October 2013: The Fourth Trimester - the bit no one warns you about!

[roxvox]

Stats sheet here

New arrivals here

Key:
SC - still cooking (pre EDD)
SFW - still f*ing waiting (post EDD)
OWT - on way to theatre (CS)
IP - induction in progress
SWIL - somewhere in labour
LIT - lost in transition

Mnippy - I meant to say . I would post of the bf and ff thread re the tube thing. I def read a thread on it a while ago...

MoN - sorry about your scar. I forget, are you bf Rlusna a bit as well as the ff? I know you were at one stage... DD had oral thrush... If E is going

Oh Lordy... Going on your nipples at all, it is VITAL that you are also treated for thrush even without symptoms, otherwise it'll just pass back and forth and not clear. Ridiculous numbers if GPs etc don't know this... I had to have nipple gel for thrush even with no symptoms.

Oh and I'm still v emotional... 8 weeks in! Cried six times today:

1. First thing because DH is away for another stint..
2. When feeding because I love the twins so much
3. At 12.30 when not collecting DD because she now does full days at pre school until 3.15... Felt v guilty
4. When a woman raised her eyes to heaven and sighed when I accidentally bumped her with the pram in Starbucks (I didn't cry there, just when I left..)
5. When I saw the poppies for Remembrance Day on the Cathedral Green
6. Tonight when I thought about how much I love all three children...

!!!!

Actually no - seven times!! Twins had their first jabs at 2.30.... I cried for that too! Throughout the whole thing!!!

Legally you are literally superwoman! I feel pretty good if I've managed a shower myself these days

T is 6 weeks today and being totally lovely - smiling loads and sleeping from midnight till 6am some nights (!) I ventured out to the next city to us today to meet a good friend from work. Sounds like my maternity cover is nowhere near as good as I am, so weirdly feeling better about all that - although it seems a million miles away right now. Also got loads of lovely baby gap clothes with 40% discount - sign up to their mailing list if you're near one, they do these offers quite frequently.

Flyer so glad to hear A has turned the corner - onward and upward

to everyone struggling atm. The only thing not going so well for me is my section scar which is still not properly healed I have my 6 week check tomorrow so will be asking to try a few things I've read online, and hopefully be referred back to the surgeon if they don't sort it. Totally sick of antibiotics, and desperate to get back running again as I feel very flabby and shit about myself.

What's this about severe tiredness kicking in at 3/4 months? I thought it got better then
Legally - I am in awe... Your bf advice is amazing too btw. Don't always get a chance to say, but it's much appreciated.
Some knobend is letting really loud fireworks off near our house at the moment. Lo startles each time, poor thing. Wish they would ban private sales of fireworks and just keep to organised displays.

Oh, and good news about the weight gain flyer

mnippy someone posted about this the other day (sorry, can't remember who). Could it be what you're looking for?

Legally you are supermum, you do all this with DH away and you never moan or complain just take it all in your stride an inspiration to many!

I feel for all of you with dp/dh going back to work. I've yet to have a day alone dp is working from home daily and until the new year will continue to do so, and if he has to leave for a meeting my mum is here 3/4 days a week so we potter around together. It's worrying me that I will become dependant upon the constant help though.

Going to book A bear a little photo shoot so we have some nice baby pictures. Also just starting to write all my thank you cards, I cannot believe how generous people are when you have a baby, it's very sweet.

Also at what age do you start dressing your baby in normal clothes? A is 3 weeks old and I still dress her in a baby gro when we go out but noticed my Nct friends all had their babies in clothes.

Mon hope the thrush clears up.

Oh and Caz you are also supermum
I think you do a sterling job. Your kids sound lovely from what you've said in the past

To all those with more than 1, I seriously have a new found sense of admiration for you all.

flyer great news about A bear and legally you are amazing how on earth can you breastfees with one arm and cook with the other!

I'm getting really worried, after feeding like a demon N is hardly feeding now and doesn't seem himself, his cry has changed and he has gone back to being super sleepy. We went to the doctor yesterday but he didn't seem worried and he did light feeding yesterday afternoon and overnight so didn't go back today but he seems to be slowing down again. It's been suggested it us more efficient feeding which I'd love to believe but he isn't emptying my boobs, which now ache and are leaking for the first time, also we tried some expressed milk and he only took 30ml.

Thanks for the advice re overly generous Mil, helps to know she is not the only one. She still hasn't stopped, sil visited yesterday with another outfit from her but we actually sent it back and suggested she get something bigger as it's for a wedding in late dec and N is already completely outgrown his 0-1 month clothes and the 0-3 month clothes don't have much baggyness in them now. She also sent up some jam which is handy as we can't get jam in North London!

flyer I wouldn't worry about being dependent. It's nice that you have help. I wouldn't turn Down that much help and company if I had the chance. My DH does almost all the housework, and his parents cleaned our bathroom and hoovered this week, and we're living off food we froze earlier or that people have brought us. And I didn't even have a c section and our baby isn't particularly needy compared to others.

There's nothing wrong with keeping our babies in babygros. Maybe it's a mn thing but I used to read threads about this and lots of people are happy keeping babies in babygros for at least 6 months. We have outfits that people have given us but J has only worn a real outfit twice, to church, and I consider it a waste because he spends the whole time in his caboo carrier anyway. I don't like the idea of waistbands digging in or making him uncomfortable so I prefer babygros.

flyer I also have dh working from home and feel I rely on him so much it's lovely but I feel useless compared to those handling multiple children. N is mainly in babygrows he has a few outfits but I don't worry as long as he is warm and clean. Where we have started buying 3-6 month clothes for the future these are often still babygrows.

Bronze - can u call the Whit triage or community MWs? You sound worried, go with your instinct x

I am the first to admit I am very dependent on dh I might have 2 but dread being on my own, it sounds awful but it is the truth :S

Ladies struggling on your own - I definitely recommend getting a sling! I have a proper velcro baby. She doesn't seem to sleep deeply enough for me to get away with putting her in her crib for any more than 10 minutes. So when DH is away and I can't hand her over to him then I just pop her in a sling whilst I cook my meals or do some housework or whatever. Am yet to find a non-DH solution for if I want anything more substantial than a quick shower, so I just wash my hair on the days that DH is working from home; and when I am home alone it is purely a case of quickly de-milking my skin.

pseudo I've been signed off by the community midwifes but I have an appointment with the health visitor tomorrow. N just managed a half decent feed so I feel better about him going through the night now.

Posting before proper catch up.
Today was my first proper day alone. From 12-9pm. Sis came for an hour tho.
I spent most my day crying.
Both sons went to sleep in clothes they woke up in. No poo or puk stains , do exceptable.
DS1 and I had same thing for lunch and dinner.

I've been assured this is ok.
All fed and noone dead. Is the aim of my day.
Just wanted to share as I know some of us are struggling alone, just want to assure you, your not struggling alone.

That's how I feel gt just aim to survive the day!!! I have DH working at home but only for this week. When we had ds we thought it was such hard work.........it was a walk in the park compared with two!! I have a Velcro baby too and he is on the sling most of the day so I can okay with ds1 and get on with life, ds1 was the same and eventually got less Velcro when a bit older.
Have changed bottles tonight to mam anti colic and they are amazing if anyone struggling with windy baby I recommend.

Yes to a sling! DD was a totally Velcro baby and the close caboo sling was essential for survival... I use it for V all the time now. Can't imagine how people manage without one! They so grow out of being Velcro... As I said, DD was very clingy.... At just three she's the opposite. So yesterday was first full day at school (3.15 finish). At pick up she asked of she could stay for after school club (age saw it being set up in the class room next door). Just so happened that twins' jabs were at 2.30 today so I booked her in for after school club in case nurse was running late - she was, of course, when I went to get DD at 3.55, I walked in and she said "oh please go away, I'm still doing my activity" I said I'd give her ten mins and I got her stuff etc. After ten mins she said "can't you just go back to the doctors and I'll stay here?". On the way home age said: "Mum,when I am a bug enormous girl, I will stay at school and have a bed there. It's ok, you can see me in huge morning or next week.... It's going to be so exciting when I'm enormous". Errrr... Her school does have some boarders from age 7, but not for her!!!!! Not Velcro any more though.... !

big enormous girl and the morning.... Sorry! Hate my iPhone!

bowlfullofjelly my little one has also stopped sleeping during the day and become very clingy. You have my sympathies - it's so difficult to get anything done now!

PIL over at the minute and need to rant! In the last few days they've asked what exercise i'm doing whilst pointing at tummy (err none other than walking because your grand-daughter was cut out of me 4 weeks ago and i'm not allowed yet) and had it suggested that i shouldn't eat any naan bread when we ordered takeaway (i'm now only about 4kg over pre-pregnancy weight so don't feel i'm doing too badly. So i ate a whole naan bread)! DH suggested they might like to mow the lawn/ hoover to help out but they said they employ a gardener/ cleaner at home so they don't have to do it so certainly won't be doing it here.

Fortunately they're staying in motel down the road but they're still here every morning and evening and expect DH to drink with them/ entertain them as though nothing has changed.

Still have to survive another 48 hours with them.

Sorry just needed to let that out!!!!

kiwee. Did your DH intervene on your behalf?

I'm keeping my lo in baby gros for as long as possible flyer, especially given his tendency to have an explosive poo and make a mess up his back at least every second day. A vest ad baby gro are easily changed/removed - and cleaned. Couldn't be bothered with fuss of anything else at the moment. Plus, they're so cute when they're little in their baby gros! We have more proper clothes for 3-6 months +

!!! kiwi. Keep going, not long to go now! (Do what I do - I have a special silent 'smile and nod with clenched teeth' response to my il's worst behaviour. I am comforted by the knowledge that I can bitch regularly to my brother and best friends!)

Thanks for the advice re supplemental system. I'm finding it difficult to get comfortable with the stark truth that there are some things I could try to improve milk production but I don't out of lifestyle choice.

Oh, and legally, you are pretty amazing.

Re babygros, I have a few jumpers and bottoms, but much prefer babygros. Mnip jnr looks a tad ridiculous in the outfits (his grandma bought him a tiny shirt...when is he going to wear it and when would I iron it!?).