August 2021 Babies - They Had To Be Gorgeous, Just Look At Us

[PurplePansy05]

Welcome to the chattiest post-natal club on MN!

We spent a year together chatting about all things pregnancy and baby...

...we've tried and tested countless baby products...

...exchanged hundreds of tips...

...talked about all the big things in life, all the little things, the good times and the tough times...

...we had a good laugh together 😁...

...and somehow we now have gorgeous 3 month old babies without looking a day older ourselves 😅 (must be that good laugh!)

Graduates of the August 2021 (and thereabouts) thread:

@Smurf123 & baby Sophia 💖
@wimbler & her baby boy 💙
@Jessicapebbles & baby Ebony💖
@Inmypjsagain & her baby boy 💙
@PurplePansy05 & baby Leo Alexander 💙
@WinterBabyof89 & baby Rosie 💖
@Winecoffeeteamum & baby Emily 💖
@Ready2020 & baby Rowan 💖
@Magik01 & baby Isaac 💙
@Hoares3 & baby Ellis 💙
@Daffodil21 & baby Elliot James 💙
@sarah13xx & baby Freddie 💙
@MrsB2019x & baby Ella💖
@biscuitcat & baby Rowan 💙
@Whatshouldbemyusername & baby Arya-Nyah 💖
@notinthestarsigns & baby Erin 💖
@Aaaaa1519 & baby Anum 💖
@Angelesque & baby Isaac 💙
@Millymay13 & baby Ethan 💙
@WolfMother326 & baby Alasdair 💙
@BertieBotts & baby Alex 💙
@RandomCatGenerator & baby Solomon 💙
@lucyrp & baby Evelyn Rose 💖
@HopefulB & baby Chloé 💖
@Mmr224 & baby Alasdair 💙
@Smallbean27 & her baby boy 💙
@Fran919 & her baby girl 💖
@Caz1226 & baby Dougie 💙
@Ava50x & her baby boy 💙
@dirtyfries & baby Frankie 💖
@ame88 & baby Lily 💖

Sorry if I've missed anyone, please join in! xx

@BertieBotts wow thanks for the info, good to know! She definitely trained a while ago. She was asking if I’d started giving him food today and said she presumed he was in his big cot now 🤔 I was like eh no and no he’s still in the snuzpod in with us. That was the one who told me at the start to give him a bath at 11pm though.. who wants a bath at 11pm?! 🙈😂

@sarah13xx she asked you if you'd started giving him food yet?! That's so bad! We were supposed to see ours at 12 weeks - DS is now over 13 weeks and I still haven't heard anything. I'm not planning to chase. I'm sure there are lovely HV but I'm not keen on mine. Yours sounds awful though!

@sarah13xx if my HV said that to me I’d be very 🤨 did she forget he’s 3 months old?!?

Re the late bath, I joined an august babies group on peanut which I lurk on, someone asked for routines and so many people said baby bedtime was 11pm with a bath at half 10, so maybe late baths are a thing for some people? We did bath time at half 7 once and I thought we’d left it too late!

I think some people take a view that a bath breaks up the feed to sleep cycle. However, my DS would never fall asleep straight after - he wants us to chat to him, cuddles and boob. So I give him what he needs because I take a view if it ain't broken, don't fix it. We are slowly getting somewhere with him napping in the evening but he sure will still feed a lot and the 11pm feed is a must. This works for us.

I think it's possible to request a change of HV if there's more than one covering your area @sarah13xx. I'd consider this if I were you, she sounds like a waste of precious time. xx

@Daffodil21 She’s actually quite a nice person but has come away with so many things now that I’m like none of this is following anything the NHS says 🙈 @Inmypjsagain yeah we’ve always done a bath about 7ish even when he used to go down then get another feed at 11. I just knew if I started a bath at 11 I’d then have to move it to earlier when he started going to bed earlier 🙄 @PurplePansy05 yeah on paper it doesn’t really sound great does it 😂🤦🏼‍♀️ I’m seeing her again next month, if she’s as useless then I’ll maybe enquire about changing!

I spend all day yawning, drink too much tea then can’t sleep every single night. I need to switch back to the decaff teabags I used to have when I was pregnant. Still sitting here at midnight every night wide awake while he’s been sleeping since before 8 🤦🏼‍♀️ I have a cheek to be tired every day when it’s nothing to do with my baby!

How do you know if your DC is starting a sleep regression? DD is 12 weeks and her sleep over the last few nights has been terrible. I think the dummy issue is secondary as she's waking up anyway then realising the dummy is out her mouth. She's been a lot more restless and crying in her sleep, more light sleeping and aware of noise in the room and more waking and needs to be put back down.

I was wondering if I need to introduce another feed at night. She has slept through for 6 or 7 hours since about 6 weeks! Since moving her to the bedroom this has gone down a bit as I think I disturb her but she usually only feeds before bed at 7 then again about 3sm then again in the morning about 7am. This can vary depending when she wakes. Her last feed of the evening can be a fraught one, between crying before bed so I'm not convinced she takes enough. I've never dream fed, didn't know it was a thing!

@sarah13xx when I had DS nearly 7 years ago the advice was to wean at 3-4 months!

@Ready2020 this sounds exactly like DD. She used to have a nap between 5.30-6.30 then awake for a couple of hours and go down at 9 for the night which is when I'd go to sleep and then she'd wake at 1ish then 5/6ish but she's changed it herself to skipping that nap and going down for the night at 7pm then waking at 4 and again at 6/7

@Ready2020 our local JL has a feeding room but really it’s just the baby change room with some chairs and a bottle warmer. Nice that there’s somewhere to go but it’s a bit dingy and smelly because of the nappy bins. The cafe is better 😂 the local Morrisons however has a good one!

If their sleep is changing dramatically at this point I would assume it’s the 4 month regression. It can hit from 3 months. My advice is to try and keep things consistent and they will hopefully be able to ride it out. They change so much developmentally at around 4 months which is why it happens.

@sarah13xx I recommend the twinings English breakfast decaf. I’ve tried many and they’re the best in my opinion!

@sarah13xx That's really concerning she asked about food! Much too early and goes against NHS guidelines - maybe worth a word with someone higher up even. Unless she wanted to tell you to stop I suppose :o

@Ready2020 never overthink sleep, the progression of it is not linear during the first year or so anyway and also looking at patterns over a few days will drive you mad thinking what have I done to cause this?? It's an illusion that you have control (mostly) - the majority of the time you have done nothing, it's just babies being babies.

I think we have the Lamaze wrist rattles. I'd be cautious of the weird never heard of before brands on amazon as they are often Chinese dropshipped products, the exact same things you'd get on Wish but priced higher and may not meet Western safety standards.

Thanks @Inmypjsagain - really interesting Instagram story. I’ll try that! There’s no stopping DS to when he’s awake and determined he is hungry - he can bawl the place down and we live in a block of flats!

@sarah13xx is she confused with someone else perhaps? I know HVs have heavy workloads, maybe that’s the answer? Otherwise very odd indeed!

We have some pretty wrist rattles shaped like little foxes that were gifted from JJMB. Haven’t tried them yet but they are mighty pretty.

@RandomCatGenerator she did say the wrong name at one point but it was a name very like mine so I just ignored it and thought she doesn’t even know my name either 🙄😂 she went on and on about how he was 3 months so she definitely knew his age!

@BertieBotts I know, she’s said quite a few things that have been the opposite of the guidelines. Was saying she thought he’d be in his own room by now too when that’s clearly the opposite of what it says!

@lucyrp yeah I think she’s obviously still going by those guidelines then

@wimbler I really need to try them

Think my first period may be on the way. In terrible sore pain today 🥴🥴 11 weeks pp and didn't expect it so soon especially when EBF🤨

Oh that’s interesting about the late bath breaking the cycle- so do babies generally feel tired after a bath? We have it as part of a routine so he knows it’s nearly bedtime but I don’t think he comes out drowsy, if anything he’s stimulated!

I second twinings decaf, only tea I found tolerable in pregnancy.

@BertieBotts oh good point about the rattles on amazon, I wouldn’t have thought about that! I’ll look at Lamaze and JJMB!

@RandomCatGenerator well I thought that too, if he yelled after food for more we wouldn’t have not fed him, but we gradually reduced it and it seemed fine, he’d finish a 4oz and fall asleep straight away… but as I say this could be just a coincidence and he would have naturally done that, I’m not sure, but it’s worth a try imo!

Oh I just thought of another way to do tummy time if your babies hate it, I only twigged I do it when I popped him on my lap this morning, but if you have your knees up and have baby on their front facing out, he seems to spend ages watching tv from that position (or looking at something) and maybe not as harsh as being on the floor?

@lucyrp I’m not ebf but have had 2 periods now and it sucks! Hope it’s not a bad one

DS3 is totally exhausted after a bath but he still wants milk to go to sleep :o Interestingly though he sleeps much better/more deeply after a bath and I'm more likely to be able to sneak away.

DS1 used to get stimulated and excited by bathtime. It never worked to calm him down for bed.

Hi everyone, Hope everyone is doing well!

Thank you for the lovely intro @PurplePansy05! I’ve been lurking but haven’t had the time to actually post. Had a few bad nights with DS so not sure if the 4 month sleep regression is early?

I’ve been using my breastfeeding pillow for tummy time if anyone has one of them C shaped ones. I find it’s not too bulky for him and it raises him just enough of the floor so he seems a lot more comfortable rather than doing it completely flat if that makes sense?

@sarah13xx I wouldn’t worry too much about mile stones, each baby is very different! My first didn’t crawl until he was one, couldn’t really keep his head up himself for long at 5 months so we were referred to physio for him! He’s now a chatty 3 year old that has so much energy and no floppy head 🤣

I still have a Velcro baby who only sleeps on me in the day as well, literally whenever I put him down he’s awake within minutes. He just KNOWS!!

Also had his second set of immunisations today so hoping they don’t knock him too bad. He has cried quite a bit since them though. ☹️ Also a lot of drool here too!

On the point of the bath, it seems to wake our baby up and make him very chatty so we've started doing it before last nap or even in the morning.

I agree @PurplePansy05 if it's not broken don't fix it. We're still feeding to sleep and then baby sleeps well in his cot so I'm fine with it for now.

Has any one else had a bad experience with 12 week jabs? DS had them today and has been fussing and crying all evening and just shot up with a fever. Have given Calpol but didn't expect it as there was no MenB this time. Feel a bit worried tbh.

@WolfMother326 I was told that a fever was possible after the 12 week vaccinations and to just keep an eye on DD. Not sure what element of the vaccinations would give a fever but it is possible. Hope your DS feels better soon.

We're trying some time with DD alone in cot and monitor on. Just an hour or so. I really don't know what I expect to happen. Well I do know what I fear and that's she will stop breathing for some reason and I wasn't there to help her. Its irrational but can't help it.

I can confirm that the John Lewis cafe is flipping roasting. Was nice to meet the NCT ladies but being the only one not living in Edinburgh I'm not sure I'll be meeting them as much. Bit of a shame really.

@Ready2020 I still think that but I reassure myself a lot knowing the risk of sids drastically reduces towards 4 months so although we’re not out of the woods (don’t know that you ever are again when you have a child 🤔) it definitely feels ‘safer’ now that he’s a bit bigger. Still use the snuza hero clip on breathing monitor every night because in my head he can’t breathe without that clipped on to him.. honestly don’t know how he manages it the other 12 hours of the day 😂

@WolfMother326 he was fine after the first jabs, just sleepy (which I’d guess was more the calpol) but he had the 12 week ones last week and I don’t even think he’s back to himself yet. He’s had terrible stomach issues from the drops in his mouth this time, he was completely fine with it last time but he’s been crying a lot more and pulling his legs to his belly in pain a lot at the weekend

@Magik01 aww that’s good to know! It really doesn’t matter in the long term at all, they’ll all get there eventually. I really didn’t give it a second thought until she was in yesterday and explicitly said he was ‘behind’ or whatever the phrase she used was, when he can hold it just not for more than 30 seconds or something 🤔 I think the sense of panic or fear or whatever it is she’s made me feel is more due to guilt thinking have I not been doing enough? but I’ve since googled a lot about tummy time and the fact some people don’t do it at all and they’re fine has made me stop worrying about it 🤦🏼‍♀️

I’m also pleased to report after almost exactly 4 weeks… (drum roll please)…

My period has stopped.. I think 😂🎉 Didn’t think this day would ever come!

We might eventually have sex again one week soon, still going since I was 32 weeks pregnant or something.. I think that’s 5 months 🙈

@BertieBotts thanks for the info on tummy time. I just didn't want her to fall behind her milestones due to something I haven't done. End of the day I know all babies are individuals and will reach their targets at their own times. I guess also seeing there are so many of us whose LOs hate it. I have started trying with a pillow etc. See if that helps. @Inmypjsagain thanks for the tip on the knees, will try that too tomorrow.

I'm also on the august babies group and yes I was surprised too with ladies bathing babies at 11. I gave her a bath today at 7:15 and thought that's late too! I want to aim for 7ish. She's EBF so she fell asleep at 8:45 and just woke up for a feed now. Hoping she sleeps till atleast 5 or so now!

@sarah13xx oh your poor baby. Sorry he's so uncomfortable - I did read after my last post that it can take up to a week for them to feel back to normal so hopefully they'll be better soon.