Babies Born April 2008 #3

[Beatrix]

Nettie- it is very common for bf babies to not pooh for over a week so dont stress. We get a massive explosion her about once every 4 days


well everything is going really well here. MJ is finally getting faster with her feeds!!!

well Big bro is on and i want ice cream later

[Tarnee]

Hi everyone

Just sitting here waiting for DD to go to sleep - we have been having some trouble getting her to go to sleep on her own last night and tonight. She is fine during the day - and happy as larry if you hold her whilst she is sleeping, but no matter how 'deep' she is sleeping, you put her down and she wakes right up!! Fingers crossed for this time (she is making all the right 'going to sleep' noises so far). I think part of my problem is that I don't have a bedtime routine yet - I have been just going with the flow so far (and not had any problems - until now). Must work on that.

I have discovered 2 things about water. The more (or less) you drink has a direct relationship to both your bowel movements AND to your supply. So keep drinking everyone.

Shoegal: glad to hear things are looking on the improve. And I hear you on the 'fat' jeans. I am so limited on what I can wear - especially since the one time I wore a maternity dress (1 week after DS was born) someone asked me when I was due!!! I am not risking that again by wearing maternity clothes, but there are so few of my other clothes that fit.

Beatrix: You are unbelieveable taking on spring cleaning!! My MIL is coming over from NZ next week and I will be lucky to get the normal cleaning done before she gets here. I could definitely fill a mini-skip with all the junk I collect.

Jodie: Glad to hear you are going so well! If you are feeling up to it, we should get together this week sometime. My MIL will be here for 2 weeks from Sunday so might be a while before we can meet up after this week.

Anyway - it looks like I am going to be in for a long night (have already been in twice to resettle since starting this post). I am up for it - not tired tonight (unlike last night) and don't have anything urgent to do tomorrow.

Take care all!

[Sharon19270]

Wow a lot to catch up on here.

Shoegal yay to you on picking up on Baxters tired signs, it really does make a difference trying to settle a baby who is just ready to go off to sleep, rather than one that is way over tired. Glad to hear that Baxter started accepting the breast again.
Beatrix I did a really big clean on Friday, place was so tidy, but today it looks like a tornado has ripped through the place
alittlegrubi my DH seems to cope with constant crying better than me, but then again I suppose if he hasn't had to listen to it all day...
Fire I have noticed with Oliver that he seems to be wide awake at his 2am (ish) feed and that he is then much more stubborn to go back to sleep, usually takes me an hour from when he finishes his feed.
Nettie that's a shame about your DH not being able to cope with the night feeds, hope it all works out in the end though.
Tarnee hope that you aren't in for a long night. I have kind of 'forced' a routine onto Oliver out of necessity, because it takes so long to do the school drop off and pick up I really don't want to have a screaming baby all the way in the car.


Now I have to say that since changing Oliver to the thickened formula he is so much more content and happy. He is back to having around 100-110ml each feed, will sometimes get a little bit of pain but it is usually short lived, we will be going to the community nurse tomorrow afternoon to have a chat and get him weighed. We had our 1st official family outing today, we went to lunch (just to the shopping centre) and had a look around, DH bought me Underbelly Uncut woohoo, and then we went bowling, Oliver slept for nearly the entire time, he woke halfway through bowling, we left him in his pram and after about 15 mins he decided to go back to sleep, DH was amazed because it was so damn noisy in there, he said there's no way he would go back to sleep.

[mgm]

shoegal i checked and the helpline is victorian. sorry, that wasn't very helpful of me! oh well, i only have half a brain right now.

dh says typing is waking dd up so i'd better stop (or shorten my fingernails...)

here's hoping for a restful night for all of us!

[Fire]

Shoe, I use Bioceuticals Babybiotics 0 - 3months (they aren't in that link, but you can see the blue label of that range to look for). In my last life, *before children* , I was a naturopath and I still have access to the professional range. But I do believe you can get them from a health food store, they'll be behind the counter or from the person who works in the store (they're often a naturopath).
Also, I just remember that thing called a "nursing strike". It often happens when a baby is also fed by bottle, as bfing is hard work for them and bottles are a breeze. They choose the bottle over the breast, and wait for that apparently. I'm going to be on the lookout for it when I introduce expressed milk down the track.

Jodie, I envy you!! Looking forward to those days...

Apparently bf babies can not poo for a month and it be "normal"! I don't know about that myself, but that's what I'm told.

[Fire]

Hey, Nelle, or someone else who is on top of this mothering thing, (I see Nelle as one of them, correct me if I'm wrong, Nelle!) when does it get easier? I was told six weeks, and it actually got harder for me at six weeks. I can't remember from DD as she was a baby six years ago. How do you do it, like, how do you just take it all in stride and not be so overwhelmed?

[BabyWrangler]

Hi all.
Been ages since I've been in...we were on our first thread when I first came in here!

Does anyone else find that their bub just falls asleep during tummy time?
Doesn't matter what time of day I try and get BJ on his tummy, he just dozes off!
I have him on a Lamaze mat that has 20cm x 20cm squares on it, with mainly black and white patterns, with some bright ones as well, but he just dozes off!
I also have one of the lamaze mirrors on the wedge so that if he lifts his head (which I KNOW he can do), he can look in the mirror, but he doesn't lift his head during tummy time!

Any suggestions?

We have also been working at trying to sort out DS's reflux/constipation issue.
He has reflux and was on Gaviscon for that, but it turns out that the Gaviscon has caused MAJOR constipation, so we have had to stop the Gaviscon and give Lactulose to fix the constipation, only to find that he still needs the Gaviscon to help with the reflux....we are going to have to work out a delicate balance!! Oh such fun and games!!

[Beatrix]

Baby- TBH i am completly forget to do tummy time. I find it hard with two others who like to poke. Hope you can sort out bens refllux probs

Well crappish night here last night, I chose not to burp mj when she fell asleep on the boob, big mistake. she had bad wind all night, wanted boobie but was wiggling so bad. i spent a good 30 mins getting about 6 burps and 4 chucks out of her and now she is fast asleep.

horrible weather here and its going to drive me nuts cause i cant send the older two outside. they are already at each others throats and its only 8:30.

I finally brought a bouncer. cant wait for it to be delivered. might be helpful to give me a arm break during the day

[Nettie]

I'd just like to clarify what I said in my last post about DH. It's not that he's not coping with night feeds, but that he's more tired because he spends most nights sleeping at the foot of our bed so that he can settle Liam when he rouses. This means he gets less sleep than me so he gets a bit rattier! So when I get 3 hrs uninterrupted sleep, DH wakes 3 or 4 times to settle Liam so I'm not awoken. Isn't he a treasure??

Liam finally did a big wet poo last night... all is fine!

Well, we're off to town today to attend our first 'Cleft Clinic' appt at the Hospital. I will let you all know if we find out anything interesting!

[Beatrix]

Nettie- no need to clairfy hun, My DH dont even wake for the kids and even if he has had 8hrs sleep and they wake up at 6am its to early for him and he is a nasty pastie. Good luck with you app. today

[BabyWrangler]

Aaahh we've reached a plan for Bj's issues!

Gaviscon for reflux at before bed feed, and middle of the night feed, and lactulose on the 3rd day if he hasnt pood.
That way he'll settle better at night, and will still poo (if only 2 doses of gaviscon still binds him up, if not, then no lactulose!), during the day, he can sit in his rocker after feeds to keep him upright for longer which will help with the reflux...
Fingers toes and eyebrows crossed!

[alittlegrubi]

My DH wants to know if I am ever going to go back to sleeping in our bed. I've been sleeping in the nursery since I was about 6months pregnant - like Sharon we have a waterbed. I would have thought he'd appreciate not getting disturbed sleep.
Fire - funny, but I took you for "someone else who is on top of this mothering thing". I'm not expecting it to get easier until 3 months. Haven't got many tips for you - you seem to be on top of most things.
Baby - you ight find that due to the reflux BJ is more comfortable on his tummy and therefore can settle himself off to sleep. If it were me I'd not try to fight it, let him get his sleep on his tummy, obviously you need to watch him. My DS was like that with his silent reflux, slept much better on his tummy - usually on my chest.

[BabyWrangler]

Hi Grubi!
Thanks for the suggestion, we have him sleeping on his side (has been since birth as I don't agree with back sleeping), and his bed is nice and elevated with a reflux wedge too.
But we might try the tummy thing!
Thanks!

[Fire]

Re sleeping when put on tummy, it's probably as suggested, such a relief that he falls asleep. We don't do official tummy time, I read somewhere it's another bollocks thing westerner's have on our checklists, but we do go outside daily and lay under the lemon tree at lunchtime and he sometimes likes a roll on his tummy then. Ci also gets masses of what is like tummy time on my chest, as he rears up and back which is great for his neck strength.

As for me being a together mum, not a chance . I love mothering toddlers, that's my thang, gimme a "child" and I rule the world. Gimme a baby and I turn into a wobbling pile of pus. I LOVE my sleep, plus I'm a control freak so don't like not knowing what negative is just around the corner. I like people you can rationalise with, and babies aren't yet in that category. Heh, can't all be baby lovers, eh? That's why I'm full of so much crap and trivia, research is my attempt at gaining control in an uncontrollable situation.

[alittlegrubi]

Fire I applaude you for knowing yourself.
I am like you, happy to give this baby away to anyone who wants to take my mat leave, give them back when they are old enough to interact with me. I feel for my DS as he is copping it due to my inability to deal with the baby stage and the crying!!!!
I'm not so much of a control freak as I like to be able to do things - I don't do sitting around, relaxing very well, which I can't with a squirming, crying baby that needs my attention all the time. I can't even find the time to do ebay listings ATM.
I'd suggest that the way to "just take it all in stride and not be so overwhelmed" is not go with the flow and not have a plan. A little like your labour plan, if you have one then chances are it will be nothing like you planned, if you don't have one, then you aren't so traumatised by what occurs. Like for me - I was absolutely certain that I didn't want a c-section which is why when it happened in an emergency situation I still didn't deal very well with it. If I hadn't needed to be in control of how she was born I could have just taken it in my stride and not been so overwhelmed (IYKWIM). Other than that I am as useless as you with the baby stage.

[Sharon19270]

Fire I have read that somewhere too about BF babies going weeks between poos and it is all normal. As for when does the mothering thing get easier, I find that having a routine helps me to not be overwhelmed by it all, even if that means forcing a routine onto him, now if that gets all out of whack, i'm a blubbering mess
BabyWrangler have to say we haven't really done tummy time yet, but now that he is having more awake periods we will start, we couldn't do it with Jordan as it made his reflux worse and he would scream in pain. I was told to keep Oliver upright for approx 20 mins after a feed which should help with his food settling in his stomach. Just out of curiosity, why do you have a problem with back sleeping? I used to put Jordan on his side because of his bad reflux, as if he was on his back he would sound like he was choking on his vomit.
Beatrix I didn't get Oliver to bring his last bit of wind up at his 2.30pm feed last night and he was grizzly and grumbly for the the rest of the night. Oliver is starting to enjoy his bouncer, it is the Fisher Price rainforest one and he really likes looking at the lights and the moving animals.
Nettie my DH wears ear plugs to bed, and he doesn't even know when I have got out of bed, or when I come back LOL, I have to agree and think that the constant resettling when they are being restless is definitely more tiring, you can just be starting to doze off and then you have to get up again, anyone would find it very frustrating
alittlegrubi I was back into my own bed the first night home and it was wonderful, DH said that he got very lonely in there by himself, and it was nice to have the cuddles on the colder nights too. My eldest always slept on his tummy, this was before they found that it can increase the chances of SIDS.

I took Oliver to the community nurse today and he has put on 400g in 10 days (little piggly) she also congratulated me on picking up on his signs of reflux and that we did make the right decision in putting him onto the thickened formula, especially since he has now gone back to drinking 90-110ml at each feed. He had also grown 2cm since birth and his HC was 1cm bigger too, so all in all, the nurse was happy with his progress.

[Nettie]

Janine - You remind me of myself! I like kids I can interact with too! This whole baby thing is very stressful & tiring. We haven't been doing a lot of tummy time either - DS doesn't seem to like it much. However, we prop him up on our shoulders regularly and he gets practice at holding his head up then. He's very good at it in this position, but on his tummy he's quite frustrated. I don't think he likes to not be able to see anything!

Went to 'Cleft Clinic' yesterday and they had about 7 people in the room (plastic surgeons, speech pathologists, head of 'cleft' department, orthodontists, etc) and all they did was look in his mouth and answer my questions. Thankfully we don't need to persist with the feeding plate. DS was getting very upset using it so about 5 days ago we stopped using it and figured out a way to feed him without it - it works so much better and he is so much calmer at feeds now. They didn't quite believe us that he can suck the bottle on his own without help from us, but he's just slow at it. He's such a clever little man!

I see I now have my avatar - yay!! Thank you Kathryn!

[Sharon19270]

Nettie sounds like you have a very clever little boy there being able to feed without your help

Feeling a bit anxious today as DH has gone to Melbourne till tomorrow night, Oliver has been really good on the KaricareAR so I shouldn't really be worried, but I think it is just that I know that DH is so far away and won't be able to come home in a flash if I need him to and I don't know how I am going to cope with organising Jordan and his homework, dinner, shower etc and Oliver if he decides to have a screaming session.