MSE Parent Club

[Deleted User]

Hello everyone,

Sorry i've not been about much lately, we've been so busy, got married on 14 April, had a long weekend in Oxford for a honeymoon and since being back we've been non stop.....until this weekend, when I got chicken pox, BADLY!

So I have come to a standstill and have been able to catch up with this thread.

Congrats to all the new mummies who have joined since my last post. Its so great but hard work eh?

I have a question. Our 5 month old boy, soon to be 6 months used to spend up to an hour crying before finally going off to sleep. For 6 weeks we perserved with the paediatricians advice and did controlled crying and the same routine every evening. Then we thought we had cracked him and he finally started going into his cot without all the crying rigmarole and would lie there happily and get himself off, even if it took 20 mins. This last week we have slipped back, he is doing the crying thing again and we don't know why. Nothing has changed, he hasn't got the pox yet, although we are on the lookout and his teeth still not through.

I feel its behavioural still, its a paddy to being put to bed or he's so tired he is grumpy. I even put him to bed a little earlier now, but still the same ting.

As a last resort over the last few nights we've resorted after 20 mins of him crying to giving him his dummy as he was on the verge of hysterics. It always calms him down and once asleep I take it out and he doesn't need it again. He then goes through until gone 7am.

Am I wrong in giving him his dummy to get to sleep when we didn't used to? I don't want to make a rod for our backs but it seems the little guy needs comfort. He already has his comfort things with him in his cot and they used to work.

Please advise as I appreciate the dummy route is too easy. We only use a dummy to calm him down when he is quite upset, its not our first course of action during the day.

I tried weaning him about 2 weeks ago, but he wasn't interested so intended to wait until he was 6 months. This week he hasn't even been finishing his feeds and doesn't seem overly hungry or that bothered. Especially first thing in the morning, when I would expect him to be really hungry.

Ruling out the possibility of chicken pox, what else can I do?

Many thanks,

Bay

PS during the day he is quite a happy little chappy and always smiling.

[Deleted User]

Also if anyone wants to see, here are some pics of the little man himself. They are a bit old now, probably taken when he was around 4 months.

http://picasaweb.google.com/jamilejf/JenJack/photo#5052628906809826482

Woby_Tide

Deleted_User wrote: »

As a last resort over the last few nights we've resorted after 20 mins of him crying to giving him his dummy as he was on the verge of hysterics. It always calms him down and once asleep I take it out and he doesn't need it again. He then goes through until gone 7am.

Am I wrong in giving him his dummy to get to sleep when we didn't used to? I don't want to make a rod for our backs but it seems the little guy needs comfort. He already has his comfort things with him in his cot and they used to work.

Please advise as I appreciate the dummy route is too easy. We only use a dummy to calm him down when he is quite upset, its not our first course of action during the day.

He certainly does look smiley. Personally I'd say it was horses for courses. From memory we went througha patch where ours wouldn't go to sleep without a dummy. 5 mins after dropping off though they'd lose teh dummy so we'd take it away to clean for next night etc and they'd never noticed. After a few weeks they didn't seem to spot. It could be some teeth movement, just not enough for you to see, but enough for them to feel.

purplepatch

Bailey - he's scrumptious! He's a proper boy if you know what I mean, me being used to only girl babies - you can really see the difference even though they are so young. Sorry, that probably just sounds daft! As for the dummy thing, I'm no expert but agree with woby-tide, you just need to do whatever works at the time. My LO will go off to sleep ok, but wakes up always once, sometimes twice a night for feeding. Wish I could find a solution to that :rolleyes:

I'd also say that the chickenpox thing is probably of significance as it's got such a long incubation period. I remember when DD1 got it, she was a bit unwell in the week before the spots appeared, nothing specific just not her usual self. And I'd hazard a guess that now you've had it, there's very little chance he'll escape, it's so contagious.

Lu_T

Hi Bailey - welcome back! You certainly sound perkier than the last few times you posted. :T

Congratulations on your wedding, hope your day was v. special.

Having been through a dummy dilema ourselves (see earlier post) I agree with the others. Don't feel guilty about giving him something which is calming him down and saving him becoming hysterical. You can always tackle the dummy issue seperately when you've got over this period of crying at bedtime.

If you're convinced it's attention-seeking it's probably best you persevere with your normal routine or he'll quickly figure out he can exercise control by kicking off. They're bright little !!!!!!s even at this stage aren't they?!

Imogen is doing well with her weaning. My SIL said she'd never seen a child so obsessed with food. She'd been watching us and her cousin eat and drooling (like the dog used to - seriously!) for about 3 weeks before we started giving her stuff. 3 weeks in she's on 2 meals a day - breakfast and tea - including dessert at tea time. Tomorrow we're starting to give her lunch too. Some days she cries because you don't give it to her fast enough and she likes to 'help' by holding the spoon and sliding her hand down to pile the food into her mouth. Great!

On weaning it really is whatever suits your child. Perhaps he'll feel more like having something different when he's feeling better - esp. if he's coming down with chicken pox. There are babies older than Imogen at one of my groups who aren't as advanced as her on the weaning front. Yet she still hasn't rolled over when younger ones have. Horses for courses, as the others have said...

SeptemberBaby_2

Just taking a peek in here (couldn't resist!).

Ladies, your baby pics are absolutely gorgeous and you should all be very proud!

x

Lu_T

Don't forget to join us in September! Meanwhile, enjoy the peace and quiet...

[Deleted User]

Hey Lu T, thanks for remembering me, wasn't sure if anyone would.

Yes I certainly do feel more upbeat these days, Jack is my gorgeous little man and having discussed it with my new hubbie, we've decided if he needs his dummy to get to sleep at night, so be it. Once asleep we remove it and if he wakes he can resettle himself without it. ITs a calming thing and associated with sleep. We can deal with removing it later on.

He's been watching us eat again lately and drinking too, if he's in my arms when I am drinking say a glass of water, he's looking up at me whilst I'm doing so and showing interest in everything we do. Today I said to Ian, lets try the weaning again. So on his 10 am bottle I prepared a bit of baby rice and tiny bit of pureed apple and I used a tommy tippee soft tipped spoon. He did take some this time but after a few spoonfuls, well more out then in again, he'd had enough so we gave him his bottle.

Last time we gave him half a feed, then stopped for weaning then rest of bottle and he never took the rest. So i thought I would start weaning first then bottle, see how we go!

Tonight he went down having fallen asleep on his bottle and we haven't heard a peek since 6.55pm!

I did feel guilty this eve though, i'd bathed the little fella and was in the kitchen with Jack in my arms about to put his bottle in the microwave, Ian appeared and was talking to me. As I opened the door to put the milk in, I accidentally bopped Jack in the head by opening the door, resulting in a 1 sec delayed shock reaction from him, then full on howls!! I felt so bad, as he cried all the time the milk was warming. Then whilst feeding every now and then he whimpered and a little bump came up on his head!

In his nearly 6 month old life, I have succeed in bashing him on his head 3 times:-

1. In the bath when I dropped the baby wash fell off the side of the bath onto his head.
2. When I picked him up to pull up his sleepsuit after his bath and he headbutted the door knob.
3. The microwave incident.

Bad mummy...... But with the door knob one I did call Susdoc as I was concerned about concussion, but they reasurred me that he would be fine, gave me symptons to look out for and you know what, he was totallly fine!

Hubbie has bashed his forehead once with something whilst nappy changing and fallen down the stairs with him in his arms, luckily he saved Jack and just hurt himself and I was standing at the bottom to catch and steady them both.

God that sounds awful doesn't it......We are so careful around him, but accidents do happen.

My mum and Ian both say, if that is the worst that happens to him, a few knocks to his head then he's doing ok. I worry about head injuries, but I have to remind myself how many times I've stood up and bashed my head on a table or cupboard door and I'm still here. It just hurts that's all.

Right i'd better go, I have baby food to prepare and freeze.

Night everyone.

Bay
xxx

purplepatch

Lu_T wrote: »

Imogen is doing well with her weaning. My SIL said she'd never seen a child so obsessed with food. She'd been watching us and her cousin eat and drooling (like the dog used to - seriously!) for about 3 weeks before we started giving her stuff. 3 weeks in she's on 2 meals a day - breakfast and tea - including dessert at tea time. Tomorrow we're starting to give her lunch too. Some days she cries because you don't give it to her fast enough and she likes to 'help' by holding the spoon and sliding her hand down to pile the food into her mouth. Great!

Wow Lu, that sounds brilliant. You lucky thing.

My dd isn't taking to solids one little bit, having started weaning a couple of weeks ago. I tried baby rice to start with but she just shuddered and spat it all out. Tried pureed veg with a bit more success and mashed banana, but she has since decided that she doesn't like it. Won't open her mouth and tries to pull the spoon out of my hand or pulls her bib over her face. It's driving me mad. So far tried carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, banana, apple, pear, baby breakfast cereals, even petit filous. Turns her nose up at absolutely everything I offer :rolleyes:.

Any suggestions of other things to try? She's over 6 months now, so should be having solids now. I really need some sleep as she wakes up at least once, often twice a night, starving hungry. Total opposite of my first daughter who always slept and ate well at that age.

Feeling exasperated.

[Deleted User]

Hi purple patch,

Just wanted to let you know that my son is doing exactly the same thing, i've tried baby rice, apple and carrot and he continues to look at me as if I'm poisoning him. He will be 6 months this week. I'm thinking of leaving it another week or 2 and see if he shows interest then.

I really don't want to be getting into food battles with him at such a young age, so trying to not make a big deal out of it. Just hoping it will click when he's ready. I did try putting a little bit of food onto my finger and he did open up for that a few times, but he absolutely refused a spoon, despite it being a tommy tippee soft tipped one.

Babies, they have their own agenda!!

Mine usually takes between 7-9 oz a feed, but lately its been getting less and less and today he took 5oz at 7am, 3 at 11am and so he's missed out on a bottle. Just hoping he takes theh whole thing later, he is being a right pickle taking his milk too, that is turning into a battle.

What's going on? Is it a phase they hit around 6 months?