Weekly thread, May 30 - June 6 - Page 3

[sew_crafty_girl]

Feeling sad today. It's my son's 10th birthday. I hate that were not together on most of the special days. My son and daughter live with their dad since our divorce in 2001. It's an hour drive, an hour and a half ferry ride and another hour drive away. The UAV moved them away 2 yrs after our divorce. I regret everyday how weak and vulnerable I was back then.

But, my daughter's dance recital is on Sunday and I can't let her down since I missed some important events already late in the pregnancy so I'll be travelling over there with Anna alone and I'm pretty nervous. I've ride the ferry once with her already and it sucked. I hope Anna is cooperative and allows me to stay in the theatre while big sis dances.

[loveneverfails]

Dena. When we have more room in our house, *maybe* we could adopt you. However, by the time we have more room we'll be pregnant again. And about visiting your mom's grave and burying her ashes. I'll keep you and your family in my prayers.

I would let the 2 year old go on the potty training stuff or I think you risk getting into a turf war with bodily fluids as the battleground. Not good. But I also tend to train my kids late. I figure your daughter will probably start caring again soon, and the extra weeks out of diapers may not be worth the fighting with some rather young infant twins there.

[Dena]

LNF, Thanks for the prayers.

And yeah, that was what I was inclined to do with Ellen. She is a rather, ahem, willful child and we have enough battles already. I swear, if she had hit the terrible twos any earlier, Maya and Hannah might not exist.

My first was almost three and a half when she trained, so I am not at all concerned, it would just be nice to have one fewer in diapers. But it is really easier to just change the diapers than fight over the potty.

In other news, Ellen's children's show just threw out the fact that baby whales drink about 100 GALLONS of milk a day. Wow.

Oh, good grief, they just showed a bunch of mammals, including a human baby, with the line that mammal mothers feed their babies milk. But guess what the human baby was drinking from? I feel a letter to PBS coming on...

ETA: SCG I can't imagine how hard days like today must be for you.

[loveneverfails]

I wonder how much my husband is bragging at work about how he partially caught Mercy while she was pulling her escape artist routine. He did a really good job, and I know he's really proud of himself, but it's really really funny to see him talk about it.

[justamama]

Jenfl- glad breastfeeding is getting easier

Jess- I'm walking a fine line between too much milk or not enough, too. Lucy's constant growth spurts don't boost my confidence any, either.

Rhi- hoping more zantac helps. Baked oatmeal sounds Yummy! Definitely going to try some.

LNF- I feel like its a good day if I keep the living room clean and dd2 takes her nap. So far neither is happening today.

Teething- Lucy's showing pre teething signs, too. Especially the gumming and biting her hands. My nipples are extra sore, too, so I'm wondering if she isn't getting the extra acidic teething saliva already!

Afm- We went out of town past week. We being my rad, the girls, and my little sister. Texas is too hot and humid for me! We also went to Oklahoma to see family. And give our rooster (yep, we got two chicks and one turned out to be a roo!) to family with a farm. The girls all did well. Reese has learned to walk in her cast.

I missed 3 days of zoloft. And paid dearly with major anxiety last night. I still feel like getting through days are a challenge. This week will be trying. Wed I have a followup for ppa. Thursday I have an appt for my wrist in the morning and wic in the afternoon. Saturday is a graduation party and a meetup for local mama friends who want chickens.

What is everyone doing with their babies? I'm afraid to try a playmat. Reese is unaware if how rough she can get. And with the heavy cast...I just see it ending badly! She's 2 months, and has excellent head control. I've thought about a small saucer or something. She prefers being upright anyway.

[rhiOrion]

We've just started using the playmat in the past couple of days. I posted a couple of videos of her playing over on the shameless baby photos thread. She seems to REALLY like it. One of the toys hanging down from it has a mirror on the bottom and she just STARES at herself. And occasionally she smiles at herself. It's just too cute. And she likes to kick the toy that's by her feet. And she waves her arms all around.

[MaterPrimaePuellae]

We're using a bumbo a little bit. DS wants to be upright unless he's VERY sleepy, and he gets tons of the equivalent of "tummy time" in the sling. We use the bumbo when I'm showering/using the restroom and if I need to do hot things in the kitchen. Otherwise, he's basically in arms or sleeping.

We tried the park again this afternoon after a cleansing nap. It threatened to thunderstorm almost immediately after we arrived, so we hurried over to the picnic shelter. It was so cool! DD and I watched the approaching storm and then sat under the picnic shelter while it stormed. DD eventually ventured out to play in the rain and she had a blast in the huge puddles.

I'm breaking my rule of no internet while DD is awake, so I'm off....

[Peace+Hope]

agh! getting things done??!!! we have friends coming to stay for a week, and they'll be here in two days! i have a list of things that is longer than anything i've done in a week, much less the few hours i'll have b/n now and thursday. AND... yesterday our vacuum broke AND shelves collapsed in our kitchen cabinets. thankfully only the pasta bowls fell out and broke, but we had to gingerly take out all the things on the whole wall of cabinets, clean up, fix the shelves, and put it all back. also, i'm having to inspect and wash and sift every blessed item in my pantry due to a pantry moth invasion. in addition there are tools and supplies everywhere from where my husband is patching a pipe and re-drywalling/painting. so the kitchen looks like a freakin' tornado LIVES in there. AND i stayed up til 2am last night helping my husband with a proposal.

pepper, any chance you can get your DH to help out around the house? i know you've mentioned before he mostly adds to the mess, but is he open to reason? threatening gestures with large frying pans? seems like he could at least keep his own stuff picked up, geez.

dena, so your dd was teething but didn't get teeth til 15 months. so, did she teeth that whole time? that farm sounds WOW! i would love to live in the pacific northwest sometime. what an amazing opportunity to share a home and business with friends. we have one couple we would do that with, but they are firmly rooted with their fam in maryland, while we are the same in NC. , thinking of you missing your sweet mom. i really can't imagine that being a loss you ever "get over."

sewcrafty, i hope the trip goes well and you get to enjoy your daughter's concert. that your kids are not with you. i have a close friend in a similar situation, she bounces from angry to stunned to devastated to hopeful and around again. her little boys are 3 and 6, and her X makes it really hard for her to see them.

mpp, no time to clean for three weeks? i'd be furious . what's a teething necklace?

jenfl, wow, that's one active baby! charlie can roll when he's on a surface that is not flat

justamama, i'm wondering the same thing. charlie likes to be sitting up, but i don't have anything to sit him up in, and propping him anywhere leads to severe and almost immediate slumping... i'd like a baby bjorn bouncy seat, because they have different positions, but it's almost $200! since sitting up is months away, i can't imagine what else would work...

eye goop: did more reading and it's a blocked tear duct for sure. i've noticed that eye having a little goop every now and then, but it's just picked up. confusing to read about, because i've seen different recommendations for the correct way to do the duct massage. up, down, sideways, circular .... definitely continuing the breastmilk...

teething:
thanks for the tablet recommendations - i'll look into them for sure, but don't want to be giving charlie something daily, especially indefinitely, know what i mean? honestly not that into homeopathy much, and i'm concerned about the sugar. how often do you give them, how long does the effect of one last?

so, experienced mamas, tell me, how bad is teething? i mean, what have your experiences been with your babies? is it something that bothers them all day every day?

[jenfl]

P+H -- I've found teething varies a lot from baby to baby and tooth to tooth. DD had a few rough ones, but also cut some teeth with very little protest. We tried Ambesol, but it seemed to hurt her. So we just gave her Tylenol on the worst days, and pushed through the rest. Re: teething tablets: I think most of the effect (if, like me, you don't believe in homeopathy) is the sugar. The sweetness calms babies down. I tend to avoid it.

AFM -- I nursed side-lying!!!!! AND I've switched to cradle! Thank you all for your positive thoughts! We've made definite progress in the last week. When he's not serious, he still pops on and off. But when he wants to nurse, he actually stays on for 15-20 sucks!

In the last few days, I've finally started to think that we might make it out of this. It may never be "normal" nursing, but I think I could maintain this.

This is a huge victory considering how very VERY close I came to stopping. I am one happy AP mama.

[sew_crafty_girl]

Yay Jen!

My daughter was a good teether. Give her something to gnaw on and she was happy. First tooth at 11months. Then they came in twos and fours.

My son was miserable. Tylenol was the only thing that calmed him. First tooth at 6months and one at a time.

It's neat to see how Anna is content to lay in various places now and happily entertain herself moreand more over the past few days. She mostly lies with her head to the side, rarely looking up. Not as much crying without a reason now. Tired crying is the most frustrating one as nursing isn't always the solution. Skin is clearing up. just afew pimples and dry spots left.

Pleased that I got to talk to my son. Its rare to get someone answering the phone at my ex's.

[GreenTeaGinger61]

Teething: All of my kids started signs around two months and it varied how long it went on until we saw evidence of actual teeth. Sometimes, they did well and other times it made them fussy. There was no real order to it. I did use Hyland's Tablets. Here's my thing: I didn't use them everyday. I used them just as someone else might use Tylenol or Mortrin.

Playing: We got a playmat for Rowena at Ikea. She's pretty indifferent:P The other kids love it. I'm hoping she'll start to like it more. I'm also planning on a Bumbo chair once she has better head control. Mostly she just likes being in my arms which is not helping me getting this place unpacked. I had to clean the old house with wearing her which was not fun at all. Plus I'd like to have some time with my husband her inability to sleep anywhere but on me is not helping our sex life

Jess: I'm so sorry about your parent's dogs. That's rough. I have no ideas on stuffed animals though.

Sliverspook: Good thoughts for your mom.

Jen: Whoot!!!

Today: Did nothing:P I did help dh get our bed set up...finally. But really most of the day was spent at the park. I only planned on going for two hours but got to talking with a really neat mom, and ended up spending 3.5 hours there, and another half hour in traffic. And tomorrow I"m going to a friend's house for a playdate. I promised dh I'd stay in Thursday and Friday and get some stuff done round the apartment.

[smeisnotapirate]

Dena -

P+H - my DS was born with a blocked tear duct. Opened on its own when he was about 20-21mo. I didn't do anything to it, because it didn't really bother him, and our FP wasn't concerned about it.

AFM, today sucked monkey balls. I couldn't find my keys and had a total mental breakdown because I was looking for them while two kids were screaming their ever-living heads off and they were NOT where I put them last. Turns out they WERE where I put them last, but I just was so frantic, I didn't look very closely.

So I went to the bookstore to pick up the book I'd ordered before Nomi was born , and I'm putting the kids back in the car and DS hits the "lock" button on the car door (all you experienced mamas know where this is going). I end up closing the door to go around to the other side to get DS in, and THE CAR IS LOCKED. With my keys, my cell phone, and my FIVE WEEK OLD BABY INSIDE IT. It's 85 degrees and the car had been sweltering when I put her in, as it was in direct sunlight. To make things worse, Nomi decided she was uncomfortable and started SCREAMING. This is my daughter who NEVER has screamed in her life (until today).

I panicked, grabbed DS, and ran into the nearest building (a nursing home), where the sweet receptionist let me use the phone to call the police and reassured me that "it happens to all of us, honey." The police were there in less than 5 minutes - it was really amazing. There was a police car, a fire break-and-enter squad, and an ambulance within 5 minutes of me making a call. I nursed Nomi while the EMTs got out their stuff and approached me. They asked me how long she was in there (less than 5 minutes, thanks to their quick response), and the woman said "ohhhh, she's nursing fine? As long as she nurses and you make sure she's good and hydrated, you're doing better than we can by poking at her." It was really sweet. They were great.

I also got a real, honest-to-goodness margarita from a hot Peruvian bartender, courtesy of DH, for having such a crappy day. So at least it ended on a good note. And both of my babies are safe. Thank G-d.

[loveneverfails]

Jen, that's WONDERFUL! I'm so happy for you!

Sara, WOW. I knew your day was not great, but that's just beyond what I had imagined. You deserved that margarita.

[Pepper44]

SME--Ack what a bad day! The locked car with a baby inside would have had me in shambles.

Block tear ducts--I think Ada had a partially blocked one at birth because she had some serious gooey eye going on. The midwife told me to rub it in a circular motion with the pad of my index finger while she was nursing, and to also put milk in it. It totally cleared up at 4 weeks!

[Dena]

Yay Jen!! Awesome news!!

Sara, Yikes. What a scary thing to go through! I am so glad the police responded so fast and everyone is ok! I would have freaked!! So glad your dh pampered you with a margarita!

Tear ducts - Maya had a blocked one at birth, but it seems to have resolved itself. We did some massage, but I can't say that it was consistent enough to have done anything.

Ginger, I think a day at the park is good for the soul! That is where we spent Sunday, and it was awesome for all of us.

Afm, I CraigsList! Double Umbrella stroller for $25! Woot! And in perfect condition to boot - just a little dusty (the guy was totally apologizing for that too, which cracked me up - gave me this great deal and apologized that I was going to be spending ten minutes dusting the thing off. ) That totally made my day... I thought I was going to have to spend at least $100 on a used stroller.

[rhiOrion]

Sara, so did they pick the lock? Or did they have to break a window? I'm so glad they got there so fast!

[justamama]

Sara, so glad the rescue folks responded quickly and all was ok. Don't feel bad- the first time DH and I had to take dd1 with us shopping late at night (my folks lived across the street and usually kept her), we forgot her in the car for about 5 minutes before we realized she was in the car. I ran to the car (where she was sleeping), and held her bawling.

SCG- glad you got to talk to your ds.

Jenfl- yay!

Dena- I love Craigslist, too. I just listed a ton of baby items, and am waiting to get pictures of a bugaboo listed for $175! Which, if I get it, I will be reselling for a profit. If I can manage to part with it, that is.

All the girls are sleeping. By themselves. Lucy is in the pack 'n play! I had to swaddle her and put her on her tummy, but she's asleep!

[MaterPrimaePuellae]

Sara, oh my-- that has almost happened to me a few times since DS was born. It sounds like you handled it very well. That must have been a LONG five minutes.

P&H-- yeah, it depends on the tooth. The first two (bottom center teeth) came in with seemingly no symptoms at all. I just noticed two little white specks on day, and they were teeth! She almost always got two at a time. The molars were awful. She woke up 2-3 times a night and had diarrhea/bad diaper rash because of the extra saliva produced by the teething.. and it seemed like just as one finally erupted, her gums would start swelling with the next ones. I tried lots of things-- she didn't like chewing/gumming anything. I even tried a tiny bit of whiskey on a rag (rubbing the sore area) (figuring it was probably better than orajel) and it didn't help, either. I tried the teething tablets, too, and I didn't notice much improvement; I know some people really like them, though.

teething necklace: made of baltic amber, it supposedly contains succinic (sp?) acid that reduces inflammation. The most popular site to buy them seems to be Inspired by Finn. They're not expensive, I think they look nice, and I have heard so many people say that they helped their children, so.. It may be a total coincidence, but I put one on DS yesterday morning and he slept 2.5 hours, which is the longest he has slept in weeks. He's been asleep for the past hour this morning, too.

Jen-- yay for improvement!!

AFM: I think I'm developing a plugged duct or mastitis. I never dealt with anything like that w/ DD, so I'm not sure. I definitely wore a bra that was too small yesterday, and I woke up this morning with a sore spot in one breast. I also have what feels like the beginnings of a cold/flu, which I know *can* be a symptom of mastitis... Oh well. Pushing the fluids today, I guess. Kellymom seems to indicate that antibiotics are only necessary w/ red streaking and extreme sickness in mom, and I don't have either.

[ivymae]

Teething - add my kids to the ones who worked on teeth for months before they broke through. I imagine they feel like growing pains, all that movement and adjusting below the surface. Hylands are great, and we're getting a teething necklace this time, but in the end it's just another part of parenting that you forget later, because otherwise you wouldn't have another one.

MPP - if you have vitamin C load up on that, and garlic supposedly helps as well. A hot short and breast massage has helped me in the past. I hope it doesn't turn into full blown mastitis - I didn't get out of bed for days and days when I had it with DD2.

Sara - So glad Nomi is okay. I've been lucky - when I've locked my kids in the car, it's been mild outside. But oh yes, I've locked my kids in more than once. I even taught DD1 how to undo her carseat now that she's 4, because she's had to get out and unlock it for me. Swiss cheese brain, I swear.

Dena - Yay CL! And I randomly think about your mom and her ladles on a regular basis. She's still here, even in random people's memories.

Jen - I'm so proud of you and your little guy for sticking with it. You are awesome!

SCG - Happy late Birth day of your little boy. My mom was away from me for many birthdays and big events, but I knew, unequivocally, that she wanted to be there and that she was celebrating my birth as well.

AFM - Oh man, I have two hands for a few minutes! Becky is sleeping, and hopefully not getting sick. The big girls have been running high fevers the last few days, and i'm not sure i can handle a infant with a 104 fever. Hopefully nursing will keep her from getting hit with this virus.

Becky is two months old yesterday, and I am loving this stage. I forgot how much fun they are once they really "wake up" to the world. She smiles constantly, loves to have someone sing to her, is always looking around like "Whats that?! Oh man, that is the coolest thing ever. Or wait - THAt is the coolest thing ever. MOM, did you see this? WOW! What's shiny over there?! I've never seen anything like it!" She adores Ella, and is understandably wary of Alice. She's still a chunkamunka, and is wearing 6 or 9 month clothes. She sleeps well (waking up twice between 10 and 6) and is pretty easy going as long as mama is nearby. I've learned withthe two older kids that sooner than later she is going to be slamming her door and yelling "I want a different mom!" so I'm okay with holding her as much as she wants right now.

[GreenTeaGinger61]

Originally Posted by ivymae

She adores Ella, and is understandably wary of Alice. She's still a

This picture made me LOL. Becky has this look on her face like "Should I cry yet or wait?" This is how Rowena looks when Piper starts loving on her. We're just starting to get into the being aware stage and it is wonderful.

Dena: I forgot to offer some hugs. I also think of the ladle story and it always makes me smile. The farm sounds amazing. I don't know anyone I could share a house with though...:P
And park days are needed It was also a lot of fun to meet up with a new mom whom I really like. She is ap but not militantly so which I always find refreshing. Plus all of our kids got along well which is always a bonus.

SCG: Also forgot to add a hug to you. Happy birthday to your son. My son is also about to turn ten and I can't imagine how hard it must be for you to be away. But like Ivy said He no doubt thought of you and knew you were thinking of him.

Sara: Hugs. I haven't locked my kids in but that's only because all of my cars need to have key inserted to lock but have the saftey feature that the van can't be locked from the inside.