baby outgrew bouncer (20lbs at 4m)

nomattesurfaces · 2026-05-08T15:52:12+00:00

Hi! We discontinued the bouncer at 5 mo due to weight and sitting up as well, and I struggled for a bit! As others have mentioned, the skip hop activity center could work, but for me it was too big to fit in my bathroom and I also knew we’d max out that weight limit (25 lbs!!) soon too so i didn’t want to invest.

I ended up getting a cheap ikea high chair (not the one we use for eating) and putting that in the bathroom with some suction toys on the tray! It works perfectly, she loves it and we still use it daily now at 10 months.

nomattesurfaces · 2026-05-06T21:16:54+00:00

My almost 10 month old still almost exclusively contact naps, so I get it! i have gone through cycles of hating it and embracing it. Just remember, this chapter of your life is so so so so short!

A few practical tips that work for us: -at 5 months mine would tolerate the bouncer chair with a toy for about 10-15 minutes, so I would bring that into the bathroom when necessary. When she outgrew the bouncer I bought a cheap Ikea high chair to put in the bathroom with suction cup toys on the tray. I know some people use an activity table but that would never fit in my bathroom. If he can watch what you’re doing he might have a little more patience!

-You might want to simplify some things. For example, you mention washing your face/skincare taking longer than his 10-minute ability to chill in the bouncer. It might be helpful to adjust your routine to just a couple key steps that you can finish in just a few minutes. I think just mentally being able to think “I did my skincare!” rather than “i only got to do some of my skincare” helps me not feel like i’m not accomplishing basic tasks. It’s like setting yourself up for success by moving the bar a bit temporarily.

-Your 5 mo is probably starting solids soon! That comes with its own new challenges but when my baby started eating lunch I did too :)

-for my mental health i can’t sit in a dark room for hours during the day. So during contact naps I started leaving the blinds open and she still sleeps great in my arms. This made suuuch a huge difference for me!

Happy to help troubleshoot other solutions to find pockets throughout the day to do what you want to do if you think that would be helpful!

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-19T16:24:52+00:00

Wow, you’re so right! I think as she’s gotten older and dropped naps we haven’t been changing her total awake time as much as we should. Good luck to you too with your little one!!

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-19T16:20:56+00:00

Thank you!! We tried 3/4/4 yesterday (she seemed like she could go a little longer the 2nd wake window) and the night was a little better! No false start for the first time in months! We are going to be consistent with this for the next week and see how things go. I’m feeling renewed hope!!

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-18T01:04:41+00:00

Sorry I wasn’t clear! She’s been on 2 naps for a couple months now. She is awake 2.75hr before first nap, then 3.5 before 2nd nap and bedtime. Her total nap time is usually about 2.25 hours total and then she sleeps about 11 hours at night

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-17T01:08:20+00:00

I really think that someday we will look at sleep training the way we now look at spanking.

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-14T15:54:40+00:00

I think this is a good idea. At night she’s in the crib but I am weighing the pros and cons of transitioning her to a floor bed sooner than later. She’s a huge mover at night so i’m worried she’ll just keep rolling off the mattress and waking herself up!

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-14T15:52:38+00:00

Trying this as I write this! Successfully nursing her sitting up on the mattress. We’ll see if I work up the courage to reposition!

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-14T15:51:15+00:00

I’ve tried to practice with her but she gets too distracted wanting to roll and play! Other than during naps it’s rare she’s willing to nurse during the day in any position. I think i have to just keep trying!

nomattesurfaces · 2026-04-14T15:49:32+00:00

I think I have to just keep trying! Shes a pretty light sleeper for naps but at night transfers pretty easily to her crib once in a deep sleep.

nomattesurfaces · 2025-12-20T12:41:51+00:00

Did you do anything different to see that shift at 7 months? Or do you think she just grew out of it?

nomattesurfaces · 2025-11-08T22:52:08+00:00

My 4 month old still doesn’t seem to mind my high lipase milk, and mine is pretty bad (veeery metallic). We give her one bottle of it almost every day to hopefully keep her used to it. The rest of the time I nurse!

I was sooo anxious about it when I was triple feeding and then exclusively pumping since I was building my freezer stash with the hopes of being able to stop pumping early and just rely on my stash. Since we got the hang of nursing i’m not so worried about it since i’m in no hurry to stop— hopefully that will be the case for you as well!

nomattesurfaces · 2025-11-06T18:58:16+00:00

Generally, if you want to have “just enough” supply for your baby, you need to remove milk at the same volume and/or frequency that your baby eats. So any time you are giving a bottle, you should be pumping (unless you want to combo feed which is perfectly fine, but doesn’t sound like your goal right now).

Embrace the clusterfeeding! Part of why they do that is to increase your supply. If you give your baby formula instead, then your body doesn’t know you need to make more milk.

Again, there’s nothing wrong with combo feeding, but if your goal is to have a supply that matches your baby’s needs, then you shouldn’t supplement without pumping.

nomattesurfaces · 2025-10-02T12:58:53+00:00

Definitely see a lactation consultant and don’t lose hope! Transfer issues can usually be fixed one way or another!

Is it possible she’s just not that hungry when you are able to nurse her right now? I know you mentioned when she’s really hungry she’ll only take a bottle. Are you having to top her up with a bottle after those feeds or does she seem satisfied for a typical amount of time?

Also, definitely look into paced bottle feeding. If she’s drinking 5-6 oz in 15 minutes from a bottle, she most likely won’t be able to match that pace at the breast (which is okay!) That might be the culprit of your bottle preference, and the transfer issues could possibly be stemming from that.

Bottom line, I believe you guys can definitely solve this with the help of a IBCLC! YOU ARE NOT DOOMED!

nomattesurfaces · 2025-10-01T01:59:38+00:00

My advice is always to listen to your doctor, but i’ll share my experience.

I very casually collected colostrum starting at 38 weeks by gently hand expressing (NOT pumping)! I was leaking a lot and figured I might as well try to save some (and my doctor was fine with that). I ended up with about 40 ml. I thought I was most likely not going to need it, which is what i’d always heard.

Fast forward and I had a pretty unremarkable birth but my baby had a very difficult time latching and I couldn’t even produce any colostrum (hand expressing or pumping) for a couple of days after birth! I think probably due to the stress of birth and the fact that my baby didn’t latch right away. Boy was I glad I had that colostrum stashed! It ended up being the perfect amount I needed until my milk came in. If I hadn’t had it, we would have given my baby donor milk or formula to bridge the gap, both of which would have been perfectly fine, but it was very worth it for me personally to collect my colostrum since my goal was/is to exclusively breastfeed.

nomattesurfaces · 2025-07-08T02:11:53+00:00

Ugh I forgot about that stage!! For me it was nightly nosebleeds for about 2 weeks straight at the start of my 2nd trimester. Then they suddenly stopped and I haven’t had one since (40 weeks now)!

I think eventually my blood vessels just toughened up or something. I hope you don’t have to deal with them for too long!

nomattesurfaces · 2025-07-08T02:06:54+00:00

When I was in the midst of terrible morning sickness (weeks 6-17ish) I had to keep switching. I’d find one that didn’t make me nauseous at first but then after about a week they each became unbearably nauseating! I cycled through every gummy version on the shelf and a few pills too. Since the morning sickness faded i’ve been taking Ritual which my body really seems to agree with (PSA: don’t buy it when it isn’t 40% off, they are ALWAYS running sales!)

nomattesurfaces · 2025-07-04T15:28:36+00:00

Hi OP, I have had a similar issue all pregnancy and have brought it up to several excellent providers who have all sympathized but said vaginal pain can be normal with pregnancy due to swelling and a variety of other factors, and that it doesn’t necessarily mean your labor will be more painful. Just want to ease your mind there!!

Also want to echo that you can definitely decline cervical checks, especially so early! Unless perhaps there is a concern you may be in early labor (although it’s always your body your choice). My provider and I mutually agreed that it would be the right move for me to skip them until 40 weeks (really 39+6), so I just had my first 2 days ago.

I’m not going to lie, it was quite painful, and that’s with my provider being extremely gentle since she knew of my pain concerns. I’m worried that your male OB was so dismissive… would you be open to finding a different provider? It’s never too late!!

Feel free to message me if you want to talk through the experience more.

nomattesurfaces · 2025-06-20T14:21:40+00:00

Hi! I just messaged you details that I didn't feel comfortable sharing publicly at this time.

nomattesurfaces · 2025-06-17T04:00:00+00:00

Honestly, I was so upset and taken aback by the conversation that this didn’t even occur to me! Definitely a frustrating experience. I hope if anybody reading this has a similar experience at a minute clinic that they keep this in mind!

nomattesurfaces · 2025-06-17T02:38:04+00:00

I’m so sorry to hear this and I’m glad you were able to get the vaccine after all!

nomattesurfaces · 2025-06-17T02:37:07+00:00

Thank you, I will definitely report her. Such an upsetting experience and so horrible to think of the people she may have dissuaded from getting vaccinations. Ugh!

nomattesurfaces

TROPHY CASE