First day on my own with a toddler and newborn

JimmyTheWig

Gillyx wrote: »

I meant for the OP, if she is breastfeeding? She would have to cut dairy from her own diet. Sorry if I came across like I was recommending alternative milks for a 1 month old, I never would

Oops, sorry!

Yes, good suggestions, in that case!
If I remember correctly, the official medical line is that diary passed through in breastmilk shouldn't have any impact, but anecdotally many people who have tried cutting it out have seen improvements.

DigForVictory

Evening MV! How're you doing?
Someone else in charge while you have a hot bath with a good read?
(It's been a Long Week for you & Mam'selle - don't you deserve a treat?!)

Metranil_Vavin

I am going out this evening for a curry with a friend, first night out since mam'selle arrived

I'm totally knackered after a bad night last night, but think a few hours away from the witching hour will do me good..OH is in the hot seat!

Thanks for checking in on me. DD is 5 weeks old now, and whilst from 6pm onwards is still challenging, I think we are getting a bit of a handle on things.

x

pennypinching77

I found winding by tapping on the back took ages.
A very quick method is simply massaging the babies back with the tips of your fingers in the motion of squeezing a ball. The more upright the baby is the quicker it will come up. I wind for a maximum of a minute with this method.
Hold baby so head just over your shoulder and massage the back.
Would be interested to hear if this works for you.

kboss2010

Metranil_Vavin wrote: »

Thanks for the tips! I have also heard that 'white noise' such as hoovers, hairdryers etc can be soothing to a baby. Recording the washing machine is a good idea..will try that!

Last night was a teeny bit better. I made an effort to get her on her playmat a bit more often and to sleep a wee bit less. I think part of the problem is she sleeps so soundly during the day, come 6pm she's PING awake!

I also gave her some gripe water after her 2am feed, and used DS's old lullaby light show to help sooth her, and she did eventually drop off. I'll give the infant Gaviscon a go too.

Can I ask, how long was she in hospital for? I only ask because I have never been able to sleep in darkness or complete quiet.

My gran told me a few years ago that she realised when I was a baby that I needed light and noise to sleep and she attributed it it to three months I spent in an incubator constantly surrounded by lights and people. Bizarrely, I think she's right. I guess the same might apply if you've had constant visitors or a busy household from day one.

Also, re wind, rubbing in circles never made sense to me. I don't know if it is the same but my mum was sick a lot with painful trapped air when I was a kid (long term health issues). Rather than rubbing her back in circles, rubbing firmly up the spine with two fingers seems to encourage the body's autonomic peristaltic reflexes to kick in (the mechanism through which you swallow food/air and vomit).

It also works well for sickness due to too much alcohol/food poisoning lol! My OH wondered what the heck I was doing but it worked!

Own_My_Own

Dd was allergic to my milk :eek:

I had to put her on soya milk at 6 weeks. She was a very poorly baby, ( hospital from 12 weeks to 21 weeks). But that's a different story.

Have you tried a baby sling. I loved mine. I got loads done while carrying her around. The natural movement of my body soothed her.

She also like being put in front of the washing machine in her bouncer. I am another one that would recommend the Hoover. I am supervised I had any carpet left by the time we moved.

Metranil_Vavin

kboss2010 wrote: »

Can I ask, how long was she in hospital for? I only ask because I have never been able to sleep in darkness or complete quiet.

My gran told me a few years ago that she realised when I was a baby that I needed light and noise to sleep and she attributed it it to three months I spent in an incubator constantly surrounded by lights and people. Bizarrely, I think she's right. I guess the same might apply if you've had constant visitors or a busy household from day one.

Also, re wind, rubbing in circles never made sense to me. I don't know if it is the same but my mum was sick a lot with painful trapped air when I was a kid (long term health issues). Rather than rubbing her back in circles, rubbing firmly up the spine with two fingers seems to encourage the body's autonomic peristaltic reflexes to kick in (the mechanism through which you swallow food/air and vomit).

It also works well for sickness due to too much alcohol/food poisoning lol! My OH wondered what the heck I was doing but it worked!

We were only in for a night. I had a very quick and straightforward birth (only about 40 mins!).

Things are a lot better now, DD is now 13 weeks old and settles much better at night. She has also been sleeping more longer chunks of time, although that seems to have slipped back a bit the last week..I'm thinking a possible growth spurt, but it is all a lot more managable now I am through that initial first few weeks of hell!

Wind isn't such a problem now either as she seems to bring it up a lot more easily now after a feed.

Thanks for all the suggestions Now I could use some advice on getting my nearly-3 year old to calm down and stop being such a tantrum thrower! :rotfl:

dizziblonde

Metranil_Vavin wrote: »

We were only in for a night. I had a very quick and straightforward birth (only about 40 mins!).

Things are a lot better now, DD is now 13 weeks old and settles much better at night. She has also been sleeping more longer chunks of time, although that seems to have slipped back a bit the last week..I'm thinking a possible growth spurt, but it is all a lot more managable now I am through that initial first few weeks of hell!

Wind isn't such a problem now either as she seems to bring it up a lot more easily now after a feed.

Thanks for all the suggestions Now I could use some advice on getting my nearly-3 year old to calm down and stop being such a tantrum thrower! :rotfl:

I just mentally allocate marks out of 10 for style, stroppyness, inventiveness in what they've got upset about and performance when mine tantrums.

TeamLowe

MV glad to hear you and little lady are doing better

dizziblonde's suggestion reminded me of this site: http://www.reasonsmysoniscrying.com/

JimmyTheWig

Metranil_Vavin wrote: »

Now I could use some advice on getting my nearly-3 year old to calm down and stop being such a tantrum thrower!

Am probably not telling you anything you didn't already know, but it's all about attention.
All of a sudden (well, 3 months ago) a new baby came into the house. Toddler feels that they are missing out on attention.
Any attention is better than no attention (especially for a toddler) so by throwing a tantrum they get what they crave.
But positive attention is better than negative attention. So do your best to be interested in what she is doing. Interact with her on any level you can. If she does good behaviour (especially if it might seem boring to her) then heap on the praise. Conga round the room with her, if you've got the energy!
None of this is easy with a small baby, but it will get easier.