September 2014 - Into the new year!

[RedToothBrush]

Shiny New Thread for a Shiny New Year.

Okay, I've decided to attempt a tactical withdrawal to see if I can move her off my lap without waking her. Wish me luck!

Aww she looks so snuggly :)

Elijah is fast asleep on me which is lovely as we had a busy busy day and he needs this time!

Good luck! Hopefully he's in such a deep sleep he won't wake up.

Well it worked! Normally I'd have had no chance but I think the jabs made her sleep much deeper than normal! She woke up though after half an hour (allowed for a bit of frantic cleaning - my Mum is over tomorrow)! Only wish I had moved her an hour earlier and then I could have got so much more done.

Yay, well done Kitkat. She looks so cute. I love it when DD sleeps on me. I know I should be training her to have naps in her cot, but daytime snuggles on the couch are so nice and I get to relax and watch an episode of Gray's Anatomy.

Misog, hope your first day back went well.

Are others going back, and if so when? I'm going back on 1st June and I've negotiated to work half time for a year before going back ft. I was supposed to go straight back to ft, but I don't think I can do that quite yet. I'd miss her so much!

I'm going back mid July. Just shy of a whole year off!

Team I didn't realise you could ask to go back pt then build up to ft. Not due back until November but it still feels too soon!

I go back in June but then it's the summer hols so really back in sept. Love my job but :-( about leaving my little man. Hope today went well misog.

Team..I also try to encourage day time naps in cot..but cuddles are lovely, and I have started scandal series 3 today!

I'm back in Sept full time - dreading it. :(

I'm really lucky at work as they are great with family stuff. Essentially, as long as I have a date to return to ft and my line manager gives approval HR are happy for me to do whatever I want. I've decided to work mornings only with one flexi afternoon a week depending on when things need to be done. I'll do that for a full year, then I can either return to ft or change my permanent contract to pt hours. I do know how lucky I am though. Just a shame that my pay will be slashed so substantially!

We have had two good night times in a row now! Usually we have up to an hour of fighting and hysterics to get DD to sleep. Now that I've managed to get her going to bed a little later there is time for a bedtime routine, and so far it seems to be doing the trick. I just need her to start sleeping for longer stretches through the night now...

Ooh hols I love Scandal!
Same here about going back to work then it soon being the summer hols. Thought it'd ease me back in a bit more rather than having a big shock in September! Plus getting paid for August of course. If my boss says no to PT I really don't know what I'll do. Probably cry a lot lol. I think PT should be something that employers have to provide for mothers, like maternity leave. It's not fair to force us to choose between our job as a mother and our career. That's what it feels like to me anyway. I'll stop ranting now before I get carried away

Had a rubbish night here. Took till 10pm to get her down (usually it's by 9pm) and less than 2 hourly wakings. One 20 minute stretch too so I'd just got to sleep, argh. The night before last she was doing 4.5 hour stretches. So unpredictable lol. Hope you had better nights.

I agree top. I also think childcare shouldn't be so expensive!!
A couple of v disturbed nights here...lots of dummy needing putting back, whimpers, chatting...I miss sleep!

We had a good night until 2am, but again she was very unsettled, kicking and thrashing until she woke at 5.45. So I've barely slept since 2am, and she's done this for a few days now. I'm so tired.

If I swaddle her she goes ballistic, if I leave her to it in her Moses basket she wakes herself up. Any other ideas?!

She's now having a bottle and falling asleep on me whilst looking very angelic.

Hearing other people's work stories makes me feel so grateful for my workplace. They have good family policies centrally and within our department they are very family oriented and flexible. DD is visiting work once or twice a week with me (lunch with my best friend and to generally see friends at work), so she's almost a member of staff already

team could you try swaddling just arms? DS is a wriggler but doesn't like his legs restricted so I let him have those to kick but swaddle his arms. Seems to help.

Oh yes Holls, the cost if the nursery is crazy (this is one place where work falls down drastically!). I really feel that child care should be heavily subsidised by the government. If it were more mothers would be able to work and nurseries would employ more people. Surely the extra taxes paid and the extra spending money put into the economy would cover that subsidy?!

DD is getting a spotty rash on her chin. I think it us just because she is a dribbly dummy addict! Is sudocream the best thing to use?

Honey, it is her arms she hates having swaddled! She almost tolerates, but doesn't like, swaddled legs. However that doesn't really help with the thrashing about. I just need some proper sleep!!!

The only way I could calm her last night was to sit half up, lie her on my chest and rub her back. Obviously I can't sleep like that though. I'm wondering if I should try lying her on her front, but she is not rolling yet so that probably isn't really a good solution. She normally sleeps lying on her side or back.

Oh :( that was my one idea! Sorry :(

We are also having sleep problems.

J is 18 weeks old today. For the past two nights, he has woken hourly and been hard to settle him back to sleep ! I hope this doesn't last too long.

J has also been diagnosed with a hemangioma - also known as a strawberry birthmark . It started off like a tiny scratch on his cheek when he was 3 weeks old and is now heart shaped and about 5mm at the widest point. It's slightly raised. To be honest, it's actually the tiniest one I've ever seen (it looks like a spot) and is a slow grower (they are normally much bigger and bulbous at 4 months) , and they do break down and go eventually - but at the moment, its just a waiting game...waiting to see if it gets bigger. As it's on his cheek and will technically disappear within time, it won't be treated, as it doesn't affect any of his functions. I know I am wrong to say this but I am really upset about it. I know the situation could be worse, but I'm constantly worrying and checking it for signs of growth...or on google, googling hemangiomas and then worrying some more. I think I need shaking !

Hi Jay my DS has a raised bright red birth mark to, on his torso. I asked the HV about it and she said its nothing to worry about. We've not had a 'diagnosis' like you refer to. What made you see a GP?

It will go like you say, don't worry about being upset, if that's how you feel then that's how you feel. But please stop googling! No good will come of it :)

DS has gone backwards on the sleep stakes. The last two nights he's woken twice. At least he'll breastfeed during the night now as we can both get back to sleep so much more quickly. He won't do it during the day though. I have no idea why.

Last night we went to a friends, and DS decided to scream the second she held him. And he pretty much screamed most of the time we were there. Someone stole my smiley baby The only time he stop screaming was to watch me and my friend eat.

Still not rolled.

Honey Well, i wasn't really aware it was a birthmark...it started as a little scratch that got slightly bigger and didn't go. I mentioned it to the Nurse when he had his jabs and she said it might be a birthmark and to see my GP as it's best to get checked out due to the size increase. So I went to see the GP who told me it was a hemangioma. Half of me wishes I hadn't been given a diagnosis - as since I've known, I've been obsessive about it. I know I need to get a grip and actually admitting that it upsets me and that I'm constantly googling it has been a bit of a release as I haven't mentioned it to my family and friends. I feel so guilty that I have such a concern with it, so my real life stance is that "it's cute, it's part of him..." - which is true...i just can't outwardly express my worry.

Another baby here less easy to get settled at night and more wakeful.....
4oz on this week..so relieved. Seeing HV next tues to go over weaning and starting first tastes a week on sat....baby rice, she said! Tasty...

Ems not rolled again red after the sofa incident, she is very nearly sitting up though. She can only hold it for a few seconds before she folds up but she's definitely getting there.

jay I can admit I was really worried that ds would have a strawberry birth mark as both his father and aunt had them as babies and near their eyes! I tried not to show people my fears about it, it was another one if my worries before he was born and the weeks that followed. It's ok to be upset by it

I have given my return date as mid May but due to time owed and holiday I can extend it till mid July. Which means ds will be 11 months, he will have a day with me, a day fx with dh, and the rest of the time spilt between nursery and my mum!

Ds still wakes at least once a night and always for food. I can handle that but when he does 3 or 4 wake ups I am not happy :(

Has anyone heard from kicksandgiggles she had twins right?

Oh forgot to say about the bad sleepers I was really stressed a few months ago when ds was still in his back and was waking every 30 min, I made the decision to flip him onto his tummy and he sleeps so much better. I did invest in a breathing monitor for peace of mind. He wasn't rolling (but could lift his head from side to side) when I did this and to be fair that freaked me out. He has only just now rolled from front to back and from his back only onto his side.

Obviously this is a choice only you can make but it does make ds much more settled.