Hello Mudduh Hello Fadduh: ILX Rolling Parenting Thread

I don't think they offer home epidurals anywhere yet; at least in MN they require an anesthesiologist to place them. But I would probably have been tempted to stay home by that notion. On the other hand, I don't think I'd want the mess in my house... I was happy to wear the hospital's gown and get the mess on their sheets.

I knew J. was going to come fast because Alex was quick for a first baby; I was actually a bit worried about giving birth in my car! I didn't think the car was going to recover from that kind of experience, so was glad that didn't happen.

My wife's pain relief advice: Don't listen to any TENS machine crap, you may as well lick a battery for all the good it will do you.

My missus wouldn't have been without her TENS machine (in fact, having rented one in 2005, all the neighbourhood mums who were pregnant again in 2006 clubbed together and bought one which they passed around). I think she found it useful in the early stages, though she was gulping down the gas'n'air towards the end and I expect that TENS button started to play more of a placebo role.

So the point is that...people are going to have babies, and a new medical model would be a RN-Midwife with an OB-GYN on call? At home, for the baby and momma.

I think that could be one option, but ideally you'd have the all options available, everywhere.

In my small city, you could have a home birth, but you'd be hard pressed to find an RN to attend it. However, there are Certified Nurse Midwives who deliver in the hospital in a town that is close. You might be able to find a lay midwife, but I think my acquaintances who did have home births did it themselves (I knew them through La Leche League).

I've had problems with births, so if I were going to do it again, I'd stick with an OB/GYN. Others might feel most comfortable with a general practioner who delivers babies.

Northfield offers some of the options, but not all; if I wanted to give birth with a CN-M, I'd have to drive at least 20 miles to another town.

Tonio looks like he has a Quato in that picture.

As for a home birth - I think it can be good, but if things start to go sour, it can be pretty horrible. Some friends of ours had a stillbirth because the midwife kept insisting that everything was fine.

baby pictures please!

wasn't there a new parenting thread started?

I started one, but it was pointed out to me that I can just limit the number of messages I see, rather than starting a new thread, so it withered away.

there should be a new one, those DC people start a new freaking thread every other day

we just went through four days of misery; both baby and mom had the flu. quite scary though he never got a high fever, but he was verging on dehydration most of the time, and the liquidy nasty poos he sprayed all over himself, the crib, and everything else on a nearly hourly basis had to be seen and smelled to be believed. holy god.

You asked for them!

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/155/371545906_527531d1bd.jpg

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/165/371544950_b2a0ebe93e.jpg

I am now in Japan. The eleven hour plane trip ended in a disaster. Four times projectile vomiting is NO FUN. Urgh. She couldn't handle the landing (after I gave her too much food). :-( She's coping very well otherwise.

oh no! sounds like the worst is over?

Oh those delicious twins! I'm a sucker for that gummy smile. When my boys first smiled it used to bring tears to my eyes. The unalloyed joy of it—no inner censor. So unguarded. Later on we always carry a witness inside us, in some tiny way. Always someone watching. But those baby smiles—the absolute openness is almost tragic. It makes me think of our bond with our animals—how trusting they are that you'll come back, give them dinner. They don't know how close we are to crossing the line from cornucopia-bearer to disappointer. We'll be late coming home, or offer the wrong food, or be short-tempered. Whatever, they (when they aren't being cussedly unconsolable) believe in us as if we were gods.

A little drunk. Just had dinner with my boys and one most excellent girlfriend. Sent them home with all the leftovers( stuffed shells).

That's nice to hear.

Oh, Nath, sorry to hear about your trip. Glad you got there safe.

I'd recommend getting a massage while the baby naps or your parents babysit to recover from the stress of travelling. Speaking of massages, I used to go to a massage therapist in Philly called the gentle giant who was 14 pounds at birth, like Super Tonio. He developed diabetes. Being so big can have some big drawbacks.

I know! She was a bit *off* as she couldn't move much the first couple of hours to Paris (where we took the plane).I let her crawl on the dirty floor. I mean, who gives a shit about dirty trousers and hands? The poor kid had to sit for a couple of hrs in a car! On the plane she was fine, a bit of crying - understandably - but mostly sleeping and giggling/playing with neighbours. Then during the landing she was crying and suddenly *woops* all the food came out. So I thought. But oh no, second time. Third time which was the worst as it really went Linda Blair style on the chair next to me (which thank god was empty). Then we went towards the exit. We asked for a big ole plastic bag to put the dirty blanket and teddy in. The stewardess also went to warn someone (who would take us to the quarantine section). A couple passed by and said:"Ah kawai akachan!" (cute baby) But got rewarded with Ophelia's final sick-fest. I don't think much landed on them (thank god!). I apologized profusely to the stewardess. In the quarantine section her temp was checked and also asked where we came from, how long we would stay and where (in Japan - duh!). All in all quite an event! Poor thing. That said, she's sleeping soundly next to me now. She adapted quite well! But then it's an eight hr difference so it all sort of switched forward. (Am I making sense now?) Travelling is a bit hard as you have to be flexible but a baby isn't that much. (Eek! She's a TODDLER!) :-)

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/145/378158253_e11e0db032.jpg?v=0

Check us out yo! In Nakameguro, my parents' flat.

She looks very glad to be off that airplane!

did you have to change any poopy diapers on the plane?

I think I did but I can't really remember. Ah yes, I did! I had changed her and right after that she pooped. Very funny. She suffers from the same thing as my mum: stomach/bowel being very upset after taking a plane.

I am surprised that Nakegemuro looks a lot like Swindon.

We had a scary weekend. When I arrived home on Friday night, there were fire trucks and ambulances out front. I ran inside to find about ten paramedics standing over my wife and Ben. Ben, it turns out, had stopped breathing (although he was breathing by the time I showed up), and my wife called 911. They thought he might have had a seizure, or some kind of apnea, so we went to the ER. After hours of tests, including a Lumbar Puncture (which took three tries, since Ben is so feisty! They even tried to give him Ketamine but he shat it out.), we got to go to sleep at the hospital. All the tests came back negative, and the consensus among the neurologists and pediatricians was that he had some kind of reflux-related apnea. So, he's back at home, taking Zantac. He didn't have any other similar events during the weekend at the hospital, but we're being extra-careful - making sure to burp him, keeping him upright after feedings, and we've sloped their bassinet a bit to keep their heads up a bit higher.

Oh you poor things! Reflux-related apnea? Lucky your wife is so vigilant! Ohmy godohmygodohmygod!!!!!

BEN!!! YOU ARE NEVER TO SCARE YOUR MAMA AND PAPA LIKE THAT AGAIN!!!!!!!

yikes david, that's horrible!

Sorry your travelling was so rough, nath. Are those your parents in the photo?

I'm glad Ben's okay.

Me too.

Kids getting ill is too scary.

There is something horrible about seeing your baby like this:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/156/380761073_58708969f4.jpg

Of course, Owen didn't seem to mind:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/133/380761069_c6f6b43ffd.jpg

He's absolutely plumpified with life-force in that exam room! The healthiest-looking ER patient ever!

My older son had a strangulated small-bowel when he was 19. It was a couple of days of test and torture before they doctor figured out what was causing his terrible pain. I was climbing into the hospital bed and holding him while he cried, morphine notwithstanding. Finally a CAT scan revealed the problem and he had middle-of-the-night emergency surgery. The small bowel had turned blue, and would have perforated by morning. He now has a scar from above his navel down to his pubic bone.
WORST TIME OF MY LIFE.

My oldest boy had to have middle-of-the-night emergency surgery at 11 weeks old. He had a groinal hernia and part of his bowel was falling into his testes. Handing him over to the docs to be taken into theatre was the most scary thing I've ever done, despite all the "really, he'll be fine" reassurances. He was fine, of course, and was like a new baby when we got him home - no more projectile vomiting and all night screaming fits.

Ooh my mum had that, Beth - her small intestine adhered to scar tissue after an appendectomy and went bad. Thankfully she had it treated in time - peritonitis would have set in had it been a few hours later.

That is a terrifying story about Ben; there's nothing worse than sick kids. Lumbar puncture? Wow - not fun.

If I had read the last few posts before I had kids, I might not have had kids.

My mum took Spencer to Australia for Christmas with her when he was 18 months, and called me hysterically one night because they'd had to take him to the ER and he'd been admitted to the hospital because he wouldn't eat or drink, kept vomiting and was totally dehydrated. I was climbing the walls! I was almost on my way to the airport when my sister called (she was a nurse at the hospital at the time) and said that he'd just picked up some infection, but he'd be okay, and she'd call me if I needed to come over. In retrospect, I should have gone anyway, but sure enough, after a few days in the hospital (mum slept in the bed with him) and a scary IV in his foot, he was right as rain.

My younger had a lumbar puncture when we took him to the ER for headache, and he told the doctor he was afraid he'd had an aneurysm. He's a terrible hypochondriac, and as it turned out, he'd gotten stoned and eaten a blot of cheap Chinese food. MSG?
But the doctors have to cover themselves if you're flinging words like aneurysm around.

I couldn't watch. My husband did. He said it was a slow drip, like a maple tree being tapped.

is that the same as a spinal tap?

I had one of those when I was six. I just remember being in this tiny, hot room with three nurses lying on top of me to keep me still. I was terrified. When they wheeled me back to my room the doctor told my mother I was "a very uncooperative child". :(

Same. Who are all these happy-to-get-spinal-tap kids?

I had one when I ruptured a disc. They had to inject dye to do a myelogram. I was on lots of drugs, watched the image of my spine, found it fascinating.

Oh, man, I'm glad Ben's okay. That's my number 1 worst nightmare: to find out one of my kids has stopped breathing.

My brother, an asthmatic, used to give my parents the fear all the bloody time through ending up not breathing. He's still doing it now at the age of 32! It never stops being scary.

Thanks for all the concern everyone - it feels nice, even through the internet...

Hey, the Internet is just another means of communication, and no less valid for that. Glad to hear Ben is well. :-)

Thank goodness Ben is OK.

Poor Ben! Yikes! That is scary! So glad it worked out ok!

Wow, that's terrifying. Glad to hear everyone is ok.

I'm gonna go ahead and lock this one.
The new rolling ILX parenting thread, since the other one was getting unwieldy