September 2006 babies

[Lysettes]

Start of our september 2006 post natal thread!

Morning..

DH has gone back to work today so am feeling a little lost! DD at nursery so it's just Jack & myself today which is good in a way...i.e I can sleep when he does! It's ab. raining buckets & as I can't drive yet feel slightly shut in but hoping it stops so I can at least get to the coffee shop or something. J woke at 11pm, 2am, 4.30am & 6am...the only real pattern emerging is him going down with DD at 6.30-7 until 10.30-11..the rest, well, depends how hungry he is but I feel like I'm feeding him too much at times..but you know what they say, you cannot overfeed a breastfed baby, but I do wonder at times!! Am going to start expressing this w/e too...the only thing is I can't remember how much I need to do? Any advice welcome!! Also going to try him with some infacol as he is so so windy & looks so pained at times...can't do any harm I suppose. Anybody had any luck with it previously?

Re weight loss...you're all beginning to depress me with talk of fitting into normal clothes!!! I can see the weight dropping off but HV says not to do any excersise until 6 weeks check re scar etc. I very much hope to be in normal clothes come Christmas if not before but hey...whilst I'm breastfeeding I'm not watching what I eat quite yet! My goal is to fit into something sleek & posh for my cousins "Big Fat Jewish Wedding" (sorry cus!) on the 4th Feb next year...beginning to worry about it already as it's going to be mega posh & I so want to feel good about myself by then! PIL also want to take us skiing again in Jan but when DD was 4 months we took her but it was too soon for me & scar...the break would be great but there is nothing more frustrating than NOT skiing when everyone else is..

Compo, my mission is to get to the P/O today!!! Pol, did you leave DS with DP?

Coriander - don't worry if it's pouring like it is here!!
Mabel - I think it was you who said you were topping up with formula. Don't feel guilty. W've done it for the last 2 nights now. For me I think it will mak eme want to breast feed for longer as I really need the extra sleep it gives me as dh does that feed. Although he wasn't too happy last night as dd took hours to settle after it and he only got about 3 hours sleep - welcome to my world I told him this morning!!
Pol26 - really hope something positive came out of last night with dp.

Myrtle, re. expressing, just express what you can - it can be an acquired skill!! You'll probably find that you get maybe 3 oz or so - probably what LO drinks each feed. That's how it seems to work for me, I can express more like 5 or 6 now as that's how much Fraser will drink. I express morning (while F drinks off the other side) and evening (about 9.30) - you can add both expressings together to make up one feed. Maybe try and get 4/5 oz together over two sessions, that ought to be enough!

cori, I can sympathise re. not skiing when everyone else is. We went this March with my parents, and I was 4 months pg, so didn't ski. Instead, stayed in the apartment feeling sick, and sometimes met them all for lunch. DS was in a creche, so that was a break, but it was v. v. frustrating, as the snow was fantastic this year.

Marls, my friends also brought round meals at the beginning. It was great!

Pol, did you manage to stick to your guns? Hope so...!!

DS1 is not well today - he's really red, really clingy and moany and just wants to sit on the sofa cuddling and groaning and watching Shrek (at least that's funny). I think it's the last lot of teeth. He's gone to bed now (at his request, before lunch), but I'm not sure if he's sleeping, I can hear the occasional moan still. He keeps asking for more medicine, but he's all Calpolled out. Give a couple of hours and I'll try a dose of nurofen...

Why is it that Jack is coming to the end of another 4 hour sleep??!!! Why can't he do a 4 hour stretch during the night?? I know he's only 3 weeks (tm) but honestly it's a tad frustrating..! My boobs are really aching too...I need them fed from..!!!

Clairemow, hope DS1 perks up....

Well, really tried to stick to my guns but... DP's weird brother came round (actually feel bad calling him that but he is strange) and he came at 8pm. I was trying to settle Ben as I had just put DD up at 7pm then came down to feed a hungry boy and had just about finished once he arrived. DP gets the wine out which I had said to him that a few glasses (our glasses don't help by being huge, that one glass is probably about three normal glasses) anyhow so they drink that and i'm trying to settle Ben in his moses basket and eat my tea. WB (weird brother) keeps peeking into his basket which is beginning to grate on me because I had stated that I wanted him to settle and then I could o to sleep because I had been up since 3:30am! To no avail as he still keep poking his head in which is disrupting him as then he looks round to who is saying 'hello little one' to him etc... What actually is starting to annoy me more is that DP knows how I feel yet says nothing. Makes me feel how little he actually respects me when he lets ppl treat me like that, i'm sure it would all be much different if DP had to settle him- actually no because DP would cop out and let anyone else do the hard work, he'd have his mum round every night to do it. Anyway, eventually he is so cross by being disturbed every two minutes dispite me putting him in the pitch black dining room and shuting the door (which i'm not comfortable with but wanted to finish my tea and try and get across that he had seen him and that was it!) but WB STILL goes into him!!! I glare at DP and eventually he says to come out and leave him alone, to which WB slams the door and of course Ben about leaps from his basket and is sobbing
I go and lift him out and cuddle him and by now he is only forty mins off his next feed so I sit down with him and pat him until he settles a bit but by now is searching for food... Then WB has the nerve to say i'll hold him and takes him from me!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I go into the kitchen as i'm about to go crazy. Was that what he wanted all along because as someone else said on here- come round earlier if you do want a hold or to actually see him, although for most of the day he is either in his chair looking about, in his chair wrapped up asleep or kicking to his light show on his changer. (must remind DP to get the baby gym down from the loft)best of it is WB has just finished his job as at uni as well as his social work and looking now for a p/t job as f/t is now too much.
DP comes into the kitchen and gets yet more wine and I say that I take it i'm actually feeding him then... No,no he says but I know what state he would be in to feed him.
Ben starts to cry and WB desperately trying to stop him to prolong his 'hold' but I take him back and say that it's night time and he doesn't like being held as he isn't used to it. DP says he wants his mum. Felt alittle backed but it's his brother and his place to put things straight really and not me.
I do Ben's bum etc and take him up to feed him and we both go to bed.
At 1am ish he wakes and wants a feed so I go to nudge DP and tell him that it's his (first) turn but he isn't there. Go down to find him fast asleep on sofa and in kitchen are three empty bottles of wine and a lg bottle of cider... Not happy and so warm his bottle and go up. DP wakes half way through feed and comes up. Says why didn't I wake him. Was about knocked out by the fumes of alcohol!!! So needless to say actually glad that this time I didn;t let him feed him as he was in no fit state really especially for his first night feed with him.

We'll see how well we go tonight i'm going to ask him not to drink a drop- other than coffee (he'll need that caffeine to wake him at 1am

Marls- very at your dinner drops!!!

Claire- my DD has just had her last back teeth come through and they were such pains! I can fully sympathise with it. She too was asking for more medicine when she had her fill. We had to sit through endless amounts of Dora though- would've much prefered shrek.

Cori- your little boy looks so alert and 'knowing' for two weeks...! Lovely piccie!

crikey! Only just found this thread as I guessed the September bunch would have started a post-natal one. Have been so busy with baby woodelf aka Alexander that getting on the computer has been impossible will catch up with the posts asap but hugs to you all!

Pol, I can't really say much apart from I don't wish to be rude, but DP really does need his arse kicking. Good luck tonight. Will be thinking of you.

DS seems much better now the calpol has kicked in, and he's had a second dose at 4 pm. Well timed so he can have another at bedtime! Poor thing.

Pol - WB with a capital "W"!! Alrighty, then.
If this keeps up then you'll have to post a pic of DH on Yahoo so we can all print it out and throw darts at it.
Honestly I don't know how you are physically coping. If my DH were "helping" like that I would have already taken both DS's & hopped a plane to Houston & my parents - not to spite him but just out of physical need for sleep and downtime ...
I really hope that you can work through this and things get better!!

Was thinking about you last night, as spoke too soon on the schedule - DS2 up from 1:30 to 3am ... then 4:30 to 6 ... I gave up at that point and we went downstairs.
DH had recorded "Lost" for me so that made the feedings somewhat bearable.

One more thought on this whole newborn business ... when else in history of humankind is a person recovering from surgery (C-section) or dreadful pain/injury (vaginal birth) expected to immediately subside on no more than 1.5 hours of sleep at a time ... for months at a time??? Closest I can think is POWs under torture!!
(I have too much time to think at 3 am, don't I?)

Pol26 - grr at your dp. Did he get up and go to work after all that booze?
Clairemow - glad ds is feeling better
Well here's to another evening of feeding, winding, settling

Forgive me but I'm feel really down...DD has turned into a complete & utter Daddy's girl this evening. Didn't want Mummy near her, or to read her a story or put her to bed or anything. All this & Jack is in bed asleep so wanted to be with her & have the special time we normally have but she wasn't having any of it..! Christ. she's only 2...& I'm taking it all way to heart aren't I? DH thinks he's being helpful when he says it's like trying to mediate between Israel & Lebanon...not funny I told him.....especially when I'm existing on such little sleep like everyone else...

Pol, your DP's brother sounds like a complete & utter arse - sorry to be direct. As for your DP, what can I say except he really needs to start helping...can't you just walk out & leave it to him...just for the evening? I'd be tempted....

Clairemow, glad to hear DS1 is feeling better. Compo, didn't make it in the rain but don't worry, next week they'll be sent!!!

Cori- sorry to hear your DD has taken to your DH, when we are so sleep deprived we want our first borns to shower s with lots of love and attention, not go off with our DH/DP's!!!

Yes DP did manage to go to work this morning, he was up half an hour late and was v.grumpy and noisy- the usual slamming doors and banging down glasses etc... But he got there.

I am going OUT on sunday!!! YEAH!!! I am taking Ben but I know he is generally ok. I'm going to my monthly craft class and my friend who runs it is a mw so she is eager for me to go and so she can get her hands on him. DP is having DD and no car so I doubt he will go round to his mums and let her do it all like he normal does. But on the downside he has done absolutely nothing since he came home at 5pm. But I have a pass out!!! YEAH!!!

Marls- really laughing at the post a pic of DP and we'll throw darts at it!!! Can I not do it in real life???

Marls, you've got it spot on about when else in human history etc. And I note it's only half the population that's affected... Eve and the apple and the snake and all that.... IT'S NOT FAIR!!!

Sorry to hear you had such a disturbed night. F also woke up just after 6 this morning (after 2.30 - 3.45), but I plonked him on my chest in bed with me all warm under the duvet, and got another hour out of him - probably every childcare guru's worst nightmare, but do you know what, I don't care!! I'm hoping for a quiet evening tonight and quick feeds in the night, as he's been awake most of this afternoon, and must be knackered!! He seems to be able to cope with being awake for longer than his older brother could at the same age without going into meltdown...

Cori, big hugs going your way. We just have to keep remembering that this introduction of a new baby is really traumatic for them, and I guess they blame us as we're the ones at home doing the feeding etc. DD will get over it and be a Mummy's girl again very soon.

Just having a well deserved (I think) Becks. Nice and cold while DH has gone to buy pizza. Then going to watch totally crap TV. Sounds like heaven. Spoke too soon, can hear F crying. Can't be hungry, he just had nearly an hour of guzzling!!

Hi everyone! Long time no speak....but I have been reading the posts and it's so lovley having people with babies of a similar age who can recite what time they've fed for the past 48 hours etc etc! This time I don't have any RL friends with babies the same age so I really appreciate you all.

Well this has been our first week with dh back at work and on the whole it's been great. I especially love the 2.5 hours when ds is at nursery. He only started in August and I was vastly pregnant and exhausted so did v little, but this week it's been grea tto zip round and do housework, or potter round town with dd in her pram or whatever. Bliss! I also try to find in a lovely long breastfeed when i can give dd my full attention and not have to deal with ds at the same time (TMI alert - managed to wipe his bottom and continue feeding today!!).

Lucy's doing great. She generally feeds about 3 hourly during the day and has 3 sleeps of around 1.5 hours. She been much better in the evenings this week and has slept from 7pm until we went to bed 3 out of the past 4 evenings. This is a huge relief to me as dh works about 5 evenings a week and my tolerance for small people disappears in the evenings! She is still up twice in the night which I'm finding EXHAUSTING, but last night was better as she was only up the once, so we know she can do it.

Got Lucy weighed last Thursday (after waiting an hour at the baby clinic - can't see me doing that v often!) and she'd gained 10oz in the first 2 weeks of life. Ds took ages to regain his birthweight and I'd been a bit anxious about that...

We introduced a dummy last week too and it's really helped. She loves it!

Have also started using cloth nappies some of the time too. They are rather massive on her, but we were going through a silly number of disposibles.

Hope you all have good weekends!

Pol - make sure it's a full photo from head to toe so we can draw the bullseye at the most appropriate spot...

Marls - I have DS1's godparents who have been dropping meals off which has been such a great help, and my parents have been helping too. DH's folks are arriving tomorrow and he tells me there are goodies on the way up with them as well so I'm looking forward to that as well!

Claire - DS1's been teething too with his molars, it must be really painful for them - just a shame they had to come through at an already unsettling time.

Alex has bee doing really well, he only woke us twice last night which was great as I'd started with a migraine but the longer bit of sleep sorted me out. The only thing I'm worried about is the amount of sick he's producing, sometimes the whole lot comes back up and he's already burped so I don't think it's wind. Just relly hoping it's not the beginning of reflux as we're progressing onto larger feeds. He's generally really happy and contented though so fingers crossed it'll continue...

Midwife coming tomorrow morning so I've to leave my dignity in bed and be examined 'down below'. Hope she can tell me what's up and give me something to help!

Liquid- sorry to hear you are being covered in sick! And bubba is too. Touch wood we have only had a few of those ones which cover everything and everyone.

Cori hows things going with your DD? All well I hope.

Claire- Did you enjoy your becks? I know I have really enjoyed a cold beer

Tassis- we have had the dummy for a while now and it has made life so much easier! Although Ben doesn't really 'love' it like DD did he still needs it during the day and night.

Here life is ok, we've had a sixth birthday party to go to with the worlds loudest entertainer there which DD was terrified of! In the end I had to get up and play musical bumps/statues and sleeping lions with her as she was desperate to join in but too scared of the man. She did have a nice little boogie though! And DP is FEEDING Ben!!! Although Ben is screaming with wind and in a panic (both of them) i'm very very impressed that he offered to do it!!! Now all we need to do is get him to do a couple of night ones!

Liquid- really tickled by the 'full picture' thing...

Pol - I'm really pleased to hear DP has done a feed.
Liquid - I had to be examined down there by the midwife the other day. Only realised afterwards that I'd left the baby monitor on in the bedroom and DH's parents who were downstairs, heard us talking about clots and itchiness and whatnot
Midwife says my uterus is still high but I've not got an infection so she thinks it is just slow to return to normal.
DS has been doing well but has also been spitting up a lot after a feed. If we put him back down too soon after a feed he pukes all over his cot and sleeping bag. I asked midwife about it and she said only to worry if it was after every feed or if it was projectile vomiting.

Claire ? Oh, it?s SO not. Poor Catholic DH had to put up with my comments on how God must not like women (during transition) ? since he makes us visit Hell; I mean, really, He could?ve made it feel a bit better?? Nurse told us closest to that for men would be a kidney stone. May DH never get one.

Mom wants to take DS1 to pediatrician while we?re in Houston (they have many Dr. friends & she was getting snotty on the phone re: level of care we?re getting up here). Even insinuated DS1 is small for his age, since his 2-year-old cousin is wearing larger diapers. Said there's a growth hormone he could take ... I was ! Since I?ve been 5?3? 114 lbs, DH 5?7? 145 lbs, DS1 won?t be any defensive lineman! That was a given; we're just a diminutive family. Trust Mom to put worries into my head that weren?t there before. Grr. Surgery?s not what it is in Houston, but care?s just fine here. Made me feel like I wasn?t doing my job as a Mom. Even though I know she?s wrong, I hate that.

Tassis ? congrats on dummy use ? we wish DS2 would take one!! Would make our lives so much easier.

Cori ? She?ll come around!!

Pol ? YAY on the feeding!!! We're visiting some good friends of ours in Houston & she?s having the same problem as you have ? hope they?ve made similar progress! [fingers crossed icon]

Liquid ? So glad you?ve all that help! A Becks sounds good ?

Myrtle ? LOL! That?s classic. I hope they were kind about it ? of course, they could?ve just turned their end of the monitor off!!

Off to H-Town tomorrow.

Pol, just been looking at your photos...wasn't your DD two just a couple of weeks ago? I note that she has the same ELC wooden kitchen that we got DD for her second birthday on the 4th Sep!!!!

Was on my own today with them both...it was OK ish. Strangely DD was better behaved given that there was one parent less in the house! She didn't sleep though so by 5ish she was being a mare again but hey...I survived it! I am going to bed now...J went down at 7 so I have to get my couple of hours in before he wakes again...oh bring on the expressing I say!!

Oh..DH has just opened a Becks Clairemow..I must go & have some before retiring...!!!

Cori- DD had the kitchen for christmas and loves it!!! So does everyone else too, we have heaps of new bits to go in it too. We got her the wooden garage for her b'day- she seems to have a fascination for 'boys' toys. She loves bob the builder, postman pat (woolies have some great friction vechicles in their sale!) and cars! She is mad on cars at the mo...

Well, so far so good... told DP to make DD's milk up for bed and he did, he put her nappy on at night and her pj's! He also actually watched and kept Ben happy while I wa putting DD to bed...!

Marls- feeling for your friend if she is having the same probs as me. It's bad enough at 3am without having no support. DP is though that you've been watching the new series of lost as he loves it.

Hi there ladies, finally catching up with the contents of this thread as Alex is asleep right now YAY!!! Clairemow, I had a similar experience regarding repairs 'down below' with the spinal block and a whole hour of stitching to repair 3rd degree tears right into every orifice imaginable. If I do this pregnancy lark again I'll just go straight to the cesarian without hesitation...!

Feeling sleep deprived too - its really like a form of torture to see the lo in wind pain and unable to sleep and all frustrated and red in the face crying with it. I cried myself a few times as nothing I did seemed to help. Have adjusted a bit now and have several helpful techniques such as Infacol, swaddling, a dummy, a good winding session and handing him over to DH as quickly as possible when fraught. Other than the wind he is a very easy baby - roughly on a 3 hour routine and a complete darling.

How the heck you guys cope with more than one lo amazes me - RESPECT to you all!!!
As for feeding am doing breast first (only one works so limited supply) he has anywhere from 10 mins to 20 and then going on to the 'main course' of formula which the amount varies depending how much he got off the breast. Seems to work well and he can be fed by DH if needed so I may get time to go out one day!!!

Sorry for the long post - will catch up with the rest of the posts soon but guess who is asking for his grub!

Morning everyone.
Woodelf - great to hear from you
Pol26 - fantadstic news that your dp has finally decided to be a bit more helpful, long may it continue

Can I ask what everyone does in the evenings with thier lo's as we're a bit unsure what to do. We did mange to put dd down upstairs in the moses basket for 2 nights at 7pmish. However it only lasted 2 nights so for the last few nights dh has had her down here trying to settle her whilst I get some much needed sleep. It usually takes a couple of hours with the dummy before she finally settles. Then he gives her a top up feed of formula and puts her down upstairs. Not sure why she's so cranky in the evenings unless it's because she sleeps a lot in the afternoons. It doesn't seem to be wind. Anyway it's ruining dh's evenings but I'm managing to get some sleep!! For example last night I fed her at 8pmish, went to bed, dh took over, gave her formula at 10.30pm, she went to sleep at 11.30pm and din't wake up until 5am So I got massive amounts of sleep but dh complained that he had no evening (not that I had much of one as I was asleep!!)

Hi everyone - had a very quick 'skim' to try and catch up.
V. tired here this monring. Freddie seems to be able to go a long stretch of a bout 6 hours, but unfortunately that seems to be from early evening til about 1.30am. I am strugging to wake him for the 10.30pm feed and that means he's waking twice for a night feed and then is all wide awake at about 4 in the morning - I don't know how to move that long stretch that I know he's capable of back so later in the evening??? Any thoughts?
Marls - am at your mother - does she really think it's necessary to take your DS to a paediatrician?? Children vary so much at his age, and to suggest growth hormones is just shocking!
Also, after you mentioned your DH had taped 'Lost' am very tempted to ask what's happening as I'm sure you are ahead of us over there (series 2 just ended here).
My MIL is bugging me - she is otherwise known as the one woman breast feeding police. As soon as she sees me the 1st question is 'is he feeding ok' and she literally stands over while I breast feed fred - makes me feel so uncomfortable I haave managed to time visits so that I feed him before we go and don't need to feed hi while I'm there! When she found out we'd been topping up DS1 with formula she said 'don't you think he's a bit young for cows milk' !!!! So have been v. secretive about doing it again with DS2!!

Hi everyone,

Nice to hear you're doing so well Woodelf, and Alex is settling in well.

Pol, so pleased your DP has done a feed, and was helping out a bit more - did you show him this thread??!! (hope not!!!!!)

Marls, have a good time in Houston. Ignore your mum - as you say, DS isn't going to be huge is he as you and DH are on the smaller rather than taller side! Here, DH is 6'2", so I think I am getting giants... DS1 is already 1m tall at 2.5...his growth chart predicts adult height of 6'2" - 6'4"! So I am going to look like a midget in 10 years time - how do you tell off a boy who's half a head taller than you???!! At least you won't have that issue!!!

Compo, F's feeds take on average an hour as well, although we have discovered that sometimes if he's v tired, he will cry for 5 mins or so before falling asleep - we have to hold ourselves back and not go in for 5 mins or so to see if that's the case. More often than not, he settles down and goes fast asleep, and if we go to pick him up it makes him worse as we put him right back where he started! We had a great night last night - DH fed him around 11, while I was in bed, and then he went until 4.30 - took half an hour, and was back down til 7.30. He's over 5 weeks now, so looking forward to longer stretches of sleep. What's the betting tonight he wakes up 2 or 3 times though?!

Myrtle, LOL at your monitor story!!!! Like something off a comedy show! But like Marls said, they could have turned it off - did they say anything, or did you just notice it was still on?

Liquid, hope the sickiness goes away... Does it help if you prop his basket up a bit so he's not lying completely flat? Might help the milk to go down.

The Becks was lovely thanks, although did want more than just the one... But I think if I had 2, I'd be pie-eyed!!!

These LO's are keeping us all very busy aren't they! There's so much to catch up on each time I log on!

After implementing all our 'reflux' control strategies around Alex that we learned with DS1 and none of it working we (reluctantly as he's already on my meds indirectly) have given him infacol and it's worked ! So definitely NOT reflux much to our relief. We've also been starting to put him into our routine and [crossed fingers] so far so good! We'll see what happens this afternoon. Unfortunately I've found I'm not as hard and fast about it all as I was with DS1 and DH keeps telling me I'm soft but then, he's not going to be managing both boys at home alone so I'm ignoring him for now and doing what works for me! As long as I can get them both to nap 2hrs across lunchtime I'm happy as I know I can have an hours break and an hour to wash up, clean etc.

Mabel - I found with DS1 (don't know with DS2 yet) that the key to good night time sleep was good daytime sleep - so 3 'proper' naps punctuated by 'proper' awake times of no more than an hour and a half (rather than dozing on and off) - I'm hoping it'll work again.

Marls - I'm 5'3 and DH is 5'8 so hoefully no monsters for us either! Ignore your mom though, from your pics your DS looks the picture of health! (and SO sweet!)

Sounds like all of us could do without our concerned mums and MILs passing judgement! Apparently I shouldn't be using infacol...