October 2012 babies - over here nobbers!

[Smorgs]

This really will be the thread where all our babies start sleeping through the night... right?!

Lying in bed feeding DD - love this time of the day!

Nights still awful here - up every hour last night but strangely don't feel too bad today. We went to postnatal Pilates - baby olives lay there the whole time kicking her legs doing her own version of Pilates, very cute.

yomping we also swaddle DD although she likes to break free of it. DH went online the other night and bought something called a puckababy - it's like a sleeping bag but their arms go inside it. It's meant to be between a swaddle and a grobag. I'll let you know how it goes when it arrives.

Huffle I'm assuming you're referring to my ninja breastfeeding. It's my best parenting moment to date.

oh yes - forgot to say bora that was pretty spectacular!
I once tried feeding baby in the sling at home, but the outfit logistics were complicated, and would be more so with a coat on!!

I don't understand how you feed with a sling- baby's head is nowhere near my boobs when she's in the sling! more like chin height... am I doing something wrong or have I just got particularly saggy boobies?

I can feed DD in my Ergo sling but it is a very awkward. I have to loosen the straps a lot so that she is low down enough and support her wiht my arms so it isn't hands free. It is usefull occasionally though. I cant latch her on without flashing the world so I have to sort my self out before we leave the house.

Quick question for you experts on jabs. We re finally having 8 wk jabs tomorrow (at 11.5 wks). Do you give calpol before or after?

I would it after, if they have a temp or seem a bit poorly.

So I fed her in the baby bjorn, rather than a fabric sling. I unfastened everything on the left had side (including bra) and tipped her to the left. I really had no choice and she was sucking my chest! It was pretty sureal...

Can I ask a question? My DM keeps going on and on at me about giving baby olives solids!!! Whenever I mention that we have had a bad sleep she says 'well the only advice I can give is to start giving some solids cos she must just be hungry. After all breastmilk is just watery it won't be satisfying her'' etc... Today she told me about some mum she met who has a 4 month old and she solved their sleeping problem by giving baby some organic plum purée!!!

It was quite amusing at first but now I'm getting a bit fed up. DD is not waking every hour because she's hungry - she gets disturbed in her sleep and has no way of self settling and then think she wants the boob to comfort suck to get back to sleep and so the cycle continues....

Anyway I know that weaning is done at 6 months, I don't want to do it before that but what is the science behind it - ie. what can I tell mum to make her be quiet!

Hi olives, I'm no expert but I believe you don't wean sooner because babies digestive system isn't ready for it.

On the settling back to sleep at night, we had this and I came to the conclusion she can't be hungry every time she wakes up. So we gave in and got a dummy. If she wakes within 2.5/3 hrs o last feed I give it to her, she sucks for about 5mins and falls back to sleep and spits it out. Maybe worth a try if you haven't already?

HTH

Thanks Orenishii re exercise - makes lots of sense. The nurse I saw (about something else) said ligaments are still loose whilst still bf so not to do too much. She said to leave it 4 months before riding horse - and that's just sitting. The high impact bit could be enormous boobs bouncing!! Must get bombproof bra

Erin was refusing boob, struggling and screaming today (unfortunately in cafe of local garden centre with all the old people out for an outing looking on...) Thought might be teeth pain but I think she just not hungry too as she fine when got home an hour later. So that was more than a three hour gap. I can't feel my let down but boobs sometime 'prickle' if they need emptied.

I like how Jess is being raised a hardy lass Squid. Erin got snowed on yesterday as I whizzed across ikea car park as didn't have rain cover on - just woke her up and she looked surprised.

Thanks cookie - tonight's project is to settle her without the boob. I was going to try just rocking her back to sleep but I'll try the dummy first. We do have a dummy just not had lots of success with it during the day but it might work well at night. I don't know about others but I lose all logic in the middle of the night when I'm tired and last night reverted to the boob for every wake up which was ridiculous because she clearly wasn't hungry just comfort sucking.

Bora well impressed with your bf in sling. I have a friend who said she used to walk round supermarket bfing (she has a kari me). I've got a caboo but haven't worked out how to do it.

Olives my mum is the same. She at least listens that nhs recommend not to - but still says how different things were and she used to give me egg and butter chopped up in a cup from 4 months. And things called bicky pegs for teething...

Quick visit!

Londonlivvy - Calpol after jabs, not before. Wait and see, though - DS was fine after second set but had a temp after first. DD never had a reaction.

Both fennel and fenugreek are good for milk supply!

Useful NHS advice on when to wean and why here: www.nhs.uk/Conditions/pregnancy-and-baby/Pages/solid-foods-weaning.aspx

Ladies - if you thinking of being a pushy parent and taking your 3yo to a Mandarin class, do sit in on one before you commit. Seriously, what preschooler is going to sit at a table for an hour repeating words on flash cards? In my defence, it's too cold to spend much time outside and I was desperate to entertain her. But I think we can do without this particular class. Last thing I want to do is put her off learning languages.

spoke too soon, she's refusing to feed again and screaming every time boob is near. it's not been 5 and a half hour since she fed. this is fucking miserable, I hate every second of it. she hates me and I'm useless.

Londonmrs you are not useless and she does not hate you...you're her mum she's never going to hate you! Don't panic about the times (says she who thinks it odd if DD hasn't fed for 3 hrs), just try again in a bit if she is otherwise happy. If she's feeding less often she'll be getting what she needs in less but bigger feeds!

Sorry if that sounded really condescending... totally was meant to be supportive and nothing else . I have totally been there myself and feel your upset and frustration.
Just a thought, have you tried feeding at different times... i mean just after a nap or just before? My DD tried to put herself on the baby whisperer's EASY, much to my distress as it meant we had no other way of getting her to sleep... she got grouchy at me for trying to feed her before naps for a while until I won the battle!

Oh London, massive hug. Might she be a bit poorly? There's lots of bugs going round. You're the opposite of useless. A useless mum would just strung their shoulders and move on.

" wouldn't it be lovely and easierif DD just gets in the big bath with me?!"

And it was.

Until there was an actual poonami.

squid yes I feel my first let down, sometimes more than one... it's an almost painful increase in pressure in both boobs and they suddenly go quite firm and leak everywhere. Does anyone else get random, non-baby related letdowns?

Thanks for the advice orenishii I have been feeling really terrible about not doing more (have the intention) but find it difficult with getting uni work done and prolapsing bits not liking it. I'm really interested in your DH's barefoot running though. Might have to look into that on the googleweb . There is a long history of eating disorders in my family (5 of my immediate family are bulimic), I have battled my weight for as long as I can remember and am probably only not in the eating disorder camp as I like eating too much and really hate puking! Oh and far too lazy for the super-intense exercise

Go cherry on MIL paying for uber-expensive baby yoga!

We wre told the same thing re calpol First although I was told that it can affect the immune response to the vaccinations so making them less effective. But still to give post-vaccination if necessary. I haven't done any research into this so no idea if it's a load of bull though

Katla my mum is always telling me how she fed me curry and god knows what else essentially from birth! And when she came to visit she was giving DD fox's mints to suck. At 8 weeks old

cookie or anyone else... when did you intro a dummy... I'm wondering if it's too late, but also wondering if it might help the daytime naps?

any does anyone else whose babies sleep for a good chunk at night find they hardly pee at all over night ?(the baby that is of course ) I'm finding DD's nappies are only a little bit wet some mornings and wondered if that was normal! The next one is always mega soaked in an hour though so must be in there somewhere!

Hohoho, smile I can assure you that those of us in the ED camp like food!

Squid I'd say I feel let down about 50% of the time. Like shards of glass in my boobs, painful for a second or two, and more in the opposite breast to the one she's feeding from.

London please don't be so hard on yourself - she doesn't hate you and you are not useless Maybe she's just a bit off colour - I'd not worry too much unless this lasts for days - maybe keep a check on pooey or wet nappies.

When Erin had the cold she didn't eat so often and slept for days - and even today she didn't really feed much (2x5mins) from 10am til 4pm.

Bora oh dear

Nobbers!!!

Sorry I've been out of touch. Wow just tried to read over all I've missed and it's a bit overwhelming.

We had a fab time with all our friends to stay. We're now in Auckland for two weeks while DH works and I'm looking after DS in our holiday flat for the first time alone ever.... it's not going too badly although I entertained many mums at the supermarket yesterday when I had to carry DS in one arm and push trolley with the other because he screamed blue murder if I tried to put him in the baby curved seat. Why oh why did I think leaving the Baby Bjorn at home was a good idea...?!?!?

Main update on the baby front is that DS must (I presume) be going through 12 week growth spurt madness. He won't finish his bottles, screams when I try to feed him, is generally grouchy and very very clinging. He peed all over the bed twice today and then laughed at me. It did make me laugh even if it was infuriating!!

Actually am really looking forward to heading back to Ireland in 2 weeks. It's been lovely to be away but I want to be back at home in our own flat, see my cats again and get into the normal swing of things, you know? Also my seemingly infinite reserves of patience with DMIL are wearing thin. She's (understandably) getting upset that we're going home soon and she's behaving like a child. Basically she doesn't care that her kids all have happy fulfilled lives, she wants them to live round the corner from her because it's what she expected. Errr I understand why it makes her sad her kids live abroad but she just sounds whiney and selfish.