The Official New Mom Thread

[Alice28]

Hi everyone!

Happy 1/2 Birthday to Jimmy ! I can't believe he's already six months.

We tried switching Katrina's formula to the Walmart brand but it made her poops really hard (sorry tmi) and the poor little girl screamed in pain every time she had to pass one. So she is back on Similac. Does anyone have any tips on how to save money on the brand name formula? We signed up for their welcome club but I really can't think of any other ways to save.

One more question. Katrina has patches of flakey dry skin on her (mostly on her feet). I've put lotion on her but it hasn't seemed to help. Anything else I can do for it or should I just leave it alone?

Formula---don't know if you have Costco, but I *think* they sell gigantic cans of Similac for cheaper. Otherwise I can't think of anything else except use your coupons & stock up when stores have sales!

Dry skin----I used a fancy brand called Arbonne for babies with Molly- she had really dry skin & it drove me nutty...but if you can, just leave it alone.

Jimmy is 6 months already? No way!!

What to bring to WDW- good question! And let me know what came in handy as we are counting down too- 60 days to be precise!

 

[DisKim]

My computer has been driving my nuts. For days now, the internet gives out every time I try to post. I have to catch up now.

Justhat - I love the new pictures of Madison.

Lissawynn - Happy birthday to Jimmy. I can't wait to hear all about your trip. Make sure to let me know all the great tips for going to WDW with a baby!

Peigirl - congratulations! I'm sorry you have had such a rough time.

I have been having a terrible time with Aidan the last couple of days. We took him to Sesame Place with the kids yesterday. He was miserable and crying for most of the day. I figured it was because we were out all day and he was uncomfortable. Today he did the same thing. He cried almost all day and wouldn't let me put him down. I had to hold him during his nap just so he could get some sleep and feel better. I don't think he's sick. I'm thinking it must be either he's constipated (he hasn't gone #2 in 2 days but that's normal for him - TMI, I'm sorry) or he is teething (he bites his hand constantly and drools all over). He is only 3 months old. Could he be teething already? It's been too long since my other 2 were little, so I can't remember when they started teething.

 

[tkyes]

Soooo much catching up to do!!!

Happy Birthday to Jimmy!

Peigirl - congrats!!! Sorry to hear about your difficulties though.

Gretchen - don't beat yourself up over it. Everything will be fine. I can't let Tyler cry it out for more than 10 - 15 minutes because he becomes inconsolable. I'm sure I'm not doing the right thing by going to get him, but I just have a hard time imagining him calming down. I'm sure it's a first time mom thing with me.

So, you're supposed to get your baby on a schedule as soon as possible right? Just how do you go about doing that? Tyler's nights are not consistant yet. Sometimes he'll sleep 5 hours, sometimes 4. Then obviously he's up at different times in the morning. So everyday starts a little differently.

Also, eventually babies are supposed to take 2 long naps during the day. Tyler still naps between every feeding. I don't know if he has ever had 3 straight hours of awake time. How do I try and break him of this and get some longer nap time in?

I went in Gymboree the other day and I do like some of the boys lines this time, I didn't really care for too much of the boys summer stuff. I need to wait for sales though, I just can't pay full price. Same with the Gap too, everything is full price right now.

Tamie

 

[becka]

Hi Everyone!!! I have not had a chance to check in for a while so I have not been able to keep up with everyone's news but I hope everyone is healthy and happy.

Allie turned 6 months old yesterday...it is so hard to believe. She is such a fun baby but so much quieter than Nathan. She is sitting up pretty well by herself and we are only days away from those first little teeth coming in. Teething has been pretty hard on her and I am hoping it goes quickly.

Allie thinks the world revolves around her big brother and it has been so much fun to see the two of them actually play together. Nathan loves to spin Allie around as fast as he can in her exersaucer and she just giggles...it is so sweet. In fact when she is really fussy and nothing seems to calm her down we send Nathan in because she always calms right down for him. He is our secret weapon....

I have been feeling better as well. I have been on medication for a little over a month and it has made a big difference. I really didn't realize quite how bad I felt until I started to feel better. My doctor wants to keep me on the meds for a few more months and then see if I can come off of them.

We are planning our next WDW trip for early February and I am getting excited. I was starting to get worried that Allie would not be able to handle it but as she has gotten bigger I start thinking that we will be fine although I am not looking forward to a 20 hour drive!

 

[lissawynn]

Becka It's great to hear that you're feeling better and doing what you needed to do in order to get better. It's great to hear Allie is doing well, too. Jimmy has been teething for so long, I can't wait until a tooth appears. We're taking Jimmy to WDW on Friday. I'll let you know how the 16 hour ride goes for us. Your so lucky to have a little guy who enjoys being a big brother.

 

[Tasha+Scott]

Hi everyone! I am behind on this thread so I will just say I hope you are all well and I'll try to catch up later.

My brother's cochlear implant went well. We just have to wait until his scar heals before they can actually turn it on and work with him on learning on how to hear and talk normally. I can't wait! While we were at my mom's Kylie managed to put herself to sleep every night in her bouncer. All I had to do was pick her up and lay her down in her pack and play and she slept all night. She has been self-soothing herself since then and is starting to take naps somewhere other than on me now which is a nice change. She has been sleeping through the night for several weeks now too w/a couple of exceptions. My mom and I are pretty sure she is in the early stages of teething too. She is constantly chewing her fist and drooling really badly. I started teething around her age so it's possible. I feel truly blessed b/c the first month to 6 weeks was really hard but now she is such a good, happy, easy baby. I have a feeling our next one will make up for it though!

Btw, I still have not gotten a period. I have an appt. on Aug. 15 and if I haven't gotten one by then I'll see what she says. I know I'm definitely not preg. and I am not bfing so I don't know what's taking so long!

 

[Tasha+Scott]

Here are some pictures I had taken of Kylie at 2 months:

 

[gwcollins71]

Justhat & T&S,

I love the new pictures you both posted! Tasha, Kylie is getting soooo big. Look at those cheeks!

We are managing here with Lily. I feel like I can't predict when she will be awake or asleep. Daddy leaves for work around 5-530am and Lily usually wakes for a short nursing and falls back asleep within 20 minutes. Its 7 am and she's still up and fussy. I tried nursing her longer. She was still fussy so I gave her 2 oz of formula. Now she's semi sleeping while I type this with one hand. At least she's quiet. I'd like her to fall asleep so I can take a shower.

I was over at the neighbor's yesterday and Lily was fussy. The neighbor said she had gas b/c her tummy was tight. I don't know. Whenever she's crying her tummy becomes tight. As soon as she stops her tummy relaxes. Anyway, the neigbor said to give her Mylicon drops or some other gas drops. She's not even 4 weeks. Is it too early. When is it not too early. We got all these baby meds at my shower. I don't want to give her anything until she's old enough. When will this be?

TMI -- PERSONAL QUESTION...

How long did it take to want to "get back in the swing of things" with your husband? I am dying to and we can't until 6 weeks. I thought you weren't supposed to want to after a baby? I feel like I'm a weirdo right now.

Anyway, has anyone not waited the 6 weeks? Will it really hurt anything? Just curious.

We are finally getting Lily's announcements finished. I got kits at Target and we've been working on them. They are pink striped cardstock and have a photo of her with a vellum overlay with her stats and a ribbon tying it all together. Mike is cracking me up. He is sitting there holding Lily and tying all these little pink ribbons into bows at the same time.

I am not looking forward to going back to work. I actually have work meetings starting next week . I don't want to leave her with anyone. She doesn't seem old enough to leave with anyone else yet. It is hard to believe that she'll be a month on Friday. It seems like yesterday I was having the c-section.

Hope everyone has a fantastic day. I am completely jealous of all of you that are leaving for Disney. I'm trying to get hubby tio agree on a trip next summer. He wants to go to Mexico. What would we do with Lily in Mexico? Hmphhh!

Gretchen

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

Tasha - cute pics! Kylie is such a cutie. And good luck to your brother.

Gretchen - we gave Lucas Mylicon drops at 3-4 weeks with our ped's approval. I don't know how well they work, but they don't harm him or have any side effects or anything. I heard it was because the drops do not get absorbed into the bloodstream, but I'm not certain.

Everyone going to WDW - have a great time! I'm jealous. We plan on going in Oct 2006; it seems like a long time away.

 

[lissawynn]

Gretchen - I waited until after my 6 wk. check to resume DH's and my "relationship". Even then it was too soon, but my poor hubby was dying. I'll be honest, yes, it was painful for the first several weeks, but things got better. I don't care what anyone else says, after an episitomy (sp?), things are NEVER the same!
We also gave Jimmy the gas drops when he was just a few weeks old. He had terrible gas pains for a stretch of a few weeks. After that it just cleared up. The dr. told us that was due to his digestive system developing.

Tasha+Scott Kylie's pics are so cute! I wish Jimmy had that much hair! Glad to hear your brother is doing well.

It's going to be hot here today! I don't know whether I want to brave the heat and run my errands or stay home in the a/c and get the majority of my packing done.

 

[vald1977]

Love the new pics! Madison and Kylie are such little cuties !

As far as a baby schedule, I never quite figured that one out myself. With my DS, we just let him figure it out for himself and the older he got, the more predictable he became. We will follow the same route with DD. I am a stay at home mom so I have a bit of leeway though as far as sleeping and stuff so that is what worked for us.

Mylicon drops were a lifesaver for us with DS. They are safe to use even for very little babies (like others have pointed out). It's worth a try.

We didn't wait the six weeks after having DS . I think it was more like four. Since I had a c-section that "area" wasn't affected and we had no problems. Now DH is already bugging me but I do think two weeks is pushing it! He will have to wait a liitle longer.

 

[gwcollins71]

thanks for the advice. maybe I'm more excited about the "idea" because I too had a c section so there's no damage down there. Who knows? Hubby is adament about waiting 6 weeks bc dr said so. I'm hoping I can convince him.

Gretchen

 

[copper68]

i would think if you had a c/section it wouldn't be a big deal if you're ready.. however my situation was quite the opposite.. my doc didn't make it into the room in time to do my episiotomy and i ended up tearing.. so i was VERY sore for quite a while.. and wondered for a long time if i was stitched up a little more than i should've been.. but things are fine now.. (i would hope so it's been 18 months.. he he he)

 

[Tasha+Scott]

I was over at the neighbor's yesterday and Lily was fussy. The neighbor said she had gas b/c her tummy was tight. I don't know. Whenever she's crying her tummy becomes tight. As soon as she stops her tummy relaxes. Anyway, the neigbor said to give her Mylicon drops or some other gas drops. She's not even 4 weeks. Is it too early. When is it not too early. We got all these baby meds at my shower. I don't want to give her anything until she's old enough. When will this be?

Kylie had terrible gas at just a week old and I was told I could give it to her then so she started taking some mixed in her formula at just a week old without any problems.

TMI -- PERSONAL QUESTION...

How long did it take to want to "get back in the swing of things" with your husband? I am dying to and we can't until 6 weeks. I thought you weren't supposed to want to after a baby? I feel like I'm a weirdo right now.

Anyway, has anyone not waited the 6 weeks? Will it really hurt anything? Just curious.

Truthfully I wanted to at only a week after I had Kylie even though I had a c-section. We didn't have relations, but we did improvise with other things. We didn't start having relations until a few days after my 6 week check-up and, yes, it did hurt and wasn't very fun! I didn't expect it to hurt after a c-section but it did! The funny thing is when we couldn't do it I REALLY wanted to but now that we can I really don't feel like it much and have only done it a few times. I guess maybe I had wanted to due to the postpartum hormones or something!?

 

[DisKim]

Hi ladies!
Tasha - Great pictures of Kylie. I love her little dress. My friend's baby has the same one. I just got pictures back from the photographer. I'll try to post them soon.

As far as resuming "relations" goes, I always waited at least 6 weeks (all were ******l delieries). After my last pregnancy, the doctor asked me if I had at my 6 week check up. I was suprised. I told him that I thought I had to wait for his okay. I would think that you would be fine since you had a c-section. I have three children and had an episiotomy each time. It makes it a lot more difficult.

Aidan is actually taking a nap and I have to wake him up to take him to the library with my other kids. The poor third child gets no rest.

 

[floridafam]

Add me to the "we didn't wait" list.

When I was discharged from the hospital, a student nurse said 3 weeks and I knew she was wrong. I think we waited 4. We didn't have any problems and it was just like before.

Only since I started back on Yasmin has it become a little painful. TMI sorry.

Is anyone else on that. I'm beginning to think that it is the bc pill from hell.

T&S,

Those pictures are amazing. What a cutie!!!!

I hope everyone is doing well. Kona saw her first space shuttle launch this morning. It was great!

 

[joats]

Only since I started back on Yasmin has it become a little painful. TMI sorry.

Is anyone else on that. I'm beginning to think that it is the bc pill from hell.

Did you read my reply about Yasmin a few pages back? I had an awful experience with it.

I too am hoping to get the go ahead at my 6 week check up this coming monday. Even more than that, I'm hoping to get approval to swim! LOL!
I'm dying to go swimming!!

 

[floridafam]

joats,

Yes, I did. Thank you. I am done after my current pack runs out.

 

[justhat]

Thanks everyone about Madison's pictures.

Tasha, Kylie's pictures are adorable! She's so expressive with her eyes. Very, very cute. Where did you get them done?

Strawberry Lemonade, I love your new photo of Lucas too! He looks so happy on his play gym. Madison had the same one and loved it too. It was where she first flipped from back to tummy.

I waited until after my 6 week checkup before we did anything, but really I had the check at 5 weeks because I was going to be out of town at 6 weeks so I guess it was really 5 weeks. Honestly though, I had absolutely no desire to do anything and if it weren't for that fact that my husband did I would have waited longer. Part of it was that for about 3 or 4 weeks, I was pretty much exclusively pumping because I had mastitis and it hurt too much to feed her, then when it cleared up I was still too sore for her to nurse. So I was feeding her with a bottle every 2 hours, then pumping, so I was exhausted. Plus that didn't leave anytime between feedings for anything anyway! The other part was pain. I didn't have an episiotomy or tearing, but they had to use forceps to turn Madison's head and the forceps cut me pretty badly internally (2 hours of pushing and she didn't move because her head was slightly turned to the side-they turned her with the forceps and she came out in 3 pushes). I really couldn't sit down comfortably for about 4 weeks. So yes, it hurt and the 1st time we actually had to stop cause it was in no way comfortable for me.

 

[Alice28]

The funny thing is when we couldn't do it I REALLY wanted to but now that we can I really don't feel like it much and have only done it a few times. I guess maybe I had wanted to due to the postpartum hormones or something!?

I dunno, maybe cause you're TIRED!?!?! Seriously though, DH and I did the deed at 4 weeks post partum this last time cause it was do it, or get nothing at all for 10 more months. So, I gritted my teeth and tried to enjoy it. I think with the other two we did wait til the 6 week mark. I will say in all brutal honesty, and sorry if I offend anyone, that a good lubrication product is your best friend for at least 6 months after having a baby. Esp. if breastfeeding. All those hormones everywhere for some reason make things dry down there.

Mylicon is ok for young babies...buy the store brand- much cheaper.


And, cute pics Tasha! Kylie is so sweet!