Bi-Weekly Chat Thread (thru 10/28) - Page 10 « Back to Group Discussions

[sillymom44]

Dannic-- I completely agree about baby gear.  You'll find this funny....the only reason I mentioned trying to avoid gear is only b/c I hate to waste money on something you only use for several months AND b/c I desparately want my babies to learn to self-soothe in hopes that they'll sleep longer at night.  It always comes down to sleep with me... Years ago, when I had my 2nd son, a friend told me to avoid baby gear for that very reason.  She had a highchair (that reclined) in the kitchen and that is the only thing other than a crib that she used.  I took her advice b/c her babies slept amazingly well.  Looking back though, I should have reallllly thought hard, before I took her advice, b/c she formula fed, put her babies in a crib in a separate room from birth, and let them cry....  Why the @$%$ did I listen to her??  I just really liked her- I guess that's why.

I think that you have to do what is best for you and for your family and for your marriage!!  DH said it best when he stated "I have to save you from yourself" when he begged my to let him buy formula.  Luckily he is only needing one bottle of formula/day right now.  I am trying to eat as many calories as possible, but am nauseous and not hungry.  And then he gets to have breast milk that is loaded with Emergent C, antibiotics, and 600 mg of advil at times...  

Hoping and praying I don't have a breast abscess.  I was sobbing all morning in fear that I was developing one b/c I have a hardened mass (not a lump) where the red splotches were.  I was researching on the internet, and I insisted DH take our older boys to church b/c they wanted to go and they have had a crappy Thanksgiving vacation since I have been sick...but, I let my imagination run wild and imagined the abscess rupturing...  Ironically, the friend I mentioned above had this happen with her 1st son and she was hospitalized when he was a newborn.  That is why she formula fed all 4 of her children.  Anyway...my fever is down in the 99s, so surely that means I am getting better and not developing an abscess.  I will call my mw tomorrow.

Oh- and we are still co-sleeping b/c of the sickness.  DH starts out co-sleeping in the spare bedroom and then brings him to me when it is time for him to nurse.  I sleep with him the rest of the night.  It helps me get more sleep so far.

Sorry for all of the complaining...I just know that all of you will be encouraging, so I am "using" you for support.  

[dannic]

Ha!  I think I complained quite a bit during our pregnancies--complain away!  We get it.  hugs!  I'm glad your temp is lowering!  Hopefully you are on the up and up!  Do you have some probiotics you and baby can take?  Don't worry, baby is also getting alot of yummy stuff from your milk--and you know that.  Funny how our imaagination gets the best of us when we are alone and supposed to be resting...I remember the firs ttime I was alone with isaac; he was crying and clammy and I just knew something was terribly wrong...called dh home...and then isaac pooped non meconium for the first time.  lol.

I did the exact same thing with my toddler today.  DH was taking everyone else to church and ds toddler was begging, crying to go...so I arranged it, lol.  DH is in the young men's group and ds hates the nursery so my mom was supposed to take him but dh ended up just keeping him.

Ladies, I need bra suggestions.  I have used medela and anita.  what else is there that is supportive and not too high or low cut?  lol  see my thread, plz...

[Vegan Princess]

I'm wondering what everyone sleeps in? I usually sleep in a nursing cami but my top arm always gets cold and it's like a puzzle to get the blanket to stay over my arm but not go over baby and not get yanked off by my wiggly 3 yr old. But I think a shirt would be odd too since I am always nursing sidelying. Silly question. Also the cami doesn't hold my top boob in very well - and a nursing pad moves and my right boob always leaks, even though it makes way less milk than the left.

Last night is the first night I didn't get up to pump at all! I feel pretty good. :-) I just am tempted to keep it up once.night for a while though bc I get a couple extra ounces that I could keep adding to my freezer stash. I think production is highest in the middle of the night.

I have a swing. I got the kind that is like a cradle this time. But Aria hates it. My first daughter loved her swing - always got relaxed and went poop while in it. LOL. If I need a few minutes, I put her in the bouncy seat (also left from my first). She just likes being a bit upright and looking around - not so much at the stuff on the seat. Or I put her on a blanket - she LOVES just being on her back and looking at everything these days!!

Ok, baby pooped...

[dannic]

Mostly tshirts...and yeah, my lower arm is always cold.  I do have a nightgown that unbuttons on top and I like that better.  baby sleeps in a sleepsack so he doesn't need my covers and sleeps on top of them.  Of course, we are only using a sheet at this point.  Without the heater which we haven't used yet, it gets around 69 degrees in here.  not too bad. 

isaac is beginning to reach for things; he gets super excited but then frustrated.  the other day I helped him grab one of my curls hanging by my face and I got an instant huge smile!  SO Sweet!

[sillymom44]

Dannic- I am hving the same problem w bras...  I need to get measured by a professional though, 1st though b/c I am afraid my bras are too tight and are contributing to my mastitis.  

Vegan- i have the best sleeping shirt ever-- I nurse sidelying as well. I never did stop co-sleeping b/c I had to nurse often w mastitis.  It's not meant to be a nursing shirt, but it works great b/c I can easily pull the shirt down below the breast.  It looks like a long sleeve shirt that wraps around and ties and is a v-neck.  Does that make sense?  I am able to cover up my entire body (I have to have the cover over my cheeks for some reason) by using the corner of the comforter pulled at an angle up over me and then tucked in under my body or it is angled over the baby so it is only slightly over him.  He was in a sleep sack, but I realized his face was sweaty and he was getting too hot at night.  When he was just born, though, I had a horrible problem with one arm being cold at night b/c it wasn't cold enough out to turn the heat on yet.  I envisioned buying leg warmers for my arm, but then we started turning the heat on.  

DH said that Jack reaches for his face when he's on the changing table.  Today he smiled the most ever when I had him propped on pillows on my bed and was singing children's songs to him.  He smiled over and over and cooed.  It was wonderful after the weekend I've had.    

[Vegan Princess]

Hmm, so shirts that pull down. Got it. :-) I seriously considered a leg warmer for my arm too. LOL! It was my DH's idea.

I don't use a sleep sack bc half the time she is on the inside of the bed. I'd have to have my own covers, separate from DH. I do try to keep her on the outside as much as possible though (we have the crib sidecarred so she can't roll off the edge) bc my 3 yr old also sleeps on the inside and while DH tries to keep her on his side, I get nervous she is going to hit the baby in her sleep. 

Aria has her 2 month checkup tomorrow and her first shots! Poor baby. I spread them out so I think she'll only be getting 1 shot tomorrow. 

My 3 yr old just came home from preschool early with a tummy ache. She seems fine now. I SO hope this isn't the start of the stomach flu like her teacher was thinking. 

Silly: I hope you're feeling better and your supply is recovering as you eat and drink more!

Cindy

[sillymom44]

Vegan-  LOL about the leg-arm warmers.  I bought the cutest leg warmers for the baby online at "Layla Grace"- and they showed them as arm warmers too (so cute) maybe they have adult ones too??  

Yuck on the shots-- I dread them in 3 weeks.

I feel better, but still working on increasing supply.   

[Vegan Princess]

nak

i've started putting aria in the sidecarred crib, after she falls asleep and comes off the boob. i scoot my pillow over so i am right up next to the crib mattress. dh built something so the crib mattress is the exact height of ours. so i'm still close to her but feel like i have my own space. she doesn't seem to mind, so far. last night she was a little fussy bc she got a shot (dtap - poor baby!!). so we went to bed at 8:30. she nursed until about 9. she slept in the crib until 1:50. i nursed her then moved her back and she slept until 6 something! then she was up for a bit but let me hang out in bed...she and i both fell back asleep in about an hour and my big girl let us sleep until 9:15! such an amazing night of sleep! and i am so much more comfortable being able to roll over or sleep on my tummy if i want. but i def still love snuggling her next to me too. 

aria had her 2 mo visit yesterday. 22.5 inches and 10llb 4.5 oz. can you believe the dr's handout said it's ok to let your 2 mo old cry for 20 minutes so they will learn to put themself to sleep? dh reminded me i was shocked that the 1 mo handout said the same thing. i know i'm prob setting myself up for tough sleep issues again but that is ridiculous!!

[springmum]

We're doing a kind of sidecar setup for part of the night too. I was finding that my first stretch of sleep I sleep really deeply and not feeling that I was safely co-sleeping. For the first 1 or 2 stretches after I go to bed (which are still only about 2 hours, the nurse and right back to sleep) I put him in his bed, then later he comes in with me. He sleeps about the same either way, though I'm wondering if his early morning grunting would be less if he was still in his bed....maybe I'll test it one night. He is usually in bed for the night any time after 7 and I go to bed around 10 or so (put DS1 to bed, visit with DH etc) Some nights putting him back in his bed the 2nd time makes him keep waking up. He doesn't cry, but he does fuss a little - I do pick him up and keep trying depending on how much he is fussy (sometimes he's just grunting and wiggling with his eyes closed and I know he's okay)

I'm very against babies crying themselves to sleep, but I do feel like we contributed to DS1's poor sleep habits (we tried so many different things with him), so I'm hoping to establish something better this time. I'm also hoping DS will start going longer than 2 hours between nursing at night....

[micromama]

Wow is this thread still going? LOL. Just popping in to say hi! First of all, congrats to everyone who's since had their babies! I have been lurking and cheering you all on. Also glad to hear everyone is surviving these early newborn days. Sorry I've been incognito lately. Unfortunately baby Harper has some health issues I've been dealing with, namely related to poop. She has trouble going without me holding her legs for her (I think it makes it easier for her to push?) She's been an infrequent pooper since birth basically but I find if I hold her legs she will have two to three big BMs a day (not counting the diapers she "sharts" on her own, hehe). Otherwise, maybe every 2-3 days and she gets super fussy. I've been struggling with oversupply too so the poops are very foamy and sometimes sort of green. But, she is gaining AMAZINGLY well-- she was born at 6 lbs 5 oz and right now is over 10 pounds. Anyway overall it's been a little stressful. She has a rectal biopsy next week to rule out Hirschsprungs disease but so far, the tests they've done don't suggest it. She could just have a "sluggish rectum" as my GI doc says. Sigh.

Other than that, all is well. Big sis took to her role like a champ, so that is one less thing to worry about! Also, other than the poop, Harper is a doll-- very mellow and cheerful when awake. She does still sleep a lot though-- probably 16-17 hrs a day. She sleeps amazing at night, only waking twice to nurse on average. We are co-sleeping though. I find on the nights that I sidecar her, she wakes very frequently wanting to be held. She is a snuggler.

Well I hope everyone else is going great!

[sillymom44]

Micro-- we had similar poop issues, although DS was pooping some on his own.  initally there were no problems...but then as time went on he was grunting and straining for hours at night.  I was not sleeping at all.  Then, I would try to help him poop by pulling his legs up and wiping his bottom which would usually stimulate a poop- explosive poop- that would last for what felt like 15 minutes.  I tried taking dairy out, but it didn't help.  DH is intolerant to gluten, so I took that out of my diet and the pooping problem went away.  We saw huge improvements right away, but then it would come and go, but after about 2 weeks the problems is gone.  I also stopped eating eggs b/c his poop smelled so badly of eggs...  

We try the co-sleeper from time to time, and sometimes he does great, but most of the time he sleeps with me.  He takes longer naps if I just put him in the bed...once he starts rolling though...

Soo, the baby caught the older boys cold....  It's just a stuffy nose, but that leads to a lot of fussiness and stress...  I knew he was fine, but I did go ahead and take him to the peds office.  We saw the nurse practitioner who is also a LC and I LOVE LOVE LOVE her.  She is the sweetest nicest med professional I have ever met.  She also told me soemthing about his latch that might explain the 2 cases of mastitis...

[micromama]

Interesting! I've taken dairy and soy out, but so far no change. I might try gluten next... She can go on her own but much longer in between BMs than if I hold her legs. I figure as long as she's pushing on her own, no harm! Thanks for sharing the tip... Gives me hope we will solve the problem soon.

[micromama]

And sorry to hear about the cold! Harper had one a couple weeks ago and although it was short lived, it was no fun at all. Hang in there!

[sillymom44]

Glad to hear i'm not the only one w poop issues.  it was so awful bc i truly would not sleep for hours and hours....he was so loud and fussy.  Glad i could offer assistance- hope it helps!!  Luckily there are lots of gluten free food options out there now!

Is anyone else going back to work?  I go back in mid-jan- at least that is the plan so far.  i only work 930-3 and follow the public school schedule, so i have lots of time off...  it's such a good job, but I am so nervous about daycare- even though it is really nice and professional.  anyone else have daycare experience?  this is our first time...bf we moved my mil babysat. 

its so warm here-- need to get up and go for a walk!!

[Vegan Princess]

I have been avoiding dairy bc Aria was spitting up a ton and kinda fussy after eating. I fell off the wagon this weekend and she has been squirming around farting for the past 2 nights. I see what you mean about the hard to sleep thing - I kept thinking she was waking up bc she was squirming so much- but a lot of the farts would actually wake her up. No more dairy for me. It's hard around the holidays though when you're going to parties where someone else prepares the food. This kid made me stop being vegetarian and start eating meat again - and now she is going to make me a vegan again. LOL. 

I don't have much experience with daycare. I did check a bunch out bc I was going to put my daughter in for 1 day/week while I worked at home. I ended up doing a nanny share though. Right now I have been pondering the YMCA daycare. They have to be 8 weeks to go and she is 9 weeks now. I would LOVE to work out. My pediatrician said it was up to me but to know that it's the height of cold and flu season and a 2 month old won't tolerate anything she picks up very well. Plus she isn't fully vaccinated since we spread them out. So I'm thinking I am going to hold off on the Y, unfortunately. :-( I go back and forth. 

Micromama: Nice to see you! Sorry about the pooping issues. Aria sometimes skips a day but she doesn't seem bothered by it. Then when she does go it's a ton! Usually she is a once/day gal now. Some days 3 times, some days not at all.

I just weighed Aria. She gained 9.5 ounces in 8 days (up to 10lbs 11 oz). They say they should gain 1/2 ounce to an ounce/day. I'm so stoked! We haven't supplemented in almost 2 weeks and I haven't pumped in a week! Yay!!!

Cindy

[sillymom44]

Vegan- I agree about cold/flu season and daycare...it totally freaks me out...until I remember that Jack got a cold from the older boys at home.... It's unavoidable when u have older kids. I hv such mixed emotions about going back to work. At least i have options...and could stay home. Yay for the weight gain!!!! Jack is huge...need to weigh him.

Im having problems giving jack his probiotics- he throws a fit. I've tried a bottle and a syringe. Any ideas? Its powder.

[Vegan Princess]

nak

silly: my midwife said to put it on your nipple. 

[sillymom44]

Ok...except that I'm supposed to give 1/4 tsp of powder mixed w something I assume???  Dannic- how do you give it??

[Vegan Princess]

Well it would be getting mixxed with breast milk once he starts drinking? Curious to hear what Dannic says too.

I have started attempting to put Aria down for naps. As in not in the baby carrier. I've tried a couple times and failed miserably. And I hate to even admit it, but we still have not DTD yet!! We've tried and Aria can't stay asleep without me for more than like 10 minutes. ARGH! I suppose we may need to try another tactic for DTD - like putting her in the swing. It's so hard to find time w/an older kid that stays up until 9 and then I just want to go to sleep with the baby. And of course we have 2 kids in our bed with us. But anyway, naps. She just screams her head off as soon as I put her down - awake or drowsy. There is no "fussing" that is soothable. She did actually just fall asleep in the swing though - I suppose that is a start. Tips please??? On naps or DTD. LOL.

Cindy

[skinnyloveBC]

Silly: We were giving DD the berry flavored gas drops to help with her discomfort (before we found the probiotics), so we mix those with the probiotic powder and a few drops of warm water. It works for us to give her that from a syringe or dropper. It's probably the sweet flavor that helps her take it. I hope this helps!