November 2011 - early birds, just in time and late to the party, all welcome!!

[TwoJackRussellsandapumpkin]

Hi all,

just starting up a post natal thread for all the due in November peeps on the antenatal forum and anyone else who would like to join in too, hoping to see my arrival by the end of the week, so officially an early bird I hope :)

perish yes, ds suddenly overnight has much better head control and neck strength and is really alert. Only had 3 naps in the day yesterday.

treacle shudder, sounds impressive. The worst projectile vomit with DD was all over me and milk was pooled in my bra cups. So gross. Yup, head scratching re Norris for me!

for clarification purposes, Norris McWhirter wrote and edited the Guinness Book of Records and used to be the official adjudicator on BBC childrens TV programme Record Breakers, when someone tried to break a world record and have it officially recognised. I'll just shuffle off and get my walking frame and sensible shoes, I'm feeling very old.....I'm only 36, honestly!

Treacle don't worry, I know exactly who Norris is!

Hello ladies - i have been a lurker of late for no good reason, just not much to share.
I still haven't got a routine going yet but will probably start to work on it soon;) My new year's resolutions are to speak more danish and to finish my writing for children course but right now, we are so 'freestyle', I don't know whether I am coming or going.

Today I am having a chilled day at home doing house stuff but tomorrow I am going to see Sherlock Holmes at baby cinema with my mum's group. I swore I wouldn't bother with the group this time (too many insecure yet overly-opinionated and judgy mums) but actually they are a pretty relaxed group so its been quite nice so far.

Yesterday i joined a nearby gym that is really child-friendly. They have a mum and baby class three times a week, and I couldn't believe it when I saw the class. There were babies sleeping in prams outside and then loads of babies on floor mats while the mums were doing step moves above them. And also older kids in the corners playing on ipads and stuff! I stayed and watched all the mums come out and some even had two kids with them. And they were mega-fit! A bit intimidating but since its there, I'm going to try it out.
They also have an experienced baby and child-minder during peak hours, but I just got a daytime membership to see how it all goes ;)

Amaya is doing great, really smiley and interactive these days but totally dry skin and sooooo much cradle cap. I am oiling it with borage oil and using cradle cap shampoo but trying not to scrape too much and take all her hair out too which is what happened with DD1.
She has one night time bottle every other night when I sneak off into the spare room for some kip, but my husband is finding it really hard to settle her afterwards and is knackered at work so not sure how long that will last...
Pity really because I do crave that time off in another room - having her cot in the room with us means like all mums, I am constantly on high-alert. Even with ear plugs I feel like I am sleeping in her cot with her - I hear every snuffle!

Hope all is well with your babies - its difficult when there are health issues and you have to go back and forth to the hospital and doctor etc. But time does go so quickly - its a whistle-stop tour when they are this small.

OOOh that gymn sounds great - not sure with my boobs so massive that I could manage anything that involves jumping up and down though! I am getting out and about with the buggy as my exercise - two lots of school runs and walking to the shops instead of driving. I also joined Slimming World at the weekend as seem to have stopped losing weight now so need some help to shift the extra baby (cakes and chocolate) weight. I am amazed at how much you can eat on it and as I am bf I have a big appetite so will see how that goes. Have stuck to it so far including an all you can eat breakfast at the weekend - loads of fruit and yogurt then a big grilled English breakfast.

We have moved Luke into his own room now in his cot and he and I are both sleeping a lot better as a consequence. I now only hear him when he is ready for a feed - not every noise. I did this with ds2 at this age and he slept so much better than ds1 who was in with us for the first 6/8 months - he was still having night feeds at 18 months and I think it may have had something to do with us disturbing each other and getting into bad patterns.

I am having a chilled day too today after a weekend of activity and a week of decorating last week. Got more to do as we have all had a room switch to allow Luke to do into the smallest bedroom, the boys are now sharing our room and we are in ds2's room. SO Luke's is done but got to choose new bedding and wallpaper for ours this week = will check out the sales at the traforrd centre for inspiration.

All going well here now - more sleep = much easier to cope with whatever the day throws at me.

All the best to all of you, especially those with poorly babies.

Afternoon all,

Good news from here, no diabetes for me, but I have to lose weight and start watching my diet, as there is a 50% likelihood of my developing type 2 diabetes within 10 years and if (hopefully when) we have another baby I'll be blood testing almost from the beginning of the pregnancy, which will be a pain!

Anyway, for the UK folks, have you all applied for child benefit yet? I only mention as HMRC will only back date payments for three months, which I only realised when I filled in the forms last week, so thought I would say something.

I too had a lovely projectile vomit incident last night/this morning, but Treacle, you can win this competition, I did have to strip down the bed, me and the boy but it was cos I was so tired I forgot to burb him and the wind came back up on it own! I am also in my mid thirties and remember McWhirter too Treacle, those youngsters don't realise what they missed out on - which might be a good thing really....

J has just about grown out of his basket, so have been starting to put him into his cot bed in his own room at night, feels really strange not to have him next to me, I have a monitor, even though I can just about hear him as his room is next to ours, but he seems to sleep a little better in there, I think it's partially due to it being bigger so that he doesn't hit his arms or legs off the sides and then wake himself up.

Busy I started weightwatchers y'day for the same reason - weight fell off with DD but I don't think I've lost anything in last 8 weeks even with school run. Doing the online version - free to sign up if you go for 3 months option + if you do it through topcashback you get equivalent of 3 months cashback (if it works) so overall free! Anyway maybe we can cheer each other on. I have 2 stone to lose but initially just aiming to fit back into some normal clothes. I know I've overdone it with junk both while pg & since DS was born so hopefully just getting out of bad habits is all that's needed. I had just lost 1.5 stone when I got pg so would be nice to get back where I started. DH is doing a diet competition at work so he won't be tempting me with take away & puddings!

Cool, we have a little weight loss club then ;) I want to lose 10 to 15 kilos by June.

my dd1 slept so much better in her own room too and I knew we were keeping each other awake at night. She slept through as soon as she slept in her own room. But I can't move Amaya to the back room as its just that little bit too far away. The health visitor recommends to wait until 6 months then move her cot into dd1's room but I may do it sooner. Silly thing is that dd1 spends half the night in her own room then comes into ours, onto a little mattress bed we make up on the floor for her. Big apartment but all of us crammed into our bedroom, its ridiculous!

Re. white noise - I recommend the ipad app - the airplane noise knocks Amaya out and she sleeps for ages...

Glad there are others who overindulged and have weight to lose - I have never tried SW before and signed up for a 12 week plan - it would be lovely if I could get the 2 stone off in that time. I am 42 now so guess the weight doesn't come off so easily.

We have this cd for white noise:
www.amazon.co.uk/White-Noise-Tinnitus-Relaxation-Masking/dp/B002OW7CE4/ref=sr_1_cc_1?s=baby&ie=UTF8&qid=1326219485&sr=1-1-catcorr
I put it on when I get back from the school run and leave Luke next to it in his pram so I can do homework with the kids, get tea ready and actually eat it in peace!

Hi all! I'm on swimming world too at the moment as have 2 stone to lose to get me slimmer that pre pregnant. Also going to Zumba tomorrow which I super excited about!

As there is mention of white noise, we've been using the android app "white noise lite" which is a free app.

Not much else to report really except that DS's eye infection is improving and he seems to have been really chatty today-we've been putting the world to rights! Still sleeping in with us, don't think it will be long before he is in his own room but i am putting it off until we get a baby monitor. I think i am going to miss his little snores.

Stranger alert... sorry i've been absent for so many weeks ladies - what can I say - im just having too much fun being a mummy to sit at the computer! However needed some advise/assurance (see below) this evening so logging on in hope of findings that everythings 'normal'!!

I hope everyone is doing well - i've had a bit of a back scan but obviously missd lots. Cali fx for you and abi, hope the drs do their thing for you! Probably a bit late but Happy New Year to all the November ladies!

Baby girl is doing really well - piling on the weight and loving mummies milk - we also seem to have the beginnings of a routine (fx) at night now!

So here's the advice I need. Have roamed the threads but couldn't find exactly what I wanted. (Probably TMI so you've been warned!)

Had 6 week check last week - though doc didnt really check anything on me - but got my pill and went home excited to be able to get back to business with DH. We had lots of fun but really couldn't go all the way with intercourse - despite wanting to.

My perenium (where I've had stitches) seems rather tight and inflexible so DH could only go in so far and it felt like if he went any further I was going to tear again. Is it normal for that bit to feel hard like that? Anyone else struggling to go all the way?? Wondering whether I should get dr to examine me - though the mws did look a couple of weeks after and said it was all OK - and DH says it looks OK down there.

(And to make things even harder started bleeding again today :-( - think thats a result of my pill though as doc said that may happen)

Evening all.

Cali I'm glad you are making some progress and I hope things continue to improve for Abi.

I've been to the docs today to get some cream for DS skin as the eczema/rash/whatever it is has not improved with olive oil. He doesn't seem bothered by it but I need to get his passport photo done and I want it to be nice - it lasts 5 years!

Treacle we had a massive sick session last night too - I hoped to feed DS to sleep but he just kept eating and eating and then a LOT of sick came out, over me, the bed, my pillows!

Stace I had a physio appt today to check how I am down there after the stitches (3rd degree tear). We haven't attempted any sex yet and I have been advised not to until the doctors have checked me over in a couple of weeks but when the physio touched my scar it was quite painful. She explained that a scar on our arm, for instance, would heal more quickly because it is constantly being touched which toughens the skin up so to help heal the perenium scar massage it three times a week with olive oil quite firmly. Literally just rub over the scar, I hope this might help you.

We still have no routine here hence DS is kicking away on his playmat at 11pm, sigh. But he has been gorgeous today and I've had so many smiles and giggles I don't care.

Hope everyone else has a restful night.

mashpot can i ask which cream your doctor recommended for the dry skin? Oil is not working for us either.

We had a tough evening yesterday. Not sure why but she wouldnt settle and possible had tummy ache. things spiralled and i think we kept changing tactics too often and poor Amaya ended up screaming her head off, which is most unusual and really heartwrenching.

Luckily, wearing her in the moby wrap eventually calmed her down and she felll asleep at midnight but I was kind of keyed up and needed someone to settle me!

In those situations, it's hard to give up what i want (to eat unaccompanied by a baby and watch an episode of the killing with dh) but accepting the situation seems to make it easier... We bought wireless headphones last weekend so if we have that kind of situation, we can watch a little tv, listen to music etc. I also love reading while feeding/settling and just finished a hilarious Dawn French novel.

Slimming tip from my super-thin mum of two mate: having a chai tea with soy milk in the afternoons when tiredness and sweet cravings hit, instead of scoffing biccies. It does keep you going...
I just need to 'clear' out the hotel chocolate giant slabs from Xmas;)

Heehee to the chocolate - I cleared out 5 toblerones over christmas!!! May have contributed to my weight gain somewhat

We had a terrible night last night with Luke - back to 1.5 hourly feeds and wouldn't settle at all at 5am so I am shattered today.

Not sure whether it is linked to all the walking I did yesterday or the slimming maybe having an effect on my milk supply? Or maybe it is chocolate milk withdrawal!!! Anyway expecting HV in an hour so will ask her. I'm sure she will be a font of knowledge (not)

Happy days

tjuice it is called doublebase gel. They prescribed it after a chat with the doc on the phone so I didn't need an appt, maybe your doc will do same?

Hey busy, same night had here. I'd be interested in what your hv days. Mine wasn't that useful.

Sex, well we haven't indulged yet (8 weeks) I probably could but I'm so annoyed all the time at lack of help generally that I can't find the motivation.
Weight loss, I want to lose 20kg by November. Going to do it through half portions and walking. I'm pleased that I ended the pregnancy 5kg less than I started but I need to make a major change.

Pam my HV was hopeless - she just said Oh, you're doing so well. He is still very new, stick with it, blah blah

No sex here either - I am so exhausted in general trying to run the house, 2 other boys at 2 different schools etc etc that it is the last thing on my mind.

Will really try to stick to the weight loss thing though as that will give me back my self esteem - feel middle aged and knackered at the mo.

Pam what about the gallstones? Do they give you any trouble these days?

Hey Treac no they haven't reappeared yet. The stones that were seen on the MRI scan were 5mm and my bile duct was 7mm. I had some violent puking at 7 months which I think were the stones passing. If there are any left or any new ones since June when I had the scan then they may become an issue as my bile duct shrinks back to the nomal size.

Fingers crossed! I've heard it is hard to lose weight with no gall bladder.

busy I got the same. My hv is pretty cool though and she made me realise what good work we'd done getting him happy with nappy changes and lying under his gym. We just have to do the same with the crib. She said it isn't baby behaviour you are trying to change it is your own - I agree with her. I use the booby to pacify and give up on other methods quickly.

Grr just lost my post... Anyhoo, y'day was day 2 of my diet & I managed to forget to record my lunch - I thought the points left for my evening meal seemed generous! Hope I haven't stuffed it up too badly. I still have Xmas chocs but plan to ration them as I know I can't get through a day without it (a problem to tackle at a later date) & have worked out I can 'afford' 2 wedges of choc orange or 2 Lindt truffle balls per day - I have a toblerone left too but not sure I can stretch to a wedge of that.

Busy I think we are leading parallel lives!

pam we're at coming up 13 weeks and not indulging either. I just don't want to. my DH is irritating me too!

I think I should show DH this, just to prove I'm not a one-off abnormally awkward woman, and lo this is normal behaviour for a mum with a tiny person! Although I admit that we have a winner, given we haven't done the deed for nearly 20 weeks now! In my defence we had so many stressful months, that DH irritated me immensely too, and we're slowly working on finding each other less annoying right now - had a lovely meal out just the three of us on Monday - and the table nearby us had three lovely grandmothers who all held Willow while I ate! TBH I think feeling like this is totally normal if you're breastfeeding, its your bodies way of ensuring it won't be having to support another wee person anytime soon as it's busy enough with the one just now. I know when I night weaned DS I found DH attractive again, rather than just annoying . So I'll blame it on hormones. Better not let the formula companies know this gem, I can just see them changing marketing strategy to appeal to desperate new dads.

Evening all,

well in the case of marital relations , have indulged with DH, but he had to be very gentle, doubt there will be loads of that going on for quite some time, but it was an itch that was needing to be scratched and we both feel better for it IFYSWIM?!?

Went to my first postnatal exercise class today, was good, really hard work though, but definitely going to go each week and hopefully get fitter and more importantly lose the baby weight and all the rest of the weight I've been carrying around, was quite slim when I met DH but being loved up meant that I got fatter and fatter...

As regards my diet, there is literally nothing in the cupboards which could be described as tasty or interesting (i.e., chocolate, crisps, biscuits etc. etc.), I have the basic ingredients to bake, but I have to do the baking first, which normally would mean that by the time it was cooked I wouldn't want to eat it any more, but yesterday the time lag didn't work and I really really loved the chocolate sponge cake, was good though did leave some for DH too.

Is anyone's LO sleeping through yet? J sleeps about four hours at a time and then wakes soaking wet through (we are using cloth nappies, so leaking can be an issue) and ready for a bottle. He does seem to be a milk monster and have discussed whether he should go onto hungry milk, but am wondering what you guys do?

Right, am away, One Born Every Minute is on, still fascinating!! Have a lovely evening y'all.

twojack our Lo isn't quite through the night, doing about 5-6 hours overnight but stick waking for a bottle at 4am.

Went to Zumba tonight, i ache in places I didn't know COULD ache! In other news, DS has hardly slept today and wide awake at the mo but Dh is dealing with that, he always does last feed.

Still no period here :-( bit paranoid that i might be pg again, despite using condoms.

Also, I lost 9lbs in a week! Well chuffed. And DS is now 12lbs12ozs! The little chunk!

Hello all, sorry to have become a lurker...have been reading but really struggling emotionally at the mo (not helped by defiant 6yr old not wanting to go to school or bed as Madeline doesn't have to!!)

Anyway, M is doing well & had her jabs monday - minimal fuss considering so we are happy with that. Considering the amount she has started dribbling (have had to make a dribble bib as she is otherwise wet through) & her irritability today I feel teething may have started - has anyone used Amber teething necklace??
M is also really alert & strong, loves being upright (stood with me supporting her minimally for 10mins chatting to herself in the mirror today) & goes in the door bouncer which she loves so have ordered a jumperoo - cannot wait for it to get here so she can have a go!!

cali hope you get some answers for Abi, sounds positive that they are properly investigating it now. Well done for remaining strong & not taking no for an answer.

Poor DP has had nothing from me since I was about 20weeks preg (so 29wks now) though he is good & let's me take the lead :)

M is now semi sleeping through the night - she will do 11-6 for 2-3nights then she will have a night where she is up ALL night. Really struggling with this new sleep pattern!!

Hope everyone is well, sorry not to namecheck xx