June 2010

thanks newbie!

have a great day

oh thats nice.. My ex has a mauythai school here in cape town, so I know all about that scene.. Its scarry, but great to watch.. Wishing him all the luck...

I think baby city has those mirrors.. good luck, nt long to go now..

newbie - he does karate and mixed martial arts but he is training for his first mixed martial arts fights. i am so scared and worried about him though - it's hectic "ground and pound" kind of fighting. he now trains morning, noon and night, 6 days a week.

i said he must do it all before connor comes but unfortunately the fight is in 2 weeks so connor will be here already.

i hope pains subside too! as well as your heartburn - that really sucks.

rearview mirror - anyone know where i can get a rearview mirror for my car so that i can see baby while im driving?

oh wow what kind of fighting, sounds interesting.... I am also suffering with heartburn at add hours.

Hope all ur pains subside..

Goodluck.. hope all goes well at ur app..

hey ladies

i see im not the only one thats up at a strange hour ehehehheeh. dh is training for a fight so we're up all weird hours of the morning and night (good practice i suppose)

lucy - thanks for the info - kinda scary but the more information the better. i cant believe your little man is already a week old

newbie - i also have nights where i just cant sleep but mainly because of the fire ball in my throat.

every kind of ache imaginable - i have a new pregnancy symptom - it's called "every kind of ache imaginable" - wisdom tooth ache, head ache, back ache, belly ache, finger ache, toe ache, throat ache - did i mention back ache? heeheheheh

last appointment - going to call gynae today to make my last appointment. hopefully he can tell me when he thinks connor will be here and that things are still looking good for natural birth.

have a great day ladies

lol thanks for the info girl... Every little bit helps

Hey Newbie

Wide awake at 3am (not just baby - I couldnt sleep - possibly wired ... but did do a nappy change and settled a crying baby now too...)

All I can say is I found this article and to those that recently had or have babies you will agree its 100% and brilliant...

Ladies all pls read:



Life With Your Newborn —
What Nobody Tells You

By Tanya Remer Altmann, MD



Mother Nurture

In the hospital you have lots of help—nurses, lactation consultants and doctors—all at your beck and call. Then comes the time to take your little one home. You’ve read the “must-have” books, subscribed to parenting magazines and spent many evenings on the phone with your mother-in-law. Think you’re prepared? Think again.

Here are a few important tips parents tell me they wish they had been told about the first few weeks at home with their newborn.

Sleep
Everyone tells you that you won’t get much sleep, but it’s worse than you imagine. Realistically, you won’t get any in the first few weeks. In addition to needing to feed every few hours, babies don’t know the difference between day and night. So no matter what time he rests, you need to take advantage and nap too. You can also try to help him get on track by keeping nighttime feeds and changing as calm as possible and wake him after 4 hours of daytime sleep to feed. But as soon as your doctor says he’s gaining weight appropriately and it’s ok to let him sleep at night, don’t wake him up at night to feed and enjoy the extra sleep yourself.

Crying
Babies cry! When they’re not sleeping, eating or pooping, they’re crying! They cry when they are hungry, wet, cold, hurt, or just for no apparent reason at all. You will get to know her cries and what they mean. If she’s been fed, changed and checked to make sure nothing is hurting her, it’s ok to let her cry for a little while. Often it’s just her way of blowing of steam. So give her the chance to just let it all out. You can try swaddling, rocking or singing to her, it may help. If she is truly inconsolable, call your pediatrician.

Feeding
We know that breast milk is the best nutrition for your infant and you should attempt to breastfeed your baby every 2-3 hours or when she seems hungry. What you may not know is that although breastfeeding is “natural”, most babies aren’t born experts. Breastfeeding takes patience and hard work initially, but keep at it. It’s worth it for your infant’s health as well as your own. And don’t be afraid to ask your pediatrician or a lactation consultant for help. It usually takes 4 or 5 days for your real milk to come in. Rest, water and a nutritious diet can help. Stress, lack of sleep, dehydration and not enough calories (or even low carb diets) can decrease your milk production.

Poop
While your infant may resemble you, his stool won’t look like yours. Babies poop a wide variety of colors, consistencies and frequency. During the first 24 hours of life, stools are thick, sticky, and brownish-black in color—called meconium. After the first few days of life, the stools of breast fed babies lighten in color from black to brown to green to yellow. They also change consistency from sticky to seedy to cottage cheese-like to looser. Formula fed babies usually have firmer stools that are often light brown in color. Also, when babies poop they may strain so hard their face can turn bright red and that’s ok. And some babies may not stool for a day or two when they first come home from the hospital, while others will poop after every feed.

Growth
Your baby will most likely loose weight the first few days. Many newborns loose 10% of their birth weight after they are born and within the first week start gaining weight back and reach their birth weight by 2 weeks of age. Your pediatrician should plot and follow her growth at each office visit.

Skin
Who says that babies have soft, silky smooth skin? The truth is that most infants initially have dry, flaky skin that may start to peel after the first day. They also have a wide variety of skin rashes, bumps, spots and even acne. Don’t worry, having baby acne doesn’t mean more acne as a teen. Most are normal newborn skin conditions and will go away with time—no treatment needed. Your doctor can take a peak at the next exam.

Hiccups, sneezes and spit up…oh my!
You’ll think it is so cute the first time your baby hiccups, sneezes and even spits up a little. But then it continues and goes on and on and on. While these behaviors rarely bother the baby, they really bother parents. Don’t worry. It’s all a normal part of infancy. As long as he is feeding and gaining weight normally, there is no need to be concerned.


By no means will this completely prepare you for life with your newborn. You will have questions every day, hour and minute you are home with your baby. Write them down as you think of them and take them with you to your infant’s check-ups. Don’t forget that you can always call your baby’s pediatrician if something is urgent or you’re unsure of what to do—that’s what we’re here for. After all, you can’t be prepared for everything.