December 2007: It's all worth it for the smiles.

[claraquitetirednow]

I've never started a new thread before - has this worked?

I guess all our LOs seem to be getting to the same stage with feeding then! DD also seems to go 3 to 4 hours between feeds regardless of how long she feeds for! I guess the flow gets faster and the milk consistency changes too. I have noticed DDs poo and sick are much thicker! She is doing okay for weight, not following the line but am not too worried as I can see how well she is growing! Ordered her a load of bigger clothes (coming tomorrow), got her some denim skirts and cute tops with little capped sleeves and ordered some tights and long sleeved vests to go with them so they will be suitable for nice or nasty weather!

can i just give those whose LO are being pesky feeders a virtual cheerlead dance. This is what DD started to do and instead of just going with it i tried to "fix" it and started reaching for the bottle thinking that she was fussy at the breast for some sinsister reason!! If only I had just kept at it she wouldnt have fallen in love with her Dr Browns!

I am LOVING the medela symphony - now have very satisfying row of breast milk bottles in the fridge!!

What size clothes are the little ones in - mathilda is reaching the limit on most of her 0-3 stuff but dont want to make the jump to 3-6 cos then she is well and truly growing up!!!

Pecka - great news that the pump is working for you. What a relief!

Rory is in 3-6 now, but he should be, he's 4 months next week. Some of the Tesco sleep suits for the new size up are a bit long in the leg though.

Thanks for the advice Pecka, I have been considering reaching for the bottle, I think I will just persevere - am sure she will not starve herself! Fantastic news that the pump is working well so she can still have plenty of BM!

Evie is 11 weeks old and I have just put her into 6-9 month clothing! She is just too ?long for the 3-6 month stuff, her dungarees were giving her a wedgie, her dresses were showing off her nappy all the time and her trousers were leaving her with cold ankles! 6-9 stuff is quite baggy on her though! Was a little sad about it as she is not a newborn anymore (and she's my last baby) but also excited as she is becoming more of a little person everyday as her personality is developing!

And its a fab reason to buy more cute girly clothes for her!

not sure where that rogue ? came from in my post!

Pecka so glad the pump is working for you, do you feel better about things now you are able to give her more bm?

Wobbegong, no their comments don't put me off at all, if anything I feel slightly smug about it. Normally I wouldn't judge people for how they feed their baby as it is their choice but when they are so damning about my choice, without even proper reasons why I can't help but feel sorry for them. Am all for choice but informed choice. Does that make sense? Am probably making myself sound like a bf nazi now and I'm not I promise! It definitely makes me want to do the peer supporter thing though, it's a real shame that people are so uneducated about bf and it's not surprising that the uptake is so low round here if people rare coming up against attitudes like that without having access to decent information.

DS is still in mainly 0-3 clothes but they are pretty tight on him now. Don't actually have any 3-6 month ones for him though so will have to buy some. That's a novelty-I've never had to buy anything for dd!

Skid I'd rather have the children too!

RE feeds, ds often only takes about 2-3 minutes now then pulls off. I've been trying to put him back on but he just keeps popping on and off and I can tell he isn't really drinking after that. He has always been pretty efficient though so now he must just be a super fast feeder! He isn't going 3-4 hours like all of yours though, mostly between 2 and 3 hours.

Claireybee - don't worry, we NEVER get 4 hours between feeds and I have to entertain her a lot to get to three hours usually.

Skid - re weaning. I am actually rather looking forward to it. I quite like thinking about what I am going to feed her, pureeing etc. Is that sad, a bit like saying I like changing nappies or something? Anyway I am looking forward to giving her her first meal in a couple of weeks.

Apparently there was an article in the Times (?) which said there is a new theory that now parents have been told to leave their children until 6 months to wean, they are all growing up much fussier and difficult to feed as they know there own minds more the older they are.

This is probably total bollox but I do know that we weaned dd1 at 4 months and she is a very good eater and quite happy to eat most fruit and veg etc. So I won't be doing anything differently anyway.

beckle, just wanted to say today I've been feeding DS in the rugby ball position when he's been fussing and so far it's worked because he can have a better view than in tradtional hold. His poos are also thicker now too.

Pecka, glad the pump is working, thats the one I used when DS was in hospital and also found it really good. I also love my medula swing pump, i only use it once a night for muilk for DS's one bottle after his bath and its really fab.

What's everyones favourite clothes for their little ones? I love Zig Zag but itd really pricey, Debenhams have some nice things but looking for new things. DS is ready to go into 6-9 month in some clothes but others (Next and Tesco) seem quite generous in their sizing

Loucee - I would say we get about 50% of our stuff from Next and the other 50% a mix of hand-me-downs and other shops. I think Next do nice stuff that isn't too pricey.

I have just bought some nice stuff from JoJo Maman bebe - now that I have two girls I feel justified spending a little more dd1's clothes and getting better quality.

Clairey - I know exactly what you mean about bfing. I've had the odd comment "Oh are you still feeding him yourself" and the like. One woman told me she tried for at first then "couldn't be bothered anymore" and she thought formula was better! That attitude pisses me off more than anything especially when I read about people such as Pecka who try so damn hard and break their hearts over it. And I don't think any of us here found it easy to start with!
I am respectful of people's choices and I firmly believe that their needs to be more information on infant feeding in general. But I do believe that bf is the standard to go for and that formula is the safety net to safeguard babies who cannot be bfed.

LOucee - I like Boot's mini mode really nice funky clothing and washes well.

clara - I agree about weaning babies when you think they're ready. The six month thing it seems to me is one of these blanket guidelines which once again treat us like we're stupid. You're not supposed to start before 6 months because of the link with childhood obesity but you can't wait longer than 6 months because they need more than they get from milk - so when is the right time to wean them - on the one day they are exactly 6 months old? Surely every baby is different e.g. bigger babies will probably be ready earlier, smaller babies later... but that is obviously that is too complicated for us little women to understand

oops didn't mean for that to be such a rant!

loucee - we have 95% hand me downs, but DD's stuff comes mostly from Next. If I was rich I would buy her Boden though

Re feeding - yes DS is also fussy at the brest atm but I just shove him back on usually. Then he stays there for 30-40 minutes obviously using me as a dummy so maybe I should stop shoving him back on - all those extra hours in the day I would have... what on earth would i do?

clairey - glad the comments don't get to you and that's fantastic you are going to be a peer supporter - is that the same as a BF counsellor?

Milo is in 3-6 months clothes but I reckon he'll be out of the within a few weeks. BTW clairey and any other reusable users - do you find that trousers/dungarees look ridiculous on your DS because his nappy is so bulky? Milo is still in babygros because they're the only thing he can wear in which he look in proportion!

I originally wanted to wait until 6 months but am wondering whether to start just before he goes to nursery. I'm keen not to go down the baby rice and rusk route because my friend did that and now she has been having trouble getting him eating savoury stuff as the baby rice and rusk are quite sweet apparently. So not sure what to do! It seems to me that the rice is just "filler" and not that beneficial nutritionally speaking, so rather start him off on veggies to begin with.
What are other people's thoughts - how did you start off your older dcs?

bouncing - they recommend starting off with baby rice because it's really easy to digest i think. Rusks are a different story as they have quite a bit of sugar in them (AFAIK baby rice doesn't - but breast milk and formula milk are sweet so that would make the rice taste sweet)

I think it's also a good idea to start off with sweet-ish vegetables like carrots or sweet potato. the thing is milk is sweet so if you start them off on spinach they might get a bit of a shock but if you give them loads of fruit before veg then they might not like the unsweet veg - bit of a minefield really!

Think I'm going to try baby-led weaning this time so that means stuff he can hold that is soft like bananas, boiled carrots, hmm not sure what else.. must read up on it

The main thing is not to worry about it - at 2.5 DD now eats loads of stuff she wouldn't touch as a baby and hates other food she used to love so just go with it and don't worry if he doesn't like a particular food

Aw dd just kissed ds on the head and said "love you Douggie". bless her!

Skid I think I've got used to ds having a huge arse now but I know what you mean! Tesco trousers fit well over cloth IME. Do you use sized nappies or BTP's? I have mostly bimbles for DS and they aren't too huge-I find it is the wrap that adds bulk cos it seems to make it more rigid! Have you had any success with night nappies? I've had to put him in a disposable at night now cos he was needing too much boosting.

Most of dd's clothes are hand me downs, loads of next, quite a bit of Tesco, Asda and Sainsburys and the odd bit of something classier such as Pumpkin Patch. The bulk of ds' stuff is supermarket too though he has some lovely Australian hand me downs from a friend of mine.

BT weaning dd was a nightmare, she refused to eat! She barely touched food until 13 months old but will eat a wide range of stuff now. I started her off on things like carrot, apple, banana etc but soon got to the point where I'd throw anything at her in the vain hope she'd eat it! After seeing how she survived on so little and how remarkably unfussy she is now I'm just going to go straight to finger foods for ds and will just give him bits of veg from our plates to begin with.

I love Bumgenius - got one to try and it is fab - not hugely bulky either. Going to buy a few more and sell some of my other pocket nappies and AIOs to make room for them!

My fave clothing is probably Next for kids but that is because I can order it online, there is not really anywhere decent for kids clothes near me. We have a Woolworths (awful clothes which wash badly) and an M&Co (Mackays - nice stuff but expensive for high street). I like Tescos stuff but ours is too small for clothes, hoping to expand this year though!

As for weaning, I weaned the DSs at 13 weeks and 20 weeks respectively. I started off with baby rice and pureed fruit and veg with both of them. DS1 was a fussy eater as a baby and still is, DS2 would eat anything as a baby but now copies DS1 and is fussy. I have heard that babies weaned later do not take to savoury foods as they are so used to the sweetness of their milk! I guess they know their own minds a bit more by 6 months! I plan to wean DD somewhere between 4-6 months, I will see how she goes though and take my cues from her I think! Am dreading it though as I hated weaning the boys!

Im hoping to get nearer 6 months but then my plan was to breastfeed til 6 months so Im just going to not think about it and see what happens!!

I hope ill manage it as dd at 12 weeks is taking 3oz feeds, 4oz at a push so is not a particularly hungry baby unlike her brothre and sister were when they were babies.

Feeling way way way better about it all, partly due to having you lot to rant at - so thanks!!

Glad to hear it

No probs pecka, just glad you're feeling ok now

So ds loves his food (no surprises there) we started on baby rice to get him used to the texture but he's now loving pureed carrot with butternut squash, the plum baby spinach, parsnip and basil pot but he's not convinced by fruit purees yet...its fun though, he's really enjoying it all but i haven't dropped any milk feeds, he's still bf every 1.5 to 2 hrs |(unless asleep) and one ff at night, but after talking to my hv i decided that my 16lb but 13week-er was ready!! Dd was fine on the same so i'm not worried at all.. (picture on profile)

Aww Clairey, how sweet was your dd?!

Ah Loucee, thanks for reminding me about the benefits of rugby hold-i always forget that its a really good way to get milk into them without the fussing!

Anyone's lo start tearing at the skin of your boob with their hand? I think ds thinks he's stroking but its vicious! I'm having to hold his hand quite firmly to stop him, which is annoying as i like having one hand free to, erm...mn and ebay..n stuff

Oh lordy its nearly the weekend again=how did that happen? Dd is going away with my folks next week for a whole week i'm going to be lost without her!!

We're trying to edge bedtime earlier this week in prep for the clocks going fwd....must invest in some blackout blinds for ds' room-he's going in it v v soon and the ikea curtains although sweet, are completely seethrough and pointless lol... Any recommendations for blinds?

Have you seen there is a dec 08 thread....it seems like a life-time away I started the due in Dec 07 thread...I only tested because I was off to a wedding and wante dto know if I could drink and I was so scared following my mcs. Then we when we told everyone my mothner said oh I had guessed from the way you would always fall asleep at every turn - oh well.

I am looking at Evie now - do you wonder what they will turn out like? What personalioties they will have? What they will sound like?

Most of our clothes we have been given or are handmedowns (on their 5th child). I am trying to buy a few nice things from gap, boden (I love the pink dress with the rabbit on) and my fav. which is a stripy sleepsuit from toby tiger.

Cazzy-NO??!! That makes us seem sooo last season I wonder what they're talking about? Might have a nosy... Ah them were the days...

We're lucky to have some good handmedown clothes passed to us too so i justify my mini boden habit by saying i'm only buying a select few items

Ouch , I've got blocked ducts I think. My right boob is all lumpy and has a large lump quite far in, I've tried expressing but they haven't gone. Oh no, this is where I panic (I know i've been quite lucky on the bf front so far). DS hasn't been feeding properly for a couple of days but I'm so used to be told "they take what they need", "as long as he's getting wet and dirty nappies", "he seems fine in himself" that I don't really know when he has had a feed or not. I have been guilty of swapping sides quite quickly as it seemed to get more milk in him but obviously this has resulted in the milk not being drained from one side. Any advice greatly received.

Lizzer, glad your DS is taking to his food well. It doesn't seem that long ago that I was making purees for DD (2.1yrs old).
Skid etc, I did a bit of BLW with DD. She would love a ripe pear and strips of mango in the early days.

Just back from playing netball, felt so good to get out and see the girls again but oh what a shock to my system!

Ouch Loucee! I would try and get it sorted asap. I think massage is supposed to help? Maybe you should seek further advice. I'm sure that I read on here you should massage the lump towards the nipple whilst feeding to encourage it to clear.
Cazzy - Yes I was at Dec 08 thread... where does the time go!!
Lizzer - Dexter is fab! I love his little doggy hoodie, so cute and doesn't he have the biggest blue eyes! You dd is gorgeous as well, I'm sure you will miss her loads. But I guess she'll benefit for loads of attention from her gps and you'll be able to concentrate on Dexter. It is hard to try and find a balance when you have more than one, I know DH finds it hard to make sure he is giving dss lots of attention when he comes up while trying to spend some time with Daniel, as he hardly sees the baby during the week.
Thanks for all your advice on the weaning, very useful. I'm really looking forward to weaning him it should be fun... if very messy

speaking of weaning - what happened to mememumy anyone know?? She was talking about baby rice in bottles I think a good few weeks ago and we were all and she disappeared Hope she didn't think we were judging in any way - anyone know her/got contact I might CAT her otherwise????