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... 😄

No I’ve not brought anything extra. Cushions are a thing that you out inside the flange where your nipple goes to get a better suction. Also ladies use them if they have elastic nipples to make it less uncomfortable I believe

Thanks @roxy

Hi @Lilice, yes I have one! It's a god send for me as I'm exclusively expressing and I'm working 2/3 hours a day again so I can do it at the same time. It's pretty good. I can do a lot more than when I'm plugged in but you have to be careful as it does Leak if you bend over or do too much.

Sometimes the suction is poor and I think it's because every single party has to be 100 dry so I have to check that and put it back together again.

The app is brilliant as it logs how much I express and when. Sometimes the amounts it detects aren't 100 right but you can edit that.

They are expensive though I'm getting sponsored ads for a black Friday deal so maybe worth holding out if you can?

Oh and no haven't bought any extras. They've got some new products out but they catch milk in the bra if you leak between feeds etc so not needed for the pump. Is that what you mean by the cushions?

How's everyone doing?! Ed is 10 weeks now and HUGE!!! Everyone thinks he's 6 months And my back hurts lol!

He's starting to generally do one long streak at night now normally 11-3.00/4.00 sometimes more, sometimes less. I'm incredibly grateful though as my girls were dreadful sleepers and o didn't get that to at least 6 months with them. His daytime naps are a bit less certain and are getting shorter. I tend to put him in the pram for a walk morning and afternoon as he will have a decent sleep in there. Think when he hits 12 weeks I may try work on better day naps.

Hope everyone else is ok? X

Thank you @ChipsAreLife I ended up buying a cheaper version on amazon. Eva has developed bottle preference and i need to express on the go if I want her to get any breastmilk. But im still in two minds and think my life would be easier if I just switched to formula.
That's brilliant for the night sleep! We get a few long stretches but not consistently.
How are you finding

How are you finding being back at work, and coping with 3 kids? Are your girls happy to have a little brother?
Naps aren't great for us, unless it's in a sling. She'll do 30 minutes in her bed and need help to get back to sleep. I often end up taking her in my bed and resting while she naps next to me. My husband is getting 2 weeks of furlough soon and wants to tackle naps then.

It's really hard. I find myself toying with formula but I find it such a faff preparing it etc. We have to have a special one so can't even buy pre made stuff! But then expressing is a faff. DH said 'no matter what you choose it's not easy'. So true!

Honestly ... my time is so stretched. My house is generally a tip and then I'll blitz it on a Friday or Saturday. DH is still not working (events) so he has baby whilst I work but his mental health isn't great so he's given himself tasks in the house to keep him focused. Sounds great ... but there is often mess everywhere. Currently my downstairs loo has been ripped out ready for tiling today 🤪 I'm hoping to ease back in dec it's just been a very busy month for the business and was easier for me to step in and fill the gap than recruit. It's paid for Xmas too.

How are you finding 3? Will you go back to work soon? So hard when you work for yourself
I think. I can't remember what you do but I'm in comms and PR and I can't just stop start it especially in the run up to Xmas!

Yes same on naps! Sling or buggy being moved fine. Bed less so lol. Going to start working on bed naps from 12 weeks and see how it goes.

Sorry forgot to tag you @Lilice

Hey everyone, hope you are all doing ok. I have been completely flat out! I would have been checking this thread numerous times a day!! Now it's once a day if I'm lucky!! Haha!!
I hope I'm not speaking too soon but we are very lucky with our little girl, she is 10 weeks tomorrow!
We got our first 9pm - 630am sleep OMG!! She does make little noises and like someone else said I find them reassuring. My DP is back in same bed as us so it's lovely to be together.
She is also letting us set her down for daytime naps. She loves the play mat and is starting to reach for the toys, not accurately lol but it's great to watch the development. Can't believe how much she has changed especially when I look back at the newborn pics!!! She is still wearing 0-3 and prob will be until at least Jan. my new hobby looking at baby clothes 😂😂 good job I'm on maternity pay and can't buy any haha

Anyone else got 'baby wrist'?!!
My left wrist and hand are sore and apparently this is a common condition new mums get!!

@ChipsAreLife have a look on your local Facebook selling pages or eBay for a perfect prep. You can pick a 2nd hand one up for £20, takes all the faff out of formula prep. I swear by mine. In fact I have 2 cos I found one for a fiver in charity shop so upstairs and down haha.

@ShiningStarz that first full nights sleep is such a game changer, makes a huge difference to your frame of mind lol. My boys been full nights since Thursday and it’s heaven lol.

@ShiningStarz I think I've got baby wrist, baby back, baby hips, baby neck. Everything aches from holding and carrying him...I will accept it for the cuddles though, they make it worthwhile

@chipsarelife wow back at work and 3 kids you are superwoman! I don't remember the last time I brushed my hair 🤣 my house is also chaos I'm trying not to care but I just want it clean!!
@shiningstarz that sounds like a dream, I'd be happy with 2 hours 🤣 it's not so bad when he's in our bed as I just snooze while he feeds - i swear last night he was attached to my boob from 4am until morning! But I really want to transition away from bed sharing so hope he'll start settling in his next to me soon! At the moment he wakes every 45 mins in there 🙄

Oh and yes to the baby hand/thumb pain @shiningstarz @roxy8203! I thought at first it was from being on my phone all the time (such a bad habit whilst sat trapped under a baby all day) but then I read somewhere about it being from picking them up all the time!

@Lorna198 ah ok will have a look! I'm thinking of maybe just doing one or two formulas in the day as that's what I find expressing hard. At night it's ok as I express when he feeds and he goes straight to sleep and doesn't need cuddles. In the day he likes to be held!

@ShiningStarz wow! That's a great sleep!!! Ed couldn't go that long without milk so well done sienna!!!

@MooseWL ha ha thanks! Don't get me wrong some days I don't get into the shower till 9.30pm! I'm lucky that we are in a bubble with MIL and she is besotted with the baby and is also so bored with lockdown so she has him a lot whilst I work. DH just isn't as good with babies and doesnt understand why you can't just put him down for a sleep for three hours 🙃

My first two didn't sleep well so I know how lucky I am this time round and also that it can all change over night. It does eventually get easier in the meantime find a good podcast and do some Xmas shopping at night! X

@chipsarelife I've also got my MIL in a bubble who is also besotted, she works so only tends to come over once a week but it's really nice to have someone come over and give me a bit of a break. Plus she does my washing up and brings meals, I definitely lucked out in the MIL department!
Oh no. Have you asked your OH to try putting the baby down for 3 hours and see what happens 🤣
Tbh I'm getting used to the terrible sleep. 6 weeks ago I was like I cannot survive on this little sleep, but now I'm just sort of surviving!
He did a 90 min stint in his crib tonight which is progress, but typically it took me ages to fall asleep!
Night feeds are terrible for online shopping!

@ChipsAreLife my mum has been staying with us for over a month - she came from France- she is leaving this weekend and I don't know how I will cope without her because even now I have to admit I'm struggling to share my time between the three kids and im mostly with Eva which makes me feel very guilty. My son had surgery and had to spend 2 weeks recovering at home, he's just been back this week to school. Having my mum around was amazing. Otherwise he would have been watching TV for 2 weeks.
Eva is definitely my last baby, there is no way I could go through the newborn stage again.
I will go back to work one day a week from February. I teach in a private French school and do tutoring too. I imagined I could resume the online tutoring earlier while Eva napped next to me, I was obviously out of my mind 🤣
@ShiningStarz @Lorna198 that's amazing for the night sleep! What's your secret?? Did it happen gradually?
My first 2 slept through from 3 and 4 months old, but I had to give them a dream feed at 11pm for months before being able to drop it. Eva won't take it some nights and I feel bad waking her up if she's not hungry. She still wakes up twice a night and sleeps 9pm to 7 am.
@MooseWL im still expressing at night and finding it hard to go back to sleep. The other night I was awake for 3 hours!! I thought breastfeeding at night was supposed to send you back to sleep easily

@Lilice I noticed last night we bathed her too late and then she didn't have the energy for the full feed so she woke once at 4am for feed!! The night before where she slept through the night we bathed her an hour earlier at 8 and she had her feed 830 and out like a light at 9! I think the other night may have been a one off, we'll see lol !! Hope your getting on ok x

Anyone else here have just the 1 child and not planning anymore? We are so blessed to have one baby at age 38 & 42. We have talked about trying for another and have decided not to. I'm still in mixed minds but my DP is a definite no!

@ShiningStarz how long can Sienna stay awake at a time?

@Lilice it happened out of nowhere. Awake 2am n 6am then since Thursday he’s slept through. We haven’t changed anything so think it won’t last lol.

@ShiningStarz ours is 1st baby and at 37 and 42 and I’ve mentioned a possible 2nd because ya know times ticking if we do want one lol and hubby says absolutely nothing so I’m assuming we will just have one. Like you say it’s a blessing but we’ll see what I can do 😂

@Lilice between morning and about 6. She will feed every 2-2.5 hours. She'll be awake for about 40 mins and be happy playing on her play mat musical thing for about 20 minutes. Once it gets to 6pm though she's pretty sleepy. Defo knows difference between night and day. How's it going for u?

Evening all! So jealous of those all night sleepers. Currently up for 3rd time tonight with my 6.5 week old. She struggles with wind, after her last feed it took jyst over an hour before she was comfortable enough tio put down for sleep, but 5 nibs later she was hungry again so the whole cycle started again 🙈

Anyone else have a really windy baby?

(for what it's worth she's EBF and the health visitor has checked latch etc and all good there)

@Margo34 yes I've got a windy baby, he's not too bad through the night but hit 5am and he's thrashing around and eventually gets upset. This also coincides with him usually waking around 4:30 so basically won't go back down after 4:30. He sleeps perfectly on me but as soon as he's on his back he's wriggling. He's 10weeks today so I'm hoping it won't last much longer and his tummy will mature. He's also a booby baby

@ShiningStarz we are 38 & 39 so I think we will only have one baby. My partner didn't want children when we met and it took a year and a half, a miscarriage and fertility issues to get to this point so I'm not sure we will put ourselves through it again. Although if we were to have more I wouldn't rule out adoption