Nov 09 and we're feeling fine, feeding, burping, not enough sleeping - that's us!

[BeckyBendyLegs]

Just thought I'd better create a new thread.

Raggie how about a trip to Burford?

Good luck maman!

I'm with you on the work front raggie, I love teaching and can never imagine not doing it. I think I would go mad if I was at home all the time and I have the upmost respect for stay at home mums.

scarlottiI have no idea anymore about growth spurts. One day I'll think she's going through one, the next day she's fine, then the next 2 days she's feeding all the time again. I'm just taking each day as it comes now and have given up trying to predict how the next day will go! Hope things get better at home. You know ehere we are if you need to vent

DH had his first night out on friday, straight after work and stayed over at mates house. I was really dreading it but the dcs behaved themselves and I managed to get them both to bed by half 7. Felt very proud of myself HOWEVER, I could not do it for a whole 2 weeks like you Tamlin, hope you are coping OK!

Good luck tomorrow maman, I hope you enjoy your first day back.

I'm with tok on the growth spurts, I use that to explain a change in Ethan's routine every other day. This week I will try my best to get out of bed early and hope that this brings his bedtime forward. Goodness knows what I'd do if I had other children!

Loving the new smileys [bbiscuit]

Boo the knitted boob with a tam o'shanter isn't working!

morning.

I feel terrible.

I have hardly slept in days.

I have a sore throat, been creeping up for days, crap on the back of my throat that hurts to cough away, sore tight chest, sore muscles, headache. Yuck. I think the fever i had was the start of it, just delayed its arrival to coincide with DS waking at 3am.

DD woke up at 5:30am, on account of crashing at 6:30pm last night.

Being sick with children sucks.

I am meant to be going on a meetup with some MNers today, was going to be taking DD out of nursery for the morning, and passing DS around for cuddles. Should I just take DD to nursery for her normal time, then come home and kick DH out of bed and crawl into it, or should I dose myself up and just ride through it, on account of it being good for both me and DD to meet other mums with children her age? (i have met a couple of them before, lovely ladies).

Pav sorry to hear you're feeling rough, it's dreadful when you have kids. Guess it depends on how ill you feel re the mn meet - if you dosed up and went, could your dh then look after the kids later so you can sleep?

tok well done on your solo time! It's rewarding when you manage to look after them and it all goes smoothly.

claire think I'm using the growth spurt line here too although he did wake more in the night last night so would fit, ish.
I also messed up last night, he woke at around 5ish (again) for a second feed and I must have thought it was around 6ish so put him in bed with me after rather than back in his bed. He didn't settle properly so I've been half awake since 5!
He seems to be starting to wake more at the night time feeds and so taking longer to settle back down and I don't know why. As we're in the same room it's also noisy when he's harummphing away at 3am!

good morning, once again, I couldn't keep up and don't have time now to read more than the last few posts. So I can only hope everybody is doing well.
maman good luck for you today!

Speaking of growth spurts, I think Paula had already hers earlier than I expected it. There have been a couple of sligthly unsettled moments and then suddenly it was easier to bring her to bed... and there are a couple of new funny sounds she is able to produce... apparently in particular funny at 5am
And she is suddenly much more aware of certain noises, she started to cry when my husband blowed his nose.
But yesterday we were back to waking up the first couple of attempts as soon as she is near the matrass of her cot. So I am not quite sure if this has been it or not. Maybe she is in the middle of it?

maman hope you are enjoying your first day back at work!

pav sorry to hear you're feeling poorly. You are right, being ill with kids sucks! Hope you feel better soon.

Tok glad your dh free night went well. Hope he repays you and you get to have some quality time with friends or at least have a lie-in or some time to yourself.

scarlotti hope little one's growth spurt finishes soon and you get more sleep. How is everything at home now?

I am feeling so tired today. I don't know what was wrong with Millie last night but she was screaming her head off until midnight. Then ds woke at 4.30am, dh's alarm goes off at 5am and Millie woke up at 6am for a feed! Ds woke again 15 mins later so we were all up and ready to start the day by then, now I feel like crap!

I don't know how to get Millie to bed earlier. At the moment she has a 30 min nap between 7.30pm and 8 (roughly) then she wakes and is awake for a while, feeds, bit more, is awake then falls asleep about 9pm. We change her nappy and feed again at 10pm and then she is restless and awake until 11pmish. I go to sleep at 10 and dh stays up with her but as he gets up at 5am to go to work he is getting quite tired! I don't know whether to put her to bed at 9pm when she falls asleep and not give her the 10pm feed and nappy change. Could she be restless afterwards because she is overtired? Also, when dh has her he is on his computer in a lit room so maybe this is harder for her to drop off. Honestly, you'd think second time round I'd know what I was doing!

skorpion it was just one class in a 'bumps to babies' group at my local chidren's centre. TBH I think that was enough as now I've had a few pointers, I'm just going with it and giving her a bit more of a proper massage after baths instead of the more just stroking variety I was doing before! You should look into it though, there's so much around - I'm going to a singing and nursery rhymes thing tomorrow. Good way to meet people too. That reminds me of our proposed Oxfordshire meet up. Do you think Oxford would be best? Or should we venture into the shire towards either you or tamlin? Oh which reminds me again...I can't add you as a friend on FB tamlin if you're around - then we could try sorting something out on there which would be easier I think.

TOK don't think I knew you were a teacher - what age do you teach? There are quite a few of us on this thread!

scarlotti sorry to hear things aren't brill at home. Like pav said - do vent here if you want/need to!

hugs to helips and hoping for a better night tonight.

Hope work went ok maman

Right, now I'm going to start thinking about my Burns Supper preparations the noo...

Thanks raggie enjoy your burns night!

Gosh it's quiet on here today, where is everybody?

Hello! I'm lurking. Sorry to hear about all the sleep deprivation and illness I'm still struggling with the insomnia but better than I was last week I think. It is hard, isn't it, running after babies and toddlers and keeping everything else ticking over and then being expected to do this on a few hours sleep?

Toby is doing well. He is also snuffly and restless in the early hours - it must be just a baby thing. I'm sure they get better at sleeping then at some point (otherwise I wouldn't have two older DSs who sleep 8pm-8am). He's now in his cot rather than his basket and looks tiny and very lonely in there. I hate it! I want to climb in and cuddle him

bbl i am glad you are managing to sleep a little better, or feel like you are. I love the idea of climbing into their cot and snuggling with them! If i thought for a moment i would get some peace i would .

Reuben has been asleep all morning. I went to the meetup and he slept through it. I came home and he woke up just in time to cry through lunch, then had lovely cuddles and fusses. Now however, after DH finally went out with DD so I could try to get some sleep without having a marshmallow stuffed in my face, he is refusing to sleep anywhere apart from on me. Where he is right now. I am clinging bbl to the fact that you have 2 boys who sleep so well, as right now any kind of sleep for more than a couple of hours seems like a distant memory, one that will stay locked in my head as a memory. I cannot see a time when it will be so again right now.

I am so tired it is unreal. And when i try to tell DH how tired i am, so that he can help me work out a way of getting some sleep he tells me that he is tired too. "i am so tired DH', 'me too' 'i really need to get a mit of shuteye' 'yeah i know how you feel, i could do with a nap too' then has the cheek to doze on the sofa while i look after both children . AND, and...stayed in bed this morning while i get both children ready to go out, after i had hardly any sleep and was up at 5:30am, and was still in bed when i left the house at 9:30am. I am so pissed off i can't even speak to him about it. I do apologise for the moaning. I understand this is quite trivial really, and compared to other people i know he is a saint, but really, sometimes he takes the piss.

I feel so sorry for DD. I shouted at her, because she woke me up from a nap just as i got into rem sleep, and because she has trashed her bedroom. Again. While i slept. After i told her not to. I apologised for yelling but i feel bad still.

Hope you're faring OK today at work, maman.

helips I think your instincts are right - she may be overtired, and being in the lit room with your DH isn't helping. Try putting her down after a nappy change at 9 and then join her when you're ready?

Hope you're feeling better soon, Pav. I suggest announcing that you are taking a nap, dropping Reuben in DH's lap and running to bed before he knows what's happened. Don't forget to lock the door, and wear earplugs

Claire I blame all fussiness on growth spurts, too! They're growing pretty exponentially the first year, right? I'd be fussy if my weight was increasing every day...

Except today LO has a good reason to be cranky - 8 week jabs! Ouch. If she gets feverish, should I take off one of her layers of clothing? Is that a stupid question?

BBL Sorry to hear you're still having sleep troubles but glad Toby and the DSs are doing well. Don't blame you for wanting to cuddle your baby in his cot

I gave LO such a shock yesterday! She started crying while I was in another room, so I ran over to pick her up and startled her so badly that she gasped, her eyes grew big as saucers, and a second later she let out the biggest scream ever. She was inconsolable for half an hour, until her dad finally calmed her down. I felt horrible

longwayaway we don't have locks on any of our doors which is why DD was able to wake me up!

maman sorry i was so rude! I hope today has gone/is going ok at work.

Anyone else have babies who constantly rub their faces over you? reuben will rub his face over my chest over and over and over for hours if i let him. I think its a tired thing (although he also manages to rub snot on me too! ) but not sure as he has just done this for 10 mins while waking up, thought it might be a hungry thing at first but not that either

pav Hope you're feeling better. I have a similar response from my other half when I say I'm tired. I suggested last night me going to bed after Ethan's feed at around 8pm and DP bringing him in when he was next hungry. The following night I would stay up while DP got an early night. No point in everyone being tired and the menfolk would surely see the logic in that suggestion? Worth a try perhaps?

longwayaway We haven't had a date yet for 8wk jabs even tho we've past 8 weeks now but I was wondering how easy it is taking the children for jabs on your own?Manageable at this stage I'd imagine but does there come a time where another pair of hands are needed?

Is anyone else still using Infacol? Ethan is sick a minute after every feed and it's still milky, not the creamy proper sick... Sorry if TMI! I've stopped eating porridge or cereal for breakfast to avoid too much dairy and this worked for a day or two but I've been eating a fairly plain diet over the past couple of days and still the sick. Now starting to think it might be the infacol but worrying about stopping in case the colic monster returns. I think we'll give it a go anyway. Wish us luck!

claire if you want to avoid dairy but still want to eat porridge, you can make it with water/pinch of salt and it is just as nice. It is how it is eaten in scotland i believe.

Problem with making a deal with DH is it never seems to work in my favour. We agreed last night that if he let me have a good 8 hours sleep with me only waking to feed Reuben, and him dealing with him the rest of the time (ie i go to bed early) and also him dealing with DD if she wakes up he could have a lie in this morning. Which is fine, except Reuben decided to want lots and lots of feeding in the night and DD woke at 5:30am. So i got a shit deal there. And he still took his lie in. That was the 'deal' after all.

Pavlov Toby does the rubbing thing all the time! I have flakes of dry skin all over my jumper as I type!

i wonder why they do it? its quite funny, maybe its a comfort thing.

claire the jabs were easy as pie - took less than 5 minutes. Just had to undress her bottom half (nappy stays on) and the nurse did a shot in each thigh. If a second pair of hands is needed, I think the nurse would be helpful enough. And, to second Pav's suggestion, I make my porridge with water (with lots of brown sugar and raisins on top).

I don't know - I think it is a comfort thing too. DH thinks it is because his head itches perhaps (he has cradle cap). I think it is a tired / comfort thing as he rubs his head when he's going to sleep too.

Ioan rubs his head back and forth when he's tired too, he's rubbed away all his hair in a strip at the back!

So tired today here too, and get the same response from dh when I say anything too How can he be as tired when he gets to sleep all night in the spare room?!

Helips I think it is overtiredness, and the computer etc. won't help. Here, if I don't catch his tired cues in the evening we get a screaming session that can last up to an hour and really distresses me. I take him to a quiet dark room and try and calm him down that way.
He's the same for his earlier naps but can tolerate more then. Evening time is the most sensitive apparently as they're tired from the day, and normally the most hectic at home as everyone is coming in from work etc. and so it's noisy, bright from the lights and lots of smells from cooking so their senses get overloaded.

Thanks for all the kind thoughts, I may well vent although am thinking of starting a thread in another topic so will link to it when I have and you can all tell me what you think. Am sure DH reads this thread when it's open on my laptop !

pav I really feel for you big hugs from me!!! do you live in london? I would come babysit for you for a few hours so you could have a little sleep!! Im very lucky and pearl sleep really well generally, but when she doesn't i really cant cope as i need soooo much sleep!!

helips backing up what the others are saying. By coincidence the topic of today's First Baby Parents Class was Sleep. The woman leading the class said that research proves that if babies watch the flashing/changing images on tv it makes their little brains very active and it takes up to 45 mins for their brain waves to return to normal. Although it's generally recommended that in prep for bed you lower the lights in the room you are in with the infant if you are watching tv or a computer screen this will actually make things worse as the flashing from the screen will seem brighter in contrast.

raggie How was the Burns Night? Did you do the whole address to the haggis etc? Never been to a proper 'do' but they sound fab. My husband is scottish so has introduced me to this pinnacle of hibernian cuisine. So delicious, so long as you don't read the contents label!
I'm doing a massage course, partly of course to learn how better to massage my LO before bed, partly to meet new people. Only problem is we have a nervous and slightly awkward course leader. She knows the massage stuff but has never led a group before so isn't very good at breaking the ice. There were quite a few lonnnng silences last week. We were all there, sort of willing her on to get it right...

pav So sorry to hear you are unwell. Last thing you need right now; get well soon!

mamam Hope it went well - that commute sounds a particularly horrible addition to an already long day.

I'm contemplating my return to work too. Officially off till late April, but meeting my boss tomorrow to discuss me going part time and I'll let her know I'd like to take an extra three months. It's tricky though because I'm a one woman dept so they'll need to recruit an extra person for the other hours. I've already made sure my maternity cover chap can do the extra three months. My job is as a theatre technician so there are also lots of weekend and evening hours making childcare difficult, even part-time childcare. My husband has to attend evening meetings and work occasional weekends too, so I can forsee lots of fun next autumn!
Like you and TOK, and others, I just can't imagine not working at all. It might be good in reality, but work's been so important to me for so long that in my imagination it's necessary.

Any top tips for when I start looking at nurseries or childminders? James will be around 8m old when he starts, but suspect I'll need to sort it out a lot sooner than that. Am I right?

Venus I suggest to start looking for childcare places ASAP (i'm a registered childminder). Many nurseries have waiting lists, and childminders can only take one child 'under one'. Some cm's know if they're losing a mindee to school from Sept onwards, so spaces become available. I know it's something that you would rather not have to think about just yet, but weeks do pass by..

I'm going to eat my dinner and go through all the posts.. I've been lurking as well as I'm so tired!

Lorks, Fruit, that's not what I wanted to hear, but it's very good to know. Something else to add to the "to do" list - and near the top too...

Venus - i agree with fruit re nursery/childminder places. We could not get any childminder for DD by the time i started looking at around 4 months, apart from a batty old drunkard who smoked like a chimney (oh but not in the house, by the back door so that was ok ). So we found a nursery which we liked well enough, until she grew a bit older than a baby. We put her on a waiting list for the nursery we really wanted and she was on it for over 2 years until we got a place, and is where she is now. Reuben was on the waiting list since he was inutero , he will get a priority place as he is a sibling, but there is still no guarantee of a place by the time i return to work as baby places are like gold dust here.