March Mamas 2012 Baby Group (Closed Group)

[crowned]

Yep, Sambles. Here they recommend no water at all until 6 months, and being super careful and limiting it even then. I guess babies have gotten electrolyte imbalances due to the water and ended up having seizures. It sounds like an ounce or two wouldn't hurt though. Sometimes the medical system here gets over-cautious because of a few dumb people who do things like substitute water for a regular feed or trying to save money by giving water instead of formula, so if in the UK you're told a bit of water is fine, I'm sure it is. Most likely, water intoxication is probably in extreme cases only, I would guess.

 

[mitchnorm]

I think as long as it is only 1-2 oz and not replacing a normal.feed then its ok. I wanted to check with nhs direct first and they said yes...but only a bit in warm weather. Not keen oj doing it but she doesnt need extra feeds and will still eat her full ff i am sure.

Hubby away all this weekend at a stag do in Newquay so just me and M til Monday afternoon....not too concerned but do like to have his help at the weekends. I am used to filling up my weekdays with activities for us but usually have other things to do at weekend

Quick question....where do all your LOs have their daytime naps? M naps 3-4 times per day and only for 30-40 min at a time....if i put her in her cot every time i would be constantly up and down stairs....i know that when she gets more mobile it will be difficult to let her nap on sofa or playmat but not sure i want her in cot. I know its good to have an association between cot and sleep......but i dont want it to be between cot and short naps. She knows down in cot means nightime sleep i guess

 

[Sambles]

It's strange how different countries have such different guidelines but also very interesting. Obviously we aren't advised to give loads of water but a couple of ounces here and there if needed

 

[Sambles]

T naps in his pram in the kitchen because he sometimes takes a while to get to sleep and I keep having to pick him up to resettle him or put dummy in etc and I can't keep going upstairs to do that. Although that would help with the weightloss TBH I did the same with S til he was about 8 months and got into a better routine and started having 2 long naps a day and then I put him down in his cot

 

[mitchnorm]

Thanks sambles....M getting much better at self settling and sends herself off to sleep now ....did used to put her down in carrycot but she used to fight it...might try that again from tomorrow...at least then she is safe from rolling over etc etc. Until she gets to the 2 x longer naps i agree i dont want to put her upstairs....will do at that point. Luckily she still fits in carrycot as its bigger than moses basket

 

[emera35]

I think mums here are given the advice to give a little water if they are ff because of the opposite reasons Crowned. Some mums offer more formula in hot weather and end up over feeding their babies due to their thirst rather than hunger and then babies end up overweight. with bf its not so much of an issue as the first milk to flow is pretty watery its enough to quench thirst without the extra calories. I'm surprised that water intoxication is considered an issue as really a baby would need to consume a relatively large quantity of water for that to happen (by relatively i mean in proportion to their body weight). The overall advice here is definitely that ff or bf, some cooled boiled water in hot weather is perfectly safe and even recommended. I find it fascinating how advice varies from place to place. Like though most of the rest of europe sterilizing products barely even exist on the market as its not considered necessary. In Holland the advice is to make bottles up just with straight tap water ans wash everything up as normal without sterilising.

 

[mitchnorm]

For Vitfa....it slipped my mind to.write down my bf to ff switch.....

I exclusively bf until about week 10....by this time M was sleeping through the night so night supply on boobs had certainly regulated a bit

Week 10 i introduced one ff at around lunchtime...maybe between 12-2. Didnt want to do evenijg feed in.case she reacted badly or had excess wind. We had no problems.

Week 11...introduced second ff before bed around 6:30pm

Week 12 introduced third ff first thing in morning...around 7:30am

By this time it panned out that M was getting:-
Morning ff
Mid morning bf
Lunchtime ff
Mid afternoon bf
Evening ff

She didnt feed overnight at all. Noticed after 5-6 days that my suppl was dropping, she was getting frustrated and i had to top up a couple of bf....so last bf was at the end of week 13. Went to 5 ff per day but have changed in last 7-10 days to 4larger feeds.....about 6-7oz per feed....to make sure she gets around 26-28 oz...about right for her weight.

I had no engorgement issues by reducing over a 4week period and the sttn had already regulated my boobs somewhat. I would start by introducing one bottle per.week minimum....i.e. dont give a second until at least week 2 of changing as your boobs may.suffer. off course you can drag out over longer if you prefer but your supply will naturally drop off anyway

Good luck.....after the initial sadness of stopping i really enjoy bf her....alot easier than i thought. Sterilising not a hassle at all and M prefers the powder to ready made which is great

X x

 

[littleANDlost]

i think O's ill, she's not eating much, sleeping loads and early she had a period of lots of crying in pain. I hope she's just feeling crappy cause of teeth. there's no temp or rash or anything like that but she's not herself, she just wants cuddles and normally she'd rather be on the floor. I've tried calling my FIL whose a doctor but could only leave a message so i tried calling HV and got the same thing.

 

[wondertwins]

Crowned- We were told the same thing when we left the NICU -- not to give water until 6 months.

Sambles- Yay for 2 sleeping LOs. I love when that happens!

Emera- Thanks for the face-blowing tip! I wonder if there is a connection between that reflex and the recommendation that using a fan helps reduce the incidence of SIDS.

Loo- YAY for double digits!

AFM.... TGIF! This weekend, we'll be visiting in-laws as my DH has a bunch of family that will be there. It will be nice to see everyone (and have lots of helpers with baby stuff), but honestly, I could go for a quiet weekend at home. Oh well. I guess that will have to wait.

Last night the boys did awesome! P slept from 7 to 5 (with one wake up where he needed to be soothed back to sleep) and K slept from 8 to 4 (with ZERO wake ups). I think the difference was that I slept through their mini-wakings and they put themselves back to sleep. I'm such a light sleeper, I usually wake up with every little whimper or sigh. However, for the first time, we slept in totally different parts of the house. We have a video monitor that has two cameras that I set up right next to my bed, but the sound is much less sensitive than the audio monitor I have used before. Plus, as it cycles between the two video images, there is a delay and a pause. The end result is that I don't hear every single tiny noise. Fingers crossed we can duplicate the results!

 

[emera35]

Oh Mitch, meant to say, for naps I'll put F down where ever its practical! Sometimes she'll nap in her chair or on the sofa (with cushion barricades!) Sometimes in the stroller in the hallway or out. Sometimes in the carrier, and sometimes in her cot. I really need her to be flexible with her naps so I'd rather not have a specific place. In the end I suppose I want her to nap in her cot and home, and in the stroller/carrier when out so I'll likely cut out the chair/sofa naps soon enough as they are getting less safe! I want F to associate her cot with night sleep, but I make sure its different in the day by putting her down with the blinds open and noise in the house. At bedtime I pull the blackout blind and put her lullabies on (winnie the pooh projector currently as its reasonable inoffensive ) so even though she's in the same place the atmosphere is different for naps and bedtime. . Its what I did with Roh and he's brilliant at napping and going to bed (when we are at home, otherwise he's too busy checking out what's going on!) So I figure as it worked with him I'll do the same again and see how it goes.


F is killing me, she was up every hour from midnight last night!

 

[Sambles]

Big hugs L&L it's horrible when they're poorly

I would say if she hasn't got a temp, rash or is screaming for hours on end then just keep an eye on her and give lots of cuddles. Teething can affect them in so many ways but it's so hard when you don't know what's wrong.

If you're really worried maybe phone NHS Direct?

 

[Sambles]

F is killing me, she was up every hour from midnight last night!

I think F and T must have been on the same wavelength last night because he was exactly the same

 

[wondertwins]

OMG! I just saw that the temperature is supposed to reach 106 today and 108 tomorrow!!!!!!! (That's over 42 for the Celsius crowd). Yikes. I guess we won't be going outside at ALL!

 

[mitchnorm]

L&L nhs direct got back to me with a nurses call after less than 2 hours might be qorth cal if you are worried....0845 4647 x x

emera...aaargh for F feeding.i am happy for M to be flexible where she naps as long.as she is safe....she is happy to crash on playmat and our living room is seperate so.i can shut door to keep cats out and her safe. I think.carrycot downstairs is a good option to try too. I just spot when shes tired, bolster her if on sofa and place a muslin or blanket over her....good for drafts or association.that its time to.nap

Waybuloo has become popular.today ha ha....have it on.sky plus now as shes never up early enough in morning

 

[Sambles]

wt - I can't even imagine it that hot. It makes me feel bad for moaning when it got to 27 last month. Where abouts in the U.S are you?

 

[emera35]

L+L I second calling nhs direct if you are worried about O, they are amazing and have always given me excellent advice! the number is programmed into my phone now!
If she seems grumbly and uncomfortable I'd give her some calpol or teething powders/gel to ease the dscomfort. No reason for her to suffer if you can help ease it . Calpol is your friend! . I'm not a massive fan if over using painkillers, and for myself I only take them if I really feel I need them. I hate to think that my LOs are in pain though, and from experience with Roh it does help take the edge off teething so they can relax, feed properly and enjoy themselves rather than being miserable.

 

[littleANDlost]

I don't think theres anything i can but keep an eye on her, if she gets anything like a temp or stops getting wet nappies ect i will call straight away

in other news Livy just rolled from back to front! so funny as she ended up on her face with bum in air, i had to hide to watch though as she wouldn't do it with me there haha

 

[vitfawifetobe]

L&L - Hope livy is feeling better - i agree with emera - E was in pain with teething last week and a little dose of calpol seemed to help - also rub her gums with bongela with seems to be doing the trick. Lots of hugs and cuddles from mummy

Thanks so much mitch - Im ready to stop and for selfish reasons but im not sure how E will take it so slowly is our plans - by 6 mths i want to be at the end of our BF journey - im so torn and feel E will KNOW and JUDGE me - lol crazy momma

E is still up ( on a good night) between 2 and three times - im not sure how to bring FF into our routine..

Starting from last monday, we have given her a 5 oz bottle afternoon ( so between 1/2pm)
she generally will take 4 oz of that - Im thinking of contining this for 3 weeks and then bringing another bottle in

She was at my parent yesterday and had x2 FF back to back which i think was too much on her tummy

L x

 

[vitfawifetobe]

Mitch and other FF ladies - roughly what are your FF times ??

 

[emera35]

Vifta, E will not know, or mind, or judge you!!! She will love her Mummy to bits for all the cuddles and kisses and security she gets from you! She's not going to care if her hunger is satisfied by boobie or bottle! Even if you want to stop and feel its for selfish reasons, at the end of the day, the only person who will miss the bf is you hun. I'd just feel proud of what you've done, and the decision you've made and what a loving caring mummy you are!