Okay, my list...

Agree completely with the 'don't stop making noise just because the baby is asleep' My little boy sleeps in the lounge during the day, TV on, me on the phone, visitors over and people laughing, talking, he sleeps through it all.. in fact he's so used to sleeping through the noise that getting him to settle in silence is actually harder..

DON'T:

Don't get set on certain ideas before you know what your baby will like..
My little boy HATES having his arms swaddled down beside him, doing this will only lead to tears and frustration from him, as soon as I unswaddle his arms, he settles down. He also HATES sleeping on his back, and much prefers his side, sleeping more peacefully and for longer periods, on his back he wakes as soon as you put him down.

These babies have opinions right from the start on what they do and don't like and regardless of how much YOU may want to do something a certain way, if your baby doesn't like it, its not going to work.

Don't beat yourself up if BF'ing doesn't take off.. my baby had to be bottle fed formula in hospital for medical reasons in the first 24hrs... almost 3wks later and he is only just starting to take to the breast for short periods of time and only with nipple shields. the society induced guilt I've gone through for formula feeding my baby (even though I'm pumping every day as well) has been just stupid. He's happy, healthy and being fed, and thats what matters....

Don't Expect to know everything.... and don't feel silly for asking for advice/help. You're not super woman.

DO:

attempt to sleep when they sleep.. although this is easier said then done at times!

hand them off to your OH when you can!! My OH has started setting his alarm slightly earlier to get up for work so that when LO wakes at 5am for his feed, I feed him, then hand him over to OH for winding and cuddles for an hour so I ccan get a little more sleep before OH goes to work. Find what works for you both.



Enjoy every moment.. cuddle your baby, hold them, even if they are sleeping, they really do change sooo much so quickly.

Also for those unsure about sleeping bags for new borns, both Mothercare and Amazon do a 0-3month old bag for just under £30, it has long sleeve arms that can be unzipped off as well.

I just thought. When you get home you are so knackered so what I did (this only works if you are prepared to let your partner bottle feed) as I was breast/bottle combo was went to bed at 6pm til 12am then when hubby came to bed he put baby next to me in moses. This way I got 6 whole hours of sleep plus ones baby slept through night,and hubby who is a late to bed person anyway got his full night too.

It was so hard going to bed at 6pm though especially when weather so nice outside but it saved my sanity I can tell you. And as for giving the bottle it never interupted my milk supply at all but will add that after 4 weeks I expressed milk this was just for four weeks we did forumla for those 6 hours.
xx

That's near impossible for me. We're moving to a hot country, where the room temp won't get below 20c

And for the ladies discussing the blanket/swaddle issue; I always heard it was safe to use blankets if you put the baby's feet at the base of the bed so it can't wriggle down under the blankets; not to put it higher than their chest, and to tuck the blanket under the side of the mattress to ensure it doesn't get in their face.

really good thread gals learnt a lot

This is a brilliant thread - thank you to all the ladies who have contributed!! I wish I had some pearls to share but this is no1 and I the few bits I already know have been well and truely covered!!

Thanks again and please keep the ideas coming!!

xx

Thank you all for adding to my post I hope that more can add, it seems alot more than Just me need it! Thanks for the knowledge!

I was told you can use one of those soft nail buffers on the baby's nails. That way you don't have to bite them and you don't run the risk of the clippers. You don't want a nail file as their nails are so soft, just a nail buffer.

My boss did this but for the benefit of his cats and passed the advice onto me. He said that when his LO was born he got a blanket that the baby had been wrapped in, took it home and put it where the cats normally slept. When he brought his son home the cats didn't bat an eyelid! Might work - we're going to try it as our cat is a bit of a diva!

Great thread!

dont think that cat nets work mine jumped into the moses basket knocking the net off lucky i was in the room when this happened never leave your cats alone with your baby even with the net over the basket x

trust your instincts never hesitate to call the docs or ambulance if you are concerened x