April 2011 - cake-offing, gin-guzzling, wine-sipping, dreams of sleeping

[fraktious]

Thread 3!!!

Also doing the 5am run and DI didn't stop screaming and go sleep last night till 1am, think it must be those 2nd jabs. I think she might have Diarrhoea as the past few days she has been pooping everytime and seems to be uncomfortable to trump. Got GP appointment today for her weight so will mention.

We are very lucky that MIL doesn't work and lives just 10mins away & wants to look after DI but after all this chat here I like the idea of her going to a nursery to play with other kids maybe 1 day a week, might start looking into it. I'm not back to work till next May & hoping to be pregnant again by then so will hopefully only go back for around 5/6months if things go to plan. (yes we have had the talk and made the 2nd baby plans already !!), going home to Oz in Feb and gonna start TTC, already nervous about the 24hour flight home with a baby especially as I'll be doing it on my own on the way back

Buck Havent used a Mei Tai but love my Kari Me if it's cold and just bought a baby Bjorn on eBay for £11 which I also love, not as hot, good back support and DP loves it to !

DI thumbs are so little she keeps missing them and gets all the knuckles instead but seems happy to take a dummy most of the time, I apparently sucked my thumb till 12. Mum told me yesterday when I was in high school I told her I used to go to the bathroom to suck my thumb so nobody would see and then I would feel better !! Lol, I must have been a bit of an oddball !! I think it's cute when babies suck their thumbs

Ok she's asleep so I'm off to express in the lounge !

On the sling front we have a selection of woven wraps which are great and a RS which is good for poppable carriers. I tried a mei tai when M was little but couldn't get to grips with it - he was swamped and felt insecure. We're looking at getting an Ergo or a Manducca. I would love a Rose & Rebellion but they aren't as DH friendly.

Another bizarre night of 1 hour segments. I think it's a combination of teeth and him disturbing himself by kicking his legs up.

Thumbs/dummies: I'd prefer a dummy because you can remove it at a later date, but they can find their own thumbs sooner and replace them when they fall out! At the moment I'd settle for either.

Childcarewise we've gone for the most expensive option but we only need c. 25 hours a week and I think boosting M's English is worth it. Plus childcare here is institutionalisation at its best and we can up the hours easily when DH is deployed.

I have a Kari Me, and also a Baby Bjorn. And we also have a backpack with incorporated rucksack which T is a bit little for atm but is brilliant still for DS1.
petal F would probably be big enough to go in a Bjorn-type carrier facing forwards now which might be good in terms of keeping him amused? You can always turn him face to chest for naps.

We have had an amazing night. 8.30pm-7-30am with only a brief wakeup to feed at 2.30.
And no waking from DS1 thank goodness!

Great news on your sleep, Ali! We had a similar 8-5 & 5:30-7:30. Although I suspect this is all so the 4 month sleep regression feels that much more painful!

So I think the baby bjorn has had 2 votes so far.

Hello ladies, hope you don't mind me butting in on your thread. DS was born 26th April so I hope I qualify! Definitely with you on the gin drinking, mum bought me a bottle of Bombay Sapphire from Duty Free on her last visit (they live in Canada) and I've been slowly working my way through it!!

Re: dummies, when my parents wanted me and sis to give them up, they told us about poor children in Africa who needed them and we had to let them have ours. Obviously we were very socially conscious at that age because it worked!! Bit concerned that I haven't started looking at childcare yet, planning to go back to work when the mat pay dries up after Xmas. Great fun :(

Not sure if anyone else has this: DS has started turning his face to me while bf [dragging my nip with him] to grin up at me. Hurts like hell but impossible to get upset or angry because it's just too cute for words!! Not sure if this is normal behaviour?!

Anyway, just thought I would introduce myself, and maybe overshare a bit!!

Morning.

We have an ergo carrier which we really like and DH finds it comfy to use too. They're quite expensive but I think good value for money in long run as they can fit much bigger babies(I think even toddlers!) so will last a while. Plus you can wear it on front, back and side.

We had a good night last night tho I've probably cursed it now. DD went from 7-6 with a dreamfeed at 10. She's been guzzling a LOT of food the last few days (approx 30 oz when she usually only had about 24-27oz) so not sure if she might be going through a growth spurt... j is 13 weeks on Monday.

Welcome jode my DD is bottle fed but over the last two weeks she has taken to looking around everywhere and head turning whilst feeding. Plus it's apparently the best time to start smiling and laughing at mummy. Very cute (and I'm grateful for it as she has reflux so a stark contrast to the screams we were getting prior to that) but it does make feed times much longer!

I'm in 2 minds about posting this so please don't take it the wrong way. I'm very pro babywearing, any kind, as long as it's done safely and there's nothing to beat carrying a baby and having your hands free.

That said I would personally not use a baby Bjorn carrier or any other type of very structured carrier, unless it's the new comfort one. I prefer carriers which position the baby knee to knee and avoid putting pressure on the spine and hips. I would especially avoid forward facing for any long period of time. If they are used they should be holding the baby high and tight in a parent facing position.

If you look around you can find softer structured carriers which aren't too expensive but will take you all the way to toddler hood, particularly 2nd hand ones.

Eugh, H is massively snotty again and refused to sleep anywhere but face down on me from 1.30am. Aaaargh, am tired with horrendous backache as a result

He's chesty too, should I make a doctor's appointment? He's feeding well and seems happy when he's had enough sleep but he's clearly phlegmy.

The sucker I use is just a Nuk one, you squeeze the air out, put the nozzle in the nostril so it forms a seal then you let go so air is sucked down the nose. It's great and tends to get out the snot you can hear but not see. It was only about £1 too. You can get saline nose washers that cost quite a bit that are meant to be quite good too.

H spits dummies out now, he's fist chewing a lot though and sucking his tongue against his upper gums where I think a tooth is bothering him.

15 weeks with pounds that match his age!

Hi jode

DS does the boob dragging thing too - it's bloody painful but I haven't figured out a way to stop him yet!

We're using a stretch wrap at the moment, but I don't think it will be long before I weighs too much for it and I'll then get a woven wrap. Probably a diddymos or ellaroo, I need to do some research before I choose which one. Whichever one I choose I'll get the longest one so I can eventually sling him on my back.

I found carriers like the baby Bjorn (we had a bush baby cocoon) very uncomfortable. The head support is non existent as well, so everytime you move forward you have to support their head with your hand, and the whole point for me using a sling is having a free pair of hands. Also the carriers dont give adequate crotch or spine support for your lo. However, that's just my opinion and other people like them!!

Gaaaah, I keep catching my hair in my bra clips, anyone else do that? Ouch.

Morning all and welcome Jode.

You've all given me the kick up the backside that I need to get a move on with nurseries/childminders. We still haven't done anything and I'm worried there won't be any places anywhere we like if we don't start looking soon. I know a friend is paying £50 per day for her nursery place, so suspect that it's going to be a dear do...

Cycle - P is really snotty and snuffly too, has been for about a week now. Like H, she's still feeding well and seems happy enough. Her sleep hasn't been as good for the last week though, but am unsure if this is because of move to her big cot or her cold.

On the brightside we had a better night last night, 8 - 4 (with a dreamfeed at 10.30) and then 4.20 - 7. Hurrah!

Urgh, loads to do round the house today. It's getting to the point when I don't think I can use P as an excuse for living in mess anymore. She's 11 weeks now!

Oh, and yes - I keep getting my hair caught in my bra clips too. It hurts! Although not as much as when P decides it's fun to grab hold of it and yank it as hard as possible. Fun for baby, not such good fun for mummy it seems!

ILTMI I'm probably selling a Didy size 6 if you're interested. It's a double faced cotton/linen, really well broken in, super supportive - the only reason I'm selling is because I got one in a different colour!

Seems like all our LO's are developing colds!! Cycle I thought R was chesty when she started with hers and DP has asthma so I hot-footed it down to the Drs, who wasn't really overly bothered! You'll know if H is properly ill, he probably won't feed well and maybe be listless and quieter than usual. Dr told me that as long as they're coughing and clearing the secretions then they'll probably be ok. But obviously just go with your own instincts. R is still a bit snotty now but seems otherwise fine.

She's also started taking more milk at a feed so am hoping my cutting one feed but increasing the volume is eventually working. We've gone from 21 ish ounces a day, to 27 and 25 the last two days so have now started making up my bottle to 6 for each feed. Only problem is i only have 2 bigger bottles and the rest only take 5ozs so will have to go and buy more.

I just have a tippitoes carrier that I got from amazon, it does forward and parent facing, i was advised to get that type to help with her hip but it doesn't get used all that often.

Well R slept til 5am after going down at 10.15 and then got up again at 7.45 - yawn!! Preferred it when she slept til 9! Don't know why she can lie and play quiety on her mat once she's up but refuses to lie nicely in her crib upstairs and let mummy have another 40 winks!!

Welcome Jode

I have two slings. A fabric one that you tie up but have only used it twice as find it a faff and feels like not enough material, and one more like the baby bjorn which I use much more and am confident to be hands free with.

Hi Jode welcome to the April babies thread.

Another one with a cold here. L woke up at 5 all snuffly, poor little thing. Any advice on how to treat from those who've already had it?

L is also a smiley feeder. She just stops mid feed and looks up at me and smiles, very cute. Not as cute is when age grabs my hair and pulls!

Errr not sure why autocorrect thought she should be age!!!

Frak I agree with you about some carriers, I'm definitely avoiding anything that's crotch-only. Which is why I like the look of the mei tai.

I'll have to look at some of the others mentioned.

Hello Jode! F does the turning & grinning thing. He's got a tooth coming through too so it's really sore sometimes. And yesterday he was doing it just after let-down, giving everyone a good view of the arc of milk going over his head/in his eye! Good job I was out with friends from BF group. No shame from any of us any more!

Ps welcome Jode I love Bombay sapphire! Plymouth gin is yum too.

If ILTMI doesn't take the sling Frak let me know how much you want for it if you do decide to sell. I've been hankering after a Didy or similar for awhile, partly so I can do back carries and partly so that I have alternatives for those days when I fancy a change!

S is an on the boob smiler/giggler, it is very cute but rather annoying when trying to discreetly feed in public!

I don't want to jinx things but I think, that maybe, my milk is finally settling down overnight. I've had two nights without a pj top and bra change!

Star don't worry about the house, S is 15wks and ours is organised chaos at best! (To be fair it was before we had a baby!).

Sassy HV advised me to take R into the bathroom and run the shower or hot tap before bed time so the steam would unblock her nose a bit. Then suck out what you can with a nasal aspirator if you have one. They also told me to tilt the crib/moses very slightly as this reduces the risk of aspirating any gunk they might cough up. I also put some karvol on a muslin and hung it on the end of her crib but it's not advised fo use under 3 months. Other than that I just gave her a dose of calpol before bed. She was worst in the morning when she first woke up, pretty much the same as I would be if I had a cold. Hope this helps :)

Morning! Hello Jode, welcome to the Aprilites!! :o

I was up until 2am. Mum and dad got back from hols and were coming here from the airport beofre driving home. I had thought it was only a flying visit to collect the overnight bag they left here before they went, but no! They seem to have bought half of a tennerife baby shop for B along with various things that flash and twinkle! And they were overweight for their case because of it! They were meant to be staying overnight, but they have a funeral today so just shot up the road.

B did 8pm til 8.15, I fed him and he's still sleeping now! If sleep regression hits, I'm stuffed!

Slings, I have a Mobi wrap, which I love. It took a while to master getting B in on my own but have it down pat now.

MrsW thanks for the advice. Will give all that a go.

Sassy20 I agree. I like my Close sling too. It's very easy for them to feed in them without anyone noticing too. Although after the wedding i realise that R is getting heavy (mixed in with the tail end of SPD, makes it too hard) and I need a pram now. I have replaced the car seat with a maxi cosi and I'm just waiting for the adapters to arrive to transform F's Quinny. I'm going to have to get him to walk further now he's two.
I felt a bit guilty this morning. I woke up to R still attached to the boob, the dog barking downstairs, F stamping on the wall from his toddler bed and DH already gone to work leaving a wake of mess behind him. I thought to myself "Arent I meant to be thriving and enjoying this time?" then felt I must be really rubbish at the job of SAHM then instantly felt guilty.