MSE Parent Club - Part 2

galvanizersbaby

xcat_girlx wrote: »

i think i've watched so many friends go through problems with their partners etc during pregnancy, im wanting as little added stress as possible.

i've been thinking about the b/f and tbh im now thinking that given all the sickness, aching etc in pregnancy then ofc the actual giving birth bit, im guessing sore nipples etc are a doddle? its now more a case of seeing how other people cope with the problems of dad doing feeds!

There are so many things to take in to account when breastfeeding (I won't go in to it all here) but at lot of mum's don't find it a doddle - it can take patience and perservance and a lot of determination - I could breastfeed but I failed to be able to express any milk (I know I'm not alone on this one)
I don't think you should be worrying about the logistics of this now and wait and see how you get on when you've had the baby - and the same for you Mrs Tine x

galvanizersbaby

xcat_girlx wrote: »

at least she didnt go to the extreme my sister did when she didnt settle at school.........she hid my mams car keys and only found them 5 years later when we moved house:eek: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

poor kid forgot that you could walk it in 20 minutes.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: little monkey!

Dormouse

xcat_girlx wrote: »

i've been thinking about the b/f and tbh im now thinking that given all the sickness, aching etc in pregnancy then ofc the actual giving birth bit, im guessing sore nipples etc are a doddle? its now more a case of seeing how other people cope with the problems of dad doing feeds!

Not everyone gets sore nipples when they're BFing, although yes it takes a few days to get used to it. Some people find it more painful than others (a bit like childbirth - some people seem to breeze through it :eek:, others certainly don't think it's easy:rotfl: )

As for dads doing the feeds if the mum is BFing... A lot of people I know are very good at expressing so dads can give the baby a bottle.

Personally, I have never got on with the breast pump , so I fed the babies, it's as simple as that. I accepted that for the next 4 months or whatever, I will feed the baby, and just got on with it. Daddy got assigned other, less pleasant jobs.

And I know this will sound a bit Stepford wifeish, but DH had to get up to go to work every morning, and even though being a SAHM is as hard a job as anything else, I felt it would have been unfair to ask him to do the night feeds. As it was, BFing is so easy at night that it was a lot less hassle for me to do it than getting DH to do it.

BTW funny how dads want to help with the easy, cuddly tasks (feeding) but try and get them to do the more yucky ones (explosive nappies) and they're nowhere to be found! :rotfl:

daphne_descends

Ah, I have to give a bit of praise there Dormouse, my OH offers to do the really bad nappies :eek: when he is around I don't really change any at all, which just about makes up for those days where he (DS, not OH!) tries to poo as often as he can!

I agree about the work thing too and I'm about as far removed from a Steford wife as you could imagine - but OH earns the money that enabled me to take so much maternity leave. So he got uninterrupted sleep.

I got lie ins every weekend instead suits me fine - although not so much now DS is so active and LOUD I can't get back to sleep for love nor money these days listening to him walking the v-tech around (damn those wooden floorboards...)

Back to work now though! I have a hot chocolate and no little person to knock it over! Wish he was though

Baybee1984

Hey guys how is everyone today?
BS still happy going to school fulltime, so feeling good about that. I dread the day he wakes up and says he doesnt want to go ahh lol. But hes still enjoying it so all is good.
Still feel a bit bout the OH, but I guess time will tell!
Hope all mums and babies are well! xx

Becles

Who took my angel away and swopped her for a devil?

Had a busy morning - was cleaning the kitchen and it went quiet and I discovered her emptying the hall drawer and throwing hats and scarves everywhere. While I was picking them up, she decided to throw a newspaper around the sitting room. Then I had a bucket of soapy water to wash down the skirting boards in the sitting room, and while I was busy she tipped the bucket out on the floor, so the floor got a wash as well :rolleyes:

She's in her high chair supposidly eating an apple now, but she keeps giving pieces to the dog instead

SusanC_2

xcat_girlx wrote: »

Can anyone give me an average cost of what i would be looking to shell out on essentials for a baby both before giving birth, cot, pram, etc, and also per month afterwards?

We spent a total of £1539 up to Alice's first birthday which was more or less covered by child benefit and the maternity grant. This included ALL extra expenses related to having a baby including the extra we spent on food and electricity relative to before she was born (I have lots of spreadsheets). It also includes all baby expenses pre-birth such as maternity clothes. We spent £450 before she was born and the rest has been afterwards. We were given quite a few things but we have also spent on some things which aren't essential such as a bike seat and helmet so I can go cycling with Alice on the back of my bike and we didn't go for the cheapest travel cot because we wanted one which would fit in a tent when we go camping so we could have done it for less. I made a spreadsheet of what I thought we would need over the first year. Half the cost was these things and half were either things I hadn't thought of (such as birth certificate, breastmilk storage bags, maternity clothes etc.) or things which weren't essentials (such as Christmas/birthday presents, books, going swimming etc.) Also some things we bought a more expensive version because we thought it was better and we could afford it so we could have done things cheaper if we wanted.

On breastfeeding - I had very sore nipples and it took about a month before it stopped hurting at all. I can totally see why people give up in the first few weeks but once I got through that initial barrier it was easy and I'm still going 17 months later. And it's pregnancy - not breastfeeding - that can make your breasts go saggy. It's not like the babies literally dangle off your breast - they're not strong enough to hold on with their mouth!

SusanC_2

I'm worried that other people are going to think I'm some cleaning and tidying freak as Alice is always trying to clean/tidy these days. On Sunday afternoon we were at a friends house and her three and six year old were playing with playdough and ALice was picking up the bits of playdough they dropped on the floor and putting them back in one of the pots. I don't know where she gets it from.

xcat_girlx

SusanC wrote: »

We spent a total of £1539 up to Alice's first birthday which was more or less covered by child benefit and the maternity grant. This included ALL extra expenses related to having a baby including the extra we spent on food and electricity relative to before she was born (I have lots of spreadsheets). It also includes all baby expenses pre-birth such as maternity clothes. We spent £450 before she was born and the rest has been afterwards. We were given quite a few things but we have also spent on some things which aren't essential such as a bike seat and helmet so I can go cycling with Alice on the back of my bike and we didn't go for the cheapest travel cot because we wanted one which would fit in a tent when we go camping so we could have done it for less. I made a spreadsheet of what I thought we would need over the first year. Half the cost was these things and half were either things I hadn't thought of (such as birth certificate, breastmilk storage bags, maternity clothes etc.) or things which weren't essentials (such as Christmas/birthday presents, books, going swimming etc.) Also some things we bought a more expensive version because we thought it was better and we could afford it so we could have done things cheaper if we wanted.

brill thanks:T

im going to look at a few places for prices etc and make some spreadsheets etc. and you have to pay for a birth cert?!?!!?

xcat_girlx

SusanC wrote: »

I'm worried that other people are going to think I'm some cleaning and tidying freak as Alice is always trying to clean/tidy these days. On Sunday afternoon we were at a friends house and her three and six year old were playing with playdough and ALice was picking up the bits of playdough they dropped on the floor and putting them back in one of the pots. I don't know where she gets it from.

how old is your little 1? my goddaughter (20 months - it started when she was about 15 months)is going through the exact same thing. she chases round after you picking up the tiniest crumbs and insists you putting them in the bin if she cant reach it or something.