April 2012 - little people who actually DO stuff now!!

[BeyondTheLimitsOfAcceptability]

Ta da

Eeek! Ladies I think I may have a blocked milk duct? L boob tender yesterday & today I have some visible tender lumps above my nipple. What do I do? It's never happened me before. DD has actually been feeding more recently; she's cut her 4th tooth & now has (another) ear infection. So she's up more at night & off her solids.....I do think her latch isn't as good ATM & for ages now she'll only fed lying down. I'm back to work in 3/52 & I'm wondering if this is almost the end of our BF journey......too much going on here recently to have thought it all through properly & it seems easier to just continue.

jelly follow the advice on this link for treating mastitis. Keep feeding, offer the sore breast first, warm compresses etc

www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/pdfs/BFN_Mastitis.pdf

Good luck, hope it clears quickly

Thanks Buns; that's a really great link!

jelly - did you manage to clear the blockage? I hope all is good.

hug - how has work been?

N is now doing a wobbly crawl - bye bye freedom!!
His first couple of nursery settling in sessions went well, still won't be easy going back to work though :(

Yay N!!!! DD still miles from crawling: loves sitting & has started reaching up to the sofa behind to pull herself up so wondering if she'll Sontag before crawling?

Blockage seems to he gone Laughing, but I'm still tender on that side & DD still isn't latching v well...will keep a close eye to avoid a repeat! Glad Nursery is going well..My two older Dd loved their Nursery & though its almost been a year since we took them out, they still ask about going back! So hopefully N will love it too.

I'm dreading work too...18 days to go. :-((((
My MIL is dying & December was v stressful & I'm mentally & emotionally completely unprepared for going back. My dear mum has offered to keep Dd for the first month after I return to give me a chance to settle back without worrying about settling DD s'where too. Her name is down with the Nursery my older girls went to. But; one of their favourite girls has Registered & I'm trying to sort her being DD's Childminder. For some reason it feels right, whereas I always felt better with a Nursery environment before. My hours were cut, which actually suits us WAY better for now...

How's N's skin Laughing? Often wondered if any of those creams helped....do you think his sleep improved after weaning him off the breast? That's my current preoccupation...DD still up once or twice a night.

Jelly I've had 1/2 blocked boobs before, v sore! Manage to clear them by extra feeding and hot bath, massage and hand expressing! Hope it sorted now?

I feel my breast feeding will be coming to end soon too, but will continue for the next few months!
I have till April till I return to work. But I have a meeting in Feb in discuss my hours. Hoping to go from 40 to 16/20 if my boss will let me?
DD will go to my mother and dh for childcare. :)

Oh a question about sleep!
DD had been turning alot in the night. Always slept on her back, but lately she has been rolling to the side or front. How many of your babies are front sleepers??? Is it a worry????
I can't really stop her, when we turn her she goes back over!

:( Jelly - so sorry to hear that December was so stressful. It sounds like a great offer from your mum to look after DD for the first month while you settle back into work. At least it's one less thing to worry about. Really pleased to hear the boob is feeling a bit better, and I hope the tenderness clears up ASAP, blockages are a pain aren't they?!!

N's skin is currently very good, we have to apply steroid creams to the worst bits every other day or we get flare ups but it seems like we've got it under control and the itching is so much better, he had his first bath today without mitts on which is a huge leap forward - yay!

I hate to say it but his sleep is so much better since I've changed to formula, he has only ever woken once each night maximum since (apart from a couple of teething hell nights) with a few nights without a wake up. For the last four nights he has actually done 11/12 hours straight. His sleep was improving anyway so it could be coincidental and his intake of solids is pretty good so perhaps this helped too? I bet we'll have a row of rubbish nights now.

newmummy - fingers crossed about the change in hours!!

N has been sleeping on his tummy ever since he learned how to roll over. He sleeps with his face down and his bum in the air! It was scary at first and we tried to wedge him in so he couldn't turn over but it didn't work and he just got upset. You can get angelcare monitors for peace of mind but I think the risks are very low at this age - particularly for strong, mobile babies like L! :)

Hi. Work is ok, work life balance ATM, not so much. Was going to diet too but I don't need another thing to think about ATM with work, home, two children, dh and home. If I'm not dieting dh can do more coking too and I need help more than a trim waist right now.

I can't wait for the weekend tbh but I'm sure I will get into the swing of things.

Ps had a head appointment with A, he's improved again :). No crawling here but sitting improving and he is commando pushing backwards so don't think crawling will be too long.

Why is it when dh works, I get up with the boys in the night, were both off I get up, I'm in work dh off I still get up.

Hug - Nooo! Kick DH out of bed on his day off!!

Great to hear that A continues to improve :)

hug same here. Until I had a really honest chat with DH. While I can function on little sleep, he can't and was using that as his get out clause for not getting up in the night. I've been back to work for two months now and while it's mainly me that gets up in the night, he's a lot more aware than he was and on a weekend, it's his turn too.

I really do think that men and women at fundamentally different when it come to children. He sometimes doesn't even stir when she wakes up, I hear every sound in my sleep. I've had to come to peace with the fact that he doesn't think like I do and I don't think many men do. So every now and then I'll stamp my feet and put a rocket up his arse, but when push comes to shove, mama does it better!

Have just put this on facebook, but are any of your babes grinding their teeth? Harry has 2 bottom teeth through, and 1 coming through now at the top, he loves to grind them, drives me batty!! Esp as I sometimes do it when I'm asleep.

With regard to dtd, hubby and I are at it 4 or 5 times a week if not more, hasn't been sore for a long time.

Harry has started to sit independently. He takes a few steps when I hold onto him. He's into everything he shouldn't be. Still on pureed food, nothing lumpy as it still makes him sick. He also starts nursery on Sunday (we are in Dubai, thats the start of the week) twice a week, 5 hours at a time. Hopefully it will restore my sanity!

He's still up 2 or 3 times a nite, hungry most of the time, but I do let him cry for a little if he's been fed an hour before crying, normally settles after 10 mins or so.

Loving the updates. xxx

Blimey lots of catching up to do; I also need to change my name but bored of VintageNancy, time for a new one so will ponder on that.

Jelly sorry you're having such a bad time :(. Hope the transition back to work goes ok.

And ditto to everyone else embarking on returning to work. It's over a year since I last worked, part of me would quite like to start doing something. Need to get a work permit first though...

Vicky E has slept on her front from about 6 months. She rolled herself there. She seems more comfortable and sleeps loads better. I now put her down on her front as she settles quicker that way.

Hug glad A's head is improving :).

laughing good news on N's skin.

No crawling as such here yet but she is pulling herself about on her front. She'll walk holding hands pretty well though. Maybe she won't bother crawling?
She's over her nasty diarrhoea bug and eating and sleeping really well. That'll likely all go wrong soon as we've got 2 weeks in the UK coming up so jet lag will hit us hard no doubt.

dream A grinds his teeth, horrid sound.

moan alert if you don't want to read don't worry but writing it will make me feel better

Dh has done nothing since I've been back in work. No cooking, housework, washing, he hasn't even done anything with ds1 while they've been off together, just stayed in playing on the computer. So now I will have to do it all this weekend.

A has been a wreck since starting nursery. He has not dealt with it very well, was vet upset all afternoon. He screamed from 7 to 9 and as I type has just started again now. He was up 1.30 to 3.30 and I foresee another sleepless night.

Thanks for the advice on the front sleeping, just going with it now. We have a video montior so we can see how L is sleeping away, and it great for peace of mind.

I glad I'm not the only one with sleepless night! Sorry lol. I have some night for hell here too. Mainly DD goes for only 4/5hrs then cries out- just for us, not really for a feed! And has always done it, so needed to take action!!!! For my insanity and dh!!!!

Started sleep training properly last night, really going with it now! no more bf in the night. I think before I was too much on/off and confusing her? So doing control crying everynight now.......
Finger crossed it work, I don't know what else will!

Another crap hubby here with waking up in the night. I have to shove him out of bed, and i do wake to every sound too, he just sleeps through! But he isn't too bad with other housework.

Ooh let me know how the training goes... DS has started waking more at night. I have opposite problem with DH. I would advocate leaving DS for 5-10 mins to see if he self settles, but DH heads straight in there & picks him up and brings him to me to feed!

Not sure what message that is sending to DS but then neither do I want him to go hungry. Hmm.

Oh hug that is pants. I'm sure A will settle at nursery soon but you need help from DH now at the tough bit! :( I think I'm going to have to create a rota or something with DP when I go back, he doesn't mind helping but never uses his initiative and does chores without a bit of a nag which is tiring in itself.

Good luck with the sleep Vicky, keep us posted on any progress. N woke at 2am last night screaming for a bottle which he downed in a flash so I think he still does genuinely get hungry in the night sometimes.

I had a dream last night that I found out I was 20 weeks pregnant!! I woke in a cold sweat! :)

Think we may have hit the nine-month sleep regression. E has been sleeping through for the last couple of months (give or take the occasional upset) after sleep training but her naps have suddenly gone to 30-45 mins again and she was up at midnight and refusing to go back to sleep. Ended up co-sleeping/nursing to sleep for the rest of the night but my back is now agony so can't keep doing that. Isn't it ironic after posting yesterday she was sleeping well?!

hug hope A settles soon, such a lot of change for you all to adjust to. Have you talked to DH about how you're feeling?

My DH rant: every time I leave E with him while I pop out (opticians yesterday) I come back to find them watching TV. It's not that hard to entertain her for an hour FFS. I'm not anti-tv but I feel like it's his default solution if she gets a bit fussy.

Namechanged, this one might stick for a while hopefully!

Interesting link, Nancy (love the new name!). I think this could be what's going on with DS. Although he's also taken to having 3am poos as well! DH deals with them...

DS is definitely becoming a little more clingy and more opinionated about food - loves satsuma (still!) and hates yoghurt! I thought all babies loved yoghurt. Could be because it's natural yog mixed with fruit (blueberries today) as I don't want to overdo the sugar.

Guess I'll keep on bfing and hope for the best...this too shall pass.

Hi all, lost you for a bit then, hope you all had a great Christmas and New Year.

I go back to work on Monday. Suddenly feel like I didn't make enough of my Maternity Leave. Although I know realistically, I did everything the weather, and funds, would allow.

I think I'm sad because it signals the end of DD2 being a little baby. And we're still not sure if we're going to have a DC3, so this might be the end of little-baby-ness for me. Got proper tears now and everything. I'm terrified i'lll end up crying at work you know.

Hope all our April 2012-ers are doing well, I cant believe how quickly their first year is going. My NCT group are talking about having a huge first birthday party/meet up at the local baby sensory place, which might be fun.

R has been sleeping on her front since she learned to roll both ways at around 4 m I think . She tosses and turnes so is sometimes also on her back. Ds did the the same . Once they can roll you can't really dictate how they sleep .
I'm hoping she's now ready to sleep through regularly and not have the one feed she was still having (DH did it ) .
I'm lucky in a way that DH does a lot when he's at home . Since he is gone 12 h a day and DD is asleep most of the time when he gets back , he does the morning and any night wakings. Also have the certain daily chores he does and the weekly things that are his chores. Since I'm not always well due to my chronic illness he does have to do more nowadays and on specially on weekends he runs around between activities and shops etc and looks after DC and cooks too :).

A has been back to his happy, sleeping normally, eating self. Makes me think its definitely my return to work that caused his upset last week, I hope he gets used to it soon as I really can't afford to not work :(.

I'm sure he'll adjust , it'll take time . He'll be ok :)!