Post-grad Brookers, over here! We will Brook No Argument that all Mini-Brookers sleep 12 hours a night and behave angelically during the day

[TooImmatureTurtleDoves]

Over here!

I have already had my present from him, the Kindle which came last week. Not that I've got time to read anything yet. He's left the presents from our parents and a couple of my friends, all the cards and my cake. So if I hadn't packed the Kindle myself that would also have been forgotten. I guess things were a bit stressful when we were packing re DS but I'm not telling him that it's an acceptable excuse! We're braving the pool this morning. DS so excited.

Oh yes forgot the kindle. Make him squirm a bit longer :)

Docs this am - dd2 has a minor ear infection in one ear but other wise both ok and just to ride out the shits. Sigh. they were supposed to be going to nursery tomorrow together and my mum had booked a spa day for her and me. That's the end of that I guess (unless the poos magically stop???).

feeling a bit depressed and rubbish. waiting for my mum (my saviour!) to arrive before I even bother to try to cheer up.

Hope the pool goes well scarlet! Love that you had to eat the chocolate weetabix Jaggy :)

Aww Pomme hope dd2 better soon and the poos do indeed magically stop (or at least return to normal, I imagine a complete cessation of bottom activity wouldn't be ideal either )

I also am feeling down at the moment and as if I'm struggling with everything . Just feel like I'm walking on idle - sliding about all over the place and not going where I should be. I don't feel as though in doing a good job for either DS, or keeping the house nicely or doing a good job for DH or anything really

Hope you're having a lovely birthday Scarlet and that DS is enjoying the pool

Oh biscuits I feel just the same. Lethargy and inertia are my current bffs. F had a monster nap this morning and I did absolutely nothing. Am thinking its lack of regular sleep as I just can't be bothered. Perhaps when that improves you might feel better? And anyway you are def not doing a rubbish job.

I think I meant to say walking on ice, although idle is equally applicable

also feel like I'm just going nowhere here. drowning in washing and toys some days and just lacking energy and motivation. also still cba really with SFF which i know is making DH feel a bit neglected.

i figure it'll either be much better or much worse when i go back to work.

DH will be happy that I'm not round the house all day making a mess, but i know I'll be stressed about being organised and not being late for work and have to try not to freak out and snap at him. I used to spend my evening/morning with DS1 while DH got whatever he wanted done/made dinner or drank beer and played ps3, but I'm not sure that will be practical this time so i hope he's not expecting it to be the same! i was obviously keen to spend time with DS1 when i got in, but i think we might need more of a team effort this time. :)

pomme he hadn't even touched his breakfast and i hate wasting stuff.

Thank you Jaggy and Hawthers, well I'm not glad that you feel the same but it does make me feel more normal iyswim?

Drowning is a great way to describe it. Meals take so long that I sometimes don't have time to tidy up before we go out so then I come gone later in the day and there is still all that to tidy. I seem to spend all day tidying, washing up, preparing meals etc so it feels like all I've done all day is clean, but without actually doing any proper housework. I feel like one of those hamsters on a wheel

Ooh me too on the sff and the hamster wheel and DH just doesn't get that it just continues all weekend so its totally relentless. I feel I'm the staff here and all the food shopping, cooking, providing meals, clearing up, tidying, providing entertainment, answering endless why questions (im looking at you ds1), changing endless nappies (that'll be you ds2) is taken for granted. I guess I'm wanting someone to say thank you!

Yes yes YES Hawthers - exactly all that!!! And if I moan DH says 'well I know you work really hard' but what I'd really love is for him to, off his own back, just say or do something to show it. Does that sound stupid?

Me three on the hamster wheel. Absolutely can't be bothered with SFF. Usually get them down for 8 ish, tidy up the meals devastation in the kitchen, quick shower (as no way is it calm enough in the morning for that, a quick wash if I'm lucky) then often S is already awake again. Or if he isn't I'd rather have an hours 'me' time. Sigh. And yes to constant tidying of kitchen, meal prep, laundry but never getting any cleaning done...
Thank god for our 3 hours a week with a cleaner but that's literally all the cleaning that gets done. I did way more before this infant slavery...

3 pooey nappies overnight, so maybe an improvement... Still no results from their stool samples. Now B has a really terrible cough. He sounds pretty chesty to me.. S is coughing away unperturbed, but poor B sobbing with it. The night was really terrible, I was horrible to Dh, swearing at the babies, DD up too and i feel rubbish.

Me me me me me me me. Sorry guys

it's when you look around at all the stuff to do and when you do get a spare 30 mins it's the last thing you want to do!

have added new pic of boys to profile :)

am feeling a bit mental today, so added one with me in too.

AND its DH's ability to completely switch off at the weekend. He can just sit there and close his eyes drop off to sleep in 15s. I feel I always have to think about who is doing what; naps, kettle on for milk, food, nappy changes for DS2 and wee, poo, food and drink requirements for DS1. He just switches off and then asks me what should be happening. Even when I moaned about this and he said he didn't know what DS2's schedule is (the same one for the last wording 3 months during which tome he's had 3 weeks off) so I wrote it down and he still can't be bothered to read it and just asks me...

YES Hawthers that is ALSO true! DH is going 'just come and sit down' but there is always so much stuff to sort out and think of before we can go anywhere. And if I did sit down then when we go to go out he gets all huffy because there is SO much to organise that it makes us late. I'm sure he thinks I make up stuff to sort out just so I can make sure we're late for everything.

Gorgeous pics Jaggy - what a lovely family. Funny, I imagined you with darker hair. Can't think why?

omfg do not talk to me about DH's face at how long it takes to leave.

And and....

(just 2 more I promise)

I discovered this week that DH has been changing DS2's vests I'm the evening and the morning even if its not dirty. (hmm that sounds odd, I usually put a clean vest on at bedtime which he wears the following day then put anouther clean one at bedtime). DH has been merrily adding to the washing for no reason.

And he is always asking what we are having for dinner. For the love of god man open the fridge and use your eyes. I even wrote out a list of meals ad well.and hr still asked

I give up

The washing thing would literally tip me over the edge Hawthers. I am ALWAYS doing washing. If I was Dream and had the washing of two babies to deal with I would make DH wear just one outfit all week.

Hello, lovely Brookers!

Sorry to hear everyone is a bit down. I have had my mum here most of the day and so feel like I actually achieved things. I have a) Shredded, b) walked the dog properly and c) hoovered the living room, which was really, really, really manky. Oh and d) showered. Most days I do none of these things. The dog comes off worst - he's getting podgy. He keeps begging for walks but it tends to be when M is asleep, and I want her to sleep in her cot. Maybe I should take to letting her sleep in her sling while we walk. The thing is, I tried that today because Mum arrived at 11ish, which is usually when M goes down for a nap, and we took my dog and her two out for a walk and M stayed awake almost the entire time and had a tiny nap of no more than 5 minutes. She did sleep when she came home, I suppose.

Yesterday we got back from swimming at about 12, and M slept for the next 3 and half hours and I did nothing. Not one thing. Well, I did eventually stick the dishwasher on at 3 o'clock because I knew I would need some of the things in it to cook dinner, but that took maybe 15 mins to do.

Oh yes, DHs. Mine just won't do things when he's supposed to - he says he'll do something in 3 minutes when his bloody computer game has done something, and then he doesn't do it. Like last night he said he would cook dinner and he was going to start at about 5.30, but somehow didn't for ages and M eventually burst into tears with hunger at 6 and he finally got going. So we ate at 6.30 in the end. Little M was v hungry and did eat really well, but that's not the point.

Oh dear. Life is a lot easier with just one DC, isn't it? I'm sorry everyone's feeling so rubbish. I'm sure lack of sleep is a big factor.

DH properly yelled at me a couple of days ago cos I hadn't done enough housework. DS burst into tears. :( In his defence, DH was knackered after a bad night with DS and a stressful day at work, after which he'd come home and cooked (he does the food shopping and cooking - I tried briefly to take over before DS was born but DH refused my food!). In my defence, DS was snotty and unhappy, had hardly napped and didn't want to be put down all day.

I know I'm lucky that DH does a lot. He also cleaned downstairs at the weekend before some of my distant relatives popped in for a cup of tea (while I went to an NCT second hand sale with DS). BUT he is usually home from work by 4pm (cos he starts at 7.30am and his school is at the end of our road) so he does have plenty of time to do stuff. AND he also expects me to tell him what to do with DS all the time, and never ever thinks to change his nappy unless DS does a poo while DH is holding him.

Even so, I realise things are easier for me, so I'll shut up now!

BTW, I picked up an Ergo for £30 at the NCT sale but I fear it's a fake - it has a spelling mistake on the label. But does that matter? Can I use it anyway?

No brooking that the poorly DC all miraculously improve, and sleep like angels (do angels sleep?) and we all feel better too.

Oh, and lovely pics, Jaggy . Your DSs are scrumptious!

Depends, Pet - does it seem sturdy enough that it won't fall apart? I don't see why you shouldn't if not.

I am also lucky in that, like you, I only have the one to deal with atm. Also DH is a public sector worker who is usually home by 4.45pm. Plus, I am a natural slattern who doesn't mind mess that much - it has to be pretty bad before I get stressed by it. And M hasn't been ill or teething at all yet, in nearly 7 months.

Jaggy, lovely pics! I always pictured you as a brunette too. Maybe thistles sound brunette?

Happy Birthday, Scarlet! I would have been furious with DH if he had left my presents behind. There would have had to have been much grovelling. And I will be 29 on Sunday.

H appy birthday Scarlet! Despite the present catastrophe, I hope you've had a lovely day.

Sorry to hear about poorly babies - again. Hope they're all on the mend.

I'm lucky like Too and Pet. Though I have recently taken on more of the housework/cooking. The house is a mess mind. I have a student starting on Sunday, and looking around I'm dreading getting everything tidy in time! Argh...

Sorry to hear about all the brookers feeling a bit down. I feel quite rollercoaster-y at the moment - some days full of energy and ideas, and other days shattered. Tonight is a shattered night, yet I have so much to do... and have just spent an hour procrastinating.

Iz's sleeping is getting worse. Am I making it worse by taking her into bed with me when I get utterly exhausted of night feeds (usally around 4/5am)? Hmm. She's also developed a very high pitch squeal over the last few days - can indicate happiness or annoyance, which isn't much help! She has learnt how to roll from her back onto her front though - a trick which she hasn't yet completed in front of DH, much to his annoyance!

Enough procrastination - I'm going to try and cross at least one thing off of my to do list beore bed...

grr i did i a big post and it disappeared!

how old is Iz again musical? I've had R in beside me for a bit of most nights since he was 15/16 weeks and his sleep seems to be settling down the last couple of weeks. he's 23 weeks (i think ) now and is up an average of twice, compared to about a million the previous few weeks so hopefully extra snuggles in beside me haven't mattered. :)

i think my hair is darker than that biscuits and too it gets lighter a bit in summer. :)

starting to flap about getting ready for work on time. either i can't haul myself out of bed or DS2 wakes up when I'm just away to get up.

Morning Brookers!

Lying on sofa watching M in bouncer. She is far too energetic for this time of day! I suppose I'd better start thinking breakfast. I'm thinking omelette, because she eats entirely too much yoghurt.

I wish M would settle beside me in bed, Musical, but she won't. Last night she was up 3 times - 1am, 3am, 5am. Gah. Then up at 7.15. Oh, and I do have to feed her a couple of times in the evening as well before I go to bed. When will she start sleeping for longer than 2/3 hours at a time? I tried shutting the nursery door so that the dog couldn't go in (he likes sleeping on the chair in her room, but he tends to wander around a bit at night and I thought he might be disturbing her) but it didn't make a blind bit of difference. Okay M, for my birthday I would like a whole night's sleep. Please!

Jaggy, I am considering putting up a pic of me with M, if I can find one where I don't look hideous. It's a tall order...Brief attempt at taking photos has led to the discovery that the camera needs new batteries.

morning my lovely brookers, how is everyone? I really hope babies start to sleep/ be well/ eat well/ roll/ crawl/ stop pooing a million times a day and night for everyone. Oh and happy belated birthday scarlet and happy birthday for sunday too (I know i will be out and otherwise forget). On the subject of housework, mine has gone downhill somewhat recently, I feel like I'm drowning in clothes, we have more clothes than space to put them and they are just piling up in the corners and slowly taking over. And I need to start packing some stuff and procrastinate is my middle name....so I have decided to make a list of what I need to achieve today and will do this daily (even small things like putting washing away/ out/ in the machine. I get great satisfaction from being able to tick things off. Lets see how it goes.
out of curiosity, when did your kiddiwinkles start lifting their heads up rather than sideways during tummy time? I know I don't give her enough time on her front but would love to know when they all did it. at least the sun is temporarily shining here today.

Oh, happy birthday for yesterday, Scarlet . Hope your DH found some way to make up for leaving everything behind! I'm 32 too. :)

Too my dog is also getting fat - I do walk her every morning though so I think it's all the extra tit-bits she's getting as a result of me being at home every day. I find a short dog-walk fits in nicely before DS's first nap (and sometimes he falls asleep in the sling).

Sadly DS is worse today (temperature and neon yellow poo). Took him back to the GP but they can't find the source of the problem so hopefully calpol and cuddles will eventually do the trick.