Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

Please or to access all these features

Post-natal clubs

Join our Postnatal Clubs forum to find parenting advice for newborns.

August 2021 Babies - From Santa to Solids, Hohoho!

998 replies

PurplePansy05 · 20/12/2021 14:32

Here we go again!

I'd do another delightful intro, alas I've lost count which thread this is now and we all know our LO's names anyway 😁

So instead I will just say, Merry First Christmas together to you and your LOs! 🎄❤🎁

May the sleep regression pass as soon as they see Santa later this week...

...May they love weaning and may our kitchens survive...

...May 2022 be full of blessings for them and for us ❤❤❤

Oldcomers and newcomers welcome, as always! 🥰

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Thread gallery
11
RandomCatGenerator · 22/01/2022 18:57

Defrosts just fine in my very limited experience so far! We use silly apple shaped ones for fruit Grin

Inmypjsagain · 22/01/2022 19:13

Apple one sounds like a good idea to differentiate between fruit and veg!

I didn’t realise there’s a weaning forum here, the posts seem quite similar but there’s an interesting one asking if anyone regrets BLW.

Smurf123 · 22/01/2022 20:10

Should I be concerned that dd still needs size 0 mam teats on the bottle?
Tried size 1 tonight but she's spiling the milk out the sides of her mouth and making like a clicking noise when She sucks

Smurf123 · 22/01/2022 20:11

Also she isn't a fan of purées so far but will happily suck/ chew on a slice of toast/ raw carrot/melty puffs/ cucumber/ watermelon sticks

PurplePansy05 · 22/01/2022 20:35

His teeth look exactly the same as two weeks ago, still not through but very close. 🤷🏼‍♀️

@Inmypjsagain I was thinking about removing tomato skin first but how would you make tomato puree more creamy? I don't want to mix them with formula, sounds rather disgusting 🤮 could they be pureed and cooked with a bit of passata maybe? Then maybe sweet potato with it?

Also I've tried pureed peppers and mixed them up with carrot and sweet potato and whilst yhe flavours go well, I got rid of it as no matter how hard I tried to blend it, tiny pieces of pepper skin were still in it and they were sticking to my throat and I really didn't want to gove it to him. Maybe roasting peppers first would help? I'm struggling a bit here xx

OP posts:
biscuitcat · 22/01/2022 20:43

Oh my goodness so much chat!

We still haven't started weaning, I'm holding out till 6 months as we get back from our holiday just a couple of days before then so I figured that would be a good time to start anyway - really looking forward to it!

Teething is a bit of a pain at the moment, he doesn't seem to be in massive pain with it but it's definitely affecting his sleep, in particular, he used to go down from 7/8-ish until whenever we woke him, but the past week or two he's been up at 10 which is cutting our evenings short as we tend to just go up to bed then. In a way I really hope that's a teething thing, as it means it will end!

@BertieBotts we're having between 2 and 4 naps, usually about 2.5! I don't know how it would be if I put him down to nap in the cot, but he sleeps quite well with contact napping which I think is why it's reduced, as each one can be quite long.

Ready2020 · 22/01/2022 20:48

I think that with weaning the hard work seems to be starting! We're now forever going to have to decide what to have for dinner Grin

I'm only giving DD something every other day if that. Should I be doing it every day? There are days when I'm out and I don't want to feed her later on in the day.

She has been very disgusted with the food so far. But I think she might like the sweet stuff like her mama. Tomorrow is sweet potato or peas.

DD sleeps every night now on her front or side. I'm a bit more relaxed with it now. She has also rolled from front to back a few times but doesn't seem too bothered about doing it unless she really wants a toy. She isn't quite sitting up unaided yet but can balance on her hands.

Has anyone found it more difficult to put baby down to sleep? DD is resisting it more these days and we really need to be careful that she doesn't nap too close to bed otherwise it's melt down!

Is anyone considering a childminder rather than nursery? I've discovered that the only nursery available only gets a 3 out of 6 on the care inspectorate. I think I'm stuck with it until I get to the front of the waiting lists for childminders as I'm a bit late sorting it all!

Ready2020 · 22/01/2022 21:00

Oh is anyone still doing plenty of night feeds? DD still wakes 2 or 3 times for a feed and it's not just a wee bit so I think she's genuinely hungry. Part of me thinks I'm taking the easy way out though and just feeding her back to sleep. But another part of me thinks she'll stop waking to feed when she's ready and doesn't need it...

Smurf123 · 22/01/2022 21:04

@PurplePansy05 lots may not agree but dd had homemade pizza this week 🙈 well sliced tiger loaf then topped with passata and grated cheese. She loved it .. may not be the healthiest but I figure she's allowed all the elements and it was what ds and I were having for a quick dinner before his sports club.
But I'll hold my hands up and say I don't think I'd have given it to ds .. But she was fed up with her carrot sticks and reaching eagerly for it every time we took a bite 😂

August 2021 Babies - From Santa to Solids, Hohoho!
Smurf123 · 22/01/2022 21:18

@Ready2020 dd had a good night last night with a feed at 7, 1130, 3, 5 and then 8am
Night before she was up every hour and would only settle with a feed

Also my mum is a childminder and my ds went to her from he was 6months and I loved it, he hated the year he did in crèche due to covid (could have been that specify crèche though as he loves preschool now)

I think if you get a good childminder they are worth their weight in gold! But it depends what you want. My mum offers home from home. So cuddles on the sofa, occasional treats, party days, day trips, mothers and toddlers when babies but also will nip in to Tesco if she needs a small bit of shopping. With other kids she minded they would have gone to my granny's once a week with my mum when she went etc. Their parents knew and were happy with that. They all grew up calling my granny and granda, granny and granda too. In the past 19 years my mum has worked with 2 families - the first she had from the oldest child was 8 months until the youngest child turned 12 and went to secondary school, she still visits them and sends them birthday and Christmas presents the oldest just turned 19. The second family's oldest is now 16 but they still have one child in primary school and he still goes to Mum. Again she had the siblings until they loved to secondary school so just get the bus home themselves. Ds will be going back to her but she isn't able to take dd at the baby stage due to after effects of illness/ treatment. So I'm going to send dd to a crèche (a different one from the one ds went to). I don't know any other childminders in the area and I kind of feel there's a safety in numbers. Plus the crèche is on the adjacent grounds to ds school so I will be able to drop them both off at the same time from September instead of having to do 2 separate drop offs. (Will be doing the 2 drop offs until ds starts primary school)

biscuitcat · 22/01/2022 22:40

@Ready2020 we're on 2/3 wakes most nights - I feed to sleep, but also think he might not be super hungry as he doesn't have a big feed. My current plan is to get him moved into his own room in the next couple of weeks, and once that's all settled, get DH to go in with some water (so he doesn't see me and wonder why he isn't getting the good stuff 😂), and see if that makes him not bother waking! Might not work, but worth a try...

PurplePansy05 · 22/01/2022 22:45

That's super cute @Smurf123, look at her 🥰 Totally no judgement here. I'm thinking to start DS on some pasta and homemade sauce which really isn't far of your pizza ingredients-wise as soon as he is more confident at picking up pieces of food. He wasn't to begin with, but there definitely is a lot more interest in doing it now, so who knows, maybe next week. I'm not following anything tbh, apart from my own instinct. I just make something fresh for him every day and let him try, and give some finger foods too to give him something to explore and hold as well. He basically eats whatever we have at home, so whatever fruit and veg we eat in any given week. I actually offer food twice a day, mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Obviously there's still a long way to go before he eats everything in a non-pureed form and I know he will inevitably go off some things. But I'm very happy he is enjoying the new flavours, smells and colours and he is actually eating nice size portions too and that's what feels right for us. Rome wasn't built in a day 😊

I know some parents don't believe it's true, but it is for my son - food helps with his sleep, especially during the day. He's been doing 3 naps, about an hour long, sometimes one 1.5hr or so for about a week now. Night sleep is around 12 hrs, it varies, but seems to be roughly 8.30-8.30 atm. He wakes up at 4am and sometimes at 7am but self-settles now. I am hoping for a 7-7 sleep eventually. He feeds lots during the day, still the same amount of bf and his bottle and more and more food in addition to milk. It looks like he's burning a lot of energy playing and practicing his sitting skills and there's a potential 6m growth spurt going on too as I breastfed loads today.

On a separate note, Smurf, your mum sounds absolutely lovely! 😊 xx

OP posts:
BertieBotts · 23/01/2022 08:15

@PurplePansy05 did you see my post about the Joie Steadi the other day? It's £66 in Tesco at the moment and makes a great spare if you plan on rear facing. But I'll try and get a post written this week assuming Leo is OK to go to Kita (fingers crossed as they have two cases of covid there).

We had two poos yesterday, hurrah! The first was a bit more paste like and had a stronger smell and lots of food remnants in, then the second was his perfectly normal poo exploding in random directions :o I have bought a couple of jars - carrots and rice; carrot, rice and chicken and carrot, potato and turkey. Couldn't find any prune but it wasn't needed anyway. I have remembered that all jars in Germany are 90% carrot, rice, apple or pear Hmm There was a completely smooth "spaghetti bolognese" but I didn't fancy the look of that 🤢 I will have to get onto making some because all the jars taste exactly the same.

I think I'd roast the tomatoes and peppers and then blend and sieve to get the skin out. You could then mix with couscous, use as pasta sauce or rice (baby rice?) if the taste is a bit strong. Or just cut up raw pepper and serve in strips. Tinned tomatoes or passata is a good way to get tomato taste too, you could mix that with mashed potato and courgette, or scrambled egg. (I love tinned tomatoes and scrambled egg!) Making a kind of "ratatouille" is great as well - my mum used to make this without aubergine, it's full of flavour and blends down well for babies.

The whole allergies if given before 6 months thing is meant to be outdated, although I think it's still NHS advice to avoid those things. Interestingly ages for different foods vary around the world. For tomatoes, I think it's to do with the acidity and the similarity to the nightshade plant rather than allergies. For example some countries say to avoid kiwi and strawberries until a later time too. But there was an interesting study in Israel where babies are often given peanut puffs as a first food and they have lower peanut allergies than anywhere else in the world. From this more research is being done and they are finding that the earlier an allergen is introduced the better, although still not before 17 weeks. If you have family history of allergies then you should speak to a doctor though.

@RandomCatGenerator I did a long post on weaning at one point, possibly near the beginning of this thread?

Another way to get skin off easily is to blanch the veg in boiling water, but I imagine it makes them a bit tasteless. Never tried it.

No teeth here yet. I don't think it's a problem to keep using size 0 teats :)

@Ready2020 We don't give food every day although he wants it most days. I just did a couple of days off to allow for that poo to come through. Then this morning he had a suck on some raisin bread again. Will probably give him some lunch today. We still have night feeds. They do stop by themselves, but just to be aware that if you're waiting for that it tends to take longer than if you help them along a bit. My other two both had night feeds well into their second year. I think I will try night weaning around 15mo this time, and I'm thinking of putting him in the room with DS2 at around 8 months this time (and co-sleeping in the second half of the night if he still wakes up a lot).

I used a childminder with DS1 and she was lovely. I think it can be great for babies as it's a bit more like home for them. However we will probably go with a nursery when the time comes here as the language barrier stresses me out.

Yummy! Pizza is a great food for babies, especially home made.

PurplePansy05 · 23/01/2022 08:28

@BertieBotts I did and I looked up that seat and there werr none on Tesco online and the one nearest to us doesn't do car seats. It came up on Smyths I think but wasn't that price. Did you see it online? This is what's inspired my friend and mine conversation in fact.

A sieve!!! Blush Fgs how did I not think of that!!! 🙈 Cheers! And some great ideas about introducing tomatoes, scrambled egg tomato was my favourite childhood meal! Grin xx

OP posts:
BertieBotts · 23/01/2022 08:45

It's normally about £100 - it might be they have all sold out in Tesco maybe? I just heard about it on the car seat groups.

Daffodil21 · 23/01/2022 09:06

@PurplePansy05 you are living my actual dream with 8:30-8:30 😂😂

Smurf123 · 23/01/2022 10:07

@PurplePansy05 the steadi is also in Halfords online if it's any use it's £89 but enter sale10 for an extra 10% off until Monday so would bring it down to about £80

Smurf123 · 23/01/2022 10:07

@Daffodil21 mine too 😂

Daffodil21 · 23/01/2022 10:21

@Smurf123 see you at 3am 😂

PurplePansy05 · 23/01/2022 10:43

@Daffodil21 I just looked at Halfords and am fuming - they do indeed have this offer BUT this seat is not available for click & collect or delivery anywhere near me, and we're talking stores within a 50 mile radius too. I even put London as the location just to see what comes up and it's not available either. The bastards basically advertise it on their website but it's nowhere to be seen Angry It would have been ideal though, so thank you for sharing anyway!

Any thoughts on Joie Tilt anyone cause it seems similar specs-wise to me? xx

OP posts:
BertieBotts · 23/01/2022 10:56

Joie Tilt is indeed very similar but it's really small. If you have a budget of up to £150, probably just hold on as the Tilt is always about £70 so there's no rush to buy it now.

Ready2020 · 23/01/2022 22:29

@bertie when you say help them along a bit how can I do that? So she wakes up and instead of feeding her I just comfort her, hold her and shush her? I think that's where we aren't sure what to do. Like tonight she woke up at 9pm and needed a feed. She's awake now and OH comes through saying she's awake and needs another feed. She was only fed an hour ago so I'm pretty sure she's not hungry. It's just more work to try putting her back down without boob! So I've left him to it.

BertieBotts · 24/01/2022 07:25

I don't know, sorry. I've never sleep trained, it doesn't feel right to me. But I think some other posters have had success :) I can tell you about night weaning that I've done with DS2 as a toddler but it's probably not the same.

BertieBotts · 24/01/2022 07:27

I'll rephrase, at this age, I've always gone with path of least resistance which is generally feeding back to sleep. I just tend to think they are going to wake up anyway so might as well go with the least amount of disruption.

We had a fairly good night last night. Only woke up at 2am and 6.30!

Dia12 · 24/01/2022 09:12

You must be exhausted @Ready2020, I've heard from a few of their babies getting up frequently overnight around 6 months. There is so much going on right now for them, could be teething, growth spurt, sleep regression or separation anxiety.
If she's still hungry, could try bottle feeding expressed milk and see if she takes a bigger feed before bed and that may make her sleep for longer.
Hope she settles soon.