week of Sept 25

[mpc]

Good morning all.

I'm sitting in a hotel room, 2000 miles away from my baby.   I left yesterday afternoon... pumping has been going ok. My first pump produced less than half an ounce and I freaked out, but it's been alright since then. I did pump once in the plane bathroom which was an experience, lol. I'm getting ready to head in to work, hope it's a good week. DD woke up a bunch more than normal last night. I think she misses me too. 

[janegold]

Aw mpc, hang in there. And you're super woman for pumping on the plane!

H works in a weird industry where he is SUPER busy for 6-7 months, traveling about 75% of the time, and then has most of the other 5-6 months off (summer). His busy season just started again and he left last night for a 9 day stretch. I was on my own a lot until B was about 4 months old but I think it is going to be harder now that he is almost 10 months and mobile.

This is what our morning looked like (and what nearly every morning for the next 7 months will look like):

B wakes at 5:30a. I bring him into my bed to nurse and pray that he goes back to sleep for a while. Of course he doesn't, and is crawling all over the bed and me, and trying to climb up the headboard. I can't go back to sleep because the second I take my hand off him, he will head-dive off the bed. 45 exhausting minutes later, I admit defeat and get up for the day.

I stick B in the pack n play in the living room while and he fusses the entire 5 minutes it takes me to go to the bathroom, brush my teeth, wash my face, put in my contacts.

I change and dress him, then let him crawl on the bedroom floor while I get dressed and put him in the jumperoo while I do my makeup and hair, and get my work bag and his daycare bag together.

THEN we have to take the dog out across the street. I don't feel like hauling the stroller down the elevator in the back of the building, or messing with the baby carrier, so I'm hauling a 21 lb baby on my hip while wrangling a 120 lb dog on the leash. Man at the crosswalk comments: "Wow, you have your hands full."

Come back inside, get the dog food and water, load B and our things into the stroller and finally out the door by 8. Walk him to daycare, walk to work, drink all the coffee in the world.

*whew* that was cathartic.

[cherryvalance]

mpc, aww, that sounds rough. She'll be so happy to see you wen you get back!

janegold, I know this isn't the point, but I hate when people tell me I have my hands full. THANKS, CAPTAIN OBVIOUS.

My inlaws came out to visit this weekend, so we're having a quiet day at home recovering. I'm glad DS was able to meet all of his grandparents, finally, but it's such a disruption to his schedule so it's a little difficult. Other than that, I see a big improvement from his PT and we seem to have hit a comfortable place with our feeding choices, so I'm feeling good overall.

Now it's time to plan Halloween!

[Chrysanthemum]

janegold, ugh that's tough! And that's all before 8 am! You're superwoman!
So glad to hear PT is helping cherryvalance!

C is almost 9 months and LOVES food. It's so much fun feeding him new things and watching him devour it all! We have a 9 month check up later this week and I'm looking forward to learning his weight. Hahaha. We continue with PT and are working on rolling (still! He can do it, but doesn't do it often or enjoyably), and getting into and out of a seated position. His head does seem to be rounding out some, so I'm not nearly as anxious about all this any more. He's a happy, easygoing guy. And, I just ordered him pants with a jack o lantern on the bum. Hahahaha!

[awick14]

((mpc))

janegold- that's a lot to do by yourself for a long stretch like that. I hope B starts sleeping a little longer so you don't have to get up so early.

I've been so busy I haven't been around much. There's a light at the end of the tunnel though! Finally.

We move in just under 3 weeks, we've found a daycare that we like so that's a huge weight off our shoulders. DD is 9 months old and she is starting to climb everything. You can't leave her alone for a second before she's trying to get onto the couch/chair, up her highchair, onto the dogs back etc. it's exhausting, lol.

[oneslybookworm]

Hey ladies! I've been MIA lately, just settling in at work (it's been insane the past two weeks). G started daycare last week and that's going well, so I'm happy about things on that end. He's 12 weeks tomorrow, and it's so hard to believe that he's getting so big!

I am so ready for Halloween! It has been miserably hot here the last week, and I'm ready for fall weather. I think we'll end up going back to visit my parents in a few weeks, they haven't seen G since he was around a month old, and there's a great apple orchard/pumpkin patch near where my parents live. I'm hoping to get some cute photos with G and the pumpkins, since it'll be his first fall. Then...THANKSGIVING!! And CHRISTMAS!!! OMG...time is flying!

[cherryvalance]

Chrysanthemum, omg, I love the pants with stuff on the butt! DS got a little set from MIL that says, "I love my mummy" with bandage looking pants. I'm dying over his cute Halloween stuff! And I'm so glad to hear C's head is rounding out--I know how stressful that is.

awick14, I can't believe she's so big already! I remember when you announced that you were PG.

I'm dying for fall weather, too. It's been in the 80s and nearly 90 here. COME ON.

[awick14]

oneslybookworm- time is flying for sure! I can't believe he is getting so big.

cherryvalance- my pregnancy announcement came up on Facebook memories at the beginning of sept. (We didn't announce until 21wks) I was shocked it was so long ago that we announced. But really it's inlyb3 months until she's a year old. 😳

[King26]

So Sunday was such a struggle. J wouldn't let me put him down all day long. He would only fall asleep for 30 or 45 minutes at a time and DH was gone all day (it's the longest he's been gone and I felt bad compaining as he was working). We got into a big fight because we were both stressed.

However, Sunday night, all day Monday, and today J has been really good. He's gone down for his naps, stayed down, slept ok at night (enough that I've gotten 6 hours the last 2 nights). I'm hoping this is a trend. I know he's too young to really start a routine but I'm so glad it's been good the past few days but I'm waiting for another tough day.

I know I keep harping on this but after J is done eating he gets crabby and sometimes cries if I don't entertain him. Does this happen with a lot of newborns? We take him for walks, sing to him, play with him on the play mat but that doesn't take up too much time. If I put him in the carrier he falls asleep and sometimes he is only up for 25 minutes then crashes then nexy time he is up for like 2 hours and is grouchy. Is this normal? People keep telling me they just sit with their babies and watch TV and I feel liek am I missing out? When I breastfeed I can do that but when we bottle feed he is finished quickly and wants to move around or he gets upset.

Today DH sent me to a massage at a spa and told me to use the amenities. I've only been gone from J for 2 hours at this point but today I left for over 4. I was so nervous but he was really good for DH thankfully. I was really worried he was going to have a rough time. So I got 4 hours of me time and a massage and it was nice to relax for a while.

Also, we've been gonig to bed at 8 the last 3 nights because that is when J goes down. I feel like if we don't go when he goes we will be screwed because we won't get enough sleep. His first night sleep is always the longest and I want that stretch whether it's 2 1/2 hours or 4 hours because it only gets shorter as the night goes on.

mpc, I can't imagine, I'm sorry you are so far away.
janegold, All of that in the morning? I'm exhausted just reading it!
cherryvalance, Anytime people come over it's a disruption in J's schedule and the next day is rough. I felt bad telling my parents to come see J next week but my friend who lives 2 1/2 hours away is coming this week plus we had a doctors appointment this week and anything out of the ordinary is a lot for him and we need like a day or 2 to recoup. I'm glad you are feeling good about your feeding choices...can I ask what it is you are doing since I'm still trying to come to terms with our feeding choices?
Chrysanthemum, I can't wait until J can eat solids. I bet it is fun trying out new foods.
I'm glad daycare is going well oneslybookworm, I'm ready for this heat to go away too. When J was born in August we had to put the heat on in the bedroom because he was cold. Now I have a slow fan on because I feel like he will overheat with the swaddle on. We don't have air conditioning and I want him to be comfortable.

[mpc]

I had a migraine yesterday, probably from all this traveling and time change and everything. Doing better today. The work I came out here for hit a serious problem yesterday that we are trying to work through. I might change my flight to come home early if we can't do what was actually planned. It'll be nice to get back home but it just means I'll have to come out again.

DD woke up 3 times for H the first night I was gone, but only once last night. I hope she keeps going on easy on him. He's giving her about 27-30 oz of breastmilk a day. Does that sound right? The only real reference I have is kellymom which says 25 is average, up to 30 during a growth spurt. I only pumped 15 ounces yesterday, which was a bummer. I'm about 3 oz ahead today of where I was this time yesterday, so maybe I'll do a little better. No way can I keep up with what she eats though.

[mpc]

Chrysanthemum, glad you're having so much fun with food! I'm looking forward to giving it to DD, I think she really wants it. I let her have a few sips of my water recently and she went nuts, kept wanting more.

King26, I'm not very good at entertaining a baby, so I feel your pain. DD was usually in the best mood immediately after eating, so I would try to leave her on the play mat alone for the next 20 minutes or so, so I could do things. Then as she started getting crabby I'd sit down with her or pick her up or something. Once she'd been awake for about an hour or maybe a little more I'd start trying to get her back to sleep. Now at 5 months she's awake for longer stretches, but during my leave she really was done after an hour.

[cherryvalance]

King26 , ugh, we just had one of those days, with too-short naps, so I'm afraid tonight is going to be rough. Your spa days sounds amazing, though; my mom came over yesterday and let me nap and I thought THAT was a great day, lol.

We're back to combo feeding. I went to the lactation consultant and felt great about nursing him (and not having to pump at night), but he had a bad day where he was crying nonstop and would suck down whatever I'd give him in the bottle and would want to nurse every hour. The anxiety of not knowing how much he was eating was too much for me.

But H pointed out that pumping wasn't really any better on me. It took SO much time and my supply never really re-regulated after I had an oversupply, so that wasn't working, either. Even when I kept myself on a really strict four hour pumping schedule, he'd still get lime green diapers.  Plus, we'd have to bring the pump with us wherever we went and I'd have to run out to pump in the car.  It was so draining. 

So, we decided to eventually move to EFF. Right now, I'm pumping every 5-6 hours to decrease my supply and I have a decent freezer stash, so he'll be able to stay on 2 oz milk/2 oz formula for a while. When I go back to work, he'll be only on formula unless we have more frozen milk. I know, mentally, that this is the best choice for us, but I still have on and off moments of sadness about letting go of nursing/pumping for him. I think that's going to continue for a while because I have trouble with change (EX-I was sad to no longer be pregnant when he was first born, even though I was thrilled to have him, lol).

Whatever you choose will be right! If you want to talk about it, I'm here.

[thoseareradishes]

So E has decided she is a big girl and doesn't want me to hold her to help her settle for naps anymore. She just wants to go in her crib (then I have to hold her pacifier in). She still wakes up after 30 minutes pretty consistently, but I'm about 50/50 with getting her to settle back down again. It's frustrating but I'm hopeful we are moving in the right direction. We also are working on ditching the swaddle, since she figured out how to roll over this week.

Hope you get to go home soon mpc.

[King26]

cherryvalance we are at the same place. J gets 2 oz formula and I then breastfeed probably 1-2oz but I'm getting to the point where we will probably just eff soon. I will make it to 6 weeks for sure I'm hoping to 8 weeks still with combo but not sure we will make it that far. It's frustrating not knowing if he is getting enough but he is sleeping better

[oneslybookworm]

King26, G was like this a lot in the first month or two as well. The last 3 weeks or so, things have really started to calm down a bit. G was a FUSSY NEWBORN. Like...if he was awake, he was fussing...morning/noon/night, it didn't matter. If his eyes were open, it was likely he was screaming. It gets better, promise...hang in there. I'm convinced the first few months of a baby's life are hell on earth.

[oneslybookworm]

Also, for all the ladies who are BFing and considering EFF...we've been EFF from day 1, and it's going really well. Try not to let it stress you out or make you feel badly for switching. You have to do what is best for the baby AND for you/family. That isn't always BFing, and you shouldn't feel an ounce of guilt for ANY decision you make regarding how you feed your child (except if you give them bottles of Diet Mountain Dew...there should probably be some guilt for that).

Huge hugs ladies.

[King26]

Sept 27, 2017 9:02:29 GMT -5 oneslybookworm said:

Also, for all the ladies who are BFing and considering EFF...we've been EFF from day 1, and it's going really well. Try not to let it stress you out or make you feel badly for switching. You have to do what is best for the baby AND for you/family. That isn't always BFing, and you shouldn't feel an ounce of guilt for ANY decision you make regarding how you feed your child (except if you give them bottles of Diet Mountain Dew...there should probably be some guilt for that).

Huge hugs ladies.

Thank you! I lol at the mountain dew. I have a parent at school and when I said his baby really seemed happy with him he said it was because he gave her and all of his kids a lick of ice cream every time he has a cone when they are babiez

[oneslybookworm]

Sept 27, 2017 9:05:52 GMT -5 King26 said:

Sept 27, 2017 9:02:29 GMT -5 oneslybookworm said:

Also, for all the ladies who are BFing and considering EFF...we've been EFF from day 1, and it's going really well. Try not to let it stress you out or make you feel badly for switching. You have to do what is best for the baby AND for you/family. That isn't always BFing, and you shouldn't feel an ounce of guilt for ANY decision you make regarding how you feed your child (except if you give them bottles of Diet Mountain Dew...there should probably be some guilt for that).

Huge hugs ladies.

Thank you! I lol at the mountain dew. I have a parent at school and when I said his baby really seemed happy with him he said it was because he gave her and all of his kids a lick of ice cream every time he has a cone when they are babiez

Of course...I will be the BIGGEST supporter of anyone who chooses to feed their baby however the hell they CHOOSE to do so.  I don't care if you swear up and down before baby is born you're going to do baby led weaning, don't care if the baby is still BFing at age 4, and after day three you decide that shit isn't for you.  YOU DO YOU!!  Don't let ANYONE tell you any different...that you're not trying hard enough, you're not giving it enough time, whatever.  Now, if you also just want encouragement to keep going, I'll cheer you on as well!  BFing seems HARD AS EFF.  I couldn't do it, but damn, i applaud anyone who does.  

Basically, you just have to do what's best for you.  Your baby is going to be beautiful and wondrous EITHER way, I promise.  

[oneslybookworm]

Also, do we have some sort of sheet with all the grad babies and birth dates? I'm losing track of how old all the babies are??

[cherryvalance]

Sept 27, 2017 9:02:29 GMT -5 oneslybookworm said:

Also, for all the ladies who are BFing and considering EFF...we've been EFF from day 1, and it's going really well. Try not to let it stress you out or make you feel badly for switching. You have to do what is best for the baby AND for you/family. That isn't always BFing, and you shouldn't feel an ounce of guilt for ANY decision you make regarding how you feed your child (except if you give them bottles of Diet Mountain Dew...there should probably be some guilt for that).

Huge hugs ladies.

Thank you for this! A thread on Got about the crap in regular formula definitely made me sensitive for a hot minute, so I needed to hear this again.

[pooh8402]

Sept 27, 2017 10:59:40 GMT -5 cherryvalance said:

Sept 27, 2017 9:02:29 GMT -5 oneslybookworm said:

Also, for all the ladies who are BFing and considering EFF...we've been EFF from day 1, and it's going really well. Try not to let it stress you out or make you feel badly for switching. You have to do what is best for the baby AND for you/family. That isn't always BFing, and you shouldn't feel an ounce of guilt for ANY decision you make regarding how you feed your child (except if you give them bottles of Diet Mountain Dew...there should probably be some guilt for that).

Huge hugs ladies.

Thank you for this! A thread on Got about the crap in regular formula definitely made me sensitive for a hot minute, so I needed to hear this again.

Thank you for calling my attention to this. I gave her an earful. I'm feeling hot on the issue since I work in a hospital that is working towards its BFHI designation, and had to sit through a BF supplementation class last week (that told me nothing I didn't already know), where they used those stupid balls and said that newborns' stomachs are only 5-7 ml. Inaccurate, according to the research.

[cherryvalance]

Sept 27, 2017 12:23:11 GMT -5 pooh8402 said:

Sept 27, 2017 10:59:40 GMT -5 cherryvalance said:

Thank you for this! A thread on Got about the crap in regular formula definitely made me sensitive for a hot minute, so I needed to hear this again.

Thank you for calling my attention to this. I gave her an earful. I'm feeling hot on the issue since I work in a hospital that is working towards its BFHI designation, and had to sit through a BF supplementation class last week (that told me nothing I didn't already know), where they used those stupid balls and said that newborns' stomachs are only 5-7 ml. Inaccurate, according to the research.

I happen to be checking GBCN as I pump, so it added insult to injury . Here I am, pumping, all sensitive and prickly.  

How do you feel about baby friendly hospitals over all?  Mine was, and I actually had a great experience with the nurses taking DS when needed, helping me get a break, but I've read pretty awful things on here about others' experiences. 

[cactuscookie]

Sept 26, 2017 16:11:16 GMT -5 King26 said:

I know I keep harping on this but after J is done eating he gets crabby and sometimes cries if I don't entertain him. Does this happen with a lot of newborns? We take him for walks, sing to him, play with him on the play mat but that doesn't take up too much time. If I put him in the carrier he falls asleep and sometimes he is only up for 25 minutes then crashes then nexy time he is up for like 2 hours and is grouchy. Is this normal? People keep telling me they just sit with their babies and watch TV and I feel liek am I missing out? When I breastfeed I can do that but when we bottle feed he is finished quickly and wants to move around or he gets upset.

Okay, so I was thinking about this and I remembered what we used to do. We had a bunch of "stations" that we would put H in. Like, let's start off in this baby chair in this room with this toy. And then when she started to hate that, maybe we go to the swing. And then the mat. And then to a different baby chair in a different room with a different toy. (Usually one of the stations was a chair on the bed while I folded laundry.) I'd take her for a walk in the stroller sometimes, although her patience with that varied. We also took her for car rides in the hopes that she'd get used to it and stop hating the car so much. (Nope; she still doesn't like the car.) But since she was a slow eater and was difficult to soothe to sleep, there wasn't that much time that we needed to entertain her. Mostly what I remember from the early days is all the frustrating time that we spent trying to get her to freaking sleep.

[pooh8402]

Sept 27, 2017 12:26:58 GMT -5 cherryvalance said:

Sept 27, 2017 12:23:11 GMT -5 pooh8402 said:

Thank you for calling my attention to this. I gave her an earful. I'm feeling hot on the issue since I work in a hospital that is working towards its BFHI designation, and had to sit through a BF supplementation class last week (that told me nothing I didn't already know), where they used those stupid balls and said that newborns' stomachs are only 5-7 ml. Inaccurate, according to the research.

I happen to be checking GBCN as I pump, so it added insult to injury . Here I am, pumping, all sensitive and prickly.  

How do you feel about baby friendly hospitals over all?  Mine was, and I actually had a great experience with the nurses taking DS when needed, helping me get a break, but I've read pretty awful things on here about others' experiences. 

Overall, I can't stand them. I think that it is not baby - friendly or mother - friendly. I think the best thing to come from BFHI is that skin to skin is heavily promoted. Love that. My hospital is actually pretty reasonable, but definitely heavily promotes EBF over combo feeding.

[kristind3]

I met with a cardiologist today for another fetal echo. She confirmed the diagnosis so we're definitely looking at surgery about a week after baby is born. There may be a small minor procedure that needs to be done immediately, but they won't know for sure until birth and an EKG is done.

I cried when she said we'd be looking at a 3-4 week hospital stay after surgery. That means we're probably spending our first Christmas at the hospital. It's just frustrating. It took so long for me to get pregnant, and now it's just one more thing to worry about.

[boiler717]

Sept 27, 2017 12:53:27 GMT -5 kristind3 said:

I met with a cardiologist today for another fetal echo. She confirmed the diagnosis so we're definitely looking at surgery about a week after baby is born. There may be a small minor procedure that needs to be done immediately, but they won't know for sure until birth and an EKG is done.

I cried when she said we'd be looking at a 3-4 week hospital stay after surgery. That means we're probably spending our first Christmas at the hospital. It's just frustrating. It took so long for me to get pregnant, and now it's just one more thing to worry about.

I’m so sorry. That’s a lot to process. Is the hospital close?

[oneslybookworm]

@daylily, I love your response on GP. LOVE.


Huge hugs kristind3, that is a lot to handle right now.

[cactuscookie]

Sept 27, 2017 12:53:27 GMT -5 kristind3 said:

I met with a cardiologist today for another fetal echo. She confirmed the diagnosis so we're definitely looking at surgery about a week after baby is born. There may be a small minor procedure that needs to be done immediately, but they won't know for sure until birth and an EKG is done.

I cried when she said we'd be looking at a 3-4 week hospital stay after surgery. That means we're probably spending our first Christmas at the hospital. It's just frustrating. It took so long for me to get pregnant, and now it's just one more thing to worry about.

I am so, so sorry. So many hugs.

[thoseareradishes]

Hugs kristind3.

[kristind3]

boiler717 It depends. They hopefully will be able to do the surgery here in town at the Children's hospital which is only about 15 minutes from where I live. If there are complications (which they won't know for sure until after birth), then they will have to send us to Dallas or Houston to get the surgery done, which are each about 3 hours away.