The 5th Gemini luxury bus - the one with babies!

[FrustratedSycamoresRocks]

As we have all our gorgeous babies now, welcome aboad the 5th Gemini bus.

Drinks and previously banned foods supplied in bulk, Car seats installed, slings and prams at the ready, as we head into parenthood, and all the excitement, and sleepless nights our little ones will bring along the way.

Ew, I think formula tastes horrible compared to breastmilk!

I don't dare try it lol
Just don't understand why she doesn't seem to like it when I give it her in a bottle, I do think it seemed like she preferred it at first though?
At frus with four boobs
I never know what kitten will want, one or both she like to keep me on my toes

I don't really want her to have the formula as I have a freezer full of bm she won't drink just want her to take a bottle if and when we need her to

Hehe at 4 boobs! You should at least give it a lick, kitty. Are you not wanting to know what your milk tastes like, or the formula? Dh has tried mine before...Both of the boys are very curious as well but I haven't given them any yet. I'm sure they think it tastes like the almond milk they drink

Maybe kitten would take it better if you cup feed her instead of a bottle? Or.... you could try the SNS system with her sucking on a finger too. Could be a temperature thing... babies are so fickle sometimes!

I agree that it could be a temperature thing. Formula is recommended to be blood temperature, so you can't feel it on skin, but when my bm drips its colder.

You're not on your own kitty I've never tasted formula either. I can't bring myself to do it. (i was a bf baby, which shocked me when my mum told me, she's a major prude but was living in Germany so that might have influenced her) According to DH it's quite bitter.

keep me on my toes have to laugh as that's on a spongebob square pants episode that we watch a lot. I can just hear Patrick saying "keep you on yer toes"

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Well it was a friend of my mums who said hers was bitter so I presumed maybe it is bitter therefore the formula being sweet night alter it, I've tried abit of formula but can't bring myself to try my bm so not sure if it is or not!
You might be right about the temp though, this was a ready mix so carton as don't want to buy a big tub as wouldn't need it so was room temp whereas I normally warm it up and I imagine is hotter then it would be from me, how would I know what temp to make it though?? ( It's kept in the fridge so is obviously quite cold) when I've given her water before to give abit of gripe water etc she seemed fine with water do you think she may like it colder?

Good luck tonight ladies

I keep the cartons in the cupboard. (Unless open) heated until it feels just off my body temp.
Bm is frozen in bags. We defrost the bag under a warm tap, and usually when it is fully defrosted its warm enough.
She might like it colder. A lot of it is trial and error.
My nephew used to drink it straight from the shelf without heating. strange boy that one

kitty I never thought about it before, but maybe bm is different with different people, like it depends on what you eat? . I usually end up wiping it off ds's face when he lets go mid feed, which is how I know mine is sweet I just presumed everyone's was sweet. Sweet like rice milk rather than a sugary drink.

Sleeping ds transferred to cot, so lets see how long we get. He's been asleep roughly an hour so far.

pear I hope baby pear sleeps better for you tonight. lor hope you have a repeat of last night.

I would describe it as like melon juice or rice milk. Definitely not bitter! I have read that babies are able to detect the differences in taste depending on things that their mums have eaten though (ie onions, garlic or chocolate). Go on, Kitty just a tiny lick I promise you that it doesn't taste bad, just different.

Here's to a successful sleep-full night for everyone!!

kitty When I give DS2 expressed milk I take it out of the fridge & hold it either in my hand or between my thighs for about 10 minutes, swirling occasionally, until the bottle no longer feels cold. The only time we've had a problem getting him to take a bottle was when DH tried to feed it to him straight from the fridge "because it's a hot day"!

We're having problems. Now that my supply is settling down it's becoming clear that he was only getting enough because I was squirting it into him. His poo is regularly green now & he has issues with keeping the breast in his mouth. He gulps enthusiastically to begin with but once the initial let down is over then he'll only do 6 or so sucks in a row before having a long rest. He'll usually give up altogether after 12 minutes & no matter how many times I shove him back on he only sucks for 30s before getting annoyed. He's bruising me at almost every feed because he pulls his tongue back while resting & doesn't push it back out when he starts to suck so he's just dragging the areola over his gum. If I don't de-latch him regularly then he slowly pushes the breast out of his mouth until he's just hanging off my nipple!
We've got our 6 week check tomorrow & I'm dreading it. I'm terrified they're just going to dismiss me or tell me it's the latch. It's not. I hate seeing all but one of the GPs at our surgery but they like the female GPs to do the 6-week check so I can't see the nice bloke. I bet he'd listen to my concerns. One female GP is completely clueless & has to look everything up in books & the other just talks over me. Can't remember which I'm seeing tomorrow but neither fills me with confidence! I should've taken DH up on his offer to come along for moral support. Too late to ask him to come now, he'd have problems letting work know etc. I really want to be able to be stubborn & insist they take me seriously or refer me to someone who will but I'm probably more likely to just do what I'm told & cry all the way home!

DS1 is still awake & DS2 has only just settled. It'll be fun having to get up & out by 9.15 with a grumpy toddler!

You can be stubborn agnu you need to be. Do you think he has tongue tie as well as the lip tie, or that there might be something else?

I'd just say exactly what you've said here, remember you've bf another child sucsessfully so you know the difference, hopefully they will listen

Y y to what kitty said. Sadly ime being able to say you've bf previously makes them take you as more experienced. You already know what it should be like, as you've done it before.

Yes, I'm thinking tongue-tie. I can feel the frenulum but no idea if it's normal or not! After I spent a large proportion of the night crying in the bathroom my fab DH has emailed work to let them know he's going to be late in! Am sitting in the waiting room after accidentally arriving 30 mins early - we were told 20 past & it's actually 20 to & the Dr is running 10 mins late! DH has wandered home with DS1 to get the books we forgot to bring to entertain him during the appt.

DS1's feeding was never exactly 'successful' but it's the fact that DS2 is going the same way that tells me it's wrong! The difference this time is that I have some idea what might be wrong!

Well that was pointless! She was super sympathetic & kept telling me that she breastfed her 2 & it is really difficult... She also told me that green stools are nothing to be concerned about before admitting that I know more about it than she does. Oh, & she said that feeding 8m with DS1 was 'a really good stretch'. I had to bite my tongue at that point to stop me shouting at her. Yes, it's better than feeding for less time, no, there's no shame in formula if that's what's best in your situation but the WHO guidance is to breastfeed for 2 years & that's what I'm aiming for. I need to be supported to achieve that if possible, not just be patronised & told that anything is 'really good'. I don't need validation, I need help!

She kept going on about the local breastfeeding advisor but didn't have her number & suggested I try calling her. I suppose at least she might be able to tell me how to go about contacting the necessary people to get this sorted. My next plan of attack before I try her is to contact the milk bank people & explain that I'd still like to donate but that we're having problems that no-one seems to want to help with. I'm really hoping that she'll be willing/able to tell me how to get help as it'll benefit them. The milk bank is based in the NICU of the local hospital so, in theory, she should have access to the paediatricians who'd probably be the ones to do the cutting if there was a tie. Failing that, there's a breastfeeding group that meets on a Friday near me which is only peer-support but I suspect they might be able to help me figure out how to push the issue.

On the bright side, DS2 has just had a really good feed. Not perfect but I'm not horribly bruised & actually feel a bit emptier than when he started feeding!

Oh agnu how absolutely frustrating. Bf is NOT supposed to be hard work. I'm angry for you.

I know you probably have these but I found a link with numbers

I just googled 'cut tongue tie ' & the milk bank lady's name came up as the person to contact for either NHS or private patients! Have emailed her outlining our problems & asking if I'll still be able to donate once I get it sorted! FX she'll get back to me soon!

Sounds very frustrating Agnu. Amazing how few people seem to be able to spot ties correctly and support bf women. Hopefully the milk bank lady will help.

Wow agnu good for you for following your instincts! I'm sorry you have a bonehead for a GP. I often wonder how some of these doctors actually graduate . Ditto to what frus said! It shouldn't be hard work. There's also no room in a doctor's office for patronizing nor trying to share your own personal experiences with patients. She should have at least checked the baby's mouth!

You are right about the green poos though. They're not harmful, but when they are consistently coming and you're not getting the bright yellow stuff than baby isn't getting enough fat from the hindmilk. Glad to hear you've had a successful feed! Keep trying mama, you will get these sorted. It sounds like milk bank lady knows her stuff. Hopefully she will get back to you soon!

It's no wonder you've forgotten me, it's so long since I posted, I've been reading but never quite had 2 hands free.

So, BF still isn't without its hitches, I still have sore nipples. She really clamps down when she latches so if position isn't perfect it wrecks me, also she has become more nosy this week so likes to wriggle while feeding which pulls my poor nipple into all sorts of shapes.

I'm wondering whether baby needs a bit of cranial osteopathy, there's someone near me who is a big expert in babies with sleep and feeding problems, but it's £120 for the first appointment and 85 for subsequent ones which is hard to swallow when on SMP!

Alternatively I could contact my old Lact Consultant again. She was helpful 2 weeks ago when I had my Bleb, but I need more advice about this Lecithin like how long I should take it for and whether to come straight off it or should I wean myself slowly, as the last time I reduced the amount I was taking I got another Bleb. I also want to ask her about it's side effects as her poo is really toxic and I'm assuming its because of the Lecithin. So while I'm asking about that I could ask about the clamping.

It's been 6 weeks of bloody hard slog, but it sounds like you guys all have your troubles too.

MBL is on holiday! She's not due back until mid August. How inconsiderate of her to book a holiday when I need her! I've forwarded my email to the alternative contact listed in her out-of-office reply so hopefully I'll eventually find someone who can help!

Hi Lib! Have you had her checked for tongue tie? DS2 clamps on me because he can't keep his tongue out over the gum to maintain suction when he's taking a break from sucking but doesn't want to let go. I think it's because of his hypothetical tongue tie!

DS2 currently looks ridiculous. He scratched next to his nose earlier & pulled off a chunk of skin. I tried to gently clean off the scab with a wipe & made it bleed even worse so now he's got a bit if tissue stuck to his face! Doesn't seem to be bothering him though - he's fallen asleep!

Completely unrelated whinge. I'm stressing about money. DH is starting a new job that pays 2wks in hand. So we're going to be a months wages down come the end of August. Eek. I hate frugal living. Plus I wanted to do an ikea shop for bedroom furniture, but looks like that's going to be put on the back burner. Which means ds is unlikely to go into his own room before christmas, as his room is currently used as a wardrobe. and I'd got myself all excited about ikea too.