PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[vizsla]

totally random.. but can i just say how piss*d i am that this week alone 5 people have said that "c is a total momma's boy" (or something to that effect). he is going thru separation anxiety.
it's called a natural part of development people!! geesh.
plus, way to go labeling itty bitty baby boys as 'weak' or needing their moms unjustly. i just get soooo

vent over

 

[phoenixgirl]

Fly by post standing up because the laptop isn't charged and I don't Claire to grab the cord.

I just tried to pick up a mama at the kiddie coffee shop. Not in a weird way, but you know . . . She lives two blocks away and just moved here. Maybe she'll be my friend! We agreed that I'd FB request her, but then I wasn't sure I had the right person . . . to be continued!

I'm bringing sexy (time) back over here. Claire has moved to feeding 5, maybe 6 times a day. So maybe the BFing hormones are down? In any event, I just wanted to give hope to the BFing mamas finding the libido has left the building. It's definitely much better than it was a month ago. For the BC curious, I gave up the mini-pill in case that was causing the libido problems, so now we're using condoms. Not ideal, but I'd really like to avoid hormonal BC now that I've been off it and felt the difference.

Claire is sprouting two/three more teeth (top row). She currently just has the two on the bottom.

I've gotten up the courage to dunk the disgusting cloth diapers when necessary, which is a lot better than letting them fester. Apparently we could get some special sprayer (like a handheld bidet) but I'm holding off on that. I feel like all I do is spend $$$.

Claire and I are heading up to my sister's tonight and then to the family beach house tomorrow (sans Daddy). DH will be fixing the water damage in our upstairs hall and master bedroom.

I really have to make a decision about the France trip. We've kind of settled on a date, but it's only 3 weeks after she turns one. I'm worried that if the weaning isn't going well, we'll be stuck.

 

[steph72276]

Haha, Phoenix you crack me up with the picking up a mama at the coffee shop line! Good for you for finding a possible friend. I find it is really easy to make friends with a baby with you...people are always coming up and talking to us!

 

[meresal]

Man, it's been a while... I guess I just don't know what to post about recently... that and I don't have the time to read posts anymore, much less post my own. C is boycotting naps. He is taking 2 or 3 20-30 minute naps a day... and I am lucky if 2 of them are without a fight. It's like he has forgotten how to close his eyes. (He is also, about 99% of the time, only falling asleep if I hold/rock him. So I do that and make sure he is in a good sleep for about 5 minutes, and then by the time I get over to lay him down in the PNP, he either wakes up immediately, or no more than 15 minutes later.)
Our day starts out great and he's the happiest baby in the world, and then as the day goes on, he slowly gets more and more grumpy. Then, by the time DH gets home from work, C wants nothing to do with anyone but me. Also, in order to get C to take a nap, I have to nurse him... however, this usually means he nurses for about 5 minutes and then passes out. So our routine for feedings is completely shot and the rest of the day is spent doing little snacks when I think he is hungry, or when he needs a nap. It's so weird, and a bit frustrating if we are being honest.

We have C's 4 month appt on Thursday, so I am hoping that the second round of shots go well.

Mara, I hope things are going well with the new nannies. Crazy to hear about the weather there!
Burk, so glad to hear that someone else can't imagine not having more!
Jcrow- I hope that Em is sleeping better. As you can see from above, we are having some issues with sleeping. I am trying to figure out when to start trying to get C to put himslef to sleep. I feel like he is in a weird stage right now, so maybe in a week or two.
PG- Congratulations on the possibly friend! I know how you feel. DH and I moved to a new area, and I met some SAHM's in our Gymboree class that I have connected with. It is great to feel like you have your own "people" and make plans again.

Re: Baths: We have a baby tub/lounger thingy... and we bought a foam pad to lay C on until he is big enough to be in the lounger by itself. It is plastic and not very comfortable, so we wanted something softer for him to sit on, and that would hold him in place. We will probably switch to the Duck tub once he can sit up on his own.

That is all i can remember right now... Hope everyone is having a good week

Ohh, and a positive for me... I have finally dropped a couple more pounds. After loosing almost 20 in the first 3 weeks, I hadn't lost a single pound since. I am thinking of trying WeightWatchers online, just to keep track of my eating habits. They factor in if you are breast feeding, which was my main worry about dieting of any kind. We shall see...

 

[somethingshiny]

Just wanted to post to say Lily is sleeping SOO much better! I didn't want to jinx it those first two or three nights by bragging about it, but we've had exceptional nights for over a week! Usually every other day or so she'll want to stay up for a couple hours at one of the night time feedings, (2am) but it's significantly better than just being up all night! I am concerned that it may be short lived though. The card warned us that she may be more tired while adjusting to the new med dosage. I'm really hoping that she's adjusted by now and I'm going to have a baby that sleeps!

On a side note, my 4.5 yr old shoved a googly eye up his nose this morning. After a few tries we were able to blow it out. But, trying to convince a crying little boy not to breathe in through his nose while he's gasping is harder than it would seem.

Hope you're all doing well! I don't have time to catch up (and fear I never will!). Lily is demanding a meal!

 

[jcrow]

oh, mere, i was so where you are a few weeks ago. and it's strange because it seems like they go in reverse as far as sleep goes. hugs!

 

[ljmorgan]

Quick drive by from me --

For A+A lovers, the older style SIX layer dream blanket (in aqua/brown only) is on sale for $28.96 plus $5.39 shipping at Amazon.com -- I have been trying to scoop one of these up on eBay for a while since they're discontinued and thicker than the new four layer dream blankets, but they always go for $$$. They retail for $58ish instead of $44 like the new ones. http://www.amazon.com/aden-anais-Dr...ie=UTF8&s=baby-products&qid=1282758560&sr=8-6

I'm going back to work next week and I am absolutely dreading it. I feel like I am very fortunate with the new work schedule that my husband and I have worked out, but I am still heartbroken. I just can't stay out of my field for a few years because it moves so fast... if I left and tried to return after 2-3 years, I'd be obsolete toast. But here is what we're doing... we're both enrolled in a program at work that allows us to work only 20 hours a week (as opposed to our usual 40) and attend grad school part-time. So I will be working Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday as two 7 hour days, and one six hour day. Then I have two online classes a week at night. My husband will work his 20 hours as two long days (Wednesday and Friday) and one of us will be home with Andrew every day. I am nervous about working, going to school, and taking care of the baby because right now I stay home and feel like I get nothing done! How do you ladies do it?

In positive news, I called the woman in charge of our "nursing mothers" program at work and was stunned to hear about the support that we have! Sometimes I wonder if it's because I work in such a male dominated environment (computer science) and nearly all of my co-workers are male... perhaps my employer is hyper sensitive to women's needs at work We have several pumping rooms at work with a Medela Symphony, a comfy chair, refrigerators to store milk, a sink to wash parts, etc. So even though I have a Medela Freestyle at home, I think that I'll keep it at home and just use the Symphony at work. I found out there is a pumping room right around the corner from the office that I work in, so I am really pleased. I have worked so hard to establish solid BFing with Andrew that I was really worried about being able to pump at work. Anyway, I can keep all of my parts and supplies in the nursing room (lockers) and then just stop by on my way out of the office to grab the milk and go.

I did have some grand illusion that my kid would be sleeping 12 hours a night straight by the time I returned to work As it is he goes to bed at 7pm, wakes up around 1am and 4-5am to eat, with a final wake up around 7. If you could choose when to work a 7 hour day, what would you do? Get up at the 4-5 am feed and go into work around 6-6:30 and leave at 1:30-2pm, or sleep and feed him at his final wake up time around 7, get in at 8:30am and work until 4pm? I am not sure what would work best but I'm leaning towards the earlier time just because I wouldn't be getting a lot of extra quality sleep anyway, and I would have more awake time with him in the afternoon.

 

[Mara]

hey Linds really quickly, I would do the first option--just get up and go in earlier then you can have more afternoon time with him. Since J goes to bed at 7pm I leave work at 4:30 or 5pm so I have 2 hours with him (not enough!) and then work again for another hour after he goes to bed.

I'm looking at the dream blanket --tempting, but what do you really use it for? Since we sleep sack J... I don't really give him blankets other than his fave thin knitted one my Mom made him. But I hear some Moms love the dream blanket. Also if it's too hot to sack him or give him the knit blanket (like last nite) I just gave him an A&A single layer blanket.

mere..yay for weight dropping. Agree with jcrow that sleep can change often, depends on babies and what is going on with them. how old is C again? 4mo growth spurt or wakeful maybe? we def were stuck in that for like 2-3 weeks.

Hi other Moms! Don't have too much to add... for whatever reason the thread has been sooo slow lately!!! And even the other site is too. I have been beyond busy this week--don't really know why except maybe settling into this new schedule, new nannies, etc. I also am getting some dental stuff done today. Jeez, the week is just flying. Oh yeah and I wish I wasn't working.

and last nite J's room was 85...poor kid! We had his ceiling fan going and a floor fan all night long. I thought he would sleep like crap but he was totally fine. He just had a tshirt and diaper and an A&A blanket in there with him. I found him snuggling it when I checked on him, cute.

 

[ChinaCat]

Hi ladies. Just popping in to say hi!

Viz- Any news on the job front???

Phxgirl- I wish a cool mom would pick me up at a coffee shop!

 

[phoenixgirl]

OK, good, it was the right woman on FB and she accepted me and seemed amenable to a park date next week. I did have a tiny fear a la middle school that I would be rejected. Fun! I've always been the person who invited the new student (when I was a student) or new teacher to eat lunch, so I'm glad to get to continue that in mommyland.

Linds, first of all, that's super awesome about the pumping room at work. That makes total sense, and I give your company props for being pro-nursing. I wish my school had been more accommodating on that front, but in the public school system there's not a lot of time, money, or space to dole out for that kind of thing.

As for working earlier or later, I'll just ask some questions that maybe can give you some clarity. Will you be able to nap if need be when you get home? Getting up for the day at 4, working, playing with baby, then taking a night class would be exhausting. Are you a morning or night person? I'm not a morning person, so that wouldn't work for me.

Crying baby, gotta go!

 

[lovinsparkles]

Hi PS mommies,

I have an assorted list of questions and no experienced mommies to ask them of. Any takers? Feel free to answer any that you might know the answer to off the top of your head.

1. What kind of winter gear does a 6 mo. old baby need? My DD will be 6 mo. by Oct., about when it gets cold around here, and I'm not sure what kind of gear to stock up on. Snowsuit? Boots? We were gifted a Bundle Me thingy (I think that's for the stroller/carseat but maybe you need a separate snowsuit for other times??).

2. DD has slept in a pack N play in our room since birth. We have used her real crib more like a playpen, to hold her and let her watch her mobile while I shower, etc. Now I'm starting to think more about transitioning her to the crib full time, but she doesn't seem to associate it with sleep. Is this reversible or have I made a terrible mistake? Should I remove the mobile which seems to stimulate her rather than make her sleep (i.e. she cries when it turns off after 20 min., rather than letting it lull her to sleep)?

3. DD has been a fairly good nighttime sleeper so far, but daytime naps have been totally chaotic. She recently seems to be settling nicely into a late morning nap, but I haven't had any luck with the afternoon nap. She'll sleep in her stroller or while we are on the go, but not if I lay her in her crib/pen. I think I need some kind of ritual or something that makes her know it's sleep time...maybe? Also, maybe darker curtains?

4. Ahh, the paci. It has been a lifesaver so far. I've been trying to only use it for sleep time or when she's really fussy (which often means she's sleepy). Now she pretty much needs it for sleep. Should I take it away before that pattern gets any deeper? It is a problem in that if she drops it in the night, she's not big enough to replace it on their own, which means she cries until I fix it. When she's a little bit bigger will she be able to put it back herself, or will I always have to do it for her? How does that work with the cry it out method (i.e. if she drops it, let her cry it out, and then she'll learn to sleep without it, or just take it away completely?).

5. I need some kind of play area flooring to make our hardwoods softer as she learns to move around more. I'm hesitant on the idea of those foam mats for health reasons (I tend toward the organics rather than plastics). I was thinking maybe a cotton rag rug on top of a rug pad...do you think that would be cushioned enough for this purpose?

Thank you to any and all who feel like tackling any of these. I hope to reciprocate when I actually know what I'm doing...

 

[jcrow]

ah, seems like your little one is about the same age as mine :] em will turn 6 months oct 7. anyhoo...

Hi PS mommies,

I have an assorted list of questions and no experienced mommies to ask them of. Any takers? Feel free to answer any that you might know the answer to off the top of your head.

1. What kind of winter gear does a 6 mo. old baby need? My DD will be 6 mo. by Oct., about when it gets cold around here, and I'm not sure what kind of gear to stock up on. Snowsuit? Boots? We were gifted a Bundle Me thingy (I think that's for the stroller/carseat but maybe you need a separate snowsuit for other times??).

2. DD has slept in a pack N play in our room since birth. We have used her real crib more like a playpen, to hold her and let her watch her mobile while I shower, etc. Now I'm starting to think more about transitioning her to the crib full time, but she doesn't seem to associate it with sleep. Is this reversible or have I made a terrible mistake? Should I remove the mobile which seems to stimulate her rather than make her sleep (i.e. she cries when it turns off after 20 min., rather than letting it lull her to sleep)?

3. DD has been a fairly good nighttime sleeper so far, but daytime naps have been totally chaotic. She recently seems to be settling nicely into a late morning nap, but I haven't had any luck with the afternoon nap. She'll sleep in her stroller or while we are on the go, but not if I lay her in her crib/pen. I think I need some kind of ritual or something that makes her know it's sleep time...maybe? Also, maybe darker curtains?

-- so where we are too. i can almost always count on her to nap once a day in the morning. after that it's hit or miss. usually miss. em is also an on the go baby. while she'll miss napping at the house, as soon as we're out and about, she'll fall asleep in her car seat. so, not sue i an offer any help since it seems we're in the same boat.

4. Ahh, the paci. It has been a lifesaver so far. I've been trying to only use it for sleep time or when she's really fussy (which often means she's sleepy). Now she pretty much needs it for sleep. Should I take it away before that pattern gets any deeper? It is a problem in that if she drops it in the night, she's not big enough to replace it on their own, which means she cries until I fix it. When she's a little bit bigger will she be able to put it back herself, or will I always have to do it for her? How does that work with the cry it out method (i.e. if she drops it, let her cry it out, and then she'll learn to sleep without it, or just take it away completely?).

5. I need some kind of play area flooring to make our hardwoods softer as she learns to move around more. I'm hesitant on the idea of those foam mats for health reasons (I tend toward the organics rather than plastics). I was thinking maybe a cotton rag rug on top of a rug pad...do you think that would be cushioned enough for this purpose?

-- we have carpet, but i just got a 100% cotton quilt/coverlet thingy that goes on a bed to put onto the floor since her small playmat no longer contained her. it works beautifully! i got to for a steal at tjmax. maybe getting two of those and doubling it up would be enough cushion?

Thank you to any and all who feel like tackling any of these. I hope to reciprocate when I actually know what I'm doing...

 

[MonkeyPie]

1. What kind of winter gear does a 6 mo. old baby need? My DD will be 6 mo. by Oct., about when it gets cold around here, and I'm not sure what kind of gear to stock up on. Snowsuit? Boots? We were gifted a Bundle Me thingy (I think that's for the stroller/carseat but maybe you need a separate snowsuit for other times??).

5. I need some kind of play area flooring to make our hardwoods softer as she learns to move around more. I'm hesitant on the idea of those foam mats for health reasons (I tend toward the organics rather than plastics). I was thinking maybe a cotton rag rug on top of a rug pad...do you think that would be cushioned enough for this purpose?

I am by no means an expert, but I think these two I can handle For winter gear, keep in mind the same rule you use any other time - babies wear one more layer than we do. The snowsuit will only be necessary if you intend on taking your little one out in some snow, lol. The bundleme will help a lot when you're out and about, though.

For the floor I think a deep rug on top of a rug pad will be plenty. It's inevitable that she will creep off onto the hardwood, but when she's playing with you she won't need a ton of padding. After all, we never had padding on the hardwood as babies, you know? She'll be good with a rug

----

On another note - has anybody noticed that they have clearer skin after having baby? My skin hasn't been this clear this long since I was a teenager. It's pretty awesome!

 

[anchor31]

I apologise for the "me centric" post in advance... J has been sick again and it's been crazy for the past two weeks, with visits to the hospital, than a 2½ days hospitalization; now we're home with a backpack IV thing. J is crawling so I have to watch him like a hawk when he's awake so he doesn't rip off his IV or strangle himself with it. The meds seem to be making him overexcited, so I'm exhausted. It should come off next week. I hope everyone is doing well!

 

[phoenixgirl]

Oh Anchor, how sad! I hope he feels better soon! So sad to think about him crawling around with his little IV.


Lovin ~
1. Claire was tiny over the winter, so I'm not sure this applies, but we did have a zip-up thick "snow" suit for the times we walked around after a snow storm. We used a Bundle Me on her carseat too. Other people just use blankets. My experience has been that it's easy to buy stuff you don't need before you know what you really need. Duh, right? I just mean, maybe go minimalist until you find yourself wishing for a pair of mittens or whatever.

2. PNP vs. Crib -- my experience has been (and continues to be) that you just have to keep trying out new things and working on transitioning from one thing to another until it clicks. Just be patient and don't freak out if it doesn't happen right away. And thank the baby gods if it does.

3. You're at 4 months with only a single morning nap? Hmmm. That seems early for just one nap, but every baby is different. Don't know on this one.

4. Paci . . . see #2.

5. Do you have area rugs? We have hardwoods, and Claire doesn't seem to mind them at all. As soon as she got mobile she started spending most of the time off the rugs. I wouldn't go to any trouble to babyproof the hardwoods unless you discover a problem with knees/legs. She is usually just scooting around in her diaper. She doesn't even mind the concrete in the basement. Granted, she is scooting, not crawling, so her knees are not an issue (but thigh-rubbing is).

 

[lovinsparkles]

jcrow - actually, it seems that my fuzzy mommy brain failed at math -- my LO will be 6 months in Nov., so you have a month on us...

monkey & phoenix - OK, maybe I'll just start with the Bundleme and blankets, and see if I really need a snowsuit. My quick web research says that babies walk around 9 months...so I guess you'd want a snowsuit by then cause they wouldn't be able to walk in a Bundleme? I guess I was afraid of her wobbily self bonking her head on hardwoods, but it's interesting that you don't think they're too much of a problem. I might still try to rig up some kind of cotton rug/rug pad combo unless I can find a ready made organic playmat for that area (so far no luck).

phoenix - she has started taking a solid late morning nap (like 1.5 hours). in the afternoon, she'll doze in the stroller or carseat or even for a few minutes in her bouncy chair, but then she wakes right up and never gets good rest so she stays fussy. i'm trying to figure out how to train her to sleep solidly then too. I bought my first sleep book this week (the no cry solution one), so maybe that will help me out.

thanks for the thoughts, ladies! very appreciative!

 

[Mara]

re: paci... she's prob too young to worry about it but i worried too. if it REALLY bothers you, you can do CIO but that is not any more fun than replacing the paci a few times. one of our friends did CIO with no paci and said it was pretty painful but her baby was only about 4.5mo old. it really depends on what bothers you vs not. i was not into the paci but J only takes it at night and he spits it out when he falls asleep. sometimes he needs it more, sometimes less. once i started letting him CIO (at about 6.5mo) he needs it way less because he ends up spitting it out, crying, then falling asleep without it and not needing it as much at night--maybe 1x.

re: crib sleep. here is what a friend told us to do and also what we did. we had him sleeping in bassinet first. i intro'd him to crib with naps. at first he didn't like it but i just kept doing the SAME THING over and over and finally he would nap in the crib. eventually we moved to 1/2 the first night in bassinet and 2nd 1/2 in the crib. then all crib. i was freaking out over the change but he adapted to it really easily and i think most moms here have had the same thing if i recall correctly.

re: clothes--i would ditto others, go minimalist til you know you need something. no use in stocking up to find she doesn't fit into the clothes come the right season (she could have a growth spurt and entirely skip a size from like 1 week to the next!!) and if you aren't really sure what you will need yet. we are in CA so even the bundle me was too warm for winter here... all we ever used was an A&A blanket and LS tops and pants. also our baby likes to be warm but not too warm. at 6mo she might not need that extra layer, she can regulate her temp a lot better than at 2mo etc.

re: hardwood floor. we have the same thing and we have 2 old rugs we don't use and a quilt so i just made play area for him using that. i was going to buy a rug but this works out fine and honestly unless we cordon him off in an area, he WILL end up on hardwood and he WILL bump his head, his face etc... and we'll all deal with it. the other day he made it to the wood at my moms house and is on the verge of crawling and kind of zipped fwd and hit his face but he didnt even cry. anyway i'm not saying let her do that but if it happens it happens, you can't prevent everything all the time. i started a thread called 'playmat or playpen' with a lot of responses from moms that you might find helpful.

not too much to report here other than i went to the dentist to have them fix a root canal (it was hurting) and they found an entirely new little canal they missed 2 years ago--no wonder it was hurting and it took 1.5 hours today, it has a temp filling on it and i have to go back in a week to do 2 more hours. UGH!!! and my mouth is aching, and i have a headache. not feeling like a ray of sunshine today--tired of being so strapped for time and feeling half ass about everything!

anchor, hope J feels better. big hugs for you all. poor baby.

 

[lovinsparkles]

Mara - Thank you!! So helpful! I'm going to go check out your playmat thread right now. I love the idea about half nights in the crib as a means of transition. No, the paci doesn't bother me too much right now (I only have to replace it a couple times a night usually)...I was more thinking about when she's in a crib in the other room and it might be more of a hassle to get in there and fix it over and over. Thanks for the info on how the CIO method works with the paci...that's what I thought but I wasn't sure.

 

[Sha]

Just popping in quickly to say

I've been reading but haven't had much time to respond. Busy week!

PG - your post made me llaugh!

Love all the baby pics! Burk - I can't believe K is crawling already! He is too cute...!

anchor - so sorry about the ongoing health issues. It must be so frustrating for all of you....

***********************

AFM - nothing much. I'm just loving off my daughter.... She is being so cute and funny most of the time these days - it just makes me laugh. Yesterday we were doing grocery shopping and she kept bouncing around in the trolley and shouting, "BAH BAH BUM BUM!!" at her top of her lungs, and grinning whenever anybody looked at her. She's such a silly-poo.....

 

[somethingshiny]

Totally spoke too soon. Last night, Lily was awake until midnight, then at 2 (when I had to wake her for meds) until 2:30, then at 4:30 until 7:30 then at 8 until 9:30. And, to top it off we had preschool orientation this morning. Luckily Nana was available to come over for a couple hours so I didn't have to take her with me. She's starting to rouse again for a meal. See you all later.

 

[KimberlyH]

Lovin, my .02.

NAPS: For now I would remove the mobile as it stimulates her, you can put it back later. I would find a routine and stick to it. Your daughter is about 3 months old if my math is correct, at that age I would put her down 2 hours after waking throughout the day. So if she sleeps until 7 nap at 9, wake at 10:30, back down at 12:30, awake at 1:30 back down at 3:30, then down for the night about 2 hours after her last wake up time. My daughter just transitioned to 2 naps a day at 6 months old. Before then she couldn't handle being up for any longer, and when she was getting her down was a bear.

CRIB: I'd start using the pnp as your play pen and the crib for sleep only to make the switch. We just moved our daughter to her crib and it went totally smoothly, but I nurse her to sleep. It took a while to get her to sleep in the pnp rather than on or in bed with me when she was smaller (like a month total to make the transition). I just kept trying over and over and over again until she finally stayed put, it eventually just stuck that she'd go longer and longer in the pnp, I started off with her first stretch of sleep and just kept adding from there.

FLOOR: Our living room and hall are carpeted, the rest of the house is hard wood. I'm going to buy playmats for her room.

Somethingshiny, I know it's hard but it sounds like Lily is sleeping like a typical infant. Jane's sleep gets good and then difficult again at times. Sleep isn't linear. Hang in there.

****

My girl is 6 months old today. She's getting so big and is just joy.

 

[ChinaCat]

Anchor- Hugs. You and J have really been through it. You are a strong mama and he's lucky to have you. Keep us posted.

Lovin- 9 months is pretty early for walking. We have hardwoods, area rugs and the playmat in various combos. O has been crawling since 6 months and just started walking at a year. No serious damage from head bumps on the hardwoods (or doors or tables, etc). I wouldn't worry about it for right now. We got a mat simply to put in one corner of our playroom and we keep all his toys on it and it's kind of "his" area. Also it has come in handy when he had diaper rash and I needed to let him crawl around without a diaper. It's very easy to clean pee off those rubber mats. But I would say we would be fine without them. Rugs would work perfectly.
As for the other stuff, you've gotten great comments. I agree with Kimberly on the naps.

Mara- Boo for root canals! But treat yourself to a shake to feel better.

Kimi- She is 6 months already? Happy SIX MONTHS to Jane!!!! I love love love that age.

 

[ljmorgan]

Mara I already have one dream blanket that I usually use to lie him down on -- it is so soft and cushy (but still breathable and not hot like those furry blankets I received a million of as gifts) and is nice to lay on our hardwood floors, or I drape it on the couch or just cuddle him up with it. I don't imagine I will ever use it in his crib, but it's large and would also be a great blanket for a toddler. I also use it as an impromptu nursing pillow in the car, traveling, etc

phoenixgirl I am NOT a morning person. However, my new dictator requires that I rise early so I suppose that I am a convert. Since my husband will be home with A on the days that I work, I would have the opportunity to nap in the afternoons if I needed to. I have one online class on a weeknight, and the other online class is Saturday mornings. I am really torn, but my schedule is flexible so I suppose that I can try things out both ways and see what works best. Thanks for the food for thought!

lovinsparkles As far as transitioning to the crib for sleep, I second everyone about moving the mobile for now. We just moved our son to his crib last night for the first time and had no problems. When he first came home from the hospital he slept in our bed for one month, then a bassinet for a month, then the Bjorn travel crib (the bassinet became too small.) We never planned any of it, things just worked out that way. I think that my kiddo is semi high maintenance but he never seems bothered by sleeping somewhere new, I just plop him down as usual. I think most people try "transitioning" during naps because the idea of shaking up night time sleep (especially if it's going smoothly) is TERRIFYING. So I can definitely see doing it that way.

Naps for all I bought ALL of the sleep books but really, really love "Healthy Sleep Habits, Healthy Child." It's written by someone who is actually a doctor that specializes in pediatric sleep and backs up his advice with research. I love that the book explains the science behind sleep. So many advice books seem so "common sense" and I feel disappointed after reading them thinking "I knew that!" This book however really surprised me. I had absolutely NO idea that most babies should be going back to sleep 1-2 hours after waking throughout the day... I figured that I was just supposed to wait for him to fall asleep on his own I suppose? Imagine how that was going I immediately started watching for those early fatigue signs, and napping is much easier for us. Kiddo takes 3-4 45min-2hour naps a day.

AFM Last night was A's first night in his own room Sigh. I wish we hadn't had to transition him to his room RIGHT as I'm going back to work because it's creating more sadness on my part, but it needed to be done so that I can get up/dress in the morning without waking him. Things just got in the way of us transitioning him sooner, travel, etc. He woke up at his normal times for feeding, and woke up happy and smiling in the morning. I was soooo worried I wasn't going to hear him cry -- even though his room is ohhhh 5 feet from ours, AND I have the baby monitor volume all of the way up... inches from my head. I would say that I ended up with the opposite problem, I woke up every time he BREATHED loudly but hey at least I feel better knowing that I will have no problem hearing him. I had this fear he'd cry all night and I'd never hear him and wake up and find some traumatized starving child in his crib! I had no idea I would become such an irrational person when I had a child!

 

[MonkeyPie]

Reading all of your posts about naps makes me wonder what I need to do to get Micah to nap like he should. He has never been a good napper, from birth he would stay awake hours longer than I thought he was "supposed" to. He's gotten better about it over time but he still only really naps twice a day (around 10 and 4) with the occasional nap scattered elsewhere. And never longer than 45 minutes, usually. I can't imagine him tolerating me putting him in his crib every two hours, that seems excessive.

 

[ljmorgan]

MP is he in a good mood most of the day? If so, I wouldn't worry about it if he is taking fewer naps. I think that the book is a guide but each child is different. My kiddo starts yawning and getting cranky sometimes an hour after waking last -- if I rock him or even walk around while holding him, he'll conk out -- so obviously he needs it. If Micah is awake and happy and not cranky, I bet his amount of sleep is just right!

 

[KimberlyH]

CC, it amazes me that she's 6 months old already too. I told my husband I want another baby, but would prefer two more. He's like "You have a baby right there!" I know I do, but I can't imagine not getting to do this again it's been such a joy. It was the first time he didn't flat out say "NO!" when I brought up three kids, so I'm secretly jumping for joy.

****

I do have something to contribute. We went out to dinner last night and Jane's diaper needed changed. So I say "I hope they have a changing table in the bathroom." My husband replies "Doesn't the ADA require it?" Um, she's a baby, not disabled...so I laughed and headed off to the bathroom; no changing table. I managed to change her standing up and no leakage! I was so proud of myself.

 

[Mara]

Kim...how did you change her standing up ?!? Please share! I have not needed to change J while out but I prob would have gone out to the car to do it in the trunk!

Linds... lol re irrational. i have my moments. our house is tiny and i DEF hear him, so i keep the volume off on the monitor--esp since it's video. now that he is older i don't worry AS much about him but the first few months you def can have some paranoid moments...esp the first few nights after we moved him from our room into his.

re: naps.. J is not a great napper, it really depends but we get 1-2 naps out of him a day, basically equaling 2-3 hours total every day regardless of 1 or 2 naps. but he goes the 12+ hours at night so as long as he gets the 12+2-3 then that's the 14-15 that i think he should be getting for his age. i tried to nap him more when he was a baby but he was never a huge napper. our neighbors told us her kids were the same way. i think it just depends on the kid. if the kid is not crabby all the time, red eyes and rubbing eyes... then it's probably fine as long as they get their total hours overall. i love sleeping but hate napping so i hope J is like me.

ss...ditto that when you think something is stabilizing like sleep it can switch up. honestly i feel like that is ALWAYS happening even though we have a really good night sleeper. nothing is consistent, i just have conditioned myself to accept it--i think its part of parenthood!

burk..forgot to say yay for K crawling!! J is lifting up and rocking and he can go backwards but he doesn't quite get it yet, which is ok with me. while i can't wait to see it, i also don't want him to be TOO mobile too fast, yikes. tonite he was trying to use his crib to pull up which he doesn't quite get yet, again relief for now.

i can't believe all the LO's are getting so old!!! where is this time just going? i can't even believe J is 7mo, Jane is 6mo, Micah is what..4+ months?? it's kind of sad wah!

this week was my first flex sched week and though it's been stressful with the change and the new nannies/routines, i am enjoying being at home a little more. today i came home at 2pm to relieve the nanny since she has to leave at 2:30 and i worked for a bit then took J and P for a walk then came back and worked a little more. and i think i found a contractor for my open contract which i am excited about--relief is in sight hopefully!!

 

[gingerB]

drive by mommy moment post --

came home from a FRUSTRATING, LONG day at work, sad because i got home just barely before his bedtime so i knew i'd only have maybe 5 minutes before he went down for the night. A was sitting on the floor playing with his aunt and grandma and i was across the room putting up my stuff and was cooing to him and he turned and saw me and his face lit up and he crawled over to me and put his hand on my arm for me to pick him up.

i literally melted into a puddle of pure baby love

 

[meresal]

Linds- I know exactly what you mean, by waking up for every little thing. Thougth I haven't done it at home, I did it the first night at the hospital. I was up every 30 minutes checking on him. lol. When it kicks in, there is just no controling it. Hopefully you'll get some more sleep tonight!
Kimberly- That is too funny about the ADA. LOL. Happy half-year!
Mara- Glad to hear that the flex scheduling is working out. I bet you are going to love it, once you get into the swing of things!
Ginger- Congrats! What a great way to end the day!

Naps... shmaps... my son hates them. He is definitely on the schedule wehre he gets tired every 2 hours. However, a 15 minute power nap suits him just fine. Sigh.

 

[MonkeyPie]

MP is he in a good mood most of the day? If so, I wouldn't worry about it if he is taking fewer naps. I think that the book is a guide but each child is different. My kiddo starts yawning and getting cranky sometimes an hour after waking last -- if I rock him or even walk around while holding him, he'll conk out -- so obviously he needs it. If Micah is awake and happy and not cranky, I bet his amount of sleep is just right!

Most of the time, yes. Though the past week or so he has been super grumpy after about 1pm, and I KNOW it's because he's tired, but he just won't go down. Yesterday I fought with him on the couch for a half hour and finally got him to sleep, and he slept a whopping 20 minutes. Whoop de doo.

My god it's cold this morning. I'm freezing! Stupid winter is coming

It's BPF ladies! Cough them up!

Some of you have already seen this but gosh I love it. Such big eyes, oh I love this baby.