Ovulating 29/30/31 May? Looking for a TWW buddy? *6 BFPs

[Chrissy05]

Happy belated anniversary Ruby and Ganton!

I'm sorry to hear that you're feeling rather down Ruby. Hopefully having your DH home the next few days will help, and will allow you to get more sleep. Feel free to vent as much as you need... we are here to support each other... whether that's ongoing TTCing, pregnancy related, or the trials and tribulations of having little ones.

Sleep deprivation is so hard. I too have been having a rough few weeks, and it doesn't help that my parents are away (they're traveling in Alaska for their wedding anniversary), so my usual support system isn't around. DH is helping as best he can, but seeing as we're nearing the end of term (he's also a teacher), and he's also taking a Masters level uni class, he's often really busy and exhausted... so most of the baby caring is done by me. Felix was diagnosed with reflux, which explains all the crying, projectile spit-up and what I thought was colic. Being a first time mom, I wasn't sure what was normal and what isn't. It kept getting worse however, so I mentioned it to the doctor when we went for our 2-month vaccinations and she confirmed that his behaviour wasn't considered normal and was in fact reflux. He's now on medication, which seems to be helping, but the pharmacist claims it could take up to a week before we see the full effect of the medication. I've also spoken to my in-laws, and they're going to start coming over 1 evening per week and give me a break so I can have a nap or run errands that can't easily be done with baby in tow. I'm really lucky that they want to help, even if it means they have to drive 45 minutes each way in order to get here.

Spiffy, I'm glad to hear that your DH is doing the night shift and allowing you to get some much needed rest. I can't imagine how you manage with 3 young children at home. You're a rock star!

Squirrel, I hope you are doing well.

 

[ruby83]

Sorry to hear you are having a hard time too Chrissy! Being a mum is tough! Yep we are here to support each other.

Unfortunately last night did not go to plan. Charlie just couldn't be settled by my hubby as much as he tried. He just wanted to be breast fed
So I took over about midnight and got some sleep but not great. We all had a nap today while Harry was at kindy which helped a bit. I think to combat my anxiety about not being able to sleep I just have to lower my expectations a bit and realise that unfortunately I will most likely be dealing with sleep deprivation for some time and I will just have to get used to it. I need to accept it rather than try fight it if that makes sense.

Charlie is sleeping better now (waking twice) so as long as I can switch my brain off from thinking too much then I will hopefully be better rested soon. I will seriously crack open the bubbles when he manages to sleep through the night. Can't even remember what that feels like since in my pregnancy I was getting up multiple times a night to pee!! hahaha

 

[Spiffynoodles]

Chrissy, I was the same way with my first baby. I wasn't sure what was normal, so her reflux went undiagnosed. I'm glad Felix has been diagnosed, and hopefully the medication will make him more comfortable.

Ruby, I'm so sorry. Sleep deprivation sucks! I also have a hard time falling asleep, which is why my husband has offered to do the night shift for me, because he can get almost twice as much sleep as I can because he can fall asleep within seconds and all the little noises don't wake him up like they do for me. I think it was the worst with my DS1 because I was breastfeeding and so my DH could never help, and my DS1 would wake up around 3am every night and be completely awake for hours. It was awful. I think I cried every single day until he started sleeping better. So I know how you feel.

 

[ruby83]

Thanks Spiffy! Breast feeding Charlie is great in the sense that it is a super easy way to settle him and get him to sleep (and all the other obvious health benefits) but does mean at night I have to manage all alone. Harry was mixed fed from day 1 and no way near as clingy to me as Charlie is. Still giving Charlie a formula feed right before he heads t bed to try and fill him a little more which was working before this regression started.

Last night Charlie went down in his cot but ended up in bed with me. I told myself to not look at the time all night as that is when I get anxious, but he fed 4 times over night!! Luckily I was able to go back to sleep quickly and feeling tired today but not anxious or emotional which is such a relief! Not sure if this is a growth spurt as he is also sleeping a lot more...

Hopefully he starts to get back to waking once (or not at all!) sooner rather than later!

 

[Spiffynoodles]

Ruby, not looking at the clock helps me, too. Also, I had a bad habit of courting up the total hours of sleep I got, which is always depressing so I try not to do that, either. I hope it's just a growth spurt and he's been doing better for you these last few nights.

Levi is doing well. We got our first little smiles from him over the weekend, which was fun. He's also been going through a growth spurt and eating a ton, but I think he's coming out of it, now. My DS2 is sick, though, and that's been making things really hard the last few days. Also, my DS1 got diagnosed as having a developmental delay and qualified for special education preschool services, which is good, because hopefully he'll get the extra help he needs. And his preschool class is supposed to be at the same time as DD's class, which means I'll get almost 3 hours, two days a week, of having just the two younger kids, which will be great.

 

[ruby83]

Thanks Spiffy. Unfortunately Charlie is still waking multiple times at night and I feel like a walking zombie really hoping this will pass soon! I'll even take 1-2 wakes!

It's good your son will get the support he needs. I remember you mentioning some concerns previously. Sorry to hear your other son is unwell! I hope the other kids don't catch whatever it is! Or you for that matter!

Great to hear Levi is doing well! Helps when they start smiling and you can see them looking at you with love!

 

[Spiffynoodles]

Turns our my DS2 had Hand Foot and Mouth! So unfortunately my DS1 can't go to his preschool class this week, just in case, even though he seems fine. Sigh. I just hope Levi doesn't get it.

Ruby, I'm sorry the sleep hasn't improved. I sure hope it gets better for you soon.

 

[ruby83]

Oh Spiffy that sucks! Harry has had it and got such a bad rash around his face made worse with all the drool from teething. It is horrible! Hope your other kids don't catch it! X

 

[ruby83]

Ganton, are you still co sleeping? After Charlie's sleep issues I took him into bed with me and now he is sleeping better but doesn't want to go into his cot again. How long did you co sleep for and is it hard to transition them back to the cot? I'm ok with it now but would rather him go back to his cot sometime soon!! Any advice would be appreciated!!

 

[Ganton]

Hi ruby. Yes, we're still co-sleeping. I've tried to put Erica in her crib a few times but she normally wakes within half an hour, then I bring her in with me again.

With Ben, I constantly tried to get him sleeping in his crib and it was always a battle. I was much more relaxed with Seb and co-slept full time until he was 4 months old. At that age, he learnt to roll and was more capable of getting himself comfortable so we started putting him in his own cot. Initially, it was just until his first night feed, but he was sleeping the whole night in his own cot by 5-6 months.

I'm therefore not too worried until Erica is about 4 months old, although it does concern me slightly that Erica doesn't go down as easily during the day as Seb did, so she could end up being harder to transition to her crib at night too. I'm hoping that not constantly trying to get her to sleep alone will reduce any potential stress around bedtime for her, so she'll be more confident about sleeping in her crib when we do try to get her used to it.i have to say that I love co-sleeping though. She actually stayed asleep in her crib reasonably well a few night a go, but I moved myself right to the end of my bed and even put my head into the co-sleeper slightly so that I could hear her breathing and just be close to her.

 

[ruby83]

Thanks Ganton. I'm trying to get Charlie to sleep at least his first day nap in the cot so he gets used to it but unfortunately he only ends up sleeping for about 20-30 mins. I've started a bath, feed, bed routine a few days ago but to be honest it's not really working and Charlie ends up staying up with us until I go to bed around 9. Harry was so much easier and would just go to sleep as soon as I popped him in the cot. I'll keep persisting now that Charlie is getting close to 4 months!

 

[ruby83]

Hi ladies, how is everyone doing? X

 

[Spiffynoodles]

I'm doing pretty good. My DH is still doing the night feedings most nights, which is such a life-saver, because when I have to do them, I just don't have the patience that I need for all four of my little kids the next day and I usually end up in tears. Levi is doing great. He's 2 months old today, and he is such a content baby most of the time and really only cries when he's hungry or wants to go to sleep. He smiles at me all the time and makes the cutest cooing sounds ever.

How are the rest of you doing?

 

[ruby83]

Spiffy he is adorable! Great to hear your hubby is able to help out to make things easier! Unfortunately Charlie doesn't settle well with my DH so he has had to just help out as much as he can with Harry- doing bath bed routine etc. Charlie is up and down with his sleep and he is still co sleeping which I have just started working on- no success as yet! I'm a bit stuck because I never had an problems with Harry's sleep so not sure how to address it. He is going on his cot well for first nap but at night he just screams and gets so worked up! No amount of patting and shushing would help. Last night I put him in asleep and he stayed in there for 30 mins but then woke up and got worked up 😢 I guess I just need to stick with it. Other than that things are very well. Harry is so cute with him and we have settled into a nice groove. Winter here sucks because it is quite wet so not many outings for us. Booked to go to Palm Cove on the Great Barrier Reef in August which will be a nice escape and first trip with 2 kiddies!!! Hopefully it goes well! Haha!

 

[Ganton]

Hi everyone. My little Erica is doing very well thank you. The reflux (or whatever it is) is still causing problems, but she's putting weight on nicely, she's smiling and making cute noises more and more now and she continues to sleep well at night as long as she's in bed with me.

I haven't even attempted to put her in her crib at night for weeks and weeks, but I like having her in bed anyway. I don't have a plan for how to transition her yet, so I'm afraid I can't offer any advice, Ruby. The thing that's causing me more problems at the moment is that she just will not be put down during the day. Her feeding had improved so she now feeds peacefully and often will fall asleep on me, but will wake within minutes of being put down. She's even started struggling with staying asleep in her car seat or pram when moving. I don't know if that is because her reflux affects her more when she's laid down or whether she actually isn't struggling with reflux at all and had just got very used to mummy cuddles. We saw a paediatrician yesterday and he prescribed stronger reflux meds but I've read the side effects and I'm reluctant to give it to her if reflux isn't really the big problem. It's so hard to know what to do for the best sometimes.

My boys continue to be great with Erica, which is lovely, and DS1 seems to be benefitting from spending more time with me. He still has s major problem sharing toys with DS2 but his behaviour is generally much better and he's laughing, smiling and talking more with me. I've actually just given notice to remove him from nursery so he'll be spending 6 whole weeks with me before he starts school in September.

I'm glad to hear you're all going well. Ruby, I hope you find a way to move Charlie to his own bed (and then you can pass any tips to me &#128540. Spiffy, it's great that your husband can help so much overnight. I can imagine that must really help you make it through the days with your kids. Has your DS1 started his pre-school yet? I hope it's helping him and giving you a bit of a break from having all the kids.

 

[Ganton]

I just thought I'd pop in here to see how everyone is doing. How long is it until you go on holiday, Ruby? Even though it's winter over there, you've probably still had better weather than us. It has rained for a few weeks and I think today is our summer with a high of 24 degrees. It's due to break tomorrow then back to rain!

I'm feeling a bit sorry for myself today as I started with a stomach bug yesterday evening. I've not been sick since 1am but I'm still feeling tired and achy, and I have all 3 kids to look after. I'm just hoping no-one else catches it.

 

[Spiffynoodles]

Sorry to hear you're feeling sick, Ganton. Being sick when you have kids to take care of is the worst!

We're doing pretty good. Levi is doing awesome. He actually slept for 11 hours straight the other night, which was amazing! It was a fluke though, because last night he woke up to eat, but only once, so I hope it means we finally got blessed with a good sleeper (or maybe my DH just has the magic touch ). He's getting better neck control, and loves to lay on the floor and look around (sometimes he actually starts fussing when I hold him too much). A first time mom might be sad about that, but with three other needy kids, I'm just glad he likes to be independent sometimes.

 

[ruby83]

Spiffy what a cutie!! I'm so jealous you have a good sleeper!! I was lulled into a false sense of security with Harry since he has always been an awesome sleeper and slept through the night at the same age Charlie is now!!

Charlie is amazing but not a great sleeper. He was starting to go down well in his cot for a bit before coming into bed with me but the last few nights he has flat out refused and cried until he exhausted himself when I put him in. We literally have to go in every 2 mins to try calm him! I'm hoping it's a stage but to be honest it hasn't been great since he was 12 weeks! Before then he was a dream waking only once! Ah well, just have to push through and hope things improve 😝
Don't get me wrong apart from the sleep side he is such a happy boy, feeding well and doing great! Harry is still so so cute with him!

Ganton, sorry to hear you are unwell! Sucks being sick when you can't just lie in bed and rest! Hope you improve soon!

Still a few weeks until our trip, but looking forward to it! It's been a very rainy winter here which makes getting out and about difficult! I've often been putting Harry in an extra day at kindy just so he doesn't get too bored.

 

[ruby83]

Chrissy, we haven't heard from you in a while! Hope all is well with you and Felix!

 

[ruby83]

I am normally on my phone so don't get a chance to upload a pic! Here is my little Charlie Bear! Lucky he is cute that is all I can say! Hahaha! Surely he will sleep well one day.... That is what I keep telling myself anyway ;-)