October 2014 // thread 5 // baby's first Christmas

[JeannePoole]

Welcome back!

(Dear greetings cards manufacturers: 'Baby's First Christmas' does NOT necessarily have to include Baby being liberally sprinkled with glitter from your shoddily-made merchandise.

Except that, as I'm rapidly discovering, it does.

Ive been wondering about a cleaner but thought it sounded really lazy given we only have 1 dc but now im tempted! How do you find them/make sure theyre not dodgy?

Lenuchken and fate thanks, what you say makes sense. M will fairly reliably do 10-12 out in the pram and this week I discovered that if he is in his new Benetton pramsuit (a present, v cosy) he'll stay asleep once we get home. I like to get out of the house (he wakes at 6/7am) a lot so don't mind him sleeping in the pram or whatever, I just worry he won't sleep so well at home in his cot. He sleeps well during the night however (touch wood) so swings and roundabouts. Today he slept 10-1230, woke to feed at a mother and baby coffee thing and then he nodded off on way home at 2;10. Thought shall I risk it and get hot chips from the chippy, yes indeed, and he stayed asleep in the downstairs hall so I could eat them in peace! Good boy!

Ps my baby doesn't nap/sleep on me...at all. I know that sounds good but sometimes I wish he bloody would so I could park myself on the sofa for hours! He v occasionally does ten mins in a milk coma but then jerks awake.

Moose, ask your neighbours? Ours came recommended from someone down the road. She's great although M did burst into tears when she smiled at him the other day.

That should be £18 a week, she's £9 an hour. Wonder I got friends to recommend theirs. I tried a few but really like this girl and trust her when I'm not in... Even if you just do it for a few months it might help your sanity, even every other week might take one thing off your hands?
Pregnant - YES! I would a happily give up something to keep her now, it's so great. Maybe not food, but something defo!

Lenuchken and fate You speak wise words.
I need to remember that all the good sleep will eventually come and really there is no magic way to get them to sleep though! I went a bit nuts trying to get all the good sleep habits with my first. I'm definitely a bit more relaxed this time but could do with being even more so I reckon. I often feed him and nod off but I've become an expert shallow sleeper and he stays on me. It's not ideal granted but happens a lot when he wakes so often. I have to hold him up after feeding to stop him puking and I just end up nodding off...
We had two better naps this morning a bit longer than 30 mins and then this afternoon a nap in the pram. He literally wakes the second I stop pushing though so I have to keep going, no pausing for a cuppa!

You shld 100% get a cleaner! I'm slightly embarrassed to admit that Ive done literally no housework since having the baby. My husband sleeps in the spare room, has all the sleep he wants and so that seems fair to me! I've been spending 2 nights a week at mum's as well so he has time then to do bits. He works from home though so it's doable, if he was out all day I would certainly have a cleaner!

Took babymoose out for a walk and he went straight to sleep. Stayed out for 45 mins and got him in asleep. Got on sofa and he woke up :( i swear he hates me.
anywho off to gp at 4pm to ask about his reflux meds as he screamed like a crazy person when he woke up :s

:( that's crap moose

mine is like that, never ever stays asleep once we're home. I think the change in temperature wakes him. It's awful.

Thanks ladies - I do have a cleaner although she's been away since Christmas but still feel the house is a mess and untidy (it's huge, 2 step kids, 3 pets etc) and I try do the big shops online but then have to do small shops for fresh veg etc.

But I seem to do several loads of laundry every 2-3 days, and am always unpacking or putting away things...

Since sleeps seems to be a big subject for us all, My baby just seems to feed and sleep. And the problem is he'll do 30mins then wake up for 20mins then go back to sleep for 40mins, (repeat with various adjustments to times). I'm sure he used to be more awake
Does anyone else's baby sleep so much? *

• disclosure: his mother likes her sleep too but this seems ridic even by my standards lol

missus dc1 was exactly the same all he did was sleep it got to the point where I thought there was something wrong! He's fine and still likes his sleep now (15 months) when I put him in his cot he does this strange wiggly dance thing because he loves going to bed so much

I say enjoy it! But if you go on to have any more it hits you like a tonne of bricks when they're not the same

I dont mind the cleaning so much, its the constant untidiness that does my head in! And washings i bloody cant stand it, think its the sorting it & putting it away that gets on my wick! I have purposely not put any shelves up in my new house as i have learned the hard way that they are magnets for coins, clasps, sweetie papers, keys, toys, dog toys, cups, crusts of bread, mail, deffo not for displaying pretty pictures & ornaments like i imagined

Would folks think bad of me if I roll my eyes at non-working Mums with cleaners?

My friend (who became a stay at home wife upon getting married, before she had children) used to have an au pair even though she was a stay at home mum of 2. I often roll my eyes at her first world problems too.

Does anyone know someone who had/has one of these?
www.amazon.co.uk/Robopax-Baby-Rocker-Automatic-included/dp/B004DORTGM

i swear I lost my baby weight after ds1 by cleaning! And then I got a cleaner when i went back to work. I still have one now...

Ha ha roll away fate when I was working I used to have a cleaner everyday she would come tidy up, make beds and walk the dogs it was great,have to settle for once a week now. Oh the hardship :(

I've not got round to doing my big shop this week and needed a quick tea for the kids as need to be back out at 5.
I don't think I've ever seen them so excited about a tea I've made before.
Egg and oven chips.
So glad time most days preparing a healthy nutritious meal for them with fresh ingredients

Anyone else's baby unable to keep their hands out of their gob.
M stuffs his fingers right in, even made himself gag yesterday

Please do roll fate! I roll at myself but love my 'treat'! I work freelance so not really on maternity leave...I cannot say no to work, it's like a weird inbuilt thing...

However when my baby drifts off to sleep like magic with a dummy in the bouncer and sleeps longer stretches than 3 hours at night I will ditch the cleaner.

Whew!! Not just me then.

I am declaring a war of clutter and tat!! We have a house full of it. I blame DH since I moved in with him and it's all his crap. I wonder if he would even notice if half of it went to Oxfam??

The baby is awake. I repeat. The baby is awake and shouting!

I think I preferred it when he was asleep ;0)

Ladies we are 5 posts away from a new fred. I made a new one here...
www.mumsnet.com/Talk/postnatal_clubs/2277116-October-2014-thread-6-babys-new-year-resolution-is-to-sleep-more