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... 😄

@ShiningStarz glad it sounds like LO is doing well post-vaccinations. Smiles are definitely a good sign! We always have a sleepy day on vaccination day so you may find her a bit snoozy for the rest of the day

@ShiningStarz - that sounds pretty much like DD on Monday. She slept really well in the afternoon and then also slept 10pm to 5am - which is unusual for her!!

This may seem a bit like a silly question, it what do you do with your babies when they're awake? DD is having longer stretches when she's not sleeping or feeding and I'm not too sure what to do with her. We do sessions on the playmat and tummy time and I sing her nursery rhymes. But she doesn't seem all that interested. And it's pretty exhausting having to think of things to do with her all the time - for example she hasn't slept all afternoon so she's been with me on the sofa and I'm just stuck for more things to do. I don't think I can sing head shoulders knees and toes one more time!!

@kersh33 we do playmat as well, he’s mainly interested in his rattle but never for long, or things that are shiny. Sometimes I just wander around the house and pause near mirrors and other shiny things. We do some online things like baby massage / baby music but it varies how interested he is. They get more interested gradually I think. Mine has just started reaching for rattles etc which is a bit more fun for me now he’s that bit more engaged. Its such a difficult age when they’re awake more but not quite ready to actually play!

@kersh33 that sounds just like me!! Unfortunately that's all we can do at this stage. It doesn't seem a lot to us but it is to them! It gets so boring though. My LO loves just being walked around looking at things like @Sara7455 says though that gets tiring. I put my little one in a sling now so I can get on with things and she can still look around. I then talk to her by just saying out loud what I'm doing!

@kersh33 it's hard when they are so young. I've found this Facebook page with free zoom baby classes and have done a couple this week. my boy has been asleep of lost interest both times but I've still watched to get ideas for when he I awake. All the classes are free and funded by the lottery

@kersh33 I also found this app which has play ideas for different age groups

@Roxy8203 I saw you mention that group the other day. I did have a look but struggle to join zooms at specific times and there didn’t look like they keep much of the back catalogue saved. I’m a Busy Lizzy member so I use their page as they’ve got all the old lives stored in the group and I just do the classes when little one is awake and in the mood.

@Sara7455 no I think they run that page as they would pre-lockdown in person classes. The app has some good ideas for play as well

@Roxy8203 I’ll give the app a try. Thank you 😊

@kersh33 we do the play mat daily too and she loves it. Our girl is 9 weeks but still sleeps most of the day. When she is awake she's happy lying in our arms, I'v started bedtime routine to include reading couple short stories. Sometimes I just sing nursery rhymes / walk around house explaining what I'm doing too! The sling sounds like a great idea!

Our local NCT gave started doing park walks (meet up's) to comply with covid so I plan to start that, there is also an outdoor running/walking buggy club near me. Maybe look for outdoor walks with other mums, try NCT first xx

Ugh leap 2, 5 days to go. Clingy, crabby nightmare! That’s all I have to say lol

@ShiningStarz Just to say I do the weekly NCT walks and they're great. Meet mums who have babies different ages so can get tips/ideas. Also the NCT volunteers are a wealth of knowledge and so supportive!

@Lorna198 same...so clingy! I've found a sling at home to be brilliant as keeps them close but I can get in with things. My LO almost always falls asleep in it

@WillowT yeah I am get more tempted to get one!

Although I do kinda take it back. It may have been an awful evening but he slept 1145 till 755. 8 beautiful hours 😍 fully aware it’s a fluke but god I’m taking it 😂

@Lorna198 it's a game changer. I would recommend getting in touch with your local sling library (think they are NCT run)....you can hire one to see if you like it before you buy and they give you loads of advice.

Thanks everyone for your replies - it's much appreciated! Good to hear that I'm not missing something super obvious to do. It is hard when there isn't really a lot of feedback from the baby!

I'll have a look at the app and the Facebook page. Sadly I'm not in UK and we are in strict lockdown so so opportunity to meet people in person. They don't seem big on baby groups here either so not much online that I've been able to discover. DD seems happy enough but you always worry whether you should be doing more! I think that's the mum guilt kicking in!!

Oh @Lorna198 I am jealous! We had a terrible night. DD was up loads for milk and then when she was sleeping was so bloody noisy that I found it impossible to sleep! Because of her reflux I have to keep her upright for 20 mins after food but then that wakes me right up and it takes me ages to get back to sleep, and then just when i’m almost at the point of drifting off she goes into that ‘noisy’ part of sleep and it’s impossible to ignore it

@OrDis I hear you with regards to the noisy baby ! It's incredible how much noise they can make in their sleep!

@WillowT that's great! Our meet up's are on a Friday at 11. Nice time too!!
Has anyone tried the rain cover on pram yet?
Our LO hates the bassinet! She cried for at least 20 mins and then eventually falls asleep but it doesn't make for a pleasured walk lol! We take her out mainly in her car seat attached to the pram, haven't tried to see if raincover will attach properly over the car seat on pram 🤔

Got 3.5 hrs straight sleep last night, whoop!! Can't believe how big and alert she is with smiles constantly xx

@OrDis and @kersh33 noisy baby here too, think I'll miss her noises when she eventually moved into her own room, I find it quite reassuring!

Noisy baby here too! I've never known anything like it 😂 He's asleep next to me now though & quiet so why am I awake?!

His injections went okay this week. I absolutely hate it when they have a temperature so I'd got myself a bit stressed about it but he was okay. He absolutely hated the calpol though.

I'm managing to get out a bit more now my scar has finally healed and I'm using a stretchy wrap for him. It's an ergo baby aura & I'd definitely recommend it. I took baby and dog to the beach yesterday and it was lovely. I'd put the wrap on before I got in the car so I wasn't faffing when we got there.

Thank you for the fb group recommendation 😊

Hi everyone, I hope you're all doing ok.

Has anyone bought an elvie breast pump? @ChipsAreLife i think you mentioned it? Would you recommend it?

@Lilice I have it but only started using it yesterday. I tried for 20 minutes in the afternoon and got 2oz. I don't have anything to compare it with but it's very easy to use and love that your not wire to a plug so can move around

@Roxy8203 did you have to buy any other extra parts? I saw people mentioning cushions on a Facebook page - no idea what they are.