March Mamas 2012 Baby Group (Closed Group)

[waula]

no ideas cuppie...N wont even take a bottle...huge because I know feeding or the lack thereof is VERY stressful. Is it the taste difference do you think? Could you express and do half half so introduce the formula in a bit more gradually? No idea if this is even possible.

 

[Mrs Cupcake]

i think it is a taste thing because he does take expressed in a bottle (it took a long time to find a bottle he would accept)

i have got some milk in the freezer, maybe i will try and mix...

does anyone know if any formula tastes more like breastmilk than others?

 

[waula]

what bottle will he take cuppie?

i've had such a fab afternoon with my best friend from uni and her 8mo little boy. she's doing a relaxed version of baby led weaning with him and it looks AWESOME! He ate lamb and apricot tagine with rice and broccoli then raspberries and cleared the lot... couple of gags on the lamb but actually ate proper food. she spoons in sloppy stuff and rice but it looked like he was having a lot of fun. So he christened my new high chair and I totally get why someone could find maggots in it!!! There was food EVERYWHERE!! My dogs are going to get fat.

 

[emera35]

Cuppie, not sure about formula tasting like breast milk, but what Waula suggested is a good idea, exactly what I was going to suggest. Try mixing ebm with formula, maybe try 50/50 to see if he'll take it, if not start with more bm/less formula. Once you have him taking it, then gradually increase the formula amount. You might need to do some expressing to manage it. Also, harsh as it sounds, it's probably a good idea to stop the breastfeeding as soon as you can. Express when you would have fed and use it to mix with the formula. I know you really need R to be on ff for when you're working, so if its causing a problem then I think making sure he only has the ebm/formula mix available to drink will help. If there are still breastfeeds available, then he might start holding out for a bf and not take his bottles.
You could also try him on a different brand of formula to see if he prefers it.

Sorry its been a bit of a struggle today, I too know how it feels to have a baby skipping feeds and its really worrying and stressful.

 

[lozza1uk]

Cupcake no idea sorry, they all smell pretty horrible though as you Posted a while ago. I've done what Waula suggested before though mixing the 2. Fortunately Z seems pretty indiscriminate, he's taken 2 brand of formula (hipp organic hungry baby cartons and ciw & gate hungry cartons))and 4 different bottles! I found a boots own bottle for £1 and he's even taken that. Sorry, that's not much help to you.... Swap you for a sleeping baby though

Still not got Z to sleep even though his bath was at 5! I swear hes fitted with a battery. He better be full tonight and sleep as I'm empty! Been feeding what feels like constantly for 6 hours!

 

[emera35]

Oh Waula, you've made me giggle! Anyone who is a neat freak, be warned, you have no concept of how much mess a baby/toddler eating can make!! I've had to scrub food off the ceiling many times! Its hard to get unhappy about it though as they have soo much fun! its reasonably neat until they start really experimenting and feeding themselves, then it goes into a whole other world of mess! I just have dettol wipes by the highchair at all times!

 

[Nicnak282]

Cuppie it's so so hard when they are struggling with eating, please be kind to yourself hon. I was also gonna suggest doing half and half. I did this for A when we were having trouble BF at first. I struggled to keep up with her feeding as she wasn't taking boob and needed to express all the time for every feed. I started to introduce formula with expressed BM and she was fussy at first but then took it as there was no alternative I really hope he takes it soon. xxx

 

[Mrs Cupcake]

waula - he takes the NUK latex teat bottles

plus sounds fun with the toddler feeding

emera, i know you didnt mean to upset me but im now in tears again. I don't want to give up bf so im going to persevere with the bf in morning, ff during day and bf at night. hopefully it will work out.

im going to try the mix of bm and fm and see how that goes. plus im going to get hubby to try tomorrow which will hopefully work better.

has anyone applied for the free plum pouch coupon through the link i put? i have got 2 (one for me and one for hub). you can choose stage 1 or 2 up to the value of 99p.

 

[mitchnorm]

Cupcake...sorry R not taking ff...i would agree mixibg ff with ebm is a great idea...i know some people who have trief it. In fact you.can do 50:50 or start with more ebm to.ff ratio and slowly.drop it. Agree with.emera you may have to.withold bf.....he may be holding out for it. I have heard Aptimal is supposed to.be the 'closest' to.breast milk but not sure there is any truth in.that. Have you tried other formulad and bottles? Also M much prefers the powder formula...she took the cartons but didnt.like as much...they seem awfully creamy. Looking at my.ebm and powder formula in a bottle...they are far more similar in consistancy...rather than.cartons..too.rich. Good luck

Agree with you ladies on.toy clutter...hate it...clear it away every nigjt. Jumperoo is an.eyesore in living.room . New extension means dedicated playroom and a bigger room for M

 

[Nicnak282]

Oh and toy clutter...it is everywhere I look!!!!! And she's only 4 months!!!

BIL & SIL are the worst culprits on buying 'plastic stuff' and cuddly toys that are bigger than her! BIL walked in with a giant pirate Tigger last week complete with sword and eye-patch and waggled it in her face...A looked bloody shocked I can tell ya!

 

[mitchnorm]

Nicnak...gorgeous pic of A...woop for Tigger though....M is massive fan of Winnie the Pooh (pushed on her from me)....bursts into massive smiles and laughing when you start the intro to the tune...loves it x x

Goooooo Jess Ennis!!!! Oh and i guess Andy Murray...have difficulty getting excited about him...i know thats bad

 

[emera35]

Cuppie, sorry for upsetting you I thought you planned to move over to ff, rather than combi feed? My mistake if not, sorry! If you want to combi feed, then just see how it goes with the mixed bottles. Hopefully it will be tasty enough that he goes for it If you exhaust all the options with that then maybe you'll have to rethink, but its definitely worth trying different mixes and different brands before you stop the bf if thats the case. My suggestion to stop was only based on you switching totally rather than combi feeding!

 

[Glowstar]

Cuppie - you have my sympathies because I had exactly the same problem but a bit further down the line around 7 months, I eventually stopped BF at 8 months.

Great advice about mixing 50:50 but also try and get someone else to feed him the formula and I mean so he can't see you at all. Maybe try evenings with your OH doing it. Way back in the day my HV told me that if baby can smell you they associate you with milk. Emily used to just refuse to eat and then got really distressed I used to cave in and BF in the end because I was in tears too.
Just a suggestion

Thanks for advice on hand/arm pain. Will see how these tablets work and take it from there

 

[Skadi]

Thanks about the head banging Emera. It was a shock to see her do it.

 

[Glowstar]

Sorry I kind of misread it too Cuppie

Anyhoo - the suggestion of getting someone else to do the FF's might work out OK during the day, so OH might be a good tester for that

 

[kazeraggi]

Hi ladies,

We've just returned to Seattle from our trip to Ireland...unfortunately I didn't get a chance to keep up while at home, and I'm still working my way through hundreds of pages....but I just wanted to say hi and hope you are all doing well

I'm sorry to hear about continuing sleep struggles, but I can empathise as we are still doing 3/4hr stretches most nights. I feel so awful for those of you with shorter stretches, I just don't know how you do it.....I really, really hope for you all that your babies learn how wonderful sleep is soon!
I notice there's lots of talk of solids now, which is the next big step I guess. We're going to a First Foods class this weekend, so I'll share any useful info here afterwards. Thank God we're not at home, I swear my mother would be feeding her ham sandwiches given half a chance.

We had a fabulous holiday...my sister's wedding was amazeballs! I expressed like a maniac so managed 2 nights off, which was just magical
Is it awful that I wasn't really that sad leaving Z? Her grandparents minded her so I trust them implicitly....and I was just chuffed to have a bit of freedom Of course I was delighted to see her the next day, but all in all I think it was really good for her too to have a different experience.

Anyhow, I'm not sure if anybody is planning flights with their lovely babas anytime soon, but I wanted to share some tips I found really useful on our trip. Hopefully they'll be useful to somebody

- bring a travel neck pillow to rest babies head on when nursing/feeding
- bring sanitizing wipes for tray-tops, arm rests etc.
- wear the baby if possible, as it's easier getting around the airport
- one parent could board plane first to sort out seats and bags, then other parent and baby board towards the end - less time for baby on the plane
- bring puppy pads for the airplane changing tables, easier to manage as they're disposable
- bring saline nose drops for the baby - dry air can sometimes cause a blocked/runny nose...also bring baby acetaminophen (calpol) just in case
- keep baby-changing gear in a separate, smaller bag in your carry-on luggage - you don't want to be lugging a big carry-on bag to the toilet each time you change baby
- change the baby immediately before boarding....fewer times you have to change on the plane the better!
- order baby stuffs to be delivered to your destination if you're there for a while - I've just put a big Amazon order of nappies, wipes etc. to be delivered home so we don't have to go shopping when we arrive...and we only have to bring enough baby kit for the journey
- nurse/use soother when taking off and landing (the obvious one!)


xxxx

 

[kazeraggi]

Oh and I forgot to add that I finished the Shred just before we left for home.

I thought it was class! Really tough going (I was busted for the first few days)....but a great sense of achievement when you finish I found it toned up the flabby areas more than tonnes of weight loss but it definitely resulted in a noticeable difference. I took the odd day off, which they don't recommend but I really needed it. Also found it super easy to do cause I could knock it out during Z's naps.

Good luck to those 'shredding'....you can do it!
Mind you, my newfound philosophy is if you can have a baby you can do ANYTHING!

xx

 

[Blue_bird]

Great list, kazeraggi, I'll keep a copy of that for December!!

MsCrow - to you and your family... please tell your dad to take things easy when he does come home xx

With regard to clutter - I'm normally ok with a bit of this - but then have a 'need' to tidy up - unfortunately OH has a bit of OCD about tiding up - he is slowly learning not to bother till M has gone to bed!!
Christmas pressies: We are leaving the UK early December for a family wedding in Oz - and are not returning till early Jan.... As most of the family are going to be in oz - i just assumed that xmas would be cancelled.... er no... saw my grandparents last week - who have given me a few t-shirts for 9/12 month olds - they advised they had only given them me now - to ensure if he is big enough to wear them before hand - as they didn't want to have this stuff in their allocation
I've since told my parents- not to do xmas pressies - as they have done sooo much since M has arrived.... not sure they are actually listening....
skadi - sooner you get the house checked - sooner you will feel better x
Glow - for the people giving you toys....
for great british bake off and cooking programmes in general... I saw the Sarah Millican programme being recorded - and it had ( i think his name was ) Paul Hollywood form GBBO... I hadn't watched it before- and how just want to eat cake... grrrr

 

[citymouse]

pissy mouse (who will join.in very soon) REALLY help.

Hey, the ONE thing I have never been is pissy! You're thinking of Missy. Although I did pee on the nurse while pushing. And I said, "That probably happens all the time, right?" and she was like, "Uh... sure."

I need to catch up, but I'm here to claim my Bad Mummy badge. I had G on a blanket in my office next to a bin of fabric and somehow a dead bug fell on the blanket and she rolled around in it. Ugh ugh UGH! And it was a really gross one with about a hundred legs, so there were gross little dead bug legs all over her clothes. I HATE those things!

Okay, more soon.

 

[lozza1uk]

Mouse - ugh, that bug sounds gross.
Kaz - glad you had a good trip, some good flight tips. Getting on one at a time would have been a clever idea, we faffed for a while boarding although the fact we didn't have seats next to each other didn't help! I've got a weaning class next week too, we can swap notes!
Bluebird - you'll have to have an early or late Christmas! Doesn't sound like you'll escape it anyway.

z lasted 5 minutes in his cot tonight and woke yelling, I wonder if he rolled into the bars. Anyway ended up comin to bed with my, DH back in spare room but then he woke about half 12 and we've had about 40 minutes of screaming. Literally nothing would calm him down, I've no idea what the matter is? Have given him some calpol and he's finally calmed down and is now happy ro feed. Cant feel any teeth? And he didn't seem to want to chew my finger so not sure it's that? Really hope he goes back to sleep, poor baby.