new babies, old families, and lurkers

[Mary]

So here's the new addition to the due-date check in! I was flipping
through my Sears pregnancy book to write all the questions, and it
includes the chapter: "The Tenth Month - postpartum." Postpartum is
definitely a part of pregnancy, so here you go:

All our new moms, if you're still reading here and haven't migrated over
to misc.kids.breastfeeding or misc.kids yet, how are you doing? Lochia
tapering off, or telling you to take it a little easier? Are you
getting out of the house, or snuggling in with the baby? How's your
support network? Don't hesitate to talk to your OB if you're feeling
bit blue -- it's *very* common, and there's no reason for anyone to
suffer (the vast majority of antidepressants are fine to take while
breastfeeding, for example). Still getting the hang of all this newbaby
stuff? How's motherhood treating you so far? How are you feeling about
your birth experience? Write everything down, it disappears so quickly!

And not-so-new moms, whether you're a beloved member or lurking or
skimming or occasionally checking in, how is everything going with your
families? One of the most valuable part of this board, I think, is the
number of not-pregnant women who stay in the community, whether to give
advice, follow friends' progress, live vicariously, or cheer each other on.

Mary S.

[Laurie]

Mary wrote in message >...
>And not-so-new moms, whether you're a beloved member or lurking or
>skimming or occasionally checking in, how is everything going with your
>families? One of the most valuable part of this board, I think, is the
>number of not-pregnant women who stay in the community, whether to give
>advice, follow friends' progress, live vicariously, or cheer each other on.
>
>Mary S.

I guess this would be me ;)

We're doing very well! Christopher is such a happy baby, and his smile just
melts everyone's heart. The funny thing is how everyone comments on his
head- how perfect and round it is! A very odd thing to say, but it's so
true! He's 16 lbs now, not sleeping quite as well as he was, still 100%
breastfed, and finally takes a bottle like a champ. Still misses me while
I'm at work, though. We had his Baptism last week and it was such a great
time; a beautiful ceremony, Christopher "talked" through the whole thing
which was rather amusing. A neighbor of ours let us use a moonbounce for
the kids at the party afterwards, and it was AWESOME!

Jessica is also doing great, it took her a couple of months to make the
transition to sisterhood but now she's really good at it! She loves
Christopher, tries to tickle him and gives him rasperries all the time. She
also loves to hand him his little toys to play with; of course, she tries to
steal them back after about 30 seconds but hey, it's progress ;) She's up
to about 25 lbs or so, still a bit of a peanut but looks very proportioned
now, and...........she's POTTY TRAINED!!!!!!!!!!! Yippee!!!!!!!! It's so
true that when they're ready, it's a breeze. It's been over 3 weeks and
she's a real pro now. Has even had to pee in the woods twice now. ;)

Oops, Christopher is calling me...........

laurie
mommy to Jessica, 29 months
and Christopher, 4 months

*This email address is now valid*
>

[Jacqui]

Mary wibbled

> All our new moms, if you're still reading here and haven't
> migrated over to misc.kids.breastfeeding or misc.kids yet, how are
> you doing? Lochia tapering off, or telling you to take it a
> little easier? Are you getting out of the house, or snuggling in
> with the baby? How's your support network? Don't hesitate to
> talk to your OB if you're feeling bit blue -- it's *very* common,
> and there's no reason for anyone to suffer (the vast majority of
> antidepressants are fine to take while breastfeeding, for
> example). Still getting the hang of all this newbaby stuff?
> How's motherhood treating you so far? How are you feeling about
> your birth experience? Write everything down, it disappears so
> quickly!

Yup, still here - although also in mkb and upp too. Lochia - bah, 34
days of it is just not fair! Fingers crossed today is the last day
though. (It appears to be.) Getting out of the house most days,
although the c-section and the remnants of SPD are slowing me down
(probably a good thing). Thanks to paternity leave, new grandparents,
and Buzzy Bee (hi!), today is only the second full day I've been alone
with T, so I feel very supported (although he did pick this morning to
have his first bout of projectile posseting... oh and he's just done it
again!) Feel quite comfortable with most of the new mum stuff, and am
enjoying it immensely. A few whinges about the birth but mostly of no
real consequence. I'm keeping a blog for me, and one for him, as well
as his baby book and a website full of pics. :-)

Jac

[Ericka Kammerer]

Mary wrote:


> All our new moms, if you're still reading here and haven't migrated over
> to misc.kids.breastfeeding or misc.kids yet, how are you doing? Lochia
> tapering off, or telling you to take it a little easier? Are you
> getting out of the house, or snuggling in with the baby? How's your
> support network? Don't hesitate to talk to your OB if you're feeling
> bit blue -- it's *very* common, and there's no reason for anyone to
> suffer (the vast majority of antidepressants are fine to take while
> breastfeeding, for example). Still getting the hang of all this newbaby
> stuff? How's motherhood treating you so far? How are you feeling about
> your birth experience? Write everything down, it disappears so quickly!


Do I still qualify as a new mom? ;-)

Genevieve is doing great. I'm feeling great. This has
been by far the easiest of the three births to recover from.
I can't believe how quickly time passes. Genevieve is
smiling and having a grand time. She's extremely alert
and pays attention to everything that goes on. We get out
a lot and she's a great traveller--which is a good thing
since we have a lot to do, especially with school and
extracurriculars starting up.
I just can't believe how lucky we've been. She
eats well (no problems taking a bottle of EBM from anyone).
She sleeps well (can even put her down awake and she nods
off on her own) and only wakes one or two times at night to
eat briefly and go right back to sleep. She only cries if
she's hungry or needs changing or has some other issue.
She loves visiting with other people and smiles and coos
at them. I wouldn't have dared order up a baby this good ;-)
Work is really, really crazy right now and I'm
having to put in a lot more hours (and more of them at
the office) than usual for me. It's likely to be a zoo
for virtually all of September, but it's just one month
and we'll get through it one way or another!
We did finally break down and got a minivan. I'm
still struggling with driving something that big, and
my left foot and right hand have *no* idea what to do
with themselves (I've never driven an automatic before).
On the other hand, it's nice that the kids aren't
crammed in (they were waaaaaay too close together
before!) and I love that we can go to dinner with my
folks without taking two cars.
They boys are doing great. They love their
baby sister and have a great time playing with her and
showing her off to everyone. They start school tomorrow,
and both are *really* looking forward to it. Best of
all, both have the teachers I would have preferred for
them and I think they're going to have *great* years.
All the extracurriculars are starting up as well, so
it should be interesting! The boys have already done
their Nutcracker auditions (though at their age it's
pretty much a no-brainer what parts they'll have), but
Nutcracker stuff shouldn't get crazy until October or
so (thank goodness). We still don't have soccer
schedules yet, but Colin is going to be on a team
coached by a good friend (Genevieve's godfather), so
that should be a hoot. Adrian has a few introductory
piano lessons during the summer and is looking forward
to the fall session starting. He really seems to be
taking well to it. We'll see how consistent he's going
to be about practicing ;-) Maybe it'll rub off on me
and I'll find some time for some more consistent
practicing myself!
All in all, life is really good, if busy. I'm
looking foward to this year!

Take care,
Ericka

[SuperEeyore]

Mary wrote:
> And not-so-new moms, whether you're a beloved member or lurking or
> skimming or occasionally checking in, how is everything going with
> your families?

I've been lurking mostly, lol. There is only so much typing I can get in
before Juliet monster takes over the keyboard or clicking the mouse moving
the cursor.

Juliet (snugbug for those who remember) is 16 months now, and is still
slowly transitioning to solid food very slowly. On a good note, eggs are
now a texture she doesn't gag on! Yey Juliet!

Laurel
http://webs.lanset.com/monkeylove/

[Catherine C.]

"SuperEeyore" > wrote in message >...
> Mary wrote:
> > And not-so-new moms, whether you're a beloved member or lurking or
> > skimming or occasionally checking in, how is everything going with
> > your families?
>
> I've been lurking mostly, lol. There is only so much typing I can get in
> before Juliet monster takes over the keyboard or clicking the mouse moving
> the cursor.
>
> Juliet (snugbug for those who remember) is 16 months now, and is still
> slowly transitioning to solid food very slowly. On a good note, eggs are
> now a texture she doesn't gag on! Yey Juliet!
>
> Laurel
> http://webs.lanset.com/monkeylove/

What a precious wee girl Juliet is! Thanks for sharing!:)

Catherine C.
grandmother to Brendan--Sept. 22, 2002

[A&G&K]

"Mary" > wrote in message
...
>
> So here's the new addition to the due-date check in! I was flipping
> through my Sears pregnancy book to write all the questions, and it
> includes the chapter: "The Tenth Month - postpartum." Postpartum is
> definitely a part of pregnancy, so here you go:
>
> All our new moms, if you're still reading here and haven't migrated over
> to misc.kids.breastfeeding or misc.kids yet, how are you doing? Lochia
> tapering off, or telling you to take it a little easier? Are you
> getting out of the house, or snuggling in with the baby? How's your
> support network? Don't hesitate to talk to your OB if you're feeling
> bit blue -- it's *very* common, and there's no reason for anyone to
> suffer (the vast majority of antidepressants are fine to take while
> breastfeeding, for example). Still getting the hang of all this newbaby
> stuff? How's motherhood treating you so far? How are you feeling about
> your birth experience? Write everything down, it disappears so quickly!
>
> And not-so-new moms, whether you're a beloved member or lurking or
> skimming or occasionally checking in, how is everything going with your
> families? One of the most valuable part of this board, I think, is the
> number of not-pregnant women who stay in the community, whether to give
> advice, follow friends' progress, live vicariously, or cheer each other
on.
>
> Mary S.
>

Hi Mary,
We are doing fine at 1 year pp and still bf DD. I'm doing the odd reply
post to this group, but mainly lurking ... because ... well ....we'll be ttc
in the not too distant future... there I've said it! I'm getting very
excited at the prospect of being pg again and check this gp with the
intention of lurking ... unless I see a post that I feel I might be able to
share some of my experiences with.
I'm hoping to start posting here soon when actually "up the duff", but
continue to post at mkb ... great info and support on bf :)
Thanks for asking :)

BTW ... how is your little'un?
Amanda

[Irish Marie]

"Mary" > wrote in message
...
>
> So here's the new addition to the due-date check in! I was flipping
> through my Sears pregnancy book to write all the questions, and it
> includes the chapter: "The Tenth Month - postpartum." Postpartum is
> definitely a part of pregnancy, so here you go:
>
Yay I finally made it to this side :-)
Well Liam was a month today and he's really filling out, I brought him to be
weighed today but there was no clinic today so I'll get it done tomorrow,
should be interesting!
He is such a cutie and already I can't imagine life without him. He wakes a
fair few times a night but I take him into bed, he latches on and I can
snooze for a while, when he's finished and I've woken back up I lift him
back into his Moses basket. He likes a lie on in the mornings so that's
good.
He started smiling yesterday and I got some beamers today. We need to get
him a mobile for his buggy to keep him stimulated when I need a minute or
two to get some stuff done.
I'm delighted that I've managed to keep up bf this far, I was so nervous
about it while I was pregnant, I was convinced I wouldn't manage it again.
My b00bs are starting to settle down, they aren't as full anymore and not
leaking as much (no supply issues the let down is still strong and he's
gulping away!), so this stage feels quite strange.
DD started back at school yesterday so I'm a busy mum of 3 now, Liam seems
to enjoy the school run so far though, he loves the motion of the car and
his buggy.
I was so tired last night though that when I was putting DS1 to bed I really
really wanted to climb in next to him and catch some sleep!
I haven't suffered any baby blues this time, well apart from the 1st day
home from hospital when I had a go at dh and rang my mum crying, I came
around within 5 minutes though. I think the difference this time is that dh
and I are much more secure than we were when we had our first two children,
he has been fantastic and offered me so much support and understanding. I
also think that bf has helped relax me, luckily I've had no real problems
with it.
We are making arrangements for Liam's christening which will be on the 28th
of this month and I'm building an ebm stash for the freezer for when I go
back to work mid-November.

--
Marie
Mum of 3
DD born 03/98, DS1 born 11/99 DS2 born 08/03

[Taniwha grrrl]

Lydia is 6 weeks old and a total cutie pie. I have to add
her to the perfect baby group too, seems to be a lot of them
;o) Goes down at 11:00pm and doesn't get up until lunch time
the next day. Smiles all day long and is just a sweetie.
I have no idea what she weighs but she looks well padded and
is definitely growing well. She's got that little bald patch
at the back of her head that makes her look like a Catholic
monk at the moment..lol
Seth thinks the sun shines out of her, kisses the face of
her all day long. Tries to share his biscuits with her, and
biscuits are like gold to him, so it must be love.
I'm doing pretty good recovery wise, my scar hasn't given me
any discomfort. I was doing some abdominal exercises and
felt it twang once or twice and stopped but other than that
it's fine. My RA is back though (not that it ever really
left) my knee was the size of a melon over the weekend,
today is my first day of crutches. I'm hoping my hands and
wrists will ease up soon, I can't do anything, even
unpopping Lydia's domes on her clothes causes pain, and
changing a nappy is an event....sigh
I'm hoping my Rheumatoligist has a drug for me that doesn't
require weaning, but I'm not hopeful. I refussed to wean
Seth so all I could have was Brufen (Ibuprofen) which
doesn't even touch the surface anymore.


--
Andrea

If I can't be a good example, then I'll just have to be a
horrible warning.

[courtney johnson]

June is nearly 11 weeks now and such a treat! So energetic and
cheerful and doing something new every day, it seems. She's nursed
like a champ all along and is fine taking bottles of EBM when Grandma
or Grandpa babysits. We had a messy couple of weeks before I figured
out that she's sensitive to dairy, but she's doing great now. I can't
believe she's already outgrowing some of her 0-3 month outfits - where
did my tiny newborn girl go?

I mostly lurk on m.k.b since it seems like others have already asked
the same questions I have - Google has been a godsend :) I love
reading everyone's updates here, too, and hope it's not *too* long
before I rejoin the ranks.

-Courtney
Mom to Mary (b/d 6-8-02)
and June (6-19-03)

[Phoebe & Allyson]

Mary wrote:

> how is everything going with your families?

Good. Caterpillar is 14 weeks now, which is a really good
age. She'll roll from her back to her side, and from her
side to her tummy, but hasn't managed the whole thing at
once yet. She's starting to want (or at least tolerate)
more "play on the floor" time, so I managed to read all of
the ads in the newspaper today while she hung out on a quilt
next to me.

Still not a fan of tummy time, but it's because she can't
make herself go anywhere. If I sit her up against
something, she immediately dives for her toes, wiggles until
she's sprawled on her tummy, and tries to push off with her
feet. Which are pointing straight backwards and get no
traction. If she rolls onto her tummy, she's happy
struggling away until she manages to work both of her elbows
out from under her. Then she's trying to move forward, and
it's just not happening. She's going to be the go-go-go girl.

She's also a lot more musically inclined than I am, so if
we're home alone, we turn on the cable channel that plays
classical music (300 channels, and we're using it as a
radio). Anything that plays music mesmerizes her, and calms
her down if she's fussy.

As you can tell, I could just go on and on. It seems like
she's a better toy every day. :)

Phoebe :)

[Mary]

Nikki wrote:

> I never see you post anymore :-) We are doing well. we moved this summer
> and survived. Hunter is going to preschool now and just loves it. He
> beams. Luke is just in the depth of twoness, Lol. I want him to sit by
> himself at meal times. Jeez he is persistent so I'm trying to decide if I
> want to carry on with that.

Nikki, it's good to hear from you! We're doing well, very busy with
life but happy. Does Luke like to sit in your lap at mealtimes?
Sproutkin wants that -- she'll only be happy in a high chair for a
little while, then she wants me -- and she will only eat in my lap.
She's still a really picky eater but her solids intake is up and her
weight is up a *tiny* bit so we're not worried about her anymore. Is
Luke making the switch for meals (and how)? That's good to hear that
they're getting into their own beds a bit now. It sounds like you guys
are all doing great. :)

Mary S.
mom to the Sproutkin