December 2010 - Merry Christmas new babies!

[Chooster]

Hi, I couldn't see a post-natal thread but as we grow in numbers we'll need a place to chat!

All good here... Jude is now 5 days old and such a wonderful good baby. Mind you he must think he's been born in the Arctic as it was -16 outside this morning in Edinburgh. Brrrrrrr - Its not always this cold Jude .

How's everyone else getting on?

Hiya

steno ouch!

ff can completely sympathise with the sleep situation - I have spent the last month in my lounge as DD will not sleep upstairs and people asking me if she is sleeping through makes me want to kill them, how many 4 week old babies sleep through! Note to self - never ask a new mum if her baby sleeps through (she will probably be telling everyone herself if the baby does sleep through as she'll be so amazed!) My DH is also making 'advances' I mean seriously! He has been brilliant generally but why he can't understand why a sleep deprived, overwhelmed new mum (who also had a 3rd degree tear) might not be be up for it anytime soon is beyond me!

DD is much better after her cold but we had a colicky night, I have a moby wrap on loan from a friend and it was an absolute lifesaver. I have ordered one today from Slumber Roo, they have some on sale for £29.95 and you get a free hat and free P&P

MrsS at your weight loss - I was pleasantly suprised I could get my pre-pg jeans on and done up but I've got an epic muffin top going on. I must get out walking daily, as I found that helped after pg with DD.

lol at those of you being asked if baby is sleeping through yet - I can only assume that those people asking aren't parents themselves I considered myself lucky that DD slept through the night from 10 weeks old - hoping Matthew takes after her.

kitty glad your DD is feeling better

at those DP's making advances! What with DH working shifts (so his sleeping pattern gets mucked up), coupled with broken sleep from Matthew waking for feeds and the fact that he's trying to revise for his exams means that sex is the last thing on his mind right now.

DF glad you're getting the hang of being out and about with Bob

Hi all,

Have been reading the thread but never seem to get much time to add anything!

Thomas is six-and-a-half weeks now, and finally feel like life is starting to resemble some sort of normality.

Doesn't seem to be having the six week growth spurt, but then he cluster-fed from two to four weeks so perhaps he got it over with early!

Quick question - where did you all buy your Moby slings - did you order them directly from the website?

Hope all is well with everyone!

Max & MrsS I too am back into pre-preg jeans, tops are a different matter, I have got used to the extra length that can be found in Maternity tops, as all my tops that I loved pre-preg are ridiculously short and I keep flashing my mammoth muffin tops and jelly belly.

When I went to PN group, the mums that's babies were sleeping through were proudly bragging [which is fair enough] but a couple of mums paled and one nearly burst into tears. Also about feeds, Bea seems to be the most 'routine' yet the youngest, the hardest routine was someone who feeds every hour and a half and is struggling to make her LO go longer, which is really hard on her.

DH has really annoyed me this weekend, can't wait for him to go back to work on Monday. He just didn't care about our routine and played with her when she's meant to be sleeping so she's over stimulated and I end up being up all night settling her back down again. We agreed Saturday was his lie in and mine on Sunday, though I will still be BF'ing. He had his yesterday until 10am. This morning he turns off the alarm for her 6am feed, and ignored her screaming so I ended up getting up and dealing with her at 7.30am, and she was so angry and hungry it took an hour to BF her. He rolled over to watch me and proceeded to give me 'tips'. After feed settled her down and he was in the middle of the bed, unconscious and snoring, couldn't rouse him to get in bed, so have been doing housework since. My one day for a little bit of a lie in and he gets it. I am steaming at the moment, I've been making as much noise as possible to wake him and no sign yet. I've got to go and get her up for her 10am feed, so will nick the duvet cover.

Yesterday he made me laugh as he thinks carrying a baby in a sling isn't manly, so I wore it around town. Yet he proceeded to carry the change bag that also doubles as my hand bag. ??? Men, eh!

ah yes, kellestar I remember the new mum competitons well I don't know why everything about parenting seems to turn into a competition? Sorry your DH is being so unhelpful. They just don't get it sometimes do they? I'd be furious if my lie-in day (I remember when we had exactly the same system) was ruined. TBH my DH knows better than to even think about disturbing me when I'm asleep unless there's a crisis!!

I seem to have got tons of stuff done this weekend which means my house looks slightly less like a tip.

One of my close friends who had her second baby on 2 Jan was burgled yesterday - what low life scum there are around. I don't know what happened as I haven't had a chance to speak to her, but it's really unsettled me.

coco I ordered mine from amazon but I had a voucher to use

anyone else's LO detest having their nappy changed? Matthew screams blue murder the entire time. I'm dreading having to change him while we're out and about, people will think I'm doing something that hurts him...

hi Coco, I got mine from ebay :)

kitty my Dh sleeps in the spare room so I have Bob in the bed with me and it seems to work out well at the moment, though I am worried i might end up having him in bed with me for years. He does sleep very well in his moses basket too but I just like having him near me at night, specially as he wasn't with me for the first few days of his life.

I am back in my pre-pregnancy jeans but not my pre-ivf ones I am hoping that I will eventually get back into my size 10s but would be happy at 12.

I am not following any kind of routine with Bob as he's only just over 3 weeks so I am impressed by those who already have nap times. We think we probably have it pretty easy though as he was in a kind of hospital enforced routine. The only thing I have changed is feeding more frequently but he will still go for around 4 hours in the night. I tend to feed him when he shows feeding cues, change him if he smells etc. - he likes nappy changing times

max sorry to hear about your friend :(

frankenfanny that must be so annoying, my DH is quite happy to leave me alone - so far! I need to think about contraception at some point. He's been really good to be fair, though is back in work and loves telling people how tired he is. I am ok on broken sleep and the breastfeeding means I just go straight back to sleep but he doesn't like being woken up. He has done most of the cooking since I had Bob so I am really grateful to have food and drinks delivered to me on the sofa.

Today we're going to take Bob for his first visit to Maplins! Boring! ha ha.

Hi again everyone.
DD now 10 days old! Time flies.

kellestar I had a similar problem with DP when DS was tiny. He would lie in till 2pm or later both days of the weekend then come downstairs and use the laptop, leaving me to do everything for DS. I got through to him eventually though. He told me he 'needed his break'. I pointed out that because he was so busy taking HIS break at the weekend, that I never got one. Also pointed out that he might feel more rested if he actually spent time relaxing with his family instead of wasting his weekend asleep. We now have a one lie-in each system, although it's yet to be seen how DD's arrival will affect this.

I'm still on crutches although trying to rest as much as possible in the hope that I'll get mobile quicker. I really have to as DP is back to work on Thursday. Eeek. Can't think how I'll cope if I'm still on crutches with a fucked up pelvis trying to look after a toddler and a newborn.

I haven't weighed myself but I know I lost weight in pregnancy. When they weighed me at the end I was only 3lb heavier than I was at the beginning and when you consider DD was nearly 10lb and had a massive placenta it's clear I've lost some. SIL said the other day that I have a waist and some shape. Like others though I still have massive jelly belly!

am not in pre-pregnancy jeans yet (DD only 3 wks old) but am in size 10s so thank goodness for sainsbury's £10 bootcut jeans! at that price i don't mind if i only end up wearing them for a few months. not much hope on the pre-pregnancy tops due to sheer size of boobs! some of the looser, tunic type tops are ok but some wont get a look-in until i stop BF. oh well.

DD doing well, still got major milk spots but they are slowly starting to clear. she's still on four-hourly feeds although she is feeding for longer. the last two nights have been quite a shock as she's slept through from her 10pm feed to 3am!!! she's a proper tinker when it comes to burps though - its like she holds on to them then gets mega hicoughs which need more boob to settle.

sorry to hear about DPs being a pain. i think some blokes just really struggle to understand what it is to look after a baby, esp. when they are at work all day. from their point of view they're tired and need 'down time' without realising that whilst you've been at home all day its not like you've been sat around doing nothing! as for 'relations' - blummin heck! i just told my DH to take things in hand if his needs were that bad

weather here grim so not been out with DD today. also really peed off with dog owners right now - every time i've taken her out in her buggy round the village i've had to deal with dog poo on the wheels. i'm sticking to the pavements too. sigh. its a real pain because i have to get DD out and somewhere safe inside before i can then deal with it. i've had to mop the floors twice in as many days. its just so selfish and so unhygenic. (i know not all dog owners are like this btw...)

Hello everyone, it's been ages since I last posted - mid December - have just found this thread and read it all at high speed but please forgive me if I don't respond to everyone individually as it would be epic! Congratulations to everyone on their lovely babies. Sounds like everyone is settling into life in newbornland. It has been reassuring to read how everyone's been doing.

Tom is 5 weeks today and a bouncing baba, no idea how much he weighs but it must be at least 10.5lbs and over 2 feet long, he has grown out of all his NB clothes and is in 1-3 months stuff. He had lots of spots but they have gone, he is now losing his fluffy dark brown hair.

He is a sweet-natured easily consoled baby but he screams like he is being murdered when his nappy is changed. He loves swimming in the bath with me or DH and feeds furiously for hours and hours morning and evening which was excruciating when he had a crap latch but is fine now. He also hates being put down to sleep and will only sleep in a sling or in/on someone. He likes going out in the buggy and in the sling, and falls asleep immediately.

I am so glad he is not a newborn of a few weeks old anymore. DH adored him from the moment he was born but I didn't 'get' him at all when he was very new, and found him quite alien and a bit scary but now I have got to know him and what he likes and dislikes I love him inordinately. I think he is going to start smiling soon - he gazes at me thoughtfully which is lovely. I used to be
:( when he turned his head away.

I will try and join in this thread properly and chat with you all now I have a bit more time and know whether I am coming or going!

Hi all. Nice to see everyone getting on ok. I am nowhere near back in pre-preg jeans! Daren't go anywhere near them TBH. My maternity stuff is too big now though so I have a bit of a wadrobe crisis going on at the moment. Getting by with a belt on mat jeans and long tops.

William still has chompy feeds although it has only been a few days since his tongue tie division. On the whole, there has been a big improvement but it could be better still.

No idea about routine. He sleeps mainly in bed with us or in sling and I feed on demands. I think he's probably having in the region of 10 feeds a day but I'm not sure.

DF DD slept in bed/on people for the first few months and by 12 months was sleeping 7-6 in her own cot in her own room.

WRT people claiming their babies are sleeping through, it depends on your definition - technically I believe it is a 5 hour stretch. I really hate the whole business, it's not a competition and babies aren't actually supposed to sleep through this young. If you have one that does, you are very unlucky and very unusual. Honestly, the amount your baby sleeps has nothing to do with how good a parent you are. I took the attitude with DD that she had needs at night the same as in the day so if she needed to be fed or held or rocked etc, I did it. It was hard going sometimes but we never considered cry it out as an option (tried it once, never again) and as I said she started to sleep through in her own time. That was the approach that suited us, it won't suit everyone so you need to do what you feel is right and try and ignore people who are trying to turn everything into a competition.

Anyway, rant over!

William smiled at me the other day. Total heart melting moment. He hasn't repeated it yet, but just that one smile has made the whole horrible pregnancy and postnatal period so worth while. :o

thank you WLL I am so confused about what I should be doing so am just going to play it by ear.

I wondered - can people maybe add some stats? like when your baby was born etc something like this?

DuelingFanjo baby boy (Bob) born 22 Dec 2010 6lb 15 oz.

wave to Miffster

Good to hear from you miffster

DF should we set up a seperate thread for PN stats like we had for antenatal?

er meant lucky in previous post if baby sleeps thru!

DF & max good idea, it'll be nice as I struggle to remember baby names :]

Bea gets a middle of the night feed, her last evening feed is 10pm and then she will go through to 2am and then through to 6am. After feeding at the 10pm feed she takes about 45 minutes to settle, but for the 2am and 6am feeds we keep it quiet and don't rouse her too much and she'll settle back down in 15 minutes or so. I would rather her settle down smoothly after those early feeds than go through the night.

coco I also bought mine on eBay.

DH has appologised for his naughty behaviour and we had a chat about things and he seems to understand now, we know what each others roles are now, hope it gets easier next weekend.

rudbekia I know what you mean about the miserable weather. I can't work out how to put the rain cover on the pram and hate to get her wet. We keep the pram in the garage as it's huge and no space in our house. Dog Poop really annoys me too, it's just so rude that people leave it. We live on a country lane out of the village and so many people don't bother clearing it up as it's in a 'rural' place, but the amount of times we have had to move over to the verge as cars are passing and stepped or ran over something. Grrrr

with you on the dog poop issue - just plain rude!!

got a bit excited about rediscovering pre-preg clothes!

Does annyone get the afternoon blues? Evvy seems to be much harder to settle in the afternoon and i end up feeling blue as well.

used my moby this morning - she fell asleep so i am taking that as a success!!

I'm no where near getting in my pre prey jeans... oh well! I know exactly why tho! Too much chocolate and yummy dinners... need exercise but tricky to find the time. When Jude is asleep there is always something else to do with the other kids.

Jude is doing well... speaking of routines he pretty much feeds every 3 hours in the day stretching to 4 hours ish at night. I have a similar set up to you Df in that Dh is in the spare room and Jude is in with me in bed. I prefer it that way as it means I can just get get on with things at night without worrying or thinking about Dh. As I'm bf there is nothing he can do except annoy me!! ;) but I am thinking of buying a drop side cot soon so Dh can move back in...

Totally agree about dog poo.... yuk, hate it. I accidentally rolled the buggy through some the other day before I had to put the buggy back in the boot...

DD cluster-fed last night...big feed at usual 6pm time, followed by her being uber restless, another big feed at 8pm and then slept(ish) until 11pm when she had another huge feed. think she might be going through a bit of a growth spurt (i think i read somewhere that 3wks is one of these times??!) anyway, i look forward with interest to clinic on wed when she'll be getting weighed. she's starting to put a real strain on me when BF so i'm using lots of cushions for both our benefit.

DD now sleeping most nights in the nursery - this is just next door to our room. resorted to this as she is a nosey monkey and we found anytime we spoke or woke up during the night etc she would too! she seems to sleep much better away from activity - however we still have lots of cuddles and on the weekend she comes into bed with me for my lie-in which is lovely! i've got a comfy chair in the nursery where i do her late night feeds...found getting out of bed a real challenge at first, but having all the nappy stuff etc on hand has its advantages.

kellestar and chooster although its grim i'm glad i'm not the only person suffering from dog-poo issues! and how horrible, having to get a poo-covered buggy in a car...you have my sympathies!

Afternoon all! Getting into swing of things this week, if I can stop DH from wanting to go out and do "stuff" although he is currently feeling sick so should have a quiet couple of days.
My weight loss was all during pregnancy with all the walking and cycling I was having to do to work, i was only 7lb heavier on due date than pre preg and once I had Hugh it all came off in one go, I am now 1&1/2 stone lighter than pre preg but weight has been steady for a few weeks now, problem is jelly belly and no clothes that fit! Asda and Tesco cheap jeans and tracksuit bottoms for a while I think!
I hate the dog mess thing as well and I'm a dog owner, I don't understand why people are so lazy!
Hugh has the smelliest farts in the world especially as he appears to save things up for a couple of days, spends a day really agitated with wind then has a big release - not fun! At least he hasn't squeezed it out of the top of his nappy yet like DD did !
We have Cyril the squirrel home from school for a few days so I better go and find some fun things to do for his photo diary

OMG DD just had an epic tantrum [despair emoticon]. Matthew has been grizzly all afternoon because he was tired but was fighting sleep. Thankfully he settled after his 5pm feed. DD had been lovely since picking her up from school. I made her her tea, she had about a 3rd of it and said she was full. On the rare occasions she does this, she then plays up at bedtime about being hungry, so I told her what I epected her to finish. So she carried on eating. Then she started blowing bubbles in her glass of cranberry juice. I asked her not to in case it spilled (as it would have stained the rug she was standing on) and she completely ignored me. I took it away and put it in the kitchen, she came and grabbed it and carried on blowing bubbles, while wandering around the living room. I told her off for ignoring me and she committed the cardinal sin of laughing at me. Well that was that. I ended up physically dragging her upstairs while she thought it was all very funny . It all unravelled from there on. She and I had a 10 min fight - me trying to keep her bedroom door shut, while she was trying to open it, all the while, she was creaming at the top of her voice. Then she started throwing stuff around her room. I rang DH (normally a good deterrent) but typically he didn't answer and then when he did on the 3rd attempt, he said he was busy and couldn't talk. She finally relented when I told her she'd have to go next door to apologise to our neighbours about the amount of noise she was making. She's in her room 'calming down' now. I know that most of this is about her being tired because she's still waking up far too early in the morning, but what can I do? I can hardly sedate her to keep her asleep for as long as she needs! It got so bad I told her she wasn't going to her cousin's birthday party on Saturday - I don't believe in making empty threats but this is a tough one as I know Archie will be disappointed if she doesn't go.

Sorry for the self indulgent post, hope everyone else had a good day.

Max I think your DD is same age as mine (5) IIRC - we bought her a princess alarm clock and she is not allowed up until it goes off. If she wakes before alarm she is allowed to sit and look at books in bed. Set it 5 mins later each day until it gets to time you want her to get up! DD is 7 in week and 8 at weekends it now, seems to be working. Don't know what to do about food issue as we have the same problem with time taken to eat said meal - if she could she would take 2 hours to eat a bowl of pasta. I have had to start removing privileges for not eating nicely i.e. without face pulling, talking incessantly, singing, humming, sitting with same food in her mouth for 15 mins, I could go on and on .......... Any advice?

rudbekia and kellestar I so agree about dog s**t. I live near a Mothercare and both times I have walked down there with the pram I have ended up standing outside cleaning poo off the wheels with a wetwipe before I can go in.

I have also learned what a great thing drop down curbs are and how annoying it is when people park in front of them.

kiwi5 I get the afternoon blues, Bob feeds a lot from about 3 to 7 plus he's very ratty at about 10pm. He's a great little sleeper once he's down though.

MrsSnaplegs I have a farty baby too, he takes after his dad!

Waves to chooster

maxpower sounds like a tough day :( I really admire everyone who is handling more than one child. No advice but I hope you have a better time with DD tomorrow.

cheers DF me too

MrsS yes DD is 4.6 so about the same as yours. We've done the alarm clock thing for the last year which was working well but seems to have gone a bit awry since DS arrived. Problem is we can't force her to go back to sleep in the morning even though she is clearly exhausted and needs more sleep than she's getting. Just hoping it's a phase. Foodwise she's actually really good - this evening was out of character for her. Anyway it's nice to know it's not just me

MrsSnaplegs do you eat with your DD? i don't have another child other than my baby, but i do remember eating tea with my mum and sisters (and sometimes my dad if he was home early enough) and if we didn't finish in 'good time' and eat nicely then the food was taken away and we weren't allowed 'pudding'. sounds a bit harsh but it did work!

maxpower hugs. i really don't know how you ladies with more than one child do it!

DD farts likes a trooper...cracks me up every time! she's going through the whole unsettled in the evening thing. currently sat with DH and i with the lights down low in the sitting room gazing at the cat!

Sounds like a day in my house maxpower! Ds who is 6 still pushes us and does that laughing thing as well sometimes and it drives me even more mad. Have you tried making her bed times earlier. That's what I did.with ds2 when he was waking too early. I thought that at least if he was getting up early he wouldnt be too shattered. Oddly enough when I put him to bed earlier he started to get up later! I think because he was nicely rested and more relaxed so slept longer. He may be unique though but worth a try perhaps?

My little Jude has hardly slept today however... very wide awake in my arms now. The only time he slept well was on his tummy in my bed but I had to wake him after an hour for the school run ..... I felt awful doing that to him.

Hi to everyone!