First Time Mom's - Due March/April 2013

[I Love Lucy]

Sarah - Oh my gosh, cat urine is the worst. I was so pissed when I moved in to this townhome because the upstairs bedroom smelled like cat piss. I finally got the smell out though but I think Mila at least can still smell it because my bedroom is the main area she would spray. Thankfully her spraying is such a small amount of urine that there really was no cat pee odor. Seriously, she was doing it in my house for months before I actually see her do it and realized that's what was happening. She has peed in my bed though if DH and I are gone longer then a day. Apparently she has separation anxiety because she doesn't do that any other time. Apple cider vinegar thrown in with the laundry works fantastic at getting the smell out though.

That really sucks about your job. I would be so upset if the lady taking your job is only doing so until something better comes along. Especially since you really loved the job. Maybe if she does leave they'll call you back?

Lauren - I'm so sorry about the crap with your neighbors. If it makes you feel better when DH and I lived in our old apartment I had to call the cops on two teens who were literally having sex outside our apartment. I'm sure you can imagine my surprise when I walk out to take my dog outside and have to see them with clothes thrown all over the place and such. Then the worst was they left their nasty, used condom on the ground so apparently they were able to finish before the police arrived. Then that damn thing was there for weeks before the landlord got it cleaned up. I would be livid all over again every time I had to see that condom. Especially because there are little kids that would play out there and I doubt they would know any better about not picking it up.

You don't have to be there much longer though so try to keep your head up. And if your other neighbors continue to call the cops on them then hopefully they'll be kicked out and you won't have any problems renting.

AFM - Aiden almost rolled over yesterday. I had him on his playmat and he managed to get from his back to his side but he couldn't get the rest of the way over. He sure was trying though. Then he got really mad so he rolled himself back to his back and refused to move again.

Nothing else happening. DH is working so it's just Aiden and I today as well. No plans that I know of for this weekend either.

 

[doggylover]

Brittany that's such a gross story about the kids outside your old apartment Great news about Aiden! He'll be rolling properly very soon then! I feel like Isabelle is a million miles away from doing that. I know she the youngest baby, but only less than a week younger than Aiden, so it makes me jealous to hear about the great stuff he can do
TBH I don't know if I'd go back to my old job - it's so far from home that I wouldn't be home until 5-5.30pm each night so would hardly get anytime with Izzy. That doesn't sound good at all to me. But then again, beggars can't be choosers!

Lauren So sorry your neighbours are pissing you off again. That girl sounds like a treat.. I hope that you get it rented out asap so you don't even have to contemplate going back there. Less than a week now until you move!!!

Afm I had a great day today. This morning I went to a cloth nappy group which was fun, and they are planning on holding it every month which is great. I love getting to groups like that and chatting with people with similar interests. Isabelle enjoyed it...she fell asleep for most of it
Then we went for lunch with my SIL and we all went to my parents' house for the rest of the afternoon. So nothing major, but nice nonetheless.

Isabelle has been sleeping pretty well, still waking twice a night but I don't change her nappy anymore so it's a 10 minute feed and then back down. She isn't doing the great 6/7 hour stretches she had been doing around 8/9 weeks, and I have no idea why, but what we have atm isn't too bad - I can deal with it!
She hasn't been going down so well in the evenings though. More often than not she goes down asleep, then wakes and I have to go up and feed her back to sleep - which is not something I want to get into really. Some nights (like tonight) it's just once - 10 minutes and done - but other nights it can be 3 or more times. We tried leaving her to see if she would settle again, but she doesn't 9 times out of 10. And although she will settle eventually if we sit and shh and pat her etc, it can take up to 30mins. So now I don't even really try anything else but feeding her back to sleep.

Her morning nap is going great though - the last 2 days she had gone into her crib awake and chatted and wriggled to herself before she falls asleep without an issue. I just wish she'd do that at night!!

Other than that....nothing to report!

 

[Cathleen]

Dear Mums
I've just found this forum and wondered if I could join your conversations : ) I gave birth to my sweet daughter Lily 3 months ago and I've been looking for a place to talk to other mums for some time now and it seems I found a perfect place... As it's my first baby I have a lot of doubts and it'd be great to know how other mums are coping.
I know you know each other for quite a long time now, but hope I'll fit in

 

[doggylover]

Hi Cathleen, welcome! Congratulations on the birth of Lily, what a beautiful name! How is motherhood treating you so far?

I'm Sarah, and my little lady Isabelle is 2.5 months old.

 

[Cathleen]

Hi Sarah
My daughter was born 15 March, so she's 3,5 months old. Now it's getting better, the beginnings were quite rough as she was a lil bit colicky. At the beginning even going for a walk was quite an adventure - she had to sleep when we went out and as soon as she woke up I had to run back home as she'd cry her eyes out outside - no idea why
I read a few posts back to be as up-to-date as possible - it seems we share the same profession - I'm also a teacher : )

I read your discussion about cats - my cat was spayed a long time ago, but after having Lily she was a little bit jealous I think, because she started peeing in strange places. Once we were heading to our parents-in-law, we left Lily's car seat next to the door and waited for Lily to fall asleep. When she did that we quickly put her in the car seat but she woke up and started screaming. Only when we took her up we realised that the car seat was wet - soaked I mean, totally in our cat's pee! You can imagine how furious I was, especially that we had a three-hour-journey in front of us. Fortunately I'd borrowed a car seat from a friend before I bought the one for Lil, and luckily I didn't have time to give it back. Otherwise I don't know what I'd have done...

 

[MrsHippo]

Hi Cathline,

I'm Lauren and mummy to Beau who was born on 30th March

Sorry to hear about Lily being a little colicky, I know it's really difficult to look after a baby with it. Also sorry about your cat. Them along with dogs can be very funny with change. That's why I unfortunately gave my dog away before Beau was born, she was very hard work and hated change. Even Adam's shift changes would cause problems for her!! I knew bringing a baby home would be awful. So we reluctantly made the decision to give her to a new home.

Brittany, that's awful about your neighbours!! What on earth possesed them to do that!!!
I have felt really down since what happened though. Yesterday we went to our friends 30th b.day party - there were loads of parents there. I actually felt like I was at a baby group it was that bad. Anyhoo, the whole time I was there I just wanted to cry. My friends were talking to me but I didn't want to talk back. All I wanted to do was go home ..... But not come back here. I felt as though I was stuck in between a rock and a hard place

Also Brittany, that's great about Aiden rolling over. Beau can roll on to her side when she is on our bed but I think that is mostly down to the dint bits in the mattress.

Sarah, I don't blame you for not wanting to go back to your old job. I don't. I've thought about it a lot recently and they will make me work everyday (I'd prefer to work 2/3 days on then the rest off) but they want me to work everyday for half a day. However, I can see that gradually getting longer.

We are going to Adam's aunties for dinner today which has been arranged for a couple of weeks now. However, I don't want to go. I just don't feel like socialising with anyone but being here is making my mood even worse. As I type this they are playing music, throwing rubbish out their window again and pouring water... Or some other liquid out which keeps dribbling down our window and leaving marks on it. They have a sink!!! So why are they pouring it out the window???

OMG. I feel so miserable :'( :'(

 

[doggylover]

Lauren I'm so sorry that your shitty neighbours have made you feel so down, and basically ruined your whole weekend. At least by the end of this week you not have to deal with them on a day to day basis. Have you started packing yet?
It would be great if you could go back for half days - I wouldn't mind 5 days doing that, or 2/3 days full day. But anymore than that and I will just feel awful about never being with her. There aren't many jobs though, so I just have to take what I can get. Either that or do something totally different.

Cathleen so sorry to hear about Lily's colic my nephew had mild colic and that was bad enough, but it sounds like you've had a really rough ride with poor Lily. Is she more settled now?
That's so gross about your cat! I would have murdered mine! My dad is convinced that our cat is going to kill the baby, so the poor boy is under scrutiny any time he comes into the house!
Do you teach primary or secondary?

 

[MrsHippo]

I have started packing - last week!! I couldn't help myself lol. I will be doing lots more this week, starting tomorrow. It makes me feel better.

I am really annoyed with myself, for getting so upset with everything. But its so hard not to be. Is it so bad to want to be happy?

I think I'm taking a backseat on the blog for a while. I have way too much going off at the moment. Hopefully once I am settled and happy again, I will start lol. I haven't even been comping, I haven't done any for weeks. I just have no motivation to do anything. Its sad really

 

[linzylou]

Cathleen - Hi and welcome! I'm Lindsey. My daughter, Sarah, is also 3.5 months (born on March 17). I'm sorry about Lily's colic. Is it gone yet, or gotten better at least? Sarah wasn't colicky but she has never been a great sleeper. She was doing 5-7 hour stretches but now we've hit some kind of wonder week/growth spurt/sleep regression and she will do a max of 4 hours. Some nights it's every 1-2 hours. How is Lily's sleep?

Sarah - Waking twice a night for 10 mins is not bad at all! She will probably drop one of those feeds eventually and then it will be even easier! I've had a harder time getting Sarah to bed (i.e., having to go in and comfort and/or feed her again a few times the first hour) but she has been clingier overall this week. Last night she let me put her down awake, babbled for 10 minutes, and then fell asleep. Did the same thing at 4am as well so I know she's capable of it. I think babies will go through different phases with their sleeping habits, too, so the bad nights are not permanent. At least that's what I tell myself when I've been up 5 times. It sounds like Izzy's doing well, though!

Lauren - I can't believe how much shit you've had to endure with these neighbors. They should have been evicted! It's understandable why you would be so upset. I'm sure you will be much happier at your new place. Just a few more days!

Brittany - How did the crib work for Aiden? Sarah's been sleeping in hers for 3 weeks now and we haven't looked back. She was up to 6 hour stretches until last Sunday! Now she won't sleep more than 4 hours no matter where she is. What your neighbors did was absolutely disgusting!

As for me - Night before last was awful. We were up for 2.5 hours in the middle of the night - a first for us - and she also refused to nurse but was hungry so I had to go make her a bottle. But last night was good. She slept 3 hours, then 4, then 2, and then took a 2.5 hour nap this morning so I feel rested enough. Plus, Seth is home today and let me sleep in.

Sarah makes a few new noises and she's also started scooting herself around on her back. She did a 180 in her crib last night. I went to bed seeing her face on the video monitor and woke up to her feet!

Hope everyone is having a good weekend. It's 119 degrees today so we're not doing much.

 

[Cathleen]

Hello Lauren : )

So sorry you had to give your dog away, hope you managed to find her a decent home, I know it can be very difficult to find good people for animals you love...
When do you have to go back to work? What are you plans concerning Beau - a nanny/nursery?
I didn't follow the thread from the beginning, just looked a few posts back, so I don't know if you're moving because of your neighbours, but still I hope you found a great place for your family. What I understood is that you are leaving your OWN flat, is that right?
I remember when I was looking for a flat, I was so afraid of having bad neighbours, they can simply ruin your life...
And don't worry, the moment you move out it's going to be a lot better, you'll see.

Sarah
Looking from perspective Lily's colic wasn't that bad after all - I mean, I heard of worse cases She started having problems when she was 3 weeks and after two weeks the colic was over (we had to use some medicine for a month though). She cried mainly in the evenings and at weekends - that is when my husband was at home - so my poor husband had the idea that baby cries non stop

However, going out with her was a problem for a longer perdiod of time. I somehow dealt with that, I just had to learn that you can't plan anything with the baby - I only went out with her when she was asleep and I knew that I had 2-2,5 hours before she wakes up and starts shouting. Going with her on a cold day was not an option as when I wanted to put some warm clothes on her she started crying. Even just puting her in her pram and going out resulted in crying outside - she didn't fall asleep as most babies do when they are going for a walk. I still don't know what the problem was, it all suddenly stopped and right now I go out when she's awake, she takes a short nap in the pram and when she wakes up in the park she is so happy - just wants me to take her in my arms so that she can contemplate the world

Sarah, my Mum is just like your Dad! She reminds me non stop that I should never ever let my cat go near Lily as (she wants to put in nicely) "she might lie next to her face and the baby will suffocate". You can imagine that I didn;t dare telling her about the little incident with the car sear But the truth is my cat is so afraif of Lily - she doesn't go near her, when I come into the door with L. in my arms and the cat is there she slowly retreats

I teach English in a secondary school (16-18 year-olds)

Hello Lindsey
Your Sarah is only two days younger
5-7 hour stretches at night were really great, but I think it really might be this wonder week and in a few days Sarah will get back to sleeping longer
Lily usually goes to sleep at 9 (we started puting her to her crib two weeks ago ), then I feed her around 1-2 am, then 4-5 am, 6am and finally at 7am when she wakes up. But to be honest I like it like that, I feed her almost without waking up as I take her to bed for the first feeding . She doesn't cry at night, in fact she doesn;t wake up, she just starts sucking her fingers while sleeping - I wake up when I hear that sound and I just give her my boob just to fall asleep while cuddling her. I just love this moment of her being so calm and eating without any problems (during the day she sometimes have a pattern of: eat-cry-eat-cry-eat)
Does your Sarah need to be held after being fed? Does she fall asleep in your arms or do you do something else to help her fall asleep?

And congratulations on Sarah's scooting around, it's fantastic! What new sounds does she make?

Sorry for the longish post, I have to try to keep it short next time

 

[doggylover]

Lindsey oh my gosh I am right there with you on having to resettle Isabelle/feed her again in the first hour after she goes to bed. It's exhausting some nights for sure. Last night she was asleep when I put her down, then woken hour later and would only settle after two little feeds. Tonight it took around 20-25 mins to settle her when I put her down. No matter what I try, nothing seems to make a difference. There have been very few nights when I put her down and she goes to sleep and stays asleep. We've had nights where it's been sleep 20mins, cry and need a feed over and over for hours. Luckily none as bad as that for a while!
So funny about her scooting around in her crib! You'll need to put the video monitor somewhere you can see more of her now just incase she does it again!

Lauren I had an inkling you might have started packing, knowing how super organised you are!! I'm sure you've loads of stuff, and with beau it must be difficult as you'll need things right up to the last minute. At least nobody will be hot on your heels for your flat, so you can move all the important things ASAP and get the rest over a few days?
Yeah there is no point in forcing yourself to blog if you don't have much time, especially with moving! You should try and do a few comps though- hopefully you'll get a win and that'll make you feel a bit better.

Cathleen I think you're right about not being able to plan with a LO. We can only do our best, and just deal with things as they come up!! Sounds like you had Lily's habits down to a tee when she was more fussy though, so I guess it's just about adapting as they change.
And yeah, for a while izzy just cried when my family we around and I'm sure they thought she was a demon!! My dad keeps saying now how much she's changed because she doesn't cry so much with them - but she has always been happy and smily when at home with me!

afm not much new at all. I didn't do much today, let simon walk the dogs and lay on the sofa lol! Isabelle has been so sleepy today, all she's done is eat and sleep. I think maybe she's hitting the 12 week growth spurt.

 

[I Love Lucy]

Cathleen - Welcome! I'm Brittany and my son Aiden was born April 5th. His weight and such is on the first post if you're curious. My labor with him was pretty quick too. My doctor was estimating about 24 hours for me since first labors typically take longer, especially with induction but from the start of my induction to his arrival was 9 hours. I also cloth diaper, exclusively breastfeed, and bed share (though I didn't intend to do that). So that's a little bit about me and Aiden to catch you up a bit.

As for the cat peeing, I'm so thankful none of my cats or dog for that matter have gotten jealous and started peeing random places. Though my cat that would spray would spray on DS's pack 'n play which really doesn't make since to me because that was one of her favorite places to sleep before DS arrived. Thankfully it doesn't smell like cat pee or I would have been livid. I can only imagine how you felt with the carseat.

Lauren - I'm so sorry you're feeling so down at the moment. I remember when I had to call the cops on the two teens at my old apartment I felt so upset about it for weeks after. I think it was because that nasty condom was sitting out there so I had to see it every time I took my dog out and it would just anger me all over again. I imagine you're still feeling upset about the whole situation because you still have to deal with your neighbors. Not much longer though and you'll be out of there and in a much better place.

Lindsey - I failed miserably in my attempts with the crib. I put him in it Friday night after I fed him when he was half asleep in my bed. As soon as I put him down in his crib though his eyes were wide open. I pretty much knew at that point it was a lost cause but I waited 5 minutes anyways to see if he would stop fussing but no luck. Last night he didn't want to sleep at all, it was after 10 before he finally went to sleep for the night and at that point I was too tired to even try putting him in his crib.

So glad Seth was home and let you sleep. DH also let me sleep this afternoon but I think it was more so because Aiden was sleeping too and with me sleeping he was free to play his video games without me yelling at him.

AFM - I have stuff to update y'all on but I hear Aiden downstairs crying so I better get down there before DH starts freaking out.

 

[linzylou]

Cathleen, my husband gives Sarah her bedtime bottle and puts her down when she is practically asleep. She used to turn her head a few times and then she'd be out. Lately, though, she's been waking up as soon as her head hits the mattress. Sometimes it takes a hand on her chest while saying shhhh, other times I nurse/rock her. It sounds like you and Lily have a nice routine and I love the convenience of co-sleeping. We only did it for a week but we still do for the occasional nap. Now Sarah's in constant motion so it's not always that easy!

Sarah's new sounds are yelling (not quite a shriek or a squeal but not a cry, either) and she also says something like "der der der" which goes on until she's practically out of breath. She looks mad when she does it, too - it's like she's lecturing me.

Sarah, the first hour is definitely the worst! I don't even try to go to bed until we're past it. Tonight hasn't been as bad (knock on wood!). Bottle at 8:30. Shush/pat for 2 mins. Asleep by 8:45. She's woken up twice since (it's 9:15), fussed for literally 10 seconds, and then gone back to sleep. But the night is still young...

Haha, I did move the monitor. She's already scooted herself sideways. Silly girl.

Brittany, I'm sorry! Our first night was pretty bad, too. There is plenty of time for Aiden to get used to his crib so don't worry and do what you need to do to get sleep at night! I sometimes wish co-sleeping would have worked out for us because I love snuggling her (which we do a lot during the day) and it's a lot more convenient to nurse in bed, I think, than to have to go into another room but I am glad we made the transition when we did. She moves around so much now that I would not feel comfortable leaving her in the RNP overnight.

 

[I Love Lucy]

Lindsey - I thought DH was the one wanting me to move DS to his crib and then when I was trying it he was saying he was under the impression that DS would be in bed with us until I stop breastfeeding (planning to start weaning at 6 months). I think DH secretly likes having DS in the bed with us because then he can see him anytime he's awake. I know he misses DS a lot while he's away at work. Especially if he gets stuck working late. As long as I have DS swaddled (well more so his arms wrapped up since he's too big now to swaddle him properly) he's not too bad sleeping next to me.

AFM - I had a really rough night yesterday night. DH and I tried DTD again since I haven't been having any pain down there lately so I was thinking we would finally have sex that was pain free and therefore enjoyable for me. Wrong! DH was able to get like a quarter of the way in and that didn't hurt so I was excited thinking that I might actually get to enjoy DTD. So I told him I wasn't having any pain so he moved farther in and OMG did it hurt. I was so disappointed that I made DH stop right then and there because the mood was completely killed for me. Then I probably sat up for hours crying about it because I was so upset. Before I felt like I was able to be optimistic about DTD working the next time but I'm almost 3 months PP and still can't have sex. It's just so discouraging.

Anyways, I'm off to get ready so I can drop the cat off at the vet for her spay. Hoping the earlier wake up time doesn't throw off Aiden's day too much.

 

[MrsHippo]

Brittany, sorry to hear your attempt at sex didn't go too well I know this maybe TMI to tell, but does it hurt just inside or is it deep? If its deep endometriosis could be the cause? Or a possibility at least. However, I thought I had it just over a year ago. I was always in pain when trying to have sex, my doctor checked me for STI's (even though I knew that wouldn't be the cause) but once they were ruled out she said it could be endo but would have to have a laparoscopy (think that's the one) to check before treating. But me being a wimp, I put it off... Then about a month later I was fine again I know it's an inflammatory disease but not sure whether symptoms come and go? But if your pain is deep then I'd mention it to your doctor and see what they say? Also, I know child birth can cause problems with the viginal muscles - some people end up tensing whenever anything goes ''down there'' , whether it be their man or a tampon. Have you tried using sex toys? That's worth looking in to if you haven't. Try something small at first and see if they relax you more.

Cathline, where are you from? Tell us a little about yourself

As for me, I did some more packing today. I'm piling it all up in to the smallest room and I had a phone call earlier to arrange a viewing for tomorrow. So unfortunately they will have to see beyond the boxes lol.
I overheard an argument outside earlier between the scum and the guy who lives next to them on the same floor. He was saying he'll get them evicted. The scum's (ill refer to them as scum!!) response was 'he isn't going to throw out his own daughter' ectect then turned around and went 'you don't know who I know' - so now they're threatening their neighbours as well as making our lives a misery!! Even though its disgusting, I'm so glad it's not just me it's effecting!!

I brought Beau a door bouncer off eBay today looking forward to seeing her in that!!

 

[I Love Lucy]

TMI but it just hurts inside, kind of like DH is trying to put something way too big in there. I know when I had my 6 week check my OB said I was having vaginal dryness due to the breastfeeding. And she was saying that may cause problems with sex even if we do use a lot of lube so I think that's what my problem is. At least I hope because she did say she could prescribe me some stuff to help with that if I need her to. I'm just kind of feeling like I'm never going to be able to have sex again and it really depresses me.

Those neighbors of yours sound horrible, Lauren. I can't wait for you to get away from them. Hopefully your other neighbors reported the threat to the police since I can't imagine them being allowed to stay there if the cops are repeatedly being called.

What kind of bouncer did you get? I saw Laura posted a pic of Eva in one on FB but the brand is only a UK one so I'm still looking. The one I was previously looking at had nothing but negative reviews.

 

[MrsHippo]

Ours is a Tippytoes doorway bouncer. Amazon sell them so they might be sold overseas too? Worth looking but reviews are good. I got mine for £10 on eBay. Didn't want to spend much. I saw Laura's too, I looked at that brand as well.

Your sex life will be back to normal again one day, just keep trying. But the pain you describe is exactly how I felt. But then I was back to normal before I knew it.

 

[linzylou]

I've been looking at this bouncer for the near future but I'm not sure when to start using it. She's pretty good at holding up her head/upper body so maybe at 4 months? Have you used yours yet, Lauren?

 

[MrsHippo]

No I only paid for it today so waiting for it to be delivered Beau is good at holding her head also - apart from when she is tired! Then she slumps.

I looked at those bouncers but are too big for here so thats why I haven't brought one. I might think about it once we have moved. I know the door bouncers say from 3 months old. Not sure about the jumperoo, I'd assume it was the same?

 

[linzylou]

The one I was looking at said 4 months. Sarah's 15 lbs (her thighs no longer fit the Bumbo ) so hopefully she can use it by then. The doorway jumpers look like fun, too, so I'll keep looking. I can't believe our babies are getting so big.