I'm going to be a Daddy!!!!!

[Soundwave]

Thanks Jason.

Will have a word tomorrow & see how she is getting on, you could tell it wasn't easy & she was getting a little frustrated.
I'm not too worried it was Katie who really wants to Breast Feed but I'll try to talk her round if it just isn't working.

Yeah I wasn't sure on the whole holding baby thing but Katie has just been lying down today & Chloe has been lying next to her more than she's been held so not too bad but I'll keep an eye on her once we are all at home.

Thanks man...you really don't have too.
Lol I'm expecting this will be it & after that if it doesn't fit the baby I won't be allowed to buy it

Oh yeah I was pretty useless today trying to change Chloe's clothes...I'm all thimbs & took me forever to get her in a babygrow & because Katie couldn't help I started getting stressed...glad my mum was there for a helping hand lol
Oh & I missed the first nappy!!!! lol
I'd gone to the canteen to get some dinner & my mum got it instead

Neil

[NeoDragoN]

Congrats Neil!

[buster_broon]

also the main best part about breast is the colostrum which is really only there at the very start so if she gets that in Chloe then its not a loss, every woman wants the best and breast milk is the best but charlotte tried and it nearly broke her within two weeks, plus if she really wants to do it just express it when its not so sore because Chloe will make her boobies red raw

also how is the Meaconium? - horrible horrible horrible, think we had 17 nappies in the first day

as for vests, stretch it over chloes head, best when she i slying down then you dont have to support the head and put your fingers through the arm holes and just feed her arm up - easy peasy

also always front to back my friend with little girls

and finally if you think vests are hard wait until you get dungarees, long sleeves and muther funsting tights, my god they are a nightmare

[buster_broon]

plus mucker everybody has their own ideas about being parents and even im guilty in the last posts but do what you think is best and easiest for you and Katie

i asked my mum for guidance on ellie crying for teething and she suggested putting her in a room and closing the door until she stopped or giving her some whiskey, unsure how i dont have emotional issues and/or a drunk

the old guard eh!!

[Family Fry]

Congratulations soundwave, glad baby and mum are doing well great news to hear. Some sound advice from buster too love hearing tips about fatherhood, kinda scares me if I'm honest cause I'm so damn odd around other peoples babies and children.
My wife is training to be a midwife and has delivered 3 babies now, today she got a box of chocs from a dad and the mum said to her she will be a great midwife (which made he cry) from what sounded like a very stressful labour for mum and dad too. It's just fascinating hearing the stories and it still amazes me that we go through all of that, so worth it though.
Congrats again

[Stoppy2000]

also the main best part about breast is the colostrum which is really only there at the very start so if she gets that in Chloe then its not a loss, every woman wants the best and breast milk is the best but charlotte tried and it nearly broke her within two weeks, plus if she really wants to do it just express it when its not so sore because Chloe will make her boobies red raw

also how is the Meaconium? - horrible horrible horrible, think we had 17 nappies in the first day

as for vests, stretch it over chloes head, best when she i slying down then you dont have to support the head and put your fingers through the arm holes and just feed her arm up - easy peasy

also always front to back my friend with little girls

and finally if you think vests are hard wait until you get dungarees, long sleeves and muther funsting tights, my god they are a nightmare

My son arrived 4 weeks ago, and the above is great advice. So far fatherhood is awesome. Though the fact I am posting this before 7 am does tell its own story!

[cavalcade]

Just to counter the breastfeeding thing - if she wants to do it and she's having trouble, rather than giving up and putting the baby on formula then there are plenty of organisations who can help if the midwives aren't able to - La Leche League for example (who have a helpline, and probably local councillors). While it can save a mother distress in the short term, there is the longer term guilt if she thinks she's given up too early. Especially after a caesarian, it can be difficult to get breasfeeding established, but it is worthwhile beyond the colustrum, both from an emotional perspective for the baby as well as immunological and more scientific reasons.

Be aware you'll have hundreds of people giving you advice though the only way through is to do what you think is best. I would only say the "best" route in child rearing is rarely the easiest one.

[mr_sockochris]

My baby girl is due today! No movements yet though.....

On the topic of breast feeding, we will be using bottles. We know 3 people with children who they breast fed and they're always ill while our boy who wasn't breast fed is far healthier and smarter than all of them so we'll be doing the same things with this one

[Soundwave]

Thanks again guys it's all top reading.
Just getting my stuff together to get back up there...Spoke to Katie a little while ago & they think she should be home some time today so I've been getting things ready here.

also the main best part about breast is the colostrum which is really only there at the very start so if she gets that in Chloe then its not a loss, every woman wants the best and breast milk is the best but charlotte tried and it nearly broke her within two weeks, plus if she really wants to do it just express it when its not so sore because Chloe will make her boobies red raw

also how is the Meaconium? - horrible horrible horrible, think we had 17 nappies in the first day

as for vests, stretch it over chloes head, best when she i slying down then you dont have to support the head and put your fingers through the arm holes and just feed her arm up - easy peasy

also always front to back my friend with little girls

and finally if you think vests are hard wait until you get dungarees, long sleeves and muther funsting tights, my god they are a nightmare

Lol oh the joys of dressing them
Thanks for the tips, speaking of tights...my mum bought here a pair of jeggings yesterday so I'll look forward to trying to get those bastards on at some point.

The Meaconium hasn't been too much of an issue so far...because she isn't feeding properly there have only been a couple of nappies & luckily I've avoided all of them lol
By all accounts she screamed the place down this morning & got herself into a stuppor & nackered herself out so she hasn't fed right today either but they are doing some skin to skin while she's sleeping & hopefully when she wakes up again she'll be starving & latch straight on.

plus mucker everybody has their own ideas about being parents and even im guilty in the last posts but do what you think is best and easiest for you and Katie

i asked my mum for guidance on ellie crying for teething and she suggested putting her in a room and closing the door until she stopped or giving her some whiskey, unsure how i dont have emotional issues and/or a drunk

the old guard eh!!

Lol I love the stories from older parent's some it is really WTF

Makes you wonder how some of us are such normal, upstanding members of society doesn't it really

Congratulations soundwave, glad baby and mum are doing well great news to hear. Some sound advice from buster too love hearing tips about fatherhood, kinda scares me if I'm honest cause I'm so damn odd around other peoples babies and children.
My wife is training to be a midwife and has delivered 3 babies now, today she got a box of chocs from a dad and the mum said to her she will be a great midwife (which made he cry) from what sounded like a very stressful labour for mum and dad too. It's just fascinating hearing the stories and it still amazes me that we go through all of that, so worth it though.
Congrats again

Thanks man...good luck to your missus, will be a really rewarding career.
Our midwife was fantastic on Saturday night, couldn't have asked for anyone better, she was comforting, funny, helped us all relax & just plain brilliant, she was on night shift so not sure when she is next on the rota but I'll be making sure she gets something for everything she did.

My baby girl is due today! No movements yet though.....

On the topic of breast feeding, we will be using bottles. We know 3 people with children who they breast fed and they're always ill while our boy who wasn't breast fed is far healthier and smarter than all of them so we'll be doing the same things with this one

Congrats buddy...hope it's today & everything goes well.
Would be strange 2 Bordersdown babies in 2 days

Thanks again for everything guys.

Neil

[Nijo]

Some more thoughts about breast feeding...

- it is hard to get started, and will hurt in the short term
- sometimes the baby has drunk a load of amniotic fluid before it came out, therefore it might not be thirsty to start with
- all babies lose weight in the first days, and that's not something to worry about (takes a week to get back to birthweight)
- expressing is a good choice if she can't manage it at first: keeps the supply going for when she's ready

If you can get it to work, it's so much easier than bottles... no sterilising, no heating milk, no washing up!

[buster_broon]

One thing the ante natal classes said to us and I firmly agree is that new born babies cry or a reason and not because they are after something, that happens later when they start to learn that if they cry they will be picked up etc

If Chloe was crying this morning then it's just a matter of working through any scenario to figure out what it is, but skin contact is so important and if Katie can't hold her lcose to her skin just you whip off your t-shirt and do it, the familiar sound of a heart bet calms them down

Always hungry, cold or tired in the first wee while

[Soundwave]

Hey guys well we are home!!!

Been back since about 4 this afternoon & it's been mad since we been home luckily no one has been round to pester us yet but it's just been non stop sorting stuff out, getting Chloe settled & just general tidying.

She's been feeding ok but is just always hungry, we think Katie is producing enough so after a breast feed she is still chomping at the bit for more so we have taken to adding Aptamil if she whinges too much & that seems to settle her down which so far is what we need.

I've still been beyond lucky & avoided all the meaconium nappies
Did my first nappy today...just a wee one which was ok but I'm all thumbs so it took a bit of faffing but got there

Anywway glad to be home & hopefully I'll get some sleep tonight...well I better, back to work tomorrow

Neil

[charlesr]

Nice one dude.

[QualityChimp]

It's really weird but the first six months were incredibly tough because of lack of sleep. Half a year without a night's complete sleep is pretty draining.

However, looking back, it seems like years ago. If you're struggling, you have to remember that it does get better.

I've even been to the cinema twice this month!

[buster_broon]

I've even been to the cinema twice this month!

thats an impossibility my friend and will be on to social services to look into this

Ellie was one of those rare babies where she was in her own room with the lights off after 6 weeks and only taking one feed through the night and after 4 months she was sleeping 8 until 7 and still sleeps like that now and has a wee 2 hour nap at 10am

but now she is 18 months and the temper tantrums are starting to come out especially if you stop her doing something she fancies like climbing into the washing machine or going into cupboard's, i could be wrong though and just being strict