July 2023 babies

[Summermeadowflowers]

Hello everyone! So this is a continuation of the pregnancy thread(s) as we’re almost full.

DD was born by elective section on July 18th. Her older brother was born following an emergency section after a failed induction in December 2020 and I didn’t want to go through that again! It was a lovely chilled experience and I was a bit nervous waiting but felt like I was in good hands. I was also home the next day.

Feeding has been tricky for us. I really wanted to breastfeed but as with DS, DD hasn’t taken easily to it and struggles to latch. Nipple shields help to an extent although are not a cure all but she doesn’t get much milk and ends up frustrated anyway. I’ve mostly been expressing for her but realistically don’t know how long I can keep it up. It’s a shame as I do really want to breastfeed but it isn’t happening!

Oh and my wound is infected … lovely!

How is everyone else?

I'm the same! Ahhhh

DD woke at midnight, half three and half five crying DS never did, I’d hear him snuffle around and knew he wanted a feed. It’s worried me she’s crying. Probably just different baby though?

Also unlike DS she’s quite unsettled in the mornings, so dreading the teen years! DS does have an annoying tendency to wake at 5 cheery and ready to start the day though.

We have the same thing, DS2 is such a happy little boy, always slept like a dream and didn’t know he could cry until he was toddling around ! This little girl is shouting at the boob and screams like the world is ending in the night when she wakes up. None of my other three have been like this but DH and I joke it’s because she knows she is the littlest and will have to shout to he heard

Does anyone feel a bit guilty when you see your baby awake in her cot on the baby monitor? I've literally just spent hours with her but she fell asleep after her bath and a cuddle. I left her and now I see that she is awake. She looks really happy but I want to go and pick her up again!

I’m glad it’s not just me. DH usually does the last feed before we go to bed and I then do the first part of the night, and I’m always itching to tell him to slow down feeding or burp DS more as otherwise I’ll be dealing with a windy baby. It’s probably stupid as he’s probably doing it essentially the same as me. So hard not to correct and nag.

Just had a breakdown in Sainsburys car park because the baby got too hot in the carrier on my front and started screaming and then DS1 started fake crying really loudly too to get attention. DH took DS1 off me and sorted him out and I just had a cry in the front of the car. Whenever I think the emotions are fine and stable I feel all shitty again.

This time was triggered by accidentally bumping the soft spot on his head. I fucking hate that soft spot. I’m convinced I’m going to brain damage him. Is it just me? I haven’t hit it or anything but every time I kiss it or anything, and feel is go in a bit, I just feel sick as if I’ve broken him.

@RandomCatGenerator my DS does the fake crying! It’s so annoying.

I used to find DS crying very panic inducing (I’m pretty sure I had PND, I only know now because of how different I feel with DD, which in itself is guilt inducing!)

I actually managed to get out today and did some shopping, nothing exciting, DD was a hit in M & S though.

We had a comedy moment in Morrisons a week or so ago. DS had gone to an outdoor playgroup and got muddy so I’d got him a change of clothes. DH decided to put the clean clothes in the sink and it was one of those taps that turns on automatically. I had to run out to buy him some new jogging pants and a top. And as I did so I knocked DDs head, I was panicking but she was fine (I stood up suddenly and bumped her against a plastic tissue dispenser.)

@habiller i gave up breast feeding when dd was nearly 2 weeks old (I was really sad at first). Throughout pregnancy and my brief experience of breast feeding, I still drank a caffeinated coffee everyday. I have my body back now and it feels good.

@PinkPink1 are you putting him down for naps / at train / training him into a routine already? That’s really impressive if so.

@Summermeadowflowers thanks for the solidarity!

I have PND so maybe that’s why I am finding it difficult. I keep thinking I’ve turned a corner, and this week was so good so far, but have really fallen apart a bit today. Haven’t been able to deal with their crying at all, have just melted.

@habiller still colicky here. I am just delighted it doesn’t seem to be CMPA which is a real pain for poor DS1. Using reflux milk still, but no other supplements like infacol or anything - it seems to be helping, or he is at least less colicky than on normal formula. But 9-11pm and 4-7am are very grunty and fidgety indeed as he strains with wind.

DDs poos still smell weirdly of vinegar. I’m unsure what is causing it but it doesn’t seem quite right to me.

@habiller i am up, expressing I loathe the breast pump! I vowed I would not do this again and here I am. I do worry DD is just used to bottles now. I know ideally bottle shouldn’t be introduced initially but she has to feed!

I hate admitting this but I’m so fed up with DS and his early wakings. I have obviously never liked them but right now I feel absolute rage as the whining starts at 5 am. I was just really brusque with him and upset him

Oddly (but brilliantly) she has created her own routine. I know roughly when she will sleep for the night and the times she will wake up for a bottle or nappy change. Quite predictable. Her blocked nose and trapped wind is improving (I bought saline drops and colic drops), but when it was really bad she didn't really sleep for long and was very restless all day and all night. My mum said I was a nightmare fussy baby during the day and my brother was the same at night so I think I'm very lucky! Oh and I bathed her yesterday because she had a massive poo haha.

I am so tired...
Arthur's night times are just awful at the moment, although, a positive he was a bit better last night.
His wind/grunting is just so bad. @RandomCatGenerator funny you should say about 9-11 and 4-7 being your worst times as that is exactly the same for Arthur. Arthur has a bottle of expressed milk about 8/ 8.30 and screams in pain as soon as he has finished it on and off until about 11. He then has another feed, is a bit unsettled, but will go down in his moses basket until about 12, then he will wake again about 2, then he will wake again about half 3 and if I manage to get him down in his moses basket, he will grunt and scream in pain from 4-7, most of the time it's easier just to get him on my chest as he will sleep nicely then, he just can't tolerate being on his back, but I am so scared of him getting in the routine of crying to come out.

@habiller when was your little one born? Arthur was 1st July and is 6 weeks on Saturday. I too thought I saw a smile yesterday, but have also know convinced myself it was wind!

@AnxiousAnnie94 not sure if this is the case for you but I used to express milk and also give her formula (I would alternate feeds). She would sometimes latch to my breast but sometimes wouldn't so I was fearful that she wasn't drinking enough hence stopping breast feeding. I found that she was more unsettled after drinking expressed milk because she was hungry. Formula fills her up more. Obviously if she was drinking from my breast and latched properly she'd take what she needed and it was fresh too. I stopped giving her breast milk (breast and expressed) when she was around 2 weeks old. She's 5 weeks old and a bit now. Have you tried colic drops?

@PinkPink1 he is purely breast fed currently. He has one bottle of expressed milk a day, which DH gives before we put him down for the night after a bath.
Previous to this week when he has been so unsettled, it had been fine, but this week, I don't know if he's having a growth spurt along with stomach pain, he's been so unsettled. Pulling himself off the boob and screaming in pain. So I've been worried he's not having enough, but has been having lots of wet nappies still. I like him to have the bottle before bed as I know exactly how much he's had so if he doesn't feed much during the night due to being in pain, I know he's had a good feed before sleep (ha).
I do think it is pain as as soon as he's finished, he will arch his back, go red faced and scream and be so hard to settle, it takes ages at night. We can also physically hear and feel his little tummy.
I haven't tried colic drops, have tried infacol (made him worse), dentinox (constipated him) and now gripe water (not sure if it's helping or not). I'm not sure if he has reflux, he has all the symptoms except being sick.

@AnxiousAnnie94 Dentinox worked for my baby and she has runny poos. I guess we all react differently to medication, including babies! Mine arches her back and cries when she has trapped wind. It's awful :( could be a growth spurt!

@PinkPink1 Arthur has runny poos now that he's on gripe water. Strange!

@AnxiousAnnie94 that's so odd! I'm not sure what a normal poo should be like. She does one runny poo a day but doesn't seem unwell.

You probably didn’t upset him - you probably just startled him. They’re very simple creatures at this stage. And you feel bad about it, so you won’t do it again. You didn’t hurt him.

I totally understand where you’re coming from - and it’s definitely not an uncommon feeling. Massive solidarity.

DH and I had a rule with DS1 (who never slept) that if we felt ourselves getting angry at the baby, we’d ask the other one to take over so we could walk away and calm down. Can you do the same? Or can you get a break - parents?

Anyone's babies struggling in today's heat? 😫

Tilly is so unsettled. All she's done all day is cry on and off, which is very unlike her. She only cries when she wants a bottle usually. Partner is off for the first day in 6 days, before doing another 5 days. Been trying to get house work done but not getting very far 😫

Definitely @rach971. Elijah usually just goes to sleep in the carrier or sling but he absolutely wasn’t having it today, he just screamed until I took him out and took him into the nearest air conditioned building (a pub!) to cool off. I bought a cheapo stand fan last year in the heatwave and it has been invaluable today! He definitely takes after me and isn’t a fan of the heat!

Has anyone taken a baby to a wedding or similar event before? I’m taking Elijah to a wedding on Saturday with DH, Solomon is being looked after by my parents. Any tips?