Elderberries no 2 - all old and new berry babies welcome!

[HazleNutt]

New thread!

lilly that sounds super tough has it been since you've been at your mums or more recent? Hope it improves soon for you!!

You have my total respect for getting them all in the car in one trip, I had to make 2 trips!

My car is very carefully packed! German shepherd in the boot, car seat behind me, giant orange inflatable swimming ring wedged between seat and car seat (good job I'm a short arse!) wellies behind passenger seat, pram spreading sand from the wheels all over back seat, mum in the front with her two dogs in the footwell/on her knee. It was brilliant, everyone jumped in the car out of the rain apart from me who is strapping the baby in/putting the pram away getting soaked like a total numpty! It's amazing what you can fit in a clapped out Honda civic though

They do start sleeping eventually...don't they? It's scream from about 8-9.30, wake up again at 12, 3 and 6, up for the day at 8 zzzz. I think it has got worse since we've been at Mums but I'm not sure if it just feels that way because I'm trying to do it all myself iyswim or if she really is worse?

Yeah everything seems harder when you don't get the relief of handing them over, even for a few minutes. She might just be a bit unsettled in her new surroundings? Fingers crossed it passes soon for you!

I have to get H from pram into carseat, then take the top (carrycot) off the pram, fold the chassis up, bungee cord it to the back of the rear seats, bungee cord the carrycot in beside it, then finally put the dog in the boot, then do it all in reverse when we get their. Would be easier if pooch was in a crate but shes not, so keeping hold of her while doing the rest can be a tad tricky. Oh the joys of dogs huh

Well mother count your blessings. L is over 8 months and has been teething for ever with nothing to show for it. Nada. Not even one tooth.
Pickled I feel for you tying to do it alone. Does your mum help? And is there a plan for you to go back home or are things pretty grim on that front?
Sleep has improved a bit and although L has been up for about 2 hours every evening she is now only waking up once or twice a night so I'm not even that annoyed that this is happening! Whatever it takes.
What a pain about work janey. I would def appeal too just for the sake of principle! Do any of you have dates to go back yet?

we got a ski box for one of the cars for when we are taking both dogs and baby out. not cheap, but as neither baby nor dogs are not going anywhere, it's an useful investment.

Lilly that sounds incredibly tough, but they all start sleeping eventually. By the time they are teenagers, at least.

oh, ski box is for the buggy, not dogs or baby.

I'm back at work on 1 May, absolutely dreading it but that's largely because I don't enjoy the job anyway.

Mum tries to help and can be helpful at times but she also tells me I should leave her to scream and just shut the door, tells me I should give her calpol pretty much every night to 'make her sleep' and gets annoyed because she's too noisy, sometimes when the poor kid is just playing how I've survived ten weeks of this I don't know beer may have played a part

OH and I are going to move back in together to see if we can make a go of it but between sorting the building site out (he's been sleeping on a mattress on the lounge floor as the whole top of the house is uninhabitable atm) and all of the other issues we've got it could still be a few weeks before I can attempt to go back.

L has finally screamed herself to sleep in my arms again after over an hour of crying, I've just managed to out her down. That makes it beer o clock right?

Sorry, no more moaning I swear!

Hazle so glad dogs and/or V aren't in the ski box.

Moan away, Lilly. You have undoubtedly got it tough at the moment.

Mother yay for H's first tooth!

We have one of these in order to get dog and pushchair both in the boot, and if we need to get them both in our other smaller-booted car we have a roof box.

Alex step away from the Google when it comes to regression. No good can come from knowing what is ahead. I found that wine was much more useful when it came to dealing with it.

Merk when you are alone with a baby leaving the house is a mammoth task so well done for even attempting it. When E was that age I struggled to even get dressed let alone venture out!

Janey why would you need 1.5 hours for lunch? In fact why would you need any more than 30 minutes for lunch? I know it's a London thing so you media types can all go on a lunchtime bender but with a baby to get home to you should be able to take a short lunch and finish earlier. Your boss sounds like an arsehole.

I am so annoyed at my work for being so bloody unreasonably reasonable! Grrr!

We have been to a funeral today and a lovely group of old ladies who we barely know had a random and unexpected whip-round to give E and my Sister's baby both some money. I don't think most of them have much more than state pension to live on so what a lovely gesture. We got about £5 each and hadn't got a clue what to do with it so we bought lottery tickets in the hope that their nice gesture might bring us some luck. This also now raises the question of what we would do with the money if the ticket wins as it would be E's? Do you think she would lend us some for a new house?

Absolutely beer o'clock Lilly. Poor you, sounds so tough.
I'm sure you have but have you tried trying to get down earlier? M is worse the more tired he is: harder to get to sleep, wakes more frequently. If he gets 2-3 hours in the day and is down by 8pm (7pm before clock change but deliberately kept him on old times!) we tend to get 12 hours these days tell me to bugger off as I know it's all luck and that M will no doubt start being a nightmare again soon, plus I'm sure you've tried everything

Hazle at baby in box!

Oh and I absolutely don't need 1.5 hours cav apart from on a Fri when I down the best part of a bottle of wine like everyone else and an only asking him to change it at the start of the week. Am so bloody mad about it, just the principle of it all really. I'm sure if I had asked to work reduced hours they would have said no as well.
Gah.

cav that is so lovely of them! A really nice thing to do. Why is it those with less are usually more generous?

hazel at times I'd happily put one or both in a box

lilly moan away!! If you can't moan here where can you moan huh.

And tonight ladies and gentlemen ok so just ladies we have a cav special. (cav this sucks)

After being up since 12.45 with a repeat of ..... H falling asleep, being put down, sleeping for 10 mins, waking screaming..... I gave up and am now on a mattress on the floor in his room and he is now fast asleep wouldn't you bloody know it next to me on a bed build of pillows and a throw. Please let me get some sleep! I am blaming the tooth because he has never been this clingy or frustrating at night before.

crap night here as well, up several times and whiny. I was already getting used to sleeping. And no idea why, the day was normal, ate and napped well; not sick, I can't see any new teeth - just didn't sleep.

Now, is little prince George quite a chubby one, or is mine just really skinny?

I think V is tall and skinny Hazle but young George does look like he may well be a food fan.

I took E for weighing for the first time since mid-Jan this morning and she is 10.15kg or 22lb 6oz in old money, and has maintained her weight at around the 95th centile so she is still a chunky monkey like George.

I allowed myself to get hopeful that E's sleep had got a bit better on holiday and since we got back, but last night she was back on top form and we had wake ups at midnight, 3-5am and then she got up at 7.20. Just great! Also no sign of teething here. I think she just likes to keep us on our toes.

Mother H's clinginess just sounds like teething, or that's certainly how it was here.

Oh, and just so we can all brace ourselves, my Sis took Nephew for his 12 month jabs yesterday (which I think are MMR, PCV and Hib/Men C) and as a result she had a night of hell last night which is apparently quite common. He is such a placid baby normally and a great sleeper but last night he screamed all night, was running a temperature, projectile vomiting and did not sleep a wink. Something to look forward to then.

Eek, so that will be just in time for me (hopefully) going back to work then...but never mind bracing myself for that, I'm busy bracing myself for the night ahead...please let it be better than last night, wake ups every 1-2 hours!

Oh and lilly I wondered about you trying for an earlier bedtime too, as S is ready for bed by 7pm these days and can get cranky if overtired although take my advice with a pinch of salt as clearly I know nothing about getting a baby to sleep well I'm just wondering if that might help with the screaming? You've prob tried that though.

Lilly I'm pleased it's not all doom and gloom for you and oh. Hopefully time apart will do you both good. I have no advice on sleeping either as I'm obviously still shit at it. Just a question - do you ever lie down with her? When L is grumpy and I can see she is tired I sometimes come to bed with her and just lie there. More often than not she eventually falls asleep and so do I
Argh cav I'm currently bracing myself for this 9 month regression which I'm sure will hit in the middle of my holidays!

I seem to have developed a mantra I'm now saying each morning: "well Margaret Thatcher managed to run the country on 4 hours sleep a night". Worrying on so many levels that I find this comforting! That and the big smile S wakes up with cheers me up, along with a cadbury's creme egg to start the day.

Oooh Creme egg! Can't wait for lent to end

How was last night? Awful? It will pass.... Eventually... Get help from your mum or DH in the meantime!

I've got the fear about a 9 month regression. M was a week or so early for the 4 month regression. He's 9.5 months now so I'm hoping it was the three bad nights last week although realistically that was because he was ill and had a temp of 38.5 and that now we're back to 11.5-12 hours a night we are through it?! I'm kidding myself, aren't i....

I most certainly hope there wont be a 9 month regression - it's not mandatory, after all. We had just one bad night day before yesterday, and sleeping well again - we actually got up before V woke up, that felt weird.
I'm worried about next week though - my parents and aunt and uncle are visiting, so I expect a lot driving around etc, which will of course mess up V`s usual naps. Hopefully he will be tired enough from the extra attention and activities though.

alex I feel like I survived on 4 or 5 hours a night for months. Don't panic it won't last forever, S will come through it.

janey I hope you're right! For all our sakes

She was up five times and started the day at 6.10am BUT when she lay there in her bed chatting first thing, she managed to suck her fingers and her herself back to sleep for 5 mins which was a little silver lining, self settling wise. So annoying that at 2am I couldn't get myself back to sleep for ages so wasted sleep time!

I have timed my holidays beautifully for regressions - two at 6 months and one at 9 months! Damn!! I know, I know, my diamond shoes are too right and all that.

Hope that is the 9 month one done and dusted for you janey!

cav what UV playpen thing did you get again, and was it a travel cot as well?

*too tight diamond shoes!

I feel like a terrible mother, E has a cold and she's not even 3 weeks old :(

Meant to say a big thanks for all the answers and help you've all given. Especially as all I am doing us asking questions and not actually participating in the thread at all! Promise I will be more sociable when I find normality again