This thread is for parents who's baby was born July 1st-15th 2009
Your moderators for this forum are as follows- Astrolady ~ Administrator Onyx ~ Senior Moderator MistyFying ~ Senior Moderator Nelle ~ Senior Moderator Olive ~ Moderator
There are many issues that you will encounter as a new parent. We have put together this list of useful articles and threads in order to assist you with some common questions or issues you may have, and to provide you with bit of extra support that we all need as new parents:
Please contact the Australian Breastfeeding Association (ABA) or a Lactation Consultant if you are concerned that you may have breastfeeding and/or supply problems, and before the introduction of solids.
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Last edited by Olive; July 24th, 2010 at 08:51 PM.
i hope everyone had a lovely first christmas with their bubs
we didn't go overboard with presents which was lucky because the grandparents definitely did it was such a great day though & seemed so much more special now there's a little one to share it with
we had a good christmas day, although by the end of the present unwrapping Hayley was getting cranky- I think all she wanted to do was go to sleep as she crashed out as soon as I put her down!
she had a couple of nice long sleeps yesterday.
We took a break from solids over the last few days, it was just a bit crazy with getting prepared for christmas and we went to wagga on christmas eve. she has munched on a couple of rusk sticks (man don't they make a mess!). Started with rice cereal again this morning, giving her some now. She is taking to it much better, I dont know if it was having a break from it or that I'm mixing a bit of apple into it that has made a difference. But at least she is happily eating it/spitting it out and opens her mouth like a baby bird, and sings away! while she is having it, rather than resisting.
we also bought her a high chair on christmas eve, MIL sent us some money to get her one for christmas, so that has made feeding her so much easier. although DF put it together and discovered the tray, which is supposed to be removable, is broken, so it's really hard to get on and we haven't tried taking it off yet. So makes it difficult to get her in and out of it, and also isn't very safe as the little bit that goes between their legs isn't going to be that stable... will have to give the store a call when everything gets back to normal and they had better replace it free of charge! also hope we don't have to take the whole high chair back as it's over an hour away...so annoyed.
Hi all... hope everyone had a lovely Christmas
We had a great day, among other things we bought Singstar as a family pressie & it was great late in the afternoon we put it on & had lots of laughs, especially at FIL and then later the kids sat & played cards & Monopoly.
I was so pleased, I said to MIL sometimes I worry that for the kids it becomes all about the pressies, it's nice to think they will have other nice memories of the day.
Storm, I saw your other thread about the highchair, what a PITA. Hope they send you a new tray & you don't have to drive all the way back to get it replaced.
Well we have a couple of new milestones, she is sitting alone now! all of a sudden she went from wobbling & nearly doing it, now she will sit for 5 or more minutes at a time. We still have pillows around her though as she does tend to topple sometimes lol.
She got a little paddling pool for Christmas & sat in there yesterday splashing at the water, that was great timing for her to be sitting.
And we have started solids, I was going to wait until 6 months or at least 5 and a half but she is very ready. She went all of a sudden from showing a passing interest in our food to breaking her neck to try & get at it lol. So far she has had cruskits (loves them) steamed broccoli & pumpkin pieces & pumpkin puree. And she doesn't seem to like banana.Tasted it but pulled the most awful face... what was funny was she kept reaching for it & every time I brought it back to her she would get a smell of it & screw her face up again
Hope everyone & their babies had a wondrful day... we are in go-slow mode here atm...nice to relax after all the rushing around.
Hi everyone! Hope you all had a lovely christmas! I feel a bit weird, I haven't been online for about three days, normally I'm on here every hour or two LOL.
We've had a few crazy days, but Ash has done so well. On Wed we had my work Christmas party, I took him along and he was the life of the party, absolutely loved it. I couldn't beleive it he was up for 4.5 hours before he finally conked out. Then Christmas day and Boxing Day we were running around here there and everywhere. He pretty quickly caught onto what presents were all about which was great. But I think he really enjoyed having a day at home yesterday (so did we).
We started him on solids on Christmas Day. I gave him a carrot (cooked) to play with. It was hilarious to see the faces he made, but I didn't think he actually ate any of it, well not until I changed his nappy the next day and saw little pieces of carrot in there LOL. On Boxing Day I gave him a piece of carrot and one of zuchini but funnily enough he wasn't interested in either, so I let it go. Then yesterday I gave him the same, but again he wasn't keen on putting it in his mouth. So I mushed up some avocado and let him put the spoon in his mouth - he loved it! I started mixing a bit of mushed carrot with it and he loved that too, I think all up he would've had a good couple of t-spoons. So it seems he's not too keen on the whole finger foods thing, so I think today I might go with spoon feeding and see if I can get him to have some zuchini...
His teeth are also well and truly through (thank goodness), but in the last couple of days he's started biting my nipple OUCH! I'm really hoping he isn't going to make a habit of it!
Anyway, better run, sorry for lack of personals, hope everyone is doing well x
hi all hope everyone had a great christmas. we had a quiet day allowing the kids to play with their new things. Anton is now sleeping from 9pm-10pm to 5-6am where he will have a bottle then sleep until about 1-2 hours sorry gotta run kids have emptied toybox all over my small lounge
Hope everyone had a great Christmas! I know we did and Sam was very spoilt!!
Miss E - glad the teeth are through, sounds like you had a hard time for a while and I am not looking forward to it!!
We started Sam on solids about two weeks ago and he is absolutely loving it. Took to it like he had been doing it for years. We are giving him pumpkin mixed with farex and some apple this week as well. We have noticed that he is very gassy since we started and seems to grunt a bit. He is also not doing a poo for around 3 days. I am only feeding about 1 table spoon per day or half a jar of food. Is anyone else experiencing that? Is it just their body adjusting??
I have started sitting him up and he is putting his hands out as though to try and balance which is lovely and he is pushing his legs alot when on his tummy so I don't think it will be long! Can you believe that they will be 6 months soon??? I can't believe it!
Anyway, hope everyone is well and had a great festive season. I am enjoying having my husband at home for 2 weeks but it would be nice if it stopped raining!! We do need it though!
I have been mixing the farex and pumpkin with a bit of water and a bit of breast milk. I have been making it pretty runny. When I put the pumpkin through the strainer I do it with water too so there is a bit in that too They say actual constipation is if his poo was hard but it is thicker than what it was before but by no means hard. He just only goes every couple of days and farts a lot!!! Just wondered if this was normal as they adjust?
what a fabulous time of year! Sounds like everybody is having a good time, and a few babies starting on solids too. While Zac has been having farex for over a month, I've only recently started introducing new things, which is very entertaining.
Jasp - Z is similar with banana. The most gorgeous face which seems to be a combo of disgust and apology, like "I'm really sorry mum but this is awful"
Miss E - ouch wrt teeth. I hope he gets past that quickly.
Jetta - apparently you should start offering supplementary water once you start solids - not just what's in the food but water to drink as well. Maybe that will help?
AFM - no sign of Zac sitting by himself yet, but he has worked out how to roll both ways, and can cover a surprising amount of territory by just sort of squiggling about :-)
It's so lovely having DH home. He works such long hours during the week that he hardly sees Z during the week, so they have been having some lovely daddy and son time. And, since we're not getting up to have breakfast with him and see him off in the mornings, we're getting a bit more sleep! - still waking up, but going back to bed for cuddles and stories and then a nap before really starting the day. Feels very indulgent!
My goodness it has been extrodinarily quiet in here! Hope everyone had a good new year!
Anyway, thought I would pop in and say a quick hello. We have the first of the inlaws arriving from OS today, so things will be pretty busy for the rest of the month. Ash is doing well, over the last few days he's started getting up on all fours and rocking, it's so cute to watch. But he has started teething again the top ones are now making their way down which has meant the last couple of nights have been hideous! We started him on solids on Christmas Day and it has been going really well. He loves cruskits and avocado and doesn't mind pumpkin either.
Hope everyone else is well and enjoying their bubba's, I can't believe that Ash will be 6 months tomorrow, Oh how time has flown!
miss e - happy half a year to ash!! hope all goes well with the inlaws & things aren't toooo crazy for you!
cate - we get the same face with banana here!
jetta - how's sam been going? have things improved?
ss_storm - yes to the risks being messy! that stuff gets absolutely everywhere!!
jas - hope you're still getting some relaxing, go slow time!
corey has been up on all 4's a few times in the last couple of days. i think i'll be glad when he can crawl because he's been getting so frustrated for weeks & weeks now that he can't get anywhere. he's done some commando-type wriggling but it still doesn't satisfy him. he's so impatient. i have no idea where he gets that from getting him to bed at night went completely haywire around xmas - i think we threw his routine out the window with a couple of nights out etc but we're back on track now. still wakes up to 5 times for a feed each night (not counting simple resettles) but at least we've reclaimed our evenings a little bit - it's nice not to have an over-tired baby squealing as the sound track to dinner
i'm loving how interactive & inquisitive they are at this age though - it's amazing how quickly they change in their ability to actually play with toys rather than just swot at them!
MissE hope Ash's teeth don't cause him too many dramas, poor little guy. Enjoy having the family visit, I bet they can't wait to see him!
Sloane, aren't they just gorgeous at this age It sounds like he is rearing to go!
As for us... Arlea is a little unsettled again / still... not sure what is going on...teeth maybe? I can't see or feel anything & it's not the right time for a wonder week... who knows, maybe she is just growing & changing. Somedays she is good, others not so good. Really it's sleep that is the biggest problem, she is cat-napping again & having trouble getting to sleep.
Solids are going great, we are doing a combination of BLS & purees as she isn't quite 6 months yet. She loves her food & opens up when she sees the spoon. We just have to watch ehr as she can be a bit of a piggy
Jetta her poos have become firmer too, she is going more often but she was only having a dirty nappy once every 3-4 days, now it is more like every day or two. She has water too.
I am off this afternoon to see The Lovely Bones with DD1, we have both read the book & can't wait to see the movie.
Another quick post - aren't we all doing this at the moment
Blake's doing well so far. 6 months old now - has his check up next week at the GP as I want to check some stuff out about his dermatitis (again!) as it's not going away for more than 1 1/2 days max at a time.
We started solids on Christmas Day - a wedge of tomato that he chased around the bumbo seat table and a piece of cucumber that he had a taste of. Boxing Day he rather liked his roast parsnip and potato that we offered him (in a high chair at my parents). Then we skipped a few days - didn't have high chair that worked for him (too low) but we do have one that works for him now. Last night we had roast vege again and he REALLY likes roast parsnip - gnawing it a great deal. (We're doing the Baby Led Solids thing as I know I won't have time to puree and mush stuff up once I go back to school at the end of the month.)
I'm kind of over his waking up all the time over night - I know it's normal but I want the 5-6 hour sleep that he used to have back. We had a few nights of every 1 - 2 hours waking; last night was 3hrly again so maybe we're getting back to it. And I wish he'd sleep more than 3/4 - 1 hour at a time during the day (max of 3 sleeps between 7:30am and 5:30/8:30pm)
leckert - I hope the sleep thing sorts itself out soon for you - it does seem to be just something they go through at this age, doesn't it?
jasp - hope you and DD1 enjoyed the movie together
sarah - corey and Zac still sound like they're copying each other! Zac can cover quite scary distances when my back is turned, just by wriggling around on his tummy. His bum is starting to go up in the air now and he's kind of got some crawling action with his legs - just no momentum yet.
MissE - have fun with the inlaws!!
AFM - had the 6mth MCHN visit yesterday - Zac is 9.4kg and 71.5cm long. He has really turned into a little Tonka boy! He started babbling in the weekend - lots of 'dadada', some 'mumumum' and 'bababa'. Oh, and some extremely high-pitched squealing.
I think he's moving towards two daytime sleeps now - I'm finding it very confusing cos anything resembling a routine has completely gone out the window. He's also had a few nights of waking up screaming every 45 minutes or so
We're booked in to the Early Parenting Unit in Koo Wee Rup in a couple of weeks' time which I'm looking forward to. Apparently they won't have anything to do with CIO / control crying, but focus more on recognising tired signs and teaching settling techniques. I figure at the very least we'll have a nice day out!
After that we're heading to NZ for a few weeks as hubby is working there for a month so we will spend some time with him in Wellington and time with our families in Christchurch - very exciting.
Happy New Year! And happy 6 months to all our little ones!!
I’m hoping some of you still remember me; even though it’s been such a long time since I posted.
I made a new years resolution to make a bit more of an effort to get online, particularly when I have family & friends interstate that don’t get to see Annie regularly. And of course this included catching up with you all as much as I can too. I have to admit it’s been so strange not being on the PC much; particularly when I lived on here, before Annie arrived! I’m sure some of you would remember my marathon posts as a belly buddy!
Our first few months as new parents were a little rocky… and a terribly steep learning curve! I actually think it was a shame I didn’t get the time to chat with you all, as I’m sure many of you could have given me some words of wisdom & support that I really needed at the time.
Without making this a marathon ‘me’ story – just want to share a little bit of our journey, as explanation of my absence…
Well Annie arrived a little earlier than we expected on the 4th July (EDD 15th July), and DH & I climbed aboard the roller coaster of our lives!
I went in to spontaneous labour, but my blood pressure went skyward & Annie became seriously distressed… so it all resulted in an unplanned emergency caesarean…
Meeting Annie was just an amazing experience… what a joy to finally look in to the eyes of the little person that had been bouncing around inside me for almost 9 months!
After a short stay in hospital, I still remember arriving home for our 2nd wedding anniversary (7th July), walking through the front door & looking at DH and saying ‘what do we do now?’!!
The first few weeks were a bit of a blur, as we spent our days just keeping on top of how to feed, change, settle, etc… If I got a shower & breakfast before midday, I was doing well! Fortunately, DH had the first 6 weeks at home with me and I healed really well… all a blessing!
Annie cried a lot; but being first time parents & not having spent a whole lot of time around new bubs, we really had no concept of what was normal. Initially, we thought she had bad wind… & I think I actually posted on here looking for advice & I probably didn’t get back on to thank those of you that had shared experiences and advice – so I’m sorry for the late appreciation!!… We tried lots of things – different techniques, different products, etc… As it turns out we were heading down the completely wrong path; Annie was finally diagnosed with silent reflux (or infant heartburn) at 9 weeks (following a routine appt with a midwife who got to experience a crying episode – and she insisted we make an appt with a paed asap). Poor little pumpkin, apparently her little oesophagus was red raw by this stage, from all the stomach acids that had been burning her during her first 9 weeks!. So we started her on meds (losec) twice a day… meds that were supposed to reduce the amount of acid in her tummy; however, we were told it could take up to 10 days for it take affect. Anyway, there was a whole lot more crying… and by this stage, Annie had associated feeding with pain… so we had a few weeks where she didn’t gain weight, which was awful and she would cry (as would I) & fuss at every feed. This took soooo long to get past… I honestly think it was a good couple of months before she really started to ‘enjoy’ feeding.
Our Paed told us to begin Annie on solids by 4 months, which we did & I do think this has helped. I took it really slow, with only a single meal of rice cereal for a good few weeks – and now she’s on all sorts of vegies & fruits. Fortunately, she’s taken to solids exceptionally well.
We are still on meds, but by default we are actually weaning her, as she grows & we aren’t increasing the dosage. We have tried to drop it back a couple of times in recent months, but without success so far. It also has meant we’ve had lots of trouble with teaching her to self settle; sleep through the night; daytime naps… I started sleeping her on her tummy at around 2.5/3mths; as she just seemed to settle so much better. Even though I’ve had many well meaning people tell me I’m doing the wrong thing & significantly increasing her risk of SIDS. But I was desperate for her to get some sleep!
On reflection, I didn’t do too well at coping during the early months. I found it hard to adapt to motherhood, as it was all so new. And up until this point in my life, if I needed a new skill I would do a course, read a book, study, research etc to obtain it… but there was nothing I could really do to give me all the skills I needed for motherhood… so I felt really out of control, like I was doing everything wrong, particularly when Annie was finally diagnosed. I really beat myself up & still feel terrible that it took us so long to do something for the poor little thing. She was suffering so much in those early days & if anything we were making it worse by trying to ‘treat wind’ – by making her burp, etc… all things that increased the amount of acid that would come up & burn her! No wonder she would scream!! And like a lot of people, unfortunately we don’t have a lot of supportive family close by, so I didn’t really have anyone near or staying with us to provide support or an extra pair of hands.
I think I’ve finally accepted that I honestly did the best I could as a new Mum. And I’m certainly grateful that Annie’s condition is easily treated & now manageable. There are so many people much worse off than us. But I certainly struggled within myself for a long time.
Well now that we are past all that, we’re really enjoying our little girl; she is such a delight & much more contented these days - although we're still working on mastering good sleep routines! We are loving watching her learn & develop every day; she’s very easy to love. And I think she’s forgiven us for all the pain she went through in those early weeks!!! Although she did have that imploring look last week as the Doctor gave her, her 6 month needles… like ‘hey Mum, Dad, this woman is hurting me & you guys aren’t stopping her!’
Anyway that’s where I’ve been, I really look forward to sharing more with you all & catching up on some personals soon. I’m sorry I’ve missed being there for any of you during your own challenges and tough times… and of course enjoying all the good stuff with you as well.
A heartfelt thank-you to those of you that reached out to me in those early days, it really meant a lot to me, even if I didn’t share my appreciation at the time!
BellyBelly Life Subscriber
Babies born~July 1st-15th 2009 #3
it was such a great day though & seemed so much more special now there's a little one to share it with
and then later the kids sat & played cards & Monopoly.
the top ones are now making their way down which has meant the last couple of nights have been hideous! We started him on solids on Christmas Day and it has been going really well. He loves cruskits and avocado and doesn't mind pumpkin either.
getting him to bed at night went completely haywire around xmas - i think we threw his routine out the window with a couple of nights out etc but we're back on track now. still wakes up to 5 times for a feed each night (not counting simple resettles) but at least we've reclaimed our evenings a little bit - it's nice not to have an over-tired baby squealing as the sound track to dinner
It sounds like he is rearing to go!
- a wedge of tomato that he chased around the bumbo seat table and a piece of cucumber that he had a taste of. Boxing Day he rather liked his roast parsnip and potato that we offered him (in a high chair at my parents). Then we skipped a few days - didn't have high chair that worked for him (too low) but we do have one that works for him now. Last night we had roast vege again and he REALLY likes roast parsnip - gnawing it a great deal. (We're doing the Baby Led Solids thing as I know I won't have time to puree and mush stuff up once I go back to school at the end of the month.)
And I wish he'd sleep more than 3/4 - 1 hour at a time during the day (max of 3 sleeps between 7:30am and 5:30/8:30pm)
and 71.5cm long. He has really turned into a little Tonka boy! He started babbling in the weekend - lots of 'dadada', some 'mumumum' and 'bababa'. Oh, and some extremely high-pitched squealing.
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