Babies Born October 2007 #15

[becky]

Trish - Yeah I honestly think that the later you leave it the easier it is.

Willow - Once again, I think all babies are different. My DD sleeps way more than my DS did. She too is only usually awake for up to about 2 hours at a time too.


Yeah I had my AF back, but only very lightly cause I had Implanon put in. I love it! Dont have to remember to take ANYTHING, and only get really small periods!! Yippee!!
I dont have a dishwasher, and I dont think I would get one either. Every house we have lived in in QLD had one, and I find it easier to just wash the dishes than do the packing up, unloading, and then it smells etc. Nah, Im a do-it-by-hand kinda girl

[~kellie~]

Hi everyone,
I am luckly to get 2 sleeps out of Tahlia during the day, she is awake for ages at a time, but I think she definitely gets overtired... I just don't know how to get her to settle.... when you all say you put them to bed, are they awake when you put them down, or do you put them to sleep first? If I put Tahlia down awake she screams, and if I rock her to sleep and then put her down, she sleeps for about 10 minutes and then screams.... I think I'm going to book into a Tweedle day stay that they have in my area. If she has a 1-2 hour nap I think I'm lucky

Trish - I'm happy with the botanical gardens again too....

AF hasn't returned for me either, but I've had a few cramps, so maybe its on its way???

Got mothers group again tomorrow, so I'm looking forward to that

[Khaleesi]

Well i know why I've been so sick, my blood count dropped to 67 so i have to be admitted to hospital tomorrow. Really hoping it's only for the day, My doc wanted me into tonight but we made the compromise that I'll go in early tomorrow morning.
I always seemed to get better then go down hill very fast

Kellie i put Maddi down while she's awake if she's really tired she'll drift off straight away, if she's only slightly tired then she struggle for 5-10 mins then drift off and if she's over tired then it's a huge struggle she'll scream, chuck a little hissy fit then maybe 20-30mins she will have exhausted herself enough to sleep. Doesn't matter if I'm holding her or not if she's over tired.

As for my AF it was really light, but that was because my blood count is so low. I expect it to be back to normal after my hospital visit.

[Saffi]

Only in the last couple of weeks have I been able to put L down awake and he falls asleep by himself. Prior to that I would need to pat/stroke his head, pat/rub his tummy etc until he was asleep. We still have occassions when he we are in and out of his room to put the dummy back in. Looking back now I think he may have been hungry due to my supply issues. He is sleeping longer and easier to get to sleep since I have been supplementing my BM.

Major bugger - I think my breast pump is broken. It doesn't have any suction in electronic mode, so have had to resort to manual pumping. Given that I am suppossed to be expressing at every feed, this is going to make the whole process even longer

Viv - we're showing our age being able to remember when Michael Hutchence died. I am sure some of the young ones in here are going Michael who???

Mo - sorry to hear you're not well. I hope your stay in hospital is a short one.

[misskate]

hey ladies, no period for me yet!!1 so im lving it up while i still can!

so lachlan went from spewy baby(from birth) to no spews at all for the last 4 days....... until today. that is all on that subject:P


we also went to the chn today, and i got very disheartened, looks like he has only gained 100g in a fortninght(granted they were different scales) i THINK that him having diahorea from the immunisations has helped that unfortunately so back off to see her again next wednesday!

[ninja_turtle]

*tapes up crow's feet with sticky tape*

i'm not old, saffi... thank you :wink:

ok so this is a good time to start talking about my latest issew... settling or not.

i know that catherine and ro have good an auto-sleep thing going when ro hits the cot. and some of you seem to have the luxury of the baby just going to sleep...

i have always wandered around with james, even when he was fresh from hospital i walked around with him until he went to sleep. the dang thing is that i secretly love him falling asleep in my arms. we do a sort of commando thing to lower him into his big cot but he's always been a great sleeper at night.

our carrying and rocking has not made him dependent on it overnight or any such thing. it's like his circadian rhythm was dead-right straight away and he knew night from day.

fast forward to now and nearly 7.5kg, it is hard on the ol' back to rock him (even with the new-fangled fitball device) and i feel a pressure to get him to 'learn' to put himself to sleep.

this morning i just watched for tired signs, wrapped him, put him the cot and patted/soothed with dummy, rolled him to 45 degrees with a blankie wedge (as he likes in the daytime) and off he went to sleep for 3 whole hours. he also fell asleep in his pram this morning and all was well.

this afternoon, dear god, things were not good. after his tired signs, i wrapped him (only lower half now) and put him in the cot. there was the old leg pull up, so i burped him and let him park a chuckasui on my top. back to cot... squirm, grunt, carry-on.... change nappy... back to cot... wah wah... blah blah... on and on... HUNGRY it took so long.

so i fed him... he passes out on boob - evidently this is bad according the self-soothing crowd. put him in cot... stays asleep for 15 minutes. another almost two hours go by of me trying to pat, soothe etc him to sleep. nope. awake. 4 hours (in total) of awake time for a tiny boy. baaaaaad. HUNGRY again.

fed him, turn him upright to burp him and he flops like silly putty - totally unconscious. i look blankly at DH and he just says... just put him to bed, "f#ck the shower". so now he's asleep.

i'm stumped. my instincts (though perhaps misguided) tell me to cuddle my baby to sleep whenever i want, even if my back and neck hurts. my brain says, 'he can learn to sleep when he's tired and put in the cot'.

it breaks my heart when those giant tear-filled blue eyes look at me like i've stabbed him because i'm not holding him and bouncing him to sleep.

DH and i are as clueless as each other. he cracked me up before when he said, "look, i don't know, i'm a bad parent". ROFPMSL.

so what the hell am i to do? keep going with rocking, in the interests of having my wonderful sleeper overnight and (mostly) by day (and possibly risk rocking an 80kg 15 year old on day), or do i try and re-teach him with just picking him up till he's calm then soothing him back in the cot.

i almost feel annoyed at myself for changing the status quo at all. yeah, it hurts physically but at least i don't feel bad.

gah.

am i over-thinking this?

perhaps i'm hungry.

discuss.

(not the hungry part).

thanks.

*closes door*

[Amelia]

Only 7.5kg Viv!! Rhys was 8.4kg on 29/12...Was suppose to go weigh him this morning but I couldn't have been bothered so will do it on Saturday and let you all know how big he is now with my milk....I should say cream!! :-P

[Willow]

Viv - you seriously crack me up! I have been chuckling at your antics since this thread started.

Hun, I dunno! I have STRUGGLED with this sleeping crap since DS was born to the point I had a freaking panic attack over it!! You DON'T wanna end up where I was. I understand the pressure to get them to self settle, but at the end of the day, you need to do what's right for you (man i wish i could listen to my own advice!)

If you do want to start settling him in his cot, just understand that it will take a while before he gets it. If, like me, you aren't keen on listening to him cry, it will mean you hanging over his cot to settle him while he's learning to do it on his own. It can take ages and aint much fun really. I did it with my DD too and eventually she did get it and was a brilliant sleeper and we had hardly any sleeping issues ever again (until now when she chucks a tanty every night before she goes to bed and tonight, just for something new, snapped off a piece of the timber blinds on her bedroom window??!! I'm sure it wasn't intentional but still )

The other thing is that he may get to a point where rocking, patting, holding him to sleep doesn't work. Some older babies get jack of it and you end up rocking them for 2 hours and they're still awake! Happened to a friend of mine. She then had to do controlled crying before she lost her mind, and now they tell us that is the most evil crime a parent can commit! (this was 5 years ago and no one was told back then it would cause a baby massive psychological damage and would lead them to become an axe murderer in later life).

[boomba]

Viv I have been in the same boat! We have always rocked or fed myles to sleep and sometimes its a nightmare! I dont believe in self soothing or controlled crying, and my instincts tell me to rock or pick him up! You can only do your best and try not to let others influence your mummy skills! Intution is a wonderfull thing keep listening to it! Hope this helps a little!
Miss kate have you seen a dr about his dihorea? Cause BF babies shouldnt get it? hope he puts on more weight for you in the week! Have you thought of demand feeding him?
Saffi hope you can get a new pump soon what a hassle to manually pump!
Mo Hope you get better soon! Sending you lots of love and positive vibes x

im not old*wink wink* but I remember Micheal Hutchence passing like it was yesterday! I have always been abig fan and was devestated when it happend! Poor Heath Ledger what an awful thing to happen to such a wonderfull creavtive person! I really feel for his family and little girl Matilda!

Still no AF yet thank god! Hope they stay away!

hi everyone!

x

[Saffi]

Viv - what a tough afternoon! No wonder you are questioning yourself and your decision. You made the decision for him to self settle for a reason. For the last 3 months he has been used to one way of doing things and then all of a sudden a new way is introduced and he goes "what the????". I've been there. Even this afternoon L didn't want to settle and I didn't know what else to do. Luckily DH came home from work, went in while L cried it out. IMO you need to persist with it, a little longer at least. Don't do anything that doesn't feel right. In the end you are the expert on your baby.

**Goes off to pluck out the grey hairs from head**

Amber - been meaning to ask what you thought of the CD. Does Myles like it?

[~Trish~]

Viv - I love your writing style, you always make me laugh! My advice? Go with what YOU want, don't feel pressured just because other people are doing it differently to you. Keep rocking him to sleep if it makes you feel good, he will eventually learn to self-settle. It may take slightly longer because he is used to your cuddles, but who cares if you are both happy! If you want him to self settle it can definitely be heartbreaking at times. Up until yesterday I have been wrapping Kieran and putting him straight in his cot. He would cry so hard it kept making me so upset. I would pat him and hold his dummy to his mouth until he calmed down and took it. He would then go to sleep, but his crying really upset me. Yesterday I wrapped him then gave him a cuddle for a minute so he felt calm and happy, then I put him in his cot and put his dummy in and he was as happy as Larry to go to sleep. WHY didn't I do this earlier? Ever since then he has been way more relaxed when I start wrapping him because he is getting the idea that I will give him a nice cuddle after he is wrapped. So much nicer than him screaming! Anyway, sorry to ramble on, but I just wanted to say that you should do what you feel is right for you both. Probably not much help LOL!

Mo - Goodness, you poor thing! What is causing the low blood count? Do you usually suffer with anemia or is it childbirth related? I have always had low iron issues and had a massive blood loss after Joel which left me so weak for a long time. I hope you get better soon

Misskate - I'm sure Lachlan will make up for his little weight gain now he is well again! Don't feel disappointed, things like that happen with healthy babies all the time.

Saffi - Bugger about the broken pump! If you want an Avent ISIS manual pump, I have a couple in my shop (pre-loved, but sterilised) and I am happy to give you one for free seeing as you are doing such a wonderful job! Let me know if you'd like one.

Kellie - Botanical Gardens it is then? I liked it there last time because we could fit all of us in so well. Regarding your sleep question, I think I answered it in my response to Viv!

Oh yeah, and why does it make us old if we remember Michael Hutchences death?! Was it REALLY that long ago? I remember I went into shock when I heard about his death and I shed a tear or two. I grew up with INXS and it was a sad day for me.

No AF yet for me either! Stay away I say!!

[~Trish~]

Geez I took so long to write my post that there were 4 new ones by the time I finished and I pretty much repeated what you all said!

[Willow]

I wrapped him then gave him a cuddle for a minute so he felt calm and happy, then I put him in his cot and put his dummy in

This is what I do with DS too. If he gets upset, I pick him up and give him a cuddle. If he is just grizzling (and you will know the difference) I let him go for a while before I go in. Teaching a baby to self settle doesn't mean leaving them to cry themselves to sleep. I've never done that with either of mine and they both eventually learnt (well DS is still learning!) to settle themselves off to sleep. It can be hard work while they are learning it, but it certainly makes life a lot easier down the track when you can pop them in their cot and they just go off to sleep without any help from you.

Just remember it is a milestone like any other, it might take a while before he learns how to do it.

[misskate]

viv, i love it so much when you post. as soon as i see your name i giggle. lol

im having the same dramas at the mo. i just cuddle and rock till he is almost asleep, then i put him down. if he cries again i do the same. except when he is cracking it and i just finished feeding, then i shove a bottle in. but i just keep rocking and walking till he settles again. sucks sometmes, trying to get dinner done ect.

lachlans poo is now back to normal in fact, todays one was think as, it looked like clay lol. eww. the mchn said it was normal for the diahroea to go on like that after the roto stuff so im not worried about the diahroea anymore, but i do think it had something to do with the minimal weight gain thing. as i am still confident im producing enough milk( cos even after was on hrly(6-7&8)tonight i still could squeeze some out.)

anyways im out

[misskate]

ps viv

what sort of lawyer are you? in non lawyer/had no experience with lawyers lingo.

[nickers]

Celtic- i hope you are ok and you get some answers soon, thats a horrible thing to have to go through.
Willow- Hello! we've chatted around threads before i think and i was hoping you would join us! 44mins late ahh whos counting lol! He is the baby of our babies!
Trish- ive been soooo busy without dh. Not only am i working each day (tupperware) im trying to do everything else as well as. Have been not getting to bed b4 midnight and up at 6am. The Tupperware is good but i was kinda thrown into it quickly because my manager had a family emergency in england and gave me all of her parties. Plus i am still doing some training and all the rest of it.
Dh comes home tomorrow, is home for a week but working the next few nights and then goes for another week.
Viv thats a tough one. But if you love doing it then why stop. if it doesnt bother you guys to rock to sleep than there is no prob. I know i handled Nixon a lot differently to what i do Tyron purely because he was my ONLY child and i had more time. But he sleeps and goes to sleep most nights fine now. Even yesterday he went and crawled under the cot to get a dummy he could see, grabbed his blankie and stood at the cot because he wanted to go to bed! so doesnt mean that cause thats how J goes to sleep now is the way he will need to go to sleep forever.

AF- returned for the first time a couple of weeks ago. was surprisingly heavy, grrrrreeeeeaaaatttt

ETA- speaking of poo LOL. i wondered if Ty is getting a little constipated?? he is doing atleast 1 day but the last few i have been able to actually tip into the toilet, he has been rather unsettled and wondering if its causing him pains? He is on mostly FF now and only 1 EBM a day and the formula i am using is the kaircare AF so it is thicker than normal. Those who have had constipated babies what do you think?

[misskate]

do you give him water nic?? if he wont take it cold, try heating it up?

[visitor1]

Geez u gals can talk!!

Lemme see what i can remember:

Mo- Sorry to hear your blood count is down..all the best for your hospital admission today. Glad Maddi went well with her needles.

Trish- I read about your 'morning with the backyard' thread..ewww! My girls are going great...sleeping like troopers...Jasmine eating like one...cant say the same for poor Chelsea. We have all been sick the past week, Craig and i still recovering.

Willow- Jasmine is awake between 1-3 hours. She isnt a day sleeper much. But a top night one!!

Amber-DTD at least every 2nd night...if not everynight. Its something that we enjoy and havent let the girls stop us but ur def not loopy!!

Celtic- Im sorry to hear what you have been going thru..i hope ur ok *Hugs*

Viv- Gettin bubs to sleep is a trial and error thing. ive never been one to rock to sleep or feed to sleep. My girls have learnt to self settle from day 1. I let them cry it out. I dont rock purelyt because kids sometime get into the habit of needing that all the time, and as Kellie said ...they fall asleep...then wake up cos the 'rocking' they had going to sleep has stopped! You will get there...hang in their and all ur work will pay off for sure

Kellie- Glad Tahlia sleeps when your out. Chelsea used to love going out and sleeping too!

Misskate- Good work on the big sleeps. Glad Lachies poos are under control again.

Julia- How was Max going to sleep last night (Weds night)

Rebecca- Caitlyn seems to be growing really well.

Saffi- Glad your supply is on the mend.

Nic- Sounds like a bit of constipation. In that case id give 30ml of warm boiled water over 24 hr period and after a warm bath move his legs like riding a bike and also massage his tummy in a clockwise direction.

Becky- Glad all the bed moving has gone well for Liam

Have i missed anyone? If so im sorry!

On to us....

As i said, we have all been sick. Just recovering now. Im off to a CHN appointment tmrw, not for the girls but myself. Jasmine has no interest in rolling and im not worried at all. Not alot is new here.

As for VIC meet up..im cool..where ever as long as its not somewhere id get lost finding, caters for my pram and on a weekend!

And...my site has a storewide sale on atm!! :P

Have a great week ladies....just going to be popping in now and then from now on...see ya!