PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[Pandora II]

Nat - I don''t count hours, I just feed Daisy when she wants to feed which probably works out as about every 3-4 hours during the day and night. She''s a very fast feeder though so she''s done in 5 minutes max, and since we co-sleep I don''t have to get out of bed or even wake up.

I never bothered pumping after drinking alcohol - not that I often do - I just feed Daisy just before and then it''s probably out of my system by the time I feed her again (if not, heck it might make her sleep for once in the daytime!)

I weighed Daisy for the first time in ages today - she was spot on 19lbs. She''s 33 weeks so she''s still spot on for the 75th percentile which she''s never budged from since birth other than the mega-weight-loss in the first week. She''s pretty solid, but the thighs are definitely slimming down and only have two sets of creases rather than the michelin man look she''s been cultivating!

She also managed to fall off our friend''s sofa this afternoon straight onto her head - whole forehead swollen up...

, problem was that we were driving home straight after and she slept all the way home in the car so I was rather stressed by the time we got in as sleepiness is not a good sign. Anyway, phonecall to father and watching her playing with IKEA rats on the floor for half an hour reassured me that she is still in one piece if bruised. Babies bounce more than one thinks!

Here''s a few christmas pics - those of you on FB have probably seen them already...

All dressed up for the snow...

 

[Pandora II]

This was the cutest blanket thing I found. The yellow part is soft fabric shaped like a piece of cheese with holes in it. Then there is a toy rat/mouse whose head fits through the holes, so instead of the usual blankets with a toy at the top, this one you can move the toy around.

 

[Pandora II]

mmmmm, glitter...

 

[Pandora II]

Her ''big'' present from us! Luckily she doesn''t care if the sound is on or not as I''m already about to strangle the person singing the songs on it!

 

[Pandora II]

Fiery - it''s so much fun when they start doing the dadadadad thing. Daisy has long tuneless conversations with her toys that just crack me up - gawd knows what she''s saying!

Last one... fun in the wrapping paper...

 

[taovandel]

Pandora shes so cute! Too funny about the toy--glad she likes it without the noises also!


Here is a picture of Evan all dressed up to celebrate New Year in our own house...haha!

 

[taovandel]

last one...

 

[ChinaCat]

Pandora- Daisy is a beauty!!! So cute.

Tao- OMG, where did you get that mini suit? That is awesome, so funny.

Natalina-

I''m pretty sure we still fed O every 3 hours during the day at 12 weeks. In fact, he still pretty much eats every 3 hours during the day. He dropped most of his nighttime feedings on his own by 12 weeks though, so not sure what we would have done if he hadn''t. I definitely stopped waking him up to feed him by then. Now I let him dictate when he''s hungry, but except for early in the morning, he eats about every 3 hours. Keep waiting for him to drop more feedings but not so far. Plus he''s EBF, which they say means will still eat about 6-8 times during the day. He eats 5-6 times during the day and generally none at night (except for some off nights). Is it clear when she is hungry? It''s very obvious when O is ready to eat. If so, maybe just let her tell you when she''s hungry and see how it goes. O is also still pretty skinny (wasn''t even 12 lbs at his 4 month appt) so I feed him as much as possible during the day. But since she''s clearly big enough, it would probably be ok to go longer b/w feedings with her. Let us know!

HI to everyone else. MIL is visiting so not much PS time.

 

[Pandora II]

Tao - that is too adorable!

Since I had Daisy my hair has just gone terrible, it doesn''t matter if I wash it every day, within hours it just looks lank and terrible even if it doesn''t feel greasy at all. It was really nice while I was PG so I''m sure it must be hormonal rather than just being ''my hair''.

I''m wondering about having it highlighted or something, as two trips to have it cut haven''t helped the situation...

Any tips or ideas?

 

[cdt1101]

Pandora - Daisy is so pretty!! And like I said on FB, I cannot believe how well she''s standing

My hair is also very different than before preggo. Like eventhough I have curly hair, it''s never been tangly or knotty and now it''s both...seriously I can barely get a comb thru it when I condition it in the shower...overall my hair is much drier. I''m not sure if highlights would help you or not, but I''m all for giving hair a little color boost to make it look more "alive", so I say go for it!

Tao - that little suit is the cutest!

So I went bra shopping today since I felt like my old bras didn''t fit anymore, but I was thinking I needed to go up in size..well no, it seems I''ve gotten smaller. Went from a 34B to a 32B...WTH??? Why can''t my a** decrease too

The new bras fit, but I''m thinking I must have been wearing the wrong size long before getting KU because I''m still 10lbs heavier than before..weird.

Hope everyone had a Happy New Year!

 

[mela lu]

Pandora - Daisy is just so beautiful. Truly. She''s gorgeous. I too was surprised at how well she''s standing. Romeo just mastered sitting. lol. Although he is moving around sort of by scooting in big circles. It''s strange to watch by he actually gets places!

Tao - Cuuuuuuuuuuuuute pics of Evan! What a little man he is!

China - I would keep feeding every 3 hours to maximize his intake during the day, in hopes that he''s had enough and wont need to eat in the middle of the night. I remember Romeo was feeding every 3 hours at that age too. I moved him to every 4 hours because he was spitting up so much; I was litterally overfeeding him. 4 hours worked much much much better. That was probably somewhere around 4-5 months. I cant remember now. Good luck! Also, if you want him to drop a feeding...I would try to passify him back to sleep and don''t feed him at that one feeding time. Betcha you will only have to do it for a few nights before he sleeps right though.

Re: alchohol in BM. I wouldnt worry about one, or even 2 drinks. Your body metabolizes it, and I dont think it enough will get into the milk to be worried about. Now, getting shiat-faced is another thing. That would require a pump and dump for sure.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Re alcohol, in my breastfeeding class at the hospital, the nurse said that a maximum of 2 drinks 3 hours before feeding was fine. Of course, when you feed every 3 hours, I guess you are supposed to down some quick shots during or just after the last feed? (J/K) I chose to interpret her math as meaning that 1 drink 1.5 hours before feeding was also fine. I often have a glass of wine with dinner.

We''re really dithering about planning our trip to France. Now our best friends'' baby is due in early August, and we were planning to be gone in late July. Plus I''m worried that if I''m still BFing, my milk will dry up even with the pumping. Maybe we could go over my spring break in 2011 instead, although then we''d miss the Tour de France which DH really likes seeing.

Of course, my milk might dry up from going back to work anyway. I''ll only have one time that I can pump every day -- my tiny little 30 minute lunch break.

Three days a week I''ll be able to pump around 10:30 and 12:00 (in our nonprivate office where I have an open cubicle!), another I''ll be able to pump at 12:00 and 3:00, and on stinky Tuesdays I''ll only have lunch. Although actually, on Tuesdays I have a duty that I''m supposed to get to within 5 minutes, but I bet if I said, sorry, but you have to provide me the means to keep up my pumping, no one would say anything if I were a little later.

I go back to work one month from today.

Regarding second children: my ideal would be to have Baby #2 in mid 2012 and become a SAHM at that point. I love my job, but it involves too much grading and planning at home.

 

[taovandel]

His aunt got the little suit for him for xmas....and I knew he had to wear it at New years!

PG: I also have to go back to work at the end of January and sometimes I look forward to it and other times I dread it and wish we could just win the lottery so I could stay home.

 

[Blenheim]

I was planning on getting on and asking when I should start being concerned about George not pooing, but then he had the biggest poo ever as I was putting him to bed. So..... nevermind. Prunes work, FWIW.

Natalina - Thanks, but don''t you think it''s a bit ironic that you''re getting on the girl moms for more pics and you didn''t post any yourself?

I''m still feeding on demand, which usually comes out to every 2-3 hours or so. Sometimes 4.
And poor you and poor Ellie!

Alcohol - I don''t pump and dump, but I also don''t usually drink more than one drink and I try to time it so that he nurses right beforehand and doesn''t need to for a while.

Fiery - I love hearing dadadadadada.

Pandora - just adorable!! She is quite strong, and is standing like a champ.
Poor little Daisy. Glad she''s doing okay.

Tao - Awesome pictures.

PG - that sounds like such a rough work schedule.

 

[mela lu]

Oh, and I meant to comment on Pandora''s hair question. I personally wouldn''t go with the highlights. I''ve never dyed my hair, so mabye I''m just of a different genre, but I would think that highlights would be a huge PITA to keep up, and expensive to boot. If I were you, I''d maybe try a slightly shorter and layered ''do, that would allow for a sort of shaggy chic look. The layers may help hide the limpness.

In other hair news, my hair has finally stopped falling out. THaNK GOD. it was freaky seeing such huge clumps come out all at once.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Re hair: when I got my hair cut a couple of weeks ago, my hairdresser said my hair would fall out when I stop BFing. Is this other people''s experience? During pregnancy it seemed to stop falling out (I mean as in normal hairbrush buildup) and was really shiny. Now it seems pretty much back to normal.

 

[mela lu]

I''m still EBF and my hair started falling out, tons and tons of it, around 4.5 - 5 months PP. It just stopped around 6.5 months PP. I dont think BF affected this, I think its just a normal hormonal respose. I dont know for sure though

 

[Sabine]

I totally got a "mommy do" when my hair was falling out at it''s worst. It seems to have slowed down, and I love having my hair shorter. Not sure if I''ll keep the bangs, but I like my hair shorter during the winter at least. During the summer I never have the patience to blowdry/straighten it so it ends up in a ponytail no matter what.

So when did everyone transition from the infant seat/travel system to convertible seat/umbrella stroller?

We have the snugride 32, so I think we''re going to continue using it as long as possible in the car, but I''m kicking myself for not getting a snap n go stroller to keep in my car. I did need the huge travel system stroller because of our apt. complex not having sidewalks and I have to take the dog on a long walk at least once a day, and the snap n go just wouldn''t handle the muddy, bumpy terrain. But I should have gotten both!

I just got our umbrella stroller. We went with the Combi Cosmo, and so far I LOVE it! I think I''ll keep using the infant seat in the car, but then put Jacks in this stroller when we''re out (he almost never falls asleep while OUT, only on the way home) because I''m SOOOO sick of lugging the big stroller to my car! Here''s a pic of my little man in his new "big boy" stroller!

 

[Mara]

i thought the hair fell out you gave birth? i am hoping mine falls out after birth because it's driving me crazy, i already had a ton of hair to start and now it's like a horse mane. greg thought i shed a lot before, but when i start to lose hair i think he will be really worried.

pandora, i personally love higlights but you do have to maintain them. i get mine done every 8-10 weeks and have for almost 9 years. but it gives your hair a certain depth that one color doesn't have, and i also do layered cuts for ease. do you have any friends who have GREAT hair you admire? if so, i'd go to their stylist and see what they think...that is always how i have found great stylists and hairstyles in the past.

re: bf'ing and alcohol, along the same lines as PG's BF class, ours said feed before you start drinking and then just don't get wasted. the gal said if you are worried, then pump and dump but she really was pretty lax about it. same with foods and medications for the most part..i was kind of surprised since i know some people are really strict. she seemed to think also that the more limited your diet while BF the more opportunity for the kid to develop food allergies, but i don't know what sort of studies there are around that.

does anyone who was running really HOT during pregnancy still get hot after? my neighbor runs really hot all the time and told me it doesn't change back til after you stop BF. i am really hoping that is not the case, i used to be the coldest one in the room and now i run around in winter in tank tops...i hate it actually. it makes it hard to dress appropriately without 500 layers.

tao that is the cutest pic in his little suit.

 

[mela lu]

Mara - i totally forgot about how hot i was while preg...you just reminded me! To answer your question, I don''t feel hot anymore, since having Romeo. My skin is not on fire anymore

so yah, the furnace goes off once you have le bebe. At least, it did for me.

 

[gailrmv]

Happy New Year!!! I'm so glad to have "met" you all and chatted about our kids in 2009. What an amazing year! I'm looking forward to keeping up with you all in 2010! I feel like I'm sort of between this thread and the toddler one, since A is almost 10 months now and getting more toddler-like by the day. He's pulling up and cruising!!!! Anyway, I guess I'll pop into both threads.

I will probably do my usual..... reply to the last couple of people/topics - even though I've been reading and mainly keeping up, I'm just having a hard time with the individual hellos!

Photos I've so enjoyed seeing all of your little ones! Everyone is so cute!! I feel bad not to share any of A on here. It's my personal thing not to post people pics on PS, but some of you are my friends on another site and have been able to see him over there.

Hair falling out Mine didn't seem to correspond with BFing, but did just like Mela said. It is all on the sides (like where male pattern baldness would be) and I have this "fringe" now where it grew back, like weird bangs. I can't wait til it grows long enough to blend in because it looks scraggly. Highlights I got them for a couple of years, but roots drove me nuts if I didn't get them touched up promptly. Then I realized hey, not too many years til I will have to cover up grey hair. I will just enjoy my natural color and not having to get to the salon so often. So I dyed it back to my natural color and have not had highlights for a couple years. Post baby, it's hard enough to find time to get it trimmed regularly! Anyway, I'm sure whenever I do need greys covered I will start getting highlights again. I did like the look.

Stalker neighbor update Things have been going better. I've been walking with her about once a week and she hasn't been calling obsessively like she used to... so far so good.

Strollers Even though I'm doing fine with the Bob and Mac Volo, I am so wanting one of those Quinny Buzzes that are on sale now. I won't get it - don't need 3 strollers! - but what a slick looking ride and great sale too. I wish I had something a little more full featured than the volo but not as gigantic as the Bob for outings. Of course, I usually end up wearing him in the Ergo anyway - what will I do when he outgrows that thing??? It has made this first year so much easier.

Second kid I'm not ready yet, but I think about this a lot. I'm enjoying the discussion on here. A was a pretty difficult baby for the first few months. Recovering from my c-section and BFing were hard in the beginning. I don't have relatives living nearby and my DH works long hours. So, the first few weeks (months?) were really tough. I wonder how I would go through all that again while taking care of A too. I guess I would need to ask for and accept more help, even though I'm very independent. I also am not very close with my only sibling, so I worry about what if we have two and they don't get along? Of course, if we only have one, we'd have to fight the temptation to spoil him to bits. Not by buying him too much stuff - we're not like that - but by treating him like he is the center of attention. I think about the finances too, especially about school. Public schools are pretty bad in my area so we would either need to move to a better district or pay out the wazoo for private school. But that is a whole different topic. Anyway, I feel like I've gotten into a good groove with A, finally adjusted to this whole motherhood thing and having a lot of fun. I know a second kid would be another huge adjustment and I'm not ready to go there yet. I'm very practical and tend to think about logistics a lot. Even though I'm sure it will be hard, there are lots of reasons that I *do* want a second child. I'm pretty sure we will try for a second but not yet.

 

[Dreamer_D]

OK still catching up but Mgal I would personally try giving him chunks of all different foods and just keep offering and don''t worry about if he doesn''t eat it the first or second or 8th time! Hunter went through a phase where he hated bananas and avocado and I kept offering and then he started eating them again. If he didn''t like the blended meatballs and mac& cheese, then try pieces of it. Hunter eats mostly chunks of things that he self feeds. I also noticed he made a super odd face when he tried a new flavour for the first time. Your reaction is important I think. Just offer it and when he puts it in say, "Yummy" and smile or something. If he spits it out, then just offer something else and then maybe come back to the first thing. Keeping it all fun and playful and not making a bg deal of anything he does is key I think. Also, we will give Hunter things we eat and he likes that a lot most of the time. We are not doing BLW like blen and pandora but it has ended up that we are basically doing something similar to it because we have Hunter eating almost everything we eat now.

 

[cdt1101]

Mara - I felt hot a lot during pregnancy, and for me, it got WAY worse after giving birth. I literally would wake in a pool of sweat..and I'm not exaggerating! It was awful. And I was always so so so sweaty doing the littlest thing (like walking!). It finally got better at around 6 month pp. I was really worried it was going to remain like that because it was the most disgusting thing ever!! But thankfully it went away.

RE: hair loss - Mine doesn't fall out anymore, it stopped at around 6 months pp as well, but it was scary the amount I would lose in the shower! I think it started at around 3 or 4 months pp (can't remember).

Well I think Lex sensed there was talk of baby #2 because he's been a nightmare the past 2 days

Super fussy and clingy. I can't even turn my back to him or he starts to cry, it's not cute! Sorry, but it's driving me batty. And he's woke 2 times the past 2 nights. I really have no idea what's going on, he actually "fought" us on going to bed last night????? He's NEVER done that, but he was seriously throwing a fit everytime I left the room, I mean screaming and crying on the top of his lungs! Craziness....

So yeah, I think this is GREAT birth control

ETA: he just pulled himself to standing for the 1st time as I was typing...oh man, I'm really in trouble now

 

[phoenixgirl]

Hair falling out -- maybe the hairdresser thought there was a correlation because hair falls out around the time when a lot of women happen to stop BFing? Not looking forward to this turn of events!


I took Claire to the grocery store for the first time yesterday. I don''t like having to figure things out when I don''t know what to do (one of the reasons I''ve always worked out at home instead of joining a gym), so I had some mild anxiety concerning it. Everything went fine . . . carseat fit in the grocery cart, Claire barely stirred. In fact, she was totally silent and I thought she was asleep until I walked about ten feet away to get a plastic bag for produce. Then she started what I can only describe as calling out for me, this sad little squawk. I didn''t realize she was that aware!

My grocery store is often patronized by the elderly, and more than once one of the "pregnant women and mothers with infants" spots has been taken by an old man. This happened when I was 9 months pregnant, but when I saw the decrepit old man, I had to concede that I was more able-bodied than he. But this is what handicapped stickers are for! Yesterday both spots were taken up by an old man who parked diagonally in them. There was just enough space for me to squeeze in next to him, which I confess I may have done a bit more quickly than necessary with the old man standing right there. I was mainly bothered by the fact that he couldn''t even park straight so that the remaining spot was as accessible as it should have been, and I also felt that carrying an infant in her carseat in 20 degree weather trumps decrepitude. In the grocery store, another elderly person commented that she hoped I had dressed Claire in her long johns. Um, yes, that''s right, baby long johns . . .

On the other hand, I know someone who posted on FB that she was so excited when she was showing with baby #2 (around 4 months) so she could start using those spots again. And I was like, really, 4 months pregnant so you can''t walk an extra 20 feet? So I guess the whole thing is wrought with ethical dilemmas. Perhaps there should be some kind of wrestling match to see who deserves the space? To the loser go the spoils?

 

[Blenheim]

Hair loss - Still hasn''t happened, thankfully. Is this something to expect whenever I wean though? Ugh.

Running hot - I ran really hot in the last month or two of pregnancy, and I think it went away shortly after he was born.

Sabine - we moved George out of his infant seat only because of the whole car accident thing. Other than that, I''d probably just go to the limits of the seat. It would be nice to be able to move him into the house without waking him if he falls asleep in the car, and it''s so hard to get him out of the convertible without accidentally waking him up.

PG - good for you for getting out! I didn''t really park in the preggo parking when I was pregnant, as you''re really supposed to be walking and otherwise getting exercise (barring bed rest, etc). But I''ve parked in some spots that are explicitly marked for pregnant women only (and not for moms with infants) since, if I have G with me and I know I''m going to be buying some bulky things...

 

[taovandel]

PG: Even while I was 9 months pregnant--I always refused to take the spot...I just felt kinda silly taking the spot. I mean, I''m pregnant not handicapped. I can walk the extra three spaces. I can see if I was having a difficult pregnancy or something but just having a normal pregnancy, I just didn''t see the point in it. I also hate when people park in the spots and they don''t have stickers to do so....huge pet peeve of mine.


Evan has a new cry that breaks my heart. It''s this high pitched screech..he just started doing it about two days ago. So sad--and the face he makes when doing it...ahhh!

Not sure what the cry means yet--as he will make it a few times and then be fine. Not sure if it''s because he isn''t comfortable, bored, hungry or what....it''s completely different from his normal cry though.

I also need to clip his nails...I''m so scared to do it though!

 

[Pandora II]

Date: 1/3/2010 6:35:45 AM
Author: cdt1101
Mara - I felt hot a lot during pregnancy, and for me, it got WAY worse after giving birth. I literally would wake in a pool of sweat..and I'm not exaggerating! It was awful. And I was always so so so sweaty doing the littlest thing (like walking!). It finally got better at around 6 month pp. I was really worried it was going to remain like that because it was the most disgusting thing ever!! But thankfully it went away.

RE: hair loss - Mine doesn't fall out anymore, it stopped at around 6 months pp as well, but it was scary the amount I would lose in the shower! I think it started at around 3 or 4 months pp (can't remember).

Well I think Lex sensed there was talk of baby #2 because he's been a nightmare the past 2 days

Super fussy and clingy. I can't even turn my back to him or he starts to cry, it's not cute! Sorry, but it's driving me batty. And he's woke 2 times the past 2 nights. I really have no idea what's going on, he actually 'fought' us on going to bed last night????? He's NEVER done that, but he was seriously throwing a fit everytime I left the room, I mean screaming and crying on the top of his lungs! Craziness....

So yeah, I think this is GREAT birth control

ETA: he just pulled himself to standing for the 1st time as I was typing...oh man, I'm really in trouble now

Welcome to my world - Daisy has been like this for nearly 6+ weeks now, it drives me mad. She's a delight as long as I'm with her, if I leave the room she screams the place down. I haven't found any cure I'm afraid - it seems to coincide with them becoming mobile...

Not sure whether to say 'yay' or not on the standing, its a whole new world of nightmares!

Parking spaces - I did use them towards the end of being pregnant, but I was finding it hard to walk as far as the front door by that point and my feet were so swollen it hurt!

 

[Pandora II]

Back again...

Thanks for all the comments on my baby bear - I think she''s cute too, but them I''m biased!

Hair - thanks for the ideas! I lost a ton starting about a month after she was born. The hair-loss has stopped - thank goodness or I''d be bald by now - but it just looks awful!

Tao - I loathe nail cutting time, and so I do it when she''s asleep. My current pet hate is that baby nail scissors are so damn blunt. It takes a load of effort to get the bit of nail in the right place and then it won''t cut... grrrrrr. So now I have a super-sharp pointy pair of embroidery scissors and just wait till she''s really conked out. I have to cut them every other day as she pinches me so much - my boobs are a mass of tiny cuts and bruises at the moment, but I don''t know how to stop her as taking her hand away makes it worse.

 

[natalina]

Re hair: mine hasn''t started falling out yet- I am dreading this!

Re being hot: I was always hot towards the end and it stopped right after birht. I remember a friend told me she had HORRIBLE night sweats after all 4 of her babies were born, for several weeks, and to be prepared to wake up having soaked the sheets with sweat (ew), but this never happened to me.

RE alcohol in milk: I know a couple drinks should be fine, but I had 3 microbrews that tend to run a bit stronger than regular beer. I was tipsy, which made me nervous, although that doesn''t take much since being preggo! Thanks for all the tips, and Ellie''s reaction to the formula taught me to be prepared with a pumped bottle or pass up the bubbly next time!

Pandora- Daisy is such a doll baby! What a cutie-pie! I say go for the highlights. It usually helps mine feel fuller and have a bit more body. I think it''s because "virgin" hair is so healthy it tends to be silkier and smoother, which can mean FLAT and BORING if you don''t have a lot of hair to start with!

Tao- Love the suit! Hilarious to see a newborn all decked out like that! He looks adorable!

CDT- crazy about the bra size! Sorry to hear about your job, but I bet you end up loving staying home

. Too funny about Lex "hearing" you talk about baby #2.

Sabine- no help with the stroller ? as you are much further into this than me, but just had to say how CUTE Jacks is!

PG- Yay on the grocery trip! I''m like you about doing things I am unsure of for the first time, but have realized I just gotta force myself to get out and do things with Ellie and figure it out along the way because the cabin fever is much worse than the anxiety of doing something I have to figure out, if that makes sense.

China- thanks for the info about O''s feeding schedule. I am still trying to figure Ellie out, and feel like a bit of a dunce as she is 12 weeks already! I feel like as soon as I "get" her pattern, it changes!

Blen- glad to hear the prunes worked

! And I KNEW someone would call me out about the girl pics, I just didn''t have any ready! So here are a few from the holidays with the fam (next post):

 

[natalina]

With my 4yo niece. She was SO excted to hold "Ellie Bellie"