July 2016 #3

[primarynoodle]

Hello all! Can't believe we're on thread 3! Let's kickstart with a then and now photo :)

Here's Annie at 4 months 4 days

Went ok - had to nip out at lunch on Tuesday to feed and settle her but didn't on Wednesday! (Although she refused all milk all day). Progress is deffo being made though - phew

sunday wow he's a great eater! I can coax Annie to eat a decent amount of purée but she's still not really bothered about finger foods. She definitely gets more down her if it's saucy like bolegnaise though. Does E have a good pincer grip? It's hilarious watching Annie chase peas around the high chair!

bcks aww what a beautiful family :)

julf those photos are golden - can't believe he's walking! I am totally with you on the water pistol boobs, I'm half pissing myself and half mortified when she does it!

birchy I'm finding this the toughest stage yet. I physically cannot leave the room without her screaming blue murder! Plus her sleep has gone to shit and breastfeeding can be quite a challenge cause she just wants to mess around grr. You are not alone! I am enjoying that I can plonk her on the floor and crack on with whatever I'm doing (in the same room) and she's quite happy to entertain herself though.

So those with a parent facing pushchair - when are you going to forward face? I can't bring myself to do it!

I've also now bought the next car seat - gone for the joie I anchor advance, off to pick it up tomorrow. She's nearly out of the pebble plus now.. what Con artists maxi cosi are pretending it lasts til 15 months - if your 15 month was prem maybe!

Primary sometimes I face Ben out if it's not nap time. I'll be moving him to the umbrella fold stroller soon so he'll be facing out all the time. I think I'll be moving him into the next car seat too, he looks so squished in the other one. We've got the maxi cosi axiss which we had for DD. The turning function saved my knackered back.

Lovely pic, Becks.

Primary - I've been simultaneously typing this and having a conversation with you on fb (last night) - slightly surreal...
Glad to hear that work has been OK so far. And great that you've got progress with Annie. Yes, J likewise usually refuses to drink when I'm away, sometimes even if it's as long as 10 or 12 hours. It's just stubbornness (he can take a bottle/cup if/when he wants to, he just prefers to wait for the boob), so we just try to make sure he's getting sufficient liquids through purées etc so as not to dehydrate.
Yes I agree that the screaming every time I leave the room is exhausting. I have two ways around this: 1) take J with me if I have to leave the room, and 2) if I need to hand him to someone else while I leave the room, I get them to leave the room with him first - that way he feels he's exploring somewhere new and doesn't notice my absence so much - whereas if I just leave the room that he's in, then my absence is the only thing he sees. Not sure if that will help with Annie? I've actually found J a bit less clingy in the last few days, so am hoping it's passing.
Re the pushchair, I tried facing him forward about ten days ago, but the clinginess / separation anxiety kicked in and he went mental (even though, left to his own devices i.e. if not strapped down, he always turns around in his seat and faces forward - but that's his own decision - woe betide me if I should MAKE him face forward...). So I haven't tried it since. But I might try it again soon, now that he seems to be a bit more independent again.

Sunday - my GOD what an appetite! Astonishing.
Re Jasper's naps, it's a combination of the two. He used to be a brilliant napper and would do 3 naps a day, often for about an hour and a half each (which was obviously amazing, although unfortunately he'd only nap if I took him out in the pushchair, so it was fairly limiting in terms of the amount of housework/admin etc I could do). But now he normally only needs 2 naps, and he seems to find it even harder to fall asleep indoors (whereas between about January and March he temporarily learnt this skill) because he's now so distracted by everything around him. So unless I take him out for a spin, I generally only get one nap out of him.

So, advice needed: I'm trying to get J off the boob. I don't think I'm likely to have much luck before I go back to work in 3 weeks, but I'm hoping that once he gets used to me being away for 10+ hours a day he'll self-wean a bit. But how long will it be before he stops demanding boob in the mornings and evenings? Do any of the second-timers have any experience of this? With J still pretty much refusing to drink from a cup/bottle (and tbh not having a huge appetite food-wise either) I'm just struggling to see the end in sight. My mum says I just stopped taking the boob naturally at about 11 months, but I'm worried that he might not and I might find myself boobing forever. Do you think I just need to be really strict and not let him have it? I'm not very robust when it comes to my baby...

We've got the Joie one too primary how are you getting on with it? I find the straps a faff because I always get one strap tighter than the other but I guess other makes have the same sort of mechanism too. When are we allowed to forward face car seats now? I can't see me lifting E into a rear facing seat (or him fitting into it) until the age of 4. Those turning ones look like a great idea in hindsight. As for pushchairs, he's always forward faced anyway. Yes, he's got a really good pincer grip (although I didn't know this is a skill I'm supposed to help him develop until you mentioned it ). The separation anxiety sounds really tough, it must be hard leaving when you do drop off at childminders.

Julf likewise you also have my sympathy with the clinginess, not sure l have any advice other than to keep going and have faith that it's only a phase! Regards the napping, again hopefully just a phase, it's frustrating when you know they can do it but won't. Have you tried kellymom I hear it's a good website for breastfeeding advice? What have you planned pre return to work? I'm wanting a trip to my favourite national trust place but I'm waiting for the weather to perk up. E's mammoth meal was a one-off! Although I'm rubbish with portion sizes and he often surprises me by finishing his meal when I've dished too much up. Currently having trouble spoon feeding as he's going through a phase of wanting the spoon. He's great with finger foods but nowhere near being able to manage a spoon even if I pre load it, he just turns it round and chews the other end. Anyone's got the hang of a spoon yet or any idea what age they might be able to?

Wish us luck for a settled night tonight please- day 1 of reducing E's reflux meds! I'm nervous. Don't know how I got talked into doing this just before I return to work

How did it go Sunday?

Seems ok ish so far. He slept through last night thankfully but has been v v grumpy today. He does have a cold atm and is teething so I haven't got a clue which ailment is bothering him at which time, another reason why I didn't want to cut his meds yet! We'll see how he goes over the weekend and if he's ok by Monday I'll call it successful.

Good luck!

Thanks Sunday, I'll have a look on Kellymom.
We've got some nice things planned for my last couple of weeks: a classical music baby concert, a Sing & Sign class, a buggy work-out, and some catch-ups with a few mummy-friends (including Bluebell and Ruby 😊 - is anyone else on here near-ish Bath?). I'm also heading to the Isle of Wight to stay with my folks for a few days, which I was looking forward to when I arranged it (and still am I guess) but it also feels slightly as if I'm being robbed of precious days alone with J during my last fortnight. It's silly, because I do also really appreciate my folks' help with J (they've been totally amazing, and I've got lots of reading to do before I start my new job), and yet I also feel as if I want to spend every moment with J just the two of us and that anyone else's presence is an invasion... I think my feeling of The End Is Nigh is heightened by the fact that I'm going back full-time.
I'm also planning some nice Saturday-morning activities for the two of us for after I go back to work. DH will enjoy the peace and quiet at home, and I'll get my Jasper-fix.

Which day do you go back to work (Sunday)? Have you been doing lots of nice things with E? Did you make it to the National Trust? How was your holiday? And how's E doing with his reflux / cold / teething? And remind me, are you on Facebook? (Gosh, lots of questions, sorry!)

Hope everyone else is doing OK and enjoying the bank hol xx

Hey everyone, not had chance to even peek at mumsnet since we got back from our trip but just enjoyed catching up!

Becks gorgeous family christening pic! How is Bens walking going? I know what you mean about confident walking, it is an age away for us here but I can't wait!

Sunday, Raffy can eat with a preloaded spoon but it is a very very messy affair and often after a few mouthfuls he prefers to chew the other end.. but he loves putting in his mouth and sits waiting expectantly for the praise ha
How is work treating you? Are you back full time? I am also really looking forward to the drive to and from work :)
Shoes I have ordered some of these www.bobux.co.uk/origin-xplorer-55174?colour=blackandyellow which seem great for the inbetween stage we are in with lots of aided walking but no solo trips yet! Stonz are also supposed to be great. I personally don't rate clarks after lots of poor quality school shoes for older dd.

Primary are you still getting full nights sleep?

Julf I feel you on the end is nigh and I am only back office based for three days (although will do 30 hours over the week)
I have one week left although tomorrow is my last handover day and Raffy next settle session with the childminder and I am doing an early morning drop off and attempting to be into work for 9 (ish) eek

We did our three weeks in the camper covered 5,000 km of Europe and ambitiously drove from Amsterdam to Cornwall in a day with Raffy. It was brilliant, our complete lack of routine was very helpful ha ha and he handled it all amazingly.
He was stroked, simpered over and generally admired (they really love love a baby) and gave some excellently timed smiles to make up for some of my shoddy language translations!!

Have got my DH primed to start going in to Raffy after he is settled into the childminder routine to work on longer sleep stretches. We are going for a consistent bedtime first here similar to you Julf and aiming for at least starting the night in his cot. He is going to howl though!!

Have also just switched over to cloth nappies, which is actually been a fairly easy process to date. Not had to deal with an awful poo yet though!

Can't believe it is the end of maternity leave and our babies are getting so big! I have started gathering bits for Raff for his birthday. It's bonkers!

I've been thinking of coming over to the fb group julf as I suspect I might be the only one who isn't! Have pm'd you my details if that's ok? Your plans for your last weeks of mat leave sound lovely, we've been to our usual baby group and out for the odd day trip but I can't believe how fast it's going by. Not been out to national trust place yet but I'm hoping to this week seeing as the weather is better than last week here. Yeah I get what you mean about having J all to yourself, I've banned my in-laws from visiting this week, much to their disapproval! Sort of feels like I'm mourning the end of this stage in my and E's lives together (if that doesn't sound too soppy!) I'm sure that in a few weeks we'll have got used to our new routine with my working patterns and it'll just become the new normal. One week to go

Reflux seems to be ok (touch wood, hope I'm not tempting fate!) He's been a little sick a few times but it's not disturbed his sleep so we are keeping on with the reduced dose for now but we have the go ahead from the HV to up the dose again if needed. Overall I'm very happy and have forgiven DH and the HV for ganging up on me

Rolly thanks for the shoe recommendations, will check them out later. Shoes are one of those things that I want to get right and do some research on in advance. Glad the camper van got fixed in time for your Europe trip, Amsterdam to Cornwall sounds like a v v long day! It will be an amazing trip to look back at with Raf when he's older and perhaps one he'll want to repeat for himself. Where was your favourite place? We've also started getting a few little gifts for E's bday and thinking how to celebrate. Just want time to slow down now!

Sunday I've friended you on fb and will be able to add you to the group once you've accepted.

Am I the only one left here? I can do a PM as I'm on my phone. Can you search me on Facebook Julf? Rebecca Morgan?

Im still here! Really struggling with being a 'working mum' even though im only part time. I promise to catch up on thursday when im off work again! Love to all the babies :D

I'm still here too. Juggling work and little ones is hard. Xx

Hey Becks there are quite a few people by your name. Are you sitting on a mountain? Or gazing into the sunset? Or staring through a tunnel? Or cuddling a dog? 😄

Julf.ive changed them. My profile pic is Ben with a dummy in and DD behind him. The other pic is of Ben standing?? Hope that helps xx

sunday I have to admit I do enjoy the 5 minute drive between school and childminder to stick a good song LOUD on the radio! How are E's teeth now? Annie cut her 2 front ones a good while ago but nothing since. She has settled into childminder great now, still a little whinge by pick up as she STILL won't drink any milk or water but it does seem to have improved her intake of food!

Swapped her into the joke seat this weekend so MIL can keep the baby one in her car when she has her, it's an effing nightmare getting the straps in - I'm finding the shoulder pads annoying too - are the meant to go over her shoulders or rest on her chest?! Gahhh. Also have you got the padded cushion in? She looks like she's a bit uncomfortable but there's no guidelines for it in the manual facepalm

rolly your holiday sounds fab, we are planning a camping trip in summer (saving for our Italian wedding, still have never been on holiday with my dp!) any tips?

julf how's bedtime going? I cannot believe how far we've come since that desperate Facebook post I did! She now goes down awake and sleeps through the night til 6ish 90% of the time, I have just started to put her down awake for naps which is going okay ish (morning one is more successful) and both me and Annie are so much happier. I'm trying to stick to set nap times too now, I think I massively failed on maternity leave with the whole sleep thing but we are getting there now - honestly these women who get 3 naps a day in for their babies... HOW?! I struggled to get 1!!

Anyone else back at work now? I am loving part time, sad about full time in September but keep thinking how awesome it will be to get proper full time mat pay with a years entitlement AND no stress about not having a job at the end of it for number 2.

2 bits of advice needed please!
I have to say, I am not enjoying the feeding in the backseat of the car at the beginning and end of each day, I'm also a bit worried my supply is dropping because I can't pump in the day and my boobs never feel full anymore (especially now she's sleeping through the night). A bit worried that as she's not taking milk from any other source she's gonna lose weight argh

Does anyone use childcare vouchers? I can't wrap my head around the pros and cons...

birchy and becks how are your littluns? What are they doing now? Can't believe Becky on Facebook has a walker! Annie doesn't even crawl!!

Hi Primary Ben's good thanks. He's been walking since 9 months and is into everything. He especially loves going to the park with his big sister. He's got 8 teeth now and is a great eater. I haven't found anything he doesn't like yet. Blueberries are definitely his favourite. He's been sleeping through for about 3-4 months now. Going down at 7-7:30 and I wake him at 7:30 on a preschool day or 8 on a day off. I go back to work in just over a week and I can't wait. I'm looking forward to using my brain again! Can't help with the feeding thing as i'm a bottle feeder. Maybe just add in lots of calcium rich foods to Annie's diet? I think we'll be moving Ben into the next car seat in the next couple of weeks. He's to heavy to carry in the car seat and I'm going to move to an umbrella fold buggy too.

I survived my first week of being back at work!! All has gone fairly smoothly and childminder transition has been brill so far. Primary Raffy only had some milk one day this week but just had a big feed when I picked him up. I am also finding it impossible to find time to pump, I am planning on stopping BF at 12 months anyway and weaning him off from 11ish months to whole milk and the milk he had this week at the childminders was whole milk. I am not sure how my supply will work out going to wait and see as Raff fed during the day as he normally would when I am here but I don't see how it can be clever enough to make milk according to days of the week ha ha

We love blueberries here too Becks, and strawberries in fact Raffy wa sucking them off the table earlier instead of picking them up (gross boy ha) we are also into everything. Every day his childminder has written very busy baby and we have had one accident form.. I have said she may need a new folder :)

I have signed up for childcare vouchers will save about 40 - 50 per month on the tax breaks and if DH does it will save closer to 90 I think from my maths. I couldn't see any cons from ours

Camping tip wise, don't worry about routine. Remember a torch. Choose a site which suits what you need ie do you want a club house etc see if you can see reviews to see what the showers are like. Take wine ;) I normally cook a chilli or spag bol and freeze it and then by the time we get there it is defrosted enough for eating which is helpful after setting up. Take tons of layers. Our first festival of the summer is coming up fast and I cannot wait and we are doing a bank holiday camping trip with some of Niamhs friends and their mum. Mostly have fun.
Your wedding will be amazing, Italy is one of my favourite countries. Annie will be mobbed they love the babies!

Sleep wise is going much better here too, Raffy is now going to sleep in his room in his bed by 7.30 every night for over a week. I was inspired by your article Julf. Although I do tend to still bring him in with me when he wakes for a feed around midnight. While he is adjusting to childminders and his milk flow (he has been much hungrier overnight this week) I still need sleep and cosleeping is going to get me through. Plus I figure with only about a month and a half left of breastfeeding I should make the most of it as this stage will soon be gone!

Becks which teeth has ben got? Raffy has had 6 for ages 4 up top and 2 on the bottom but has been teething really badly for 2 weeks or so now and I cannot work out which ones are next.. I am not 100% but I think it maybe two more on top and two on the bottom it is feeling pretty lumpy in all those areas!

Rolly Ben's got the top 4, the middle bottom 2 then it was the ones either side of the bottom ones. Now it looks like it's going to be the ones either side of the top 4. Well done on surviving your first week at work. Well done Raff settling in at the child minders too. Ben does the eating off the table too and will pick up any crumb off the floor. It's like I don't feed him!!

Hi all, I'm still here too although struggling to keep up now life is getting busier. My first week back went well (I haven't forgotten as much as I thought I had!) and within 5mins I felt like I hadn't been away. Not gonna lie, it was tiring and my brain is scrambled though!
Quick question, has anyone had a development check recently with the HV? We've got one booked for a few weeks time and was wondering what they might ask. E has no issues as far as I'm concerned and he's eating, sleeping, crawling well. He's just started pulling himself to standing too.

Primary E has 2 bottom and 1 top tooth but I think the other top one is just coming through. As long as Annie is eating well I'm sure she'll be getting water via her food intake. Have you tried a munchkin 360 cup? Had a giggle at 'joke car seat'! So annoying that it doesn't have a proper manual, I've been putting the shoulder straps just curving over the top of the shoulders. At the moment I've removed the newborn head section and the hard wedge bit underneath (which the instructions say to leave in?!) and just left the cushioned pad but I think I need to remove it all soon and make the head rest higher, what have you done in the end?

Becks good luck with returning to work! Likewise E will eat anything, his bread and cheese consumption is getting out of hand though! Sultanas are this weeks favourite.

Glad you've settled back to work too mrsrolly, hopefully no more accident forms sent home this week!

becks i deffo think annies getting the top 2 now, theyre bulging out of her gums! Even when A was a tiny newborn our pebble plus weighed a bloody ton so i dont miss that seat at all haha. Which stroller did you go for? MIL is looking for one for when she has Annie but is hoping for one that will recline for naps too

rolly thanks for the camping advice! Think we are going to do north wales somewhere, excited to book it now! I used to love doing festivals but dp hates them - hoping when A is a teenager we can go to some together :)
I cant believe all the accidents! They just have no sense of danger!!!
Cosleeping has saved my sanity of these last 10 months although i am enjoying not sleeping like a sardine now shes in her cot more haha.
Im glad your enjoying work - what are your hours like?

sunday ive got the hard wedge in but have taken the cushion out.. she looks ever so uncomfortable though. It really is a joke car seat - i like it generally but it just seems badly designed for the straps and stuff. Think Annie enjoys being much higher up though - she giggles like crazy when i wind the window down and the wind blows in her face haha.
My friend has had the developmeny check and it was just a tick list of what she could/couldnt do and a weigh in then a discussion of any worries. They didnt seem particularly concerned about any of it either tbh!

Not much news from us either! I wanted to ask though because i dont know if im being pfb.. my childminder keeps announcing that shes given annie jelly and custard and other very sugary junk food.. my thinking was until shes aware of it and asking for it i was just going to not feed A anything like that.. aibu to be a bit annoyed? Should i ask her to stop? Its very strange being involved with childcare from a parents point of view after years of nannying!

Argh apologies for lack of paragraphs! Stupid phone