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

So chatty ladies. Caught up but forget who writes what. Naughty here but if Daniel falls asleep in car seat while we are out I often leave him asleep in it at home. Generally he sleeps after the school run. Check him every couple of minutes to see if ok and make sure not too warm. Means I can get beds made, washer on etc and get organised for the day. Bonus if get a cuppa tea as well. Xx

Ha ha Ruby, that's so true about the teething/dribbling!

Thanks Ruby and Becks for your thoughts re reducing feeds - that makes a lot of sense.

Birchy - I recently bought myself a thermos mug. It has vastly improved my success rate in drinking tea that isn't either cold or microwaved (yuck!). It's brilliant - wish I'd thought of it sooner.

ruby since Halloween and whipping up a quick batch of flapjacks for the trick or treaters when we ran out of sweets I appear to accidentally keep baking them and eating them all!
Re bauble - I was going to do it with paint but we did a hand/foot print with paint on a plant pot when she was born and it nearly destroyed my relationship with dp - babies are not cooperative with paint and handprints! (Seriously it descended into a screaming match lol ) maybe I'll try and do one on paper and mod podge it on? Any other ideas??
Facebook group is nice for photos but I don't post really.. I only got fab when Annie was born to share photos with my nana! I hate it, and have all manner of bizarre people trying to add me from the past - no thanks!

bluebell so true about workload but the money is so good and I can't afford a low paid job and part time :(
Can I ask a writing question - at school we were always made to plan stories and have an outline, I used to just like to write and see where it took me. What do you do? And if you plan do you stick with it?

julf ewww to creepy breastfeeding watchers! It's happened to me once and I was really upset by it. Mostly people smile/look away quickly/ come over and tell me about when they or their wife breastfed their kids and how lovely it was.
Feeding - I've heard the same, I've never counted how many feeds she has TBH but I'd say probs 6/7 in the day and between 2-4 at night (since the sleep regression ). I'm planning on baby led weaning so apparently the feeds don't reduce for ages after you start weaning.

becks she does need to go up a nappy size, using up the last of the 3s. However she did manage to poo spectacularly through a 4+ the other day that was fresh on

ruby lol at other people's obsessions with teething and weaning signs. Annie's a dribbler and a thumb sucker, pretty sure it's just who she is unless she's been teething since birth!

birchy I don't do it often because we don't have an isofix so the car seat tends to stay strapped into the car - but I have done that on occasion purely so I can get something done!

Nothing exciting to report here, dp still terrified about his head :( MRI scan is next Friday so praying we get answers soon. Anybody had an MRI on here? How long does it take for results?

julf yeah, I am scared of post-solids poo. HA, yes, you did say about the horse-pleasurer. Nice. And I did feel quite up-to-date using the word 'timeline' in a FB context, thank you very much for noticing ;) Thermos mug - genius. Going on Christmas list forthwith.

becks after a second poonami this morning (right up to the shoulders, through babygro, blanket and sheet - thankfully we were on the plastic covered travel cot mattress) I think we will be switching to size 4s for overnights.

Ruby Ruben was definitely taking 1000ml a day at 6 weeks old, when I was exclusively pumping. It's an amazing amount!

primary yep, agreed, it is good pay (although not when you work out your ACTUAL hourly rate!). Could you afford doing 4 days a week teaching? When I job-shared last year I was doing 1 day and my partner was doing 4, and I know that it made her feel that the job was manageable for her again. I took on Science so that one of the core subjects was removed from her. Downside is that you are still mostly in charge of the class - responsibility doesn't really decrease by 20% with the drop in hours. For example, I volunteered to do some parents' evenings alongside her, but she had to attend all of them.

Regarding writing... I've done it both ways! Paticularly with short stories - I like to start with just an overall vague idea - maybe a main plot - and work in sub-plots as I go. But for the novel I'm writing at the moment, I planned out a main plot and several sub-plots before I started, and even worked out roughly what would happen in each chapter for the majority of the book. Now I'm writing it, I can see that I need to go back and change things significantly - I didn't really 'know' the main characters until I got quite a way in to writing it, so now I have to go back and sort out inconsistencies in their characters from earlier on - but having that skeleton plot has definitely helped drive the writing forward, and has stopped me from being pedantic about things on a sentence-level to the detriment of the pace of the overall book. The plot is developing as I write, too. I listened to a very moving interview on Radio 4 yesterday about bullying, and there is a chunk of my novel that is about bullying... And I realised, listening to the interview, that I wasn't giving the bullying plot enough importance. So that will develop now.

Sorry, very long-winded answer!

I should imagine the MRI results are back very quickly? I don't know, though, I'm afraid. Really hope it goes well for your DP.

Right. On with the proper paid work now! Argh.

Hello ladies! Totes dropped off, sorry. We've been doing lots of travelling recently and DH's sister had her baby last week. Both doing well so now let my MIL comparisons commence!

17 weeks here and think we're in midst of sleep regression. Accepting less sleep for now abd doing ok at the moment. Hoping it will pass!

Some pics of cheeky little Mo

Hi Little Mo, you look like you're enjoying life even without sleep
At what age do we develop the desire to sleep? Because I just think it's the best thing ever and these babies don't know what they're missing!!

The mobile phone ban is out of the window tonight as I think am going to be awake for most of it. H had been snotty for a couple of days and then started crying uncontrollably at 5pm, even after being fed. Completely out of character. He then wouldn't sleep anywhere except on one of us, so I came to bed at 9.30pm to get a couple of hours sleep. Woke up at 11.30 to a very unhappy baby, boy and shivery, temp of 39.6 which completely freaked me out. Rang 111, usual advice and was supposed to get an OOH GP call within two hours (still not happened). Boy has been calpol-ed, temp gone down, but refuses to be put down Hate this.

On a lighter note, primary I was looking to shamelessly steal your bauble decorating ideas . Also, I really hope those results come back quickly, surely they can't keep you both waiting very long?!

Hello everyone!

Had a really busy few days looking after my 6 year old niece as well as my two! I'm surviving... just! Needed a wine in front of strictly last night let my niece stay up to watch it and filmed her copying the dancing to send her Mum so she thinks I'm the coolest aunt ever.

ruby bless you. That's awful, I'm glad the calpol is working. When Grace was ill the dr said if they're really miserable alternate the calpol and ibuprofen every three hours. Otherwise it's 6 hours i think?! Also have you got some saline drops or spray? These are marvellous at clearing their noses to help them breath a bit better. The baby Vicks stuff is fab too. I put on the bottom of her feet and on her chest. Grace has a little cough and cold. Hate this time of year.
I'm also not on FB group. I hardly use FB these days its changed so much to when I joined ten years ago (gulp) I was at uni and it was for pics and fun. Not so much these days it seems!
The formula didn't work out well. I woke to her being sick in her sleep! My plan is to try just give her small amounts and build up to a bottle. I do have a bank of expressed milk in the freezer but need that for my night away for Xmas do!

cheery mo is so gorgeous! Ignore the comparisons. It always makes me laugh too when people make out their baby is some sort of child genius. At some point I expect this kid to be in Mensa or you look foolish

Re poonamis I had an amazing one in the car yesterday. All down her leg and up her back. Was at my dads trying to sort it out and then she weed everywhere! Maybe I'll go up a size too when I've run out.

blue I'm so impressed with the writing and working! I can't even blow dry my hair these days. Keep up with it, you're doing so well.

primary can't believe how long you've had to wait. I had one on my ankle a few years ago as they weren't sure if it needed a pin. My results came pretty fast maybe four/five days? But I would see what they say and hopefully it won't be too long.

juflin I'm still feeding on demand. I actually have no idea how many times she feeds a day. Prob every two hours? Still every three of I'm lucky four hours at night. I'm not fussed till six months And she's on solids. Just ignore what people say. As long as you're happy with it that's all that matters!

Naice biscuits have been demolished. Bloody amazing bit punishment is no loss this week. Bugger. Lesson learnt/ I'll prob do it again this week

I'm sorry if I missed anything. The girls are racing around getting silly so must go!

Happy Sunday!

ruby poor you and poor little bub! I hate it when Mo is poorly. Hope you're all feeling better today! We've just come out of a miserable 48 hrs post jabs - M finally feeling more like himself and sleeping for more than 30 mins at a time overnight! Argh!!!

Ha! anna thanks for comparison support! Yes indeed, best left ignored! Same here on feeding. Still on demand so about every 2 hrs and then up to 4 over night (rare these days) Not had him weighed in a while but he's a chunky little chap and growing out of his clothes on a regular basis so think he's doing okay!

Well done everyone who's dieting! I'm incapable - Im still averaging one or two pieces of cake a day Can't imagine giving that up at the moment....

P.s. So sorry I've missed a shed tonne! Back on the thread now - I prefer it to facebook too x

Pps So impressed with book bluebell - how you have the concentration and will power, I do not know! More updates please, then I'll feel like I've actually read something more than a magazine!

Last thing - formula discussion - we're trying a bit everyday. M not a fan of bottle but like everyone else I'd like at some point to be able to go out for an evening! We've got a concert booked end of Jan so that's the deadline

ruby I will let you know what I end up doing about the bauble haha!

anna and cheery I haven't tried formula in the bottle yet - I had a night out a few weeks ago and ffs she bloody slept the whole time! I fed her to sleep at 7 and got back at 12.30 with 2 bottles of expressed milk in the fridge and she woke up just as I got in the door so I fed her without thinking - so still don't know if she'll take a bottle! It's like she knew there was no boob in the house so thought "fuck it, I'm sleeping til she gets back".
I'm sick of expressing though, I have some breastmilk in the freezer but inclined to save it for emergencies, if we try again soon I'm just gonna get formula - which type are you using?

Thanks for the well wishing everyone, I'm sure it will be fine but the prospect that it could be a tumour is really stressing him out :(

cheery look at mo sitting! Annie is nearly there, she usually topples forward after a few seconds though

ruby deleted the first bit about H! Poor baby and poor you! We've not had a medical fright yet but when it comes I don't know how I will handle it, I'm such a panicker. Hope he's feeling better now :(

Ruby I hope H is on the way to feeling better and you have all had some sleep!

Been busy busy here the last few days with birthdays, just catching up
while DD is at remembrance parade with brownies. Just realised it is her first ever church service which isn't a wedding so hopefully she hasn't committed any major faux paus ;)

My friend alas was not preggo but she did have exciting news in that they are emigrating which is a bit mad but very exciting to them they are off to live in the sunshine land of oz in April!

Formula we are planning on using HIPP as per lots of suggestions. Our microwave has died though so I need to go and get another one as we are off out for a few hours on saturday and I need to sterilise bottles and the pump so I can express some milk and we can test said formula.

Excellent work on the biscuits Anna, I have been demolishing my way through biscuits this week but have hidden the christmas ones for now...

Best go as just looked around and R has managed to grab a lead I have no idea how he reached.. sometimes I think he may secretly have go go gadget arms!

Thanks all, H still not his usual happy self, but less hot and has mainly been sleeping, so fingers crossed whatever it is will be out of his system soon. Stayed up until 7am having a Bondi Rescue/Murder She Wrote/Say Yes To The Dress marathon to keep me awake then handed over to DH for a few hours.
Anna yes, I'd heard about alternating the Para/Ibru, must get some Ibruprofen in. He hates Calpol though, obvs hasn't got his mothers' sweet tooth.
Late night parent fail - phone on Do Not Disturb from work days, so ended up missing 4 calls from OOH people. Whoops.

Have no idea if this is a fluke or not, but mixing the HIPP 50/50 with breast milk seems to have helped it go down a bit better. Guess it might help the digestion and taste? Either that or he's a typical man and doesn't care what route his food arrives or what it is
Also, if you're mixing bottle and boob, google 'paced bottle feeding' as it helps them adjust to the flow from the years which is more constant than the boob. I really like the MAM bottles as his mouth shape seems to be quite similar to bfing.

Rolly crikey that's a slightly different update to the one you were expecting!! Laughed at the endless possibilities for church errors... let us know how she got on.

Woah! Busy on the thread since I last looked!

primary If you go with the bauble idea the woman at my baby group said footprints are easier than handprints under 6 months. I definitely wouldn't be able to get E to unclench his fist for long enough even then I'd have to get all the strands of my hair out from his fingers!

Julfin Congrats on being discharged after your CBT sessions and I'm glad to hear how useful you found it. I'm currently trying to persuade Mil to sign up for some to help with depression. I'm also confused about the number of feeds, however we formula feed. E has dropped from 6 to 5 feeds a day but is still having the same amount (7oz) each time, I just don't know how he can get by on less!

Ruby I'll definitely enjoy having other adults to talk to once back at work, preferably about non baby related topics. That's proper sitting up from H! E does 2 seconds of sitting then gracefully topples over. Hope the little man feels better soon and you can get a bit more rest.

Bluebell Great achievement with the book word count. If you are quarter of the way through writing a book you started on sept 23rd and I'm three quarters of the way reading a book I started on july 13th, who will finish first?

E is 16 weeks next week and I'm just waiting for the dreaded sleep regression to start. We are very lucky with him sleeping through but I'm not taking it for granted as I know it's unlikely to last. Thinking of taking him to get weighed next week as we've not been for a month and I'd like to see how he's doing. How often do you all get them weighed?

primary do you know what type of tumour they are thinking he might have? You said a benign one right? Its hard to say how long it might take to get results, could be anything from a few days to a few weeks. The person doing the scan should be able to tell him a rough timescale once they've finished.

sunday Annie's last weigh in was around 5 weeks ago so I'll probably go next week. She's a happy chunk and keeps growing out of clothes so no real worries about weight here.
They have said it could be a low grade myeloma (sp?) or benign or a calcified lump, a bruise or something else entirely.. and that if it is a tumour it's likely benign as symptoms aren't developing rapidly :/

Arghghghgh Annie is now up every 2 hours in the night soooo tiiireeeddd

primary Eurgh to the 2 hourly feeds. Similar story here. Little monkeys. I really hope it improves soon. There is definitely a growth spurt in the air. Hope Annie gets the sleep memo. I've had a bit of a skim so just wanted to also check in on DPs MRI /results?

julf amazing news on being discharged from CBT. I always sit on my phone whilst feeding - always have and probably always will! Oops. Did you manage to go swimming in the end? I'm hoping to go on Wednesday but will see!

bluebell you are steaming ahead with the word count. So much willpower and dedication, especially with a baby to occupy you!

cheery Mo is just looking so gorge! Cheeky little chappy

becks great growth gorgeous Ben.

Ruby wow very clever on the sitting! We almost balanced upright this afternoon at Baby Sensory but nothing since . Take your word for it about not being an axe murderer

Also having poonami explosions every time. I thought size 3s would last forever so we still have so many to get through...

Major sleeping/hunger issues .. me panicking about weight gain.. I've been supplementing with quite a bit of formula.. been a sad few days but I think the BF feeds are dropping. He just doesn't want to face me he wants to look around the room, so isn't taking in a full feed, then is hungry again. Hoping to keep up the odd feed but not sure if it will work?

Cookies thats sad about the breast feeding , they are such nosey parkers!! I think you maybe able to take back unopened nappies and exchange for a bigger size?

When you write a really long post and lose the lot

Can't remember who said what but I would suggest bigger nappies for poonami, we have had to go to size three and still have loads of twos left, trying to find a receipt so can return.

Phones- I don't think I will stop doing this, it's often when I catch up on emails and calls!

What do we think about having tv on? Sophie does "watch" it but it's the news or this morning or pointless. We do have radio on instead sometimes and I do play / sing etc so do you think it's ok to have telly on a fair bit? Can't sit with no tv n no phone all day!

Naps are now 40 mins three times a day if I'm lucky - but we do go well through the night, still think she gets over tired in day and could do with longer but only usually get this if I hold her to nap. How long are yours awake before next nap? Sophie manages two hours now. When they drop a nap do the other two get longer?

Has anyone achieved the "put down sleepy but awake" goal yet? I have no chance, bum pats to sleep all the way here.

sunday you've reminded me that H hasn't been weighed for 5 weeks, so will probably get that done on Thurs. But he's definitely growing, just got out some bigger clothes, thought I'd indulge myself with the attached after the weekend that I've had!

primary yawn, that is tough going, fingers crossed Annie stops that soon!

cookies sorry to hear about the bfing, is your next weigh in this week or next? If you can keep up some feeds, it should be possible to up them again once he's through this phase - it's probably really hard with other small people, but H is really distracted in the mornings and the only way I get him to feed a decent amount is to wait until he's been awake for an hour (got all the looking around it of his system) and then feed him lying down.

sophie we did mange a few of those put downs, then he stopped putting up with it about the same time as naps reduced for us too. He only sleeps for longer in the car seat in the car, which I can't do every lunchtime! Am hoping that this is the sleep regression and it stays at daytime and nights keep being ok...
Tv all sounds very educational!

Forgot photo!

He looks so sweet ruby Love the chilled out sleeping position! E tends to do the starfish when asleep in his cot- a far cry from the curled up newborn he once was. I can't make it to the HV until next week now so it'll be 5 weeks between weigh ins for us too.

Sophie He seems very interested in the TV which I feel guilty about but I never put him in front of it on purpose, I catch up on iPlayer during feeds and naps. I think he just likes the movement and colours. Pointless is a favourite here too and for some reason he finds Jeremy Paxman really funny! I tend to do stuff round the house when he's awake so we have radio on then.

He manages 2 hours awake before needing a nap but the morning and early afternoon can be very short, perhaps 20mins, and the late afternoon one is longer, maybe an hour. It varies according to what we are doing that day but I figure he will regulate his naps depending on what he needs that day.

Cookies I'm not the best person to answer your queries about breast feeding. I know a little about mix feeding though as I breast and formula fed (and expressed) for 4 weeks due to very low supply. I found E very quickly started to refuse the breast in favour of the easier bottle feed and although I intended to do both, I had to give up breast feeding sooner than I would have liked. Not sure what point I'm trying to make here but I would be wary of supplementing too much if you want to carry on breastfeeding. Any good support groups near you?

friendlyfirstfoods.co.uk/

For those who are thinking about weaning soon!