Still brooking no argument whatsoever that these babies are happy, healthy and awesome for 2013 too.

[jaggythistle]

eh. attempt at new thread. yo.

We are looking at getting a lightweight stroller for our holiday. Any recommendations?

I'm going to buy a Petite Star Njoy Bubble. I want something parent facing that folds up easily. No idea how it matches up to most strollers, but it gets good reviews from the testers. It only came out late last year so not many user reviews. It's not as expensive as other parent facing and seems like a good design for a quick out and about stroller.

We had a Chicco one for DS1, it was brilliant and we ended up using it all the time instead of the travel system - far easier and lighter! We also had a tesco value one which cost 15 quid to take abroad in case the baggage handlers broke it and that was perfectly fine too.

Re reflux, ds1 has always been far more sickly when he has a cough/cold.

Re breast pads, I highly recommend the lansinoh ones, v comfy and soft to touch, and have 2 sticky bits so they stay put in my bra, unlike other brands that moved around or ended up sticking to me....big ouch when peeling those away!!

Dream, you really must be due something good, it seems constant illness at your house. Just wondering, do you think it could be your dh's fault, what with him being a GP and seeing lots of ill people?!

Boo I used Johnson's breast pads, and I never had any problems taking them off. I had the leakiest boobs of all time (think running tap!) and I used bucketloads of lansinoh for the first 3 months, but I never had an issue with the pads. I found they hold their shape much better than the flimsier ones like the tommee tippee - that might be why they're easier to remove?

Rubber the only stroller I have is a Maclaren XLR, and I definitely would not recommend it! To be fair it's designed to be used from birth, and I did buy it because it has more padding and seems sturdier than most strollers (I was forced to buy a stroller for A's nursery, which meant she was only 8mo when she first used it and I wasn't comfortable putting her in the lightweight strollers aimed at DC who are 18mths+ ). However I've found it a massive pain to manoeuvre (requires 2 hands at all times), difficult to get over high kerbs, and sooooooooo annoying when it comes to putting a bag on the back (I keep forgetting I have to take the bag off before lifting DD out!). When little A outgrows my beloved iCandy Peach I will be investing in a different stroller, because I can't bear the thought of the Maclaren being my only pushchair! Sorry I haven't got any positive recommendations, I just wanted to add a warning!

Dream how are you getting on now? I've been thinking of you and hoping S gets over his d&v asap! Love the FB vid of him walking - such a little smartie!

How is everyone else doing? Pet, how's your little man? Ninja? Too? Everyone? Also a huge welcome to Boo and little K!

I Am Shattered. First week back at work, plus little A's jabs, plus my long overdue smear (for which AF conveniently decided to turn up early to gatecrash ), plus having my solicitor go on holiday for the most crucial week of my property purchase which has meant having to chase up her colleagues CONSTANTLY to get anything done in her absence. Sigh. However I survived a week in the office, little A has been a trooper about her jabs, and it actually looks like we're pretty much set to exchange contracts next week - hurray! I'm just going to crawl into a hole now to recuperate before next week...

Sorry for being an absolutely shocking brooker. I've been catching up at night from my phone, but I find it hard to post from there as I forget everything I want to reply to . I've taken on way too much work, and so I basically spend the entirety of Iz's naps and my evenings working. Hard work doing childcare all day and then working all evening (and teaching at the weekend). Am going to search more actively for some day time teaching now Iz is older. She's recently had a couple of two hour stints in creches at local children's centres while I've been there for meetings and first aid courses and has absolutely loved it - and I think once DH realises that he'll be happier with her going to nursery. Hopefully I can find something local, as the problem with my last job (and the way it paid ) was that the London element of it meant it wasn't cost effective to work while she was in nursery...

Anyway, enough about me. Iz took her first steps a couple of weeks ago, just before DH went off to the southern hemisphere! He's back this afternoon . A busy bank holiday full of family and gardening for us! What's everyone else got planned?

Scream, that sounds mad! How was work? Hurrah for contract exchange being so close! All sounds very exciting even if manically busy :)

Dream, can't believe S is still ill :( His walking looks fab though! How're you finding being back at work?

Stacks how's T's cough? Hope it's on the mend. I find that groups really cheer Iz up - she's always been such a sociable bunny. I took her to two groups a week from about 2 weeks old (I know, I'm mad) and try to do 2/3 a week now too. She loves them!

Boo, welcome! Your DD is absolutely gorgeous :) Breast pad wise I think I was recommended that if there were bits that breast pads could stick to, you should let them air dry (with milk?) first, then pop on lansinoh or similar and use pads? I realise that with toddly boo and teen boo that may be more tricky . Hope everything's going wonderfully. I am rather jealous of the newborn snuggles :)

Rubber no advice I'm afraid - I bought a buggy from birth that can be used until Iz is walking, and is quite light (City Mini). I still use a sling a lot of the time - as it appears to be better for my back - so even less helpful!

at everyone else.

I'm happy with the Babystyle TS2 we've got but DH has a bee in his bonnet about getting one for the holiday. He reckons that we will struggle to fit everything in the car, I fail to see how much difference it will make as it is the length that is the biggest problem with fitting in the car and all the lightweight ones have only been a few cm smaller than what we have now. I asked him to get the cases out of the loft for me the other day so that we can have a trial run loading up the car but he has decided we only have room for 2 hand cases so not worth bothering with

Boo I prefer breastpads that don't have the sticky bits as I find that they bunch up and come unstuck when I pull the cup down anyway so don't bother faffing around with sticking them now.

Rubber where are you going for your holiday?

Manchester

So if it comes to it and the pushchair you have doesn't fit, can you just find a local Argos or large supermarket and buy a cheap pushchair then?

Hi again, thank you so much for your advice. I have new johnsons breast pads now, after finding my little town is really bad (only a small chemist stocked them) I will get to the supermarket for some of the lansinoh ones too. I will try to read back properly when I'm not in my breastfeeding hell baby blissful bubble

Just shows how its horses for courses with buggys/travel systems scream. We have a Maclaren XLT for T and I LOVE it! It had a carry cot (which he fitted in for about 5 mins!) but the buggy is suitable from birth to 4 and the car seat fits on too. Its so lovely and quick to have an umbrella fold one, I hated faffing about with separate wheels etc with our old travel system! Its definitely not a lightweight stroller though! Glad you survived your first week back at work ok and that house move is going well. Was going to catch up more but T is asleep now (on me) so Im going to put him down in his cot! Waves to all

My travel system is umbrella fold, no taking wheels off for me.

I am also a shocking brooker! Sorry everyone - must try harder! M had a terrible cold, culminating in ABs for possible chest infection, last week but is much better now. She kindly passed it on to me, DSis and DGma, at which point I realised just how shit she must have been feeling, poor little beast!

M has learned to climb onto the corner sofa (not the straight one) and into the dishwasher/up the side to swing on the top tray and also started to scale the new fireguard at the weekend. She still has no concept whatsoever of edges/drops, and will sit up facing inwards on the very edge of the sofa/bed with her bum practically hanging off. I don't think I mentioned that she also climbed onto a small chair we have, tried to climb over the arms and fell off head first. She landed face first on one of those plastic singing nursery rhyme books which she had left on its side. I was actually holding her by the back of the trousers at the time and still failed to prevent her from falling. The chair has been banished to the spare room and we have to try to keep the door shut, or she will go in and clamber all over it. It is karma biting me in the bum for being a bad climbing child myself. DTSis and I also climbed the fireguard at about this age, but none of my small siblings did.

After a really terrible time with food, she has now started to eat again, thank God. She's getting the hang of feeding herself with a spoon, which helps because she's interested in the process. Meals are currently revolving around soft food that can be spooned easily, like thick soups/yoghurt/Weetabix. She's not really eating anything very solid except toast at home, but she does at nursery so I try not to stress too much. Does anyone else find that they spend a couple of days justifying something to others (in this case, trying to reassure my grandma that M does eat, she just happened to have a really bad cold and it was okay, she wasn't going to starve to death), and then once the need to keep up appearances is over, you get really stressed about that thing?

M said 'woof' last Friday, witnessed by Mum and my stepdad, but has steadfastly refused to do it again, no matter how many times you ask her what the doggie says.

Ok, boast over! I will post this and then read back properly and reply.

Rubber, how are you getting on with N and the new pregnancy? Hope you're feeling okay. How far along are you now? We are heading off to PIL in Dorset at the end of the month and there is no way the Quinny Speedi is going to fit in the (small) car with a week's worth of luggage, dog, giant Stage 1 car seat, M, DH and I, so I sympathise about the buggy thing. I need to get the Mclaren back from Mum (I left it there to use at her house) in the hope that it will pack more easily. It's probably the same length but folds up much smaller/thinner so takes up less room that way. Could you borrow a lightweight buggy from someone and demonstrate that there isn't much difference in size to your DH?

Welcome over Boo and congratulations!

Musical, yay for Iz walking! Go Iz! And Dream too for S - video was so cute!

Stacks, like Musical says M loved groups and actually, I did too when I went, which wasn't that often just for being a break in routine and a chance to get out of my own head. It really is hard to get out when you've been getting no sleep, though - everything feels like a massive chore and sitting with strangers being polite seems incredibly daunting. Brooking for you to get some sleep soon!

Dream, any results from S's stool sample etc yet?

Scream, hope this week is a bit gentler! How is work going?

Love to all - will really try to be on here a bit more!

Hi all

M sounds so adventurous Too! It's scary how they don't see any danger at that age.

J is still much more chilled in the gaviscon, but has dropped from 75th to below 50th weight centile. HV wants me to get him on ranitidine instead, as she thinks all the gaviscon gunk we have to give him is filling him up instead of milk. Seeing gp on weds about it.

Hope everyone has enjoyed the bank holiday.

morning all. it's been so long since I managed to get on here you'd dropped off my threads list! I promise to catch up with the thread after posting.
we are all good here, m is loving her nursery and work is going well for me. dp had taken s to school today as I was up half the night as m had cough and sore throat so I'm enjoying a cup of tea before she wakes up.
how are all the squidgy New babies doing? I do try to read fb ad much as possible to keep up but with school, nursery and work its a struggle to post. right, off to read thread as much as possible before she wakes.

well that lasted about 30 seconds now I can hear her coughing and muttering.

Bugger! just remembered neighbour coming for coffee in an hour, I'm still in pjs and house is a complete shithole. laters brookers!

Sounds like things are going well for everyone, except a few coughs/colds and being super busy. T also has a bad cough, so off to the doctor today. He's actually had it since last Thursday and it's getting better, I'm just a little worried by the occasional wheeze I can hear, and that he's still not really got his voice back.
So our plans to go out more were kind of scuppered by the cough, I don't want to infect others, or have people think I'm a terrible and selfish mum (like those mums you all complain about taking their sick kids to nursery). We have been getting out for sunny walks on our own though, which has been lovely. The weather changing has made such a difference to my mood!
T is still getting some reflux, but I'm not currently giving him the gaviscon. It seemed silly to have a cold, gaviscon and giving up dairy all going on at the same time - there'd be no way of knowing what was causing what. So we're persisting with dairy free and leaving the drugs just now. DH is terrible at dairy free though - he bought me a 'dairy free' dessert of "All butter scones" the other day, and had no clue they were dairy till I spelled it out. Same last night putting butter on the veg. He's not stupid really, just isn't thinking. So today is day 1 of proper dairy free! Negating my last week of sacrifices :(

How much did people spend on their pushchairs? DH seems to think £100 is excessive, but I'm struggling to find something for that little! I don't need a full travel system but want something parent facing and a one piece fold. I know the parent facing research was terrible and meant nothing, but I really like being able to see T. So I've been looking at the Bugaboo Bee, but it's about £250+ second hand on eBay.

Wow. For the first time in almost 2 years you dropped off the threads I'm on . What a bad brooker. Actually I'm a bit of a bad everything at the moment, I've been sucked into that f*ing annoying Candy Crush nonsense.

Where to start? DD had her first birthday. We gave her a little Wheeliebug, the ladybird one. She can't do it herself yet but she laughs at DS whizzing round on it. We had a nice day out at a little farm and had family over for a birthday tea.

She's getting better with her walking and can walk a few steps now holding only one of my hands rather than 2 and can now stand without holding on to anything.

She's become very, very clingy and won't be left alone at all if she's awake. I literally can't leave the room without her bursting into tears. It's sweet but frustrating at the same time. A new one on me, DS was not like that ever!

DS is on anti biotics again. Another horrible chesty cough keeping him awake at night. Both the DC are permanently snotty.

I've been feeling a lot more positive lately. Not sure if it'd the ADs, the CBT or the improvement on the weather but it feels good. I've had a lot more energy to get stuff done at home and have now finally sorted though all the DCs clothes into keep, charity and sell which I'd put off for yonks.

I'm off to read back through the thread now. Sorry for not acknowledging anything/anyone, I just wanted to post this before I got distracted again!

Why do the nursery send home cryptic little notes saying 'please bring in a family photo' without any more details? Such as WHEN they want the photo - in this day and age, I don't have many photos printed out, and those I have are in frames or on the wall. I also don't think DH, M and I have posed for a photo together in about 6 months. Having failed to sort one last night, I tried to find one this morning and made myself late for work, and M still didn't have a photo to take in. We are Bad Parents. And the printer is broken and prints orange stripes across M's face.

Scarlet, so pleased you're feeling happier! Whatever it is, long may it last. Happy Birthday to DD! Hope DS gets better soon.

Stacks, we have a big travel system Quinny Speedi with carrycot and pushchair attachments and, from memory, it cost £300+. I also have a Mclaren that a friend gave me - not sure which version, but it's forward-facing so no good for you. Is it a small folding pushchair you want or a bigger one? The Quinny takes up the whole boot and I have only just realised that you can fold it without taking the hood off , but that's ok most of the time atm (shopping/dog can go in back seat if needed).

Ninja, glad M is loving nursery and that your work is going well!

Little, M is a climbing monkey - she came home from nursery yesterday with a head injury letter, having bumped her lip falling off something. The nursery told DH she was climbing on everything.

Hope the GP is helpful re J's weight/Gaviscon. Can I ask, how much Gaviscon do you have to give him? It seems odd that the HV would think it might be filling him up.