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Baby Blues

post #1 of 14
6/12/08 at 10:58pm
Thread Starter 
Does anyone else have them? I'm so frustrated, cranky, wiped out, weepy, and defeated feeling at the end of every day. My DD sleeps great in her basinette at night, but won't nap anywhere except my arms during the day. I've tried getting her to nap in the sling, but she won't do it -- I have to be holding her. And I have to hold her while she's awake, too.

So, I end up stuck holding the baby all day, and am unable to play with my 3yo DS, and then when he's napping, inevitably the baby gets fussy (because I've had to put her down so that I could get my DS to sleep) and I'm stuck with a fussy baby, then by the time she's happy again my DS wakes up and I can't play with him because I'm holding the sleeping baby, etc. etc. etc. -- it's driving all of us crazy!!

I'm not enjoying my kids, and I feel terrible about it. I just want to run away from home sometimes.

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post #2 of 14
6/12/08 at 11:31pm
post #3 of 14
6/13/08 at 9:28am
I'm there. Usually around 5:00 before hubby gets home from work. Sometimes I feel so bad because I've done "nothing" all day because Caleb was extra needy or wouldn't nap all day. We just moved in three weeks ago and I haven't really established a "home" yet... boxes are everywhere... this doesn't help.
But this feeling usually subsides once I bathe Caleb and have his father hold him. Sometimes you just need some time for yourself, ya know?
post #4 of 14
6/13/08 at 10:16am
Not this time, but with my DD1 I felt overwhelmed a lot!

Have you tried a different carrier? When Meghan was a newborn she preferred to sleep upright in the Hmong carrier. Now that she's around 10 weeks old she likes to sleep in the sling.
post #5 of 14
6/13/08 at 10:32am
: and
post #6 of 14
6/13/08 at 1:45pm
My dd will only sleep in her swing or in my arms. We have the baby papasan that plugs in. She usually takes 2 three hour naps in the mornings (6-9 a.m. and then 10-1 p.m.) and that is the greatest break. I actually have good quality time with dd1. If you don't have a swing, I would definitely try another type of carrier. Currently, my dd2 likes my Storchenweige or my Moby, but only if her legs hang free. She doesn't like them up against her. She also doesn't like the carrier unless I'm moving...we either go on a walk, go shopping, or to the park.

I'm totally with you on the exhaustion by the end of the day.
post #7 of 14
6/13/08 at 3:02pm
i just wanted to say what super mamas you all must be! i can't imagine having a baby with other kiddos around. i don't know how you do it. i have a pretty easy baby...but i still have a hard time getting things done, and i can't imagine what in the world i would do with another kid!

my baby pretty much only likes her sling or wrap if we are moving. if we go for a walk, she usually falls right to sleep - and stays asleep for a long time!

good luck.
post #8 of 14
6/13/08 at 3:08pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by amaayeh View Post
My dd will only sleep in her swing or in my arms.
DD has hated the swing every time I've tried it before today, but it had been a couple of weeks since my last attempt, so I gave it a shot today and ... she's been sleeping happily in it for an HOUR!!!! Thanks so much for reminding me about it!! I just rocked her until she was all snuggly and content, then gently put her in her swing and patted her for a couple of minutes and she dozed right off -- woo hoo!!! DS and I baked a cake and played with his trains -- I feel like such a better mama today!
post #9 of 14
6/13/08 at 3:14pm
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by katiesk View Post
i just wanted to say what super mamas you all must be! i can't imagine having a baby with other kiddos around. i don't know how you do it. i have a pretty easy baby...but i still have a hard time getting things done, and i can't imagine what in the world i would do with another kid!

my baby pretty much only likes her sling or wrap if we are moving. if we go for a walk, she usually falls right to sleep - and stays asleep for a long time!

good luck.
Aww, thanks for your kind words.

My DD is the same as yours -- she's perfectly happy in the sling if we're moving. But mama needs a break sometimes, you know? I just can't walk around for her whole nap. And in 3 weeks I start back to my WAH job -- I can't even imagine how I'm going to get anything done, especially if I can't put DD down. Hopefully she continues to be able to nap in her swing.
post #10 of 14
6/13/08 at 7:03pm
DD was really colicky, in-arms high needs in the beginning and the swing was a lifesaver for me! Sometimes I would sit and sing lullabies to her to get her to fall asleep. After a few months she got more content in the sling but it took some time. Have you tried getting her to sleep in the sling by vacuuming or standing next to the dishwasher or washing machine? The white noise helped a lot.

Good luck on the WAH job! Hopefully your baby will have several content periods a day by then when you can put her down for tummy time or sitting in a bouncy seat or something. DS let me get two baskets of laundry folded today, lol, so it is getting there slowly but surely.
post #11 of 14
6/14/08 at 12:38am
Oh yeah, I'm right in the thick of it. Zaven is a much needier baby than Amelia ever was & Amelia has recently become, um, spirited. I'm just exhausted and completely overwhelmed. I'm hoping that things will start evening out when I go back to work. I was dreading it with Amelia but this time around I've found that I'm really missing being there. I think (hope) that maybe if I'm happier by being at work, I'll be more energetic when I'm home.

to everyone!
post #12 of 14
6/14/08 at 9:50am
yeah. i had to get on some zoloft & that has really helped.

soren actually doesn't really nap during the day -- he does cat naps, maybe 20 mins here, 30 mins there. SOMETIMES we get a long nap. he does sleep thru the night, though, so i'm thankful for that and try to remember that when he's waking up from a 20-min nap.

he always likes to be held -- and i don't blame him, but he's 16 pounds and i get a sore back a lot. and i have a 4-y-o to parent, too ... it's hard. i know it's just something new to learn -- a new balance, but i'd say we're only about 20% there yet. and i return to work july 2nd ...
post #13 of 14
6/14/08 at 10:18am
the transition from 1 to 2 kids was the hardest one for me. trying to juggle giving your newborn was s/he needs while giving your toddler the attention s/he requires can be incredibly overwhelming at first. it does get easier as baby becomes happier on his/her own - like under a playgym grabbing and kicking at things, or chewing on a toy, or having tummy time. and around that same age my DS got really happy in a high back carry where he could look out over my shoulder while he was awake - and that totally changed my life! being able to have him on my back and happy so i really had my hands free to do something fun with DD1 was incredibly liberating. but it does take a while.

i'm so glad the swing is working for you now! keep trying the carriers, too. as you found with the swing, what doesn't work one day/week does work on another day/week, so keep trying! and as others have said, sometimes it just takes a different carrier or a different carry using the same carrier. none of my kids have enjoyed a cradle hold in any carrier, but love being T2T.
post #14 of 14
6/15/08 at 11:07pm
Yay! I'm glad the swing worked! I have heard that A LOT from friends that their baby won't like it one day and ten love it the next. It's wonderful getting a break!!

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