Totally's postgrads - you know who you are.

[Meita]

Totally's original thread was for TTC after MC. It continued long after Totally herself graduated, and is still going strong. Totally's grads was set up as a thread for pregnancy post MC - i.e. anyone who graduated from Totally's thread and anyone else who had experienced MC and was now pregnant. It, too, is still going strong.

Now, more and more of us have graduated from Totally's grads - including LouiseSH, whose Georgie was born asleep. I suppose that makes us postgrads. We have travelled together for a long time and would like to stay in touch, but the pregnancy post MC thread is starting to get very big, and I think it should be allowed to keep its focus on pregnancy post MC. May it be as wonderful a place for support for current "members" as it was for us.

So this thread is a place for us to keep in touch, share experiences, and provide support.

(This is the first time ever I'm starting a thread - hope it works out...)

Bugger! Lost post! Quick summary then...

SamB and Louise lovely to see you

Magic you really are inspirational imagine slings for twins would be a bit much though!

Alba glad to hear all went well yesterday.

Muser yes slings can be a bit of a pain with bags, better for strolling than shopping.

Reds R suddenly sleeping much more this week too. Have had to wake him for changes now we're in the washables during the day.

Sorry a bit perfunctory, howlywails in progress must go rescue DH.

Night night all

Anyone else wide awake? Snuffles worse here so having to sit up with very sneezy baby. Even contemplated a few of the snot extraction techniques but can't quite bring myself to it...

Hmmm, well a very mucusy sick up helped, but still a very cross baby... Clean up all done and I'm now wearing my trusty moby wrap and bouncing gently on birth ball and he's finally calm and breathing much more easily... In fact I think his eyes may just have closed. What do I do now?? Early breakfast? I wish I was sleeping... [big yawn emoticon]

slings and shopping... Regular small shops or take the pram for the bags!

Re sleeping, we had loads of long sleeps yesterday... I now think because this cold was getting worse...

Right, he really is fast asleep. Time to make a cup of tea and switch on the laptop to catch up on TV.....

Good to see you Sam and a big hug for Louise

Alba - we had horrid mucas at Christmas. We also had to sleep holding Ruby upright. Had you tried steam? We found that sitting her in the car seat in the bathroom while we showered really helped. We also bought a baby version of vicks although it wasn't called vicks, if was a boots own product. We didn't rub it on her because she was under 3 months but we did put it in hot water and sit her near it. It worked well.

Oh my baby has just gone to sleep on her own while I've been posting, she is do yummy!

I'm really stressed suddenly with the impending move. We currently rent and our landlord is being an arse. I just don't need it. We live in a really expensive area and have paid him nearly £60k in rent over the last four years yet he still wants to make it as difficult as he can for us to leave. Eejit. I keep telling myself that none of it matters but I'm outraged in principle!

Really feel for you Alba on the snot front, it's horrible and we've only just got rid of it. The snucky snot device did help, and made me feel like I was doing something... I didn't find much else worked.

I can tell you 48 hours worth of poo is epic... luckily (I think) I felt it early so went to change her and it just kept coming and coming and coming! There's no way a nappy would've contained it all, it was crazy.

My wrap arrived... it's huge! It's a Calin Bleu woven cotton one, but booo it has to be washed first so I can't try it out yet.

SamB we're vaguely looking at houses at the mo but J puts us off looking seriously if I'm honest, so hats off to you.

Fab to see you Magic, they are two gorgeous babies. Online shopping though... seriously you are one brave lady to take on the supermarket!

Hello Louise hope you're doing ok.

What happened to the sun?!

Poor little vaccinated mite is sleeping peacefully, no ill effects so far, so hopefully it's just me who found it traumatic!

Just need to decide on BCG now. I would rather not but the nurse today basically called me a nob for dismissing it due to where we live. I bloody hate London sometimes.

Can't remember who else had the 8 week check & jabs today, hope it went ok though!

Having a moment as I think my iTouch has just died - what will I do without it???

Toomt we regularly have the 48 hour poo-cataclysm, I have come to the conclusion that babies bums must have tardis properties

And yes, where has the sun gone?

HOORAH!!!

Cure for the "White Screen of Death"

hold home button + volume up button then hold power off button til you see the apple sign

Phew!
Normal service will be resumed...

Oh that's why I wanted a stretchy one... sodding impossible to wrestle her in. Hmm... will practise again tomorrow.

Why oh why oh why will she only be quiet in the evenings if one of us is holding her upright? Why doesn't she ever sleep in the evening? Why as soon as it's the 10.30 feed is she perfectly happy to drop off!?! I so desperately want my evenings back. I feel like DH and I hardly talk.

Today has been a crappy day... she's hardly settled (no naps longer than 20mins) and I just feel like I get no intellectual stimulation at all. And even meeting up with other mums isn't quite it because all we talk about is babies, which is fine, but still a bit (dare I say it?) boring.

Had a big old cry on DH when he got home. I just want one day of doing something different. Hmm... am hoping this wears off quite quickly.

Sorry for the moan.

TMT I have a Calin Bleu too, and like it. Must say though it really helped to have someone show in person how to tie it.

You asked a while back about my studies. I'm doing a PhD in Sociology, on IVF. I talked to women before they started their first IVF treatment cycle, then again in the middle of it, and then again much later to look back on the experience. I'm really interested in how living through the actual experience of IVF affects people's views and attitudes, for instance on adoption, or on the legal restrictions on IVF.

Gi1da I think it was you who asked, a few days ago, about how BLW was going. Well it's certainly interesting! I don't regret doing it at all, it's just so convenient to all sit down for dinner together, rather than feeding baby separately. But, he absolutely is NOT eating a lot. Usually he plays with his food until everything we carefully got into shapes and consistencies that he would be able to eat it, has turned into mush, which he then struggles to get into his mouth. Ah well ;) We've been eating through the BLW cookbook recipes, but sometimes, when we're too lazy/tired to cook, we'll have something like a pizza from the freezer and I. will get a stick of bread and a piece of fruit. Over all, I'd recommend BLW, but we're not being strict about it - for lunch he still gets pureed stuff, and we often 'help' him eat something he just can't manage yet.

toomt I really sympathise, I'm starting to feel a bit stir crazy too. I recommend listening to Radio 4 for a bit of intellectual stimulation. And it will get better.

Toomt I completely sympathise - i think and hope it's natural to have days like this.. hope you feel better in the morning

Shattered here, ciara had injex today she was absolutely fine, bit teary but fine but i'm jst exhausted

i'm guessing i should know but what is blw? sorry i should prob know
will catch up properly 2moro xx

Toomt yup also suffering brain death, yet struggling to focus. Realised I haven't even read anything since, and this from someone who eats books. Been lent two Tove Jansson books that I've been meaning to read for ages and still haven't started. Days past I would have read them in a day. Ah well, have no plans today so will try to get going.

Second Radio 4.

Happy glad Ciara was ok.
BLW is baby-led weaning. I think essentially you allow the child to choose finger foods and self feed at their own pace rather than spoon feeding them pureed. (More to it but at least that's what blw stands for)..

uggh can I join the brain dead this morning?!
i'm reading a lot still - but don't remember anything I'm reading! Have rejoined the library and sleep deprived brian decided he wanted to read "poor little bitch girl" by Jackie Collins - oooh dear...
Toomt I'm in a book group and that's good for keeping the brain cells active (clearly they don't know about me and Jackie)
Also, check your local indpendent cinemas because they often do baby friendly screenings in the morning where you can take the babies along and because of the soundproofing the crying isn't as loud! My local one will show more challenging films (but only 12a and below)... last mat leave DS1 and I watched The Kite Runner, Elizabeth the Golden Age etc. He slept the entire time!

Yep, radio 4 here too, and world service in the night if I have to get up (often in the day too, can't stand all the plays on R4)... And my dad got me a subscription to the Economist for Christmas which has nice short articles so easy to pick up and put down. I even find the kids reading it! Nice to see when usually it's Heat and Look magazines!!

And so many long walks... Often round local shopping centre because it's cold. And I don't know what I did last time without an iPhone!

Though I did have the Newbies cinema last time. They seem to have dropped it at our local Odeon, shame, it was good...

Walking round shopping centre as I type, really should put down the phone and look where I'm going!

Morning...brain dead here today too. Can't ever get enough sleep at the moment. Two days to move. Wish it was just today.

TMT - Ruby only sleeps in the evenings if I hold her. To be honest I don't mind because she's not tricky. She just likes to be cuddled. She sleeps ok in the day though so I get a break from holding her then. She does prefer her car seat to anything else for sleeping which I know isn't great. Of course a cranky sleep deprived baby isn't great either. She's just gone off now so I must get packing!

Exciting times in the CA household... Am going to give ds2 his first bottle of precious expressed milk... This morning I only managed to get 1.5oz off and promptly knocked the bottle over- arrrgh!!!

SamB wishing you a calm and everything-going-to-plan kinda day today! Manic though it may be, tomorrow you'll go to sleep in your new home. How exciting

Meita very impressed that you've been able to keep up with your studies. Sounds like a very interesting project.

Parents coming today. Since having R I think I appreciate them all the more, though still feeling rather overwhelmed by being a parent. Don't know why I hadn't got my head around it before, think I just spent 42 weeks thinking about staying pregnant and hadn't thought about what comes after!

Wishing everyone a good day, hoping for some sunshine.

We have had 2 good nights here. Swaddling for the last feed before bed and playing white noise, and continuing that all through the night worked. She went down at about 11pm, slept until just before 3am, half hour feed, then slept until 6am, hour feed, slept until just 8.45am. Which for a 3 week old who was feeding all nigh long I count as good. I feel like a new person.

Muser, that sounds good! Hope she keeps up the good habit :)

Good luck with moving SamB! Don't try to do everything at once, ok?

Gi1da, oh no you got that wrong - I haven't been doing anything about my thesis for, oh, about a year now. Would have found it impossible to keep up with a newborn, and when I was pregnant, it was somehow all a bit too close to home - often my mind just balked when I tried to think about these things, I wasn't able to keep my own life and my work separate. But now I'm sort of itching to get back to it. We met a childminder this morning, seems like a lovely woman, her husband works as her assistant. They take the kids outside all the time which is very important to me, and the kids there seemed happy. Now we just need to see if it works out with the availabilities that they have.

Good luck with the bottles ClareA!

Hello all

Appologies for lack of postings - ironically i get more time to post when dh is at work. Plus the house stays tidier and i seem to get more done. It's like having 3 kids around the place not just 2! Will spend some time reading back over what excitement i've missed and attempt to get back on track for the next set of shifts. As it were. Only news around here is that James is not really sleeping again (i blame dh's snoring - he seems to sleep ok when dh's in the spareroom on work nights) and is currently v miz with sore legs after 2nd set of poisonpins yesterday afternoon.

Right, will attempt to catch up, tidy house before anyone turns up, and post again soon...

Damn, baby's awake...

We're awake too. Last night in crappy old house, wish it was time to get up and move house!!!

Good luck today and happy moving SamB!

Hope the move goes well samb

I have the sleep deprivation RAGE. Last night it was mainly directed at the makers of huggies for their substandard leaky nappies that caused ds2 to have massive howlywails and be wide awake between 2-4am. Also with dh for putting on the aforementioned leaky nappy. Then with ds1 for waking up too early and climbing on my stomach. Feel like the incredible hulk but more flabby. Need to go for a walk to get some fresh air but too tired to contemplate what needs to happen to get us all out of the house!!! Rant over....

Hope move going well Sam, good weather for it...

Clare is it lovely and sunny where you are? With luck it's helping. I remembered early this time round that they move up from size 1 to 2 very quickly, I left X in the same nappy from 5pm to 5am last night (mainly because he settled much quicker than expected and I wasn't waking him for a change... we both fell asleep before 8pm and it was the most I could do an hour or two later to get up and clean my teeth and change into my nightclothes) and it didn't leak!! It was extremely heavy though... (and wasn't huggies) [bad lazy mummy emoticon]

That sounds like X is sleeping through... No such luck, but I'm in such a daze for night feeds I only think of changing if leaks or smells are obvious...