All those online for NZ timezone!

[buzzybee]

Hi all. Used to be a regular on MN when I lived in London but since moving back to NZ have found it harder to make the connections due to all the brits being asleep when us down under are online! So if anyone is keen to start a thread for those of us in this predicament please reply! My DD has just turned 5 and started school last week (scary). Have just found out I'm expecting number 2 - due roughly Xmas day...

And hpe your dad's OK MrsJC

Beatrix had her ultrasound scan today at the hospital. Mostly good news . They didn't pick up anything new and the reason for the amniotic fluid levels now seem likely to remain a mystery. However left kidney still slightly dilated so they want her to go back for another scan in 6 weeks.

The sonographer was really nice and even though he's not the paedeatrician and therefore can't give me clinical diagnoses he was still very reassuring and told me that in all likelihood she will be referred to a programme for annual screening to make sure it doesn't get any worse in future.

Actually heel prick test today was much more traumatic

oh good buzzy, that sounds very good indeed. ooooh, love to see Beatrix written down, it is such a good name

my father seems to be doing OK. Of course, it will feel better and he will immediately decide that he can do everything, drive etc. and we're all fussing unneccesarily. He didn't even want to go to the hospital, I had to make him, and I just know he's going to ignore what they say to him and just go ahead and do what he likes in his pigheaded way. Precisely how he fell over in the first place. The house is far too much for them, my mother hates the journey, they are too doddery (this is the second time my father has had to go into hospital up there, they only bought it in June and have only been there a couple of times) - it is a real worry.

I am planning to try my hardest to make it to Wellington one weekend before the end of Feb (just with DS). maybe I'll come and coo at Beatrix in person...

Congratulations, Buzzy!

thanks for the school advice - I will try those sites, I just don't have the energy for a state vs private war here...

Saw the doctor today and we are looking at an elective c-section because the baby is biggish (although I think I am being measured against petite East Asian growth charts - 3.7kg at 36 weeks doesn't sound all that gigantic to me). We think we will aim for Australia Day so she always has a public holiday and a huge fireworks display on her birthday!

Somehow we seem to have procrastinated our way through nine whole months. I have not got around to antenatal classes, the cot is still in pieces and we have not chosen a name. We both quite like Iris - is it popular in the Antipodes? Do you know any at your toddler groups? What about Flora? I have a bit of a fear that she will end up one of ten in her class, but being an expat it's very hard to judge what is popular at home at the moment. I do look on essential baby but they all seem to be such dreadful bogans (think it must be where "Princess Tiiami" came from) that they're no use at all. Please excuse my snobbery but I'd rather call my child by her hospital number than Bryiellaah.

Ninedragons. at Bryiellaah. There are some stoooopid names around these days. At the hospital one of the nurses asked me how I was spelling Amelia's name as someone she knew spelt her dd's name "Ameelya". FFS. I don't know about in Aussie but I worked in a childcare centre for 6 years here in NZ and I never looked after a single Iris or Flora so they may be quite rare. I like them both.

Mrs JC - my dad would never go to hospital/drs either - I think it;s a m ale thing. He developed a dodgy big toe which he wouldn't get operated on as he was worried about having a general. So he spent the last few years of his life wearing socks and sandals as normal shoes wouldn't fit over the toe!

Buzzy - so glad the scan went well - after all that worry during the pg - sometimes I think all the tests in pg are more worry then they are worth...

Well my big news is that on Wed nad Thur Amelia slept from 9pm through to 6pm! I was in shock - f course I woke up wondering why she was still asleep and had to check on her. She woke last night once, at 3, but I'm still delighted I may get some full nights sleep. (shouldnt' say that, she will prob go back to waking 4 times a night!)

I mean 9pm to 6am of course, not 6 pm. 9pm to 6pm would be a little worrying

Hey that's great Anna. My DD1 started sleeping thru from about 7 weeks so I know its possible and what I'm aiming for again.
Last night Beatrix woke at 12.30 and 5.30am but then went off again to 9am pretty much straightaway so have had a lie in!

MrsJC, would love to see you! I'm sure we could rustle up a mini MN meet-up. Let us know when you have a better idea of dates.

Ninedragons, as Anna says I don't think either of those names are particularly common and they are both lovely. I have come across a couple of Florences (shortened to Flo/Flossie) and an Isis. There's probably an Aussie website with the top 100 most popular names on it somewhere!!

Hooray we have another baby's arrival to cheer for!! When exactly is Australia Day? My MW was of the view that it was the relative ratio of head circumference to pelvic size that mattered not weight. There were a couple of 4.8/5kg babies on the ward with me last weekend but Beatrix had the largest head! I guess I must have a wide pelvis!!!

Am I going completely mad? Surely my last post wasn't deleted by mumsnet because I mentioned some websites that ninedragons might find useful which couldn't possibly be seen as in competition with mumsnet? That really would be censorship gone mad.

no, your last post is still here...I can see it

i think your post is still there sunnydelight, the websites being britishexpats and pomsinoz 17 posts back!

was it you who had a thread a while back about having to fly back to uk having just got to oz? how did it all work out?

(1 handed typing - slow!)

congratulations Buzzybee, and welcome to Beatrix xxxxx

Just sprinting by the computer to say I'm glad the scan went well on Friday, Buzzy - that sounds very positive to me.

And Get Well Soon to MrsJC's Dad - what a worry.

Great to have a meet-up in Wgtn - and it looks as if we'll be in ChCh on 29 Feb/1 March if that's any good for a meet-up down south too?

We were married in Kenepuru Sound - well not actually in the Sound but ykwim - in April last year. So I have lovely memories of the place.

Must run - no computer time at the mo

oh really Wellie - how lovely! it was heaven

I think I'm around that weekend - I know the dreaded inlaws will be here (if they don't cancel 5 days before again that is) but I can't see them every bloody day. might have a concert but not sure yet. Anyway am sure we can work something out

Hello there Kiwis, I am in London and have been for 9 years but am coming home to Chch in Sept with my son who is 9 weeks old at the moment. V excited at the prospect, more so now that I know thtat there is a MN posse going {smile}. Just thought I would leap in now and say hello since I saw the thread up -and ask that someone has a nice cold Macs Gold for me.

YES - someone else in ChCh
our posse here is very exclusive - I think theres 4-5 of us.

congrats on the new baby.
where are you in London?

Oh, that IS exclusive - is there a scary initiation?
We are in St Johns Wood by Regents Park. Great for walking Joseph around, but we are in a one bedroom 4th floor walk up. Not so good for actually getting him out!

ooh, fancy location! (but yes, not great flat wise)

hmmm scary initiations - a drive around the Summit Rd maybe?

Will you be coming back to the city itself or somewhere just outside, and are you from here originally?

Please excuse all the questions, can you tell I'm excited to have someone coming here! I love it but it's quite a shock after living all my life in London.

No problems, ask away, might well need your help to re-settle! Fancy location means (meant) we could both walk to work through park. I want to live in St Albans where I grew up, but my husbabd is harbouring strange dreams about living near Rangiora. I think he just wants a ride on mower.
Am a little nervous about coming back after so long, but will be grand to be near family for baby, and to have a house and section. Having own lawn and outdoor clothes line seems unimaginable luxury. Am worried tho, as have no self control with NZ fish and chips so will be massive within a month.
Where were you in London? And what was the biggest shock moving there?

well I was born and grew up around BLackheath, SE London, but jsut before we moved here we'd been living in Twickenham for 4 years (and Chiswick before that). Here we live in Beckenham/Cashmere, which I love. We don't actually have a big section, but we have bags more space inside than we did in London and it's such a nice area.

The biggest shock - well, in ChCH you can convince yourself that you're still in the big city, but when we left to drive up to my parents' holiday house in the Sounds, I remembered how there's noone here - that main road up through Kaikoura is quite something! My DH's boss, an otherwise sensible man who has actually visited the UK for extended periods of time, said 'oh well yes, living in ChCh must be like living in Manchester or Birmingham' - he was pretty shocked when DH pointed out just how many people there are in those citiesa dn how built up the UK is! It's realy not the same at all. I'm not complaining though - I do miss London but I was sick of it.

The other big shock was the coldness of a 1920s house in the winter, with no central heating, double glazing, insulation etc...we are about to embark on some home improvements because I'm not doing that again. We had a new baby so had to use portable heaters, and the electricity bills were frightening.

I couldn't live out of the city though, not yet anyway - far too much of a culture shock for me. We have friends who train horses near Rangiora, and it's lovely but definitely not for me.

I am having to steer clear of the incredible range and variety of NZ cakes and biscuits, I've never seen anything like it.

Is your DH from here too then? Most of St Alban's seems to be have been renamed Merivale...or maybe that's just estate agent speak. We looked there too, it's very nice.

Funny that you found your house so cold, MrsJC. Our current flat was built in 1924 and the stone walls are so thick that it actually retains heat in winter.

Hopefully they are also fairly sound-proof. A young and deeply fashionable couple have just moved in next door and found out this morning that we're going to have a baby in a fortnight, so they must be dreading how compatible our screaming baby and their party hangovers are going to be.

At the risk of being a whinging Pom, NZ houses are freeeeeeeezing!

We put roof insulation in last winter which helped.

Glad I had dd in spring/early summer as hopefully won't get too cold till she is at least 6 months old.

As a born and bred kiwi, but one who's lived in Geneva and London I too find NZ houses very very cold. Its the drafts I think that are the worst. My advice - buy a new house or as near to new as you can get. I bought one last year and its actually taking some getting used to - even in Wellington which is not known as NZ's warmest city - I have to remember to open windows every day to make sure it doesn't get too stuffy. It doesn't have double glazing (don't really need it as Wellie only gets about 5 frosts a year) but is completely draft free and all the walls and ceiling cavities are well insulated. My mum was amazed that it still felt reasonably warm in winter even tho the first winter we were here we survived on curtain linings only on the windows and a single gas fire to heat all the open plan living area.

Sorry can't offer any advice on Chch tho - I suspect double glazing WOULD be a good idea there as much colder at night in winter. MrsJC would I be right in thinking that new houses being built in Chch tend to have double glazing these days?

Hi KJaysmum [waves]! Thanks for the congrats. Bea is doing great.
How was your Christmas? Bit wet like here I'm guessing! But the last week or so has made up for that. We came up to Waikanae Pools the day before Bea was born and I was really impressed - will definitely be going back.

I think they do buzzy

this house is a lovely period affair, but oh the draughts - great gaps around the windows and doors, no roof insulation etc. Obv a new house would be much better, but I do love period houses.

we have an extensive plan of improvements to be done over the next few months which includes a new roof, roof and underfloor instulation, some secondary double glazing etc. etc. And a new hot water cylinder, possibly solar powered to try and cut down bills even further...gulp.

it's supposed to be 33 herre tomorrow. Which is when I'm glad the house is so cool!

Period houses are oh so lovely, but I have forgotten about waking up with a dew on the duvet, as happened in one of our Chch flats. I suspect we will bankrupt ourselves with an enormous electricity bill in our first winter. That is part of the reason for coming home in Sept, to avoid a winter although it is questionable after last summer whether an english cummer counts........
MJC I am tired of aspects of London and the great things aren't so accessible now that we have Joe, but I do still love it so it is going to be hard. A really close friend lives in Blackheath, except he has renamed it Thebestplaceintheuniverseobviously. It is beautiful there.
Did you have a nor'wester in Chch today to go with your 33 degrees? God I have missed them!