Babies born~May 16th-31st 2010 #1

Hi Ladies

So we left the dr with a request for XRay & referral to paediatrician with the view that we might need to get Alyssa a helmet to wear for a period of time. I just wish the importance of not letting them lie in one particular way was emphasised more at the hospital (instead of 15 million ways to BF). Not to worry, the dr doesn't believe her skull has fused yet so still time to fix easily. So, Monday we are off to see what the paediatrician thinks. Alyssa was very good for her Xray, lying nice & still so the guy only had to have one go.

I'm with You Doodlebug on the crap day time TV. Even with all these extra free to air channels, there's still nothing on worthwhile. It is good if you just want to zone out for a moment though.

Well I managed to find time to bake some White Chocolate & Macadaemia cookies this morning. They are delicious & nearly all gone!! Alyssa has been focusing all her attention on food and not so much on milk the last few days. She's pretty much doubled her food intake (from 180 grams per day up to about 300 grams). She must be growing. Did try chicken & sweet corn puree at lunch & most of that came back up. Obviously not liking that yet. She loves all the fruit & vege purees though so that is good. I guess when she is ready she'll take to the other ones, we'll just keep offering them till then.

Ok, best go spend some time with DH. I don't really feel like we connect any more somedays. I guess that's something people say but you don't expect when you have a child. Till tomorrow, xo

Peta I know it's no consolation but I was reading a book that informed me that the Chinese think that a baby with a flat head is a good thing :) Good luck at the doc's. Wow...Aly is hoeing into the food! I'm looking forward to feeding Darcie now....it's a fun stage! Oh and it's pretty normal not to feel so connected to your DH after baby....coz your focus is just so much more on the baby, than them....but maybe you can put some spark back in by going on a date every now and then.

Crumpet OMG thinking of you...Hang in there baby.....If only you had McDelivery :)

Hi there, all

yules - tell me more about Thailand please, so I can have a vicarious holiday ... mmmmm ....

peta - sorry to hear! I hope the helmet helps, and that little head is all nice and curvy with no damage or lasting negatives in no time :hug:

crumpet - legs up, baby in and plenty of rest! :pray: for you, that wormette is growing delightfully and will be in your arms soon ... but not too soon! let's impress those Drs with the fantastic results of their stitches ...

everyone else - helloooooooooo! Hope you're all doing fabulously, and are less cold and wet than us!

afm - i missed out on telling you gals the last stage of the saga ... I had an appt with the ob, who said that it was all healed ... I said it was not, and that the surgeon had said (only the week prior) that it would continue healing over the next 3 months or so. He said no, the mucosa had grown over, and so it was done, and it I wasn't happy with the "gaping" then I would need to have more surgery ... maybe 1, maybe more ... I said that this is not "gaping" this is a cavern of a size which would enable me to put Joshua back up there, and have room for his blue book too (not in those words, though...)

He also basically suggested that I was silly for thinkng that my whoo har was going to be all the same as it was before having a baby. I'm not an idiot, I knew it was going to be different, stretched, looser, different shape, maybe cut and stitched back up, etc. That is not what we were talking about. This is completely different, this is all of the above and then some, with the stitching not being stitched up anymore. Doofus.

I then burst into tears with no pants on and my legs still up in the air. the thought of more surgery is abhorrent, but I don't see how DH and I would be able to succesfully have sex with my fifi in its present condition, so how is that "fixed" or "healed"?? And how the frig would I be able to get pregnant, if I can't have sex? Not being able to have sex is not ok with me. Nor is not being able to have further children.

I was awfully distracted the following day at work, kept on crying, and was all in all a mess (which was even more awful because people at work don't know what's going on - just that there were complications with the birth, and I've been having Drs appointments, etc).

Long story short, it dawned on me that the Ob that I saw was the Ob who burned me quite badly because it hadn't occured to him that putting a dressing over the spot where he'd just cauterised granular tissue might be a good idea ... so believing him blindly instead of the specialist surgeon who did my operation might not be too logical ... and even being upset about his opinion might be a waste of emotional energy.

So today, I paged the surgeon, and just asked him outright - you told me this, the Ob told me that, what's going on please? The surgeon was not happy jan with the Ob, and all but called him an idiot, and confirmed that I would continue healing over the next 3 or so months, and that while further surgery was always a possibility, that is not something we'd be looking at anytime soon - because it hasn't finished healing. And he said that *any* doctor should know that.

So I am feeling somewhat better, and somewhat relieved.

I am still however very unhappy with the hospital, my care in general, the obs who "took care" of me, some of the midwives (like the one who told me not to bother coming into the hospital until my contractions were regular to the second and had been that way for 1-2 hours) and the junior surgeon who accidentally cut me and didn't tell me or apologise for it. And the ward clerk who took away my lunch when I *told* her I was going to eat it, and said she'd being me something fresh and never did, despite the fact that I was breastfeeding and couldn't go and get myself something to eat or drink.

Might sound petty, but I'm at the end of my rope and I've had enough.

Ah, this was a bit long. Sorry.

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Crumpet - hang in there hun!!! NO MORE MACCAS RUNS!!!!!! :) Legs up and enjoy the crappiness of daytime telly!!!!

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im trying to avoid maccas im getting there!!
pretty much over the crap day time telly now!! :lol:

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Crumpet OMG thinking of you...Hang in there baby.....If only you had McDelivery :)

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thanks hun, doing well!
oh god if only we did have mcdelivery!
id be in heaven!! :rofl:

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crumpet - legs up, baby in and plenty of rest! :pray: for you, that wormette is growing delightfully and will be in your arms soon ... but not too soon! let's impress those Drs with the fantastic results of their stitches ...
Might sound petty, but I'm at the end of my rope and I've had enough.

Ah, this was a bit long. Sorry.

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thanks hun, im resting up, am to tired to do anything else now! :lol:

oh hun one could blame you for being at the end of your rope, you have been through one hell of a time, i for one cant send enough squishy :hug:'s your way, i know it doesnt fix things i hope it makes u feel a bit better though...

just had another appt with the OB and he is really happy, especially seeing things have settled a lot since last week, he thinks ill hit 34 but not much more than that.
that suits me just fine, 3-4 more weeks i can manage i think!

Hi everyone...reading when I can but life witha 20 month old and 5 month old is crazy as usual! Feeling heaps better and like I've 'surfaced' :)

Big hugs to everyone...and tummy rubs to crumpet...hang in there hun!

Exxx

Peanutter: Super big cyber :hug: to you hun. You are truely inspirational how you are dealing with all of your medical problems, working and being a wonderful mother to Joshua all at the same time. You deserve a huge pat on the back for holding up as well are you are. I hope that everything is on the up and up for you and you are able to look towards a positive future that includes being able to dtd and have more children.

Crumpet: Hang in there little wormette.

Peta: I hope the helmet works for little Alyssa's head. I noticed quite early on that Deacon favoured holding his head to the left side and luckily it was picked up early enough that it was easily fixed. It also helped that as part of the mothers group held by the CHN's they had a physio do a session on baby exercises and things to look out for. She gave me some good advice and simple little exercises to do as Deacon had a slight torticolis (sp?). He's good now and doesn't favour any side in particular and his little flat spot has rounded back into shape nicely. Glad to hear you have your day care all sorted out.

I feel exactly the same way that you do on both the info about looking after a LO once your home and the change in relationship with DH. Our biggest downfall is that we don't have any family close by to call on. All of my family live 7 hours away and DH's are 5 hours. We also only have a handful of people we would trust to look after Deacon and we don't want to put anyone out by having to ask them to come to our place to look after him. What to do, what to do......

Doodlebug: I missed the NN garage sale. Coz it was on WA time, I was in bed before it started.... :rolleyes: Glad to hear 'Phil' is great. I'm starting Deacon on BLS too and he loves it.

Yules: Hope you had a lovely time in Thailand and your move back to Oz is smooth-sailing.

Ellie: Glad to hear you are feeling better.

:hello: Holly, MT, Miskilla, Sunshine and anyone I've missed.

AFM: Thank you for all your healing vibes for Deacon. He managed to get better in just a couple of days. Pity the same can't be said for me... I still have a bit of a cough that I just can't seem to shake.

As I mentioned, I've started Deacon on BLS. So far he's had some steamed carrot (I've since discovered it comes out the bottom end the way it goes in at the top....), watermelon and thick rice cereal that he had an absolute ball playing with. I've ordered a copy of Baby-Led Weaning and can't wait to read it. I want to have a read of that before I proceed too much further. I'm really just stumbling my way through at the moment..... Looking at giving steamed sweet potato a try tonight. I went to a solids info session held by one of the CHN's and it was all on mash/puree etc. The first night I tried rice cereal with Deacon, not really knowing too much about BLS and Mr Independent wouldn't have a bar of me feeding him with a spoon, he wanted to do it himself!!! With that I thought he would be best off going the BLS way and he loves it. He thinks it's great feeling/playing/gumming his food. Just as much gets spat back out as what goes down, but that's the fun of it :)

We just had the biggest storm come through. Thunder, lightning, heavy rain and Deacon slept straight through it all. He definately sleeps more like DH than me, which I'm glad about ;)

Deacon is getting much better at his sitting. He sat all on his own yesterday afternoon for about a minute. It was so funny coz he was balancing himself by holding one foot while he held his rattle in his other hand. He also corrected himself from tipping over twice, which was good. I had him on his tummy with a towel under him (tip from physio to help with arm strength) and he lifted his bum up and bought his knees up under him :o Won't be too much longer and our LO's will be scooting around on the floor, how exciting!!!!

Take care xo

Hey Girls

Just a message to say I'll be MIA from now....packing, paperwork, organising.....stressed! I'm back in Perth on Sunday so will be back Monday with any luck :) Oh and got Darcie weighed today 6560g, 62cm long! YAY she's so little!

Love to all xx

Hi Ladies

Peanutter I wish I could come give you a big hug, obviously I can't, but all of my positive thoughts are with you. I would have snapped long before now. Really, doctors must think we're dumb sometimes.

Yules - happy packing!

Giggles - sounds like Deacon is having fun with his food which is good. Alyssa certainly has a bit of an appetite, but brekkie is still a bit of a circus. She'll have a 180ml bottle easy (but not if its filled to 230ml), and then sometimes she will have about 60g food (puree) but other times she mucks around so much that I just give up & figure she can wait till her next bottle. Lunch & Dinner are no problems at all and she eats 110grams a go at each of them! Little rat!!

So, update on paediatrician, he looked at Alyssa's head and advised that he would not go for the helmet. He doesn't feel it is that bad and apparently kids heads grow till they're 15!! He gave us the name of where to get a helmet should we choose to but he said he wouldn't do it for his own child. To me that was good enough not to. He said there is so much contradictory evidence out there about whether they even do any good. I told him all the things we have been actively doing to try to fix it ourselves and he said that it was perfect and if we kept at it, her head would fill in over time. Plus once she gets hair it won't be as noticeable. So, feeling calmer about that situation.

Swimming went great today. Big smiles the whole time & there was another little girl & her mummy in our class today so that was nice.

Not much else happening. Hope you all have a win on the Cup tommorrow, we're off to my work for a lunch/all day party & might drop into DH work too. Till then xo

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Deacon is getting much better at his sitting. He sat all on his own yesterday afternoon for about a minute. It was so funny coz he was balancing himself by holding one foot while he held his rattle in his other hand.

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naaaaaaaaa, sounds like the cutest thing ever!!!

and ellie - hello!!! :hello: so nice to hear from you :D

Hi Girls,
I know it has been a VERY long time since i've been in here. I'm been MIA for a while with only one computer here but also since we'lve been having issues with Miss S. She has been VERY full on and VERY demanding and not sleeping to the point she has had me stressed and in tears more often than not.
We have given her some solids at night time and she seems to be enjoying them. Her eyes move around looking for it.
Back at wk 4 days now, have been for a week - all going well so far, fingers crossed it continues that way.
I will sit down and try and catch up on everyones post - i'm very sorry for no personals.
Hope everyone is well. xx

great to hear from you sunshine!

FX that Miss S settles down nicely, and learns how wonderful sleep is, soon :hug:

Hi Ladies

Wow Sunshine, it sounds like you have your hands full & working too. I am dreading January when I go back to work. I know I have everything in place & childcare is good for kids (especially only children), but I just want to stay at home with my little girl. I have been doing some casual work the last week & taking Alyssa with me. It is not the best set up & I get quite worried about the rest of the staff being annoyed by her crying. Luckily I can now do some stuff from home, so that should be a little easier.

Well I got a very cool pressie today for my birthday. DH gave me a drive in a rally car (I think its 8 laps on a circuit)! Should be a blast. Would have been nice just to have the day off being a mum & spend some time re-finding me, but I guess that's the life of a mum. Have had a huge weekend, lunch out yesterday, friends for dinner last night, then lunch out today with the family. Poor little Alyssa is very worn out though refuses to acknowledge it, but she is in bed now for the night. It is really muggy here tonight, summer must be coming finally.

Any hints on stroller shopping, I think what I'm looking for doesn't exist - an umbrella fold, well built, has a food tray thing at the front & somewhere for my drink bottle at the back, able to travel on a plane....... I think what I want is bigger than a stroller........ Any suggestions on brands or models?

Have a good one & speak soon. xo

I"m back!

Back later.....I actually have to learn this juggling two kids thing without any help! It's like having a newborn again!

it's been so quiet!

is everyone busy, or are we all just going sublimely well??

Kinda crap over here. Logan still doesn't sleep much during the day, I know he sleeps extremely well overnight and I am grateful but what I wouldn't give at the moment for an hours peace during the day!!!!!! I have had a positive though, he finally took a bottle for the first time yesterday. Dh gave it to him while I was out of the house, he guzzled it all! There's hope for me getting a break after all!!!!

How are the rest of you ladies doing?

Hi Girls :D

Wondering if you remember me as it's been so long since I was in last :lol:

I've been reading but every time I seem to sit to write a decent sized post, someone needs me for something :rofl:

It's waaaay too hard to do personals, so just want to say Peta, hoping everything with Aly's little head is fixed asap for her xxx

Peanutter... I'm with the other girls, I think you're an inspiration with everything you've been through. Amazing :hug:

Sunshine... Hoping both girls settle for you and you get some much deserved rest soon :hug:

Big hi hi hi to everyone else!

As for me, this household over the last month has become insane!
Not sure if I've mentioned in here before (but definately have over general bellybelly!) but DH's 17yr old brother has lived with us full-time for the last 2yrs and worked for us... Well after saving him & giving him a 2nd chance at life 2yrs ago, he has shown his gratitude and appreciation by going MIA for the last 6 weeks.
Didn't show up for work or home at all, poor DH has been a mess... Having to find out from staff where he is and what he's doing.
So to cut a long story short, he's just been doing as he pleases and hanging out at his girlfriends house, so DH had to fire him from work... And I found out he's been paying his GF mum board to stay up there, so I asked him to move out of here as well.
Huge month of emotional rollercoaster here, but we've done more than enough to get him back on track... And it's time for us to have our family, home & life back again!
I'm loving it as we haven't had a night since Carmelo was born (or for years previous to that) without someone else living with us (other people over the years before BIL) so it is AMAZING just having us living here!
It's incredible how simpler the household seems without teenagers in and out continuously as well. Add the fact that my grocery bills are about a third of the amount... Happy days :)

In bubby news, Carmelo was 6 months last Saturday! My goodness, where does the time go?!
I've started him on BLS with a bit of puree (mostly cereal and mashed potato with the puree, but lots of stuff with the BLS) as he likes to play more than feed himself, lol!
He's loving the food, and hasn't affected his BF (except for his sleeping overnight) so I'm thrilled. Selfishly I was worried about him dropping BF and I think I love it more than him, so I'm glad he still wants it just as much.
He's struggling a little with constipation, but hoping his little body works it out soon.

He's trying hard with his sitting... But so far the longest he's sat is about 10 seconds before he sees something like a toy etc and makes a dive for it, lol! All will happen in good time I'm sure!

We almost have a tooth, if not 2 so we've had a few horrid nights, but overall he's doing great.

I am so so ready to be pregnant again... But seeing as how it's $6500 a try for us, we need to save some more cash before then!!!

I'm LOVING not working, and DH and I plan for me not to go back... Luke starts high school after Christmas, and his current workload for homework is huge, so I want to be here full-time for him next year.
Piano teaching unfortunately is not good hours for kids when you have a husband that works nights and no family close by!
Add tutoring, swimming & soccer training etc on top of that, I don't see where I can fit a piano lesson in anyway! DH & I both agree one of us needs to be here for the homework/night routine and TBH I have no inclination at all to go back. If financially everything stays good, I'll stay at home permanently and we'll try from June next year with another IVF cycle.

I'm sure I've forgotten heaps, but I guess that's a huge enough post for now!!!

Hoping everyone is well xxx

Hi Holly!!!!

Glad to hear things have settled down in your house and you guys are getting some 'family' time with your new little bubba!

June is about when we'll be trying again too... same situation... need to save the cash first!

Awesome to hear from you! :)

Hi Ladies

Holly great to hear from you. Sure has been a crazy time in your house, but now it seems like everything has settled very well.

Yules, are you glad to be back in Aus? I guess you might be living out of a suitcase or two until you go OS again - that would suck.

Peanutter how are you? I hope you are not working too hard and are starting to feel a bit more like yourself.

Doodlebug (I have to write the bug part else I feel rude!), isn't it a nice feeling to know someone else can look after LO if need be? In saying that, I think my DH has only done less than 10 bottles ever and he hasn't done any of the food feeds....... Oh well.

All good here. Have been feeling a bit down and not coping so well again this week. But as long as I keep busy its ok. Went to lunch with Mum & Dad today. They are so loving being grandparents! Ok, well best go for now. Catch up soon xo.

Hi Girls :D

Just a quick hi to bump the thread... It's quiet in here and I have time for the first time in ages :lol:

Nothing new to report here, trying more and more different foods with Carmelo's solids, he seems to love anything I feed him, lol!

I can't remember with Luke what the time frame was from when I started with the two solid meals a day?!

He doesn't seem to be suffering on the one meal though! One meal plus bits and pieces of BLS (although not sure how much of that he's actually swallowing!)

For the cloth users, what are your fave brands? I'm thinking about getting some customs done and thought I'd try someone new. I always get Bonnibuns but her custom waiting list is huuuuge, so thought it was a good opportunity to try a new one!

Also looking at starting Zumba with my cousin this week in the attempt to drop some baby weight! It sounds fun so we'll see how I go!

Big hi to everyone! :D

Hi Ladies

HB I too am looking to do some Zumba. It kind of doesn't look like exercise which is why i like it (well like the look of it). Two of my best girfriends gave me a couple of lessons for my birthday so we'll all go together soon.

What a crazy morning we had today. Alyssa has just zonked after missing her morning nap & then having swimming lessons. She isn't drinking much at the moment which makes me worry with the weather being a bit warm, but i guess she has what she needs.

i forgot what i was going to say. That happens all the time now, and i used to have such a brilliant memory. Anyway, enjoy the rest of your day & we'll speak soon.

Hi Ladies
all very quiet in here. Not much happening here. Alyssa is beginning to rock & roll like mad on the floor & she is trying to put together crawling I think. She keeps tucking her legs up & getting her front right up, but just can't do both actions at once!! I think it's driving her mad. She is sleeping even less during the day now its warming up & has been going to sleep at about 530pm at night & waking up about 430am. She had her first lot of watered down juice today & seemed to love it. Not so keen on the milk at the moment still with the warmer weather, but getting into more water.
Peanutter I hope you are going well & continuing to improve.
Yules are you enjoying being home / back in oz?
Doodlebug, Giggles & HB - big hello's.
Come back ladies, I miss catching up on your news!! Take care xo.

hello everyone!

we're travelling ok - I had a bit of an upset this week, when DS got weighed and seems to have lost weight ... so onto formula it was, and starting solids too. still having the same amount of boobyjuice - just changing his routine to a 3hr one (from 4hr) to include a formula feed during the day, and then at dinnertime, we have him on our lap and let him nom a bit of whatever we're eating. he obviously doesn't swallow much, but we're doing baby led weaning, and there's time.

I was really terribly upset about the weight loss, and not being able to feed him exclusively for 6 months - it was this enormous goal I'd given myself, to show that despite everything that's happened, and being at work etc, I can still be a great mum and nourish my little boy, etc ... and then after the surgery my supply has been decreasing, and now he's lost weight and it just felt like one more thing has been stolen from me ...

I'm trying to tell myself that 6 months is just a number, and yes, it's what is best, but all the thousands of babies whose mummies haven't been able (or have chosen not) to breastfeed exclusively are all still able to be happy and healthy and thriving ... please don't take this as judgment of people who haven't - it's just that I wanted to and now I can't, not because of anything I have or haven't done ... just more negative results from this stupid birth injury.

Joshua has continued blithely along however, and while I'm not sure that he likes formula, he drinks it fine and he has happily played with different foods the last few nights, so :pray: DH can get him in for a weigh next week, and there will be a significant improvement.

All that being said, DS has actually grown longer (1.5cm) and his head circumference has increased (2mm) so it might just be that he's going to be a lean baby. which I gather DH was.

I would like to officially request the rest of my life OFF the emotional rollercoaster, please.

Other than all that, work is fine, DS is fine. No movement on the milestones (rolling, sitting, teeth, etc) but it's not a competition. he's happy and sleeps well, and other than the weight loss, is perfectly healthy.

I hope you're all well, too!!!

yules - from another thread, was the kissy-poo in melbourne?? my second kissing episode involved unbelievably hot twins at the ice skating rink ... :o

Hi Girls

Sorry I've been MIA a bit. I attempted a post here the other night but it disappeared on me...grrrrrr! Gave up after that.

Won't do personals...Just a general HELLO to Holly, Shaz, Peanutter, Peta and anyone else I've missed.

DH just got back from Jersey...and said that I'll love it there. I can't wait...getting excited now. Just want to get off the ride of living in Limboland. Just like you Peanutter about getting off the emotional rollercoaster. Maybe you should change your username to EMO! LOL! :)

It's been nice being back in Aus...Max has so much fun. But he's been getting up at between 5am and 6am. Not happy! He still doesn't have a nap coz there is always so much fun to be had....so he's exhaused and cranky by the end of the day. But he crashes out by 7pm...as does Darcie so it makes for a relaxing evening. As long as I don't have to watch Mum's UK Murder Mystery shows...Gah!

We have a 3 year old Birthday Party this morning. Can't wait. Get to see all my MG friends. I miss them! Playing at the park, then taking Maxy up to DH's best friends place to be babysat for the weekend so Mum, Sis & I can do a clean up for the junk collection which starts on Monday. There is a neverending load of work going on at this house. I am the Bossy one of the family, so nothing ever gets done when I'm not around!

Darcie is going really well. She did LOADS of high pitched screaming when we first got here, then I started feeding her solids and now she's stopped. Poor little love must have been hungry! I'm doing a bit of BLS too, and she's munched on broccoli, zucchini, cruskits (thanks Doodlebug!) and her fave so far....Risotto! I have given her some pureed stuff from packets (rafferty's garden and the like) but she prefers to handle things herself. Bit hard though when she's too little for the high chair! She can't reach the tray! She is sitting like a trooper, and reaching out for things. She rolls and wriggles and then gets her feet under her instead of her knees, which then causes a face plant....but she's happy! She is still totally smitten by Max....he is the only one that makes her giggle! It's priceless!

Well that's it from me, gotta play Cars! It's only just gone 7am too.....sigh!

Hi Ladies
So nice to hear from you.
Peanutter. Don't feel bad about Joshua's new food. You have done a bloody brilliant job and have triumphed through adversity. Joshua will continue to grow and be healthy and will enjoy all the new tastes.
Yules, sounds like Darcie is doing similar things to Alyssa at the moment with the rolling forward & knees stuck underneath. Alyssa has just learnt how to play peek-a-boo by lifting a wrap and holding it over her face (while sitting) then pulling it down with a big grin.
Had a lovely day yesterday with Alyssa's 2 cousins here for lunch. She loves watching them & laughing at them.
Anyway, its pretty much bath time for the LO so I best get that going. Speak soon. xo

Hi everyone! I feel like I am premanently MIA lol! Sorry for no personals...I have read though :)

PND much better and really enjoying the girls so much more...and all I can think about is having another baby...CRAZY or what!?@!

DD2 is loving her food...just rice cereal pumkin, potato, sweet potato and apple and pear so far. She's still waking some nights around 2am and then an early morning feed around 4am...last night I was a big meany and just stuck the dummy in at 2am and said goodnight again! She grizzled for a bit then didn't hear from her till 4 :) Time for some tough love maybe heheheh! Moving around heaps and she looks like she could crawl anyday....developing so much faster than DD1 which I think is due to her watching DD1 all day :)

Anyway...back to the land of busy mum stuff...lots of love to mumma's and bubba's xxx

Hi ladies!

Sharon I hear ya on the daytime, I just wish I could put Z down for a bit to get things done! He wants to be held all the time and I cant bear to let him cry!

Holly- I have never got any customs so far... but the nappies in our house include itti bitti, BBH, Bubblebubs, Cute Tooshies, Cushie Tushies, Bum Cheeks, Cheeky Butts, think that's it... But I have just started making some. I got a big order of funky fabrics and Im having a BLAST! I also bought a snap press from Snaps Australia and a gazillion different coloured snaps! Just made Zarlen a xmas nappy! I found some awesome Care Bears & Sesame Street fabric. Strawberry shortcake too but too girly for Zarlen! I would love a girl one day hehe.

Hi to everyone else!

We are doind well here, Zarlen loves his solids. We tried the whole BLS but he didnt seem keen. He was fully keen to get the food but would choke and carry on when the food got into his mouth! Scared me so I decided to go with puree and he seems very happy with that. I gave him a bit of sweet potato, carrot & broccoli (over a week) and he got really constipated and didnt do number 2's for 5 days!!!!!!! When he finally went he cried and it was really quite hard, it was terrible I was bawling along with him!! =( It took him a week to finally get rid of it all. So we went off the solids for a number of days and have now given him steamed apple & pears. Im really quite scared to give him the full solids again after going through that issue! Im so confused as to why it even happened =(

Apart from that he is doing great, he is about 7.4kg now (I think) still breastfeeding happily. Had his first bottle of formula last weekend so I could have a couple of drinks, which was awesome! Sleeps all through the night normally.

New issue that we have though.... I discovered the lineup for Soundwave is AMAZING and we simply HAVE to go!!!! It is in March and Z will be 9.5months old. We have never ever left him with anyone before for any amount of tme. Even if we wanted to he would not cope with it well, he is a complete mummies boy and will not settle for anyone but Tas & I. So now we need to start easing him into some time with Nanny (Tasmans mum) so she can have him for the whole day & late into the evening. We are stressing about it already!

I have been sewing alot lately which has been fun. Making skirts & nappies for little Zarlen! Better go, I've got our new solar hot water system installed today, YAY! And solar panels in a few weeks! Better help the bills!

Take care xxxx

Hey everyone

Where are you all!!

I've been keeping busy....trying to stay off the computer and not check my emails and then have more 'work' to do for these UK Visas! I've finally got the company doing the work for me, which is what it should have been in the first place....anyhoo!

How are everyones LO's? Darcie is growing so quick. Getting her weighed tomorrow. I got her ears pierced on Saturday.....so cute! Bit of a family tradition from the Spanish side of the family. She too is hoeing into the solids...and same as you Miskilla, she was doing BLS but I find I get a bit more in with the pureed stuff. I haven't made anything coz all my containers etc are in Singapore waiting to be packed, so just using packets at the moment. She loves it though. I'm not really introducing things slowly though...just going mad. Occasionally I'll give her more solid things....like she had some capsicum the other day, and some fish (she LOVED that!) and she loves a cheesymite scroll from Bakers Delight! (usually the bit Max doesn't want)...she doesn't choke too much! Definitely a natural when it comes to food!

Peta I tried to get Darcie to do her own peek-a-boo the other day with her blanket thingy, but she is more intersted when Max is playing with her.
Ellie Glad to hear your PND is under control. It must be so awful to go through that. It's nice to hear that you are now more able to enjoy your girls more :)
Miskilla Hey what did you win for the Itti Bitti comp on FB? That pic of Z was so adorable! Who playing at Soundwave? I'm so out of touch with music...that makes me sad! I'm sure Z will get used to Nanny the more time he spends with her. Take it easy and do it at your own pace though....don't let him pick up on your stress.

How is everyone else going....Peanutter you especially?

x

Hi Yules... wow Darcie is eating alot! Im just afraid to give Zarlen too much incase he gets constipated again. He did chew on a piece of capsicum the other day at my SIL 21st. In the itti bitti comp he won a jade tutto, a peppermint snap in one, a lime green all in one and a lime green wet bag. Very cool. The only thing I find with itti bitt's are, they are not as good for a pooplosion. And he is already in the large size, still fits M but barely! So I'm wondering if they will last through the years size wise.
Soundwave! We wanna see Millencolin, pennywise, Mayday Parade, Never Shout Never, New Found Glory, Sum 41, Oueens Of The Stone Age, Thirty Seconds To Mars, The Starting Line, Mxpx, loads more... it's an awesome lineup this year!

Just a question.. how much are you guys feeding your bubs? Solids wise I mean.... Zarlen is in love with it and he cracks it when the food has run out or I take it away. I dont want to gove him too much cos what goes in must come out and I dont want it to hurt him. I have just been giving him about 3-4tablespoons but he wants more hehe. Im gonna try making homemade rusks today and see how they go.

As for milestones.... Zen can sit up but that's it. Nowhere near moving, my friends bub who is 5weeks younger just started crawling (feel sorry for her hehe) and Zarlen just sits & stares at him hehe he is lazy our boy I think. Im happy with that, Jeremy was on the go so early and was always in such a hurry to grow up so Im enjoying the fact that Z is staying a baby for longer.

Hi to everyone, hope you are all well xx

Hi Ladies

Miskilla I am embarressed to say I have never heard of any of those bands/groups you mention......I think that's a sign I'm getting older (read boring). As far as solids go, Alyssa has between 200 & 330 grams of pureed stuff per day. That is usually a mix of fruits, veges, custards & cereals. She loves it. She still has about 800mls of Formula too. She has started self-feeding, which is messy but a surprisingly large amount ends up in her mouth still. I just got a book by Annabel Karmel with a whole heap of pureed recipes so will be trying some soon (some I have already been doing by myself anyway).

Yules how are you?

Peanutter how are you?

Is anyone else's LO standing up (assisted)? Alyssa is doing that now & yesterday, using her legs pushed herself to a standing position from sitting on my crossed legs on the floor. I was amazed, then quickly wrapped my arms round in a cocoon in case she fell. She did get the wobbles as soon as she realised she was on her own. I think she surprised herself! She loves standing against her activity table and playing music and stuff on it. We are so amazed at her progress.

The rain is pouring here again today. Was the first on the scene at a truck accident on the highway yesterday. The driver walked away, but it has shaken me up a bit more than I thought at the time. Just the speed it happened and then afterthoughts of what if's.

Ok best go, Alyssa is getting cranky at the girl in the mirror again! xo

Hi girls!!!

I'm here! Just been easier to read quickly than actually post lately. Damn the end of year, my big kid has turned FERAL!!! Think it's just too much excitement for Christmas and worn out from kindy. He's spend more time in time out the past 2 weeks than he has all year!!!! Oh well.......

Peta - Logan has only just started in the last few weeks bearing weight on his legs, Yay! Before that he'd just collapse on them. haha! Think his generous size (read FAT) might have somethign to do with it! He was 8.2kg at the beginning of November and we've started solids since then so he's chunked up even more. I bought a summer jumpsuit for bed the other day and had to buy a size 1.... :( :( He's too little to be wearing size 1!!!!!

Miskilla - I also have no idea who you're talking about with those band names... hahaha! (Peta we can be old together!!!!) But it does sound like a lot of fun!

Ellie - glad you're feeling better hun!

Peanutter - how are your appts going re: your insides?

Yules - hi hun! Can't wait to see Darcies earrings! The pics look cute!

Holly - it was you on fb with the Grug nappy wasn't it? That one is soooo cute!!!! I want to get a cute one for Logan but don't know who to go through, if I'm going to pay for a custom I want to make sure the nappy is good and not just looks pretty! Make sense? Any recommendations?

Solids - we're doing a mix of baby led solids and mushy stuff. More so because in the morning I need breaky in him asap so I can get out the door to do school drop off and don't have the 20mins or more it takes for him to play with his food while eating bits. So we have porridge (spooned by me) and toast (sucked on) in the morning, lunch is usually cruskits (gets devoured in seconds!), veges (cucumber, capsicum, carrots, beans - these get gummed more than eaten) and some yoghurt, and we've just started dinner which is whatever we're having (chicken, veg and some mash the other night), followed by a custard. I swear if I didn't take the food away this boy would keep on eating!!! :o He's still having 4 breastfeeds a day plus half a formula bottle at night. No wonder he's so bloody big!!!! But by adding breaky and lunch, he's started to sleep during the daytime! Usually 1-1.5hrs at a time!!! Yay!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :dance:

Milestones - we don't really have any. No sitting, no rolling from back to tummy (can to tummy to back), will bear weight on his legs but not for long.. but he's lethal with a spoon, gets it straight in his mouth 9 times out of 10 and has really good hand eye co-ordination. He was holding a helium baloon on the weekend and swapping the ribbon from one hand to another without losing it.
James (ds1) was a bit later with his milestones so I'm not worried, he wasn't sitting unassisted until 9mts and crawling at 11.5mts. They'll get there when they're ready!

Better go, my time of peace is almost over, big kid has been waking around 6am lately with the sun.. poo to people in WA who voted no for daylight savings!!!! :wall:

Miskilla Yeah I gues Darcie is eating a lot. I really didn't bother introducing one thing at a time like I did with Max. I don't have time to do things the way I did with him....as I have him grumping it a fair bit in the last couple of weeks. Darcie eats at least half a pack of one of those squeezy purees (at a time....3 meals a day), plus yesterday she ate tonns of my risotto for dinner, and loves to munch on bread, cruskits, milk arrorwoot (omg how do you spell that!!). I really should be more careful with those high allergen foods though....but she seems OK at the moment. She too has been doing pellet poos....so I've made sure she has pear, and drinks lots (or as much as I can get into her) water. I usually just feed her till she lets me know she doesn't want any more....it's pretty obvious. That festival sounds like fun...but I've only heard a few of those bands...QOTSA, Pennywise and that's about it! I've been in such a musical bubble in the last few years. Of course I'm going to be when Max will only want to hear the Foo Fighters in the car!

Peta A is going well with her development it seems! Darcie can bear weight on her legs but doesn't get much of an opportunity to stand up against things coz well....we don't have anything for her at the moment! I'm sure she would give her the opportunity...she's a real mover! Especially in comparison to Relaxy Maxy. How scary being first on the scene at an accident. It sure makes you realise doesn't it.

Dooglebug Hopefully I'll see you on saturday. I hope to find some winter stuff! Gotta have something to survive in the snow they've had in Jersey! eeeeek! Logan isn't fat....he's a big boy though! All the more to cuddle I say! Max was the same. Oh and our big boys both sound as though they are cracking it in a major way! Yesterday I wanted to give up as his mother :(

Spoke to DH yesterday, he is on his way to jersey for a week. Poor guy is so exhausted from all his travel....and I'm exhausted from parenting on my own. Max keeps cracking it coz he misses his daddy....and not to mention he's gone cold turkey by throwing his dummies in the bin. Tough gig! Just can't WAIT to be settled again! BRING IT ON!!

Hope everyone is well Peanutter didn't you have an appointment with your surgeon?

quick post, will catch up on reading and proper posting in a few ...


I saw the surgeon yesterday, and it was good news, and a big answer to prayer :pray:

I've healed quite a lot - there was a bunch of granular tissue and a weird little pocket which he cauterised away, but the surgeon thinks it will heal further.

And in the short term, he said that swimming, all exercise, all foods, and *SEX* are all back on the menu!

I again asked a bunch of questions, and the surgeon answered them all calmly and completely, making sure I understood things.

So yeah, a huge answer to prayer ... thanks for the follow up, ladies

:dance::dance::dance::dance::dance::dance:

Woo Hoo Peanutter!!! :hug:

Now...quick question....do your babes cry tears? Darcie doesn't....is that weird!? Should the tear ducts kicked in by now?

yules - thanks for the best wishes ...

and re tears - yes, real tears, but not often. no apparent rhyme or reason to it.

peta - thanks, hun. I've been going out of my head about the whole formula/food/not 6 months yet thing, and I'm not sure it's rational ... maybe it's all just stress from the fistula, the operation, etc, and it's coming out in the whole eating thing at the moment ... DH keeps telling me that six months is just a number and that it's great that we got as far as we have, but I feel like a terrible mother for not getting him to six months. And then I ask myself whether I think other mums who have gone to formula etc (before 6 months) are failures or bad mothers, and the immedate answer is no, of course not. Then I try to analyse why I think I'm any different, and I just end up in tears. I know it's not rational, but I can't help it. Not sure what to do about that...

And then I compare Josh's progress to other babies - he almost never rolls, no teeth up yet, he's not sitting - and I wonder whether his development has been delayed or hampered by my hospital time or me being so upset, or maybe bad milk etc, and I get all upset again ...

And then I think of how he's a very happy little man, and he goes through 5-7 nappies per day, feeds well (5 times per day), sleeps well and is alert ... but then I think that doesn't mean anything, and malnourished kids probably do all that too ... augh!

sorry about the ramble ...

but re assisted standing - Joshie does this too. And he loves standing and leaning against me, and BF that way! he looks up every now and then, proud and punch, grinning from ear to ear, and then latches on for more, and then does it all again ... so cute!

miskilla - we're doing infant led weaning, so we're just giving him bits of our meals ... usually only dinner, but trying to get into the habbit of doing it three meals per day! he doesn't eat much yet. a handful of mashed potato here, two or three faces full of avacado there, and then the most miniscule bit of bread of apple of whatever the next day! but the book says that it can take a couple of weeks for them to learn properly how to swallow, and to get the hang of their gag reflex. so we're just doing normal feeds, plus solids after his feeds.

and re sitting, Joshua just isn't interested! Unless he's in/on your lap, if you sit him up he's straight down and flips his legs from underneath him, to get onto his belly. he seems so close to crawling, it's scary!

Hey Girls

Darcies tears started! YAY! She got a cold though and her eyes were all watery and gross...but at least I know she has them! I thought she was broken!

Well we all have colds in this house! Gah! I have a really sore throat, Darcie had the sniffles, and Maxy has a cough. It's the biggest bummer ever!

What is everyone getting for the LO's this Christmas. I can easily think of things to get for Max, but Darcie, I have no idea. Is everyone else getting things? Or not really bothering? Darcie has loads of things of Maxy's to play with, but it's all on it's way to Jersey, but it would be nice to get her her own things too. WDYT? I have got a couple of books, but she just wants to attack them!

Peanutter Josh sounds just like Max....too relaxed for his own good. Didn't teethe till 8 months, sat, but did NOTHING ELSE. I thought I was going to be bringing him beers under his mobile on his 21st birthday....but alas...that did not happen! Instead I'm up at 4:45am with him of a morning and expected to help him build imaginary houses, and ride on his digger with him!. Remember, nothing is by the book...I'm POSITIVE that Josh's development has not been hampered in any way.

C'mon girls...get back in here...we're still on thread #1!

Sorry I've been MIA for a while. I get to read where you are all up to and then get called away......

Peanutter: Yay to your good news surgery wise. That is fantastic :dance: I wouldn't worry about Josh's development. All kids are different. As long as he is happy he will progress in his own little way. You are doing a fabulous job and are handling all the hurdles that have been thrown your way with tremendous strength.

Yules: Deacon only has tears fall from his darling little eyes when he has a genuine cry when something has frightened him. Makes my heart break :cry: Boo to your colds. I hate them!!!! Hope you all get better quickly.

Doodlebug: Go Logan!!!! Wanna send him over here to teach Deacon what to do with food.... All he does is want to smoosh it all over the high chair tray :doh:

Peta: That's great that Alyssa is standing. I haven't tried Deacon with standing while holding onto something other than us. He loves to stand while we are holding his hands and he has this little dance he does most days too when there is a catchy song on the radio. So cute. That must've been scary being the first one to an accident.

Miskilla: Geez, I only know a couple of those bands. That's the problem with living in a small country town, the local radio station only plays the top 40 songs and not much variety. I mostly end up putting a cd on or live stream a radio station through our computer. Z's photo was gorgeous.

Gotta go. Deacon's just woken up and is sounding upset. BBL for more persies.

...sneaks in feeling a little guilty for not posting for AGES....

Hope you are all well.
I'm back at work now so not allot of time to write big long posts and i'm way too tired to get it down at night. working 4 days and being a mummy/wife/housecleaner etc etc is hard! I am in awe of how people do it with more!!

Sheriden is now sitting pretty much on her own. She is a really long bubba and is getting to long for her carset to be in a reverse setting - so will have to look at changing it - her legs are cramped..
She's loving her solids and crys if you take it away from her. I'm still feeding at night (anywhere up to 5 tims a night :( ) but she is having EBM and formula during the day. She's not a fan of sleeping (as those on my FB will know...) I'm sure I did something really bad in a past life and karma is coming back to bite me....
We are still co sleeping most of the time - which is fine - if she was sleeping...not playing...
I've started both her and Jorja on some brauer sleep stuff because I'm exhausted with Sheriden not sleeping and Jorja not going to bed till late and still waking - i'm trying anything and everything I can. I have spoken to tresillian who told me that i need to make sure i use the same routine, try wrapping/not wrapping her, music in the room - you know all the usual stuff they tell you.

Other than that thats all i have time for. Not much else to report.
I have read through most :hide: of the posts and sounds like overall everyone is doing well. I will try and get in here to post more often, but i can't promise it...

Big :hug: to everyone and again i'm sorry i haven't been around. xxx

False alarm, he must've just been changing sleep cycles.

Sunshine: I hope you are able to get Miss J & Miss S settled into sleeping at night soon. You are a trooper for handling all of that. I don't know what I would do if Deacon didn't sleep well at night. We turned Deacon's car seat around as soon as he hit the 6 month mark. But that was mostly because I was going on a 700km trip with him on my own and I wanted to be able to keep an eye on him properly while I was driving.

Ellie: Glad to hear your PND is getting better. DD2 sounds like she is going really well.

Big hello to Holly, MT, MO8 and anyone I've missed.

AFM: Deacon had his first little swim lesson today and LOVED it!!!!! He is a right little water baby like me. I've enrolled us to start proper swim/water familiarisation classes from Feb next year. He giggled and smiled the whole time (only time he looked a little bewildered was his first dunk under water but was fine after that) and the swim coach said he looks like he will take to swimming quite naturally.

Milestones: He is sitting all on his own and is having a ball banging/playing with his toy workbench. Rolling over lots and is well on his way to crawling. He holds his chest and tummy up or his bum on his knees, but not quite at the same time yet. Yesterday he was able to pull his right knee up under him and lift his right side off the floor momentarily too. Given his progress over the last couple of weeks, I think he may be crawling by the end of the month....... :o He loves to stand too and will kinda walk on the spot, albeit a little uncoordinated. He is definately going to keep us on our toes once he is mobile!!!

Solids: I'm only trying BLS at the moment and thinking I may have to do mash/puree as well. Fruit is fine as finger food, but steamed vegies are not going so well. Because he is going to be in day care in a months time ( :cry: ) I feel I need to try and get him going better on solids. He is definately a boobie boy, which is great by me while I'm not at work. DB what do you use to make up the porridge for Logan?? I'm in two minds about using part of my frozen EBM store to make some up as I want to have a fair bit available in case my supply dries up when I go back to work and have to express through the day.

We got a friend of mine to take some pro photos of Deacon last week and they turned out amazing (their on FB if you want to have a peek at them). He was such a smily happy boy all morning. Very impressed that he didn't start cracking up until after about 1 & 1/2 hours of photo taking!!!! He lasts longer than what I do.... :redface:

Chrissy presents: We've only bought Deacon 2 toy presents. He is going to get spoilt something shocking by my parents (their first grandchild) and we kinda figure that he is too young to really get into Christmas this year anyway. With how much fun he had tearing apart a Big W catalogue the other day I think he may have just as much fun with the wrapping paper as he would with what's inside anyway..... :ROFL:

Big :hug: to you all and hope you and your LO's are all safe and happy.

GM You can always mix some rice cereal into some pureed vege's. I used water and some veg the other day...just to give some texture. Like you I'm doing BLS but only randomly....I think they get more in with puree....plus Darcie can't reach the tray on her high chair yet to really get into it!!

Saw your FB Pics...they are great - but can I pick at one :hide:....the sheet has come up in the corner of one of the pics and you can see your DVD's in the background! Sorry...I just did a photography course! :D

Deacon sounds like he's growing up fast...and will be on the move soon! Poor Darcie doesn't have any carpet to roll around on here, so she is in our arms so much unfortunately! I am so looking forward to a house with some carpet!