Another quick post - aren't we all doing this at the moment
Blake's doing well so far. 6 months old now - has his check up next week at the GP as I want to check some stuff out about his dermatitis (again!) as it's not going away for more than 1 1/2 days max at a time.
We started solids on Christmas Day - a wedge of tomato that he chased around the bumbo seat table and a piece of cucumber that he had a taste of. Boxing Day he rather liked his roast parsnip and potato that we offered him (in a high chair at my parents). Then we skipped a few days - didn't have high chair that worked for him (too low) but we do have one that works for him now. Last night we had roast vege again and he REALLY likes roast parsnip - gnawing it a great deal. (We're doing the Baby Led Solids thing as I know I won't have time to puree and mush stuff up once I go back to school at the end of the month.)
I'm kind of over his waking up all the time over night - I know it's normal but I want the 5-6 hour sleep that he used to have back. We had a few nights of every 1 - 2 hours waking; last night was 3hrly again so maybe we're getting back to it. And I wish he'd sleep more than 3/4 - 1 hour at a time during the day (max of 3 sleeps between 7:30am and 5:30/8:30pm)
leckert - I hope the sleep thing sorts itself out soon for you - it does seem to be just something they go through at this age, doesn't it?
jasp - hope you and DD1 enjoyed the movie together
sarah - corey and Zac still sound like they're copying each other! Zac can cover quite scary distances when my back is turned, just by wriggling around on his tummy. His bum is starting to go up in the air now and he's kind of got some crawling action with his legs - just no momentum yet.
MissE - have fun with the inlaws!!
AFM - had the 6mth MCHN visit yesterday - Zac is 9.4kg and 71.5cm long. He has really turned into a little Tonka boy! He started babbling in the weekend - lots of 'dadada', some 'mumumum' and 'bababa'. Oh, and some extremely high-pitched squealing.
I think he's moving towards two daytime sleeps now - I'm finding it very confusing cos anything resembling a routine has completely gone out the window. He's also had a few nights of waking up screaming every 45 minutes or so
We're booked in to the Early Parenting Unit in Koo Wee Rup in a couple of weeks' time which I'm looking forward to. Apparently they won't have anything to do with CIO / control crying, but focus more on recognising tired signs and teaching settling techniques. I figure at the very least we'll have a nice day out!
After that we're heading to NZ for a few weeks as hubby is working there for a month so we will spend some time with him in Wellington and time with our families in Christchurch - very exciting.
Happy New Year! And happy 6 months to all our little ones!!
I’m hoping some of you still remember me; even though it’s been such a long time since I posted.
I made a new years resolution to make a bit more of an effort to get online, particularly when I have family & friends interstate that don’t get to see Annie regularly. And of course this included catching up with you all as much as I can too. I have to admit it’s been so strange not being on the PC much; particularly when I lived on here, before Annie arrived! I’m sure some of you would remember my marathon posts as a belly buddy!
Our first few months as new parents were a little rocky… and a terribly steep learning curve! I actually think it was a shame I didn’t get the time to chat with you all, as I’m sure many of you could have given me some words of wisdom & support that I really needed at the time.
Without making this a marathon ‘me’ story – just want to share a little bit of our journey, as explanation of my absence…
Well Annie arrived a little earlier than we expected on the 4th July (EDD 15th July), and DH & I climbed aboard the roller coaster of our lives!
I went in to spontaneous labour, but my blood pressure went skyward & Annie became seriously distressed… so it all resulted in an unplanned emergency caesarean…
Meeting Annie was just an amazing experience… what a joy to finally look in to the eyes of the little person that had been bouncing around inside me for almost 9 months!
After a short stay in hospital, I still remember arriving home for our 2nd wedding anniversary (7th July), walking through the front door & looking at DH and saying ‘what do we do now?’!!
The first few weeks were a bit of a blur, as we spent our days just keeping on top of how to feed, change, settle, etc… If I got a shower & breakfast before midday, I was doing well! Fortunately, DH had the first 6 weeks at home with me and I healed really well… all a blessing!
Annie cried a lot; but being first time parents & not having spent a whole lot of time around new bubs, we really had no concept of what was normal. Initially, we thought she had bad wind… & I think I actually posted on here looking for advice & I probably didn’t get back on to thank those of you that had shared experiences and advice – so I’m sorry for the late appreciation!!… We tried lots of things – different techniques, different products, etc… As it turns out we were heading down the completely wrong path; Annie was finally diagnosed with silent reflux (or infant heartburn) at 9 weeks (following a routine appt with a midwife who got to experience a crying episode – and she insisted we make an appt with a paed asap). Poor little pumpkin, apparently her little oesophagus was red raw by this stage, from all the stomach acids that had been burning her during her first 9 weeks!. So we started her on meds (losec) twice a day… meds that were supposed to reduce the amount of acid in her tummy; however, we were told it could take up to 10 days for it take affect. Anyway, there was a whole lot more crying… and by this stage, Annie had associated feeding with pain… so we had a few weeks where she didn’t gain weight, which was awful and she would cry (as would I) & fuss at every feed. This took soooo long to get past… I honestly think it was a good couple of months before she really started to ‘enjoy’ feeding.
Our Paed told us to begin Annie on solids by 4 months, which we did & I do think this has helped. I took it really slow, with only a single meal of rice cereal for a good few weeks – and now she’s on all sorts of vegies & fruits. Fortunately, she’s taken to solids exceptionally well.
We are still on meds, but by default we are actually weaning her, as she grows & we aren’t increasing the dosage. We have tried to drop it back a couple of times in recent months, but without success so far. It also has meant we’ve had lots of trouble with teaching her to self settle; sleep through the night; daytime naps… I started sleeping her on her tummy at around 2.5/3mths; as she just seemed to settle so much better. Even though I’ve had many well meaning people tell me I’m doing the wrong thing & significantly increasing her risk of SIDS. But I was desperate for her to get some sleep!
On reflection, I didn’t do too well at coping during the early months. I found it hard to adapt to motherhood, as it was all so new. And up until this point in my life, if I needed a new skill I would do a course, read a book, study, research etc to obtain it… but there was nothing I could really do to give me all the skills I needed for motherhood… so I felt really out of control, like I was doing everything wrong, particularly when Annie was finally diagnosed. I really beat myself up & still feel terrible that it took us so long to do something for the poor little thing. She was suffering so much in those early days & if anything we were making it worse by trying to ‘treat wind’ – by making her burp, etc… all things that increased the amount of acid that would come up & burn her! No wonder she would scream!! And like a lot of people, unfortunately we don’t have a lot of supportive family close by, so I didn’t really have anyone near or staying with us to provide support or an extra pair of hands.
I think I’ve finally accepted that I honestly did the best I could as a new Mum. And I’m certainly grateful that Annie’s condition is easily treated & now manageable. There are so many people much worse off than us. But I certainly struggled within myself for a long time.
Well now that we are past all that, we’re really enjoying our little girl; she is such a delight & much more contented these days - although we're still working on mastering good sleep routines! We are loving watching her learn & develop every day; she’s very easy to love. And I think she’s forgiven us for all the pain she went through in those early weeks!!! Although she did have that imploring look last week as the Doctor gave her, her 6 month needles… like ‘hey Mum, Dad, this woman is hurting me & you guys aren’t stopping her!’
Anyway that’s where I’ve been, I really look forward to sharing more with you all & catching up on some personals soon. I’m sorry I’ve missed being there for any of you during your own challenges and tough times… and of course enjoying all the good stuff with you as well.
A heartfelt thank-you to those of you that reached out to me in those early days, it really meant a lot to me, even if I didn’t share my appreciation at the time!
Deb, great to hear from you again! I'm sorry to hear those first few weeks with Annie were so difficult, but by the sounds of things everything is going great now!
Cate I hope the parenting program is worthwhile, I'd love Ash to do 2 naps a day, but I think he's still quite a way off that, we're only just getting down to three consistently now...
Leckert, I'll have to try Ash on the parsnip, I'm sure he'll love it. Don't worry too much, our night sleeps are all over the place at the moment. It seems sureal to think that it was only a few weeks ago that he was sleeping through consistently, because I don't see any sign of that happening again soon. I keep telling myself it's the teething, but some how I think it is more to do with his age...
Congratulations Naomi! How exciting, have you set a date?
How was the movie Jasp? I've been wanting to see that one, who knows when I will get to though, probably have to wait till it comes out on dvd.
Sarah it is so cute when they get up on all fours. I think Ash is like Corey in that he is getting very frustrated at the moment, he desperately wants to be able to move and sit himself up (he can sit up but we have to position him). I'm really looking forward to it too, I think he will be a lot happier when the time comes.
AFM we have DH's mum and aunt here from the states at the moment. It's been great for them to meet Ash, but it has been pretty full on. They leave on Friday and then his Dad comes for two weeks... I do wonder how Ash is going to go when things go back to normal after a month of craziness... hopefully it won't be too bad...
Anyway, better run. Hope all is well with everyone x
MissE, movie was good, I liked it but DD was disappointed, it was a bit different to the book although not hugely & I think that's kind of par for the course you know? As a movie in itself it was good though.
Enjoy all those visitors! hope things don't get too crazy for you.
Deb great to hear from you! sorry those first weeks were so hard but it's so good to hear things are going well now.
Cate the parenting unit sounds interesting, I did a stay at a place years ago with one of the boys but they did CIO & I hated it. Would be very interested to hear what techniques they use. Our routine (such as it was ) has gone out the window here too, I think it might be a developmental / age thing?
Liz I hope you can get some more sleep soon. We are much the same here with day sleeps.
Naomi Congratulations! I only just read your post now. That's so exciting, good luck with all the planning!
AFM I am swapping Arlea's dinner for breakfast for a few days. Three nights in a row she has been awake at 1:30 - 2am pooing & then playing for 2 hours... not sure if it's solids related but I guess we'll find out. She didn't do it last night but we were away Friday night & she was MEGA tired yesterday. So will see how tonight goes. It might just be an age thing I know - I kind of hope it is, because I think BLS will be a bit easier to start at night when we are all at the table. Maybe we can ease back into dinner...
deb- i'm sorry your first weeks with your little girl weren't the best...but you know she won't remember how it was, and the main thing is you've got it sorted now!
Jasp- hope the swapping meals works...you poor thing up at 2am playing! Lol
Sorry cant do more personals...have dinner on the go and Hayley has been screaming on and off for the last half hour, she is in bed and *this* close to going to sleep but at the last second starts crying again.
I feel like crap at the moment...i think Hayley and I have head lice...I don't know how we got them because we have been in close contact with absolutely no one. I feel so horrible, how does a 6 month old get head lice! Just want to cry... Will be getting some stuff for DF & I tomorrow, but will have to use conditioner on Hayley, wont be easy as she is so wriggly at the moment.
Everything else is going well though, solids are bit on and off..lol. She has had abit of mango over the last couple of days which she seemed to love, some nectarine and have also mixed some cooked pear into her rice cereal. She only ever seems to eat a couple of teaspoons though.
deb - it's so good to hear from you! i was on fb yesterday morning & saw your xmas pics & was just thinking we hadn't heard from you for ages! i'm sorry those first weeks were tough. i can def relate to those feelings of being out of control because there's no course to prepare you. and no advice anyone gives you really means anything till you're there yourself. i'm glad it's all worked out though & from the photos i saw, you have a very happy & healthy little girl so you guys are obviously doing all the right things i've missed your posts - so i hope we get to see lots more of you from now on
jas - i think it might be an age thing, corey is still waking lots during the night but instead of always going straight back to sleep with a feed, he usually has one time where he takes longer to settle. only up to an hour so far, but that's long enough in my book!
miss e - sounds like a hectic month for you! with the crawling it's a double-edged thing, isn't it? i'm sure our boys will be much happier (or less frustrated) when they can get around, but eeek - this is all happening so fast! i thought there was at least another couple of months before we got to this point!!
ss_storm - that sounds so annoying. i hope the stuff clears it up really quickly for you guys. and yes to the wriggling - nappy changes are getting to be challenging!
cate - kooweerup sounds good. i can't wait to hear about the settling techniques. sometimes i wonder if i'm missing something totally obvious when it comes to settling corey!! i can't believe how much zac has grown!
leckert - i hear you about the sleeps. i really thought that by 6 months we might be heading in the right direction! i hope it settles down for you before you go back to work.
afm, corey is is still up on all 4's but has started rocking. he can work out to move his legs but not his arms so he's done a few face plants. he also seems to have an insatiable appetite...but with all his feedings i think we already knew that
So much for my plan of more regular online catch ups...!! Where does the days & weeks go!?!?
Thanks so much for welcoming me back & for all your sweet words of support & encouragement. I have really missed you girls.
Jas - happy 6 months Arlea!! Annie was 7.9kg at her 6mth needles, which puts her close to the 75th percentile... so I don't think you need to be too concerned. I too have been a bit worried, because my milk supply has dropped off dramatically in the past couple of weeks. And like Arlea she's never really been that interested in milk, but very much enjoying her solids - which is great. I was thinking of trying fenugreek to boost my supply.
Is Arlea waking for feeds every 3-4 hrs? Annie still wakes (at least) twice a night.. always for a quick feed. I imagine she'll grow out of it eventually... and you know I always thought I'd want to wean her at around 6mths, but that's been & gone and I don't think I'm ready!! (notice the 'i'm' ready... not Annie!) They sure are growing fast!
Storm - sounds like Miss Hayley will be on the move very soon! Cute that she laughs at the dog. What sort of dog have you got? And I'm much the same with the whole baby proofing thing... not really sure where to start... beginning to think a big play pen might be easier initially!!
Oh I too have been freezing the ole Prune juice - $6 for what you can use in 5-7 days for a baby didn't seem very economical! I'm giving Annie 1 block a day for breakfast... I have now cut that back to every 2nd day or as she needs it. A constipated baby isn't fun... Annie used to almost hyperventilate when she had to 'go'... almost like she was really scared. Very disappointing that your Dr was no help! I too would have been concerned if I'd found blood! Poor little thing!
And I hear you about the 30-40min daytime 'naps'! Its amazing what you can squeeze in, in such a short time! But it does go fast!
Jess - sounds like little Anton is doing really well!
Jetta - LoL at the 180 degree spin! Annie is doing the same in her cot... never in the same place you initially put her! And the bum thrusting sounds hilarious! Sounds like you are doing really well with working & expressing! Good on you! Annie is awake anywhere from 1.5 to 3hrs... just depends on the day, how much sleep she's had (night or naps) and what we've been doing during the day. I usually know when its been around 2hrs though, as that's when she's usually showing some tired signs.
Jessica - good to hear Sophie is doing well. Congrats on a March wedding!! How are your preparations going? And yay for moving out!!!
Naomi - Congrats on your engagement! I've taken note of your suggestion of what worked for Cam's digestion... just in case we hit some more hurdles as we introduce different foods. Thanks for the tip!
Cate - sounds like you got some good things out of the settling clinic. Responsive settling sounds like a really good approach. Hope you are busy enjoying NZ and that flying with your little man ran smoothly!
Miss E - Sorry to hear Ash was unwell after his needles. Annie certainly had a few irritable days... but I now think it was more to do with digestion, rather than needles... it's so hard to know sometimes!'
How are you managing with all the visitors? I really don't know how you do it! I'm sure your FIL will understand that you don't want Ash to get sick! Difficult situation, but you really have to do what's best for your little man. Thanks for the cruskit tip - I hadn't thought to try them - always looking for new 'snacks' Annie can hold. The best tip I got from one of the mum's in my mum's group is raw carrot sticks from the fridge as a teether. Annie loves them... and they're cheap & can be thrown away when they've been dropped on the floor!!
What meats have you tried with Ash & how have you cooked them? I'm just curious, because I want to introduce meats to Annie's diet, but not real sure where to begin.
I just read your status on FB... sounds like your little man is going to be running before you know it!!
Sarah - Thanks for sharing your routine, its always interesting reading what other mum's are doing. My routine with Annie is very similar to yours - however, Annie's never been one to 'demand BF', so it's up to me to offer it to ensure she's hydrated & getting enough! Not always easy! And we too have had the most success with solids about an hour after a BF. I do try to eat with Annie as much as I can... not always practical - but we also eat dinner after she's gone to bed.
AFU - Well it seems like every week Annie decides to come up with something new... a new sound, a new routine (read "shorter naps" "less sleep"), a new way to move, a new facial expression!! Never a dull moment... I just can't believe how fast its all happening! When was I supposed to baby proof the house?? I think that boat is very close to sailing...
And we've decided Annie's first word is a growl... DH & my fault for playing "that" game too often! DH said that she'll get to an age where she'll turn to us and say "So I'm not actually a bear?" lol
And I'm constantly amazed at what she gets excited about. It can be the most bizarre objects... but she gets 'whole body' excited & makes the funniest noises. Isn't it great looking at the world through a child's eyes again!? Even the empty paper towel roll is a source of wonderment... trumpet? drumstick? pirates telescope? Who needs toys???
Oh I just read the '4th page'... I somehow missed it going backwards!! oops.
Jessica - you know how they say 'mum knows best'... if you feel your little one is happy & healthy ... and just on the small side, then perhaps there's no cause for concern. But I'm guessing it could be a common thing to try & 'fatten up' bubs, so there's sure to be some other forums out there with more advice?? Just a thought.
Oh & don't stress that Sophie doesn't stand up when held. There's a couple of bubs in our mum's group who are the same... just different stages of development & interests... I'm sure she'll manage it in her own time.
Eve - well I didn't really need to ask how you are coping with your visitors. You poor thing... I can completely understand that you are OVER it!!! Time to get your house & family back. LoL that 'the baby' reference is getting too much... I definitely think I'd feel the same!! And maybe I wouldn't be as patient as you have, they probably would have been told to use his name by now!!! I really hope the next few days go fast, but that you still have some special time with your visitors. Big hugs.
Annie has just started to go from sitting to all fours too, it is really sweet to watch... much more graceful than the tummy or face plant!! Keep smiling!
Okay that's enough of a marathon for me... time to shut up & go to bed!
Miss E - I completely sympathise. MIL is down for two days week and stays over night and that drives me insane sometimes! I can't believe you still have people in the house! I would also hate people referring to my child as "the baby". I totally agree that he has a name, it is so impersonal and you would think that relations would use his name! I am so proud of him! Sitting up on his own and starting to crawl! That is so wonderful!
Debbee - sounds like things are going well! It is so amazing the things they are doing and how they are learning. I love it. I agree about the little things they find funny. I was rinsing my mouth with mouthwash the other morning and Sam was sitting up on our bed. I came out of the bathroom just to make sure he was alright and I was gargling in the room and he was laughing so hard. He thought it was so funny. I almost swallowed the mouthwash as I just wanted him to keep laughing!
Jasp and Jessica - Sam had his 6 month check up today, he is 6 1/2 months now and is 7.55kgs. He has slipped from the 50 percentile to the 25th. I was quite shocked as I didn't think he was going to slip that much. I had been feeding him two solid feeds a day with 5 breast feeds. I have just cut out his 10pm feed so its now 4 breast feeds and I didn't think he needed a 3rd solid feed a day but she said go for it. I also have a friend who's 1 year old is only just on 9 kgs. He had real troubles with solids. He doesn't look unhealthy and the doctor is fine with him but just wants to check on him more often. I think if they look healthy they are fine. I am just upping the solids. I am feeding him lots of vegies, baby yoghurt, maybe try fish with good fats and yes avocado.
Jessica - I agree with Miss E, she will do it in her own time. Sam definately isn't ready to hold onto things and stand up. he bears weight on his legs when you hold him but only for short periods of time, he loves pushing off with his legs but there is no way he would be holding onto anything yet. I got told today that you can do some testing thing with the early childhood centre called a UEC or something like that where they put your child through series of tests if you are concerned about their development and they give you a score of how things are tracking? Just a thought.
SS Storm- sounds like things are going well! So funny with the dog! Our dog is starting to get use to Sam but he still a bit funny around kids so we are just taking it slowely! Sam is fascinated by our dog though!!
AFM - 6 month check today, was great apart from him slipping to 25th percentil for weight, I cant believe it. MInd you, Sam doesn't seem to have a stop button with food and I didn't want to feed him too much, but I am obviuosly not feeding him enough! Mind you last night I didn't feed him his 10pm feed (I had slowely bought foward from 10pm to 8pm) and he slept the whole way through without a feed! Lets see how long it lasts!! Bottom two teeth are through, an eye tooth and one front one just poking through now. I am getting nervous about breast feeding!! Sam will now be having 3 solid feeds a day and 4 breast feeds if he continues to not need the 10pm feed. He is babbling all the time now. He doesn't stop! This week he has just taken off with the talking and he is so funny! He just gaggles and gaahs and sounds like he is talking to himself!! He is rolling heaps now too and just starting to push his legs with his bum up which I think is the start of the crawling!! Scary! He is settlilng really well during the days for his sleeps which is great too, except if we are out. Today he missed his middle sleep altogether. Not so good settling in the pram.
It is hard to believe it was 6 months ago we were all starting out on this journey!!
Anyway, got needles next week!
Deb - our dog is a golden retriever (needs his manly bits removed though as I think it would calm him down a bit but DF refuses to! You'd think we were talking about him getting the snip..lol).
Glad to hear things are going well with Annie. It's exciting watching them learn new things. Hayley has a few toys she gets "wiggly" excited about, very funny to watch. You can tell she has a couple of favourites! I know I probably shouldn't, but I've started giving her one of them, a stuffed dog that DF actually bought me for Valentine's Day last year. There are two of them (probably a good thing in case one gets lost!) and she absolutely loves them. I gave one to her one day when she just would not go to sleep and had been mucking around in her cot for nearly an hour, even though I knew she was tired. She was out like a light once I gave her the dog, and has done it a few times since. I do try and get her to go to sleep without it first and take it away once she is asleep.
Jetta- good luck with the needles next week! Hope Sam doesn't react too badly. Aww nearly 4 teeth! We still have no sign of any Lol
I'm still feeling a bit lost with solids...she's still only having one meal a day in the morning. Maybe you girls can offer some tips...this is basically our routine at the moment:
Up for the day between 7 & 8, morning feed no later than 8am. I have brekky and we go for a walk about 8.30/9am. Back no later than 10am when I give her some fruit mixed with yoghurt and then she is off to bed.
Wakes about 45 mins to an hour later and I give her another bottle, then we play, maybe hang out some washing/other chores or go for a walk down to the shops if I have things to do. I have lunch, sometimes I give her a cruskit with vegemite but lately its just been getting thrown on the floor.
She goes down for her afternoon sleep between 2 & 3 and will be awake about an hour later, then it's feed time again, another play, then bath, I get dinner ready, another feed for her and she's in bed by 6.30/7pm.
The thing is if I offer solids first she won't drink her bottle, if I offer bottle first she won't have any solids, unless there is at least an hour between them which kind of makes the solids a separate meal altogether and I'm just worried if I try and introduce another proper feed then she won't be getting enough milk. I could give her solids when she wakes up from her afternoon sleep and then milk before she goes to bed I suppose but the late afternoons can get a bit crazy and Df sadly isn't much help....
She seems to have started recovering from her few weeks of constipation...we've gone back to step 1 formula and today she had her first 'normal' runny poo in about 3 weeks with no hard lumps in it at all. So I think she is finally on the mend..thank god. I don't think I've ever been so pleased to see a runny poo. Lol.
Nappy changes have become a bit of a battle...all she wants to do is roll over. A toy works for a few seconds until she chucks it away then tries to roll over and grab it. When I hold her legs up she humps her bum up and down and wriggles around..I guess it is quite cute but I guess they're only going to get more difficult from here on!
- a wedge of tomato that he chased around the bumbo seat table and a piece of cucumber that he had a taste of. Boxing Day he rather liked his roast parsnip and potato that we offered him (in a high chair at my parents). Then we skipped a few days - didn't have high chair that worked for him (too low) but we do have one that works for him now. Last night we had roast vege again and he REALLY likes roast parsnip - gnawing it a great deal. (We're doing the Baby Led Solids thing as I know I won't have time to puree and mush stuff up once I go back to school at the end of the month.)
And I wish he'd sleep more than 3/4 - 1 hour at a time during the day (max of 3 sleeps between 7:30am and 5:30/8:30pm)
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and 71.5cm long. He has really turned into a little Tonka boy! He started babbling in the weekend - lots of 'dadada', some 'mumumum' and 'bababa'. Oh, and some extremely high-pitched squealing.
great to hear from you! sorry those first weeks were so hard but it's so good to hear things are going well now.
) has gone out the window here too, I think it might be a developmental / age thing?
I only just read your post now. That's so exciting, good luck with all the planning!
Lol
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