Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Teething Bites

My mom tells me I was a terrible teether.  I was in so much pain, the doctors misdiagnosed me with ear infections more than once.  My mother-in-law claims that my husband was the worst teether in a family of three children.  If you are good at addition, you can guess what that adds up to - the most miserable, nightmare of an experience cutting teeth.  I hear that some moms don't even realize that their kids are teething until they just happen to see one or two.  I have to say, when I am told this it makes me want to punch them in the face.  I am not a violent person by nature, but one who most likely has been up countless times the night before with an unhappy baby and who has permanent bite marks on her nipples.  You can understand where my aggression is stemming from.

Both of my children are decent sleepers,  but this fact is obliterated when a new tooth is on it's way.  Lucky for me, both kids started teething at an early age and the fun didn't stop with Jane until she was over two.  Sure, there are breaks here and there, and that is usually when they will catch a cold or the stomach flu.  My little guy has been on quite a tear lately.  He was sick for almost a month while simultaneously cutting two teeth.  The boy can multi-task and I have the bags under my eyes to prove it.

As a veteran of dealing with teething babies, I have learned some tricks along the way.  Namely, there are no tricks and if something works for you one night you can count on the fact that it won't work the next.  Truly, the only real solution to teething, at least in our house, is patience.

15 comments:

  1. Aghhh! I am not looking forward to this at all. Jack is 10.5 months old and no teeth. I don't know what I'm more afraid of, he doesn't have any or they are all going to come in at once. He's had on fever since birth and did not handle it well so I can only imagine what I'm in for! Can I borrow some of your patience?

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  2. I would give you anything, but my patience is on short supply ;)

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  3. Hi Michelle, sorry I don't have a teething solution for you. :( Good luck! You're a good mommy. New follower from the mbc. Hope you can take a moment from the teething pain and pop on over to my site as well. Have a great day!

    http://cherishedhandmadetreasures.blogspot.com/

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  4. I have 3 and all their teething times were horrible! They all refused to use teethers, and medicine never helped :( Hang in there. Leah sent me :) Can't wait to read more :) I have a blog hop that happens ever Wednesday, if you'd like to join head over and link up. :)

    Lori
    http://chroniclesofacrazymom.blogspot.com/

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  5. Stopping by from Social Moms to say Hi,I'm your newest Follower on GFC

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  6. Have you tried a teething necklace? They don't actually bite on the necklace. Here is some info: Baltic Amber is a natural pain reliever and anti-inflammatory agent. When amber is worn on the skin, the warmth of the skin releases trace amounts of healing oils. These oils contain succinic acid which is what acts as the pain reliever. Succinic acid restores oxygen and energy supply to depleted cells and helps the body return to a normal, functioning state.

    Also, try wetting a washcloth and freeze it. That helped a lot with my daughter when she cut her molars. I actually used a babysoy hat that had knots tied at the top and wet it then froze it.. the knots really helped. :)

    Goodluck!!

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  7. Stopping by from http://itsowlright.blogspot.com/
    Great Blog!! New Follower!!

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  8. I'm in the same boat right now with my 10 month old son! It helps me to think...they can't possibly be teething when they go off to university (but by then it will be something else)!
    Hang in there, you're not alone!
    Char
    http://1epicmom.com/

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  9. Uggghh teething bites! I always used a wet washcloth. I actually had my oldest daughter when they were still saying use whiskey. I only tried it once and she slept for 12 hours. My daughters say with most of my grandchildren nothing works but the wash clothe that you have to keep wetting.
    Good Luck and do not blink before you know what happened those baby teeth will be falling out.
    Leah sent me:)
    http://www.doreenmcgettigan.com

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  10. Stopping by from Social moms and just wanted to say Hi! New follower via GFC, So welcome to the Bloggy world - Glad to have you with us!

    My middle child teethed constantly for the first year....she was actually born with 1 tooth already cutting! Yeah, ouch for the nursing! And you're so right...only patience, and loads of coffee can see you through.

    (On a side note, I have been spring cleaning my blog today...choosing new fonts, etc.. and I just happened to pick the same background as you! So, you have excellent taste obviously, LOL. don't worry...I will be changing mine - I had already seen another one after I had loaded this one. LOL)

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  11. hi Michelle! you're a great mom coz you carried the pain..yeah you're right it's really true that the only real solution to teething, at least in our house, is patience.

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  12. Wow! Thanks so much for your comments. It is great to see that I am not alone. I have come to accept that teething is a struggle and keep in mind that it will be over soon enough. I am interested in the teething necklace and can admit that the Whiskey idea has crossed my mind. For now, we seem to be in the clear and are getting some well-deserved rest.

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  13. Hi Michelle, teething is never fun for either the child or the parent:( Keep lots of bibs on hand!!! Hope you can join MBC and Leah's group. Following you from Mom Blogger Club. Hope you can visit & follow my blog at http://spanishforkids-jbplbarbara.blogspot.com
    Best of luck, Barbara:)

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  14. I am going through this right now with my third kid. He has been keeping us up at night and we are losing sleep and trying to maintain our patience. He is going through the whole issue of teary eyes, loose, watery BM, you know what I am talking about. What I found out is that Whole Foods sells gripe water that helps with teething, It does a decent job for us because there is ginger and chamomile in the dosage. He calms down quite a bit. Leah Dillon sent me to your blog and I am giving you some blog love! Come on over to Mom Bloggers Club and let me know that you are there.

    Miriam
    http://productjunkiemama.blogspot.com

    Miriam

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  15. Welcome, Barbara and Miriam! Thanks for your support. I was basking in the glory of a few full nights of sleep until my son started cutting another tooth last night:( I will see if I can get my hands on that gripe water....at this point I would give him a cigarette if I knew it would help ;)

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