Femmes Fetales - (PAL) Holding onto Hope 9 months and on...

[milosmum]

amber try putting a couple of big hardback books under grace's feet in the jumperoo. Thats what we did with callum and it was a hard surface for him to bounce off. after about a week he had pusched them out of the way and was bouncing off the floor so his legs must have grown!

Wow lil 6 weeks already! Hope your check up went well x

 

[Amberyll23]

Lil! Congratulations on 6 weeks, I agree that has flown by! I would love to add you on Facebook, you can find me via a search for "Belinda Lison". It is a picture of me in a blue shirt holding Grace. I'd welcome being friends with any of you ladies, would love to stay in touch, just let me know who you are when you send the friend request.

milos--thank you for the idea on using books--that will work so much better than a pillow! thanks!

 

[sparkle]

Hi ladies,
I love reading everyone's updates but seem to find very little time to post!!
Milos- fab news on the sleeping! Day naps are harder but if you can crack night time I always think I can cope better with a grumpy day!

Lil- wow 6 weeks already... Glad everything went well with bryce's check.

Amber- so glad daycare is going better. It can be so draining. Great news in the furniture too!

As for us- we're just ticking along... E is growing steadily and so happy and content. She coos and smiles just about all the time. She did well at her 6 week check although has eczema as I suspected... C has been my main worry for the past few days. He managed to get an infected patch of eczema between his fingers and is now on antibiotics. I really feel for him it looks so painful.

 

[milosmum]

sparkle - poor c sounds like sore fingers but miss E sounds like a very contented young lady x

 

[Amberyll23]

Sparkle--so glad to hear that E is doing so well, that is wonderful!!! Poor little C, I hope his eczema clears up. We found out last month that Grace has it BAD, so we had to throw out all of our lovely baby bath soaps and creams that everyone had bought us before she was born (because they all had perfume) and now have to cover her twice a day with a non-perfumed cream, and we have to bathe her also with a special soap (and can't bathe her more than 2x a week either). We also had to put her on a steroid cream for 7 days to clear up a rather nasty bout of it that she got from an allergic reaction to an antibiotic. So I feel so much for little C, poor little fella, I hope the antibiotic helps!

 

[lilrojo]

my 6 week check went well all healed up nicely no birth control of any kind for me for now lol

 

[neffie]

Girls,

Long time no speak. Sorry, haven't been good about posting more often, but have been rather busy.

Amber - Glad to hear that things are better at daycare. Ouch on the eczema! Poor Grace. Hope it clears up soon. She's adorable in her St. Patty's day pics by the way!

Lil - Glad to hear that all went well with your check up. Time is flying by, isn't it?

Sparkle - That's great that E is such a content baby. Sorry to hear about C. Hope he feels better soon.

Milos - Sorry to hear about Callum's sleep problem. Looks like your investment in time with the author paid off. May the long sleep nights continue!

Hope everyone else is doing well.

AFM, we finally have a daycare for Coco! We go in tomorrow to officially register. It was a tough decision as both the centers we had visited were excellent, but I think the one we picked is a better fit for us. Daycare starts in a few weeks, and the anxiety is starting to kick in for me. I can't picture leaving my baby with anyone else...guess I'm just going to have to get over it, along with the 'lack of desire' of going back to work.

Other than that, Coco is just one happy baby (knock on wood!). She pretty much sleeps through the night, and is more and more alert throughout the day. The coos & smiles just mesmerize OH & I. It's so exciting to see what each new day brings. Speaking of which, she'll be 2 months tomorrow! We'll be seeing the pediatrician, and look forward to seeing how much she has grown.

Question for the ladies breast feeding with their little ones in daycare. How much milk did you send the 1st week? I've read up on several articles offering suggestions on how much to send, but Coco is more of a snacker. She eats every 1-2 hours for no more than 10 mins at a time. I don't want to waste a whole lot of milk (due to new regulations, the daycare cannot store milk in their freezer), so just trying to get some suggestions and thoughts from those who have been through this before. Thanks!

 

[Amberyll23]

Neffie--so good to hear from you and glad Coco is doing so well!! Happy 2 months to your little lady!! Excellent news on the daycare!! I was beginning to get worried for you! I wish I could say leaving her will be easy, but it will not be, so give yourself plenty of space and time for the transition, it takes a couple of weeks. Also see if your daycare has a transition program, that helped me a lot! (still many tears, but made me more comfortable knowing what her day would be like as I got to go through one with her!)

On bottles of milk--Grace did and still does eat about every 2 hours, so I began with sending in 7 4oz bottles with her each day. We drop her off at 8 and pick her up at 6, so if they gave her a bottle right away, she would probably go through about 6, and then we would leave a 7th just in case. I found it is always good to have 1 extra for the growth spurts, and she has had a couple of days where she went through all 7.

Now that she is 5 months old and gets a meal at daycare each day (rice and fruit), I leave 6 bottles (4 4oz and 2 5 oz), she usually comes home with 1 of each, unless it is a particularly hungry day for her. I will probably drop it down to 5 bottles (3 4oz and 2 5 oz) once she turns 6 months and I move her up to 3 meals a day.

Wierd about the frozen breastmilk! Must be a state reg, Grace's daycare had me leave off 2 bags with them--they've never had to use them, but they actually requested that I leave some when I signed her up!

Hope that info helps! How did the fenugreek work for you btw?

Lil--Woohoo! So glad the 6 wk appt went well! So are you officially NTNP?

 

[Amberyll23]

Neffie-- Also, you may want to check with your daycare to see if they will let Coco finish a bottle in her own time. I told Grace's daycare that I would prefer that they let her finish a bottle on her schedule, even if that meant her drinking 1/2 a bottle initially and then finishing the rest an hour or so later. That way the milk doesnt go to waste. They were cool with doing it and she still has 1 or 2 bottles per day that she will start, and then finish later.

 

[neffie]

Amber - Thanks for the info! I did ask the daycare about their policy on milk that has already been warmed and drunk out of the bottle. They will keep it for upto an hour, and offer her the unused portion. After that, they toss it for safety reasons.

Wow, (7) 4oz bottles eh? Were you able to pump that much each day you were away from Grace? I remember you telling me how much you got per session before & after you started using the Fenugreek. If I'm not mistaken, you got a fair amount even before the Fenugreek, correct? I'm currently getting anywhere between 2-3 oz per pumping session. From what I've read, that seems in the normal range. I'm just curious to know if I'll start getting more per session once I'm away from Coco when she's at daycare. I think for the first few days, I might start off with several 2-3oz bottles to see how it goes. Oh, did I mention that Coco does not take a bottle? At least, not from OH. Hopefully the experienced ladies at daycare will be able to do so without too much trouble. So that's another factor to add to the mix.

I am going to be doing a 'test week' with Coco at daycare before I start back at work. I know it's going to be super hard, so hopefully this will help ease with the transition. I plan on ramping up the hours that I'm away from her throughout the week.

As for the Fenugreek, I briefly started it, and felt like my milk supply was increasing (boobs seemed to be more full in a shorter time span), but then I was under the weather for a bit, so I decided to stop taking it. Will start back next week. Hopefully I'll get a few more ounces when I pump while still at home. It will help build up my freezer stash a tad bit more.

 

[sparkle]

Amber- poor little grace and the eczema. Cs has always been quite bad. When he gets a bad patch (not infected) I use calendula oil on it and wrap it in a bandage over night with plenty underneath. It seems to work great. E also has little patches, I think we have a sensitive skin family!!

 

[Amberyll23]

Neffie--That is good they will save the milk for an hour, that is about how long it takes Grace to finish most of hers. She will start one, drink about 1/2 of it and then finish the rest about 1/2-1 hour later. I get these little green "report cards" each day from the day care that shows me how often/when she was changed and when she was fed and how much, which is really informative!

On pumping--Let's see, I currently pump 5 times a day. At 6 am i get my best production, which is about 10 oz. I then pump twice at work, at 11 am and 3 pm. I get about 7 oz (sometimes 8 if Im lucky) at the 11 am pump and 5 oz at the 3 pm pump. I pump again at home at 7 pm and get another 5 oz, then nurse Grace after she eats at 8ish, and then I pump a 4 oz "bedtime bottle" at 10-11 pm. So in total, that is about 31 oz. per day. Any my little chubster manages to get through it all at the moment, lol. I am hoping once I get her to 3 meals, I can remove another bottle from her feeds so I can start storing back up! We are sadly only at about 2 nursing sessions per day now, in the morning and at night, which has been a hard adjustment for us.

On fenugreek, I still take it religiously 3x a day. I think it is mostly supply maintenance at this point for me as I don't notice any additional increase after the first bump up that I got.

I am glad you are taking advantage of the test week. Yes, it will be hard, but I found the transition program to be so helpful and informative.

Sparkle--aww, I think you must have a sensitive skin family! Grace gets her sensitive skin from both me and dh, we both had eczema to some degree as babies and children. I was hoping she would get lucky though and not have it! Thanks for the tip btw on the calendula oil!

 

[Beanwood]

Hi all

Hope that all moms and babies are good. XX

Amber - I love your avatar photo.

Sparkle - its great that E is such a content baby.

Neffie - Glad your 6 week check up went ok.

XX

 

[GreyGirl]

Wow - so much has happened and so many babies have arrived since I was last visiting here...congratulations to you all!

I don't know quite what to say, or how to say it...my husband thought it was an April fools day joke! But I have something to say...

I'm finally pregnant! I took a test yesterday and it was either a really faint positive or an evap line...but today I tested with 2 internet cheapies - both pink - and a clearblue and it says I'm 1-2 weeks! I can't believe I've got a after all this time, and it would have been 2 years tomorrow that I had my first bfp...I'm really excited and equally nervous in case it doesn't last, as my period is due tomorrow...but I'm hoping this is finally it!

This is the one yesterday - a screen tilter!
https://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h1/InsomniaticDND/P1080486.jpg

These are the cheapies from this morning with fmu - still a little bit of screen tilters!
https://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h1/InsomniaticDND/P1080499.jpg

I didn't trust them, so used my last clear blue...
https://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h1/InsomniaticDND/P1080497.jpg

And one all together, just to make sure!
https://i60.photobucket.com/albums/h1/InsomniaticDND/P1080498.jpg

I really don't know what to do with myself, I obviously really want this pregnancy to go all the way, but I'm so nervous! Currently also on as well Thanks all...I couldn't have got here without you

 

[IMPPEARL]

Omg grey yeah!!!! So exciting, and we all know scary too! Congrats!

 

[Beanwood]

grey that is just fantastic news. its understandable that you are nervous.....try and stay positive, easier said than done i know....xxx congrats that is brill news. xx

 

[kizzyt]

Ahhh grey that's wonderful news and so fab to hear of a new pregnancy for our ff girls! Being nervous is perfectly normal but do allow yourself a little excitement to, there is no reason why this shouldn't happen!!

Hi ladies, hope everyone is doing well sorry I've been crap updating, I read everyone's updates every day just don't get a chance to reply and even now I'm on my phone so can't see all the posts I wanted to reply to! Doh! I know there's been some talk abOut eczema, Georgina has it too, managed with aveeno cream and hydrocortisone. Weirdly when she had her tummy bug and no milk for 5 days her skin was beautiful! She's in bed already now (asleep by 7!!) and neils going out soon so I am going to have a lovely bath and go to bed early, was on a hen night last night so I am shattered!! This time 6 months ago I was in hospital having given birth 7 hours ago, I can't believe how quickly it's gone, the best (and hardest) 6 months of my life xx
Ph

 

[sparkle]

Grey- many many congratulations!!

 

[Amberyll23]

Grey!!!OMG!! I am so over the moon for you!!

Congratulations and I wish you a H & H 9 months!! Can't wait to share your journey with you!!

Oh Hun, I am just so excited for you, started crying when I read your news (happy tears of course!)

 

[neffie]

Grey - Already said it on the other thread, but I'd love to repeat the words again. CONGRATS!! So glad to have you join this thread. Your seat warmer is officially removed. As we all know, easier said than done, but try and enjoy the pregnancy. Wishing you a lovely one! Again, I'm so happy for you!