Tuesday, June 14, 2011

One of Those Days


My sweet baby is having one of those days.  Have you experienced those types of days
I am referring to, those days when your baby is inconsolable no matter what you
do?  Refusing to sleep yet overwhelmingly exhausted?  Nursing every few hours and
wanting to be held constantly?
Brees is having one of those days.
I suspect teething is the evil culprit as she is exhibiting the classic symptoms: on and
off low grade fever, drooling galore, gnawing on anything she can get her hands on.  She
has been waking up every three hours throughout the night for the past week, leaving us
all a bit exhausted and out of sorts.  Nursing soothes and comforts her so to the breast
she goes, her warm body close to mine, both of us resting as she finds contentment in
the smell of my skin.  Warm bathes also seem to calm her, a little lavender oil in the
water and a soothing massage.  I have kept her in the Ergo for most of the day, holding
her close is really the only option because as soon as I try to put her down she screams
with every ounce of fury her little body can conjure up.
Oh, how hard these days can be, how helpless they can leave a mother feeling.  Nothing
hurts more than seeing your baby not feeling well and then feeling like nothing you are
doing is really helping.  As tired and worn down as I feel, I know she is feeling even
worse.  Those teeth breaking through the skin can NOT be a pleasant experience.  And
so we nurse, and rock, and rub, and hum.  At 4 in the afternoon, we are all still in our
pajamas and I may or may not have forgotten to feed Isabelle her lunch.  My hair hasn't
seen a shower, my shirt a colorful display of spit-up and god knows what else.  But we
just keep swaying, and swaddling, and whispering sweet nothings.
That's all you can do on days like this.  Just go with it, give yourself a break, hold your
baby close and put everything else aside.  The dishes are not getting done today and
the laundry room just may explode with ever-growing piles, but all of those things will
have to wait.  We're having one of those days, but hopefully tomorrow will be better...

11 comments:

Dirt On The Rocks said...

my son is nearly 2 and i still get days like that with him. i'm not sure if he's just going through changes that i don't quite just understand myself, but comforting him, holding him, feeding him at times just doesn't work.have you tried orajel for babies? that should sort of help the teething ease up bit. hopefully! i hope she feels better. teething is never fun, my son is still going through it.

Ashley said...

Ugh teeth are evil! They cause so much pain for our babes. And then both my kids have fallen and injured them. I am so over teeth. haha. I hope your sweetheart is feeling better soon!

kriznizzel said...

Arrr poor thing! and you to, I hope she doing better soon and you can get the shower and some sleep. Days like this are soooo hard

Unknown said...

We are right there with you today; Hannah's growing some molars. I hope those little teeth come in fast and Brees can get back to her normal smilely self.

Anonymous said...

Poor, poor baby. Have you tried an Amber teething necklace? Those worked teething wonders with all 3 of mine.

I hope tomorrow is better for y'all :)

arielle elise. said...

oh my! yes...i so know days like these :) hope you have a better week and her teeth come quickly!

Raechel said...

Poor baby Brees. :( We are going through the same issue on&off for the past week at our house. It is so draining. I feel so irritated sometimes that I can't fix it that it really puts me in a sour mood. Which does not help...

Hope she feels better soon. That first picture just pulls at my heartstrings,

Kim Airhart said...

That first picture is so precious. Poor baby girl. I hate when Jake has those days. I feel so bad I just want to know what is wrong but they can't tell us.

I hope tomorrow goes better for you and your little lovely.

Caitlin said...

Poor baby :( I can only imagine, having not had children...I hope she gest through it soon! <3

Hilary@BabyMooHoo said...

oh, those days are the worst! good luck & i hope she's feeling better soon!

The Poole Family said...

I remember calling my mom and crying, telling her how I didn't have the laundry done, the house was a wreck, I wasn't going to have dinner ready on time, and I just felt terrible because all I had done all day was held and rocked fussy little Andrew. Her response - "What's wrong with that??" Ha, it took me off guard, but it's SO true! "Just go with it, give yourself a break, hold your baby close and put everything else aside" is some of the greatest advice moms can pass on to each other!! Thanks so much for the encouragement... and the confirmation that I'm not the only this happens to!! :)

And I LOVED your pictures... as usual!! Brees is such a cutie!!!! :)