July 2009: Grinning, wolfing, rolling and puking! :)

[alibobble]

Hi thought I'd take the bull by the horns and start a new thread. Hope the weaning was covert enough! Fire away!

Sleeping Must have been something in the water with these July babies that is preventing them from sleeping all night!! All three of my DCs slept through at 7 weeks old. Marco has to leave the best for last, I guess!!! Woke up at 12 then at 3 last night to feed, and then I couldnt get back to sleep! I ended up throwing some clothes in the washer, reading the last few pages of the book I was trying to finish, and then staring at the ceiling listening to Marco snore!!

Christmas Need to stay up late tonight to wrap my presents. Tomorrow: Dinner at my Mum's. She has decided that she will not be going an vacation now, so I dont have to host Dinner or Christmas Eve!! Hooray! Was starting to feel Scrooge-like that I was going to have to cook yet another huge dinner! LOL

Holidays My house is going to be a zoo for the next 2 weeks with all 4 DCs home. Going to have to think of something to do with them all so that cabin fever doesn't set in. We have some snow on the ground, but not enough for them to play in. Not only that, but it has been bitterly cold here the last few days with temps dropping to -19 degrees Celcius!! Any ideas???

Lydia can you definitely not change his name? Sounds like it means a lot to you - he's still so small that in a couple of years it'd be like he was never anything other than the new name.

QueenFee the Croup sounds frightening. DS just has a little cough and that's slightly heartbreaking. Glad he's mended so quickly, he must be a strong little chap.

MissP - very of the wax and massage. I keep thinking that I should be aiming for a bit more personal maintenance.. I'm a bit of a grotbag at the moment.

I had the day trip to see friends last week and tried so hard to glam up but of course I got puked on in my good dress just as I was leaving the house. Felt like a fat and frumpy new mum.. until I had a glass or two of vino then had a lovely time with a bunch of old mates. Thanks heavens for waist belts and control tights for holding everything in - hid the worst of it. Back on the Wii fit after Christmas, the mince pies are not helping matters!

BabyB - minus 19 - yikes! We've had a bit of snow over here and everything ground to a halt as usual.

Sleeping - what is it with our lot?! I'm still up two hourly. He's even up before dream-feed time yelling for more. Not normal, surely.

Bright pink cheeks - anyone know what this means? He doesn't seem to be teething at the moment but his cheeks are bright red. He's a bit warm, but nothing major.

Christiana - my friend's DD has the Playmobil hospital, it's brilliant, yours will LOVE it. I played with it for about half an hour myself when I was round at hers

babyB - meant to suggest - I was minding three house-bound children for a friend recently and a big dressing-up box and an afternoon of serious fort-making worked like a DREAM

Hi everyone.
Hetty is a bit better, but she has bronchiolitis so the Dr. gave us an inhaler. It's a reliever rather than a steroid. I really hope it's not the start of asthma. Avoiding that was one of my major BF reasons so I'll be gutted if it hasn't worked.
snow - crapped myself when I found out about the snow coming this week and launched myself into a major Christmas prep frenzy. So I nailed the final shopping in a mammoth Meadowhall trip last Wednesday. Now I just have it all to wrap and deliver. To be fair the snow isn't too bad out this way, but I hate driving in even a small smattering so I'm glad I got things sorted.
Glad everyone is getting out and about - glad you had a nice boozy day Activity. How's your arthritis? MissP - enjoy your wax and massage.
piano - it's gone - yay!!!! As has SIL - completely broke and yet she's spending a whole month in Aus. Hope she doesn't bloody well come back
Christmas - staying home by ourselves. It's going to be easier on Hetty I reckon. I feel like we've been ill with one thing or another for bloomin' weeks now. S a bit of normality would be nice. Going to cook either a small goose or a duck - haven't quite decided yet, but either will happily stand a bit of over-cooking should dinner get buggered up at any point.
Anyway, gotta go and feed this baby x

I know it sounds awful but so relieved that others still having sleep problems, is it just me?
or does every Tom, Dick or Harry ask if they're sleeping through and then advise you on how to do it!

Ds1 slept through 12 hours from 7 weeks!
dd1 slept through from about 4 months
dd2 from 3 months.

And the Twins will be 6 months on christmas day and are no where near sleeping through.

I have been very brave today and put them in the nursery for the first time. I think I'm going to have to get tough, the sleep deprevation is killing me.

It's very weird that nearly every baby on this thread doesn't sleep.

Our evenings have got better since we moved Noah back into our room in the travel cot but he still ends up in our bed by about midnight. I think its partly my fault because i can't be bothered sitting up holding his dummy in/shushing him/patting him back to sleep for ages, especially when its freezing cold out of my duvet, so if he doesn't go back to sleep pretty quickly i just lay down with him and end up falling asleep and having him in with me all night. Ds1 was sleeping through from 7week old too.

All christmas shopping complete and pressies wrapped

Baby How the hell do you survive in -19 degrees? -3 feels pretty damn cold to me.

JetLi Yay for the piano going . Very brave going to Meadowhall this close to christmas

Hope all the poorly babies are getting better

Sleep what is that again?!!?
My night
9:30pm feed
12:40am feed
3:30am feed
6:30am feed (well once I get off MN)

DS1 and DD slept from 11pm-7am by 9 weeks and from 8pm-8am by 5months.

Will do a proper post later as need coffee and have to feed.

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last night!

fed
Stan at
9.45pm
12.15pm
3am
5.30
and up at 6.45 grrr
Freddie not too bad
10.15
2am
5.45am

Will try some protein tonight christiana only just started weening am praying when they eat more solids they will sleep longer.

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Uggghhhhh.... can completely sympathize. I am barely conscious right now and its almost noon. Went to Mum's house for Christmas dinner. Was FAB! Ate like a pig. Came home, put the kids to bed, and wrapped prezzies til 2am. Marco woke at:

2:45 (just as I had fallen into a deep sleep)
4am-ish nursed on one side
6am-ish screaming blue murder, not nursing
8am-ish screaming blue murder, not nursing

Think the poor bugger either had gas, or is constipated. Was screaming in pain and arching his back. He has his biggest poo in the morning, and so far, we havent seen much. Tried 'helping' him along, but no luck. Knackered doesnt even START to describe how I feel! Have a couple of hours before I have to take the DCs to the studio for pics. My sis and I getting the kids together to do grandchildren portraits for our parents for Christmas. Marco is gonna be a miserable little boy making a photo with 6 kids an ordeal

Hi all - glad you had a good time at your Mum's baby - your story about Marco pooing whilst on the boob in the early hours had me in stitches. How has his tummy been today? How did the photo session go?
Glad you got some sleep christiana
phoenix - I'm the same in that once Hetty wakes in the night, she ends up in with us. Too bloody cold at the moment to be out of the bed, fannying around
sleeping - we're averaging a couple of wakings a night at the moment. I think she's either hungry or cold. I think she's catching up a bit, boob-wise, from being poorly.
Bed Attire - gawd her hands are freezing at night. With a 2.5 tog gro-bag, she has on a long sleeved vest and a babygro. Is anyone's baby wearing more than this? Her feet are toasty, it's her hands and forearms that are nithered. Tried some mitts but to be honest they were a tad thin and she only kept one of them on for any length of time. I might try some fleecy ones tonight and see if they're any better.
snow - bloody bucket-loads of the stuff have come down today. It meant we missed a Sunday dinner being cooked for us by a friend and we were going to swap pressies with them today too so that arrangement has all gone to cock. I'm supposed to be out tomorrow on a pram walk in the morning and to the Dr. for another try at a smear in the afternoon. I can see me getting to neither at this rate. The main road looks passable but it's getting from the house to the main routes that will be impossible. And the pavements are treacherous so walking with the pram is out of the question. Bummer.
Anyway, going off to get a bath

Morning all.
I had a lovely night and was only woken (after feeding at 10:30pm) at 4:30am. Yippee.

Christiana very of your 11-7 coup. Pls keep me posted on how the weaning goes. Maybe protein is the key to sleep?

Baby for someone with so many DC's you really do keep busy. How do you do it? And with it being so cold! Brr.

Apple I think it is great to get out and do "non-mommy" things albeit w/some baby sick. . I remember when I went back to work DS1 was 8 1/2 months and I would catch a faint scent of his sick in the office. I would eventually find a patch of his regurgitated milk somewhere on my shoulder or back. The glamour, eh?

Jetli have the same re cold hands. I have put the heating on a timer every couple hours for 20min or so to take the chill out the air. There is nothing else I can think of doing.

Largeglass Women with twins amaze me. You are doing a stellar job. I sometimes feel a bit whingey over my one baby.

Term break has started and DH at work for the next 3 days. Wish me luck keeping all 3 DC's entertained.

MissP LMAO at the idea of going to work and taking some of the baby dribble with you Has happened to me as well.

LargeGlass second that on considering you a super-mom having to deal with twins! My first 2 were close in age and THAT was hard! I myself, have a tonne of energy in the sense that I cant sit still... so I am always on the go with something. My friends think I am nuts, but I think its genetic since my Mum is the same way

sleep so another sleepless night for me. After going to bed at 1am (after Christmas visit with friends) Marco was up every 2 hours from 2am until 8am when we officially gave up trying to sleep! The poor thing was quite gassy and crampy as he was doing the whole 'scream in agony whilst arching my back' thing. Finally at 4am he started to have small poos. This continued for the next 2 wakings until he finally exploded at 8am! Hopefully he feels better. Poor baby did not have a poo in 2 days, not to mention all the gassy-type foods I was indulging in during 2 dinners out. Thats one thing about BF I am not too keen on. I always forget to watch what I eat (aside from meds or alcohol).

Photos our photo session went sooooo well!! (will post on FB when I get the pics tonight). The photographer was quite young, but seemed to have the magic touch. Everytime we get her, we are in and out in minimal time. With 6 kids in the photos, we were done in 5 minutes!! Took us longer to pick which picture we liked best (they were all good) and wanted to enlarge. Thank goodness its done!

Snow So with all this talk about snow, was wondering how much you ladies are used to getting??? When you talk about the roads being bad and being snowed in, I picture mounds and mounds of white!! LOL... it may seem naive... but I have no clue what your climate is like. We get quite a bit of snow here. For the last 2 years, the piles of snow at the side of our driveway from shovelling have been over my head! This year, we have gotten very little.

Jetli How did the gloves work out?? Did Hetty actually keep them on?? Marco wears an undershirt and sleeper to bed, but we dont have a growbag so we just swaddle him. For the most part, he stays warm, but if he manages to loosen his hands out, they get quite cold. It doesnt help that they go right into his mouth either! He usually ends up in bed with us after a feed, and there is nothing worse than cold goobery fingers pawing at you whilst you are trying to sleep through a nursing session at ungodly hours!!

hi all. Sorry I've been really lax about reading here recently. Not had chance to rad and catch up.Not sure why. been a mad week I think.

Am just taking a break from some baking. Making christmas biscotti for presents for people as it keeps well and got jars from ikea for 89p each for them to go in. Bargain! My house smells all christmassy of orange zest and mixed spice. Yummy.

Haha! Just realised why I've managed to get on here tonight. DH is still at work (yes it's ten to 9pm) as he's got 2 weeks off over christmas and so to have a holiday, this is the price. am making him lemon drizzle cake as compensation but will no doubt eat it all myself!

weaning no idea where anyone else is up to but dd (5mths 2/3 days ago) ate whizzed up salmon pasta that me and dd1 were having for tea. Was rather lumpy but she didn't seem to care. thinned it out with a bit of ebm and down it went! Bonkers. Honestly she chewed on toast crust the other day. think I'm being a bit lax on the guidelines!

gotta go, cake ready x

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sleep is not too good here now although I can't complain as he has been good so far but got into bad habits when he was ill. He is now waking at about 11 2 and 5 and annoyingly then doesn't feed till about 10 wish he would feed when he wakes and ditch the 5 or 2 am feed.

blankets we don't have the heating on overnight as our antiquated boiler can't cope so Alfie sleeps with a sleeping bag on and a cot duvet (the little thin sort) I must also say at this point that my dh insist on the window being open and it's been -2/3/4 here overnight all week!

snow sore point , we never get any where I live in North Wales seems to have it's own microclimate. The kids are really fed up as both the grandmas have quite a bit of snow

Feeling very pleased with myself as have just sold the pram I bought to keep in the boot of the car I bought it off ebay for £50 and used it for 6 months and sold it for £70 Yay! Now I can go out and buy a light stroller for the car. I want to put Alfie in the back now he is forward facing so I need to put up the 6th seat in the boot which only leaves a little space so I have been looking at this one that do you think here
I am a bit worried that it might be quite flimsy though but it would fit better in the car than a standard stroller of decisions
weaning alife is def starting to chew too Ali and I have just started 3 meals a day to try and stop the night waking so watch this space. I made turkey (christmasy) dinner yesterday and pureed it up for him and he lapped that up he hates jars however which is a PITA

QueenFee - nice profit on the pram! I like the look of that stroller, great that it lies flat for out-and-about napping.

Weaning - we've decided to start in the New Year when he'll be just under 6 months. We could start him this week as I think he's ready but what with Christmas and that we're going abroad to see family I thought it was daft to change his routine when we're all over the place anyway.

Talking of going away, we're supposed to be going on the Eurostar - EEK!

Sleep - I'm a stuck record on this one. Still 2 hours day and night. Fed up with people telling me that "it'll be different when he's on solids" - I don't see what a couple of spoons of baby rice will make in the short term.

AliB - like the biscotti-in-jars idea. I love a festive smell, it's why there's been much mulled cider making here

I'm pretty much sorted for our little Christmas - everything's bought and wrapped. Splurged out and am doing beef wellington for festive lunch, yum.

heating - our house is old with a knackered roof so needs a lot of heating. Too skint to leave it on all the time so we're in lots of layers here. At night he's in a long-sleeved vest, sleepsuit (with built in scratch mitts to keep his paws warm!) and a 2.5 tog gro-bag. The thermometer went down to 15c one night so I put him in bed with us

PS = JetLi - I thought that what you and the others on that BF thread did for that woman was wonderful. What a happy story

Got to go out in the ice and snow now as have run out of nappy liners - just when I thought everything was sorted....

Hi everyone
I am waaaaay behind and havent been on for ages, I hope you still remember me!

I popped back on to see what you are all doing about weaning and get some advice re. sleep - Ollie sleeps HARDLY at all! He often has nights where he wakes every hour or two (especially if he is ill, which is almost always!) and I am on my knees. Staying with my ma at moment and this morning she marched in at 7, took Ollie and sai d 'put him on formula, wean him onto solids and let him scream at night'.... Now this is a bit extreme but any other advice welcome! Any of you had similar experiences? It seems like there is quite a lot of weaned babies on here which is good to hear. I really wanted to do blw but he definitely is not sitting p yet. I just want some sleep!

He is 22 weeks so nearly 5 months. Exclusively bf still. On a 'good night' he wakes twice at 1 am ish and 4 am ish. On a bad night it can be 6 or 7 times....DD slept through from 6 weeks!!!! Arrrrggghhhh....

Happy Christmas to all of you and those biscotti sound awesome!

heating at night Ours goes off after kids have had their bath and I might put it on a bit around 10pm but then not on till 6.45amish. DD2 sleeps in one of those fluffy sleep suits + growbag till 10pm feed and then with blanket aswell. When she was v small had an oil filled radiator with a timer and thermostat on in there around the times that she was waking to feed so the room wasn't as cold.

have discovered that he upside to my freezing conservatory is that it acts as an extension to my fridge! (the thermostat said 4c yesterday and the heating had been on!)

snow more here today. Glad I did food shopping on monday tho run out of a few things so must brave it into town again. ah well. Would be even better if the council decided to grit the roads.. what a novel idea. On the plus side me and dd1 "sledged" up and down the road today on a piece of waterproof table cloth

btw sleep noticed that some sleep deprived mums are cracking out the coffee to keep going. I know i would but if i have more than 1 cup of caffeinated coffee a day dd2's sleep patterns descend into bedlam. Am fully decaf for this reason. Not sure it'll help anyone but what we have, they have.

Hi everyone. I haven't posted for a few days as had some really sad news. A friend of ours died on sunday night of a heart attack. He was only young, early 40s and leaves a wife and 6 year old son. They have had so much saddness in their lives already so this is just the most awful news. We are all going to a Christmas party tomorrow which was going to be cancelled, but the little boy was really looking forward to it so it looks like it will go ahead. None of us feel like having a party though.

Sleep isn't great here either, he is either up once or twice and like a lot of you with other children, the other 2 were great at night from really early on. I can't figure out why he keeps waking. He is on 3 meals a day, lots of milk and has a night time bottle, but still doesn't sleep. i am on my knees with exhaustion now, really run down and just shattered. Will try protein!!

Hope you are all ok in this cold and snowy weather
xx

Patchy Sorry to hear about your friend. Not a nice thing to happen so close to the holidays.

Ali Mmmm... those biscotti sound wonderful!!

Christiana I'm from Toronto. The snow gets bad usually, but this year we have been lucky. We have enough to cover the ground right now, but the roads are all good. Not quite enough for the kids to play in either. We just missed the huge storm that Washington got!

Heat Feel badly for all of you in your chilly homes! Even though the temp goes waaay down here, our furnace is quite good and is set to keep the house at a toasty 23 degrees. My older DCs have small electric heaters in their rooms as well for the really cold nights. (am sitting in front of our gas fireplace right now since its -10 out today and I feel chilled).

sleep Marco did a little better last night. Woke up at 4am and 7am. Still feel like crap and need more sleep to function.

Hi all - not posted on here for months so no way I can catch up. Wondering how you are all doing.

Patchy really sorry to hear about your friend - a sad time for that family now.

You're talking about sleep... at the risk of being stoned off the thread .... DS has been sleeping through since about 3 months - I feed him at midnight (exclusively BF) when I go to bed and then he sleeps til about 7 or 8. There are a few odd nights when he wakes but that is unusual.
He wears a vest, babygro, sleeping bag, and then about three blankets! His hands are cold but his body is toasty!

He's 5 months old today - where did all that time go? He's lovely and smily but hasn't really started giggling yet. Is this about the right time or is he a serious boy?

He is rolling over at any opportunity and trying to eat anything near him - he had his first solid food the other day - wrapping paper! Bad mummy! Had to wrench it from his iron-grip away from his mouth - he was most upset.

Going to start BLW when he's 6 months old. I did it for DD because she was a stroppy madam and wouldn't eat mush. It worked for us. I didn't follow any plan - was just a reaction to her personality.

Oh and was someone saying their DC won't wear gloves in bed to keep warm? My tip is to put long socks on their hands - up to their elbows! Makes it trickier to remove (althoughDS has them off in about 5 seconds - but they stayed put on DD).