PS Mommy Thread-Newborn to 12 months!

[MustangGal]

Thanks for the complements on Kyle''s pics! I''m so happy they all turned out well, it was hard trying to decide which ones to buy!

And all the sleep issues around here suck! I feel for you ladies! Since Kyle is a great sleeper I don''t have much to add

, other than some good sleep vibes.

 

[gailrmv]

Blen I hear you on wanting a walk for everyone''s sanity and having trouble with stroller plus two big dogs. I''m in the same boat - stroller plus two big dogs. For a while I could not do it but now I have a technique where I put the stroller in right hand and dogs in left hand. A falls asleep easily in the ergo too esp when I am moving. Maybe the stroller would keep him awake?

The gals who suggested skipping the walk and putting him down earlier are probably right, esp according to all the sleep experts, but you have to do what is right for your family. I have never been able to get A down at 7 and I am a SAHM - you''d think I have all day to get everything done, but we get into this end of day jam up and it usually is closer to 8 when I have gotten him down. For him it seems to work. He doesn''t show drowsy signs before then and he just fights sleep if we try for 7. At 8 he usually goes down with no fuss. So I don''t know if you can tweak up his naps or something so that he is actually ready to go down at 8 not 7, and that way you can enjoy your walk and some time with him before bedtime?

Another idea, any way to cut your lunch break or something at work to get home just 15 min earlier in order to get home from the walk before he gets tired?


DD we are in the same spot as you on night wakeups. A has been waking up 2-3 times a night religiously to eat. The first time is usually right when I''m going to bed so sometimes I find myself waiting up for that feed. Last night he was up 5 times!! Three of those, he did seem legitimately hungry. Once he quieted down before I went in. He has been fighting his naps too. Yesterday he only catnapped and did not have a real nap and today looks to be the same. On the plus side, he has been sleeping in some (sort of combining morning nap with night sleep) which suits me fine. The 5x was awful though - worst night we have had in a while. Maybe we will try putting him down earlier and see if it helps. I don''t know though - he seems so ready at 8, right on the dot, and if he goes down any earlier he will probably not see DH at all. (DH works a terrible schedule, and many days is gone before A gets up in the morning and home shortly before A''s bedtime. Sucks for all of us.) Anyway, we''ve made bathtime kind of DH''s thing to do with A, and I really like them to have that time together when possible so I hate to mess with bedtime... but we''ll see.

I really admire all you working moms whose babies don''t sleep... I don''t know how I would function at work with this little sleep. Of course, maybe DH would help at night if I had to get up for work... who knows. Since I don''t have to go to work I do 100% of night duty and it does take a toll but I think it''s fair.

Off to settle my little nap resistor...

 

[Blenheim]

Thanks for all of the help! Quick update - after getting home from work today, I nursed George, loaded him in the jogging stroller, and took him and the dogs for a 15 min run. He was drowsy but not asleep when I got back, and so I just put him down to bed and he''s now asleep. Fingers crossed that he''s to sleep for the night.

Our house is on the market, and the majority of our showings are in the 5-8 pm range, and so what we typically do at those times is to take everybody on a walk so there aren''t any barky dogs around. We''d have to be out of the house regardless for showings, so we''re still going to have to try to figure out a way to make it work on days that we have evening showings.

Fiery- I realized something while driving to work today. Has anyone else tried bottle-feeding Sophia, or just you? If it''s just you, that might be the problem! George will NOT take expressed milk from me, but he''s fine at daycare or I leave him at home with Daddy or Grandma. I think it''s just that if he knows he can get it straight from the source if he refuses the bottle, he goes for that option.

I have several friends in the same boat, so it seems like it may be pretty common. Just leave Sophia with someone else for a little while and get them to try to feed her. Maybe stick close enough around that they can give you a call if she starts to get desperately hungry and won''t take the bottle, but be far enough away that she doesn''t think that nursing is a possibility.

 

[gailrmv]

Rough night at our house. I usually don''t share too much just because of how public this all is, so I''ll summarize. DH wants us to CIO. I do not. Today I felt very unappreciated. It has been a crappy night.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 9/23/2009 9:58:54 PM
Author: TanDogMom
Rough night at our house. I usually don''t share too much just because of how public this all is, so I''ll summarize. DH wants us to CIO. I do not. Today I felt very unappreciated. It has been a crappy night.

I''m sorry TDM

Parenting disagreements are the worst, I hope you can resolve it without too much fuss.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 9/23/2009 7:04:45 PM
Author: Blenheim
Thanks for all of the help! Quick update - after getting home from work today, I nursed George, loaded him in the jogging stroller, and took him and the dogs for a 15 min run. He was drowsy but not asleep when I got back, and so I just put him down to bed and he''s now asleep. Fingers crossed that he''s to sleep for the night.

Our house is on the market, and the majority of our showings are in the 5-8 pm range, and so what we typically do at those times is to take everybody on a walk so there aren''t any barky dogs around. We''d have to be out of the house regardless for showings, so we''re still going to have to try to figure out a way to make it work on days that we have evening showings.

Fiery- I realized something while driving to work today. Has anyone else tried bottle-feeding Sophia, or just you? If it''s just you, that might be the problem! George will NOT take expressed milk from me, but he''s fine at daycare or I leave him at home with Daddy or Grandma. I think it''s just that if he knows he can get it straight from the source if he refuses the bottle, he goes for that option.

I have several friends in the same boat, so it seems like it may be pretty common. Just leave Sophia with someone else for a little while and get them to try to feed her. Maybe stick close enough around that they can give you a call if she starts to get desperately hungry and won''t take the bottle, but be far enough away that she doesn''t think that nursing is a possibility.

Fiery Ditto!

And Blen I hope that works out! Are you still planning to be a SAHM once you guys move? I can''t recall the decision you reached...

 

[Blenheim]

TDM- I''m sorry.

I hope that you can sort things out.

DD- With the area that we''d like to move to (high cost of living), it''s doubtful that we''d be able to afford for me to stay at home long-term. I''m really not happy with my current career though, and I''m toying with the idea of going back to school and going into a new field.

G is still asleep.

 

[Dreamer_D]

Date: 9/23/2009 10:48:23 PM
Author: Blenheim
TDM- I''m sorry.

I hope that you can sort things out.

DD- With the area that we''d like to move to (high cost of living), it''s doubtful that we''d be able to afford for me to stay at home long-term. I''m really not happy with my current career though, and I''m toying with the idea of going back to school and going into a new field.

G is still asleep.

I didn''t mean longterm anyways, but even spending a year or so is a wonderful opportunity if you can swing it. Going back to school

I can''t even imagine! But then I just finished 12 years of it if you could undergrad, grad, and post doc. Its worth it though to find a career you do love! What are you thinking of studying?

 

[Blenheim]

I''m thinking about a masters in social work, with a concentration in social change (i.e., policy), and then working in policies that affect families and children. I had a good phone conversation Monday with a professor at one of the universities I''m thinking of. Full-time programs start in the fall, although I could take classes part-time starting in January at two of the schools I''m looking at. But I''d probably be able to be at home at least from the time that I''d quit my job to classes starting, and then again the next summer.

 

[mela lu]

my deepest commiserations on the sleep issues.

I find that if I put Romy to bed earlier, like, bath and feed at 6pm, asleep by 7pm, he is the happiest. It seems so early, but it''s HIS ideal.

As for my own sleep troubles, We made a HARD decision last night to let him CIO. He cried from 11pm - Midnight, and then from 4am - 5am, and then from 6am - 6:20am. We woke him at 7am and was SO HAPPY! I fed him, and now he''s been napping for 1.5 hrs (probably exhausted from all that crying!).

So, he is no longer getting fed during the night, and no longer getting that DAMN pacifier during the night. PAAN. POON. POW! Done and Done.

It was hard, but I really feel that it is the best for our family in the long run. I was dying from lack of sleep, and I know in a couple nights he''ll get the hang of it.

I''ll keep you all posted!

*Romeo, 16.5 weeks*

 

[Dreamer_D]

Mela, I look forward to hearing how it goes! An hour, man that is persistent.

hunter has gone to bed at 6pm the last couple of days! LOL! And then slept until 11pm, fed, slept until 4am, fed, and then woke at 7am! That is a pretty good deal I think! He is in a much better mood these days but I don''t know if it is because of the sleep or because we found a really good moisturiser for the eczema he has been having since he started eating solids. His rash is basically gone and that must help.

Who knows, there is no rhyme or reason!

 

[nycbkgirl]

o man we are some sleep deprived mamas here! well me not so much (bc dh has the night shifts) but good grief!

my situation is : jon used to sttn the night ...now its hit and miss..usually 1 nite feeding anywhere from 2-4am and then 7 or 8 am wakeup....but puttin him down is a major struggle and its just so bizzare...he used to go to sleep so well and now he is just all worked up about it and flipping from tummy to back all the time ...i let him cio while putting him down for bed after his last feed (usually 8-9pm) i go in every so often to tap the butt until he tires himself out. i def want to stop the middle of the night feeding somehow!!! and MELA - i think i will try it your way soon....and i will also try the rice cereal in the last feed bottle as well.

i love when people come and tell stories about how their kids were the best sleepers always and how they never had problems with them...someone told me they never fed their baby at night...from day1!!!

..thats ridiculous! and she was so adamant that u shouldnt ever feed them at night or else u will never sleep...yeh never heard that one before (but she did say she used a cultural technique of dipping the pacifier in a liighlty sweetened camomile tea and gave it at night...yeh dunno. and i wouldnt use the pacifier at nite (bc like mela and a friend of mine) they are up gazillion times a nite stickin it bak in when it falls out...so i will def do CIO and i just dunno when..dh starts vaca next week so i think thats a perfect time to get jon in shape...and then jackie..so that we can finally have them in the same room at nite...and maybe dh and i can finally sleep together again

lovvve the pics hehehe 2 cute

 

[MustangGal]

Blen - I hope everythign falls into place soon and the house sell goes well. Your career change sounds much more interesting. I''ve kinda been considering going back to school, but don''t think I''ve brave enough yet!

Mela - I hope Romy starts sleeping without crying for you!

TDM - I hope it works out for you and your DH.

Dreamer - Hunter just doesn''t want to be consistant does he?!

nyc - I''ve heard the rice cereal doesn''t do much for sleeping, but, for us at least, the rice cereal leads to less pooping/more constipation. And Kyle doesn''t have issues with the paci falling out and not being able to sleep. The only time he takes it now is when we put him down at night, he doesn''t even nap with it anymore.

I''ve been very lucky with my little sleeper. Kyle started sleeping 9pm-4am at 6 weeks old, then 9pm to 6am at 3 months, and now he does about 7:30pm to 6am. We haven''t done anything to foster this that I''m aware of, but it sure makes life more bearable! He has been on formula since 5 weeks, so that might have helped some in the begining. But my day care lady''s tiny little guy was STTN from his first day home. At 5 weeks old he''s still only 6.5 pounds! The poor thing got put on Zantec yesterday. He doesn''t spit up much, but the doc thinks he has major heartburn issues.

 

[ChinaCat]

Hi mommas!

Sorry to be so MIA- I was up visiting my parents for a week or so. I just got back on PS to try to catch up and feel so overwhelmed by all that I missed. So I am just going to jump into the newborn thread from here, if that''s ok.

O and I are doing ok, we have good days and bad days. It was heaven being at my parents, between them and my brother and sister, there was always an extra set of hands around to give me a break. Plus they are so in love with O that they really loved holding him, so I didn''t feel guilty. Now I am back home alone, DH is at work all the time, and it''s just so hard to do this all day and all night without real help. But we are getting by. I feel for and commiserate with all of you feeling frustrated by your DH''s. Mine is actually great, but I still am annoyed and resentful at how much is on me alone. I know in reality he is helping as much as he can, but it doesn''t feel that way.

Fiery, hang in there! Your daughter is such a beauty, btw.

Mela, welcome back!!! Sorry about not naming our little guy Duke. Funny thing is, when I posted his name, I did have a moment where I thought, aw, Mela is going to be so disappointed!

Going to try and be more active, I need the mommy support since I am home alone all day!

Hope everyone is doing well, and here''s wishing us all a good night''s sleep.

 

[Blenheim]

Mela, I hope that CIO helps make nights better for you guys. The paci situation sounds horrible.

NYC - not saying that it's what's happening there, but I know people who lie about how their babies sleep if asked, to avoid getting any unsolicited advice. And some people just have selective memory, and others honestly do have great sleepers.

MG - the thought of going back to school is much more intimidating with a baby than it would have been a year or two ago! But I'm young, and want to make sure that I spend my time in something that interests me and that feels like it makes a difference. We'll see what I end up deciding.

ETA - CHINA!!! Welcome to this side of things! Basically all that's been happening lately is people commiserating about sleep, and being too tired and busy to post too often.

Little update from me - we took George on a walk tonight, in the jogging stroller which has him sitting straight up. He stayed awake, but was fussy during the last half mile or so, and I got him to sleep within 10 minutes of him getting home. He also STTN again last night, so thankfully sleeping earlier isn't messing with that at all. Although I had to work to get him to stay asleep while I got ready for work today - it's so much harder to get ready quickly when he's awake and wants to be entertained. But it's great getting him to sleep so easily, so we're going to continue with this routine.

I don't think I've posted any recent photos of George, so here's him playing with his carrot teether:

 

[Dreamer_D]

Blen Georgie is to big now! I think school is a great idea if you have a clear career goal that it will help you achieve. Without that caveat, going back now would just be masochism! LOL!

You know, Hunter sits up but only for a second or two then he is on his belly reaching and crawling for things

He is such a handful now! Always wants whatever is out of his reach. Some of my friends babies will happily sit for ages and play with things, but not Hunter. I really hope he slows down a little, he still amy crawls but he is fast now. I turn my back and he is all over the place, especially into the cords! He loves to pull them when he gets his hands on them. For a while I said, "Oh he sort of moves around on his belly, but it isn''t really crawling." Now I think I can''t say that anymore... he is crawling!

Hunter: 7 months this week!

 

[gailrmv]

Welcome China! Blen pretty much summed it up... lots of talk about crummy sleepers around here!

Mela I am so excited that you got Romy to STTN with the CIO! I know it was probably brutal. I'm glad it worked out. You'll have to let us know how the next nights go.

MGal I am jealous of your good sleeper! Enjoy that!

Blen I'm so glad the walk worked out for you guys! I had another idea, have you ever tried walk, then feed, then bed? It sounds like your new routine is working great but just thought I'd mention it. We always do feeding right before bedtime or naptime, not like I have all the solutions to sleep, not by a loooong shot.

I love the pic of George! He looks a lot like my A. I'm sorry I'm so vague, both about his name and no pics. It's just that this space is so public, and I guess I'm a little paranoid. But I love looking at everyone else's pics!!! I'm just sorry not to fully contribute.

DD What's this about crawling? I do not want to hear this! A is a month behind, we have totally not babyproofed yet, and I am just not ready for him to be mobile yet, but I know it's coming.

Things are a lot better over here tonight. I just realized that it is HARD to have a rational discussion with your spouse about anything, especially parenting, when you are both exhausted and your beloved baby will not stop screaming. As with most things, it all seemed more manageable in the light of day. And, despite a horrible start to the night, A slept from 12:30 until 9. Wish I could say the same for myself!

Has anyone started thinking about timing of a second baby if you are planning on having another? It's been a topic of conversation around here lately. I'm enjoying A so much and I think I would like another someday, but I'm just not ready yet. DH thinks the closer in age, the better because they'll have a better chance of being close and getting along. I really think it has to do more with kids personalities and parents' style of dealing with conflict rather than actual age difference, but I'm not sure. Anyone else thinking about it?

 

[lover in athens]

hi mommas,

did anyone else post this?? if so...SORRY!!!!

http://money.cnn.com/2009/09/24/news/companies/tylenol_recall/index.htm?postversion=2009092415

a bunch of children''s and infant''s tylenol was recalled....

xo,LIA

 

[PenelopeJane]

Hi everyone,

I am new to the site and love this family section. I gave birth on April 5th to a baby boy, Axel, and I also have a 4 yr old daughter, Penelope Jane. (I picked her as my user ID because I love the name so much! My husband actually picked it out when we had her.) I hope it will be OK for me to post here.

I''ve been reading the past few pages and I am right there with the sleeping. Axel will sleep through the night, but has never ever slept past 7am no matter what time he is put down. It is usually 6am or earlier. After reading the suggestions on here, I put him down earlier tonight (7pm) and hope that will help him in some way. 6pm bedtime is not feasible in our house.

It is so interesting to read the different stages everyone is going through as it reminds me exactly what I was going through a few months ago. Axel was very gassy, spit up a ton, couldn''t sleep for more than 1-3 hours at a time and gradually week by week, he has gotten better and now he is not gassy and sleeps through the night sometimes. It''s hit or miss. Up until a month ago, he was waking up 4-5 times a night for his pacifier, like Mela''s baby, and flipping over a bunch in the middle of the night like Dreamer''s. And lately he''s been waking up 1x for his pacifier or not at all. I have not tried CIO of any kind yet since he is still in our room. I am an advocate of it though since it worked with my daughter. She was a great sleeper from 4 weeks on, but would scream and fight going to sleep when it was bed time so we let her CIO at 5.5 months. It took 4 nights. Cried 20 minutes the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd night. On the 4th night she went down without a peep and has since been sleeping 12 hours through. But I feel Axel is very different baby so am holding off on doing that.

He is army crawling, weighs 18 lbs, and is an easy going, happy little guy. He sits, but uses his hands to hold himself up. Blen it is amazing to see your guy sitting straight up like that!

Anyway, here are my kids!

 

[fieryred33143]

I will catch up with everyone tomorrow since mom is here and on grandma duty (yay) but just wanted to welcome Penelope. Your kids are beautiful and I love their names!

 

[TravelingGal]

Just wanted to drop in and say hello to the moms here...I lurk here and there but have a hard enough time keeping up with posting on the other mom thread.

All your babies are so darling - I come here for the photos since most of the older tot moms stopped posting them after the kids turned a year old. It''s the best part of these threads, so it''s too bad that so many of us don''t feel quite safe posting pics of our older kids.

Anyhoo, wanted to sympathies to the sleep deprived, but it seems like everyone is hanging in there and doing a great job. Oh, and Mela, I''m curious how Romy liked the pea pod? Amelia is finally at the age where she is over it. I think she''ll hate it for awhile then get back into it when it seems like her own cool personal tent.

 

[nycbkgirl]

? For MELA-
When u are lettin him cio...do u just leave him there on his own or do u come in to rock/paci/butt tap at all?...jon gets really worked up ...I am so scared to do it but I will :-/
Rice cereal went ok ..will post some pics when I can...jackie loved it but jon was overtired and didn''t want much..will try again today (I am worried about the pooping and causing constipation tho)...it didn''t help his sleep...3am feed still!

Blen- George is so big! I can''t believe they have all grown so much! Too cute!

Welcome Penelope! Cuties!

 

[Sabine]

Oh, ladies, I am in hell over here!

Over the past 2 days, everything I could have told you about Jacks and his behavior/schedule etc. has gone out the window and I have no idea why!

All of a sudden he will not stand to be swaddled no matter what (tried all the blankets), but has to have his arms out. And having his arms out makes him really not sleep well. Along with that, I think he wants his arms out because he''s been sucking on his hands, and all of a sudden, he will no longer take a pacifier AT ALL, ever! Seems to make him even angrier when I try to give it to him! So our whole routine for putting him to sleep for both naps and bed, which was swaddle and give paci, has totally gone and he is fighting sleep even more.

Plus, I don''t know if this is reflux related or not, but all of a sudden he will not stand to be held any way except up on my shoulder! This is basically making it impossible to do anything while I''m holding him! You would think this would mean he would like being in his carrier that''s like the bjorn, but no.

So basically, for 2 days he wouldn''t sleep at all unless being held on my shoulder. So last night I gave up on even trying to put him down and just slept with him on my chest since I had only been getting a half hour of sleep at a time before.

I tried putting him down on his stomach last night after he had been sleeping on my chest, but he woke up almost immediately crying.

I also think I might have post partum depression, although I can''t tell if it''s just sleep deprivation and exhaustion as dh has only been home and awake for a half hour each of the past nights this week. I really thought things were at a point where they were going to start to get better, not 100 x worse!

 

[PenelopeJane]

Thank you for the warm welcome!

Fiery I love their names, too, and I hope that doesn''t sound conceited of me to say. DH named both of them. Our son is named after DH''s maternal great-great grandfather, Axel Anderson. So our baby is Axel Anderson S----. (Anderson is the middle name.) And P. Jane is just a name DH wanted to name his daughter since he was a young lad. Kinda weird.

Tgal You''re in luck since I like to post photos.

nyc I''m not Mela, but I did CIO cold turkey with DD when she was 5.5 months old. She would scream in our arms when we tried to rock her to sleep for a couple of months, so finally decided we needed to let her CIO. She was a very persistent, determined little baby (still is) with large lungs, so we knew we could not cave. Had a bedtime routine of bottle, bath, PJs, crib, and did not go back in at all. Not sure what I would''ve done if it had gone past 20 minutes or an hour, but I am glad we stuck with the plan from beginning to end. There have been many times I wanted to let Axel CIO, but I go in there, pat him and put the paci in and he would be sleeping. So it seemed like he just needed a little comfort to get to sleep. All babies are different. Do what you are comfortable with. It sounds like you are doing great with 2. I can''t imagine.

As for experimenting with early bedtime, Ax slept from 7pm-8am. Took a while to get him down, but I''ll take it. Hope it keeps.

Mela wondering how night #2 went.

Dreamer it is crazy how they go from playing on their bellies to all out being mobile. DH put Axel on the bed while he was changing over the weekend and in a split second, A crawled and lunged forward to get to the alarm clock, hitting his head on the nightstand.

MGal Kyle sounds like such a sweet, easy going baby. Lucky!

China being responsible for a little life is overwhelming, but it gets better as they get older, smile, are more social, etc. I know how you''re feeling, though. Hang in there.

TDM I would''ve liked mine to be closer in age, but there are benefits to having them further apart. DD got full one-on-one time for almost 4 years and she was our buddy, our little best friend. We did everything together and I think it made her into this independent little girl that is grabbing life by the horns! She is reading, spelling, and makes friends easily. Definintely Type A personality. When I dropped her off at preschool on her first day, she told me she wouldn''t miss me because she will be busy being a big learner and I cried. I also like how she can fully understand the dynamic of our family now and empathize with her baby brother. She is not jealous and just loves him to pieces. I have to remind her not to smother him (with too many hugs and kisses). She is a big helper and an extra set of hands. A little mommy. But, when we plan #3 I''d like them to be 2 yrs apart, given the age of DD.

Sabine you have my sympathies. The early weeks/months are ROUGH. Axel did not sleep for more than 2 hours at a time in the first month. He also had reflux--spitting up, grunting and straining in his sleep. I felt like he never truly slept. And for 2 months, he never slept between the hours of 4am and 7am. I thought I would die. But I co-slept and nursed him often, even when he wasn''t hungry, just to get some sleep and survive. Everyone says this, and it is true, that he will get used to being outside the womb, get older, his digestive system will mature, and before you know it this will all be a blurry memory. Hang in there. How old is Jacks now?

I have a question about solids. Did anyone skip cereal and go straight to fruits and veggies for the very first "meal"?

 

[MustangGal]

Just a quick stop in, I''ll come back later for more...

TDM - age doesn''t have much to do with whether they''ll get along. Personality much more so. My sisters are exactly 2 years apart, and still can''t stand eachother (they''re 25 and 23 now!). The rest of us are more spread out, and growing up I got along better with the sister 6 years younger than me than my 4 years older brother and 4 years younger sister. My mom has a good theory on age spacing, only 1 in diapers at a time. Probably makes sense financially too!

 

[neatfreak]

Sabine Unfortunately Jacks is at an age where all things seem to go to hell in a handbasket behavior wise. It might get worse for awhile but then it WILL get better.

Are you getting yourself and Jacks outside reguarly for fresh air? It helps and with my babies it helped them sleep too.

As for the PPD-It''s VERY normal to feel the way you do right now. At the same time you could be experiencing PPD-it''s best to talk to your doctor if you can. They have a pretty good screening measure they can use to see if what you are feeling might be PPD.

HUGS. We''ve all been there-hang in there! And see if you can find a babysitter ASAP to help you for a few hours a week-it is heavenly when you are home alone with the baby/ies all week to look forward to a few hours of rest/work/shopping/whatever!

 

[Mrs]

Outgoing hugs to everyone struggling with sleep issues! I''m right there with you. Sage went down (with a struggle) at 6:45 last night and was up at 9, 11, 1:30, 4 and finally 7.... I''m soo tired today and she is just a ball of energy. I tried to get her to nap at 9 and she wouldn''t have it... got her up for a walk in the ergo since that often gets her to sleep but she''s still wide awake and jabbering away in her crib. I may try to get her CIO again tonight and I will try not to give in... we''ll see how it goes.

China, nice to see you here! We''ll be happy to support you in any way we can!

Welcome to the group, PenelopeJane! I have been somewhat relaxed about solids and introduced cereal and fruits and veggies all at the same time. If you want to go straight to fruits and veggies, I say go for it.

TDM, we were thinking of having another baby right away but now we''re likely gonna wait another year or so. There are pros and cons to having them close together and farther apart so we figure whatever we decide / however it works out will be fine.

hi everyone else

Mrs

 

[lili]

Date: 9/25/2009 3:05:54 AM
Author: TravelingGal
Just wanted to drop in and say hello to the moms here...I lurk here and there but have a hard enough time keeping up with posting on the other mom thread.
All your babies are so darling - I come here for the photos since most of the older tot moms stopped posting them after the kids turned a year old. It''s the best part of these threads, so it''s too bad that so many of us don''t feel quite safe posting pics of our older kids.

Ditto.

Blen--
George is one handsome little guy.
Look how well he''s sitting.

PJ--
Welcome and your kids are adorable.
I love PJ''s sweet smile and Axel''s chubby cheeks -- too cute.

 

[mela lu]

Date: 9/24/2009 9:40:25 PM
Author: TanDogMom
I really think it has to do more with kids personalities and parents' style of dealing with conflict rather than actual age difference, but I'm not sure. Anyone else thinking about it?

I completely agree with this. I've seen all the combos and still have no theory on which one is most harmonic. I really want another one (I see a wee little one and think "I want one!", but I do want to try for a VBAC, hence will be waiting the 18 months between due dates. I figure we'll "pull the goalie" when Romy turns 1.

K, not sure where to begin!

WELCOME Penelope! You DO have some great names there. Axel was actually on our list too! As for solids, I plan on introducing Avocado first

HI CHINA! I AM disappointed that Duke didn't make the cut, but hey, you can always have a second son

and Oliver is a FANTASTIC name. So, no love lost here

Sabine - no advice, but I'm feeling for you! DEf see your Dr about PPD. Hugs lady. It's a tough sitch you have there

I'm going to suggest something "crazy". If you find that you are SO SO SO exhausted and really need a nights sleep, but don't want to leave Jacks to suffer, consider hiring a night nurse to help you out. I did it once, just so I could get a full night sleep because I was so burnt out, and she did everything I would normally have done in the night. I felt like a new person the next day. A poorer, new person. haha.

T-gal - the pea pod was GREAT. We mostly used it outdoors (great for UV and mosquitos) and he totally didn't mind being in there. When we were at the beach though, we had to have it on perfectly level ground or else his movements would topple him over (rolling) unintentionally. I love it and agree that it has 'legs' for when they're older and want a little place to go play in.

NYC - When we let him CIO, we do NOTHING! Okay, I do check on him every 20-30 mins just to make sure he hasn't chocked/puked/rolled/suffocated/pooped but otherwise, he's on his own, baby! Tonight I'm sending DH in to check on him because I *think* he can smell me when i go in there and I *think* it makes him more Ticked off. We'll see tonight....

Last night he only cried from 3am - 4 am (our normal feeding time) in intervals. He would cry/complain and then stop. Then pipe up again, then stop. This lasted one hour and then he was down again until I woke him at 7am

THAT's LESS THAN HALF THE AMOUNT OF CRYING FROM THE FIRST NIGHT!

Crossies that tonight is half of last night...and so on and so forth...

 

[nycbkgirl]

Sabine- im sooo sorry hun

...i totally relate...i had the baby blues too and my kiddos also went thru all those changes...i was very upset when they didnt want to be swaddled and yes they start sleeping a bit worse once the arms are out ..it takes a while for them to adjust to these interesting "things" that sometimes scare them awake...thats why i had to start training them to sleep on tummy bc their arms would jolst them awake and that was that...it took some rocking and butt patting but they learned the tummy sleep and now only do that...and i find it much easier that way (except for rolling onto back which is the stage im at now

...hang in there mama and vent all u want!!

Penelope-thanks for the input! i think when i do decide to go with cio, i will only use the butt tap bc that seems to work best for us...paci is a terror...they just go nuts when that thing goes anywhere near them! and i dont wanna be up all nite sticking it back in either! ...i think we will have a tough time with jon bc he is just a terror when he cries..jackie is do-able and not that bad. boy am i hoping smthg gets these kiddos to sttn b4 we have to resort to this

but we need to start sleeping and being "human:" again! and i will do whatever it takes...doc always told my sis to do that bc nothing is bothering them and nothing can happen if u let them cio..so its just an adjustment phase in my eyes but i dunno if i have it in me..so we shall see

Mela- thats great news...cant wait to hear how this nite goes!! im hoping it wont take long b4 Romy sttn!!!

DD- forgot to mention..

about dreamer./...so sorry...and Hunter crawling----GAK! i cant believe it!

i wondered about solids too...i want to skip rice cereal too but i dont know if we are "allowed" to ...doc said rice cereal has to be first

...i rather go to oatmeal..do i put it in the formula bottle or do i start with just nighttime feeding then a bottle..oy this is confusing!