Feb-May 2011 Mommies

Hi ladies.

Been reading some of your posts & I know quite a lot of you recently gave birth.
Sorry for hijacking your thread but I think some of you might know.
I am 98 sure i've been passing my mucus plug since yesterday. It comes in little chunks. I've been extremely thirsty for about a week now but despite drinking plenty of water for the past 2 days my urine is very dark.

Please if anyone knows ahould I be concerned. Apologies for being so graphic...

My next appt is on thursday & I don't want to panick about nothing.

Kimika how do you use the bathroom scale to weigh R?? I tried but I dunno if I am doing it right. Its so ggod that he sleeps from 7 to 12. If only H would. She only pulls three hours now. But at least she doesn't fuss. She just drinks and sleeps. Those gurgles must be too cute.

Meags how on earth did youi manage to do laundry and cook and clean???!!!! Wwwoooww!! Just how cos I mean I can't do a thing fully and then H starts waking. Its like she knows I'm gonna do something and wakes up before her three hours.

Betty I was thinking that maybe just take a warm gown to wear over ur summer pjs incase it gets a little too cold.

Meags your freezer is more then stocked. Iv never seen so much milk of any kind in one freezer!!! And I agree with your idea to skip a feed to extend your sleep which is VITAL. Yes you should. And your kities have the life for sure. What do your kitties do when M cries for long periods.
Do they also get anxious or just lie around uninterested. My cat which iv had for 11 years now just wants to know what is in the pram?! She tries to sneak into the room to peak. Too funny. How you feeling now? Have you thought about what's gonna make you feel better and cope better. Any luck with The babysitter search?? It could give you a small break you need now and then to refresh.

Tazzy I would have totally freaked out and called an ambulance the neighbours my parents and everyone else if my child woke up in the night and couldn't move her head !! Glad it wasn't too serious. But a neck spasm sounds painful enough.

H is growing so fast. Her eyelashes and eyebrows are filling in. They were not very visible wen she was born. She will be four weeks on Tuesday!!! I can't believe it. She is no longer that newborn that just sleeps and wakes to feed. She's getting her own personality and she knows just what she wants. Oh and I must say that thanks to Newymum for her post on dunston baby language. I watched the video a few years ago on tv and now that I have a baby it makes sense. I googled it to refresh and it helped. Got to go. H is waking up and I'm leaking milk. ....

Hi everyone.
Betty I must agree , you are so patient. Have you decided on anything yet? Are you planning on natural or booked c section?

Mistymom congrats on your son Ryan. Lovely name. And what a big handsome boy. Enjoy him.

Emsmom I have to agree on the boobies freezing over during the night feeds. Maybe try using a warm gown and pull it over once baby has latched or I use H's blankie to cover us both. I did that once or twice helps a bit. But when H behaves like she is starving at times thats when my poor boobs just freeze over.

Schatsie I have meaning to ask u for a while now if all the pelvic pains\spd have disappeared?? I still get a bit achy when its cold. How are your stithes healing??and the flu? Are you feeling any better?

Cath and lucy those are gorgoes pics man. They soooo sweet. Can just stare at them forever hey when they smile at you. H smiles not sure if they fake or real. But too cute none the less.

Joli it is absolutely awesome that you can resign but as you say rather be cautious before just handing it in. Oh and that pic is beautiful. The sun and your smiles. Very very warm lovely pic. Too precious man!! Oh and that bath sling/stand thing that you posted a pic of , I went out and got one and yes it has my life soooo much easier. H enjoys bathtime a lot more. I'm still using it in the baby bath though cos the bathroom is too cold for her. Thanks for that!!! Bath times are so calm and she just lies there. So much fun. But its pretty cold here and I wanted to know if I have to give her a bath everyday?

HI Girls,
Wow, it feels like years since I have been on here to read and catch up but It has been about two weeks. I have been reading most days but its such a pain to type on my phone that I haven’t done it, or I have fallen asleep while reading your posts… not because they are boring because they are not… I have been so very tired. Most nights I get to bed around mid night and start my day again anywhere between 530am and 730am. Abdul has been great mostly and he wakes up between 2am and 4am and again between 530am and 630am. His last feed at night is normally around 9pm, but sometimes its at 11pm. I then like to sit and relax for a bit with a hot cup of tea and enjoy the silence. It’s the only time I get any peace.
I managed to get a really nice old fashioned cot that doesn’t slide down on the side but folds over. I used it for a few days and then stopped cos I am scared that he will get too cold… crazy I know, so I am going to put blankets around the cot to make it cozy and then try again. Sulaiman spent the first six months in bed with us and then he was in the pram and got moved around a lot but now he is in his own bed next to mine and then at some stage in the night he comes and snuggles up to me in my bed so I dare not chance it that I have Abdul with me in my bed and I have a cot which I should really use.
Rakker, Newyum mum, Claire and Mistymum congratulations on the birth of your babies.
I sorted out all the blocked ducts I had. I went for my 6 week check up (if you can call it that) and I have a milk cyst. The doctor said that he doesn’t want to drain it now as it will interfere with breastfeeding. He said that as long as I leave it alone I will be fine and it won’t cause any problems. So I am going back in 3 months time. I didn’t see a gynae because I would have had to wait til july to see one. He didn’t do any checks under my belly button which concerns me a bit and I had to ask him about my breast. He did tell me that the pain that I am experiencing above my cut is the muscles healing and I can have that pain up to 6 months after the c section and told me I have to live with it and to try not to bend over too much and pick things up that way and rather to go down in my knees. He also decided to increase the amount of iron that I have so now I am taking two pills a day.
The breastfeeding as a whole is going very well. Last week I had 48 hours of hell, but realise now that it was a growth spurt. I have been expressing milk since my milk came in which was the day I left the hospital. I am donating half of the milk that I express to Milk Matters at Mowbray Maternity. I was donating it all, but I decided that I would rather keep half of it in case I am want to go out and leave Abdul with my mom or something… anything can happen. I express twice a day… once around 8am when I am eating my breakfast and again after the 6pm feed. He doesn’t always feed at 3pm and skips it so then I pump again then. I generally land up with 300mls a day as a result. I am drinking my own version of jungle juice, drinking a glass of ginger beer a day and having two cups of rooibos. When I don’t do it then I land up expressing very little. If I drink the tea I don’t worry with the ginger beer as I then have way too much milk and get very uncomfy.
Abdul is now 7 and a bit weeks old and I still haven’t taken him for his 6 week injections yet. I haven’t done it because I have to catch two trains or 2 taxis and I have to take Sulaiman with as well because he needs to be dewormed and weighed etc. I also have to leave at 6am so as to get to the clinic at a decent hour so as to not get turned away. My mom won’t let me take my dads car… I could put the two of them in car seats… I have two and I cannot use my moms car because it is a bakkie, so I am a little stuck and she refuses to get out of bed that early to take me. I will attempt to take them on Thursday when abdul is 8 weeks old.
On Thursday I went to social services and also got there late and was turned away at 330pm. I was so upset, but there was nothing I could do, so I am going to go back on Wednesday and try get there earlier and be seen. Its very cold at that time of the day which doesn’t help and the weather has been very cold and wintery.
Yesterday I went to home affairs and the supervisor I have been dealing with since December last year took one look at me and pretended he didn’t know who I was. I guess I cannot blame the guy, but anyway he looked on the computer for me and my letter was there at LONG LAST. It took 8 months to get it when it should have taken 2 months. Needless to say I wanted to cry with happiness.
I haven’t been on here to update you ladies because I am busy all the time with either my one son or the other or both at the same time. My mom more or less leaves me to deal with them and does her own thing. I insist though that she gives Sulaiman his bath because he has so much fun with her and its her time with him and then she dresses him. While she is doing that I am either breastfeeding or making up my bed and getting Sulaimans pj’s ready and such like. In the day I somehow manage to cook 2 or 3 times a week and bake muffins at least once a week on a Saturday. I know a lot of you have to cook everyday and clean etc and have two children… I know if I had to do it I would though because I used to manage it with Sulaiman and when I was in pitermaritzberg I would sometimes have up to 4 children plus Sulaiman to look after and I coped with it. (2 2 year olds and 2 4 year olds).
The night before last night Sulaiman lost his dummy and I searched for it and couldn’t find it at that moment. I told him he will have to look for it if he wants it because I don’t have time. He didn’t bother to look for it and yesterday when he was in the bath I found it and decided to give it to my mom to pack it away. So far he hasn’t asked for it and still hasn’t looked for it, so I am hoping that is the end of the dummy. Since he was 8 months old he has only been allowed it for nap time and sleep time.
A friend of mines cousin gave me more clothes for Abdul and now I have WAY too much, so I am going to go through all of it and then pass on what I won’t be using. To think that I had nothing for Abdul to wear and now I have way too much. I am truly blessed.
I have also started job hunting. I have my job in October to go back to, but it is way too long to wait and the money is not great. It won’t be enough and Sulaiman will have to go to crèche because there is no ways my mom will stay sane. She is going crazy as it is. My dad is very demanding even though he is walking. He isn’t talking English yet and we battle to understand him and when we tell him something half the time he forgets or doesn’t understand, so it is very frustrating and then you have Sulaiman who is whining all day and wants all of your attention all the time.
Betty I hope that you have your baby soon!!!! I am glad I never had to wait as long as you have been waiting. If you can have your c section on the 10th of may go for it… its my birthday!!! LOL!!!
Kimika I hope that your son gets well soon, its not fun being in that situation. Sulaiman has been ill, but it was just a very bad runny nose and that was bad enough.
Joli I am glad that you can resign from your job and do the things that you love the most.
Meags I am sorry that the LLL woman didn’t contact you. I also didn’t find them very helpful. All they did was invite me to a meeting that they have once a month and tell me to contact and pay to see a lactation consultant.
Schatsie sorry I cannot help you with the breastfeeding and bottle. I am not going near bottles for now and if I struggle I struggle, but he takes his dummy happily. I still don’t have bottles in this house and need to buy some at some stage since I do have my milk frozen.
Chat soon. Hugs

Meags and Misty - lovely pics of your boys.

Meags - wow that is a lot of milk. Well done! Now I agree with the others, ease up a bit. Look after yourself too.

Tazzy How scary with H. I am glad it wasn't meningitis. Sorry she was still rose though.

Betty you are so calm. I'd be a wreck, well done. Sorry about the clothes, it is a pain and a waste money either way.

Tessa is definitely on the mend. We got 3 naps during the day yesterday. Yippee. Hope it lasts.

Meags - I'm sure I do have a fast let down, cos I need to sit lying back when I feed otherwise she chokes and splutters. But I know that she is a snack eater too, because I'm still feeding her every 2half to 3 hours. If only she would just fill up properly. But I think that also has to do with reflux.
Ah Matt is too cute. You would never say he is a screamer, all the pics you've posted he looks so content and happy.
I think I may have asked you this already but have you tried using a nipple shield to trick him into thinking ur boob is a bottle?

BettyF- glad is all is well with baby. What are you gut feelings? Do you think labour will happen soon? What was the reason for your previous csection?
Thanks for the Losec advice, I'm going to try a spoon tonight, because half the meds get trapped in the syringe. I wish they would make a suspension for babies! How long did it take before it started working for M? (If u can remember)

Okay so my night was slighty better. After rocking her for about an hour she finally fell asleep at 7. Then woke at 10:20 for feed. And then again at 1am and 4am but she just ate and went back to sleep so I managed to get a decent amount of sleep in for myself.

I think my little porker might need to start with no3 nappies now. I'm going to baby city to stock up later. I still prefer the pampers premium care (white packet) as they absorb bf poos a lot better.

Have a good day!

Hi ladies

So the gynae is still happy with my health and that of the baby.
Never had a very pleasant experience there as he was in a rush to deliver a baby and was rude to me as DH was not on time... Anyhow I ended up in tears - clearly hormones are playing their tricks. And I was teary for a few hours after the consultation.

Anyhow there is enough amniotic fluid and the placenta still looks 100%. He can't give me an estimate of weight anymore..

No c section scheduled yet, I must go back on Thursday 5 May if nothing happens and then I need to make a decision, either to schedule a c - section (most likely for Tuesday 10 May) or if all is still healthy and I don't schedule a c-section then I need to go into the hospital every 2nd or 3rd day for ECG monitoring.

The problem with waiting is that the longer I wait the more likely that baby is too big to get through and the higher the chances of me having a c section anyhow.

Schatsie - yes I remember feeling hot in the maternity ward last time ( was summer) - but it makes sence that they probably regulate the temp. to keep baby warm. I will just stick with the pj's that I have.
Was it the first time you gave Arno the dummy?
With M I swore no dummy. But when came out screaming non stop, I desperately tried to get him to take one. He kept refusing, and I kept buying different ones for him to try. In the end he took to the nuk one, which was the first one I tried on him....and had a huge supply of unused dummies.lol. But at least I had a few hours of no screaming, not using my breast as a dummy and M did get a lot of comfort from the dummy sucking. He stopped using it at about 18months.

Joli- got an e- mail from Gerne yesterday that she sent my beanies, so excited to see what the hats will look like.
I am not feeling too bad going over the 40 week mark. I kind of expected it as I also went over with M and no one in my family has ever had an early baby... My sister has had 4 children and the first 3 all were induced a week or 2 after their due date. The 4th one came about a week late with no induction.
Only problem is that it is freezing in CT and I have no winter clothing to fit. My jerseys etc. do go on but are so tight I am peeved as I think I may be stretching and ruining my clothes.

Meags- can't believe the amount of milk you have produced. No space in the freezer for food!
I agree you need your rest, I would cut out the night time pumping and go to sleep rather. You will feel so much happier and be able to function better during the day. Breast feeding is not the be all - it is great to BF and I know that you want to give baby the best possible start, which you have done, but don't let it consume your life. Take a few steps back and try to enjoy baby and being Mom and not worry too much about pumping etc.
The pics of Matt are so lovely, I can see he is picking up weight so nicely!

Tazzy- lovely to get an update on Amelia's progress! Sorry about the feeding trouble. M was on losec from about 3 months till nine months. I used to crush the half pill in a tea spoon with a tiny bit of water and then put it in his mouth, directly from the tea spoon.
He used to projectile vomit and vomited up after every feed - without fail. Along with the vomitting came the screaming. The paed said we could try gaviscon for babies- but at that time there was no stock available. So the advice was to top up the BF with anti reflux formula. I was not too keen on doing that, but M was not gaining enough weight. After all the changes, he still vomited, but was a happy vomiter lol...
Gosh what a scare with your LG and the meningitis. Glad it was just a neck spasm and that she is fine!

Well that's about it my side, oh yes I got the baby bag- A girlie one lol. Should have read your posts before I went to the shops. DH will just have to use the hospital one, or Matthews old one if he does not like my floral one