January 2011

[MacMomo]

Thought we should have a post-natal thread so we can stay together from our ante-natal one. Technically, DD was a December baby after coming early on new years eve; hope you don't mind if I stay with the January group after all this time. How is everyone doing?

I use baby connect as you can be as insane as you like recording feeds, pumping, nappy changes, formula, sleep, mood, activity etc

Macmomo I was thinking about buying little lambs but now she's here and reusable are just so easy.

Hi everyone, have been reading the thread daily, but there's been too much craziness going on to find time to post! First of all, splodge, been thinking of you and Arnie, I so hope he is on mend now.
We have had nasty couple of days. Louie has just not shaken off his chest infection and yesterday his breathing was getting faster and faster and really laboured and loud. GP sent us to A&E as thought he needed help breathing. Was just awful. He was assessed in hospital and has bronchiolitis - thankfully we got bringing him home, but have been stressed out monitoring him as have to return if any changes. So far, so good. On top of that, have developed mastitis in both breasts, have started the antibiotics (my third course since L's birth) and the feverishness has passed, thank god.
Night nappies - I'm with you lot in only changing for poos. Felt guilty until I read everyone is doing the same as I remember changing dd religiously after every feed! Seems so silly to wake them unnecessarily though!
Our sleep remains hit and miss. Some nights crazy, some nights fine. Have 6 week check tomorrow so am hoping get the green light to drive again.
Really enjoying hearing everyone's experiences. Hope the toddlers out there are behaving better than my one...the craziness here continues!! Would love just one quiet, calm day!!

gosh deedee sounds like you've been having a tough time, hope you both get better soon. arnie is a lot better tho also a lot harder work now he is alert and hungry and feisty again - but i'm not complaining!!
he still has to have antibiotics daily so i am not getting out much - it takes an hour and a half and the nurse comes slap bang in the middle of the day - but i'm looking fwd to nxt week when he finishes the drugs. sure i'll be uber-anxious then tho, watching for any signs of a relapse, oh it is worrysome this mummying business!! i cant imagine how anyone manages with 2 or more!

Splodge that is great news that Arnie will be finished antibiotics.

deedee you are unlucky :( poor Louie and poor you. Roll on the better weather, less colds. The bfing will settle down.

And hey thank god for antibiotics! What must it have been like to be a parent before they were discovered?

Hi all,
I've not noted feeds or sleeps,she puts on 1lb a fortnight so thats enough, and sleep wise, well i'm just guessing really,some days (like today) we'll have more and others we'll have less. Speaking of sleep I went to a talk at my local childrens centre about establishing sleep routines to get them to sleep through. I thought I was going to an immunisation chat but my leaflet was wrong! Anyway besides the fact that DD is too little (thank god!) it was really interesting. ATM she stays downstairs with us napping til we go to bed round 10, I know we need to start bath, change, bed etc earlier but I'm to chicken not sure I want to put her upstairs by herself yet, very PFB I know!

Sleep at night like most of you is erratic, some nights are good and some are bad, my biggest problem is that sometimes I fall asleep holding her and we wake up 3 hours later!

TGIF!

I haven't monitored anything! Maybe I should, Rosa decidedly grumpy for the last fee days.

Classic this morning, DH decides that she needs some nappy free time on her playmat despite the fact she hasnt done a poo in over 24 hours (she's usually a one a day girl) and then decides she needs 'crawling practice' (she's 5weeks Tom) which involves lying her on her front, she strains to lift her head & shoulders and her little legs start going with all the effort, verging on creulty I know! Anyway I'm sure you can all imagine the concequences (sp?) it was staggering!! DH yelling in panic and Dd calmly spreading it around, there goes my quiet time to myself! V funny though, don't know what he was thinking

kiwi, not PFBish in my opinion, I am on my second and I can't put him upstairs by himself yet! DH and I really enjoy our evenings with Louie as it is our chance to enjoy him calmly while dd is sound asleep....think it will be a wee while before we pop him upstairs, just for that reason really.
I hadn't been monitoring anything this time (was ridiculous with dd!) but then you lot mentioned apps...I have had great time today obsessively logging everything in Total Baby - to realise ds sleeps 20 hours out of 24 (though he's not well, but it does seem normal for him...) and his feeds last an av of 5 mins (seems v short, but obv suits him as he is gaining weight). Can tell this new game is going to keep me very busy!
Thanks for thinking of us splodge and Sarrita, we're def improving :)

deedee how's the mastitis?

beijinggal I have one Little Lambs that I'm trialling, a Bumble coming and some flat/terries. The LL seems quite short on my dd - PM me if you want any further info.

DD slept for...nearly 7.5 hrs last night! We bathed her, DH spend time time cuddling her in the sleeping room (me and DD sleep in there), and gave her a giant bottle of expressed breast milk (have decided one bottle won't spoil her latch), he swaddled her and she just passed out before I could put her down. Then I passed out and next thing I know it's 7 hrs later . Trying it again tonight to see if it's a pattern (please god yes!). She also slept a huge amount most of today, DH now believes she's been like this all the time he's been at work and I've been watching TV all day.

Got her in a sling today - 30 mins walk on the beach, first time I have felt human in about 4 months.

readyornot I laughed so much at your playmat story, hope you managed to get it clean again.

Sorry that so many of you are having a hard time , definitely grateful to live in the era of antibiotics and hope they've all worked splodge and deedee.

sarrita glad you got to watch a film in (almost) peace. We were so definitely not going to do the whole bouncing/rocking thing this time round and have ended up doing it again, whatever it takes to make life easier...

readyornot that made me laugh, I'm quite nervous about nappy off time because DS2 is a several poos a day baby, your story has made me even more nervous . Roll on summer when he can have a bit more freedom instead of 5 mins here and there on the change mat.

kiwi I'm guilty of the falling asleep during feeds as well, trying to make more of an effort to at least end up in a better co-sleeping position but it's not always easy. Also DS2 tends to come on and off and faff a fair bit during feeds, he's managed to give me a love bite above my nipple while I was dozing and not paying attention .

beijing disposable nappies here too , I don't feel good about it but I struggle to keep up with the washing as it is.

macmomo 7.5 hours! I am so jealous!

I really should go to bed now as I know there'll be a couple of wake-up calls tonight (still only managing around 3 hours or less between feeds). It's far too tempting to stay up to enjoy the odd peaceful moment while both the DSs sleep.
DS2 has managed to pick up his second cold already, he's been asleep on me all evening but, even though we've propped up the cot, will probably be awake and restless when I try lying him down.

Wow macMomo, you have given us all hope!! Cannot imagine 7 hours sleep! Louie has shifted my mastitis...by feeding every hour since 1am last night - am like a zombie.Must be growth spurt extraordinaire!!
Amazingly have managed to have a lovely day - my dd is being golden again, so sweet without a tantrum in sight, and my sis and I took them both to a garden centre for a charge about and a coffee...anyone else loving the attention your tiny gets when out and about? I love people saying 'Oooooh, gorgeous!' :o
Walk on the beach with baby in a sling sounds utterly blissful....

MacMomo

Seraphina was averaging 4 hours then dropped to 3 for her 6w growth spurt. I'm now trying to get her to drop off back to sleep as she is not always waking for a feed but just waking up. Fingers crossed for longer sleeps soon!

Speaking of sleep the poor lamb was awake for SIX HOURS yesterday and getting increasingly ratty and exhausted ending in a screaming fit before she collapsed asleep. It was :( for us both. Seriously, why wasn't a sleep control handed to us in the delivery room?

ready your poo story made me laugh!

deedee glad the mastitis has been shifted though hourly feedings are tough. Hope Louie is feeling better.

smallsniffle have you tried using a small diffuser with some tea tree or eucalyptus oil for the colds in baby's bedroom?

Yee ha. DD slept from 10.30 ish till 4.30am. I went to bed at 11.30 so 5 hrs of sleep. Incredible. Then she didn't wake again till 8 as I managed to give her a two boob feed as I wasn't completely and utterly exhausted. And... she is asleep again!

DS is at the Zoo today with his childminder.

But the night before it was a feed every hour. Sleeping with DD on the boob (happens all the time with me and with DS before so try not to worry about it).

I never had 7hrs sleep with DS until he was 10months and through sleep training I got him off his 4am feed. Well done Macmomo.

Currently have casserole pot tied to a dressing gown cord, attached to baby hammock, so that one bounce goes on for longer on the hammock. Brother-in-law's suggestions (civil engineer) who had the hammock before us - genius!

wow! amazing epic sleep macmomo, arnie only does big sleeps in the afternoon never at night. groan. i am getting seriously fed up with these boots nappies we have got - for some reason every single one i have put on him over the last 24 hours has leaked and i've had to change his clothes every nappy change which makes him scream. grrr. any recomendations for non-leaky nappy brands? the poor washing machine is going to conk out at this rate.

splodge I had the problem with Huggies, have stuck to pampers since then, just buy in bulk when I see them on offer. My mum very kindly bought us a huge bag of huggies this weekend, didn't have the heart to tell her and they'll still get used

beijing I do already have some tea tree oil (have slight hippy woo tendencies ) but must get diffuser. It's always the same when they're ill there are things I mean to buy and then they get better and I forget and curse myself next time when the thermometer still doesn't have batteries!

sarrita I'm loving the image of a hammock with crockery (or should that be ovenware?) hanging off it. It's amazing the things which work!

I've had occasional leaks with pampers but every time since buying Sainsbury's own. I think most nappies struggle to control the newborn poonamis (the force they're expelled with is sometimes amazing). I find own brand nappies work fine for toddlers though so it's worth giving them another try when they're older.

Was wondering today how a few of the regulars from the expecting thread were getting on. I haven't seen walkthedog, littlehuman, berrycravings and I'm sure there are others for ages. Any of you still out there lurking?

Ah ha, found you all! Haven't been lurking, just couldn't find - dumb brain of mine

Haven't read any of the gossip yet.

Can't believe DD is over 5 weeks old. She is doing great and getting heavier every week (no need to go to gym to lift weights!). Was 11lb3oz at 5 wk HV visit. Is slowly dropping lower than the 91st centile, which am glad as don't fancy having to carry huge baby around until she starts walking.

Update news:

Post CSection recovery has gone well. Parents came over once OH returned to work which helped a lot. DP has taken over walking the dog now dad has gone home. Been able to go out with them carrying DD in Kari me sling (she hated the other one we have)

Needed to co-sleep as she wouldn't settle at all in crib or pram unless completely zonked and even then woke up in such a state. In past wk managing to get her to sleep in crib or pram, and managing sometimes to get her to fall asleep without needing to be held/comfort suck.

BF finally stopped being agony after 2 weeks. Started expressing at wknd - more for occ times, just as well it took me 20mins to express 1oz, which DD guzzled in couple of mins - hoping more I express more I'll produce!

Restarted resusables, tried once home but she came out in a rash - nobody could work out why - all going well with them now. I've had some leaks with pampers, very difficult to get out of clothes - argh!

Having some spells of evening colicish crying - occ druing the day, but can settle her easier and quicker in daytime. Found white noise - waterfall etc, works well.

Excitably awaiting brother's 1st baby which was due yesterday.

Glad everyone is doing well. Having a nice relaxing day with DD1 at nursery! walkthedog I use a Kari me and DD2 is practically a marsupial, she is never out it!

Hi there,
Please can I join in of the thread?

Ive just come over from the childbirth threads having had DD2 on Jan26th (4weeks tomo)
Was very kindly pointed in this direction from Blancedevereux think thats spelt wrong but you know who I mean!

havent had a chance to read all the posts on here as there are so many, but here's our story:

DD1 2years 8months, DD2 4weeks, EBFing. Weight gain has been great so far! 8lb15oz born, now nearly 10lb 10oz. Managed normal delivery this time around with G&A and tens (had lots and lots of interventions with DD1 as she was back to back ) DH back to work now and In-laws staying this week which is helping with the mundane half-term. DD1 desperate to get back to creche and groups etc that are all off due to holidays

Been trying to think of ways of managing to get the newbie some piece and quiet to sleep during the day as DD1 extremely noisy! Blanche I tried your tip and left baby upstairs to sleep a little longer this morning while I gave the little lady some brekkie. It does help but no further forward with naps during day - only sure fire way to make sure she gets sleep is to get out and about with her in the pram at the moment!

Hello ladies Have been lurking, but just haven't the time to type and catch up sorry. Have been very busy. Last week was my 1st week solo, haven't had any help but I've managed with ds1 2.11, ds2 20m and dd 3wo honestly I do not know how??!! We've been getting to a couple of groups and having mostly 'good' days together. But had a few stressful days mid week with work pressures, and having to run errands etc. So Arabella had put on 1lb 14oz by 20days old , she really looks too big to be a new born, and 0-3 months are very fitted!! Co-sleeping, not that there's much sleep to be had, she's full of cold poor thing. Bf going well, but did has mastitis a week ago, managed to clear it up with feeding phew! We're using a mei tai sling which is fab, especially around the house. My 20mo is having regular meltdowns/very sensitive, so he's very hard work. My dh has been an absolute star this time around, helping change nappies, get breakfast out, do bed and bathtime for older ones before and after work I really think the 2 weeks paternity with him in charge of the toddlers scared him !! Feeling really fat and wobbly, can't believe I'm already worrying about my weight, prob because I've been this size for 3 pg in a row now! Cannot wait to start some exercise, but waiting for 6 weeks.

Hello tetty I was on the birth thread too Gld all's going well! Welcome back walkthedog

We're using pampers ATM, so far so good. Had a few leaks so went up a size, and none yet! We were going to do re-usables, but I'm REALLY struggling with washing now so think it may not be very practical. Hope everyone's well

Oh for my ds2 we use aldi's nappies...amazing and cheap! The best re-usables I've used for no leaks etc. Will prob put dd into those when she's a bit bigger (the material isn't as soft and bendable as pampers for newborn IYKWIM!)

blanche love kari me, have it on me now :)

welcome tetty. could you try a quiet box for DD1, filled with variety of things she really likes, but that keep her occupied and quiet, that you only taken out when DD2 due for nap? I know hard to find something that does that!

mama pat yourself on the back, we are our own worst critics, you are doing great. I plan to start my wii exercises on fri/wknd once 6wks up, but gentle as can still occ feel one side of stitches - MW thought either stitched a bit too tight or had slight haematoma.

oh what a day! yesterday went so well - DD is very unsettled

wondering if my boobs are heading for mastitis, hopefully just engorgement. Luckily DD wanting to feed often so that is helping.

Getting married in summer, OH popped the question (finally!) and friend just messaged me to say hotel has us down for wrong date - argh, contract is right, just seems to be the reception. it's a pretty informal affair but if hotel makes a mistake like that, we will need to make sure any details are written out in full detail.

oh well one smile from DD and it is all forgotten

walk glad you found us and congratulations on the wedding - hope it all goes smoothly from here.

tetty I struggle with naps as well, so far have been resorting to buggy/sling as well.

blanche I also love my kari-me, it is probably my most used bit of baby kit.

mama I find it hard enough juggling 2, I can't imagine how busy it'd be with 1 more and I remember 20 months as being a fairly interesting time when I only had the 1!

I know I should just relax and enjoy DS2 for the moment but I have been weighing myself (nearly 2 stone to lose) and wondering where my waist went. I've bought a double buggy though so should be getting plenty of exercise pushing that around.

DS2 was feeding practically all day yesterday and DS1 was also being quite challenging. Today I don't have DS1 and DS2 has slept pretty much all day - it's been one extreme to the other, from manically busy to very peaceful.

walk congratulations!

After our dream week of long sleeps, the colic and reflux kicked in, so things didn't stay so good - but at least I got a bit of respite. Have managed a better few days now, but really don't know how to get DD to settle in cot at 7pm. The books just say "settle her down by 7pm when she's 6 weeks old" as though you just decide to do it. We're doing the whole bath, cuddle, feed, calm, into the cot you go...wah! Wah! Wah!

Still, she's only 8 weeks tomorrow, seems very young to me. Just very afraid to find out at ten weeks that we should have been doing this differently all along and then it will be too late, bad habit ingrained!

Am also struggling with milk supply in one boob (one giant turbo tit and one tiny flat pancake) pumping every 2 hrs for a few days does sort it out, but it's chuffing hard to actually do!

Yay, weekend neatly here. Normal life task for this weekend: making pancakes

Hello ladies

Welcome Tette welcome back walk

In awe of all the ladies doing this with a toddler already, can't imagine at the moment but I guess I'll be ready one day... Hmmm and mama wow!

Macmomo I started putting DD up at 7pm at 4 weeks, it all went brilliantly for a few days but then we had a few days away at the in laws and now we are up north with my parents and I don't like to leave her because the bedroom's too far away. Plus DH was away for a few days inbetween so she kept me company and it's all gone to pot! I have tried a few times but if she cries I cave straight away, she's only 6 weeks tomorrow so still very young. We gave in the power of the dummy ( evenings only) and it seems to relax her completely, no evening fussing. In fact she was so funny last (her & DH making faces at each other, I don't want to put her up anymore!

In other news, DH and I went out on a date on Wednesday night! Probably too soon I know, but as I said we are staying at my parents & there is a great restaurant opposite their house. So I bf'd & settled Rosa left her curled up on my mum, put on a dress!!! and heels!!! and went out for a wonderful dinner and rather too much crap wine. It was amazing to be a couple again for a few hours and have a proper talk about DDs arrival and how it's changed things. It was also amazing to get back to our gorgeous daughter who'd been as good as gold. She did punish us by waking every 2 hours (usually 4) for a feed, worrying considering the likely alcohol content. Anyway have just woken from a great night, 6 solid hours, so either all is forgiven or she was sleeping off a hangover!!! Oh dear, I'm a bad bad mum! But a happy one with a very smily DD