March 2013 - 6 months down, 210 to go!

[StormyBrid]

Old thread.

Keep on rambling, ladies, we have a whole new thread to fill!

Madam has been awake and screaming for 90mins while we sit next to her cot stroking her and shushing. I don't want to get her out and feed her and set a precedent again just when we were making progress but its just so awful listening to her cry. I just want to sob.

soyo you have my sympathy. We tried the same approach the other night and managed just 10 minutes of crying each time before deciding to feed because the cries were like the ones when DD is hurt or unwell rather than just moany cries. Turned out we managed to pick a night to start sleep training when DD was clearly going through a growth spurt so we have delayed it for now and embracing full on cuddly co-sleeping again. Hope things start improving for you again - your first couple nights success were my inspiration for trying something new here!

oh dear soyo. It's just not working yet, is it? Have you tried humming? If DD becomes inconsolable and goes past the point of whinging to proper crying, i'll pick her up and hum to her - mostly Rockabye Baby. That calma her down again so she can go back down. Other than that, grab a . I really feel for you

Oh soyo I have no other advice than what's already been suggested, I just really feel for you. You're an absolute trooper!

I don't know what happened to me this morning, I've hoovered, dusted, polished, mopped and washed up. Sudden urge of grown up-ness washed over me, must counter that with Coco Pops for breakfast!

Hi all, sorry for the moan again. DH took over from me after 1hr10mins & 20mins later she was asleep. She woke again at 5.30 & I fed her with my 11hr rock hard mega boobs and brought her into bed out of guilt & exhaustion! I think I just need to persevere but it's so tough. I wonder if I can pick up a backbone when I pop to Waitrose later?

I am in thoroughly bad mummy territory today as I just had to drag the pooch into the groomers with her tail between her legs. She hates it & will be in a grump with me for days now. What a happy household!

Something that's an impressive mornings work, I haven't even managed to empty and refill the dishwasher!

Rainbow, don't lose heart, just try again in a couple of weeks. It's tough getting the timing right isn't it but I think it has to feel right to be able to persevere. I've said I'm going to give it 2 weeks and if it doesn't seem right to us all then ill leave it and try again in another month.

I hope the weather's nicer elsewhere today than it is here. It's pouring!

SoYo you are perfectly entitled to a good moan, it's what we're all here for. Well that and the flirting.

Though I hear they do sell spinal columns at waitrose

Stormy if its any consolation I couldn't see any ignorant rubbish on your facebook. I hate it when people post inappropriate things on my wall. It's likely just preemptive sabotage for when you decide to run for prime minister.

Well I feel very smug. Met up with Something for a walk and on the way home I decided to stop off and buy DS some clothes. He fell asleep in the buggy with minimal fuss (just groaning and a dummy) so I'm sat in EVILstarbucks enjoying a skinny latte. And it's HOT. Well, as hot as Starvucks make a coffee. There's a little girl in here with the same nickname as me and I keep looking up whenever her parents talk to her.

This feels good. I've been a bit down about going back to work so it's nice to have this time. I keep reminding myself that it doesn't have to stop altogether when I go back as I'm just in three days. So, normal weeks plus holiday entitlement means I actually only have 21 working days between now and Christmas. What on earth have I been panicking over?!

soyo its sunny here but cold. You are trying your hardest. Well done for coping so far. You will get there in the end.

rainbow try again another month. If shes going through a growth spurt its probably best to leave it for now.

something very impressive. Its a shame it gets messy/untidy just as quick as cleaning.

Ive bought lots of goodies to eat in aid of eid. any excuse to be naughty.

Anyone have ideas on how to get clothes free of food stains. I always have bucket of vanish at hand for presoaking but it doesnt always work. Im going through soo many clothes.

KFF I usually do a rinse, then a vanish pre soak in water that isn't too hot apparently that can set the stain and then hang them out on the line for the day. If the stain is organic so tomato based or something like that then sunlight helps bleach it out. I then put it in the wash with some extra vanish in. If that doesn't work then I console myself that the clothes may be stained but they are really bloody clean and use them anyway.

Mmm Eid goodies sound good. It's one of the many celebrations that usually sees the midwives bring a buffet on labour ward and so is a nice day to work with constant available snacks! Any excuse for a buffet with the midwives, they all become multi-denominational when there's the possibility of party food at work without the management whinging!

For those returning to work soon, I'd say the thinking a about it was worse than doing it. Once you're there it's like you've never been away and I've been far too busy to pine. Sorry haven't been around much, life has got v busy with return to work and patents not being well. Hope we're turning a corner there.

DS is well, v happy last couple of days. Still no teeth, still gets distracted trying to sit in his own and face plants, still food as fun though getting better slowly. Have mama and dada though, although by no means applied perfectly! Still can't roll front to back - really amusing nap the other day when he had to be flipped 13 times!! However, he worked out how to pick up one of his toys blocks when in his bouncer the other day by picking it up with his feet and passing it to his hands and then to his mouth I was impressed! No walking efforts here - you lot are so advanced!

Soyo, good luck. Several things I've read say that it can go backwards after a couple of good days so hope picks up again for you soon . Hope all other babies are behaving .

Parents not patents

Hello pud, good to hear from you again! I was wondering if you'd been eaten by work. You have words already?! Nice one! The closest we've got here is DD asking me for "abeeyah" yesterday. "A beer?" I asked her. "Yeah," she said. Entirely coincidental, though it did amuse me.

I love hearing about the skills each baby is mastering, because it demonstrates beautifully that they're all different. We've had sitting up unaided for a while now, and walking holding hands for months, and this past week we've had a few occasions of standing up unaided for a couple of seconds, but words and food are just not on DD's radar. And she still won't roll front to back either!

I need to get some vanish, don't I? I haven't been worrying too much about stained vests because a) they're covered up anyway and b) SIL is a bit obsessive about cleaning and will make very sure they're all spotless when they come into her possession. Not that she's going to have much time for cleaning soon - baby due in five days.

Plonky he made a comment about all women needing mute buttons, not just baby ones. It was just so unnecessary. I was trying to think of a pithy yet scathing response that managed to be polite (because it wouldn't do to be rude to someone who puts large amounts of money into my bank account) when my aunt swooped in and did it for me.

SoYo thinking about it, I too have often read that with sleep training (and so many other things) it can get worse before it gets better. It's hard, but pushing on through it means you'll get to the other side (and the sweet, beautiful sleep) soon enough. And look at it this way: sleep training might be hard, but so is getting bugger all sleep!

Dd ate a feather yesterday. "Vj, how do you know?" I hear you ask. Well, because I just had to pull it out...this morning's poo had left it half in and half out. I am traumatised. So gross.

Oh dear Veej noone needs that. Between that and KF's bedpoo I don't think we're doing too well as a group . But just think, it's an excellent story for any potential partners in years to come. Perhaps even wedding speech material.

Stormy hmm. Not always a force for good is it, this social networking? Gives ignorance a platform. But as you say, best to keep schtum. Rather envious of your SIL though, I hope she too has a sneeze birth. I went through all the clothes DS has grown out of yesterday, but it's probably only added to my insane broodiness.

Pud good to hear from you. Thanks for your reassurance regarding going back to work. I have a love hate relationship with my job so I'm hoping to only go back for a brief period (say a year or so) so being too busy to feel the strain will be a good thing. I hope your parents get better soon.

Right, I'm off to pen a bestseller, and calm friend down over her ridiculous marriage I'm not one to say I told her so, but I bloody told her so grr.

Haha feather in the poo! I love finding bits of last night's dinner in DD's poo!

Err, I did update the other day but lost it so I have been around.

DD has just about found out how to sort-of-crawl backwards. She is also eating TONS of food at each meal. Tonight we had chicken & chorizo risotto and bread & butter pud with ice cream and she not only ate her bowl of risotto (I ate her chorizo - can you imagine the nappies?!) but I had to give her more from my plate, then finished off a 1/4 of an Ella's pouch left from lunchtime, then bread & butter pud with a bit of vanilla ice cream. And 5oz of milk an hour later before bedtime!

Pud I'm back to work in a couple of weeks time and I know it'll feel like I haven't been away. Part of me is looking forward to it but DD is being totally gorgeous at the moment and as just started doing this funny eye-crinkling grin and wiggle when she sees me. I adore her (and DS of course) :)

stormy PIL sounds like a complete arse. Grr.

SoYo, I hope you've had a better day today.

Everyone else - hi! Have some as I'm watching GBBO on catch up.

Evening all! Busy day here, I drove 75miles to see my DM who's off her feet after having an operation and then drove back again and tried to time the drives with madams naps. It worked a treat on the way down. On the way back traffic jams and roadworks conspired against me so we've had to push everything this evening back an hour. I just put madam down for bed and she was wide awake, trying to climb out of her cot to me and gurgling and then 10mins later she was asleep with no crying! It's a bloody miracle! Last night she woke up 5 times but was back to sleep in 5mins each time, wasn't fed until 5am and then back in the cot until 7.30 so I consider that a success!

VJ the feather nappy is hilarious! The weirdest thing I've had so far is long bits of spaghetti!

Wing that is a very impressive dinner. We had a similar day with the Sunday roast at the weekend, she was like a bottomless pit, but back to a more normal appetite since.

I love hearing about to progress of all our babies and how they're all learning different things at a different pace. We have a lot of shouting but no mama/dada sounds. No convincing attempts at crawling but lots of pulling up and walking a bit when holding onto fingers. We have a good appetite and range of foods but a complete failure to have any water or other fluid that doesn't come out of a boob. My absolute favourite thing is the belly laughs and the gummy smile, although I like them less at 5am.

Evening all, and so much to catch up on.... but the top story that leaps out of the page has got to be VJ. Ewwwwww .... and there I was thinking such things could only ever arise with the dogs. Apparently not.

Wish I could be of help with the sleep and milk questions, but unfortunately I have no answers to anything. Sleep we're managing better post the arrival of a considerable poo backlog, and low milk intake is something I have yet to experience. Much like mini-storm, the worselet is dubious of the benefit of proper food, and is hanging on to her milk rations for all she is worth. She'll drop half a feed most days, but that's the limit.

Wing, plonky good luck for the big return. You'll knock em dead. Plonky hope we all get first read of that book before you publish. A signed proof copy would go down well . So that I can claim to know people

Progress here, well other than being the most beautiful baby in the entire history of the universe. Ever...

We have sitting, backward crawling, a poor effort at forward crawling, working out how to make toys do stuff by pushing buttons, rolling all ways all directions, all of the time (a major pain when dressing/changing her), specific noises for specific things (including a rather exasperated squeak squeak squeak when mummy is doing it wrong), and drinking water like a good un. We don't have any talking, walking, or food appreciation as yet. She'll occasionally chow down a respectable amount of something, but without obvious enthusiasm, and that will last her for a day or so.

It's my evening off as DH has been working away so I've been running solo, but tonight he's home. Yay. I'm off to collapse in a heap somewhere.

Good night wave to everyone I haven't mentioned. I'm thinking of you all, I'm just too knackered to continue!

YY to bottomless pit!

DD still doesn't ever really laugh. I think I've only heard her laugh about five times in her life although we do get tons of face-splitting grins. Would love her to giggle just occasionally...

Since we're comparing notes, DD is:
going 'ah' a lot, slamming her hand down on buttoned items (remote control, laptop) to make a noise, sitting and reaching, no crawling or standing unaided but she does 'plank' when you try and pull her up, desperate efforts to lift herself up from lying down into a stomach crunch, shovelling food in like i've starved her for days. She is being adorable at the mo but she knows and I know that there's a wonder week around the corner so i'm waiting for the devil to arrive

Wing - same here. Lots of silent laughing with the occasional sharp intake of breath but i've only ever heard three or four giggles. I think she saves it for special occasions...

Audible giggles are pretty rare here too. Raspberries on the tummy or playing Eat the Baby are the best ways to cause them. Lots of grins though. Favourite activity seems to be shaking things that make a noise (Mr Tiger Rattle and Jingly Butterfly especially). Still rocking up onto her knees, but can't figure out how to sort her legs out and actually crawl.

Over the past 24 hours we've had absolutely perfect baby sleep. Went down for all naps with no fuss yesterday, didn't wake up earlier than I'd planned with any of them, and didn't wake up at all in the night. Not even the usual 5am flip over and dummy return! Have got my fingers firmly crossed she manages the same today, but of course now that I've mentioned it I've jinxed it.

I think I must have a weirdly wired baby. She laughs at everything. Things that are funny, allegedly:

Squats. She cracks up if who ever is holding her bends their knees, even slightly.
Falling over.
Textures like stubble or velvet
People laughing
People dancing
Dogs
Funny noises
Funny faces
DH. His mere existence is apparently hilarious
The theme tune to the Archers
Animated conversations.
Picking her up to put her in the bath
Taking her socks off.....
etc

I'm fully expecting her to morph into a morose depressive goth at first hint of hormones....

Well done on the sleep Stormy. We've had a good night here too. One wake at about 11pm, and a few snorts. Other than that, nada.

I probably ought to wake her and start the day now.

Morning all

worse i agree. Apparently dh existence for some reason is funny. not that im jealous considering i lookafter him day and night. i have to work at getting giggles.

Ds has been a joy to be with for a few weeks but please dont tell me theres another wonder week coming up.

I messed up the milk rations last night. In my sleepy state i gave him 5 scoops instead of the 3 we are on now. Now hes refusing breakfast.

Im grateful for darker mornings ds now sleeps until 7. Its amazing to have a lie in. I could not take anymore 5/6am starts.

soyothanks for the cold water and sunlight tip. Thats where im going wrong. Its the tomato stains that are a nightmare to wash out. Although finding sun at the moment is a bit of a challenge. Great progress on last nights sleep.

We have pulling up onto furniture, walking when holding someones hands and saying babababa. Finally sitting up unaided. We still have no teeth, not sleeping through and only interested in eating food with dh. Last night he had a mega meal with dh and would not stop until he started gagging.

Im off to see a newborn today. Lets see how broody i really feel.

Oh vj your yucky poo story beats mine. Its hilarious. I bet you was surprised to see colourful poo.

KF don't panic. The next wonder week is week 37. We're on 34 ish so it's not far off for us but longer away for some