Hi all. Sorry I haven't been around. I'm just :shock: about how little time I have these days. I'm lucky if I get the dishes done and the washing hung out and don't even talk about trying to go anywhere LOL We were meant to leave the house at about 1.30pm today and didn't end up leaving until 2.30pm. And didn't get home until 5pm. I haven't caught up on the washing ... but I'm sure I'll get there eventually.
I just wanted to check in and say hi.
A couple of you asked how bfing is going. We had issues with latching because Sophie has a tiny mouth and wouldn't even open her mouth wide enough for me to stick enough of my breast into her mouth. And she sticks her tongue out and pokes it out. Oh well... so we are using nipple shields and expressing also. And we are giving her formula as well.
The midwife came yesterday and she has gained weight. So that's good.
She is doing well.

Well I have to go because Sophie is hungry again LOL

I'll hopefully be back in a couple of days...

First off... congrats on your new baby girl. The greatest adventure begins!!

Secondly, don't put pressure on yourself to clean your house up and cook mega meals and all that. The most important job right now is to bond with your special little bundle and enjoy her. Get to know her and focus on figuring her out and also spending time with your husband. These next few weeks are key times!!

Congrats again, life will never be the same!! :D It's awesome.

Renee - I agree totally don't even worry about the house, I mean you've been out of the hospital how many days???

You should make a new poster "LOVE ME - love my mess" LOL

Sorry to hear about Sophies latching issues - Paris' mouth was too small too, (that was only part of the reason why I couldn't B/F).

How is little Abby adjusting to new sister?

It's good to hear from you, Renee! I remember those busy, busy early days. You'll get yourself on a schedule soon.

Take care!

Stephanie :D

Renee,
It was good to hear from you. I totally understand the balancing the two kids thing. Erik is now 7 weeks and we are still struggling to find a balance. Dinnertime and grocery shopping are my worst times. Also Ben likes to bite my toes when I am bfing :shock:

I told my husband that I feel like all I do is feed people. No time for anything else.So if you are getting everybody fed I think you are doing great. If you are doing more than that you are sdoing fantastic.

How is expressing your milk going? I hope that is all going well and that Sophie figures things out.

Karla - LOL are you kidding? DS bites your toes when you are b/f? Perhaps you need some steel cap boots :wink: :)

Renee - I agree totally don't even worry about the house, I mean you've been out of the hospital how many days???

:oops: Only 9 days. I know as long as Sophie and Abby are clothed and fed that's all that matters. It's just I haven't even been able to get through all the washing and keep running out of the warmer clothes for Sophie and the clothes that fit. She is alot smaller than Abby was and only fits 0000 size clothes and I don't have much of those at all. And it's still pretty cold here.
The washing is just piling on top of me I guess...... can you say Dryer? LOL :lol:

You should make a new poster "LOVE ME - love my mess" LOL

LOL :wink:

Sorry to hear about Sophies latching issues - Paris' mouth was too small too, (that was only part of the reason why I couldn't B/F).

Fancy me saying Sophies mouth is too small.. she isn't even a preemie but honestly it just is small. Her head circumference is only 36. something cms. And Abbys was 45. something. :shock: She is just tiny. But she weighs more. :roll:

How is little Abby adjusting to new sister?

She is doing great! :D She had held her and fed her a bottle. She loves her. And she likes to help me by handing nappies and clothes to me when I'm changing/dressing Sophie. She is a good big sister. Of course she has had her moments but I'm sure it's normal.

Renee,
It was good to hear from you. I totally understand the balancing the two kids thing. Erik is now 7 weeks and we are still struggling to find a balance. Dinnertime and grocery shopping are my worst times. Also Ben likes to bite my toes when I am bfing :shock:

I told my husband that I feel like all I do is feed people. No time for anything else.So if you are getting everybody fed I think you are doing great. If you are doing more than that you are sdoing fantastic.

How is expressing your milk going? I hope that is all going well and that Sophie figures things out.

Thanks. The expressing goes fine. I can get 100mls most of the time. And when I haven't pumped for like 3-4 hours my breasts are getting achy and leak majorly. I hate that. I just don't seem to get much time to just sit down and pump.
I've been trying to get Sophie to feed with the nipple shields and she can do it but she doesn't stay awake for long and I can't get her to wake up by tickling her face or anything... so she just comes off. Other times she gets all worked up and I don't know why. It's right there and I know she's getting it because she will have it running out her mouth and all over her and I can hear her swallowing. And I can see it in the nipple shields. But she just starts to cry and move her head from side to side even though it's right there and she can latch on fine. She just stops and then starts crying like she isn't happy :? I don't understand it. :?

If you are feeling cramped for time to pump but still need to heres a little trick I learned when I was EPing.

Get an old bra cut slits in it so the pieces of your pump can slide through. Then you can use said bra to hold pump in place while you use your hands for something else. I usually fed DS a bottle or read to him this also tended to help my let down. Sometimes I fed myself since there was little time for that as well :lol:

Renee - I am glad Abby is enjoying her sister!

Renee, your Sophie reminds me of my Hannah. She will typically fuss and cry at the beginning of a feeding and then FINALLY latch on. Then she'll often jerk off of my breast about 20 times or more per feeding. I often have to hold my breast in her mouth. I literally have to force feed her sometimes. However, she is gaining weight so she must be getting enough. One thing is, do you have an overactive milk letdown reflex? I was told that if too much milk gushes into baby's mouth, they can get overwhelmed and jerk away. So sometimes I hand express a little milk before a feeding so she won't get so much at a time.

Since her mouth has been healing up, it has been better though. Keep trying and it will get better eventually! I know how frustrating breastfeeding problems can be.

I never thought of that but that could be it. I do have A LOT of milk. And when I haven't pumped for ages if I take my bra off they just start dripping everywhere. And since I don't use the nipple shields very much it is probably likely that when she first starts to feed that it all just pours into her mouth.
Thanks Ruth :D

If you are feeling cramped for time to pump but still need to heres a little trick I learned when I was EPing.

Get an old bra cut slits in it so the pieces of your pump can slide through. Then you can use said bra to hold pump in place while you use your hands for something else. I usually fed DS a bottle or read to him this also tended to help my let down. Sometimes I fed myself since there was little time for that as well :lol:

Thanks Karla. :)

Hi Renee! It's so good to hear from ya. So glad the kiddos are getting along. :D

I'm glad that that helped, Renee. One thing that my La Leche League leader said is that it's a very temperary problem and should even out soon. Do you have LLL in your area? My leader has been so helpful!

I know we do have LLL but not sure how close to us they are....

Tonight has been the worst night so far. Sophie has not wanted to sleep and when I feed her she only drinks half of the bottle and then falls asleep and won't drink anymore. So she goes to bed and then an hour later she is awake again hungry. I've been in tears this morning because I'm just not getting any sleep. Even Paul hasn't been able to sleep tonight and said he is not sure he'll be able to go to work today because he's so tired.
I am definitely going to have to take a long nap today.

Renee - its a shame Paul couldn't take any holidays!!! Do you think he would be able to if he asked?

Can Mum help? Praying for you !!! I do remember from back when it does also take the baby a while to adjust to life outside the womb (which you'd know already) even without feeding issues.

Renee - its a shame Paul couldn't take any holidays!!! Do you think he would be able to if he asked?

Can Mum help? Praying for you !!! I do remember from back when it does also take the baby a while to adjust to life outside the womb (which you'd know already) even without feeding issues.

Paul had a week off. That was all they'd let him have. Apparently they only do 3 days paternity leave payed as well. So he has used 2 days holiday pay. If he had 2 weeks off he'd have to use some of his Christmas holidays.
My mum was supposedly going to ask for a couple of days off but I haven't heard anything since... so it doesn't look like she is going to do that now.

I'm sure things will settle down eventually.......

Hi Renee
Just a thought on the nipple shield, I am sure you are aware that there are different sizes. I guess I was using the wrong size in the hospital for the first day or so and then one of the nurses figured it out and we went to the smaller size and it was the amazing the difference!

No I didn't know that. But they look right to me. They fit perfectly.

Oh ok. But she latches on just fine. She just gets frustrated sometimes and starts crying which makes her unlatch. I know she is drinking it because I can hear her swallowing and see it on her face and in the shields. :?

Hey when you say size do you mean the size of the nipple or how many holes are in it? Because my ones have like four holes in them and I am thinking that maybe she is getting way too much milk at once? Do they make ones with only one hole in them?
My ones are Avent. :?