December 2011: Scratching, squeezing, hatching and latching...

[LittleMissHumbuggery]

...and those of us left are doing a fair bit of bitching:o

I wonder if we could get a [pompoms] going on? Do we have the energy for a campaign?

Right, come on! We're a third of the way through the month and Nickelbabe needs new recruits for her advent thread. Get squeezing:o

Yay, maltesers!!! Have a good night xxx

I have finally caught up on the thread!

Sending a belated Happy Christmas to everyone and many congrats to all on the newborns.

Will try to keep up to date from now on.

If any of you are playing words with friends on smartphones/tablets while feeding etc. I'm ProcrastinatorGeneral on there:)

If you're not playing, I recommend it as a feeding friendly pastime:o

going to sleep now honest

aethel & bee! Thank you for the tips (and v.helpful looking link aethel), have just finished a mammoth expressing session (which didn't amount to much more than me crying as DH gave LO a formula feed at the same time, massive feelings of guilt & all around bad mother-ness) but will deffo be trying everything tomorrow!! Here's to positive thinking

08:00 and number of hours sleep stands at 0:(

Morning all.

I have to start expressing more. my boobs are enormous & rock solid! also need nursing bras but haven't the foggiest about what size I am - need to have a proper fitting tbh.

Sky slept really well last night - infacol seems to be helping with Sky's tummy. Also TMI question: re breastfed baby's poo...Skys seem to have little bits in them is that normal? I ask because Darcie was formula fed, so this is new to me.

Sorry LMH, think I stole some of your sleep by accident: it was
lousy quality due to bump, various aches, and sharing the bed for DD1 for half the night (who's going through a bad dreams phase at the monand often wakes me at 1-2am needing a cuddle. She then falls asleep and is too heavy to lift to get back to bed so I have to wait til DH is awale to get her back as can't bring myself to wake him/her. Oh for a kingsize bed instead of a rather small futon!

Morning Darcies: yep, breastfed babys poo is often called "mustard poo" cos it looks like wholegrain mustard with lots of little bits in. Ham sandwich, anyone?

Good luck with today's expressing ARCH!

I'm right there with you reindeer have been doing breast, then expressed milk then formula for every feed, cos she's still hungry after the breast & expressed milk as I can't manage to express more than 20ml at a time. It's v tiring expressing after each feed but I really want a) for her to be getting the milk and b) for my breasts to keep producing. She is still quite agitated on the breast, she loses the latch easily & gets really frustrated, crying and twisting her head frantically. Trying to be chilled about it but it's hard cos I want bf to work so badly and am trying so hard but just not really succeeding at the moment :(

Hi ladies need to have a proper catch up unfortunately danny and I have been in hospital last couple of days as he'd lost almost 13% of birth weight by day 5 and was practically starving poor thing. We had to stay in overnight and adopt a 3hrly rotation of breast, expressed milk and formula top ups which was tough as it was taking 2 hrs at a time what with expressing next feed, changing, sterilising etc. Expressing is only generating 1-3mls at a time which confirms my fears he hadn't been getting enough. Now he getting formula he's a completely different baby I am going to persevere with breast and expressing too try and see if we can decrease his dependency on formula now worried about over feeding him.

We also were quarantined as a woman on the ward had sickness and diahorrea and so though it meant we then got a room to ourselves we couldn't leave it and had to use dedicated loos, have all supplies and food delivered to me which was cabin fevery. Got home last night and off to get own pump today (had been on way to get one after midwife check which sent us back to hospital) need to work on my fluid levels, eating, sleeping but i just always feel like I have him up on me and it's difficult DH already doing lots to help bless.

The last week has just passed me by can't believe he's a week old already

Morning ladies, for those expressing, I recommend the Medela Swing electric pump (we discussed it earlier on the thread - was that with you gels or others?) - it was half price in store at tesco.
Baby poo - we've had all variations of green - orange - yellow, with bits in that look a little like sesame seeds.
Question: LO's lower legs were a bit bent /curved due to his curled up position in the womb. When will they straighten out? The MW never said anything, I forgot to ask. Or do they just look a bit curved, ands it all perfectly normal?
Also, his belly is very wide - goes out from his ribs, is this normal too?
I've just got up and had Rice Krispies, I am now eying up the Quality Street. Is normal?

Morning everyone!

For everyone who needs to boost supply here is a list of things to try...

Take baby to bed for a nursing holiday, constant skin to skin, if they latch - feed as often as humanly possible, if you are expressing - 8-12 times in 24hrs including at least once at night.

Giving top ups in bottles can make it harder to get baby back to the breast because the sucking action is different and bottles are less work for babies, syringe feeding, cup feeding or using a Supplemental Nursing System (google for suppliers) are alternative ways to top up.

Fenugreek for the herbal option and Motilium (over the counter anti nausea drug) both increase milk supply.

Take care of yourself. Sleep as much as you can, focus on feeding to the exclusion of everything else, eat and drink as much as you need. Don't forget that you are recovering from birth!

Get yourself to a BF counsellor, midwives and health visitors don't always have the most up to date training, BFCs have to update regularly. Check for LLL groups in your area, some NCTM and LLL counsellors do home visits too.

figgy sorry you've been back in hospital having a tough time.
It sounds like we've all had our teething troubles. Things will get better/easier! Whether it's bfing, illnesses, colic, awkward relatives, troublesome toddlers... Thank goodness for this thread!!
In the words of the very sage young Mr. Grace "you're all doing very, very well."

Oi curved legs, mahoosive belly and the urge to destroy all known foodstuffs are entirely normal:o My two looked like bandy legged Buddhas for the first three months as are both fine. I seem to have passed on to them the need to eat constantly though, you can't fill them! >_

Figgy Sorry to see you & Danny were back in hospital. Good to see your back home tho.

Oi Darcie was born bandy legged, although turned out I'd passed on joint hypermobility. Sky is bandy legged but doesn't have hypermobility. think it's something most baby's are born with.

Question: how can I help relieve Sky's constipation? She has it due to being fed so much formula by SCBU! Once she's pooed you can see the relief but beforehand you can see the pain she is in

She's too young for massage, so I've no idea other than constant boobs:( I've never really got on with the idea of boiled water etc. but I'm sure your GP or midwife (if you've not been signed off) might have some ideas?

In other news: I just spent the last half an hour decanting Christmas tat into boxes, bags and the recycle bin. It feels much better having it all gone. Can concentrate on getting on now, be it slowly with a waddle:) The kids are off to my mums this afternoon do I'm going to do laundry and potter about getting little bits done, then try to get an early night after the debacle of last night. Going to pack away the last of the bits into my labour bag as they're sat on top of it right now >_

Congratulations Hawthers and hope you're having cuddles by now too fusam

Hang in there LMH and aethel

Sorry to hear you had to go back in figgy but pleased you're home now

Health visitor came today and DS continues to pile on the weight. Now 9lb 8oz on day 13, up from 8lb 6oz birth weight. He's on 91st percentile. A complete contrast to DD who was on 9th percentile in the early stages!

Blimey Kate! I thought "BigAl" was doing well (and feeding well)!
Thanks for the reassurance re bandy legs and big bellies, ladies.

Figgy - you're sticking with it and that makes you a hero in my book. I think a return trip to hospital would have broken me.

Been told cooled boiled water between feeds by GP who visited earlier

Epic amounts of hanging going on Kate :o

I'm about to feed the washing machine them I'm heading to bed:I

darcies 'cycling' her legs can help too, works for Miri who makes a bit of a drama about pooing!

figgy you have my sympathy, we ended up back in hospital with DD1. Make sure you take care of yourself too, it is too easy to forget when you're worried about LO.

I have been prickly as hell today, I am done with the holidays and impatient to get back to our normal weeks. DP back to work on Tuesday, I have arranged 2 playdates for the rest of that week to make entertaining the DDs easier!

Hormonal.com......

msB Feeling the pain with you! We are utterly fed up of the festives now. Kids are going loopy without their routine, more so my son who is 4 and doesn't approve of deviating from the norm too much. Schools aren't back for over a week yet and I'm due any day so energy levels are at a big fat 0% >_