First Time Mom's - Due March/April 2013

[I Love Lucy]

Lauren, so glad you have Beau's appointment scheduled. Hopefully you get good news.

I was told I can't drive for 2 weeks with my vaginal delivery. My first time back behind the wheel will be Friday when I take Aiden to the pediatrician for his 2 week checkup. I can't imagine having to wait 6 weeks to drive anywhere.

As for passing gas, Aiden farts all the time! Some of them are really loud too. He poops a lot too. The first day in the hospital they want him to have 1 poop diaper and 1 pee diaper, Aiden had like 5 poop/pee diapers. I tell DH that he definitely got that from him. I also tell DH that my gassiness in pregnancy was all Aiden.

Sarah, In the hospital I had a night where Aiden did nothing but cry and cry if DH or I tried to put him in his bed (I guess around a day old the shock of everything kind of hits the baby and they freak out a bit according to my LC) and then when he went through his growth spurt he was the same. During this time I just nursed him in the side lying position (my LC recommended this to me in the hospital since being close to me is comforting for him) and just slept with Aiden next to me. Honestly, it was the only way I was getting any rest because before that all I wanted to do was cry. It does get better though. Aiden is now sleeping about 3 hours in between feedings during the night. I'm actually able to do things during the day rather then wanting to sleep every chance I get.

I also think the blood clot you found is nothing to be worried about. I was told not to worry unless I passed something the size of a golf ball.

Aiden has hated every bath he has had so far. He is due for another one tonight (only allowed to bathe him ever 3 days until his cord falls out, not sure if you have different rules) so I'm sure we'll be dealing with a lot of crying from him tonight due to that.

Lindsey, I'm so jealous that you're getting smiles from Sarah. That is one thing that I'm so excited for.

Hayley, that's interesting that swaddling is not done because of SIDS by you guys. The nurses kept Aiden swaddled in the hospital here. I always find it interesting how different guidelines are in different areas.

I'm sorry you weren't able to find a dress for Tyne's christening. I tried on one of my pre-pregnancy dresses yesterday and was able to get it on but it was rather tight so that dress went back in to the closet and I grabbed one of my maternity ones instead.

As for feeding, I was told to feed Aiden every 2-3 hours when I was in the hospital and that did nothing but cause me problems. Aiden simply didn't want to eat that frequently. I basically just wait for him to give his hunger cues and then I feed him.

Laura, great idea switching to formula since breastfeeding was making you so unhappy. No reason to continue struggling when there are other options.

AFM, We've had a great few nights with Aiden since he has gone through his growth spurt. He is in more of a routine of waking up every 3 hours through the night. So about 11, 2, 5, and 8 then we're up for the day. Not much of a routine during the day since some times he wants to go an hour between feedings, other times he wants to go 3 but that's okay. I just hope his night routine continues this way since I feel like I can actually function during the day since I'm sleeping decently through the night. Last night was actually the first night DH was able to get up every time I needed him to instead of me waking him up and then him going right back to sleep without doing anything.

The bad thing about his night sleeping schedule is that by the time he is ready for his next feeding my breast is painfully full. Like Lindsey mentioned Sarah doing, Aiden only nurses off one breast before he is fast asleep. I'm thinking I'm going to need to start pulling my pump out at night so I can pump the side he doesn't nurse on once he's back in his sleeper just so I'm not waking up in pain. During the day I don't have too many issues.

Yesterday, DH and I went to breakfast at the in-laws house. MIL is already harassing me about seeing Aiden/trying to make plans. She was telling me that DH's grandparents are coming out and they would like to see Aiden so she was telling me that she was planning to come out during the day with them on Friday. Not happening since I have an appointment with Aiden's pediatrician at noon that day but even if I didn't I find it rude that she just expects me to agree to her plans. I do things day by day with Aiden and if I happen to have a bad night with him the last thing I want is visitors. There is no planning visits ahead of time right now while Aiden is so unpredictable. Does anyone else have family that doesn't seem to get that?

MIL also kept saying that as soon as I start pumping I can drop Aiden off at her house for a whole day! He's only a little over a week old so her even suggesting that I leave him really irritated me. Not to mention, I only intend to pump when DH and I are going out somewhere since I'm not comfortable nursing in public and in the evenings so DH can do some feedings too.

 

[MrsHippo]

Brittany, I'm not surprised your annoyed by MIL. I can't stand Beau being out my site, people have offered to look after her already 'in case we want some time to ourselves' which is fair enough.. But I don't want anyone looking after her! I'd hate it if people started making plans, like they have a right to our child.

I was just reading a thread on the baby club forum about a MIL, there are so many opinions over them. Some say 'it's your baby, your rules' others say 'it's only fair that grandparents get to regularly see them'. I'm sorry but grandparents have no rights whatsoever. I have always kept to myself and I intend to keep it that way.

Anyhoo, rant over lol.

So Beau was registered today she had her hospital appointment too, her right hip has developed quite well since birth but her left is still loose and slips out of its socket so we have to go back either at the end of the week or early next (waiting for letter) but until then she has to wear double nappies. Poor thing while we were there, we saw a couple of babies with those harnesses on. They don't look bad but I'd hate for Beau to have to wear one. Even though I know it's for their own good, I'd feel bad if she couldn't kick her legs out - they can move them but can't straighten them. Just hope the consultant is happy for us to carry on using the double nappies, she is happy with them and you can hardly tell under her clothes.

 

[LiverpoolLass]

Lauren - My sis said she wasn't given a Bounty back in hospital with one of her births, and she was able to claim it online through their website?
Think they just send you a voucher to collect one or something!

Coz the pack you get in hospital contains your voucher for the next pack you can pick up from Boots/Superdrug too - I still haven't picked that one up though!

Lol @ Beau's trumping. Tyne does it quite a lot too, I'm always surprised by how loud baby farts can be!!!


Laura - Lovely to hear from you! Had Eva gained weight?
I know what you mean, it can be a right pain with them not fitting into their clothes lol. I'm dying to see Tyne in his lovely outfits!

Lindsey - WOW, Champagne Breakfast sounds amazing! I'm jealous of your breakfasts - champagne, ice cream!! You know how to do breakfast properly lol!

I'm glad Sarah is doing well

Sarah - I cannot believe Isabelle is nearly a week old! The time goes SO fast doesn't it!!!

It is so annoying with all the conflicting advice, I agree! They really do need to just decide what their stance on everything is and all stick to it lol.

Have you used your Snuza yet? I haven't as I'm still worried about it not working properly - Tyne is in Pampers Micro nappies but they're still big for him and I;m worried the alarm would be going off all the time coz it won't be properly touching his tummy until he puts a bit of chub on!
Plus the fact that I'd have to get in through his sleepsuit, and then his vest, to get to the alarm on his nappy and turn it off freaks me out - I'm worried the fright of it going off in a false alarm while he's asleep would harm him?!

Oh bless you with the bath situation!! They DO get easier, I promise!!! Have you top and tailed Isabelle yet?

Tyne has always SCREAMED bloody murder at every bath time, but a few nights ago we bathed him and he seemed to love it - he actually fell asleep in it!!
I think its because I usually have the water a little teeny bit under the recommend temp coz I;m worried about overheating him - but this time I had it at the maximum warmth allowed and he was so much happier! I think he prefers hot baths, just like his Mummy!

Brittany - Aww I'm surprised you're not allowed to drive for 2 weeks. I don;t think they limit you on driving here after a vaginal delivery?!

Yeah it is weird how the guidelines differ on SIDS! I knew about it being different in the States as my friend lives there and she was telling me how they recommend swaddling there. They did here too until about 2 or 3 years ago!
Yet they do still swaddle them in the hospitals here! Its very odd!

I'm glad Aiden is in more of a routine now! Tyne doesn't like routines for the daytime either, but I guess as long as they have something resembling a nightime routine thats the most important thing for now so we can get some kind of sleep lol.

AFM - We were discharged from the midwife today. I'm a bit concerned though, as she said that Tyne has an umbilical hernia

She was quite vague about it - she said its just one of those things, and that sometimes they correct themselves but sometimes they dont and I just need to make my Dr aware of it at his 6 week check and that they won;t do anything about it until he's 2 anyway.
I googled it and apparently its something they might operate on when he's older! :/

I really hope it fixes itself. I feel guilty about it coz I hadnt spotted it, but I'd never even heard of it before! According to Google its not usually painful, but still

We also met the health visitor today, she's really nice.

Tyne got weighed again - he's now 7lbs 2oz, so he's gained a whole 3 ounces in 3 weeks lol. Bless him!

The last two nights he has been more settled of a night - he's waking up every 2 hours for a feed, but at least he's sleeping in his moses basket in between!

I still haven't found a christening outfit but I did buy some new jeans yesterday, and I actually have them on today! They're my normal size, so I'm quite happy with that. They're quite snug and not exactly comfortable but hey...I did them up without too much of a wrestle so thats good enough for me right now lol.

We found our venue for the christening party too, its a local community hall which is really pretty - all wooden high beam ceilings! So I'm doing a Vintage tea party theme, which I'm excited about!
I've ordered the cake and I've pretty much decided on Tyne's outfit, but I'm not going to buy it until the week before incase he has a growth spurt.

Oh, and my Dad took my car to his own mechanic to try again on the MOT before I paid out for repairs and it passed!!! So yay, no forking out loads of money on repairs! Some good news at least! More money to spend on the Christening lol

 

[MrsHippo]

Hayley, glad to hear tyne is sleeping better and that he has put on a bit of weight Sorru to hear he has a hernia though hopefully it will sort itself out! I do know the operations are fairly straight forward unless they are big, I assume his is small with you not noticing it? But it's the thought of them having to go through it isn't it

I'm dreading our doctors appointment because that's when she will have her injections

I too brought some jeans today they are stretchy and soft so don't feel bad around my scar. They are a size 10 too which I am happy about. My belly hangs over slightly though so I'll be wearing baggy tops until that goes down.

Look forward to seeing photos from the Christening what outfit will he be wearing? Is it a traditional christening outfit?

 

[I Love Lucy]

Lauren, I feel the exact same way you do regarding grandparents. Especially when it comes to MIL. She's been acting like she has a say in what we do with our son since she was told I was pregnant.

She also thinks she is better then us at everything. When she was at the hospital, Aiden needed a diaper change so DH was taking care of that. Well MIL didn't like the way DH was changing him because she started to push DH out of the way so she could do it! Thankfully she realized what she was doing and stopped but geez. Sunday DH was talking to her about the nurse complimenting him on how quickly he got Aiden's diaper after he was born. All MIL could say is that DH will never be as good as her when it comes to diaper changes. Ugh, diapers are not rocket science.

Anyways, glad to hear Beau's right hip has developed well. Will the double diapers help with her left hip? Hopefully she won't need a harness.

Hayley, I'm sorry Tyne has an umbilical hernia. I'll have to look that up because like you I'm not really sure what it is. Hopefully it does correct itself.

Glad you found the venue for Tyne's christening party and that you won't have to spend money on car repairs now after all.

AFM, Aiden didn't stick to his routine last night. He did not want to sleep unless he was being held so I didn't get nearly as much sleep as I had the previous nights. FX'ed he sleeps better tonight because I'm tired.

 

[MrsHippo]

The doctor said the nappies will hold her hips in a certain position which will help the hip. But if it doesn't start improving that's when they'd put a harness on her. So we will see. Where we live in Nottingham we have two hospitals, both huge places but only one has a&e. I live 5 minutes to one, the other is a 15/20 minute drive... And the children's centre has to be at the furthest one!! This not driving this is so annoying, thankfully Adam had today off but the future ones he might not be able to attend as his work are strict. People keep offering to help me if I need to go out but I absolutely hate relying on other people and will do everything I can to not need their help. But my stubbornness means if Adam can't take me to the upcoming appointments I'll have to walk to the close hospital (even though a 5 minute drive, it's a 25 minute walk!) then jump on the free bus which takes you to the other. Oh how I hate excercise lol!!

I hope Aiden sleeps better for you tonight.

 

[LiverpoolLass]

Lauren[/B - I missed your earlier post about Beau's hip, it must have gone up while I was typing!
I'm glad her right hip has developed well. Fingers crossed her left will too! I hope the double nappies help. One of my friends babies has the harness, like you say its for their own good but its more the thought of them having to wear it and being uncomfortable :/
Has anybody mentioned anything about any of the midwives taking responsibility for not realising Beau was breech? I just think its awful that you and her are going through this basically because somebody didn't do their job properly!

As for Tyne's hernia, I honestly had no idea what an umbilical hernia is or what to look for
I'd never heard of it before the midwife mentioned it today and she really wasn't very informative about it. I googled it after she'd gone and found out a bit more about it, but I don't really know how you'd spot it physically - to me it just looks he's got a bit of an "outie" belly button?! Looking at Google images, his is MUCH less obvious than the ones on there - so maybe its only a slight one?!
I don't know - I think I'm going to take him to the Dr to find out more about it, as she really didn't give me much information on it at all.

What injections will Beau be having at her Drs appointment?

As for the Christening, I'm not buying Tyne's outfit until next week incase he has a growth spurt but the ones i've been looking at are all traditional yep!
There are so many different kinds of "traditional" for boys though - there's gowns, sailor suits, or the satin Victorian style romper suits!
I'm torn between all of them lol. The one I like best so far is a satin sailor-style suit, ivory with baby blue piping. Its £90 though which seems a lot for something he'll only wear once, but we'll see!

Brittany - I hope Aiden sleeps better tonight! Its so hard when you're exhausted and they don't want to sleep

 

[MrsHippo]

This is info on the injections at our 8 week appointment. We are seeing the doctor then to the nurse straight after. I don't like how they inject in their legs

https://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/vaccinations/Pages/5-in-1-questions-answers.aspx

I just googled the sailor rompers and they are really cute

If you thought his hernia was a belly button then it must be tiny! Beau's belly button is sort of half inny, half outy... Lol. No one has looked at it since the cord fell off, assume its ok though. I'll take a photo later lol. But I'd take Tyne to the doctors just for a once over, especially with the mw being pants!! I'm going to have to take Beau to the doctors about her eye I think. It's been a little gammy for a while now and isn't getting better.

 

[Laura91]

Im on my phone so sorry if I miss someone/something!

ILoveLucy - Do you feed her from both breasts during one feed or just one breast? During the last week of me breastfeeding, I tried to average how long Eva would feed (30mins) and then did 15mins on each side with winding inbetween x

MrsHippo - Glad to hear Beaus hip's doing a little better x

Trumps - Eva seems to be full of them at the moment! I think she's got a little bellyache today though..?

Bathtime - She loves it! I don't know whether its related to her birth but she is so calm and just lays there. She likes to be fully submerged though with just her little face popping out

Weight - Went to the MW on Monday and my little chunk has put 8oz on in the last week! She is now 8lb 3oz so we were discharged MW was very pleased!

AFM - Had a contraceptive nurse come out this morning and I've decided to go for the injection She asked if we'd tried DTD yet.. nope! I still feel like its a little early.. muxh to OHs dismay Has anyone actually braved it yet?

 

[doggylover]

Hayley I haven't used our snuza yet either. I also don't feel like the nappies are sturdy enough at the minute. Plus with her cord still on I'm not sure where it'd go! Once her cord is off and we are into cloth then I think I will. Although like you say - didnt think of the hassle of it being under and vest and sleepsuit! We do use a movement sensor mat at night and its a god send for my sanity, so I am looking forward to getting the snuza on for downstairs naps once Simon is back at work as I am currently neurotic!
I think if you want the sailor suit for his christening definitely splash out! It's a once in a lifetime event, plus you could use it for more babies so it'd be a special outfit and an investment!
Maybe I can convince Simon to put a little more warm water in Isabelle's bath tonight as we head for round two on the bath front. I've been to traumatised to go again yet!

Brittany sorry to hear about Aiden's bad nights sleep, hopefully tonight will be better. Could you maybe express a little from the breast Aiden doesn't feed off during the night just to relieve the pain, and then he would maybe latch more easily for his next feed and you could still feed him off that breast? Luckily Isabelle nurses so often (greedy!) that I don't have the same problem, and she is just now starting to take both breasts at some feeds, but how much she actually takes from the second I don't know. It's such a guessing game when bf!!
Sorry about your mil being a pain. I nearly had a heart attack last Sunday when my mum told me everyone was coming for dinner at my house that night (would have been us, my parents, my in laws, my sister and brother in law, my brother and sister in law and nephew! 11 people!) she said we would get take out, but it was the only time I have ever just said straight up no to something so easily. Logistically speaking I have nowhere to put 11 people for starters!
How is cloth diapering going for you?

Lauren yay for registering Beau! We registered Izzy yesterday so we now both officially have real, recognised little people!! Next step is the GP which is going to be a pain as we now live too far away to register her at my GP which I'm gutted about as they are amazing. I'm so pleased one of her hips is doing better, hopefully the other wont need too much intervention. Two nappies can also only be a good thing...double protection against poo-splosions

Laura dtd yet?! Omg no way! My stitches are still in there, and just the thought is painful We weren't active at all during my pregnancy, so it's been about...15 weeks maybe since we actually did dtd. So once I'm healed down there it's going to be a pretty big deal lol!
Big props to anyone who has dtd yet!

afm nothing much new. Isabelle is a week old today...where did that go?! She's still eat ing like a total champ, and sleeping well in between times.
We've had a few insane nappy explosions yesterday and today, so I can't wait to get using my cloth nappies to hopefully safeguard against that!
In terms of leaving the babies, we left Izzy with my mum while we walked the dogs on Monday, for about half an hour or so. I fed her straight before we left thinking she would fall to sleep, but my mum said she was awake the whole time lol. She wanted fed again when I got back which I think was a comfort thing. But I'm more than happy to leave her with our parents or siblings at the minute (obviously for no more than an hour as she's such a greedy monkey she may need fed after that!). I was thinking about her the whole time we were out and wondering if she was crying, but I knew she'd be ok with my mummy!
We just did her second bath and I'm pleased to report it went much more smoothly!! Simon is amazing at bath time, and we stuck a nappy under her quickly when she got out of the bath in case of a repeat of the previous time- good job we did is all ill say!!

 

[doggylover]

A few quick questions for you more experienced mommas (since mine is the littley of the group!)

Firstly, how often do you bath LO?

Secondly, Isabelle is spending much more time awake already. What do you do with LO when s/he is awake? We have put Izzy into her bouncer with the toy bar, or we get her out for some snuggles. But I'm wondering when I should start stimulating her more, and what you ladies do with LO when they are awake and alert?

 

[I Love Lucy]

Lauren, Hopefully there will be some improvement in Beau's hip before her next appointment. Also hope Adam is able to take you so you don't have to deal with the hassle of taking public transportation/walking.

Laura, Sometimes Aiden will eat from both sides, other times he'll only eat from one before falling asleep. Last night he ate from both sides just about everytime he woke up.

Glad Eva likes her baths. Aiden's cord fell out Monday so we were able to give him his first real bath rather then a sponge bath that evening. He still cried but he wasn't screaming like we were killing him like he did with the sponge baths.

As for DTD, I'm not allowed to until 4-5 weeks PP. We're going to wait until after my 6 week PP checkup though. My doctor was telling me that it can take up to 6 weeks for my stitches to all dissolve so I'd just like to make sure everything is all healed up down there before doing anything. I couldn't imagine doing anything now anyways, I still have days where I'm really sore down there.

Sarah, I'm not really having issues with Aiden latching on, even when my breast is full. I am considering pumping from whatever breast he doesn't nurse off of though to prevent waking up in pain. I'm waiting to talk to my pediatritician Friday to see what she says before doing anything different though.

Cloth diapering is going great. I know you have a lot of prefolds so I will tell you we had the hardest time with those. Aiden moves around so much that it's impossible to really use any of the types of folds with those diapers. So we just fold the prefold in thirds and place it inside a waterproof diaper cover. This is usually what we do at night since it's much faster then having to deal with the snaps and such that are on the fitteds/AIO's that I have for him. Plus I would hate to see what kind of snapping DH would do when he's half asleep (he does the diaper changes at night). I will tell you that I've only had one blowout and that was when he was still in disposables. No blowouts with the cloth.

Also, I would of had a heart attack if my mom just called me and told me a bunch of people were coming over for dinner. I find that really rude to not even ask you about it beforehand. Glad you were able to say no.

AFM, Aiden's cord fell out Monday so we were able to give him his first real bath that night (only allowed to give sponge baths before that) and Aiden didn't scream like we were killing him so that was a plus. Hopefully after a few more baths he'll find it enjoyable and we won't have any tears at all.

MIL is being irritating again. Sunday she tried to get me to agree to allowing DH's grandparents come out to my house during the day this Friday. I said no because I have to take Aiden to the pediatritician that day and don't have time to entertain people. I also told her that at this point in time, I can't really plan to see people and that we're just doing things on a day by day basis. The last thing DH and I want to do is have to deal with people because we agreed to something if we have a bad night with Aiden. She said she understood that things are so unpredictable with a newborn so I thought that was the end of that. Nope, she texted both me and DH today asking if we could come out Saturday so that DH's grandparents could meet the baby. Or she said if that didn't work they could come out here. So again she's trying to get us to definitely agree to some kind of plan which is frustrating me considering I had just talked to her about not being able to agree to any plans at this point since I have no idea how Aiden will be. Not to mention, I don't want visitors at my house right now anyways, especially without DH around to kick them out if they try to stay forever (assuming MIL would be coming out with DH's grandparents if we did that she would definitely try to stay all day). Am I the only one with irritating relatives?

 

[I Love Lucy]

Sarah, when Aiden had his cord in we were told to give him a sponge bath every 3-4 days. Everything I've read says even without the cord once or twice a week is more then enough since more then that can cause rashes/dry skin. So we'll stick with the every 3-4 day routine with baths until he's older.

As for awake time, I mainly talk/read to Aiden or we cuddle. I'll also move him around so he's not in the same room every time he's awake and therefore has different things to look at. Sometimes he's in his bouncer downstairs, sometimes in his pack n play upstairs, etc.

 

[LiverpoolLass]

Laura - I can't believe the nurse outright asked you if you've dtd yet! Seriously, is nothing private when it comes to pregnancy/childbirth?! lol.

We haven't yet but we have wanted to - I'm just insisting we don't yet as I chose to go on the pill which I started taking today, so we need to give it a week before its effective. I don't want any accidents!

Lauren - Ahh I see, its an 8 week appointment! Yeah I'm not looking forward to the injections :/

I think I'm going to make an appointment for Tyne with the Dr tomorrow. I hope Beau's eye gets better, definitely worth seeing the Dr if its worrying you.

Sarah - Love the new piccies of Isabelle, she is such a little cutie!

With bathing, I was doing it about 3 times a week but Tyne is starting to get quite dry skin so now we're just going to bath him once or twice a week and Top & Tail in between.

As for awake time, I was wondering this myself tonight - we just tend to talk to Tyne, I sing to him (he loves that! I have no idea, I do not have a nice singing voice! lol), and we lay him down in front of Baby TV with the lights off which he also LOVES.
And we also try to sit him in different things and in different rooms so he's not bored - we alternate between his rocker and his swing, etc.

I've tried showing him toys and stuff and he's not interested at all at the moment!!!

Brittany - aww I'm sorry you're having such a stressful time with relatives.
I only have one relative who's been stressing me out and thats my cousin - but thats more so coz she keeps turning up unannounced when she has a chest infection and bringing her kids with her who also have viruses! I have no idea why she thinks its ok to bring hers and her kids germs around my 3 week old baby!

Leaving The Babies - Jon & I went out for the whole day today with Tyney! It felt very weird! I have no worries about leaving him with my Mum though, same as Sarah - I know he's in great hands! After all, she raised me and my sister so I know she's more than capable lol. She dotes on him!
We had a lovely day out shopping and I was able to find my outfit for the Christening, and we then had dinner out - we were out for about 5 hours altogether, I was dying to get home to see the baby by the end of it!!

Periods - My lochia stopped a few days ago and today I got fresh red bleeding and lots of cramping, so I'm pretty sure this is now my period! Does anybody know if we're allowed to use tampons for the first period?! I'm not sure if I should maybe just use towels this time?! I'm sick of wearing them though! :/

 

[nuttynicnak]

They said no tampons to me in case of risk of infection so not sure. Maybe just use towels?

I have my six week ch k next week. Wonder gat they'll do/ask me?

 

[MrsHippo]

Morning girls,

Sex has been the last thing on my mind lol, I am still quite sore and tmi but I've been quite swollen - think its when I've been walking around. So don't quite fancy anything touching me at the moment

Baths, Beau has only had a couple since being home. She has really dry skin so I don't want to make it worse. I'll wash her face with cotton wool regularly and her bottom end gets a good clean at every nappy change. I've been using baby oil for her skin but hasn't made a difference yet.

Hayley, I was moaning about bleeding to my mum yesterday. I'm sick of using pads, hate them! But wasn't sure when I could start using tampons. My mum said she started using them a couple of weeks after and never had any problems. I'll be waiting for my period to start as the lochia is so unpredictable, it comes and goes!! But I think we are best double checking with a doctor or even the hv first.

Made Beau an appointment with the doctor for this morning. Her eye is no better and now we think has developed thrush on her tongue!!! It's one thing after another lol. Worst part is, I didn't even know. I thought she had a milky tongue but my mum told me it was thrush so read up about it and it does sound like it. Apparently it's really common in babies under 2 months old because their immune systems are immature. So we now have gammy eye, dodgy hip, dry skin and now trushy tongue which can spread to her bottom and cause nappy rash if not treated straight away!! Poor thing.

Oh and the double nappy thing definitely doesn't prevent nappy explosions - makes them much worse!! Think because it's all squashed it just rides up. Got to my mums yesterday (stupidly without a change of clothes) and the poop had spread all up her back and through every layer of clothing!! So we went to next and brought her some more clothes!!

 

[MrsHippo]

Oh and quick question... Has anyone else gone cleaning crazy? Everytime I have time to myself, I clean. I was even cleaning the toilet with cotton buds earlier!! - around the seat where I couldn't reach. But even still. I just hate the thought of anything being dirty :/

 

[doggylover]

Lauren I'm glad you mentioned thrush actually as I think I might have it. I was reading about it on the nipple/feeding end of things and I have some symptoms, but luckily Isabelle doesn't have the milky tongue (that I can see...) so I will mention to my mw and the if needed make a GP appointment too. I definitely don't want to spreading to Izzy, as it'll then bounce back and forward between us.
Last minute yesterday I grabbed a change of clothes for my change bag before we went out. Thank God! I need to be more aware of when I take the dirty clothes back out of the change bag clean ones need to go in!!!

Thanks for the ideas for awake time. I think once we are alone and Simon is back to work we will be able o get more of a little routine of different "awake activities". At the minute we are out and about a lot, so when I'm in more we'll be using some of your ideas

I also noticed Isabelle's skin was super dry today, so I have been slathering her with moisturiser, and will maybe hold off on the bath for another few nights.

She is cluster feeding again tonight - every hour for half an hour, so I literally half half an hour of being milked, then half an hour to run round and sort out the house after being out all day. She was the same last night but still slept well in the end, so fingers crossed its the same tonight.

 

[linzylou]

I've tried to reply to this thread a million times in the past few days... Sarah definitely keeps me busy!! I'm actually typing this one-handed.

Lauren, sorry to hear about the thrush! Poor Beau! I hope it clears up soon.

Brittany - Sorry Aiden didn't stick to his routine. My nights are still so unpredictable. And no, you're not the only one with irritating relatives! My FIL works down the street so he likes to give us a 5 min notice before showing up. I'm sorry you're having to deal with your MIL!

Sex - We gave in at 3 weeks. It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but it wasn't great, either. We've been too busy and too tired to try again.

Bath Time - I give Sarah a bath 2-3 times a week (and after a blow-out like this morning!!) but I do clean her diaper area and under her chin and neck several times daily. Her pedi okay'd the use of lotion now but he said dry skin is dry skin, is normal at this age and will go away in time. She really enjoys bath time, though.

Awake Time - I talk to her (pretty much explain everything I'm doing throughout the day), carry her around, snuggle on the couch, make faces, tummy time, activity mat, swing, listen to music, look at her mobile, visit friends and family (we've gotten better at going out on our own). Lots of hanging out. I'll prop her up on the bed while I fold laundry or set her in the bouncer while I shower. She's awake a lot more now so I've had to get creative.

AFM - Sarah had her one-month checkup yesterday. She was 7lb 9oz and 19" long at birth and is now 10lbz 4oz and 21" long! She had her second Hep B vaccine and slept for almost 5 hours afterwards, poor thing. Besides still being a little jaundiced (her eyes are a tiny bit yellow), she's doing great!

I visited my doctor the other day because I thought I might be experiencing a little postpartum depression. My anxiety is mostly related to breastfeeding, sadly. Sarah's in the habit of snacking all day/night, she'll eat for 5-10 mins every 1-2 hours. At first I thought it was another growth spurt except it didn't stop after just a few days. It was really starting to depress me because I felt like I was feeding her 24/7. After talking to the doctor, I think it's just a combination of hormones and lack of sleep and decided to wait until my six-week checkup to see if anything changes. I also decided to try a bottle of formula at night so that 1) I could get ahead of her with the pumping, 2) help her sleep longer at night. That backfired on me because it gave her horrible gas/upset stomach which has led to tons of crying (still dealing with it today). But at least I have about 20 oz of expressed BM now so that others can give me a break.

Now whenever she acts hungry within an hour of her last meal, I try to distract her, change her diaper, give her a paci, try putting her back to sleep, do anything to make sure she's actually hungry and to buy another 10-15 mins. She has a little bit of reflux and gas which her pedi said might make her want to nurse more often. It just sucks that a 2.5 oz bottle makes her sleep for 2-3.5 hours but my boob can't satisfy her for more than an hour. I don't want to exclusively pump (yet...) so I'll just keep doing what I can or just see if she grows out of it.

 

[linzylou]

Lauren, I wish I felt like cleaning! I've been managing about 1 chore a day. Seth is working from home right now so he helps a lot. Also, my mom is coming this weekend to watch Sarah at my house so that I can play catch up, especially since MIL is visiting again next week. I know I'll feel tons better once the house looks like it used to. Even if it doesn't last long.