The new "New Moms" thread!

[Villain-lover]

Aww Denise... Sometimes it is frustrating. How long are you generally out? is he getting too hot or near a feeding time? Or maybe thirsty? Could you take a sippy of water with you and maybe give his a few sips before you go home? is he crying as soon as you strap him into the carseat? Does he have a toy or something you can give him to do on the way home? I guess he could just be overstimulated and over tired?

 

[exwdwcm]

back from vacation. as my DH said, 'having a baby on vacation isn't really a vacation"....lol. It was a lot of work, but a lot of fun too. we had my parents, both my sisters and their DH's, plus one sister has a 5yo and 2yo. then we had my nephew who is 12 and my sister's niece who is 11. so 8 adults, two tweens and 3 kids. did seaworld for 2 days and then the beach mon-fri. i am beat! Will did great though travelling and did great in the heat and all that. you can see the pics on my blog at:
http://williamreed1.blogspot.com/

He had the runs before we left and they continued the whole trip and got the worst on the 8 hour drive home. we had to stop every hour and change him just about. poor guy. he had a horrible rash from it, but i switched to non lactose formula today and it is already improving. He never ran a temp or behaved any differently- still his happy self, just bad poops.

he is becoming a total momma's boy. i don't know what to do about it. i don't know if it was just due to being close to us for a full week or what. but he is super attached. he cries if i leave the room. he cried when i dropped him at day care for the first time ever today. he moved to a new room today, so that was different too. i just can't have him following me to every room when i am trying to cook dinner and he wants to be held constantly by me. i just don't want him to think that is the way it is. any tips? he hardly wanted to play on the floor tonight either, he just wanted to be in my arms. I had to let him cry a little on the floor since I don't want him to be so attached. lol it's nice that he wants me all the time, but i know we don't want him to be like that, we want him independent some too.

so now i have to go read a week's worth of threads and catch up! and now our beach vacation is over and i can focus on our WDW vacation.....if only it wasn't a year and a half away- actually like 16 months now. that's a long time to wait and plan! anyone else going soon?

 

[exwdwcm]

man, we are missing the big storm just in time- we stayed near corpus christi, at mustang island/port aransas, that is right where hurricane dolly is about to hit in south texas. good thing we are gone now.

QOTD-
i think Will might be a lefty. i am too.

We have 2 dogs- Tinkerbell and Sassy, they are 9yo boston terrier sisters and are so good with Will. he tries to get catch them, sometimes they let him, sometimes they run away.

various QOTD- i think i am the parent most people expected. my family calls me supermom- i just am type A, i do it all. i always have and just make time for him into our lives too while still juggling everything else- like i am sure all moms do. i still manage to entertain a lot and always be the host for gtg's etc. I have always tried to do too much, so my family and friends expected i would still be this way with a child- i just mother DH to death (pack his lunch and stuff like that), now i finally have a child to mother. lol one thing that amazes me most if watching him learn and experience the world. he learns so fast and has such awe and potential in his eyes. i can't wait to see him learn and grow day by day. i never knew i could love someone this much- i get tears in my eyes watching anything about kids now becuase i think how much i love him and it is indescribable. that feeling of love and doing anything for him totally amazes me. you don't know it's possible until you have them. What have i learned about myself? i am super more emotional now too like you Bethany. i usually don't cry in front of others. i am the 'strong' and solid one people count on. now i find myself crying at commercials all the time. it bugs me, but having him made me softer for sure.

so time to catch up:

first missed QOTW- pacifier- no, he doesn't use one and never has other than the hospital when born. he just has no interest in it and he isn't really sucking his thumb either, so i think we lucked out there.

kelly- welcome back from the lake. .....holding the little guy will get heavy and i am sure he will squirm too, so i like the backpack idea.

Holly, great blog posts---love the burp/laugh video and the one from Amanda Joy is too cute. Will loves the keyboard too.

you are making me crave some hawaiian shave ice now Bethany - yum! or at least a kaki gori from the japan pavilion.

Stacy- i love the melting pot- you are making me hungry too!

Denise- glad the bday turned out okay- i can't wait to see a movie- i am hoping to get a sitter this weekend, so we can finally see indy or hancock or dark knight. i love fantasy, sci fi or horror stuff. lol

congrats on the new camera Ash- i'll link your blog as well. i mix his formula with our tap water. we have a PUR filter, so it is filtered. he has never had issues. if we travel, i use bottled water, just because i never know if differnent water might upset his tummy. i used regular bottled water at the beach for him. i've never used nursery water. to be honest and not to offend anyone, i just didn't understand why you would pay for water if you have filtered water that works just fine at home. but i am far from doing all the crunchy stuff, in fact i am probably more the other end. lol- do what you feel is right and best for you. but filtered home water works fine for us. oh and worrying, i do it too, but i've been better than i expected i would be. i do check on him from time to time, but not as often as i thought. i've learned to 'let things go' that i used to not let go. it's made life easier so i can focus on enjoying time with him. i know it is hard to do though, especially if you have always been a 'worrier' too.

Nicole- guess you left for Vegas already- i hope you are having a great time.

I am also jealous of you guys going to disney in just under 2 months. no fair!

Beck- Vaylie is too cute with her multiple pacis!

Bethany/Beck- my DH is the same way about disney- although i know he is going to be more into it now with Will.

Beck- i am an overplanner too. you don't even want to know about how badly i plan our WDW trips. i am totally type A. gotta control and plan to every details. it's a sickness, isn't it? LOL and great news on DH's new schedule!!!

golfgirl- welcome! i'd like to know on the shoes too. i haven't put any really on Will yet either, other than jsut for show.

Meredith- yeah for the twins crawling so well and being so smart. they really are just adorable

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Denise, it can be frustrating when we don't understand why our little ones are crying. Sometimes Owen will scream and scream when he's over tired and just can't fall asleep on his own, or when he thinks we've abandoned him, or when he wants to be active but we've strapped him into his car seat or stroller, or when it's a combination of several things. Lately he's been extra fussy because he's teething, and if I forget to give him a little tylenol before naps or bedtime he has a harder time falling and staying asleep.


Okay, I want a Fit for Fun place by me! That sounds like so much fun! We do have Gymboree here, and there is a small infant room in the Children's Museum, but nothing that sounds like what the twins got to do.


As for the "Your Baby Can Read" stuff, I'm very much in the camp of "he'll reach all those milestones when he's ready to reach them", but I think that because of my grad work in early childhood, I also enjoy doing enrichment activities to encourage learning. I don't expect Owen to be reading by age 2, fluent in 6 languages by 4, and composing symphonies by 6, and I'm not going to go all neurotic about growing a genius. But my grad work was focused on the developmental impact of early childhood music education on later academic acheivement (and that's just the pre-thesis research title! ), and I did get to see ways that some early learning activities really can help kids in their development. Of course, I think that at least some of the results can be explained by simple parent-child interaction vs. any specific activities. Still, it's kind of fun to have a baby of my own to test all my research on!

 

[beckmrk04]

Denise- is he crying in the car? V used to cry in the car all the time and I wanted to pull my hair out. I figured out she cried MORE when the sun was shining in her face... I don't know. It is definitely hard to hear your baby cry, though. But, sometimes it's just them being grumpy, you know? I just trun up the radio and sing really loud. (I know, I'm full of excellent parenting techniques- next week we'll discuss Jack Daniels at bedtime )

michelle- when Vaylie gets cling-y I plant her on the ground, give her a couple of toy options, and kiss her and tell her, "I'm right here, but Mommy can't hold you right now because I have to ________"- sometimes it works, sometimes she cries, and I just let her cry- I cry when I'm mad too. I have to admit, though- when she's not feeling good, I just accept that and give her some extra cuddle time, even if some things don't get done. Besides, she so rarely wants to cuddle I try to enjoy it while it lasts.

Bethany- composing symphonies by 6? That's slacking.

 

[HollyJoy]

I'm pretty much over it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Two days in a row I've gone somewhere with my son and two days in a row he's cried the WHOLE way home. He was fed, bottle and solid, and changed. I had to listen to it yesterday 20 minutes and today nearly 45. I am beyond pissed right now!!!!!!!!!! I have no one to take Mo so he's in his activity center with his Baby Einstein DVD on. I don't understand what's wrong. He's fine to our destination, but miserable coming home!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please help me ladies, I do not want to be this upset with my son at such a young age. I really am at a loss.

Denise, hang in there! We went through that with Amanda, and she still does it from time to time. For us, moving her from her infant carrier to a convertible carseat did the trick, though she is still a very tempermental baby. She wants ME all the time, and it's wearing on my patience.. Today, for example, DH was laying a new floor in the living room, but I couldn't help him. Every time I'd put AJ down, she'd SCREAM! Ugh.. I know it's a phase, and that's the only thing keeping me going!

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

Bethany- composing symphonies by 6? That's slacking.

I know, I know, but I hate to push him! After all, Mozart was composing at 5, and he worked himself to death, so I figure I'll ease up on Owen and I won't expect a symphony until he's 6. Should reduce his stress, don't you think?


Okay, one (admittedly fairly silly) vent...

We've had to switch Owen to disposable diapers for overnight since he's such a super soaker, and the only ones that have worked for us are the Huggies Overnights. He needs the size 3's for those (he still fits in a size 2 for daytime, but they don't make the Overnights in anything smaller than a size 3 and he really can use the extra abosorbancy anyway.) Well no one around here stocks the size 3's!!! We bought these while we were out of town, and I of course assumed that I'd be able to find them in San Jose, a city of 1,000,000 people (not to mention the hundreds of thousands in the surrounding suburbs). But no. I've called BabiesRUs, Target, Wal-Mart, Costco, Walgreens, Safeway, Lucky, and even the Mexican and Asian grocery stores trying to find these. So annoying!

I finally gave up on trying to get them locally and ordered them from Diapers.com tonight. But good grief! One manager even told me that "babies in size 3 diapers don't wet enough to need a heavy overnight diaper, so we don't stock that size." Uh, hello! Come on over to my house some morning when Owen's been wearing TWO cloth diapers plus a diaper doubler and STILL has leaked through and soaked his PJ's and his bed. And believe me, getting that Amby bed apart and washing it and then reassembling it before morning naptime is no picnic.

Sigh. Oh well. Thank heaven for the age of internet...I stocked up on a few other baby care items and got free 2 day shipping, so the diapers will be here before we run out. But seriously, no one in San Jose carries these, but I found them in a city of 25,000? That's just crazy!

 

[beckmrk04]

Bethany- I went through the same thing with V- she is a super-soaker! Our Babies 'R Us carried the overnights in size 3- but I had to drive 45 min to get there. Wal-Mart and Target don't carry them. They have 4 and 5, no size 3. Vaylie still wears them though, and sometimes she STILL leaks.

They do have them on www.babiesrus.com now though! I'm not sure if they'd be any cheaper, but at least you don't have to drive all over the country.

 

[jennyL]

Hi ladies. I've been reading but haven't had alot of time to chime in. Noah is doing good. We still haven't gotten in to see the allergist but his skin looks great. I guess it just took a month for the hypo formula to work through his system and then the twice daily lotion parties we have. LOL His big thing now is we are starting some cereal this weekend. He's only ever had formula and then tasted things like fries, lemons, pickles etc. (his favorite thing is to suck a lemon. silly boy LOL) Wish us luck that it all goes well.

I can understand the frustrations you all have. Its odd at my house since usually DH is more laid back then me but when it comes to Noah I'm the laid back one. DH gets really frustrated with him when he won't do what needs to be done and then I think Noah senses it and it only gets worse from there. Of course he is a mommas boy so most times I can calm him just by picking him up. We'll have to see how long that will last.

I do know we are very lucky that he is so easy going since I have some friends with some kids that I'm pretty sure would have been my last one. LOL they are so difficult and I feel bad when they ask me something about Noah and all is easy and fun when they are having such a hard time. I know every child is different so I guess I pulled the lucky straw this time.

 

[beckmrk04]

JennyL- I totally can relate- Vaylie is SUCH an easy kid. Most nights I ask her, "Are you ready to go night-night?" She drops what she's doing, grabs a paci, and runs into her room. ??? How easy is that?

She always has been easy and fun. My poor nephew had colic. I don't know how SIL did it- she was much better than me at dealing. My MIL and I would go over a lot of nights and take turns rocking, walking, bouncing, patting, and shushing. I was big pregnant at the time, and Landon used to love to lay on my chest and belly.

(But, I have a sinking feeling that my next kid will be hell on earth. I just got it waaay too good with this one.)

 

[jennyL]

Oh that is my fear that the next one will be a holy terror. Apparently DH was terrible but my mom says I was the best of her four so we were hoping for normal and we lucked out.

He's still pretty small but as for bedtime he gets this look and I say ok time for nighty-night and take him upstairs lay him in his crib where he rolls onto his side and puts his thumb in and is out. Talk about easy.

 

[exwdwcm]

Jenny/Beck- i share the same fear too. Will is so good. His day care teacher said he is the best baby she's had in 17 years. he literally won't cry unless he is really hungry or sick. He didn't cry once on the 9 hour road trip saturday. we are so so lucky and blessed. I guess God figured he owed me after going through all the fertility stuff and a miserable pregnancy, so he gave me an easy baby? i fear #2, if we are able to have one, that is, will be fussy and difficult.

So who is going to Disney next- Kelly and Nicole? let's see you guys iteneraries!!

 

[Villain-lover]

You know, talking about having other children and all, and how your babies are soo good made me remember what a parent in the child care center I used to work at told me...she said that if most parents had the second child first, there would have been no second child!!! she said her second was so much harder and just different personality wise than the first!!!

 

[Tiggerlover91]

Thanks ladies! I appreciate all your words of wisdom. Mo doesn't cry like that when we're coming home from the park, or shopping at Walmart or Publix...only about 5 minutes away either way. He also doesn't do that on the way home from the sitters, 20 minutes away. I don't if it's because his nap time is interrupted or what. He's having such a GREAT time while we shop and doesn't sleep, so I don't know. Again.....thanks.

 

[Tiggerlover91]

Denise- is he crying in the car? V used to cry in the car all the time and I wanted to pull my hair out. I figured out she cried MORE when the sun was shining in her face... I don't know. It is definitely hard to hear your baby cry, though. But, sometimes it's just them being grumpy, you know? I just trun up the radio and sing really loud. (I know, I'm full of excellent parenting techniques- next week we'll discuss Jack Daniels at bedtime )

Yep....in the car. I have sun thing across the back window so I don't think that is it. I just hope it's a phase that ends soon! How do I go anywhere for long periods of time if he's gonna do this every time???

Jack Daniels at bedtime!!!!

 

[Villain-lover]

Yep....in the car. I have sun thing across the back window so I don't think that is it. I just hope it's a phase that ends soon! How do I go anywhere for long periods of time if he's gonna do this every time???

Jack Daniels at bedtime!!!!

I was gonna suggest a shot of tequila for you and Mo before you go out.........

 

[ImarriedGrumpy]

So far today....

I've spilled coffee on my white shirt when a cat head-butted my arm while I was taking a drink. I changed my shirt and....
Owen spit up strawberry yogurt all over the black shirt I'd changed into. I changed my shirt and...
The 2-yr old I was babysitting this morning had a big poopy blowout. While I was changing her, she started to roll over and kicked the poopy diaper out of my hand and it landed on my foot. I washed my foot and my flip-flop and...
I stepped in cat barf when I went to get a new pair of shoes to wear. So I washed my foot again and...
Owen sneezed just as I put a big spoonful of spiced sweet potatoes in his mouth at lunch. So I changed my shirt, and washed my glasses and my face.

It's not quite 1pm here yet...how much more bathing and laundry am I going to have to do today?!

 

[Pollito916]

I just trun up the radio and sing really loud. (I know, I'm full of excellent parenting techniques- next week we'll discuss Jack Daniels at bedtime )

michelle- when Vaylie gets cling-y I plant her on the ground, give her a couple of toy options, and kiss her and tell her, "I'm right here, but Mommy can't hold you right now because I have to ________"- sometimes it works, sometimes she cries, and I just let her cry- I cry when I'm mad too. I have to admit, though- when she's not feeling good, I just accept that and give her some extra cuddle time, even if some things don't get done. Besides, she so rarely wants to cuddle I try to enjoy it while it lasts.

Beck - I think we have a lot of the same parenting styles. I did the same thing with Alex when he was clingy and with the radio in the car when he would get fussy. There's nothing you can do while driving, so might as well tune it out right? I noticed that it was usually only when DS was overtired, and just before we switched him out of the infant carrier, b/c he didn't like being on a recline so he couldn't see outside. Once he was in the convertible seat it got better, unless he was overtired or the seat got too hot.

Denise - you already switched Mo to a convertible seat right? Do you cover it with anything when you leave the car? I noticed that if we don't cover DS's seat w/a blanket or towel the straps and buckles (plastic parts) can be unbearably hot to the touch, so Mo might be uncomfortable. Or he could just be grumpy or overtired, or any of a million other things. Don't you sometimes wish they could just tell us what is wrong!

One question for you - is the JD for you or Vaylie?

his favorite thing is to suck a lemon. silly boy LOL

DS loves lemons and limes too, so funny b/c he makes a sour face while eating them, but won't put it down and cries if he drops it!

JennyL- I totally can relate- Vaylie is SUCH an easy kid. Most nights I ask her, "Are you ready to go night-night?" She drops what she's doing, grabs a paci, and runs into her room. ??? How easy is that?

Yet another thing Alex & Vaylie have in common, but substitue the paci for his lovey, Rupert!

she said that if most parents had the second child first, there would have been no second child!!!

My mom says the same thing, which makes me so glad I am the 1st born

So far today....

I've spilled coffee on my white shirt when a cat head-butted my arm while I was taking a drink. I changed my shirt and....
Owen spit up strawberry yogurt all over the black shirt I'd changed into. I changed my shirt and...
The 2-yr old I was babysitting this morning had a big poopy blowout. While I was changing her, she started to roll over and kicked the poopy diaper out of my hand and it landed on my foot. I washed my foot and my flip-flop and...
I stepped in cat barf when I went to get a new pair of shoes to wear. So I washed my foot again and...
Owen sneezed just as I put a big spoonful of spiced sweet potatoes in his mouth at lunch. So I changed my shirt, and washed my glasses and my face.

It's not quite 1pm here yet...how much more bathing and laundry am I going to have to do today?!

Wow, Bethany, sounds like you are having a rough start to your day, hope the rest of the day went better!

 

[Tiggerlover91]

Denise - you already switched Mo to a convertible seat right? Do you cover it with anything when you leave the car? I noticed that if we don't cover DS's seat w/a blanket or towel the straps and buckles (plastic parts) can be unbearably hot to the touch, so Mo might be uncomfortable. Or he could just be grumpy or overtired, or any of a million other things. Don't you sometimes wish they could just tell us what is wrong!

One question for you - is the JD for you or Vaylie?

Actually, I think it's for her mommy. She told us that would be our next lesson with her wonderful parenting advice!

Yes Mo is in a convertible car seat and I don't cover it, but when I touch the buckles they are not hot to my touch, but I'll try it and see what happens. I just truly believe he's over tired. What I don't understand is why does he cry all the way home and stop cold when I hit the driveway??!!

 

[beckmrk04]

So far today....

I've spilled coffee on my white shirt when a cat head-butted my arm while I was taking a drink. I changed my shirt and....
Owen spit up strawberry yogurt all over the black shirt I'd changed into. I changed my shirt and...
The 2-yr old I was babysitting this morning had a big poopy blowout. While I was changing her, she started to roll over and kicked the poopy diaper out of my hand and it landed on my foot. I washed my foot and my flip-flop and...
I stepped in cat barf when I went to get a new pair of shoes to wear. So I washed my foot again and...
Owen sneezed just as I put a big spoonful of spiced sweet potatoes in his mouth at lunch. So I changed my shirt, and washed my glasses and my face.

It's not quite 1pm here yet...how much more bathing and laundry am I going to have to do today?!

This made me a little

Some days....