LJ, I like your idea of having a weekly job list - so much easier than planning on getting something done today. I think I'll do that too. With regards to cooking dinner at 9am, well last night I prepped my veges and meat for a casserole to put in the slow cooker this morning. I did this after bubs was fed and in bed, dinner was done and cleaned up and I'd had a shower. This morning all I had to do was pop it in the slow cooker and turn it on low. Tonight we will have a delicious beef & vege casserole with minimum fuss and I look like a domestic goddess!!
I am very much a go with your gut, trial and error Mum.
I think it is so important to be relaxed and trust to yourself as well. Miss P certainly is better off for it and while she doesnt have a routine we are kinda in a pattern.
She is still sleeping wonderfully overnight but that lead up to bedtime is basically constant feeding. From about 7pm till usually 8.30 - 9pm when she finally drops off but then she sleeps through till 5am. And man its cold at that time. Not nice having your boobs out when its bloody freezing!
I went to see a friend today who has a two week old and Peppar looked like a toddler compared to her. There is 8 weeks between them and man what a difference. Mind you in a few months I dont think the difference will be quite so noticable.
Yesterday the CHN also suggested maybe dropping the "dream feed" at 1030 to see what he would do. Well I did. I fed Robert at 630 last night and tucked him up into bed by 7. He didn't wake then until just after 130! He went a whole 7 hours. After I fed him he slept for another 3 & half hours. Mummy was impressed!!
LJ - what are the babybliss routines you mentioned?
Fejioa - indeed i saw a newbub recently and couldnt remember mine being that small - 7/8 wks does make a big difference!
Im glad to report Ciaran was back to his normal self last night with 4+hrs between night feeds - phew! He suddenly is a day sleeper (still prefers car and sling) and gets cranky when he hasnt had a nap. Amazing.
Today was an average day (took me till midday to shower and dress, then 1pm to eat something decent) as he seemed to be a big grumbly and tired today and feeding alot this morning. In hindsight should have just used the sling, but put it off as I was waiting for time to get myself in the shower. Ah well, at least most days are not like this.
This arvo (once we finally got out of the house and washing on the line) did a massive stock up shop at Aldi to try and save some $$ - im such a budget shopper all of a sudden now that our finances are much tighter than when i was at work.
Anyway, it was an effort getting it all into bags and the trolley, then into the car and upacked again at home with Ciaran in the sling pretty much the whole time. But i figure its character building stuff!
Anyway, he has nodded off in the sling now, so im going to have some dinner while i can
LJ, just make sure the actual pot comes out of the slow cooker - I believe most of them do now anyway. If it's in your price range, there's a new one out (can't remember which brand) that has a pot that you can use on the stove so you can brown your meat without using a different pan. Our's is a 4.5l sunbeam and it's my best friend at the moment!
Hi Ladies,
Wow you guys have wrote so much! i have been reading through what i can when i can , it is good to see everything is going well with your little ones and yourself of course
I hav e not been myself of late and a bit up in the air, a few years ago i had abnormal cells in a pap smear and since then have had the same , the last one i had was just being Hannah was conceived and the Drs were a little worried at the time with my results , i was to have another scan to see if it cleared once she was born.. I had my 6 week check the other week and have been waiting for my results ,awful 10 day wait what crap!! anyway i was doing silly things like thinking ahead about having cancer and stuff very bad i know.. but my results were clear!!! omg i cried in the Drs office it was such a relief and i have tearing up thinking about it .. I just dont know what i would do if i could not be here for my little girl.
So i have a new lease on life, i feel like within a few hours i have changed as a person i appreciate so much more and want to be healthy and live every moment and not stress about small things etc Anyway
I dont know if i wil remember everything everyone wrote so
Clothes sizes Hannah can still fit into some 0000 suits but she is wearing 000 clothes , but i find it depends on the make and band , as some 000 are like pillow cases on her,HUGE , her wondersuits are small in the leg part and bust a bit at the seams but the 00 are way to big all over and she cant wear them, so go figure !
Hannah is sleeping better some nights other nights not so much, she goes about 3 to 3 half hours in between the bedtime and first time feed, then its every 2 -3 hours at night still, which i dont mind i mean yeah i am tired every single day but i would rather her get me up to feed for 10-15 mins every couple of hours then to not settle and scream for ages iykwim.
We still have some of those nights where she just wont settle, i think mainly when she has bad wind and so she is up for a while with wind but by the time we get rid of the wind pains she is awake and over stimulated and ready to play lol,she starts cooing etc
I dont klnow if you guys have talked about it already so sorry if u have feel free to copy and paste .. but how do you guys go with self settling ? Hannah i think does it sometimes but still likes to be fed to sleep,whats happening with you guys?
I am so tired all the time , and i dont gett he shower or do things like i normally would each day now lol, like the other day i took my hair tie out and the back of my hair was so knotted up i couldnt remember the last time i washed my hair.. i love my time with Hannah but i do miss getting to have my two showers a day and sitting at night moisturizing and doing my little routine
I normally have a bath with little miss of a night so i dont really get to keep supa clean, i find i end up using baby shampoo and baby wash and baby moisturizer lol..thats one thing i would like to really be able to do if anything, is have my showers back..
I have been on the babybliss website and had a look very good info
ok i will be off for now so so very tired, feeling sick from the gross fish and chips we had for diner coz i am to tired from cleaning the house and baking cheesecake today
Shell - Gr8 news on pap!!! I had a ten year scenario with cervix - so glad all went well for you!!! Shell - Soph has only self settled once. At night I feed to sleep and in the day I hold her tight and she falls to sleep!!! No self settling here...tried and never ever works!
Re the shower - Have to shower when bubs asleep, happy or get up before DF goes to work and have a shower then. I do that mostly!
Hi girls. Just a quick one from me. Toby is actually sleeping off me for the first time in days so I need to get dinner organised while I have the chance!
We've had a rough few days and the end result has been Toby's first lot of anti-biotics He has a throat infection and has been really miserable. Thankfully he seems on the mend today and is back to cracking lots of smiles. It was a very sad couple of days with him crying lots and not many smiles. I feel terrible that he's on the anti-biotics so young but they have helped so he must have needed them. It seems so wrong to be pumping it in to his tiny body. DD didn't even have a cold until she was over 12 mths old but I guess poor Toby will be catching all the bugs DD brings home from kindy.
Oh dear, he's stirring now. So much for getting dinner ready! I'll be back when I get a few moments...
Last edited by Jandals; May 15th, 2010 at 02:41 PM.
: sp
Hey girls, typed a big reply the other day and it got lost
About day time sleeps though, With DD, a woman at my gym creche who believed herself to be the baby whisperer was filled with warnings re: not having daytime sleeps in the cot, we always let DD sleep in her pram and later stroller...and she was fine at night in the cot, and I am so glad we did it in hindsight. She was so easy to take out at any time of day. Last year at 1 she went to WOMADelaise, a 3 day music festival and slept under the nearest tree in her stroller or in the Ergo. Just Mothersday she slept 2 hours in our stroller.
Anyway, Daniel is sick again. We had to delay his immunisations because he was sick (I have a bug ctacher in day care like yours in kindy Jandals.) He had them yesterday, fed at 10pm last night, woke at 8am!!!! I was so nervous, BUt now has gross diarrhoa and is off his food. And more vomits than normal
You'd think after hist marathon sleep wer'd be rested but we had a 2 year old wide awake at 5:30am again and it was well overdue my turn to get up with her. I didn't think she would be the one respoinsible for the very large black bags under my eyes at this point, but that is the wonderful, topsy turvy, unpredicatble world of parenting.
Lots more to write but DD needs attention, will try and get back later
Robert will self-settle at night but during the day I have to rock him to sleep after a feed. He doesn't much like his cot during the day so I let him sleep in the bassinet (pram) by the window where it's nice and warm in the sunshine and he'll sleep for a couple of hours. He's making loads of noises atm - he must be having the best dream!
Jandals - Sorry to hear that Toby is sick and needs antibiotics. If he has them, he must need them as my son is two (been sick alot lately) and still never has had them prescribed. Likewise, my son wasn't ever sick until he started kindy at 10mths. Poor Soph is on her 2nd bout of flu - due to toddlers germs from kindy.
Polly - Sorry to hear about Daniel.
Cass - re sleeping below....
Soph is really easy to put to sleep in your arms - if you get her at the right time it literally takes 30 secs but I cannot put her down. Saying that DH has done it for me today 3 times without a hiccup. I watched him from the doorway and he does nothing special (basically just puts her in). Once I walked into the room and I didn't know he was putting her down and she instantly popped her eyes open. I backed out...DH then sh sh'ed her and she dropped off to sleep. I try that all the time and it never ever works!! GRRR!! So DH putting her in is easy for the weekend but for the week????? Seems to be a separation issue. Sometimes at night I am putting her to sleep and then handing her over to DH to put down and that works.
I did get my nails done!! Finally - the were atrocious! Did a super quick job but better than they were!!
Friday was absolutely atrocious - just about the worst day yet. Soph was absolutely shocking - would not go to sleep out of my arms at all!! In nothing - not even the sling!! And consequently toddler got no attention and was terrible!! Thank God that day is over....today has been easier with DH putting Soph in to bed.
On the plus Soph fed at 8pm last night, was in bed by 8.30pm and slept till 3am. Great stint. I needed it though!
We stayed overnight at my in laws this weekend and I won't be doing that again in a hurry. Tobi just didn't want to sleep; he is so alert that at home he needs a quiet, dark room to go to sleep (my other two would sleep anywhere with as much noise as you like). So with the extra noise and not so good curtains it was very hard to settle him. My DH managed to do it in the end, what's with that? Plus the unsolicited advice was driving me nuts. I am so exhausted from the drive, it wasn't worth it. It sounded appealing because they said they would watch the kids and we could see a movie or something and then when they saw how spewey and hard to feed Tobi is they backed right off. Plus DH spent most of the time fixing their computer and installing their new printer (which happens almost everytime we go there, he is their maintainence man). What I thought might be a relaxing break was just stressful.
I give Tobi about 10 mins of rocking and tummy rubs then he is on his own to go to sleep. I'm a bit harsh, if he doesn't go to sleep I just let him lie there as long as he doesn't cry. With two others to look after I just don't have time to constantly have him in my arms and my back is too sore for a sling/baby bjorn. Luckily he doesn't cry much.
I am sooooo desperate for a haircut and an eyebrow wax, I look like Oscar the grouch atm.
Thought I'd try and reply properly now - we'll see how far I get! Toby's happy in his swing for now and DD watching Toy Story.
Polly - hope Daniel's feeling better. Toby had a really upset tummy after his immunisations - it was a major poo-fest
I've just checked out the couch to 5Km website and I'm getting mentally prepared to get started! I feel like I need someone to give me a kick up the butt to get motivated but will try and get there myself. I was totally depressed after a trip to the shops with a nice amount of money that DH had given me for buying myself some new clothes and I couldn't find one thing that fitted and looked nice I'm feeling seriously unattractive at the moment and only having sloppy clothes to wear isn't helping. I hate the mornings when I have to try and find something to wear! Ok, enough poor me. I just need to get moving and I'm sure I'll start feeling much better.
LJ - I often have days where Toby won't be put down. It's sooooooo frustrating when there are a million things to be done and another child demanding attention. Some days when DH walks through the door I feel totally frazzled and the house is a complete mess. Luckily he's very understanding and will tidy up and get dinner organised if I can't.
Self-settling, mmmm. Not happening here and I don't expect it to for a long time. I don't think it's the norm for babies at this age to self-settle. Is it?? I've been reading this great book "The Science of Parenting" and I highly recommend it. It talks about the latest brain research in babies and just makes so much sense, IMO. I like that the 'advice' is based on research rather than a self appointed expert's opinion. I was recommended it by my old boss at the hospital who is doing his PhD in Infant Mental Health. I'll stop raving about it now but if any-one wants more details just let me know. My long winded point was that this book has helped me understand why it's often necessary for us to help babies settle to sleep and I feel so much less pressure to get Toby sleeping on his own, in his bed. Which is great because he will only fall asleep on me, in his swing or in the car during the day and unless he's in the Close Baby carrier he will only sleep for about 40 mins. At night he's much better and usually sleeps all evening either in his bouncer in the lounge (we keep the lights low) or in his bed or our bed. Once I go to bed he's usually in with us. I figure I'll deal with any sleep issues as and when they come up rather than worrying about what might happen if I don't "teach" him to self-settle now.
Oh, and I'm the odd one out as far as DH settling the baby goes. Toby will only settle for me if he's upset. I'm trying to let DH have a go but T just gets hysterical so I don't see the point. He will settle for DH if he's not sick or over-tired though.
Cass - is your DH still home?
QB - You poor thing. I hate it when you get all prepared for a bit of help and a break, only to be sorely disappointed and left feeling totally stressed. Next time you'll have to tell the in-laws that if they want their computer fixed it's on an hourly exchange rate. One hour of fixing = one hour of babysitting (spewy baby or not!)
Shell - nice to hear from you. Great news on your Pap smear! I can remember the days of not getting a shower and feeling like a total house slob (in fact I still have days like that now!). Just know that it will end and it won't be long before you can start to feel a little more like yourself again. Have you tried showering and moisturising etc. at night when your DP can hold Hannah? Get him to bath her while you jump in the shower? If I have to be out the door early (as in before 11am!) in the morning I have a shower and do my hair and pack all the bags the night before. If I didn't I'd never get out
How are you all keeping up with housework? Especially those with babies that don't sleep much during the day. My sister has been staying with us and has been doing most of the cleaning for me but she leaves in a couple of weeks and I'm wondering how I'll get it done.
DH just got home with lunch so I'm going to enjoy it while Toby sleeps in his swing.
Last edited by Jandals; May 16th, 2010 at 12:33 PM.
Jandals I have two tips for you!
Sign up now to the Bridge to Brisbane and get a training buddy (you don't have to actually train with them, my buddy is interstate, we just report in to each other. these 2 things will help your motivation to no end. Events are a great motivator and they are wonderful to be a part of. the City to Bay in Adealide was my first event and it felt amazing to run every step (only passed by a couple of walkers you know the olympic type) and cross the finish line. I would have stopped training amidst the chaos of my life (I moved interstate with my 9 month old daughter the day after the race) for sure and am so glad I had it as a goal. Go you! Check out the Pink Triathlon site too. Best event Ive ever been part of.
Queen Bee, my MIL always gets my husband to work on her computer etc when she visits or when we're there, its so frustrating, and she is not a very hands on grandma. Wehn DD was 5 months old I was working 3 days a week and she came to stay with us. i got home from work, exhausted, breast fed my hungry girl, and she asked "What will you be cooking for dinner?" I hope you recover from your holiday quickly.
We're getting ready for our first overseas trip as a family, It will be pretty busy, Melbourne 3 days, Auckland 4 days, Wellington 3 days, Timaru 2 days, Melbourne 2 days--home.
I have a large extended family in NZ including a sick 84 year old nana, so we're taking the kids for a meet and greet. And will need lots of warm clothes too!
i am glad to hear others have trouble getting things done. I sometimes forget that just the mummy bit of my life is hard and get really down on myself for not keeping up with the craziness of work, family life and sleep....very hard to come by here atm
QB my eyebrows and hair are also sadly lacking. In Adelaide last weekend I got my legs waxed (3 months overdue) before the run, and it lead to an argument with DH about me being gone for "Hours" 2 in total as I coudln't get an appt any earlier and I pointed out that when one is feeding 3 hourly it is hard to be gone for "hours" it was the start of our disasterous weekend. Yet funnily he has already had 2 haircuts in our boys 9 weeks.
We don't really do teh self settle thing either, if he happens to self settle thats good but we have a pretty small house and he's usually not far from me or DH, we have a hug-a-bub which we LOVE and so he is attached to us a lot or next to us sleeping in a breast feeding pillow or carry cot. Hopefully our co-sleeping bassinette will arrive in the next couple of days so Dh and I can sleep in the same bed. DS seems to take up a lot of room in our bed so for the sake of a couple of hours sleep one of us sleeps in the lounge. I'm pretty happy with letting him do what he needs, DD started self settling around 6 months. I enjoy the extra cuddles
Cass - Do they learn to manipulate us that quickly??!!!! We are suckers too!!
QB - Sorry to hear about your shocking weekend...guess just store it away for next time.
PollyA - You are very adventurous going off on a trip - yay for you...when are you going?
Jandals - Thanks for the information re that book - I find brain science extremely fascinating. I work in education and its applications there are amazing, so that book does interest me....as does the message re self - settling, as Soph or my son never do it!!! How did you order your co-sleeping cot??? Did you say the ABA website. At the moment I have Soph in a basinette in our room which we borrowed and have to return in a week or so...and she is not ready to go into her bedroom on her own. Can you let me know where you got it from and how it goes when it arrives?? Thanks..
Poor Soph has been upset today - bit of a tummy ache today. Basically we have done nothing at all!!
The in-laws found a side by side fisher price swing for me at the markets today for only 25bucks!! Yay...it is an older one but I didn't have the couple of hundred for a new one...hopefully Soph will like it and it will give me a break from holding her all the time. Toddler climbed in when I was feeding Soph and gave himself a big fright (poor thing!!). He couldn't get out and it swinging side to side really quickly. But might be a good thing - keep him away from it for a while at least.
I find it a struggle to get things done around the house too!!! My GP said to me that her biggest regret from when her kids (two boys now teenagers who are about 2 years apart like mine) were babies, was that she wasted time having her house at 92% when she wishes she had taken in easier and spent more time with the boys when they were little and had the house at 62%....I have taken that on board (well I am trying) and keep reminding myself when I get stressed about it. I am a bit of a perfectionist and dusted things like skirting boards etc every week...now I am lucky to get the basics cleaned. There are fingerprints from the toddler on my windows out to the verandah, all my windows are shocking due to housing estate below us sending dust all over the back of my house, cobwebs in the corners etc. But I just aim to keep the kitchen, bathrooms and floors clean, clothes washed and meals cooked. Also - I cheat a bit. I have a cleaner come for two hours once a fortnight and her job is to scrub the two bathrooms and kitchen and do the floors. Then I just keep wiping everything over every few days and don't have to scrub! It only costs 20bucks a week...and I find it makes my life a lot easier!!
I am trying to get out of the house more this week - kids might be well enough to go visiting friends again. I have stayed away as I didn't want my friends kids to get sick too. Being trapped for three weeks now is driving me crazy!! I have a work colleague visiting on Wednesday (will have to make the house look decent!!) and my old friend from our teens who lives on the sunshine coast is staying ten minutes from here at the beach - so I am catching up with her on Friday (Will's kindy day - hopefully he will be well enough to go).
Better go - kids getting edgy!! Enjoy the last of your weekend.
There is 8 weeks between them and man what a difference. Mind you in a few months I dont think the difference will be quite so noticable.
i couldnt remember the last time i washed my hair.. i love my time with Hannah but i do miss getting to have my two showers a day and sitting at night moisturizing and doing my little routine 
I'm feeling seriously unattractive at the moment and only having sloppy clothes to wear isn't helping. I hate the mornings when I have to try and find something to wear! Ok, enough poor me. I just need to get moving and I'm sure I'll start feeling much better. 
but if any-one wants more details just let me know. My long winded point was that this book has helped me understand why it's often necessary for us to help babies settle to sleep and I feel so much less pressure to get Toby sleeping on his own, in his bed. Which is great because he will only fall asleep on me, in his swing or in the car during the day and unless he's in the Close Baby carrier he will only sleep for about 40 mins. At night he's much better and usually sleeps all evening either in his bouncer in the lounge (we keep the lights low) or in his bed or our bed. Once I go to bed he's usually in with us. I figure I'll deal with any sleep issues as and when they come up rather than worrying about what might happen if I don't "teach" him to self-settle now. 
I hope you recover from your holiday quickly. 
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