The Final Fruition of the Frolicking Forays for the First Time Frolickers

[Spirael]

We came, we saw, we frolicked.

Now our PFB has arrived and we can begin the stressful befuddled guiltridden exhausting wonderful journey of parenthood!

(Or at the very least we can stop bothering the antenatal bunch until they join us!)

jsj that's one epic birth story. I posted on your other thread re: nipple shields - we had the small head, flat nipples, giant boobs combo too. Will basically just decided he didn't want to feed from them one day. My supply was never affected either - I could have opened a dairy farm with the amount of milk I was leaking/expressing. I do know someone who successfully BFed to well over 12mths with shields so don't feel you have to get rid of them.

halo don't worry about teaching Hannah to self settle just yet, she'll get there in the end.

roses I think I must be one of those rare people who actually enjoys BFing - that's the only reason we're still going. It did take about 3mths for us to reach that point though

worrisome Will doesn't have a huge amount of hair to wash, but I do it before he gets into the bath. I hold him under my arm like a rugby ball with his head tipped back over the side of the bath so none of the water runs onto his face. It's also the only way I can clean the food out of his fat rolls The other thing we've done, which we learnt at swimming, is to hold a cup of water over his head, say 1,2,3, gooooooo and then pour the water over him. We started with small amounts at first, but after a couple of weeks of doiing it every bathtime, he shuts his eyes tight on 3.

I think Will might still have jetlag. Thought we'd got it sorted, but the last 3 nights he's woken at 1am and not resettled for at least 2hrs. Last night I gave in at about 2 and got him up and played for an hour. I think he thought all his christmases had come at once Tonight I'm going to get tough with him though as it's gone on long enough. Wish me luck......

Wow Jolly that was a pretty epic labour you had! Glad you're feeling a bit better now and you're getting there with the feeding.

Halo Robyn used to settle herself quite well but she is definitely getting worse this last week. DP and I had a argument disagreement about it the other night, he insisted I should leave her to scream herself to sleep whereas I wanted to go up and settle her myself after about 10 minutes of crying. Needless to say I won that particular battle but I did try to settle her without picking her up (unsuccesful!)

R is also getting really grumpy come the evening, not sure whats causing it, whether it's just wind? Have switched from infacol to dentinox to see if that makes any difference but it's getting pretty stressful, she screams after every feed and if you try to sit her up to wind her she goes mad!!

AF reared her ugly head on Monday too :( can't believe how bloody heavy it is either! Is this normal does anyone konw??

mrsw yep I think a heavier flow is normal post birth. Mine have certainly been heavier ( and more painful!) since birth.

Not good re Robyn and the gas - have you thought about swapping her to one of the comfort formulas?

Gah, can hear sounds of havoc being wreaked in the next room so better go and see what my menace of a son is up to. Will write more later!

Will try and keep this short, as I have quite a bit of work to do today.

Welcome to the other side, Jolly! That's quite some birth story, glad everything turned out ok in the end. :)

You're right with the date, WhiteRoses. Your memory doesn't fail you, it is the 7th.

Mindy started pointing about a month ago, Worrisome. She still isn't waving, but the majority of the babies on the July 2010 thread have been waving for some time. I just get the expression from Mindy whenever I wave at her!

The wallchart we've bought is this one, it should be arriving in the next day or two so I'll give you a proper verdict then. They do a variety of different ones but the nursery is jungle themed so that's why we went for the one we did. (It was a close call between that and the giraffe, though!)

Can't really help with hair washing, I seem to have produced a strange child that loves having water in her face - even if it's soapy! She even voluntarily splashes her drink in her face at mealtimes in fits of giggles. It's hysterical.

If it helps at all, we use one of these seats in the bath, along with a jug with the rubber front.

Though one night a week, we take her in the shower with one of us. We have a shower stool that I got when I was pregnant, so I could reach my legs when washing! Now it means DH or I can sit in the shower with Mindy on our lap. She loves it!

Oh sorry, meant to reply to MrsWajs too! Heavier periods are normal, my first two were like the aftermath of giving birth all over again. They then settled down though, and they're as heavy as they ever were but seem to last for a shorter amount of time than before I was pregnant.

For the evening, Mindy used to get grumpy and thrash about, until about 12-16 weeks, IIRC. I think I read a theory somewhere about babies tend to get both tired and hungry in the evening (don't we all) but then sometimes just don't have the energy to suck. Which consequentially doesn't do anything for the growing hunger!

It seemed to ring true for Mindy, she was always starving of an evening! In fact our mantra has always been "If in doubt, feed." where she's concerned. 99% of the time, if she's crying that's what she wants! Even if she was only last fed moments earlier.

If you think that might be the problem, do you have any mini syringes (like for giving medicine) at all? Not only are they useful for giving medicine, but I've used them on a few occasions to give Mindy milk or water. She can still spit it out if she doesn't want it, but swallowing is much easier than sucking, so she tends to take it on board.

(And it's a lot less messy than wielding a cup or a spoon!)

JSJ Wow it sounds like you had a tough time but are doing really well to come through it. I hope writing it down helped. I didn't go through anything like what you went through but found writing it down a real relief.

bunny Hope Will slept through last night. Playing at 2am - well done for having the energy!

worrisome Love the singing of you are my sunshine, so lovely.

mrsw How old is Robyn? I've found that the older Hannah gets the more interested in the world she is. Consequently she is super tired by the end of the day, especially if we have a mirco napping day.

We kind of do the opposite to Spireal We rock her to sleep, then I feed her as soon as she stirs. I've found a sleepy baby feeds better as they are concentrating on one thing. Robyn might be different. Its always trial and error round our way.

If you do want a syringe and don't have one, my local pharmacy gave me one for free! Definatly get one in time for jabs if you've not had those yet as trying to spoon feed calpol into an 8 week old's mouth is messy!

We are just back from baby massage and Hannah is sleeping. Time for another

Well the wind is definitely the problem, probably as a result from swapping from infacol I think! Had a full-on meltdown tonight, 45 minutes of solid screaming that nothing could alleviate. Suspicion of colic conifrmed when an hour later Robyn did a huuuuuge fart and then a poo. Two minutes later she was beaming smiles at us like nothing had happened!!

mrsw I think the early evening screaming is pretty common at the 6-8wk mark, and they tend to grow out of it by 3months.

From 6wks to about 9-10wks William used to start screaming inconsolably at 7:15pm precisely for about 45mins each time. I think it was down to a combination of wind and overtiredness. I used to hold him upright over my shoulder and then walk up and down the stairs, or do deep squats and lunges, and eventually he'd do a huge burp and be asleep within 10seconds. If I got fed up of walking I'd lie him on his tummy over my knees and rub his back for a few minutes before starting all over again.

spirael there are babies on the November 2010 thread that can wave Will shows no interest at all in waving, but I think clapping might be his next trick. He watches intently if I clap and he's started opening his arms wide, but just doesn't seem to be able to figure out that he needs to bring them together again to clap.

halo it's not so much having the energy to play at 2am, but exhausting all other options. After listening to him whinging in his cot for over an hour and a half I was all out of ideas.

Bad news on the sleep front - he's no better, although last night he mostly chatted to himself rather than crying. He's now so overtired he's stopped sleeping in the day too, and to top it all off, he's got a snotty nose and a temperature, so it looks like he's getting a cold as well

Well after Robyns little temper tantrum last night, she proceeded to sleep from 11.30 - 6.30 this morning!!! obviously tired herself out with all the screaming. Typical how that always happens on DPs night for night feeds!! Hmmph!
But she's a happy bunny this morning so I won't complain, just hope we don't get a repeat screaming match tonight, although Bunny it sounds a bit like maybe we better get used to it!!

Worrisome Not sure about comfort formulas? Will see how this weekend goes and discuss it with HV next week if no improvement. Whats different about them, are they easier to digest??

Halo Robyn will be 7 weeks on Monday and is definitely very interested in her surroundings but she does still have failry decent naps during the day. Think I'm just gonna break the rules for now and leave her in the bouncer to settle herself before bed, easier all round!!
My mum is going to acqiure me some syringes from work so we're all good on that front. Injections are on the 21st, so not looking forward to that!!

mrsw hopefully Robyn's screamathon was a one off. I think Will only did it every night for about 10 days or so, then it went to alternate nights and reduced from there.

I wouldn't worry about the "rules" of settling at this stage. Judging by the experience of the 8 people in my mother's group, the babies who were left to self-settle in their cots from birth were no earlier/later/better at sleeping through than those that are still being rocked/fed to sleep. I think you either have a good sleeper or you don't (and I don't )

Do you not just get syringes with Calpol etc in the UK? All children's meds over here come with a syringe, and the dosage is always by weight rather than age. I quite like drawing Panadol up into a syringe for Will - it makes me feel like I'm on ER or something

Think it definitely was a one-off bunny so far no repeat experiences anyway! She went down at 10.30 last night, with a half self-settle! And slept til 4.15 then was wide awake at that time and didn't go back down til 5am but then slept again til 8.50 - can't complain about that!!

Had a bit of a melt down yesterday. Can baby blues still occur once baby is 7 weeks old?!?! Nothing particular triggered it off just me grumping at DP and him grumping back and me then being pissed off all day, resulting in an argument and tears (mine) come night time!! Men are just so blind sometimes, after dropping DSS off after tea time we went home and whilst I was finishing up washing, trying to get bath organised for Robyn and putting away dishes, DP was drawing a little scale diagram of our garden to figure out how much decking we need and couldn't understand why I was getting annoyed with him!! Have my HV on Thursday and she is doing my post-natal depression questionnaire thing so hope I'm not having another off day then!

mrsW still perfectly normal to feel all over the place - you're only 7 weeks in! Your hormones are bound to be all out of whack still. I know that 7mths in I still have my psycho turns! In fact Dh and I had a gunfights of a row this morning about something that was really nothing. Hmm actually that happened before we had the baby too! In all seriousness, if you are diagnosed with PND, it's very fixable - I was diagnosed two weeks after Lochie was born, and although it was a shit time I was very lucky with the support I got from the GP and midwives.
I think the comfort formulas are thicker and therefore easier to digest. I know Aptamil does one, as a friend used it on her very refluxey DS.
Might be worth a try? Glad the sleeping was better last night.

spireal thanks for the links, they look great! Did it arrive and how is it in real life?

bunny sorry Will is giving you such a hard time on the sleep front, hope his cold gets better!

halo am very at you doing baby massage - the one time we tried it, Lochie was seriously unimpressed at having t

Bloody iPod posting too soon!! What I meant to say was that Lochie was not happy at having to lie still. And as it's a battle every nappy change now, I've not been brave enough to try again!

We went to IKEA today and got one of their little toddle truck things for him to push along. I figured it was safer than him trying to walk along using the kitchen stools or his highchair!! We also changed the cot base to it's lowest position which made me a bit . The next step sleepwise for my tiny baby is a big boy bed! I know it's a year or so off, but time is going so quickly and I miss my little newborn. Now he's a hulking great brute who is constantly on the go and only stops for cuddles when he wants it, I have to sneak them in!

Meant to say bunny thanks for the counting down before pouring water trick - it seems to be doing the trick! (Or maybe Lochie has just realised his tears hold no sway with his mean mummy so is saving his strength for more devious revenge strategies!)

mrsw it's normal to still be all over the place emotionally at this stage. I think I was still shedding tears looking at his angelic sleeping face when he was 7wks old DH and I also had some monumental rows - mainly like you and DP because I was cooking, cleaning, bathing William etc etc etc while he would spend several hours doing some random task that a. didn't need doing, and b. should never have taken more than 5 mins. Or he'd just announce on a Saturday afternoon that he was off out with the boys.

I just don't think the men in our lives fully understand just how relentless looking after a small baby can be. Even though they help out, we're usually still the default caregiver when things get tough. One of my mother's group has just gone back to work full time and her DH has become a stay at home dad. He's started coming to our meetings, and last week he was 36hours into his time as main caregiver, and he was already saying that he had never ever realised how hard it is being the primary caregiver....and he's only looking after a 7 month old which is relatively easy compared with a newborn.

worrisome we lowered the base of William's cot last weekend after I found him using the bars as a climbing frame. It's so hard to think of them growing up. I shed actual tears in a shop the other week when I was choosing some clothes for a friend's new baby. It was just so to think that William will never be that tiny again, and even if I have another baby it'll won't be the same [sob]

We managed one great night of sleep over the weekend, where although he woke every 3 hours, he babbled to himself for 5mins and then went back to sleep each time. Then last night he spent half the night crying inconsolably I think he has a sore throat as every time he's hungry he starts to feed then refuses any more after a few mouthfuls.We're off to the doctors today to see what they think

Hello all,

Sorry that I've not posted in ages - I feel guilty for going on MN when Alastair is sleeping as I feel like I should be doing something useful. And I feel guilty about going on it when he is awake as I should be concentrating on him! But he's having a nice morning nap and so I'm going to make the most of it...

Well, we're now 3 months in and my gorgeous little boy has finally hit the 10lb mark. He's doing really well with the weight gain, considering that he was so tiny when he arrived, and is also starting to really enjoy playtime, whether he is kicking about on his playmat or bouncing in his chair. We're struggling a bit with his feeding at the moment though, as he gets about 8-10 minutes in and then comes off and cries. Sometimes I really have to work hard to force persuade him to have some more (if I don't, he's hungry again in an hour and a half, so I know he needs it) but it's awful to hear him so upset. :( The HV thinks it's reflux, but is encouraging us to try to see it out without medication as it's quite difficult to combine with breastfeeding. Anyone else had this?

I do have one question regarding night feeds and a bit of advice if possible. DS goes down by 7.30pm after a final feed and usually sleeps until between midnight and 1am before he wants another feed, so I go to bed at 9.30 to get a few hours kip in before then. After that is anyone's guess at the moment... Should I be waking him up at 10pm-ish for a feed (dream or otherwise, breast or ebm) to encourage him to have his long sleep in the middle of the night? Help!

Ah, the little man is stirring so I'd best run. Sorry for not doing personal messages today but I'll try to keep up from now on!

kurly great to hear from you! Don't worry about feeling guilty for mn-ing, that will pass! .

Just a quick one as Lochie keeps heading meaningfully towards the DVD player, and as he seems to find me saying 'no' the most hilarious thing ever, I may need to head him off at the pass! Just wanted to say re your dream feed q, I think it really depends on what kind of feeder/sleeper he is. We never did it with Lochie for two reasons - first, he just won't feed if he's not properly hungry (highly frustrating when I want to top him up before going out to avoid needing to feed him en route!). And also because he was (and still is to some extent) a nightmare to get back to sleep. If your LO is neither of these, then I say go for it! I know it works really well for some people so gotta be worth a try.

Right, Lochie has decided that the fireguard is more interesting so I better grab him before he starts trying to climb it.

Worrisome How were you diagnosed if you don't mind me asking. I mean did you know you had it or did MW/HV notice?? I had suspected that I had antenatal depression when I was pregnant but never raised my concerns to MW, couldn't be sure if it was hormonal or if it was actual depression and didn't like the idea of it being depression so just kept schtum. I was a complete wreck/psycho for a lot of my pregnancy though!! One of the main reasons DP is refusing point blank to have any more :( I think my main problems at the moment are a) that I just find the whole thing so relentless, am a control freak at the best of times and it stresses me out that I can't do everything anymore! And b) I am still carrying a huge guilt about not breastfeeding for long enough, I'm actually jealous of people who can do it easily - how ridiculous is that!!
Re: the formula, it is aptamil I'm using now so if need be I can move to their comfort feed. Will ask HV about it on Thursday.

Bunny Your DH sounds a lot like mine, glad I'm not alone on that one!! It's not that I actually want him to physically do all these things for me but it would be nice if he just offered or asked if I was managing, or maybe did something without having to be nagged!! The poor man at your mothers group, bet he's had a shock to the system! Comparatively speaking, him suddenly taking full responsible for a 7 month old is probably the same as it was for the mother caring for the baby as a new born!! I just don't think men are cut out for the job completely!!

kurly the guilt about MNing will soon pass......independent play is good for them

Re: the dream feed, it's never really worked for us. William does his long sleep at the start of the night, and nothing seems to be able to change that. I tried doing the dream feed, and it didn't make any difference, and in fact after 3 or 4 nights he will start waking for it. But, I do have friends who've had success with it though, so it might just be worth trying it and seeing how Alistair responds to it.

No advice about the reflux I'm afraid, as thankfully that's something we managed to avoid. I have friends who've successfully BFed while giving medication for reflux - I can't see why you can't just give them a syringe of infant gaviscon before you feed instead of mixing it with their formula

mrsw talk to your HV about how you're feeling, there's no shame in it if you do have pnd and you'll feel better if you get it treated. She should be able to assess you properly, and if it is pnd you'll get appropriate treatment, and if not she'll be able to reassure you.

I'm with you on the control freakness I'm such a perfectionist, and in every other aspect of my life I've always found things easy. I really really struggled with the fact that babies can't be "fixed" the way other problems can, and they don't behave in a logical manner. And please don't feel guilty about giving up BFing - you tried harder than many many other women would to make it a success, but ultimately if it wasn't working you had a hard decision to make. And remember, just because someone's finding BFing easy doesn't mean any other aspects of parenting are going smoothly for them.

Do you have much RL support from people other than your DP/mum? You might find meeting with some other new mums helpful, perhaps your HV can point you in the right direction? I know the one thing I love about the system here is the mother's group - we get assigned based on the date we had our babies and then you have 4 meetings with a HV there and then you're encouraged to continue meeting as a group. Mine still meets every week, and it's really helped me to feel that no matter what issues we've been having, there's always someone else who's baby has done the same that week.

The verdict from the GP is that William has an ear infection, so now I need to try and coax him into taking antibiotics three times a day. He seems much happier today though, so hopefully he's over the worst of it.

He tried to wave bye bye to the GP when we were leaving yesterday! He raised his arm when she waved at him, but then he couldn't quite figure out how to flap it around, so he basically gave her a nazi salute

No problem at all MrsW, I've found it an important part of my recovery to talk about it. (Sorry to the oldies on this thread who have heard it all before!)

Basically, I had a difficult birth - Lochie was two weeks late, the induction failed which led to me going into hyperstimulated labour and trying to push at 3cms dilated. He then got into distress so we were whipped into theatre for an emergency c-sec. So far, so crap but nothing really too bad. However, 6 hours after Lochie was born, he was taken to the NICU because his lactate levels were causing concern. I was told he'd be there for a couple of hours max as he needed to be on a drip to help them stabilise. However, he was there for 3 days in the end - the lactate levels were quickly resolved but then they discovered he had feeding issues so he had a n-g tube inserted. Anyway, long story short, after 3 days, I finally got him released to me on the ward, where the feeding issues continued. We left hospital after a week, with a combi feeding strategy with me expressing and feeding via bottle. All was well for the first week at home, I think I was still on the post-birth high. Then, when Lochie was 2 weeks old, things started to crumble. I wasn't eating or sleeping. I'd lie there listening to DH and Lochie sleep and be completely overcome with anxiety about not sleeping, to the point of being physically sick. I then was convinced that I'd not be able to get Lochie back to sleep after the night feeds, and after several nights of sitting up with him sleeping on me, I fell to pieces. My mum came over so I could sleep, and I was lucky that it was a day that my m/w was visiting. I was basically sobbing all day and she got me an emergency appt with the GP. He initially prescribed me with sleeping tablets for a couple of nights, as he wanted to make sure that it wasn't just down to the lack of sleep/recovery from the op etc. DH took over all the night feeds (what a star!) so that I was able to sleep. The pills helped initially but then when they were finished I just dropped back to the same depression. He then prescribed me a low dose anti-d and told me to stop expressing because of the stress it was placing on me. (the B/f guilt is a huge part of this too, but I've made my peace with it now)
So, I think the anti-ds helped with getting the basic physical stuff sorted - eating, sleeping etc. But I really struggled with my mindset around Lochie and being a mother. I forced myself to go for a walk wiht him each day and (I'm ashamed to admit this now) most days I had to mentally shout at myself to snap out of the thought of just leaving him in the pram in the shopping centre and walking away. I wanted everything to just vanish, just wanted to crawl into a corner and make everything go away. I didn't want anything to do with him, I was completely disassociated from him. I remember one dark morning when DH had to tell me to pick Lochie up because he was crying.

I was really lucky with the support I got from DH and my family - my mum took unpaid leave and came every day so that I could rebuild my confidence. As I said, DH was amazing - he would get up with me for the night feeds and just sit and keep me company and tell me I was doing great, and help me feel secure about putting Lochie back into his cot. One of my best friends was great too, she just came a couple of times a week and let me cry and took over with Lochie for the afternoon. All this was great, but as I said, it was getting my frame of mind right that really helped, and I think that came partly as a result of the anti-d's kicking in, but also just becoming more experience with the baby. I actually remember the day that the shift happened, I couldn't get enough of him, I just wanted him with me all the time, which was polar opposite of how I had felt. The M/W's and GP were great, and I was also lucky that the HV's in my area run a PND support group, so that really helped too.

Interesting what you say about being a control freak - I'm a project administrator by trade, so I am used to being in control, able to plan everything and act proactively. It has taken me a LONG time to be able to be happy with acting reactively to Lochie instead, and even now I plan various outcomes dependant on what's happening. The HV's that ran the support group said that PND sufferers tend to be that type, as they are so unused to being out of control.

Whew, what an essay. I really, really think you should speak to your GP. PND is so common, and I know there is a stigma around depression, but this is down to your hormones, it's nothing you've done, and the quicker you get sorted, the quicker you can get on with your life. Robyn and your DH deserve that, but more than that, YOU deserve that. Don't suffer along in silence when you don't have to.

bunny Poor Will! Hope he continues to feel better.

Lochie is really bad with his teeth today - he keeps making this creaky door whinging sound. Poor monkey, the Calpol is our friend today! Hope everyone else is doing ok.

Thanks for that worrisome :)

I will speak to HV tomorrow about it but am quite sure it's just hormonal, today I feel 100% fine! Your symptoms sound like they were quite severe though and must've been pretty scary for you.
Definitely would agree with the control issues though, I don't like that Robyn doesn't just fit into the routine that I want her to have! I've suffered from depression and been on anti-depressants before when I was younger so I'm not concerned about the stigma issue, it's just really not a road I want to go down again if it can be helped!

Sorry bunny posted too soon, I don't have a group as such I can go to that I know of. I did initially go to the BF group which I think I would have enjoyed but then since I wasn't breast feeding anymore I felt a bit fraudulent going! I think it didn't help matters either with the jealousy situation when all the other mummies were whipping out boobs and I wa pulling out a bottle! Will also ask HV if there are other groups I could go to. Don't see why there shouldn't be a FF support group, except for the fact that it's against government advice!!

mrsw Glad you are feeling better today. I hope you continue to feel ok. Have you tried your local surestart centre for baby yoga and massage? We did a bounce and rhyme thing at our local library today - that was fun too. I know what you mean about wanting a social group though. I go to BF support but its only once a week & I wish there was another I could do.

worrisome I don't think I was around when you were suffering PND. It sounds like it was a really tough time. I am glad you are feeling better now.

bunny I hope Will feels better soon, poor man (you get your much longed for full nights sleep!)

kurly No advice about dreamfeeding or about reflux but good to see you!

Yesterday I gave Hannah a dummy. She wouldn't take it a couple of weeks ago and I was quite happy not to give her one but yesterday her tired crying was breaking my heart. Two minutes after the dummy went in she was out for the count! The dummy can stay! She is now 15lb at 11 weeks and is getting far too heavy to rock to sleep.

Right, going to get a and a and watch some tv!

worrisome thank you for sharing your PND experience again. I'm glad that you're feeling better now and you're able to enjoy your time with Lochie

mrsw I had depression needing anti-d's when I was in my late teens and early 20s, mainly caused by the pressure I put on myself over a-levels and uni. I've felt myself heading back to that place a couple of times since Will arrived, and it's definitely not a place I want to go. I've found it does help to get out and about, even when I don't feel like getting out of bed yet alone leaving the house.

You might find Robyn starts to fit into a routine a bit more soon. I was told to start a daily routine at around 6wks and I struggled and struggled with it (I wanted a routine as I found structure to my days keeps me sane) as William just would not comply. I gave up in the end, but tried again at around the 9wk mark and he slotted right in, and was a happier baby for it in the end. The only problem with babies is that just as you think you've understood how to structure your day around their routine, they get a bit older and need to change it

I hope your HV can point you in the direction of some activities/groups - and remember at this age whatever you go to is more for your benefit than Robyn's so pick something you'll enjoy. I take Will to babyswimming, and we also go to a mum and baby postnatal fitness class. Is there anything like that in your area? It might be worth contacting the NCT to see if they have a bumps and babes group, or similar in your area. Or if you're feeling particularly outgoing, just go and hang out at the local park and strike up conversation with the other mums you see there. My final suggestion would be to see if there are any MNer's near you (or try the netmums meet a mum board which is supposed to be good) if you don't mind meeting strangers off the internet. I made some really good friends at MN Sydney meet ups

halo glad you've persuaded Hannah to take the dummy. I gave up rocking Will at around the 12wk mark as he was too heavy, and he also started fighting me when I tried. If you want a gentle way of teaching her to settle herself, try reading "no cry sleep solution". I love that book, if only because it's very good at giving you realistic expectations of how babies sleep (unlike all the baby gurus who say if you do it their way your baby will be sleeping through by the time they're 8wks old)

As for a full night's sleep, I given up on that ever happening. If you include the insomnia and late night toilet trips of late pg, I think it was some time in August 2010 that I had an unbroken night's sleep

I feel like a very bad mummy at the moment. I thought Will's recent sleep issues were jetlag related and we were quite harsh with him over the weekend. With hindsight I think he had been feeling quite ill, and I think it's been about a week since he's eaten/drunk properly. I thought the lack of interest in his milk might have been a sign he was ready to drop a feed, but yesterday and last night he has been drinking like it's going out of fashion. I was considering dropping him to 3 day feeds and one overnight, but yesterday he had 4 in the day, and 3 overnight, and he was crying with hunger before each one I feel really bad that we didn't notice how ill he was feeling. Hopefully he'll get back on track over the next day or so.

Right better go as he's pulling the controllers for the Wii off the TV stand and trying to eat them

bunny I got that book the other day on kindle. My favourite phase is "Newborn babies (under 4 months) don't have sleep problems" Very reassuring!

These babies can't tell us whats wrong so don't feel harsh. You only did what you thought was best and that makes you a good mummy!