June mummies '05 thread 7 -The one with their first Christmas

[katzglitterytree]

hello all

come and join us new and old junies

giddy - hugs hugs hugs

i am in the middle of cleaning spree, including scrubbing the oven, i must be stopped as clearly not feeling like myself.
dh might faint or call ambulance upon arrival

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Giddy {{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{{hug}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}

Lurking but had to respond to your plight! Hoping your evening is a good one

Just logged on ((((((((((hugs)))))))))) to you Giddy, poor you
And soothing teething ((((((((((hugs)))))))))) to snowfall too
Here's hoping for peaceful evenings and long sleeps...

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Hello all. Hugssssss Lynny, I don't know how you do it.
Computer has been broken and now I have no time to post. DD2 still sleeping very badly due to teeth I think. So I am very tired. Great friend of mine leaving the island on Wed so I am a bit sad at the moment too. We have a bit carol concert tomorrow in the supermarket car park so that will be fun. We spent the morning on the beach today and even went in the sea. Went down with five friends and their children with flasks of tea and mince pies. Was really really lovely. Was my friends leaving do as she wanted something low key. Right have to fly. Sorry for crap catch up.
Oh Trib - There is no right age gap. I think a close gap means harder work initally but the pay off happens sooner. Think already how far you have come with ds and how quickly that time has passed even though that tiny baby seems ages ago. I wouldn't have liked an age gap less than 18 months tbh as I really struggled with a very frustrated little girl age 16-18 months, but at 18 months it was like someone flicked a switch and she was great again. Even if it is tough to start it will pass. I am very lucky to be off work at the moment but aimed for a two year gap so that I wouldn't be off work for too long.......unless we have number three . Gosh really have to go now .......

Trib, some more pros and cons on age gaps are if they are close together it also means they both want a new car at the same time, they both grow up and leave the house at the same time. I think it would be nicer if one goes off to uni and then you have several years to get used to it before the next one leaves. But, then if they are close together, they will be better friends and I think that is nice. For me, it was probably more my age. At 36 I though t it was time to have that next child and be done with it. Although I must admit sometimes I get sad about DS growing up so fast (almost 7 months now!) I think ooo maybe I could have just one more. But then I think, do I want two teenagers or three... and I start offering up the baby stuff to my pregnant colleague.

How's that for a rambling post?!

Oh, yse, a bit late but HUGS for Lynny/Giddy.

Hugs to Linny/Giddy as well, you poor thing. Must be so hard trying to work out what dd1 wants, when she is so complex.

Uwilalalalala, love the name, v appropriate. I like your comment "they both want a new car at the same time", er ... what?! They may both want a car at the same time but they sure as hell aren't getting one. Good lord. I did have use of my mum's 2CV (!) for a while before uni but after that it was the bus and the train and that was it.

Anyway, musing about part-time working has taken a turn today as I (subtely) mentioned it to a work colleague after our interminable team meeting and she reminded me that she had asked to work part-time and been refused (she doesn't have kids - but I don't think that's relevant). Hmmm. So will be mentioning it off the record to my boss and seeing what reaction I get.

Really good to get some opinions from mums of two (or indeed more), though - I am determined not to have three. My oldest SIL has two boys and after the second was born swore blind she wouldn't have any more, but within about 3 months was starting to say how my middle bro had the "perfect family", 2 boys then a girl. Mysteriously she is now pregnant with number 3, wonder how that happened

Right, ds is kicking off and dh is calling for reinforcements. Hope all are well, and thank you again for the advice.

Evening ladies

Belated hugs to Giddy and SFX...dd has a cold atm so I know how horrid those sleepless nights are. Thankfully I remembered to get some refills for the sudafed plug in so all should be snuffle free tonight...fingers crossed!

Was right about my achy feeling - blast - today I've had a sore throat from hell - glands the size of golf balls...well probably more like marbles but I've been living with man flu for the last week so I think I'm allowed a certain amount of poetic license!

Ds has been well and truely forgiven for the minger comment...driving past our old church today he excitedly pointed it out and said 'look mum the church where you and dad got married...you looked like a princess' bless he can say anything today after that! feeling a tad guilty too Mrs CD as after your comment I did confiscate one or two of his advent calendar choc's ...will have to try and replace them before he notices, he he he!

Uwilalala - love the name - and hi again - never thought about the two cars scenario - good point!! Bet your Venture pics look fab - I'm very gutted as both ds and dd were angels and laughed loads, the pics will look great so I'll never be able to chose just one...and then have it as a poxy 10x8, but financial needs must, ho hum.

Right had better get back to christmas card writing or I'll never get them finished...why is it that I only ever see about 10 sets of friends but have what feels like 100 cards to write every year?

Hello all,
Special hello to Giddy and any others suffering with colds/sleepless nights.
I had a horrible night last night - dd awake for 2 hours after having a bad dream about 'princess stickers' I ask you !!!!!!!
Then ds woke up and moaned to himself for half an hour and then did the same an hour later just as I got back to sleep. I was up and down all night trying to ensure one didn't wake the other. Bloody dh slept through the whole thing - I'm way too nice to him and can't see the point of waking him to see to the children if I'm already awake.
I was in a terrible mood this morning though - dd was chirruping on about how daddy looked like 'Prince William' I said 'Well Mummy looks like the old step-mother' She said 'No mummy you're not ugly, you're Cinderella' yeah right...Super knackered Cinderella with huge bags and a vixen temper....

Afternoon Junies. I hope the colds are improving. None here yet, but bound to get something sooner or later am sure. If you feel frustrated and want to take it out in some senseless violence try this - click on the snowman to start, and again to swing the bat. 272 is my best so far...

Trib - good luck with the boss, hope they let you go PT. Have friends who had kids 18mo apart, she said she wouldn't do it again as felt she was missing out on dd1 who was at a very gorgeous age - but I think she's still gorgeous and always will be, don't think that holding off on dd2 would have made much difference from that point of view. SHe would recommend getting first toilet-trained before the second is born though!

Right, really must start doing the CHristmas cards!

ok 2Many - my highest is 316.9 although I have successfully made the penguin land as if he was a dart beak first too many times to mention...really should stop now as I ought to be sterilising bottles and ironing, hmmmnnnn ok then I'll have one last go!

lol 2many who idea was this cant hit one blumming penquin.

Evening mums been a bit bust last couple of days

Giddy big hugsssssssss im sure things will settle down soon.

Been in Primark today wow what a shop went with my lovely friend and finally bought something for me this christmas and the skirt is size 14 wooooohooo very excited , how sad girls.

Sterilizing i must admit i do sterilize everything, but maybe that comes form running a baby room.

William has bee non tommy tippey first cup. since i started weaning him, and on sunday he ate grandmas mashed potatoe and carrots, and apple crumple and custard only small amounts but he loved it.

right got to go eldest sis is comming be back later xxxxx

thats cool 294 so far

Hello ladies,
I have just been to a Carol Service in a car park lol. It was lovely and so was the Gluhwein and mince pies they gave us afterwards. DH has had work Christmas footy match and is now in the Officers Mess having a few beers I suspect. He did join me for the Carols. He must be having a good day as he announced that he is putting us back on the list to be posted here when we return to the UK . I know where he is coming from but said we need to talk about it really. He agreed but it made me lol him announcing it like he did, it is so unlike him as we discuss everything and I usually make the decision IYKWIM. Anyway have to dash. I am decorating the tree while the girls are in bed. My friend flies tomorrow . There have been lots of tears, but I know we will see her again. She and her family are fab!
KVG - I am offering sympathy and total understanding on the 2 hour sleep thing still. It will stop. I think, actually I know I am spoiling dd2, but I haven't reached my breaking point yet . I have cooked up a load of apples, pears and carrots and brocolli and it is all in the freezer with some expressed breastmilk ready to start weaning this weekend. DD will be 25.5 weeks old and is definately ready! I am hoping it will have an impact on the sleep eventully although not counting on it initially. DD is still plodding along the line in the red book (for what that is worth) so I am glad I have held out till now, although I don't think it has been easy.....My mum of course thinks I am mad .

317

Evening ladies. Pleased that welshgirl and teaboy have been comparing their mummies to beautiful fairy-tale princesses and not old scrubbers, that's got to be good

KVG, much sympathy for the cold/flu, when I had it I virtually abandoned all childcare to dh, my tolerance of his illness just vanished overnight I'm afraid! And Welshy, definitely too kind to Mr Welsh. I would accidentally-on-purpose ensure he woke up if I were you, not that I have any hesitation in waking up my dh in the night.

Speaking of which, we are off to the sleep clinic for a consultation tomorrow about dh's terrible snoring. Guess what? He's stopped doing it. Bizarre. Hey ho, we are going anyway.

Not sure whether p-t working is going to be a goer, but am basically aiming to keep my head down and do it unofficially for as long as possible, then tackle it when the need arises.

Also, ds had his first taste of pureed pear today and seems to have enjoyed it! Very pleased as he wanted me to have some too to show him how it was done, and unlike with our previous baby rice experiment, I didn't have to fake thinking it was nice to encourage him. Think we'll stick with pear for a few days at least - the Baby Whisperer advocates only introducing one food every fortnight, but that seems way too long, esp with something sweet like pear. Any thoughts girls?

Sky - my mum thinks I am insane as well, and she weaned late by the standards of her day (some people were weaning at 8 weeks then). Unluckily for her, ds has (occasionally) started sleeping through the night just on milk, so that didn't help her arguments. He's 25 weeks tomorrow, seems content enough on milk really, but I want to see if the solids will help the reflux.

I must confess that to assist me in the horror of weaning, I bought one of these puppies - so far very impressed!

Hi Junies

My sympathies to those with germs! I am being a complete coward and hiding away from any friends whos's babies are ill. DD is in nursery from January, and I know that I will get my comeuppance then, but I am hoping for a bug free christmas first.

Skyler - Good luck with the weaning. We started this week and dd loves it, although the new sensation in her tummy seems to be making her a little bit unsettled. Also we started her with a cube of carrot and she got seriously bad wind. So we are having a few days of baby rice and maybe some pear tomorrow.

EYM - So you have been a bit 'bust' have you? its those ann summers parties!!! .

Trib - Good luck with the part-time thing. I have managed to go 4 days a week until april, we had to, as nusery couldn't take dd on Tuesdays. Don't think we will be able to extend it past then - can't afford it .

DH has just dished up dinner so I'm off to scoff

evening all

something must be wrong with because in spite of sleeplessness i feel very energetic or would that be crazed?

dd only up 3x last night so not too horrible, spent sometime today making more of her food to freeze.

giddy - no visitors for christmas, spending it at in laws, for as long as they'll have us, i need a break oven cleaning was really overdue, we moved here at the end of march and all was shinny and new but since then a lot of grubbyness has accumulated.

on subject of traveling with babies, was making the list of all we need to take and was reminded of what someone once said ' once we became parents we are really baby roadies'

trib - i think its the law that your employers must consider all reasonable requests for flexible working for chilcare purposes. i know my work brought out a policy based on some recent law just before i left on maternity leave. will look it up

• oh yes and i flirted endlessly with babycook it does look great

skyler- carol service sounds nice, really hope sleep thing gets better soon

kvg and all suffering with nasty bugs hope it goes soon

welshie - you have an original child, no monsters under the bed for her, far to run of the mill

2manny- now my child has seen me laughing while commiting acts of violence

sfx, travelling with a small is a complete nightmare, although easier pre-weaning than after, I suspect! I have no idea how we are going to fit everything into our car at Xmas, it's okay normally but we have pressies + now we are using the buggy and not just the wheels + car seat, so it takes up more room, argh. Volvo estate anyone? I refused to drive one in Sweden (where they are practically regulation issue) I'm not doing it here!

Would be grateful for info on flexible working - although I would feel v bad if I was allowed to work p-t and someone else in the dept was knocked back because they didn't have kids.

I know that the baby cook is utterly unnecessary (esp as I give dh endless grief about all the bloody gadgets he buys) but somehow it just made the whole business of weaning seem feasible. Sad but true

And I agree, welshy your little lady is truly original in her nightmares. Princess stickers? What?

I had a similar experience on the train yesterday, and premonition of things to come. A c. 3 year old girl was sitting opposite me with her parents. Her dad said "oh, we're going to go through a tunnel now" - of course her response was "why?" and I just thought "whaddya mean 'why?' - we're on a train, the train track goes through a tunnel, ergo train must go through tunnel". I can see I am not going to be very good when we reach the 'why' phase

just quick one
as i am bound to mess up link here is the address lots of info there

www.dti.gov.uk/er/flexible.htm

and i dont think you should feel guilty

Cheers sfx

Here is the link just in case anyone else is looking.

Actually I think I should feel guilty. Surely if I have the right to work part-time so does a person without children? However, maybe that's a debate for another day

Trib, 'because I said so' is often used in this house in reply to the endless 'why' questions.

Too many messages to catch up with everyone, I've been lurking but haven't had much to say for myself. What with Christmas shopping and cleaning (my cleaner has broken her leg falling on black ice so you were right about the pavements in Leeds Trib) I don't seem to have any time for Mumsnetting

Have had a bit more success with DS2 and weaning - yesterday he enthusiastically scoffed a couple of ice cubes of pear mixed with baby rice but was less thrilled by apple. He'd rather feed himself I think, and loves to chew on toast crusts. Gave him a rice cake today and he devoured that too.

Re: sterilising, I haven't bothered at all after reading some of the threads on here.

About number 2, I think there are pros and cons with whatever you decide. If there is a smaller gap the older one will at least still be napping during the day. A bigger gap means you won't have to pay for 2 at nursery for too long. We've just got the figures for next year's nursery bill and DH has gone into a bit of a sulk about it all because it's very expensive. Perhaps time to reconsider going back to work...

Giddy, here's a very belated but very big ((((((((((hug)))))))))))). Hope everyone is getting better now.

Cratchit, the poem was beautiful, very moving.

Right, off to try and find out how much money we get back from the government for 3 year old nursery care. Anyone on here know?

Hope all your babies sleep well tonight.x