Dec 08 - The One where they take on the world (school)

[DeidreBarlow]

New thread

Here is some advice re dealing with forcefull let down reflex Beans. I had a similar prob kellymom.com/bf/got-milk/supply-worries/fast-letdown/

Arti, thanks so much. Am a dribbling wreck today! DD3 just seems to feed and scream and I was vile to the other 2 this morning. Wish Mum wasn't on holiday! I could do with a healthy dose of sanity. Wondering if I should call the health visitor for some tips!

Even wept at the school gates this morning. V embarrassing.

Beans, that would depend on the HV. Is she more sensible than Kayz's? Sorry to hear you're feeling so down and missing your Mum. If you need a laugh, have you read the do you dunk your penis thread? It's now in classics.

Everyone's HV is more sensible than mine!!

That penis dunking thread is brilliant and weird!!

Read it the other night while feeding. The Penis Beaker made me howl. Someone even posted it on Facebook today! And she used her real name! Must be so mortified! Ha!

She's a v sensible HV. Suggested not letting DD3 always fall asleep on me and suckle to sleep because it becomes a hard habit to break and said if I didn't want her in our room, then even though they're meant to recommend it for 6 months, to do what I felt would benefit me the most as I'm the one doing the hardwork. I know not everyone would necessarily agree with her, but its the sort of thing I do agree with her for. Plus I told her DD3 is feeding as often as she can and its rendering me useless and she is going to show me how I can stretch that a bit more. I'm sure it'll be things that are obvious, but when you're in the thick of it, it's hard to see beyond the immediate! She's bringing the scales so I can see how well DD is doing, and that she doesn't NEED to constantly feed, its just that she wants to; but its not doing me any good and making life difficult with 2 other nippers, so if I can stretch it to every 3-4hrs then I'll feel better. Plus she will then take a decent feed, not just graze then throw up when she's had too much.

God, sorry, that was me me me again! Plus the spot by my book is very sore and tender and the boob keeps getting a lump in it, so I wonder if there's a bit of inflammation there. DD certainly doesn't enjoy feeding off that one so much. Since my call DD has been asleep happily in the garden in her pram, soaking up the fresh air! Grrr.

Post a link to it

www.mumsnet.com/Talk/mumsnet_classics/1875847-Do-you-dunk-your-penis

Beans, DS did the feeding and screaming thing and I too was a wreck. It turned out he had colic and despite my scepticism we found cranial osteopathy worked wonders. I too cried at the school gates and looking back I realise I was totally at the mercy of my hormones as I vacillated between elation and despair several times a day. It does get easier very soon (as you know). DS is having a rare screamy day today and its amazing how better able I am to cope now my hormones are more settled.

I am meant to be starting DS on solids next week when he hits five months. I have no idea what to do! With the girls I started at six months and did BLW. However, as DS is at high risk of coeliac disease (which DD2 has) it is apparently best to introduce him to gluten before six months. I guess I need to purée and stuff so I'm off to by a whizzer thingy.

I've been reading that too. So funny. Poor OP, it's become a talking point on the benelux FB group I'm on.

Fark I just wrote a big post and lost it. Will try to recap

Poor you Beans I remember the growth spurt feeding marathon well, exhausting frustrating and it seems to arrive just as you lose the post birth loving feeling and are fast getting to that holy shit I've got more babies than I can handle, feeling. Not that it helps much right now, but remember this too shall pass. She is doing what she is programmed to do, up your production to suit her needs. Sadly she doesn't feel the need to up her sleep to suit your needs.

It helps if the HV says things that make sense to you. Don't worry about guidelines, co sleeping is against the rules too but we did it because it suited us better, I seem to remember JJ moving her dd2 out of their room earlier than six months due to the farm noises she emitted. Just do what gets you all, or almost all of you some sleep. Can you sort out some play dates for the girls? Try to give yourself a break on the girls and how you are talking to them. I'm horrid to the boys often and I don't have a new baby to deal with.

Gotta send as my battery on phone is about to die

The penis beaker phenomenon is making mn very slow today.

Completely agree with vag about the hormones. I was a jibbering emotional wreck at times. If you can manage to get the older dd's where they need to go at roughly the right times then you deserve a medal Beans. There is a mum at dd's school with 3 boys roughly the same age as your three girls and I think of you when I see her. It must be really hard work although lovely to have a squigy newborn to cuddle!

Arti I had to wean dd2 on purees after blw dd1 due to her prematurity. It is fine once you get going but a bit if a culture shock at first. Sweet potato is a good thing as you roast it and it purees itself. You get into the habit of taking a bit out of the meal, saving a bit of cooking water from veg and then whizzing it. Fish pie, spag Bol (with no pasta and added mashed butternut squash) and thickened soups went down well.

Just had dd's parents night. It seems a bit early really, do they do another one next year do you think? Unless they are having trouble settling there isn't much to say!

OMG as they say! DD3 had formula from DH at 10.30 and has just woken up! I slept from 9.30 til now, 3.30am! Amazeballs! 6 hours in a row!

HV was v good and told me to try to stretch her feeds a bit as she's just snacking, then grazing. I'm bunging a boob in her when she cries then she gets too full, pukes and thinks she's hungry again. And gets screamy and windy.

Your words of encouragement mean such a lot, thank you. And I'm sorry for being boring. Arti, if its still going after the weekend I'm going to find a cranial osteopath, sounds amazing!

Kayz, how was York?

Sybs! Are you ok out there?

Wow, listen to that wind! Love a bit of a storm!

Right, off to wind the beast. Loads of love and thanks.

Hons, I've got parents evening next week. Quite looking forward to it as DD1 hardly talks about school at all.

Gah that was an awful night. Poor DS has a terrible cough. He sounds like a high pitched terrier puppy barking. He could not sleep and was so loud it woke the girls twice. He has no fever or anything so I'm not sure whether to take him to the doc or not, it's a really odd sounding cough so maybe I should.

I don't get the penis beaker reaction. It's everywhere but while its mildly distracting I'm not sure it's not THAT funny. Has sleep deprivation robbed me of my sense of humour?

That's great Beans!!

York was good, didn't buy anything but my Brother bought himself some new clothes. I was actually glad I am too fat for the 'trendy' shops. Never seen such overpriced horrible looking clothes ever. I am never going to be fashionable.

We had an awful night. DS2 has been wetting the bed again recently. I am guessing he's just in a really deep sleep. So when I went to bed he was asleep on his bedroom floor. So I dumped DD in the cot which caused murderous style screaming and sorted his bed out. It took until 1am for DD to finally go to sleep. Only to wake up at 3 and 5.

DS2 has a sore throat so tempted to keep him off as he looks and sounds bad.

Well DS2 is absolutely fine now, running about so he can go in. They can always ring me if he gets bad.

That's what it was with my boys and in fact me (when o was their age). Get a few of those ikea water proof sheets and put one over the mattress then a sheet then another waterproof then another sheet. So if he wets in the night you just have to pull off the first set of sheet and water proof and your done.

DD2 is still in night nappies and showing no sign of getting dry. I'd be relaxed about it but she is mortified and is desperate to be dry. Not sure at what age one should ask for help.

That's exactly what I do. DS2 is like the princess and the pea his bed is so layered.

I read the willie thread pretty funny but I imagine it's just had that viral reaction where things get way bigger than they really need to.

Sorry for the crappy nights all. Fat coke coffee and cake will see you through.

Well DH left this morning for Chicago. On my own for a few days and it's happened over a v busy few days. I have a course today and tom at school. My parents are visiting Saturday and on Sunday I won tixs via MN to go to the special screening of Cloudy with meatballs 2. It's at Westfield west London so will have to leave at 8am to get there in time.

Back tonight for a proper catch up.

Can you believe Cloudy is not on here in NL until February! We only just get Planes this weekend, I don't understand.

Two more sleeps til London wish I could see you guys but sadly no. Bit spewing I didn't sort out to fly via Stansted, would love to pop in and make Beans a cup of tea.

Ooh Jam you will be five minutes from my house. But I will be in Brighton. If we can send Spot to Essex we will have a full circle of swaps.

I've done my back in, can hardly lift DS, today ain't looking promising.

DS2 hardly ever wets himself when DH is at home. I did think it was emotional somehow but last night he really seemed like he was just really tired. I just wish he had told me as he must have woken up to get changed and to go on the floor.

DD screamed all the way to school and back because she doesn't like the raincover on the buggy.

DS is in nighttime nappies. I'm not stressing about it but was a bit by the form I had to complete recently for the sight/hearing/growth check to be done by the nurse at school. In the section for health issues there was a box for bed wetting which I reluctantly ticked as it is not an issue for me. However, I do have an issue with not completing forms properly .

DS2 doesn't want to go back into nappies at all. I said about it this morning but he was saying he's not a baby.

DS still in pull ups at night! No where near dry. Although did try for about 5 weeks over the summer. He wet every night without fail. Despite us lifting him around 11pm. He really does sleep deeply though. He is a bit bothered but not that much.

Christmas shenanigans are starting! Who's eating where, what day I'm expected to cater for DHs family but he won't put himself out for mine! Aargh every year the same shit for no reason, as it usually works out fine!

I also read the penis beaker thread. I find the wider MN really odd. There are certain posters who are like a pack of wolves, circling threads looking for people to pounce on and rip apart . I'm staying here in the comfy bosom of our Dec 08 thread.

Amen to that Deids.

Nolda I'm still giggling at your comment about properly completed forms. Very funny. We actually did the same with DS1's 5.5 year health check form. We ticked yes for night time incontinence, but were told he was not as he only wet once a week after being lifted at 10.30pm. So we ticked it wrong. Speaking of filling out forms wrong. When DH & I had to fill out the form for the birth center in London where we had DS1, we wrote "exual intercourse" for the "how was the pregnancy concieved?". The midwife was wetting herself reading this, as we had not seen the tick boxes for a) natural or b) assisted conception.

Poor Arti what have you done to your back.

I'm proof reading a paper DS2's teacher has written on the effecr of iteration on design performance in primary school children. She has been testing the process that engineers use when coming up with solutions to design problems in civil engineering, on kids aged 6-8 years. Using it as a teaching aide for kids to learn to design adequate solutions, through trial & error. But she has added a great element to the study of testing the difference between kids choosing a working partner, being assigned one, or working alone. Its really interesting.