Feb 2011: the one where the babies are destruction machines

[ChestnutsREASTIEingOnTheFire]

...or is that just mine?

Yup, that's the four rules deb and ponyo . Enjoy Heidi deb . I'm in bed reading 'slow cooking for vegetarians' [dullard]

I've been so bad at sleeping this week - woke up wide awake but knackered at 5am this morning . So annoying as I''m really tired.

blizy I see mn have changed the fb link thing from 'like' to 'recommend' too many complaints I assume

Happy Christmas eve eve . This is my last day at home without dh until I go back to work . End of an era

Morning Reastie!
I found you! Hope everyone else will follow soon. Noah can be destructive, as in ripping up my Next catalogue!

Weird this morning but Noah is still asleep, that hasn't happened in a lloooooooooong time. He usually wakes around 5.30 then drifts in and out of sleep for a bit before being wide awake. I think I heard him when dh got up at 4 this morning so maybe he was awake for a while then. Ben got up at 6.15 though because his tummy hurt. We're now watching Mike the Knight!

Blizy, forgot to say haha to your dh sleeping naked on the floor, what a mess to get in, could never do that myself(?!!!).

Hi ladies, happy new thread day.

reastie C has been having tap water since about 6 months. I give it her in her cup at lunch and teatime, and wash the cup with hot soapy water both times, but don't sterilise. I do still sterilise bottles & teats tho, only cos I'm a bit twitchy about 'milky' things as I think they can get a bit rank quite quick. I think when she switches to cows milk at 12 months (over dramatised at Deb ) then I'll just dishwasher the cup and probably put teats in a cup of boiling water at night. Given that she now eats bits of fluff off the floor and licks everything in sight, I don't think I really need to sterilise anymore!

D

According to my hv delia you don't have to sterilise the water cups but if you use milk in bottles you should defo sterilise - something to do with the bacteria in milk. Also, interesting maybe for some or not my hv said beakers should be free flowing ones (luckily the ones I have are ) although not exactly sure why

Hello, wrote really long post on old thread before realising I couldn't post on it and MN ate my post

Heading into work soon, will catch up later.

I haven't sterilised anything since 6 months apart from using boiled water to make up the formula. A lot of countries are now doing away with the sterilising bottles idea as a whole especially if you have a dishwasher. A hot, soapy wash and drying on a "bottle tree" is the way forward

Anna has had tap water since 5 months really since we came back from holiday, she drank so much pool water in Ibiza I reckoned she could stand tap

reastie I kept meaning to say I got an M&S voucher and the girls got beautiful Christmas colouring activity books and pens (dear ones too, said whilst hoisting up bosoms ) from my Secret Santa.

debka Heidi is my favouritist book ever, except for Clara, she's poo. Every time Clara gets mentioned on the baby name boards I'm like no, may as well call your child "whiny" or "irritating" or long distance Clara but then I may be the only person who remember Pigeon Street

hiya ladies, i've cracked the sleeping thing, get dh to do it. I'm not joking. Took me 5 hrs the other night from half 11 till half 4 to get her to sleep. Dh does it in 10mins. I know which 1 i prefer.
Reastie i don't sterilise water cups and she has tap water. I'm gonna give her a cup of milk this afternoon instead of formula just to see what she thinks.

Morning,

Well, I'm supposed to be working but I've found you lot so I'll take a break from watching crap tv

reastie I don't sterilise water cups or use cooled boiled water. I think I did the first few times but haven't bothered since. R is anotehr one who licks the floor regularly so her cup is the least of my worries.

wiggles How lovely of your Secret Santa. I beter the girls are having lovely fun with their activity books.

hub That sounds like a good idea for night wakings. R has settled back down again after her illness - woke at 6am today. Yesterday she slept until nearly 8 and I had to kick her and DP out of bed to make sure he took her to nursery.

We've all a bit ill here. I'm necking Beechams and DP is on anitbiotics and Sudafed. R is just wiping snot EVERYWHERE. Hoping the worst of it will be gone by Christmas Day.

Heading up to Mum's later in the mahooosive car. I need to get packed up in a bit and have sent DP out delivering Christmas cards and presents while I work this morning. He just popped back as he needed more clothes for R - think she's pooed all over her car seat for the millioneth time. Does anyone else have a baby who saves all their poo for the car?!

chocoroo Anna saves her poo for as soon as she has a nice clean dry nappy on

Have spent the past 30 mins trying to wrap some presents for the girls. Mr W has Anna and Olivia at his Mums and Sofia is at school, I forgot how much I'd bought earlier in the year for S&O and I haven't got a bag from the attic down yet! which I know has some stuff I bought with my Tesco double up vouchers, Oh Christ I think I may have purchased dogs that bark - what was I thinking?, why did you all let me do it?

I've been meaning to post for the last week (even started a few) but just never got around to it. L has turned into a climber, he climbed onto the sofa with me yesterday. He also falls a lot and had a massive bruise on his forehead when we came back from holiday. He's bloody destructive too, the drawers in the coffee table have been flung open and the contents strewn about.

reastie - I don't sterilise anything anymore. He gets tap water in a cup, the bottles go through the dishwasher. I call it immune-building. I'm back at work in January as well, registered L for nursery on Wednesday [weeping emoticon]. DH is staying home with him the first 3 days I'm at work then he's at nursery from the 9th.

Gotta run, hopefully back to post more later...

reastie I think the freeflow cup thing is because it is more of a transition to drinking from a proper cup, and the non-freeflow ones they still have to 'suck' from so are more like a bottle IYSWIM, so they still have a big transition from that to a normal cup.

Cos eventually, I assume they will all be drinking from normal cups with no spout at all....or some might eventually end up drinking from...you know...wine glasses, cocktail glasses, beer tankards etc.

D

american Anna is rocking some very colourful bruises at the minute too. And don't talk to me about drawers, we have some very fetching duct tape over two cabinet drawers - must start baby proofing

Right can put if off no longer, hi, ho, hi, ho its off to work I go

reastie - very late birthday wishes to you. I had a very anti-climactic 30th in Feb, 5 days after L was born (yes, there's another Feb baby here ). It was disappointing that more of a fuss wasn't made about it but that's part of being a mum of a small child. I have half a mind to have a massive piss-up for my 31st but literally all of my close friends have moved away in the last 3 months. Gosh, I turned that into me me me, didn't I?

jane - at your DH sleeping in the hall.

Emski - congrats on the unexpected windfall. Lovely to be able to pay for a holiday with found money.

I bought L a beaker which wasn't free flowing but it had a rubber thingy in the spout that I pulled out to make it free flowing. Also, is L the only baby that doesn't drink from a beaker or cup? If I give him little sips, he'll usually swallow it but if I give him the beaker, he tips it all into his mouth and it runs out the sides.

Well good morning everyone!! Nice to see you all here on this lurvely thread, thanks reastie! Rather pleased it's a newie, means my sordid confession will be out of sight, out of mind

reastie S is surprisingly un-destructive, shows no apparent interest in the Christmas tree and has never pooed in her car seat (choc). She does however bear many bruises, most the result of encounters with her big sister.

wiggles I just found a bag of toys I'd forgotten I got for Imy- poor S will have barely anything!

to expat.

Where the heck is borg, tarlia, byron, wandering, 40...??????

Decorated the gingerbread houses with my friend and her dcs this morning, was lovely. They look a bit mental though, i'll try and persuade DH to take a photo.

expat C has varying success with the cup. Sometimes she drinks really well and others she dribble a LOT. Her peli-bib has tides and boats and everything sometimes there's so much water in there. She is getting the hand of it though. She can also a bit cr@p as she likes tipping it upside down and watching it drip out onto her high chair. I blame DH as he spent a long time teaching her to pour at bathtime.

Deb I had forgotten about your confession but now you have reminded me

Dx

Re: beakers Alice is the same - she spits out as much as she drinks and chokes alot on it . She also loves bashing tapping it on the table and turning it upside down so the water pours all over the floor . I had wondered about getting one of these actually but we seem to have shares in tomee tipee the amount of beakers we have

deb piccies please of house

Ohhh, an old friend of mine has just made my day - MASSIVE parcel arrived from parcelforce with loads of pressies for us for christmas , I needed that

DH home for christmas now so we are all stations a go go

Aww I'm feeling so festive, we went to carols last night and am now supervising Christy and Joe making brownies. DP got out of work early so has been sent to buy firewood.

reastie yay yay yay to pressies!
emski amaze news re money, what a lovely treat to go to Eurodisney, room for a stowaway? I've always longed to meet Tinkerbell :)
Re beaker debate - free flowing can get lost! The amount of carnage when Cass gets near water is insane. I shall be keeping my valve cups! As delia said, people do tend to get the hang of drinking from cups eventually...
wiggles feel your pain re drawers, Cass is completely obsessed with joe's pants drawer and systematically empties it whenever she gets chance.
Hi everyone else and yes deb would be nice to see gingerbread houses :)

Reastie,Ben had a doidy cup but I tend to find that Noah drinks fine from a normal cup if I hold it and I think it took Ben a while to get the hang of a normal cup so I'm not really bothered.
Have been working out things to buy with my 'windfall'. Stuff I've seen before and wanted but thought they were a bit expensive, like two nice planters fr by the front door, some trellis planters and a new hutch for Rabbit, our Rabbit, who has been newly named today by Ben as Porridge.

Hope your all well and getting in Christmas mode now that work is finished!

ems I think buy something frivolous just for you with some of your money too

I opened my bday pressie from my big parcel of pressies from my friend and it was the `kirsty Allsop craft book - I thought you would all have a good snigger at this It''s got some quite nice looking things in though

Started decorating the dining room table for boxing day lunch I'm hosting this afternoon . I'm making all the food tomorrow ready to be cooked up lazy style on boxing day - hopefully no last minute come dine with me style panics

DH just having a massage while I hide upstairs and look after Alice again . I can't moan as he gets loads of muscle problems with his work but I'm always that he gets regular massages

emski meant to say congrats on the money, its lovely to be able to spend money thats almost unexpected but agree with reastie you have to buy something for you, that excludes the house, garden etc - if I were you I'd start nosying at handbags

Anna is a water tipper too, but as delia and MizK said they'll get the hang of it eventually. Sofia had real real trouble getting the hang of an open cup/glass, she hated them, God bless her creche leader she told me not to panic and she was right, she was grand by the time she started nursery school!

reastie what a lovely surprise from your friend. Bil, sil and kids called over today when I was at work to swop presents. I got the usual 3rd present in a 3 for 2 offer from M&S I wouldn't fancy getting a massage, its actually my worst nightmare, stranger touching me - yuk, yuk, yuk!!

Well I'm feeling Christmassy - going in to work at 8am tomorrow morning so I can get away by 1pm, Mr W is working until 7am tomorrow morning so like debka the girls are decorating gingerbread houses with my Mum and sister in the morning, while my dad escapes takes A out for a walk

Holidays are coming, holidays are coming [sung in Coke ad stylee]

Ems ohh yeah, a handbag, that sounds good (so long as it's a super posh one you'd never usually get yourself) or some fancy pants make up or something

wiggles my mum refuses to buy her christmas stuff from m&s/boots etc where they do 3 for 2 as she says everyone who gets it will just think they got the free one . Hope work goes OK tomorrow

Alices got an extra christmas present coming early tomorrow - I'm picking up from someone on freecycle a small wooden tricycle, little wooden toddler chairs and table and a push/ride along care bear truck - I have absolutely no idea what the last thing is - any guesses welcome .

Oh, I was reading a thread earlier talking about things to do with a 19 month old and they were all saying dolls in doll buggies were the best toy for keeping them amused - am now wondering whether to ask someone to get alice one for her birthday - anyone got any experience?

Hello all. Been absent for a while due to A only being at school for a couple of hours or so a day! Just wanted to wish you all a very merry Christmas and a fantastic New Year. I hope all travel is safe and those of you who are starting work in the New Year make the most of the last few days off.

reastie , what's worse is that I looked at the same gift for my nana and decided it was too "old lady" for her, not sure if that says more about me or my Nana

S&O have always had buggies, they are not as in to them as I would have thought, Olivia tends to use her dolls buggy as a sort of ambulance to ferry sick dolls to her makeshift hospital! Teasets on the other hand, Olivia could set up a shop selling them, she loves them. Anna also likes bashing the cups together.

tad Have a lovely Christmas and New Year, have you snow?

Hi all,i wrote a big post and was congratulating myself on remembering and acknowledging so much then i posted on the old thread and lost it.
Basically good for you ems on the dosh. I love the explorers hotel.
I dont sterilise anything but the bottles and tap water from 4 months (slack)
My secret santa was mini wine and 3 chocs. Mini wine indeed tsk.
The lady next to me hated her present,she said it was useless and would give it to her grand daughter. I bought it
Dilly has been moody with her cold so have i.I find xmas so stressfull tbh.
D picked up the remote earlier,put it to her ear and said "hiya" she must have thought it was a phone,so funny.
Ella has been vile,i felt like throwing all her pressies in the bin today.
I did the Santa thing with her thanks *reastie" she loved it but my friend had set it up and didnt knpow she had been a cow bag.
I think she isnt going to know what has hit her after xmas.

Hi all, marking my place :)

Am at my mums and going on the internet means being antisocial as the 'puter is in the uptsairs bedroom, there is no wireless or 3G for my iphone - technology is no use when out in the sticks!

I feel rough and am also necking sudafed, I've gone deaf in one ear and feel all disoriantated

Back later...

Thats like my Mums ponyo Mum hovers about if im on the pc upstairs at hers.Peering over my shoulder and asking me to show her how to do things.

We went to Cribbs and saw santa with the girls and went ice skating.Twas tres festive. I was nearly bankrupt tho.Paid 4 squid to see Santa then got ushered into this chamber after and offered a choice of photos.It was as if you could leave untill you bought a snow globe or fridge magnet .I ended up buying one for 11 quid as we couldnt take our own pics for "gata protection" resons.Yeah right nothing to do with making money of course grrrrrr. Im glad i let them give Dilly a present even tho i didnt pay for her
May not get on for a bit now tho. Happy Christmas to you all.
Jane thinking of you all lots and we will have a candle burning for Zoe all day.
Its going to be hard babe but no where near as hard as it has been so do what you can to get thru it.Its one crappy day remember.