The Official New Mom Thread

[J&D]

there were no jobs

in elementary ed

I think this depends upon where you live. Here in Texas it seems that school districts are always scrambling during July and August to fill their teaching vacancies at all levels. If you are thinking about majoring in English and journalism, then maybe secondary ed is what you need to look into. A minor in special ed would open lots of opportunities. Here in Texas you can have a degree in another field and go into an alternative certification program in order to teach. You need to see what is required in Mississippi. I teach 7th grade science, and it is a very fun subject to teach. Just be aware that even though it is nice to be off during the summer, teaching is a very demanding career during the school year. Don't expect your day to be over when the school bell rings. There will oftentimes be late nights planning lessons and grading papers, not to mention open house, PTA/PTO meetings, etc.

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

I have a question about babies' skin. I noticed Lucas has a few patches of dry skin (white & flaky - no redness or rash). What can I do for it? He's just shy of two weeks old. Is he too young for lotion or should I go ahead and put some on? I got some lavender-scented baby lotion at my shower and I'm sure it would be gentle enough, but I'm not sure how sensitive his skin is. Any opinions on this matter?

TIA!

 

[Gwene65]

Strawberry-I put lotion on Meadow after her first bath. Which was at like 2 weeks I think. And the lavender one is very gentle and mild. I'm sure it would be ok to give some to Lucas.


There is nothing like smooth baby skin, except maybe baby skin that smells like lavender!

 

[lulu71]

I have a question about babies' skin. I noticed Lucas has a few patches of dry skin (white & flaky - no redness or rash). What can I do for it? He's just shy of two weeks old. Is he too young for lotion or should I go ahead and put some on? I got some lavender-scented baby lotion at my shower and I'm sure it would be gentle enough, but I'm not sure how sensitive his skin is. Any opinions on this matter?

TIA!

Mia had this problem too. Our pediatrician recommended that we use Dove soap and not all the baby washes out there. We did and haven't had a problem since. The dry skin cleared up in no time! Good luck!

PS..Can you believe we're talking about our babies now and not pregnancy stuff?

 

[joats]

I have a question about babies' skin. I noticed Lucas has a few patches of dry skin (white & flaky - no redness or rash). What can I do for it? He's just shy of two weeks old. Is he too young for lotion or should I go ahead and put some on? I got some lavender-scented baby lotion at my shower and I'm sure it would be gentle enough, but I'm not sure how sensitive his skin is. Any opinions on this matter?

TIA!

SL: the Dr/hospital said it was fine for us, but to just test it on one small part of skin to see if any allergic reaction then if nothing - lather him up.
I have used Baby Magic and Johnsons Bedtime w/lavendar so far w/no problems on Jace as his hands, belly and feet have little patches of dry skin.

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

Thanks! I went ahead and put it on anyway. I've got New Mother Syndrome really bad - I have to have reassurance for everything I do! I'll have to look into the Dove soap - we've been using the Johnson & Johnson wash they gave us at the hospital.

 

[joats]

We had Jace's 2 week checkup today. He gained 13 ounces in 8 days - WOW! He's gained back all the weight he lost in the hospital and is now 8 pounds 11.5 ounces.

The Dr. says that I have too much milk production and is having me nurse from one side at a time (for 2 feedings in a row).

Has anyone ever heard of this? Apparently, he's getting too much milk which is causing him to choke and spit up through his nose and mouth at almost every feeding. We are shocked at how much weight he has put on. Isn't the average about 2 ounces a week? Weird thing is he barely eats more than every 3 1/2 - 4 hours.

I sure hope this new nursing schedule will work.

 

[katerkat]

I've never heard of nursing from just one side - I would be so lopsided!! They're supposed to gain an ounce a day, or about a pound every two weeks. Russ was a fast gainer in the beginning, too - went up 19 oz in 13 days, once he got passed the jaundice. He's evened out now. Oh, and he rarely wanted to eat any earlier than 3-4 hours. But he never spits up.

 

[J&D]

Our ped. also suggested using Dove soap and either Lubriderm or Aquaphor (Eucerin).

 

[lissawynn]

Baby lotion I remember putting some on Jimmy in the hospital. One of the nurses told me I should hold off on the lotion until he was older. Nothing happened to him. His poor little hands were so dry at the time!
As far as New Mother Syndrome, DH has it much worse than I do. I'm so relaxed about some stuff. Jimmy is very healthy and "thriving" according to the dr. I'm just taking the new stuff as it comes. DH is the worrier in this family.

I hope you all enjoy your 4th of July! DH and I are going to his niece's b-day party today. I'm planning on an early exit. I've got so much to do. I finally booked an appt. for Jimmy's first photos (yes, bad mommy), and I have to figure out what he's going to wear. I'm also washing clothes like crazy. It's so nice outside, and I'm hanging most of the clothes outside.

 

[DisneyPhD]

We had Jace's 2 week checkup today. He gained 13 ounces in 8 days - WOW! He's gained back all the weight he lost in the hospital and is now 8 pounds 11.5 ounces.

The Dr. says that I have too much milk production and is having me nurse from one side at a time (for 2 feedings in a row).

Has anyone ever heard of this? Apparently, he's getting too much milk which is causing him to choke and spit up through his nose and mouth at almost every feeding. We are shocked at how much weight he has put on. Isn't the average about 2 ounces a week? Weird thing is he barely eats more than every 3 1/2 - 4 hours.

I sure hope this new nursing schedule will work.

My babbies always took one side a feeding. It was easy for me to remember what I need to feed next, but it looked strange feeling myself up! If I was giving two feeding in a row from the same breast I would pump the other side right after feeding and frezze it. I know many women who had a domminat breast that most of the nursing would happen on.

My problem recently was Lily's new teeth would get in the way of sucking and cause sores on my left breast that wasn't healing so I had to only give her the right and then pump the left every so often to keep it going. Since she had gotten used to eating both sides for a while she would get rather mad, like I know you have more and you just won't give it to me.

The milk the baby gets 1st is fore milk. It is rich in fat. The milk near the end is hind milk. Babies need them both. When you are feeding both side he is getting too much fore milk and not enough of the hind milk. One feeding per side will help with that. (just in case your dr just told you what to do, and not why.)

Also if he is feeding that far apart (not really a bad thing.) but your breast may be very full and your "let down" can be rather strong. Another thing you could do is pump after 2 hours and then feed him after 3 to 4 hours. (if what your dr suggested isn't working.)

What ever it is don't worry about it, you are doing great. Too much milk is almost a good thing (it will level off, until then pump and get a get supply up so you can go out sometimes!) The babies systems are still imature when they are born and it takes a little bit for them to catch up. He will be able to handel it better soon.

Good luck.

Oh and my doc said to just leave the skin alone, it will go away. It did. It did't bug the baby just me so I had to get over it.

 

[joats]

DisneyPhD: Thank you for your post! No the Dr. didn't go into as much detail, so I appreciate your taking the time to explain some of this. I am trying to pump when I can as it hurts if I don't.

Katerkat: I am so totally lopsided (LOL!)

If I can ask one more question to you mommies: Jace sleeps well all day long and the 2nd part of the eve/early am. However every night from 8pm-1am he is so fussy and nothing can console him. It's every night during the same time period (otherwise he's so peaceful). He just wants to be held I think. He'll fall asleep on one of us, but when we put him in the bassinet a few minutes later he starts crying and fussing and works up into full blown screams. Is this normal? Any way to change it or at least the timing of it to have him do this during the day instead?
Thanks in advance!

 

[Strawberry Lemonade]

If I can ask one more question to you mommies: Jace sleeps well all day long and the 2nd part of the eve/early am. However every night from 8pm-1am he is so fussy and nothing can console him. It's every night during the same time period (otherwise he's so peaceful). He just wants to be held I think. He'll fall asleep on one of us, but when we put him in the bassinet a few minutes later he starts crying and fussing and works up into full blown screams. Is this normal? Any way to change it or at least the timing of it to have him do this during the day instead?
Thanks in advance!

Lucas does the same thing! Sometimes we'll have to feed him again for just a few minutes (it's as if we're "topping him off") even when he falls asleep after a feeding and then he'll go right to sleep on his own.

 

[katerkat]

Russ did the same thing in the beginning - I swear, the minute my mom went back to the hotel he'd fuss for 2-3 hours. When he was 3-4 weeks old, he stopped. We have no idea why!

 

[joats]

Glad to hear that Jace is not the only one. I'm hoping it's not going to be PM colic that I've read about. I'm hoping tonight will be an easier night.
Thanks for your replies SL & Katerkat.

 

[justhat]

We're back from the beach and I can't believe there are so many pages to catch up on! I'll have to read them all tomorrow when my husband is home for the last day before he goes back to school on Tuesday.

We got 2 messagees while we were gone from the 'preschool' we applied to last fall that they have a spot for Madison this September! She was wait-listed in March when they mailed the decisions so we're so happy she got in. I need to go back to school this fall (I took a leave of absence for a year, was supposed to go back this May but didn't have any childcare) so this helps tremendously. Daycares in DC are ridiculous and they pretty much all have 2 year waitlists. Even the one I worked at before Madison was born I can't get her into, and I have priority status there (siblings 1st, then me). I was really getting worried about what I was gonna do this fall, so this was a huge relief. It's more or less a daycare for Madison since she'll only be 18 months (the youngest they can start), but she can stay there for the preschool (and even elementary school) if we stay in the area so we were really hoping to get in. Now it kinda makes me want to stay in DC after my husband graduates since I won't have to worry about finding childcare again. Of course, that's not really up to us though.

Madison had lots of fun at the beach, though she actually was not thrilled with the beach itself. She HATED the ocean (cried everytime we stood her in it), hated the sand, shells, being dirty, etc. Weird cause she likes the sandbox at the playground. Luckily they had a pool (she loves pools) and also a tiny waterpark, which was free for adults and kids under 3. She loved the slides at the pool, and unlike the Disney hotel slides, she was allowed on them if she rode with someone. We spent most of the day on the slides and playing in the water fountains and stuff. I decided to try the beach again at the end of the trip and as long as I sat her on a towel she was happy to play in the sand. She started out playing with her shovels and not touching the sand, but she got brave and worked up to grabbing handfuls and rubbing it together, collecting shells, and running all over the beach. She still hates the ocean though! I definitely did not want to come home today, especially to come back to a supercrowded DC. The place is mobbed with tourists, it's unbelievable. I don't even want to leave the house tomorrow. And I actually kinda can't, cause the bridge to VA we take is closed tomorrow cause of the crowds, so that will make grocery shopping a challenge. Oh well.

Okay, I need to get on some unpacking and laundry.

Oh, joats, by the way, Madison did almost the same thing. She was a great baby all day and night, except around 9pm. She'd more or less fuss/cry no matter what we did for about 1-2 hours. Then she'd fall asleep and stay asleep about 6 hours or so. It started around a week old and lasted till she was around 7-8 weeks, then miraculously stopped. It was hard to handle cause I felt like I had to be doing something wrong since I couldn't console her, but I soon realized that was just her little quirk (when no one else could settle her either). And it was worth it to me to deal with the crying since she'd sleep so long afterwards. Oh if only she did that now! I'd be thrilled! Hopefully a visit to the sleep clinic Thursday will help us figure all her sleep issues out though. (2 nights of hours of screaming at the beach really made me look forward to this sleep clinic!)

Oh, and I also made tons of milk (which I loved cause it took a long time to come in and she lost a lot of weight) and Madison would choke almost every feeding. She wasn't big on spitting up, just a choker. She still chokes sometimes when she's nursing though, so maybe that's just her. I still fed her both sides each time, but only for 3-4 minutes per side-total mealtime was 7 minutes. She did this about every 2-3 hours.

 

[Alice28]

It seems like most babies, if they are going to have a fussy period, seems to be in the afternoon or evening. It's weird.

I have to share something extremely exciting with you ladies, and no, it has nothing to do with Gymboree.

I have been dealing with anxiety over some home repairs. Nothing major, but some cracks in our plaster in the ceilings; floor molding that needs to be installed (we had Pergo put in 3 summers ago and have yet to replace the base molding in the kitchen and Molly's room ); paint is starting to chip on the outside of the house, in some places pretty badly. I was anxious because I wasn't sure who to call about the plaster; don't have a lot of money right now; hate not having DH here to talk with about it.

Several years ago when the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan began, our local radio station that plays the top 40 songs and does a silly morning show, etc, was helping out a deployed family with a water heater or something like that and I remember one of the DJs saying how there were tons of contractors here in the Portland area who wanted to help out deployed families for free or nominal cost and just to call the station and ask for help. Well, at the time everything was hunky dory with our family, hubby home, thought nothing of it except that it was really cool.

Well, I decided the other day just to email the station and ask for the name of one of those contractors cause I had several minor repair issues with our home that I didn't know who to contact for. I briefly stated that DH was in Iraq and had been for several months, and he wouldn't be home til next Jan, we have 3 kids, and I would hate for him to come home to a mile long honey-do list.

The DJ emailed me back and asked me to call the station to talk with him off air. I did call (after 45 minutes of being way nervous about it) & he was on-air so the call screen guy took my name and number and the DJ called me back about an hour or so later. He said he was soooo impressed with my email that I wasn't "Gimme gimme" about anything, and that I didn't ask for anything at all but a name, and that he and Terry (the cohost) were so grateful for my husband's sacrifice, that they want to put me on air in a week (after they are back from vacation) and open my needs up to the greater Portland area and get ALL the repairs I want done, done! OH MY GOD. I was shocked. A little tongue tied for sure. I don't know exactly will happen, and whenever my mind starts racing, I pull back and say to myself, "I want the cracks repaired, and anything after that is gravy."

God is good, and so are my fellow Oregonians. This is so exciting I could just scream! I will let you all know what happens of this as I know...like I said, this won't happen until the 11th.

 

[Jenn Lynn]

Make a big list!

Congratulations! That's really cool.

 

[joats]

Justhat: Glad you had a great time at the beach. Sorry to hear about Madison's sleep difficulties.

Alice28: What wonderful news! I can't imagine what it must be like w/DH not there. I am so happy that the radio station is going to help you out. Congrats! I hope you can get some help with those home repairs!

 

[DisKim]

Justhat - I just took Aidan to the beach for the first time too! He was such a good boy. He slept most of the day or sat in a portable bassinet that I brought and played with his toys.

Alice28- What great news! I'm so happy for you. I wouldn't want my DH to come home to a honey do list either.

I hope everyone had a great fourth of July!