October baby chat thread - Page 2

[mamas2atti]

Originally Posted by ryleeee

gentian violet..i'll have to get that.

It usually comes in a 1% solution--make sure you dilute with water to 1/2% solution or it could be harmful when rubbed inside baby's mouth.

[mamas2atti]

Originally Posted by rosie_plus_one

So I'm kind of in a pickle here because I know he should be feeding throughout the night, but I also kind of believe that babies know when they need to eat and they'll let you know. He's by no means shy to let me know when he wants to feed at 7 am. Should I be waking him up after 2 or 3 hours to feed him? Should I let sleeping babies lie? I talked to my lactation nurse about it, and she kind of said that I should feed him during the night, but she didn't make a very big deal about it and left me feeling that maybe she didn't think it was something to be too concerned about.

I own a business that employs several IBCLCs and I know they would tell you a 3 week old with slow weight gain should be awaken at least once during that stretch to eat. Every 2-3 hours is not absolutely necessary, as he might cluster feed before he goes to sleep for the night, but at this point your breasts need to be stimulated and baby needs to eat at least 8-12 times in 24 hours and probably on the higher end for slow weight gain. Each case is very individualized so this is just *general* information. I would wake him up after about 5-6 hours to get that extra feeding in and see if that helps with the weight gain.

[eclipse]

Rosie, is he having any issues with jaundice? if he is, I'd wake him, because jaundice can make babies sleepy. also, you say he's gaining weight slowly - but how slow is slow? if he's having enough poops and pees, and is still gaining, i wouldn't worry *too* much about it - but I might try waking him right before you go to bed to sneak in a feeding. Also, if you wake before him, you might try waking him up as soon as you wake up to see if you can entice him to eat. fwiw, though, my dd was not much older than yours when she started sleeping through. She was a very content baby, and one of the only things I could do that would make her cry was to try to get her to nurse when she didn't want to and would rather be sleeping. She didn't have slow weight gain, though, so YMMV.

Anyhow, last night was a night from hell for me. My two older kids have the 2nd cold they've had since Aidan was born. DH slept in the living room with ds because he was having a hard time breathing and would sleep in his room. DD kept waking herself up coughing and going to look for DH. Aidan woke up every hour or so - I changed 5 poopy diapers between 11PM and 5AM. in that time, the longest stretch of sleep I get was about 20 minutes at a time. Aidan was ridiculously gassy, and nothing seemed to help. he was waking himself up with his farts, spitting up constantly, wanting me to be sitting up with him at the breast, but not actually nursing, etc. around 5:30AM, I finally woke up dh and handed him off and let him give him a bottle of EBM. ugh. i was at the point that i was falling asleep *while* he was crying, and I figured that couldn't possibly be good. i got a couple of hours of sleep, and a little more in the afternoon. I'm starting to wonder if our night time sleep problems might be due to something dietary or reflux or something. i don't get why he sleeps fairly well during the day, though - if it was dietary, or reflux, wouldn't that affect him all the time? I still kick myself for not being more proactive when DS1 was a baby - in retrospect, I'm sure he had reflux - but he also cried all the time, had to be carried and bounced, didn't sleep well day or night, and had to be laying on some one in a somewhat upright position to be able to sleep at all. Aidan will sleep laying down during the day, but night time is just really rough for him. He's still not particularly cranky at night, but he seems to want to nurse, but is unable to (you know, the latch on, latch off type behavior?) anyway, I'm pretty tired - that was the point of this post.

[Worldshakerz]

allgirls, that's great that you are tandeming. I was feeling extremely ambivilent about it 2 weeks ago but now the idea doesn't seem so bad. Since Jakob has been sick these past few days he's been wanting to nurse. Tonite he got 10 seconds on each side when I put him down to sleep and he was fine with that. He's been okay with a very little bit these past few days. I may continue on a "don't offer, don't refuse" basis. However when he asks I think I will continue to see if anything else will meet his need first such as a snack, a drink of water, hug and a kiss, etc. Also, I think limiting the length of the nursing session works well for us too.

[rosie_plus_one]

Eclipse - No problems at all with jaundice. Everyone has said he's an incredibly healthy baby. Let's see - he was born at 9 lbs 8 oz, and dropped to 8 lbs 13 oz before we left the hospital. Then a week later he was up to 9 lbs 5 oz, but due to some problems breastfeeding, he lost a few ounces over a 4 day period. He weighed in at 9 lbs 3 oz on Thursday, 13 days after he was born.

I would say that he feeds at least 10 times during the day - he feeds almost every hour, then is very content to sleep through the night. He did wake up last night after about 4 1/2 hours to feed, but that was the first middle of the night feed we'd had in quite a while.

Rosie

[ryleeee]

i woke haye up if he slept more than 4 hours at a time to feed him.
it turns out he was usually SUPER hungry and if he wasn't he just fell back asleep.

[allgirls]

my baby sleeps a lot at night...she's 11 days old and usually has at least one 5 hour stretch....I am not concerned...it may change, it may not...but she eats up a storm all day and cluster feeds for several hours in the evening. I nurse on demand. We haven't weighed her since day three but she's gaining. I am using up my disposables before switching to cloth and she has outgrown the newborn ones and is up to the size one package(which is all gone after today!) and she fills out her 3mos jammies quite nicely now! Several pairs are really getting too tight!

I think you should look at your baby and make the decision...Martina is so healthy and chubby and content...I think the sleep is as important to her growth as the milk is!

tandeming is a bit overwhelming...but mostly very satisfying...I love how Sophia holds Martina's hand when they are nursing at the same time. The other day they both fell asleep and I was stuck in the chair. My eleven year old came home and I said can you take the baby please...I have to pee...it was so funny...thankfully it was only half an hour before she came home...I do not nurse them at the same time if I am alone now! Of course Sophia is nursing more now because she loves the milk and she sees me nurse more so it reminds her. This morning she said..."can I have a widdle sip pwease" while baby was nursing...so cute. She is getting better at waiting her turn.

Ryleee..yeah...make sure to dilute the GV...I forgot I did that 2 years ago!

My oldest dd who is 15 and her friend made dinner last night...caesar salad, mashed potatoes, cauliflower with cheese sauce(I made sauce), and honey/garlic chicken(I am a vegetarian but DH said it was great) with a huge cherry cheesecake for dessert...I had 2 pieces I am down 22lbs since baby came...I gained 40 and was already up a few extra before I got pregnant. So the cheesecake is my last hurrah! I am trying to eat right and lose very slowly so I am down to my normal weight by next summer...not lofty goals but with tandem nursing and a nice healthy diet I think achievable...I figure 9mos to gain, 9 mos to lose!

Of course now that I am not pregnant I can enjoy a bit of wine with dinner occasionally as well...nice!

[allgirls]

Wow is it quiet here!

Bailey...how are you doing?

We went for a weigh in for Martina...10lbs 9 oz...what a big girl at 15days old!

On the way in Martina started crying and Sophia started singing twinkle twinkle little star to her and she immediately stopped crying! Then went to sleep...tonight we went to pick up Christi at her friends and same thing happen...immediately when Sophia starts singing baby stops crying and falls asleep...Sophia is very proud of her big sister success!

Oh...and my van got T-boned in the grocery store parking lot~$3100 worth of damage to the passenger side. The front panel, front door and the bottom panel on back door have to be replaced. I can't even open the door on the front. But the lady that hit me was very nice and we exchanged information. Her insurance will cover the damage. She was driving a Ford Taurus and the bumper is pretty squished. I have a Ford Freestyle so the damage is down low.

At least no one was hurt though I have a cut on my thumb..no idea how it is possible to do that...couldn't find anything sharp in the van that might have caused it.

[Godiva]

I'm doing the best I can concidering I have a bowling ball between my legs (my mom claims that I don't look like I've dropped, I told her that if I drop any lower, the baby will be crowning!) and the extra 90lbs I'm lugging around (uh yeah, the longer shes in there the bigger I get!). My attutide is much better than it was last week though. Last week I was emotional, bitter, and thought that baby would never come out. Now I'm feeling pretty positive and I know that she will come out. I've been pregnant so long, what's another week or 2? I'm glad to hear that you and your girls are ok allgirls! That must be terrifiying to be in an accident with your kids in the car. I used to have the WORST lead foot before I was pregnant (after getting me an old muscle car, my dad told me "this isn't a grandma car, don't drive it like it's one". I really don't think he thought I would take that to heart as much as I did) but now, the most I go is 5 over, and I'm so careful before pulling out or anything. That is so cute about Sophia singing Martina to sleep! What a good big sister! Oh, if anyone is intersted, you can see 44 week pregnant pics here 44 weeks

[allgirls]

Bailey...you look gorgeous! 44 weeks! That is so cool...I know it doesn't seem that way to you but it's really awesome that you are letting this go naturally! Your baby will be here soon! You look so ready!

OK...must change my siggy...my oldest noticed yesterday it said she's 14 and she's 15...better get right on that!

[mamabeth]

Just wanted to say Bailey, you look awesome, and you are a strong mama to go all the way! My baby was born at 43 weeks, so from one ten month mama to another...hope he/she comes soon.

[Godiva]

Thanks! ::sigh:: at least I'm not getting medical advice over here... I posted on the uc forum and it's great, lots of people are being very supportive, but I posted in the UC forum because I DON'T want medical advice of any kind! I know that they are just trying to be helpful and all, but I swear if I have one more midwife post on there about my due date or what I can do about my bp, I'm gonna scream. I really just want to say, "thanks but theres a reason why I don't have a Dr or midwife in real life, and yes I have figured out on my own how to regulate my bp, and really I CAN count to 40!" Yesterday was a post about how I wasn't due til Nov 8th (umm 3 days ago?!) according to when I got a postive pregnacy test. If I was due Nov 8th, I wouldn't have even been PREGNANT when I took the test! And besides, that is something you really shouldn't tell someone who has been waiting for 6 weeks (4 weeks overdue plus 2 weeks before due date hoping she'd come early ) for a baby, "oh you could still go another 4-6 weeks"..... I tried to reply as nicely as I could stating that I've been over it a million times and the only range of dates for this baby is Oct11th -25th, with the 11th being most likely. And Then I tried to get them to drop the whole due date thing by saying "I don't care about my due date anymore since I'm waiting for Caia to tell me when she is due" Then I get another post this morning about my due date . It's really starting to irritate me and ruin my good mood. I know they mean well. I'm just highly senstive right now and the littlest things upset me.

[allgirls]

I hear you girl! My last dd was 16 days past my "due date" and the biggest irritant to me was suggestions of what I should be "doing" to get things started. I mean, seriously...baby will come when baby comes. If you try something and it works I have a feeling you would go into labour without it and it actually didn't work...just promoted what was already happening.

The only exceptions I would make is to walk and have sex. Both for enjoyment not inducement

after a week I gave up "trying" and from then on things got easier.

Martina was 10 days past my "due date" and I did nothing!

post-term labour would probably be as common as pre-term if it wasn't for over-use of induction.

I know Martina was post-term...her daddy is a truck driver and was home one night...I got a pos hpt before he came back....it was exact and sounds like you know as well!

We would like Caia to come out though...we want to see her!

[Godiva]

Originally Posted by allgirls

If you try something and it works I have a feeling you would go into labour without it and it actually didn't work...just promoted what was already happening.

I completly agree with that one! I tried everything to get her out last week. Nothing will get a baby out before it's ready (except hosptial inductions, and even those don't always work. I'm sure if I went for a hospital induction last week, all the pitocin and AROM in the world wouldn't have gotten Caia out, they would of had to cut her out of me). I read somwhere the other day that pregnacy is like a big boulder on a stone pillar. Every day you're pregnant the stone pillar wears away a bit til finally there isn't enough left to support the boulder and it comes crashing down. All the pushing in the world won't get the boulder to fall before it's ready because it's too heavy and the base is too strong. Why waste my energy pushing against this boulder? It's so much easier to just sit and wait and watch for it to fall . I would like Caia to come out as well! I hope she looks like her daddy! Little Ukie girls are adorable in every way. I'm more curious to see what she looks like because I have a good feeling about her personality already (STUBBORN!!, active, determined, and unique). Something is starting to stir in there a bit though, I'm getting mild crampy contractions. It's a start at least.

[mamas2atti]

Hang in there bailey! Kudos to you for letting her decide when to come out.

Even though I ended up being induced at 42 weeks, I hear you with people's comments. When people questioned when I was due and I told them the date I actually had someone tell me (at 41 weeks, 6 days) that I "must have miscalculated." I almost punched her! People should really keep their mouths shut around postdate pregnant women.

Any day now. Sending you labor vibes~~~~~

[Godiva]

hehe, anytime someone refers to me as bailey it makes me smile! Bailey is actually my horse so when I hear (read) his name I think about him. People at my barn usually don't even know my name, I'm Bailey's mom. I miss riding my boy so much, but I'd kill myself if I tried to get back into the saddle. Plus I have SPD so wrapping my legs around a horse right now definatly isn't a good idea. Hehe it seems to me that the midwives don't want to beleive that I could possbily be over 44 weeks and my baby isn't dead yet. (haha and this is most definatly a healthy happy baby, she and daddy were playing kick the hand last night when he was rubbing my belly. Everytime his hand passed by her feet, she'd either poke one out really far or she'd kick at his hand). I think there should be a law that if you come across an obviously pregnant lady (who looks like she's about to pop) you aren't allowed to say anything other than "you look great!" Although I guess there really doesn't need to be a law, I'm sure plenty of people have learned the hard way that "wow, you STILL haven't had the baby yet?!" doesn't exactly go over well with an overdue hormonal pregnant woman.

[allgirls]

Bailey is your horse That's so funny!

You are right...they can't believe that baby is still in there and well. They don't get the difference between "increased risk" and something actually going wrong.

I mean..if this baby needs 44 wks to cook then you are not actually "overdue" this is just normal for this baby!

Sophia was 16 days past my due date but I don't believe she was all that post dates...Martina was 10 days past but she was way later. But nothing that would be problematic...healthy placenta, no meconium etc. etc. She just peeled over a lot

[lovnbnhome]

Originally Posted by rosie_plus_one

Maybe you second time (or more) mommas can let me know what you think of this -

My son is 16 days old today, and for the past 6 or 7 nights in a row, he has slept for about 7 hours straight through the night. Usually it seems like he sleeps from about midnight to seven, but once he slept from 9 pm till almost 6 am. He sleeps in the bed with his dad and I, he breastfeeds very frequently throughout the day, he has the appropriate number of dirty diapers, and he's gaining weight slowly. He was a big baby when he was born - 9 lbs and 8 oz.

So I'm kind of in a pickle here because I know he should be feeding throughout the night, but I also kind of believe that babies know when they need to eat and they'll let you know. He's by no means shy to let me know when he wants to feed at 7 am. Should I be waking him up after 2 or 3 hours to feed him? Should I let sleeping babies lie? I talked to my lactation nurse about it, and she kind of said that I should feed him during the night, but she didn't make a very big deal about it and left me feeling that maybe she didn't think it was something to be too concerned about.

TIA October Mommas,
Rose

I know LLL recommends that you wake the baby in the beginning so that s/he gets the nutrients that s/he needss. I guess you could call them to see what they recommend for your little one.

[allgirls]

Baby smiles are the greatest...we got our first one at 10 days and every day they are becoming more and more frequent...I love when she stops nursing...looks up with those big eyes and gives me a bright gummy smile..this has been my favourite thing with all my babies!!!

She is 19 days old today! Wow..it's going fast..yet only 19 days and it seems like she's always been here. She's laying in her little seat so mommy can safely have a coffee...so content and cooing...I love this little person!

well...better run..only have a minute to finish before she's ready for mommy again!

Cheers

[ryleeee]

i can't believe haye is 6 weeks already. holy smokes.