June 2023 Babies ☀️ (Thread Six)

[ireneadler101]

Thought I'd start a new one as the old one is full!

I'm 37w exactly and definitely starting to feel more Braxton Hicks (they woke me up last night) but they don't seem to be getting more intense/frequent. Also a bit of lower back ache and general bump tenderness, plus I think I've lost a small bit of my mucus plug. Think this is probably normal at this stage and just my body gearing up for labour but am quite nervous as have a c section at 38+3 and hoping to last till then! Second pregnancy but last baby arrived at 36w so feels like uncharted territory!

How is everyone else feeling?

How is everyone getting on? I think we may have hit the 4 month sleep regression (a little early as he’s 14 weeks) DS was generally pretty settled at night- only waking once for a feed between 10-7 but now he’s awake every couple of hours, not needing anything just settling- popping his dummy back in a few times. It usually only takes 5 minutes but it means DH and I never get a long stretch of sleep and he’s just started doing 6 hour stretches so it feels hard.
Does anyone have any tips? How long is this meant to last?

• he had just started doing 6 hour stretches

We thought we were in the depths of the 4 month regression but realised she's actually teething. She's really suffering with it bless her. I've actually resorted to Calpol a couple of times in the last couple of weeks.
Also still BF but my god is she rough now. I assume she's using it as a comfort for sore gums whilst feeding but jeepers my nipples are so sore. We got the prep machine set up today and are planning on introducing some formula because we probably need to start weaning her off boob if she's going to be this aggressive ! Anyone else in the same boat ??

We are going through the same thing, he turned 5 months on Sunday so thought we skipped pass it. He slept 8 hours straight before, now he does 5 hours then up every 2 hours after that. I know it’s not horrendous compared to others but still a kick in the teeth!

He also massively fights his daytime naps, I’m exhausted 😴

How is everyone ! Technically my baby was born early on the 26th of May ! Due on the first . Since she has been born - her stomach finds it difficult to digest milk literally every time she drinks milk she does a huge poop. Been to the doctors mutiple times and they keep telling us to change the milk . We have found sma the least offensive on her stomach so sticking to that. They said they don’t think it’s cmpa or her being lactose intolerant but it’s just so stressful watching her in pain . Sorry just needed to vent .

@BobbySD345 Oh bless her, it’s horrible seeing them in pain. We’ve been hit by a cold- that’s what triggered DS sleep turning to rubbish- and now he’s getting over the cold it’s just not going back to how it was. We’re also wondering if he’s teething- what symptoms does your little one have? Can you feel the teeth coming through? I can feel bumps under the surface but not sure if this means he’s actually teething. Although he is chomping everything and drooling like crazy.

@Ally1992 I think it hits a bit harder when you’ve had a decent sleeper and then their sleep becomes rubbish. I used to count on the fact that, even though DS was a rubbish day napper, he’d sleep Ok at night, but now I’m just so shattered.

@Zaalfruit Aw that sounds really stressful. Is there anyway you can buy dairy free formula just to try her and see if it makes a difference? Or maybe comfort formula which might be more gentle on her belly?

@Hoppyhops we've had exactly the same. Matthew is coming up to 16 weeks now, has been almost sleeping through since 10 weeks and was very consistent before that with only waking up twice for a bottle at 2ish and 5ish. He came down with a cold a week ago, had a night where he was awake 9 times as his nose was blocked, seems alot better now but his sleep is all over the place still. Last night was awake 3 times, twice to feed, the night before slept till 6, before that slept till 4. The other night he just wouldnt sleep until 11 where we've been putting him down between 7:30 and 8. He's been chomping a bit the last few days and dribbly but don't think he's teething yet. Not sure if it's his cold messed up his sleep or the sleep regression or both but reassuring to hear I'm not alone, he's rubbish at naps too! Just hoping his sleep will settle down soon as the unpredictability is so hard!

@Kelvie103 It’s good to hear that it’s not just happening to us. I naively just assumed he’d started a good pattern and that was that- then the cold/regression came. It doesn’t help when the mums in baby group all seem to have babies that sleep right through the night and just fall asleep on the floor in the middle of a loud, bright, busy playgroup (I wouldn’t have believed it if I hadn’t have seen it with my own eyes!)

I really hope this is a passing phase and the night sleep will come back. I can handle the crap naps if the night comes back!

Would love to know people's thoughts on how you manage evenings out with baby.

We don't have family nearby and our little one is going through a phase where he only wants me in the evenings. He's also EBF. Basically a babysitter isn't an option. But would like to go out for a friend's birthday meal on a Friday evening. It's likely to be a gastro pub type venue.

Other than staying in and getting a takeaway, anyone any tips on how to make this work, would you just take a 5 and a half month baby with you and hope they will sleep in the pram?

Asking because DH doesn't think there's any issue, I'm not sure it's that simple when baby is usually in bed and asleep by 7:30. Feel like I'm asking a bit of a stupid question - I can see it going really badly but don't want to be a complete Debbie downer and maybe I'm over thinking it!

Honestly, I wouldn't go in your situation. I found it stressful enough taking DD to SIL and she could sleep in the living room on her own, with the monitor obs.

Would DS take an expressed bottle from DH so you can go out and he stay home?
I know my DD wouldn't cope with sleeping in a pub, perhaps for a day nap but not her night sleep.

Thabks @DrinkingAllTheGin - I agree, and I can see me and little one getting upset and leaving halfway through when it all goes horribly wrong. I think another friend is going to offer to host instead which might be better than going out!

@hoppyhopps this is our 2nd so I recognise the signs easier but red cheeks - one or both, drooling more, rubbing eyes and face a lot with hands, chewing hands, shorter naps and more unsettled periods throughout the day. The other sign is bad nappies that have a distinctive vinegar smell and a red bottom. The breast feeding has also become really painful for me because she's sucking so hard to soothe herself.

Hello. Do it - our 17 week old is always out for dinner with me and my husband but we go out early ish so we aren’t out too late with her so there’s still plenty of time for her bedtime routine. This is easier in the autumn/winter, though, with it getting dark earlier. We love going to restaurants so want it to be second nature to her as a toddler as we are also miles away from family on both sides so night offs aren’t really an option.

Thanks @Minnie68 for another perspective on it - before we had a baby I always said there has to be a balance of adjusting how you live to suit the kids and also them fitting in with your life! It will be on a Friday and everyone going except my husband has wfh day on a Friday, so that should make it easier to go out earlier! None of these friends have children but they are pretty understanding so think it should be ok if we end up going out to eat instead of someone cooking or getting a takeaway.

We have been to the pub with DS a few times and I just left earlier with him - more than happy for everyone else to continue enjoying their evening out, I'm just not staying out so late for a while!

I’m so jealous of formula feeding mums 😭.
Elio is 90% EBF and sooo sleep is a bit of a pipe dream.
We usually get 11pm till 3/4am then 6 & 7am.
HV said that’s epic for an EBF baby so I guess I should be grateful 😂
He’s doing so well though 2nd to 25th centile in weight and now 50th in height.
His cheeky personality is starting to show too! ❤️
Definitely seeing some sleep regression though.
The last week has been ROUGH 😂

I think I’m the only one that’s exclusively expressing milk for my DD. Breast feeding has been a challenge both mentally and physically. She latches on fine but she’s such a lazy eater and gets fed up at the breast easily. I was so determined to give her breast milk this time round so I stuck to expressing.

Im so jealous of those of you who are EBF from the breast! It must be so much easier to just whip the boob out and feed directly. I can only dream about that for now.

Sleep has been going okay for us too. She’s a terrible napper. She only naps for like 30mins and is then awake for like 2hours. She sleeps well at night though. She’s down at around 9pm and only wakes up once at around 5am for a feed and then sleeps til 9am.

@rllrsk8 would they sleep on you/in a sling! That's how I'd manage at the moment!

@firsttimelondonmummy that is epic for ebf in my experience 😂 we're still every 90mins-2hrs from 11pm(ish)

@firsttimelondonmummy That’s amazing! DS was doing a very similar pattern (with the odd longer stretch) before his sleep regression and he’s formula fed - what I’d give to have that pattern back!
Also, your little one is so cute - great pic 😆

Dd is now coming up to 7 months. I’ve started her on baby food once a day to try but not baby led weaning yet. She can’t properly use her hands yet so she’d just be looking at the finger food if I tried that! This is her after having some pouch food, I gave her the spoon afterwards and she hit herself in the head with it 😁

Aw @BellaTheDarkOverlord she looks so cute. I'm looking forward to getting going with food for DD. Everyone seems to be asking me when we are starting.
She is only 4.5 months and can't yet sit so not yet.

@BobbySD345 sorry i missed your reply the other day. Thanks for that- DS has pretty much all of those symptoms, including the red, sore bum so I do think he’s teething. The cold is finally going though so at least that’s one challenge over with. I’ll keep on top of the teething gels/powders and hope that soothes him.

@DrinkingAllTheGin everyone keeps asking me when I’m starting solids as well, it’s usually followed by “oh really I put so and so on solids at 4 months” when I say not until at least 6 months.

DS has gone back to sleeping 9pm-4/5am since Friday so if it was a sleep regression it only lasted a week 🤞

Lovely photos and I've enjoyed reading your updates! I gave Dd some banana earlier which made her smile. 4.5 months and obviously not properly weaning but giving her a little taste here and there.

Glad we aren't the only ones experiencing sleep regression. I feel like it's getting worse as past few of nights DD waking up "snacking" every hour or less. Tonight is especially bad - every 45ish mins since she went down... at 8pm 💀 She is also unsettled during her naps (where she fights sleep) during the day unless she's in the car seat and the car is moving - then she's out 🤣. We co sleep but I am kind of regretting stopping breastfeeding as I am so tired getting up and down to sort out the bottles. I know it's just a phase but I'm so tired :(

I make up bottles in advance and just keep them in the fridge. It's so much easier at night!

We had the health visitor round yesterday and she suggested weaning early as he's such a milk monster. Has a bottle every 2 hours in the day. Might try it at 5 months but that feels so soon. I'm not ready! I've been giving him little tastes of food. Like a raw carrot to suck on or a bit of homemade soup on my finger and so far he loves everything so looking forward to starting him properly.