June 2008 - The Olympics are here and Mums deserve gold medals

[ThePenguinProject]

Thought I'd start a new thread before we ran out of space! Couldn't remember the exact name suggestion so have paraphrased, the sentiment is still the same though...

Having a terrible day. J had jabs and when weighed had put on very little weight which didn't surprise me as has been screaming at breast for past few days and refusing to feed for more than few minutes. Feel very upset by it all. Not sure what I am goin to do as he won't take a bottle either ...

HI there

Quick post as it's a day when I've got both of them - and they are both asleep ...!

Greenfairy - really delighted that the compression thing helped. Dorothy has also shot up the centiles. Am feeling very proud mummy as she has gone from 9th centile (induced for pre-eclampsia at 41 weeks) to 50th centile at 6 weeks, and weighed 9.13 yesterday. She seems to have just started her 6 week g spurt today too, so we'll see.

Re stimulation, I have half an hour in the mornings when I don't have DS and she is awake, which would be a good time for stimulation, but I never manage more than about 5 minutes before she gets grizzly.

Totally agree with you , Mammawhizz re this baby stage. 'Roll on 3 months,' that's what I say!

Love to all others.

Sybil, in haste as is my specialised subject, reflux? is she sick at all? Does she seem very uncomfy? Or have you thought about silent reflux?

Sorry you're having a rubbish day Sybil. Sending virtual hugs and hot chocolate.

Hello

I have a sleepy baby today, and so I am actually up to date on the thread, and (shock horror), think I may have a moment to post.

The reason for the sleepy baby is that Peter had his 8 week jabs this morning. He took it very well: cried briefly, but no worse than when he thinks he should have been fed 5 minutes ago. He then went to sleep, and has been waking up every 45 minutes, feeds furiously (no change from normal), then back to sleep (big change from normal) ever since.

I have two shameful admissions arising from this:

1. I did as a friend advised and gave him calpol before we went to the drs. Maybe this is making him extra sleepy.
2. I am quite enjoying today, as normally Peter is pretty much awake all day.

That is one very egocentric post, but warm wishes to everyone none the less.

hiall - not egocentric post at all allipalli as am going to use your friends tip re calpol myself

amberc am wtih you on the beach volleyball (and am still bemused as to how that is in but rugby sevens isn't)..also note from another thread you were also at teh lansdell.

Does stimulation time count as sucking your toy hippo? this is defo the preferred game when awake now

needahand we're struggling too with bedtime so trying to do the pick up/put down thing... not easy when sooo much easier just to give in and let her sleep on us

ampster - love the article

poppy Did you have the midwife led care and if so aren't Michelle and Sue lovely!!? I thought it was the best money I ever spent (other than the rocking chair that makes Luke go to sleep instantly!) to go with the private care there.

penguin re your missing washing! And essie poor you re. the washing disaster, that is so like something I would do

whinegums thanks for replying on thrush symptoms, I have my postnatal check tomorrow and will ask about it then as well

sybil sorry to hear you've been having the bf issues. Are there any bf groups near you that you could go to? I called La Leche when I was having these issues (still am to some extent), and although she tried to help, I found it more useful to chat to a midwife at a bf cafe I went to, as she could witness firsthand what A was doing (screaming at the breast and refusing it even though hungry). A's feeding seems to be improving a bit, but he still does what you describe. I hope you get some help on this, it's so wearing and must be upsetting for you

My sis also says give Calpol before injections - and give Medised or Calpol Night after to make them sleep! Though they have changed the advice on M and CN, you're not supposed to give it before 2years now cos some people were using it all the time.

I gave Esther Medised after her hernia op but she still didn't sleep . She is better now though. I feel guilty giving Medised actually cos it feels like a cop-out somehow but as my mum says 'if you were feeling under the weather wouldn't you want to take something that helped you sleep?'

I am knackered today - even though I am getting pretty much a full night's sleep now (apart from waking up searching for babies in the bed) I still feel shattered by 5pm. Unfortunately that coincides with the DTs' cranky period before their bath - no chance of them both taking a nap at the same time

Hi all

tjuice I have a friend called Storm who is fab, so it was sort of inspired by her, but it was the first name DH and I both really loved. Elodie is a smasher btw!

needahand great that you got a house - it's been like that re renting in bristol for years actually. btw how you do limit SJ's feeds? What tactics do you use? Getting a bit desperate with Storm tbh.

allipalli don't feed bad - my GP also advised calpol before. i couldn't get Storm to take it and faced a v unhappy baby as a result - am sure you did the right thing.

sybil sorry you're having a rotten time - have you ruled out thrush? It can make their mouths hurt a lot and stop them feeding.

neenz i dreamt i went to ikea and left Storm in the car! paranoia setting in...

Well, we have had to give up the hungry baby formula evening feed . The cow's milk I cut from my diet is of course in the FF, and Storm has been miserable the last three evenings - no coincidence I fear. We're trying goat's milk formula tonight but it's not a hungry baby mix - can't get one. So we'll see how it goes...

Neenz I regularly wake DH asking where the baby is, although last night I fell asleep before Isaac and with him on my tummy and we ended up snuggled up until he woke for a feed at 2am

Isaac has his jabs next week so I shall be taking the calpol tips on board.

Was very decadent today and went and got my car valeted by one of those hand car wash places. It now smells all lemony and is soooo clean (hasn't been cleaned internally for over a year). Although with the sodding rain it won't stay clean for long.

Well baby and DH are currently watching the Liverpool match on ITV1 and I am about to go and unpack from the week away!!

Evening all, just catching up on the day's post. S crying in the background but trying to give him a few minutes before I go to him.

Had busy day today which is good as DH away till tomorrow night. S reasonably well behaved although we are in the crying zone now! However, he does seem to have moved on from the colicky screaming to only crying when we put him down (he'll settle and snooze while we hold him). Fingers crossed. Ooh, he's gone quiet, long may it continue...

PP so sorry about your washing! Hope the whitener works.

Laura whinegums katyjo week beginning 1 Sept looking good so far. Would the monday, wed or thur suit best.

Ooh, crying started again that was shortlived, better go...

Have you all seen the difference between normal formula and hungry baby? There is hardly any difference at all - just looked. There is slightly more fibre and carb but so small I wonder what effect it would have. I keep forgetting to make up hungry baby for the 7 and 11 feeds and I have not noticed a difference when I give regular formula. TGF have you?

Hi All, been a while since last post, things were not too good here at the end of last week. After much deliberation I ended up stopping BFing this time last week. LO and I where stuck in a bit of a groundhog day of Feed, her be in agony for an hour or so due to such bad wind then throw the lot up again. It turns out that we both have thrush, LO was treated ages ago but i never was, on the Hv advice. So, we have been passing it to and fro to each other. Her latch was so bad due to the thrush, hence the terrible wind.
It was a really hard, emotional decision to stop BF, but Ive got to say Ive not regretted it so far. Things have deffinatly looked up for both of us and Lo is a lot happier now her milk is staying down.
I suffered q bad with the boobs stopping so suddenley, but am relieved to say that 1 week on where nearly there, apart from the thrush still lingering slightly.
Needahand, congrats on Bristol house! Im local so lets know when your down this way.
Amber, just wondering about your night nanny.
Is it expensive? How come you have one? Is your DP/DP around too?
Well, we are doing ok an a night time routine now. Lo goes in her cot at 7.30, then wakes twice before 7, quite random times tho. Interested in whether or not people wake their Lo's for feeds. I hadnt been, then did last night to see if it helped her go longer between my sleeping hours. It made things worse! what is meant to be the benifit of waking them at 10 - 11 ish??
Having trouble wit hdaytime naps here tho, she will only go off for quick power naps of 15 mins of so, maybe one hour long one in a day. She then ends up beside herself with tiredness come 4pm and is a nightmare till bedtime.
Right, off to bed

amber I'd only given Storm about three bottles of formula before we used the hungry baby mix so I can't compare - but we've decided to knock the night FF on the head actually, as I think the cow's milk protein is disagreeing with her - not much help her sleeping half an hour longer if she's miserable every evening - and she has been for the last three.
She was like this when I ate a lot of milk and cheese - when I gave up dairy it stopped, so I don't think it's a coincidence.
So, back to EBM, which she is less keen on, I think because she prefers it straight from the source! But at least it doesn't make her miserable - her wind has been horrific for the last three days...

udc well done re getting up those centiles - you should be chuffed!

fungle where are you? I am in Bristol as well so we three could have a meet up - getting jealous of those london ladies! re those daytime naps - i find storm will feel heavier when she is ready for bed - even if she seems quite awake. i use this sensation as a gauge of when to put her to bed - normally 90 mins to two and a half hours after she gets up. i also find the first sleep - after her 9amish feed the most important - if she doesn't get that one it's v difficult to sort her for the rest of the day.

DM and DF have offered to go swimming with me and Storm on Saturday when we stay with them, so that I can get some lengths in - v excited, esp after all the olympic swimming today - not sure I'll be breaking any world records tho!

Morning all, fungle I FF and wake S at around 10/11 for a feed. I think the idea is that if they take a full feed at night, then when they are ready to drop one of their feeds it will be the middle of the night one.

When I switched to FF I put S on a routine of 7am, 10am, 2pm, 6pm and 10pm (rough times) and he has one feed in the middle of the night. It only took a few days for him to settle into that routine. He's started taking less and less in the night, though interestingly he didn't finish a couple of his feeds yesterday (including 10pm) and he took a lot more in the middle of the night.

Right, time for quick shower before next feed! Have a good day everyone.

Morning everyone

Sybil, hope you are having a better day today.

TGF, interesting re dairy. I am going to give it up for a few days and see if it makes D less windy. Yesterday she threw up her whole 7.0 feed (straight after a bath ) just as I was burping her prior to putting her down.

Really interesting with you all asking where the baby is. I was excatly the same with DS, but have not yet been with DD. I was terrified I'd edged him out of bed - it went on for about 6 months. It must be some atavistic urge. (get me with the big words!!)

Fungle, sorry about the thrush and that you have had to give up BF. I'm glad that things are settling down though.

Neenz, I'd wondered why they'd said not to use Medised any more. It was tempting to use it a lot when DS was teething as he was very snotty as well, and it really helped.

On to the next feed.

Poppy yesterday was the third evening we tried the control crying thing...and SJ cried not even 5 minutes. It is hard letting them cry but we did it with DD and people always comment at how good she is to go to bed. She never complains and is quite content lying in her bed in the evening...well worth it in the long run

Neen glad Esther is recovering well from her hernia operation.

amber don't be jealous of the seven hours, it is between 8 and 2 or 3am, but because I can't fall asleep before 11 or 12pm it doesn't really help especially as after that he wakes up every 2 hours to feed!!!

Fungle sorry you had such a tough time with breastfeeding, but I am glad things are improving for you and that you are happy with your decision to FF. Will definitely let you know once I have moved and have internet, might be nice to meet up, especially as I won't know anyone there. Or we can set a date and place nearer the date I move (I am weary of the internet, last time I moved it took three months for us to have TV and internet!) All the better if GF meets us, the more the merrier! I move in three weeks, the first week of September and I am sure I will appreciate a break from unpacking after the first week!

GF I was definitely surprised by the rental market in Bristol. Everything is so expensive and you should see the state of some properties for the price! Absolutely shocking. Re limiting Sj's feed, I just leave him to suck for 15 minutes on a breast, if he still is sucking strongly I leave him another 5 minutes, if it is a half effort, I move him to the other breast for another 15 minutes. It has been a few days now and he is starting to unlatch himself. He is more content and less windy too. I think before he has to work hard to get enough milk to satisfy him on one breast and then when he moved to the other one he was tired and didn't get so much milk and then was hungry again quite soon. It seems more efficient now. Let me know how it goes if you try.

Re calpol before injection, I did it with DD but not with SJ as HV advised against it as it may mask a fever or something which could have adverse effect if the lo had the jabs at the same time

Yesterday I felt like I didn't have much milk so I tried fennel tea as advice by someone here and although it tastes vile I definitely seem to have more milk today

Just a quick note as I forgot to tell you guys that last week, they called me up for jury service in September.

As you can imagine, I was a trifle concerned but sent them photocopies of dd's and ds's birth certificates and said I was exclusively breastfeeding ... and I got a letter back saying they'd excused me. Phew!

UDC good to know bfing is a get-out! And well done on Dorothy's growth - she's bigger than Iestyn now! He's 9.10 this morning!

OK, a short one - he's crying, had his jabs, not settling. Will consider the calpol - they wouldn't give me any to use until after the jabs!!

Should I give him some anyway, or see if he's unsettled?? (Hahahaha - how would I know?!)

needahand it was me with the fennel tea!
yes, the property market in bristol is shocking. i'm renting from my best friend so have got a v good deal and no hassles, but there are a lot of awful houses out there!
re meet ups - there is a nice cafe in westbury on trym where you live, and also blaise estate, which is a beautiful wild park which backs onto avon gorge right by you. or we could go to the mall and hit john lewis!
re limiting - i've tried just giving her two gos on the first breast, as she often unlatches for a 'break' when it's still quite full. i've also decided to stop persevering with the second breast so much - instead i unlatch her and we go and have a wander around the house and some play and then she often just wants another two or three minutes on the second breast and is then ready to sleep. before i would just sit with her for half an hour trying to get her to feed from the second breast as she clearly wanted it but was too distracted/ tired. this way is much better and i've noticed a difference in her already.
she's also getting easier to settle in the evenings - two weeks ago she'd be up til 11/12 and not sleep between feeds but now she normally feeds at 9 and then sleeps for a couple of hours, which is brilliant. i don't know if there's a connection, but it's wonderful!

udc no dairy is deffo the key to keeping storm settled. this morning, after only a 3oz goat milk feed yesterday, the farting/ pooing explosions we'd had three days in a row after cow's milk FF were gone, and she seemed to sleep much better last night.
sorry your LO threw up her whole feed - did you bath her straight after a feed? have read this can make puking more likely (dunno why tho...)

re dream feeds for those of you doing FF or EBM for this - how much does your LO take? Storm will only take 3 to 4oz - pretty much down in one go, whereas in the day it's more like 6 to 7oz if she gets EBM. Does this mean she's going to drop this one soon?

For dream feeds it varies. Sometimes Luke only takes 60-100ml (not sure about ounces!) others he'll have the lot! I think when they take less and less it does mean they'll not bother waking and drop the feed eventually (here's hoping!!)

Morning all

All good here, For those of you dream feeding they do drop it eventually and would suggest dont wake them for it as I found that waking Fleur would mean she would wake more during the night.
Now she sleeps from 7pm to 12/1am and then wakes at 4am and 7am. The 12/1am feed she doesnt take much so soon should drop that too

TGF - re not taking much thats what fleur started to do taking less and less til eventually it merged with her 1am feed.

Breast compressions do work, by doing them i can express about 150ml 6 oz in 6mins!!!
Saying that Fleur can drain a breast in 5 min flat !!!And i worried that she wasnt taking enough but she has nearly doubled her birth weight weighing now just over 11 pounds.

Yesterday we managed to have some friends over for dinner with their kids 5mths and 3yrs. They were up all night but Fleur was very good and slept through all the noise! SO feel normal now that we can get back to some normality !!

Found these on the internet made me giggle!!
Childbirth song
Being a mum
Dad Sense

heehee, that childbirth song is ace!