Frühlingserwachen - spring finally seems to have arrived in Germany and Austria...

[LinzerTorte]

... or at least I hope so.

For everyone in Germany and Austria, and anyone else who would like to chat!

2nd1 I figured flying was out of the question. We were thinking of driving, butwould be a good 10 hours and I'm sure I read that ferries won't let you on after 32 weeks. My doctor seems to think it won't be a problem if we just get the train, but I don't think she realises how long a journey it will be.
I think I know we won't make it but as I'm so early on (15 weeks) I'm just in a happy state of denial about late pregnancy!
I'm doing the equivalent of sticking my fingers in my ears and singing loudly but it's keeping me sane for now!

Bebe sorry, can't helo there. Have you had your Dr's appointment yet? How did it go?

Canella You can't lose the exclamation marks; your posts just wouldn't be the same! I always think I'm overdoing them and usually go back and delete a few. I have to restrain myself from using too many ellipses as well...

bebe I never had SPD, but did have sciatica during my first pregnancy. I could barely walk, would wake up every time I had to turn over at night as it was so painful, and it was generally just awful. I'm so glad I only had it when I was pregnant with DD1 as I don't know how I'd have managed to cope with a toddler as well.

2and1 The DC all have names that work in both English and German, and they also pronounce them differently depending on which language they're speaking (as do I, in fact). DS gets called by his full name in German and by a shortened version in English - rather confusingly, there's another boy in his KiGa group with the shortened version but it's his full name. As a result, DS went through a phase of saying "I'm not , I'm !" whenever I tried to call him by his "English" name.

Starting to suspect that that's what I've got. I've had a few days now and again with pain and difficulties walking. But after the walk around the zoo and the drive home I was in so much pain and then yesterday I could hardly walk all day. Today it seems a bit better and while there's pain I can at least get into a proper walking position instead of hobbling bent over like a little lady with osteoporosis ... have the appt on Friday so maybe can get some info then..
Chased up my EHIC card yesterday as I STILL haven't got it and they said that it didn't process properly...so now I have to do it all over again. (things just don't seem to be working well)
But dd is happy and we're abt half way through our stay so and the weather is getting better so hopefully we'll still be able to have fun and enjoy Germany before we go.

Hate to say it bebe but that sounds pregnancy-normal to me, rather than SPD! It's a long way around the zoo and I would have ached after walking all the way around and chasing a 2 year old even at 20 weeks ish - all the ligaments loosening etc etc mean that unless you have been walking that amount throughout your pregnancy you are likely to suffer for it the next day! Didn't you get similar acheyness in your first pregnancy? Now I don't think I could physically walk the whole way around Munich zoo at all, and I ache like mad even after normal housework or doing and putting away the weekly shop, and even after I sit on a hard chair for more than half an hour or stand up teaching my evening course - only an hour and a half. I don't have SPD though, just late pregnancy normality as far as I know, unless you are an athlete who has stayed in training throughout (or maybe unless you are 22 instead of 35 like me... hmmm)

Hope it's not SPD as I think that can be quite crippling and incredibly limiting, especially when you already have a toddler, though luckily it almost always goes away completely within a very short time of the birth as far as I know. If it is SPD the support belt and physio do help - my friend was also on crutches which she just couldn't move more than a few meters without, out but found that hard in her second pregnancy as she had a 20 month age gap. If you do have SPD make sure you get the physio and the support belt - hope your health card comes through asap!

Hope you can enjoy the rest of your time in Germany, just take things as gently as you can with Moo about!

bebe - i never had SPD despite 3 pregnancies so have no personal experience of it but think i agree with 2and1 - a 2nd pregnancy is hard going as you have to do your normal stuff and run after a 2 year old so maybe its just normal aches and pains. But the Frauenarzt will be able to have a good look at it on friday.

linzer - meant to say about your ipod dying - mine died twice recently and wouldnt turn back on but i looked on the apple website from the laptop and they suggested pressing the top on/off button at the same time as the other button for 10 secs and it worked. Dont know whether you've tried it already but thought i'd let you know.

It could well be simple 2nd preggy troubles.
I certainly never had anything more than the occasional trouble getting up from sitting with Moo and once or twice after swimming in the evenings I had a tight back and found it hard to straighten I certainly didn't have days of it at time (and I'd never consider myself the least bit fit...I'm very chubby actually- tho I'm even less fit this time around because of health problems I had after Moo) nor did I ever have trouble standing without walls or something else supporting some of my weight or the pain was too great for me to walk... Tho I had about 2 weeks of something like that early in Moo's pregnancy and it's actually what made me find MN.... It's not a normal muscle ache/ or tiredness; it's the burning/shooting pains in a particular area I'm suspicious about.
(TMI alert: like yesterday when I had to poo I seriously felt a similar pain/pressure on the front lower bit to what I remember very specifically being the feeling of the pain while pushing out Moo... I had to stop and have a moment to figure out what was going on and whether it was me baring down on the baby or not...)
But we shall see; I do know this baby is a very different position to where Meg was (she was quite high) this one is quite low. And I know that the relaxin in 2nd pregnancy works far quicker typically as well as the fact that I'm not as fit because of age etc so it could (hopefully) be those things and once the baby is bigger and moving around even more and gets out from btwn my legs as much the pain will ease. I really really hope it's so.
I've had a lot of friends who had trouble with SPD and a few of them were laid up for months because they couldn't move properly most days. I won't be able to deal with that here!
In the mean time I've been taking precautions as suggested by Dr. Google abt keeping things 'aligned' -not crossing legs or spreading them too far (like when sitting indian style) and making sure not to lift heavy things and sleeping only on my sides with my hips aligned, and moving the legs as 'one.' The pain has eased enough or me to do the housework today. Plus Moo went down for a surprise nap and I did too and it's seemed to have helped a bit more.

I really feel for you feeling this tired and achey too 2&1! It's so not fun!

Now I've spent way too much time here; hope all the rest of you are well and are getting some sun.

Canella Have just tried what you suggested and my iPod is back on again - thank you so much! DH was convinced that the battery was dead, but when I switched it back on it said that the battery was low (20%) so it can't have been that. I was even considering whether I should replace it with an iPhone (am very tempted, but it would be so expensive). I wonder whether it'll be OK next time I try to turn it on or whether I should turn the auto-lock off - it seems like a bit of a waste of electricity to have it on the entire time, though.

bebe I hope you're feeling better today and that you can get some answers at your appointment on Friday. Although I found my second and third pregnancies very tiring and often got quite achy, I was never in the same kind of pain as when I had sciatica and could barely move (have you considered sciatica as a possible cause? I never realised it's fairly common in pregnancy until I actually had it).

Have just taken DD1 to her computer lesson; it's a shame it can't be fitted into the school day as no sooner has she come home and had lunch than she has to go back to school again. DS was supposed to be going to a birthday party this afternoon but the Geburtstagskind has come down with the D&V bug that's doing the rounds here, so the party has been postponed until next week.

Aw thats excellent news Linzer!! Think it should be ok now - i just leave mine on standby and if it happens again you'll know what to do!

Morning all!

After those stunning dogs and Tower of London teapots, I thought I'd share this gem with you:

www.englishcheesecake.com/shop/product/id/311

Anyone else slightly disturbed/bemused by this?

While I'm on disturbing/bemusing - I was convinced I felt the baby kick last night, was really excited (although I realise it's probably far too early), got DH to have a feel of my stomach etc. Turned out, it was a huge, erm, gust of wind. I don't think he will ever let me live that one down! In fact, he was still laughing this morning. Oops!

Lol at the baby turning out to be wind, Banana.

It took me about five minutes to realise what the name of the cake meant! I think we should have a thread tea party for the Royal Wedding, with tea served from the Big Ben teapot and that cake - although surely eating the Union Jack is sacrilege. And I'm quite disappointed that there aren't edible photos of William and Kate on top of the cake as well.

My iPod is still being a bit temperamental and it took me about five minutes to switch it on this morning, but at least I know how to switch it on (eventually) now. I'd still like an iPhone though, and DH has agreed that I can ask for one for my birthday (in six months' time) - although I think he's hoping that I'll have changed my mind by then. I very rarely ask for anything (or indeed, get much!) for my birthday but seeing as it's a runder Geburtstag, I think I'm entitled to a little more than usual.

Continuing the England/UK discussion, DH and I had to go to the notary this morning to sign our Wohnungseigentumsvertrag (quite why it's taken so long to draw up, I'm not sure) and the receptionist wanted to know where my passport had been issued. I told her that FCO is the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and she said "Oh, the English consulate - I mean the British consulate". I was sadly quite impressed by an Austrian seeming to know that there's a difference!

In a moment of madness - well, several moments (so I really have no excuse) - I've arranged for three of DS's friends and one of DD1's to come over this afternoon and to pick them all up (from three different places, not to mention DS needing to be picked up from KiGa at the same time) at 2 pm, which only gives us an hour for lunch and homework. I think I may need a large glass of wine this evening.

ha ha bananamad about the wind - that'll go down in family history. That cake is beyond weird - why would anyone order it? I will happily watch the royal wedding but am puzzled as to why anyone would go to any more bother than that. why people go to London just for it i've no idea! Quite pleased it falls in dd's school holidays tho. Have got friends with school age dc in the UK who say their dc are only at school for 6 days in the whole of April with the way the holidays have fallen - glad thats not us!

linzer - def think a glass of wine will be in order after you turning yourself into an informal kiga for the afternoon - you're mad woman! Def agree tho that since you have a special birthday this year that you should be entitled to something substantial - and an iphone def fits the bill. My ipod went thro a crazy phase the other week but like a toddler it seems to have grown out of it.

well drank a big cup of self control this morning and although i skived the german class i lost myself in German grammer for hours this morning. I've got a really old book of grammer exercises and for the first time since i bought it (prob 10 years ago) i'm working my way thro it. Have driven myself mad with all the cases exercises and prepositions (+ cases). Pronouns next which should be easier.

banana - lovely cake! dear, oh dear, it´s all gone a bit mad. Seem some bizarre the wedding. How is the bump developing? And the wind? Soon it will be kicking, and it will be clear it is kicking!

canella - well done for doing all that German. Do you find it satisfying to sometimes sit down and do some good old fashioned grammar on your own? I do, though find it hard to motivate myself, I enjoy it once I am into it.

Linzer - one glass of wine? surely you mean one per child you had in your care?! Hope it was not too much. Hope you get the iphone - plenty of time to do some convincing! Look away everyone else - I have Billa sticker 166 - does dd still need it?

bebe - hope the appointment goes well! At least now you have practised getting there, and know how to bribe little moo into co-operating.

I am just back from HNO with dd1 - she needs her tonsils (or bits of) removed. So will be taking next steps. Has anyone got any experience of this?

The afternoon wasn't actually as tiring as I thought it was going to be - no quarrelling at all, which made a nice change - but I've decided I still deserve my glass of wine. DH has just appeared with a bottle of red.

Is it British week at Lidl in Germany this week btw? Hope (does she still post on here?) posted on FB that Lidl has mature cheddar this week (in the Stuttgart area, at least) and someone else mentioned salt and vinegar crisps. It's American week at Lidl here this week but they don't have anything very exciting; popcorn and bacon are the only things I remember, both of which we can buy here anyway.

bananas I'm no help I'm afraid, as I don't know any children who've had their tonsils out here - well, DH did as a child but his experiences would probably be a bit out of date now! Sticker no. 166 turned up in a packet a couple of days ago, so we don't need it any more thanks - all three Billa albums are now complete, but we still need three Spar stickers.

Canella Well done on the grammar - I have a couple of books upstairs that I started about 15 years ago but just can't motivate myself to finish them. I really must make a start on my Italian course too, but the mornings are just too short...

hope you enjoyed the wine Linzer! Dont think its british week - was only recently british week and i was in there yesterday and didnt notice anything in particular. They still had cheddar cheese left over from the other week tho - maybe thats what she meant. Our Lidl always sell sliced cheddar - good for toasted cheese in our house.

Bananas - no experience of tonsils being taken out here but i had mine done as an adult - obviously the first day post op wasnt fun but it very quickly got better and obviosuly never had tonsillitis again which made it all worth it to me. I am more prone to losing my voice tho if i get an infection - think if you dont have your tonsils to protect further down then that is the risk. But have heard that dc bounce back even faster than adults - hope it all works out well for him.

We get the sliced cheddar too canella. We love cheese though and although I like abit of cheddar, when we're in the UK I miss the choice we have here. At the moment we're trying loads of different goats cheeses. Dd loves that camembert style one that you put in the oven then dip baguette in!

Have been trying to get on top of the housework this week, the dust and ironing pile was not normal. Managed to book dh a hotel near the Hauptbahnhof in Hamburg at a reasonable price. I hope it's not a bad area. I just think of Frankfurt and the area around the Hauptbanhof there is awful. Now just need to try and book some holidays for us. Dd wants to go to Rome or Milan (why??) and I fancy the Nord or Ostsee.

Linzer you are really great for having so many dc around all the time! I really must try and organise stuff like that as dd is very fed up that no one comes round. Ds just organises himself and his friends come without alot of phoning and making of appointments but dd's friends families are not of the spontaneous variety!

I must admit it's often easier when the DC have friends over to play, so I don't exactly discourage it! I hardly see anything of the DDs when they have friends over, although it can be harder work with DS as he'll suddenly decide he doesn't want them to play with a particular toy of his/just wants to watch TV etc. and can even get a little rough with them sometimes. I was quite surprised at how well it went yesterday though, as three can sometimes be a bit of a crowd. I wouldn't normally invite more than one friend over at a time, but his best friend's mum had to work and asked if I could look after her DS and his little sister too.

Are you looking for somewhere to go in the summer holidays, admylin? A friend of mine is going to Rome for one of the long weekends in June, but it wouldn't be my first choice of holiday destination with the DC (they're leaving theirs behind with the GPs, which isn't an option for us). At the moment I'm looking for hotels for our trip back to the UK in September; I've booked a hotel at the airport for our first night, have found a guest house in Chester for the second night (need to confirm that today) and so just need to find somewhere for the last night now.

Canella Maybe it was leftovers from the last British week then - I did ask on FB, but she hasn't replied yet. It must be about time for another British week here, as it feels like it's been at least a year since the last one. I did enjoy my wine, thank you - just what I needed! I limited myself to 1.5 glasses in the end, which was more than enough considering that I have virtually no alcohol tolerance any more.

Yes, need to plan summer holidays and then in June there are a few days (must be some sort of Feiertag as a long weekend) and Easter (can probably forget that as left it too late). I'll try to do a few day trips over Easter though. We're near Bremen, Hamburg and the coast (Nordsee) all worth day trips if we set off early. Must try to find out what the best train ticket deals are as I don't like to drive Autobahn!

I know what you mean about it being easier when friends are round. My 2 dc used to play so nicely together. When they were really small and we lived in the village they were happy to play together but since hitting the start of puberty ds constantly teases dd and she shouts at him and they won't even walk to school together at the moment. I hope it passes but I have a feeling it could be one of the longer phases

We normally get two long weekends in June as the Christi Himmelfahrt and Fronleichnam bank holidays are on a Thursday, but unfortunately they've decided that school should stay open on the Friday after Fronleichnam as it's not long before the summer holidays start.

I find the German motorway very scary too - I don't enjoy driving on the motorway here either, but at least there's a speed limit. DH has persuaded me to drive part of the way back from Munich in September, but I think I might wait until we're back in Austria!

I used to argue constantly with my brother when we were little and he used to tease me horrendously, but I seem to remember it got better when we were teenagers so hopefully your two will get on OK again soon, admylin. The better we got on, the less we used to play together though - if that makes sense (probably because we were at an age where we were getting too old for playing).

Aren't drivers somehow aggressive though in Germany? I find that even in the town area sometimes you'll get someone right up behind you even though you're going at 55kmh then they'll overtake and I often see drivers go past who must be doing 70. Still, I can cope with that but the Autobahn is awful. I wonder if I could plan the drive to the nordsee all on little country side roads?!

Well, there is hope for my 2 dc then! I just wish they would atleast walk to school together and ds would stop teasing. I can only get him to hold his mouth if I threaten laptop entzug at the moment. Anyway, off to make lunch as I have just got in from shopping. I bought Rösti to try as we've never had them (well I have had homemade ones before) so we'll see if they eat them or turn their noses up! Do you do Rösti? I know German friends serve them with apfelmus but don't fancy that.

You get the odd aggressive/impatient driver here too, but I seem to remember it being much worse in Germany - which is one of the reasons I hardly ever drove. Mind you, I didn't really need to back then. I think I've mentioned it before, but they also became noticeably less impatient once we'd exchanged our Austrian number plates for German ones. I was so nervous when I first started driving here that I got some new driver plates to put on the windscreen; it took me a month or two before I was confident enough to drive without them!

Hope your DC like the Rösti - I don't think ours have ever had them, so that might be something new to add to our repertoire! I used to have a Rösti maker (or whatever the equipment is called - like a huge garlic press) but got rid of it in a decluttering spree several years ago.

oh i love rostis (thats not the pl is it??) but have never made them myself. none of ius are big fans of Apfelmus but its a very german thing.

I'm a really confident driver but even i get scared sometimes on the motorway. The one thats nearest to us feels like the quietest in the world but then it joins the A4 and once on a friday afternoon on it, i was nearly crying in the car! I have to drive to Frankfurt Aiport when we go away in June and dh said the drive to there is really scary! wondering if i can park my car at fulda and just take the train.

like you're idea of planning holidays admylin - it always feels nice to have something planned. We had a lovely time on Ruegen last year but it was really busy and the traffic was a nightmare to get on and off it. Have never been to Rome or Milan but would be great to go for a few days.
Think we're going to go to Sued Tirol for our summer holidays. Dh isnt enthused about taking all the dc on a package holiday with a flight just yet.

linzer - think a travelodge room would be too small for the 5 of you but they ar doing rooms for £19 at the moment if you book far enough in advance. I've just booked one for one of my nights in the UK in June. Of course there is no luxuries but for £19 who cares.

Have cancelled my nachhilfe student this afternoon - the weather is too nice and he's not got any tests coming up. I'm sure he'll be happy too.

Oh Rösti sound good! I need to have a look in our supermarket to see if they have some. It seems like quite a faff to make them myself, but they are lovely. I'm not sure about the Apfelmus though.

It's funny the subject of Autobahn driving in Germany has come up - I'll be driving on the Autobahn on my own for the first time tomorrow to pick a friend up from Frankfurt airport. I thought I'd stop at the supermarket on the way though to pick up some breakfast stuff for the weekend so that will break it up a bit. I know once I've made it to the supermarket I won't be as nervous.
His flight lands at 11.30 so I'm hoping the motorway won't be too busy when we come back, and anyone who doesn't like my driving can always overtake!
I'm glad to know I'm not the only one who gets nervous about it though, I was beginning to feel a little pathetic!

Admylin If it's any consolation, my brother and I used to fight horribly as children, but we grew out of it in our teenage years and we are very close now.

Oops, I was still typing as you posted, Canella! I've been to Frankfurt airport in the car a few times but DH has driven. I don't remember the route being particularly scary, but maybe I'm coming from a different direction to you? I'll report back next week and let you know :)

The trick to driving on the Autobahn is to go faster than everyone else . I've stopped doing it now, but a spell of driving everywhere at 180km/h takes away the fear. It's actually really easy as you rarely have to change lanes, and anyone behind you is not going that much faster so is less annoyed with you.

I drive 130km/h max nowadays. And hate BIL for driving 240 km/h in his new penis extension 4x4 .

240 km/hr [schock]?

I agree about German motorways being a nightmare to drive on. They are very aggressive on the whole - and I learnt to drive in Madrid so was used to some macho behaviour. I especially hated the roadworks in Germany, where the temporary lanes are really narrow and you have someone up your backside (nearly wrote "some arse up your arse") expecting you to move over SOFORT --just slide under the lorry in the slow lane or what?!

They are better here in Austria. Having said that Linzer, I found the traffic in B. rather scarey. I kept thinking that I was about to drive into a one way street because of the way the cars coming out of the street took the corner---on my side! And the tractors - I´ve never been very good at judging just how sloooooooooooooow a tractor is. (As you see I got rather lost getting into B. and into tractor territory).

admylin - enjoy planning holidays. Love Rösti- never made them though and don´t like Apfelmus too much. Did dc like them? That constant fighting must be very tiring for you. I´ve heard many tales of quarelling siblings then turning into good friends. But hard in the meantime.

canella- enjoy the nice weather! I´m off to get the dc, go to the library and then the park. It´s really lovely out there. Unfortunately I spent most of the day looking for work clothes. Got some now but what a chore! Especially trousers- I can´t do that skinny cut. My mother once advised me to stop swimming so much (as a teenager) because my legs and shoulders would get too muscular. It´s those muscular legs that don´t slip into skinnies.But I hope not to say anything as silly as that to my children!

Off to the sunshine!