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PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

Dreamer, good luck with the pumping and lunch time feedings. I would do the lunch thing if I could. If you wind up finding it too difficult, you can always try something different then.

I have been on a manic pumping kick. And I''m taking Fenugreek again, so I stink in a sickly sweet kind of way. I''m trying to get my freezer stashed so that when I start working again with my stinky teacher''s schedule (i.e. no regular breaks), maybe I can keep up EBF. Last night I crazily pumped after the 3:30 a.m. feeding. My goal is to pump at least a bottle (4 oz.) per day. Does 4 oz. per bottle sound right for a 10.5 - 11 lb. baby who feeds approximately every 3 hours during the day?
 
Hey! Posting again in my haphazard way...

DD I'm so glad it's going well so far! Congrats again on the new job and I'm glad you can ease back in.

Blen THat sounds like a great idea on the freezer stash. Remember too that as she gets older and starts taking in solid foods, she may need less milk than she does now. Also, while it really stinks that your pumping breaks will be irregular at school, you may be able to squeeze in another pumping session for example before you go to bed (assuming you fed her several hours before and wont need to feed her at that time), to help keep up your supply and make bottles for the next day.

Amber Congratulations on your return to work and I'm so glad it's going well! Great photos - super cute baby. That's amazing about your weight loss too! Wow!

Anchor welcome!!! And congrats!!!!!!!! Adorable photos (I think they were on the preggo thread but I know I saw them somewhere!)

Sabine Is there any alternative with the dog - could someone stay with him or her? If not, then I think your DH could definitely fly with Jacks! It would give him new appreciation for your day to day, I think!

Mandarine Welcome back! I'm so glad your trip went well. You are brave driving all that way! Our first couple road trips with A were abysmal but he actually did well on our looong trip last month. I think it was about the same distance as yoru trip. He actually slept vs screamed in the car!

MRS Are you still around? Hope you are doing well!

Hello to everyone else! Sorry to skip so many people - I read this thread whenever I get a minute but with a mobile baby, I don't usually get to reply til later and by then I've forgotten at least half of what I wanted to say.

I'm excited that we are fixing up a spare room to be a family room/playroom. It will be TOTALLY babyproofed (at least in theory!) and cute looking too. Progress is slow but we should be painting tomorrow! DH has the day off. I'm hoping he'll entertain A and I can put on the TV and do the painting - sad that this is now considered "me time" but I'll take it where I can get it.
 
Date: 1/6/2010 12:32:02 AM
Author: TanDogMom

I''m excited that we are fixing up a spare room to be a family room/playroom. It will be TOTALLY babyproofed (at least in theory!) and cute looking too. Progress is slow but we should be painting tomorrow! DH has the day off. I''m hoping he''ll entertain A and I can put on the TV and do the painting - sad that this is now considered ''me time'' but I''ll take it where I can get it.
Click to expand...
I had some of that "me time" a few weeks ago when I painted our entry hall
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Our new house is entirely 20 year old buidlers beige and it is going to be a nightmare painting it all!
 
Date: 1/6/2010 2:03:53 AM
Author: dreamer_dachsie
Date: 1/6/2010 12:32:02 AM

Author: TanDogMom


I''m excited that we are fixing up a spare room to be a family room/playroom. It will be TOTALLY babyproofed (at least in theory!) and cute looking too. Progress is slow but we should be painting tomorrow! DH has the day off. I''m hoping he''ll entertain A and I can put on the TV and do the painting - sad that this is now considered ''me time'' but I''ll take it where I can get it.
Click to expand...

I had some of that ''me time'' a few weeks ago when I painted our entry hall
20.gif
Our new house is entirely 20 year old buidlers beige and it is going to be a nightmare painting it all!
Click to expand...

Hehe-welcome to my nightmare.

Except mine was terra cotta/baby puke. And it was patched all over the place with the WRONG COLOR. Builder''s beige would have been amazing. We painted it all over the course of like 2 weeks because I just couldn''t stand it.
 
Date: 1/6/2010 2:07:22 AM
Author: neatfreak


Date: 1/6/2010 2:03:53 AM
Author: dreamer_dachsie


Date: 1/6/2010 12:32:02 AM

Author: TanDogMom


I'm excited that we are fixing up a spare room to be a family room/playroom. It will be TOTALLY babyproofed (at least in theory!) and cute looking too. Progress is slow but we should be painting tomorrow! DH has the day off. I'm hoping he'll entertain A and I can put on the TV and do the painting - sad that this is now considered 'me time' but I'll take it where I can get it.
Click to expand...

I had some of that 'me time' a few weeks ago when I painted our entry hall
20.gif
Our new house is entirely 20 year old buidlers beige and it is going to be a nightmare painting it all!
Click to expand...

Hehe-welcome to my nightmare.

Except mine was terra cotta/baby puke. And it was patched all over the place with the WRONG COLOR. Builder's beige would have been amazing. We painted it all over the course of like 2 weeks because I just couldn't stand it.
Click to expand...
Except that in a fit of energy and blind optimism in the first week here I bought tester pots and painted large swatches on the walls in the living room, dining room, kitchen, and family room, thinking we would be painting right away
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It looks like S**T. My mom warned me and now I can't admit it was a mistake or face the "I told you so" nightmare. ETA Oh, and the entry hall and upstairs hallways too.
 
Thank for you well wishes, I''m feeling much better today, and I''m back at work. It felt a bit odd being home alone with no baby yesterday, I kept catching myself thinking Kyle was just napping in his room! I think that was the longest period of time I''ve been home baby-free since he was born, and I didn''t know what to do with myself. I ended up organizing and cross-stitching and watching way to much CSI
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Thanks for the compliments on Piper! She's a real cutie even if she's always wanting to be held (well, right now she's asleep in her swing).

Dreamer: Piper is 6 weeks, and doesn't sleep here as much as she did at home. I think it's because I held her all the time at home, so that's my fault.

Question for BFing moms:

I've had no problems BFing Piper, at least with supply issues and latch. The only problem is how much I get engorged when she's not eating. She eats from one side at a time and is done, so should I pump out the other side to keep from getting painfully full? When I get engorged it's impossible to feed her because I've got big boobs and they just won't fit in her mouth. I don't want my body to produce MORE milk, though, so would pumping trick my body into thinking she empties both sides at a feeding? I have WAY too much milk and I'd rather not have it increase. Any help would be greatly appreciated. When we were at home, I'd just sit around in a bra and feed her when she seemed hungry, obviously I can't do that at work, so I'm trying to get her on a 2.5/3 hour schedule here.

Also: Piper sucks on her hands constantly. I thought it was because she was hungry, so I feed her when I see it. Then, this morning I noticed she sucked on her hands right after a feeding, is this a soothing thing or is she STILL hungry? When I was feeding her for a while she unlatched herself and fell asleep, so I took that as a cue that she was done, was that right?

One MORE thing (SORRY!): if I pump to bottle feed her at work (easier to feed her when there are people here), can I still nurse her at night? I'm really hesitant to bottle feed her because a.) unsure of how much she'll eat b.) don't know how to warm it up and c.) I worry she'll refuse my boob and I'll be stuck making bottles in the middle of the night. I do want her to be able to be watched by family/DH so I won't need to be so attached to her 24/7, and I plan to BF for as long as possible.

ETA: THANK YOU for any help/advice!
 
Amber 1) Don''t pump if you want less milk! I would just do a small hand expression into the sink to relieve the pain, but just knuckle through it and keep the one sided feeding. Your body will adjust your supply -- a full boob for a longer period of time is what tells your body to slow production. 2) Hand sucking is a normal developmental thing at Piper''s age, doesn''t mean anythng except that she is discovering her body and her world! 3) Many moms switch back and forth. It sounds like your supply is good, so as long as you keep BFing as much as you possible can, then you can offer a bottle a couple times a day without worrying too much. She will not get confused. But I wouldn''t recdommend doing it too much. Your supply is still forming and regulating and pumping just isn''t the same thing as BFing, so if it is possible to nurse her at work it is really the best for BFing longer term. I know it is hard to be discreet with a baby her age because latch is difficult, but if you can figure out a way I always think it is good to get used to BFing in public when you plan to BF long term because it just makes life easier.
 
Ditto to Dreamer.

If you want to bottle feed during the day and breastfeed at night, what my books advise is that it is hard to do so long-term if you're not co-sleeping. Co-sleeping allows the baby to eat as often and for as long as they want at night which gives extra stimulation for milk-production. Prolactin production is also higher at night than during the day.

If you are just waking for one or two feedings a night then it may not be enough to sustain your supply.

ETA: I think Fiery found this difficult, it would be worth seeing how Robbie is doing as I think she pumps during the day and then co-sleeps at night.
 
Thank you both!

There really isn''t anyone objecting to me BFing her here, in fact they''re all for it, I just feel awkward announcing "I''m going to feed the baby now" so they don''t walk into the room where I do it. Basically it''s just my own hangup. I enjoy BFing her, since it''s so EASY (and cheap!) and it''s nice to see her looking at me.

I guess I''ll just continue as usual, and hope it all gets less awkward for me.
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Date: 1/5/2010 10:39:16 PM
Author: phoenixgirl
Dreamer, good luck with the pumping and lunch time feedings. I would do the lunch thing if I could. If you wind up finding it too difficult, you can always try something different then.

I have been on a manic pumping kick. And I''m taking Fenugreek again, so I stink in a sickly sweet kind of way. I''m trying to get my freezer stashed so that when I start working again with my stinky teacher''s schedule (i.e. no regular breaks), maybe I can keep up EBF. Last night I crazily pumped after the 3:30 a.m. feeding. My goal is to pump at least a bottle (4 oz.) per day. Does 4 oz. per bottle sound right for a 10.5 - 11 lb. baby who feeds approximately every 3 hours during the day?
Click to expand...
I have read a couple of places that babies are supposed to get 2.5 oz of milk per pound of body weight per day. So if you have an 11 lb baby, they should get 27.5 oz per day. If they get fed about 7 times a day, that equals about 4 oz each feeding, so I think that is a good thing to start with.

Amber - I have recently gone back to work, so little E is getting bottles during the day. We started out giving him a couple of bottles a week at about 6 weeks so he''d get the hang of it. He is fine with them now, and he has no trouble getting back on the breast when I''m home. He gets breast fed by me in the morning, gets 2 to 3 bottles while I''m at work, gets breast fed another one or two times after I get home and before he goes to bed, and at least once again at night. So far, no nipple confusion. And my supply is just fine. I pump twice a day at work, and get at least 8 oz every time I pump. If you have a lot of milk to begin with, which it sounds like you do, I don''t think you will have a problem.

Fiery - Just wanted to check in and see how Sophia is doing. Hope everything went okay at the ped last night.
 
Pretty much ditto to Dreamer.

O has sucked on his hands constantly since birth. Weirdly, I can decipher b/w his shoving his hands in his mouth b/c he''s hungry and when he''s just sucking on them. You will too, eventually! But this is one of the reasons why it was great to have O on a 2.5/3 hour eating schedule, they get easier to predict. For example, if he ate at noon and he was shoving his hands in his mouth at 1 pm, I pretty much knew he wasn''t hungry. But if it was anywhere close to 2/3 hours, I would feed him. Also, when O gets hungry there is NO mistaking or soothing him so you figure it out pretty quickly.

FWIW, I pump during the day and nurse O at night and have had no problems at all. In fact, I feel like I have more milk than I did. Go figure. Now, O is almost 5 months so I do agree with Dreamer that nursing him as much as possible at this stage is best as your body is still determining milk supply, but pumping/bottle once a day or so probably won''t make much difference. I think I started pumping and letting my mom give him a bottle so I could have a bit of freedom occasionally at around 5/6 weeks. I didn''t do it regularly, but maybe once a day. It didn''t seem to affect O at all.

I should say I did have some nursing issues with O around 3.5 months but it had nothing to do with pumping. He started refusing to nurse, so I had to pump & give him a bottle instead during the day. My supply did lessen for about a week, but then went back to normal. This was when I was still at home with him, so not b/c of work or anything. He just went on boob strike!

I am a big proponent of feeding schedules. In the beginning you should feed them whenever they seem hungry, but by 6 weeks I think you can safely try the 2.5/3 hour schedule. And it will make work a lot easier for Piper and for you. JMO!
 
PG, the best way to figure how much bm to put in a bottle is 1 oz. per hour. Babies do vary, so one baby might want a bit more while another baby wants a bit less, but it''s a place to start. For a baby who feeds every 3 hours, I''d start with 3 oz. and then adjust from there.

The cool thing is that this is the standard for a breastfed baby no matter what his age or weight!

When I was building up a freezer stash, I found the easiest way was to pump on one side while nursing on the other side. It does take a bit of juggling, but I liked how efficient it was. I hated pumping AND breastfeeding because it felt like that''s all I was ever doing!

Amber, I agree with the others that say not to pump if you want to decrease your milk supply. UNLESS, you want to pump off the excess milk and store if for later! Since she''s 6 weeks, you should find that your supply settles down a bit soon. Honestly, I''d much rather deal with oversupply issues than undersupply ''cause I''d take advantage of it and fill the freezer. With Will, I had what I thought was a decent freezer stash -- until I had some supply issues later on (like at 7 months) and went through it quite quickly.

As for the bottle feeding, it''s perfectly possible to do bottles during the day and breastfeed at night, but there are some things to keep in mind.

You''ll have to pump on a regular basis to make up for the bottles you give Piper. This is just like someone who''s working and has the baby in day care. You might pump once in the morning, once in the afternoon and then nurse her at lunch time when you can probably get some quiet time without interruptions.

Has Piper had a bottle at all yet? Since she''s 6 weeks, she may not be willing to take one without some work. I usually recommend introducing the bottle between 3-4 weeks. I had a child that REFUSED all artificial nipples because I didn''t introduce one until she was well out of that window.

If she hasn''t had one, you might try having your DH give her one while you go out of the house. Many babies will not accept a bottle from Mom or even if Mom is in the same house! At her age, I wouldn''t worry about her suddenly developing a preference for them.

And then there''s the other thing...she may refuse to take a bottle from you during the day because she knows the original food source is right there.
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As for actually preparing the bottles, it''s pretty easy. Whatever type of bottle you choose (and you may have to try a couple kinds), make sure to use a slow-flow nipple. I stick with the Playtex nursers with drop ins because they''re so easy to clean each night, but a lot of people like Avent.

Once you put the milk in the bottle, fill a container with warm water and set the bottle in there for a while OR gently swirl the bottle while running warm water over it from the tap. If you store milk in a bag to freeze, you can just warm it in the bag the same way and then transfer it to the bottle. Just be sure not to shake it hard because it''s not good for bm.

BTW, that''s so awesome that you can have her at work with you like that! I love hearing about workplaces that are family friendly because it''s just so good for everyone. I''m planning to keep the baby at home for the first 3 months while I work here, but if I have to go into the office, he''ll go along with me. I''m convinced that having your baby with you while you work does wonders for continuing the breastfeeding relationship, which benefits your employer because you''re less likely to be out due to a sick baby.
 
Thank you ladies for all the great advice! You really don''t know how much this helps me.

RPS: I am VERY lucky! The people I work for I used to also baby-sit for, so they brought their kids in to work a lot when I first started here (10 years ago). I used to take the kids to the park and to get ice cream, it was great. I was pretty much bookkeeping as well as baby-sitting, but I love the kids so much that it was a perk for me (also, who WOULDN''T want to go to the park with the kids she helped raise- WHILE at work?). This is why I decided to bring our baby in with me, because they''re like family to me.
 
Amber- Question I''ve been meaning to ask you! Is "AmberWaves" for Julianne Moore''s porno character in Boogie Nights, or is it like "Of amber waves of grain"? Or neither and I just have a dirty, patriotic mind.
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RPS- A friend of mine sent me this article and I thought you might find it interesting. I didn''t want to continue thread-jacking about BF over on the preggo thread, so glad to see you over here. Hope you enjoy!

http://drmomma.blogspot.com/2009/07/breastfeeding-in-land-of-genghis-khan.html

Caveat: While I find this article intersting and a very sweet take on motherhood, I in no way secretly wish I could move to Mongolia and live in a tent so that I could BF freely!
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Hi ladies

I took Sophia to the pedi yesterday for her fever and asked that they check her urine while we were there. Her urine had a very strong odor. When we went in for her vaccines I mentioned her urine scent and they said it was nothing, probably just the switch from bm to formula, the type of diaper, even how often I change her diaper. I mentioned it again last night and it turns out she had a UTI
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She''s on 9 days of omnicet (oral antibiotic) with a f/u appt on the 14th. I get results of her blood test on Monday. On the 14th they are going to put a cath in to check her urine
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The pedi explained that it could be due (and excuses in advance if I''m saying anything incorrectly) to reflux where instead of all the urine pushing out, some of it comes back up.

I also need to make an appt for the 18th to have a renal ultrasound (checking kidneys) and they''re also going to do a procedure called vcuh (?) where they place a dye and see if it is going back up. She said she wants it done to make sure everything is ok and she won''t need surgery
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Sorry for the selfish post. I''ll catch up later. Sophia is doing well, no pain or anything and no more fever which is great.
 
Fiery, so sorry to hear about Sophia!! I''m glad you were persistent though, it''s a good lesson for me to learn, as I tend to back off easily. Piper was diagnosed with the kidney reflux in utero, but it went away on its own. Not that it means anything. I hope that''s not what it is. Either way, you poor things.
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China: it was for the song, then I remembered the Boogie Nights character and was like, "DAMN." I should put a disclaimer as my siggy: "Name not from movie about ****". Although my real name and maiden sound a lot more porny than that! The Amber part is my first name, now I wish I had tried just "Amber" (ala Mara) for my SN!
 
Fiery- Wow! Holy mother''s intuition, batman! I am so sorry that Sophia isn''t feeling well and you have to go through all of this.
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Remember the babes are a lot stronger than we give them credit for and she won''t remember any of this the next day even. She''s a strong cookie. But I will be hoping that all is ok and it''s just the UTI. Glad she is feeling better already!

Amber- Now see, I would have been like, cool, the name works on so many levels!!!! I love your real name, btw. So fiesty.
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Fiery - So sorry about Sophia, hope all turns out well and she gets better fast!

China - Great article! I do admit that I use the boob as a distraction technique with Daisy all the time... whilst a lot of the article makes sense. I''m not so sure about breast-milk in one''s coffee!

I''ve also noticed that since Daisy got mobile she''s only taking three big feeds a day - before both naps and before bed. The rest of the time she''ll be doing something - playing or rampaging around - and then she''ll suddenly stop, come over to sit on my knee and want to feed for 30 seconds or so before rushing off again. I guess I''ve just turned into a big security blanket or something!

Amber - I agree with RPS about giving Piper the odd bottle, I have a few friends who were terrified about nipple confusion and left it till 3 months to try one and now their kids would rather starve than take one which is very limiting for them.

I also think the whole feeding in public thing just takes some getting used to and is hardest at the beginning both because you''re self-concious and because you have to help them latch on which tends to show rather more boobage than normal. Once they can latch themselves it''s easier and honestly people barely notice, even when they turn their heads to see what is going on behind them! I found it weird at first feeding her in front of my IL''s and DH''s grandparents but now it''s easy: at xmas there were my SIL who has a 4 month old, DH''s step-sister who has a 6 month old and me all sitting in a row in front of the TV feeding our babies, we looked like some kind of nurse in!

DH was also very supportive and would encourage me to just ''get them out'' at the beginning when I was a bit shy about it all!
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I fed Daisy the other day in the checkout queue at the supermarket - she was having one of her ''I am starving and if I don''t eat NOW I will die'' moments, so I just loosened the Mei Tai off a bit so I could drop her down to boob level, hoiked up my jumper and carried on with queuing, taking stuff out of the trolley etc. When we left the supermarket, DH asked if I wanted to feed Daisy before we got back in the car - despite him standing next to me the whole time and carrying on a conversation he hadn''t even realised I''d just fed her...
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Oh no...poor Sofia!!!
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You go with that intuition mama!. I hope she feels better soon!

Amber I have no advice on the BFing since I couldn''t BF (boo)...but wanted to say that your company ROCKS!

PG My guys eat 4-5 oz (usually just 4) every 3 hours during the day.
 
DD and NF - my sympathies on all of the painting.

Mgal - glad to hear you''re feeling better!

PG - G tended to drink about 4 oz at a time, generally every 3 hours or so. So that sounds about right to me too.

Amber - I can see that you''ve already gotten a lot of great advice. What I''d personally do about the engorgement is pump or hand express just enough to take the edge off. You don''t want to pump enough that your body thinks it needs all that milk, but a little bit of pumping/expressing can really help you feel a lot better. I cosleep but have had no problems with bottles at day, nursing at night - however, he won''t take a bottle from me. Has to be someone else feeding him.

The hardest part about feeding them in public is just getting used to it. It gets a lot less awkward with time. For the most part, other people really don''t notice either.

Pandora - I''ve done that with the Ergo and had my friend ask me why I was carrying him so low in it, completely oblivious. LOL.

Fiery - I''m sorry to hear about Sophia, but thank God you had your intuition about that. I hope she gets better soon now that she''s being treated.
 
Blen I got the scootababy and it is great! Too bad it came when my mat leave was finished
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I really could have used it the last few months. I find it more comfortable to carry him in than the Ergo, just because it is a more natural position and he likes to look around. He was not liking how constraining the ergo was now that he is older. I have not worn him long term in it so not sure how it would be on a walk, but def. a good thing!
 
DD, I''m really glad that it''s working out well for you! Yay!

After months of being an Ergo cheerleader, I am not so much feeling the love these days myself. I''m not sure if it''s because George is heavier or if I''ve now lost just enough weight to throw things off, but I just feel like I can''t get a good fit anymore and so it''s not all that comfy.

I just asked you a question over in the baby gear thread, about whether you still like your baby monitor. We need a basic audio one that will work in a larger house and I saw that you mentioned yours like, a year ago.
 
China, thank you for that link! It was really a sweet read, with some laughs thrown in.

Amber, your company sounds fabulous! I can understand why you''d be there so long and feel as if they''re family.

The company I work for is VERY family oriented. Now that I''m having #6, I have the second highest number of kids. Our CTO has 7 and our CEO has 5. The other people either have 2-3 kids or they''re young and haven''t gone down that path yet, but they have nieces/nephews that they dote on. I''ve taken all of my kids into the office and never had one bad word said -- in fact, they''re usually invited to sit in co-workers'' offices. That''s something you simply cannot put a value on, and I appreciate it after working at other places that expected work to come before family all of the time.

About BFIP: I know how hard it can be to nurse in public when you''re just starting out! I refused to do it with my first 2 and would hide out in the car. I got a little bit better with #3, and then with #4 became a pro.

Some of my tips for BFIP comfortably:

1. Dress for success! You won''t feel really comfortable hiking your shirt up so that some of your back and side is exposed. Button down shirts/cardigans are wonderful for this. Under them, wear a t-shirt/tank and then you can lift the t-shirt/tank while the shirt/cardigan keeps your back and side covered. The baby will cover what little of your belly is exposed.

2. Practice at home. Ask your DH to help with this. Get yourself situated somewhere, like on a chair in the middle of the room and get the baby latched on. Have your DH walk back and forth and try to see something. It will become quite obvious that unless he''s really staring, it will appear to him as if you are simply cradling the baby.

3. Take a field trip. Go out to McDonald''s or something similar with DH or a friend. Find a booth where you can sit first with your back to people. Nurse the baby. Then switch sides of the table so you''re facing people and nurse some more. This is a really good way to ease into nursing in public because you can plan when to go/where to sit for your comfort level.

The more you do it, the more comfortable and capable you get. I personally love to see other moms BFIP because I think it''s such a wonderful thing.

Oh, and a tip for having a nursing toddler...do NOT wear a shirt with snaps without something more substantial than a bra under it unless you''re ok with being half-naked in public. When my daughter was a bit over a year old, I was wearing a snap-up denim shirt one day when we were at Target. She apparently decided that she wanted to nurse right then and there and gave a good yank on the front of the shirt -- and everyone in the electronics section saw me standing there with my shirt wide open and the lovely white, boring nursing bra underneath.
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Date: 1/6/2010 10:51:45 PM
Author: Blenheim
DD, I''m really glad that it''s working out well for you! Yay!

After months of being an Ergo cheerleader, I am not so much feeling the love these days myself. I''m not sure if it''s because George is heavier or if I''ve now lost just enough weight to throw things off, but I just feel like I can''t get a good fit anymore and so it''s not all that comfy.

I just asked you a question over in the baby gear thread, about whether you still like your baby monitor. We need a basic audio one that will work in a larger house and I saw that you mentioned yours like, a year ago.
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I like it fine for the price. We don''t use it at all though. We can hear him if he really needs us so we don''t worry about it.

I think the ergo is best for placid babies who don''t squirm and move all*the*time. Huter is not one of those babies.
 
Date: 1/6/2010 3:42:30 PM
Author: fiery
Hi ladies

I took Sophia to the pedi yesterday for her fever and asked that they check her urine while we were there. Her urine had a very strong odor. When we went in for her vaccines I mentioned her urine scent and they said it was nothing, probably just the switch from bm to formula, the type of diaper, even how often I change her diaper. I mentioned it again last night and it turns out she had a UTI
7.gif


She''s on 9 days of omnicet (oral antibiotic) with a f/u appt on the 14th. I get results of her blood test on Monday. On the 14th they are going to put a cath in to check her urine
7.gif


The pedi explained that it could be due (and excuses in advance if I''m saying anything incorrectly) to reflux where instead of all the urine pushing out, some of it comes back up.

I also need to make an appt for the 18th to have a renal ultrasound (checking kidneys) and they''re also going to do a procedure called vcuh (?) where they place a dye and see if it is going back up. She said she wants it done to make sure everything is ok and she won''t need surgery
7.gif


Sorry for the selfish post. I''ll catch up later. Sophia is doing well, no pain or anything and no more fever which is great.
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Hi Fiery, I''m sorry to hear you''re having to deal with this. If it''s any help, Amelia has the same thing, so here''s some info based on our experience. We caught a UTI early (strong smell, tiny spot of blood) and got the tests you mention done when she was about 4 months. It was about half a day at the hospital and while I wouldn''t say it was fun, it''s wasn''t too traumatic.

The degree of reflux is described on a scale of 1 - 5 on each kidney, with 5 being the most serious. Amelia had 3.5 in both, so she''s on a long term antibiotic to prevent a further UTI. The condition will often correct itself as they grow (so the tests are done again at around age 3) but in the meantime, it won''t cause any harm unless she gets a UTI- then the kidneys can be damaged. Hence the antibiotics. Preventing a UTI is the most important thing.

The other thing to keep in mind is that even with the antibiotic, breakthrough infections are possible, so you have to be alert for the first signs of UTI. I have a letter from Amelia''s Dr explaining her condition - as soon as she gets a temperature or looks a bit off colour even, we take her straight to hospital to be monitored and tested for UTI (the letter just make it quicker and means we don''t have to go through explanations or get any hassle about being neurotic first time parents lol).

She''s been fine so far, no real problems at all. She has had a raised temp a few times but her tests have come back clear, so it wasn''t a UTI. We''re really hopefull that the next tests will show that the problem is correcting itself. Otherwise, there is a fairly minor op that will sort it out when she''s a bit older.

The main thing is just to be very vigilant and trust your instincts if you think she is sick or getting sick (which you''ve done, thank heavens).

Hope this is helpful, if you have any questions I''ll do my best.

Jen
 
Amber- I am a bit late, but Welcome! Piper is so cute and you are very lucky to have the work set up you do! Sounds like you got a lot of great advice re: pumping/engorgement issues. It will get better as your body figures out Piper's demands!

Sabine- I guess I am in the minority, but there is no way either DH or I would consider him flying alone with Ellie. I think this is mostly because he travels every week for work Mon-Thurs, so he really only sees her Fri-Sun and this kind of limits how comfortable he is with her. Or maybe I should say how well he "reads" her. Lately she has been having these crazy melt downs if we don't get her put down for a nap in time, and he is kind of at a loss for how to calm her down. It really upsets him because he feels like she doesn't like him
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, even though I've explained to him that as she grows her patterns change and it's just really hard to stay in tune if you aren't with her all the time. If it weren't for these new tantrums, I would certainly be ok with him taking her. Best of luck to you and your DH whatever you decide!

Anchor- Welcome to you too! I LOVE the name Jacob and can't wait to see pics!

DD- so glad work and the feeding situation went well.
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Fiery- oh no
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- I hope Sophia is feeling better!

Pandora- good wishes to your hubby! That would be great if you were able to stay home with Daisy!

Blen- those pics are TOO cute!

Mandarine- good to see you! You ARE crazy for taking that trip, but I am so glad it went well! It must feel good to have that experience under your belt, if you know what I mean. One more step closer to "life as usual" again, right? And oh goodness- #3 thoughts already?!?!?

ETA: LOVE all the tips for BFing in public. I am still to nervous to try it, but you guys are helping a lot!
 
Ellie and I met a friend for lunch yesterday and I just had to take a pic of her little outfit!

tinyIMG_0907.jpg
 
Date: 1/7/2010 4:51:43 AM
Author: Mrs Mitchell

Hi Fiery, I''m sorry to hear you''re having to deal with this. If it''s any help, Amelia has the same thing, so here''s some info based on our experience. We caught a UTI early (strong smell, tiny spot of blood) and got the tests you mention done when she was about 4 months. It was about half a day at the hospital and while I wouldn''t say it was fun, it''s wasn''t too traumatic.

The degree of reflux is described on a scale of 1 - 5 on each kidney, with 5 being the most serious. Amelia had 3.5 in both, so she''s on a long term antibiotic to prevent a further UTI. The condition will often correct itself as they grow (so the tests are done again at around age 3) but in the meantime, it won''t cause any harm unless she gets a UTI- then the kidneys can be damaged. Hence the antibiotics. Preventing a UTI is the most important thing.

The other thing to keep in mind is that even with the antibiotic, breakthrough infections are possible, so you have to be alert for the first signs of UTI. I have a letter from Amelia''s Dr explaining her condition - as soon as she gets a temperature or looks a bit off colour even, we take her straight to hospital to be monitored and tested for UTI (the letter just make it quicker and means we don''t have to go through explanations or get any hassle about being neurotic first time parents lol).

She''s been fine so far, no real problems at all. She has had a raised temp a few times but her tests have come back clear, so it wasn''t a UTI. We''re really hopefull that the next tests will show that the problem is correcting itself. Otherwise, there is a fairly minor op that will sort it out when she''s a bit older.

The main thing is just to be very vigilant and trust your instincts if you think she is sick or getting sick (which you''ve done, thank heavens).

Hope this is helpful, if you have any questions I''ll do my best.

Jen
Click to expand...
Jen, thanks so much for sharing your experience. Are there any other signs you have noticed in Amelia that has led to a UTI? I mean, besides the strong urine odor and/or fever?

TIA!
 
aww Natalina, she''s so adorable!!!

**


So...it IS possible to spoil a newborn...or at least my guys!. I got into the habit of rocking the to sleep. It wasn''t a big deal and I loved snuggling them. I could rock them both at the same time and just loved it. Well, they''re way too heavy now and they want to be rocked for like 20 minutes before they actually fall sleep!!!. If they aren''t in DEEP sleep then they wake up crying as soon as you put them down....so sometimes it would take me 45 minutes to put them down for a 30 minute nap! It was just a bad habit...that needed to be broken!.

Today I started trying a bit of crying for naps to start to try to break the habit. I lightly swaddled them (not with the big guns -aka: miracle blanket- as I save that for the nights!). Then I sing and rock them, and down they go (awake). They cry and fuss, I go back in one minute and pat their butts, offer a paci, turn on the crib soother and leave again. They keep crying, I go back in after another minute, same thing. Then I leave again...then come back, rock them each a minute again and put them back. All in all it takes like 10 minutes until the fall sleep. That''s not bad right? for the first day of trying to break the rocking madness??

I want to try tonight at bedtime too.

Any tips??
 
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