August 05 Mamma's -- October Chat!!

[heldt123]

Whoo hoo! We made it to October. Hard to believe! Howdy all and how are things going?

My little guy has been feeling a little better these days, I think the worst is over. He has been smiling more the past two days and even gave me the cutest little grin today.

I'm super paranoid about his surgery this wednesday. Worry, worry, worry....they haven't even sent me the info I was supposed to get, I'm calling the clinic on monday if I don't get anything.

Have a good month!!

[~Megan~]

Just hopped on to subscribe.

I think I'll have to see if my mw can bring her scale the next time I see her. I'm curious as to what ds weighs now. He's fitting into 3-6 month stuff really well right now.

What are you all thinking of getting for your kids for holiday gifts? he doesn't need any toys, dd's old ones will be fine when he gets old enough. I doubt he'll need clothes. I really have no idea what to give him

[carrietorgc]

wow, 3-6 mo already! Adrian is short and fat, so he is still wearing all 0-3 mostly, although he has outgrown the smaller stuff already. he has a long torso like his daddy.

xmas stuff - prob. either some clothes/robeez if he needs them, or some cool wooden toys

What is everyone doing re a pacifier? Adrian finally will take one. Dh is paranoid about giving it to him too much,but he gets gassy when he wants to nurse to sleep and he has just eaten an hr before. he tends to like to eat, be awake, and sleep during the day. i've just been letting him have it a few min to help him fall asleep, then removing it before he is out. and it is helpful in the car if he is upset. that is it, we don't even give it at night since he will nurse to sleep then.

Jamie, I'm sure he'll do great at his surgery! My mil says dh's went well when he was a baby, and improved his disposition.

[Korwynne]

Leila had her 2 month apt Wed. She's up to 11 pounds 3 ounces and 22 inches (where Josh and Lindsey were at 1 month weight wise and Lindsey's birth length :LOL ). They increased her zantac to 3x/day, and it seems to be helping. We took her out of the infant carseat and put her into a pretty pink britax decathalon, and with the reduced pressure on her tummy and the more upright position, she's stopped crying in the car!

She's beautiful and perfect and I'm so in love with her

For Christmas, I'm getting her some new bibs/teethers/sippy cups since the others have been through the other two kids.. she's getting a blanket doll and a soft velour knotty doll.. some wooden haba baby toys.. an astrological rattle.. and Santa always brings a "big" gift.. since she needs nothing, I've ordered her a Kathy Kruse mermaid doll - she's my mermaid baby and will have a mermaid room when we move, so I thought it'd be cool even though she's too little to play with it. She'll also be getting a shopping cart cover and the next size up in robeez.

I'm having surgery Monday to remove a fatty tumor. I'm more nervous about being away from Leila than anything else. Its an outpatient thing and I don't have to be completely out, so I'm hoping for the best.

[Mama Coltrane]

yahoo- an october thread. nak
xmas- hmmm- no idea. i want to start 529 savings plans for our boys, so maybe i will do that with a couple toys.
my first ds never took a paci. i haven't tried with emmett and probably won't. he seems pretty content without it.
heldt- feeling for you. surgery is nerve wracking, but i bet it will go well.

i found a sling from my stash that emmett likes. that makes life easier.

- kerri

[heldt123]

Pacifier phobia here. I've never felt too bad when neither of my boys would suck on one, but I can't say that I've tried real hard either--they always manage to get lost somehow.

Christmas? AAAaaaaah, um, yeah....I haven't though about that yet. I'll probably get him an outfit or two, as my 6-9mo supply is scant b/c I sold a bunch of it during a broke period. Maybe one small toy too. I'm sure the grandparents will spoil him with toys anyway.

Jodi - good luck with the surgery, hope it goes well.

[henhao]

Heldt and Korwynne--good luck with your surgery.

Olive seems to be getting bigger. She's 5 weeks now and we'll take her in a few weeks to get weighed. DH and I are both so curious to know how much she weighs. Her face looks different every day.

I have 3 more weeks of maternity leave and I'm trying not to get stressed about returning to work. My schedule will hopefully be to work from home on T-Th and then work at the office (sometimes with the baby) on M-W-F. I am so grateful to have this flexibility. I figure if my plan to take her into the office doesn't work then the worst case scenario is that I'll get someone to care for her.

I tried pumping and only got 3 oz!! Ack. Tomorrow I have to get DH to give her a bottle so he and she can get used to that before I return to work.

We tried a paci and she sucked it for about half a second before she spit it out. I might try it in the car because she cries and cries in the car.

What do you think about the pumoing? How long should it take to get 3 oz? I know it'll vary some depending on pumping speed etc but I'd appreciate any estimates...

[carrietorgc]

we were all set to not give a paci this time around but it kills me when he wants to suck to sleep and gets so upset and gassy from nursing anyway....

deborah, i think 3 oz for a first time pumper is great! I ended up with a 500 oz ebm freezer stash with dd - the sad thing (or good thing) is that it was never used since I was able to bring dd to my work daycare when i returned to work ptime at 4 mo and she decided to refuse a bottle

I would suggest pumping at the same time every day to train your body. generally the am is better - prolactin levels are highest at night and you will be fullest when you wake in the am. how about if olive nurses around 7 then pump around 8 (assuming she will eat again around 9 or so).

sadly my huge stash met a deplorable end - dh accidentally unplugged the deep freeze a wk before dd turned 1. it was so sad! my lll leader cried along with me....

oh, are you using a double electric pump? i love my medela pump in style.

[EStreetMama]

3 oz is awesome to start!! I am having to exclusively pump (every 2 hours!) and I am lucky to get 2 oz! I would kill for 3 oz, so just keep pumping and collect every drop you can. It really does add up.

Sadly, last week my boy only got 25% breast milk and 75% formula. We're looking into a milk donor but I'm kinda worried about the disease factor. She is a former client of my MW, but it seems like a risk.

What would you do, please? Use a donor to get him more breast milk or keep on with the formula?

Good luck with surgery, you two!! Let us know how you're doing.

Christmas--I am more worried about what to get my almost 10-year old stepdaughter for her birthday. I think the little boy will get Robeez and clothes and some toys to grow into.

Believe it or not I just spilled half of the milk I just pumped while trying to type that I was sorry that Carrie lost her milk stash. Grrrr...I spilled it into my work keyboard too.

Gotta go!

[WriterMama]

Hello ladies! It's been so long since I've checked in--it's so good to see you all.

Heldt and Korwynne--best of luck to you both. I'll be thinking of you.

RE: pacifiers
I've been kind of phobic about them, too, but I tried one this time because Mara absolutely detests the car and it breaks my heart to hear her cry. Unfortunately, it just makes her gag, so I won't be pushing it any more.

Mara is 7 wks now. She is so alert and smiley now--I love it. She's getting chubby, too. She's outgrown most of her 0-3 mth clothes. I'm anxious to see what she weighs at her 2 mth ped. appt. Sadly, she's already had her first cold (thanks, big sis! :LOL), but she's a trooper and her congestion is starting to clear up.

Take care, everyone!

[carrietorgc]

i would use the donor breastmilk, as long as the donor takes all the regular tests for diseases. i've donated milk to my friend (she cannot pump well at all, but nurses her son just fine) the few times she has needed to go into the office. i was able to get a copy of my test results from my midwives forher.

[nabigus]

Deborah, not to worry about the 3 oz--I only got 2 oz the first time I pumped (and that was hard won). Now I pump during his first major nap of the day and get 6-8 oz total pretty fast. Especially if you're pumping in addition to nursing, it may take a few days to build up a supply.

Poor ds is so gassy tonight--I feel just awful for him. He's otherwise doing splendidly, very laid back and chatty and happy. We ventured out with friends to a yummy pizza place tonight--only problem was that ds was so distracted by the noise and people that he kept popping off the breast. so much for discrete nursing.

Loved all the pics of babies. They're just so darned adorable!

[Amy in NH]

We have a ton of clothes (everyone has been very generous with gifts, hand-me-downs, borrowing, and consignment shopping), and tons of toys (with 3 older kids and we've kept all the good toys). For their first Christmas, each of the kids have gotten baby keepsakes like silver spoon, cup, and bank, a 1st Christmas ornament with their name and year engraved, and a blanket that has their name knit right into it. We get something and encourage the grandparents to pick something from the list.

Jessie hasn't taken a pacifier until today. A friend was over holding her, and she was really fussy. She had already nursed and changed, so Dawn offered the paci and Jessie took it - then passed a bunch of gas. She just needed something to suck to get that gas out. She had a couple of green stools today, too. So we'll keep an eye on that! I'm not going to push the paci too much, though. It's more of a pain to use than not.

We got her 6 week pics back from Sears, I'd post a scan but I don't know how. They came out really cute, though.

[Mama Coltrane]

jodi, good luck with surgery too. you mamas are strong.

here are some pics of emmett a week or two ago. he is pretty big.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/PhotoVie...d=198739908205

http://www.kodakgallery.com/PhotoVie...=1128255043799

- kerri

[Maggi315]

HI,
Just popping in to say hi. My poor little guy has his first cold. We had to cancel his baptism yesterday which was a pain because we had lots of people, rented a hall, and had food. He is doing much better, now I am feeling sick and so is my 3 year old!

Christmas: What I normally do for their first christmas, is buy them things I need/want. Like a new sling or something. Joshua is going to get a sheepskin rug, always wanted one of those! Plus a few outfits, probably bigger ones for the future.

[ktmama]

Hi guys
Jamie and Jodi - good luck to you both with your surgeries. I'll be thinking of you.

Little Olive and Emmett look a bit like my Annabelle with all that dark hair! Hers is SOOOO soft (like her dad's) and I think her sweet head is my favorite part of her. Do you guys do that? Fall in love with a specific body part? Sounds wierd, but with dd1 it was her butt. Still is. That girl has the sweetest little butt.

As for the paci, well, I think I don't have a paci problem (which gets spit out), but a car/car seat problem. What is the deal with hating the car? Is it not being able to see the grown ups? Is it that the seat is that uncomfortable? Is it being strapped in? Anyone have any insights? I do have the mirror thing, but haven't installed it yet. Too many bells and whistles for me, but if it would help, I'll try anything. Dd1 hated the car too.....

As for Christmas. We actually celebrate the Winter Solstice, but do have a gift exchange. Money is so tight this year with only one income, I am considering making a game out of a $20 limit each. Anyone have any experience with making the holidays fun on no money? For AB, I'm sure she'll get a pair of Roobez (used) and then I'll ask the rellies to put their gifts in the form of donations to her 529 fund.

The aspen leaves are turning here in CO and the weather is lovely. So fun hiking with the hotsling! Hope you are all having a lovely weekend.

[heldt123]

Originally Posted by ktmama

What is the deal with hating the car? Is it not being able to see the grown ups? Is it that the seat is that uncomfortable? Is it being strapped in? Anyone have any insights? I do have the mirror thing, but haven't installed it yet. Too many bells and whistles for me, but if it would help, I'll try anything. Dd1 hated the car too.....

I dunno...my first son loved car rides and his carrier carseat. He'd sleep and sleep or just look around. This one hates it. About half the time he will fall asleep, but as soon as the car stops moving he usually wakes up. I have a double stroller that the carseat fits in, but I have to carry him in a front carry and my older son gets both seats to himself and his toys.

I've found that timing helps. If he's just eaten and I think he will be close to taking a nap, I put him in and go. Of course that doesn't always work if we have to be at an appointment at a certain time, but it works better for the rest of the time as he will fall asleep fairly quickly. I picked up one of those strap on toy bars at a yard sale and will try that soon to see if it helps any.

As far as liking a certain body part, I love his little shoulders. They are all hairy and fuzzy. I like to swirl my fingers there and make little patterns. Baby buts are always cute!

[henhao]

Actually, i should clarify that the 3 oz was collected at 2 diff times. Sorry for the confusion.

Okay, I'll try pumping in the am. Thanks for the tip!

Oh, that's so sad about your stash. Gosh. I don't want to lose even a drop!! I'd have cried, too.

Yep, I have the medela PIS. I pumped one side while dd was on the other. Not on purpose but she was hungry about every second that day I tried pumping. =) Tomorrow, I'll start pumping at 0700 or so and make that a habit.

Your baby was born on my dd's due date.

Originally Posted by carrietorgc

deborah, i think 3 oz for a first time pumper is great!

I would suggest pumping at the same time every day to train your body. generally the am is better - prolactin levels are highest at night and you will be fullest when you wake in the am. how about if olive nurses around 7 then pump around 8 (assuming she will eat again around 9 or so).

sadly my huge stash met a deplorable end - dh accidentally unplugged the deep freeze a wk before dd turned 1. it was so sad! my lll leader cried along with me....

oh, are you using a double electric pump? i love my medela pump in style.

[henhao]

What are Robeez? Are they shoes?

Sorry to be mistaken about my 3 oz. What I should have said (if I didn't have milk brain) is that I collected 3 oz in a day...I pumped 3 different times and sometimes not for very long at all. My best guess is that I got about 1 oz during my first session. Thanks to you all for your tips and such.

We celebrate xmas but I like KTMAMA's idea of celebrating the solstice. I only celebrate xmas because of my family. I'd be happy to spend the day reading a book.

Ktmama -- I think not having money makes life more interesting and forces people to be creative. When DH and I were poor grad students, we lacked for nothing. He drove a 1971 car. We made do with what we had and shopped at thrift stores. I have a thing for vintage clothes anyway. Now I look back on those days with fondness... As for gift ideas, you could make cookies, put a photo of your new baby in a frame for someone, make ornaments together (or other decorations if you don't use a tree). You could also buy games--bocce, deck of cards, cribbage, etc. Those aren't expensive. I try and try to get my family to calm down with the gifts. It gets crazy, and I feel embarassed when I sense that someone else in my family speny waaaay more than I did. But I don't want to go over budget and they hopefully know I love them even if I'm not spending loads of $$.

[Korwynne]

Kate, Leila stopped screaming in the car when we moved her out of the infant bucket and into the convertible seat.. the bucket seat apparently scrunches them more and puts pressure on their little tummies and backs.