Babies Born September 2007 #25

[MamaPan]

morning all
gotta be quick, Mr N is asleep and I am getting ready for today - have mothers group at my house later this morning. did the cooking for it yest (nothing full on some cheese and spinach triangles and an apple cake) so not much to do - get out toys for diff age babies etc i guess. Noah is 7 months today - that has gone SO quickly!
Cally am so glad sleep school went well, we are thinking of asking for a referral as well. N gets up 1-2 times per night every night but the main issue is his day sleeps - max 45 mins each and max 3 of them... and this is already a HUGE improvement... i cant get him through the sleep cycle in the day so think i need some help with it. anyway really glad it went well for you guys - i only hear good things about the results from QE2.
MD - i also did a double take at your bun in the oven! glad you enjoyed the bread.... hope the ergo goes well..let us know. how is your pelvis/hips now?
Sherie - the tractor top is ana ll in one and unfortunately it is from baby gap so not available here... N is nearly grown out of it so i would sent it to you (he has only worn it a few times) but perhaps A is too big??? what does he weigh now? it says 6-9 mnths but i would say N has a few weeks left...let me know... i did think of you when i put it on.
thanks for the comments re the pics of noah, i just saw how tech unsavvy i look as i seem to have put the same ones up a few time LOL!!! will try to go on and do some other ones, he has grown so much hey!! i was rather slack in the uploading with none since november!
Arte - it sounds v beautiful where you live... i hope W enjoys his first winter!
umm did i tell you i made noah fish with cheese sauce and vegies? he was a fan of that one and i am glad to get him to have fish akready - i think too many kids are fish averse! if you want me to post the recipe let me know (it is from my book). i must say N has been a little bit sore in the tummy, i think i have been too experimental!! so i am now doing a tiny bit of the interesting stuff like lentils, chicken, fish but mainly the usual suspects of vegies, fruit, custard, yoghurt etc to see how he goes. it hasnt been anything too bad but i must say since the last 2 days of a little less of the protein etc he has been sleeping better (though that coudl be a coincidence, whenever i come to some conclusion with Mr N he goes and chgs everything).
CONGRATULATIONS Fianne! glad you had a good holiday and great travel tips. I have taken N on many domestic flights now but we are planning a couple of oseas trips so these tips will REALLY come in handy.
Queenie - YOOO HOOO we miss you!
I was also wondering where LP went. I hope all is ok she had a lot on her plate.
ok hi to everyone else, this is turning into a bit of a novel so i am off.
back later

[Leemar]

Hi Girls,

Well My Poor Jordy The Dr got back to me and he is really backed up.. So he has to have movicol half and with great luck he did a poo on sat night but no more since... I am hoping for a big one today... Xavier seems to be heaps better with no temps for 2 nights now... looks like he can go back to his own bed... (I like to have them in my bed when they are sick) Olivia is great and had a wonderful 1st day at daycare on friday... We didnt do much on the weekend.
Cally- Congrats on the sleeping
Renee- Hope you had a great time
Noni- congrats to Asha....
Leigh- Hi and Welcome

Well i better go I am home today and have heaps to do..

Hi to all and have a great day

[Leemar]

Hi Pregpan you mothers group snacks sound great

CONGRATULATIONS TO MRS FIANNE

[Cally]

There was no control crying involved, we did what they called 'responsive settling'. Basically once I put her down, I patted her tummy and sang until she was calm and then backed out of the room. We then sat and listened to her cries. When it became a bit more than a whingy cry, but not yet a distressed one, I go back in and repat and sing until calm, then leave again. I would stop patting when she first calmed, and then stop singing a little bit later. I could hear her trying to soothe herself at some stages. They recommended that the first night if it took a while (eg 30 minutes) to just stay and pat and sing until asleep and then try again the next night. So Arte, if you tend to feed to sleep you might need to do that for a little while until he is used to that change. So by doing that, it got her used to falling asleep by herself so that if she wakes during the night she is able to get herself back to sleep more easily. With the overnight waking, rather than trying to stretch her first wake up for longer, I feed her when she first wakes (which means I may have only been in bed a short while, but because I am still tired when I go back to bed it is easier to fall asleep) and then resettle the next time. I only had to get up to her two nights when she woke the second time and then she started doing it herself.

With the day sleeps, they should be doing 1.5 hour naps twice and one 30-45 min power nap. They said if they wake 'grumpy' especially after 45 minutes they need more sleep. So basically do the same thing as above, but after say 20 minutes get them up if they haven't gone back to sleep and try again later. If they are tired and won't go to sleep in the first place, try for 45 minutes. We had one day where she fell asleep after 40 minutes.

It definitely seemed to work easier with the younger ones, the older babies (eg 1 year) put up a lot more resistance. I didn't feel like we did that much different to what we were doing at home, although we were tending to stay in with her to settle her rather than letting her do it herself. The main thing seems to be to get out so when they actually fall asleep, you aren't involved. It can take 2-3 weeks until they are really right. Last night she wasn't as good at going to bed, but it still only took 20 minutes, we just had to go in a few times.

I was very happy with our results. I'm not sure if she was ready to do it and that's why it worked so well or what. We never had a session where she didn't calm just with patting but they did say that picking up is a last resort.

Let me know if you have any more questions, am just about to start the highchair search.

[AnyDream]

Cally thanks very much for that. Did you attend a sleep clinic via the MACH clinics first or was this the first step for you?

[~mamaspice~]

hello everyone

WE'RE BACK!!!!

Perth was lovely but I must say it is soo nice to be sleeping in our own bed again.
MD, Charli was fine in the portacot!
Our trip over in the plane wasn't the best. We didn't get an aisle seat and the inconsiderate couple in front of us had their seats reclined for the whole 5 hour flight! Imagine this when you've got a 10 kilo baby on your lap and your husband is 6ft5! We had no room.
The flight back was much better. it was a bigger plane so we had a bassinette for Charli and plenty of leg room. Overall Charli was pretty good on both flights except she decided to save up the biggest stinkiest pooey nappy for the flight home. It was not fun trying to change her in the planes toilet! I think she is caustrophobic too because as soon as we went into the toilet she started screaming.

Sorry, haven't had time to read through everyones post for the past 2 weeks.

Hope everyone is well!

I better be off. I'm still in my PJ's. I guess I can be excused for being lazy. 31 today Ahhggg!

[*noni*e*]

hey everyone
supposedly hearing back on a house today so cross ur fingers for us
well i am sooo tired lol its been so busy the past few days its good to relax a bit.. i should be cleaning but i've got all day for that so i am putting it off lol..
Ashas so much more content now that she can sit its like shes got something different to do now she really needs some new toys though the ones she has just arent a challenge anymore and dnt interest her as much..
a q about solids.. whos up to 3 meals?? i always get it wrong lol.. we went up to three meals a day but she didnt really eat it so i dropped it but lately shes been hungry in the late avo and sometimes has a snack, dried pears are a hit atm as i found she cant hold pieces of fruit coz they just slip out of her hand lol.. should i introduce dinner? or just keep plodding along as we are? i just dnt know lol.. oh and btw i found those pasta star things thanks i'm sorry i forget who suggested it but thanx again..
charlismumma - glad u enjoyed perth. sux about the plane trip i hate it when ppl are inconsiderate i mean u obviosuly need more room with ur bubba!! dp has the same problem he is 6ft and always gets cramped up on plane trips..
cally - glad the sleep school went well.. that sounds what we do except sometimes i get lazy during the day and just bounce her to sleep in her bouncer haha i am sure i am gonna regret that when she gets too big for the bouncer..
leanne - hope jordy gets better soon! glad xaviour is getting better too it helps i'm sure with one less sick little person
pregpan - i wish i was in your mothers group those snacks sound yummy
ETA - any ideas on what to put with the pasta?? trying to think of something yummy.. i always eat pasta with a strong tomato sauce like dolmio or something but i think thats prob a bit strong for her??

[AnyDream]

C'smumma - sooo glad the magic portacot worked for you! Bummer about the seat reclining, I asked the person in front of me to unrecline theirs a couple of times which they did for a short while. Did I read that right - ! Hope you get your jarmies off eventually and have a lovely day.

Noni if you're doing milk you could do a white sauce with some minced up chicken in it. Or you could do a veggie soup with the pasta in it. I've got my fingers and toesies crossed for your house.

Leanne, I meant to say before I hope you get some movement at the poo station soon. Poor kiddo. Sounds like X is feeling better so that's good.

Pregpan I rang about QE2 and in the ACT you have to have done one of the MACH sleep clinics before you qualify for the QE2. The kicker is that you can't take your baby!

[MamaPan]

thanks so much for the info cally, i think we could benefit from it too so i will spk to the nurses about it. I am so happy for you that is is abit of a success, as you really have had a hard time with Katie's sleeping. I think even though it is pretty much what you were already doing, the impartial help can just kick off a new start iykwim?
Noni - good luck with the house! Umm with the pasta stars maybe just mix through some vege puree (could water it down if you wanted it more runny) o rmake a cheese sauce or tomato puree. I think i read somewhere not to use adult premade sauces like dolmio bc of salt content? not sure though... some grated melted cheese may be good enough? if you wanted to make a cheese sauce the one i made to go with the fish is yummy - i just used cornflour and butter, milk cooked until a bit thick and then stirred in grated cheddar and some full fat ricotta (marscapone would be ideal). Noah loves it. i think this would be good w the pasta, it isnt strong. a pureed tomatoe stirred thru the sauce would make it yummier too. you can freeze that sauce for future use too. hope that helps. I do 3 solid meals a day, as he has a great appetite though sometimes they are v small meals and sometimes more depending on appetite. I am scaling it back alittle as i may have been too experimental so i am seeing if his sleeping is better with less adventurous foods. i think just follow asha's signs... no rights and wrongs in my opinion.
Welcome back Tamara - glad you had a good time and HAPPY BDAY! I am turning 32 this year so you are a spring chicken! enjoy your bday!
N is really only happy sitting up now - it is like he has a whole new perspective on things and wants to do it all the time. i want him to also spend time lying as he will then learn to roll frontto back and also crawl.. but i guess it is all ok if it is his instinct????
ok N is asleep so i need to clean up after mums group (and wash the tpoys which everyone had a great chew of) so will be back later

ETA thks for the info MD re the sleep clinics... damn it i have heard they are useless!!!!

[*noni*e*]

thans pregpan - i ended up going with vege puree and full fat greated cheese melted through she absolutely loved it though it wentbloody everywhere!!!.. the ricotta idea sounds great but i didnt because i only had reduced fat ricotta or light or whatever it is lol.. gosh ur such a gormet chef!! i wanna eat at your place!! yeah i didnt think the adult sauces would be good so tomato is ok then? i wasnt sure if it was too strong.. suppose it would be nice with ricotta mmm thanks heaps..
md - ohhh chicken and pasta lol why do i not think of things like this? i am sooo lost i am telling u!!
tamara - happy birthday!! sorry must have missed that

[Trillian]

Gosh I have missed out on a lot today. I had to go to town to get a tire on the car fixed so I was out most of the morning (but i did manage to pop on here while I ate brekkie LOL)

Pregpan, thanks for the offer, but A would be too big for it. How did Mothers group go?

Tamara, I hope you are having a great day. What a nuisance for those people to have their seats back.

Leanne, that's good to hear that X is better and J's bum is getting sorted out. Yay for Olivia having a good first day at daycare too.

Marydean, I wear a lot of those wintery colours too.

Noni, did you hear about the house at all? Fingers crossed you get one really soon. With the dried fruit, just be careful of the sulphur dioxide (Preservative 220), it can cause allergic reactions in some people and it's actually recommended that children have no more than 1half of a dried apricot (or equivalent size in other fruit) in a serving.

Cally, I'm really glad you've gotten so much out of the stay.

We are still only on 1 solid meal a day, with an afternoon snack at this stage. He really doesn't need more than that ATM.

[MamaPan]

hi sherie - i thought he may be too big for it. shame as it is gorgeous and N will only wear it a few more times so i would love it to go to a good home!
mothers group wentwell, we always meet on wed but i needed to chg to mon this week and from now on when i am working mon-wed we are moving it to thursday. it is so nice to see all the bubbas growing up, it is funny when we forst met N was 8 weeks and i thought he was SO old!!
am a bit stressed about next week - we are going to melb on sat morning as it is passover so we have family stuff to do there... we fly down on sat morning. DH then leaves at 6am mon to fly to brisbane for the week and i fly home with N. Then I start work that day! i think maybe i will see if i can start on tues. i will need the day to get organised as i am alone all week with N as DH is away then til at least sun... a bit stressful. We have our first day of FDC on wed i wanted to try it all out before work...

[*noni*e*]

thanks sherie - yeah i know about sulphur as i have had trouble with it before.. asha was fine with it though i watched really closesly before during and after she ate it.. i didnt know she was only supposed to have such a small amount though.. she wouldnt have eaten more than that but shed just shove it all in if i only gave her a piece that big iykwim??
no word on the house yet spose we didnt get it?? idk if i ring back she'll probably get the $hits coz i rang this morning too but i am sooo impatient!!!

[Cassius2]

Hi Girls! and BIG hello to Leigh and Ruby!! welcome welcome welcome!!!

Hey Cally, great to hear that you had a great time at QE2. it was so funny as we were talking last week about what sleep schools were about in melbourne and now i know! lol!

MD: you made my heart skip a beat back there...bun in the oven...jeez!!! LOL!! now THAT would be an intense proposition!!
re the sleep seminar, i went to the MACH run one out in tuggers and it was pretty ok. i mean they teach the same routine as tweddle down here. it worked with leila, but we were also thinking about going to the QE2 one in canberra for awhile as well. i cant believe that they dont want babies there!! WTF?!! what's the point in that? Leila came along to the MACH sleep seminar and it was good because i was able to put her to sleep while i was there and get some feedback, canberra can be the pits sometimes! are there any private consultants who can come to your place? i know there are in sydney and melbourne, surely with the situation as it is in canberra someone somewhere has a similar service. i have heard they are fantastic.

Arte: the ergo is pretty comfy, however, i reckon that if you are going to be doing the big hikes it might be worth going the whole hog and getting one of those baby backpack things. my friend is pretty avid in the hiking and they use it with their bub...that said, i have found the ergo really easy to use and it would take up much less space!

Charli: HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!! woo hooo!!!!

Noni: fingers and toes crossed in your general direction!!!

sorry this one is pretty short as i am procrastinating at work and the guilt is setting in...will write tonight!!

[Artechim]

Noni, do you have a toy library there? There are a couple around here and you hire a toy for a week or two. I haven't made it there yet but am planning to go this week because W is bored with his toys now too.

Pregpan, W is the same with the sitting - since he started he refuses to lay down. I think that is why he is no where near crawling.

Cas, thanks, I think we will look into getting a pack. There seems to be a lot to carry, the packs have bags under the bub. Otherwise I will have to carry too much (I am too clumsy to safely carry W with trip hazards around lol). Also from the limited pics of the ergo I have seen they don't have much of a view? He is a nosey little person.

Cally, thanks heaps for that, I am going to copy your post and keep it for reference. I think that we will try to get him back in to his cot next time we move (new house is supposed to be ready in 5 weeks but I am not holding my breath)

Trillian, I have found a shop with all the buzzy bee stuff. It even has a coin operated buzzy bee ride out the front.

Leemar, hope J is feeling better now

Well, it turns out if you have top and bottom teeth you can grind them. It is the worst noise ever.

Got to go, bed time (hopefully)

[AnyDream]

Noni, yeah, keen to hear about your house, hun, still got fingies and toesies crossed. We're doing two small meals a day, one midmorning which resembles breakfast, and one before her bath in the evening. This suits us for now and I guess we'll add lunch in later down the track when she's at FDC and wanting something while she's there.

Pregpan, farout you are one busy mama, I'm practically having a meltdown (on your behalf) just thinking about it all!

Clare, they don't have babies at the MACH sleep clinic because the age range goes from 6 mths to 3 yrs, and if you let the 6 mth babies come then you have to let the toddlers come and apparently they run riot and no one gets any value out of it. So I kind of understand why. They've squeezed me into one at the start of May cos that's one of the few days DH will be here to mind E while I go along . BTW, I just think the name Tweddle is Hil-a-rious - straight out of a D!ckens novel, I can't believe it's a name that's supposed to be taken seriously!

Sherie it's another reason I love autumn the best - I love all the clothes in the shops right now! Not that I've taken myself out shopping for a while.

Arte, the ergo range has a backpack that clips onto the sling - not sure if that helps? The buzzybee shop sounds excellent, I don't really know what you are talking about (is it a clothing brand) but I do love the buzzybees and ladybirds!

[Cally]

MD - my sister was booked into a sleep seminar at the end of the month but got into the day stay at Lanyon tomorrow because of a cancellation. Hopefully her 4 week old will sleep during the day after that. We didn't have to go to any sleep seminars before QE2 as they aren't offered in country areas. The mums with little bubs at QE2 all were from country areas, those from Canberra with little ones that didn't sleep didn't seem to make it there until they were 4 months old, presumably because they have had to go through all the different seminars.

Happy birthday Charli!!

K has a new trick - she lunges towards a wedding photo of me with her hands out like she wants to cuddle!! I'd love to see it, but I don't think it works if I'm standing there.

Noni - good luck with the house.

Pregpan - gosh you are a busy thing!!

I am so confused about high chairs!! There are so many options.

[*noni*e*]

anyone else having night leaking issues?? i just cant seem to get on top of it.. everytime i go and get her from her cot she is wet on the sides of her pjs any ideas?? i think she would sleep longer if she wasnt so wet...
i saw in another thread that bamboo nappies (cloth ones) are really good for overnight do u think i should try one???? they are really expensive! does anyone have any experience with them?