January Baby Bears 2017 ~ 48 Momma Bears: 21 Blue, 17 Pink

[Ally2015]

thanks for comments on Isa!

ali-Hope o's skin gets better soon. 3 hours a day sounds a bit liek Isa except his seem more distributed, 30 min naps here and there, but other days he will nap longer. It is just quite erratic. his bed time is consistent though and then he sleeps better in the night. im also falling back on the crib sleeping, he keeps being in the bed. i need to get really strict!

slammer- sending you a hug, this stage is so hard and going to work might be a nice break for you.

lit- sounds v busy, glad fitness class was good. Maybe just with V getting older and bigger she is getting prone to gas etc? Isa has a lot of gas and reflux, but is much better now. Have u tried gripe water? i also feed isa spoons of camomile and fennel tea, and i think it helps settle his stomach.

afm- Isa been hard during day and not napping great. Need to get more of a routine. I am tired. every time i make one, i never stick to it properly. .

 

[Angel5000]

I have to go back to work in 3 weeks. Ugh. I'm not looking forward to it. I did have my principal confirm that there's an office in my building I will be allowed to use for pumping but was told my pumping availability time is my before/after school time, prep period and lunch. My prep and lunch are in the same block so I can only pump once in that time period. If I feed Melody at 6am before I go to work, I have to pump at 7am (when I get to work - class starts at 7:45am), because the next opportunity is 11am. Even then, pumping at 7 and then at 11 might be hard on my body. My teaching hours are 7:15 - 2:45, with student hours 7:45 - 2:15, so I can pump again anytime after 2:15 if I need. Or if I can get out of there by 3 I can go home and feed (I only live 5 minutes from the school). Unfortunately if I am spending my before school time pumping and most of my prep period pumping at 11, then I have no time to do things like make copies and stuff, so I'll have to stay late after school. Blah. This really stresses me out. The thought of this makes me want to give up nursing....except I love BF when she's actually nursing from me.

As for Melody - things are going pretty well again. She's nursing again and we started working on sleep. I'm trying to get her to fall asleep with a little less bouncing/rocking on my part and it seems to be fairly successful so far. We hold/bounce/rock until she starts to get the drowsy/calm look (usually takes about 3-5 minutes if I watch the clock and put her down for nap at the right time) and then I lay her down and pat her back and give her a pacifier until she drifts off. If she starts to cry and patting doesn't calm her, I'll pick her back up and start again. It takes longer than me just rocking her to sleep because I can rock/bounce her to sleep in under 10 minutes if my timing is right, but I'm getting really tired of having to make sure she's fully knocked out and then deal with the risk of her wake up when I lay her down and starting over. At least this way even if I stay and pat her all the way to sleep, I don't wake her up by having to move her off my warm body onto her cold bed.

I've also found that in the evening if I put her down around 7pm she'll sleep for a good 3 hours before waking back up, so that has become her "bed time". Any earlier and she sleeps about 45 minutes (normal nap time). Last nght she even napped from 5:30 - 6:30, and then at 7 she went back down for 3 hours. Of course, the rest of the night was in 1.5-2 hour increments (of course AFTER I go to sleep she wants to wake up more often). But at least I'm getting some time with DH where baby is actually asleep.


Apple - I'm starting to feel like I'm getting ot the point where I'll be happy to move to formula soon(ish). I love BF but I hate pumping and will be glad to avoid having to pump.

Slammer - Thanks. That makes me feel better to hear that your LO's naps got better at 6 months. Right now Melody's naps are about 45-60 minutes, which I'm honestly okay with. I just wish her night sleep would last a little longer. I'm just so exhausted and going back to wokr in 3 weeks with this much exhaustion has me worried.

Sounds like Jack and Melody had similar days with all that sleeping a few days ago. Melody slept almost all day long a few days ago. I'm pretty sure it was related to growth spurt. Congrats on the weight loss! I need to work on that. I have been exercising, just am too lazy to eat right.

And, FYI, I'm right there and canNOT wait until M can sit up and hold a toy. I'm so tired of carting her around everywhere!


Lite - I'm at a standstill with weight loss too. I am trying to eat healthier but it's hard when I'm so hungry all the time and my initial impulse is to grab for whatever crappy food I can find. I agree, the nasal bulb makes babies hysterical. Melody freaks out over it. I hope V is starting to feel better soon.



Melody did the same thing - refused to nurse from my right side completely and was nursing less in general. Hopefully she takes it again. Glad that your fitness class went well. It must be nice to have a group of moms, so everyone else understands what having a baby is like.


Vrogers - I'm so glad that I'm not alone but I'm so sorry that you're going through similar feelings.

 

[Literati_Love]

Angel - sounds like we have been going through very similar issues with nursing. I am glad to hear M's feeding is back to normal. Woohoo! Hopefully Violet will follow suit soon. I'm glad you're having some success teaching her to fall asleep with a little less help from you.
That sounds horribly restrictive with your pumping times when you go back to work. I don't blame you for being stressed by it. Your milk production is pretty flexible, so I am sure your body would adjust to those pumping times without your supply being overly affected (hopefully). Perhaps if it gets to be too much, you could switch to combi-feeding? Formula during the day when you're gone, and BFing when you are home? I absolutely hate pumping as well.

Slammer - ah yes, I didn't realize you were going back to work next week already. I thought if it were a couple more weeks away, you might need a break before then! That's really tough that he won't even really go to your DH without being upset. Makes it pretty hard to ever get a break. Hopefully he gets more used to your hubby when you go back to work.

Ally - we have tried gripe water, but she absolutely screams and acts like she's being tortured when we give it to her, so we only use it if her gas is really bad. It gives a bit of relief, but not much. I am starting to wonder if she has silent reflux. She doesn't spit up at all, but you can hear liquid shooting up from her stomach, and then she swallows it. She also has a cough, chokes and sputters often, arches her back, seems in pain from feeding, etc. We don't have a dr's appointment until she is 4 months. Don't know if we should go in sooner...
sorry you are so tired and Isa is napping so poorly. It really is all so exhausting.

 

[slammerkin]

Angel - I think if I were you I'd try to pump at 7/11/2:15 and do copies and such after the last pump before going home. I think your supply would be OK with that.

Glad to hear Melody is getting back to nursing and you're having access with naps!

Literati - Jack will tolerate DH for a little bit if he's not tired, but once he gets even a little tired it's all over! They'll find their groove in the next week or so I'm sure...just might be a tough few days.

Jack has been spitting up a lot more in the last couple weeks. I don't think he has reflux per se, but I dunno. He doesn't seem to mind it.

AFM - tried Jack in the stroller last night when we walked to a playground and he was fine for only a few minutes before screaming his head off..just like in the car seat. I don't know what his problem is. The hatred of car seat and stroller are the only things that would make me think reflux, but he can be fine for a few mins, plus he has no problems with laying down in bed or on the floor. Boo! Stroller walks were an important part of DH getting through the months he spent at home with DD before she started daycare. If Jack hates them it's going to suck for DH.

According to the scale this morning I've regained two lbs! Waaaaaa. Hard to tell if that's accurate. Could be back down two tomorrow I spose. But I haven't been as good in the last week. DH getting better means he's cooking more...which means I eat more, lol.

Went shopping for new work pants yesterday since none of my old ones fit. Found one pair that fit, and they were three sizes larger than my old pairs from the same store! Yikes! Strangely I don't mind my chub that much while clothed...not a big fan of it while naked though. I'm still small compared to most people, so a bit of chub makes me feel a little softer/more womanly at the moment. Just wish I could get rid of the mommy belly and keep it on my butt, haha!

Oh, edited to add...I finally tried to put Jack to sleep and leave him last night...only the second time I've tried. I managed it! Nursed to sleep and snuck out...but of course he only slept 30 minutes. DD did the same for months and months on end...would only sleep 30 mins after going down if I left her. It sucked so bad! I really hope Jack doesn't continue to do that the way she did.

 

[newbie2013]

I've been slack with posting again and for my own mental health, I'm going to try to be better at it. I'm really not doing OK at the moment. The combination of baby, work and house is really getting me down. I'm exhausted all the time and my traditional with dh is deteriorating. He was really sick last week so I was managing completely alone and now it seems he is sleeping in the spare room all the time. My mum said some things that didn't need to be said the morning she left and that has put dh and I in a really bad position. He's pissed with her and basically doesn't want to see her. I've booked my flights home for summer with ds, but dh isn't coming, so I'm facing two 25 hour flights with a six month old on my own. I'm also away from dh for three weeks and he's not happy about that. I will also need to confront my mother about what she said and I'm not looking forward to that. I can't believe she's completely ruined three months of her trip in a single minute. She really disappointed me because even though she may haves felt better having said her piece, she left a sour taste in my mouth and it won't be the same between her and I from now on. I was really close to my mum and she helped me through a lot of myth infertility issues, but now I feel let down. Dh is trying to understand as well, but he keeps talking down about my mother and it really affects me. He brought it up again in the car the other day and I had what I can only describe as an anxiety attack. It really scared me because I couldn't control myself. I almost hyperventilated. Instead of dh being supportive of me, he said nothing. I think he thinks it was an act but it wasn't. I feel like I'm walking around in a surreal daze. I'm literally forcing myself to get through each day. He's not doing anything around the house, hardly doing anything with the baby. I can't keep going like this. I'm really close to breaking point. I need to talk to him but we haven't had time and with him in the spare room at night, we don't even have night feeding time to chat.

Sorry for the crappy post. I really don't have anyone else to talk to after my mum let me down

 

[vrogers]

Literati- I'm sure there are different factors in bottle fed vs breastfed babies (like diet like you mentioned) but we use gas drops which work super well and sometimes gripe water which tends to help her gas as well. It's frustrating to deal with, I'm sorry!
Your fitness class sounds fun especially because there are others with babies which means they definitely will not judge you as far as holding/calming baby. That's awesome you have something like that!

Slammer- what kind of work do you do? I'm sure you've said and I have an awful memory. I'm doing seminary, I started in jan. 2013, the school itself is in New Orleans but I am several hours away so was going to an extension center (same class and work, just not at the school and with diff teachers and class mates of course) but cycled out of the classes they offer so had to go exclusively online. I enjoy it a lot it's just taking me forever and I wish I would have taken this semester off while having a new baby, oh well.
I'm sorry about jack! L can be the same way sometimes, I think with us it has to do with dh not being very "comforting" or nurturing. He's going to be better when she's old enough to talk and entertain herself a little more, but it would be nice if I wasn't always the one having to settle and deal with her.
I'm also the same, I always end up just staying home from anything and everything because I'm sure the baby would fuss the whole time, and that makes anything more stressful. I really am ready for her to be older and hoping she doesn't despise her car seat :/

Ally- ugh I'm having the exact same issues with lack of naps and routine. I hope we both get it sorted asap, it's so tiring and I am spent!

Angel- I'm sorry about dreading back to work! The pumping schedule sounds exhausting, I can see why it's stressing you out! I hope you can figure out a good routine that works for both you and baby without having to give up nursing. Glad you and melody are doing better on the sleeping/eating side! That's interesting about the bed time thing, I may try that and see if it helps us too.

Newbie- I'm so so sorry you are struggling on top of the added drama with your mom and dh. I have a rocky relationship with my mother and for personal reasons have basically had to cut contact with her, and then we had some drama with dh's mom several weeks ago and even though she's generally really awesome it left a bad taste in my mouth especially due to my issues with my own mother. It's hard, especially when you don't have all the support you could have of family getting along/helping. I'm also not a confrontational person and am bad about just letting everything stir around inside.
Is there any way you could talk to your mom before the trip there? Could dh go with or is he not able to at all?
Hopefully you're able to talk to your mom and dh and everything goes well and they listen to you instead of just saying their piece.


Afm- L is generally a good sleeper, decent napper but today she will not nap! Last week was bad too but I blamed her 12 week leap because she was also eating more but now it's basically the same and I'm exhausted.
Also very ready for her to be a bit more independent so I can feel like my own person again, it's so exhausting! I know she won't always be this little and I'll probably (maybe? Haha) miss it when she's older but not right now!!

 

[Literati_Love]

Slammer - my dd1 went through a very long phase of hating car seats, and she supposedly never had reflux. I think she just hated them. She was fine being flat on her back otherwise. Perhaps Jack is just going through a phase...and hopefully it doesn't last too, too long. It would be a lot nice for your DH if he could go on walks while you're at work, like you said.
Sorry you had to buy new work pants after all! I am starting to think I am going to have to buy larger pants as well, since I am tired of wearing maternity pants. Then again, if the weight is going to come off somewhat steadily, I might as well just wear maternity for a little while longer. I think my normal pants would fit a lot better if I lost about 5-6 lb at this point, even though I have about 10-13 to go total. That's good you don't mind yourself in clothes. I am also not chubby by any means with this weight, since I was pretty lean before, but I find that I am so soft and flabby now, and I don't like that. If I were actually toned, I wouldn't look so bad. My tummy is way bigger than I would like, and I think that is the most depressing part. My hips/bum feel huge to me, and that is why my pants aren't fitting still. I did lose another pound this week, so hopefully it doesn't just come right back. I'm sure those 2 lb you gained back will fall right off again. Fluctuations are normal!
That really sucks Jack would only sleep 30 minutes without you. Violet is the same. In the day, if I put her down, she wakes up within 3 or 4 minutes. If I put her down at night, she will maybe last 20-25 minutes (if she doesn't wake up instantly) and that's it. It's depressing. My dd1 was like that after the 4 month regression, but before that I could at least put her down at night for the first few hours, although I had to hold her for 2 solid hours first. It's a bit worrying that Violet is somehow even WORSE than dd1! So, I feel your pain.

Newbie - I am so sorry for what you're doing through with your DH and your mom. I know how it feels to feel like you have lost your only confidante (when my BFF betrayed me this past summer). It is really too bad your mom felt the need to say something that obviously hurt/bothered you and your DH. She should have just kept her mouth shut! I hope you can patch things up and that she will apologize eventually. That definitely sounds like a panic attack you had, and it is really too bad that your DH wasn't more supportive or understanding. I can totally see why you would have had a panic attack, as family conflict can be super stressful. Sounds like you and DH really need a proper talk about what is going on and how you are feeling. It is so hard to get quality time together with a new baby, and especially with him sleeping apart from you. But maybe just mention to him that it's important you have a one on one talk about some things that are bothering you, and hopefully he will make it a priority. Good luck.

AFM - we had quite a traumatizing night last night. I was just changing Violet into her sleeper for the night when dd1 gasped and said, "Violet has a fuzz on her toe!" I went to go take it off, but assumed it was nothing major, as my dd1 has an irrational fear of fuzz and hair. However, when I went to take the fuzz off, I discovered that THREE of her toes had hair tourniquets on them! They were wrapped around extremely tightly and so deep that they were digging deeply into her skin, her toes with very red, and they were all swollen as well! I instantly panicked when I saw there was no way to get the hairs off with my fingers. I told my DH what was going on and told him he had to get them off RIGHT NOW or she was going to lose her toe. I was so panicky and couldn't even look at them. My DH raced into action and grabbed tiny scissors to cut the hair, but quickly saw that it was way too tight around her toes that he couldn't do that without cutting her. So he got the tweezers and started extracting all the hair that was wrapped around her toes, while I held Violet's foot still while she screamed in pain. Dd1 (bless her) alternated between crying and calmly reassuring Violet, "it's okay, Violet, daddy is going to get it off of you." She even paused at one point to tell DH, "daddy, you're saving the day!!" Which relieved a little tension. DH finally got it all off (or as much as he could) and we started googling the situation and texting his sister who is a nurse for advice. We sent her a picture of the toes, and she said to go straight to the hospital. We had to quickly call our friend who lives just a few blocks away to come over and put dd1 to bed and stay with her so we could both go to the hospital together.
On the way there, DH was so worried Violet was going to lose her toe. Long story short, she is okay. DH did an awesome job getting everything out, and the doctor just cleaned out a tiny bit more lint that was trapped in her toe. The two surrounding toes weren't too severe, but the middle toe was so severe that it was cut right down to her tendon! Terrifying. Everything got cleaned up and the dr wrapped her foot up and we have to clean it and re-dress it in two days. We have to go back to the doctor next week to make sure the swelling is going down okay, and if it doesn't appear to be improving within a couple days, we have to go back to the hospital to get it checked. She is on antibiotics as it definitely appeared to be slightly infected. However, her circulation is okay and she is likely going to be just fine. We feel SO bad and are heartbroken for her, but all the hospital staff was reassuring that it wasn't our fault and these things are very difficult to notice and not something you normally notice until it gets quite bad. That was good because DH was pretty much beside himself. I feel awful, but am just glad we found it when we did, and that she is going to be okay. That is a huge blessing, so I am trying to focus on the positives. Violet seems much happier today and doesn't appear to be in pain. We got back from the hospital after 2 am, so it was a short night for us.

 

[Literati_Love]

VRogers- I think we posted at the same time. We will have to see if we can find gas drops at the pharmacy. Is there a certain brand you buy?
I am sorry L is having such a bad nap day and that you're so exhausted. I wish you could get more of a break. Lots of hugs!

 

[AliJo]

I had my whole reply typed up and then accidentally closed it before sending! Ugh! I'll try to retype later..

Lite - That's so scary!!!! How long do you think she had them? Makes me sick to my stomach just thinking about it. I no joke checked T after reading that. I'm glad my hair is shorter now, but it still could get wrapped. That was one thing they told me at the hospital. That if T is abnormally fussy to make sure to check fingers and toes for hair. Thank goodness she is okay. Bless your older daughter for noticing!! She'd be getting ice cream or something from me!

I'll catch up (again! ugh) with everyone later. Not even going to bother talking about myself right now.

 

[pompeyvix]

Sorry I've been MIA ladies. I accidentally unsubscribed and haven't been reading

LL - OMG,poor Violet with the hair tourniquets! (I had to google it, but I had guessed what it was). I wonder how long they had been there for? And a massive well done to DD1 for noticing them! That whole experience sounds so very scary If Jamie wasn't asleep right not, i'd be checking his toes. In fact, I'll be doing it as soon as he wakes for milk. It sounded like you acted fast and I am so glad everything is OK

Angel - Sorry to read you've been struggling with Melody having a nursing strike and then not sleeping very well. I can only imagine having to deal with that and then the worry of having to go back to work in 3 weeks.
If you can pump at 7 , 11 and 2.15 , your supply should continue , especially now your supply is established. i pump just 5 times over 24 hours now and my supply is pretty consistent.

newbie- Your post was just heart breaking It sounds like you are dealing with an awful lot right now and no one seems to helping or supporting you. I am sorry your mum said some terrible things. I really hope she comes to realise she was wrong and apologise, especially as your husband is being particularly supportive.

Ali - Sorry to hear you are feeling very stressed and anxious sounds like you have a lot on your plate right now what with managing work and having a demanding baby who just wants to be held all the time.

slammer - sorry Jack is not settling very well for your DH I know what you mean about being irritable with DD1 when her behaviour is OK but you're feeling short of patience due to other reasons.

Ally - Isa looked so cute with his little bow tie
It's hard to make a routine as they change all the time. We have a bedtime routine here (but not at a set time) , the rest of the time there is no routine at all really as some days Jamie seems to need to sleep a lot and other days (like today) he has barely slept at all. It will get easier as Isa get bigger. He will naturally fall into a pretty predicable routine.

vrogers - I hope Lillian naps better tomorrow. It won't be long at all until L is a bit more independent. She will soon start reaching to grab things and show interest in toys. I think Anabella was around 3.5 months when she grabbed for the first time and started to enjoy things as opposed just look at nothing all the time!

AFM - We're OK here. Jamie has spent Mon - Wed sleeping for hours and hours in the daytime, to the extent I started to worry about him! Then today he has slept very little and has been awake almost all day which is quite hard as he is not at the stage where he can reach and grab toys, so he gets quite frustrated quickly and likes being held (as most babies do!). I find if we're out he will sleep and sleep, especially if he is in the sling. Both Monday and Tuesday this week I had to wake him for milk during the day! Today we have been at home almost all day and he has barely slept. I am glad it's getting warmed which makes going out and about that much easier.

 

[slammerkin]

Newbie - I'm so sad to hear you're struggling so much with DH. That's really awful that your mom had to ruin her visit and drive a wedge between you and DH. I hope you and DH can patch it up and work through it. I'm a firm believer in the idea that a disagreement should be resolved and then put behind you, never to be resurrected. I think you both need to move on from the hurt your mom caused and not discuss it again if at all possible. It's just stoking the flames to have it come back up again and again. You two need to be a united team - the two of you against the world. I hope you can talk things through and he will start pulling his weight more. I'd be anxious as hell about traveling alone with a 6-month-old too!

Vrogers - I do web content management for a government agency. It's pretty low-stress and thankfully I can telework a couple days a week. I bet it’s hard to get your school work done with a newborn!

DH can be very loving and nurturing, but Jack doesn't care, haha! But he's also the “fun” one, so I'm sure they will be thick as thieves when Jack gets to be a toddler. DD was obsessed with my DH for almost a year starting at 18 months!

We are clearly all feeling the strain these days! I know we will all be happier when these babies get a bit older and slightly less round-the-clock work.

Literati - OMG, what a traumatizing night! Poor little Violet’s toes! I also wonder how long they were like that before being noticed. And I immediately checked Jack’s toes too, lol. He actually did have a hair wrapped around a toe weeks back that I noticed while giving him a bath...thankfully it wasn't too bad, but it was a bit red and left a line for days. I really hope she heals up just fine!

Pompey - I definitely think being out and about begets more sleep. I agree that it’s nice to have warmer weather to make getting out easier.

AFM - spent today trying to get Jack onto the bottle! DH tried two days ago without success, so I ordered two more kinds of bottles and we tried again today. DH tried all three kinds we had (Comotomo, which is what DD used, MAM, and Lansinoh mOmma) and couldn't get him to latch on. Lots of crying later I just fed him. I tried again after he had napped and DH had gone shopping. After much effort he finally took the Lansinoh! He seemed to gag on the Comotomo...I think the nipple is too long for him. So I spent probably nearly an hour bouncing around the place with him in one arm trying to get him to drink! My arm was DEAD by the end! Doing all that with a 14-lb baby is exhausting! I had to do the same thing to get DD onto a bottle...essentially distract with so much stimulation that they don't focus on you torturing them with the bottle and just give in! Need to have DH try again tomorrow and each day after to reinforce the skill, but I'm relieved for now that he took it at all!

 

[Literati_Love]

Newbie - oh yeah, I forgot to mention but that does sound like an absolutely horrifying prospect to take that long of a journey alone with your baby! You are brave! But I am certain you will handle it amazingly well, even if it is hard.

Pompey - yes, I am sure everyone will be checking their babies' toes and fingers today! I think I am going to start a daily routine of checking all of them every morning!
I find Violet goes through periods of sleeping almost excessively as well, but then she'll have very wakeful days as well. I guess it's normal? I am glad going out is easier with the warmer weather. I am finding that as well.

Ali - Thanks. I really don't know how long it was there and try not to think about it, as it stresses me out. There is no way of knowing, and the important thing is that it is gone now. I think it was at least a couple days, as I believe it may have been the cause of her not nursing on the right side on Tuesday. When nursing on that side, her left foot would have been touching my lap and it was probably painful. I shudder to think about it now. I will be checking obsessively from now on.

Slammer - I am glad after great lengths that Jack finally took a bottle for you. I hope your DH has similar success. What a shame you had to go through so many types before he would! Violet has only taken a bottle the one evening, but she took it that evening twice with no issues, so that is a relief! However, dd1 was the same when we tried it early on, and then refused it later on (but eventually would take one again later).

What a relief you caught that hair on Jack early on! I am glad it seems to have healed up. I do generally have Violet just in sleepers during the day and night, which cover the feet, so I'm not normally staring at her bare feet unless she's having a bath as well. So I will have to start checking every day when I change her! Poor girl.

 

[newbie2013]

Thanks ladies. Hopefully this four day weekend will give dh and is chance to talk. I would like to talk to my mum but need to do it face to face because I'm feeling so sensitive about it now and I'm terrified about having another anxiety attack.

Lit - oh my goodness! Thank you for sharing. I hope she's OK.

Slammer - there's a lady at work who is struggling to get her lo to take a bottle. I will tell her your story to prove that it can be done.

I am trying to get ds to sleep without the swaddle bag that he's been using since birth. It is almost impossible because I worked so hard to train him that being in the bag means sleep. His startle reflex is still too strong and he can't settle without being in the right bag, but I think I have just had a breakthrough! I just woke to feed him in the middle of the night, he wouldn't settle in just his onesie, but I put him in the sleep suit and put him down while he was still awake... He put himself to sleep. I will change my strategy now - train him to sleep on his own, then remove the bag. Someone suggested that I cut the bags to allow his feet to have free movement but keep his arms swaddled, but I can't bring myself to do that because it would ruin them. Fingers crossed this new strategy works. If he gets used to settling himself, maybe he can do it without the bag.

 

[slammerkin]

Literati - yes, I hardly see Jack's feet either! Either in sleepers or covered in socks!

Newbie - just to expand on what I did for DD and Jack (if it helps your coworker).... I have a short hallway in my house with pot lights in the ceiling so I turned those on, held baby in one arm so they were staring up at the lights and bounced/paced quickly back and forth while singing nonsense noises...all while trying to get them on the bottle. That worked with DD and almost did with Jack... They were just mesmerized by the lights and sounds. With Jack he couldn't quite get there, so I tried moving outside and doing the same..also very stimulating with the sunlight and sights/sounds (obviously in shade, not direct sun to blind him). He got the latch soon after that. Oh, I also stroke the bottle nipple down from their nose to their mouth...it's supposed to encourage their natural impulse to latch. And squeeze the nipple once in their mouth so they get a taste of milk. Most people say the dad or other caregiver will have more success getting a BF baby onto a bottle, but I've found with both of mine I have the right sense of what they need to get there, more so than DH. Hope it works out for your coworker!

 

[vrogers]

Literati- oh my goodness, I'm sorry you guys had a scary night! I've heard about hair tourniquets and have been paranoid because my hair is pretty long. I'm glad she's doing okay and doesn't seem to be in too much pain! Definitely something out of your control, it can happen easily to anyone.
We use mylicon but I've heard little remedies is good too!
Thankfully right after I typed all that she fell asleep for about 2ish hours! Just wish I could get her to sleep anywhere other than me like she does at night.

Ali- hope you're doing well!

Pompey- I can't wait until she does start grabbing for toys! She seems more and more interested in them, just doesn't quite reach for them on purpose yet.
Isn't it crazy how much they can flip flop? I'll get into the swing of things and then she'll change it up on me!
That's good he will sleep in the sling while out though.

Slammer- that's nice your job is low stress at least! Completely agree with how it'll be nice when they don't feel like round the clock work. I'm glad I'm not alone though!
Also I'm glad you were able to find a bottle that works for jack! I hope he keeps taking to it.

Newbie- I hope you two are able to talk over the long weekend and that he hears you out. I've struggled with bad anxiety for awhile and it helps to have someone who is supportive and lets me cry/vent, I hope you're able to have some peace this weekend!
Sounds like a good plan with the sleep bag and I don't blame you for not wanting to cut them. With the love I have for sleeping now it's crazy to think I ever had to be sleep trained or put up any kind of fuss when it comes to sleep. If only I knew!

We're talking about moving L to her crib in her own room in about a month, I read someone who was doing that right around the 4 month sleep regression. Go ahead and get it all out of the way I guess. I'm nervous about how she'll take to her crib and how I'll handle sleeping while she's in a diff room. I would wait until she's 6+ months but I don't want to wait too long because she'll grow out of her rock n play anyway.
So glad it's almost the weekend, does anyone have any plans for Easter?

 

[Literati_Love]

VRogers - today we have nothing up, but tomorrow we will go out to the farm to celebrate Easter with my DH's family, and then Sunday afternoon/evening we will have Easter dinner with my family. What about you?

Good luck transitioning L to her own room. Thanks for the recommendations on gas drops.

Slammer - sounds like you have a very effective method of getting babies to take bottles. You should write a book!

Newbie - that sounds like a good idea to get him to sleep on his own first. There are bags such as the halo swaddle sack that allow their legs to be free to kick around. Might be worth looking into? They also allow you to swaddle arms in OR out, which can allow for an easier transition. You can also just swaddle with one arm at first, and then transition to both out.

 

[Ally2015]

angel- glad she is nursing and that you are working on her sleep. Good luck! glad you have found a good bedtime, Isa's is around 9pm. Then he will settle for a few hours in a deep sleep, and dh and i have a few hours together then. I wish his bed time was a bit earlier though haha.

lit- i feel for Violet, poor girl. It might be good to see dr sooner if possible, but what do you think they would suggest or give?
Oh my , poor darling Violet, i'm so glad she is ok now. Her poor little feet, but glad she is happy now. i also checked Isa's toes and fingers there just to check.

slammer- hopefully he won't and after a few days will settle longer without you! its such a shame Jack hates the stroller and car seat, Isa loves both, I took him for a walk as i know it puts him to sleep for a little while. Good luck getting J o the bottle.

newbie- i feel so bad for you! im trying to think of what to advise but it is hard. I am glad you are posting on this and letting it out. we will all support you on this as best we can. I also think you need a chat with your DH, let him know how you feel and whats on your mind. Im sorry about your mum and that you will have travel so far on your own. i hope thinsg get better soon, you sound like such a lovely person and dont deserve all this stress. hope baby Z self settles. i need to get Isa to do this..

vroger- what nap issues are you having? isa just wont sleep much during the day at all. Good luck with moving L. i don't think i could move Isa yet, not until hes closer to 1 i think. But i do need to work on better sleep habits with him, so that transition is easier.

pomp- yeah, we have a bedtime routine but not a very set time, i do notice that 9.30pm onwards he sleeps quite deeply and for a while so we normally do bath at 7.30/8 and start winding him down. Isa sleeps in car seat and pram too so i sometimes take him out for a walk so he sleeps lol.

afm- having some tough days with Isa not sleeping much. The thing is, i know he wants to sleep because he falls asleep and then wakes when i put him down after about 15 mins. And he then is cranky and looks so tired. by the end of the evening he is so over tired. One thing i have noticed and that others have commented is that he is VERY alert , toda he stared at the penguins on his blanket for over an hour! maybe he needs to really wind down even before a nap.

This weekend, dh has a long weekend, and we are both going to try and get more of a routine for Isa, and break some of the bad habits we have with his sleep. wish us luck.... besides that i am getting a facial with my friend which will be lovely.
I also have my period, BLAHHHH.

hope u all have a nice weekend x

 

[Angel5000]

I'm working on getting Melody to have a consistent wake up time in the morning. She usually wakes up between 7 and 8am, but knowing I'm going back to work I need that feed to be around 6am so I've been waking her up 15 minutes earlier each day. Today she was up at 5:45, ate, and then stayed up. Usually she falls asleep after eating so she's definitely getting there. Of course on weekends and this summer I'll regret that I'm teaching her to wake up this early, lol, but it'll be best for when I'm at work.


I'm wondering how many of you have moved your LOs to cribs in their own room? Melody is in her crib for all naps, and the beginning of bed time. After she wakes around 10pm for a feeding I TRY to leave her in her room but I almost always ned up bringing her back to our room at either the 10pm or the next feeding, mostly because I'm too tired to keep walking across the house (it's a small house, I'm just lazy). In our room she sleeps in the pack n play, but I end up getting lazy and moving her into my bed around 3-4am if she wakes up. I really feel like I need to get her into her room all night because when she wiggles in her room she'll put herself back to sleep sometimes but in our room it wakes me up and then I go to her before letting her have a chance to settle herself.


Lite - I hope that Violet starts nursing again soon! Yeah, very restrictive pumping times. I figure I'll end up combi-feeding eventually. She occasionally has formula now and does okay with it so at least I know she'll take it fine.

What you're describing (to Ally) sounds like what my friend described when she was telling me about silent reflux in her daughter. Not sure what the solution was/is except to keep her upright after eating. I hope you can figure it out soon. If she's having lots of problems I might call for an earlier appointment before the 4 months. Just in case there is something that can be done.


OMG I'm so sorry to hear about your night! That sounds absolutely terrifying! I had read somewhere that babies can end up with hairs wrapped around their toes and it can be a common cause of what parents think is colic, especially if they don't find it for several days, but I have never actually seen/heard of it happening to anyone. Your DD1 sounds adorable, so sweet of her to try to calm Violet! And now I'm seriously sitting here contemplating waking up Melody from her nap just to check her feet and make sure they're ok! How long do you think her feet were like that? I'm just wondering because we give Melody a bath every other day and I clean out the lint/fuzz between her toes and fingers every bath time (she somehow gets a ton) so I (hope) would notice at that point but it sounds like it could escalate so quickly.


Slammer - I think that's what I'll do, except on some days instead of 2:15 I will probably pump closer to 2:45 or 3. Only because the only time I can help students outside of class hours is right after school and so I try to be available if they need help since math is so complicated for many of my students. On days I don't have students after school I'll pump right after class ends I think.

Melody hates the car seat and stroller too. If I put her in the car seat she goes nuts. I was telling my friends I have the only baby alive who hates car rides. If he doesn't mind layind down in bed or the floor then I doubt it's reflux. I think Melody just doesn't like being restrained. But I even if I don't put the straps on her in the stroller she gets mad. I haven't tried stroller without the carseat attached. I'm wondering if she's old enough now.... Can you strap Jack onto you with a wrap or sling and do walks that way?

Sounds like a rough time getting Jack to take the bottle! I can't imagine carrying him around for an hour in one arm! I get tired with M, and she's not even quite 13 lbs yet! Sounds like he's not really thrilled with the bottle idea. I had heard that comotomo was the "go to" if no other bottle worked, so that sucks that he wouldn't take it. I did read somewhere that if you nurse first to get some of the hunger it might be easier to get them to take a bottle when they aren't already frustrated from hunger. And once they get the hang of it then you don't have to do that. I don't know if that would help or not. I hope that he continues to take the bottle! I'm glad he finally found one he would take!


newbie - I'm so sorry that things aren't going well for you. I don't know what your mom said or did but it sounds like something that definitely needs to be talked about. Even if you and your DH are having some difficulty it really isn't fair that he is not helping around the house or with the baby. Just because he may be upset doesn't mean you should be dealing with everything alone. Don't apologize for the post, you are welcome to rant anytime! We're here for you! If you keep having anxiety though, it might be good to talk to someone: a doctor or therapist or something. If not, we're here too.

Is there a specific reason you're moving ds out of swaddle bag? I'm just wondering. We moved Melody out of her swaddle because she started to hate being swaddled, and I couldn't swaddle arms out becuase her startle reflex was still too strong. The "zippity-zip" actually works well for her (it helps she's a long baby) and she really likes it. I've been told some babies need to be swaddled for longer, just depends on the kid.

Vrogers - I'm right there wanting M to be a little more independent too. At least once she can sit up I won't feel like she's always stuck depending on me to move her if she's bored or something. I hope her naps start to get better for you! I found that when I started doing my pre-nap/bed routine (the exact same thing each time) that Melody's naps got better after a couple days. She consistently sleeps about 45-60 minutes now. I know it's not amazing, but way better than the 15-30 minutes I was getting before. And now that I've started to lay her down almost asleep and just pat her until she falls asleep she doesn't wake up in the middle. She used to wake up about 15-20 minutes in and I'd have to put her back to sleep and then she'd finish the rest of the 45 minute nap. Now if she does wake it's only if I stop patting too soon (or if the dogs go crazy and wake her). It may not be for everyone, especially because I think this qualifies as "sleep training" (which can be a dirty word to some people) but its been really helpful for me. Your LO may just need a change in her nap routine now that she's gone through a few leaps. I believe that after some of the developmental leaps the way they sleep and perceive things changes enough that it old ways of sleep may no longer work as well. Just a theory though.


Ali - I am about to do the same thing (check Melody's hands and feet for hair)! I am just forcing myself to wait until she wakes up from her nap

Pompey - We think alike As soon as Melody wakes I'm checking her for hair tourniquets too. Thanks, I think I'll be okay supply-wise. I just hate that the only time during my day when I can do prep work for class I will be pumping, which will make my day even longer and I'll have to end up taking work home. I hate that my job is so labor-intensive. Most people have no idea how much time a teacher puts in. Now I know why so many teacher friends of mine stopped BF when they went back to work.


Ally - what time does he wake up if his bedtime is around 9pm? I wouldn't mind Melody having a later bedtime but DH and I are usually in bed between 9 and 10 since we are up by 5 and neither of us function well without sleep (and yet we have a baby )

 

[Ally2015]

angel- just reading your advice to vrogers RE the naps. Isa's naps are rubbish 15-30 mins one, i am going to try what you suggest about the routine, as well as a consistent wake time. I will try to put him down as he is falling asleep and pat his back.
He will wake around 00:30/1 if he goes to sleep about 9. Have a feed and then straight back to sleep x

 

[Angel5000]

Ally - Good luck! I hope a routine works for you! Mine is fairly simple: we go into the nursery and I check diaper, then I turn on her fan/heater (her room can get cold/hot depending on the outdoor temperature), and the white noise sound (we started this when we realized she liked the sound of the shower), next I put her in her swaddle or sleep sack, then close the blinds. Then I bounce/rock her on the yoga ball until she starts to get sleepy. I used to bounce until she was all the way asleep but now once she's sleepy I lay her down on her side (she sleeps better that way) and pat her back. This whole routine takes about 5-10 minutes, depending on how long i bounce her (if I time her nap just right I can bounce for only 2-3 minutes and lay her down).

Lately she's started crying when I lay her down and if I give her a pacifier she'll calm down and start to go to sleep. If I laid her down too soon and she wasn't tired enough I pick her back up and start again, it does take some trial and error but once I figured it out it's been a real help for her. The only part I'm still working out is how long to pat and when to remove paci. If I leave the paci in then she wakes up when it falls out and nap time is ruined. So I very slowly pull it out once she's started to drift off and I keep patting. In Melody's case, patting lasts anywhere from 5-10 minutes, which can be exhausting BUT I plan to start to reduce the time I spend patting once she adjusts. Right now I Just want her to get used to actually falling asleep in her crib instead of on me, then when she wakes up and realizes she's in her crib she's not startled by the fact that she suddenly isn't in my arms where she remembers being before she fell asleep.

I implemented each of these things (consistent wake time, patting, and routine) separately, doing each one for a week or so before adding another. Just expect it to take several days to see any kind of results because Isa will have to adjust. I hope something here helps! A friend of mine gave me all this advice about sleep time and she's been a godsend and her advice is always spot-on (4 kids, 1 adult, 1 teen and 2 under 2 years old and all very different personality-wise, so she's been doing this awhile)

At least it looks like Isa will sleep a decent amount once he goes to bed, that's great. After he goes back to sleep do you get a decent stretch again or does he wake more often?

I'd love a nice 3-4 hour stretch around 9-1am! Melody gives us a 3-4 hour stretch at first (but if she's down at 7pm, then she's waking just an hour or two after we're asleep) and then wakes every 2-2.5 hours after that. I suspect it's less actual hunger and more of routine to wake at that often. I think I'm going to try to trick her into sleeping through one of those times by slipping her a paci and rocking her back to sleep without feeding during one of the wake times for a few nights and see if that tricks her into going 4 hours. During the day she goes 3-3.5 easily, sometimes 4, so I KNOW she can go that long. I hope that doesn't sound cruel?? I'm definitely not starving my kid, I promise!