October Chat Thread! - Page 2 « Back to Group Discussions

[poppylove]

(((((VV))))) I had so many days like that with my older dd. I was alone with her after 3 days and it was scary, lonely, and somewhat depressing. It will pass, as she gets bigger and less dependent on your body every waking minute. (It does happen, I swear!)  Also, I think, the longer you nurse, the more you will be comfortable NIP. You are still new to it and totally worthy of "chickening" out sometimes. I really feel for you mama, too bad we don't live close and could hang out 

Oy, I have had many an awful day since # 2 was born. But I feel like things are getting somewhat easier. This moment was one of the first I had to even come on here and write to ya'll. Having two babies so close is rough. I feel like I am majorly neglecting my just turned two year old. It sucks. 

Physically, I am just nursing all day, and waiting for the spotting to stop so I can get to exercising hard (like zumba and running) and being with the hubs! 

Thinking of you all.

[pennywhistle]

I totally have the "just hand over the baby to my husband" moments.  Doesn't make you a bad mom at all!  I can't imagine being alone with the baby that long - when my husband is gone for 4-5 hours I start to feel a little nuts.  You're doing a great job!

As for the other mom - maybe go back to the same place around the same time a few times?  You'll probably run into each other again!

[iixivboots]

This is a cool link from babycentre (sic) uk, developmentally appropriate ways to play with your baby each week:

http://www.babycentre.co.uk/baby/development/letsplay/

[pennywhistle]

Oh that's perfect!  I've been wondering what I can do with Atticus other than carrying him around and kissing his face repeatedly!

[NewMumJoy]

Big huge hugs, VV - so sorry you were having such a tough time, I hope you're doing better w/B home by now!  I know how hard it is to go that long (and repeatedly) on your own, with no support nearby... an almost identical situation for me as well!  I had a meltdown too after 6 days (w/no shower) to learn that DH's flight was cancelled til the next morning - at that point you're just hanging by a thread!  Erase erase any guilt about needing a deserved break - it's also in baby's best interest for momma to take care of herself!  Eventually you WILL get to meet some new friends there.... And I totally get the anxiety w/BFIP (I'm still nowhere ready myself, it's a big enough deal just to get dressed and out of the house)...maybe there's an LLL chapter mtg (a great place to practice) or parenting/infant class (like infant first aid) where you could meet other like-minded new mamas?

Boots - thanks for the link!!  Almost every day I say I'm going to look up age appropriate activities but then never get around to it, now I can cross that off my list  :)

Poppy, Rebecca (and all of you 2nd+ time mamas).... many hugs, you're doing such a great job!!  Throughout my pregnancy I often appreciated not having to be chasing toddlers around in that condition... and now as I attend to this little one round the clock, I can only imagine how hard it is to still maintain some balance w/the other little loves in the household.  I'm torn enough about not being able to give enough attention to my dog!

InTime - so good to hear from you!!  Sorry about your PPD, I'm sure the past few months have been very challenging w/a preemie and keeping up w/your other children (are you still able to home school??)... I can't believe it's been 4 months, our "first baby" in this DDC !! 

[LilyTiger]

Originally Posted by pennywhistle 

Oh that's perfect!  I've been wondering what I can do with Atticus other than carrying him around and kissing his face repeatedly!

Ahahahahaha!  I pick Piper up and kiss her when I switch boobs and she's always like, "What are you doing, woman?  Give me the boob!"  I just want to squish her and kiss her all the time. 

ETA: Is anyone else completely ravenous ALL THE TIME?  I've gained back three pounds from eating like a starving polar bear and it is not cool.  My appetite was nothing like this when I was pregnant.

[iixivboots]

Lily, yes I'm so hungry. My period is back this week (great) and it's even worse (saallllt!)  I haven't seemed to have a supply issue but I'm freaked out about getting my period again so soon, I thought it was supposed to be even longer. I don't think it's fair to have PMS and care for a young infant.

Lyle is not a fan of repeated kisses so I try to do it when he's asleep. He got this, we think, from our oldest cat who will lean away if you try to kiss her. Ha.

Haha, so I was doing one of the activities on that link for two months, pulling him into a sitting position repeatedly, one arm at a time, whilst singing "row row row your boat" and he threw up most spectacularly.

edited to add: it is 2 a.m. and I've had like three post dinner snacks and I'm starving and can't sleep. Ugh!

Edited by iixivboots - 10/9/12 at 2:07am

[NewMumJoy]

I'm starving all the time too, to the point where I have that hungry/low blood sugar headache and generally feel like crap.  But of course I have a fraction of the free time to fix anything for myself, or even keep myself hydrated!  My preggo cravings are gone (no more ice cream!) but now no particular foods seem really appealing, despite my hunger.  I'm also trying to cut out milk and peanut butter since William's had hives since the weekend - and I was basically living off PBJ's and smoothies - so now I feel even more indecisive about what the heck to eat all day!

[Sol_y_Paz]

YES!!  Beyond belief hungry 24/7.  And when he has a spurt, I notice my hunger increases tenfold as well when it is already sky high.  

[sallyrae17]

I've always had more cravings while breastfeeding than while pregnant and it's not any different this time around. 

Boots - Have you tried EPO (evening primrose oil) for PMS? You can take it three times a day. Also, I don't remember if you encapsulated or not, but placenta pills can be extremely helpful with your first period!

[Veritas Vitae]

Thanks for the kind words. I felt much better when B got home, but it was sort of a bummer that he was only home for half a day. While I was happy to hand Q off to him when he walked in the door, I wanted to smack B upside the head for making annoyed sounds when she woke up during the night. And when he tried to wake her up at 5am to check if she was still breathing...I guess I've just gotten more comfortable with her sleeping cycles while he still gets a little freaked out.  He is traveling for the next three weeks and then he will either be working from our city, or possibly 90 minutes away for the following 5 weeks. The good news is that for the next two weeks, he will be coming home on Thursday.

I ordered a nursing cover from Udder Covers using the coupon code to get it just for shipping.  Hopefully that works out, because getting Q latched on under a blanket can sometimes be a bit difficult.

I think we had a thread sometime back about good handheld foods? We need to start one of those again.  It is so hard to get enough GOOD food to eat without resorting to granola bars, cookies, and PB&J, etc. Especially when you're hungry all the time.

[NewMumJoy]

Originally Posted by Veritas Vitae 

.... It is so hard to get enough GOOD food to eat without resorting to granola bars, cookies, and PB&J, etc. Especially when you're hungry all the time.

YES.  I'm SO burnt out on granola bars!!!

[iixivboots]

Hey does anyone have any good treatments for poop stains? We usually use resolve stain remover and it gets out everything, but it's not working! The stuff has already been washed and dried :(

Edited by iixivboots - 10/13/12 at 12:16am

[Tizzy]

I like Sunlight bar soap, sometimes it's hard to find.
Otherwise sunshine works wonders, wash and hang dry in the bright sun.

[LilyTiger]

Quick rant: I'm going to kill DH.  I got home from a long weekend away (Thursday through today).  DH admitted that he hadn't really cleaned the house, but he did have to work Saturday, so I didn't worry too much.  But I walked into the nursery to find an entire wet bag full of all last week's cloth diapers (I had her in disposables while traveling) sitting there, stewing.  It was disgusting.  They smelled horrible.  So after screwing around with extra washes, I try to nurse Piper down for her nap only to find the crib full of clean baby clothes that never got folded.  Soooooo frustrating.  Especially since DH agreed that if I handled our laundry, he would handle the diapers and baby clothes.  Now I'm doing everything AND taking care of the baby all day.  It makes me want to strangle him.  I don't understand how I can look around the house and know what needs to get done while DH needs like a massive list pinned to his forehead.  ARGH.

[iixivboots]

Oxyclean and putting them in the sun worked!

We switched to Target diapers and we're having more leaks but overall they're sooo much cheaper and pretty much as good. If I don't end up going back to work FT I think I'm going to look into cloth. Well, I might start researching anyway.

 How is everyone! Keeping busy? Anyone back at work yet?

This was supposed to be my first week back. I am feeling good about the decision. Went to the doc to get my flu shot and was told I am still anemic and am getting some bad swelling from allergies (this is a slippery slope for me, once I get a cold/allergies it can aggravate my asthma, I can then get chest or sinus infections, need antibiotics and steroids, ugh!) So anyway I am glad I have time to stay home and care for myself and Lyle. It is still unclear whether my job will be there for me in January. I'm just kind of trying to sit with the uncertainty and take it day by day.

Poor little guy, he has ingrown toenails. Pediatrician wasn't super helpful, said to just push back the skin after a bath. One caught on something last night and it bled and he was inconsolable for hours! We need to figure out the best way to soak it. I do NOT want to end up going to the pediatric podiatrist or putting him on antibiotics for it.

The weather is FINALLY cooling off just in time for nutty allergy season here. Ugh. But we are still walking at night when it's in the 70s, sweet! Still in the 90s. As those of you on FB saw, we got to a pumpkin market at a farm to take some pics and get pumpkins on Saturday, so that was fun. Lyle was cooperate with a few smiles.

More random slice-of-life news: in an effort to save money, I dyed my own hair and only half of it took, my hair is so damn thick. It still hasn't started falling out at all. So now the underside of my hair is a totally different color and we had to buy a second box of dye. Ugh. Really I should've gotten something closer to my natural color and kick this hair dye habit I've had since I was 15! The ammonia is so gross.

In other news, I'm getting my first Babyhawk mei tai in the mail today or tomorrow and I'm SUPER excited. I think this might be the carrier for us, and it's orange. We've been using the ergo and it has its uses but the MT I tried on was just so snuggly. :)

[Sol_y_Paz]

I have a dental appointment coming up.  They want me to bring DS and have him sit in the car seat since everyone does it all the time.  Based on many past outings I already know DS will not be content to hang out in a bucket seat for a whole hour.  It somewhat makes me curious just how many babies are, since they said people do it all the time?  He does like being worn, but I can't wear him for a cleaning   

[Mama Chickadee]

Hi everyone!

Its been so nice to read updates from everyone, and hear all the news!!! I rarely have any time to type with both hands, so haven't been checking in much. 

Miriam is 10 weeks old now. She's smiling and cooing, its just so much fun :) I'm starting to bathe her more frequently... at this point she's probably only had about 7 or 8 baths total, which was fine up till now, but she's starting to get "scurfy" pretty quickly, and just needs total body washes! We have a deep jacuzzi tub, so we just go in together and soak. She's still a pretty undemanding baby - she basically waits until her siblings are quiet or asleep, and then wants to be up and play. Great for the siblings, not so great for me trying to get sleep!

Sibs are adjusting - so much easier than the transition from 1 to 2 kids. My oldest just loves playing with her, and my toddler just seemed to have noticed her for the first time last week, lol. My two oldest seem to finally be bonding together (it only took 2 years) and that has been great to see. 3 kids definitely brings more balance to our house! Too bad it brings about 2x more laundry....

Speaking of laundry, we started cloth diapering again this week. I did it with my toddler until this past April, and he had gotten a bunch of colds in a row, and was constantly having diahhrea problems, and the nighttime diapering wasn't working, so I just quit. But, now that I have the laundry situation back under control, I started cloth again. I forgot how much fun it can be :) Since Miriam is EBF, no nasty diapers!!! I just wish we could hold off on doing solids until, like 1 year old? :)

Sol - Miriam hangs out in the carseat on top of a fluffy blanket a lot. Her siblings would never have stood for it. 

Boots - sorry about the dye job! I hope you're able to fix it. We have a family photo shoot this Sunday, and I look and feel like crap. I really need to go get a haircut, my hair looks awful right now. And do some waxing. And clip my toenails. Argh.

Lily - Sorry to hear about the naughty husband situation. My husband did something execution-worthy last week, but remember, if you kill him, that's one less set of hands to help hold the baby :) 

Re: ravenous-ness, I'm there, too. I'm constantly eating. I'm trying not to get cracker crumbs on my computer right now... I am now a fan of hummus and crackers - easy to eat, some protein, and comes in various flavors! Can be scooped with baby carrots or crackers (or a spoon)

VV - I'm glad you came on to rant. I so totally hear you on how you are feeling, it makes me feel less alone! DH started a new job, and while he isn't traveling internationally anymore, he doesn't get home often until bedtime, so I get very little help with all the kids. Being a mom is an exhausting job, and I think the time that we are hitting right now can sometimes be the worst - we're over the birth/new baby high, they still are waking us up all the time, and we have almost 2 months of sleep deprivation under our belt. But, the good part is, it usually starts to get better soon!

Well, tomorrow is picture day for DD at her school, which means a whole lot more prep time in the morning... hair, nails, jewelry (my daughter is such a girly girl!) We already did her hair tonight, so at least that part is almost done. Better get to bed so I can face the day tomorrow. Yea coffee!!!

[pennywhistle]

Originally Posted by LilyTiger 

I don't understand how I can look around the house and know what needs to get done while DH needs like a massive list pinned to his forehead.  ARGH.

SERIOUSLY WHAT IS THIS ABOUT.  My husband is the same way.  I'm not one to make gendered statements but COME ON, DUDES.

[iixivboots]

Okay, so regarding showering with baby, I did it! Here is my patented method! (The idea came from the Dr. Sears book where they said they used white cotton gloves to make the baby less slippery...)

I put the bouncer in the bathroom with towels (one regular and one hooded)

Put Lyle in a plain white sleeveless onesie, left crotch unsnapped. Took off his diaper and showered with him in the unsnapped onesie (after I had hopped in and rinsed off and checked the temp). It gave me the confidence to do it, he was very nonslip. Just soaped his head and diaper area. Then I got out, put him in the bouncer and wrapped him in his hooded towel, rinsed myself again quickly and then got out and got him to the changing area for dry clothes and diaper.  I don't think I will need to use the onesie in the future, as long as I'm careful about soap application. This might become part of our routine, it was fun, I think he liked it and I love clean baby!