September 2012 babies - warmest welcome!

[Macaroons]

Here's the new thread for September babies fresh from the oven!

I'm a first time mum and I'm struggling with breast feeding at the moment, my 6-day old DS always seems to be hungry (a feed every 2-3 hours, each lasting roughly an hour), and when he's hungry he's very aggressive towards my nipple it really hurts! Any tips out there? And how often do you feed your baby and for how long? how do you teach your baby to be gentle on the nipples?

Good luck to those still waiting for their babies to come out! Will be watching out for more baby news!

ballroom it's great to have your parents by your side, I couldn't manage without my mum just being able to talk to her when I'm bored or feeling a bit low, it's great to have her close to me.

Moomin I take it the breast pump is destroyed? I did that a few years ago with them hand warmers, you have to boil them to get them back to normal so I put hot water on hob added 4 of them wrapped up in a cloth and sat down to watch tv, when I remembered the kitchen was stinking the pan was destroyed and the cloth and hand warmers where glued to pan, never tried it again after that. :(

So Herbie has received his appointment for his jabs on the 13th. God love him. Reading a few posts up (not sure who said it) but I have not considered keeping Herbs in a bit more. We try to get out everyday but I suppose he isn't around other kids much, well except his cousin who got her jabs 2 weeks ago.

Hope everyone had a nice and relaxing weekend, :)

Well, I haven't had the best of starts to the week. I was crossing the road and pushing the pram down the kerb. The front wheel locked and I fell over the pram, upending it and me. I fell into the road (ouch) and hurt my knee. Thank goodness Oliver was ok, as he was strapped in and slept through the whole debacle. I was (and probably still am) in shock. A very nice lady came over and helped me and the pram up- I thanked her, in between tears. It is nice to know that there are people out there who will come to your aid. My knee is now bandaged up and I'm staying indoors with a sweet . I won't let this put me off going out, but i'm going to walk alot more gingerly now. I'll dig out my walking boots for when it is winter.

Hope you ladies are all ok. We're still not in any kind of routine, but after today, I don't care. Oh, and my two year old has been full of a cold this weekend. So, the calpol came in handy, but not for Ol after his jabs. Marvellous stuff! Good luck for any babeis haveing their jabs this week, they really aren't that bad xx

Oh no, shoeprincess!, how scary! I'm glad that there was somebody nice nearby to help you out. I would have been a blubbering wreck!

Ballroom, I'm glad that you are close to your parents. When I split up with Ex-H, when DDs 1 and 2 were aged 3 and 2, my family rallied around too. Although it wasn't the same as being pregnant or having a newborn, I understand what you mean about you not having imagined that your life would be like that. It was my decision to split up too, I just couldn't continue with the relationship being the way it was. I was lucky to meet current DH, and was amazed when he was happy to take my two children on too.

Rachel, yes, the pump and bottle were completely wrecked. I was just glad that I hadn't spent much, as I'd bought it on Ebay. I've just been to Boots and bought a new pump, and a steam sterliser! I'm leaving Lola with DH on Wednesday night for a couple of hours, as DDs 1 and 2 havea dance show. I'm feeling a bit apprehensive, and worried that Lola might not take to the bottle. I'm going to try her with a bit of expressed milk later today.

Had my little chunk weighed by the health visitor ahead of the six week check today. Lola is now 12lb 5oz- I can't believe how big she is getting! She's gained over 4lb since birth, and isn't even 6 weeks old yet. It just goes to show that tiny boobies can produce enough milk!

I know mums and dads are great aren't they? Drive you batty at times but you couldn't do without them.

I think it was me that said about keeping them in Rachel . I'm still out and about with B a lot and it doesn't hold me back from hitting the supermarket or the shops, it was just the kids adventure playground (with all the snotty nosed kids running about ). Told you I'm precious.

Aww shoeprincess I'm glad Oliver was ok, I'm sure that was a shock. Hope the knee feels better soon. I remember when ds was a little baby I got caught in severe winds with the pram. The pram lifted a couple of times and nearly upended - and it was a super heavy silver cross one. I arrived home shaking and in floods of tears. I won't be considering any form of routine myself until baby b is about 12 weeks old. Then it will just be a bedtime routine, the day she can settle herself into.

I think this is me now sworn off men for life Moomin :) Sad as I genuinely would love more kids but I'm kicking onto my mid thirties this year so will resign myself to two. Wow Lola is a great weight. I have small boobs myself and even up to last week was able to express more than baby b was taking. Dreading to see what shape they'll end up now I've stopped as I lost a cup size and went from a B to A expressing for only three weeks for ds.

I haven't been too fussed about Ollie being in contact with other babies/toddlers, but then with his snotty brother clambering all over him (and his brother still goes to nursery), I reckon he's been exposed to alot of stuff already. That said, i went to a mum and babies only film at the cinema and there was a baby there with a horrendous cough. I did panic that it may be whooping cough and spent the afternoon frantically googling . The knee is much better thank you ballroomblitz. Takes me back to being at school with a scabby knee.

The shenanigans didn't end there though. Nursery rang and said that Thomas had a really red eye and was rubbing it a lot. Got an evening appointment at the surgery and saw a lovely GP. Turns out he has conjunctivitis and needs drops. It seems a lot better today, though he had a major meltdown this morning. The worst tantrum I have seen. i think his cold and gammy eye have taken it out of him poor boy. Oliver didn't settle last night either, so I do actually think that babies sense when you are stressed/ worried and react accordingly.

I'm wondering what kind of state my boobs will be in, once I finish breastfeeding. I went back to normal first time around, but doubt I will be as lucky this time. Oh well, I'll just go to a decent bra fitters...

Have a nice day ladies. At least we have the US Election coverage, to keep us entertained during the night feeds tonight. Oh, and I have a 200g bar of choclate waiting for me. Well, I do have a sore knee

Hi all - i haven't posted in such a long time as I never seem to have a moment with LO and a toddler but I do read all the time and you all keep me going during the night feeds.

Things are well here Chez Tea. DS was 5 weeks old yesterday and is still on the 91st centile at 12 lbs 1. We feed on demand so he can go 1-3 hours between feeds with the occasional 4 hour gap. i have teeny boobies so this amazes me and I frequently squirt milk everywhere - I think I'm going to have to incinerate the sofa when we're done! I'm exhausted like all of you but it seems to be easier second time round as my expectations are much lower! We got a cleaner so I don't worry about housework and I don't try to leave the house very much, I get friends to come to me. First time round, it felt like I was always rushing to some class or music group and it was hectic, def taking things at a slower pace this time.

My parents were here for a week (from Ireland) which was wonderful then MIL came to stay and now it's just me and the kiddies. Sometimes it's overwhelming / exhausting / frustrating but I just try to take it one day at a time. We gave DS a dummy last night as he was so upset and overtired and he was asleep within minutes. I'm not sure how I feel about it as DD didn't have a dummy but I was desperate for sleep and no amount of rocking, cuddling, boob would calm him down.

Not looking forward to jabs in a few weeks but a necessary evil. DS also needs the BCG as DH is from S Africa so an extra one for him

all round and will try to post a bit more on the thread x

Well Ava had 8wk check and her first imms yesterday and her navel is herniated and theyr going to check on it again in 3m they hope it'll go down on its own so I'm a bit worried about that she's 10lb now mainly on breastmilk and my 'boob story' after dd1 is even worse than some of you down thread (is that the term?) so I won't share
we were out all morning faffing round the shops and she remained asleep so I was racing round getting things done before ds and dd1 home and I tripped over the hamster ball while cleaning his cage it split in half and he fell out and I nearly trod in him! made my blood run cold! so I didn't pick up Ava who'd by now stated crying till he was safely back in his cage!
going out for a meal with my non mum
friend iv only expressed 1 bottle so not really prepared....
take care all x

maketea my parents were over from 'the kingdom' last week!

cjbk1 I'm from Waterford! eek poor hamster and poor you! Hope navel clears up too

ballroom - DS is 8 weeks now, he's sleeping a little better these days, but still, he only really sleeps well from 7pm, he hardly naps no matter how hard I try to settle him (so by 4-5pm he's fairly grumpy...) maybe because he's so tired, he usually sleeps really well between 7-11pm, but what happens in the early hour is hit or miss. last night he slept 7pm-11pm, then 12 midnight - 4.40am. When I looked at the time - 4.40am I was really happy! At least it's not 2-3am! We'll get there one day...

cbjk - what a story re your hamster cage! at least little hamster is now safe!

moomin - what a story re your breast pumps! I've always been using a steriliser, only takes 8 minutes and you don't have to watch it!

maketea - we had the 6-8 weeks check up today, and the jabs too. at 8 weeks DS is 61.5cm, which is at 91st percentile, but his weight is only at 50th percentile, so in a way he's thin for his height. DS cried straight after the jabs, settled by the magic rattle at the clinic but is relatively grumpy after his jabs when he got home:( hope he'll feel better soon! (and I just bought that rattle from amazon as DS stopped crying that instant! it really is like magic! here's a link for those who are interested www.amazon.co.uk/Halilit-Rainbomaker-Musical-Shaker/dp/B000CEM6WY/)

Hi everyone. It seems we're all having our trials at the mo.
Ours here is that DD had an ultrasound today to check in her clicky hip and it showed the joint to be 'immature'. Apparently it can cause dislocation and problems with walking later on.
She's got to have another in two weeks to see if there's any improvement but worst case is surgery.
DS had to have surgery under general anaesthetic and it was very upsetting for us. He bounced back brilliantly, it was just us who suffered!
Positive thoughts that it'll get better soon.

I'm feeling good about night feeds. She's going 6 hours between now and around 3am. Then two hourly till about 9ish when DS rises.
Definitely finding dealing with the tiredness better this time.
Expected to be dead on my feet but it's not as bad as I thought.
Lower expectations has helped!

Now let's see if she teaches me a lesson for expecting to sleep tonight and wakes every hour...

Wherearemyshoes sorry to hear that your LO has a clicky hip, hope that will mature itself and won't need surgery!

macaroons your little ones sleep pattern sounds like mine. Really struggle to get him to nap but then he sleeps brilliantly from 7-11 then it's normall 3 when he wakes and then 6 or before if I'm unlucky!
wherearemyshoes hope your dd's hip is ok. I know of one baby who had a dislocated hip at birth and has to wear a harness thing, she doesn't seem to be bothered by it but it looks uncomfortable for her. I'm very jealous of your 6 hour sleeps!
I've got mastitis so feeling quite sorry for myself at the moment. The antibiotics are working so don't feel so fluey anymore but the boob is very sore still.

smallgreen I found cabbage fantastic for the boobs, mine were red hot, massive and so sore, I bought a cabbage after mw said to try it, it worked wonders for me. Although now I cannot eat it, the thought of it makes me feel a bit sick. :( maybe one day I'll get back to it without bringing back the awful memories.

shoes I hope by the next time your Lo is seen, her hip will be okay.

So went down to Hv drop in as everyone in my family and Oh's says I should change Herbie onto stage 2 hungrier baby milk, he was taking a 4oz bottles every 2 and a half hours, takes more than 30oz a day so went to discuss with Hv. Got him weighed and he is now 11 lbs 2oz so has gone up 6ounces in a week :)
Anyone else bottle feeding how much does your Lo take each bottle and how often?

I'm so jealous at the your Lo's going to bed at 7, my monster is still awake now, crying and sucking his fists. There's no chance of him going down any earlier for me so far.

So I have decided that I NEED my hair cut as Herbie pulls it every time I lift him and its so sore as he is a strong wee baby with such a grip.

Small you have my sympathy, mastitis is awful isn't it. Sounds like you are on the mend now though. I had my six week check today. All fine with me and dd2. I finally feel like we are emerging from the newborn chaos/pain etc and back into real life. Anyway must go to sleep now as dh does a bottle now for dd2 so i can get some sleep as all her other feeds are breast feeds. Hope we all have good nights.

shoes, I hope your little one's hip corrects itself.

small, hope you feel better soon, mastitis is awful.

Well, leaving Lola for the first time was a bit of a disaster. I fed her at about 6ish, and went out half an hour later for the dance show which started at 7. I'd left 4oz of expressed milk in the fridge. I called DH during the interval at 8,and Lola was screaming. Apparently, DH had given her the bottle, but it leaked everywhere, so she'd only ended up with about 1oz, and was hungry again. I felt terrible, and sat through the 2nd half on the verge of tears. DH and Lola were so relieved to see me,once little lady had been fed, she was full of smiles and coos. Poor little thing. On the plus side, the oldest two were great in their show.

rachel My DD is bottle fed and she does roughly 4oz every 2-3hrs during the day and 4-6hrs at night.
We had her 6week weigh in yesterday and she is now 8lb 8oz ... Exactly 15oz every fortnight so far!

shoes I hope you little one's hip sorts itself out x

Hi Rachel, Euan has a 5 oz bottle every 4 hours during the day and then the 8pm is 6 and I do half and half hungry baby and normal. He then usually goes until 12 and has the same and then same at about 5am. His naps aren't routine and totally depends on what we are doing: if we are out and about he sleeps all the time. He is a super good baby compared to dd, I didn't sleep for about 3 months with her and she still wakes 2 or3 times a night, exhausting! Was all prepared for it being the same and being up all night but so far he seems settled.
We've got horrid colds again and I feel like I'm so dehydrated and my hands are all sore and cracking

I have a question re formula.......if your baby wakes in the night do you feed them even if they've had all their bottles and recommended amount for the day? Ds is breastfed but I'm considering swapping to formula after Christmas but the only way he goes back to sleep at the moment is with more boob so am worried my only way of getting him to sleep will be gone if I swap!

Smallgreen according to what the formula box says Herbie should be taking a 5oz bottle 5 times a day. I count days from midnight to midnight. He can have between 5-8 bottles and usually takes between 24-33ounces a day. Hv says just give him what he wants.

So yes when he gets up at night (which for me is usually once) I give him a bottle. There's no way at the minute I could get him to sleep without the bottle,

leeletoo how old is Euan now?

Okay I now have Herbie on a 5oz bottles every 3-5 hours during the day and at night he can go between 4-9 hours depending on whether he takes a lot and when he falls asleep.

Thanks Rachel. I'm going to try it I actually love feeding him but I can't cope getting up three times a night is be so happy with once a night like your herbie and he has never gone more than 5 hours so 9 would be a dream come true! All the ladies at my massage class who have formula babies are getting a full nights sleep and all the breastfed ones aren't so there must be something in that!
If it makes no difference then I shall concede defeat and just become nocturnal!

He is 8 and half weeks Rachel. The hungry milk really helping him sleep. Smallgreen, I have to give Euan a bottle in the night when he wakes but he is going longer and longer between feeds, like last night he went 8pm till 2am, six hours. So if I can get to bed quick I can get some good kip. But I know mums who ebf and their babies sleep right through: you might switch and it make not a jot of difference. This was the case with my dd, I stopped bf at about 4 months with the hope she would then sleep better: even packed full of formula she never slept longer than 3 hours stretches until she was 2 and now still often wakes 3 times a night. Euan up less than her! Sleep is one of those things that is totally down to each child.

I've got a nasty feeling it won't help! He isn't really hungry when he wakes, just feeds for 5 mins and goes straight back to sleep, using me as a sleep aid basically, any ideas on how to stop this?

Hi ladies, I haven't posted over here for a while so just catching up. I am really sorry to hear about clicky hip shoes, plus all the colds and poorly LOs.

small I am having the exact same as you with babyfunch waking, feeding very briefly etc. She only goes about 1.5 to 2 hours between feeds as she is not full up. Sometimes she wakes after just a few minutes. However I have just ruthlessly got her to feed for over 20 mins by changing her nappy and keeping her in just a vest for a feed so fingers crossed I might get 3 hours now!

DH is taking her out tomorrow morning armed with 2 bottles as I have been expressing. She took a bottle from my mum on Tuesday and do hopefully will do the same for DH.

Good luck with upcoming jabs, feeds, nights etc everyone :)

About formula. Baby b takes sometimes a 7oz bottle, sometimes feeds all day with 2-3oz (which does my head in). Apparently take the baby's weight in lb and multiply by 2-3oz for a rough guide about how much they should be taking. Just got weighed at 5 weeks Tues and was a healthy 9lb14, 50th centile. I hold my hat off to women who carry 10lb+ babies. That must be so heavy in your stomach.

small Formula will either fill him up where he doesn't wake or if he does, just give him food. I've just switched bf to ff and the only time dd wakes up during the night is for a feed (where boob would previously comfort her and she wanted feeding a lot). I just keep the room dark, don't really talk to her and only change nappy when needed. She then gets to know it's night.

wherearemyshoes Hope the lo's hip corrects itself. Know it's horrible but at least if they have to operate it's easier on them (and not remembering) if they're younger. Hope it doesn't come to that though.