Due August 2021 - Welcome to the World!

[PurplePansy05]

Welcome to the chattiest birth club on MN! Newcomers always welcome 💐

14 gorgeous new babies have joined us already, welcome to the world 💖💙🥳

@Smurf123 - Welcome to the world, baby Sophia 💖
@wimbler - Welcome to the world, baby boy 💙
@Jessicapebbles - Welcome to the world, baby Ebony💖
@Inmypjsagain - Welcome to the world, baby boy💙
@PurplePansy05 - Welcome to the world, baby Leo Alexander 💙
@WinterBabyof89 - Welcome to the world, baby Rosie 💖
@Winecoffeeteamum - Welcome to the world, baby Emily 💖
@Ready2020 - Welcome to the world, baby Rowan 💖
@Magik01 - Welcome to the world, baby Isaac 💙
@Hoares3 - Welcome to the world, baby Ellis 💙
@Daffodil21 - Welcome to the world, baby Elliot James 💙
@sarah13xx - Welcome to the world, baby Freddie 💙
@Biscuitcat - Welcome to the world, baby Rowan 💙
@Whatshouldbemyusername - Welcome to the world, baby Arya-Nyah 💖

Counting down until we welcome 20+ new arrivals:

@MrsB2019x - Induction w/c 9 August, Girl 💖
@Dia12 - EDD 8 August, Girl 💖
@Aaaaa1519 - EDD 13 August, Girl 💖
@Angelesque - C-section 16 August, surprise 💛
@lucyrp - EDD 16 August, surprise 💛
@livingwithbees - EDD 16 August, surprise 💛
@BertieBotts - EDD 16 August, Boy 💙
@WolfMother - EDD 17 August, Boy 💙
@Caz1226 - EDD 17 August, Boy 💙
@Millymay13 - C-section 17 August, surprise 💛
@RandomCatGenerator - C-section 19 August, surprise 💛
@Smallbean27 - EDD 19 August, surprise 💛
@Sheisfee - EDD 19 August, Girl 💖
@Alittlexmasmagic - EDD 22 August, surprise 💛
@LottSE20 - EDD 22 August, surprise 💛 @notinthestarsigns - EDD 23 August (but likely to be brought forward induction/C-section), surprise 💛
@Fran919 - EDD 25 August, surprise💛
@Ava50x - EDD 25 August, Boy 💙
@ame88 - EDD 28 August, Girl 💖
@HopefulB - EDD 29 August, surprise 💛

It's officially THE month! Watch this space! xx

Sorry @BertieBotts it clearly took me too long to type!

Congratulations on baby Alexander ❤️❤️❤️ Let’s hope he does a wee soon and can avoid a scan. Hope you’re doing okay and able to get some rest 💙

@Inmypjsagain I thought boobs wouldn't go down until breast feeding stopped? But I'm not sure tbh. I normally have small ones so I don't mind that there's finally something there 😂

@Inmypjsagain my only advice is feed until sleepy. And repeat. Though I've been taking a nap before the night shift these days so I'm hoping to pass her over to OH to deal with very soon 😂

@BertieBotts congratulations, glad everything went well & hope things are easily sorted for little Alexander tomorrow xx

@BertieBotts congratulations 🥰

Congrats @BertieBotts, good taste in names Hope you're both doing ok ! xx

Thank you ladies for your support and sorry to hear so many of us are going through the tough phase it helps to know I'm not alone, but I wish it was easier for all of us!

I am perservering. DS stayed with me all night last night and it wasn't too bad. Today he's had long feeds, extra feeds and countless cuddles. I'm finding this bonding time helps me with coping when things get really tough so I made sure to squeeze in as much as possible. I think this growth spurt has actually started, there's no way he'd want to feed so much otherwise 😱

My breasts are still catching up, I think. Today even Haakaa didn't collect much at all, DS has drank the boobs dry 🤣 Which might explain why the electric pump didn't work. I will try again either later this week or early next when my HV comes to visit.

I know there is always formula, but I've always wanted to EBF for the first 6 months and since my milk supply is increasing and the latch is good I'm just really determined to keep it going. I love it as our bonding time and want to make the most of it.

But it is hard, the frequency of feeding has shocked me. Mixed with sleep deprivation and anxiety over DH returning to work, it's a bad combination. I am digging deep here right now to keep going.

I hope to get to the stage of expressing a decent amount so things will get easier 🙏 xx

I thought breasts won't get smaller for as long as we BF?

My bump is not there anymore 15 days pp, but it's flabby kind of mum-tum now, it sticks out. Not sure if it's going to get more in shape or if this is it and I'll have to exercise later.

List update below 😊 xx

21 gorgeous new babies have joined us already, welcome to the world 💖💙🥳

@Smurf123 - Welcome to the world, baby Sophia 💖
@wimbler - Welcome to the world, baby boy 💙
@Jessicapebbles - Welcome to the world, baby Ebony💖
@Inmypjsagain - Welcome to the world, baby boy💙
@PurplePansy05 - Welcome to the world, baby Leo Alexander 💙
@WinterBabyof89 - Welcome to the world, baby Rosie 💖
@Winecoffeeteamum - Welcome to the world, baby Emily 💖
@Ready2020 - Welcome to the world, baby Rowan 💖
@Magik01 - Welcome to the world, baby Isaac 💙
@Hoares3 - Welcome to the world, baby Ellis 💙
@Daffodil21 - Welcome to the world, baby Elliot James 💙
@sarah13xx - Welcome to the world, baby Freddie 💙
@MrsB2019x - Welcome to the world, baby Ella💖
@Biscuitcat - Welcome to the world, baby Rowan 💙
@Whatshouldbemyusername - Welcome to the world, baby Arya-Nyah 💖
@notinthestarsigns - Welcome to the world, baby Erin 💖
@Aaaaa1519 - Welcome to the world, baby Anum 💖
@Angelesque - Welcome to the world, baby Isaac 💙
@Millymay13 - Welcome to the world, baby Ethan Benjamin 💙
@WolfMother - Welcome to the world, baby boy 💙
@BertieBotts - Welcome to the world, baby Alexander 💙

Counting down until till they welcome their munchkins:

@Dia12 - EDD 8 August, Girl 💖
@lucyrp - EDD 16 August, surprise 💛
@livingwithbees - EDD 16 August, surprise 💛
@Caz1226 - EDD 17 August, Boy 💙
@RandomCatGenerator - C-section 19 August, surprise 💛
@Smallbean27 - EDD 19 August, surprise 💛
@Sheisfee - EDD 19 August, Girl 💖
@Alittlexmasmagic - EDD 22 August, surprise 💛
@LottSE20 - EDD 22 August, surprise 💛
@Fran919 - EDD 25 August, surprise💛
@Ava50x - EDD 25 August, Boy 💙
@ame88 - EDD 28 August, Girl 💖
@HopefulB - EDD 29 August, surprise 💛

@BertieBotts congratulations!

@Inmypjsagain not back to pre pregnancy quite yet but as this is 2nd baby not sure it ever will! Skin on my tummy is more wrinkled than before for sure, especially when I bend down

Also in the witching hour. He’s spent most of the day asleep so expecting a tricky night. He’s clearly got a sore tummy too which makes me so sad

@PurplePansy05 how much would you usually get with the Hakka? I've tried using one the past 2 days - mainly to try and get
Sophia to take the dentinox drops to try and help with wind but I only get about 30/40ml - I've only tried once each day.. but breast from yesterday feels really bruised from it too so not loving the idea of continuing it.
I've never managed to pump or get much pumping even with a hospital pump with ds. I gave up pumping with ds as I was getting virtually nothing and it was painful but he was still almost fully breastfed for a year the very odd bottle of formula in there if I was going out for the evening or something and he decided he needed milk before I got home. Even when I went back to work at 6months he rarely took the bottle during the day he fed before I went and as soon as I got home.
We have had nights of constant breastfeeding and then last night Sophia fed around midnight and didn't look another one to 445am so it does pass / get easier. (I say this as the person with 6bottles of ready made formula in the cupboard and 2 sterilised bottles in the steriliser just in case! I haven't used them yet but I know they are there if I need them) Also growth spurts don't stick to a schedule so they might be a week early or late for some too !
Congratulations @BertieBotts hope you are both doing well!!

@Smurf123 I can usually get to 60ml using Haakaa in about 20 mins-half an hour, I attach it to the other breast whilst bf. Otherwise it collects a lot less. Interesting you say your breasts felt sore after using it, I am actually finding it very gentle - much gentler than the electric pump. I really wonder if it's the case that different pumps suit different women depending on the size and shape of our breasts and nipples. It's a minefield to find the best suited one though!! xx

Also off-topic, but is anyone else's baby a strong wriggler? DS can lift his head up and turn it, his neck is so strong! He also moves his legs loads and can roll onto his side, both left and right. I always put him to sleep on his back, but he chooses to sleep on his side. HV and midwives said to leave him on the side as long as he falls asleep on his back. His grip is also incredibly strong, he pulls my hair, tops necklaces etc.

I guess I just never expected this from a newborn baby! HV said to start tummy time but I don't really know how to with such a small baby.

Has anyone been through anything similar with your DCs? xx

@PurplePansy05 I got about 30 ml while feeding on the other side, I think it was a bit more yesterday maybe 50ml. I'm not sure I had it on right yesterday to be fair, I tried it on the other side tonight and it felt ok. Still I think expressing just isn't for me.

Yes to the wiggly strong baby! Dd does the same and a tight grip on my hair! We have done tummy time a few times and she can lift her head enough to turn it all the way over to the other side after we put her down. She seems to enjoy it enough for a few minutes sometimes longer. I still remember how much ds on the other hand hates tummy time! Instead for him his tummy time consisted of tummy time on my or dhs chest instead.

How did you do tummy time @Smurf123? It's a stupid question I know 🤦🏼‍♀️ But do I just put a blanket on the carpet, put him on his tummy and let him lift his neck? I saw there are some sort of sensory tummy time pillows available online, is this worth buying? Sophia's behaviour sounds very similar to what my son does, I'm so glad you replied.

50ml is good with Haakaa! I find when I attach it right from the bottom of the nipple as if your baby was latching on, it works best and zi personally can't feel any suction then meaning it's painless, yet it does the job 😊 xx

@PurplePansy05 pretty much, my health visitor said just to lie her on a blanket and keep an eye that she doesn't bury her face into the blanket.
We had one of the tummy time pillows for ds like this one in the photo but we mainly bought it as he really hated tummy time and thought it might have made him enjoy it a bit more I'm not sure it was really needed though.
With Sophia I'm just putting her on her tummy on the baby gym mat but any blanket would do too

Yes all my newborns have been active like that. I like doing tummy time on your or dads chest, that's a nice one. Or do it on an elevated surface like the changing table so they can see you. We used to do it at nappy changes so it was just a couple of mins at a time.

German hospitals are obsessed with overheating babies. They keep putting him in a million layers with a heat pack inside and for the changing table in the room there is a little heater on top of it to keep the baby warm whole naked. I feel too afraid of being judged by the other mum I'm sharing with not to use it but it's just making the room hotter

This was ds on his mat, I think I'll just stick with the play gym / blanket for dd though

@BertieBotts that's so strange! It seems to be a European thing Do they give him a duvet too? My in laws are in Denmark, about an hour from German border .. they are also obsessed with overheating baby, they get wrapped in a duvet as a newborn there. When they came to visit ds when he was a few weeks old he came out in heat rash with the amount of layers they tried to put on him every time my back was turned! (They had sent a baby duvet for him too which I hid at mums house so it couldn't be used! - 3 years later she's still "washing" it for me) And turning up the heating! It's so different from here

@BertieBotts congratulations on baby Alexander! Hope he manages to have a wee to avoid a scan! Fingers crossed.

@PurplePansy05 glad to hear your doing better today, it’s a hard road with. Newborn but whatever we all choose we do our best. ❤️ My DS is also super wriggly! He holds his head up all the time when he’s on my chest and throws himself about! It’s a good thing I pay attention else he would have thrown himself off me numerous times!!

@wimbler I’m 12 days PP now and probably look around 4/5 months pregnant still. I have got what I can only describe as a bulge on one side of my stomach above my scar which is concerning me. Told the midwife today who said I should be seen tomorrow just to check it’s not just swelling still.

This might be TMI, but when I go for a wee just as I’m finishing my insides really hurt? Not like a UTI hurt but my actual insides- hard to describe. Is anyone else getting this? Is it normal after a section? I don’t remember it with my first...

Congratulations @BertieBotts Alexander is a lovely name

Completely sleep deprived right now, I could fall asleep instantly but I have engorged breasts as my milk came in today. Dd is on formula so any tips to dry up breast milk will be appreciated. Also how do you get rid of this pain it’s crazy. I have rock hard lumps on either side of breasts that are so painful

@Aaaaa1519 do you have a manual pump at all? I think the advice is to express enough to make your boobs comfortable, but not a lot so that your boobs keep making sure. I think hot flannels on your breasts can make them more comparable as well. Really feel for you as engorged boobs are so so painful!

Another one struggling with feeding/lack of sleep and it’s only night two. Ethan feeds and sleeps in the day but just wants continuous feeds all night. I keep nodding off and I don’t know how to stop.

@Millymay13 I’m assuming because it’s day two your milk hasn’t come in yet? Isaac was awake all night day one and two, then it got marginally better once my milk was in. Hang in there xx

@Millymay13 We spent night 2 in hospital and it was a hard one. I didn't sleep at all, DS was at first difficult to rouse and then hungry all the time and my milk didn't come in. He was also jittery due to being hypoglycelaemic as a result of my GD. I was so upset just looking at him. They topped him up with formula, otherwise he'd not feed enough. Your milk may take a week to come in. It's important you stay positive, lots of skin to skin, get him to latch on and suck as much as poss, express or try at least snd massage your breasts to stimulate them. It might bd the case your milk may come in really quickly, for me it was day 3-4. Oxytocin is vital xx

@Aaaaa1519 definitely get a heat gel pad thing and put that on your boob. When my milk came in I had a few days of rock hard sore boobs with lumps. But this helped as did pumping. Though watch with the heat as I leaked all over the bed the night I used the pad!

@Millymay13 this night will pass and tomorrow will be better! I promise! I got to that point early on too and used a dummy to settle her. She didn't need anymore food and just wanted to suckle. It's not everyone's first choice but it helped me.

Currently singing the praise of Ewan the Dream Sheep. Rowen is in her cot! And has been since midnight. Might just be a fluk but we'll see tonight when I do it again. Plus she's not quite as settled this second time around being put in. Fingers crossed she'll sleep again. The 20 minutes of sound isn't quite enough though and I need to turn it back on a couple if times before she really settles. I've turned the cry detection on too this time but not sure I need it as she only cries when she wants food or changed.

Sorry about the typos, I got him feeding next to me and can't type properly

@,Magik01 Thanks lovely. Re your scat definitely get it checked it shouldn't be swelling up anywhere. Also re your psin inside, no I don't have that feeling and I think I'd be pushing for a thorough check over to make sure you're not developing an infection. It is also possible they msy have caught your bladder or surroundings when making the incision. It's rare but possible. They should probably scan you. I wouldn't neglect this though.

Thank you for the tummy time tips all 😘 DS decided to fo tummy time on our chests himself from early on and we've also tried s bit on the changing mat. Blanket is coming out today. It's also my first day on my own with him...I hope we survive!! 🙏 xx