we did it, we did it, the babies are here, now come and join us and we will give you a cheer!!!!

[Dozymare]

Hope this works

thought i would start a thread for those of us already in the heady World of motherhood, so we can share the trials and tribulations of the early days....

I shall start with my birth story and hope other's follow and I haven't started a dud thread

As you know I was dreading a 3rd CS, almost to the point where I was having panic attacks - we went in on the Thursday and after waiting for an EMC we were taken to theatre where I was DELIGHTED to recognise the aneathatist (sp!!) who helped deliver DS2. Now, one of my major fears about a 3rd CS was the fact that having had a "perfect" excperience with DS2, it6 wouldn't be possible to experience the same thing again...I was wroing, it was better The whole thing was started at 1315 and Tallulah was born at 1344 weighing 7lbs 2oz. She has a shock of dark hair but seems so small compared to the boys who were 9 and 10lbs respectively. The care I recieved was absolutely 2nd to none - no complaints or gripes.........So far so good.........

HOWEVER.........my god, do you forget the pain of breastfeeding before the milk comes in - I am in absolute agony and have had to top up with aptamil as the poor wee thing is so, so hungry...I am literally BF for up to 2 hours (the point of pain in both udders ) and then topping up with Aptamil. She guzzles 30ml and then settles.......As for sleep - sleep is for wimps!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Morning All - so much going on, I don't know how you ladies have the time to post daily - you are obvioulsy super organised mum's!!!! CHOC What a lovely unusual name, where was the inspiration??????

I have to take Tiger to the hospital tomorrow as she still hasn't regained her birth weight - the MW thinks this is due to my lack of milk production, as she has put weight on since I switched to FF but thinks the poor mite was so hungry last week......however, she is now a very content baby who is REALLY awake qutie a lot - last week I was worryhing as she was literally asleep all the time........I also think she can see now as well.....

Now, I hae missed some births - Congratulations to missdee - great name choice (not that I am biased, but I still love my name) and what a quick birth! How are the girls with their little sister???

Also congratuilations to vbab am at how quick you were as well - Mr Vbab deserves a medal, what a brave man eh!

Well done as well to browny and mummytonic can't beliove we have had so many new arrivals theser past 24 hours!

As for wine, it is a GREAT present to give/recieve - I am no expert but I do love my wine - if you are buying for someone, try and find out their favourite and then speak to a wine merchant who can advise. i can give you details of ours if you want (God, what a lush I sound!) But as cricri Bordeaux and Burgandy are both good to lie down........

DM x

obs TOTALLY missed youe point then about food - DH is off to borough market at lunchtime today with a shopping list. He is inst4ructed to get me some Vacherin (very very stinky french cheese that is only proiduced for 3 months of the year and has to be kept OUTSIDE it pongs that much, but by goD IS IT DELISH!) some pate and some calves liver...I plan to have a gourmet fest this weekend, espeically as I am now not BF I shall also have some champagne!

Cor, I can't wait!

Mmmmm dozy, I love vacherin

I used to work in a cheese shop that sold farmhouse cheeses, predominantly from the UK and Ireland but some continental ones as well. I loved that job as you got to eat cheese all day! thankfully it was quite physical with lots of heavy lifting and running around or I would have been the size of a house.

I feel a cheese and wine evening with the girls coming on.....yum yum.

My undercarriage is still sore . There is a pain deep in my buttock which hurts when I walk, but mw checked me over and says everything looks lovely

Fin up half the night again with really bad colic/trapped wind. He sleeps happily all day and then the fun starts about 8 in the evening and doesn't stop till 4 or 5 am. We had another trip to the cranial osteopath today so fingers crossed it has helped.

I am taking part in an infant development study.......my student came round this morning to introduce herself. She will come here every Friday for an hour for the next two years to observe Fin and how he is doing, including interaction with me, how he communicates etc. It's a bit of a commitment from me, but I can pull out any time I like! nothing as grand as Prof Wilson unfortunately so we won't be on the telly, but worthwhile nonetheless.

Hello all - just popping on to say hello while my mum is holding Mack. DH has gone to work today (we decided he'd go in one day a week to stretch his paternity) and so I haven't had much chance to use my hands for myself!! How on earth does one go for a pee with a baby about?!?!?

Thanks for the nice comments on the name - we are really pleased with it and DH spent last night trying to commit to memory the words to Mack the Knife! DM I saw the name somewhere (spelt Mac) but don't know where then DH said we could have it if we spelt it Mack so the deal was done!

DM I am going to be at EH at 11am tomorrow, maybe see you then if you are around at the same time??

I have had some brie and even though I'm not a huge fan I asked DH to buy me some pate and I am going to have some on toast later!

Daisy I am still sore too and I am paranoid about it becoming infected - how on earth would you know???

My back is really hurting too at the moment - just in one spot to the left of my spine. Could this be because of the Epidural?

Hope you are all having good days and are happy mums and babes. Right - off to dress Mack in his "I Love Daddy" babygro to surprise DH when he gets back from work.

Gary Sinese's character in CSI NY is called Mack

you sound like you are doing really well ChocO. Re the loo....you just have to put the baby down and go for it....same with having a shower etc. When DS was little I used to take his bouncy chair into the bathroom with me.

Don't know about organised, Dozy, I have spent most of the day asleep. The little guzzlers guzzled all morning and then gave me from about 11-2 asleep in bed.

Ds1 isn't well. Dh has taken him to the docs, had a temperature since Wed am, but no other signs of anything, no vomiting, no rashes, he has a bit of cough and cold but not drastic. Anyway, as it is the weekend now, dh wanted to take him to doc before the w/e starts...he is moany, crying and I am sick to death of Cbeebies and Nick Jr!

My rash is back. It was calming down and I was down to 4 piriton a day for several days, but it's got bad again- itchy, itchy everywhere.

I haven't indulged in any special food, except a lot of chocolate after the Gest Diabetes. We have some nice cider from Brittany (Loic Raison) though, maybe I will frigge it for tonight...I HATE smelly cheese!

Obs, is your overhang infected, or are the stitches infected? Mine is just hanging and wobbling around, it is so disgusting.

Ahh ChocO, the I love Daddy gro sounds cute. Is it the Next one? Someone gave us matching Daddy and Mummy ones for the twins, but they are a mahoosive newborn size!

I am going mad inside the house, but can't bring myself to get out (getting myself decent and twins dressed warmly and actually leaving the house on foot ...am I the only one?!

hope DS1 feels better soon Merry. and that whatever he has got he doesn't pass it on to the babies.

Fin has been sleeping most of the day again, so looks like another bad night here. His feeding has tailed off again and I'm back to worrying if he is getting enough.

Obs, it'll take time for the scar tissue to go down. Apparently gentle massage can help break up scar tissue and help the would to heal. As can gentle tummy exercises. Not sit ups though, just pulling your tummy muscles in, hold for a bit and then let go. It increases blood supply to the area and aids healing. Same for any undercarriage issues....pelvic floors do the same thing.

lacks is it you w big gap between tummy mucles? anything which helps bring them back together, other than sitting on sofa eatin and watchinh telly? i left ky jelly in toilet and cleaner came , young girl, wonder what she's been thinking!!

don't you jus love that drunken, satisfied to the max face that babies get when they pull off your boob? makes it all worth it...

sorry for fin's antics, lacks. mine are more windy through night too, but they have bottle of formula around 9pm. also i think i produce more milk at night so there's more foremilk...but it's a pain winding them half the night.

yup my tummy muscles are mashed....but don't despair; there are exercises you can do whilst sitting watching TV.

There was a thread on it; I'll try and find the link

Pilates is good for strengthening tummy muscles and core stability

Merry its the bloomin marvellous one, and its soooo cute!

Mmmm, had a snack earlier of duck liver pate on toast!!

hey chocO

where has everyone gone? You'd think they were all busy having and looking after babies

I think Oscar is going through a growth spurt. He won't stop feeding. I know he is getting milk as i can hear him gulping but he seems to be constantly feeding at the mo. It's bloody tiring and i feel like i'v constantly got my (.)(.) out

Going out on my first girls night out tomorrow. Really looking forward to it. I'v expressed a couple of bottles today and will do some more tomorrow for dp to feed. I'm not going to go silly as i think couple of glasses of wine will see me right . How long would anyone suggest not to breastfeed for after a few drinks or do others think it doesn't really make a difference. Advice much appreciated.

Merry hope your little boy is feeling better.

Lacks Oscar seems to sleep all day and likes to party all night too. It's not much fun is it. Hope you get a decent night tonight.

Hi to everyone else

Lola, the general consensus on MN is that it doesn't make much of a difference and there is no need to pump and dump. I wouldn't feed the baby if I was so pissed I couldn't stand, but would after a few glasses of wine. The alcohol doesn't hang around in your milk any longer than it does in your bloodstream.

Fin did that mad feeding thing Wed/Thurs through the night and in the morning and then slept for 5.5 hours! We need some big evening cluster feeds if that's the effect it has on him.

He has been better tonight it has to be said, but he did this last week after seeing the cranial osteopath as well. And I avoided coffee all day as well.

right he has had a good feed, so I'm off to bed for some much needed Zzzzzzzzs before he needs me again

Lolabella I've been doing the constant feeding thing too - my bum is numb from being sat in the armchair for so long! It is exhausting at times and I'm still having to top up with formula to keep up with Elise's demands. After feeding for a lengthy period she starts to get very agitated and just sucks without swallowing which makes me think there still isn't enough milk. I can't seem to express very much either
Lacks Perhaps you can advise - I only managed to express 1oz yesterday and after I'd done so the next feed was a marathon 4h session as though there wasn't enough. Is this normal? I didn't bother trying to express today and still spent most of the day feeding. It's not just in the evenings either when I know babies do their cluster feeding, it's throughout the day. She eventually falls asleep as if she's had enough but as soon as I try to put her down she wakes and starts acting hungry again. After a bottle of formula though she's perfectly happy - alert and then ready for sleep.
On the bright side she was weighed today and is back up to her birth weight
Hope you managed to catch up on some sleep
Dozy If you like Vacherin have you tried Delice de Bourgogne? It's made with triple cream and is absolutely yummy...

I totally sympathise Cricri I'v just bf for an hour and a half and eventually had to take Oscar away from the breast as i'm so tired but he is not asleep and is still rooting. What is going on? I don't know whether to top up with formula. I'm using nipple shields and try and take them away when Oscar is latched on but he won't always go on my breat afterwards. I'm now worried that he is not stimulating my nipples enough when using the shields and this is the cause of the problem.

Bloody hell, why is this so hard?

All you ladies having bf issues yoiu have my sympathies and respect!
TMI warning - I have a question to all those CS ladies. Does your overhang smell?
I seem to get a nasty whiff when I lift it up to get a look at the wound. Its not weeping at all but the skin around it is very red and a bit smelly. I wash it with plain water and dry thoroughly 3-4 times a day and air it whenever I can I just wondered if anyone has any other tips, i think it is just because th skin is touching and it gets a bit sweaty!
Also baby question, Jay lost his cord yesterday and his belly button is bleeding - not much but there are spots on his nappy when I change him and there seems to be congealed blood in the belly button - any advice?
Hope everyone is well and enjoying the weekend!

hello all.
ladybuzz the cord sounds normal, fine, but your scar needs looking at, I think. Are you discharged from the cmw yet? if not give her a call, otherwise I'd see GP.

lola cricri I've not used nipple shields,so can't help there, but it is quite normal for babies to feed like this. DD1 used to feed and feed in the eveings until about 1 am, I felt like she had drained me completely.
Are you getting their wind up successfully? Sometimes they get full of wind etc. Any kind of discomfort like that and they will want to suck. Sometimes I find if I just pass baby to DH for a non-milky cuddle she is asleep in a few minutes.

cricri if she's gaining weight she must be getting milk. They quite often do the cluster feeding in the afternoon, to, IME.
Another good trick is to rest the baby right over you arm and rub their back it helps with colicky feelings, which may help her settle.

I just wanted to add before I go, that please don't think that every feeding niggle is becuase you are bfeeding, I don't know if you noticed, but in hospital you will see plenty of women having problems with colicky, not taking enough at each feed, bringing up most of a feed, babies who are being fed formula. Sometimes it just takes the baby and the mother a bit of time to get things just right- so try not to worry.

Just wanted to reassure those with bfing issues...I have found it easier this time round...so far anyway. Had issues with ds1, a lot of issues, but so far this time it's been mostly ok. If you stick at it, then next time will be easier!

My twins get 1 bottle of formula a day (depends on their appetite that day, about 60mls to 120mls) to give me a bit of sleep! Maybe cricri, if you schedule in 1 bottle a day, you will feel reassured, not guilty because you've planned it, and it will give you a break too...if it's worrying you. Sounds like she's doing well to get back to birthweight though. My two are definitely getting bigger and fatter, though they haven't been weighed as still no HV visit or red book.

Agree with pinkee on sucking when in pain. Mine need a lot of burping despite bf.

Ds1 is bit better today and managed half an almond croissant, his first food since Wednesday lunch! He slept till 10.20am, which was rather nice!

Hi Daisy, we're certainly not going through this thread as quickly as the AN ones!! Seems to be something else to keep us busy...

Just had Mack's heel prick test (had to do 2 as there wasn't enough blood from the first ) and 5 day weight check - he's lost just over 10% so they want to weigh him again tomorrow. The MW said I should feed him for at least 30 mins at a time so I just tried but after 20 mins he didn't want anymore - i tried tickling feet, stroking his cheek, but nada.... What now??

Also, I just wanted to say sorry as I realise all my posts on here are very me me me, its not that I am ignoring other people's posts but I just have no useful advice to give .... and I am very grateful to all you experienced ladies for your wonderful advice!

ChocO, the weight thing is a difficult one, as he is now being weighed on different scales from the hospital so there will be a change in calibration. Also, weighing him tomorrow won't give them a very accurate picture imvho, as this is too soon. Their weight can change dramatically from one day to the next depending on whether they have just fed or oven had a poo or a big wee. The rule of thumb is that they should have regained their birth weight at 14 days, and bearing in mind that your milk has only just come in, I think (and that's just my opinion) that it's too early to worry about it, if he is feeding well and weeing and pooing frequently. Perhaps you can call one of the helplines and talk to a BFC as well for more reassurance?

CriCri, Fin is also doing the mad seeming unsatisfied at the breast, but from my experience with DD and what I've read up on this is perfectly normal at this stage. your DD will seem satified after a bottle of formula as her tummy is full to bursting of something that is more difficult to digest. Think of it as the difference between you snacking all day to keep the edge off your hunger and then eating a huge five course rich meal at night.

We also get the cluster feeding at all hours of the day, not just in the evenings......from 2am till 8am seems to be his favourite time for it and then he sleeps for hours.......need to get him round to evenings and then I might have a chance of a decent sleep.

Anyway, for both of you, some information from kellymom onmilk supply, weight gain and fussiness at the breast.

Fin seems like he's fighting with it some times and growls and holds on like he's trying to squeeze every last drop out!

And, yes they will want to suck if they have wind. Putting them back on the breast can be counterproductive with a windy baby as they then get too much foremilk which can cause windiness in itself and it becomes a viscious circle. If they have wind they can look a little blue around their mouth and under their nose (like five o'clock shadow!).

ChocO, try changing his nappy and then putting him back on as this should wake him up a wee bit. Also, put him back on the breast he has just come off as he will be getting the more calorie dense "hindmilk". The boob that has been rested will have the thinner thirst quenching foremilk.

and meant to add, the length of time he feeds doesn't really mean anything. Fin only feeds for 10-15 minutes, but he has such a strong suck he is getting enough in that time.

choc, agree with lacks on weight. ds2 was still under birthweight at 12days, but midwife said it was fine and discharged us as he was gainig from where he had been...he was only weighed at 7 and 12 days anyway.

Ah, here we are!
BFing issues.
Yup, I got some too, and I thought my experience with DD would leave me less confused!
My Jonathan is doing great until his evening feeds when he is hungry but just not interested in latching on. How frustrating and annoying that he is grunting and grumbling, eventually crying, and still won't open his mouth wide enough for my boob! And that it is at 4am and then 7ish both times I am knackered with it all and my patience is thin. I feel like such a horror that I cannot keep my normal cool I get exasperated with him and just lay him back down until he works himself into a bit of a tizz then he latches on

Ho hum.