Hi everyone! Hope you're all having a great Friday... I'm in a fantastic mood today - it's our (dh & I) 5 year anniversary today, and in honor of it, Megan (who is 4 weeks old) slept for 7.5 HOURS last night. I couldn't believe it! We've been trying a new trick with her to get her to sleep more, and based on the last few nights, it appears to be working - 5.5 hours on Tuesday night, 6.5 hours on Wednesday night, and then 7.5 hours last night. Before this, she slept for 3 hours, then woke up to feed, then up for an hour just looking around, then back to sleep for another 3 hours.
Ahhhhh, life is good! Plus, grandma is going to babysit tonight, while DH and I go out to dinner. And, I'm down another 2 pounds, and it's Friday! Yippee!!!
Garden Girl - thanks for the info about the meetings. I still have to decide what to do. My sister has the weight watchers info, and she is going to show me the basics of her plan, so that I can decide if it is what I want to do or not.
Jen - Thanks for the encouragement. I hope the medicine works for you. I never had any fluid from my incision - The only incision related problem I've had is that once the surgical tape came off, I had a lot of soreness when I walked, I guess from my loose tummy skin rubbing against it. I'm sorry - I wish I had something I could tell you. Hopefully your doctor will have comforting news...
Lara - I want more info on Tops meetings too! How much do they cost?
Hello, friends! Welcome to the newly pg friends, we are so glad to have you.
Well, I had quite a scare the other day. I have been feeling great since Josiah was born, but then Thurs. morning in the shower I started having some cramping. At first I didn't think anything of it, but by the time I got out of the shower I was doubled over in pain. I called DH at work and he came right home and rushed me to the doctor. (We were both in a panic!) Turns out I have an infection, which I guess is a fairly common complication while recovering from childbirth, although I've never had it before. The doctor was so reassuring. She put me on a high-dose antibiotic and some very nice pain killers and I should be fine soon. I am feeling better but very tired and sore.
I was planning to go back to WW on Monday, but now I'm not sure if I'll be up to it or not. I am really anxious to go back and get this body back in shape!
Jen and others -- do NOT beat yourself up if nursing doesn't work for you. My Mom was a Le Leche League leader, so I was raised with the "formula-is-sin-breast-is-best" mentality all the way. Imagine my horror when I tried everything possible with my first and still couldn't nurse! She got dehydrated and everything. It was just awful. So with my second and third I supplemented right from the start. I nurse 10 min on each side and then follow up with a bottle of formula. I also nurse in between feedings if he is fussy and seems to want that. It does make the feedings a little longer, but it's still easer than pumping or using a SFS like I was the first time around. Both my girls nursed for about 4-5 months and then gave it up and only took the bottle, but it was very gradual and never a problem. And everyone is perfectly healthy and happy. It helped my guilt when one of my many lactation consultants told me, "Be thankful for formula. These are the babies that 100 years ago wouldn't have made it."
Ok, first I will say there is a really good post on TOPS here. It is from the TOPS Board here. TOPS also has a website that has lots of info .
Basically, it is member run, each year you elect new officials, which is great, and the program each week is put on by different members. I have found that the more involved I get the better I do, and I know that a lot of the other members feel the same.
Yearly dues, which pay for the monthly magazine are $20 here in the states... and I think $25 in canada. Monthly dues depend on the chapter, most are between $3 and $5 a month I believe. You can pay once a month or once a year or anything in between I believe.
I have a great group of ladies, and we now have 2 men joining us as well which is nice. we have a couple of teens who come, but for the most part the women in my group are a little older. There are a few of us just starting our families or in the middle of raising our families too.
Hi everyone,
Sue, please tell me what is the sleeping trick?Little Leo now at 8 weeks and won't sleep more than 4 hours...last night was up almost every hour and we are shattered! At the moment DH is working odd hours,leaving home at 4pm, back about 1.30am, and i have a rebellious 4 year old to get fed and bedded plus Leo who wants to be nursed all evening.
If anyone has any advice irtips onhow to get a breast fed baby to sleep longer I'm all ears. Have tried getting him to take a bottle of formula in the evening which he will do as long as it's mixed 50/50 with expressed, but even so he doesn't sleep well...
Hugs to you all,
Geneve
I'm not sure if it will work for you or not, because unfortunately I'm not breastfeeding, but this is what we did...
I took this idea from the "Baby Whisperer" book. It's called cluster feeding. Basically, giving her enough calories in the evening to last her throughout the night. One of her normal evening feedings is usually at 6PM. She drinks about 5 ounces of formula per feeding. Then, we feed her 4-5 ounces again at 8PM (of course, we don't force her to drink the whole amount though - we just stop when she's done.) Then, we feed her again, right before we want to go to bed (usually 10:00 or 10:30). She usually won't drink her full amount at this feeding, usually an ounce or two less. So she ends up having 12-15 ounces between 6 and 10PM. It seems to be enough calories to be allow her to skip her middle of the night feeding - she doesn't wake up for it. I asked the pediatrician if this was o.k. to do, she said it was fine.
She slept for 5 1/2 hours straight on Wednesday night, 7 hours on Thursday night, 7 1/2 hours Friday night, and 7 hours last night. (She only slept 4 hours on Saturday night - we missed her 8:00 feeding, and that seems to have made a big difference).
It has been life changing for us - I was so sleep deprived, I didn't know what to do with myself, and I didn't want to start adding cereal to her bottles like lots of people suggest - she's too young for that, and my pediatrician warned me about that.
We also got a sleep wedge - one of those things that lets you position the baby on her side or keeps her from rolling onto her tummy - she really likes it - I think it makes her feel "cuddled" even after we put her down in her crib.
geneve - My little girl has been sleeping through the night for quite some time now (she will be three months old on fri.). I nurse her during the day. She gets a bottle of formula at night. Lately she has been looking to go to sleep by 9:30 and will sleep until at least 8am sometimes later. One secret we found with the bottle is to have dh give it to her. She got very confused when I tried to give her the bottle. Now that Sue mentioned "cluster feeding" I guess that is what my baby has been doing on her own. Some evenings she looks to nurse, for what seems like, non-stop nursing sessions from 7pm to 9pm. I just sit there sometimes and hold her and nurse. So, maybe she has been filling up on her own. I also have to admit, she likes to sleep on her tummy. I had been laying her on her side because that is how they had her in the hospital. She had excess mucous and would gag a bit if she was on her back. Well, she decided to roll from her side to her stomach at about 4 weeks of age. I panicked when I went in to check on her one night. But she was able to move her head to each side. I also think she liked the comfort of being on her stomach. Her dr did not have a problem with it either. So she has been sleeping on her stomach ever since. I know that all of the literature says "back to sleep" so Some might think I am a bad mother. But everyone is different and this is what works for my baby. I know things will get easier for you with time. Take care.
Thanks for the advice, I'll try to ensure he has more in the evening.
After the second night of **** (up 3 times last night and up more the night before) I canonly assume he is going through a growth spurt...he seems to be hungry all the time. I want to carry on feeding him if I can but I think he's going to have a few more bottles in the day as I would truly be feeding him for most of the day otherwise. He is really very long and a bit underweight for his length, so I guess when he grows a bit he needs to pack the calories in....when I was a kid I was always tall and skinny and always eating, oh what I wouldn't give to have those days back again!
First day of the post baby diet yesterday was a complete disaster, I didn't have time to get a proper meal in, and kept going on chocolate, tea and toast all day. Oh well, todays a new one and am starting off with a healthy bowl of oatmeal, which should keep me going for a bit.
hope he sleeps a bit today, and not around school run time, then I might be able to catch up on a few hours...
Best wishes to you all
geneve
hi there!
