March 2013 time for shoes!

[Plonkysaurus]

New thread ladies...

Oh Yummy. Have a in commiseration / celebration though.

yummy sorry it was a no this time. Are you exhausted due to return to work and clingy babe? That would seem to follow. Both exhausting I imagine. 12 to 14 months is peak of cling, hang on in there. Ecobaby has a melt down when it's time to move on from park or staring at a bee or bashing a pot or trying to lick the loo brush. I keep trying to remember it's their only way of expressing their frustration. Sigh.

Plonk there aren't many details for that house as far as I could see. If it has wide reaching views I'd be tempted though. I feel if you can get a sense of space like that it makes up for fact you can't have a place with massive garden/next to fields. Will this be your first home buy? Nowt like a baby, wedding and house purchase within a couple of years of each other!

So, our girl is now one! We've had a busy day starting with unveiling her new kitchen and a visit to a farm with her nan and great nan in Norfolk at home and ending here in Bedfordshire where we travelled so that ecobaby can see her daddy on her birthday. We haven't opened all presents yet. Seems sensible to spread them out. She seems to like the tea set best so far. Not sure if it was all the presents, the travelling or the sugar in her cake icing that made her hyper after dinner but she sure was running around like a loon This time last year I had had lengthy cuddles in the pool with ecobaby who the midwives had adorned with a lovely pale yellow knitted hat, I'd had the midwife help me to shower upstairs and was waiting for an ambulance desperately wanting a big glass of lemon barley and some toast and distraught not to be allowed any due to impending surgery. I am smiling recalling dh and best friend struggling to load hours old ecobaby into the car on a freezing night ready for her first trip into the outside world to hospital. How different it all was back then. I think I recall it with rose tinted specs. I remember it all as cosy and laid back. I'm sure it wasn't!

Oh Yummy :( it's a horrid feeling. Be nice to yourself, get an early night and look forward to spending Christmas relaxing with a ds who's old enough to enjoy it.

Happy birthday toddleco! Sounds like a manic but lovely time has been had.

Yes it'll be our first house with our name on the paperwork. It's a bit ambitious isn't it?! Baby, wedding and house within 18 months. Pure madness but thems the brakes. The one I linked to is awful, definitely not what we'd like but the stock photos made me chuckle. Two of them aren't even of the house.

Happy late Birthday Toddleco!

And Plonky - My DSis is selling her house in Alvaston if you're interested...?

Sorry for all the troubles everyone is currently undergoing - I have a stinking cold and DH had to put DD to bed (story and all) for the first time since she's been sleeping through i.e. about 9 months Shocking - every time i've asked before now, it was my job and he'd do it 'another night'. I shouldn't complain. I'm off to crawl into bed and wallow in self pity. Night all

Ah, the meltdowns, we have those too. Usually when I won't let DD fiddle with the knobs on the cooker. I've told her, if she wants to gas us to death she can do it with her own bum or not at all. We're making progress though. Where no used to result in a big grin and continuing to try to kill us, now it makes her sit down with a bump and yell at the injustice.

I know how you feel with the poas, yummy. Terrible timing, but still a tiny little hope, because it'd be nuts to actually plan another now, but if it happened by accident, well, you'd cope and just get on with it. I found it was like Schroedinger's pee-stick. Knew it'd be a bfn but until you pee there's still a chance, and your brain runs away with you...

Good news yesterday. I had a dole appointment. Found out that if I worked sixteen hours a week I'd be nearly seventy quid better off (not bad considering I'm currently on equivalent to full time nmw). I also learned that Hull's one of the pilot areas for free nursery hours from age two. Bonus!

Well I've just had a day to remember. Called the doctor out yesterday as I really couldn't breathe and was frankly terrified. Was ambulanced straight in to hospital with suspected pneumonia, and of course a small toddleworse on my knee. Cue panicked calls to in-laws to ask them to drive down from up north, and an even more panicked call from DH who is as I type flying back from Hong Kong feeling a bit miserable that he left me home alone to cope when I was obviously unwell.

Alls well that ends well though, it's not pneumonia, it's just severe congestion and exhaustion. They've given me all sorts of pills and potions so I'm good to go. Toddleworse however excelled herself. 5 hours hanging around in a strange place, constant wet bum as nappies weren't a priority, missed dinner, randomly timed milk... and general mayhem and scariness. She had a huge meltdown when they carted me off to x-ray and she was left with the nurses, but other than that she was really very good.

Massive massive thanks to the hospital who were brilliant. They brought her a big box of toys, bumped me to the top of the x-ray list so she wouldn't be without me for long this might have been down to the inconsolable screaming which I could hear from the other side of the building, brought her water, gave her a mobile phone to play with.... they couldn't have done more. The NHS as a machine may be a bit broken, but the A&E nurses are wonderful.

So that's my news, and I'm home now being mothered by MIL, and generally spoilt rotten.

Yummy what a shame, but it'll happen, when you are less exhausted which will be better timing for you. SIL is 12 weeks now, and I keep thinking back to the 12 week stage myself. I think it could be summed up by saying knackered all the time!

Have good days all. Hope the toddles are all on good form and behaving. Mine has just conquered stairs. I need stair gates now don't I?

Oh my goodness Worse, I should hope you're getting some proper rest. How long is MIL staying? I'm a bit that it got to the stage of suspected pneumonia before you got someone to help you out, but I suspect you may have been just battling on. Please indulge yourself a bit and stay in a warm bed with fluffy blankets and lots of peanut butter for awhile!

Stormy are you jobhunting then? Does the maths mean that a nursery place would be 100% paid for by tax credits? Excellent news on the free nursery for 2 year olds too. My friend has this as she's in a low income area, and she says it's been a godsend for getting her kids socialised while she gets some university study underway.

Any hope you feel better soon. Do you have any info you could pm me (like a rightmove link) to your sister's house?

We had DFIL over for tea last night which was quite nice. I was about to say I've had a particularly manic morning and moan that I'd not managed to have a cup of coffee until I got to the office, but Worse's post brings that sharply into perspective! Happy Wednesday everyone.

Oh wow worse what an adventure for you and dd. Let dh take care of toddleworse while you rest up.

Happy belated birthday toddleco

I have recovered from my disappointment but now I know if an accident does happen it will be a welcomed accident by me (not by dh though).

Anymore birthdays to go?

There may still be miniLeni, but I think that's it for birthdays for this year. So who's next? Mine's exactly seven weeks away (assuming I can count) and I'll be twenty nine. Impossibly old! If I were following my mother's childbearing pattern, dc2 would be five months old and dc3 would be conceived accidentally next month.

Not jobhunting yet, Plonk, but it's good to know what the options are. If Fartypants gets fifteen free hours, and I work those fifteen plus one more and add a bit extra for travelling, it looks like only paying for maybe two or three hours a week. Of which tax credits cover up to 70%. Sounds very doable. Not that I'm anticipating walking into a job the day she turns two, mind. But she'll be going to nursery then anyway, for the socialisation (and so I can have a cuppa and do the hoovering in peace).

Sounds like you've had an exciting day, worse!

If I were following dm pattern my dc1 would be 6yrs old and dc2 would be 1 yrs old with a miscarriage in between dc1 and 2.

stormy we are similar in age. Turned 28 in January but feel like 88.

Ds now has a thing for the toilet. Poor teddy drowned. Oh well good luck to dm when he is at hers tomorrow and friday.

How are you worse?

eco is dh liking his new job? Or are you secretly wishing be hates it so you can move back home

thanks any, yummy and plonk Ecotod had a good day and present unwrapping continued today.

Worse! blimey O'Riley! If when you read this you are anything other than in bed resting with a nice book and a platter of nut butters on toast then I'll give you pud's stern look and then some How awful that must have been with babe in tow. Well done for not having a break down. And, get better soon, be kind to yourself and lap up dh attention.

Plonky I smiled when I saw the photo of the wild Bronte landscape. I'm familiar with these new build bonkers sales tactics. I didn't want to appear too down on it if it was something you were excited about it. I have done relationship break down, house move and new job within six months. I have also done mum death (for want of better terminology), wedding, house move and pregnancy within a year. Both transformative times, so don't shy away from getting on with it all would be my advice. You're a purposeful woman, you can do it!

Any nine months is a bloody long time to have let him squirm out of Bath and bed! Nine days and I'd be on strike. You are very patient and deserve a big dollop of something good. How's life other than the cold?

Our temporary home is great,, Lovely outlook, gorgeous village, well equipped, but there's no bloody phone signal so the raison d'etre (for you plonk) of this trip (to call agents and view houses) is a bit fecked.

yummy, dh so far loves his new job. They've ordered a mac book pro for him and this is apparently exciting and more than reason enough to proceed with our move plans

Happy belated birthday eco toddle hope the temporary move goes well.

worse ! Hope you're feeling better and being looked after. Looking after a toddler is hard when you're well so hope you're getting lots if help and rest now..

yummy

Hmm..what news..the culture shock of work has settled a bit and it feels like I was never away!! Leaving the house at stupid o clock is still hard but it's lovely to pick him up from nursery and see his happy face when he sees me. Life is busy though!!

I'm going to take up the offer of for Wednesday, and pass out a few more to anyone who wants it and maybe and for worse and yummy and any . Night ladies.

Hi all,

Haven't been here for ages but finally caught up. Thanks for all the kind messages. Hope you're feeling better Worse, that sounded scary. Best of luck with the house hunting Eco and Plonky. Betty, hope things have improved-tearful, food-refusing, clingy babies coupled with work and relentless parent- and wife guilt is miserable. Those phases are the absolute worst but they do pass. l agree that nursery might help more than you can imagine!

As for us, DS must be the last as his birthday is on Friday. Can't believe he's one. He's doing relatively ok, surgery planned for the week after next which I'm dreading. Met the surgeon today and while he's lovely, the whole procedure sounds gruesome and terrifying but necessary. After that we'll know if chemo is required . We've had weeks of scans and tests and waiting impatiently. Thankfully they haven't found any other tumours so it looks like it hasn't spread which is very good news. He's still a little ninja that never stops moving so it's hard to believe this horrible thing is inside him. Thanks again for the kind thoughts and happy birthday to all the little ones.

How lovely to hear from you cantturn and good to hear things are moving swiftly along in terms of treatment. Brilliant that it seems to have been caught at a good time with no spreading. I'm guessing you back home. Is ds well in himself? If he's charging around I'm hoping he's feeling minimal symptoms. We think of you often and continue to wish you well.
Be prepared for the birthday emotions as already documented by gerry and I! I think the first year of your baby's life must be the quickest year ever. Do you have any plans for Friday? Of all the things Ecotod received I have to say the happy birthday balloon is still the favourite

Great to hear from you Cantturn. It sounds like your boys a real trooper and I hope he has a lovely birthday. How are you? We're all here if you want to rant or anything else.

Ooh eco I'd be overjoyed with a new MacBook! I made a few films using one at uni and fell in love with them

plonky - here's the link... I found this property on the Rightmove Android app and wanted you to see it: www.rightmove.co.uk/s6p/44740355

It's prob a bit small but it has served her well

eco you're right that DH has gotten away easy for too long. I made him do bedtime tonight as well I still feel a bit bleugh (nostrils so blocked i can't breathe and feel sick) but feeling increasingly better since reading about worse's woes. Crikey - well done for getting help. Not sure i'd managed for long without a DH or family around (and i've only got a cold )

Cr*p phone - no idea how to do a proper link...

Thanks Eco and Plonky-that reminds me I need to get some balloons! He had an absolute meltdown in a restaurant today when we had to leave one behind-was happily headbutting it all through lunch.

Birthday plans are low key-coffee and cakes with family and a walk on the beach! His brother has spent every breakfast for the past week discussing what cake I should make. I'm afraid it will most likely be a toddler unfriendly chocolate fudge cake! Felt very guilty when reading all the delicious toddler friendly cakes that were being made! He's doing very well at the moment which helps keeps me sane.

If he was obviously unwell it would be so much harder. It seems that the treatment will make him initially more unwell than the tumour has so far . But for now, he's an extremely lively, happy little boy who never sleeps and shuns most food offered!

Thanks Any, I've just had a look. Bit small for us but love her garden! Hope you're feeling better rested now. And yes, 9 month off bathtime duty?Bugger me. Did he have the option of doing it or was he elsewhere during bedtime? If working then fair does. If not, well...DP would get more than a clip round the ear for that behaviour!

Eco I meant to thank you for your encouragement last night. It turns out that a frantic day of going hither and thither for work purposes followed by a swim and sauna is not the best formula for a talkative Plonky. I think we're both a bit mad, personally, but it's more fun this way, no?

I have a baby clinging to my legs. Best dash. Happy overfamiliar Friday you sexy bastards.

plonky Sexy Bastards! I love that compliment xx

cantturn hope ds has a lovely birthday tomorrow!
And nowt wrong (indeed lots right!) with chocolate fudge cake.

Is Leni still here /name changed? I often think of her as she was ill wasn't she

It's not even Friday is it? Oh well. My sentiment remains the same.

Ood a few of us are in touch with her on Facebook. She's doing really well, no idea what came of the health issues she was having, but she's back at work and her boy looks fantastic.

Is it really Friday? Have I lost a day somewhere?

Leni's on our facebook group, Ood. They're doing grand from the sounds of it.

Hi Cantturn we had choccy fudge cake too and I have to say DD was delighted!!

Plonky I hate to point it out because we are indeed sexy bastards, but it's Thursday I hope

I'm past my little wobble, thanks everyone. Madam has just been up once the last 2 nights which has helped!

Wors, next time don't leave it so long you brave fool! How are you feeling today? I hope you're still being well looked after.

Yummy I'm glad you're getting used to work, hopefully everything won't seen so manic soon! DD starts nursery next week so it's her first settling in session today. DH is going to take her because he'll be doing the drop offs but the control freak in me really wants to be there!

Happy belated birthday EcoToddle, sorry for radio silence on the day. I hope the house hunt goes well despite the signal black spot. I vote you base yourself in a pub like Kirsty and Phil do!!

Cross posts, whoops!