July 2013 - Part 1. Remember your pelvic floor exercises!

[TotallyEggFlipped]

Time to start the post-natal thread.

And start those PELVIC FLOOR EXERCISES!

We have no routine at all, try to have bath, massage, jimjams, feed and bed each eve, have varying degrees of success and getting Theo into bed, often spend most of the early evening cuddling then putting him back down before giving up and cuddling until I go to bed!
cheek I think babies cry when they wake in a different place to where they fell asleep, which is why health visitors say you should put them down awake. I don't think they remember very much from the 1st year (I can't remember much before I was 3 or 4) I figure they won't remember being put down and you'll remember all the lovely cuddles so enjoy them

Can I join? Was on the wrong antenatal thread all along and nice as they are it makes more sense for me to follow the happenings here I think. (And you get prizes on this thread!!) Mine was born 11 July, 5lb 9 and a little brother for DS1 who's two.

Off to give him a bath now as I'm sure they'd arrest me if they knew how few he'd had since birth...

Welcome BrieMonster - hope all good with you and ds2.

Cheek - I don't think they remember in the long run. J is the same - will sleep on me (or anyone else) v happily but wakes when put down. I have taken to swaddling and putting him down drowsy occasionally and sometimes he drifts off - its pot luck though.

Re routine - not much of a routine here either. I tend to feed and change him after he wakes from a nap and try to put him down for a nap when I see him yawning (though he does fight sleep so varying degrees of success) - sometimes he's awake for 30 minutes, sometimes hours before sleeping. In the evenings he has a quick bath and lots of cluster feeding before going down sometime between 8 and 9.

Glad I'm not the only one getting the fewest smiles cheek our one loves the curtains and the cat more than me! Oh well... :(

waves I saw this mould thing in John Lewis that kept babies in a correct sleeping position maybe something like that? I know my mum used to roll up towels and prop my brothers and I on our side (when it used to be recommended) Maybe something like that could help? Good luck anyway.

Elka keeps adding the odd high pitched scream, and I mean scream to her crying the last couple of days.. It's really frreaking me out I feel like I've hurt her or she's in pain. Is this normal? It really disturbs me. Dh seems to be unfazed by it which almost makes it worse for me because he's so calm about her when she cries. I swear men just don't have that 'painful reaction trigger' when babies cry like a woman has.

nexus I shall investigate the mould thing for sure. Happy for him to flip onto his tummy when we are both awake but anxious about the sleeping obviously. He showed off his rolling skills in public today at an open air film we went to. Hoping the extra fresh air bodes for a good nights sleep!

We have no discernible routine here either, I just try to keep things darker and quieter in the evenings. C is 4 weeks tomorrow so it will be a while yet before we know what's what. Means I am getting vastly more confident at bfding in public at least as he gets hungry at such erratic intervals!

Hi Brie, I am an import from the August thread too. DD was born on July 24th so I absconded!

We have the tentative beginnings of something resembling a routine here in that L is eating at similar times each day. We've slotted her into DS bedtime routine so she is bathed and changed for bed by about 7.30 and seems to be settled by about 10 (though she's having the occasional squawk as I type!)

Re leaving them in another room etc, I don't think they remember. Also, as normality starts to set in, they are going to have to be left to snooze whilst we get on with other (boring) housy things. This week I have been on my own with both kids much more and I've found it hard that one of them always seems to be waiting for me to finish with the other before I can sort them out. Aargh! This has led to me starting to feel a bit low and overwhelmed again so need to be having a good talk to myself over the next few days.

Happy hols to everyone away. We are day tripping next week. That should test my organisational skills!!!

I'm currently feeding or rocking (on shoulder) Sophia to sleep unless she's in the car.

I don't understand the books that say out them down for a nap when sleepy. What does that mean in practice? Do you stay with them whilst they decide what to do (sleep or wake up) or do you pat/sush them to sleep?

Hoping for a good nights sleep everyone

We don't have a deliberate routine yet, but he has settled on a pattern of feeding that he sticks to fairly closely.

Do need to start having more baths though, he seems to attract fluff like a magnet. Always has sock fluff on his toes, even when wearing a foot less baby grow

Have walked miles round edinburgh today. Bought a bike trailer, slightly premature, but the last one in the company and a cosmetic return so for cheap. It looks big, even compared to our cargo trailer.

I've been slack and only reading rather than posting lately... I've got my best friends wedding today and over the past couple of weeks have been juggling bridesmaid duties and looking after J.

Welcome Brie

Really interesting reading about all your routines. We fonts have one yet but I like the idea of bath and massage in the evening so might start with that. At the moment I only bath J once/twice a week. I was concerned about drying her skin out but if you massage after I suppose that problem is solved.

I too have been getting more smiles at me rather than the wall lately- makes my heart melt!

Since hitting the 6 week point J had also gone from pooing several times a day to every 2 days. I was worried at first but she seems fine.

I was thinking I know babies develop at their own rate but I would be interested to know how old all your babies are when they do certain things as I have no point of reference as J is my first. Like when we were expecting we put how many weeks we were maybe we could out how old our babies are in weeks at the end of our posts?

7+3

F doesn't have much of a routine either. We have a routine we do at night of bath, clean clothes, feed, snuggle with DH (while I get ready for bed) then sometimes she goes to sleep and we put her down in the cot, and other times she doesn't and I take her in the spare room and cuddle/feed etc until she sleeps.

In teems of putting them down once asleep, I think if you then didn't go to them when they woke and cried that in the long term could be damaging but as long as you then reassure them etc it's ok. And one offs of anything are unlikely to cause any problems especially at this age (obviously with exceptions of extremes). That's my take on it anyway.

We've been getting smiles since about three weeks, and they're now often at me which is lovely! This week she started making an oooh noise after I made it and then grinning.

5+6

Abz - not necessarily premature, B has been out for a few short trips in the trailer already. We've borrowed a Weber baby seat with head support which fits into the trailer. From Sept I'll be doing the nursery run with them both in the trailer. Appreciate it's less nerve wracking second time round, though!

abzs I had to check back to make sure your dh was back onshore after hearing about that crash that night. My DH knows one of the people that died

No routine to speak of here, but I'm not even trying to get routine tbh. I'm just going to go with the flow for now as she changes so quickly at the moment

Been attempting to declutter the toys today and have convinced the boys to chuck out quite a lot of stuff including lots of trains which are doubles or damaged . The mess just drives dh and me crazy, and with 4 kids you accumulate a lot of stuff!!

Hello all,

I have a question for you ladies. I still get intermittent swelling of legs and hands. I wonder if anyone knows what I can do to stop them. Tomorrow I will be 3 weeks postpartum. It feels like this time round I'm experiencing slow recovery compared to my previous births.

2+6

I think getting your body moving, going out for gentle walls is one of the best things for water retention. I found my wees (sorry for over share!) went on for ages after giving birth. I assume this is my body sorting out water retention etc. I can't remember what herbal remedy is good for water retention.. I would be wary of them too if you are bfing. This actually leads me on to my next question! I have loads of small but bloody annoying varicus vains in my legs ATM which seem to be getting worse. I know horse chestnut is supposed to be really good but bit worried about taking it if bfing (it's not exclusive but still) by any chance does anyone have any info or experience? I'm getting mixed messages on the web.

Also going back to silver, I hear things don't go back as quick second time round...:(

6+3

Silver - massage wrists and ankles/feet as this will help flush out water retention. Magnesium will help too - coconut water is a good source or try mag phos supplements. And gentle exercise is good as well. Hopefully you'll feel more like your old self soon.

Nexus - no idea re varicose veins and honeopathy I'm afraid. Best to get yourself to a qualified homeopath to find out what's safe to take while bring. If you have a meals yard pharmacy near you, they're normally pretty good in the advice.

Welcome, Brie

We're still only at the 'thinking about a routine' stage. I haven't really deciphered much of a pattern emerging for anything, but considering the number of times we've been up and down to stay with my rents whilst DH has been away or the girls have been sick, I'm sure N doesn't have a clue whether she's coming or going!

We haven't heard that we know anyone thinking Hope your dh is okay.dh flies with chc, but doesn't work with anyone from total.

Is there no insomniac club any more? I doubt I'm the only one up! Hallo brie

C did seem to be settling into some form of a routine, then hit either another growth spurt or the heat got to her, but feeding has gone mad again the past couple of nights. My previously every-3hrs baby turned to every-hour baby I'm trying to not offer food each time she wakes tonight so she doesn't rely on snacking in future.

I hope you're all getting more sleep tonight. News of 9hr sleeps on fb are making me very

4(+3)

Thanks and hi all. I'm up too mrsross!

No routine here yet either. And tonight was my first night with the two boys alone. DP usually gives a bottle late evening to give me a break from BF and oh how I missed that tonight... No through-sleeping baby here. Just a rather adorable windy awake one.

6+2

We're awake again. Getting so tired during the night feeds. It's a real struggle to stay awake.

Awake here too! L just having a grumble and a wriggle post feed. I'm giving it a few minutes before I close my eyes in case it all leads to a nappy situation!

Also awake... C has had a ridiculously unsettled afternoon and evening and night. I think he probably wants a bit more of a feed now he had a clean nappy on then maybe, hopefully I will get a couple of hours sleep. I am so tired!

I also hope other wide awake babies are asleep soon

4 + 1

Another one awake...

J behaved very well at the wedding. I did not like being separated from her during the service and there was a particularly hairy moment during the photos when she needed feeding..,but all in all she was fab! By the end of the evening u had milk/dribble marks on both sided of my bridesmaid dress but it was a good day!

Very tired now though...

7+ 4

cheese better than booze stains?

Awake again for a feed. We got 3 hours in between though, so I would be counting my blessings, were it not accompanied by copious, unfathomable screaming poor things don't know what's wrong sometimes, do they?