Wenn es im Winter stürmt und schneit, haben wir eine Flasche Glühwein allzeit bereit - life in Germany and Austria

[LinzerTorte]

As I couldn't find a suitable poem mentioning Glühwein, I composed my own. Please don't laugh.

All welcome - anyone living in Germany, Austria or anywhere else who would like to chat.

Gater I do hope you get things sorted at the doctor today, it is not fair how many BF related problems you've had, and even after deciding to stop!

I think I've reached breaking point on the sleep deprivation now, went to bed at 8.30pm after fallinga sleep on the sofa, baby slept 9pm to 11pm but after that he woke every 45 mins, so I am not even getting a full sleep cycle, and since 3.30 I have not been able to re-settle him at all. If it were one bad night in isolation or a couple due to illness I'd be fine, done that plenty of times, but I have only slept for a 6 hour stretch once in the last 2 months I think, and atm even a full 1.5 hour sleep cycle seems to be a luxury...

Its not like there is any alternative though, and he has a rotten cold so can't do any last resort sleep solutions like leaving him to cry ev en if I wanted to (but the sleep had gone to pot before the cold, and the bug that came before the cold)

His squirming powers and speeds have increased hugely though, and he is pulling to standing, have to keep doors hut now to contain him - need to get the stair gates up really! Developmentally he is doing well for 7.5 months, I guess he can keep going because he cat naps and baby sleep cycles are shorter than adult ones, but I am cracking up!

Poor you 5more; sleep deprivation is just horrible. I was at breaking point with DD1 too, who didn't sleep for longer than five hours at night (in 1-2 hour chunks) for the first three months, but at least I didn't have older DC to look after - that must make it even more difficult. I remember feeling in a permanent zombie-like state and was just desperate because there didn't even seem to be any signs of improvement; fingers crossed it gets better for you soon.

Gator Really hope you can get something sorted out today; you've struggled for long enough as it is. Hope the thought of Glühwein is keeping you going.

We had a nice if busy weekend. We spent a relaxing couple of hours painting pottery on Saturday afternoon and the DC loved seeing DH's friend again (unfortunately he wasn't allowed to bring his two children as his ex claimed they were too tired after their last visit to us). Yesterday it was DH's work Christmas party - the usual lunch cruise on the Danube, with a Kasperltheater, magician and Father Christmas to keep the children entertained - which was nice although getting a bit same-y after four years.

DS is at home today as he had a temperature yesterday; he'd have to stay home from KiGa anyway because of the temperature, but he's definitely not his normal self and is lying on the sofa watching Peppa Pig atm.

Gator, hope you get some help today. Must have been really scarey going to the hospital with baby spittlig blood. Thank goodness they found out what it was.

5more, hope you're able to get some sleep during the morning and you all get into a better routine soon.

Linzer, hope your ds feels better soon. Nice of the company to invite families for the Christmas do. Dh's employer wouldn't dream of it and this year he's even been told that they all have to buy their own drinks, only food is free! He's only going to go for one drink and not eat anything!

The therapist was a right wierdo! Dd couldn't wait to get out of the place so we're back to square one trying to find another one nearby. The woman asked about 5 or 6 times during the meeting where dd went to school and which year she was in. I was getting fed up by the 4th time. She also kept trying to do speach therpy with dd which she doesn't need even though I told her it'd only be for Rechtschreibstörung on the phone, and 3 times during the meeting.

The therapist does sound rather strange, admylin - hope you manage to find a better one soon.

Well, we did have to buy our own drinks (apart from the children, as there was a big table of children's drinks) and the food was a bit rubbish if you were vegetarian - basically just rice and Serviettenknödel (not sure exactly what they are, but they were quite stodgy and tasteless). It was good otherwise, though - great for the children and great if you know lots of people there who you want to talk to, but the novelty is wearing off slightly for me! DH said it's paid for by some kind of Betriebsumlage (basically everyone has a few euros taken from their salary); it must cost quite a bit, at any rate. The DC all had a ?10 Libro voucher in the bag they got from Father Christmas; I tried to persuade them that the vouchers were for the adults and the sweets and chocolate were for the children, but they weren't having any of it.

Sounds fair enough if they're also giving gifts out to the children! Other years they have been allowed one drink and food from a buffet but this year no drinks! Dh has a new student from China and he said he'd go to the party too but he has to be in bed by 10pm and he can't possibly stay up later as he always goes to bed at that time!

Left a message at the next nearest therapy place, hope they ring back soon so it's sorted. The strange one was right across the street from dd's school so would have been good.

That sounds like me - I don't like to be up too late either! I'm not good at socialising after about 7 pm, or at least not at proper events like yesterday's where I have to speak German (luckily it was over by 4.30 pm).

Shame the first therapist didn't work out, but it's really worth persevering until you find a good one - and, equally importantly, one with whom your DD feels comfortable.

DS has got fed up with watching TV and is now pestering me for a present.

Morning all!
5more - I sympathise totally with your sleep problems - my dc3 was also a rubbish sleeper and also remember walking round like a complete zombie. One of Dh's Christmas presents to me in dc3's first year was a nights sleep. Best Christmas present ever.. I've not got any great advice - he just grew and became more active and slept a wee bit better. Fingers crossed your ds sleeps better soon.

later - oh you are having the hardest timd too. Hope you get seen at the doctors today.

admylin - that therapist sounds beyond rubbish. Are there quite a few others in your area? Was well impressed with your hexenhaus - still havent done ours!

linzer - sounds like you had a fun weekend. I'm another one for going to bed early - 10.30 is late for me. But I always think thats late enough since I'm awake at 6 most mornings. Would have to have a nap to stay up later.

We also had a good weekend. Ds1 went to his tennis christmas party on saturday morning so dd and I baked plätzchen - it involved some crazy bright green icing so not very typical german. Then when he came back he wanted to go to his friends, dd was at her friends and ds2 was at the IL's so for the first time in years dh and I were alone on a weekend afternoon!! Bet it'll be a long time before it happens again.
And yesterday we went to pick up ds2 - i always meet my IL's half way since they live 90 mins away - but we meet in the local ski area and there was snow so we went sledging for the first time this winter. There's even a travelator to bring you back up the hill - stops the dc moaning. Was much fun.

Need to go tomo to finish my Christmas shopping - dh wants new aftershave - I've no idea which one to buy??

linzer - sounds like he's on the mend!

Have now seen Gar eth Mal one on the telly ladder - just watching the strictly results show. He's not as handsome as I thought he'd be.

DH has a Joop aftershave that I quite like, Canella. I suppose you'll just have to try a few and see which you like, although they all tend to blend into one after a while.

Your weekend also sounds good, esp. the child-free bit! I can't remember the last time DH and I had an afternoon (or a morning) to ourselves.

I've just taken DS's temperature and it's back up to 38.9° so it looks like he'll be at home tomorrow too. I can definitely tell that he's not himself as he's been lying quietly (he's stopped asking for a present now!) on the sofa for so long.

Am making very slow progress on my Christmas cards. I'm in the middle of writing a letter to an American friend; we only ever write to each other at Christmas so I don't feel like I can just send a card - I suppose I could have done and promised to write in the New Year, but it wouldn't be quite the same. Not that it will necessarily get there in time for Christmas now anyway...

I must admit to thinking that he wasn't really my type when I googled him. But I'm sure he has other redeeming (and far more important) features.

God that made me sound really shallow didnt it!! I just had a mental picture of him and was surprised by how young he looked. I dont know anything else about him (which makes my shallowness even worse!). Must go and google him.

Thanks for the aftershave tip. Tried the other week to buy some but I was so full of cold that it was a disaster. He used to have a Tommy Hilfiger one that reminds me of whem we first got together - maybe I should buy that one!

5more lots of sympathy from me, too. DD was also a terrible sleeper as a baby and I found it very hard to cope. It must be even worse with older dc as well. Canella's DH's present sounds inspired, though. Is H feeding at every waking, or could you do something similar with one feed to prevent engorgement?

Gator there must be something the drs can do, surely? Aren't there pills to reduce milk production, or is part of the problem that your ds isn't adjusting to drinking from a bottle very easily? I hope things get sorted out very, very soon.

Canella enough snow for sledging? I had to drive north up "our" motorway on Saturday and saw a sprinkling from the car, but I didn't realise that it was deeper elsewhere. Glad you had a nice weekend.

Admysteltoe what a strange therapist! Hope you manage to find a good one soon that isn't a pain to travel to.

Linzer I usually go to bed shortly after 10pm just to fit in with DH (and DD's kiga start), but since I regularly end up driving home late at night after gigs it's probably a good thing that I'm naturally more of a night owl.

I'd got the impression from his first tv series that GM was gay, but the recent thread seemed to be under a different impression so maybe I misunderstood . I suppose I could write on my friend's FB wall: hey G. Over here! Are you gay? If not, half of Mumsnet wants to marry you. Please clear it up for me.

Re aftershave, DH uses Acqua di Gio and won't even contemplate trying anything else, but I always really liked a Paco Rabanne one that an ex used to wear.

Ok,not gay according to his webpage. Also this thread was not on the first page of google results so I don't think we've mentioned him too much .

There is light at the end of the tunnel! I marched to the Dr's this morning & after a bit of to-ing & fro-ing with the receptionist about whether I needed a Frauenarzt or a Hautarzt & the Dr had a look & declared that it isn't thrush & gave me something to dry up my milk fairly quickly. I've just bf'd for what was probably the last time. I guess it might still be thrush but that should be easier to deal with once feeding has completely stopped & my breasts get a rest.
I'm a bit wary of speaking too soon, but yay!

Hmm, I appear to have deleted a sentence without meaning to - the Dr thinks that just stopping feeding will stop the pain & the bleeding etc. Fingers crossed...

Sending lots of sympathy your way, 5more! It sounds like an absolute nightmare & I really hope things start to look up soon.

Great news that you've finally been seen and that something is being done, Gator - hopefully your problems will clear up quickly now.

ladder Going by the one picture I saw of GM, he reminds me of one of DH's colleague's - who is quite effeminate but also not gay. (A really useful contribution to the discussion, I think you'll agree.)

Canella We can be shallow together, then.

I gave up trying to come up with a present for DH and asked him; he decided he wants a subscription to a photography magazine, so that's easily sorted. As long as I remember to do it, that is.

DH watched the video of my English class last night (I couldn't work up the courage to watch with him) and said he was positiv überrascht. I'm not sure whether this is a good thing or not (obviously good that he liked it, but I'm not sure how bad he was expecting it to be!). He thought it would be good for the parents to watch too but wasn't sure of the logistics... I jokingly suggested putting it on YouTube as you all suggested, but he immediately said no, I'd run into all kinds of legal problems posting videos with other people's children in them. Not that I'm in the slightest bit tempted to post it on YouTube, I hasten to add.

Gator, hope you start to feel better soon - I was going to suggest that maybe a Frauenarzt would be able to help. Did the doctor tell you how many days it would take to clear?

Linzer, hope your ds's temperature is down, has he got any other symptoms?

Sounds like we're all early bed people but I think that has to do with never catching up on sleep after having dc! I just thought it was strange for a fairly young student to say he couldn't even make one exception for a party and had to be in bed at 10pm! Students are usually up all night aren't they (trying to remember back to my youth)?

Well the 2nd therapist was really nice although the flat is in a grotty block of flats with tiny smelly lift to get to the 2nd floor (we couldn't get to the stairs as the door was locked) but otherwise it's nice inside, modern and clean so we can start there in January. The other place with the strange therapist had a box on th efloor of the waiting room with those ABS-Socken and a note saying dear children, please take your shoes off and put on a pair of socks! That put dd right off as she has a foot phobia and wouldn't dream of wearing a pair of communal socks!

That's true - I don't think I ever went to bed before midnight when I was a student. I often didn't get to bed until around 4-5 am when I was in Berlin (partly due to having to wait ages for the night buses), but as I'd arranged all my classes so that they were only on one or two days a week, I didn't have much incentive to get up early most of the time!

Glad you had more success with the second therapist. It's good that you don't have too long to wait until your DD can start.

DS is back at KiGa this morning, although he'd have stayed at home if he'd had his way. He just had a temperature yesterday, no other symptoms, and was fine yesterday afternoon and evening. I did wonder about keeping him home today so that he could rest, but just foresaw a morning of him getting bored and me not begin able to get on with anything (which is fine if he's really ill, but he usually perks up as soon as he's allowed to stay home).

Hello everyone!
Haven't posted here for a while - don't know where the time goes, but wanted to jump back into the thread. How is everyone?? See that you're all in festive naming mode - will have to think about something witty to change my name to!
Sorry to hear about the sleep deprivation, 5more and the bf probs gater - sending positive vibes to you both.

Linzer - did you get through your xmas cards? It took me ages to actually find any to write here - and my mum ended up bringing me over a job lot from M&S when she visited last week. And I totally don't understand the postal system here - I posted one set of about 8 last week to England which cost me less than 5 Euro, and the same amount cost me 13 Euro this week. Huh?? Oh, and they wouldn't accept some of the small cards I had written - apparently there's a minimum size for cards here
So, we're onto our third month in Vienna now - and DS is hitting four months already on Thursday - whoaaa!! He's doing great, but I think he's showing signs of teething - drooling and chewing his hands all the time. I had a feel of his gums and couldn't feel anything - any tips, anyone???

Admysteltoe The Frauenarzt ended up as part of the problem! Well, not the Dr herself, she was lovely. It was a nightmare with receptionists promising to call back then never calling & not answering the phone. Then my midwife offered to call the Dr but the receptionist said no, the Dr would call the midwife (which also never happened), then yesterday the receptionist told me off as the midwife hadn't called! Once we got past that she tried to send me to a Hausarzt instead, then when I argued with her she said it was the midwife's problem & nothing to do with the Dr. She is normally really lovely, but a bit of a jobsworth!
Anyway, the pills should take effect within 24 hours, so almost there. I had to feed a little this morning as one side was full & a bit lumpy but we are getting there slowly!

I'm glad it went well with the second therapist - the first one sounded really odd!

LinzerI'm glad DS feels better today & didn't end up coming down with anything nasty.

(I'm an early bed person these days too - only really since we moved to Germany & there was no more partying to be done though :) )

Hi Coco!

If it's any consolation the German postal system is a mystery too!

DS id doing exactly the same - gumming his hands to death & drooling everywhere (he'll be 3 months at the weekend, how time flies!) He seems to go for his hands a lot when he's hungry but I hadn't thought of teething - thanks for the tip :)

Hi coco, good to see you again! I usually stock up on Christmas cards when I'm back in the UK after Christmas as the range here is somewhat limited, to say the least. You can sometimes find reasonably priced packs of 10 in places like Lidl and Hofer, but otherwise it's mainly individual cards costing 3 or 4 euros each - not really practical if you're sending more than about two cards altogether. (But then a lot of Austrians don't seem to "get" Christmas cards; my ILs keep the cards they're sent in their envelopes and don't put them out on display.)

I can't make head nor tail of the postal prices here since they put up the prices earlier this year. I've got a leaflet showing all the relevant prices and sizes, but still always end up paying a completely different price from what I was expecting. Normal size Christmas cards to the UK should cost ?0.70 but ?1.70 if they're over 20 g (up to 50 g), so it sounds like the first lot you sent were all under 20 g and the second lot were over. And yes, there is a minimum size for cards - having just consulted the leaflet, it's 14 x 9 cm. (Do you think I could get a job at the post office?)

Btw don't know if you saw earlier up the thread that platanos and I are hoping to meet up the first week in January, but you'd be very welcome to join us if you're around.

Gator Glad to hear you're getting there with the feeding; it must be a huge relief. Continuing on the post theme, DH took the ITI bulletins etc. to the PO yesterday so they should be with you soon.

It's so long ago since we went through teething that I can't remember much about it (although I do remember MIL constantly saying, as soon as one of them was grizzly, "he/she must be teething") - I think I just gave them lots of things to gnaw on.