Babies Born November 2007

Dragonbub- I agree about some of the other threads around here moving too fast i too have trouble keeping up with some of them. At least in here with it been a bit on the slower side it gives you a chance to get to know the other posters etc and keep up to date. Glad to hear you are having a better week this week. Your little man sounds like he is doing so well 5.3kg already you must be pleased. With DD1 it was the opposite for us it took her ages to gain weight a worry i hope we dont have with Molly- so far so good. Hows the new routine?

june78- Welcome to the thread :) How are you recovering from your CS? I had an emergency with one with my first DD and it was awful i had 15 hrs of labour b4 hand and i took the full 6 weeks to feel decent. This time i had an elective for various reasons and have felt fantastic since day 2-3. It is definately a scary experience to have to go through an emergency one esp with your first bub. Are you BFing? i had lots of problems BFing DD1 and believe it was a result of my traumatic labour/birth and the separation we faced immediately after delivery. This time was a wonderful exp and bub and DH came into recovery with me where we met a LC and bub had a BF. No separation at all.

Everyone else- How are you all coping?

Well we are doing quite well still but very tired. I love both my girls to pieces and wouldnt change either of them for the world but i really am missing my days with just DD1 and even my days b4 children. Everything just feels like hard work at the moment. Simple tasks like going to the toilet, showering and nipping to the shop for bread etc are just so difficult. It literally takes me an hr and half to get the three of us up, dressed, fed and ready for the day.
Molly is still feeding anywhere between 2-4hrly but since i have given her the dummy she is alot more settled in between feeds. I am pleased to say that it has not affected our Bfing yet so i dont think it will . Poor little thing has been prodded and poked so much this week by DD1 she will be one tough bub very shortly :) Well i am exhausted (aren't we all) and Molly is hungry again so i best be off. Takecare.

Just another quickie from me. It's been so busy with 3 kids. Tyler's been a bit of a velcro baby - not wanting to be put down so tends to have one good sleep a day in the HAB. Not ideal but it works and it means I can still get stuff done. Blake (Mr 2.5yrs) is being a bit challenging. Not sure if it's due to Tyler being on the scene or just being at toddler. We're working thru it.

Ty's putting on good weight - I think it was 670g in the last fortnight. I must be a good cow! His night sleeps are pretty good - anywhere between 4 and 6 hours.

Can't remember who asked (Willow?) but I have no idea when their sleep patterns at night extend. My other two were terrible sleepers, and Blake's only been sleeping thru the night since I was 32wks pg, so what's that 11wks ago?

Hoody, I so agree with you about how much harder it is to get things done with another baby in the house. Just to get in and out of the car is a trial. I tend to allow myself 10 minute to do that alone as Blake can be quite defiant and difficult. And then of course when Ty's screaming cause hes' got wind and needs to get out of the capsule! Fortunately my big girl is 10.5yo and not only independant, but also a great help with Blake.

OK, off to bed for me before Tyler wakes for his next feed and I only have 15 mins sleep!

Hope all the babies sleep well tonight!

Well, it sounds as though everyone is as tired as I am :D DS is on 3 hourly feeds at night, fairly routine, 9.30, then around 1, then 4 then I get him up at 7-7.30 for a change into day clothes and a feed and play. The night routine is pretty good, he usually has an unsettled period around 4 ish in between feeds, so I am getting about 5 hours average sleep each night, but it is not so bad. At least it is predictable so I can get a kip in during the day (some days).

Hoody - I have read so much on dummies being bad, but you know what? Whatever works! It shuts Caden up when he is getting changed as sometimes he is a grump. It also lulls him off to sleep sometimes, and gives my nips a break when he just wants to suck. I am glad it hasn't affected BFing, which really, I think must be fairly rare, as no milk comes out of a dummy, IYKWIM? A friend recommended getting a bigger dummy, as he just spits the newborn ones out. I gave it a go and presto! He seems to like it heaps more and it actually gets the back of his mouth where he really wants to suck. If I don't give him a dummy he just sucks anything, his arm, blanket, me, various strangers if they are passing by. I figure if he wants to suck, may as well give him something clean...

June78 - Welcome! Apparently all babies have an unsettled period during the day (mine has about 10) which is usually in the afternoon when your milk supply is at its lowest. I found that once I accepted this, it was so much easier to just get on with it. I read somewhere that babies have at least 1 hour of unsettled during the day, and one unsettled day during the week. I guess all up this is true.

Wardygirl - LOL about you being a good cow! I love the idea that all that growth is due to your body feeding them, it is so lovely. I guess DHs miss out on that experience, but they do look so cute together when DH gives him his expressed milk at night time (they get the 9pm feed together).

Well, as for us, things are def improving. I am much more used to Caden's cries and routine now. I know if he is fed, changed, warm and has been a wake for an hour or so, his cries mean that he is tired. He fights so hard to stay awake, and if I keep him up for at least 10 minutes too long, he will really scream (but keep fighting to stay awake anyway). I feel alot more confident in being able to decipher his cries, so I just rock him and cuddle him until he finally gives in to sleep.

Anyhoo, enough about me, have a great weekend!

Hi girls, good to see some more posts in here.

We are doing pretty well at the moment. DS's sleeps have definitely improved out of sight during the day, but he still has his rough days like today. It's taken a mighty effort to get him to have just a few hours of solid sleep this morning, maybe he is hungry and wants to feed more often? Not sure.

He generally has 4 sleeps a day, first and last are usually unsettled so he only sleeps for about 1.5-2hours at these times, but his middle two sleeps are really good and he usually does about 2.5-3hours.

Nights are developing a pattern too - usually bath him and put him down at about 6pm (sometimes he goes down easily, other times it can take 30 mins!) then he'll wake between 11pm-12am, again at 3am and then we get up at 6am.

I've worked out that if I get up at 6am (I fought it for 3 weeks, that is an early start for me! Before DS was born DD and I would sleep till 7/8am) feed him, take him into the bathroom with me and have a shower before DD wakes up, our mornings are a lot easier to handle.

I know what you girls mean about having toddlers and babies. It is really hard work trying to juggle the two. I really look forward to weekends when DH is home and he can help out with DD a lot which leaves me more time to relax, get some house work done etc etc.

We took DS back to the chiro yesterday. He is happy with his progress and we only need to take him weekly for a few weeks then monthly if we want to continue. It's hard to say whether it has helped or whether it was moving him into his cot in his room for day sleeps that was responsible for the improvement. I have noticed that the day after we take him (that is today) he is usually pretty unsettled. Not sure if that's just coincidence.

Unsettled periods - I've always been told it's normal for babies up till about 6 months to have one unsettled period every day (usually from one feed until the next) and one unsettled day a week. Fun and games hey??!!

Have my 6 week check up with my ob tomorrow and my appt with the counsellor. I am feeling heaps better these days but still think it's worth going to talk to her because I definitely still have days or moments where I feel like I'm not coping.

Have a terrible head cold at the moment and terrified i'm going to pass it to DS, that's the last thing we need, a sick bub.

Anyway, better go, the little man has just woken up and needs to be fed. Going to attempt to go down and do some xmas shopping this afternoon while DD is sleeping, will take bub with me. It's always good to get out of the house, even for a few hours.

Rachel - just wanted to say that DS was a velcro baby too for the first 2-3 weeks. It was such hard work but he has really settled down now and it makes it so much easier. I'm sure Tyler will too. Also, DD was initially great but I have noticed that she's started acting out a bit in the last week. i'm sure it's just an adjustment period and they will be back to normal once they get used to having a new bub around and the new routine of things. Hang in there!!

Hope all are well and happy.

Hi Ladies & November Bubs

It's taken me a while, but here I am! Thought I would join you all & introduce our little sweetpea.

Our beautiful girl, Ellis Ava was born at 00.43am on 17/11/07 at 42weeks after a bit of coaxing & help from medical technology (in the form of an induction - single dose of prostin gel after which my waters broke of their own accord, and venteuse delivery) at RWH Melbourne. We'd been booked into the birth centre but the induction meant our birth had to take place in the labour wards...something I was dreading! In the end though, we made it with a few stitches following an episiotomy but without any other pain relief and couldn't be happier with the staff & management of the entire process. In fact, I am totally in love with the wonderful midwife who helped us all though :lol: And afterwards we were able to spend our post-birth time back in the private roomed, double-bedded serenity of the birth centre.

We are having a great time getting to know each other and both DP and I are feeling pretty lucky to have such a relaxed & easy (so far) cutie take up residence with us.

Hopefully, I'll be dropping in an out a little more frequently & although I've crossed paths with some of you in other threads, I'm hoping I can get to know you all a little better here :)

Hope you're all well & happy.

x
AJ

Hello All,
Some quick questions on routines:
Do you have a strict routine, or have you tried setting a routine, or do you mainly go with the flow?
There is so much info, for and against this, that I thought I would get the "real" opinions. The SOS book is all about routines, and I am not sure if these work. The author proclaims to solve most problems, such as colic and reflux, through routines.
Also, where do your babies sleep? If they sleep in your room, when did you move them to their own room?
At the moment, DS sleeps in his bassinet during the day, and his cradle at night. He is a great sleeper, but just takes ages to get down. And even then, he fights it so much by the time he is actually asleep, he really is over tired! I am getting a bit sad with my grumpy-all-the-time baby, I think perhaps he is not getting enough sleep, so that even when he is awake he is grumpy and showing tired signs. I am thinking a move to his own cot might give clearer sleep signals, and give him less distractions. Also, with him in my room, it means I pretty much get him up when he wakes up in the morning, even though if I sleep in (when does that happen?) he usually sleeps right beside me until 9.30 am or so.

Anyways, just a bit lost as to what to try to ensure he is not grumpy during the day.

Have a great week ladies, hope you catch some zzzzzs

Hi everyone
Have finally got Jacob to sleep after 3 hours of cranky baby. There didn't seem to be anything wrong, he just decided to have a good cry. Luckily DH is great at calmly pacing the floor with him. I think we may have worn him out a little today as I had my brother over to take some photos. Jacob was really well behaved but was awake longer than he normally would be.

Hoody - recovering pretty well from the c-section. Still occasionally get a twinge here and there, but the last week or so I have felt pretty good. Having to go through the few hours of labour certainly knocked me around a lot and I wasn't prepared mentally for it either. But I am just happy we ended up with a healthy baby at the end (it doesn't matter how he came out). BF is going really well, but I was worried. I didn't get that first hour with Jacob afterwards as my blood pressure was low they kept me in recovery longer than normal. DH got to hold him for that first hour, but by the time I was there he was asleep. For the first 24hours he wasn't at all interested in feeding from me. But now everything seems to be good. Glad to hear the dummy is working for you. Jacob isn't all that interested in sucking other things so I haven't worried about one for him.

Dragonbub - I know what you are going through with the over-tiredness. There are times when Jacob fights sleep so much. But eventually his little body has to give in. I am getting alot better are reading him though, so I am really trying to get him moving towards sleep before he is too tired.

Willow - good luck with your appointments tomorrow.

AJ - Welcome to the November babies. Looking forward to hearing more about your baby. Try and rest as much as you can now!

Dragonbub - just read your latest post. I am pretty much going with whatever routine Jacob wants at the moment, although there does seem to be a bit of a pattern developing. I just think trying to dictate to a crying baby who quite obviously wants a feed, that "its not time yet" won't really work. However I do try and have a bit of difference between night and day so that he knows night is for sleeping and day he can nap or play. So at night I feed him in his room with the room fairly dark. I don't talk to him too much, feed him, change him, feed him some more, then wrap him and try and get him to sleep. During the day I feed him in the lounge and if he seems to be dropping off to sleep then I put him on a rug in the lounge. Sometimes though he is quite obviously wanting to be awake after the feed so we have a bit of playtime. I find longer than about 1/2 hour and he will start getting tired and grumpy so I work to getting him to sleep. If he stops the eye contact and gets a little grump then I know its time to start the sleep routine. Its not easy and every few days the "routine" changes and I have to alter things a bit, but it does mean he is getting very good at just feeding and sleeping at night.

Hope everyone has a good nights sleep tonight.

Dragonbub - we don't have a 'routine' as such. I found the SOS routines to be a bit ridiculous to be honest. That's only my opinion, but I ordered the 1-2 week routine on line and when I got it and it said "Feed baby. Allow baby to self settle to sleep. Express from right breast" etc etc I've just gone "HUH??" what if my baby can't self settle to sleep - that's the whole problem!!" so I promptly deleted it from my computer!

We follow more of a structure - feed, play, sleep. I find it easier to have this general guideline/pattern of how our days go and if it all goes pear shaped somewhere along the lines because DS won't sleep, then it's just so easy to pick it up again. I try to stick to my feed times as much as I can, but even these can be adjusted.

For example, DS woke at 5.30am this morning. I fed him, he stayed awake for about 40 mins (this is his 'play' time, obviously they don't do much playing at this age), then started to settle him to sleep. He will wake up, I'll feed him, he'll have his play time and then I'll put him down again for a sleep and so the day will continue.

With his sleep, I try to let him settle in his cot on his own, but this doesn't happen all that often. So I'll give him a cuddle till he relaxes, then put him in his cot again and stroke his face, pat him etc till he settles off to sleep. Sometimes i have to repeat this process a million times before he dozes off. He does wake after one sleep cycle sometimes (not sure if you know about sleep cycles, but babies sleep in cycles of about 35-45mins) so then I have to resettle him. Most of the time this is easy, but sometimes I can't get him back to sleep so I'll get him up in the end.

It can be an exhausting process (especially this time for me with a toddler too - I'm constantly running between the two some days) but I know from experience with DD that eventually it does work. DD was a fantastic sleeper by about 6-8 months, slept through every night, all night and only very rarely woke.

Nights are different obviously, he wakes, I feed him, he goes straight back to sleep. DS sleeps in his cot in his own room during the day (and I've already posted about what a huge difference that made for us) and in his bassinet next to me at night.

By the time DD was about 4 months we started following the tresillian routines, they are really flexible and I found that DD was pretty much following it already, just as her own patterns had emerged.

I have electronic copies of the tresillian guidelines and routines that we follow (had to type them up for a friend, we don't have a scanner), if your interested, I can email them to you.

Anyway, hope all that helps in some way!

Hello All,

YAY Molly slept for 5 solid hours last night- thats our biggest stretch so far. DD1 went for another sleepover at Nanna's so i didnt have to get up at the crack of dawn either so today i am feeling quite bright and cheery. I have even managed to go food shopping and cook tea and its only 12pm.

With regards to a routine i tend to go with the flow iykwim although i do the feed, play, sleep pattern like Willow. During the day Molly will sleep in her basinette or her swing if i cant get her to settle and at night her basinette is beside my bed though normally at some stage through the night we end up co sleeping.
Well someone has woken and is hungry so best be off

Hi all, sorry for being awol. Didn't have access to a puta. I can't comment too much as DS2 is sleeping 7-9hours at night and often self settles during the day, big change from, DS1 who was a fighter at every sleep time excepting nights!
We sleep DS2 in his own room with both doors shut, this helps means that when I hear him crying he is ready for a feed rather thean just stirring. Has made a huge difference to his nighttime feeds, stretched them out a bit and when he does feed he is awake enough to feed properly. Only discovered this while away at my parents house but has made life much easier.
He is generally up til 10pm then awake again between 5 and 7am for a feed then back to sleep for 3-4 hours then awake and asleep for the rest of the day until the next night.
We have chosen to use a dummy as we'd had enough of the uncontrolled screaming in the evenings that was wearing us all out and with a constant weight gain of minimum 250gms a week we're not worried about the breastfeeding interference. He only has it in the evenings or when he is really unsettled during the day and needs to sleep. I am finding that I am feeding between 1-2 hourly in the evenings which I don't mind as he sleeps so well through the night. If he won't settle at sleep time I just keep feeding him until he does, I won't put him to bed at night with a dummy as if he needs to suck at that time then i figure he is still a bit peckish and so feed it is. Works for us.
Just heard that my sister is in labour with her 3rd bub which is 10 days overdue.
Will check in sooner this time bubs needs more feeding,
bye,

just a quick hi. i am being kept so busy with the kids, christmas stuff, etc. and i now find myself having to organise work stuff even though i don't technically go back until february - oh well, such is life. Nate is such a big boofy baby he is the size of a two month old (he is only five weeks).

sorry got to go, he is screaming to be changed and fed (again).

hi again, i am sitting here feeding Nate and typing with my left hand, so this might takeawhile, i'll keep it short.

we don't really follow much of routine here (i'm too dsorganised). but basically he wakes up, i change nappy, feed, and then he will either sleep again, or he will play, then have another nappy change, feed and sleep.he tends to go down at 9.30pm and sleep for6 hours straight, but then will only go back down for another two hours at most - or will only stay asleep when someone is holding him. we are slowly working it out (sort of). luckily, jelly is 'mostly' a help. she absolutely dotes on her brother (i have to keep a close eye on her, she has already tried to pick him up a few times, and i have once caught her trying to feed him cheese).

can i ask whether everyone here is or has bought their bubs chrissy prezzies either from themselves or santa - and if so what? DH and I are still undecided about what to do.

Have to be quick kids are on the loose :)

Misty- with regards to Xmas presents my girls are getting a swing set and cubby house to share (be a while b4 Molly can play but what do you buy a nb for xmas?) I also have molly a few small toys etc and an outfit or 2. In comparison to my DD1 she has next to nothing which i feel guilty about but she has everything she needs etc and i dont want to just buy for the sake of buying iykwim.

Well we had another 5 hr stretch of sleep last night. It seems that from her 10ish feed Molly is very settled and will sleep quite well. She will then feed at about 3 and then between 6 and 7 so its not too bad. I hope it stays this way and doesnt go back to the feeding 2 hrly. DD1 even slept in til 8 today so i have been spoilt. Molly is starting to look really big so i am hanging out to get her weighed. Our mchn has an open clinic on thurs mornings so we will pop down and see her.

Would you all believe that since coming home from hosy i have put weight on :( Bfing makes me eat all day long and i'm always starving. Anyone else have this prob. I try to eat well most of the time but i must be having too many biscuits still. Once i have my 6 week check i hope to start back with some excersise. I feel i could start now but as i had the CS i want to make sure i'm all healed etc.

Hope you are all well

Sounds like most of these bubs are sleeping pretty well - not us! DS has gone backwards a bit in the last few days. Has stopped doing a long stretch at night of 4-4.5 hours and is back to 3 hourly feeds :rolleyes: He's also been really hard to settle during the day for most of his sleeps.

I have to keep reminding myself that this gets easier....

Hoody - re weight I've gone the opposite way actually. I don't find much time to eat these days. Breakfast is a rarity, I try to at least have a big milo every morning and sometimes i have some toast too, always eat lunch when both of the munchins are asleep and eat dinner too but don't eat anything in between. I have to remind myself to keep drinking throughout the day because I don't want my supply affected. So far, so good. I'm actually back to my pre pregnancy weight and back in my jeans and most of my clothes (some tops are a problem because i'm still walking around looking like Jordan!). I would like to lose a few more kilos though because I put on a few when I was taking clomid/doing IVF. I'm sure you'll find that once things at home settle into more of a routine your eating habits and your weight will return to normal.

From my experience both last time and this time the biggest trap I fell into was eating when I was really just thirsty. So this time I drink 2 glasses of water after each feed and the have a glass of water everytime I think I'm hungry. So far I have been losing weight slowly but surely compared to lst time when Iate too much all the time and didn't drink enough and had a real struggle in the end with my weight. And my supply is out of control.
I have noticed a big difference in the last two days when I stopped drinking so much water, I'm always hungry and eating rubbish so its back onto the water thing today and I'll see how it all goes.

Ethan slept from 1030pm last night till 710am. I'm reallyhappy with this and hope it continues. I think the trick for us is to get him to sleep a bit before his last feed at night but time the feed to start anytime after 930pm. So as far as sleep goes I'm not complaining.
My sister had her baby on Monday night, another girl (her 3rd) Alyssha Olga Greta. 8 pound 13 and 53cms long. She was almost 2 weeks overdates so was pretty easy to expect a bigger baby. Only prob is that she delivers so quickly that there is a risk of crossinfection with the strep B so they are on watch in hospital until Thursday.
My other sister told me that she has joined Belly Belly in the LTTTC and assisted conception threads. Might go visit and she how she is. It's all happening in our family at the moment!!!
Enjoy the beautiful day (for those in victoria anyway!)
Just realised that I need to change my ticker... oops!

Hehe, Willow - I agree about looking like Jordan! I am only a few kilos off my pre-pregnancy weight, but I feel like an attraction at a gentlemans establishment at the moment! Sounds like DS might be going through a bit of a growth spurt for you, which might explain the 3-hourly feeds.

Hoody - I haven't really been doing any exercise, although lifting a rapidly growing baby is no exactly light work! I am the same, waiting the 6 weeks after the c-section before I start doing anything other than a few walks around the shops. Better to be sure your body is ready for it.


Misty - havent' bought any Christmas presents yet and really not sure what to get him. He has so much already and I know his grandparents are going to go a little crazy!

Joy - fingers crossed for your sister!

Here Jacob is being fairly settled. We had a few days of crying for an hour at around 6pm but that seems to have disappeared now. He tends to go for a sleep then for 3-4 hours which is great as it means DH and I get to eat dinner together. We even went to a restaurant last night with the pram and no dramas!! We were so excited. He is still a big grunter in his sleep but I am learning to let him go until he is actually awake or crying before I pick him up and this is extending his feeds a bit more as during the day for the last few days he has been feeding 2 hourly (which I am sure has something to do with the heat).

Oh, got to go, just heard a big wet fart through the baby monitor. Not sure if any nappy can contain that!

Wow, lots of posts! I came on yesterday but for some reason I couldn't get into anything, so am trying again.

Weight - well, I am not sure if the BFing is working, or the constant pacing/moving, or the lack of food, but I am almost at pre-pregnancy weight. I lost 6 kilos before I got BFP so I am about 4 kilos away from that. I know what you mean about the eating. It is 11 o'clock already and I really need to get something to munch on. Luckily I am a normally thirsty person, so tend to drink at least 2 litres of water each day.

Willow - yes, have read the SOS book and there are some good tips - like make sure I burp him more and really work to get it up. I am better now at recognising when he has air in his tum. It takes a while sometimes, but has its rewards by him not spewing it back up. Other things, like the dream feed etc just don't work. Like everything I guess, you take what you can use, and disregard the rest. Yeah, that info on Tresellian would be great. How do I send my email address?

Also Willow - I think I definitely got the unsettled bub from the rack. He sleeps from about 7 pm (after some serious fighting) until about 11.30, then is up again at 2, then 5 then fights again for about half hour, then into bed with me, then another feed at 7 then will sleep until about 10. This gives me enough sleep, even though it is a bit disjointed, but I feel more human. I tried to extend out his feeds using a dummy and what not, but I agree with (Joy?) that if he really wants to suck, then I would prefer he suck on me, rather than a dummy at night.

I too keep reminding myself that it does get better. As bad as it sounds, it is really nice to know that this is normal, and other mummies have had similar issues with their bubs. It can feel so isolating and lonely when everyone elses babies seem like angels and yours is there screaming until he is purple!

Joy - wow a whole night sleep! I haven't had that since pre-pregnancy.

As for us, getting into a sort of routine, but it is more weekly than daily. Caden is a lot more settled now and has some really nice awake time where he makes faces at me and pokes his tongue out. They are the moments I love most and am looking forward to more of. It seems that for the last 8 weeks he has mainly been good when he is asleep, which is such a shame because I really wanted to play with him. Now he is better and more alert, so playtime is a bit more interactive and I am less stressed.

Christmas pressies - I thought I would buy some toys that he will be able to use soon. I would buy them anyway, but it will be more fun to have them under the Chrissy tree! I love the "baby first Xmas" decos as well, so cute!

Well, better go eat something, do washing, make phonecalls, wrap pressies, etc etc before DS wakes up.

Have a great week everyone!

Dragonbub - have to be very quick but just wanted to say don't feel isolated or alone because my DS is following the same pattern as yours almost exactly! And while some people will tell you that their babies sleep like angels in my experience, it's never an ongoing, permanent thing. They might be as perfect as newborns but sooner or later pretty much all mums will have issues with sleeping, feeding etc. No baby is perfect!

Just enjoy his awake time and try not to stress about his sleeping etc (says me, the biggest sleep nazi of all time!! :rolleyes:) Very soon he'll be so alert and fun that the good will far outweigh the bad. I always feel so much better and all warm and gooey when DS gives me a smile, doesn't matter how stressed or cranky I was before, it always makes me remember what I went through to have this little boy and how lucky I really am.

We've got DS one big present for xmas - he seriously does not need any more clothes and already has some toys I've put away for him, plus what he'll get from grandparents etc so we've decided just to leave it at that. We got him one of those play centre thingos that they can sit in and bounce etc? OK, that was a pretty dodgy description so I hope you get what I mean! LOL.

Dragonbub- I agree with Willow they change so quick. Molly was feeding every 1.5 to 2 hrly last week and then this week at night she's been having a solid 5hrs but i'm not expecting it to last. It's like DD1 knows though as when Molly is sleeping well i am getting up to her. In other words i am still sleep deprived.

With regards to putting on weight (i mentioned this in an earlier post) i am not huge or anything and i am still only just heavier than i was when i fell pg but i dont think it will be easy for me to shift anymore if i keep eating like i am now :) Lots of you said i may be thirsty but i am drinking about 2-3L a day. I am going to try and have a glass of water every time i want to snack though and see if it helps.

Well Molly has been fairly good today (wish i could say the same about DD1.) I am taking Molly to be weighed tomo and looking forward to getting some reassurance that she is gaining weight on booby juice. I'm sure she is doing fine though it's just nice to see that she is growing. SHe is fast asleep now and this is normally her unsettled time so i hope that doesnt mean we will have a rough night.

Hope you are all doing well.
take care

Dragonbub - forgot to say yesterday, if you PM me your email address, I will send you that tresillian info.

After waking 3 hourly again last night :rolleyes: DS has had a great morning, sleeping well with very little settling.

Just thought I would pop in and say hello, as I am the mum of a nearly 3 week old little IVF miracle.
He is a bit colicy at the moment, and only really wanting to sleep when he is held, so we are on a very steep learning curve here. But he is very very cute, so that makes up for my lack of sleep at the moment!!

Hi all,
We are doing a little to well here which makes me wonder what next. DS is being generally easy, lots of lengthy unsettled periods in the evenings but other than that he is pretty good. My mum and MIL keep telling me that their babies were like DS2 but I am wondering if their memories are hazy but no need stressing about things while they are good, just gotta relax and enjoy.
DS1 is currently asleep, we had mum's group here today and he was completely whacked after they left, good for me!!! he's sleeping well at the moment.
DS2 is awake but chilling in front of the window, hes been having a bit of a squawk but nothing I've needed to get up for.
We are looking at buying another business and am currently trying to decipher the figures that we have been given. To me it is all a bit confusing which is worrying as i'm meant to be the one out of my DH and I who can understand this kind of stuff. Gotta get back to it and see what I can work out.
hope your sleeps get longer and the smiles come more often!!!!
enjoy!

EJE- welcome to the thread and congrats on your new DS.

JOY- something i've come across is all grandparents had perfect bubs :) I"m sure your DS is been good. My DD1 was an angel and i'm sure ppl didnt believe how well she slept etc. We never had any major issues she was a breeze. So far DD2 is lots more work

Had Molly weighed today and she is up to 3.66kg so doing fairly well thats 800g in 4 wks
well best be off she is crying (i'm sure she knows when i sit down)

Welcome EJE - sounds like our little boys are twins! DS is an IVF bub and was/is also very windy and colicy and wanted to be held for the entire first two weeks of his life!

Hoody - Must be hard for you at times when DD1 was such a good sleeper etc. You'd think I'd be coping a bit better because DD was no angel either! LOL. I do think DS is a bit more unsettled in comparison though.

Hi Wllow. Hoping that now we have enetered into week the colic starts to settle down. Would also love not to have to hold DS all the time, or rock him, so I could ge some sleep. People tell me it gets better... at this stage am not so sure... can see me doing this for the next 18 years!!

Hi everyone,

Well! So much for 'popping in' a little more frequently...! I hope you're all well.

We have had our 4 week check with our maternal healthcare nurse & our little girl is growing beautifully - nearly 4kg now! She is just about smiling, though at this stage her biggest, gummiest grins are just as she's falling into a deep sleep. Hehee, so cute!

Hoody - our nurse mentioned Ellis' 'nice' sucking blister at our appointment yesterday and wasn't concerned at all. They come & go and she doesn't appear to have any attachment issues. I'm sure the nurse would have mentioned it otherwise because she's had a good inspection at feeding times! How are your headaches btw? Better I hope.

EJE - I hear you hun, I felt the exact same way and was a bit of a mess for the first few weeks, lots of tears and not much sleep!

I PROMISE it will get easier and he will settle down a lot over the next few weeks. Hang in there!!

For the wind/colic - try Infant's Friend. I was giving it to DS at every feed in the first few weeks but now he only has it for night feeds (as this is when he tends to have most problems with wind). We found it really helped. You can get it at most chemists and it's about $10 I think.

ajw108- Molly still gets the occasional sucking blister but they have calmed down alot i guess like our nipples their lips need to get used to sucking. Lovely to hear your little girl is growing well and smiling. I sometimes think Molly smiles but then it doesnt happen for ages and i wonder if maybe it was just wind,lol. I am still getting VERY freguent headaches and have been told by my mchn that it isnt common but not uncommon (if that makes sense) when BFing. I am trying not to take anything for them unless they are really bad as i dont want to be living on drugs. (mind you i had to take some panadol today) I had bad headaches up until i was about 28wks pg so i thing its a hormonal thing. Hope to hear from you again when you have the time.

Everyone else- hope you and your bubs are all doing well and still coping beautifully.

We are doing ok. I am still exhausted i feel i cant win. Molly has been sleeping quite well at night with one stretch of between 4.5 and 6 hrs however DD1 is cutting her molars and is not sleeping much at all at night. I guess if its not one it will be the other keeping me up. I dont mind too much as i knew what i was doing when i had 2 close together though it can be hard esp if both unsettled at the same time )i had both girls screaming at 4am today! We have a christening this arvo and i am godmother so that will be fun with looking after both girls etc but at the same time i'm sure their will be lots of ppl willing to cuddle DD2 if she is unsettled.

well take care and i hope you all enjoy your weekends

Wow, Hoody and Willow, sounds as if my bub isn't the only grumpy one in the world! I don't know how you could manage two of them at once, I think I will wait until Caden is 10 before trying again, LOL.

Welcome EJE - I hear you hun. It is a trying time, DS was actually pretty good in the first few weeks, but the last 5 weeks have been very trying. It can put so much pressure on you, your relationships, and your health. I am in the same boat, so the only advice I can offer is to take up as much help as you can, every offer - accept! If there are no offers (as with us, we have almost NO family support) there is lots of community support available, or if you can afford it - buy it!

Joy - I agree that grandparents must forget what their bubs were like. If I am having a bad day, Mum just mentions how it is normal and how she had such a hard time with us, if I am having a good day, mum talks about how we were perfect angels (though I think she is just trying to one-up-me rather than her memory failing - but that is another issue...).

We saw the paed the other day, CAden has put on 390 gms in 9 days! AND he grew 3 cm. No wonder he is grumpy - the doc said that he is injesting the equivalent of 20 litres of milk a day. He has made his own growth curve, that is pretty much going straight up, not yet curving. He said it will calm down soon and that the growing is the reason bub is so unsettled. Fingers crossed this is the case.

Had immunisation the other day too, but Caden handled that really well. Had a VERY unsettled day yesterday though, so am hoping that was just the after effects - Day 3, is this normal to still have side effects?

Well, he is sleeping now so have had a moment to jump on and catch up with y'all.

Have a great week!

Dragonbub - hang in there, he will settle eventually (sooner rather than later hopefully!) I have emailed you that tresillian info.

We are doing pretty well still. DS has slept in his cot in his own room the last two nights and seems to be sleeping better in there than in his bassinet in our room, which means I've been sleeping better too. I hate it though and have been sleeping in the spare room just to be close to him LOL! Not such a great long term plan for my marriage, but for now it's working.

His sleeping is definitely improving and apart from the normal unsettled times/days he is much more settled and easier to settle to sleep. We're getting there! He is enjoying his awake time more and is a happy boy, smiling and 'talking' to me which just melts my heart!

Hoping to take him for his 6-8 week check up with our GP tomorrow - going to ask her about his 8 week needles because he is 8 weeks the week of xmas and then we are away for 10 days so not sure when to have them done. I'd prefer later than earlier.

Hope mums and bubs are well...

Hi all - thought I might jump in here. DS was born on the 12th of Nov by emergency C section after a long and difficult labour. He was also overdue (11days) and jumped the gun on the induction that was scheduled for the 14th!

Just feeling like I'm getting a hang of this 'mum' thing now, but that's subject to change with no notice ;-) The latest trick around here is a sudden and stubborn insistence that daytime sleeps are a thing of the past. I'm really hoping that this is a phase that he'll be over soon.

Willow - by any chance was the paed that did your son's circ in the St George/Sutherland area? We moved just before DS was born and I don't know anyone in this area to ask. I'd rather choose someone based on recommendation than chosen at random - YKWIM?

Hi everyone
Well its been a few days since I've been able to get near a computer. We have had visitors galore over the last few days, having a bit of a rest from them now, but expect more over the weekend. We had the day from hell with DS on Sunday. From 4:30am to 7pm he slept a total of 1 hour and spent the rest of the time crying and grizzling. He didn't seem to be in pain or anything, just a very unhappy bub. Not sure if its something I ate and really can't think of anything different I had the day before. The poor thing was so exhausted when he did finally crash that he slept for 7 hours.

We had our 6 week checkup yesterday and he is now 5.4 kg (thats 2kgs above his birth weight) so I'm pretty happy with that. He got the all clear and the paed doesn't want to see him again. Yay!! I got checked out too and my Ob is happy with the way my scar is healing and given me the all clear to do some exercise, although I don't expect that to happen too much over Christmas.

Loving the smiles I am getting at the moment. It makes you (almost) forget the broken sleep when you get a bit grin when they see you.

Welcome EJE and Sass

Dragonbub - has Caden settled down after his needles now? Jacob is due in two weeks and was wondering if it will unsettle him a little.

Hi Everyone-
Just a quick post before Molly has her feed (she is content with DH at the minute but it wont last long) We have had a rough weekend and start to this week so i havent had time to scratch my bottom let alone sit on computer. :) DD1 started with a cold on Saturday and we ended up at hospital with her having ANOTHER asthma attack (well at least thats what they think she has) She is home and doing much better however I now have her cold and poor little Molly has a runny nose and been very unsettled. I am hoping she is not going to get any worse as i dont think i'd cope with 2 sick kids and been unwell myself. I told DH that once you have kids something should kick in inside of you to stop you from getting ill as been a mum you dont have time. Last night Molly had a really good sleep 9.45-4.45 but i still had to get up to DD1 and then had Molly be very unsettled all day. It is really hard at the minute when Molly is unsettled as DD1 been unwell is ultra clingy too. Today i literally had hold of one of them from 6am til 9.30pm. Its 10pm and i am sitting for the 1st time all day with a cuppa having 10 mins to myself, i havent even managed a shower yet. This last few days have really made me think that maybe we should have waited a little longer before having DD2 so DD1 would have been a bit older. I feel guilty more than anything cos DD1 isnt well so i want to give her all of my attention but it is impossible. I say this but i wouldnt swap Molly for the world and in reality i know that in a month or 2 things will become easier (well i can hope ;) )
Well Molly is starting to fuss so it's time to get my boobies out again. Take care

Hoody - sounds like you are having an awful week but once DD1 is feeling better I'm sure you'll be feeling better too! Sounds like Molly is doing some great sleeps so when DD1 settles down you can take advantage of that! Don't worry so much about questioning the age gap - my DD is much older than your DD1 and I still find it hard, so even if you had of waited, you'd still be feeling guilty like me! I hope you are all feeling better soon.

Sass - we're in the Penrith area and our ob did our circ for us (he's a surgeon but only does the babies of his obstetric patients). I have a friend in your area who had her little boy done and her dr came very highly recommended by friends and family, she was very pleased with how everything went. I will get his details for you and PM them to you. I think he's in Menai - is that right? Is that near you?

Things are going pretty well here. Took DS into the city yesterday for a farewell lunch for a friend of mine and he was a very good boy :) Left DD at home with her Nan, no way I was taking a toddler into the city at xmas time! He slept quite a bit in his pram but was still pretty tired so I put him down at about 6pm and he slept till 11.30 - 5.5 hours, his longest sleep yet!

Am so tired because we've had such a busy week with appts every day so i've missed out on having a nap most days. DH is out shopping for my xmas present, DS is in bed with DD to follow shortly (she didn't have a day sleep today cause we were out again) and I'm going to be right behind her!

Having DS's 8 week needles next Monday - xmas eve poor little fella! It is actually a few days before he is 8 weeks but he's 8 weeks on boxing day and then we're going away so our GP thought this was the best plan. I was a bit funny about it at first but then I figured he was 10 days overdue (and our dates were spot on due to IVF) so it really shouldn't make any difference! Strange logic but it works for me!


***ETA: Sass - the doctors name is Dr Dilley, at Menai Medical Centre. It’s the medical centre in the Shopping Village and your GP that needs to give you the referral should know who you are talking about, he is very well known around the area apparently. He also practices at the childrens hospital and at Gymea or somewhere else in the shire.

Hey Everyone,
June78 - Caden is def settled. He was pretty good on the day of the needles, good the next day, then not so good on the third day, but not sure if that was needles or not. He tends to have a good day, an average day, then a bad day. I guess I just need to get into his swing of things. Today was a bad day, grumpy all day and very clingy - I couldn't let go of him! Get some baby panadol if you haven't already, as this helps with the fever.

Thanks Willow for that info! Caden seems to be getting into more of a predictable routine. On his good days he pretty much follows the 2 hourly sleeps, an hour or so wake time and is quite cheerful until his hour is up then gets grumpy but goes down easily. On his bad days it is constant napping and awake and very clingy. The nights are getting better and I have dropped a feed which makes my boobies ache, but I get more sleep! Poor bubs has to contend with getting drowned when he finally wakes up for a feed :)

Well, Christmas is just around the corner. It is so lovely to have a first Christmas with a bub and I have gone a bit crazy and bought him heaps of clothes as he is in 000s now. He weighs almost 6 kilo! He put on 400 grams in one week and grew an inch ;D At least I know why he is grumpy - apparently they drink the equivalent of 20 litres of milk per day and my little man hasn't really had a growth spurt as such, it has just been a constant rapid growth. The doc said things should calm down soon.

Have a great Chrissy everyone!

Hi everyone - I'm a very late arriver here!

Euan was born 28th November, 12 days late, 4.2kg, cute as a button, by emerg c/s (birth story is posted - it's a bit gory though in parts so not for after dinner reading...).

Today he has been settled baby after three days of screaming constantly. He has actually slept and been happy today, and has settled really easily. Must have worn himself out. Or he realised that mummy was going to feed him to the crocodiles if he kept up this kind of behaviour...

I'm still waiting for a 'routine' - he changes every three or four days. Today he's been falling asleep not long after each feed, and actually been feeding every three hours or so, although he was awake and alert for a couple of hours in between today which was nice. I've been mostly carrying him in the baby bjorn because it's better for my back and he likes to be constantly cuddled/carried upright until he is actually asleep - major velcro baby syndrome but we'll see how we go tonight. He actually fell asleep on my chest after the last feed and I put him down 10 minutes later - a first! He has been sleeping for 5 hours at night since about 1 week old, which is pretty unusual. It's not as good as it sounds because he either feeds constantly or cries the rest of the time - long sleep times but also long awake/grumpy times. Hopefully this will be the start of a more consistent pattern.

He's becoming much more alert and engaged and is looking me in the eyes much more often, and I think he actually smiled properly the other day. He didn't fart or poo immediately afterwards so I'm pretty sure it wasn't gas - LOL!

Hope you guys are all having good nights with your bubbas and it's nice to meet you all! I've been lurking for a little while but haven't had a chance to post yet!

Hey Suse - welcome!! I was hoping some more girls would come and join, it tends to be a bit quiet in here at times. I know everyone posts when they can but I'm a bit chatty! ;)

Not such a good few days here. Logan has not been sleeping so well again :rolleyes:

We even had a pretty bad night last night, after his usual big sleep of 4 hours he then woke 2.5 hourly but when I offered a feed he fussed and took hardly any which is stressing me out a bit. Our feeding has been going really well and he's averaging about 300g weight gain a week, I just want it to continue. DD did this at about 4 weeks, suddenly got very fussy at the breast and it escalated to the point where she pretty much wouldn't take it. We got some help from tresillian and got through it but I don't want to go there again, it is sooooo stressful.

So after not much sleep and a few tears this morning (you'll soon learn that i'm a crier! If I'm sad, angry, stressed, tired, happy - I cry! LOL) I'm determined to face a new day and try to get his sleeping sorted again.

We are having our 8 week needles tomorrow and I am going to talk to our GP and get a referral for a day stay at Tresillian. Can't hurt to get a bit of advice and a few pointers about where we might be going wrong. They were a great help to me with DD who after a lot of hard work became a brilliant sleeper at about 6-8 months and still is. 6 months sounds like forever, but when I've got friends and my SIL still having major sleeping issues with their 2 and 3 year olds, it puts things into perspective!

I find myself asking every day "why couldn't I get a good sleeper this time??" then feel instantly guilty because of everything we went through to have our precious boy - classic IVF mum guilt trip!!

I need to keep reminding myself that he is only 7 weeks old and there's still a lot we both need to learn and that eventually it will all come together and things will be easier.

Well I'd better go, he's stirring again, have already settled him twice this sleep **sigh**...keep your fingers crossed for me that he has a nice big feed when he wakes!!

willow-Goodluck with the needles tomo i'm sure your little man will be a trooper for you. I am terrible taking my kids for theres i always get teary. I too am a 'cry baby' as my lovely family like to call me i cry if i am mad, tired, hurt, angry, happy basically some days yu only have to be nice to me and if i'm having a bad day i will cry so you are not alone. We are allowed to be emotional its bloody hard work with 2 a new born let alone a toddler in the equasion too

dragon bub-You must have some good booby milk for Caden to be growing so well. It must be nice to have dropped a night feed and your boobs will settle again so they wont ache for long

suse-welcome to the thread, i hope you are recovering well from your CS. i ill be sure to read your birth story when i finish this post.

Well we are doing reasonably well. I have a terrible chest infection and DD1 is still unwell. Molly has a cough and is very unsettled. i think she is wearing herself out in the day as last night she slept for 6.5hrs again had a feed then another 3 but again has hardly slept today and i cant put her down. I think i would prefer to feed 3 hrly at night and have her settled in day as i'm finding it very hard with a sick toddler. well i hope you all have a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS and that you all get spoilt. Enjoy your first one with your new bubs :)

well Molly is craying AGAIN so i best go have a cuddle

Hang in there Hoody!! Sucks that you are all sick for Christmas though. Hope you are all better before Tuesday!!

Thanks willow we are just hanging on :)

Suse- wow what a birth story and i thought my emergency CS with DD1 was traumatic. I enjoyed reading it and think you did an amazing job you should be so proud of yourself :)