August 2015 - Jaffa cake wars and many Mugabe greetings to you!

[mzzzf]

New thread ladies - praying for a decent sleep tonight!!

Hello, wondered if I could join in here? DS is 8 weeks now, found first bit tough but slowly getting easier. Can I ask how others get their babies to nap in the day? DS will nap in the sling easily for hours but if I try to get him to sleep in his sleepyhead during the day it involves much crying even when rocking/walking around with him! Sling is great but would be nice to not have a baby attached to me for one nap a day!

Awwww fatty! You sickie monster. Stomach bugs are shite. Can your dp take over so you can hug the toilet?!

I'm 10 weeks pp and ff so I thought I'd have then sooner tbh... Start taking the pill again today then Such fun!!

Hi Ruby - welcome! Napping is our kryptonite and not one of us is nailing the naps all day everyday. Slings rock though I agree about having a contact break, I have no solution I'm afraid. Babies are tricksy little buggers!!

Joskar - Jaffna, twists and maybe a bake in the oven Camembert with fresh white bread!!

Last night wasn't too bad for us. Up at 1am, 3-4am and then 6am. I still can't work out what happens at 3-4am to stir her... Also I took a punt from our chat yesterday and put a thin blanket over her grobag (I'm in Scotland so quite nippy at night now!) and I had less 2nd half of the night fussy. Either it worked or the cold I have has dampened my hearing!!!

Cold pizza for breakfast?! HELL YEAH!

Mini mzzzf just kicking back and watching Homes under the Hammer post milk!

He will be round later. Not that he's happy about it. He was meant to be in work but they've told him they don't need him. So he's pissed off because that means his wage won't be what he was expecting. Oh well. Shit happens. At least he has a job.
Nathan was telling me stories.
ruby no one knows the answer. And some of us are damn near experts with the amount of kids we have

Mugabe morning everyone!

Not a bad night here after ds eventually went to sleep at about 12:30. He fed at 4am, 7am and just now, but has gone back to sleep every time. He's a big fan of the lie in. I do wander if I should try to get him to go down sooner and get up sooner. But I'm scared of trying to change things because I'm actually getting sleep at the moment.

Thanks for the reassurance that my ds isn't the only one who wakes up at bath time. People keep telling me to start making one a part of his nightly routine, but fuck that. I think you're right about all the different sensations being stimulating mzzf.

Welcome tindel. Lovely to have a new member.
35 weeks must have been quite a shock for you. That weight gain is amazing. Seriously well done you.
My ds was born 6 days late on the 27th, so is similar in age but a bit bigger at 7.6 when born and about 11lbs now.
I'm exclusively breast feeding as well. I don't feel we're getting into any kind of routine yet - Apart from ds being grumpy in the evening and then not sleeping until about 1am . I do feel that in the past week I'm not spending quite as much time feeding. I'm assuming he's becoming a more efficient feeder. He still feeds every 90 mins or so in the day.
I'm sure things will get better soon. You've been through a lot. Go easy on yourself.
My ds also smiles at the boob .
And for the record, I'm not a fan of the Jaffa cakes, but I may hold some sort of record for digestive and hob nob eating.

I missed your post somehow nolonger. But sorry you are feeling crap. I echo what everyone else is saying that there is no way you are a bad mother. You sound so lovely. It must be really hard with a toddler and a baby. I hope you have a good day today

Well done on the great sleep dozy! Go piper!

I hope everyone has a great day and that all the colds, uti's and periods aren't too horrible.
We don't have any plans today. I feel like I should do some housework while ds is asleep..... But I may just mumsnet and snooze.

Didn't see the second page before posting!

you need the lovely chocolates that come in a bar made of tiny squares jockstar. White or nutty are my favourites. You also need the fake kinder chocolate sticks. And a mini pizza from the bakery. And some pots of fruit cocktail trifle. And maybe some yummy cheese. And................. God I'm a hungry pig!
I'm also surprised at who I have and haven't heard from work. Very telling.

Welcome ruby.
My ds sleeps in his pram or vibrating bouncy chair laid back in the day. But it's a bit of a battle and he would much prefer to sleep face down holding on to my boob.

Gorgeous pictures mzzf and fatty.

Hi ladies good morning! After two nights of no 1am feed, DS reinstated it last night so we woke up at 1, half 3, and half 6 which knackered me after getting a bit more sleep previously! But he let me sleep from 7 til 10 so that helped!

Re periods, I'm Ff and they came back at 6 weeks. Re biscuits, they all sound good. Where do you stand on double dockers? They are my current night feed food of choice

We have yoga and nct coffee time this afternoon so better go and get us both ready. Have a good day everyone!

Thanks that's reassuring to know I'm not the only one struggling with naps-I guess I'll just go with the sling while it works easily with no tears! The pram does send him to sleep (sometimes involves some crying) but then he wakes when the movement stops. Am going to try transferring him out of the sling today and see if that will work.

Lovely photos!

I take my hats off to those with more than one child, I'm struggling to believe how I'd ever cope with more than one so well done all!

Welcome Ruby! Getting DS (9.5 weeks) to nap anywhere other than the sling is what I spend about 50% of my time thinking about. So far I haven't taken much action after one failed attempt to get him to nap in his Moses basket but I take great heart from fellow thread user Effin who's managed to get her LO doing naps in his crib. My problem is that I'm so lazy and I know the sling works like a charm plus someone on here - think it was Joskar - once said 'do what works until it doesn't work anymore then do something else' and I now live by that! Keep us posted on how you get on today - need to keep feeding my nap obsession!

Haha MzzzF we're totally having a lazy morning in front of homes under the hammer as well! Moved on to Jeremy Kyle now

Hope you feel better soon Fatty, 3 kids and a stomach bug sounds like bloomin hard work.

I can't believe I'm doing this already but I'm off to look at a couple of nurseries later! Waiting lists round here are insane so should have had DS's name down from the day he was born but funnily enough we had other things on our mind then! Gonna stick him on the list at a few places and keep everything crossed that he gets in to one of them.

MaGratGarlik I'm a fan of the double decker although never have nightime snacks and now feel I'm missing out-why did I not think of this before, chocolate will make nightime feeds all the more better!

Clstow nice to see someone else has a nap obsession, I swear if I find a solution I'll be the happiest mummy ever! Yes I haven't stuck at one nap time plan for long enough either as the sling is too easy (sometimes I walk 2 steps out the door and he's asleep! As opposed to 30mins of crying while rocking etc!) Will let you know how I go

MaGratGarlik enjoy yoga and NCT meetup, we are going to start yoga soon :)

Mugabe ruby

frolic I hate Jaffa Cakes! My current favourite for snacking on is Minstrals - but most chocolate will do - am going to have to stop but breast feeding makes me ravenous and chocolate is so easy to help myself to and it's a treat to perk me up!

I've never had periods while breast feeding - breast fed last 5 DCs for a year each and periods did not start until I stopped feeding.

DD slept for 3 hours today in her car seat - I know experts say you are not supposed to leave them in their car seat for long but if they are sleeping it is tempting to leave them which I did - we were out shopping but I kept her in it when we got home until she woke naturally - bad mother....

Love you are far from being a bad mother - you're a legend with 6 of them running rings round you!!

Re car seats - once in a while letting them go over the two hour mark is ok. Most of the babies and kids I've treated were in them for hours each day, consistently. I remember one poor mite slept in his as his parents drove to get him to sleep and then didn't take him out again. I get doing, practically, anything for a good sleep but FFS!

If you haven't been to lidl yet jockstar, I also highly recommend the goats cheese and tomato focaccia thing from the bakery. I've just had one and a pizza for lunch - purely for research purposes- and can confirm they are both lovely.

I am a big fan of the double decker magrat. I wish I'd seen your post before going out so I could have got one!
Like loves, I am finding that breastfeeding is making me ravenous. My goal for this week is to get down to just one treat / unhealthy snack a day instead of about 5.

I also need to think about looking at nurseries clstow. Time is going so quickly.

I'm not sure if I've had a period or not. I had some light bleeding last week. But my pp bleed had only stopped properly a few days before and I also had an infection, so I think it was more to do with that. I'm exclusively breastfeeding at the moment, so I doubt it was a proper period.

Mugabe a very good day everyone. It's beautiful here so I'm going out for a big long dog and baby walk.

Hallo everyone, can I also join the flurry of newbies on this thread? Have been lurking for a little while but now feel like maybe things are in order enough that I could actually contribute occasionally!

Have had a quick read back and based on previous conversations you've all had, here are the relevant facts about us. DD2 was born on the 28th August, a successful VBAC much to everyones relief. She was 8lb 1oz at birth and is now 11b 3oz or there abouts. DD1 then started Reception class at school 10 days later... hence the absolute chaos. We are cloth nappy toting, bf'ing gluttons for punishment, and I find that the only thing that gets me through the 1:30am feed are Cadbury's giant chocolate buttons - although I do love a jaffa cake or two

Welcome new folk! Mugabe mugabe mugabe!

While clstow is correct that ds has occasionally slept in his crib, this has taken near -constant effort on my part, shushing, providing a finger to suck, putting dummy back in, etc. Naps are still more likely in the sling and sometimes the pram, but again, only while moving. If I so much as dare to stop to look at something in a shop he'll wake up. I ditched a basket of stuff in wilko's the other day because of this . And crib naps are never more than 30-40 mins. I would kill for a two hour nap that didn't involve me so I could catch up on some sleep. He's even started to not go as long in the sling now .

Periods can f off too. I'm hoping bf will keep them at bay for a while longer.

I can't believe people do this more than once, especially with other ds's in tow. Heroes you are! It makes me sad though because I always wanted two as ds won't have any cousins - DH and I don't have siblings - but just don't think I can do this again. Or in fact at all. Wouldn't be so bad if ds wasn't so upset at being overtired the whole time.

We have no routine other than at bedtime, but I keep wondering whether we should try more in case it would help ds get more sleep. Ds loves the bath and it seems to calm him, but he usually cries afterwards. I now take him straight into the bedroom to dry him as I think the bathroom is quite cold.

Hello

Love the thread title! (Although anyone else wondering what frolic does on her phone that it immediately thinks Mugabe is the autocorrect )

Welcome newbies and congrats on your babies!!

Re feeding DS is 9 weeks tomorrow (oh my god how???) and in the last week his feeding has slipped into a vague routine. During the day and night about every 3 hours. However in evening he is v unsettled and cries a lot and still likes to cluster feed. So between about 6pm and 11pm can still be every hour.

Re napping have no idea am afraid. DS and I have a strong difference of opinion on nappy. He very much believes in a post feed 20 minute power nap in my arms or as a last resort the bouncy chair. I am hoping for a couple of hours in the cot. Sleep when baby sleeps does not work when your baby only naps for 20 mins. However I spent so much time obsessing over DS's feeding I am trying to relax about the lack of napping.

Re giggling DS does not giggle either. Just smile but no giggling. Which I can't understand as he spends all day with me and I am bloody hilarious. Still his lose.

We are on the train heading back down South. My wonderful mum has packed us off with Jaffa cakes and something called 'deli choc'. Never heard of it before but bloody yummy.

So big news from us. Last night DS slept for 6 hours. From midnight till 6am. Couldn't believe it. No idea how or why and is almost certainly a one off but was lovely. Is the most he has ever slept.

Nolonger please don't feel like a crap mum. You sound like a lovely mum and have given some great advice on here. I can't imagine how hard 2 is but sounds like you are doing great!!!

Ps you know life has changed when the free drinks cart results in you lining up the still water and not the mini wine bottles.

Well DP turned up to "help" with me being so ill and the fecker is asleep on the couch!!! He's got 20 mins before I throw Nathans teddy elephant at him.
He was up all night playing Xbox so its his own fault he's knackered.

I finally got frolicdog to sit next to frolicbaby!

Welcome slowife!

I can't imagine doing this with two either effin.

Yay! For some good sleep kbro. Fingers crossed for lots more. I'm a

Thanks for the reassurance re naps ladies, sounds like DS is not alone in disliking long naps. Sleep when the baby sleeps is a bit impossible when it's only in a sling or for half an hour but oh well we will get there.

Effin, DS also screams as soon as he is out of the bath-not sure if it's because he is cold or just that he loves the bath so much he's sad to be back on dry land!

With routines we generally try to do a 2.5/3hr feeding routine with eat, activity then sleep like in the baby whisperer book but to be honest I don't know if it even makes a difference as on days where we just do whatever he doesn't sleep any better!

Kbro well done on the 6hr sleep!! We had one of those last week followed by a 5.5hr one the following night but now are back to 4-hope yours stay!

FattyNinja I hope your DH is helping now!

Frolic dog and baby are adorable!

I poked him until he woke and sent him to get DS1 from school and I plan on having a bath alone later. (I usually have DD or DS2 in with me)
We are off to speak to consultant tomorrow for DP getting the snip! Yay! No more babies, no more hormones that don't flaming work anyway, no more worry!

The mystery of napping babies. Totally baffling. With DD1 I spent back breaking hours shush patting her to sleep in her pram/cot during the day. She eventually cracked it in her own sweet time, nothing to do with me I'm sure, but would then only sleep in her cot with the curtains drawn so we ended housebound in the afternoons or she'd go in to meltdown!

Fast forward a couple of years and I then only had to bloody wean her off her afternoon nap so she could go to preschool. She'd still have one now if left to her own devices! Cue one seriously grumpy child and all the stress again in reverse.

I'd rather DD2 was a bit more flexible so we are operating a baby-led approach to sleep at present. We'll see how that goes...

Frolicdog looks terrified!! Sweet piccie though. I love Spans

Glad he's up fatty, I know as mothers we don't have the monopoly on tiredness but FFS men get a grip. I often feel like telling DH "yes my darling you're tired, from work, cycling, and 'occasionally' hearing the baby as you sleep at night BUT I'm tired from 9 months of pregnancy, 36hrs of labour, a EMCS and a lack of continuous sleep longer than 4hrs for the last 10 weeks". Rarrrrrr!!! It's my own fault though I let me get my upduffed

Re the giggles, she's only just started doing them. I normally have to sing in silly voices or do movements that make my hair go wild etc etc. prior to the giggling she had done what I can only describe as noisy smiles and I guess just managed to put it all together.

I have a bit of a sleepy bear today, she's currently snuggled into my arm, when not screaming she's a cutie (sorry for the gratuitous tit shot!)

Double chocolate digestives are summat' else!!! Nom!

P.S. Mugabe!

frolic I love frolicbaby's outfit!