MSE Parent Club - Part 2

ladybirdintheuk

Caz, I'm sure Krystal will come and set us both right soon, but I read that when baby is having a growth spurt they often eat "little and often" to increase your milk supply - eating a bit every hour, rather a lot every 3 hours or whatever... Izzy was doing this last week, then had 2 very tired days where she grew. I dread to think how big she will be when I take her to be weighed on Thursday, but she is definitely filling up her babygrows more than she was a week or so ago!

ladybirdintheuk

Oh, and I think we have the beginnings of hand eye co-ordination - she seems to be actually reaching out for things now. clever baby :T

Krystaltips

Growth spurts are actually unproven... But it is known that babies to go through periods of frequent feeding at about the same time to up your milk supply... The most frequent ones are about 4-6 weeks and again at about 14-16 weeks (which is the one most often confused with needing to introduce solids)

Caz, if you're waiting until she's finished one side before trying her on the other then that's great, best way to carry on. If you think she's falling asleep before she's had enough, there's a technique you can try called breast compression. Linky to instructions on how to do it here... Followed the link to that from here and there are a couple of videos on it.

Gotta go, chinese just turned up

My_Fathers_Daughter

Hi all - we have had a lovely day, lots of smiles from Benjamin who seems to be comforted more and more by our voices rather than by cuddling or feeding...this is fantastic for hubby who is just coming around to the fact that Benjamin likes to be talked to all the time (well that's what I do!) and there is no need to be embarrassed about chattering carp to the baby!!


Probably a bad time to ask this but does anybody have any thoughts on giving a breastfed baby formula?
I am struggling to express much because Benjamin is so hungry (he gets there first lol)...I have been freezing what I can (2oz here and there) and hubby has been giving Benjamin the occasional bottle (which he takes to really well and happily comes back to the breast)

However...we are going out on Tuesday night for the first time, just for a meal so we will only be away for a few hours, but at some point in the not so distant future I would like to go out for a night and a few drinks so my mum will come and look after Benjamin. I think it may just be easier on me and on my mum if she can give ready made formula rather than fussing defrosting/warming breast milk in the night.


Long winded explanation...sorry! Any thoughts ladies?

Krystaltips

I am incredibly biased... But also supportive of personal choice... If you think, after looking at all the facts, formula is the way forward for you then by all means give it a try...

Aimee had 1 bottle of formula a night for a couple of months, but looking back I do wish I hadn't, and probably won't with this baby... I was shown this article a while back and it struck a cord.

Have you tried expressing from one side while he feeds from the other? Works especially well first thing in the morning...

My_Fathers_Daughter

Krystaltips wrote: »

I am incredibly biased... But also supportive of personal choice... If you think, after looking at all the facts, formula is the way forward for you then by all means give it a try...

Aimee had 1 bottle of formula a night for a couple of months, but looking back I do wish I hadn't, and probably won't with this baby... I was shown this article a while back and it struck a cord.

Have you tried expressing from one side while he feeds from the other? Works especially well first thing in the morning...

I am sure that it was you that said that it is easier to express whilst feeding so I have mastered the juggling and only express whilst feeding but I still can't manage much - 4oz is the most I have managed.

I will read the article, but can I ask why you wish you hadn't?

Lu_T

MFD - I had to mix-feed Imogen as I am self-employed and was back at work after 6 weeks doing 1 day a week, 3 days a week by the time she was 12 weeks old :eek:

I had tried expressing but just couldn't get enough out to stock up for 3 days' worth and wasn't always able to express while I was working at the times when she would have fed.

As Krystal said, it's a very personal decision but I don't think it will be the end of the world if you're giving formula for the odd night out. You're doing a wonderful job for your baby and you deserve a bit of time off. If that's what you've got to do to achieve it then it sounds like a fair swap to me.

BTW - I haven't read the article Krystal linked to, so don't know if I'd feel differently after reading it.

Had a rubbish day today arguing with OH. My hormones are all over so I'm not in the best place, but I just feel like he's not doing as much with Imogen as he could. It took me an hour to get her dressed for ballet yesterday morning - which was then cancelled :mad:. We'd had an awful night with her up every 45 mins for about 3 hours and, although he did his fair share of putting her back to bed, every time I got up the baby woke up and was disco dancing in my tummy, so it took forever to get back to sleep. He just doesn't seem to appreciate how tired I am and how nice it would be if I could have a bit of time to myself. I don't begrudge being with her and i know her being difficult is just a phase (every request is currently met with, "no" and the usual threats of, "We won't go to X" are met with, "I don't want to go to X anyway") but I'm so worn out and he doesn't seem to get it, even though I've said.

We've had a chat tonight and tried to sort something out, so hopefully it will get better. I'm just finding it so hard right now and am dreading when I've got two to wrestle with :sad:

Sorry for the rant. Just need to get it out of my system.

SeptemberBaby_2

My_Fathers_Daughter wrote: »

Hi all - we have had a lovely day, lots of smiles from Benjamin who seems to be comforted more and more by our voices rather than by cuddling or feeding...this is fantastic for hubby who is just coming around to the fact that Benjamin likes to be talked to all the time (well that's what I do!) and there is no need to be embarrassed about chattering carp to the baby!!

My babies always get a running commentary of every mundane task throughout the day! . I'm convinced if they could they would tell me to give them a break but I'm sure its good for their language skills (and I don't realise I'm doing it half the time! ).

xx

Krystaltips

My_Fathers_Daughter wrote: »

I will read the article, but can I ask why you wish you hadn't?

With some of the training I've had, and some of the people I know through the training.. I've more of an insight into formula manufacturers and their questionable practises which has made me extemely sceptical... Plus there is the formula itself, I know a lot of the ladies on this thread formula feed and I'm never going to say to someone that they are doing the wrong thing just because it is something I would not choose to do... But with Aimee I am extremely careful with what she eats, she very rarely eats processed foods, or sweets with high numbers of additives/colourings/sweeteners etc... So I check ingredient lists on things and can generally decipher what is in things... Have you ever looked at the ingredient list of a packet of formula? All these things are stuffed with ingredients that the companies claim are fantastical etc... But how do they obtain these ingredients? What chemical processes are followed to extract vitamins from things... And what chemical processes occur in tiny tummies once the formula is ingested? We know that follow on milk is absolutely stuffed with iron because the composition of it is not great for encouraging iron absorption into the body and so a lot is lost (cue constipated babies) the same can be said for all the other nutrients... The government sets out guidelines with minimum and maximum amounts of each vitamin/mineral that needs to be present in the formula and each company makes their own mix within these guidelines... But how do we know that babies aren't absorbing too much of one vitamin and not enough of another?

Excuse my bit of a ramble... Just me putting thoughts down, and like I said, I am never going to tell people what they should or shouldn't do, this is just how I feel...

cazscoob

Lu T have a *hug* i kind of know how you feel. have been up for the past few nights with erin do am like the walking dead and finding it hard to do anything never mind cope with 5 kids. hope things get easier for you soon xxx

we are constantly feeding again and think tiredness doesnt help, she more comfort feeds to go to sleep and then as soon as i take her off she screams, think she would be latched on 24/7. have left her for a while tonight crying as there is nothing wrong she has been fed and changed etc. well its bed time fingers crossed she will sleep.

MFD erin has had 2 bottles of aptimel milk as first time my sis had had baby and i wanted to see them and second i went for a meal with friends. OH gave her them and she wasnt too pleased but did take them, i personally think that it doesnt do any harm and mummys need a break sometimes:D