June 2008: new year, new diets, new resolutions, but when push comes to shove creme eggs are still the solution!

[KnittingRocks]

Sorry, couldn't cope with Christmas anymore!

GOOD LUCK AMBER!!! Realised we've got to come back to the UK now, how popular would DS2 be with his friends if he has a joint 18th b-day party with two hot twin girls?

No pushing or shoving here, ELCS planned for Monday morning (not your b-day anymore Dewin), but would love a creme egg. NZ gets v upset that the NZ creme eggs don't taste 'right' cos they import them from the UK rather than making them here, it's all good for me though!

Systems - a diet that incls choc sounds good to me. I'm considering a strict Sun-Fri diet with Saturdays off. Has anyone tried anything like that?

Neenz - There's always a missing piece of a jigsaw, E was just being helpful.

Deb - GREAT news about the appeal.

Knitting - Had the flu myself for the 1st time ever beginning of Dec. It's awful isn't it? Hope you get better really, really soon. Will be having the jab every year myself now too.

Spider - I love the idea that as a mature 2 month old W should be keeping to an earlier bedtime now. Gonna try the 'placid baby' trick now.

Dewin - I've been looking at cribs even though we have a moses basket and cot. I think they look great. Your church story sounds lovely, pregnancy enthusiasm is wonderful, it makes you feel so special, we (society) has become very blase about it all. I'm still mourning the idea of 'internment'.

Re: the flavour, I love the idea of you finding out but not telling anyone, I considered that too. My MIL and MW are furious that DH and I won't tell the name we've chosen. I get a 10 min earbashing from MIL every time about it (and over Xmas we were seeing them daily at least). It's made me more determined than ever not to tell them.

Anyway, my new years resolution is to keep up with this thread. Hours stuck on the sofa BF-ing should help.

Eeny goodness, that's come quickly. Good luck

We didn't tell people the baby flavour with the girls but I think it would have been more tactful if we'd said that we didn't know, rather than that we did know but weren't going to share . We didn't find out with the boys.

It's snowing again

Hi, yeah for deb and school success!

Spider, putting Fraser in with ds1 massively improved his sleep and they love sharing a room so hopefully yours will too.

Dewin you sound happier and less stressed these days! Pregnancy must suit you, morning sickness and all.

Flu vaccine - that was me. Dh and I always get them done privately because he's self employed. We just can't afford for him to be off sick for a week. But I have gotten the boys jabs now - Fraser had a temperature the night after but it was very mild. I have very mixed feelings about it but in the end I just felt that the official advice was inconsistent and better to be safe than sorry. I'm not impressed with the communication about the need or no need for jabs for the under fives and the BBC reporting seems deliberately vague (not commenting on the age of people hospitalised). The best information was the mumsnet webchat.

Amber - lots of love and prayers your way today!

We had it other way round of course with the twins - we knew the flavour, pils didn't want to know and it enraged me through the whole pg that I had to keep it secret from them!

Rolf, 40 is not so bad, even 50 is still young these days!

Flu is awful - I've had it once. It really annoys me when people say they have 'flu' - I think, er, no, if you had flu you wouldn't be stood here talking to me!

Spider wow 2mths already. Daniel was sleeping in his own room at 8wks cos he started settling back to sleep straight after feeds in the night. It would often be midnight before he went to sleep though. We managed to nudge it round a bit but even now it is late on - 10.30pm last night. He does go to bed after his bath at 7pm but only ever sleeps for 45mins. Then he just sits in his bouncy chair watching telly with us till he gets a bit grouchy at 9-ish then I feed him again and try to put him in bed. He sometimes has a cry and a few more feeds before eventually dropping off. And he has an annoying habit of waking after 30 mins for one last feed before going off to sleep for the night (with one waking at 3.30ish). He also slept in a pram rather than a moses basket at first!

Amber, good luck!

Penguin, good luck!!

Dewin, you'll have to come to Liverpool now to get the mat clothes and the crib

Yay for your school success Deb!

yes good luck Amber and Penguin!! can't wait for news

Maya is that you already? Monday? Hugs and prayers your way too then!

Lots of luck for Monday Maya enjoy your weekend first if at all
possible.

Good news here. We had the follow up audiology appointment this morning for W and the results all showed normal hearing. So we are discharged. It was probably that he was bunged up before Xmas with colds. I also had a v nice morning sitting in a dark room with a comfy chair whilst W slept through the tests, and no toddler to wrangle!

Neenz that evening pattern sounds v similar to W. I do need to institute some kind of regular bathing routine for him though

Knitting always this life. Watch your back.

Abdn I am trying to enjoy the pg this time, despite the sickness. But I also don't post on the bad days! Work is dreadful, really bad indeed, and I may be unemployed by the end of the academic year - or, have to take a job which makes me unhappy because of the financial problems we have (not so bad now, but we can't afford unemployment - I would lose the house, then have to move to London, end of Welsh education for Iestyn - and the other advantages eg small class sizes etc etc). But that's for some other discussion.

Spider I don't remember having a bath routine for Iestyn at 2 months. But then I have some weird defective memory when it comes to remembering those early days! Great news on the hearing test - but I knew it would be ok.

Neenz I will have to come to meet up with you! It would be lovely. Rolf as well - I would be very grateful for the crib, and also Neenz's trousers. I can do Fridays normally? Jan is a busy month, and we're nearly halfway through (argh, wish I was halfway through the stuff I should have finished) but I'm sure we can sort something out. Funnily enough, DH was supposed to be in Liverpool today but it settled.

Spider v pleased the hearing check went well

T is wearing a purple woolly hat with 2 bridesmaids headdresses on top . I'm having a clear-out (kind of)

Dewin great . As I'm neither pregnant nor the mother of a little baby I volunteer to do lunch for you and Neenz and the children. I've kept meaning to ask Neenz - is T known as Fee-o? DD1 calls T "Fear"

T's nursery hasn't re-opened after Christmas. They had a burst pipe and have to have the whole ceiling replaced. I think a lot of their stock was destroyed as well. They reckon they'll re-open on 31 Jan but I think that seems awfully optimistic. They are getting temporary accommodation for the children with childcare vouchers but they don't think they'll be able to accommodate the younger ones until they re-open. T is really sad as she loves going, and I know I could start her somewhere else but it seems a shame for her to have to resettle, especially as it's not as though I need the childcare (guilty SAHM emoticon). Also the nursery staff are lovely and I'd feel mean if I just quit their nursery altogether.

I assume the twins must have been born by now btw - no one heard??

Just checking in for twin news

Good luck for Monday Maya

Snowing here too Rolf, dh gone out to check the 4 wheel drive does what it's supposed to do!!Let's hope he doesn't get stuck anywhere.

Ooh, should I post Amber's news? She has two little girls! Madeleine and Isabella, born at 12.24 and 12.26 today. All doing fine.

Lovely lovely names!

I've got to rush off but just quickly - Knitting thanks for what you said re: job. That was a lovely thing to say - and accurate (academia is really, really bad now - won't go into the politics of it but massive, enormous underfunding, plus job cuts, plus stressed workers = general fear and panic and quite a bit of personal vendettas/bullying/backstabbing etc etc). (Not that I'm suffering from all of the above, though!) So yes, I whinge, but I do love where I live (I'm also quite restricted due to my subject area), and I adore research and teaching - when I get to do those things! I've got a very supportive union, but a snake of a head of department!!

Done it! Madeleine and Isabella born 1224 6.3 and 6.11lb. I am actually breastfeeding hurrah! M is a sleepy angel but I constantly crying! Beautiful little healthy girls x

Fantastic news Amber, many many congratulations and what gorgeous names!!

Congratulations Amber! Brilliant news! Lovely names.

Will catch up later as I am actually meant to be going for a night out tonight!

Aw, congrats Amber - lovely names and well done on the bf!

Amber congratualtions!!!!! Beautiful names!

That's lovely. Well done you. Gorgeous names too.

(Looks like we've all been lurking this afternoon waiting to hear)

Fantastic news Amber and lovely names. Well done you x
Another one here who's been lurking to hear the news!

Good luck on Monday Maya.

Oh Amber! Congratulations and what fantastic names. Well done!

Hurrah, congratulations Amber and well done on the bf too. I too have been checking in all afternoon for news.

You next Maya - hope you get some R&R this weekend.

Loft visitors update - man from the Council been - no evidence of anything . He's put a biscuit down and we're to check to see if it's eaten. Def not rats or squirrels though. Could be mice but at the other side of some shiny insulation stuff that goes across the roof walls and right down through the house. Think I'll get our window cleaners out to clear and check our gutters to see if there are any holes in the roof. All very odd - the man thought it was very strange that the noise was in

Oops!

Noise was in one place and only really at around the same time every night

Well the breastfeeding has all gone to shit. It's the one downside to the portland. They have made me give formula to top up Madeleine as she's little and a bit shaky and the paed said she needed the glucose. Now. She won't bf. Isabella just wants to sleep so not interested but if she hasn't fed in 6 hours they make you give formula. Seems wrong to me. Shouldn't I be waiting for her to want it?