2013 ist schon da! A new Kaffeeklatsch thread for the New Year - living in Germany and Austria

[LinzerTorte]

All welcome - whether you're living in Germany or Austria, have questions about life in those countries or just want to chat.

Previous thread here.

Nutella sounds like a nice day out! Do you think you'll be able to leave PIL in charge of ds so you can get a rest sometime soon? I would have loved to have had family nearby when mine were small. It took my parents almost 3 years to come out and visit us as they never liked the idea of me living in Germany!

What are you going to make with the treacle? I have a tub of the German treacle (Grafschafter Goldsaft - but it's not golden it's black) bought by mistake and have no idea what to do with it! I wanted to buy their golden syrup (Heller Sirup) but the pots look the same and I didn't read the label properly.

Tumbles glad the weather is better. Sounds like an ideal place for letting/chucking the dc outside and still being able to see them.

Well the dc have polished off half that jar of branston over the weekend! Must admit I don't cook or feed them officially at weekends (I take weekend rest seriously!) so they tend to go for easy snacks and toast with branston is their favourite!

admylin I never know what to make that needs molasses, either. I'm sure my mum used to use in regularly in baking when I was a kid, but I can't think what in. I'm still searching for the perfect gingerbread recipe, but I've got one that's reasonably good and that doesn't use molasses, just a bit of golden syrup.

mrtumbles this winter has officially been particularly dark and sunless - something like 40% less sun than average and the fewest hours of sun in December since records began in 1950-something, something like that anyway. I hope the sun hangs around for the rest of the week, it is rather cheering.

Glad to hear that you've got a plan to sort out your concerns with your dd and that it's putting your mind at rest. I'd be interested to know what your experiences of teaching kids with ADHS were - there's a boy in one of my English classes who cannot stay on his chair for longer than about a minute, he stands up or falls forwards onto the floor. He is a very quick learner and seems to try to control his excess energy if I ask him to, but I notice sometimes he stands up almost as a reflex (often when he's shouting out vocab) and occasionally he will look a bit confused as if he is surprised to find himself standing up. It's not terribly disruptive and it's not down to me to do anything about it anyway, but I'm just curious as to whether that may be indicative of ADHS or not.

platanos I noticed someone had asked Katy about Uggs on the comments section of one of her blogs, but she hadn't answered. She recommends minimal footwear, but says at the very least shoes should have a flat sole, room to spread your toes and a flexible sole. Uggs have the first two of those, but don't have a flexible sole, however I find I can still roll my foot in them because they're relatively loose around the ankle and heel (mine may be a size too big, though). I was looking at some other sheepskin boots online and remember reading something about them stretching to fit your feet and warning that if you had ankle instability and stepped over the sides then they would deform to that shape quickly. I will link to what Katy says about ankles, but I don't want to lose this long post, so will do it separately.

nutella hurray for good stretch of sleep! Will cross my fingers for you that you get a repeat performance or better tonight.

linzer that's a really good idea to replace MNetting with reading as a default thing to do when you have a break. I'm sure I'd be more productive if I did that, too, since the time seems to disappear online much quicker .

Did any of you read the bra thread(s)? I discovered that I'm probably a 28DD/E and not a 32C as I thought, so have ordered a few (in multiple sizes) to try. Can't imagine it's going to be quite as life-changing as some of the people on those threads seem to have found, though .

Katy on ankles

cheas- thanks for the info on uggs and ankles. It was more out of curiousity and because dd1 has a funny way of standing which puts her ankle in a strange position. No, I have not read the bra threads...but I am in search of new bras. I am sure the dragon in the little shop down the road measured me wrong. where did you order yours from?

admylin Well done on taking weekend rest very seriously. I shall remember that for when mine are a bit older and can be trusted to get something out the fridge without dropping it all over the floor - they have to stand on a stool to get things out.

nutella that sounds like a nice visit to the ILs. Hurrah! Thought of you today - we were in the dr's waiting room and a little toddler was crying, ds said "when I hear babies cry, I also want to start crying". So, another one who will not be a criminal? Can I cross that off my list of parental concerns? Hope the long sleeps continue.

mrtumbles thanks for telling me about the treatment for your dd's verruca. I will not scrape till it bleeds. The dr also froze my dd's and we have to go back next week, but she said "it helps if you do this scraping at home" which I shall take to mean: "it will just take a bit longer, but will be fine if you don't make your child's foot bleed every night". The outcome of the visit to the dr sounds perfect - it should give you a good idea of what your dd needs, if anything. Did you get an apt?

went to dr with ds and am very pleased at getting referral to HNO and allergy testing (both things had been mentioned by paed and Hausarzt in the past but they had always said we should wait until the current cold/flu was over) and nose drops, vit D and some multivits . He just seems pale, worn down by winter and illnesses - and his skin has broken out into horrid eczema which he did not use to have. Anyway, let's see if I can get him healthy again.

hello everyone else. Still sunny here....lovely! Though I am indoors it is nice to see a blue sky..

cheas cross post. Thanks for the link on ankles!

platanos hope your ds feels beter soon. Maybe he's got the winter blues and the arrival of abit of sun will put him on the mend! Sunny here in Hannover today and washing is drying outside for the first time in ages.
Yes, start training them early with self feeding at weekends! Start with own breakfasts and lots of praise and let it graduate from there to whole day or even 2 of looking after their own meals!!

cheas I had a look on the website for Goldsaft and there's a recipe for flapjack on there. Might try it. Just think it might be too dark in colour with treacle instead of syrup.
I missed the bra thread too and am also in need of new ones. Last time I ordered some they fit OK but quality was rubblsh so I sent them back. Maybe I should try a UK site.

Took ds to get his shoes at the weekend. He walked in the shop and picked up the first pair he liked, they fit, we payed and walked out all in less than 15 minutes! Now, dd is another cup of tea. She has been trawling websites and trying to decide on what she wants but al lonline so we will have to hunt them out in town for her tp try on for size then order them as the particular colour she wants isn't available here (so she says).

cheas I have a rotten cold at the moment and think DS has a touch of it so I forgive him for waking every three/four hours to feed overnight I was wishing, hoping and praying that he would do another 5 hour stretch... Ah well... Maybe tonight!

platanos must be a good thing to know your DS is just as sweet yes it is lovely to see the blue sky again!!

admylin having a rest at the weekend sounds like a great idea! I'll let DS know he can get up and dressed on his own as soon as he likes... No I don't want to wish away all the cuddles and funny faces really

The best thing about the IL visit was that DP didn't feel stressed. So often he feels he is expected should visit rather than simply because he wants to. I guess that's why the middle brother only visits at Easter & Christmas.

DS and I are making grandma a Mother's Day gift (it's English Mother's Day this weekend) she arrives on Wednesday. I did some little hand and foot prints this morning... The green paint I used on his hand seems to have stained it a bit oops. Now we need a frame and to print a nice picture of DS

admylin and platanos the bra thread was in AIBU, there's now a continuation since the first thread got to 1000 posts! Anyway, apparently you should measure fairly tightly around under your breasts and that measurement is your strap size (no adding at all). If you measure an odd number, then chances are the smaller size will fit better, but try both sizes. You can test the band fit by putting it on back to front and trying to pull it away from you - it should be so tight that you can only get a couple of fingers in. To get the cup size you bend over at 90 degrees and measure around the part hanging nearest the floor - the difference (in inches) in the two measurements gives you the cup size A,B,C,D,DD,E,F,FF,G,GG etc.

I ordered from brastop.com which is in the UK, but they said on the thread that small back sizes were even harder to find in Europe and anyway I don't like ordering from sites I've never heard of. Brastop have lots of good reductions and free delivery to Europe if you order over 75 quids worth - of course I'll end up paying to send the wrong sizes back, but I've decided it was worth it since a trip to a decent-sized town with a Hunkemöller or whatever would cost a similar amount in petrol and then they wouldn't have my size anyway...

Morning all,

We finally succumbed to all the viruses that are going round - DS had a temperature at the weekend, I started feeling shivery and achy on Sunday and DD1 was complaining of a stomach ache and headache too. They both stayed at home yesterday, but are back at school today; I'm back to normal now too, apart from backache caused by too much sitting on the sofa yesterday. At least we were still able to get into Vienna on Saturday, had a nice lunch and visited DH's new office (I tried three different types of coffee from two different machines and pronounced them all undrinkable) before going to the theatre.

cheas I'm positive that I'm wearing the wrong bra size, but it's the size I find the most comfortable. I was measured as a 30 quite a few years ago but stuck to 32 as I found 30 too tight, and moved up to 34 after having the DC. But if I measure myself like you said, I'm a 26. OK, so I can get two hands in rather than two fingers with a 34, but I got rid of all my 32s a while back as I just found them uncomfortably tight. But maybe I should give them another go... will have to have a look at the thread too.

Nutella Thanks for reminding me about Mother's Day; I must get my card in the post today!

admylin I don't cook at the weekends either (although DH does), but getting the DC to fend for themselves sounds like a good idea! They could manage breakfast but usually wait for DH to get up and go and fetch rolls from the baker's (although DD1 would be perfectly capable of going if we gave her a list and some money the night before).

platanos Glad to hear you've got some referrals and prescriptions; fingers crossed they do the trick. Also good to hear you not only understood but also enjoyed the theatre! Dick Whittington was good too; very low budget (although hardly surprising considering how small the audience was) but the acting was excellent. The only downside was some heckling Austrian boys in the front row; their teachers sitting next to us, several rows back, kept saying sshh but to little effect.

MrTumbles Good news on the referral; if your DD does need some kind of help, then you can intervene at an early stage and if she turns out not to have any problems, you know there's nothing to worry about. I'm generalising a bit now, but the problem with the education system here is that it doesn't allow for children who are dreamers/work at a slightly slower pace/can't concentrate for as long as others; it's perfectly normal for some children to be like that and is often more to do with their personality than academic abilities, or the fact that they take longer to mature than others, but there's no room for even slightly square pegs.

Morning! Just waiting to skype with a friend so sneaking in some MN time beforehand.

cheas - I had a quick peak at that thread despite always thinking my bras were ok but it said the bit at the front between my boobs should always sit flat against the chest and mine doesnt. Will have to have a hunt for a measuring tape (dont think dh's workman ones will be any good ) and see what I measure.

nutella - hope you feel better soon. Did you get your 5 hours stretch of sleep? Glad you had a good visit at the IL's. Aw so exciting that your mum is coming for a visit - hope she is the kind of grandma to take him out for long walks to let you catch up on some sleep.

admylin - I've got all my dc making their own breakfasts too - obviously its only cereal or toast but it means an extra few minutes in bed in the week and a good couple of hours at the weekend . Now need to move on to the other meals! Glad the shoe buying for your ds worked out but I feel your pain with your dd. I'm dreading spring/summer shoe shopping already.

platanos - yes my foot problem has been going on way too long - since last summer - but hopefully these insoles will sort it. Your ds has really had a run of ill health this winter. Hope the vitamins help and a the other doctors can help too.

mrtumbles - the appt with the doctor about your dd seems to have gone well. Hope you dont have to wait too long for an appt so that she doesnt lose any more confidence in the meanwhile.

Waves to everyone else

Its dh's birthday today so need to crack on and make him a birthday cake this morning. I was also supposed to bake him something to take to work but totally forgot yesterday so have to bake that too. I bought him a voucher to have a massage - find him more difficult to buy for each year.

And ds2 finally lost his first tooth - not sure whether its a or a - he's my littlest and I feel a bit sad that he's losing his baby smile. But then its been hanging out for days so I'm glad the drama is over - well until the slightly wobbly one next to it starts to hang! Really wobbly teeth give me the heebie jeebies - hate when he wants to show me how much it moves .

X post linzer. Thats rotten that you all were poorly but glad you feel better now. Agree totally that there is no room for slightly square pegs in the school system here - the dc really have to be impeccably behaved at all times and never lose concentration. Wonder how many adults could claim to be like that - not many!

Morning all.

ploom what kind of cake are you baking? Dh is the only on eat work who won't celebrate his birthday with the colleagues! All the others turn up with cake and Sekt on their birthdays.
Are you keeping the milk teeth? I had all the first milk teeth in a little tooth shaped box but got rid of them recently when the dc told me it was too disgusting for words!

Linzer that shivery and achy feeling is awful isn't it. Was the play in English that you saw? I guess it must have bene as they don't have Dick Whittington in German do they? We went to some great plays and shows at the Friedrichstadtpalast in Berlin (we lived near it). Realise how lucky we were to have all the Berlin city life on our doorstep after trading it for Hannover.

cheas thanks for the bra measurment tips I will also have to have a go as I'm in need of new ones. Did your order arrive yet?

Nutella great that your mum is coming to stay. It'll be nice to have adult company all day long and someone to help out!

I've finally decided to go to the doctor today when dd is at the orthodontist (they're in the same building) as my fingers have been hurting at the joints. It's abit like arthritis (or what I imagine arthritis could be like) but hopefully it's some simple to fix vitamin deficiency or something like that - I'm too young for arthritis!

Sounds like a good idea to get yourself checked out admylin. hope it goes ok.

I've baked dh some choc chip oat cookies to take to work & then I'm making a chocolate cake & a raspberry flan for when he gets home.

I've kept quite a few of dd & ds1's teeth but they're all mixed up. Not sure why I keep them but it would feel strange to chuck them out.

admylin Yes, it was staged by an English theatre company. I haven't been to see a German play for years, although we used to go to the theatre a lot in Berlin too. I suppose we're lucky in that we don't have to travel far to get to a big city, but somehow it seems much more of an effort to get there if you're not actually living there - even though I often used to travel more than 25 minutes to get somewhere in Berlin or London.
Hope you get the problem with your fingers sorted out and that it turns out not to be arthritis.

Ploom Saw the photo of your DS on FB - very cute! I felt the same when DS lost his first tooth not long ago; the youngest seem to grow up so fast. DS's second top front tooth is very wobbly now too, so he's going to look even more gappy soon.

Hope the cake baking goes well. I remember baking three cakes for DH's Einstand in Germany, but now he just goes out and buys cake etc. when it's his birthday. We always just had Sekt and ice cream where I worked - far easier!

ploom my mum is a very good grandma. Loves to have as much time as possible with DS and won't question whatever bizarre instruction I might come up with :O (of course she'll probably still do whatever she feels is best :))
Choc chip oat cookies... They sound good.... I normally make oatmeal and raisin cookies but swapping the raisins for choc sounds like a win win!
I often make cookies and cook a few then put the dough in the fridge (in a sausage shape wrapped in cling film) and cook them when I want, yummy warm cookies :o

linzer sorry to hear you had a poorly weekend. Good to hear you're all feeling better though.

admylin hope the visit to the doctor goes well. Perhaps it's your bones telling you that you dont like the cold damp weather, and you should move to Texas (I think that's where you said DH had applied for a job)

cheas interesting tip about the bra thread, thanks! Of course I feel like mine change size daily at the moment (I'm convinced they got bigger in the last two weeks actually!). I might invest in some underwired BF bras...

Anyway... DS slept really well! I'm not sure if it is the visit to the osteopath or the growth spurt but he seems much more chilled (still managed to notice I sneaked off for a shower this morning and was not impressed). He slept 22:00-03:00 then 03:30-06:30. I even felt like I had a decent sleep! hurrah! I even managed to have us up and dressed early (for us) then put DS down for a nap! He has been asleep for an hour :o
I'm going to make some lunch - eat it, feed him and head out for a walk before going to my friend's for coffee.
And the sun is out. Super! Better get a move on, me sneezing and coughing is probably going to wake DS any second and I should make some lunch....

Just got back from the doctor and he says it is arthritis He prescribed ibuprofen and told me I can warm some bird sand in the microwave and sit with my fingers in it to ease the pain. I have to go back for some blood tests one morning as he wants to check my thyroid and iron levels.

Nutella those biscuits sound nice. What's oatmeal in German and where do you get yours? Good idea about keeping a roll in the fridge to make quick fresh cookies you super hausfrau you!

ploom which recipe do you use for your choc chip oat cookies? Home baked biscuits/cookies are the best!

Oh gosh, admylin, I am really sorry to hear that. I hope it is a very mild case and totally manageable. I hope you are feeling ok. I have a friend my age who has RA, she manages well with acupuncture.

admylin so sorry to hear that! I also hope it's really mild.
I buy normal porridge oats (Haferflocken- IMHO the ones in the blue or yellow Köln bags are best. Yellow is whole oats and blue is.. Rolled oats I think), I love porridge, then I either just use that in my cookies or I whizz them with my stick blender... Voila oatmeal
Also I find if I cook all the cookies at once then they get eaten all at once pretty quick so really it's just me trying to limit my cookie intake

Hi lentils! Nice to see you hope you're well.

Struggling to keep up with the thread at the moment - well I read it all but then have to go out before I get chance to post.

So sorry about the arthritis admylin - hope the sand helps. My Mum has it and knits a lot to keep it at bay.

Sorry you have been feeling ill Linzer - hope you are all improved soon.

The baking sounds delicious ploom! Good idea with the cookie dough Nutella.

Hope you get some answers with dd MrTumbles. Let us know how you get on. Ds1 has a developmental check on Thursday too as we are worried about some of his reactions to things going wrong.

Got to go and pick up the elder two now. Sorry for not namechecking everyone. Hope you are all having a good week.

Hi, Nutella!
I just struggle to keep up with this busy thread! Still here though! :)

Nutella Great news on the sleep; a good night's sleep makes such a difference. Hope you enjoyed your coffee. I can't drink (normal) tea or coffee when I have a cold - which the shivers and aches seem to be turning into - and keep feeling thirsty, which is very unusual for me!

Jenny Hope the check goes OK and that you get some answers.

admylin Sorry to hear that it did turn out to be arthritis. I misread bird sand as bird seed and thought ooh, I'll have to tell my mum (who has arthritis) as they have so much bird seed at home! But I can see that sand would make more sense...

Hi Lentil.

Have read the bra thread - well, several different bra threads - now and worked out my new size, but it's not one that I'd ever be able to find in the shops and I'm a bit wary of ordering online without being able to try on (considering how expensive returns would be). I may wait until the summer and order some then, so that I can get free returns when I'm at my parents'; my bras atm are perfectly comfortable, but I'd be interested to see what difference a wildly different size makes.

Thought I was going to have DD2 and DS at home again today; DD2 was complaining last night that she still had a tummy ache and headache and couldn't sleep, so she came into bed with me (DH is away until Thursday), and said she was still feeling ill this morning. I arranged for a friend to bring the school work she'd miss, but then she suddenly decided she'd be able to go after all. And DS was coughing so badly last night that it made him sick, but he was fine this morning too - he only seems to be coughing in bed for some reason.

Nutella thanks for the oatmeal tip, I thought I would have to buy it but if the mixer works on rolled oats too that's good. I often see nice sounding recipes using oatmeal but scrap them as I had no idea where to get it!

Hi lentils how are things going? Yes, I hope it's mild arthritis too and if it stays in the four fingers only, that would be bearable. It's kind of a mild throbbing pain but not enough to stop me sleeping or anything.

Just noticed the prescription is for ibuprofen 600mg so might not take them unless it's really bad. The 400mg ones knock me out!

jenny hop ethe check for ds goes OK

Linzer hope the cold gets better soon. If you can't drink coffee could you try peppermint tea or cammomile tea with honey? It's good if you can drink alot anyway. I always forget to drink until it's past 8pm and then I daren't drink too much as I'd be up in the night! Yesterday was the same and I had to go
nüchtern (what's the translation for that?) to the blood test this morning too so I was really thirsty by 9am when it was over. I should make a new rule for myself, no mumsnet unless I have a glass of water then I'd be fine!

No MN until after a glass of water sounds like a good rule, admylin! When I was still following Flylady, I added "drink a glass of water" to my morning, afternoon and evening routines but that's fallen by the wayside now. I'm not overly keen on most fruit and herbal teas, but do have some echinacea tea I quite like - and would still be more likely to drink fruit/herb tea (if I could be bothered to make it) than a glass of water, unless I'm really thirsty.

I think it's funny how nüchtern can mean both sober and an empty stomach -and it could lead to some amusing misunderstandings. English is often much more long-winded than German; you'd have to say something like you had to have an empty stomach or weren't allowed to have anything to eat before your blood test.

Morning!

admylin - Aw I'm sorry that it was arthritis. Hope the painkillers help - think the advice is to keep them moving as much as possible so maybe the heat might help that. Glad its not just me who cant drink late in the evening. 8.30 is my limit. Always feel jealous of dh who can drink right up till he goes to bed - maybe it'll come to him as he gets older too. I might have other faults but I am virtuous about drinking water - I could easily guzzle more than 2 litres a day. I think not drinking coffee or tea so much helps since there isnt anything else to drink in the house. We stopped the dc drinking anything but water or milk about a year ago and they seem happy with it (until we have visitors and then have juice and they cant get enough of it like when cheas was at ours the other weekend).

hi lentils - how are things in sunny frankfurt?

jenny - hope the check for ds goes ok - what kind of problems is he having?

linzer - hope the cold doesnt hang around for too long. There seems to be so many bugs going round at the moment so well done to your dc for getting to school today.

nutella - whoo hoo to the improved sleeping .

Here is the recipe for the choc chip oat cookies It is an american recipe so the measurements are in cups - sorry. I just use Haferflocken and they work out really well - not sure if thats the right thing to use or not.

You can say have fasting bloods done, can't you? Still have to change the sentence quite a bit though.

Sorry to hear about the diagnosis, admylin. I hope it stays bearable and managable.

My bra order arrived yesterday - pretty good since I placed the order last Friday. I won't have time to try them until this Friday though as I'm working - am writing this in the pit during a particularly long section of Cosi fan tutte where I have nothing to play . They keep rehearsing a loud crash on stage which at least stops me nodding off!

I've always been confused by oats - what are rolled oats? I always buy grobe Blatt, but one recipe I was reading said "not jumbo oats", are they something else?

lentils I've thought of one question- what are good vegan sources of calcium? And do you have to supplement with vit D, or can you get that from your diet in sufficient quantities? I noticed a new vegan section in our supermarket last week and bought some seitan fix - have a recipe for chickpea cutlets which needs vital wheat gluten and I could never find it before .

Hi to everyone I didn't manage to namecheck.