December 2011 - they'll soon be one, put away the <haddocks> and bring out the bunting!

[seven77]

I loved kate's thread name but thought we needed a birthday theme for this one. We'll soon have 6 weeks of birthdays to celebrate!

Your post was very sweet at the end there cheung. With our home-educating I'm at the opposite end to aethel in that DS has never been to nursery, but I completely agree that child-led is the answer. They learn constantly all the time, especially at this age so there's really no need to 'teach' them anything. Our DCs are programmed to mimic us, he'll learn to build a tower by watching you, learn where his head is by you singing head, shoulders, knees and toes etc. as time goes on you'll find that he'll learn to do things in his own time, DS was doing simple wooden puzzles by now and stacking blocks up, DD will only knock them down, and take the pieces out of a puzzle then crawl away, I'm not worried as I know they don't develop in all areas at the same time, at the moment her physical development is way ahead, but at some point her fine motor skills and her intellectual skills will catch up. Sorry that wasn't meant to be that long!

aethel how is everyone today?

DD is better today, but she has rashy cheeks and her bum is red raw. Her first tooth is nearly through, my mum thinks its all connected. Is that possible or is she talking nonsense?

we're doing OK thanks. I'm back to eating, DS is still not great, but he had one 6oz bottle at midday and kept it down, all other drinks have been little and often. He's a bit sicky still but it's small pukes rather than enormous hoses. Just wish I could make him all better straight away :(
DD2 seems to have recovered too so guess she didn't get it properly. Phew. DH is alright now as well. So we got off lightly!

More viewings tomorrow and Weds, would have been one today exvept I refused as the house is covered in washing from all the pukes. Nice touch.

Oh and the teethy bum thing: medical science has no clue but yes it def happens!! Red cheeks could be explained by increased blood to the facial area when the teeth are moving about. The only thing I can think is that maybe teething drool is more acidic so carries through? (you'd have thought not tho as the enzymes in your gut are meant to neutralise acids).
You get a similar sore bot if your little one demolishes lots of citrus fruit.

Just back from work we were hosting an event at bath rugby club.....no burly players around unfortunately tho even worse is that the cm thinks figgyboy may be getting the pox!!! He has one big spot on his cheek I think/hope she's wrong but in the 10mins I had with him before bed I swear he got 2 spots on his forehead.....no!!!!

Guess we will know in the morning!!

Yikes! Good luck figgy!
Good luck with the viewings aethel (it's amazing how many viewings you're getting. There'll be an offer soon, fingers crossed.) Glad to hear you're all on the mend.

You'll know in a couple of hours, pox don't hang around:(

Cheung How lovely of you to look out for your SIL kiddies. about your DH response tho.

Aethel Hope the viewing go well.

Figgy poor Figgyboy think some calamine lotion is needed just incase!

WRT playing. Sky loves her walk along walker she really motors pushing it along. Will upload a video to FB shortly. She can put things into wooden puzzles spaces and can put shapes into a shape sorter. Nursery were really pleased at how far along she is, but said she is like her sister lol.

I've had a banging headache since this morning, my sinuses feel heavy and hurt when I breathe in and got really sore & swollen throat - sodding cold!

Sky is still a bit grumpy - think that's the teething tho. However, bowel movements are a lot better.

Darcie's hypermobility is still giving her jip. So waiting on appt for that.

Time for bed me thinks!

I hope it's not pox figgy! How has he been the last few days? I'm not the expert but aren't they normally ill before they get the spots?

Glad you're all on the mend aethel.

Can I have some non-pregnant views on the John Lewis Xmas ad please? It's been making everyone (including me ) cry on my ante-natal thread.

I was intending to do a proper catch up over the weekend, but couldn't get near the laptop with DH around. So apologies for lack of individual namechecks!

DD had a check up with her surgeon on Fri. All good with her bowels now - she has control of them, which wasn't a given, so he's happy with that. We just have to be vigilant and make sure she never gets constipated. There's one last thing to sort out though and she's now on the waiting list to have her umbilical hernia fixed. It'll be sometime in the new year and will just be as a day patient this time, rather than the week-long stays we've had with all her other operations. I'm obviously not looking forward to it, but at least this one is relatively minor and should finally be the end of things.

DS had his first full day at nursery today, and whilst it was lovely to spend the day just with DD, I spent it worrying about DS after his constant crying during the settling in sessions. Thankfully it didn't go too badly. He didn't eat all day, but did drink his milk, slept a little, stopped crying and played a bit. It could have been a lot worse! I gave him breakfast before he went and tea when he got home, so he won't starve, and fingers crossed he will start to settle over the coming weeks.

I've found a nice present to order for DH from the DC's for Christmas: this print The same website has lots of good present ideas especially for very difficult to buy for people like DH

Hey Cheung, my DS is the same, he just enjoys racing around and ferreting at things- and paper play is a favourite, he made short work of the Saturday magazine...though I had to tell DP off a bit as he wasn't paying attention and DS got a nice, choke-about mouthful on the go before I intervened

I also know he'll get loads of stimulation at nursery- we've just had the parents' evening, Latin's going really well but they sent us home with his folder and we get a really good overview of what he's up to. Glad your DS was OK Kate, it's always a worry I know.

And I agree with you and Oi, they're such good fun at the moment! Your DS sounds like he's coming along really well, especially with the copying and joining in.

I believe I got my first kiss from DS at the weekend- nursery have noticed how he'll sometimes go up to people, open his mouth and kind of plant it on them like a sucker fish, and I got one of those last night

So glad to hear you're all on the mend aethel, and that some have dodged the bullet entirely...but not so great with MrsDSM and figgyboy! Let's hope it's just an evil zit or something...

Managed to get everything done at work, but am drained this evening.

Evening . hope it is the "pox" figgy. There is a lot of it around here at the moment so hoping F doesnt catch it. DS appears to have some natural immunity, as was exposed to it twice through very close friends and never caught it.

Nappy rash and teething definitely go together in my opinion. Poo is more acidic I think and Freya suffers terribly with it. Not made better by nursery appearing to only change her nappy at set times so she gets left in it on Weds at nursery longer than she would with me as I can smell her immediately. It can take a whole week to recover and then it gets bad again. I will have to speak to them again. They find her hard work at nursery already as she is not happy there so they will love me!

Re playing - freya love playing with a ball with DS - they crawl round after it together and pass it to each other and F finds it hysterical. She also likes knocking over towers and playing with things that light up/play music. She also loves touchy feely books. However, he absolute favourite game is opening the tv cabinet, swinging on the doors and taking all the DVDs and CDs out and tossing them on the floor! And turning on the wii steering wheels, watching the flashing lights and bashing them on the floor!

DS (4) was in tears tonight scared about us all dying. He told me he had to sit in silence at 11 o/c today and think about all the dead soldiers. I think maybe they could have been a bit more gentle for reception class. He had a supply teacher today, which probably didnt help. I might mention it tomorrow to the TA.

I find Freya easier in some ways now but she is hard work overall. Her sleep is still appalling - I was up for two hours last night as she cried, coughed her guts up and threw up several times. She has been constantly ill since starting nursery and unfortunately this has been at the same time as autumn bugs. I can't believe she ever slept 7-7.

Hope other ill babies (and mums ) are on the mend soon.

I think we pox free he woke at 5.45 for HIs bottle and nappy change had a good look and couldn't see anything.....fingers crossed touch wood!! He went back to sleep literally as my alarms clock went off grr have left him to it.

Lost my voice feel lousy but I have a wonderful DH, he has come home from work to look after me and help with Sky

Sounds like you'll be OK figgy, chickenpox goes "whoomph" omce the spots start coming. It's a bit loke the monty python
Tree sketch where one leaf falls off the tree, then another, then another, and them every other leaf simultaneously goes "aaargh" and falls off in a huge collective of angst.

Hmm. That sounded so much less crazy in my head.

cold-cure vibes to dsm. and hope your week gets better northern.

Hello all, hope you all had a great weekend and the poorly ones among us are feeling better.

Thought I'd just put down my highs and lows:

• DS now likes couscous
• have remembered to use Olay night serum every night for a week and it's made such a difference!! Usually I just wash my face with DS's Johnson & Johnson baby bath
• we got a playpen
• I'm halfway through The Happiness Project and Calmer Easier Happier Parenting - both MN suggestions, both excellent so far
• cooked more stuff from Jamie Oliver Great Britain - everything I've made so far has been a winner (I don't always get on with JO but this one's great)

I visited the house we're moving into in January to measure up, and it's going to take a lot more work than we thought including new carpets/flooring throughout (£££) and new plastering in the living room that we're going to have to try and convince the college to pay for. The people who live there are lovely but they, like us, are "benign neglecters" so we'll be inheriting quite a few problems that I think we'll just have to throw money at.

Things I need to STOP PROCRASTINATING this week - I set them down here for accountability:

• have another clearout of DS's clothes
• finish and post my US tax return (nine months late )
• apply for UK passport and electoral roll (yay!)
• sort invites for Thanksgiving
• find provisional licence and book driving test and lessons
• declutter (hire decluttering service?)
• assign secret santa recipients
• read my mother's sitcom script
• book dentist checkup and cleaning (ugh)

I feel I should also add my "to-do" list to make you feel less guilty Xiao so here goes...

• declutter bedroom, sort through clothes and ruthlessly bin lots
• clear and clean kitchen cupboards
• finish sorting Freya's "too small" clothes (only sleepsuits and vests to go) then vac-bag the lot to go into the attic
• also need to book dentist (me and Freya)
• think of some Christmas presents for the awkward buggers parents
• go to the supermarket and buy Sunday dinner for 10 on Sunday

DP has decided that he is going to dig up some horseradish roots on Saturday with my Dad (and Jack) and make his own horseradish this weekend ready for Christmas. I've told him that he's not blending it down in the flat because it STINKS!

Phew on the no poxy pox, Figgy. I always get a bit antsy when people start talking about "its best for them to get it young". My cousin got it young and the infection caused her brain to swell and almost killed her! Sometimes it really isn't for the best...

The only time Freya ever gets nappy rash (and even then only mild redness) is when a tooth is about to erupt (so, er, twice so far) so there must be some truth in the acidity of the drool changing.

re: playing. Freya loves anything noisy/musical. She dances to every single piece of music she hears, no matter whether its a song, toy or even advert jingle . We got her some stacker cups last week and they make her rather overexcited! If we build them up into a tower, she likes to knock them down but not before examining the tower from every angle to decipher how it will fall best She's a funny little thing sometimes! She loves books and being read to (the cardboard type books are particularly great for chewing apparently) and it almost sounds like she tries to sing along if you sing nursery rhymes with her.

So far, developmentally, we have:

• Clapping
• Dancing
• Crawling
• Gives kisses (and then blows a raspberry in your face and giggles)
• Pulling up to standing and cruising
• "Singing" (if I hum a very simple string of 2 or 3 notes, she will try and copy)
• Waving

She was exactly 10 months yesterday

Oooh thats turned into a bit of an epic post

missree wierdly our freyas could be twins - my freya loves the same things, especially music and dances when we enter shops with music on! Developmentally they seem in the same place too - clapping and cruising etc. I even think they look a bit similiar when I see your profile photos!

Thats quite funny Jiggle, the Freya twins!

I thought I'd dig this out so we can see whose birthdays are coming up...

FairyBayleaf DC1 EDD 6th Dec BORN 29th Sept Albert Elwyn 2lb 14oz
Tjuice DC2 EDD 21st November BORN 7th Nov Amaya Rose 3kg
Sevensevenseven DC2 EDD 20th Dec 25yo Southwold BORN 21st Nov Eva Rose 5lb 4oz
Girlwiththemouseyhair DC2 EDD 24th Nov Maggie Juliet BORN 25th Nov 8lb 9oz
YBR DC1 EDD 22nd Dec BORN 25th Nov (girl) 6lb 3.5oz
LittleBlueBoat(Cheeptrick) DC2 EDD 5th Dec 29yo S.Yorkshire BORN 26th Nov Hope Brynn Frances 8lb 9oz
Kri5ty DC1 EDD 13th Dec 26yo Manchester Boy BORN 29th Nov Saul Harrison 6lb 13oz
LauraSmurf DC1 EDD 3rd December Girl BORN 30th Nov
BeeMyBaby DC2 EDD 29th November 25yo Scotland BORN 1st Dec Safia Hawwa 7lb6oz
SoTiredOfTheWheelsOnTheBus DC2 EDD 7th December BORN 1st December Boy 8lbs5oz
Iggly DC2 EDD 2nd December South London BORN 2nd Dec (Girl) 8lb 1oz
Girlsyearapart DC4 EDD 6th December BORN 3rd Dec (Boy) 7lb 7oz
HoneyLovesCake DC1 EDD 2nd December Cornwall BORN 6th Dec Rocco Kaleb 8lb 14oz
Mmmmcheese DC2 EDD 25th December 32yo BORN 7th Dec (Girl) 7lb8oz
Itsybitsy08 DC2 EDD 6th December Boy BORN 9th Dec Kieran 8lb4oz
Msbuggywinkle DC3 EDD 13th December 27yo BORN 10th Dec Miranda 8lb6oz
OiMissus DC1 2 December, 39yo, Horwich, Bolton BORN 10th Dec (Boy) Alistair Jude 9lbs
jigglebum BORN 11 Dec Freya 7lbs
Pludophtherednosedreindeer (plupervert): DC2 EDD Dec 10 (Kent) BORN 12 Dec Helena 8lb 6oz (3.8kg)
NorthernChinchilla- EDD 19th December, BORN 12th Dec, Boy, 7lb 7oz
Jomouse DC1 EDD 2nd December 35yo London BORN 14 Dec (Girl) 5lb 8oz
Tyelperion DC1 EDD 3rd December 27yo Windsor BORN 14 Dec (boy) 9lb 8oz
KateM77: DC2 EDD Dec 10 34yo BORN 16 Dec Daniel James 8lb 6oz
BennyBenBear DC1 EDD 5th December Manchester/Bolton BORN 18 Dec Oliver Stephen Bolton 8lb 9oz
Kiteflying DC2 EDD 7 December 44yo Australia BORN 18 December (Girl) Lulu 8lb 14 oz
mopsytop DC1 EDD 25th December BORN 19 Dec 6lbs 11oz
AWomanCalledHorse DC1 EDD 22nd December BORN 21st December 7lbs 6oz (Boy)
Figgygal DC1 EDD 12 December 30yo Bath BORN 22 Dec Daniel James McMillan 9lb 4oz
Kitty5824 DC1 EDD 21st December 33 yo Manchester - BORN 23rd Dec, Boy, 7lb 14oz, Sebastian John
hawthers DC2 EDD 22nd December London 33yo BORN 28 December 7lb 4oz (boy)
Aethelfleda DC3 EDD 27th December London BORN 3rd January, Albert Thomas William 8lb 10 oz
LittleMissFlustered DC3 31st December BORN 6 Jan (boy)
hopeful1 BORN 6 Jan Noa Francie Kate 10lb 3oz
MissRee EDD 31 December BORN 12 Jan Freya Violet 7lb 7oz

Gosh we have lost so many of them havent we!! I appreciate it is hard to keep up but it is such a shame as i find this such great support and banter!!

I am never on a pc apart from at lunchtime so i can actually do a bit better of a post!!

Figgyboy is just generally in the seek and destroy phase he coasts on everything and with everything that isnt nailed down, he is now slapping the fish tank, Tv, skunky poor thing. I think he is watching too much tv as if it is off he makes a beeline for the remotes and points them at the tv shouting at us He is not a big book fan he always fights bedtime story but i think that is because he sees his bottle of milk waiting for him, he loves his v tech laptop, his shape sorter though he mainly throws it or pulls the top off of it and then puts his socks in it!! He loves his stacking cups but has done for months, his footballs and is going to be a proper boy i think.

We have so far got him an octonaut ballpit (need balls), a leapfrog lettersaurus, peek a shoe octopus and a rocking bear from mamas and papas (i love bears). As his bday is 22nd Dec and we off to Scotland on the 23rd i figure he will have to have them on his bday and then on xmas day he will just have presents from my family to open as makes no sense for us to buy him things to take up and then back with us. Damn these close together events

figgy me too. Even when I have dropped off for ages and ages, or have not much to say except to check in and offer sympathy, joining this thread all those months ago was one of the best decisions I made before having DS. Whenever I see that list I hope that people like Honey and mrsbuggy are doing ok.

Would it be a bit stalkerish to PM them and point them in the direction of the thread/invite them back to celebrate birthdays and stuff/ask how they are?

No I don't think so - maybe you could frame it as us all doing a one-year catch-up?

Have saved the list and will send something out first thing in the morning

Maybe I should change my name to MissStalkerRee

Sky has had her 1yr development check today and is meeting all her milestones. HV thinks Sky is intolerant to Milk & dairy so I need to start her on a milk & dairy-free diet. Seven Can you give me starting points please as I have no idea.

Thanks

I joined really late I think DS was 3 months old or something!

For me it's EDD 18/12/11, born 24/12/11 Lewis 9lbs 1oz :)

I'm really glad I joined, everyone has so much good advice and humour :)