Babies Born December 1st-15th 2010 #2

Oooooh Georgi, good luck on the plane :) If you can, BF on takeoff and landing :) Sounds like he's in the same pattern as Will :)

Picketty - which MCNs have you been looking at? I'm so upset that I got a boy, cause I have no excuse to buy new patterns!!!! I find that using the baby beehinds with covers the most economical and easiest thing, with itti bitty d'lish for going out ;)

Jules - my family used to live in Middlemount, now my 2 cousins just work there.

OK, Pip wants to watch the Wiggles on my puter, so catch up with you later!!!

Hi all,

MadB, can you get PUL at places like Lincraft and Spotlight? Lincraft has a sale on at the moment and I’m going to get some clothing patterns and fabric anyway, so might just try the nappies too :) Where did you get your nappy pattern from?

Kaz, those widdlewuns are SO cute. I will have a look at their next stocking, should be this Sunday I think. I have ordered a trial pack of baby behinds but I think they are coming from North QLD so who knows when that will arrive… So glad your bf is going so well – good on you :)

Cathie I hope Charlie’s hearing test went well and that the oldest three have settled into school.

EJ do get your friend a Wrap Me Up – I had seen them before Amelia was born but didn’t buy one as I wasn’t sure if they would suit the bub. Stupidly we bought 3 swaddle me wraps… they are no good at all for Millie as she hates having her arms wrapped to her sides, we’re going to sell them on ebay I think. SO it was great that our friends gave us one to try or we’d probably still be struggling to keep Millie in muslin :) I hope Aiden is settling down for you a bit – does he go to kindy at all?

Jules, Cairns family are fine – they are on high ground so no storm surge damage etc. I hope all is well in Toowoomba and that Jacob settles more for you.

Picketty, good to see you back. Have you tried gripe water? You can get it at the supermarket and it’s alcohol free. I don’t know if it helps with poo, but it does help clear wind so it might make Connor a bit more comfortable? I have been making dinner earlier in the day as well, it really helps doesn’t it? Not yesterday, I was exhausted and we ended up having Maccas. Revolting. I completely understand how you’re feeling with the isolation – HUGS. When does your Mum’s group start up again? Are you in Perth proper or in an outlying area? I went out to a Mums and Bubs session at the cinema nearby yesterday, it was a nice little outing and while I didn’t get to chat to other Mums there were a lot of tired smiles shared as we went in and out… if I weren’t so shy it would probably be a good way to “pick up” new friends :) and ice cream always makes me feel better.

Georgi, good luck for the immunisations and the flights! It sounds like all is going really well with you and your boys :)

As for us… still sleeping downstairs on the air mattress. Oh dear God, my BACK!! I thought there was a bit of a breeze coming through last night so we all went to sleep upstairs, but it was very short lived. DH was the first to go back down, then Millie woke up crying around midnight and I could feel a nosebleed coming on myself so we both trooped downstairs. The forecast is for the change to come through on Sunday… argh! We went and saw “How do you know” yesterday for the Mums and Bubs session. I haven’t been to the movies in ages and this probably wouldn’t have been my first choice (REALLY want to see “Black Swan”), but it was a much needed bit of lighthearted fluff. Millie was really good so I’m feeling a bit more confident about taking her to the movies, at least during the day.

Still calling daycare centres… ARGH, starting to worry that Millie won’t get a place. I thought having so many centres in our area it would be easy to find a place, but it seems that they have very stable clientele – it will take someone actually leaving the area for us to get a place. Not that I’m overly keen to head back to work (especially this week – my class room isn’t air conditioned!), but it will be a pretty big financial hit if I don’t. I’ve been offered some tutoring work which sounds good, but… this is my time with Millie. I asked the lady to give me a bit of time to think about it, but I think I’m leaning towards no.

…just called another place – THEY HAVE A VACANCY!!! We’re going to visit now. It’s on the way to the station so it’s perfect – I can drop Millie and DH on my way to work :) Hope it’s a nice place!

xox

Ohhhh it's a hot one here today and it's really not THAT hot. It's the humidity. There's also some thunder which is making my Lilly sook.

Jules enjoy your time away and i hope the zantac settles in and you guys are all really calm and happy. I'm trying to focus on Aidan a little more to avoid the tartrum, we had a good day yesterday until the evening. He did all he could to avoid eating dinner then DH took them to the park and then tantrums after it when going to bed. Sometimes you just wonder why you try but obviously you never stop. We'll get there i'm sure.

Well Harper is waking so i'll have to be back girls, i hope you are all well :D

Hey girls,
picketty - hope you are going ok. I hear you on wanting to be strong. I fought tears for the whole first week my mum was here, then I just lost it. Now I still cry every time I talk to her because she's so supportive, and keeps telling me I'm doing a great job. I was told my the CHN that I didn't even "get in" to my mum's group - can either go to one in my area with much younger babies, or one in another area with slightly younger babies. It sucks - I too am far from family and friends, so am pretty isolated. For now I have two old work colleagues, a neighbour and the local ABA group, and I also do the hospital postnatal physio class, so it all helps. Can you contact playgroups or similar? Maybe your local council to see if they do baby sessions at the library?

pp - no PUL at Lincraft, but you can get your microfleece (great inner/liner fabric) and flannelette if you want it. Nappies Covered is a good website for supplies. They have everything. I have made quite a few of my own, but they're not quite as good as the pros.

Kaz - don't be sad you got a boy - girls are bad for your bank balance! Not just nappies, but dresses, hats, the lot! We hung out in the shopping centre today for the aircon, and I was lucky not to come out bankrupt

EJ - humidity is our world up here! Kinda tough when baby will only sleep wrapped or in the sling!

I'm trying very hard to do at least one cot sleep every day. I have to rock her off, but then we usually get a half hour sleep out of her, and that's enough to do all the jobs I can't do with her in the sling. DH has taken her up to the supermarket in the pram - he tried rocking her off, but couldn't, and cracked it, so I held her while he got ready, and she fell asleep. :lol: I felt a bit sorry for him.

Georgi - have a lovely time in Sydney and I hope the flight went ok.

Kaz - I have bought and now tried - Cute Tushie minky (leg holes don't fit no matter what I do and so it leaks, don't like it), some Cushie Tushie minkys (OK, but quite bulky), Green Kids anytimes (love them, will buy more), Tots Bot easyfit (survived a pooplosion, will buy more) and some Itti Bittis that I've yet to try. My Mum has sent over a Bumgenius V4, Smartipants (had very good reviews in US), Wonderoo in PUL and a Charlie Banana. The minkies all look super cute, but I'm leaning more towards the PULs and the pocket style so that the wee is away from his little bot a bit more. I would love to have the confidence to make my own, but I know it would take me hours and then leak within 3mins of it going on and I would be mighty frustrated with it all.

PP - I hope you liked the daycare centre. I suppose I should probably get on to that for when I go back to work later in the year. I've decided to take a few extra months off unpaid so I can spend more time with Connor. I seem to remember the midwife at the hospy said not to give babies gripe water, but it may be that she thinks it still contains alcohol. I'll give it a go, if he'll take it. I might take him to see the Dr next week if he doesn't do a poo of his own accord over the weekend. He was very grouchy tonight so he's probably blocked up again, poor little mite. The mummy's group starts in a couple of weeks, but there is a local playgroup advertising for new members so I might go along to that next week, and pilates starts again next week too so at least that will give me an hour of me-time once a week.

Audax why did the CHN say you can't go to the mum's group? If it's because your little girl is too old then I would complain that there haven't been any over the Christmas/summer. Connor was born at the end of Nov so missed the last lot of mum's groups, but he'll be almost 3 months old by the time we go in a few weeks, and to be honest we really could have done with it starting in December or at least early January. I know its the school holidays etc, but the world doesn't stop turning just because the schools are off. Rant over. I like the idea of going to the cinema, even if it is just me and little Connor.

Am going to look at nappies uncovered and see if it inspires me...

Oh I love Greenkids - there's a photo of Will on my FB with him in one at a couple of weeks old. If you're after cheap stuffing, go to Woolies and pick up a 3-pack of microfibre cloths from the car section (about $5-7) and stuff them with one of those folded in 3. Quite trim and good for wee when changing nappies frequently - microfibre will soak up wee quickly, but doesn't hold a lot, IYKWIM? Bitty d'lish are lovely, as are Bitty Tutto - I use those for going out. Maz covers are good - they are polar fleece so breathe - but don't use them in car seats or anything that presses against them, as they will seep through. Good for sleeping / baby wearing (except bjorn style carriers). Have to go find my nappies whereever DH has put them all (they are in a huge container) and start pulling out the mediums, as he's starting to outgrow the smalls!!!!!

Well he just had booby then 150mls and did a huge poo. hopefully DH has changed his butt before putting him down. I'm exhausted, night all.

That's a good idea about the Woolies stuffing - I don't like the bamboo that comes with the greenkids and I was thinking about getting something else.

So, about Connor's pooing, or lack of it, I've been doing some internet research and quite a few people have good results with seeing a Chiro. Do you think I should go and see the GP first to rule anything else out? I don't like to waste the Dr's time if she'll just say 'Oh it's normal for them not to poo very often' etc. Or should I just speak to the chiro and see what he says? Sorry, I'm about as decisive as, well,.... I don't know.

Morning ladies,

Pickety sounds like you got a great range of nappies to try. I think babies/mummas have difference successes with different nappies depending on the size and shape of their bubs. I too had some leaking problemes everytime i put Itti Bittis on Charlie in the end what i'd do was put a pul cover on as well even though they supposedly didn't need it. Just saves the many changes. I have found great success with Baby BeeHinds, they are slightly bulky so you generally have to go a size up in pants but we don't have leakages at all. I use bamboo with a wool cover at night and the pockets during the day, i have some made from pul material and some from minki. I never had the spare dollars to really go out there and try all the different brands so once i found one i stuck with it. I do the meals as early as possible also, usually when Charlie boy is down for his sleep and Aidan likes to help. So much easier than trying to do it during the witching hours. Sorry to hear your feeling a little down and frustrated, motherhood as beautiful and challenging as it is is a huge adjustment to the life we had before. It takes some getting used to. I'm generally around during the day and don't always get to post but feel free to call for some help when you need it i'll do all i can to say hi and be here. Sometimes just someone to talk to and listen can make things a whole lot better and it can be really difficult waiting for DH to get home to finally have someone who can listen and return the conversation :hug: I hope you don't have to wait too much longer for mummy's group to begin.

Georgi it's great to hear your little boys are doing so well. It's great when things settle and you realise you are capable of this motherhood caper. Harper has stopped taking the dummy again, i kept trying to offer it but she just kept spitting it out. Back to the drawing board...

Kaz i must say i was a little excited at the prospect of having a girl and all the gorgeous nappies out there to choose from. You still might get your girl :D So good to hear you're leaking. Wow you're amazing at the dedication you have to bfing your child. You have to be sooooo proud of yourself.

PP Aidan is about to being 3yr old kinder (i've held him back) but it'll only be one afternoon a week. I think the behaviour is a mixture of realising i don't have so much time, his age and a bit of bordom. Next week will be our first week of all our activities back on again so we'll see how things go. Frustratingly it takes things getting quite bad before you look at your parenting or what is happening and then figure out what you could do to make things work a little better. It's continually changing so you think you have it all figured out then something changes and you have to figure it out all over again. I see you guys are in for another warm day, i hope you get a bit of relief soon. Today feels cooler here and we had a lot of rain and thunder over night.

Well that was part 2 girls but i'll have to be back for the rest. The boys are misbehaving and Harper is up already.

hi all

Sorry ladies for not keeping up with the posts.

Got out of hospital last week, after out immunisation apnoea episode.
Heat and no aircon as killed us and had a really unsettled week.
I will keep posting in this section, but think I will also post in Matteo's due date section, as he is just about at his due date now and won't reach the same milestones as all your bubs. He is still keeping me awake all night and no sign of smiles as yet, but the paed said he should achieve these in line with his corrected age.

take care all

Hi to all will be back when i can :D

What's the next unsettled stage? Harper hasn't slept for more then half an hour at a time today. I'm exhausted.

Hi all. I've been offline for a whiel - loads to catch up on here!

Butterfly, I'm glad to hear you're out of hospital! Can't believe Matteo is only just full at 40 weeks now :hug:

Picketty - PM me if you want to catch up some time. I'm out near Midland but I can come down your way on a Thursday or Friday (when DS is in daycare). We could have a coffee or something, even if it's just to tide you over till your mothers' group starts (hopefully you have a nice bunch of girls to get to know).
As for poos - have you called the ABA at all? Aside from infrequent poos, any other issues? Plenty of wet nappies? I don't know about dairy, but bear in mind that the formula will be dairy based also. Did the problem start with the formula? Maybe he's still getting used to the different milk...?

Nappies are easy peasy to make. I make pockets (I also don't like the sticky feeling as you stuff them), but I don't have snaps and AIOs take too long to dry.
I get my stuff from nappies covered, and also get the inner stuff from bunnings - you can get a pack of 5 microfibre clothes for $15 I think. (Great minds!)
For patterns, you can just make your own. Do a practice one with crap material, try it on for size, then adjust and make another. I've thrown sooooo many duds away - even have some dud PUL ones (i sewed throught the PUL inside the seam so they leaked - derrrrr). anyway, I'm sufficiently confident now to splash out on minky PUL.

Kaz - way to go with the feeding! How exciting was that squirt?

Cathie, I hope the hearing test went well.

All the bes tsorting out cc pixie. it's stressful enough when you have to return to work earlier than you'd like without then having the worry of figuring out who is going to care for your baby.

Jules - hope you're well in towoomba. Your little man will get there in time :hug:

Miri has been more demanding in the past week - I guess it's the 6-week thing. EJ they go through these patches every couple of weeks at this age... dont' they?
I'm knackered anyway. GP had a bit of a go about me not taking the iron tablets. I'm taking 2 spatone but they all want me on those ferrogradumet thingies - but those pills bung me up! i lied to the hospital and told them I'd take them as well as the spatone,... had a blood test on friday so we'll see how aneamic I am. :( DD is perfect though, on the plus side.

It got worse, i think it was wind. She was popping off as we were patting her butt over and over. She got really aggitated and no settling until midnight, it was not good at all. Got appt today but thinking of cancling thme so we can stay home.

Hi all!

Thanks Audax, I will go back to Lincraft for microfleece... sale is on til Sunday, I could do some serious damage in the coming days :) Your poor DH... they try so hard and get so frustrated sometimes don't they? DH kind of ignores Millie's tired signs of a night because he wants more time with her... hard to limit his time with her though.

Picketty it sounds like you have some options opening up for you in the coming weeks. Enjoy pilates especially. A friend of mine was telling me about Burlates - a cross between pilates and burlesque!!!! I mean, really... surely the corsets would restrict movement somewhat?! I checked out the Green Kids website, those anytimes look good. I had confirmation that my pretty Archie and Moo nappy and inserts were shipped today, I can't wait :) Got my nappy bucket on Saturday, so cloth bums here we come! Would the chiro be doing kinesiology for Connor? A friend of mine had great results with that and my sister-in-law who is very into natural therapies said she takes her oldest daughter to a chiro for kinesiology. I'm considering it for Amelia if things go haywire again with her digestion or sleeping.

Kaz thanks for the tips on the liners. That's a good idea!

EJ fingers crossed Aidan is getting back to himself again with all his activities on. How did everything go today with Harper?

Butterfly I'm so glad you guys are home. Hope the southerly change has come through where you are and that things are more comfortable and settled.

MadB I never even thought about not stitching through the PUL. Good to know, if I ever have the guts to make my own!

As for us... we have a childcare place, Millie will start in the Possum room in July, three days a week. A heartbreaking thought... it's months off, but the months go by so fast!!!! The place is highly accredited, very clean, well-equipped and fully airconditioned (which, walking in there on Friday, was a HUGE relief), and the staff seem really nice and very keen on "their" kids.

Saturday we went to my in-laws' new place - the pool was finally ready! Bliss. Yesterday we had a lovely lunch with couples from our ante-natal class - awesome to catch up and hear birth stories :) The heat has been disgusting, last night was the first night we were able to sleep in our own beds since Tuesday. Millie is SO pleased to be back in her cot - she likes to kick around and she really couldn't do that comfortably in her rocker or bassinet. So today was brilliant: she fed, played and slept like a champ. We went to the local parents' group - we're starting to group off according to babies' ages and I have a date to go see "tangled" on Wednesday with one of the other Mums, and go for a walk in Parra Park on Thursday morning with a big group. After the session I went to Lincraft and bought a basic pattern and some very cute fabric for a reversible dress/hat/bloomers combo. Feeling very creative - I just have to organise my time a bit better during the day so I can spend a chunk of time sewing.

Hey, cloth nappy gurus, how do you measure the rise? Can I measure that off a disposable or should I wait til I see which MCNs fit?

Hope you're all well - thinking of you!
xox

pp - i keep a small tape measure in my nappy drawer (from howards' storage world, retractable keyring type) and you measure from the front waist to the back waist, between the legs.

:

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Waist - Measured at the natural waistline. For velcro or snap covers and diapers the smallest setting is with the fasteners closed and the elastic (if applicable) fully relaxed. The largest size is with the fasteners at the largest setting and the elastic lightly pulled. For pull up style covers, the smallest measurement is taken with the elastic fully relaxed. The largest setting is with the elastic pulled about 95%. You should not measure over a diaper.

Leg - Taken diagonally at about where the leg opening on the cover or diaper would be (see picture). For velcro or snap covers and diapers the smallest setting is with the fasteners closed and the elastic on the leg fully relaxed. The largest size is with the fasteners at the largest setting and the elastic on the leg lightly pulled. For pull up style covers, the smallest measurement is taken with the elastic fully relaxed. The largest setting is with the elastic pulled about 95%. You should not measure over a diaper.

Rise - The rise of the cover is measured by taking the cover and laying it out flat. From the top of the front of the cover or diaper to the top of the back of the cover or diaper is the rise. To measure this on your child, measure from the front waist through their legs and back up to their waistline in the back. A larger number in the rise will mean that the diaper or covers will mean a higher waistline.

Covers: For the rise measure over the diapers that you want to use.

When trying to decide upon a cover size, start with the suggested weights and then see if the waist, leg and rise measurements of your baby fall into the range of that cover. If you start with the measurements you may end up with a cover that is way too big. But, you do know your baby best. Most covers have suggestions on the page as to how they fit. For all the velcro covers, you are looking for waist and leg measurements that fall in about the same place in the range. If your baby’s waist measurement is on the lower end of the range and the leg measurement is on the higher end of the range, the cover will probably be too tight at the legs.

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Will is still doing well. He's been sleeping in his rocker in the garden while I've been working in it. yay!

about my garden ... our neighbours are selling their house. I LOVE gardening, but DH grudges the time I spend in the front garden, cause he doesn't care about how it looks, but that's a major driver for me. So their selling gives me a blessing from DH :) That plus it's actually a prescription from my GP who manages my depression - he came out to say bye to trev & I and said to us "well Karyn enjoy your bath and gardening this week!"

Last night Will was engaged after his 10pm feed, he was just enjoying his rocker and was looking around everywhere! Then he slept until 6:30 ... mmmmm
More gardening today :)

PP - glad you enjoyed your movie. The "lullaby" sessions are great aren't they!!! Up here at our local, the kids all got to know each other and would play through the rows of seats during the film :) Yay on CC space!!!!! :happydance: I went on the waiting list with Pip when I was 5 months pregnant, and he finally got a place when he was 9 months old. It's so hard to get in to places :(

EJ - hope Harper's doing better today. Can't find the Book, trev's put it somewhere :(

Ooooh and (cause I can) :ninja:

Hi ladies

BF so glad to hear that Mateo is home and that things can start settling for you guys. Would love to hear from you as you get the chance on how things are going but understand also if you post in Mateo's corrected age group.

Kaz i love to garden also but it's hard to find the time. I love it in the summer but hate it in the winter. I definately belive it helps with the moods, being out in it or being able to look and admire it knowing your hard work went into it. I feel really down when i look out and see weeds and mess but feel so good when i can look out there when it's clean, swept and no weeds in sight. Just another thing to try and keep on top of :lol: So glad that little Will was able to sleep and give you some time in the garden. That's for looking for the wonder weeks book, it's ok i think Harper just wants to keep me guessing anyway. My brain is soooo tired.

I hope everyone else is well and bubs are doing good. I think i caught up with the rest of you in my other posts that i had to do across a couple of days. Right now mum has taken the boys down the street and park for a walk, Harper is in bed and i have a few quiet moments. I'm definatley getting a bit frustrated at things, the demand is huge and i'm struggling to find time to just be me. Cathie i have no idea how you do it, you have beautiful, happy, healthy looking kids and i admire you for managing when i could only partly imagine what each day involves for you. I have been doing a bit more sewing or watching my mum do what i wish i could be doing because i just don't get a moment. Yesterday was a better day for Harper, we went to the health nurse but i cancelled the hips ultrasound (i'm not worried about it, it's just the creases that don't line up so we're checking it out). She did sleep for a good few hours in the afternoon and i had a friend over for lunch but when she left Harper woke and then it was pretty much time for me to go get the boys. Then the evening she slept on and off but seemed to get a little uncomfortable again. Wind and reflux together. She's 10lb now so not sure if the zantac doesage is still right for her. Last night all i wanted to do was have a little time to sew and watch the underbelly movie before i went to bed but Harper was in my arms on and off through until 11pm. I'd put her down and then she'd wake again and i'd try patting and sshhhing and then i'd pick her up and she'd fall alseep again. It's hard to push things when you are unsure of what's going on with the reflux. So once again the evening is all about settling Harper to sleep and i get no time for me. Last night i had a tiny bit of a yell about just wanting to do something for ME which i felt very selfish for doing, i'm getting a lot of help but it's so demanding. At the same time i know i'm so lucky with all the help i've had and this is my choice, my children and this is what is involved with being a mum to them. I just want Harper's evenings to be like her days can be and give me a few hours of me time before i go to bed. I'm sorry about the selfish whinge girls, i'm so greatful and blessed to have such beautiful children but i want to exist somewhere in there also. Anyway whinge over, i have a bit of time to sew now so i better go.

Sorry about the selfishness, i hope you are all well and happy and the little ones are growing into beautiful little beings xoxo

HUGS to you EJ. It's not selfish at all, we all have our days where we just need to vent, and others where we have the time and headspace to provide support to each other. That's what we're all here for. Thinking of you xox

Like Pixie said, it's all good EJ - it's not selfish to vent or talk through things when you need to. That's why we're here :hug: Do you use the sling in the evening at all? Even if it means putting her down a little later, you might at least get a bit of quiet time (though not quite to yourself).

I keep trying to pre-empt DD's screaming time and she just starts earlier and earlier! Oh well. Got the wrap me up today. :leap: I think it's love!

The gardening sounds very theraputic Kaz! Maybe that's what I need too. Or something at any rate. I've been spending too much time online (and here I am again :doh:) - it has ocured to me that I'm trying to avoid my responsibilities here. It all gets a bit much at times, but I really need to just face it.
Doesn't help that I'm tired, anaemic and my thyroxine dose is wrong again - I think my thyroid must be growing back or something :dunno: Seeing GP again on Friday then i'll have to go to the bloody specialist I suppose.

love the ninja