October 2005 Babies - it just keeps getting better and better!

[Elf1981]

Thought I'd steal the honours of setting up a new thread

Woohoo, 8:15 til 7:45 sleep! And even when she woke up, she babbled away in her cot for ages! She's now on our bed having been fed, holding her foot and sucking her thumb!

One week today and I am back at work. Gutttttttttttted.

ELF can I borrow some of Evie's sleep please...Thomas slept from
8 til 11.30

11.50 til 3.30am
3.40am til 5am
5.05am til 6.30am
I am shattered this morning and just as I type this Thomas is having a nap!!
Morning Red you were an early bird

NM- glad your DPs fall wasn't more serious. I fell on the ice and then two days later fell down the stairs. Luckily I wasn't carrying Johnny either time, but my unsympathetic DH started going on about what would have happened if I had been carrying ds and how could I be so careless as to fall (like I did it on purpose ffs).

Stop all this talk about thinking you might be pg!! I too had been thinking this and had managed to convince myself that it was nigh impossible. You lot have brought the wee niggle back again. I've not had my periods back yet as still exclusively bf, I'm on the mini pill which I have taken correctly and I'm too bloody knackered most of the time so NO NO NO I'm not!!!! It would be nice though........ and all Johnny's newborn winter clothes would be right for November.

YF - do you manage to fall asleep fairly quickly after you have put Thomas down? In the first few weeks, Evie would wake at 1:00, 3:00, 5:00 and I found it really difficult as it would take me about half an hour to get back to sleep, or more. A friend of mine, her baby would wake at the same type of pattern, but she'd fall asleep as soon as she got back into bed so it didn't feel too bad to her.
I spent loads of those types of nights watching BBCnews24 or Star Trek re-runs!

Morning Ladies, i need some advice...as you know, i'm still breastfeeding Joey. However, i unfortunately have to go back to work soon, and as i'm a nurse we work shifts of up to 12.5 hours long. I physically can't express (tried loads of times, only get a thimbleful each time for hours of effort!), but i obviously have to get some form of milk into Joey, which means trying formula. The only one we've tried in the past was SMA gold, which Joey spat out and was sick with, although that was admittedly several months ago. Any suggestions re milk brand, bottles etc to try? I've got about a month before the dreaded W-O-R-K. Also, at what age can babies realistically have cow's milk as a main drink? The books seem to quote 12 months, but that doesn't seem to make sense as they can have other dairy products from 6 months! Sorry it's a bit long-winded, just don't know where to begin, and i trust your advice! Thanks, NM x

DP update - his backS really achey, so i've kept him off work today (hence my presence on MN!), but he's otherwise recovered. LOL re possible PG - that was me last month! I was convinced, despite birth control and general abstinence , that my utter exhaustion and starving hunger could only mean i was pg again. Test said no, mind said 'can't help feeling a teensy bit disappointed!'

Nanny’s taken LOs to music group, it’s their first time and feeling a wee bit I should be estatic that they love the nanny so much, ds2 just gave a nonchalant “Bye bye” as he walked out the door. I never felt this when ds2 went to nursery. Oh well it’s only 3 days week!!

So what am I doing with this free time…going to the gym? Swimming? doing some spring cleaning? No…mumsnetting. I’ve set myself a limit of 1 hour only!!!

Jockey lol I forgot my ds1 is now a celebrity, he’s going to send me his appearance on DVD, so I might have to sell them on eBay How’s your ds2’s earache? Poor wee mite.

Elf sooooo glad evie had a good time

YOKEFLEET – at lack of sleep, is he in his own room?

Red, I’m afraid you’re far too perky in the morning!!!

NM for both my boys, I didn’t give them cows milk to drink until they were 12 months. When I stopped breastfeeding I use/used Hipp Organic First Infant Milk, no particular reason (apart from it’s Organic) but I used it with ds2. I remember standing in the supermarket almost crying,as there was too much choice. I just wanted the best for ds2.

I don’t whether you’re using a bottle at the moment for expressed milk, but it may be worth getting him used to it now, as my friend is having a nightmare getting her bf lo to drink from a bottle. She’s pancing because she’s going back to work soon!

lol, I think it but wont take a test. Logically I know it would be a small miracle - using the pill, condoms & still breastfeeding, so I should have some sort of protection there!!

Nervousmum for bottles I can reccomend Nuk. I tried Evie on Avent & Tommee Tipee, she did not like them. She will drink from the Nuk ones and also a cheap bottle I got from Morrisons which separates in the middle so baby can hold either side if that makes any sense. It was cheap and Evie likes to hold it herself and try to feed herself. You could try them to start off with, see if it's a hit!

What kind of expresser are you / were you using? I have an Avent Isis (manual) but found it tedious so I spent £45 on an electric & battery Medela (called Single Deluxe) which is fantastic and I get loads of milk out. You could try hiring one (ask the HV) to see if you get any joy? I originally thought I'd have to combind feed when I go back to work and do formula, but am managing to get enough milk this way.

Have you had the Bounty Weaning pack? In mine there were two samples of formula that could be tried, we were going to try Evie on those to see how she got on if we needed to buy milk, and buy one that suited her iyswim.

Nervousmum, sorry if that sounds preachy, really should read my posts before I send them!

Another thought - you could buy some of the milk cartons etc and try them if you havent got any samples from the bounty pack (I think there was an SMA & Hipp in mine). Most formula companies do cartons of their milk. IIRC they are expensive, but it saves buying a big tub to then have to throw it away.

rtl yes Thomas is in his own room he started waking twice a night at about 20w so at 21w started weaning but it hasn't helped and now with the teething too!! oh and we all have a cold as well! (soon be summer!!)
nm Thomas uses Tommee Tippee bottles with a 3month + teat at the moment (to start with we had some tommee and some avent, was fine with both on the 0 month + teats but didn't take to the Avent 3month ones) We have used Cow and Gate from day 1 went onto their "Plus" (for hungrier babies) after 1 month.

Elf, i've got both an Avent Isis manual pump, and the Tommee Tippee equivalent, but both just make my nipples really sore for not much milk. I'll ask the HV at baby massage tomorrw re hiring an electric pump to try, as i'd rather avoid the formula for as long as poss - i know the milk's in there!!!

As for bottles, we've got avent ones and a couple of tommee tippee ones (both sets came free with the pumps!), but Joey just doesn't seem to be able to suck them. He chews the end with gusto, but doesn't actually get anything out!

Thanks for the help, NM x

Just ordered a couple of NUK bottles, and i'll pick up a few cartons of formula to try when i go to Tescos later.

NM- I was exactly the same, kind of set that I'd need to use formula but not too keen on the idea. My electric pump has been a godsend, though pricy if not going to work out. I read you can hire them from places but not sure where, I just took a chance with mine.
Evie is the same with Avent & Tommee Tippee teats, just chews at them and gets fed up. The nuk ones are easily manipulated and a lot softed.
I also read somewhere that MAM teats are supposed to be good, I think they are the ones where the teat kind of elongates in the mouth as well like a nipple so breastfed babies tend to get on with them.

Oh dearie me. I've just had Johnny weighed and he's only put on 2oz. Thats 7oz in 6 weeks. The HV agrees with me that he is bright and happy and appears to be fit and well, but she says that as a HV she can't ignore the lack of weight gain. There are so many allergies/food intolerences in the family that I really want to hold off for a bit longer with the weaning. I'm feeding him every two hours, I always feed him now if he wakes in the night. He's getting a top up of ebm from my supply in the freezer. We are taking to bed in the afternoon for a couple of hours for feeding. Oh I don't know what to do.

MB - if you really dont want to wean yet, then dont.
TBH from what I understand, the calories that babies get when they start weaning is teeny tiny, Evie only has a few teaspoons of whatever I am giving her, so a teeny bit of fruit or veg. But it will fill her tummy as it is bulky, but calorie wise she is getting less than breastmilk. So putting Johnny onto solids may not increase his weight.
I may be totally wrong, but I'm sure thats what I was told on a mumsnet thread when I asked about weaning.

MB - i'm going through the same thing!. Ds weighed today at 13lb 10oz and has just droped below the 2nd centile. Was following it nicely till today and now the hv is asking us to think about weaning. I'm trying desperately to hold off till 6 months, maybe even longer as ds was three weeks early. I don't want to supplement either unless i really have to. Dh has allergies and asthma so I don't want to take any risks at all, but I also don't want to have the little fella starving hungry :( Not that any of that helps you at all. Do you feeding for 2 hours in the afternoon every day?

Ds has got a bit of a cold at the moment, got some Karvol, he seems to have settled to sleep.
Hope you have all had a lovely day with your babies. Off to bed now.
Goodnight all

Hi everyone, sorry I havnt been around, but we've had a mare of a time lately.
I hope you and all LO's are well and healthy and those that were snowed in are now out. Ive only breifly skimmed through the post to try and catch up, but boy do you lot gossip, lol .

Finlay has been really poorly since Friday night, he started off with a bit of a cold, then had a temp of over 38.7C and had sickness and diorrhea (sp) to go with it, he's still not right yet but getting there, and to top it off just as I came on here tonight my DD was sick all over the bathroom, God I hope she's not got what Fin's got.
DH has been working from home to help out but needs to use the broadband which is another reason why I havent been on here.

Sorry for the long miserable post but I dint want you to think Id dissapeared as quickly as I arrived IYKWIM, xx Raine xx

Goodness it must be something in the air but think Cameron coming down with cold again!!

MB keep your chin up, you have done soooooooooooo well and dont have long to go!!
Dont beat yourself up - you know whats best for Johnny

RAINE hope your lo's are feeling better today (we have been extra chatty for the last few days!!)
RED/MG hope your lo's are feeling better too
MAWBROON I'm with Elf and Piggiesmum on this one, only you know your child properly. I don't think Thomas has as much since he started on solids but I haven't been to have him weighed so can't be sure IYSWIM. Imo hv's seemed to really push weaning early on, much earlier then current guidelines
ELF in reply to your YF - do you manage to fall asleep fairly quickly after you have put Thomas down? The answer is 50/50 on Monday night did sleep well in between each feed. Last night however he woke at 12.50 put him back down at 1.05am and I was still awake at 3.40am thinking that I hadn't replied to your post!!!!
I do find that when feeding Thomas through the night I have to be thinking about something to avoid falling asleep and dropping him off the bed like I did when he was a few weeks old (god that was an awful night!!) So when we moved house in Jan and were having probs with the broadband every feed I would think about that and get really wound up!!!
Gotta go Thomas is screaming!

Morning ladies.

Piggiesmum - Johnny's at the 2nd centile now as well, but he had been at the 25th. His graph is just a straight line for the last six weeks. I don't feed for two hours every afternoon, but if he is a bit girny then we take to bed to snooze and feed.

Elf - that is my understanding too of the teeny amounts of solids that they start on. My reluctance is along the lines of why would I potentially expose him to allergies etc when he might not even gain any weight from it.

I know I sound paranoid about the allergy thing, but both my parents have food allergies (my Dad is particulary bad) my brother has a couple, my sisters DS has now just grown out of an egg allergy which would have put him in hospital had he eaten any eggs. This is before we even mention any of the asthma/eczema/hayfever etc that I suffer from. I have avoided peanuts all through pregnancy and breastfeeding and feel that holding off is absolutely the best thing I can do in Johnny's case and if he were to develop these allergies then I can rest assured that I did everything possible for him to help prevent them.
I just don't want the HVs putting me down as some neurotic crank mother. Breastfeeding is rare enough in this area never mind exclusive until 26 weeks!! One of the Mums in the baby group the other week asked if I had given him chocolate yet as she had given some to her 10 week old dd.

Mawbroon how many weeks is Jonny now?

sorry mis-spelt Johnny

He's 20 weeks now YF.

morning ladies