Postpartum Week 3 by Teresa Palmer

What week:

3

How big is baby:

10lbs! He put on a lot his week and is really filling out.

What’s something new this week:

Just how alert and awake he his compared to the previous weeks, we are also getting more frequent smiles, we still have to try hard but when he gives them they’re so incredibly special!

Most challenging moment:

He has been having really bad gas at 4am every night! He sleep from 8-10pm then about about 12-4am then wakes up for an hour really struggling with gas, he is very uncomfortable and grizzles and grunts trying to do a poo, we have been rocking and pedaling his legs and changing positions a ton to get him to feel more comfortable. This is definitely new so I’ve been looking in to things I may be eating that are upsetting him.

Something you loved this week:

We lost our power for 4 days at our home this week from a crazy storm that also damaged a building on our property. We had just bought a bunch of groceries too and sadly had to throw all of our produce out but it did mean we got to have hotel slumber parties with the kids and my mum. We ordered room service and watched shows and shopped at Rundle Mall everyday, it was like a little staycation.

Mama time?

Zero this week as I’m also a Maid of Honor at Cassandra’s wedding (the manager of Your Zen Life) and was planning her bachelorette party. I spent 9 hours making her a scrapbook and planning the bachelorette too. Her wedding is this Friday and I’m very excited. Bodhi is a page boy so there’s a lot going on in the lead up to the wedding. I still get to have some nice baths which are a great me time but I’m noticing Bodhi’s naps are getting shorter and shorter. Right now I’m writing this from his bed as he fiddled next to me, he only slept for 15 mins so I’m hoping he will fall back to sleep because this is the only time I get me time!

What am I eating?

Almond butter and banana bread, cacao smoothies, pumpkin salad with seeds, toasted sandwiches, beans and pasta.

What’s working?

Just our very laid back lack of routine is working, Forest is on his own sleep/eat/play routine that he naturally fell in to. We also have been tanking him up with breastmilk at night time from about 10-12am when he is awake and hungry so that he sleeps longer stretches. The 4 hour stretch we are getting has been really nice. He also sleeps in until 8:30am so that’s been lovely.

My Body:

Feels great! Bleeding has stopped and I feel like my old self again. I have a really sway back and I notice that if I spend too long on my feet I get a really sore back right in the curve. Also baby wearing which I’m a huge fan of generally has been hurting my back when we walk for long periods so I’ve been having to get Mark to carry him. My back issues started during pregnancy too and hasn’t felt any better unless I stay off my feet.

Checking in:

I’ve been getting pretty sad to leave here to be honest, which is funny because we have the most amazing life in LA and we love our friends and Bodhi’s preschool, we have such a great tribe there and I know as soon as I’m home I’ll feel great and settled again. I think I’m mourning the idea that it’s just been this beautiful bubble with the 4 of us as a little family, with no other commitments, no one else’s schedule or work stuff coming up, just us and our little boys, playing boardgames, watching shows after they’re asleep, just being together and connecting. It’s been so simple yet so recharging and probably the most magical and happiest time in our marriage. Also being around Bodhi and Forest’s grandparents and my best friends from school and their kids has been a really special time and we have made incredible memories. This kind of lifestyle here in Adelaide is just a complete world away from LA and Hollywood, film scripts and director meetings and all the self imposed busyness that happens in LA. We love it, we create the busyness but it’s less relaxing and still. I think what this time has given us is a new appreciation of all the incredible opportunities we have and if we have learnt anything it’s about how to instill the calm, the peace and the quiet amongst the energy of LA. I’m sure there is a way and I look forward to exploring that next week.