Sept 08 - Is it day or night?

[lollyheart]

Hope no one minds me starting a new thread?

Carrieon You're so right re:

'next time round you won't even realise the baby is crying - they'll have self-settled before you've finished wiping the finger paints off the floor and cleaning play-doh out of the carpet!'

pacita here:

www.kellymom.com/bf/pumping/pumping_decrease.html

and

www.kellymom.com/newman/27expressing_milk.html

I'm afraid no-one can really give advice re: pump because different pumps suit different people. I use the ameda lactaline which I am happy with, and a lot of people swear by the medela (sp). Starting places for electric pumps. I prefer electric personally because although hand expressing and hand pumps are supposed to be good enough, they don't allow you to type at the same time

charity haven't been for a walk, which was probably a mistake. I thought I'd try to put him down in the cot for his lunchtime and afternoon naps to have some time to myself, but he refused to settle either time.

I really was on the verge of a panic attack earlier when he was just wailing. I realised I was practically wailing in synch with him.

Sympathy to you becaroo! Ninja a bath might have been a good idea, although I was so hysterical that I couldn't actually think of anything sensible like doing something he enjoyed.

T is now totally out for the count on DP, who has promised to deliver him to me for feeds only for the rest of the evening.
I really need to learn to not tackle things like settling him in the cot for every nap on a friday when I've coped all week and am just running out of patience.

Oh hopefully I really feel for you. Just remember that gradually the good days outweigh the bad, and it helps you see the bad days for what they are. Tomorrow is a fresh start, and you're going to have the most relaxing evening tonight. The week is over, you did it, well done you!!

jenpet I use a little nappy cream where her neck is sore.

Hopefully Get DP to do EVERYTHING except feed and go to bed!

carrieon I have just realised that this is the first full week I have done with no visitors to help out on any day, so perhaps I haven't done as badly as all that.

starlight he is going to do just that! I am walking away from the huge pile of laundry and washing up. DP may have to run out for disposable nappies in the morning as a result of this, but I'm thinking that once won't kill the environment...

Crikey you haven't done badly at all - the first whole week on your own is a major thing - no one to bounce ideas off, or pass the baby to so you can go to the loo/eat something. You're both alive - success!!

Anyone else finding it weird that you're no longer a post-natal mum with a newborn...you're now just a lady with a baby?

I empathise masses, hopefully. It may be something in the water as Diego normally would be quite happily sitting in his chair for a while, whereas today it has been a constant screaming when he was not feeding or asleep...

let's hope for a good night and a better day tomorrow, huh?

Still no poo. Getting paranoid as i think he must be uncomfortable... I have tried the massage, the leg exercises and drinking orange juice (me).

They've recommended me giving him a teaspoon of cooled boiled water. Anyone tried this or have any thoughts?

hopefuly i totally sympathise (have been posting my moans on the thread about finding having a newborn hard (on the home page)) as I am in a total worried state today.

The only time DD has settled in the evening was Wed when she was basically awake for most of the day. i feared she would be overtired but no, slept like an angel from 7.30pm to 6.30am, with one dreamfeed at 11pm.
So - aha i think, she needs to be awake more in the day. But she won't!! We go for a walk, she sleeps, we play together on the gym, she cries, I sing her songs, she cries, I cuddle her loads, she falls asleep.

now I am totally worried that I have a 7 week old who only has feed times as a routine. If you asked me when her naps were in the day, i could not tell you and I am worried that when she is awake I am not playing with her enough and when she sleeps, she is not in her cot and so not in a good naptime routine. She just sleeps anywhere she can.
hopefully your commenst about T's lunchtime and aternoon naps totally freaked me out - C doesn't have those - she just sleeps when she wants and feeds every 3 or 4 hours.
I just don't know what to do and am really panicking about not doing the right thing. Sorry, it must be today.

i am a crap mum and should go back to work and let better people look after her.

Fingers crossed pacita. Diego (love the name!) probably is beginning to get uncomfortable, but with a bit of luck that means that something is imminent. Re the water, if you formula feed I wouldn't think twice about it (sorry, can't remember if you do), and if you exclusively BF I guess you just have to weigh it up - some would say that a BF baby doesn't need anything more, some would say go for it.
My SIL's baby went 9 days once (exclusively BF) with no ill effects except lots of grunting and crying for the last 24 hours of that and the most enormous explosion in the world when it finally happened - I think they just threw out the clothes and nappy!

Imoscarsmum I know the feeling - nothing ever works twice! It's so frustrating, as every time I think I have something cracked, it goes wrong 24 hours later. T's nap times are very predictable (approx 9am, 12pm and 4pm, each time he will have been awake for 2 hours at nap time), but I have literally a 5 minute window in which to settle him, which seems to occur before he gives any tired signals. if he's already yawning, it's probably too late, but if I start too early he gets really frustrated, so either way he cries. if I get it spot on, he goes down in about 10 minutes and sleeps beautifully, but that happens very rarely.
I also empathise totally with your thoughts about going back to work and letting someone more capable do the caring. I feel exactly like that today, like anyone would make a better job of caring for poor little T than I would.

Oh, quick question - how much can I drink and BF? DP has just passed me a glass of wine, and I would hate to be told I shouldn't be drinking any of it! Hadn't even occurred to me to check previously, as I haven't felt much like drinking so have only had the odd 1/4 of a glass... I'll be feeding T in about 20 mins and then again at 10:30, and pumping at 8, but I'm happy to pump and dump if necessary.

Drinking a couple of glasses fine - I was told that I never needed to pump and dump by BF counsellor. Enjoy it, it'll probably help your let down as you'll be relaxed

Thank god for that. Being deprived of a glass of wine at this stage might have been the proverbial straw that broke me.

horrible day today, like many of you. Alfie has wanted to feed constantly all day, i feel like i have been drained of every ounce of fluid (so am now replacing with wine ) and to top it all i have got really cross with ds1 because i have been so tired from lack of sleep last night. Alfie is currently crying off and on in his swing seat, i keep telling myself 'he isnt hungry, he's tired' but still feel bit bad

hopefully I nearly always have a teeny tiny glass of wine in the evenings. I don't think it's likely to cause any problems. I'd lose the plot if I couldn't have that at the end of the day. (hic!) .

DD is currently wide awake and gurgling at BBC1, I have given up trying to settle her in her cot until later on. At least this way she is happy and quiet and I get to eat dinner in peace. She does seem to be getting better during the night so I won't push my luck and take her to bed just yet.

DS had his first hair cut today. I'm not sure who is more traumatised, probably me TBH. I only got it tidied up round his ears and now I want it to grow again as he was getting a cute 'surfer boy' look . No more hair cuts for a while I think.

I've just realised we haven't heard from splishsplosh in ages, in know she was having a rotten time with her P, I hope she's ok. She's not on the facebook group either is she?

hopefully my mum actually suggested drinking a bottle of beer in the evenings that you're feeling like you're not making enough milk. she swears by it. i've never needed it but thought maybe passing it along. so i guess drinking is beneficial and yummy

The 1970s book on breastfeeding that my mum lent me says that if you can't get your milk to let down or you need to relax then you should have an alcoholic drink and try again

Oh, and guinness is actually good for you

Something to make you all smile.

Today Robyn had her first cuddle with her big brother B. B is 9 and has autism and a host of behavioural and developmental problems. We have been on edge as to how he would behave as he can have quite violent outbvursts and fights with dd1 a lot.
DP had Robyn when B sat next to him with his arms out in a cradle hold and signing please. So dp handed her over and laid her on his lap, at this Robyn started to cry a little so B lifted up his top so she could have some milk!!!
All in all he sat with her for 5 mins cuddling her and wouldn't let dp take her away.
Got a few pics of it and had to wipe a tear away as this is such a big step for B.

Am now going to start the feed fest before bed. After yesterday's post she has settled twice in her chair in the eveniong

thanks hopefully I think Alfredo's a cutie too! And yes, he's 1/4 Italian, 1/4 Filipino, 1/4 Polish, 1/4 English. How's about that for mixing it up?

After two nights of being able to put Alfredo to bed earlier than my own bedtime, I'm pushing my luck and have done it again - this time when I put him down after a (very sleepy) feed he opened his eyes but it's been a good 5 minutes now and no crying yet! It's the closest we've got to self-settling.

I got a 4 hour chunk of sleep followed by a 3 hour stint last night. Yesterday he went down at 7pm, woke at 8 for a 30 minute feed and then at 10:30 for a 40 minute feed. But this was after I basically let him feed all day from 11am onwards. I decided it was definitely a growth spurt which was coinciding with my recent addition of expressing for 30 minutes an hour after his morning feed.

I think boob and baby may have reached an agreement today as I was able to leave the house at midday for an NCT lunch in Camden. Fed him as soon as I got to the restaurant and he graciously repaid the favour by letting me eat most of my pizza while he cooed and smiled in his pushchair (first time ever!). I then managed to hold off a crying meltdown with a dummy (held in place by mummy) on the bus back.

I feel for those of you going through growth spurt pains. It is so exhausting dealing with a baby who doesn't seem to settle, even while feeding. I had to call DH yesterday to bring me lunch as I hadn't been able to do anything but feed the little monkey since breakfast - burger and chips was needed!

This last week I've started clock-watching to see if Alfredo has started to settle into his own routine. He has a morning nap which happens 45min to an hour after he's finished his first feed. Didn't impose this at all, he just has a little grizzle and drops off on my or DH's shoulder then I can put him down in the moses baskeet. The rest of the naps and feeds have been a little bit all over the place this week, BUT I've found clock-watching really helpful in the late afternoon/early evening when it feels like I've hardly had a break from feeding and actually it's been a good hour of playing with A, having him bounce up and down on my lap whilst simultaneously supporting his own head (his new trick this week).

Wow, while I've been typing this I've still not heard from him. Fingers crossed he goes a bit longer than last night!

I'm having a vodka tonight. Bliss!

imoscarsmum and hopefully don't think that - (altho there are many times I've thought the same). Please have a nice restful weekend I hope you're enjoying the wine Hopefully

I think I sounded a bit rubbish in my other post - I don't really resent looking after ill dd1 - it's just that sometimes getting out of the house keeps me sane.

Now M has officially slept all day, except for 45 mins in the morning and the odd 10 mins to feed. She had been getting more awake before this, should I be worried???

Thread names?

debs - have to go and wipe my tears now, that sounds so lovely

Debs that's lovely. It must have been a proud mum moment for you.

By the way I've put some photos on my profile - my mum says my 2 DDs don't look alike - what do you think?

just added a photo too....

www.mumsnet.com/member/MemberPage?call=com.mumsnet.member.PublicImageGallery&nick= meglet