FEB 2010 No longer newborns!!

[InmaculadaConcepcion]

Three months and counting, everyone! Our babies are gradually getting the hang of the world...and we are gradually getting the hang of them...

Yes, I agree BG, watercress and bethylou...I've still only got one DC, but I get those feelings at times too. I'm sure they will pass as the DCs get older and don't need us as much (especially when they start school etc..) but the days can seem long and very baby-centred (then you look back and wonder where the time went).

Oh bethylou, how awful, you poor thing. I've only had one migraine in my life and that was enough (nothing like as bad as you describe, though). Mine was brought on by my fear of flying...here's hoping my concern about DD will stop me getting too stressed on my own account tomorrow and Sunday...

Drooling and fist-sucking at this age is (according to my baby book!) totally typical at this age and doesn't usually mean they're teething. DD is also producing huge quantities of saliva at the moment and when she gets out of her swaddle, she sucks her fists so loudly, it keeps me awake (one of the many things...)

12 week development spurt, fizi? Doesn't affect all babies the same way, but don't be surprised if any sleeping/napping patterns go out the window and they become harder to settle and are generally fussier for a while. Can last a few days or a few weeks....then you get the fun of the 4 month "sleep regression", which is essentially more of the same. There's some good links on the "4 month sleep regression" thread over on the sleep forum (I'm such a regular there now!!)

Well, last night was a total bummer. She napped badly yesterday and was so overtired by bedtime, the 5S technique wouldn't cut it, I was almost at my wits end to stop the screaming, when unexpectedly she was distracted by the mobile DH made her and was instantly silent. I was then able to get a feed down her and then get her off to sleep (then she woke up 40 mins later...and 1.5 hours after that etc...) As well as frequent awakenings, it was very difficult to resettle her at times, including a screaming fit at one point (usually she just whimpers and fidgets) and she needed 3 overnight nappy changes too.... (usually I'm the same as you lot nowadays, leave it on all night unless she poos). Ugh, if this IS the 12 week thingy, I just hope we get through it soon. Great timing just before we head back for this wedding tomorrow...

Do I sound a bit grumpy today?!! Can't think why!

Info on sleep regressions, development spurts etc. in this thread

Bethylou your migraine sounds really frightening, hope you don't have any more of those

Oh, IC, sleep regression sounds awful (off to bury head in sand).

It's okay, AC, you and your DD may cruise through the whole thing! Some babies do, so I'm told!

Forgot to say about coils - I too had a Mirena prior to removal in order to try for DD. The progesterone is only a trace, so shouldn't compromise your fertility once it's removed - it certainly didn't mine. Having said that, some people are definitely more sensitive to hormones than others, so it's not for everyone. It was good for me, though - no periods!! That part especially was ace.

Sympathies from me too bethylou. I suffer badly from migraines and had my first since I was 18 weeks preg last week. Luckily dd was at nursery all day so I just took myself and ds to bed for pretty much the whole day. I know my normal treatment is a no-no while breastfeeding so I had a quick google to see if codeine was allowed. I was surprised that it is not recommended anymore and of course the stuff you can take is totally ineffective. I am fairly sure a large part of my migraine was that I was totally stressed the day before, because ds wouldn't nap during the day and I had stuff I really wanted to get done, but couldn't. It's my own fault because I am expecting too much of him. I remember dd having 3 hour naps in the day time, but of course she was older and I just have to wait a while for him to hopefully do the same.

Lots of drool here and almost thumb sucking. He keeps shoving his thumb too far in though and pulls a hilarious face when he is wondering what is happening. Some sort of growth/development thing also seems to have started as for the last day and a bit he has fed every 1.5 to 2 hours, day and night. Here's hoping it doesn't last too long.

Sorry you are a bit low watercress. As dd is 4 now I think I have got used to being seen as 'just' a mum. I know when I go back to work next year though the thing I will like best is being the old me for a while. When ds was born we did start swimming and ballet lessons for dd, and I have found them quite sociable. The mums (or dad's if we are lucky!)all have a good natter while the little ones are being entertained elsewhere. Don't get me started on the price of ballet kit though....

Gosh that was a long one. Ds wriggling on my knee now so better go. Enjoy the sunshine. Apparently summer is about to begin here. Hurray!

Another night has begun...

This time I didn't wait until "bedtime" (probably my mistake yesterday as she was overtired by 1900...) but started the routine early - about an hour after the end of her previous nap. She was much easier to put down as a result and didn't cry much at all (thankfully). She woke up after an hour, but application of dummy, then removed while stroking her forehead seems (SEEMS...) to have dealt with that. Fingers crossed for a better night. I want to be reasonably well-rested so I can cope with the stress of tomorrow's flight.

Wish me luck, Everyone!

I am blowing sleepy dust at all your LOs...(makes a change from volcanic ash, anyway.)

Hello everyone!

Sorry it's been so long. Since I've been back working I have no time anymore. For Anything.

bethylou how horrible for you - I hope you are feeling better.

IC I like the update on the fist-sucking/drooling. DD does that thing of stuffing her whole fist in and looking confused too. She also does it in the bath and sometimes gets a taste of soap suds, which she really doesn't like.

As for broody... golly I don't think I have spent one moment in the last three months when I haven't thought 'when can I do it all again' I really want to have a big family. I need to pace myself a bit though - work is truly horrible (I have a work associate who is making my life an utter misery) - and I don't want to have another baby in reaction to that - ie as a comfort from work and as a way to get away from it. When I read the comments about only being a mother it makes me think that I should give my career one last chance.

Well everyone, hope it's not so long before I am back again.

Take care and hope you and your babies sleep well.

Thanks everyone. I'm feeling a lot better today, though still have tingling in my hands and feet - saw the GP and he says I will have to stop feeding to start some preventative treatment. Will try acupuncture first as it has helped in the past.

DS2 kindly let me sleep for an hour this a.m. which was great, especially after a second rubbish night in a row here (I feel your pain IC). DS2 still has a horrible cough which keeps waking him (and us). Last night I had to take him into the bathroom and fill it with steam to stop him - brings back memories from two years ago with DS1! DH slept through it all and then asked the fateful question, "Did you have a bad night?" when I snapped at him this morning! It was not helped by him sleepwalking in the night (looking for DS1's pants apparently - think DS1's potty training is getting to him!!)

Good to hear from you FC and sorry that work is not going so well.

Good luck IC - I can't imagine taking DS2 on a plane at this stage - you're much more adventurous than we are!

Have just put my bare elbow in a small pile of previously undetected baby sick so had better go... [grr.. face required!)

Hmmm. Dd2 is due her four months injections (3 this time - poor baby, will she forgive me?) on Tuesday afternoon and we are flying first thing on Wednesday morning. Not sure that was such a bright idea to book the flight for that day. She has been pretty okay with the first two sets of immunisations, but with three jabs I wonder if I am pushing my luck...

Blimey, bethylou, with a night like that I'm not surprised you get clouted with migraines. Huge sympathy from here.

Last night was better. She's still waking up loads, but mostly resettled very quickly - only one that took longer and that at least was without crying.

Ooh, BG, good luck to you too...

Adventurous, bethylou? No! Didn't really have any choice. Believe me, I HATE flying at the best of times.... hey ho...

Deep breath, then....

Hi everyone. I have a very rare 5 mins while ds2 is sleeping and ds1 is out at nursery!!

Everything is going grand here with ds2. He is sleeping really well. He sleeps/feeds during the evening then I take him to bed with me when I go at 10/11pm and feed him then. He usually wakes around 4am for a feed, and then that's him until he is rudely awoken by ds1 at around 6am. i suspect he would sleep longer if left to it. So, I am getting a reasonable amount of sleep just now. I know to make the most of it though because the 4 month sleep regression could just be round the corner for us.

ds1 is still quite unsettled by all this, especially first thing in the morning when he wants milk. He is learning to wait his turn, but it's not something he is learning very quickly...

I have discovered that I have too much lipase in my milk so it won't keep once it's expressed. I scalded the last lot, but ds2 refused the bottle from dh and ds1 said it tasted minging, so it went down the sink so I don't think I will bother expressing any more. It's too much hassle.

bearcrumble - I have a bicornuate uterus too. It wasn't discovered until I had a cs for ds1 because he was breech. I got my VBAC with ds2 despite being convinced that he would be breech too. I haven't read all the thread - has yours caused you any problems?

I was at the physio this morning about my ankle. She said it's all looking good. I can go about my every day life without really noticing it now tbh, but things like crouching down, or running for the bus remind me that it's still not quite back to normal yet. I was away a couple of places with hard beds and my ankle was sore in the morning if I had been lying on that side. I can feel a big screw sticking out and I think that is what's causing the pain.

We finally have some nice weather here. Yippee. It's a bit crazy. We did actually have some snow last week. Hopefully this is summer now. It's been a long time coming.

Hope you are all doing well.

Never heard of sleep regression (whatever that is) and dd1 was no different at four months.. dd2 is coming up to 4 months, too and sleeps fine. My theory is that if you don't know about it, it won't happen to your child . Worked a treat when dd1 was teething. I didn't know she was meant to be utterly miserable with it, so she wasn't.

Oh no, DD's not well . She's been v. sleepy all day, grumpy when she's awake and her temp is 38.4 . Also lots and lots of drooling and runnier nappies (is 'runnier' a word?). .

I've put her to bed with a dose of calpol and calgel and I'll go check her temp in an hour to make sure it's come down. Poor baby I hope it's just a 24 hour thing.

I'm wondering if maybe it's just her teeth (even after reading your post BG ).

I bet I'll be eating my words when dd2 starts teething...
Sorry to hear your LO is not well AC. Hope things improve.

Hi all,

Bethylou Poor you with the migraine, it must have been so scary. Sounds like the people in the shop were v sweet and helpful though. I have only had one in my life and it was bizarre, my vision went all curved round the edges and then I got a pain like someone had put a nail through my head. Horrible - thought I was having a brain hemmorhage.

mawbroon re the bicornuate uterus, well I was also having a c/s for breech when they discovered it. I did have problems getting pregnant so we paid for IVF after a year of trying as I was getting older (36) and didn't want to miss the boat. My placenta didn't work v. well so he had to come out @35w - I don't know if the shape of my womb had anything to do with that. Well done on your VBAC.

Last couple of nights have been full of waking/feeding like the early days. Growth spurt no doubt.

I have been hostessing all day - 5 mums and babies this morning 11 - 1.30, then baby clinic then three more mums and babies from 3-6. The thing they all had in common - not one wants to go back to work while the babies are so little but we all have to cos we can't afford not to. It was really nice to be so social - I thought after a day like that I'd be knackered but it was actually much much less tiring than a day like yesteday when I didn't really manage to get off the sofa - and much more fun.

Hi there,

First post in the new thread!

Our holiday went fine, DS was well behaved during the car journey (5&1/2 hours drive down to my mum)

He has discovered how to suck his thumb but he's still confused on why if he takes it out of hi mouth, there's nothing to suck.

DS is not doing too bad on night sleeping, he still wakes up around midnight and 2am, but resettle quickly and doesn't need a feed until 6am.

bearcrumble same here re. back to work, only 3 weeks left

FC sorry to hear about your work problems, if I were you and it was too difficult I'll be trying for a second one!

At work we always get grief if something is done bad but very rarely you get a well done.

Someone (sorry I can't remember who ) asked about how long nappies were worn at night. DS wears his from 6pm to 8am. I use the large Bumgenius insert and a bamboo insert (bought on amazon).

DS drooling is quite amazing, I have nicknamed him 'mon petit escargot' (my little snail). People are quite surprised that I only speak to him in French while my DH does it in English, I hope it'll pay later in life and that he'll be bilingual.

Must go now and empty the washing machine (again!!)

DD is fine this morning. She made a miraculous recovery at 5am and started rolling about the bed and giggling at me (all I could do was beg 'please go back to sleep Poppy').

She's been fine today, super smiley and rolling around all over the place. I've no idea what last night was about .

Still, was like being back at work doing hourly obs, lol, I didn't sleep a wink, even after I'd stripped her twice to check for rashes .

Hi everyone

I'm not sure how this works because people seem to know each other already. Is it ok if I join in? My DD was born 2nd Feb this year.

Stangirl welcome to the Feb 10 babies talk!

Just join us to share your experiences / problems / joy ... or to have a whinge about feeding/sleep...

Thank you GuernseyFrench.

In which case I think I'll share my awful Baby Yoga experience from this week. I trundled along to my first go at Baby Yoga - I'm not really the exercise/yoga type but had heard this would be a nice thing for me and my DD to do - all was going well until DD started grumbling. I took her to one side to feed and eventually out if the room to calm. Things seemed much better so I rejoined the group. Trying to do a particularly tricky baby-on-legs move DD exploded into tears. At which point the teacher came and took DD off of me. She proceeded to teach using my DD - who by now was completely content. I stood around like a lemon with all the other Mums doing their stuff and the teacher with DD. After a few moves I asked for my baby back - as soon as she was back in my arms she burst into cries again, Cue exit of one Mum feeling very inadequate. Think I'll stick to wriggle and rhyme....

Stangirl welcome!
What a lovely day today. Didn't quite know what to dress dd2 in - she ended up in just a vest in the end because she was so hot. Dd1 drove me mad by changing her clothes about 17 times... Still adjusting to the change in temperature and kept insisting on putting on tights and jumpers, wellies and a cardigan (!), then stripped off to her underwear again and try something new because she was so hot

Welcome stangirl - that reminds me of my baby massage thing on Monday. He started wailing early on and none of the other babies were making a sound so I had to dress him and feed him - but by that point they were all screaming their heads off and one of them had done a wee that sprayed two other babies so no one would have noticed his crying anyway.

Welcome Stangirl.

Forgot to send commiserations (due to migraine haze) to Chinook for also having migraines.

The week has only got worse... Yesterday morning I was awakened by DS2's breathing monitor going off at 6a.m. I assumed that it would be a false alarm, but it seemed not as DS2 was motionless, despite the very loud noise (and associated tummy vibrator) and the monitor was working properly (i.e. not dislodged). I shook him and he took a breath and then seemed fine. I was remarkably calm, only becoming more concerned as the day went on and I had time to reflect. I took him to see the GP who asked what colour he was (I hadn't stopped to turn the light on so had no idea). She said just to watch him carefully, as we have a paeds appointment for him on Monday anyway due to the reflux. Refluxy babies can be prone to periods of apnoea (holding their breath).

DS2 has a terrible cold and cough so I'm not sure whether the secretions just got in the way or combined with the reflux. I used the monitor all day while he was sleeping without any problems. Then, just as I was going out for dinner (reluctantly) at 7:30p.m, I put the monitor on and it wouldn't work. The thought of sleeping last night without a monitor after the morning's events brought me to tears so DH spent the evening trying to source an alternative and then drove a 40 mile round trip at 10:30pm to pick it up!

People have asked whether the monitor was just faulty yesterday morning and the honest answer is we will never know. However, as it worked fine all day and DS2 was unwell, I'd guess that it was working correctly.

It is really down to a discussion by IC on our threads here that I got a monitor at all and I am soooo grateful to her. The possible consequences of yesterday morning without a monitor don't bear thinking about...

Suddenly I feel so particularly lucky to have my two healthy children and realise how fragile life is. Sorry to start the weekend on a bit of a scary note, but had to share. Think my RL friends are fed up of hearing about reflux!

Enjoy the sunshine.

Bethylou Fuuuuuck. That is so scary, I am sitting here with my heart racing. Your precious little boy. It really doesn't bear thinking about - what might have happened had you not had the breathing monitor. I am so glad he is ok, but what an awful shock for you all. I'm so glad your husband went out to get another monitor when yours failed - you really are having the week from hell. Hopefully that was the third thing (the monitor not working and having to be replaced) of the bad things that come in threes and it will be plain sailing from now on.

I hope the appointment on Monday answers some of your questions.

I have DH's parents down - his mum is so cack-handed at handling the baby, me and my mum had our hearts in our mouths every time she was holding him. At one point I had to put my hand between his head and the edge of the table because she was holding him so close to it.

I don't know what to do because she is a lovely, lovely lady and I don't want to hurt her feelings by saying "no, you can't hold him" - and it seems that even when I pass him to her when she's sitting down she's not safe as the tabletop incident shows.

My husband is very good, and he can see it too and will take him off her quite quickly but I don't know if my heart can cope with another day of it.

And she creeps upstairs to watch while I am changing him which I find weird.

Maybe we will go for a LONG walk with the pram today - so at least I can let her push the pram in the park with no danger of her dropping him.

They are going after lunch. I can't wait to be honest - simply because of the holding/clumsiness thing.

Can't work out why she is so clumsy with the baby when she had 2 of her own. Her sister came yesterday morning and she was fine with holding him - I felt totally confident.

Bethylou poor you! That must have been scary. Fingers crossed it's all fine now.

bearcrumble she probably was the same with her children or as she considers she has experience she doesn't pay attention. My MIL always wants to stand up when she hold DS and I find it a bit scary as she can have some balance problem.

Lovely day today, DS is in short sleeve top (first time) and shorts!! He does get very sweaty feet too which I find very odd for a baby! I bought him a pair of sandals from Next to use at nursery if the weather continues like this.