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

[claraquitetirednow]

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

loucee as you can imagine i do have an opinion about running bras. The way i approach it is to have an encapsulating bra and then a squash it all down bra on the top. The reebok shock absorber i use with a tight crop top on the top.

Morning everyone!
DS was a little star last night! Daddy gave him his bath at 7pm, then I fed him and put him to bed at 7.45. He stayed asleep until 10.30 which allowed us to watch Knocked Up while we had dinner (Boy did that bring back memories ).
DH gave him EBM at 12.30am, then he stirred around 2 so I gave him his dummy and he went straight back to sleep. Then he woke up at 3.40am for a feed, back to sleep again and didn't wake up until 6.45am. He wasn't crying when he woke up then, he was just gurgling, and when I got him out of the Moses basket and put him on his bed, he smiled at me . And he was totally chilled when I changed his (wet) sleepsuit and his nappy. Hope this repeats itself but bet it won't, especially as I am off out tonight! Hope I've left DH enough EBM, if not we have an emergency bottle of formula.

Ooo, where you going BT?

Well, Suey I bought the bigger size (3) y'day and that's it-problem solved! They looked giant on him but as your dd is the same weight as ds i'd get a packet today-at least for the night time and then use the rest of the small ones up through the day-soo nice not to have a wet sleepysuit to change this morning. thanks for that info Insy, i wonder why they changed the design?

So pleased to her your dp is slightly improved pecka! I have honestly never met a baby who'll self settle til much much older so maybe your elder 2 were just a flook! And don't give up hope..

Don't do dreamfeeds either btw, the clostest i get is shovin boob in mouth before ds is fully awake and getting him back to sleep!

The sun is shining AGAIN, have a lovely day everyone

Nowhere exciting, just to my friend's house for a girly night in, it's her birthday.

Loucee - potty training: it might be a good idea to start earlier rather than later if you think your dd is ready. We have left it too long and she is too strong-willed now. She knows exactly when she wants to go and what to do but for now usually prefers to use nappies (if she is bare-bummed she will tell me to put a nappy on her when she needs a poo). She does sometimes go on the potty in the morning but it takes a lot of pursuading and I don't often have time for this. And the frustrating thing is, at 2.5 years, she is already dry at night! If only she would take that final step and ditch the nappy we would be home dry (literally).

Pecka - I don't think you are making a rod for your own back at all. My dd1 always needed help getting to sleep (rocking etc), or I would feed her to sleep and then put her down. But she started sleeping through at about 5 months and is now the most brilliant sleeper. She very rarely wakes up and if she does she stays in bed and usually just goes back to sleep.

Strangely dd2 is much better at this stage and (with a dummy) self settles all the time. However the annoying thing is she then wakes up when the dummy falls out of her mouth if she isn't quite asleep yet. What can I do though, I can't tape it to her face!

She is still waking at about 2.30am and 5.30am though so I am still knackered all the time.

Is anyone who is breastfeeding introduced a bottle of formula last thing at night - and if so has this helped them sleep longer? Thinking of doing this soonish.

clara - I'm agonising about introducing a bottle of formula so would be interested to know if anyone has had some success with it - we had a few nights last week when ds slept for 8 hours and now he's waking twice in night again - I did a dream feed last night and it made no difference not sure what to try, hoping its a growth spurt

loucee - ds1 is doing great, very proud of him I really feel like I'd rather he was in nappies! but there seems to be no stopping him

bt - what a great night!

Lizzer-so sorry it wasn't good news

Pecka-I agree with Clara, I don't think you are making a rod for your own back at all. I always rocked/cuddled dd to sleep in the beginning and she has gone to bed fine ever since (she doesn't stay asleep all night but that's another issue!). By now dd was self settling in the evening after her bath (well more like completely conking out after bottle) but during the day she would fall asleep on me/in car/in buggy. DS still needs to be rocked for all sleeps but I do wonder if that is partly to do with dd having had formula before bed and him just being a boob man. No chance of him falling asleep in car or buggy though-he screams until he looks like he is going to explode! Thank god for my slings!

Meme, tbh I would be a little concerned about giving your dd solids already. I know people will say that the guidelines keep changing but to my mind they are changing for a reason and the latest research has shown that a baby's digestive system can't cope with solids until at least 17 weeks, and preferably closer to 26. Please don't think I am having a go, cos I know you only want to do the best for your baby but I really think you should seek further advice about this.

Was trying to see a pattern in ds' days but gave up cos it varies so much! Have kind of implemented EASY but not really if I'm honest! We do wake, eat, activity, sleep, but if he wants feeding again in the middle of play or before sleep then I'll feed him. I really admire people who stick to a routine-it was stressing me out trying to follow it!

He was going to bed at 8ish for a week or so and sleeping til 12 but then started screaming until 10/11 every evening. This week MIL is staying with us so have both ds and dd in our room (VERY cramped!),ds has started going to sleep between 8 and 9 again but am keeping him downstairs then going up to bed with him at 9.30/10 ish. He is still way too unpredictable to put alone in the room with dd for now-If he woke up I'd then be battling to get 2 babies back to sleep! He is mostly waking twice between 8pm and 6am now, but other nights he wakes constantly!

Had my 8 week check last week-complete waste of time. went in, GP said "everything ok?" I said yes and off we went!

It is lovely for MIL to be spending time with the kids but I tell you what I cannot wait to have my house back!!!!

Know the feeling Clairy of wanting your house back when you have guests around...

Dreamfeed - I give a bottle, but to get DD2 to drink 2 ounces takes about 15 mins, as she is such a deep sleep and have to keep turning the bottle in her mouth to get her to suck

Potty training: Well done you mothers out there who are potty training and juggling your babies. My DD1 is 2.2 yrs and thinking of potty tarining in a few months - don't think I have the energy right now to run around after DD1 and keep an eye on DD2. Insy/Loucee - did you basically take thier pants off and keep asking them when they need to go?

Hi Caz - Am having some good days and some low days but am coping (somehow). I've been keeping an eye on your BF posts as we had some similar issues - hope it is better for you now. I've started to mix feed now, as I found BF contributed to my PND.

Amani I'm not potty training DD yet, she had her nappy off because I hadn't put the new one on yet and it was nearly time for her bath. The potty is kept in the downstairs loo and I often talk about the potty and what its for etc. It totally surprised me when she actually did the poo in the potty! I would prefer to wait til the nicer weather arrives as it'll be nicer stopping by the road etc without getting pelted by hail and rain! I am just reading up on it at the moment so I have a good idea of what to expect and how to go about it. DD likes to go on the toilet trip with the wee girls at the childminder so she's getting to know about it like that as well.
Glad to hear you're coping, like you i have a roller coaster week, some good and some not so good days but I haven't spoken to the Doctor yet. The HV was dismissive and said all the things that trigger me to change the subject and just pretend everything is fine. I must say I do feel a lot better than I did so I'm hoping it will continue to go like that.

Caz which direction are you from Glasgow? Would you fancy meeting up for a coffee?

Hi folks.

well DD2 had her first set of jabs today - even though she's 110 weeks on Fri being away last week sort of knocked it. Felt rotten though as HV should have been coming here in the morning but didn't turn up - I phoned to complain/check and it turned out she was at the funeral for the little 2 year old from our village that accidentally hung herself on window blind cords last week - sort of put things in perspective a bit

True to form DD2's really good routine and sleeping etc when at my folks last week has now gone all to pot completely. They think she's a fab baby (well she is - don't get me wrong) and is so easy as she settles herself etc etc - however not so anymore - 20 mins or so each night of going purple with rage at the shear indignity of being put down Not too bad though as she only wakes once in the night.

Loucee as for potty training must admit DD1 was really easy but mainly due to her buddies at nursery being a good few months older and she just copied them. At 2yrs 8 mths she's still in nappies at night but has been waking odd times recently saying she needs a wee so maybe that's the first sign of being dry and night. I would say though that the trainer pants (the ones with the little shapes etc on the front that fade if they wee) don't help IMO - they are too much like nappies and we didn't see any improvement with them - just taking the plunge and having pants did the trick.

Caz Loucee - I'm Stirling way if you do fancy a meet up? DH works in Glasgow (as do I when I'm not on Mat leave) so easy for me to get there - would be fun to meet.

Anyone got any exciting Valentine's plans then? I sorted out babysitters for the two piglets but DH so far has failed to grasp the idea that on the Fri after VD (and in general a Fir night anywhere half decent) you need to book - so no doubt I'll be reporting a night out at Pizza Hut

Anyway - sounds all quiet for now and location, location on TV so will be off

The thread has been very quiet - hope everyone is out and about enjoying the little ones and not couped up with poo and screaming babies!

Beanster I'm over Hamilton way so likewise very accessible to Glasgow and would love to meet up, I'll wait for Caz to reply too. Wednesdays or Thursdays are best for me as DD is at the CM and means I can have a relaxing day shopping too!

Valentines, well DH is going to cook us a lovely meal tomorrow night and we're going to open a nice bottle of bubbly and have a quiet night in. With his family not speaking to us and my family being down south we don't have any babysitters. We're going to have to bite the bullet and ask friends to babysit (tricky as they all have kids) though as I really do want a meal out with DH at some point!

Is anyone doing any diet clubs? Just wondering what the recommendation is whilst you're Bfing?

amani - I had ds1 with a bare bum at home for a couple of days and didn't really ask him too much if he wanted to go (I think I'd have heard 'no' at lot if I did that ) I just put him on the potty at certain times, i.e. 30-40 mins after eating or drinking hth
how much mixed feeding are you doing? has it helped the sleep?

clairey - EASY isn't working for us either ds2 has a play and then wants more food, he;s such a hungry baby its exhausting

loucee - my gp advised against any kind of diet whilst bfeeding - he said thats one of the main reason people struggle as they forget they are still eating for two

no plans for valentines but hoping we will get out on Friday night - just need to persuade my parents to babysit....

I will be on my own on valentines (unless you count 2 dd's) as DH is still on his course . We're not the romantic types but boy am I missing him at the moment.

hi scottish girlies! i am in ayrshire so glasgow is ideal too...going "up to town" would probably be the most adventurous I've been yet as far as taking dd out, so it would be nice to do it with people who are in the same boat! where in town is good for bf-ing/changing/lounging around drinking coffee for long periods of time?!

Ahh Clara, sorry your DH is away at the moment, we aren't very romantic either.

Caz & Beanster I'm going to try to CAT message you both so that we can make arrangements to meet up. Also wanted to reassure you Caz that we'll make ourselves very comfortable and your DD can feed for as long as she needs.

Just tried to CAT you both but it says your settings are set to not receive private messages! Any chance you could both change that so that I can CAT you my email address? (last time I put my email address on a thread I started getting all sorts of mad junk emails through so not keen to do that again!)

just trying to set it up just now loucee, have been meaning to do this for ages! will post when done

that's it done! don't think messages get sent until working hours tomorrow though

Re so called dream feed, I'm not a great fan. With both my DDs I tried (both on bottles anyway) and came to conclusion that it just encouraged waking at regular intervals. Now just put Bea down whenever she's ready (somewhere between 7.30 and 10pm normally) and leave her to it. She has now slept through to at least 5.30am (once to 7am ) 5 nights in a row

loucee someone told me you get 10 extra points on weightwatchers when you are bf. I'm with insy, though. (especially at the patisserie up the road does such good plum danishes!)

OO- I think we may have cracked it. The last 3 days i have had a bit of an experiment. I have spun her out until 7am for the first feed and have brought bathtime back half an hour to 6.30pm. The last 3 nights she has fed at 10.30/11, 3.30am then 7am. First jabs today so it may go a bit haywire, but otherwise feeding her 10.30am, 2pm, 5.30pm and 6.45 after bath. (all approx, but no extra feeds needed.) she still has had a bad night with constipation etc, but it hasn't affected the regularity of the feeds. Fingers crossed.

hi all, one handed typing today with ds on my knee.

I am wanting to test the butter theory soon, I'm hoping jogging will help shift the baby weight.

Just got back from a week in scotland visiting dh's family. Had a great time and ds was good as gold all the time - even sleeping midnight til 6.30. sadly back to broken nights now we're home.

Well done Suey!! Hope it keeps up

Loucee - I've done Slimming World, they are approved by the Midwifery Association and have a special plan or bfing mothers - you get extra healthy extras. Will be joining next week.
I've got nearly 4 stone to lose. If GP dares to suggest to me that I shouldn't diet I will slap him - I've put up with years of GPs telling me I need to lose weight!!!!

OOh we had a similar night to the night before.
But I had a meltdown yesterday afternoon, ds wouldn't stop crying tried everything I could to calm him down, nothing worked, phoned dh to find out what time he was coming home, he didn't answer the phone so let him a horrible message saying I was going to divorce him
Ended up shutting ds in the living room and myself in my bedroom because I was so upset
OK today.

Buzzy very at Bea sleeping through! well done thats great.

Caz I think you just need to go to your settings to change it to "accept messages from other mumsnetter* (you dont need to pay the £5 just to receive)

Suey I'm hoping that by resuming some gentle exercise that I'll be able to avoid a diet as such. I imagine all i really need to do is check my diet and instead of picking up things on the run in a hurry to make those things healthy snacks - I always hungry whilst bfing!