March 2005 part 6 - Toddling towards summer!

[leogaela]

And her it is!

Glad your bump is growing nicely Leo.

It will be good to see some holiday photos of Niklas when you get a chance, and misdee - love the new ones of Serena. She has got 'proper' hair, Freya is still somewhat folically challenged!

Freya has a bit of a problem at the moment with a sore 'front bottom' (still not sure of a polite word for it!). I am trying to be very thorough when I change her nappy (esp a dirty one), but she is screaming the place down every time. Boys are so much simpler, much easier to clean! Was thinking of tring some Kamilosan, or has anybody got any better ideas. Also, how bad do you think it would need to get before I saw the doctor, I don't want her getting an infection?

Pidge - make sure you enjoy having Cleo at home for this last few months. I really missed Ethan when he went to school, and I seem to be one of the only mums at the school gates who looks forward to the holidays! He is such good company, always keen to do stuff and he makes Freya laugh (well mostly, they have started to squabble a bit - mostly when she stands in front of the tv on purpose to annoy him!)

Glad you had a good holiday Leo. Agree that Italy is slightly run down. Thought our SA roads were much better than theirs. Don't know if would could afford the cost of living in Switzerland! Was shocked to hear from my friend who moved to Geneva about the cost of childcare - hectic. For me to send Lauren to a playschool for three mornings a week next year is going to cost me the equivalent of under 45 Pounds a month!
For the first time today I looked at my child and thought she's becoming a proper little girl. Her babyness is going fast. She had her hair in a little ponytail and looked so grown-up. Quite the little monkey at the moment. Pushing boundaries big time, especially with throwing things. Threw her apple at the cat's head today, which she thought was very funny. Have to nip that one in the bud quickly.
Glad you're feeling fairly strong Leo. No sickness?

HELLO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oh my goodness, so much has happened and it's taken me ages and ages to read everyone's posts. I'm sorry I disappeared without trace but I had a bit of a health scare but everything's OK and I'm back. Thanks to Cristina for e-mailing me as I was a bit nervous of coming back after being so long away.

Leo TWINS !!!!! Wow, how amazing but I'm so pleased for you and that you're pregnancy seems to be going well.

Far too much else to comment on but glad everyone seems OK, had nice holidays and that all the babies are happy and healthy.

Harrison is just gorgeous and is a proper boy. DH calls him the 'Tazmainian Devil' as he's always on the move creating mess and havoc wherever he goes. But he has the cheekiest of smiles and is so lovely and affectionate. Hannah is also well and back at school in Year 4. She looks so grown up compared to all the little ones. I'll try and post some pictures at the weekend.

Must go as have work to do but just wanted to say hello to everyone. Oh yes and welcome to AndyJ (better late than never)

It's lovely to be back with you all

Busywizzy - Welcome back! Glad everything is ok with you now, we were all worried about you.
Good to hear that Harrison and Hannah are doing well, you must post some new piccies for us when you get a chance.

Really pleased to hear from you.

Well thank goodness!! Welcome back Busy We were all really worried about you. Hope everything is ok with you.
Think Lauren is turning into the Tasmanian Devil's sister!! Think those terrible two's are starting at 18 months. She's not really being naughty, just pushing us all the time and then watch us to see how we react. She has this silly naughty smile that she puts on when she knows she's being naughty, but think if she looks cute she'll get away with it.
SUMMER IS HERE! Gorgeous day today. Although you also seem to be having a bit of a late Summer surge in the UK.
Must organise swimming lessons for Lauren. Bit of a nightmare here when nearly everyone has a swimming pool. Am a bit paranoid about Lauren falling in, but ours should be ok as we have a net and a pool alarm.

I've just been looking at the Photobucket and my goodness, they're all so gorgeous

Grace has the bluest eyes ever, Freya is soooo like Ethan, Iris has such lovely hair (just like Hannah's when she was small) and Lauren has just got so grown up. She looks like a little girl, not a baby.

Harrison is still quite baby looking (due to his continued lack of hair) although he has had a hair cut as it was getting a bit long at the back and his fringe. It's funny that as curly as Hannah's hair is, his is poker straight with not a kink in sight. I've posted a couple of pictures.

Have a nice weekend everyone

busy - WELCOME BACK - so glad to hear that you are ok. And I love Harrison in the cowboy hat. What a character!

Am off to get yet another early night - don't know what my excuse is for being so tired - shhhh - don't tell anyone, Iris has slept till 6.15am three days in a row!!! Maybe all these 'lie ins' are making me sleepy!

Pidge, was this the weekend of the Windsor half marathon. A couple of my friends from work ran it and I thought about you. How did you do?

Busy - how sweet of you to remember! Yes, today was the day. I had a brilliant day out - though I might not have said that at around 10 miles, when I felt like crawling home! It was hot, hilly, and way harder than I'd imagined it would be. But I got round in just under 1hour48 and am chuffed. Have a very sore left knee now though, so might be taking it easy for a while! How did your friends get on?

Dd1 was dispatched to a friend for the day and went to the circus with them. So she was happy. And dp and Iris came along to Windsor Great Park to shout support. Iris seemed to have a jolly time, though somewhat bemused by my mad antics.

Now celebrating my 13.1 miles with rather a large amount of red wine!

Lovely to have you back Busy - we were all getting worried about you. Glad you are ok.

Jo - Grace suffers intermittently with a sore bottom (back and front) - it happens if we don't notice that she's done a poo and change her straight away. The best thing that I've found to clear it is a combination of Metonium and Sudocrem (Metonium seems to work better but is very thick and hard to apply so I mix it with a bit of Sudocrem to make it a bit easier). Don't use wipes either while she's suffering - just cotton wool and plain warm water is best.

Grace had been a real grump all week - dissolving into tears at the slightest thing and having big tantrums if she can't get her own way. She's had a bit of a cold so I guess this is what is causing the grouchines (at least I hope so!). It's been a bit draining, as I've also had a cold so not at my most tolerant! Having said that, she's still adorable though! .

Pidge, what a fantastic time. My friends did it in 2 and a half hours so they were dead impressed by (and envious of) your time. They too said the first 8 miles were OK but from there on, it was a hard slog. Good on you

BonyM, Harrison had a cold about two weeks ago and was an absolute horror for the 3-4 days before it broke. Kept throwing himself on the floor and crying at the slighest thing until I could quite cheerfully have thrown him out the window. As soon as the cold passed, he was back to his happy self so hang on in there

Jo, Hannah has always suffered from the odd bout of sore 'front' bottom, even now at 8 years old. I think some girls are prone to it and some aren't. I find Sudocrem always does the trick but if Freya keeps on crying after a few days, I'd take her to the doctor to be sure she was OK.

Right, off to do homework and recorder practise!

BW - I never knew you played recorder

Doh, my secrets out

A word of advice to all of you whose children don't yet go to school (most of you I think). Never, ever, ever, ever get talked into letting them learn a musical instrument - I can't begin to describe how torturous it is. We've been learning how to play the note G on the recorder tonight. How could learning one single note take half an hour and it still sound like the cat four roads down being murdered. I'm off to pour myself a large glass of wine to recover

busywizzy - LOL re instruments. I played the clarinet as a kid and that truly did sound like I was strangling a cat! I reckon - avoid clarinet, oboe, anything stringed. What about xylophone .

My legs are flipping stiff today. But had a lovely day up at dp's parents. His mum looked after the kids whilst I had a fabulously therapeutic swim in the ponds on Hampstead Heath. And Iris thought it was great watching mummy swimming with the "quacks"!

"She has this silly naughty smile that she puts on when she knows she's being naughty, but think if she looks cute she'll get away with it." Clever girl, little Lauren. Tell me it doesn't work!

Great to have you back Busy !!!!

Well done Pidge! That is really great. The exhiliration of finishing far outweighs the pain doesn't it. When is the next one planned?

Ok, I am really sorry, I didn't get onto the computer at home again on Friday as planned (sleeping took priority) so I still haven't updated the photobucket. Its high on my list of things to do though!

Christina - Although I try to keep a very straight, stern face on when Lauren is being naughty, she can so be so funny with her little 'ploys' to try and look cute and innocent that I can't help but laugh sometimes. She's pretty good though - her worst 'naughty' behaviour is helping herself to the cat biscuits from the storage bucket and throwing her doll at the cat. Took some cute pics of her this weekend. Will put them on tonight.
Just back from gym. Been going nearly a month now and starting to feel stronger. Only lost a kilo so far, but my BMI has already dropped 1%, which means my fat is converting to muscle. Did lots of lunges yesterday and my upper legs and bum felt so sore this morning. So we did arms and tummy today. My waist isn't too bad but I still have this little paunchy bit below my belly button which I can't stand.
Having a row with DH at the moment. He wants to join his brother in Mauritius for 10 days after Christmas, but doesn't want us to take Lauren. I've said that we've already been on one holiday without her this year and that I don't want to go away without her again, especially when it's to a place that she would enjoy. He's said that he can't relax with Lauren around, which is probably true, but he needs to realise we have a child now and that we can't parcel her out to the grandparents all the time!
I'm actually quite worried about him and Lauren at the moment. She cries nearly every time he picks her up and won't give him any loves and cuddles. He's getting quite fed up about it. Although I haven't mentioned it to him, I think it's because nearly every time he interacts with her it's always so physical - you know - throwing in the air, hanging upside down, tickling etc. To be honest, I don't think she likes it much and has come to associate him picking her up with one of the above activities. Do you think I should talk to him about trying to spend time with her in a different way? Don't want to tell him how to be with his daughter, but he can't seem to see that she doesn't like all this 'rough and tumble'.

Jambot, it's hard when your instinct tells you that things aren't quite right and I don't know what to suggest as I suppose it depends on how your DH might react. If it's any help, my DH and Hannah have got on better and better as she's got older. He wasn't good with her as a little baby, got better as she got to toddler age but she still preferred me but now (only taken 8 years), she'll happily go off with her dad for the day, although he wouldn't think to suggest anything unless I prompted.

Tread carefully is my advice as men can be quite sensitive to criticism (I know that's a bit sweeping) and try and find the right moment and the right way to broach this with him. If you get it right and he and Lauren are happier together, you'll be so glad you were brave.

Just remember, children are very fickle, so what Lauren isn't happy about today might be very different in a short while. Hope it get's better and thinking of you

Jambot - I know what you mean about holidays. They certainly aren't as relaxing with children as without children. I used to be able to top up my tan and get through a few novels, but now I sometimes feel that I constantly run around. However, for all that I wouldn't want to leave the kids at home when I went away, family holidays are what memories are made of! Perhaps as a compromise you could pick somewhere with a creche or childminding facility? Not sure if you have heard of Club Med, but I know that they offer good childcare arrangements? Hope you manage to work something out with your DH.

Quick question for you all!
I have spent £28 on a pair of Clarks shoes for Freya.
I have also bought her a dodgy pair of £3.00 Dora the Explorer wellies.
Can you guess which she prefers?
Exactly, the cheap old wellies - why do I bother - she has no taste!

jopg - what a hoot with the wellies!

jambot - that is a real tough one isn't it. I don't have any great suggestions, except maybe to try to engineer for your dh to have some more time with Lauren ideally without you being around. My dp has the girls on his own before and after work on the 3 days I work, and I'm sure that has helped him cement his relationship with them. He does their breakfast and supper and has to get them to the childminder etc.

And the holiday - well, I'm at the other extreme. I've still only left my 4 year old overnight on a handful of occasions. And Iris never! I'd say JoPG's idea of a holiday where you can compromise over some child-free time might be good. Or what about a child friendly holiday and then a shorter child-free night away or weekend away?

Jambot - it sounds to me as if a family holiday is what you need so that your dh spends more time with Lauren and gets to know her better. Maybe your DH needs to be more involved in the day to day care of Lauren maybe and not just the playing, also joining you when you go for doctor's appointments etc.. I think its probably been particularly difficult for him to adjust as you weren't properly living together after Lauren was born.
I think our holiday together really helped us bond together as a family and has helped us be much more tolerant and less stressed with Niklas, it taught me to relax even when he is around all the time.
How to approach your dh about this is a difficult one though.

Welly boots - Niklas loves his as well! Although over here they cost a considerably more than £3 !

I was very proud of Niklas today, he managed to put both legs in his trousers himself alhtough he didn't manage to pull them all the way up!

Hey - Niklas is a genius with his trousers - my 4 year old daughter still often gets in a tangle trying to do that. It's unbelievable how often both legs end up down the same hole!

jambot - what leogaela said about holidays reminded me of a family holiday when my first dd was a year old. I think I had already made the switch to arranging the day around her requirements - sleep, food, not putting her in the car for a long journey unless she was ready to nap etc. But dp found it a real struggle for the first few days. He kept wanting to have lie ins, and I would be saying let's get going so we can do something with the morning and then come home and take the afternoon nap with dd. Anyway, we had quite a few arguments which is really unusual for us. And then the penny dropped, and he still talks about how he realised he had to make that adjustment to planning the holiday round the baby rather than himself, and that way everyone ended up having a better time.

Hello to everyone!

Busy-i will be the last one to welcome you back.Glad you and Harrison are good.

Well,And I nave some bittersweet news.Ii everything will gofine I will be in England at the end of october.This is the sweet part.And the bitter-I have to leave Ksenia in Ukraine with my parents for at least 6 months.Six months she will be without me,growing,making achievments.I hope i could exist away from her.So all of you who is arguing about holiday-don't.Appreciate that you are all together.That is the mostimportant.And the holidays will be just fine.

Leo-how are you?How is the belly?do the babies move?How does it feel?I want to aask you how is Nicklas and his cough?Ksenia cought the cold and i was rubbing a goats fat into her chest and Nicklas came to my thoughts with his cough.
I am uploading some pics to the fotobucket.Welcome to look all of you.They were taken in august.

UMum - Your separation from Ksenia will be very hard. Will you be able to visit her atall? When will you know if this is what will happen?

Ethan has been to the doctor's today and unfortunately he has got impetigo. He has been given cream and oral antibiotics. I am hoping that Freya does not catch it, but if she does I will probably be a bit cheeky and use some of the cream on her to see if I can catch it before it gets out of control. I am now washing the towels at 60c with detergent and tea tree oil, and bedding is next. Hopefully he will be over it soon and can go back to school on Monday. He cried at the doctor's today when he was told he could not go back until Monday, it was his day for 'show and tell' today and he was going to a friend's house after school for tea. Am making it up to him with Tom and Jerry on the tv today, and I've promised him a trip to Pizza Express tomorrow.

Poor Ethan Jo. Lauren had it a few weeks back. Took about a week to clear. Luckily it looks worse that it feels.
Haven't discussed the holiday further. DH spent some nice time with Lauren on the weekend which was good. No throwing around involved, so she was less stressed. Why must men think kids need chucking around all the time?
It's my 37th birthday tomorrow! God, how old! DH's secretary is coming in to baby sit Lauren during her nap and for the afternoon, so DH and I are going out for lunch.
Sorry to hear about what you are going to have to endure Ukrainianmum. Why do you have to leave Ksenia behind?