May Baby Mayhem!

[Bodeccia]

Hello fellow May mums. Let's follow on from our lovely ante-natal threads, here's the first of the post-natal ones. Join us as we work out how to handle nappies, feeding, colic, crying and all things newborn, or just to celebrate the joys of a new baby!

Hello cupcake :)
It had gone very quiet on here! Sounds like your DS2 is doing brilliantly. I've got my 6 week check today and other than that I'll be spending my time between DD, the washing machine and the washing line to take advantage of this glorious weather!

Oh and I have a question.... DD has been sleeping very well in her swaddle at night but is starting to get too small for it. What's the youngest age / size you would put your LO in a gro-bag?

SES I believe grobags are OK from 4kg / 8lb8oz. We've been using one from about 2 weeks old, mainly because we didn't get round to getting them out before that, and just swaddled her with a sheet instead... Used to be 7lb when we had DD1, I think. Not sure why or when that changed! Oh, and hope your Dad had a good birthday - did you see the torch?

I am in the process of moving DD3 onto mixed formula and BF. Feel a bit :( about it, but it just wasn't practical BFing during the day while looking after DD1 & DD2, especially when I take them out on my own (and due to nursery closing I will be taking them out a lot more, as they are only in the new nursery 1 day a week). It was all fine unless someone decided to run off, poo, throw their lunch on the floor etc. etc., and frankly it's easier and quicker to deal with that if I don't have to put my boobs away first, and am not leaking milk everywhere while dealing with whatever it is... Also, I was getting increasingly tired, and was worried about the CFS symptoms getting worse, this way DH can let me go to bed earlier, and do the last feed at night himself. I'm still BF for the early evening and early morning feeds, so hopefully she is still getting some benefit. Unfortunately, the formula seems to be giving her stomach ache and constipation, so much I'm considering putting her on "Comfort" milk. The good side is that the lack of poo has cleared up her nappy rash (she was pooing all the time before!!!). Swings and roundabouts, then...

Took the DDs swimming today. As it's the holidays, their normal lessons weren't on, so they had a lesson together, with one other little girl. Amazed how well DD2 is doing, and how hard she tries. DD1 seems to not want to listen or try as hard as she could though, which is pretty frustrating (especially at £11 each per lesson ), and I'm sure she's going backwards, rather than progressing with some things. DD1 got her Stage 2 badge which was good, DD2 got her Duckling 2 badge and was absolutely delighted with it. Taking them horseriding with my friends DS on wednesday - hope they enjoy it (and don't fall off!)

One of our grobags says 7lb and one says from 10lb. We've been using them from about 9 weeks but no real reason why we didn't a bit earlier.

Catsy, don't feel guilty- you've done well to get this far. What milk are you using? I found Cow & Gate first stage good when we moved ds1 at 9 months, others gave him stomach pains. She might just need time to adjust.

Ds1 has been doing settling in at preschool, it's going really well. He starts properly next week, two days 9-3. I'll miss him but I've had him full time for three years on Saturday! It will be nice to get time with just Adam too, we're going to a trial Gymboree session to see how we get on.

Got a connecta baby carrier that arrived today. I already love it! A bit of a faff strapping the straps around the back but I'll get used to it. It's really nice to wear and I think DH will like it.

Is anyone else finding their baby feeds a lot in this hot weather? I seem to be feeding loads in the day but the last two nights he's only fed once at nearly 5am!

Thanks Catsy and Wriggle. I've found a few that are 0-6 months so will get one to try with her.

Went into work this morning with Aoife and got lots of lovely comments. She did have an emergency nappy change on a colleague's desk though due to another explosion up her back.

Catsy it is tough feeding while looking after 1 other ds so it must be really tough with two. I am lucky ds1 is quite clingy do tends not to run away or anything, he just hangs off me and wakes baby up when he's trying to get to sleep. Heard good things about colief drops. You put them in every bottle and it helps break down the lactose which is normally what's upsetting the stomach.
Both boys got snotty colds and not sleeping well. Weather is lousy here still, rubbish living in Scotland sometimes.

where has the sun gone?? & why rain? & just when I had ordered a shade a baby for my pushchair to keep T protected from the sun.
We had just started to enjoy walks & picnics on the Common here in Nappy Valley.
There have been 2 periods of sunny weather since T was born - the week he was born when I slowly cooked in hospital and this week. Grrrrr. Where is the glorious weather everyone spoke of when they said "oooh, May, what a lovely time to have a baby & take mat leave"?

Anyway. How is everyone? Enjoying your hols? It is quiet on here.

We had our (delayed) 8 week check up & jabs yesterday. Apart from the screams from T at the time he seems to have been unphased by the jabs.
The dr was fab for my confidence too after the out laws had done their best to ruin it by telling me I was starving my baby and that he was so skinny he would need hospitalising if he fell ill. Not helpful at all & made worse by them being medics & not just voicing their concerns but telling me what to do too. Grrrr. How on earth are we supposed to learn to parent & develop if they stick their oar in so far? Of course I have had to grin & bear it. Anyway Dr says he is fine and the 9th centile line is ok to follow and some babies are just smaller. He is only 25th for length so not that large anyway - although his head is on the 91st..... Wonder where he gets that from

How is everyone else doing? Anyone still topping up with ebm or supplementing with formula on top of the usual breast feeds? Am wondering how long this will be necessary....

Hello everybody

My bundle of joy is asleep just now(rare event) so will write a few words.

cupcake your wee one is huge!

SES my washing machine is on every day-sometimes just for a spin when i rinse some muslins and bibs.

Catsy and SirCharles my DS is on mixed feed just now-looks like he wasn't getting enough from me so had to top him up.He's very greedy,wants to gulp the bottle in one go(without any breaks for burping) which would result in projectile vomit (been there,done that).Every feed has him in hysterics when I have to burp him after every ounce.

Somebody mentioned here about having good milk(can't remember who though),if so,please tell me what do you eat?Was told to eat well because i lost some blood during labour and was anaemic but eating well and my milk is still rubbish?

He's filling nearly whole length of moses basket so i reckon will have to assemble the cot soon.

Centile wise-length 57 cm 9 days ago so bang in the middle but weight-just 3800 grams which is waaaay behind(or so I'm being told).

8 week check this week so hoping he's a bit heavier.

Looking forward to have some more sleep-MIL will come this week so will help me a bit with the chores-DH and I had huge row disagreement so he's not helping at all.

Everybody keeps saying it will get better...

Take care ladies,somebody just woke up...

Sir Charles I'm right with you on the weather, I got the same comments about 'lovely time to have a baby'. Humph, one hot week in May and most of that spent in hospital having DS! And that was it. Even this week while the whole country sweltered we sat under our permanent sodding rain cloud. Worst summer weather I can remember, bloody typical! Anyway...
Glad to hear your 8 week check went well. I had a bit of a wobble last week as everyone's babies at the clinic were heavier than DS and he's only on the 2nd centile. But got lots of reassurance and support from the HV that he's fine so I guess I shouldn't worry. I'm still EBF so there's always that niggle that he's not getting enough. Started expressing this week so I can have the odd bottle for him if I want to leave him with someone else for longer than an hour! Went to get my hair cut on Friday ( not really a treat though as I hate going to the hairdresser! ), a friend had DS and said he took his bottle no problem and was very well behaved.
Looking forward to next week, we're starting to socialise at last - a baby play class and baby massage to start with! Hopefully I'll pick up some magic relaxation tips!

Limeflower, I'm pretty sure someone recommended chocolate as a good breastfeeding food :)

It was probably me talking about having way too much milk.. but I don't eat any kind of special foods..unless you count a LOT of cakes, biscuits and crisps!!
Have heard fenugreek supplement is meant to increase supply. And of course putting baby to the breast a lot.. think ds has been having a growth sport cos he fed so much more over the weekend and now I'm back to spurting milk all over him, just when I thought it was settling down!
I dreaded giving up bf with ds1 but I find myself really looking forward to stopping thus time it's not that I don't enjoy it but just can't wait not to be restricted in clothing/bras, buying breast pads & able to leave him for long..bring on 6 months! (though I'll likely still keep up morning/bedtime bf for longer)

Right both mine are asleep so I'm going to nap too! Hope all are well today.

Limeflower- your milk will be fine. Nature has designed it so that if you aren't eating well it will be you that suffers not your baby . Try to eat a good diet and drink plenty of water to make you feel better. Fennel tea, fenugreek and oats (flapjacks- yum) are recommended to boost supply. But better than that, try to feed often (at first signs of hunger, don't wait until they cry) and night feeds are important. Skin to skin is good. Carrying in a sling and co-sleeping are a good way to be near and responsive to your baby. Ignore anyone who says 'but he can't be hungry again'. Make 'if in doubt get them out' your mantra . If baby is doing plenty of wees and poos likelihood is they're getting enough. Some babies drop down a few centiles after birth then stay there. Does your hv seem pro-bf? If not and you want to keep feeding could you look for a bf support group in your area?

Cupcake, I'm a bit of a squirter too! Poor Adam ends up spluttering as jets of milk shoot out! I'm actually hoping to feed longer this time- I totally agree re the damn breast pads and restricted clothing choices but I found doing formula such a PITA it's a compromise I'm willing to make . Six months is amazing though and no need to feel bad.

I'm still loving my connecta sling, wore it all morning at the zoo and even managed a feed in it! I'm going to sell our close carrier and I quite fancy another sling- has anyone used a mei tai? The connecta is a buckled mei tai but wondering if I can cope with tying. Would be a cheaper way of getting a spare carrier (useful if one is in the wash). Slings are quite addictive!

Adam has started rolling from back to front! Poor boy flips over then gets a bit confused . He likes tummy time a lot more than ds1 did.

Ds1 starts nursery preschool tomorrow. He's been doing settling in and tomorrow is his first full day (9-3). I think I'll find it hard but will be nice to have time with Adam. Must resist temptation to get all housework done and actually play with Adam! Poor boy ends up being a bit neglected normally. He's three months old today, feels like he's been with us longer. DS1 is still craZy about him.

hi everyone, not been posting for a while but still avidly reading everyone's updates. Tessa is asleep and DD's 1&2 in bed, (if not asleep), so finally have a chance to write something.
10pm update: I'm back - T woke up so got interrupted again for another feed and settle! It's so hard to get on here bad write these days, no spare moments are there?!
I was very interested in the comments about all the different weights of our babies, sircharles, limeflower, cydonia & cupcake, having experienced anxiety in the past with dd1 - is she overweight? (91-98th centile most of the time) and dd2 - is she ill,

Pressed send by accident! Anyway dd2 was always poorly with reflux and small in weight and length from birth till fairly recently (25th centile or less most of the time).
Now, with dd3 she is currently 8 weeks and just got her weighed again today. She is 12lbs 4oz, and consistently following the 75th centile line, so really quite a big girl. She already has a chubby little face and legs - looks a lot older than 8 weeks really. And her head circ is on the 91/98th centiles... Her head was above all the centile scales at birth, although she does look normal, don't think you'd notice without a tape measure! (i did worry for a week or so if there was something wrong with her, but hv and gp assure me everything is fine). My guess is she will be like dd1 and end up being very tall, which is why dd1 chubbed out as a baby.
T has also had oral thrush for quite a long time, and it's taken a lot of fiddling around with creams in her mouth for weeks, and on my skin, to finally clear it. Didn't bother T at all, but a worry for me as it can cause terrible pain in your breast if it transfers to you when breastfeeding. I've never had to deal with this before, anyone else?
sircharles, I've been supplementing bf with formula feeds from very early on, as dd3 wanted to feed all the time - big baby and big appetite! I find mixed feeding works well for me, partly because I don't have time to do 45 min / 1hour breastfeeding which T wants every few hours, what with the other 2 girls to look after. So I alternate between a formula bottle and a breastfeed, probably doing a bit more formula feeding now overall.
How is everyone's sleep going ? T still can't go more than about 4/5 hours between feeds at night, (every 2-3 hours in the day), so I'm awake and feeding 2-3 times every night. I have a friend, wih baby of similar age, who's been sleeping through from 7pm to 7am almost every night, for weeks now! And that's been with ebf as well! I've had 3 babies, and never yet had one of those really good sleepers or worked out how to achieve that...
Will post again soon I hope!

limeflower why do you think you do not have enoughg milk? Are you sure he is not just meant to be small right now? T feeds and feeds on me and the weight is starting to go on - thank goodness. But he is 9th centile for weight.
To keep up my supply I still have the hospital grade double pump we rented when we first hit problems. I pump 2-4 times a day for about 15 mins, whether or not anything is coming out., plus more at weekends when DH is about to take on choresv& nappy changes.
I also take Motherlove more milk capsules (available from amazon) and drink earth mama organic milkmaid tea or similar (also amazon).
I also have a toblerone & dairy milk habit!!!!!!
It will get better so hang in there :)

cydonia we too are starting to be more sociable. Baby massage yesterday, a LLL coffee morning today & NCT pitter patter play group tomorrow. Have also enquired after yoga & Pilates classes where babies can attend and am looking into baby music & baby swimming.
T loves other people& babies right now, whilst showing no interest what so ever in teddies or toys. He also seems to enjoy music. His personality is starting to come through - so exciting!

wrigglebum I wish I was a squirter! Instead I worry whether there is enough or if anything I am doing will reduce my supply.
I love my hana baby wrap sling but need a sling for when it is raining as the wrap drags on the floor whilst putting it on so not practical to put on outdoors in bad weather.
No rolling here yet. No signs either.....

Right then,will try to explain(hope DS won't wake up)

When DS was just over 3 weeks I had mastitis and was given antibiotics and ibuprofen.DS didn't want to take sore breast(as adviced by HV),doctor at the hospital said to express this breast and pour away the milk as it would be slightly salty(can't explain to you why,was told at the time)-that's why DS didn't want to take it.After expressing the milk production will be back to normal,keep latching DS to this breast.

The week I was taking AB and ibuprofen DS was taking the breast but kept throwing up after feeds.HV came and said he was dehydrated,next day she called me and suggested giving him formula.The same week he developed some rash,spots on his body(looked like hormonal teenager) and swab from belly button revealed some bacteria.Off to the GP,DS was given oitment with antibiotic for belly button,oral AB for spots and reflux medicine.

HV whinging he's not putting weight.

We went to bf clinic,they were very helpful,agreed to top up DS with formula as he wasn't putting ANY weight.5 weeks after birth he was barely over his birthweight.

DS wasn't sleeping at all during the day and waking up every hour at night-poor thing was just starving.

Since mastitis my breast slowed down a bit.I was told that demand determines the supply so more I feed more milk I'm going to have.DS is a hungry baby and will happily hang off my boobs 24/7.

I'm not 100% convinced to HV-just my gut feeling and caught her a couple of times talking rubbish.

DS takes the bottle every few hours and latches onto me in between.I don't force the formula down his throat,he gets it when his hungry AFTER boobs.

When I went to bf clinic they told me my milk supply might be working a bit slower because i lost some blood at labour and was anaemic so it was additional strain on my body.

I'm eating VERY well.Oat cereals for breakfast,meaty lunch to get some proteins,substantial dinner at night with plenty of snacks in between.Must improve my fruit&veg intake though.

Drinking fennel tea and stout(recommended by mw),won't touch fenugreek as i find it horrible.

Sorry,DS just woken up,will try to finish later...

LimeFlower- sounds like you've had it really tough there. If you want to carry on bf I suggest you get in touch with a Breastfeeding expert via La Leche League, NCT or Breastfeeding Network. Then you can be a bit more confident about their advice than your hv's!

Fenugreek does come in capsule form if you still want to try it without the taste.

oh limeflower" you poor mummy. You have had a tough time. I seconf wrigglebum's* suggestion of getting in touch with your local LLL or NCT BF support. I too have had a tough time, for different reasons, which resulted in low supply and a very skinny baby. I found the support i received from the NCT & LLL trained people to be superb. Sounds like you are eati8ng well. Have you considered double pumping to improve supply? The NCT/LLL people can advise you but it has really helped me in a short space of time. I am also on domperidone and the Motherlove more milk capsules, available on AmazaonMotherlove capsules seem to have an impact too (& you cannot taste the fenugreek which is a plus!). Fenugreek capsules are good too - to make a difference you need to be able to smell it in your urine or sweat. I smell a bit like a curry but most people dont notice - just me & DH!!!!.

The making more milk teas are good too - search on amazon and loads will come up.

i also read this: Making more milk book

Kellymom is also a good website - have you found it yet?

Just posting to get this back - will have a good read and try to catch up in next day or so!

hey does anyone have a link to the facebook group?

Hello ladies:)
Somebody keeps you all busy? haha join the club then.
I can read no probs when i'm feeding DS but can't write at the same time.Now I'm writing and it's eating my sleeping time.
SirCharles and Wrigglebum thanks for your info.Visited bf clinic last week,the consultant lady said that it was perfect-DS has 2 bottles a day on average,sometimes 1 and today he had none but my nipples are shredded .She said she would be worried if he had 6 formula bottles a day.

DS is slowly fattening up and getting longer,MIL said his fingers are plump (they are) and has a lovely glowing complexion.He's bright as a button and doesn't like to be left alone.He's also very chatty but I haven't got a clue how to entertain him for longer so any suggestions welcome.

He's kind enough to let me have my breakfast without screeching but the rest of the day is very hard going,especially on the day like today-pissing down all day so couldn't go for a walk.The other days I walk with him for up to 3 hours.

Hope everything's going well for all of you,take care :)

BTW,i noticed today that May 2013 started in antenatal,remembered how frustrated i was this time last year...

Hey everyone... I haven't posted in ages.. Just been catching up with all the posts.
Sounds like some of you have had your hands full.
My lo is amazing, she sleeps through the night, drinks all her milk, laughs and can entertain herself, she just started rolling over too.
I'm soooo lucky.
My DD1 was an absolute nightmare, she's 6 and still doesn't sleep through the night, I was absolutely dreading the newborn stage with DD2 but phewwww she's fine !
DD1 hasn't taken to her as quickly as I'd like her too she's really rough with her ad gets annoyed if she cries. Any suggestions on how I can help their relationship along ? I have an aupair moving in at the start of next year and they will have to share a bedroom :-/

Hi ladies it has been pretty quiet here! imissbrie sorry I'm not on the facebook group..is that where everyone is chatting?? :)

lime so glad you're persevering with feeding, well done, it sounds positive. A 2 year old is great entertainment for a baby if u can find one of those
Seriously though, do u have any of the baby Einstein/amazing baby type books with lots of black & white patterns, my lo loves them.

Ds2 was sleeping 8 or 9 hours at a time but the last couple of weeks he's been waking for 3 or 4 feeds a night I'm guessing 12 week growth spurt so I'm really hoping it stops soon!

Hello everyone, I wasn't on your antenatal thread but hoping to join in on this one!
DD was born 22nd May, my first baby. I'm exclusively breastfeeding and hope think that I'm doing ok! She seems to be a brilliant sleeper, has been doing 10pm straight through to 5:30am since she was about 5/6 weeks old, think I got lucky! Now she's going 9:30/10 pm until 7 am, but will stir in her sleep about 6 so I get up and feed her in her sleep!
We've had a few rough patches, mainly due to the dreaded in-laws, contracting tonsillitus, stress etc.
I am finding it lonely as I live out in the middle of nowhere, there isn't a shop within walking distance, I don't drive and there's one bus every couple of hours. I just feel really cut off from everyone and very remote. DH keeps going on at me to go to mother and baby groups but doesn't actually realise how stressful getting into the nearest town is!

Hi dinosaur just quickly stopping by to say hello so you're not unanswered :) thus thread has gone super quiet so we may not be the chattiest sorry! Sorry you feel lonely that is so hard with a new baby.. with my first I always found even having one thing to look forward to in the week helped loads so even if you just go into town on one regular day it will help loads..
My ds2 was born on 22nd May too :) what time was yours? Mine was 9.22pm, maybe we were in labour at the same time :)