Jan/Feb 05 chat - Thread #3

[Tammy: Ethan & Kaden's Mom]

Congrats to your sister, Christine!

[branwen]

Hi everyone!

Christine- congrats to you and your sister!  That will be so much fun having babies together! 

A time- I am so jealous of everyone's A time.  I still feel a little embarrassed :oops:  about Eirwen's lack of A time but she isn't happy without her naps. :oops:  I feel silly saying I am finally excited that we have a 6:30 bedtime but it is such an accomplishment for her!!!

Nail clipping- I used to chew them off while she breastfed or tear when she was a newborn after the bath.  But then switched to clipping while sleeping, but ever since 6 months it is impossible, she will wake- so I sit her inside my legs crossed legged on the floor facing out and try to do it holding her hands.  She hated it at first and she still tries to take the clipper but we get the job done.

Joanne- I love your little bum picture!  I need to get one of Eirwen. :mrgreen:

Deborah- what is the prognosis?  Are you going to wean?  What did the ped advise you to do?


US- teething day today.  Christine I think Eirwen might be getting all of those teeth too.  Possibly 3 on the bottom and the 2 front top-these definitely as they are like two large swollen squishy bumps! My poor baby!  She cried so much in the afternoon today that I finally put the TV on cartoons to distract her for a bit.  We're back to our love affair with infants advil. :wink:

She is babbling a lot!  It sounds like whole conversations- it is too funny.  I love it!  I need to tape record her.  I thought it would be a fun keepsake to have.

Slowly adjusting to her exersaucer.  I caught her "standing" with her feet actually flat yesterday! YAY! Does anyone know if it is better for it to be too high than too low?

[HeatherC]

Oh, Branwen, how wonderful!  Maybe this will be the reassurance you needed.  Don't you just love the babbling conversations?  It brings tears to my eyes.  But whenever I get the camera out, she stops!  We are also back to teething.  Love her little heart, I drug her all over town today, then wondered why she was so miserable.  Duh!!! 

Ok-does anyone else have a hard time changing their lo in public?  It's a total nightmare for us.  I'm sure being on a hard, cold surface is a shock compared to the soft, cushioning pad at home.  But, what else can you do?  I can't let her sit in poop till we get home.  She breaks out with diaper rash after a few minutes as it is (another tell-tale of teething for her).

[Deb_in_oz]

Joanne - i love the last photo with the toothy smile - we have some like that of alex (liv still has no teeth)

Schae - our Activities include
 :arrow: the girls playing together -      yeah!!
 :arrow: watching DVDs - unfortunately olivia LOVES alex's DVDs and gets excited when i turn it on  :oops:  i usually let her "watch" but also have her sitting with her own toys in the same area
 :arrow: i have a basket full of stuffed toys that also jingle, cars, a bunch of little toys... and she will pull out what she wants
 :arrow: blocks and stacking rings - just dumping out and banging - no attempts yet to put together (alex was almost 11 mo when she did the stacker correctly so i know it is a while off)
 :arrow: we have an enormous collection of kids musical instruments so we will get them all out and the 3 of us have a little music party
 :arrow: swing in our backyard, looking at the leaves and grass - she adores outdoor time and i definitely don't do it enough
 :arrow: playing with balls - we have an enormous collection of these too (different sizes, fabric ones, stress balls, plastic balls from ball pit, squishy ball, bumpy one)  so she bangs them, bites them, squeezes... and recently i started helping her play "catch" with alex by rolling rather than throwing.

Tarri - that is great Emily news!!

Christine - congrats to your family - that is awesome that Leah will have a little cousin close in age!!


Branwen - i am so happy for you about the babbling!!  with the exersaucer if the aim was for her to build strength in her legs and bear weight then i woudl bet lower is better than too high because at the higher setting she will just dangle her legs...

US - so much news:
 :arrow: for the past 2 days it has been all about "mamama" and calling me - it sounds nice but already it is the double edge sword as i know she is calling to me when Dh is getting her ready for bed and i can't go to her so i feel pulled KWIM?
 :arrow: olivia started trying to pull up yesterday and is getting frustrated but gets halfway there or crashes her face into the coffee table etc  (since alex started this at 7 mo i can't help always feeling that soem things are "late" even though i know 9 mo is exactly average)
 :arrow: if you did not see my post in great news - i passed my next driving test!! it takes 4 tests and 3-4 years to get a full driving license (only 1 test and 2 years to go  :roll: ) i feel proud! i have passed each test on first try.
 :arrow: happy 9 mo birthday today to Liv - it is flying by so fast


still dealing with breakfast issues but Dh is waiting for me to eat dinner and watch a show we taped    so will write a separate post tomorrow

[StrawberryAnnie2]

Christine - Congrats to your sis! I remember what it was like when I got pregnant. We didn't want to tell anyone until I was 3 months along but I was just bursting to tell someone.  Will this be your first niece or nephew?

Deb - great idea about the musical instruments, I didn't even think of those. Now I have to go shopping

Branwen - Yay that Eirwen is using her Exersaucer, before long she'll be bouncing so wild and carzy in that thing. Hannah used to go nuts in there I think the lower is better to start out with.

Us - Has anyone else here had trouble introducing dairy? When I give Hannah yogurt or cottage cheese she gets little red hives around her mouth. I have stopped giving her any dairy for fear that she is allergic, or maybe I just need to hold off until we hit the 12 month mark. Any thoughts?

Joanne

[Jaime]

hi ladies - it's been a busy week - though a great week for all of you!

christine - congrats on the new baby!!  how neat that the cousins will be close in age 

heather - i put down paper towels & maybe a crib pad down on changing tables; they seem to help.  i like the pads cause they're very thin, so they fold flat in the diaper bag, and waterproof.

Joanne- those pix are too cute.  what a fantastic smile!     i haven't given luke any dairy yet.  he's had such skin issues i haven't even done yogurt yet!  that said, that (yogurt) is about the only dairy i gave jaina until she was a year old.  can't hurt to wait, IMHO.

Schae - what does it mean to be capped?
A time - luke likes things with sparkly pictures or things that make noise when he plays with them.  so lots of books with sparklies & shinies, and toys like cups & blocks that he can bang together.  he also likes his little toy piano - he can bang on it & it sings!

Us - we've had early 6am wakings all week now.  totally developmental related - he's trying to crawl more than ever.  i wish it would just click in his head cause he'd be so much happier that way!  now watch, in another couple of months i'll wish he was immobile!   :oops:  :lol:

Me - the entire staff was gathered together for a meeting on wed.  the superintendent was there, which ordinarily means nothing good - even he said that.  then he told us that everyone was getting a 10% raise, retroactive to the beginning of the school year.   

it is very good news... but it still means my salary is low, but i'm not sure if i should bring it up to the principal again - like i will seem ungrateful.  i'm not, but i still don't think it's being calculated correctly.  guess i'll probably go with that.

anyhow - i have to go in 2 days next week, but the kids are off from school all week!  thank goodness!  love this time of year!     even the weather is participating - we're finally down to the 70s (21-26 C)  in the day & 60s (15-20 C) at night. *ducks to avoid rotten fruit thrown by folks in much colder weather!*  :lol:

[Schae]

Christine: Congratulations to your sister!

Branwen: I clip Luka's nails in the same way. He used to tolerate it, but hates it now. I'd just leave his nails, except that he uses them to pinch me while bf. Maybe Eirwen is just not used to standing, and isn't quite sure what to think of the sensation? Hopefully she'll be doing it more and more often.

Heather: my changing bag comes with a foldable pad that I use when changing Luka in public. That's the extent of my suggestion though.

Deb: It so cute that the girls entertain each other. Imagine how close they'll be as teenagers.. lucky girls. Well done on passing the test! It's very strict there huh? Happy Monthday Olivia!

Joanne: It does sound like she's allergic. Has she had normal cheese?

Jaime: We have a 3gig limit for internet usage for the month, and we seem to use up this limit a week or so before the end of the month (every month :oops: ) Once we've reached the limit, then we're 'capped' and can only access local south african sites (no BW for me )
You are so brave! Yay on the increase, but if you feel that you deserve more, then go for it.

Us: I think I may have become a prop. And we are going through separation anxiety. No one else may hold him, change him, bath him... only mama. He's even taken to clinging to my legs lol! And with the nightwakings (yes, we have those again), he screams if anyone else goes into the room. I go in and say "Shhhhh" or "Heyyyy" and he immediately stops crying and goes straight back to sleep. Sometimes I have to lie next to him though. I'm not sure how to stop this.

Job Front: I've been offerred a job!  Going in for salary/contract negotiations on Monday.

If I take this job, we'll be moving out of my parents house end of Dec. I'm hoping to put Luka into his own room, get him sleeping through etc and need a real plan to get that started. I hope you ladies don't mind helping me out in that respect. I think we may have to start right at the beginning. But more on that closer to the time.

Sorry that was so long.

[thitz]

Jamie, I bought the eucerin cream and started using it yesterday.

Deb, what are you doing for a df right now?  I'm at 2 oz and 8:15pm.  I sooo want to have her weaned by Dec.9th so the babysitter won't need to do it.  Congrats on your driving test.  Now you need a car for Christmas!
And Happy 9 month Birthday to Olivia and Emily!!!!

Schae, that's awesome about the job offer!  I bet you can't wait to get Luka in his own room.  I think how you just say a word to get him back to sleep at night is okay.  I imagine it's a phase that he's just got to go thru.  I'd really hold back on the sleeping with him though.

Us, the babysitter came over yesterday and I think she'll be good.  Emily got frightened a few times and turned into me but I distracted her out of it.  I booked her for the christmas party night.  I plan on doing another session with me here still so Emily can get more used to her.  And she's only $5/hr.

[Leah's Mom]

I'm a day late, but happy 9 month b-day to Olivia and Emily!

[Deb_in_oz]

Tarri - we are not doing the DF again - we did it during the GS, but Dh really does not want to do it any more - of course he is not the one who keeps getting woken up early - yesterday she cried out at 5:30 and i rushed to her to find her asleep  :evil:  of course i never got back to bed and she woke at 6:15 for the day (seems to not be able to get that last cycle in some days)

we already have a car (we got it when i was PG with alex) and i have it 99% of the time - Dh takes it when i don't need it and he has to drive to a meeting (he does nothave a parking space at work so only takes it to work occassionally)

glad to hear the babysitter will work out and happy monthday to emily as well (forgot it was her who shared Liv's bday  :oops: )

Us - it always seems to be something... yesterday was my first day ever of staying out with the girls all day - we went to the zoo and instead of rushing home for afternoon nap we put Liv down in the pram (slept 1hr 30 - but only slept 15 min in the morning as she fell asleep just before arriving at the zoo and woke on arrival  :evil: ) and let alex skip her nap (she slept on way home at 4pm)  ANYWAY for dinner i included some beans for finger food for Liv.  turns out they create an insane level of gas for her and she was waking on and off from 7-10pm screaming and crying in pain, we would rub her back and she would finally fart a little, but not enough relief... this was so awful!! plus she has a cold so is stuffy one minute and streaming snot the next - she woke at 3:15am and twice more before getting up at 6:40 this mornign (i feel like a tired wreck)

have spoken with Michelle B by email and she says hi!  Kinlagh stands independently now and took her first step yesterday!!!! they had a great vacation away from her and all went well, they are now 2 weeks away form trying daycare so are trying to be positive about that experience.

Schae - good luck on the negotiations!!
about activities - i forgot to mention Peek-a-blocks - do any of you have them?  we have 6 sets that my sister got alex (she loved them form 6-7 months old) and we play with them at least every 2 days or so. i know they have rond ones now, but these are great because they have the things iin them and can be stacked later on.

[dkjokisch]

Tarri - The reason I asked is that Maya's bedtime slowly crept earlier when we were having the napping problems as she was just completely wiped out by 6pm, and I couldn't take it anymore.  It went from 7:30pm to closer to 6:30pm.  Over time, it led to earlier and earlier wake-ups.  I was starting to stress about the early AM wake-ups until I thought about and realized that Maya needs 11-12 hours of sleep at night, so if I put her to bed at 6:30pm, I was asking to get woken up at 5:30-6am.  We slowly eased her bedtime back out again.  We still do the last feed between 6:30-7pm most nights so I can get a good feed in her before she's too tired, but then dh sits and cuddles with her in the chair a bit and reads a book. 

Also, I survive when dh travels by going somewhere to visit someone or inviting someone to visit us.  We've only been home alone once (for 3-1/2 days), and I thought I was going to go nuts!  Maya was a terror, and our computer (my only lifeline) went on the fritz while he was gone.

And yeah on the babysitter.  I am nervous about leaving Maya with a stranger, but at least I hope they would handle things as we ask given that we'd be paying for the service.  MIL has offered to babysit when she's here next week, but to be honest, I don't feel comfortable leaving Maya with her.  She doesn't respect our wishes with regard to Maya, and I'm not sure it's worth an afternoon's freedom to have to deal with the aftermath.  Last time she rocked her to sleep for naps, and for the next three weeks, Maya would cry herself to sleep on my shoulder for every single nap!

Christine - Congratulations!  I suppose for every couple who tries for years to have a baby there are those who get pregnant just thinking about it.  Twice now, we've gotten preg on the first try, so we know now to hold off until we're really ready.

Branwen - I agree it's better to have it too low - that way she can push down with her feet and support her own weight.

Debra - Congrats on the driving test.  A trip to the zoo sounds great.  I've been wanting to go, but have been too afraid of attempting to nap in the stroller.  I glad it went ok save the gas episode.

Joanne - What a cutie!  We've introduced yogurt, cottage cheese, cream cheese, and cheese slices, all without any trouble.  If you're seeing a reaction, I would wait for a while and reintroduce it under controlled circumstances.  Either way, I'd hold off until you've had a chance to talk to her doc about it.

Jaime - Congrats on the raise.  10% is better than nothing.  Can you try to renegotiate for next year?

[dkjokisch]

Wow, that was long, and I forgot about us.

Maya has come down with our cold.  She's miserable.  Dh and I are still sick too.  She's still fighting nursing (who can blame her with the cold), but she has nursed all weekend.  The last time she outright refused was Friday afternoon.

We're still having problems with the helmet - the irritation came back the first day she wore it again.  I am going to try to line it with moleskin and see if that helps.

Branwen - The ped said to just keep doing what we're doing with regard to the eating.  We're trying to offer more meat and dairy, but so far the only thing she really likes is cheese slices (which is good because they're easy) and banana bread with cream cheese (which is bad because I make it myself and free time is hard to come by, but also good as I can substitute some soy flour to up the protein content).  I also started taking fenugreek and blessed thistle supplements to address the supply issues.

We've been cleaning like mad all weekend as MIL is coming tomorrow (and staying until Dec 1!!!).  SILs arrive on Tuesday.  MIL has rented a house on Amelia Island (on the Atlantic coast about 1 hours from here) for Thanksgiving.  It'll be nice to see everyone, but we're not looking forward to dragging a sick kid out on holiday (or having to share a room with her while we're there - none of us sleep well that way).  We'd like to drive up for the day each day, but I don't think that's going to be an option.

[julieb]

Well, we've had some ups and downs lately.  On the UP, after doing that hour of PU/PD last week, we've had two nights with no wakings and 2 nights with only 1 (that were quickly resolved).  I guess we had gotten him into a bad habit with the seperation anxiety?  But on the DOWN, he's had really early mornings this weekend, despite sleeping in fairly well all week.  :roll:   Figures!  Just when we can sleep in!  :?  And he only took two 45 minute naps today!  :shock:   He was a wreck at lunch and I pretty much had to carry him around in the sling most of the time.  I thought surely he'd conpensate with a longer afternoon nap as he has in the past, but no!  We'll see how tonight goes.

Hazel, what's the name of your long-sleeved bib?  Where'd you find it?  I tried to find one on Saturday.  I swear, I have largest bib collection of anyone I know.  I have 5 different kinds and I'm not completely happy with any.  I should become a bib designer!  :lol:

Heather, my diaper bags also come with thin foam changing pads.  But I usually change him in the car (my passager seat folds flat) because it's cleaner.  The one time I couldn't, I changed him in the stroller, laid the back flat, and went in the womens bathroom.  Seemed okay.  I'm pretty fortunate, Asher usually won't poo in public and waits till we're home.  Too distracted, I guess!  :lol:

Joanne, sounds like Hannah is allergic to dairy right now.  I'd hold off for a while.  I'm holding off on all dairy, eggs, and wheat until Asher is at least a year (per my ped's recommendation as well).  Since he's still BF, I don't really worry about the calcium intake right now.  Have you tried dairy alternatives?  There's a lot of stuff made with rice and tofu that tastes pretty good!  I'm just not bothering with any of it since it's expensive, not crutial right now, and we've only got 2 months left anyway!  :lol:

Schae, your avatar is darling!  You should post a bigger one for us all to admire!

Deborah, I can totally sympathize on not wanting MIL to babysit -- and having to deal with the aftermath!  I've often felt the same way!  I just pick and choose when I really need it and try to do it at times that are hard to mess up!   :lol:   Hope you all feel better soon.

[Daniel's mummy]

Julieb - I got the coverall bibs from 'toys r us' and 'mothercare'.  I'm assuming these are only UK stores?  Anyway the websites are toysrus.co.uk (follow links to babiesrus) and mothercare.com.  Follow links for bibs.  I'm sure they must be available elsewhere.  If not they should be!  They are great.  Daniel is so messy but just loves to eat most stuff himself.  Having his sleeves covered just means he can make a mess and it's not a problem.  They're particularly great when out and about and you want to try to keep their outfit as clean as possible.  Hope you find some anyway.

Us - reality check last night  :shock: .  DH and I sat down and went through our finances.  Seems we are starting to overspend each month.  So we worked out a few places we can save some and we worked out a tighter budget that we're gonna try to stick to.  So I now have an amount for 'me' each month and Daniel has an amount (clothes etc) and dh has an amount.  Whatever we don't spend of 'our' money each month we get to carry over to the next month.  We figured this gives me money to be able to go out for coffees and still get out and about during the days without feeling guilty.  (Dh joked about wanting to see receipts for Daniel's spending as he thinks I'll just spend it all on myself!!!)  We're also gonna try to stick to a tighter food bill each week.  Having recently started dieting though this could be tough (diets always seem to cost that little bit more don't they?)  BTW I have lost 5 lb over last 2 weeks so I'm happy
Daniel came down with a horrible cold over the weekend.  So much snot :shock:  :x  :shock:   Poor thing.  It's now turning into a real chesty, rattly cough which is just so sad to listen to.  But the good thing (and I hardly dare write this :? ) is that it's not affected his night sleep.  He's still slept though and woken up happy (just covered in snot!)

Branwen - Daniel loves being on his feet these days (supported) but he still hates being in his jumper (door bouncer thing).  I wouldn't worry too much if Eirwen doesn't bounce around in the exersaucer.  Just try to do lots of standing in your lap etc...  My sister is a physio and when Daniel used to hate standing she said just to get him used to the sensation of pressure on his feet.  Sometimes that was just me sitting on the floor and Daniel sitting on my lap with his legs hanging over touching the floor.  Gradually he started pushing up onto his feet a bit when we held him and now he is fine standing.  But he still NEVER steps.  Weird, but I'm not worried.  And he's still not crawling :wink:

Must go and do some housework now while Daniel naps.

[thitz]

Hazel, I think you mentioned about taking Daniel to a new playgroup last week, is that where he caught his cold?  I think I'm getting paranoid about Emily getting a cold, this week is the first playgroup we were planning on attending, but I think we'll skip it again if she gets shots at her doctor's appointment the day before.  And I know about the budget thing...dh did our finances when he started his job 3 weeks ago and he also gave all of us a set allowance.  We've got to recover from his being out of work for 8 months :wink: .

Julie and Deb, if it makes you feel any better, Emily still wakes between 5:30 and 6:30, so we're all in the same boat :wink:

Deborah, I think you are right about early to bed means early to rise.  I just haven't been able to shift her anymore especially after all that shifting with the time change.  I think I'll leave her be for awhile, since she's napping and nighttime sleep is sooo good right now .

Us, Emily's starting to try and clap .  I'm amazed because I've only been doing it a few days!