View Full Version : Winter Bubs 2010
I'm starting this thread for a the girls from Due April/May/June 2010 and anyone else who wants to join to talk babies :)
Cool Nikki well done :)
Sparkles, Cat, M goes down btw 10 & 11, wakes around 3 or 4 then 6 or 7 for feeds. I usually go back to bed then :)
I have to wake her every 3 hrs during the day if she doesn't wake herself. It sucks cos it means I get no break!! Poor little thing was fast asleep when I woke her an hour ago :( but hey, it seems to be working!
Jet - I'm the same DS goes to bed around 11 - 12pm, then awake for a feed at 4am then up again around 7am, then we're on a schedule of 2-3 hourly feeds all day until 6pm where he normally takes his last feed until his bedtime feed. Good time for me to get stuff done except by then I'm usually exhausted and just lying on the couch snoozing. Oh well washing can wait and sandwiches for dinner are just going to have to do.
That's funny how similar our routines are Nikki! M does the 2-3 hourly feeds til around 8 or 9 then bath then bottle then bed. Hey! We have routines!!!! Finally!!! We started bathing her later so we could have dinner at a reasonable hour! And this week it's freezer clear-out while I focus on top ups and expressing! Sangas for dinner sounds great!
Thanks Jet, Nikki and Sparkles! I'm hanging out to lose the 3am/4am feed - we still have NO routine here but the 4kg mark is just around the corner (and its mystical promises of longer sleeps!).
Cat - The 4kg mark didn't bring longer sleeps for us yet but I live in hope, maybe 5kg.... I hope it works for you though :)
angeleish
23-06-2010, 18:53
wow - new thread..... love it!!
earth - congrats on the safe arrival of DS! Sounds like he is already doing well. Such a strong and big boy. Glad all went well but sorry you didn't get your VBAC.
Cat - 4kg didn't change anything here either (sorry to disappoint!!) Night sleeps are slowly getting longer. (day sleeps...... what day sleeps??)
We still have no routine here. DS has been getting progressivly worse for day sleeps. We spoke to our MCHN at mums group today and we are now off to sleep school!! We don't have a starting date yet but just knowing that help is just around the corner is a HUGE relief!! This week has been a nightmare with him awake from 8am - 9pm with only catnaps in between. I'm hoping he starts to get better soon as the poor little guy is just so exhausted by the end of the day! (So is his frazzled mum!! :hair:)
Angel - your days sound like mine at the moment, by the time 7pm comes DS is exhausted from being awake all day and then he is just beside himself with fatigue.
Angeleish how long are the catnaps?
sparklesare
23-06-2010, 19:32
Angel: Sorry to hear DS is still not sleeping during the day. Hope Sleep School helps things out for you. Poor little man he would be exhausted..
Good luck with it, I really hope you get a good improvement.
Angel and Nikki - bugger, was hoping the 4kg mark would bring me some relief!!!
I did try something different today - I stopped picking DS up after his catnaps and just shhed him and kept him in his bed and, miracle of miracles, he had three good sleeps today! First time ever. I had to work extra hard at the BF after his sleep to make sure he was drinking properly and not lapsing into comfort sucking so that was a bit of an effort - picking him up for a stretch every 10 minutes or so and keeping him alert. Not sure if it's going to work again tomorrow but one good day after four weeks is good enough for me right now!
Nikki and Angel - good luck with your little guys - it's so hard sometimes :yes:
Angel - good luck with sleep school - how old will DS be when you go? I met a couple this morning at the MCHN with a toddler and they did sleep school when she was little and absolutely loved it and said it worked a treat - I hope you have the same result!
angeleish
23-06-2010, 21:48
cat - well done on having a good day!! Also, well done on getting your man to go back to sleep after a catnap!! Great achievement! :yelclap: As for your question about sleep school I don't have an exact date yet so aren't quite sure how old he will be when he goes. At this stage I am expecting a phone call next week from the clinic and will know more then. I'll keep you posted!!
jet - 20 minute catnaps max. If I put him in his cot it is even less. He wont sleep on the bouncer and will only sleep in my arms or in the bjorn which with my bad back just isn't an option at the moment. Also, his poor sleeping patterns mean I don't get even 5 minutes to myself to do the most basic of tasks. This kind of routine is not sustainable especially since DH and I have no family here whatsoever for support and help with time out.
Thanks for the support girls. I actually feel better knowing that help is around the corner with the sleep clinic. Today was a much better day knowing that there is help out there. For the past week I have just felt so bad that my poor little man can't get the sleep he needed.
Good news is that my little man is stacking on the weight big time. His 000 bonds sleep suits are almost too small for him and he has graduated in nappy size. Next week I'm going to start using my cloth nappies!! Can't wait!
Angel - wow, my little man is only just getting into his 000 suits now, his 0000 still sort of fit him. Like you I need to get into a routine because I don't have family nearby to rely on so I need to be able to cope on my own and still do other things like have a shower, do the washing or groceries, make dinner etc.
ToysRUs are having a sale on nappies, might get the next size up in preparation :yes:
Cat - that's great you managed to get better sleeps today, I try that too leave him in his cot, most days it works but the last couple of days no joy :(
sarbear1
23-06-2010, 22:46
hi girls :) just a quick one.. My headaches have been shocking.. Had an xray of my teeth today and dentist tom will see if my teeth or jaw could be the cause.. I'm scraping the barrel now.. I'm desperate! Well dylan is a happy chubby boy! :) just started going into size 0 ! Omg! 15 weeks old! Has his 4mth needles tom night! Out of the blue he had 3 nights where he was waking at 4ish for a feed.. And i felt like a zombie! Then just as i was worrying he'd lost his touch he slept for 10.5 hrs last night ! Woo hoo! I'm feeding right now.. I'm praying for a good sleep again! I really feel for those having a hard time through the night. It will get better! I hope everyones well.. I'll get on the comp tom to write properly x x x
Sarbear - good to hear from you again, look forward to hearing more. As for the zombie feeling, I can completely relate.
Yikes angeleish 20 minutes! And I thought 40 was bad! Really hope sleep school works.
Sarbear great to hear from you. Wish they would hurry up and find the cause of your headaches. Funny how you forgot the pain of the night feeds :D
off to mothers group today and we're having lunch afterwards. DH got today and tomorrow off to help out, oops!! Of course he's in bed having got up for the match.
I've given up on the bassinet during the day. Hope that doesn't come back to bite me but since I'm feeding her so often, expressing after every daytime feed and topping up, and now have to bring back tummy time, spending time on settling just isn't gonna happen when she's quite happy napping in the bouncer.
EarthAngel75
24-06-2010, 10:00
I wake ds for feeds during the day - 3 hourly until 6-7pm when his last feed for the day before bedtime is and then I give him a dreamfeed around 10pm and then let him wake me when he's hungry overnight. He was extremely unsettled overnight and thinking it may be gas related due to pulling up his legs etc and nothing would settle him so sending someone off to pickup some colic/gas relief tonic today to see if it helps.
What does everyone due in terms of BFing? Do you offer both sides at each feed? I'm at a bit of a loss as what to do there as it's very rare that ds pulls off - even after more than 30mins on one side and if i offer both sides but still keep feeds to a reasonable time he probably wont be getting the different types of BM.
Sarbear: I cant remember but did you have a spinal or epi for your c-sect? When i went in for mine the anethetist mentioned something about the rare possibly of chronic headaches as a possible side effect and it made me think of you. I hope you find an answer soon.
angel: I hope you dont have a long wait for sleep school. I have heard wonderful things about certain sleep schools but I also know some people who didnt find them useful at all. Hopefully they'll have some answers for you :)
Earth - I've had advice in both respects, some people say just offer one breast and then let them sleep other people say always offer both. I think if you want to increase your supply after the 6 week mark then offer both, if he'll take it but if you are happy with your supply then just offer the one unless he seems unsettled afterwards. I think also when feeding a newborn having them on the breast for 30 minutes is not unheard of, but nearly everyone I have spoken to (lactation consultants and nurses) have said that once DS stops nutritive sucking to take him off the breast and burp him rather than let him comfort suck. Although in the beginning it's hard to tell the difference because newborns tend to do a combination of both.
Jet - you are supermum, feeding, expressing and going to mothers group, how do you do it! I feel like I am chained to the sofa at the moment with feeds and trying to establish some sort of sleep routine.
Oh Nikki I'm not supermum by any means! Haven't done any expressing or topping up today and am stressing about it!!! But thank you!
Earth, what Nikki said re BFing!
Am I pushing my luck going out to dinner tonight? Time will tell!
Ooh good on ya Nikki. We haven't tried yet.
DH is taking M to his mum's tomorrow for a few hours to give me a rest. I'm going to do a yoga session and have a long hot bath (is it bad if I have a glass of wine in the bath in the middle of the day lol). Sadly this means more expressing so he has 2 bottles... But it will be worth it!!!
angeleish
24-06-2010, 20:29
Nikki - have an awesome dinner with hubby tonight! I'm sure you'll be fine. Our little boy always behaves better when we are out.
Jet - enjoy your rest time tomorrow. Wine and bath sounds perfect... even if it is during the day!! :yes:
earth - DS is also the kind of boy who would keep feeding and not pull off. In the early days I just limited him to 30 mins each side each feed as that is what the hospital recommended to build up supply. It seemed to work well for us.
well we're off to sleep school tomorrow... wasn't expecting it so soon as I was told there was a waiting list!! We will be there for 4 nights!! Hopefully my little man learns a lot and starts sleeping for his mummy. Wish me luck!!
Angel - just wanted to wish you luck for tomorrow :yes:. Your doing such a great job with DS hopefully he learns a thing or 2 about sleeping :sleeping:
I don't mean to rub it in but I haven't got up during the night for the past 2 weeks! Maddie has her last fed around 10 then bed by 10:30-11 and up at 7-7:30! :yelclap:
But in saying that I haven't been BFing for aboout a week, supply couldn't keep up with demand :(. I'm abit bummed that I couldn't keep up with her but I never 'enjoyed' BFing :no:
Sorry I haven't been able to post much, I'm trying to keep everyone updated with FB! DD is SO wake and alert during the day its hard to type a good post!
EARTH - Congratulations to you and DH!
Boo - good work on sleeping through. When I was bottle feeding DS managed to sleep from about 11pm - 6am but now I am BFing he wakes at 4am for a top up. I think it'll be a while before I get rid of that mid sleep cycle feed.
Jet - enjoy your bath and wine, sound amazing!
Angel - good luck, I hope it works you and come home with a perfect little boy :)
Dinner worked out great, he slept through the whole thing and then the whole way home, then for another hour and a half at home before he wanted a feed. He can be a real darling when he wants to be.
Nikki, well done, glad you enjoyed your dinner!
I'm loving my free time today. Did an hour of yoga and had a ridiculously hot bath - divine. Off to express again! Have a bad feeling I am going to run out of milk cos M is taking lots of top ups all of a sudden :( it's weird cos I always have milk left over when she BFs so why doesn't she fill up on the boobs?!
Jet - I've been told that the flow is slower with nipple shields and when you use them long term they can reduce your supply after a while but I think that only starts to happen more around 11-12 weeks of continuous use. However just because you still have milk left when you express doesn't mean she doesn't take any off your breast, maybe she just feeds when it flows fast but as soon as she has to suck for it towards the end she doesn't work hard enough on it because the nipple shield can make it harder work for them to stimulate the hind milk. Don't take my word for it though, this is just info I've collected along the way. DS won't take the nipple shield at all anymore (I tried when my nipples were sore) because it flows too slowly for him in comparison to just the nipple. When I was using the shield I was able to express a lot after he fed, but once I started on the nipple there was hardly anything left in there afterwards, at first I thought I was running out of milk because I was used to filling a bottle of EBM!
Maybe the lactation consultant will be able to let you know more?
That makes sense Nikki, thanks!! Yeah I need to get my a$$ into gear and see an LC.
Well top ups not going so well. She's now going nuts when she first gets on the boob cos it takes a few sucks to get the let down happening so I don't want to use so many bottles anymore in case she goes off it altogether!! Don't want to express to get the let down happening either cos she needs to know she has to work for it. Def calling ABA or LC on Monday. Was hoping I wouldn't have to.
Jet - so is she going on without the shields now? DS has worked out that all he needs to do is brush the nipple to get let down and then he latches on and goes for it. In the last week he has started getting really good at latching on and taking a really big mouthful in and he manages to get his fill from one side in about 7-10 minutes. Far cry from when he was a newborn! My challenge is getting him to burp afterwards, he always makes such a song and dance about being burped :confused:
Actually now you mention it since taking the breast he has gone off bottles, took him ages to drink just 10ml today, he just plays with it and refuses to suck. The other day he flat out refused the bottle, so they can get very fussy about what they want and the suction action must feel very different for them.
The ABA might recommend a supply line while you breastfeed but it can be a bit tricky to master...
Wow Nikki that's brilliant. You're doing so well!
Nah we're still on shields.
You've done an amazing job keeping up with her on the shields, I gave up on the shields after only about three weeks because I just got fed up of ending up with milk all over myself when he'd knock them off all the time as they filled up with milk. It's hard work so you have done extremely well to persist through the obstacles, I'm sure one day she'll just latch on without them and surprise you. That's what happened to me, he just decided one day he knew what to do. They are funny little personalities aren't they :p
Thanks Nikki. I wonder if she's being held back by the shield. Just spent 2 hrs BFing and she wouldn't stop. I was over it so gave her a bottle of ebm - only took 40ml and is now finally asleep. I don't get it!! I had plenty of milk in my bbs!!!
Hi All,
It's been a bit tough getting online lately - my little DS has been keeping me really busy! Yesterday, though, was a good day with the little guy going down for his sleeps without having to fall asleep in my arms everytime - babysteps but we're getting there (and, then, of course, as soon as we establish a routine, he'll change everything!).
Angel - great news on the sleep school!!!! Please let us know how you go - I'm hoping all good things for you both!
Jet - the ABA run a 24 hour hotline - 1800 mum2mum. Give them a try anytime - I've called it a couple of times (but been on hold and had to go) but apparently the volunteers are fantastic.
Boo - congrats on the sleeping!
Oops thanks Cat I was thinking of Mothersafe not ABA forgot they are 24 hrs lol
nice work with the sleeps!
Have you guys seen this? http://www.bubhub.com.au/community/forums/showthread.php?t=191005
M is taking the boob (shield) ok today, phew.
Jet - that chart is really interesting thanks :) I just had DS on the bb for the last 25 minutes, I think in the end he was comfort feeding but I let him get on with it because the last few feeds he's been a bit fussy with gas and reflux, so I think he needed to chill out a bit and so did I.
Cat - I hear you on being kept busy, it really is a 24hour job. I had about 6 hours sleep in the last 24 hours broken in no larger than 2.5 hour segments. I'm shattered.
I need a proper coffee now!
I hear you re the sleep Nikki!! Enjoy your coffee :)
cat what are you doing to get DS down in the day?
Called the ABA, they pretty much said go with my instinct...
Called the ABA, they pretty much said go with my instinct...
Truth is I don't think there is a one size fits all solution, everyone I saw told me there was no reason why DS wasn't taking the breast. They checked for physical reasons, emotional reasons and technique and it was all a mystery. As was the day he started taking it, no reason for that either but now he prefers breast over bottle. Maybe getting all the milk out is just something she is going to need to learn in her own time. Do you try and put her on without a shield every now and then. DS refused the nipple hysterically for weeks, then one day he just took it no rhyme or reason, it was a last ditch attempt on my part.
Nikki you give me such hope :) I haven't been trying without the shield lately cos I was so focussed on the weight thing. I think I need to relax and go with the flow a bit more. Trust in nature you know? As you said, they do things in their own good time.
Oh I laughed today. M was so excited and giggly during nappy time she made herself spew lol
That's cute, DS is a very serious little boy but when he smiles or gets excited it melts your heart. They are so precious aren't they :)
Aww Jet and Nikki - so cute about your little ones - we're starting to get smiles here (DS is one month today!) so it's so precious!
Jet congrats on the feeding!
Nikki - well done on getting out for dinner with DH!
Jet - I'm learning to put DS down when he gets cranky and then be really firm with him in the bassinette - shhhing, rocking, pushing the bassinet over the bump where the rug meets the floor boards and playing his music softly. Before, when he was cranky and tired, I'd try to calm him in my arms first which backfired everytime because he'd calm first then crack it when I let him go.
It's working more often than not. Three times today - after his 3am, 6.30 and his 10.30 feeds. It's hardest after his 10.30 feed because that's playtime with DH and neither wants to stop playing! But, as I type, he's still down!!!
Babysteps...babysteps... :yes:
That's great Cat, well done!! You must be very patient!!
Cat - you sound like you are doing a great job, I'm finding lately I've been having to hold DS more often in between feeds and sleeps.
It doesn't work everytime but I'm learning to be more patient (it doesn't come naturally!). I find it harder, though, after a big play to get him down like that - it's easier after a bf and a little play. I'm expecting it all to change as he gets closer to 6 weeks, though - that sounds like when you all started noticing your bubs become less settled...
Cat yeah we were told 6-8 weeks is $hitty and they weren't wrong!
Lately though I find myself sometimes getting all teary when I think of how much I love M. I never fathomed how strong the feeling could possibly be. Even though sometimes she drives mental!!
Had green poo for a whole day but now I'm sticking with the first boob for the whole feed if she's being lazy and that's started to clear it up.
She had a nasty nappy rash over the w/e which we've worked out is due to the johnsons wipes. We had been using huggies but the johnsons were on special so when we ran out I started using them. Seem to be too moist so am now on backup wipes - a pack from aldi - which are drier but they have alcohol in them. Just til my bulk order of nappies, wipes and nappy sacks comes from the bulk warehouse.
sparklesare
29-06-2010, 10:23
Nikki: My boys birth certificates arrived today...9 weeks!!
Jet: I found the same thing with Johnsons wipes :yes: Very fragranced and wet. I use Huggies wipes now, what are the Aldi ones like? :yelclap:for the bulk order...its great isnt it. I live by it now, and include household things like washing detergent etc.
Sparkles - that's great, I hope mine arrives soon.
Jet - I've only tried huggies wipes so far and I just buy them in bulk now, they work well.
I've just come back from hospital, one night stay after my operation to have my gall bladder removed yesterday morning. Am feeling quite tender and I have to limit what I lift up for 6 weeks and no driving for 2 weeks at least if not 4. DS was such a good boy, he came into visit me yesterday for a few hours and slept on the bed with me in between feeds before DH took him home again. I'm so grateful for how tolerant of all of this DS is, he is making it so much easier on me.
Hurray Nikki glad that pesky gall bladder is gawwwwn!!!!
The aldi wipes work fine but they have alcohol so I wouldn't use them for long.
OMG frickin woolies have nappies on special after me buying them online, doh!
Congrats on the op, Nikki. Wishing you a speedy recovery :)
I meant to say - I got DS's birth cert last week - took four weeks but I dropped the form in so maybe that's why it was quicker?
Sparkles - not surprised yours took twice as long as mine - they had to two afterall :laughing:
sparklesare
29-06-2010, 16:17
Lol so true Cat. They didn't even get them right I only got F's standard certificate and commemorative one but no standard certificate for O, clearly that confused them too much!!!
Grr...they are so hopeless. I hated going in there - the staff member called my number then proceeded to have a long conversation with her colleague while I waited in front of her. I was very sleep deprived and very unhappy and only went in because I figured we could process our Centrelink paperwork quicker if we had an actual receipt - then Centrelink told us the next day that they didn't need the receipt!
We got the standard cert but not the commerative one. Apparently that's going to arrive later.
We're also still waiting to get our deposit back from our hospital - we had to pay a deposit when we booked back in September which is supposed to get refunded about 6 weeks after the birth. Not sure why this red tape is all so difficult!
sparklesare
29-06-2010, 16:34
They are quick to want our money and slow to give it back aren't they?? Hopeless. Nothing surprises me anymore.
It would've made more sense to take it off the excess we paid to the hospital (especially since we had to pay two lots of excesses for both me and DS) but, no, they prefer to refund it later.
Has anyone done their thank you cards yet? I've had so little time to do anything but was thinking of getting my act together soon? Any suggestions?
Cat - we did our thank you / announcement cards a few weeks back, I knew if I didn't get them done then I'd never get around to them.
Sparkles - how annoying that they stuffed it up, how hard is it to read a bit of paper and get it right after all they took their time!
Jet - am so relieved to have the gall bladder out, now I have to recover from surgery. I am going to try and breastfeed again tomorrow, I just have to work out how best to hold him so he doesn't put pressure on my abdomen :confused:
Ouch nikki. Rugby hold? Lying down?
My BIL is doing up our thank you cards, how cool is that!!
Jet - just tried the football hold, it worked!
Yay nice one Nikki :) my wrists can't do that one anymore :(
thinking of trying the save our sleep routine. This DD being up til 11pm every night is really getting to me. Have no time with DH at all and I reckon she would eat better if she slept more during the day. Plus it's pretty crap for DH after a full day at work. And at nearly 9 weeks I don't think she's gonna grow out of it!
Well it looks like we have one bad day and then one not-so-bad day. Today was the latter with DS going down for a sleep each time (twice while completely losing it but was out like a light within 15 minutes which validated my thinking that he was tired, not hungry or gassy or or or or).
I just wish I knew how to string two of these days together but right now I'm grateful for even just one!
Even better because DH and I got to eat dinner together for once...it's a nice change from me either scoffing my food down or having to reheat it.
Good luck, Jet - it's hideous when they are up for hours and hours on end. I hope you can get DD to sleep through the arsenic hour
sparklesare
29-06-2010, 20:31
Cat: did thank you cards 2 weeks ago, I kept putting it off. Mine were pretty simple and I just did mine on the computer through a template design. Pretty basic nothing fancy etc just a pic of the boys and their birth details next to a b&w pic from our prof pics.
Thanks Sparkles - I need to get my act together otherwise I'll be sending them out with the Christmas cards!
sparklesare
29-06-2010, 21:02
Oh well you enjoyed DS too much!!! People will understand Cat!!! ;-)
Cat - If you don't get around to the thank you cards you can always include a special message at Christmas. I have received some wonderful Christmas Cards from friends with their bubs on there and a special thank you to every one who congratulated / helped them in their first year with a short run down on their little one. Not everyone sends out announcement / thank you cards because like Sparkles said, as new mums sometimes we just have better things to do! Like spend time with our little ones :) Sometimes just an email and a phone call is enough for the time being.
That's a nice thought, Nikki. I might just see how I go in the next couple of weeks. We're still getting first-time visitors because we couldn't have many in hospital while he was in Special Care and so many people have been sick too (and, thankfully, stayed away).
It's not exactly the top of my list of things :) but I realise how few "thank yous" I get these days so I'd like to get around to it (one day)!
Cat - maybe you could just do the cards online in between feeds / naps and then have them sent to you. Save you leaving the house apart from posting them out. I've just googled birth announcements and there are heaps of places to choose from that have templates ready to go where you can upload a fav photo and a personal message.
sparklesare
30-06-2010, 13:41
CAT: I am also still having visitors around as they didnt see Oliver as he was in hospy. Dont feel pressured, as Nikki said, check out the online ones, or just buy a packet of Thank you cards and include a nice photo of DS...keep it easy and simple for yourself. :) Your doing an enormous job already just looking after DS.
I agree :) people will understand.
So I started the save our sleep routine yesterday. Worked like a dream! WTF?! M was in bed at 7 with barely a whimper! Woke at 1130 for a feed then at 330. All going great until: spew and poo fest at 5am :( then was hungry again so I got to bed at 630 which has completely thrown the routine for today lol. Will see what happens when we get back on track!!
Jet - sounds like it is starting to work, nothing is going to be fool proof but yesterday's routine sounds like a dream.
Routines have gone out the window here since my surgery, now we are just playing it by ear. I am lucky L is so flexible at this age and couldn't really care less yet about a routine. He was such a good boy last night though, feed at 11:30, then again at 4:30am, 8:30am and 11:30am. Lots of nice sleep in between for all three of us, which we all needed.
That sounds like a good night Nikki! Only reason i started this routine lark is cos of her not getting enough sleep during the day and therefore not feeding well and being overtired in the evening so not going to bed til really late.
Jet - I think you have to go with whatever is working for you at the moment. Seems these things change daily in this house but I know some babies really like routine and others are not as fussed, I guess like adults their personalities are starting to show slowly :) If routine is what M likes then I'd say go for it, happy baby means happy mum if you ask me.
I knew it was too good to be true. M went down at 7, eventually settled herself but woke 40 mins later having spewed and is still awake grunting and sucking her hands with the odd whinge. So I am waiting and waiting to go to bed!!
Jet - I've had many a day / night like that. I am quite tired tonight and want to go to bed but there is no point, L will want another feed in about 1.5 hours and so I might as well stay awake for that one at least before I head to bed. I don't normally get to bed before 11:30pm these days.
Hope you got a good rest Nikki. I gave up and went to bed at 930, was out like a light and M didn't wake til nearly 2!!!! Gold!!
Jet - wish I'd done the same, went to bed about 11pm because L didn't wake up for his feed and he ended up sleeping right through until 3:30am! So if I'd just gone to bed at 9:30 after his feed I'd have had 6 hours sleep in a row. He is sleeping longer these days and I've stopped waking him for feeds, I figure he'll tell me when he is hungry.
That's funny but also sad!!!
Jet - I know, it was a bit sad. I think he is starting to sleep longer at night though so maybe I need to just give him a chance and try and put him down for the night around 10pm and see how he goes.
Anything's worth a try eh :)
EarthAngel75
02-07-2010, 17:43
Hey girls :)
Cat: I'm getting around to my baby annoucements this weekend. I bought a template for $6 USD from www.mygrafico.com (http://www.mygrafico.com)
where all I had to do was insert a pic and customize the wording. You can find heaps on www.etsy.com (http://www.etsy.com) where you email all details and the photo(s) you want used and they make it all up for you and send you the proof to print. They're usually about $15 USD.
Jet: glad to hear the save our sleep routine is working for dd. I have that book but at the moment I am using the routine from Tracey Hogg's the Baby Whisperer but am finding I need to adjust it as all the references I have say babies under 8w should be 3 hourly and ds wants more uptime then that allows for.
Nikki: I hope your recovery is going well. Glad to hear you have finally had the surgery though - what a relief to have it all over and done with finally!
AFM: We're settling down here nicely. My mum just left this morning so will have to see how I go with all the household chores that I havent had to do for the last 2 weeks and taking care of ds too. DS loves his hands and gets totally overstimulated by them during the day so have bought an ergo cocoon which zips them up in a wrap like enclosure which seems to be helping him off to sleep during the day. I have had him on a 3 hourly routine starting at 7am going until 4pm and then feeds at 6, 8, 10pm to tank him up overnight and he'd wake once around 3am for a feed but now that he's just over 2w old he wants much more uptime and the 3 hour schedule just doesnt work with that so changing to a 4 hourly routine starting at 8am and going until 4pm and then the same tanking up regime at 6, 8, 10pm. We bath or top to tail around 7 each night and then he goes off to bed. The 8 and 10pm feeds are via EBM in a bottle as he's asleep and I can't get him to take the breast when he's fully asleep.
We had our photo shoot last sat and here are some of sneak peaks:
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs150.snc4/36873_398515607685_69132477685_4518856_6541870_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs130.snc4/36873_398515597685_69132477685_4518854_5196628_n.j pg
http://sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc4/hs150.snc4/36873_398515612685_69132477685_4518857_4634653_n.j pg
Earth - those photos are just gorgeous you must be very happy with them :)
Aw such gorgeous photos!!!!
Gosh we are quiet lately. Hope you're all ok. Nikki, hope you are recovering well.
AFM SOS is working well. Having trouble getting her to sleep more than 40 mins during the day still. M only wakes once a night! She's only having 5 feeds a day now with one top up but I think she's taking more each feed cos I express 140-160ml now and she took 160ml in her bottle tonight with no spewing (touch wood). Everyone thinks she's put on weight, even me, but i am soooooo nervous of Wednesdays weigh-in. Buying a new scales on Monday - I think she's hit 4kg but don't have a digital scales lol.
Jet - I have everything crossed that she has put on weight, if she is taking feeds of 160ml that it good! DS takes about that now, sometimes only 100ml other times up to 200ml. Once she starts gaining weight she'll keep going strong.
Thanks for asking about me, I am doing well. I feel so much better today than a few days ago. I still have to be careful not to overdo it or pick L up myself without help but within a couple of weeks I should be good to pick him up and carry him around again.
allyoop8
03-07-2010, 20:55
hi girls how is everyone we finally finished our extensions so the boys rooms are all done we havent had the computer up and running for a little while
hope everyone is well and we are slowly getting into a routine
i will have to get some photos up on facebook soon when i have a minute lol when is that
Hi All,
Wow, it's so quiet in here...guess we all have our hands full!!!
Jet - how's the SOS going? We're still hit and miss with the day sleep - I think DS is going through a growth spurt as we had two-hourly feeds all day Saturday (which has never happened before). Nights are OK for us - feed around midnight then again around 3 or 4am but the days are still challenging. DS will be 6 weeks on Thursday so we're hoping he is well over 4kg at his weigh in. How old will M be this week?
Nikki - glad you're feeling better! Must be so hard to not instinctively pick up DS! Hope you mend very quickly.
Earth - beautiful pics...you must be so happy. Ta for the advice re the announcements.
Ally - can't wait to see your pics!
Cat - L went from 4 hourly sleeps to 2 hourly sleeps around 6-8 weeks but luckily (we've just hit week 9) he is starting to get back to 4 hourly again day and night. I am hoping at 3 months he might start sleeping through but we'll see what happens.
Ally - glad to hear the reno's are finally done for you, now you can enjoy :) Looking forward to some pics.
angeleish
05-07-2010, 20:09
Well I'm back from our stint at sleep school which ended up lasting longer than we expected. Turns out our boy has reflux (like I suspected). He is now on medication and is starting to improve but still struggling a little. It certainly explains why he wouldn't settle no matter what I did. It was tough though. Now that I know he has reflux and is uncomfortable and in pain it makes it harder to hear his crying.
We are starting to get a bit more happening in the day sleep department though so I'm really happy. Much better than the 14 hours straight awake that he was getting. Touch wood he continues to improve.
A few of you have mentioned thank you cards. I did mine through vista print. Just filled in the template and it was dead easy. I've just got to get around to writing envelopes and buying stamps. Hopefully I can do it before our little guy hits the 3 month mark.
Cat - 6-8 weeks were a nightmare for us (mind you we had undiagnosed reflux to deal with too). Hang in there. Apparently it is a typically rough time for most babies.
Jet - SOS sounds great. If my little one wasn't so refluxy and difficult to predict I'd try the same too.
Nikki - Glad that you've finally had the surgery and that you are recovering well. It must be about time that life throws some easy living your way. Hopefully your recovery continues to go well and you can well and truly start to enjoy your man.
ally - woo hoo on the extensions being finished. It must be a relief.
earth - Beautiful, beautiful photos. Well done. What a handsome boy you have! So photogenic.
angeleish - it's good that they diagnosed the reflux, at least you can deal with it now. Thanks for the well wishes :)
Ally, good work with the renos!
Cat, SOS is Amazing. I cannot believe how quickly it kicked in. She went to bed at 7 last night awake and did not cry at all! First time!
She also found her thumb so looks like we won't be needing a dummy at all! She self settles really well now. Even day sleeps are good! If her weight is ok I will finally be able to relax and enjoy!
Angeleish I'm glad they figured it out. Poor kid.
Jet - That's great news about your SOS program working :yelclap: I hope it keeps working and you start getting some good nights sleep, they are bliss when they happen and you'll feel like a million dollars suddenly.
As for the dummy I am the exact opposite to you, I am trying to avoid finger/thumb sucking and am trying to get L to prefer the dummy. He started showing an interest in his thumb a bit over the past couple of weeks but I keep squashing his hopes :laughing: Lucky for me his interest is fleeting, time will tell though...
angeleish
06-07-2010, 16:21
Jet - SOS sounds awesome for you guys!! Well done!!
Our man wont take to the dummy either. We've tried heaps and so did the nurses as it is meant to help with reflux (apparently it encourages saliva which neutralises reflux acid). He's started to suck his thumb which I haven't tried to stop as I figure it may end up being a good replacement for the dummy. If thumb sucking ends up being a problem then I guess I'll just have to deal with that later down the track.
Girls I've found heaven in a baby shop. Yesterday I bought a "miracle blanket"... it is a wrap that really tucks arms etc in tightly. Our boy has slept so much better since we started using it (he constantly jolts himself awake normally no matter how tightly I wrap). It seems to be working a treat (touch wood). I love it so much I even dashed down to the shops this morning to purchase another. I don't want to jinx myself and I know it could partly be the reflux medication kicking in.... but I think we've just struck gold. :thumbsup:
That's great about the blanket angeleish! Lucky for me M likes her hands free :)
I've been googling thumb sucking, as you do, apparently they grow out of it between 3 and 5 so I'm not too concerned. It just fell out of her mouth in her sleep and she didn't notice so that's a good sign!
I don't think there is much you can do to influence dummy or thumb sucking, I never sucked my thumb but both my sisters did. They both ended up sucking their thumbs well into school age and my mum tried everything to stop them but it didn't help. They refused the dummy every time when they were young so there was nothing she could have done differently to stop them thumb sucking, whereas with me she didn't even have to stop me I just wasn't interested apparently and I stopped dummies after about 12 months as well. My nephew on the other hand has a dummy that they are trying to get him off but he just refuses to let it go! He even carries spares in his pocket in case he loses one, now that's thinking ahead!
We had immunisations today, L cried and I my stomach just knotted up and my eyes welled up in tears. I had no idea that his sudden scream would have such a profound immediate effect on me too. He was good though, he stopped soon after and forgot all about it.
Jet - M has had her immunisations hasn't she? How did you go? I wasn't expecting to react the way I did, in fact I think he handled it all much better than me! I had to give him a breastfeed afterwards to make myself feel better I think.
Yeah she had them a few weeks ago. It was horrible. I bawled when she cried - had never heard the I'm in pain cry before!! Lots of cuddles for both of us!!
Jet - I know it's a special type of scream that just makes your stomach clench isn't it. Brings you to instant tears.
Absolutely!!! I dread M ever being sick :(
I had two hours of solid screaming last night, I think his little legs ached a bit from the needles (he had a bruise on one side) and he also had trapped gas. He was so tired poor baby but he was obviously in pain so he would sob then scream, then sob again. Eventually through his own sheer exhaustion we got him to fall asleep and then he managed to sleep all night (with a dream feed in the middle). Hearing him in pain though was really hard :( I'm grateful we ended up breastfeeding after all the ups and downs because it was a good way to comfort him last night even though by the end I had hardly any milk to offer, it still relaxed him.
Aw no that's awful. Poor little guy :(
Well M has cracked the 4kg mark!!!!! Up 350g in 2 weeks. Different nurse this time. She was horrified at what we've been put through!!! I must trust my gut more often!!
You must be so happy, congratulations :yelclap:
I'm over the moon nikki. Finally I can enjoy being a mum!
Jet - I know exactly how you feel, I've had my operation, my little man finally breastfeeds and he doesn't have weight gain issues anymore, it's a great feeling!
angeleish
07-07-2010, 19:55
oh Nikki that sounds rough. It's hard to hear them cry when we know they are in pain! I hope he is better now. I'm so dreading those injections.
jet - what a relief!! I'm so glad your little one is gaining weight and that you had a better nurse. You sound so happy. It is so good when things go right with our little ones. It feels great to know when we are doing a good mummy job.
angeleish - what are the symptoms of reflux? L has been getting more wind pain and reflux lately and he cries while he is feeding like he is in pain, I am going to the doctor to check him out.
Thanks girls! I'm now feeling ridiculously run down which I think is due to the the release of stress. Hope I don't get sick now!!!
Am baking a cake for mothers group :)
angeleish
07-07-2010, 20:37
Nikki - for our little guy it is mostly a lot of back swallowing (a high pitch gulping noise) of saliva. When he swallows he gets quite upset as it is apparently quite acidic. He arches his back a lot after feeding in pain, regularly gets the hicups etc. For our man feeding was comforting as it took away the horrible acidic taste, but for some reflux babies it can turn them off feeding. Also, some reflux babies spew a lot but our little man has silent reflux so doesn't spew all that much at all.
It was really hard to get a diagnosis. I was brushed off by a few Drs. The nurses at the sleep school however spotted it straight away and by that stage he was in a lot of pain from it. I'm now able to tell the difference between him being a normal grizzly baby to him being uncomfortable from the reflux.
Good luck with the Drs. Let us know how you get on. Reflux can be pretty hard for the poor little babies but also makes life hard for us mummies. I feel so bad when he is in pain from the reflux it is tough.
jet - I haven't baked a cake since I was pregnant. I just don't have time anymore. You are amazing to even think about it.
AFM - I have a shocking sore throat. DH passed it on to me. I so hope I don't pass it on to my little one. I don't think I could bare to see him sick at the moment.
Angeleish - I think I might need to get him checked out. L cries until I feed him, then he seems to suck for comfort rather than hunger. Once he's on for a little while he starts to fuss and stretch his body out and when I raise him to burp he tends to cry like it's painful to burp. He has also started to bring up milk more often and he cries when he does it, whereas it never used to bother him. If he is in pain I want to do what I can for him.
Jet - you bake!! The closest I have come to baking is making pancakes, as it is I share the cooking with DH and the most complex thing I make at the moment is pasta with mushroom sauce and I usually love cooking. No wonder you are feeling run down wonderwoman ;)
On an up note he's started to really lift his head and look around when he is on his tummy. He can stay propped up on his elbows for nearly 10 minutes now looking around, smiling and interacting with us. I'm such a proud mummy :)
Good morning all!
It's been a bit tough getting on line lately - although it's been easier to read through posts than try to reply one-handed!
Angel - welcome home from sleep school - glad it has brought some relief! Fantastic that DS was finally diagnosed although very distressing that it took so long. Hope you are also feeling better too.
Jet - congrats...yay!!! Is M 8 weeks now? We have our 6 week appointment tomorrow - I'm also hoping DS has cracked the 4kg mark!
Nikki- good luck getting L checked out - hopefully you get a faster diagnosis than Angel.
Re the thumbsucking question - we're also hoping DS can suck his thumb soon! I hate the dummy - he hates it too but he loves to suck to soothe himself. DS sucked his thumb for his first two days as he was on his tummy in the humidicrib in Special Care so he's always trying to suck on it now. I know he could end up sucking his thumb until primary school (or beyond!) but we'll deal with that later!
Has anyone else been given the whooping cough injection? We've been advised for DH and I to both get that one when DS has his jabs when he turns 8 weeks.
Cat - we had the whooping cough vaccine when he was about 6 weeks old just to give him an extra level of protection. Apparently there are regular breakouts. Good luck getting DS to suck his thumb :fingerscrossed: if he's shown an interest before chances are he'll do it again. Having a bub that can self settle is great.
Cat, M will be 10 weeks on Friday. Oh that's tomorrow! So she is small but perfect :)
Thinking anout introducing a dreamfeed cos she only woke once between 7 & 7!!!
The thumbsucking is very cute. She needs to work on coordination tho! Nikki nice work with L's neck!! Does he get enough sleep?
We also got the vax at 6 wks.
Jet - 7 - 7 is a long sleep for a 10 week old, congrats :yelclap: L sleeps from around 10pm - 4 then he wakes for a feed (dream feed) then back to sleep and wakes again around 8am. He's not really awake until his 8am feed, his 4am feed is just a quick one with a nappy change, he sleeps through it mostly.
allyoop8
08-07-2010, 09:59
hi girls just checking in but i dont have the time to read back i hope everyone is well we still have all the painting to do when will it ever finish lol
Cat - we had the whooping cough vaccine when he was about 6 weeks old just to give him an extra level of protection. Apparently there are regular breakouts. Good luck getting DS to suck his thumb :fingerscrossed: if he's shown an interest before chances are he'll do it again. Having a bub that can self settle is great.
Quick one before our MCHN appointment - here's hoping for 4kg+!
I meant whether you and your DHs got the whooping cough vaccine - our MCHN recommends it for the parents too?
Well done Jet on the big sleep! We also had a great night - DH did a feed at 1.30am then I did a sleepy one at 5am then DS slept through until 9.30am. WOOHOO! We all got tonnes of sleep for once!
Cat - yeah we both had the whooping cough when he was 6 weeks old, he's only just had it a few days ago at 9 weeks.
EarthAngel75
08-07-2010, 13:40
Hey girls,
Just a quick one here as it's almost time for DS's next feed. I got the whooping cough booster for myself whilst still in the hospital.
Nikki: Good luck with DS and the DRs and the possibility of a reflux diagnosis :) Seems there's quite a number of bubs in here with reflux. It's not a lot of fun when your little one is in pain that you cant take away.
jet: superwoman baking a cake! I sooo don't have the energy for anything like that LOL!
AFM: I got a bout of mastitis last Friday. The pain wasn't so bad and only lasted 2 feeds or so but the fever was a killer. Was put on antibiotics and it's all pretty much gone now. DS is 3 weeks today and is doing really well. He is getting easier to put down and getting better at self settling each day.
Thanks Nikki! Was wondering if it was a bit more widespread than Melbourne!
Well DS has well and truly cracked the 4kg mark - yay. Now if only we can get to the four hour feeding cycles...
Cat - I'm still on 2-3 hourly feeds, nothing I do seems to stretch him more than that unless I go back to bottle feeding. He just gets too cosy on the breast and thinks it's a good place for a quite meal and a nap! So I rarely get him to empty both sides, usually just one and a bit.
Earth - glad to hear you are feeling better now.
How big is L now, Nikki? I can't imagine ever moving past these three hour feeds! I agree - N loves it too and really enjoys it. We're still doing the last night feed via the bottle and that seems to settle him for a bit longer but, otherwise, he's on the boob for all the other feeds and he's like clockwork with the three hour wake ups - I can almost time him to the minute!
Earth - nice work on overcoming the mastitis!
Cat - I do 4am bottle feeds too, seems to keep him happier for longer because at night trying to keep him awake to feed is near on impossible. He is nearly 10 weeks and must be close to 5kg I imagine - he fits some 000 but mostly still 0000, not sure exactly as I haven't had him weighed recently. He is getting a bit chubbier, I need to put a new photo up on fb.
OMG, he is just beautiful, Nikki! What amazing eyes - aren't they incredible creatures? My MCHN was so impressed with how expressive N was today - I'm still surprised at how much he has changed in the last two weeks (let alone how much in the last day!).
You must be so proud of L - gorgeous.
I'm impressed he fits into 0000 - I've packed up most of the 0000s already but have left out some of the bigger ones. I'm annoyed that some of my 000 seem barely bigger than the 0000s!
Cat - some of my 0000 he outgrew weeks ago, others are the same size as some 000 outfits. Different brands vary so much! Thanks for the compliment, we think he is adorable :) I can't believe how much they change every week either, every week they become more alert. This week he is starting to look around and smile when he recognises faces.
hopefulmama2b
08-07-2010, 21:07
Hi Girls!
I have been awol moving and waiting to get the stupid internet connected lol- but i am happy to say we are all settled in and I feel like I have been living here for years lol
So how is everyone and their bubs? someone update me on any big news if any?? lol
Billy is great.. so smiley and happy- he really notices things now and always has a smile for his mama- and although people still tell me how small he is I don;t see it and I think he has come leaps and bounds from the little 2 kilo bub I gave birth to- not sure of his weight, he has just started wearing his 3 zeros, some are huge and some fit fine- he is still in a lot of his 4 zeros too but.
Welcome back to cyberworld, Hopeful! Glad the move has gone well and that Billy is growing up so much - these days are so precious, aren't they? I wouldn't swap anything (including sleep) for those amazing smiles and giggles - so beautiful, so amazing!
Hi Hopeful! Not much news here!!! The days are going by very fast though :(
:iagree: one day seems to blend into the next and then I realise he is another week older. Although I am enjoying each stage as it comes, he is so cute now chattering away and smiling when he recognises a face.
EarthAngel75
11-07-2010, 08:48
Boy it's a little quiet in here lately! We must all be busy with our bubies hehe
C is doing really well. He put on 300g exatly this week and is now 4.81kg so thinking he'll crack 5kg next week. He even slept thru the night last night. went down around 7pm and had dream feeds at 8pm and 10pm and then wasn't up again until 645am. Poor little guy fed quite fast on the one side though and ended up bringing a bit of it back up before going back to bed though. He's still wearing 0000 in his actual clothes (mainly pumpkin patch which is quite big imo) but in his sleepsuits he's mainly in 000 with the odd 0000 still fitting. He's quite close to growing out of his 0000 clothes though as they fit perfectly in length so as soon as he does anymore growing they wont fit anymore. DH and I psuedo measured his length yesterday and he was 57.5cm.
For those of you with chucky and/or refluxy babies when did they start to show symptoms? C is only 3.5w old now and wondering if we've made it past when these sorts of things show themselves. He has vomitted twice in bed and then this morning but I can attribute all of those to rather large feeds for him. He's also posetted twice due to gas but otherwise we havent had much of the vomit or milk spit ups to deal with. I would love to have gotten lucky with a non chucky baby this time as DD was a huge chucker.
Jet: great to hear that your dd is doing well on the SOS routine. I have C on a rough 4 hour routine and it works really well for him. He does have a witchy hour from his late arvo feed until we start tanking up feeds at 6pm where he doesnt usually want to sleep and can be a bit whingy but otherwise it all works quite well.
Hopeful: welcome back to the land of the WWW! hehe Hope you've all settled in well and sounds like Billy is doing great.
Nikki: Great photos of L on facebook. He has got some gorgeous eyes. He's got great neck control already holding his head up like that too.
Cat: Most books I have reckon most babies stick with a 3 hour routine until around 4 mths (16 weeks) unless they were very large to begin with - which is the case with my ds. DS though tends to do 3 hours between waking up for the day and his next feed but then 4 hourly until I start tanking him up at 6pm. They also say that some babies need to be 'taught' to stretch out their feeds at that age as they wont do it on their own.
Earth - I found the wind / reflux started between 6-8 weeks of age, before then he never really had any issues. He's calmed down again as well so I'm not sure he really has reflux, maybe he was just going through a phase....
On the topic of Pumpkin Patch, I went to their store yesterday they were having a sale and they had so many cute outfits my DH had to remove me from the store!!
Lol nikki that's cute :)
I've just had the worst lunch out at a friends. M couldn't sleep cos there were young kids screaming so she just went bananas for ages. We gave up and left early :(
Jet - if it makes you feel any better we decided not to go out today for lunch because L was just too irritable and will only sleep for about 20min at a time.
hopefulmama2b
11-07-2010, 16:08
yup Billy had the crankiest morning! Wasn't till after a bath about 1pm that he settled and he has been asleep since then.
I feel like a bad mummy- I missed his 8 week vaccinations as we were right in the middle of moving and I totally forgot my health centre nurse whatever appointment- I rebooked straight away but she couldn't see me till 15th- next week :no: I asked if I could just take Billy to the doctors for his needles but she said no?? I have no idea what he weighs either so I jumped on the scales last night with him and then without him and deducted lol- I think he weighs just under 5 kilos or just on 5 kilos- so he has pretty much doubled his birth weight! Woo hoo! I think 5 kilos is still in a small percentile for 10 weeks but its a hell of a lot better than his 2.2 kilo birth weight! Oh wow yeah- my baby is 10 weeks today!! far out! so is yours Nikki! lol
Thanks Earth - N was only 3.1kg at birth and only just cracked 4kg so we're not expecting to have him sleep through the night just yet. He is getting better at 4 hour stretches at night between feeds. I have had some friends with 4kg+ bubs and they also had them sleeping "through tne night" by about 4-6 weeks.
Jet and Nikki - we went out for brunch with friends on Friday - the first time I've gone out and had to be somewhere "on time" regardless of N's feeds. I gave him a quick feed at home and he fell asleep by the time I got to the cafe but, of course, he work up as soon as my meal was placed in front of me! I gave him some EBM which settled him but still meant I had a cold meal! DH and I have otherwise been going out for lunch or brekky straight after N feeds so at least we can enjoy ourselves!
As for today - yep, we're having a disrupted day too. Must definitely be a full moon! Speaking of full moons, the mid-wife who did our baby class said more babies are born on nights of full moons than any other time. N was born 45 mins after a full moon peaked - anyone else have their bub on a fulll moon night?
Ooh, Hopeful, a bath - that's a good idea....we might try the same thing. N has only catnapped since 10am when (we were both) woken by the phone.
Congrats to both Hopeful and Nikki on 10 weeks! Wohooo!
Hopeful - 5kg is awesome for your little guy - or not-so-little guy! Well done - he's grown so much, you must be thrilled.
Hopeful - Re the vacs - our council has drop-in days where you can turn up without an appointment. Check to see if your council does those too.
Hopeful, M is 10 weeks but only 4kg last Monday. I'm weighing her like you are tomorrow night hoping for 4.2 ;)
Cat how do I know if it was a full moon?
Google :) 28th April was full moon so no!
Hi Jet - I have a calendar which gives exact times etc for full moons but you can also see it here:
http://www.afma.gov.au/information/publications/fishery/moon_phase/calendar_2010v2.pdf
I've been sitting in N's room rocking him quietly in his bassinet and quietly surfing the net. He was quiet for ages so went to leave and took one look at him and he is wide awake and grinned at me like it was the biggest joke! That's it little man, bathtime for you!
Hopeful - you can get your vaccinations from the local GP, there is nothing that says you need to go to the community health nurse. You might need to pay a consult fee (not sure on this one) but I know that I can go to my local GP and they will fill out the book for you. I only had L 8 week vaccinations done at 9 weeks because it was all too much stress having them done the same week as my surgery.
Cat - same thing happens to me all the time. L will sleep in his pram but the moment my food is ready he'll demand to be cuddled or fed, murphys law I think ;)
Thanks for the link Cat!
A baby from my mothers group rolled over today! Same age as M! Wow!
Jet - which way did they roll? Front to back or back to front?
Jet - apparently that's the first way they roll, then eventually around 4 months they start the back to front roll.
Hi All,
Well I have a baby who has forgotten how to sleep during the day again!
On another note - those of you with "unexplained infertility", what are you using for contraception? I haven't had to think about contraception for years but now I can't help but wonder whether this would be the time I could actually fall pregnant naturally!
hopefulmama2b
12-07-2010, 14:54
LOL cat, dont have to worry about the contraception here LOL. I think I am premenstral today but lol- i have eaten the whole pantry lol :laughing: it SUCKS having a period again, quite liked 9 months without it!
Haha Hopeful :) I feel like I'm premenstrual a lot of the time at the moment but I think it's just sleeplessness! As for eating out the pantry - I'm keeping the Cadbury factory in business!
Cat same here with day sleeps. I'm going insane here. Contraception? Don't you have to be having sex first lol
Hopeful - I've had a peak in appetite but I think it's because L is feeding more and I have to produce more milk... or at least that's my theory because even when I eat more I still seem to be slowly losing weight.
Cat - we don't have to think about contraception but a friend of mine went on the mini-pill which was safe while breastfeeding. I guess once you stop BF you can use just about anything you like. They say full time BF holds off your period but if it were me I wouldn't risk it. As us IVF girls know, the body rarely does what it is supposed to. But as Jet said, sex is the last thing on my mind here. I've told DH that he might get lucky once L is 6 months old, as you can imagine he is not very impressed with that but being a good husband dutifully says all the right things :)
Jet - I've just started a self imposed self - settling routine with L for day time. Night time sleeps he is doing really well on his own but during the day he fusses a lot. So I have brought the pram out starting today and I put him in it when he is sleepy but before he is asleep and encourage him to put himself to sleep. If he wakes I shush him, pat him and put his dummy back in and rock the pram but I don't engage him or talk to him. I will only pick him up if he is hungry, wet or genuinely distressed. It's taking a lot of will power, energy and my sanity but would you believe it's starting to work already. He opens his eyes to see I am still 'around' and if he feels secure goes back to sleep on his own! I'll keep you updated over the days to see if it still works or it's a once off.
Ooh keep us posted nikki. M goes down fine but wakes after 40 mins and won't resettle :( I too am starving all the time!!!
Jet - 40mins isn't too bad, some babies sleep longer at night and nap during the day. Plus I've noticed with L (as you prob have with M) that there is more play time and awake time during the day where he wants to engage, talk, kick his legs and wave his arms! At the moment I'm not getting more than 1 hour naps either, sometimes shorter but he seems happier when he is awake now that I am making him sleep more.
Today is my no chocolate day, Mon/Wed/Fri... no chocolate for me. I was getting too addicted again, it doesn't take long. So I have a self - imposed ban a few times a week to stop myself going nuts for the stuff!
Nikki that's good that L is so happy. M gets overtired with such short sleeps and gets very cranky!! If she has a 2 hour sleep she's in great form. Good on you with the choc ban. God I do love chocolate.
I'd love it if L had 2 hour sleeps too...
Ta for the advice re the contraception! I would rather not even think about it but DH has been counting down to my 6-week check up with my OB which was this morning. I'd told him I couldn't have sex until after I saw the OB (he believed me, thank God!) but now I'm thinking I should make an effort! I got the script for the mini-pill from the OB this morning but I'm wondering if I'll even remember to take it after not having to think about it for so long! Unfortunately (or fortunately?!??) DH LOVES being a dad so he doesn't seem to upset about the idea of having another one (or maybe he can't imagine it happening after years and years and years of futile trying).
Nikki - I agree re the full-time breastfeeding = contraception but also not willing to risk it because I'm probably the exception to the rule!
Re the daytime sleeps - it's so much harder to get DS down after playtime. He just wants to keep playing. He has now finally gone down for his first proper sleep (I hope) since waking at 10.30 this morning. He's barely stayed down at all today and it's meant our feeds are all over the place.
Nikki - well done on the no-chocolate day! I can't imagine a no-choc day! I'm finding I'm so hungry in the morning, including at the 4am feed. Speaking of food - better get some dinner going!
Cat - there was no way I was ready for it at 6 weeks, you are amazing!
Maybe not so much amazing as just over finding excuses not to! I was flicking through another thread and they all started at about 2 weeks! Geez! 2 weeks??? I thought 6 was early!
You kill me. My DH is too traumatized by the birth to even consider DTD!! Plus the ob said my epi scar will hurt if i don't massage it every day. Like helloooooooo do i have time to do that?!
Cat - I was still sore (muscles from pushing) at 5 weeks, there was no way I was in the mood for DTD. Then I had my gall bladder attacks and surgery and now I just want my body to feel normal again before I even think about sharing it again! I wasn't sure what to expect after having a baby but from the experiences of other girls I know most say they weren't ready for quite a few months, most saying they starting being interested from 5 months onwards so I don't feel like I'm in a rush. Two weeks sounds way too early I was still bleeding then :eek: Also I've read that if you BF you are likely to not be in the mood for a while because the hormones that suppress ovulation also can suppress your libido so if you are not in the mood then that could be the other reason.
LOL@Jet! My DH was way too fascinated by the birth to be traumatised! I was hoping it might have the opposite effect!
Nikki - I didn't know that about the lactation hormone suppressing libido...interesting. It is very hard "sharing" - I'm barely used to DS feeding 6-7 hours a day from me let alone letting anyone else have a part of me!
Cat - I feel the same way, since having L I find that he demands me so much and it feels like my body isn't my own. I just don't feel like I have anything to give to DH at the moment in that way, I wouldn't be interested enough to even pretend. I'd rather wait until I really feel like it again. At the moment I just make sure we make time to hug and just chill out together to keep the intimacy without trying to push it.
EarthAngel75
13-07-2010, 10:18
Good morning girls :)
Hope you all had a reasonable night with your bubs last night :) C is back to waking once between 3-4am which makes mummy happy LOL! He was up every 3 hours during the day yesterday though so thinking he is about to have another growth spurt. I noticed yesterday that a lot of his 0000 pumpkin patch pants were a little short in the legs so think it's time to change over to the next size.
Nikki: pumpkin patch does have some cute stuff - though I dont really like their bigger boys (2 years+) stuff as it's usually rockstar/skater/bmx themed which I find a bit blah. Their sizing is also bigger which is a bonus and they do tend to have good sales (often prices are cheaper online than in store as an FYI). eBay is also a great place to find excellent used condition pp in sizes under 1 year for next to nothing. Good on you for imposing no chocolate days. Ive been craving sweets like Cookies but we dont keep anything like that in the house so requires DH to go out and there isnt often time which is a good thing lol
Cat: I too am absolutely starving when I feed C between 3-4am. What is with can't be stuffed going downstairs to find something to snack on though - which is probably a good thing!
All this talk of DTD - my DH is one who's not overly interested in DTD but now that C has been born and I'm 'off limits' (was told not to before 6w) he's all in the mood LOL! He was just saying last night that the urge was getting stronger as the days go by haha
Jet: Drs are funny with what they think you'll have time to do. They have no idea how busy like is...
C seems back to his 4 hourly routine today - YAY! maybe ill get a nap in this arvo after all. We've finally got house sitters organized for when we go to Canada over xmas. Now just need to get onto getting a passport for C. Have the forms here but havent found the time to fill them out yet.
Earth - I find just not having the bad foods in the house the best solution, because by the time you think about going out to buy it you can't be bothered especially with a baby in the house! I do buy cookies for guests though but by the time I have someone over DH has scoffed the lot and I have nothing to offer them! I however indulge in Lindt Chocolate but I buy the Lindt Balls so that it makes me stop at one or two rather than a block where I can just keep mindlessly eating :rolleyes:
I just put away most of L's 0000 clothes today and brought out a whole heap of 000 clothes. I am happy he is getting bigger but it was sort of sad to know his newborn days are behind him already! It was just yesterday I gave birth to him.
Goooooood morning ladies! After 3 totally $hithouse days, M slept from 7-7 waking at 220 for a feed and during playtime she rolled from front to back several times!!! Yay!!! Here's hoping she has better sleeps today!!
Earth I keep putting off the passport photo experience!
Nikki I love your lindt tip!
Jet - just saw the footage of M rolling over, how cute! L used to roll over but he won't do it anymore! No idea why not.
Need to get L a passport next year so we can go overseas. When is everyone thinking of travelling. We're doing domestic flights this year and international end of next year before he turns two.
EarthAngel75
14-07-2010, 10:05
Jet: the passpost photo isnt too bad actually. Well at least it wasn't when we had it done with dd at the post office. It's hard though if your bub doesnt like to look straight up as their head cant be off to the side at all!
Nikki: we're travelling overseas for the month of Dec this year. I'm praying that C will still fit into one of those bassinette things the airlines have so that he doesnt have to sleep in my lap the whole time. Not sure he will though due to his length. You're pretty keen thinking of travelling overseas with a 18mth-2yo - ive heard horror stories lol of travelling with kids at that age as they tend to refuse to sit still and can make for one long flight. Probably depends a lot on the personality of the child though. I certainly refuse to even contemplate doing it at that age! For overseas travel with an infant you pay 20% fare plus all taxes etc as I discovered while inquiring about airfares as I was always under the impression infants were free.
Well I made the mistake of having philadelphia cream for cooking yesterday and it seems to disagree with C - making him terribly gassy for more than 12 hours afterwards. Certainly wont be eating that again anytime in the near future.
sparklesare
14-07-2010, 10:14
Hi girls
have been a but MIA of late. The boys keep me on my toes busy that's for sure.
Jet: well done on 12 hours last night, hope it lasts for you and hope SOS is going well.
Nikki: I have to do passports too, dreading it to be honest. Mine expires this October so need to get that sorted but so happy I get a new photo mine is a shocker!! We are in Qld ATM and flew up. They flew well. F crashed out when we got on and O had a but of a grizzle, overall better than I thought they'd be.
Cat: well done on cracking 4kgs for N.
Has anyones bubs shortened their day sleeps? The boys are a lot more awake during the days now. It's forcing me out for walks etc to try and lengthen their sleep past that first sleep cycle. My boys are 3 months old this Sunday....cannot believe they are growing so quick and fast? :-(
Sparkles - I had my passport renewed earlier this year so now just DH and DS to go! I am not looking forward to flying with L to WA next month but hopefully he'll just sleep.
L doesn't sleep much longer than an hour at a time during the day but then he is mostly happy to chat away, play, suck his fist or dummy. I am finding walking around the house with the pram helps if he is fussing and getting tired but fighting sleep. He can't fight it for long in the movement of the pram.
Earth - We'll fly business class if we fly overseas with him so hopefully having more room will help. You are right though, on international travel infants are 20% of the fare, whereas if you fly domestic they are mostly free, although some airlines charge taxes. As for fitting in the bassinette, I flew when I was was 18months old with my parents and even I slept the whole way in the bassinette even though my legs hung out over the edge! So you never know, C might just be happy to hang in there and snooze the whole way.
Nikki I heard they often forget new tricks :)
Just got the passport pics done, phew that was hard work. Thinking of going to Ireland next month but only if I can use my points.
Sparkles yep have the same issue. Been driving me mad cos she was screaming with tiredness but would not sleep. Better today though.
angeleish
14-07-2010, 16:30
sparkles - our little guys day sleeps have never been great but now we are on losec they are getting longer. Still hit and miss though. Sometimes 20mins, sometimes 40, sometimes over an hour. I always try to re-settle if under an hour but if that's impossible I try the swing, bouncer or if desperate my arms until the next feed.
wow- so many travelling babies in this thread. we are off to Adelaide next week. Only a short flight so I don't think there will be many problems. My biggest problem will be minimising luggage!! :rolleyes:
jet - well done to your girl on rolling over. My little man has done it twice purely by accident. I'm waiting for a repeat performance.
I think we finally have a sort of routine in this house. During the day my little man feeds 3-4 hourly. From his 4/5 O'clock feed I then keep him awake with lots of play and a little cat nap in his swing, then bath feed and bed. We finally now have him in bed for the night from around 7/8pm. This is a huge difference to his scream fest witching hours that we were having when he would only give into sleep at 10/11 at night. So much more civilised now. DH and I actually get to eat dinner in peace and have some "us" time. For the most part he now will only wake once during the night around 3/4am and then will go back to sleep until about 7/8am. So happy with that!! I'm finally feeling human again. :smiliedance:
Angeleish that's fantastic. It's just so good for you and DH to get your evenings back.
angeleish - that's amazing that he sleeps from 7pm - 4am! L sleeps from about 9 or 10 through until 4am then again until 8pm. Although last night he slept from 3:30 through until about 9am, which was a really long sleep for him.
Jet - I don't think L will roll over any time soon again. He doesn't like ending up on his back. He tries to shuffle forward and move around when he is on his belly and gets frustrated that he can't crawl anywhere yet.
EarthAngel75
14-07-2010, 19:23
Sparkles: wow 3 mths already? Your boys must be getting so big by now! :) Before you know it it will be time to start solids lol
Jet: Good on you for getting the passport photos done. I'll probably try and get C's done the Sat after this one but then the fun begins as the guarantur for a baby needs to have known them from the day they were born and the person my DH spoke to in the passport call centre said they should be a Dr or midwife/nurse. Since my ob didnt deliver C he cant do it and a lot of the midwives at the hospy i went to seem to work at all the hospys in the ACT on call so tracking them down may be difficult.
Nikki: Good to hear you travelled in the bassinette when you were 18mths - it gives me hope! Ive found a lot of info online that some airlines wont allow you to use the basinettes at all if your baby can sit up (risk of falling out I guess) and I just cant imagine having the hold a baby the WHOLE time on a 14+ hour flight!
angel: YAY for having a routine. I find it so much easier to work around a routine myself and keeps bubs knowing what is happening next.
hopefulmama2b
15-07-2010, 20:07
hi girls and bubs
just a quickie as i am nursing a very grumpy little man- had immunisations today.. man i cried!! billy also now weighs 5.2 kilos (fatty lol) so he has over doubled his birth weight lol.
you girls are lucky re the sex thing lol- my dh is so demanding!! i have to perform like twice a week at the moment which is twice too much!!!!!
angel- great routine! nikki, billy sleeps about 10:00-3:30am he wakes at 3:30 from hunger.. roll on baby cereal time lol.
sparkles- happy 3 months for sunday xx we are just two weeks behind u exactly!
Sparkles - I can't believe your little boys are nearly three months, where is the time going. They are very cute though, even in the photos their personalities are starting to shine through.
Hopeful - twice a week, I still haven't tried once yet... I'm not really interested yet nor do I have the energy. How do you find the motivation? My DH has thrown himself into work and lucky for me he is very busy securing new business at the moment so he hasn't got the energy or time to try and woo me.
Earth - I know what you mean, holding a bub on the flight would be fine for a few hours but 14+ is a bit much. I am already dreading my 5 hour flight :(
allyoop8
15-07-2010, 20:43
hi girls sorry i dont get on here much anymore i would love to but it is so hard everytime nate sleeps seth is so demanding i have to play and get no time on here anymore i love it but
hope everyone is well
Ally - I can't imagine how demanding two would be, I barely get 10 minutes a day to myself if DH isn't around and I only have the one to look after. Good to hear you are loving it though :)
Woah - Hopeful, impressive!
Nikki - I'm thinking those lactation hormones are definitely having an anti-libido effect on me!
Ally - great to see you - can't imagine coping with two little people!!
All of you travellers - impressive. How much luggage did you need, Sparkles!?!?
I'm also impressed with those bubs sleeping for so long...bring it on!
Well I went out today without N for the first time. I decided I needed to get my hair done -those greys just wouldn't go away!
I just missed getting home for N's next feed so DH gave him formula as I only had half a feed of EBM in the fridge. I got home as DH was putting him down and I got to see my first proper projectile vomit - was very impressive. Completely cleared the side of the bassinet and landed in a splatter across the floor. Thank God for floorboards! Poor little guy - not used to formula during the day and must've completely scoffed the lot so quickly he gave himself a tummy ache. The rest of it was removed via the biggest poo explosion so it was bathtime. My relaxation from my haircut quickly evaporated!!! What a disaster!
Cat - I agree the BFing is definately dampening my libido I just can't seem to show any interest at all.
L is the same with formula, he spits it up. I think it's thicker and just not what he is used to. I think if he were a formula baby he'd have adjusted but because I usually feed him EBM if I bottle feed he notices the difference in thickness and sometimes he just plain refuses formula which can be a bit of a pain if I am out of EBM. As he gets older though I think he'll get less fussy, especially once he starts getting old enough for solids.
EarthAngel75
16-07-2010, 09:03
Hopeful: Go Billy with his weight gains. Most babies dont double their birthweight until 5-6mths so he's doing well LOL He weights almost the same as C does. Weighed C last night and he was 5.130kg but that's at 4w old haha He's our little Chubbo!
Nikki: is DH going on the flight with you so you can share holding bubs? And on the whole refusing formula thing in my years of experience being a nanny and dealing with that it actually gets WORSE as they get older not better/easier. Its every BFing going back to work mums nightmare. They do eventually give in though - after about a week and as long as mum doesnt try giving them the formula and if it's a regular almost daily thing. It's pretty stressful for everyone involved though! I'm facing this dilema as C will have to move to formula at 9mths as we are going back for a FET when he's 11 mths old and you have to stop BFing 2mths prior for your hormones to rebalance themselves. I dont want to introduce formula too soon but need to make sure he'll drink it since he will still be at home with me when I make the change so he'll have to take it in a bottle from me.
Ally: good to hear from you. Sounds like you are loving every minute with your two boys :)
Cat: Projectile vomits are the worst imo! Lucky you have floorboards though. DD used to do them all the time onto carpet which is a pain to clean up. C ate too quickly the other day (from the breast though after sleeping thru the night) and did the same thing. I put it down to eat too fast and either giving himself a tummy ache or eating too much.
Well I'm a little over the winter weather at the moment. We're consistently getting down into the early -'s overnight after such a mild autumn its a bit of a rude shock and doesnt bode well for having a young baby. Our house is drafty, has no insulation in the walls and no gas heating so the split systems have to blow back on themselves when it's so cold to keep operating which drops the room temp dramatically pretty quickly with no insulation. I hope it's a short winter and that August brings some warmer weather.
I feel for everyone in the cooler weather, we don't really get a proper winter up here and I'm so grateful because I am constantly covered in milk in the middle of the night and I imagine that would horrible if it was cold too.
Earth - I'm not sure if we are going to move to formula, I suspect he'll probably end up on it at some point because he can be quite rough when he attaches and once he gets teeth that could sway me back towards the bottle. It's really hard to tell if he is going to reject formula or not because he changes his mind weekly as to what he prefers. Last week he wanted the bottle, this week he only wants the breast?? He is definately a fussy eater. I don't think we'll go back for an FET for quite a while. Before I had him I thought about trying again within the year but after all the ups and downs of pregnancy and post pregnancy I just want to enjoy being a mum and give my body a bit of break from TTC, pregnancy etc.
:iagree: - well done Nikki. It must be frustrating but I bet a lot of mums would've given up by now!
We're going to a big christening on Sunday which will mean we'll be out for about 7 hours or so. There will be a restaurant afterwards so I'm trying to work out how to manage N's feeds. I really don't want to express and miss too many feeds in a row because then it just gets uncomfortable! Hopefully they'll put us in a corner!
Well I stuffed up N's feeds this morning! He work at 5.30 and I was just so tired I only fed him one side and let him fall asleep. D'oh - I knew it wouldn't be enough and, yep, sure enough, he was awake again at 7 for another feed! You think I would've learnt! At least he's still asleep now - my friend was supposed to be coming over at 10 but had to turn around after she was halfway here as her DD :barf:all over the car. The joys to look forward to with a bigger bub!
Cat - If I am out and about and don't want to feed in public I just arrange to feed in the backseat of the car, maybe that's an option for you in between functions / stops?
sparklesare
16-07-2010, 10:26
Cat: didn't pack too much luggage, 10 suits and have just washed and used them again. I didn't want to pack too much as I knew I'd go overboard so literally just went minimum!!
We are heading overseas later in the year also so that's going to be interesting as we are heading to a colder climate from our Summer. Well done for flying bus class Nikki you will score the good legroom and be more comfy. I'm thinking of doing it with ff points myself!!
Thx re the comments re the boys Nikki, your right they are so different in personality, think O's time in the NICU has def made him a stronger fighting person. Little F is just a very chilled bub, my little snugglebum.
Heading home to Melbourne on Sunday and cannot wait!! Nothing beats coming home after you've been away!!
Hopeful: your a champion I haven't even thought of DTD, but DH did ask me if I'd consider a 3rd the other day....lol that was amusing!! Talk to me in 5 years I said!! Just have to get my eggs back from NYC!!
Gosh I hope M will take formula when I try at 6 months!
allyoop8
17-07-2010, 20:37
jetgirl goodluck with the formula seth would never take it very annoying
OMG OMG OMG
M slept through from 7pm to 645am!!!!!! What the!!! Of course now I'm freaking out cos she will now only have 4 feeds today instead of 5...
Jet - L has been sleeping a lot lately and I was worried he was sleeping too much but I've since spoken to some people who say some babies just love their sleep and a lot of people have said that around 10 weeks onwards they start to sleep longer and when they eat they are more efficient so they take more of what they need to see them through. Congrats on the sleep :yelclap: Enjoy it and she'll tell you when she is hungry :)
Ally - I think I might need to start giving L formula here and there just to remind him that it is also a source of food in case I need it. I just wasted a whole bottle of EBM yesterday because he wasn't hungry and by the time he was I was so full I had to breastfeed him so I had to throw it... in future I'll just take formula if I have to throw that it doesn't make me cringe as much.
Sparkles - you did well to only take 10 suits, some days L stays in the same outfit all day, other days I have to change him 5 times. When we fly to WA I'll only take about 5 suits because I am hoping to do a bit of baby clothes shopping in Perth where they have more choice. Plus his grandma will be keen to do some shopping for him again too and I can't deprive her of the space to pack the suits :)
EarthAngel75
18-07-2010, 09:12
Jet: Hopefully M will learn to take formula at daycare when you go back to work without too many stressful moments. Woohoo on M sleeping through! I soo can't wait for more of that lol. I wouldnt worry about her feeds. If she is hungry from sleeping through she'll just do some cluster feeding at some stage.
Ally: the total refusal of formula is what i am sooo concerned about with C. It would be one thing if it was going to be something associated with daycare or something but it's not. I also dont want to introduce formula too soon as it actually destroys to good the BM does in the gut but what to do...it's just a fine balancing act!
Well we seem to have a little chubbo on our hands lol! We have actual baby scales here from when we had dd and had to keep a close eye on her weight so have been using them with C. We weigh him naked at the same time each week before his bath. Last week he put on 310g and this week he has put on 420g! That's so far averaging a pound a week almost!! He sleeps really well and at the moment is usually only up for an hour to 1.15hrs before going back down for a 2-3 hour nap so must not be burning that many calories lol
Wow Jet, that's fantastic! Hope you have a great day too to follow up the great sleep!
Are you still following the SOS?
Thanks girls :) yes Cat I'm a total SOS addict now :) I just love it!!
Earth, nice work with the weight gain! I wish we had baby scales. I'm always stressing!
Nikki I agree re. the clothes :)
angeleish
18-07-2010, 10:15
well done to your little girl jet!!! What a huge achievement. I also agree with earth - after DS has a big night sleep (he's slept through twice) he tends to make up for it during the day with an extra feed.
earth - your son sounds like the dream baby... great weight gain and great sleeps!! What a legend!!
nikki - I also find that DS is sleeping more lately and is more settled. I was thinking too that perhaps he is just more used to things now and life on the "outside" isn't so daunting and new to him!!
sparkles - just to clarify... is that ten suits each or ten suits for both??? Hope you had a great trip away and got a bit of a break too. lol at hubby for suggesting a 3rd so soon!! He must be one brave man!!!
AFM - DS has been so much better lately. Not sure if it is the medication or him getting older and more settled.... or both??? Hopefully he keeps it up as I am loving it at the moment!!
We went shopping on Friday as some of his 000 are getting small so I want to be prepared for the next stage (he's now5.4 kg.... was only 3.1 at birth). Myer had heaps of sprout clothes on sale for 50% off and even more in some cases. We got some size ones for next yr too.
DS has his first plane trip this week to visit my family. He'll have to sleep in a cot there as they don't have a basinet. Hopefully he wont mind. If he does well then I think I'll transfer him to the cot when I get home too. He's already sleeping in his own room now and that is working so much better for everyone...... my little man is growing up so fast!!
Jet - sounds like SOS is the key to a good night's sleep for you, bet you are glad you started that program!
Angeleish - glad to hear your little man is settling down too. We had a few difficult weeks but L seems to be settling into a routine, he sleeps a lot more now and I've noticed he seems to have less gas and fusses less after feeding. I think maybe he was having some temporary problems with too much wind or reflux but now that's sorted itself he is back to being my chilled little man.
Earth - wow C really is piling on the weight! You must have some very good quality BM. L is getting chubby now too, I love those little squishy legs :)
sparklesare
18-07-2010, 13:14
Angel: yes ten suits each bub. F is a bit chucky so needed a few in reserve!! Packed more lighter cotton stuff so easy to pack in.
Looking fwd to getting home and settled again. The bits lived the warmer weather been great weather. Nikki qld winters are awesome any wonder you love it up there!!
Jet: well done with the sleep for M. Awesome little girl!!
Sparkles - yep winter is most definately the best time of year :D
EarthAngel75
18-07-2010, 16:27
Angel: I guess DS can be a dream baby but I must admit we hardly venture out of the house since I'm still not allowed to drive (have to wait 6w post c-sect) and there isnt really anywhere within walking distance that's worth going out to. Being consistent and at home for all sleeps etc can make a huge difference to a baby's routine. We did go out with DS today after one of his feeds (so was due to sleep) and he slept on and off fitfully while we were out. Tried to put him to bed when we got home (as was still 2 hours from his next feed) but he kept waking so fed him an hour early and tried putting him to bed again and it took me almost an hour to get him to sleep as he was overtired and overstimulated by then. Your DS is doing well with his weight gains too! He's getting close to doubling his birth weight already. I LOVE sprout clothes from myer. They're a good price, cute and decent quality.
Better run and get dinner started so I can eat before C's next feed! Hope you all had a fabulous weekend :)
Girls. I'm on my second (and last) glass of wine this evening and have just had an epiphany. I do not believe I deserve a healthy, happy baby. So I keep thinking things will go wrong and finding problems that aren't really problems. I think it's because we were TTC for 2 years and got lucky on our first ivf cycle. Examples:
I dread going to bed in case we have a bad night - this makes no sense as we never do! (touch wood)
Today I decided she holds her head to one side. DH thinks I'm being silly.
Sometimes I think she's convulsing but she's actually just yawning.
I'm terrified of the future.
I'm so paranoid it's driving me nuts. How do I get over this?
angeleish
18-07-2010, 20:33
Jet - I am the same. Dread having a bad night (but rarely do.... the days... um well that's another story). The head tilting um yep I've worried over that too. Then I start thinking... does he make enough eye contact?, Is he smiling enough? Does he have a flat head? etc etc. Then I start thinking.. Do I spend enough time talking to him? Do I give him enough tummy time? Do I cuddle him enough? Do I give him enough time away from me to be independent? etc etc etc.
I'm not sure if it has much to do with the IVF and m/c for me... maybe it does.... maybe its just part and parcel of being a mum.??? I just try to remind myself to stop the worry and enjoy the journey.
Oh and by the way... congrats on the wine!!! You are a girl after my own heart (I'm enjoying a quiet beer as we speak!)
Oh angeleish thank you, I thought I was being weird but you make it sound normal ;)
Enjoy your beer. My daily wine gets me through the day!
Jet - I feel the same, some days I just feel like I keep needing to remind myself how lucky we are to have him that I keep thinking that there must be more 'tests' for me to pass. I think after all we've been through to get here it must be normal to not take it for granted. As long as it doesn't get to the point that it immobilises us or takes the joy out of parenting for us I think in time the fears will pass and it will start to feel more 'everyday' if that makes sense. Apparently it's not uncommon for IVF parents to exhibit more anxiety than norma but he good news is by 12 months our levels of anxiety are on par with parents who conceived naturally.
Thank you nikki. I knew you girls would understand.
EarthAngel75
19-07-2010, 08:44
Jet: I agree with the others it's completely normal and I do think a lot of non-IVFers have the same fears. However I think the longer it took to concieve your baby probably also plays a role or any life experiences you may have had. For example due to DD dying from SIDS and me finding her cold and stiff makes me think everytime I go to get Corbin from his naps (he's often still sleeping so I wake him when his next feed is due 4 hourly) that I'm going to find him dead. Or if DH has gone up to get him I fear he's going to come downstairs and tell me he's died etc. It's completely irrational and I know it but the brain goes there all the same. The fear of him dying is slowly getting less and less so I too think it will pass with time as it becomes more 'real'.
LulusMum
19-07-2010, 08:52
Sorry to barge in, but i just wanted to reply to Jetgirl:
Totally normal what you are going through. I was a wreck the first year with Max, always thinking something was wrong. This got to the point where i wouldnt allow DH and i to go out together without Max cause i thought what happens if we die in a car accident and he is still here......It wasnt rational at all but years TTC leave you with doubt in your ability not only to concieve and bear children but raise them too.
The good news is we have broken 12 months now and it was like getting over a hurdle - on his birthday DH and i actually had a toast to "making it" refering to coming through the first treacherous 12 months. For the first time i feel i can enjoy my little boy without the worry - he is healthy and happy and when they are a bit older you can tell this, its not the same as trying to read a 3 month old who gives you no clues. i was worried about attachment with Max - now its all Mummy, lots of cuddles - but i remember telling DH when he was about 6months old that i thought Max hated me:rolleyes:
It will pass, and your confidence will grow - look how well you are doing with the new routine. I promise, even though it seems a long way off, its like switch flicks at 12 months and everything falls in to place:yes:
Thanks for barging Lulu :) , your post really helps.
Earth, I just can't imagine what you've been through. Thank you.
Earth - You've been through a lot, your little boy is just adorable and obviously so very loved :hugs:
Lulusmum - your fears sound just like mine, suddenly you don't have the stress of 'will I ever have a baby' so you feel you have to replace it will, 'will I be a good parent, will something bad happen to ruin it all'. I'm glad to hear that by 12 months you start to relax into it more, your story is really helpful :)
angeleish
19-07-2010, 20:25
earth - you are one brave woman. Your fears are most rational. I can't even begin to imagine what you have been through. Your DS is so lucky to have you as his mum.
lulusmum - thanks for thread crashing. It is always good to hear from people who have "been there" before.
:iagree: with all of the above. When I was pregnant, it felt like I was pregnant forever when you count all the years of trying. Being a mum, it also feels like it's been forever but in a different way. I still poke N when he's sleeping really soundly because I'm petrified something has happened. I'm lucky he sleeps through my pokes and prods!
Earth - you have been through hell. We lost a nephew after he spent six months in NICU. It was heartbreaking - especially as I was lucky enough to see him almost every day as I work near the hospital. It was wonderful seeing him grow and get stronger every day only to go through losing him. It was so hard for us but not even close to what his parents went through.
It'll be great when the anxiety fades and our confidence grows - I'm sure that all mums go through this and everyone says that it's so much easier with the second one. For those of us who get blessed with #2 (or #3 for you, Sparkles!), I hope it's true. I was also told after I had N that you never really stop worrying about them - I know that's true too but I'm definitely looking forward to being less paranoid and gaining some perspective!
EarthAngel75
20-07-2010, 15:00
Good afternoon ladies :)
C has thrown out his routine today and well last night too (was awake making noises in bed from 4am so mummy of course couldnt actually sleep!) which has left me feeling a little zombie like. Just when i went to lie down for a nap he decided it was time to wake up again! I'm hoping this is all part of the 5 week wonder week or an early growth spurt and he goes back to being my good baby LOL
Has anyone been out in the giant toy sales buying stuff for Christmas this year now that they've got a bub? I havent been out but that's mainly because nothing in the sales really caught my eye. Ive got a few friends whose bubs were born end apr/early may who are buying the smart trike featured in the Target toy flyer for their bubs.
We're not getting much for DD for Christmas Earth - no money. Maybe one big thing and a few little bits. No idea what to get!!!
Earth - we're flying interstate so it would be too hard to cart gifts around. Plus L will be too young to care. Maybe next year when he understands a bit more.
EarthAngel75
21-07-2010, 09:28
Jet: We're quite lucky we have a bunch of stuff put away that we had for dd as we dont have a lot of $$$ at the moment either. Using what we do have to go to Canada and do stuff there. As for what to get dd I can offer some suggestions :) The target toy flyer can be found here:
http://target.dynamiccatalogue.com.au/portal/dynamiccatalogue?CatalogueID=12777878891431&pageview=two&gotopage=1
Depending on how much you want/plan to spend on the big thing - I HIGHLY recommend the fisher price toy door on page 3. It's $99 though. I have one here (found mine on eBay a long time ago) and all the kids ive had here have loved it. It's probably the most used toy ive got and easily used from crawling to age 3-4 so has a long life span. It has a shape sorter in the door so no need for a seperate one of those and has the alphabet and numbers, does counting and has a clock etc on it. Kids LOVE crawling thru the door and locking it (comes with a big plastic key lol oh and mail to put into the mail box). If however thats way out of your price range Then here are others I can recommend:
Page 1 (front cover) FP amazing animals train suitable from 6mths+ has big chunky animals with textusres all over and some make noises when parts move. The train moves and makes noises (runs on batteries though)
Page 2: the FP dolls pram. Your dd will eventually LOVE a pram lol this one suitable from 9mths+ and may be possible to use as a walking aide.
Page 3: the walk and drive by FP. Ive got a different version of this here. Great for learning to walk, has a shape sorter at the front and then the 'legs' click together so it can be driven (great fun until they're about 2)
Page 3: The FP chair. This is probably better for a bub closer to 1. But once they're cruising and moving around kids LOVE to try and sit on chairs. This one has got electronic components and a story book attached (may play nursery rhymes or something).
Page 10: playskool caterpillar looking thing with cogs on it.
Page 23: the clamshell sand/water pit thingy. Kids love playing in sand and this allows you to have water in one side, sand in the other and when not using cover the sand up with the opposite side. One of the jobs i had here the kids were in the sandpit from about 9mths old.
Page 48: a bag of mega blocks. They say suitable from 1 year but in my experience babies can play with them younger (probably around 8-9mths with the bigger pieces. they LOVE trying to put them together and taking them apart and putting into their mouths lol. It's quite a developmental thing they go thru. I have found though that they have a limited life span of about 9mth-2yo.
Page 53: Any spot books. Most of them have lift the flaps which babies love!
Bath toys are also a good idea. Stacking cups/blocks (somewhere around the year mark they love to stack things and knock them over - they think it's hysterical!). The Thats not my... series of books are great too. They have furry/shiny etc bits on each page. Any toy that lets them put things into something and take them out (or where they slide/fall out on their own). an example would be the FP gumball machine (their roll around balls go into the top and come out the bottom). The other things that *may* be suitable depending on the personality of your dd are things like an activity saucer a jumperoo etc. I personally think these are best starting from 4mths as by 9mths or so some babies refuse to go into them as they want to explore (these keep them confined). They're more expensive (see towards back of target flyer) but if you go to a baby and kids market in kellyville you'll easily find an activity saucer for about $40. There were 4-5 of them there when we went last year. You can take advantage and buy used things for Christmas when they're so young hehe as once they get older they realize they're supposed to come in packaging! Ohh and some nice puppets is another idea. They LOVE when you tell stories with them and have fun trying to get them onto their hands from about 1yr.
Nikki: We're flying over xmas too. Our gift to corbin and his gift from santa will be staying here though as too much hassle to take with us and he wont know any different. We'll be taking little things with us though like some books and a plush reindeer toy.
DS seems to be in a developmental week this week as he's not actually sleeping all that much/well - I can get him to sleep but takes longer and then I hear him wake fitfully a few times but he does manage to put himself back to sleep so far. He's also totally wide awake when I feed him and craning his neck to look around at everything which is driving me batty as he ends up pulling himself off from craning too far. He also 'talks' when feeding lol makes all kinds of interesting sounds/noises.
Wow Earth I'm speechless!!! Thank you :)
Jet - how is SOS working for you? Someone mentioned they were trying it the other day and then another person said they'd had a lot of success with it so I hope you are finding it just a useful!
Earth - everyone spoiled my nephew last year and he had so many presents he ended up getting grumpy and didn't want to open any more (he is the first baby on our side of the family so he had lots of gifts!). Anyway after he went home his parents unwrapped one of their gifts and gave him the huge cardboard box which he turned into a cubby house. When I visited him a week later he was so excited to show me his new 'toy' the furnished (with blanket and toy telephone) cardboard box. It was hilarious :laughing:
Nikki yes SOS is awesome I'm so so glad I found it!!!!
EarthAngel75
21-07-2010, 11:58
Jet: no worries lol I have been thru soo many kids and sooo many toys. It's actually been great and given me a good idea what i need/should have for different stages. I always try to go for things with a long life span since it's better value for money. Things that are good for them developmentally but have a short life span I always try to get for 50% off or buy used (this is how I got my mega blocks collection for example).
Nikki: It is funny how the young ones seem to prefer the cardboard boxes and/or wrapping paper more than the gifts at the time. I had a little boy I used to look after who LOVED his huggies nappy boxes - he used to get into them and use them as a car or boat lol I'm sure your ds will get spoiled this year from everyone in your family too :)
Jet - Since we've tried a routine that includes lots of daytime naps and putting him to bed by 6:30pm we've found he sleeps so much better and isn't as cranky anymore. I think I was overstimulating him and keeping him awake thinking I needed to entertain him when all he really wanted to do was sleep more. He now sleeps most of the way through the night, he has a dream feed at 11pm and then back to bed until about 6:30am.
Earth - I am sure he'll be spoiled, in fact I might need to remind friends/family that we have to fly home so not to buy too much stuff! We were thinking of buying L a Trike for Christmas, not that he'll have any idea what it is but it is good from 6 months - 3 years so he should get a fair bit of use out if. I hope... :rolleyes:
EarthAngel75
21-07-2010, 13:50
Nikki: the trike seems to be the popular gift this year. I know of several people getting them for their LO's for xmas who were born around the same time as L. With your dream feed is L completely asleep and if so do you manage to BF him or is it a bottle? I tried dreamfeeding C a few times with the boob but he was in too deep a sleep so now I express and bottle feed him as it's easier to get into his mouth and get him sucking than with the boob. It feel like C is asleep most of the day. He wakes at 7ish and is up for maybe an hour before going back to bed. Awake again somewhere between 10-11am for 1.15hrs then back to sleep. awake again around 130-230pm for an hour then back to bed until around 430-5pm at which point he's up until 7pm for the night. He's been resisting sleep (not cranky or crying but awake in his cradle) for the last little while until 8pm usually so thinking I may have to change his bedtime to 730pm and see what happens.
Earth - he pretty much only breastfeeds these days and he is not in a deep sleep when I dream feed. I wake him a bit by changing his nappy first but because he is in a routine he is still sleepy so he feeds with his eyes closed but he is sort of awake. As soon as he has fed though he is back asleep and I just put him back in his cot and he's out like a light.
When he was four weeks old like C I wouldn't have had as much luck because he needed to be awake to feed otherwise he'd just stop sucking but now it seems like it's more instinct and he knows what food is and how to get it so he can do it in his sleep if that makes sense.
Well I've put the FP door thingy on "raincheck" whatever that means! Just have to convince DH.
Nikki why do you do the dreamfeed? Is it to make him sleep longer?
Jet - He starts to stir around 11pm because he is hungry but because he likes to sleep I try not to disturb him too much but rather just keep it quiet and feed him calmly so he doesn't wake up too much. That way once he has fed he just goes back to sleep content and happy rather than waking up and being cranky because I have disturbed him. He doesn't like to be awake between 6:30pm and 6:30am, but as soon as the sun comes up it's like a switch is flicked and he is all chatter and personality!
Ah clever :) good thinking mum!
Jet - I've only been doing it for the last week and a half but it's changed this household, DH and I have some us time again and L is happier because he gets more sleep and is well rested.
It's gold isn't it nikki :)
EarthAngel75
22-07-2010, 08:54
Jet: raincheck usually means they dont have any in stock but they are getting some more and you're in line once they come in :) As for convincing DH try the whole it's got a long life span approach lol DH's tend to be practical and maybe if he can see that it's a good 'investment' due to how long it will be used for he'll think it's a good idea! hahah I do a dreamfeed here too strictly to get ds to only wake once overnight and then hopefully in a few weeks so he'll sleep through. I use a bottle of EBM though as can't get him to take the boob when he's fast asleep.
nikki: isnt it great when you and DH get some time back to yourselves? I'm looking forward to DH and I getting our movie night back (used to rent movies sat night) but at the moment the evening is filled with C related activites until around 8w anyways.
Congrats Nikki - sounds like you're doing really well. It must feel fabulous!
Jet - do you do the dream feed with the SOS? I borrowed the SOS book from the library but haven't started as she says to start at 8 weeks if you're not expressing. ATM I only express if I'm going out. I just can't see N going so long at night without a feed although he did go 8 hours without a feed last night (feed at 8pm then sleep from 10pm-4am). N is 8 weeks today so I'm hoping we might score some longer sleeps (for all of us!). :fingerscrossed: N is still on three-hour feeds during the day, though...he's onlhy 4.5kg so that's not going to change anytime soon!
We're also not going overboard with Christmas presents - I just want to get N something significant for his first Christmas but with 11 nieces and nephews and four godchildren to buy for, we've got enough to deal with at Christmas. I'll just be back at work, too, so I'm keen to keep it very low-key with presents - I'm more interested in all the playtime he's going to have with family and friends!
LulusMum
22-07-2010, 13:38
You guys could just save heaps of money on xmas gifts and buy your babies a couple of rolls of gift wrap instead:laughing: Best fun around for under $2.00:D - Max was 6months at xmas and all he liked was the gift wrap and bags:rolleyes:
Well it turns out the FP door thing is not a raincheck item so I bought it today and omg it's sooooo cool!!!!!
Cat I don't do the dreamfeed. The first week or 2 she woke around 11 and 3 but now it's only once between 1 and 7 yay! Jeez M still isn't even 4.5kg!!!
Lulusmum I know but I also know I can't help myself!
EarthAngel75
22-07-2010, 16:00
Lulusmum: LOL i know how they love giftwrap and whilst I *may* let C play with some I am quite worried he will want to put it into his mouth and the dyes in it which are probably from China are probably unsafe for consumption. I'm a bit of a stickler for anything contains dyes from china near my kids.
Jet: It can be very exciting having a bub at xmas -Im with you on the can't help yourself thing. Ive been trawling the web for cute outfits for C to wear in the cold weather in Canada, cute reindeer shoes, hats etc! Kids bring the spirit back alive all over again. I'm glad you like and got yourself the FP door. I reckon it's pretty cool too lol
oohh and a little something ive learned girls when it comes to kids and toys - the BEST selection is always brought in for these july sales and between these sales and ones I think in sept or oct are the best prices all year. In the past ive gone looking for something early in the year ive seen in the sales and it cant be found anymore until the following toy sale time that year - can be very frustrating if you're wanting something specific.
:iagree: - a cardboard box and some packing paper will probably be a good present. Maybe some child safe crayons or markers and you have an amazing present!
I have no idea how heavy L is, I haven't weighed him in weeks but he is gaining I know that much and I just love his little fat rolls on his legs now :) I doubt he is much over 5kg though if that, he's just not a huge boy yet... I'm sure the spurt will happen if not before by his teenage years when he towers over mum!
My little man is thriving on more sleep now, he seems to be so much happier now I don't try and push to keep him awake longer... what was I thinking!! When he is awake I try and interact, play and talk to him and he loves it but as soon as I see the signs he gets wrapped and put to bed.
angeleish
25-07-2010, 14:45
ladies... what's going on. I disappear interstate for a few days and we've dropped to the next page!!
I"m hoping that means that we are all out there enjoying our little bundles!!
Glad to hear all the talk about christmas. How exciting it will be with our little ones this year. We're not buying much for our little man (although I want to). I figure money is tight and he wont really know anyway. Plus, his family (both DH side and mine) are likely to spoil him rotten anyway!! As for the christmases after that.... well I'm sure the credit card will get a work out then!!
well our little man has graduated from basinet to cot and he looks so cute sleeping there. This morning he woke with the biggest grin. So cute. It is a little harder to get him to sleep there as it doesn't rock like his basinet did, but he's coping quite okay with it.
He's also graduated to 00 - such a boof!! I've had fun recently shopping for 00, 0 and size ones. This is the first bit of shopping I've had to do for him as we were given so many 0000 and 000 when he was born. I've really loved being able to shop for him.
I'm also feeling a lot more confident as a mum now. I no longer panic so much and just go with the flow. I'm really enjoying this age that he is at and don't really want him to get any bigger/older.
angeleish - 00 wow he is doing so well :yelclap: My little man is still in 000, he only just graduated into them last week but he has been going through a growth spurt so who knows how soon he might go up a size. Although it won't be long until he moves from his bassinette to the cot, probably within the next month and a half, I'll have to buy a baby monitor for him then because he'll be out of our room :(
Hi girls. We're moving to 00 in wondersuits but i blame the dryer lol. M is not even 4.5kg yet. I have her in the cot during the day to get her used to it. Great that you're feeling so good angeleish!!
hopefulmama2b
25-07-2010, 20:23
Hi Girls
Wow Jet- Billy is over a kilo heavier than Mauve lol. Are you wearing the bonds wondersuits? they are teeny in size!! I have some cute bonds trackies for Billy and they are 00.. they are roomy on him but I always try to buy a size up. Billy is starting to move to 00 in standard growsuits (target/kmart brand ones) because they are so small!! The 00 ones are big on him but more long than big- we have a chunky little monkey lol. I am almost concerned that he is soo chubby lol, he is 12 weeks today and at 10 weeks had already doubled his birth weight! The maternal health nurse said it was ok, that small for dates babies like Billy do make up for it rather quickly but he is such a hungry bub!
Angel- Thats awesome that u are feeling so confident- I am the same!!!
I went out last night for a boozey night with the girls. I dont think I can handle my alcohol like I used to lol. I really missed Billy and at 1:30am I got DH to come pick me up so I could come home to my two men lol.. left my girlfriends out parting till 5am. I dont think I have it in me anymore lol!!
angeleish
25-07-2010, 21:13
Our little man has gone from 3.1kg to over 5.5 and is also getting so long. I really do wish though that he was still in his 000 as we had so many cute outfits given to us that he only got to wear once or twice. Mind you buying him 00 has been fun too. We have some cute 00 jeans and trackies and when he wears them he looks so grown up.
As for his basinet he hadn't grown out of it (it was quite a big basinet), but when we went away he got used to a cot. We will go away again soon and once again he will be in a portacot so I figured I may as well try to keep him in a cot rather than change from basinet to cot and back again.
nikki - the first night DS was in his own room was really strange and quite difficult. I felt so bad leaving him alone in a dark room by himself but it has been good actually. I am now less likely to respond to all of his little noises which means he tends to re-settle better. Also, DH and I can no go back to reading before bed and also talking to each other without having to worry about waking him. In the morning, DH can get ready for work without having to worry about waking DS so it is just more practical for us.
jet - your little M is so cute and petite. Good on you for blaming the dryer (although those wondersuits are notoriously small)
hopeful - well done on the boozey night out!! :yelclap: I'm so jealous. I've already told DH that the first weekend I have after DS is no longer breast feeding then I'm checking into a 5 star for a weekend of wine, massages and sleeping in. My two boys can hang out together for some "quality time". DH thinks I am joking.... !!
Hopeful - Good on you for getting out again! It'll be a little while before I get a boozy weekend again because I'm breastfeeding but as soon as I'm not I am going for a night away with DH to do cocktails :D
Jet - we're in 000 because most of our stuff is summer stuff, I think winter stuff would be harder for him to fit into because he is longer rather than chubbier. Your little girl is such a cutie though, it's nice to have them little for a little while longer :)
Angeleish - sounds like he is growing well, L is around the same weight but because the outfits are summer ones they still fit. I do love the little jeans and trackies! I wanted to buy some the other day but it's too warm here so I dressed him in a cute denim overall suit, it was adorable :yes:
EarthAngel75
26-07-2010, 10:09
Nikki: glad to hear that L is thriving on more sleep. You may find that he stacks on some serious weight now that he is sleeping so much (and therefore not burning as many calories) :) I love overalls on little boys - i think they are heavenly!
Angel: How exciting that your ds has graduated beds. I'm not game enough to have DS in a different room to us until after 6mths due to the SIDS guidelines and the fact it was within 1 week of us putting dd into her own room overnight that she passed at 6.5mths old. If ds grows out of his cradle he'll be going into a portacot in our room until at least 6mths as the cot wont fit. Did he enjoy the trip interstate? I love shopping for clothes for my ds too LOL but I'm buying much larger sizes now to put away hehe
Hopeful: I find all the all in 1 suit type clothes are quite small (short in the legs in particular). DS is in 000's and when his legs are actually stretched out (he's still got some of his newborn curl) they fit perfectly but he's due for a growth spurt soon (6w one) so once he's gone thru that spurt he'll probably have to move into the 00's too! Ive just discovered the Gymboree 'gymmies' (sleepsuits) are actually much longer in the legs and nice and slim fitting so look absolutely heavenly on him. I wonder if our boys will keep pace weight-wise of whether Billy will slow down at the usual time (once starting solids) which means C will overtake him since he's so much younger.
Well C is feeding less at the moment (or at least it seems like it's less - not wanting both sides and not necessarily finishing 1 side) - dont know if all the oats ive been eating for breakfast has upped my supply (oats are known to increase supply but I eat them because they're lovely on a freezing day lol) as he's not making up for the lack of feeding at night or anything. I'm waiting for the 6w growth spurt/frenzied feeding to start as C is 6w on thurs which is when that's supposed to happen. He's still making big weight gains. He went from 5.220kg to 5.640kg the last week. Over the weekend I also had to adjust the straps in the capsule as the shoulder straps were below his shoulders which is incorrect fitting (i had a feeling last time he was in it so looked it up in the manual online). We took him out to the baby and kids market on Saturday as I was looking for some Robeez slippers/shoes for him thinking about our wooden floors and when he starts to crawl/cruise and it was my lucky day lol there were quite a few people selling boys stuff (usually theres a lot more girls than boys) and I got 3 pairs of Robeez leather slippers for $3-5/pair (sell for $40-50 new), a pair of tip toey joeys for when he's walking in almost new condition for $5 ($50 new) and another pair of walking shoes for $5. Also got a few pumpkin patch padded all in 1 outfits that were like new. DS did really well and slept the whole time in the pram - he usually stays wide awake whenever we go out so this was a first and was good to see it was possible for him to sleep while out and about. Had our washing machine break with a load of washing in it on Friday so have a repairman coming this arvo and hopefully they can fix it on the spot (disgusting burning smell when it broke so been told it's probably the pump) as our laundry is starting to really pile up and thankfully ds is not a chucky baby!
Earth - L is only feeding every four hours and at night every 5-7 hours depending. I asked the midwife if this was ok because I thought he was supposed to have 8-12 feeds a day but she said as long as he is growing (which you are right he is stacking it on now he sleeps more) and he has plenty of wet and dirty nappies per day (no probs there!) then just let him feed as he wants. Maybe he just gets such a big feed from me he is happy. I eat oats too... not to increase supply I just like them!
Hi girls I've been eating oats too with brewers yeast and flaxmeal to keep up my supply!
Earth I've been wondering what to do when dd starts crawling as we have wooden floors too...
I wish she would stop waking after 40 mins during the day. She gets soooooo cranky cos she needs more sleep and sometimes nothing works to get her back to sleep :(
No news here. Off to a 35th birthday dinner on sat - ILs babysitting. First time leaving DD at night so freaking out! Hopeful puts me to shame!!
EarthAngel75
26-07-2010, 14:11
Nikki: C is not even interested after going more than 4 hours during the day at the moment. Just did a bunch of reading online though and most of what I found said it's normal for them to become 'fussy' and pull off and not feed properly anywhere near a wonder week or growth spurt week and we're in the middle of a lot of that at the moment so hopefully that's it. I'm finding it all highly frustrating as I'm waking up totally engorged and he doesnt want to feed even from one side properly and then come next feed 4-4.5 hours later he still isnt interested so by then I'm leaking all over the place and end up expressing which of course just produces more milk - arg!
Jet: I'd probably try holding a dummy in your dd's mouth when she wakes after that first sleep cycle and see if that wont resettle her to go back to sleep and if not the method Tracey Hogg uses in her book before 16w is putting baby on their side and patting their bum while saying shh in their ear as its hard for baby to concentrate on more than 2 things at once. I find it quite hard to do myself. Once they're 16w though you can try PU/PD so you pick them up if they're crying and put them down as soon as they stop and repeat as many times as necessary until they give in and go to sleep (may take an hour+ the first time but will get shorter as each day passes).
do your floors get cold in winter? That's my biggest concern is our floors get cold so ds will always need socks on and that will make his feet slippery so to get around that these are what I bought (used at the baby & kids markets):
http://www.robeez.com//i/2792L_2.jpg
These particular ones are made by Robeez. They're full leather and dont fall off. Nor can little people get them off their feet themselves. They're also non-slip. You'd probably easily find them at baby and kids markets near you in Sydney or you can buy cheaper versions new (the leather isnt as thick but you can always buy a few pairs in different designs lol) from this ebay seller in Canada:
http://shop.ebay.com/shoeszoo/m.html?_nkw=&_armrs=1&_from=&_ipg=&_trksid=p4340
I like these for inside the house as they're not shoes as being Canadian we dont wear shoes inside the house. I also think they are handy for going to indoor play centres for girls in the cooler weather when wearing tights as it's mandatory to wear socks (no shoes allowed) at these places but tights are generally very slippery. However if you're not fussed by the whole shoes thing there are also tip toey joeys which have DIVINE shoes for girls lol
http://www.tiptoeyjoey.com/
These are also full leather but once in size 6-12mths they also have a split flexible rubber sole. The maryjane style for girls imo is TDF! I had several pairs for my dd and you can find them under size 12 months on ebay fairly frequently and can at times get them quite cheap (new they're $40-50/pair). You may also find these at the markets. There was a lady on sat at the ones down here who had a pair in ballet pink size 6-12mths she was selling for $1 that were still in decent shape (scuff marks to the toes and that was it!).
Im already starting to think about when C is crawling or able to move about a bit as our tv/home theatre stuff is quite a cable mess at the moment and presents a real chocking hazard and I need to find a solution BEFORE he starts to move.
Hi girls I've been eating oats too with brewers yeast and flaxmeal to keep up my supply!
Earth I've been wondering what to do when dd starts crawling as we have wooden floors too...
I wish she would stop waking after 40 mins during the day. She gets soooooo cranky cos she needs more sleep and sometimes nothing works to get her back to sleep :(
No news here. Off to a 35th birthday dinner on sat - ILs babysitting. First time leaving DD at night so freaking out! Hopeful puts me to shame!!
I'm going out for drinks in a couple of weeks too and I'm already fretting!
As for the sleeps, I have the same problem. L is tired and needs sleep but wakes after 40 min. Here are some of the tricks I've tried, some may work some may not:
As soon as he stirs I put the dummy back in before he fully wakes if I get to him in time.
Put my hand on his chest and stroke his forehead with my other hand to soothe him.
Swaddle him and then rock him back and forth even if he cries, he usually gives up crying after a couple of minutes.
Put him over my legs and rock him back and forth while patting his bum until he gets dozy again.
Put him in the car capsule (in the lounge not the car). The snugness of it seems to relax him and is happy to drift off at his own pace.
At night I don't have any of these issues, I just put him down at 6:30 and he is tired and falls asleep but during the day I have to try a different trick every day it seems.
angeleish
27-07-2010, 11:42
All you girls going out for drinks soon..... I know it would be scary but I envy you. DS has never had formula and I can't express much so leaving him is just impossible. I know I should be grateful that I can BF so well but at times I feel so tied down by it. oh well.... will make my eventual night out even better when we finally get there.
jet day sleeps here are hit and miss too but getting better. Some of Nikki's suggestions I've tried too. Here are some that work for us:
* patting him gently on the chest/shoulder and shhhh ing
* rubbing his tummy clockwise (works well if he has woken from wind pains....)
* doing both of the above at the same time.
* when he was in his basinet I would gently shake/rock the basinet
*singing quietly to him
*placing my hand firmly on his chest - it must make him feel secure
* If he gets too upset or wont settle I pick him up, put him on my shoulder. Calm him, then put him down and try again.
We always have his room as dark as possible and I wrap him very firmly with blankets tucked tightly. Also, I try to give him the opportunity to self settle but not to the point where he gets upset. It's a fine line. .....Anyway don't take my word as gospel, as I said it is still hit and miss here.
We ended up co-sleeping with DS here from 5.30 this morning as the poor boy had bad wind and tummy pain and couldn't settle. It was the first time we've done this but I was just too tired to sit by his cot soothing him. I think DS loved it as he had the biggest grin on his face and kept looking from DH to myself as if he couldn't believe his luck. He eventually fell asleep again but I don't think I ended up sleeping much more anyway as I just couldn't stop looking at how cute he was. Then later this morning DS and I had a little dance together in the kithen to some Michael Buble. He loved it and kept giggling! Too cute! How lucky do I feel today! :cloud9:
Angeleish - I dance with L all the time, ever since he was little it was one of the ways I used to calm him if he had wind pain or was just cranky. I also bop a bit when I sing with him in the shower, he almost shrieks with happiness it's so cute :D
I've found now I can BF so well I rarely bother to express but I have a whole freezer full of milk so I use that if I want to go out for a bit. Although I am still a bit nervous about leaving him even if it is just for a couple of hours. I will probably spend the whole time thinking about him!
Thanks girls I have tried all the above and she sucks her thumb but it just seems to take a lot of crying regardless to get her back to sleep once she's woken up.
Earth love those shoes!!!!
Angeleish M goes to bed at 7 and usually doesn't need feeding till 2am so since I wouldn't be out late and would only have maybe 3 or 4 drinks I can get away with not needing to leave a bottle although I would leave one anyway due to paranoia!!!
angeleish
27-07-2010, 17:47
fair enough jet. DS usually goes down around 7/8 until about 3/4 am so I guess I could do the same too. I'm just not confident as yet that he will stick to that routine for me..... so I definitely understand your anxiety.
Nikki - tell me more about showering with DS. I want to try with my little man but am not sure about the logistics. Do you rely on help from DH or have you tried going solo?
Good question angeleish I'd be terrified of slipping!! And how do you both get dry? Guess it's easier if it's warm eh...
angeleish - Usually I get in the shower first and then get DH to hand L to me, but sometimes I just go solo. The hardest part is actually getting out with a wet baby because first I have make sure he is dry and safe before I can worry about drying myself, so often that's when I ask DH to help and take him off me so I can finish showering and dry off afterwards while DH entertains L and dries him off.
DH showers with him too and he was really nervous at first too but once he'd done it once he wondered why he hadn't done it sooner because it saves so much time and is quite easy. Plus most babies love the closeness and water, so they behave :)
Jet - I think every baby seems to have different sleeping patterns. I am still learning what L wants and needs and am learning mostly I just need to teach him to soothe himself but it's working out 'how' that I struggle with. Most of the time I just want to pick him up and cuddle him but I know that's counterproductive for him in the long run.
Nikki yep totally agree re settling!!! M got some more sleep than usual today cos I did not pick her up and as a result she spewed less! Madness!
EarthAngel75
27-07-2010, 20:27
angel & Jet: I used to shower with dd without any help. Our bathroom is a combined laundry/bathroom though (so had a flat surface) so I used get everything ready first by laying out dd's towel on top of the washing machine, moving the portable swing in there with a thick blanket and getting myself all ready. I'd have dd in the swing then turn the water on to right temp and then undress dd on top of the washing machine and hop into the shower. When I was finished showering her I'd leave the water running and pop her out, dry her off and wrap her in the blanket and pop her in the swing and turn it on and get back into the shower to finish. You could do the same with a bouncer too.
Well after another day of C being fussy on the breast I started googling and looks like I more than likely do have an over supply and he's now got too much lactose in his little body from too much foremilk. I'm now going to trial block feeding which is feeding from the same side for several feeds before switching to make sure he's getting the right balance of fore/hindmilk. Turns out that's probably why he's been gaining so much weight lol as he put on 420g again this week.
Did anyone else not get frenzied feeding at about 6w? They're supposed to have a growth spurt then and want to feed every 1-2 hours etc but so far C hasnt increased his feeds at all.
Did anyone else not get frenzied feeding at about 6w? They're supposed to have a growth spurt then and want to feed every 1-2 hours etc but so far C hasnt increased his feeds at all.
For us it was 6-7 weeks that the feeds were insatiable.
angeleish
27-07-2010, 20:40
hmm sounds like showering with baby will involve some logistical planning of military precision. :laughing: In all honesty though I think I might give it a go. I will try first on the weekend when DH is home. We have heater lights and ducted heating in the bathroom so the cold weather shouldn't be too much of an issue. Can't wait to give it a go.
Jet - glad to hear your little girl had a better sleeping day.
I agree with Nikki sometimes it is so hard not to pick them up when they wake too soon but we just have to think long term gain!!
earth - DS has always been a greedy feeder so I didn't notice a huge difference at the 6week mark. I did notice though that he was hugely unsettled then and it was the peak of his reflux too. As for oversupply - this was my problem too and apparently this didn't help with his reflux (I was feeding to soothe him and this in turn upset his tummy and made his reflux worse. It also meant that my supply was becoming way too much). The LC told me to feed one side for a minimum of 20 minutes and only offer the other side for 5 minutes if DS still looked hungry. I did this for a week or so and my supply went back to normal and now I am back to feeding from both sides. I still need to watch carefully for signs of over-feeding though as my supply tends to increase very quickly. The change in feeding did help DS a lot so I'm curious to see how you go with the new feeding patterns. It's such a delicate balance though isn't it.?
I can't remember Eart isn't that terrible!!!
EarthAngel75
28-07-2010, 08:46
Nikki: Thanks - maybe it's still to come here then as C isnt actually 6w until Thurs.
angel: Thanks for all the info. I used to feed 25-30mins/side and offer both and he'd usually take both so feeds were close to an hour. Then he slept through the night once and of course in the morning my boobs were rock hard and sooo full that he filled up on the foremilk and that's the first time he chucked. I think my problem is i was expressing in the morning after he'd feed as my boobs would still be so full and he'd only feed from the one side - which is turn signalled my body to produce more milk (in hindisght a bad idea!) It's good to know that you were told 20mins is a good amount of time as I have no clue. Interesting that you didnt notice much of a feeding frenzy in your ds as I had been wondering if i will or not since i purposely cluster feed ds in the early evening which is a way to deal with grwoth spurts - I'm trying to follow a routine from The baby whisperer and this is her recommended routine until 8w. Maybe it'll work and I wont get the frenzied feeding lol
Jet: LOL@ not remembering. The body/brain does that so you'll go back and have another one hahahahaha
Well i tried putting ds just into his woombie for his sleep this morning (i had been wrapping then into the woombie) to see if he'd grown and settled into trying to move his arms around so much (he used to fight them being restricted but free enough to move around!) - seems it may have backfired to a degree. He did go to sleep but Ive just started hearing little noises on the baby monitor - he's not upset or anything so will leave him but seems he may have a broken/unsettled sleep. Guess he's not ready for that yet. Maybe next sleep ill try wrapping one arm but leaving the other free inside the woombie and see how we go.
Hi Al,
Quick one:
Earth - N had two days of 2-hourly feeds between 5 and 6 weeks...he would feed for an hour then sleep for an hour...exhausting!
Re the showering issue - I haven't done this myself but I've heard that wrapping bub in a muslin cloth can make them less slippery to hold in the shower? Might be worth a go.
Regarding the slipping, yes they do get slippery but I find it harder to hold L in the bath than in the shower. At least in the shower I can hold him up against my body whereas in the bath he used to squirm around and I nearly dropped him in the water more than once!
I'd say give it a go, you might love it or hate it but I think people either prefer bath or showers and then stick to that because that's what they are comfortable with. I think I'll only go back to baths when he can sit by himself and starts wanting to play with toys etc. Until then he can have mummy cuddles and nursery rhymes in the shower :D
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