May 2013 thread our new and not so new arrivals

[BeauticianNotMagician]

Hi ladies

Just thought we could all really do with this. Rather selfish a its mostly for the thousand odd questions I have and things I'd like to share/ vent that no one else would understand.

We've all been together so long I even talk about you all to DP

Kranky are you formula or breast feeding. What working so far with me is to feed Teddy 3oz in the day and 4oz bottles at night. So at 11 he has 4oz and sleeps until 2.I give him another 4oz and he wakes at 5 and then 8.

Teddy cries the most when cold so the first thing I do when he cries is give him a dummy and put another blanket on. If he continues crying ill push him back and forth in pram as that's where he sleeps in day. If he still cries I check his nappy as he hates being even slightly wet. Babies cry for different things but its usually hunger, being cold,constipation or needing a nappy change. You just have to figure out which it is. Sometimes of course they just have a bit of a cry for no apparent reason. If your baby cries for long periods, goes very red, the cry sounds different painful almost and they draw their legs up to tummy its likely colic so try infacol, dentinox or gripe water. Again different products work better for different babies.

Ladies

Do you mind if I join you? Dd is 4 weeks on Tuesday and I just feel like I'm muddling through. I was ebfing, but she didn't put any weight on for about 5 days so am now giving formula, and expressing a feed as well. She has only just made her birth weight :-(

She actually isn't too bad at night - she will wake, feed, then sleep, but I'm struggling during te day as she will only take half a feed, won't sleep and doesn't like being put down, or being in the sling, sii run round like. Whirlwind when she does eventually sleep!

I Also need to than you all for your constipation tips (for the baby!). I tried a couple yesterday and got things moving!

Goodmorning, just finished reading through all the previous posts. We had an absolute poonami here since yesterday... Really nasty wet green/yellow gunk. Quite wet too. Smelly!

Went to see peads yesterday for check-up as they were worried about jaundice and blisters on head from vacuum. Anyway, they barely looked at those things, but are worried about her dropping weight. I can see their point as she went from 3.6 at birth to 3.4 leaving hospital to 3.2 yesterday, but had real trouble getting her to feed long enough, especially at night! Am getting much better at waking her and my milk only really came in on Friday. I really don't like the way they scare you! I was told to top up at every feed with 30ml, but am not doing that if the feed was a good one. Will only do it if it wasn't a proper one as am reluctant to use the syringe. Need to come back on Wednesday so fingers crossed she will have gained some weight by then!

Welcome mrsdonald, my DD was born on the same day as yours. At our midwife appt yesterday, she was finally back up to her birth weight but it's been a long time coming. We have also had to move to mixed bf and formula because she just didn't seem to be getting enough with just bf.

Dh is back to work full time tomorrow so I am doing the night feeds from now on. He has been really good at helping with nappy changing etc up until now, but it doesn't seem very fair to expect him to keep doing that when he has a long day at work.

I'm trying a new strategy tonight, instead of feeding her my bed, I've got up and come through to the other room (will be the nursery when she moves out of our room). when I was feeding in bed, it didn't work so well because we would both doze and she would never end up getting a good feed. This seems to be working a bit better. Does make me wonder if we should be sleeping her in her own rom sooner than six months. What are other people's thoughts on this?

I am just getting to the stage where I am wondering about trying to establish some kind of routine. I read gina before Alice was born, but I think it is probably a bit too rigid for me. I quite like being able to leave the house! I found another one on amazon called The Baby Book. Does anyone have experience of this? Or any other recommendations? Is anyone doing a bedtimeroutine yet? She has just been staying up with us until we go to bed, and tends to quite awake in the evenings. I kind of think this is no bad thing because perhaps she is more ready for sleep during the night. But not sure when people typically start move of a 7pm bedtime?

So much to figure out! At almost four weeks, she is definitely starting to get a bit more interactive. No smiles yet but definitely taking more if an interest in things etc. it's amazing how quickly they change!

Hope you're all having a good night, ladies...

roast do what works best for you. We moved DD1 into her own room at six weeks so she could go in the cot, she kept flinging her arms out and hitting the crib sides and waking herself up. We started bedtime routines around 6-8 weeks here with the other 2, it was around the time us having the TV on started to disturb them so we assumed it was the right time.

Hi Kranky and MrsD

DXB they are so good at scaring you about the weight. Itll all work out in the end. Bf babies lose a lot more, and actually, your LO has only lost a bit more than 10%. So not entirely out I the ordinary. Now your milks come in, it'll fall into place. And as they get bigger, they feed better too.

Roast personally I wouldn't worry too much about routines yet. The only routine is nappy, feed sleep on repeat! There is plenty of time for that. I think it's quite a modern phenomenon of getting babies into routines. They kind of just happen anyway when baby is ready to stick to one.
Last baby went into own room when she outgrew the Moses basket about 3-4 months. But this time I feel more nervous. It's a combination of more research out there about styling in parents room and also the fact she is a preemie/tiny. I Deliberatly bought a crib this time so she'll stay in with us longer (if she stays on the growth curve she's on now it'll last a year!). My initial thoughts were 6 months corrected age. But I might get fed up before then! We used to put DD1 up to bed about 7 ish when she got to about 3 months and then dream feed her at 10-11. Worked brilliantly. But again, I'm more anxious this time about her sleeping on her own.

Weigh in day today! Wish us luck for this afternoon. Putting her on our own scales says she hasn't gained anything this week . So now I'm worried sick. I just want to hit 5 lbs but looks like its going to take even longer.
On a positive. I think I had a smile yesterday! Tried to do it again to show DH and he grimaced instead. But I'm sticking to 'it was a smile!'.

roast I think if your a routine person you'll be more comfortable with a routine. Life is all about routine and baby's always respond well to some sort of routine. I think 6-8 wks is when we started with the other two but that was bedtime routine. My BF babies never fed on demand & were three - four hourly quite quickly so you automatically have a routine. I thinks there is nothing quite like your intuition but there is lots of good advice and suggested approaches out there. The Easy routine from the baby whisperer is what I do so I don't under or over feed when she is crying for something else... 'Eat -Activity-Sleep-You time. At five weeks activity is a nappy change or looking at patterns on the cushion. Nothing is set in stone but these things help so why not.

Hi everyone. DS is 18 days old today. He's doing fabulously. The pediatric nurse came for our home visit on Tuesday and didn't believe the weight the hospital gave him 8 days before - as he'd gained almost 700 gms since then. Whatever other challenges we have, I do seem to be able to make milk!

I ended up visiting A&E Sunday (a week ago) because I felt so bad, and after mastitis with DS1 I really wanted to head it off at the pass, if that's what it was. They took some tests, and it took them a week to get back to me and say "yes, there is something there, you need to take ABs". A week for goodness sake!! GRRRR. So started a course yesterday, and really hoping that's going to help with the blocks I've been battling. Will be so nice when BF settles into the paraphernaelia free option it's supposed to be, without the need for nipple shields and pumps and washing and sterilising etc etc etc.

We're going with on demand feeding here, although I am waking him for feeds if it's too long since he last ate (partly for him, partly to relieve my boobs). We did the same for DS1, and it worked for us then. If it's not long since a decent feed, we'll check other things before offering milk, but I am getting pretty good at recognising which are the hunfer cries.

DS2 now has a dummy, which settles him. Especially helpful when he's had a long feed but wants a suckle to settle, and I don't want to faff with nipple shields and lansinoh for a 2 minute comfort suck.

Those whose babies wake themselves by flinging out their arms, have you tried a swaddle or wrapping them so they can't throw out their arms? It has helped both my two in the very early stages.

Rhienne Hope the antibiotics kick in soon for you. I had a uterine infection and felt a little better on day two of my antibiotics.

Roast like Bood Ive always started more of a routine at about 6 weeks.

Well first day of me with all three today and I just about survived. The school run about did me in though half hour walk there and half hour back. I don't think I can keep that up four times a day. So I caved and applied to the school around the corner from us. I feel bad as ds1 would have been to 4 different primary schools . But the school run will take over my life and we don't plan on moving again

Beaut, 30 mins sounds hellish, not just for you but for all DC's. I would apply for the local school too.
My oldest DD changed schools nearly 2 years ago for pretty much the same situation.... It was the best thing we've ever done.. Not just for her, but for the rest of the family.
It's only 5 mins walk away... Bloody marvellous!
We did the in year application during the middle if term, and put ASAP as the start date for her. She started 2 July bless her, but if we 'd waited until start of September, although more cleaner, there were 8 other families wanting the place, and we wouldn't have got her in.

Thanks for your responses re routine. I think I would eventually like to try and establish some kind of predictable pattern, but may wait a couple more weeks. I am starting to find the night times really hard. Now DH is back at work, I've been feeling like I should do all the night time stuff but it's really difficult. I'm usually ok with the first feed but by 4am today I was feeling awful, really nauseous and tearful. Ended up waking DH to get some help. It just takes so long.. It's about an hour and a half to bf, top up with formula, burp and settle her again. And then only an hour or so before she's ready to do it all again! When does this get easier?!

Good luck with the weigh in 10!

beaut that sounds sensible re moving schools. Four hours of walking every day sounds a bit much!

rhienne that's awful that they took so long to get you onto ABs. I hope they start working soon.

roast my night times are the same and now she has arose stool after every feed so light on change & takes an age to get her to settle. I've done all night time feeds as my husband looked after the other 2 DCs before he went back to work & now he's back at work I would never ask him. I'm starting to buckle though & have cried the last few evenings. It does pass, it's just hard when you're in the depths of it. Grab sleep when they do is the best advice (if other DC are in school)

loose stool! Phone keypad grrh

roast with dd1 I bf at night for only about 4 weeks. She too used to be on the breast for hours at night. In the end, I have her formula as a dream feed at 10-11, then expressed and have her that in a bottle at about 3am when she woke. She would down it in 20 minutes. Bliss. I never had any issues with supply overnight. I still don't express overnight now. I dd when she was on the NNU and I had my least amount at that time (but apparently I'm unusual).

A is 4lbs 14.5. So nearly there! Last night I was exhausted (after spending all day designing and making my DHs website) so I left him to do the last feed and I went to bed. A pooed everywhere. It was on her face when he bought her up and he reckoned he'd cleaned it up! He said he's never seen so much. He was catching it in his hands and it just kept coming. I'm scared she's lost weight for the pard appt tomorrow !
Dd1 keeps waking in night an coming into our bed. She's clever enough now to not bother waking us as she knows she'll get sent back. At 5am this morning I woke to find he asleep clinging onto me.

This weather is gorgeous. Going to get out into the garden while it lasts!

Great weight gain 10! Congrats. I'm getting DS weighed this pm but as he hardly fits in newborn sizes anymore I am assuming he will have put on lots.

Does anyone else's baby have lots of facial spots? DS does and I wish they'd go as he currently has a face that only a mother could love! Any tips for getting rid of them?

Sorry school run is two hours in total a day not four. I didn't make it very clear. I have put on my application to start ASAP

Spotty baby here art :-( it's been suggested to me that the reflux & spots may signal a milk protein intolerance. This can be got from breast feeding too if you drink milk & milk products. It wouldn't bloody surprise me if it was that.

This is my first post on post-natal thread only taken me 10 days.

Bubs is nearly back to her birth weight at 10 day weigh-in today. Good that all the BF has been worth it but it is exhausting! She likes to feed for 1 hour+ sometimes and the feeds start to merge into one another. Hopefully this is just for a growth spurt then feeds will become shorter. I have started watching The Fall on iplayer during BF but I really want to be out in the sun!

Any recommendations on sun cream suitable for newborns? We will keep her out of direct sun but midwife said they can be burnt even in shade.

I hope everyone is getting to enjoy at least a little bit of the sunshine. X

I have a spotty baby too :-( Any tips would be appreciated

We had our 1st day home alone today. Was less stressful than when DH is here. I even had time to do some cleaning which I havent done much of on his 2 weeks off. Also been for a long walk and a toddler group. So nice coz I get to play with DD1 while someone holds the baby.
Just need to sort dinner and then DH can do baths tonight.

I'm another that does all night feeds. Starting to get a bit much now tho I'm exhausted. Last night I think I had about 3 hours in total sleep. Were still having trouble feeding. So off to the health visitor tomorrow hoping she will be able to offer some advice. Annoys me tho coz you get so much help if your breast feeding but if your bottle feeding they don't seem to offer any help/care.

At least the sun is shining so we can get out of the house.

Sorry I posted too soon. The only time Ive been able to get on here all day. T is full of cold and had me awake since 3 this morning. He hasn't slept all day other than when I was out on school run and I'm exhausted.

10 DP is working away at the moment. We are speaking but I'm sti not happy. Probably because I'm tired now as well

I've got T some suncream the pharmacist recommended banana boat baby factor 50

Personally I wouldn't put any cream on before 6 months but I have a cover on the carry cot pram and a muslin square shielding the hole part. If she's in the baby borjn then I have a sun hat and long sleeves/ legs.

For the spots I just keep cleaning with pads & cool boiled water. It's coming from the inside so not a lot you can do