MSE Newborn to 1 year (& beyond!) baby club 2

Claree__x

Hi woad,

I wanted to bf but I couldn't due to a traumatic birth. I felt awful ff'ing but my daughter is now 12 weeks and absolutely thriving. I know that breast is best but happy mummy, happy baby is also a true mantra! Don't make yourself miserable, please.

Routine wise, at a few weeks there is no night and day, it's just all the same I'm afraid. I may get slated for this but we started controlled timed crying at 8 weeks and she's slept through the night since then. It worked for me, might not for others. I realise that at the moment 8 weeks seems forever away but it's not, I promise.

As for clock watching - I still do it sometimes! Babies are hard work!

mozzyc

IHateDida wrote: »

Ok Nutella......the white towels are lovely...but nothing stays white in our house - despite me using biological powder!

If anyone is formula feeding and gets fed up making bottles etc... - get yourself a Perfect Prep machine - only £48.96 on Amazon (never seen it this cheap...ever - and they go for the same price, or higher on Ebay secondhand!) http://www.amazon.co.uk/Tommee-Tippee-Closer-Nature-Perfect/dp/B00BG6304A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1384025253&sr=8-1&keywords=tommee+tippee+perfect+prep

Mine has been my most valued piece of baby equipment! A ready to feed bottle in around a minute!:T

As for smiling my LO gave a few brief smiles around 6 weeks but the real lengthy giggling has only just started (20 weeks) - she is finding me rattling my keys and pretend sneezing absolutely hilarious at the moment!

Never heard of that. Wow, that would be great to have. If and when I do have another. I can't even think of that until he's finished nursery!!x

Saffagal

Hi WOAD and welcome to the thread and Congratulations on the birth of your little one.

Breastfeeding is very hard work to start with - someone told me that but I didn't believe just how hard it would be to start with. Lansinoh is amazing stuff btw! There is a lot of information on Kellymom if you want to resume and continue with breastfeeding. My LO is just over 6 months now and I can honestly say from 6 weeks it got easier, from 10 weeks easier still and now it is the easiest thing out. Pumping is no indication of supply - wet and dirty nappies are. Baby is far more efficient at draining the breast than any pump ever will be. Can you get to a breastfeeding group or have a lactation consultant come and see you if you'd like to persist with breastfeeding? They can help with your latch to ensure that baby is latching properly and therefore feeding efficiently. (Your HV/midwife will be able to give your details in your area). Secondly, it is completely normal for baby to "cluster feed" which is where baby appears to be almost permanently attached to you for hours. Each baby is different as to their timings - my LO would cluster feed from approx 5pm to 10pm at around the age of your LO. This is normal behaviour to build your supply so that you have enough milk through growth spurts which happen a lot in the first six weeks.

As far as routine goes I would say two weeks is too early; as much as being a mum is new to you, being out in this big, scary, noisy world is new to your baby. I found it helpful to get us both washed (stripwash/shower for me; bath or wipedown for LO) and dressed in the morning even if it was dressing in clean pjs! During the day I always had curtains open and either the radio/tv on. In the evening I'd dim the lights and lower the volume. This helped me feel more "normal" and slowly but surely a pattern emerged with LO.

mozzyc

BeNiceToMySelf wrote: »

yes! my little un is 8 weeks old. for years I wanted a baby and now I feel so silly for wanting one. I was so naive! Sleep deprivation and tiredness make the situation seem so much worse. At home he can scream for hours on end and I just can't settle him. I have to go out to baby groups and push him round shops to just help the day go by. A lot of the time I think about a refund but I definitely couldn't go without him.

Charlie was very similar. I used to have to just get some clothes on, put him in the pram, and walk. Sometimes with earphones in just to have some normality. It helped relax us both. We had a park nearby, and i'd just do laps around it, listening to some of my music that I hadn't listened to in ages. He always relaxed in the pram....

Saffagal

Hallo all How are we today?

Re my work meeting, unfortunately there isn't anyone I can leave LO with as I work an hour away from where I live so would be gone roughly 4hrs minimum (and as long as there are no holdups on the motorway) which I think is too long as we're only just starting solids and she refuses a bottle/cup.

We had a little trip up to London yesterday to collect her new passport and do a little Christmas shopping. Just OH's parents to buy for and we're ready for Christmas!

Bangton I'm 6 months into this parenting malarkey and somedays I still think "What have I done???" I admit, this is usually when she has been having a particularly bad, whingey day for no discernible reason. That said, if you're feeling overwhelmed or teary more often than not I think it would be worth having a chat with someone for some additional support. It is better to get support and enjoy your LO than struggle on alone. Much as moaned whilst my folks were visiting, I had live in support for three months which helped in lots of little ways.

Nutella I thought those towels were very pricey so I resisted the temptation lol Also :T for your LO knowing all the Wind the Bobbin Up actions... I long for my LO to learn them

IHateDida :eek::eek::eek:That mother spending 40min making those artistic breakfasts!!!!

And yes we're guilty of planning (almost) unnecessary trips out just to have a reason to go out! On Friday we walked to a nearby garden centre because the cat needed a new toy and the spare ones I have indoors wouldn't do.

Hope that everyone is having a good day

fluffnutter

*Nutella* wrote: »

By the way, Fluff, I've got some news especially for you. I'm pleased to announce that my LO is now able to do *all* the moves to 'Wind the bobbin up'. She finally cracked the troublesome 'wind' part last week, and she's very proud of herself

Wind the Bobbin Up is fine for babies and toddlers. Just not for their accompanying carers.

BeNiceToMySelf

WalkingOnADream wrote: »

Since then he has been on formula and I feel like a massive failure. I have also been expressing when possible and also offering the breast in the hope of maybe returning to breastfeeding now he is bigger and stronger. I am totally drained as he is a 'snacker' so eats little amounts usually every hour and I need to express every 2 hours as my supply is low. As a result I am in a constant cycle of feed, pump with no time for much else. I'm in 2 minds about whether to totally give up on breastfeeding/expressing and just concentrate on spending more time with my son.

Has anyone been in a similar situation?

Yes similar. Little un was diagnosed with severe jaundice at 2 days old so had to be fed formula via tube as it was important to keep his fluids up to take away the jaundice. My baby did a few sucks then fell asleep but I think that was the jaundice as he really wants his boob now! He was discharged at 1 week as long as I combination fed. I got into a cycle of breast feeding, feeding expressed milk in for a bottle, formula and then expressing. I managed to do this 4 part feeding cycle for 2 weeks but it was hard! I gradually reduced the formula and have been exclusively breast feeding for 4 weeks. It's difficult because they need to be at the breast as much as possible to stimulate your supply. In the end I had to build up my confidence to go cold turkey and use no formula. Even now baby has dropped a percentile in weight and if he drops further then the HV says they would advise supplementing with formula. I also had a very supportive OH but even he was doubting my supply saying baby was hungry.

I went to my local baby cafe and got lots of advice and support from other mums and the lactation consultant. Try kellymom.com for information. Search the net to find your local baby cafe. Don't feel guilty, it is really difficult! Maybe try and get as much information and advice as possible before deciding how to feed your baby.

It's great to read about other people's 'pointless' trips! What a great thread for support.

Claree__x

mozzyc wrote: »

Never heard of that. Wow, that would be great to have. If and when I do have another. I can't even think of that until he's finished nursery!!x

Mine just arrived, set it up and cleaned it. Can't wait 'till she's due a bottle now :rotfl:

She's been a wee pest today though, finally asleep in her chair but we had a bit of a difficult morning!

lao_cat

WOAD, I dud the feed, express, formula cycle for 3/4 weeks. It is killer as you never really get a break. Would definitely recommend getting support, someone to check his latch and teach you how to know if he is actually drinking. The falling asleep at the breast is common enough and can be sometimes due to the flow of milk slowing down. In this case you can do breast compressions during the feed to really push the milk into him.

I am not sure what pump you are using to express but if you need to build your supply, if your ds is not latching at all, I think a really good double pump is necessay. A handy trick to redu e the time is to store all the bits in a bag in the fridge between pumps. It is fine to only wash and sterilise once a day. You can also try some things like fennell tea, fenugreek and oats to boost your supply.

If ds is latching, while you are building your supply it is really important to
Top-up rather that supplementing a whole feed with formula and also to always offer the breast first.

In saying all that, there is no need to feel bad if you decide that the best thing for your family is ff. the best option for your family is one that results in a happy mummy who has time to spend with her LO.

For me I know the only reason why I got through it was I had alot of support from my husband and my lactation consultant. That and a good amount of pigheadness.

Claree__x

I think I might go nuts before the night is out and it's nothing to do with Eilis, it's my 16 year old brother in law!

In the summer he said he didn't want to go back to school and had applied for college courses. I had a look at them and said they weren't ideal because they didn't lead to anything but it that's what he wants to do then it's a start. He ignored all of this and went back to school anyway (probably cause he was too lazy to follow it up!)

Now, 3 months later, he hates school. I looked and found him better courses and he eventually applied and had an interview organised for Monday. Got a text to say he'd gone to the wrong place and missed the interview. !!!!!!?! He claimed they only gave him a street name and a postcode so he assumed it was the one in the city centre. What more does he want?! I've spoon fed him to this point, I found the course and practically filled in the application and now this. Obviously it's now up to me to fix it. I've just suggested he phone and ask to reschedule and been asked who to speak to and what to say, you'd think it was my future we were talking about here!

Basically, he doesn't want to go to this college cause its about an hour from his house. There's one closer but it doesn't have any courses relevant to what he wants to do but he keeps going on about it, as do his mum and dad but that's a different story. I keep saying I'm going to back off and leave him to it but I can't see him wasting his life. Argh!

Sorry. Completely non-baby related.