any other over 35 first time mums?

[clio]

Okay, morning now, and I'm awake. That was the strangest thing. I kept falling asleep even while trying to write that I was falling asleep! I think that last sentence took me half an hour to get out!

I spent all of yesterday putting together my syllabus for my Ami History course, as it's due for review today. I ended up making a whole bunch of stuff up because when I originally taught it, my lectures were 70 minutes long, and now I have to cram everything into 50 minutes. No time to figure out how to do that in a day, so I came up with all sorts of important sounding topic titles to fill in the gaps, like: "Politics in an Industrializing Age." But now I have to write a lecture about Politics in an Industrializing Age. I'm thinking now that I should probably have aimed lower.

I'm sorry for all of you with sleeping problems! Our 1970s parenting experiment is still going well; I heard him at 3:30, and just left him. He wasn't in hysterics, more like just whining, and he fell back asleep within half an hour. This morning as well; he woke at around 5:15 am and I left him whining and chattering until 6. He seems no worse for the wear (<--what does that even mean???). In fact, he's finally got his colour back. When he was waking up all the time and refusing to nap at all, I began to worry because his face was so white, and his eyes were always red. I didn't know it was from lack of sleep, so I worried that he was either anaemic, or, because he looked just like my sister when she's having an allergic reaction, that he had a deficient immune system. Nope, turns out, he was just always tired. But we're not teething at the moment, so I'll need a different game plan when we are. Maybe I'll have to find out what parents did in the 1980s...

Skweek and Charlie--I hope you're surviving your first nights with your LOs. Charlie, is the sleeping any better? And Skweek, any real problems yet? How are you both surviving after your c/s? Definitely take it easy. And take whatever meds they give you! I was all for toughing it out, until I realized that, although I didn't really need the pain killers, I did need the anti-inflammatory to heal quicker.

SK--poor Finn! Poor you! What do you think caused the vomiting and temperature? And are they still gone? And out of curiosity, how did the romper help, vs. the baby grow? I hope the GP is helpful (because we all know how amazingly attentive they are to our problems...).

Angel--Oh, I want to cry just hearing about your night! That's crazy! And why did it have to happen on your night? I hope this is just an anomaly, and they'll go back to being semi-angels again. And they were both so close to winning the "Baby of the Week" award of the thread (and as we know, this is a VERY rare distinction...).

Leeze--was Kia any better last night? I totally forgot about the MMR shot--J will get his in a month. And I guess we all have to go for the flu shot as soon as possible. Did Kia fare being left at the nursery any better today? How about you?

Borboleta--re: the diaper problem, have you tried the Huggies Overnights? They saved us because J seems to pee like a race horse during the night. Though because he had to move up a size and they are still a bit big on him, we're double diapering at the moment. Huggies first, then Pampers Cruisers overtop. Of course, this is all for pee, and I have no idea how to solve the poo problem. Have you tried other pregnancy forums, or asked on Baby Club? (Though I guarantee you that someone will tell you to switch to cloth! ) One thing that helped J's poo become more solid so it didn't escape was, well, solids. But now we're having terrible trouble with diaper rash. Anywhere his poo sits, once you wipe it off, there is a bad rash underneath. I don't know why it's happening, because he's not teething. I want to do diaper free time, but have no idea how to do it without pee getting everywhere. The one time I did it, he peed 4 times in half an hour.

Okay, J is up from his nap. I'll keep on going later in the day.

 

[SabrinaKat]

things seem better at the moment -- he has been eating less, but I am offering both bottle and water at hourly intervals, and had a slight temperature (38.1) earlier, but was smiling, laughing, playing -- but getting tired faster (cold and teething, I think). I didn't bring him to the GP, but rang to check any hours/appointments for tomorrow just in case, but to be honest, Finn has been fine today. I am glad that I took the day off, though, and he seems to have had a 24-hour (well, 36 hour bug) but no vomiting today (he did eat his porridge/oatmeal this morning, but I am not offering any other food to allow his tummy a chance to recover). Also, we've started adding the colief (to break down the lactose) again just to see if that helps him (so far, yes), so it appears that perhaps he has a delicate tummy at times, like me? thanks to all for your concern....

storm -- sorry about your LO, sigh....
clio -- actually sounds like an interesting topic -- you could do things like look at the rise of the labour movement, unions etc over the 20th century and show how events like the 1912 (?) Triangle Shirt-factory fire led to changes politically? (I just saw a documentary series on PBS America about New York from beginnings to post-WW1 (by one of the Burns brothers), which was really interesting....) and I bet you have loads of better ideas than mine!
leeze - also am curious re: MMR and LO's response (am thinking of delaying until 15 months, but Finn has had all his others around the right time)

off to have a bite to eat as LO is napping.

bye!!!!!!!

ps. love to seeing all the pictures and bits on fb -- I don't post much, but will try to put a few pictures of LO when he is better....

 

[Storm1jet2]

Just a quick post - L had a good day at nursery! Ate her roast chicken dinner, was in good form, napped in the COT and didn't cry when I picked her up WOW! Could it be lactose free milk is the way to go? Who knows!

 

[Claireyb1]

Just a quick post - L had a good day at nursery! Ate her roast chicken dinner, was in good form, napped in the COT and didn't cry when I picked her up WOW! Could it be lactose free milk is the way to go? Who knows!

Did she nap in the cot at nursery?? sounds like a good day!

 

[Storm1jet2]

Yes clairey she did, they said she was in great form... Shes still awake now mind you, bouncing off the walls wee monkey!

And she ate chicken stir fry and rice noodles for tea, I just took hers out before I added any sauce.. she's usually a terrible eater!

 

[Borboleta]

Hi ladies,

Storm: glad to hear that L had a good day at the nursery. Sometimes they just need to adjust to new routine. And man, I don't know who has it worst in the sleep category: you, leeze or Claire!! Angel was there too but really hope that last night was just an unusual night or teething and it will go back to better nights soon .

Clio: I think you meant to write to angel about the diapers . Thiago does sometimes leaks pee thru the diapers but not all the time. I just asked leeze about the cruisers versus the baby dry just to see what she thinks about the cruisers at night time. But I might take a look at the nighttime pampers as you mention. and thiago's poo got much more solid since we started feeding him solids. Poor thing today had a bottle and then decides to poo and he pushes so hard that he had milk coming back his mouth and nose! He didn't like that!

Sabrina: glad to hear that Finn is feeling better. When they are at the crèche they catch those weird bugs but it seems that when we get it it does not go away as quickly as they go thru them ..

Today we are going to the santa's wonderland and got toys, iPad, and laptop ready for our 1:15min trip. So hopefully thiago will enjoy his little trip there. My sister brought him this baby DVD from brazil and thiago loves it. It is called galinha pintadinha ( painted chicken) and just has lots of music and cartoon like images. So we are definetely bringing that DVD with us.
His sleep is not horrible. He is still teething and yesterday he woke up at 3:30am and I didn't want to deal with rocking him back to sleep so I just brought him to bed and fed him and he slept till 7am because OH was getting ready for an interview and was making lots of noises . And talking about job interview it went really well so next week he will be getting an offer !!! So excited. It sounds that the future boss really likes him. I will let you ladies know when it is official that he is back being employed.

Hope for a lovely night of sleep for all of us!!!

 

[Leeze]

Too much to remember again! Borboleta, I don't know what you mean about cruiser nappies, are they the same as the Easy Up ones? I started using these because Kia wriggles so much and these ones don't need to be stuck down as they're more like pull-up ones. I like them because you can put them on while LO is on the move!
Clio, my Mum said when I was a baby that ve midwife use to advise them to leave the baby in the pram in the garden under a tree and then check back in 15 mins and mostly we would have gone to sleep. This was in the 70s! I've tried a few times at bedtime or naptime to see what happens if I put Kia down awake but she becomes hysterical very quickly and either sits or stands so I just couldn't imagine her going to sleep this way. Sounds like it's working for J though. Good luck writing your lectures.
Storm, it's so hard leaving them at nursery isn't it? Glad L seemed ok after her session today. Kia seemed a little better today too and had a nap. They apparently cuddle her and sing to her and she falls asleep. She won't do that for me, but it is a huge relief to know she can nap without me. The feedback I got about her lunch was that she ate some but when they tried to get her to use cutlery she wanted to use her fingers. That's my girl! Sabrina, great to hear Finn's eating. Always a good sign.
Need to sign off now as our take-away just arrived. Enjoy the rest of the evening, or day depending on where you are xx

 

[clio]

Storm-- That's wonderful! I'm bestowing on you the Baby of the Month award (even RARER than the weekly one) simply because after all the cr@p you and L have had to go through, this is one miraculous day, which deserves a monthly award. When did you change to lactose free (and is it formula, or did you yourself cut it out for your BM?) That's quite a radical change in her, so there's a good chance that was it...

SK--yes, I love that PBS Documentary. Last time, I didn't feel like writing a lecture on urbanization, so I showed the relevant episode from the series. I cover a lot of what you said in other lectures, so it'll be about the spoils system, the way the railways screwed the farmers over (leading to the lecture about populism), the gold vs. silver issue and Bryant. We'll probably end with a look at The Wizard of Oz as a parable for this era. I love lecturing, and I actually love putting lectures together, but because they are very elaborate powerpoint presentations, they take a long, long time for me to write. Canadian I know like the back of my hand, but American I always have to review.

I'm so glad that F is feeling better. I'm dreading the next major illness J gets. We've been lucky so far; we only had one horrendous cold when he was two weeks old (and it lasted at least two weeks), but otherwise, he throws them off really quickly. My husband and I do too, so he may have inherited our immune systems. But, stomach bugs are a whole other matter. And, of course, he hasn't been exposed to any children other than his cousins, so he's been quite insulated. However, the older cousin is in Kindergarden, where he could catch anything, and since the cousins see each other weekly, I'm sure a stomach bug isn't too far around the corner.

Rowan--it sounds like M is in a really good state right now--congratulations! I have to get J winter boots. Oh, I just thought of something; since he's walking now, I have to find toddler shoes instead of using the Robeeze. What type of shoes did you buy M? What brand are they?

And yay about the tomatoes! Have you tried grapes? J LOVES them.

And a shout out to our beloved thread mother, Kosh. I hope that things are okay and that Gael is finally getting better. Is being back at work any easier to tolerate?

 

[clio]

Okay, so it turns out I wrote that last post and forgot to post it until now.

Anyway--Borboleta--oops--I thought it was you. But do try the Huggies overnights (not Pampers--they're like plastic). They really work when they fit properly. J just has to grow into this new size a little more. I can't speak to Cruisers at night because we didn't even try them; we know to stick to the Huggies.

Leeze--do the pull-ups fit already? Because that would be awesome if he could wear them. I just spent 20 minutes changing him because he wouldn't stop twisting around. How much does Kia weigh?

Oh, and J has a new tooth! (For you guys I know it's old hat, but this is only our fifth.) It's on the bottom right, right next to the first two that came in. And I feel ridges on the other side, so fingers crossed! This would also explain the diaper rashes.

J's been practicing "bottle" instead of "bap" this afternoon. I know this because he started with me while pointing at a bottle. But it still sounds like "bap." I went and took a nap and came down to a frustrated husband who didn't know J was practicing. So he had made him a bottle and continuously offered it to J every time he said "bap" or "bat". And J continuously wouldn't take it. Well, so much for our sure fire way of knowing if he was hungry...

 

[SabrinaKat]

well, LO seems back to his normal self -- no vomiting all day (yeah!) and only a little cranky, but okay with mummy, thankfully, e.g. lots of smiles and only usual crankiness. Asleep at the moment (it's OH's night, but he has to work in the am, so not much of a lie-in for me -- c'est la vie), and hopefully, back to normal.

clio -- one of my favourite documentaries is Ken Burns' Civil War. I have a monthly subscription to Smithsonian magazine and notice a new one from one of the Burns brothers on the Dust Bowl -- has it been shown yet on US/Canadian TV? I think they are fantastic documentary film-makers (I applied to and was accepted to film school years ago and whilst too lazy to so do, greatly admire them!). oh, and you asked about changing clothes from babygro to rompers -- it was just that I felt LO was too hot and with open feet (!), he might be cooler, so yesterday, he had a long romper (legs to ankle, but bare feet) and today was wearing overalls in terrycloth/long sleeve vest with bare toes (but I put little slippers on him) -- I just felt air circulation might make him feel cooler.

I have to say that the few minutes last night when LO was red-faced, unable to be comforted by mummy's songs and projectile vomiting all over him and me and my fear that the next step might be convulsions, (wasn't!), was terribly scary and I think that's why I screamed at my OH (we discussed today) -- even though we both did first aid courses, I guess I just still worry...sigh. so, even though LO was okay today, I felt better staying home.

As for illnesses, Finn has a few minor colds, so this one threw me for a complete wobbler -- before having mono/glandular fever at age 23, I never was sick as a child nor was my OH, so am hoping that LO also inherited our 'immunities', etc....but it was scary for a few hours here and there, my sympathies to all us mummies when something scary happens.

best wishes to all!

bye!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Leeze]

Very quickly as i'm half-asleep. Clio, the nappies are only size 4 - dunno if you have the same sizes over there? They're called Pampers Easy Up. I haven't had Kia weighed for a couple of months but she's normally on the 50th centile so not huge. Last time she was nearly 8 kilos, maybe at 10 months. She's just gone into age 9 to 12 clothes! These nappies are great because you can get them on quickly even if they're crawling or rolling etc.
Sabrina, I hate the worry and feelings of helplessness when Kia is ill. Particularly if my Mummy skills don't seem to be working on her. Feels like having a newborn again and a bit scary. Big hugs xx

 

[Storm1jet2]

Morning ladies, not the best night for us but we did have a settles block of sleep from 9.15 until 2.15 and yes I did go to sleep at 9.15 on a Friday night.... This am hubby woke her getting ready for work so we had a grumpy baby that didn't want to be awake but couldn't get back to sleep... And then she had explosive bum, which I have to say the Tesco nappy contained, I couldnt resist 2 packs of fortysomething for ten pounds!

We lady fell asleep in her toast so is napping now before we go to grandpas house.

Clio we only switched to lactose free on Thursday after a chat with my brother but we also also stopped the carobel which might be helping too.

Typically she's woken up...bye

 

[Rowan75]

hey ladies !

re nappies M is in pampers size 4

yey for good sleeping in cot and new teeth and learning new words (m stood shouting in playpen so not got long lol)

re shoes we got these https://www.clarks.co.uk/p/20351684 she she had gone up a size - we tried those R shoes whos name I cant remember (my cousin sent some from Canada) but the elastic cut into her a lot and now shes outgrown them - the shoes she has are in the cruisers range and they recommend walking shoes oncce they can do 10 steps on their own

we went out last night - went to see bond - and also for a meal out well pizza - it was lovely and I felt lovely in my outfit (all ebay apart from coat and undies) and I think dh was thinking i looked nice as well wheras last pg I think he thought i\ looked like a whale! lol!

M enjoyed being looked after by grandma and g'dad so that was good! shes full of fun today

shes getting braver walking and keeps walking on her own as best she can - she can do a few steps now maybe 5 or 6 and she keeps standing for ages and trying to get up to standing from sitting

Michael is moving more yey well Im feeling him more anyway! he had a good wiggle at the cinema - whether it was the loud bangs or too much sugar for mammy I dont know lol!

hope everyone has a good day!

 

[Storm1jet2]

Hey Rowan we have those shoes but in the metallic colour, they are so cute!

 

[clio]

Rowan--those are adorable shoes! (Why is it that I don't like anything cutsey, but shoes? And I don't even care about my own shoes; I've worn the same pair of Blundstones exclusively for seven years now. Hmmmnnn... Maybe it's time to get a new pair...of Blundstones, of course.) And yay for M walking! It'll be no time at all. J did the 5 steps for a few days, and then, suddenly, one day, walked all the way from the kitchen to the living room. So, five steps to fifteen!

More re: shoes. My mum was asking if I'd taken J out into the snow yet (she's all the way in the east of the country, so she doesn't quite get that in Edmonton, you don't go out in the winter. There is no playing in the snow, because it is COLD.) Anyway, because she wouldn't give up on the point, I humoured her, and promised to send her pictures (I figured I'd put him down in the snow for a second, snap a pic and send it to her). But then I remembered that I don't have any BOOTS for J. I had been thinking all the time about Robeeze boots, but they won't work anymore because I now need proper soles. I think we have Clarke's here, but I'll probably get them second hand. In fact, my SIL probably has a pair for me...

Re: everyone and eating--holy! Everyone is doing so well! J's eating everything he's given as well. They're all different ages, so what gives? Leeze, J is still very lazy with utensils as well. If I give him two, he won't eat and just bangs them together. Once I looked over and saw him with the thick round handle of a spoon in his mouth, smoking it exactly like he would a cigar. He doesn't get that spoon anymore.

My husband is driving me nuts again. J has by now learned that if we put him in his crib, we mean business. Bedtime was always easy (though I forced my husband to push it back so he'd get up later than 4 am), and he's now stopped being ridiculous in the night and sleeps through (J, that is, not my husband). The other policy we had implemented was the nap policy. He goes down at 10 every morning, period. He can do what he wants in his crib, but he stays there. But the day after this policy was implemented, my husband started waffling about how we need to be flexible, and what if he cries in his crib, blah, blah, blah. And, for the next few days, J had again an erratic nap schedule, which sometimes meant that he didn't nap at all. (And if you think I'm being really harsh, here is a pic of what J looked like when he wasn't sleeping:

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8199/8192993205_533807eccd_n.jpg

The only colour in his face is from teething and drooling.) My husband wasn't around at 10 this morning, so I popped J in his crib, left, and within ten minutes he had stopped crying and was sleeping. My husband came home, I told him what I had done, and that this policy was officially in effect, and his response was: "Well, we'll see. We have to be flexible."



Anyway, the policy is now officially in effect.

SK--we don't have cable (or a television, even), so I wasn't able to see the Ken Burns one on the Civil War, though my husband and I certainly wanted to. (In fact, my husband was dying to see it, and he actually combed the PBS site to watch all the clips of it. He has more patience than me...) The Dust Bowl one sounds very interesting as well, but my husband is an historian of the prairie west, and of the Depression in particular, so I don't think there will be much new there. But I love the fact that they are historically accurate and break things up into small, manageable bits (it's good for showing students). There is one long series on the history of Canada, as well, and we use it all the time when we don't want to lecture. We both hate teaching battles, so that's when we most certainly pull them out. Or, when we're just tired of hearing our own voices...

By the way, don't anyone think we're snobbish highfalutin academics who won't have cable or television because we're too busy reading books or are against tv in principal. In fact, I'm addicted to all things television. We just subscribe to the most amazing internet service that gives us every single show, American, British or Canadian, that you can imagine. Plus, it has every season as well, so it's well worth the $30/month we pay for it. Sadly, the only thing they don't have are PBS documentaries...

Oh, and it turns out that J has not one new tooth, but TWO! After prying his lips apart with a wooden spoon, we finally got to see them in all their glory. One is on the top, and the other on the bottom. And since he was miserable with teething this morning, another must be coming in somewhere. Finally! Maybe he'll soon catch up with the rest of the LOs on this thread!

Leeze and Borboleta--J is in size 3 Cruisers. I think they go from 22 lbs to around 28? Since I don't know how much he weighs--but he's always been 50th as well, Leeze--it sounds like the pull-ups would work on him as well. Though I've just taken to being really stern with him while he's wriggling around and doing his best to thwart my efforts at diapering, and he stops moving. But if the Pull-ups would work, then that sounds like an amazing alternative. I'll look into them.

Okay, it's time to end this novel! I'll check back on later.

 

[AngelUK]

Sorry ladies, just quickly, so you know I am still alive. My mum is coming tomorrow and today I went with my friend Beau to a exhibition on fashion from Hartnell to Amis. Both designed for the royal family etc. It was quite interesting and it got me out of the house. But it means I still need to clean at this time of night (8:30pm) as I was out all afternoon, so cannot do personals.
All is well here except that for the last 3 or 4 days we have had to rock Sebastian to sleep! If we put him down in his cot as usual he will cry really loudly! We have to rock him till he is asleep or he will cry as soon as his back touches the mattress! I don't know what is going on but I suspect it is still teething. Still only a white fleck after weeks now but what else can it be? He is also off his food. So
Got to run. Hope you are all well, sending hugs and love to all xxx

 

[Storm1jet2]

Evening ladies, baby bedtime battle is over, at 9.15pm... She fell asleep on the way home from my dads and I put all the shopping away with her over my shoulder and she was like a rag doll, lily eventually helped me wake her

Still on the lactose free milk, not even formula Clio, I did try it and she wouldn't drink it, it is awful! My husband said it tasted like cardboard, it was just so bitter! So we have resorted to lactose free cows milk, technically 6 weeks early I tried to breastfeed very briefly, it didn't work and then I was at the hospital so much, often without L it wouldn't have worked but I did have immense guilt, especially when a so called friend said I could have expressed while I was at the hospital if I wanted to badly enough... Woman dear I was sitting with my dying mother I wasn't going to express infront of my brother's, dad, other visitors etc or waste what precious time I had in another room... Ok rant over!

Anyway lactose free milk and no carobel equals zero spew! What a New and novel experience, I mean zero spew at all! Burps where you don't have to duck and run, WOW

My fingers tired typing this on my phone .... Hope all is well, sleep is plentiful and Clio little J is so pale with lack of sleep!

 

[Claireyb1]

Evening ladies, baby bedtime battle is over, at 9.15pm... She fell asleep on the way home from my dads and I put all the shopping away with her over my shoulder and she was like a rag doll, lily eventually helped me wake her

Still on the lactose free milk, not even formula Clio, I did try it and she wouldn't drink it, it is awful! My husband said it tasted like cardboard, it was just so bitter! So we have resorted to lactose free cows milk, technically 6 weeks early I tried to breastfeed very briefly, it didn't work and then I was at the hospital so much, often without L it wouldn't have worked but I did have immense guilt, especially when a so called friend said I could have expressed while I was at the hospital if I wanted to badly enough... Woman dear I was sitting with my dying mother I wasn't going to express infront of my brother's, dad, other visitors etc or waste what precious time I had in another room... Ok rant over!

Anyway lactose free milk and no carobel equals zero spew! What a New and novel experience, I mean zero spew at all! Burps where you don't have to duck and run, WOW

My fingers tired typing this on my phone .... Hope all is well, sleep is plentiful and Clio little J is so pale with lack of sleep!

OMG Storm, I am aghast at that "friend's" comment about breast feeding! how utterly insensitive and cruel. You did the right thing for you,your Mum and Lydia. You would not have been able to deal with all of that and breast feed a baby. It was hard enough for me to try and juggle viviting my mum in ICU and that was with Lucy being 8 months,let alone days/weeks old!!
You should never feel guilty about that.
Great news on the milk,I hope this is the start of something good!!!

 

[Leeze]

Just popped in to catch up on news. We're crazy busy trying to pack for the move and get our new place ready. Catch up soon xx

 

[Borboleta]

Quick one from us too. We went to Santa's wonderland yesterday and it was wonderful! Really cool place, I just wished it was 10 degrees warmer . But thiago loved it. He was the first baby in the season to take a picture with Santa. The trip over there was not that bad since I had all the gadgets and toys to keep him entertained. I was exhausted when we got home though!!!

Will post picture of thiago with Santa soon.

Bye ladies.