question for all you experienced mothers

The first night DS was home he slept almost all night.
It scared me to death! I kept checking to make sure
he was alive. Would have been easier to get up feed
and put back to sleep. I was pretty clueless about
taking care of babies. I was always around them but
tended to avoid them, even on toast. I figured most
of the stuff out. They are pretty resilient until they
grow into teens!
Taria




"LN (remove NOSPAM)" wrote:

I'll toast to that.

I actually would love to hold a newborn for a few hrs, but that's all I
wanna do! I am not good without sleep! I actually couldn't remember if I had
a boy or a girl during one 2:00AM feeding. Kept me perplexed until the
diaper change.

--
LN in NH
a crazy quilter * hand quilter * & hand appliquér
all in all --- a very slow quilter.... So send quilts!
http://photos.yahoo.com/lns_obsessed

" Ellison" wrote in message
...
Howdy!
Wait until you get the Baby Instruction Book w/ your new baby;
that will explain everything. *snicker*
Wait--you mean they don't come w/ Instruction Books??!!! VBG
Ask your friends with kids; they'll demo the items.
Go into a baby store or the baby section of a dept. store and
check it out in person; eye-opening, for sure.
American Baby magazine was free from our physician, 24 yrs. ago.
http://www.americanbaby.com/ Looks like it's still free.
Also, Parents magazine was a good resource.
http://www.parents.com/
Good luck!
Ragmop/Sandy--- I love babies...
On toast!
"Dr. Quilter" wrote in message
...
The other day a friend came by with her SUV and dumped a whole bunch of
baby stuff at my place, including a crib with all its trimmings, a car
seat, a chair that swings, another that vibrates, a stroller, two bags
of maternity tops a bunch of stuff like disposable diapers too small
for their monster (that baby is huge, and dense!) etc. Plus three bags
of baby clothes. My problems a

a) I don't know how the baby items are called!
b) I don't know if some of them are meant to be worn together, i.e. if
some are underwear and others go on top, etc. Or when to use what,
basically.
c) this goes along with other talk I've been hearing, such as layettes
and receiving blankets.

Is there something I can read, or a website you reccomend, that explains
all this?

Marissa
who has never been around babies, obviously!

--
Dr. Quilter
Ambassador of Extraordinary Aliens




--
Please visit my web page at:
http://home1.gte.net/res0yk6g/taria/index.htm

See my Siberian Cat, Lilly, at:
http://home1.gte.net/res0yk6g/lillypage/lillycat.htm

Also remember - they are like wild animals, they can smell fear and
indecision! Always make like you know what you are doing. If you make a
mistake, pretend like you were testing THEM. Hey, this method has done me
for the last six years and two kids.

--
Sharon From Melbourne Australia (Qof DU)
http://www.geocities.com/shazrules/index.html
Member of the Houston 2004 Party Animals
"nana2b" wrote in message
...
If you have doubts about the car seat, take it to the police station for
them to look at it. They will tell you if it is a current enough model.
Just remember, the baby doesn't know you are inexperienced at motherhood.
He
is inexperienced at life! Learn together, it is so much fun. Nana

--
Sugar & Spice Quilts by Linda E
http://community.webshots.com/user/frame242

Polly Esther wrote:
Marissa, I'm sure it would help lots if you could get a bit of practice. I
remember so well the first time the nurses in Preemie ICU asked me if I
would like to change #1 grandson's diaper. Well, sure. I had done a few
million diaperings in my time. What could be so hard about that?
Well, in the first place, the little guy was about the size of a frog.
In the second place, I had never approached a disposable size 3 lb.
diaper.
Didn't know front from back. How to remove the things that cover the
sticky fasteners.
Didn't know if you put the front under and overlapped with the back . .
or the other way.
This might be funny in the movies but there was nothing funny about it
with a screaming, enraged, hungry little bit of humanity.
He lived. So did I. The diaper fell off.
So . . . let's find a way for you to get some practice. Polly

I'd never changed a nappy in my life before DS came along!
Now, after nearly 8 weeks I feel, almost, like a pro!
I still occasionally stuff the timing, but those occasions are getting
rarer and mostly due to DS being a typical 'widdle boy'!

--
Melinda
http://cust.idl.com.au/athol

One of the baby born dolls??? LOL

--
Sharon From Melbourne Australia (Qof DU)
http://www.geocities.com/shazrules/index.html
Member of the Houston 2004 Party Animals
"melinda" wrote in message
news:1061796349.160200@webserver...
Polly Esther wrote:
Marissa, I'm sure it would help lots if you could get a bit of practice.
I
remember so well the first time the nurses in Preemie ICU asked me if I
would like to change #1 grandson's diaper. Well, sure. I had done a few
million diaperings in my time. What could be so hard about that?
Well, in the first place, the little guy was about the size of a
frog.
In the second place, I had never approached a disposable size 3 lb.
diaper.
Didn't know front from back. How to remove the things that cover the
sticky fasteners.
Didn't know if you put the front under and overlapped with the back
.. .
or the other way.
This might be funny in the movies but there was nothing funny about
it
with a screaming, enraged, hungry little bit of humanity.
He lived. So did I. The diaper fell off.
So . . . let's find a way for you to get some practice. Polly

I'd never changed a nappy in my life before DS came along!
Now, after nearly 8 weeks I feel, almost, like a pro!
I still occasionally stuff the timing, but those occasions are getting
rarer and mostly due to DS being a typical 'widdle boy'!

--
Melinda
http://cust.idl.com.au/athol

I'm pretty sure I can pass the goat in the grocery store test. In fact, I
think a pair of goats would be a pleasant change.

And you mustn't forget about the loud praise for accomplishing things in the
public restrooms. "Good job, Mama!"

--
Wendy
http://griffinsflight.com/Quilting/quilt1.htm
de-fang email address to reply


"ME-Judy" wrote in message
...
A friend sent me this - it's better than any book!ROTFLMAO

Follow these 15 simple tests before you decide to have children. . .
This could be a great form of birth-control G
(For those of you who now have grown children ... Ahhh the memories!)
(For those of you who now have Grandchildren ... Enjoy!)
(If you know someone planning to have children ... Pass this on!)
Test 1
Women: To prepare for maternity, put on a dressing gown and stick a
beanbag
down the front. Leave it there for 9 months. After 9 months remove 10% of
the beans.
Men: To prepare for paternity, go to local chemist, tip the contents of
your wallet onto the counter and tell the pharmacist to help himself. Then
go to the supermarket. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their
head office. Go home. Pick up the newspaper and read it for the last time.
Test 2
Find a couple who are already parents and berate them about their methods
of
discipline, lack of patience, appallingly low tolerance levels and how
they
have allowed their children to run wild. Suggest ways in which they might
improve their child's sleeping habits, toilet training, table manners and
overall behavior. Enjoy it. It will be the last time in your life that you
will have all the answers.
Test 3
To discover how the nights will feel . . .
1) Walk around the living room from 5pm to 10pm carrying a wet bag
weighing
approximately 4-6kg, with a radio tuned to static (or some other
obnoxious
sound) playing loudly.
2) At 10pm, put the bag down, set the alarm for midnight and go to sleep.
3) Get up at 12pm and walk the bag around the living room until 1am
4) Set the alarm for 3am.
5) As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2am and make a cup of tea.
6) Go to bed at 2. 45am.
7) Get up again at 3am when the alarm goes off
8) Sing songs in the dark until 4 am.
9) Put the alarm on for 5am. Get up when it goes off
10) Make breakfast.
Keep this up for 5 years. Look cheerful.
Test 4
Dressing small children is not as easy at it seems.
1) Buy a live octopus and a string bag .
2) Attempt to put the octopus into the string bag so that none of the arms
hang out. Time allowed for this -- all morning.
It's winter, dress child with snow suit, mittens, hat, scarf, boots, etc.
... then undress child(ren) because they have to go to the bathroom!
Test 5
Forget the BMW and buy a practical 5-door sedan. And don t think that you
can leave it out on the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't
look like that.
1) Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment.
Leave
it there.
2) Get a coin. Insert it in the cassette player.
3) Take a family size package of chocolate biscuits, mash them into the
back
seat.
4) Run a garden rake along both sides of the car. There. . perfect!
Test 6
Get ready to go out.
1) Wait
2) Go out the front door.
3) Come in again.
4) Go out.
5) Come back in.
6) Go out again.
7) Walk down the front path/driveway.
8) Walk back up it.
9) Walk down it again.
10) Walk very slowly down the road for five minutes.
11) Stop, inspect minutely, and ask at least 6 questions about every piece
of used chewing gum, dirty tissue, and dead insect along the way.
12) Retrace your steps.
13) Scream that you have had as much as you can stand until the neighbors
come out and stare at you.
14) Give up and go back into the house.
You are now just about ready to try taking a small child for a walk.
Test 7
Repeat everything you say at least 5 times.
Test 8
Go the local supermarket. Take with you the nearest thing you can find to
a
pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is excellent). If you intend to have
more than one child, take more than one goat. Buy your weeks groceries
without letting the goat(s) out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat
eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even
contemplate having children.

Test 9
1) Hollow out a melon.
2) Make a small hole in the side.
3) Suspend the melon from the ceiling and swing it from side to side
4) Now get a bowl of soggy cornflakes and attempt to spoon them into the
swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5) Continue until half the cornflakes are gone.
6) Tip the rest into your lap, making sure that a lot of it falls on the
floor. You are now ready to feed a 12 month old child.
Test 10
Learn the names of every character from the Fimbles, Barney, Teletubbies
and
Disney. Watch nothing else on TV for at least five years.
Test 11
Can you stand the mess children make ? To find out, smear peanut butter
onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains. Hide a fish behind the stereo and
leave it there all summer. Stick your fingers in the flower beds then
rub
them on the clean walls. Cover the stains with crayon. How does
that
look ? I have one: Write on the walls and furniture with a bar of
soap!
Test 12
Make a recording of Janet Street-Porter shouting "Mummy" repeatedly.
Important: No more than a four second delay between each "Mummy " -
occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required).
Play
this tape in your car, everywhere you go for the next four years. You
are
now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.
Test 13
Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continuously
tug on your skirt hem/shirt sleeve/elbow while playing the "Mummy" tape
made
from Test 12 above.
You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a
child in the room.
Test 14
Put on your finest work attire. Pick a day on which you have an important
meeting. Now:
1) Take a cup of cream, and put 1 cup lemon juice in it.
2) Stir.
3) Dump half of it on your nice silk shirt. Saturate a towel with the
other
half of the mixture.
4) Attempt to clean your shirt with the saturated towel.
5) Do NOT change. You have no time.
6) Go directly to work.
Test 15
Go for a drive, but first. . . .
1) Find one large tomcat and six pit bulls.
2) Borrow a child safety seat and put it in the back seat of your car.
3) Put the pit bulls in the front seat of your car.
4) While holding something fragile or delicate, strap the cat into the
child
seat.
5) For the really adventurous. . . . Run some errands, remove and replace
the cat at each stop.

You are now ready to have kids!

A friend sent me this - it's better than any book!ROTFLMAO

Follow these 15 simple tests before you decide to have children. . .
This could be a great form of birth-control G
(For those of you who now have grown children ... Ahhh the memories!)
(For those of you who now have Grandchildren ... Enjoy!)
(If you know someone planning to have children ... Pass this on!)
Test 1
Women: To prepare for maternity, put on a dressing gown and stick a beanbag
down the front. Leave it there for 9 months. After 9 months remove 10% of
the beans.
Men: To prepare for paternity, go to local chemist, tip the contents of
your wallet onto the counter and tell the pharmacist to help himself. Then
go to the supermarket. Arrange to have your salary paid directly to their
head office. Go home. Pick up the newspaper and read it for the last time.
Test 2
Find a couple who are already parents and berate them about their methods of
discipline, lack of patience, appallingly low tolerance levels and how they
have allowed their children to run wild. Suggest ways in which they might
improve their child's sleeping habits, toilet training, table manners and
overall behavior. Enjoy it. It will be the last time in your life that you
will have all the answers.
Test 3
To discover how the nights will feel . . .
1) Walk around the living room from 5pm to 10pm carrying a wet bag weighing
approximately 4-6kg, with a radio tuned to static (or some other obnoxious
sound) playing loudly.
2) At 10pm, put the bag down, set the alarm for midnight and go to sleep.
3) Get up at 12pm and walk the bag around the living room until 1am
4) Set the alarm for 3am.
5) As you can't get back to sleep, get up at 2am and make a cup of tea.
6) Go to bed at 2. 45am.
7) Get up again at 3am when the alarm goes off
8) Sing songs in the dark until 4 am.
9) Put the alarm on for 5am. Get up when it goes off
10) Make breakfast.
Keep this up for 5 years. Look cheerful.
Test 4
Dressing small children is not as easy at it seems.
1) Buy a live octopus and a string bag .
2) Attempt to put the octopus into the string bag so that none of the arms
hang out. Time allowed for this -- all morning.
It's winter, dress child with snow suit, mittens, hat, scarf, boots, etc.
.... then undress child(ren) because they have to go to the bathroom!
Test 5
Forget the BMW and buy a practical 5-door sedan. And don t think that you
can leave it out on the driveway spotless and shining. Family cars don't
look like that.
1) Buy a chocolate ice cream cone and put it in the glove compartment. Leave
it there.
2) Get a coin. Insert it in the cassette player.
3) Take a family size package of chocolate biscuits, mash them into the back
seat.
4) Run a garden rake along both sides of the car. There. . perfect!
Test 6
Get ready to go out.
1) Wait
2) Go out the front door.
3) Come in again.
4) Go out.
5) Come back in.
6) Go out again.
7) Walk down the front path/driveway.
8) Walk back up it.
9) Walk down it again.
10) Walk very slowly down the road for five minutes.
11) Stop, inspect minutely, and ask at least 6 questions about every piece
of used chewing gum, dirty tissue, and dead insect along the way.
12) Retrace your steps.
13) Scream that you have had as much as you can stand until the neighbors
come out and stare at you.
14) Give up and go back into the house.
You are now just about ready to try taking a small child for a walk.
Test 7
Repeat everything you say at least 5 times.
Test 8
Go the local supermarket. Take with you the nearest thing you can find to a
pre-school child. (A full-grown goat is excellent). If you intend to have
more than one child, take more than one goat. Buy your weeks groceries
without letting the goat(s) out of your sight. Pay for everything the goat
eats or destroys. Until you can easily accomplish this, do not even
contemplate having children.

Test 9
1) Hollow out a melon.
2) Make a small hole in the side.
3) Suspend the melon from the ceiling and swing it from side to side
4) Now get a bowl of soggy cornflakes and attempt to spoon them into the
swaying melon by pretending to be an airplane.
5) Continue until half the cornflakes are gone.
6) Tip the rest into your lap, making sure that a lot of it falls on the
floor. You are now ready to feed a 12 month old child.
Test 10
Learn the names of every character from the Fimbles, Barney, Teletubbies and
Disney. Watch nothing else on TV for at least five years.
Test 11
Can you stand the mess children make ? To find out, smear peanut butter
onto the sofa and jam onto the curtains. Hide a fish behind the stereo and
leave it there all summer. Stick your fingers in the flower beds then rub
them on the clean walls. Cover the stains with crayon. How does that
look ? I have one: Write on the walls and furniture with a bar of soap!
Test 12
Make a recording of Janet Street-Porter shouting "Mummy" repeatedly.
Important: No more than a four second delay between each "Mummy " -
occasional crescendo to the level of a supersonic jet is required). Play
this tape in your car, everywhere you go for the next four years. You are
now ready to take a long trip with a toddler.
Test 13
Start talking to an adult of your choice. Have someone else continuously
tug on your skirt hem/shirt sleeve/elbow while playing the "Mummy" tape made
from Test 12 above.
You are now ready to have a conversation with an adult while there is a
child in the room.
Test 14
Put on your finest work attire. Pick a day on which you have an important
meeting. Now:
1) Take a cup of cream, and put 1 cup lemon juice in it.
2) Stir.
3) Dump half of it on your nice silk shirt. Saturate a towel with the other
half of the mixture.
4) Attempt to clean your shirt with the saturated towel.
5) Do NOT change. You have no time.
6) Go directly to work.
Test 15
Go for a drive, but first. . . .
1) Find one large tomcat and six pit bulls.
2) Borrow a child safety seat and put it in the back seat of your car.
3) Put the pit bulls in the front seat of your car.
4) While holding something fragile or delicate, strap the cat into the child
seat.
5) For the really adventurous. . . . Run some errands, remove and replace
the cat at each stop.

You are now ready to have kids!

We had DD#1 convinced that babies came with a care label on the back of
their neck. Hers said "wash with soap and water. Give lots of hugs." She
kept looking for DS's on the back of his neck when he came along!

--
Wendy
http://griffinsflight.com/Quilting/quilt1.htm
De-Fang email address to reply
"Diana Curtis" wrote in message
...
I think the nurses take the manuals. That would explain why a baby in the
hospital is perfectly mannered and once you get them home they do all
sorts
of things parents cant figure out..
And then they tear the labels off them so you cant return em either!
Diana

--

Oh, I don't get the loud praise, I just get the loud questions: Mama,
are YOU going to go PEE now?? Do you have to POOP???..........we are
slowly breaking DS of this habit, adn in a few years, I can see having
to do the same thing with DD.

LArisa

frood wrote:

I'm pretty sure I can pass the goat in the grocery store test. In fact, I
think a pair of goats would be a pleasant change.

And you mustn't forget about the loud praise for accomplishing things in the
public restrooms. "Good job, Mama!"

I think the nurses take the manuals. That would explain why a baby in the
hospital is perfectly mannered and once you get them home they do all sorts
of things parents cant figure out..
And then they tear the labels off them so you cant return em either!
Diana

--
http://photos.yahoo.com/lunamom44
" Ellison" wrote...
Howdy!
Wait until you get the Baby Instruction Book w/ your new baby;
that will explain everything. *snicker*
Wait--you mean they don't come w/ Instruction Books??!!! VBG
(Snipped the good information)
Good luck!
Ragmop/Sandy--- I love babies...
On toast!

Marissa:
Good friend you've got there! Did she really dump them?! LOL
You've heard the answers to a and b, so here ar my comments on c.
Receiving blankets are those heavy cotton flannelette squares,
about 32" IIRC. They are used to cover baby, to wrap baby, to nap
the baby, to cover surface for changing baby, to cover momma when
she holds baby, to shield sun over the stroller. In other words,
you can't have enough receiving blankets! A Layette is simply the
term for the collection of clothing, etc. for a baby. Sort of
like the word trousseau for the bride's honeymoon clothes. Lots
of books have info on what babies need. You might check the word
layette in the index. Basic child care book is useful for
instructions, terminology, and practical info.

Next, about the car seat. Several have mentioned having it
inspect by the Police. That may vary from place to place. Here
the Fire Department does that. So call around. Also, you don't
want too old a crib as the older ones have wider spaced bars. To
get info about the correct sizes of baby furnishings (as far as
safety issues), you might check with child welfare department or
who ever is the licensing agency for child care people. They will
have certain safety standards that are helpful to parents too.
This is an exciting time for you ... enjoy every minute of it!
PAT in VA/USA

"Dr. Quilter" wrote:

The other day a friend came by with her SUV and dumped a whole bunch of
baby stuff at my place, including a crib with all its trimmings, a car
seat, a chair that swings, another that vibrates, a stroller, two bags
of maternity tops a bunch of stuff like disposable diapers too small
for their monster (that baby is huge, and dense!) etc. Plus three bags
of baby clothes. My problems a

a) I don't know how the baby items are called!
b) I don't know if some of them are meant to be worn together, i.e. if
some are underwear and others go on top, etc. Or when to use what,
basically.
c) this goes along with other talk I've been hearing, such as layettes
and receiving blankets.