FESH Spa & Creche: Plenty more FESH in the brie

[CUNextTuesday]

Welcome all those with aching scars, undercarriages, eyelids and limbs. Find comfort here. Menfolk barred.

I was going to ask about expressing. I was flicking through a "your baby week by week" book in the shop yesterday and it suggested starting expressing and offering a bottle in week 3, but I thought you were meant to wait until six weeks. I find it all very confusing. I would like to express at some point, but given feeding hasn't been that straight forward for mr I don't want to mess it up.

Not sure I'd want to express right now, in the last 2 days the middle of the night cluster feeding has started up again and I think if I expressed as well I might start to feel like a dairy cow. But I don't want to end up with her refusing anything but boob.

I only have a tiny manual pump at the moment that the hospital gave me. Any recommendations for a good pump?

Electric muse all the way! I got T Tippee one. Medela is v highly reco'd too but I ain't used one of them!

I've made a total balls up and I'm not going to be able to make the M4 FESH meet due to ferry times and my parents living in the arse end of nowhere 1000 miles from a fricking airport/motorway. Sorry ladies. :( Next time.

muser The Medela swing seems a popular choice and isn't too bank breaking at all. In fact, is currently on sale on amazon for 78 smackers and they hold their re-sale, although if you're looking to start in a couple of weeks perhaps ebay?

muse I have a medela mini, bottles and teats looking for a home if you are interested. It was ace but obv have no use for it now.

The mini looks good, portable would be handy for pumping while out. I would give them a home Polly, what sort of price were you looking for?

£20 for the lot muse?

Oh poo Alps- never mind. Next time ditch the rellies - they are far too inconvenient

There is no right or wrong time to express in my book Muse....took me a couple of months to pluck up the courage with LC but am much more confident this time round. You'll know when you're ready.

hey ladies sorry again for lurking and not contributing.

We've had an epic fail today on the 2nd attempt at baby rice. He was much more interested in the food and took it into his mouth this time. But obviously not ready for swallowing as he choked and then vomited his entire milk feed too. Feel horrendously guilty for trying to make him eat when not ready.

muser expressing is a cinch once you've got a decent pump. You probably won't get much at the beginning but it really doesn't matter. 5 minutes twice a day and before you know it you'll be pumping 100ml in under 10 minutes. I gave up at 3-4 weeks for the reason you describe but I was a fool to do it, as had he woken screaming for a feed 10 minutes after expressing I could have just given him the feed in a bottle. So long as you have roughly an hour between expressing and feeding it should be ok. I've never had empty boobs yet and I don't think it's actually possible - it just feels like that. Lots of people don't get bottle refusers but as i've struggled and had so many tears over it I'd say get going - even if you are only giving her a couple of ml every day. Quantity doesn't matter. Good luck! PS are you up for meeting up as per facebook? lemme know. would be lovely to see you and your little girl.

medee Well I gather rare beef is frowned upon during pregnancy - although I seem to recall you saying not above the border. 'Tis traditional in the FESH creche to welcome newbies with some melting brie, cocktails, cured meats and cake obviously. Sometimes we lay out the buffet tables a few days early and have to keep the fingers flies off. A grasshopper is the gayest of all the gay cocktails (creme de menthe, creme de cacao & cream).

moo Don't feel guilty - there's a reason they have that awesome gag reflex thing going on - it's so they don't choke! :) Bear easily puked weetabix/porridge/baby rice - but has always kept fruit/fromage frais/tasty stuff down better. Tbh - what would you rather? Pear or plain readybreak?

ponio is that all the mtgs orf or just the middle of nowhere one?

Also how the heck are you supposed to know if they're ready unless you try Moo. No harm done eh!

silv Just our one unfortunately. :( I won't be able to make it to our one until 4pm at the earliest which in turn means it'll be waaaaaay too late for me to be doing treacherous B roads through the depths of the arse end of nowhere. :(

alps when did you get him to successfully start? do you suggest staying on rice, or try something else? I dunno. Might need to go and see HV and see what they say.

honey They start young over here - 16 weeks. I waited a little longer due to him being premature. I started him on jars of fruit puree - mango was not popular at first but goes down fine now. I also used jars of veggies - runner beans made him go "blurrrrgh" but everything else was OK. Fruit much more popular than veg - like father, like son I suppose! I used jars at first and a friend brought some really interesting ones over from the UK - e.g., strawberry cheesecake - much tastier than plain rice or porridge!

I wonder if it's a good idea to use jars as you say at first. Smoother consistency? I might leave it a few weeks try and again and then see. And there was me thinking he'd be gobbling big macs by now. Boooo.

muse have just forwarded you an email I got this afternoon from NCT about pumps etc, in case you didn't have it too.

Thanks Medee. Am going to take Pol's though. Will msg you Polly.

Moo definitely up for meeting, will msg you. Anyone else in ThatLondon fancy a get together?

I am on my way back from slingmeet and Bob is fast asleep in her Kari-me. I also now want a Mei Tai.

I was told in our peer supporters class to wait till bfing established before expressing and trying bottles, which is generally thought to be 5-6 weeks (I guess longer if you've had a tricky start though?)

moo I'm stocking up on Ella's Organics as back up for my definite fail as chef or summat.

silv Tbh it's a piece of piss. I've had a look at the Annabel Karmel stuff and I think (personally) that it's playing on the "guilt" or feelings of "inadequacy" of first time parents because there is NOTHING it can teach you unless of course you usually dine on a bigmac meal or Gregg's. You just steam/boil/nuke the fuck out of a bit of fruit, add water, blend until tasteless. Add cinnamon/ginger/smack for taste. After a month it can get a bit more lumpy. All Bear's meals now are just "our" meals before I've added salt/wine/salty seasonings/salty cheeses. You would have to work hard to fail at nuking + blending and if he's got a fine appetite you'll soon learn how to feed without spilling a drop! :)

Is anyone doing baby led weaning? A friend of mine did it and it seemed like fun.

Muser There are several FESHes doing BLW (boxer/carrots that I know of). I think it's a really personal choice and depends how much time you have and how you want to live your life. E.g., If I let Bear pick away himself he'll mash it in to the tray and/or throw it at the dogs, very little is ingested. This in turns leads to him feeling hungry at 2am! I'd rather sleep and I'd rather feed him x amount knowing that he's swallowed it. I then give him a few bits he can throw around the room.

Thx alpy. I'm not sure whether to try BLW or not. In general I am just bricking it big time about the choking/gagging. Also minor ishoo in that I don't eat that well when I am home alone when HI is not here so that wouldn't work for MB.

Make in bulk. They don't care if they have the same thing every day, thank jeebus. And don't worry about gagging. If you start with pure purees there is nothing to choke on and gagging is just a reaction to an unusual texture. I think it was casp who said babies gag reflex is much further forward than ours so there's little risk of choking.

Finally, don't make the first solids a meal as such. A little try before a bottle and gradually build up, is my advice. And before you know it your child has had a large bowl of porridge with banana for breakfast, two helpings of cottage pie and a yoghurt for lunch, a pancake for tea and scrambled eggs with cheese for dinner