The babies are here! September 2020

[LatteLover12]

Hi all 👋🏻

Here's a new thread so we can keep chatting through the sleepless nights and the many outfits they've already grown out of... 😄

@Sara7455 I think you're right. I think it was maybe 4 months post partum but check with surgery. It's important to get it when you can though. It wasn't crazy painful but more so than normal.

Well he slept through the Halloween trail last night 🤣 he's feeding loads at the moment. I'm attached to my pump loads lol!

I'm struggling with getting him down for daytime naps. He likes to be in the carrier for them but he's so big it's doing my back in!

@ChipsAreLife I will check and I’ll definitely get it but will see what they say first. If we’re about to have a lockdown then who knows if they’ll even do it in November.

You’re doing so well to still be exclusively pumping! The bigger and needier he gets the less frequently I’m managing to do it so he’s probably on about 70:30 formula:breast milk now.

Hey anyone using mam bottles?
We are still using the 160ml smallest bottle. She still needs 8 feeds a day minimum and drinks 100-120ml per feed.

We have the steriliser, 2 small bottles and 2 big bottle set, apparently all have baby teat size.

LO 8 weeks next thurs and the mam site says can move to teat size 2 from 8 weeks on bigger bottle. Anyone got experience of this? Just need buy teats separately. Thinking bigger teat might get LO to drink more milk at one feed.

@ShiningStarz I am. Also still using the baby teat and the little bottles but he’s 8 weeks corrected now so thinking of getting the bigger ones in ready. I can’t remember where I read it but there’s some resources online about when they’re ready to go up a size - if you go up to early the flow will be too fast and they start gagging and spitting up more so something to watch out for. I’ve started having to use some powdered formula though and it’s much thicker so I think he’s struggling to get it through the teat as well. Drinking less than usual at powder feeds and hungry quicker after! I reckon it’s worth having them in to try but with age guides on these things I take them with a pinch of salt since all kids develop at different rates and are different sizes etc.

@Sara7455 our surgery never stopped doing smears. Think there are certain things they will carry on doing and that's one of them.
Thank you. It's hard somedays, he's incredibly hungry and I'm having to express at least 1400ml a day and it's hard! I've actually just ordered some dairy free aptamil so I can give one formula a day and space out feeds. I could have got from GP but Amazon was quicker and it was £15 which is fine when only doing one feed a day.

Re teats. We've started to use a couple of 2s. He was taking in so much air trying to get milk faster on the 1s. He was sick the first couple of times but he's getting used to it. He does feed much quicker on them!

Hope everyone is feeling ok re lockdown. It's so shite. Luckily schools are staying open and I'm glad we can go for walks and also playgrounds are still open. Just so crap as I'll miss my family and friends.

@ShiningStarz I bought some this week with size 2 teats and dd is 6 weeks. She was falling asleep during feeds quite a lot during the day with the size 1 tommee tippee and has really responded well to the faster flow. She does leak milk from her mouth more but I think she's mainly excited by it!

Oh Ed was on the teats from 7 weeks. Agree with @ShiningStarz the age thing is just a guideline. You'll find it with everything. Like at 6 months they don't need night feeds for example. Some do!

@ChipsAreLife that’s an amazing amount! I think I only ever got as high as about 900 and down to about 350 now. He’s on mostly formula anyway so I’ve started putting one feed a day in the freezer so he can keep having a little bit when I’m not producing anymore. Imagining slightly less daily over a longer period of time (especially over winter) will hopefully still do him good. Our GP are prescribing his premature baby milk at the moment but the nurse said the consultant might stop it soon so we’ll have to start buying it before long.

I’ve just started using Dr Browns bottles with DD And they have been amazing at cutting down her wind. We also use the number 2 teats as she’d fall asleep after an ounce on the number 1 teats from working too hard. The ages are just a guideline.

Thanks @Sara7455 @Chanel05 I plan to ring the GP in the morning to discuss contraception!!! I even shaved my legs thinking we might have had an opportunity but our beautiful daughter is all the contraception we need!!! 😂🙈

@ChipsAreLife wvery 3hrs for feed is great!!! Little one has been feeding more frequently and sometimes as little as 60ml!! Going to try moving to the stage 2 teat on bottle tomorrow. See if that's helps.

Thanks all for answering the bottle teat question! Definitely will try number 2 teats from during the day tomorrow. Fingers crossed means she gets more in less time with less effort and then sleeps for longer 🤞🤞

I haven't been pumping since about 5 weeks and LO is almost 8. I was only getting about 40ml a day and couldn't hold pump and LO once DP went back to work.

Feel so bad that I'm Not even giving her one BF even expressed.
Iv been reading kelly mom on relactation and reading that it is possible.
For some reason since she was born I could go a whole day not drinking any water! I even bought pregnacare BF multivitamins which I never even started! Need to change my ways!!

So I plan to take 2 days as recommended just doing skin to skin and then fingers crossed over next few weeks she will begin to get enough feed from BF with formula top ups. Anyone else
Considering this after formula feeding ? X

@shiningstarz good effort shaving your legs, I'm impressed 😂 I resemble a yeti!
Good luck with the relactation but don't beat yourself up or feel guilty if you can't. As long as she's fed she'll be fine and happy! I'm really bad at drinking water. I've started to keeping a water bottle on the sink in the bathroom so everytime I go to the loo or go wash my hands after a nappy change it encourages me to have a drink which helps me stay hydrated!

To those using formula, do you wash/sterilise the scoop? I keep finding that when I tip the formula into the bottle some is sticking to the scoop! I’ve been trying to bang it off but it either doesnt work or just makes a mess!

So has anyone thought ahead to Christmas yet or is it still too far away to think about? What are you getting for your little people? Family have been asking us already what they can get for baby girl! We are intending to ask them for a reuseable nappy or 2 in the 'birth to potty' size to help build our stash of reuseables once she grows out of her newborn ones. Bit boring I know! We were thinking of filling a small stocking with sensory stuff/treasure basket type stuff. She'll only be 2 and a half months so not going to go overboard, more token things really! What are you all planning to do?

(or we might treat her to a dehumidifier so her nappies dry quicker 😂)

@Margo34 people have started asking us too and I have no idea. They’ll still be so little! Maybe some books for bedtime stories but I’m still very rarely reading. His bedtime routine is basically bath or just change to pjs and him yelling at us until he’s decided he’s full enough to sleep so it doesn’t really lend itself to reading. Possibly some clothes in 3-6 months. He got quite a lot of toys as new baby gifts and he’s not hugely bothered about any of them still most of the time.

Here’s Rafe’s list. Not huge but just the stuff he needs, refuse to waste money when he’s simply so young at 17 weeks at Christmas. He can then have the 6 month stuff waiting for him.

6-12 months sleeping bag 2.5 and lower
Piggy bank personalised
Books
6+ months toys
Baby Walker
High chair
Feeding bowls cutlery etc
Add to his premium bonds
1st Christmas something so he has a special gift from both sets of grandparents to treasure

@ordis I do one bottle of formula in the evening, so I only sterilise the scoop once in a while. I always have a Milton solution going in the kitchen so I just drop it in there. I hate it when the steam makes the powder stick to the scoop lol.
I like your list @Lorna198 thanks for sharing. I'm thinking of getting an activity circuit, it's good to keep them occupied

Your list is fab @Lorna198 !! Your family and friends are organised!! We still haven't been asked, I think it'll just be money really so we can buy what's needed as she gets older. Must order up first personalise Xmas tree decorations tho!! Maybe a Stocking too 💕
Re. The scoop! We only used powder formula for a week and it was gross, so sticky and got everywhere! She was so constipated on it. I think the foaminess didn't agree with her!!

Well LO was waking every 2 hrs for a feed but last couple nights things have changed!
My DP gave her her feed as usual after 8pm bath and she slept until 11pm and then he have her feed and brought her to me! She slept until 330am, only drank 40ml milk tho!!! I tried and tried but her lips were sealed shut!! Since about 4am and now (620), she has woke 2/3 times crying so I start the bottle warmer, turn back to settle her while it's warming and off to sleep she goes!!! Anyone else's LO wake up crying in night but but for feed?!! This is a new development!! I'm wide awake now and may as well watch the US elections lol, might put me back to sleep 🙈

It's meant a she's gone from 11pm - 630 on 1 feed!! Apparently she didn't drink much at 11 and she def only had 40ml in the night.
We have switched to size 2 mam teat so may have something to do with the change

@ShiningStarz ah I was going to ask if you resolved the foamy formula issue. GP has finally insisted i use some alongside the ready to drink stuff as I get it all on prescription and he’s having more and more formula now. It’s so foamy and horrible looking though and he’ll only drink a small amount of it unless he’s really hungry. Doesn’t help that I’m used to the ease of expressed milk and the ready to drink so faffing with kettle and cooling the milk down is a pain! Persevering for now but will see how we get on.

@Lorna198 that list is great! Thanks for sharing.

@Sara7455 we just bought the nuby bottle warmer from Argos! It's great and I would recommend to anyone who needs to warms up formula feeds. It was £18 and honestly takes 3 mins to heat up and it's always either right or just under which suits. Rarely too hot expect when I'v ran it through twice!

@Sara7455 we haven't tried her back on the powder. I think I'm happier giving her the readymade although it's working out around £5 for day! We use the 1 litre bottle during the day and then usually 1 200ml mini bottle overnight.

For anyone using aptamil readymade, the 1 litre bottle is about 30-40p cheaper in M&s!! They only ever have a few bottles on their shelf but saves us at least £12 a month combining M&s with sainsburys / Tesco. X

@ShiningStarz that’s good to know for when I stop getting formula on prescription. Not sure how much longer that will be now he’s a healthier size. His nurse said to make sure we keep using some ready made but will try to give him as much as we can if they do big bottles of the ready made as well.

I saw a tip earlier to use a sterilised spoon to mix the formula instead of shaking. Might help with the foamy issue?