November 2014 - The one where they won't stay still.

[MrsAukerman]

New thread, new moves, new poo!

Thanks Anna, I think that's the kind of dress I need as my legs are ok, it's just my stomach that's a disaster area!

Food today, DD has had half a plum, some natural yoghurt and currently munching on one of those organix crisps in one hand and a piece of pepper in the other. Dh made her scrambled egg and toast for dinner last night in an attempt to get her to sleep longer but she doesn't seem to have much interest in dinner. It's more of a time filler really.

Have been out 3 separate times today ON MY OWN (that's a huge step for me ), entrusting MIL with DD...obviously, both of them were absolutely fine...

A daft question for those of you who are giving Weetabix for breakfast: are you using formula / EBM rather than regular cows milk? Bought some today and then realised I'm not sure what milk to use as I didn't think they should have cows milk yet unless it's used in cooking...thanks!

DD has suddenly found an appetite (and has worked out how to feed off a spoon properly) so today she had for breakfast porridge with apple puree (which she almost finished) and a piece of banana (which went in her mouth and out again). Lunch was pea and parsnip puree (2 ice-cubes which was all eaten) followed by Greek yoghurt with a fruit puree mix. Tea = broccoli and carrot pieces with the remainder of the pudding from lunch. Frozen cucumber sticks are an accompaniment to every meal

havent I give weetabix with whole cows milk. My HV said not to give cows milk as a drink on its own as babies should still be on BF or formula, but in food (whether cooked or not) it is fine. I think some people believe introducing cows milk at this time can increase the risk of intolerance / allergy but it isn't something I'm very worried about.

Haven't I use ebm as baby has a cow's milk protein intolerance and I am a cheap skate and refuse to buy oat milk or soya milk just for him and actually ebm is better for him especially as the little monkey barely breast feeds some days but saves it for the night time.

Thanks moggle and eastmids....so it seems I can give it with what ever milk I like!....Hmmm, don't have any EBM as DD is very efficient and sucks me dry (sorry, tmi); but do have some formula we had in case of emergencies so may use this up and then go onto cows milk...

Yes, I use soya milk because I don't get round to expressing enough, but, if it wasn't for CMPI, I would be putting full-fat cow's milk on breakfast cereal.

I made tuna pasta salad for dinner today (and didn't nearly burn the house down today!). Was planning to give DD2 some of the leftover curry from Tuesday but it seemed too hot for that today. She had falafel at lunch and somehow managed to get crumbs of it down the inside of her vest despite wearing a t-shirt and bib over the vest.

I use oatmilk cos of the supposed CMPI but would be using cows milk otherwise. I say supposed cos the other day DH put a splash of cows milk in his Ready Brek to loosen it up a bit and there was no reaction. We suspect the intolerance has probably passed over a good bit. He was only 6 weeks old when he was diagnosed and his gut has grown a lot since then!

Still being cautious though.

I have a friend coming over at 11 and the place looks like a bomb hit it. I can't be bothered to do much. I'm too tired. I have make up on and am washed and DS is bathed - thats my limit this morning!

........Better wash up the breakfast things though. Ugh. The effort of it all!

Arrgghh a tad stressed get contract from before/after school childminder yesterday for ds1 and discover she charges 50% in school hols so 13weeks when she isn't available wouldn't mind if she was available and we chose not to use but will have to pay for childcare as well in hols and all other ones are now full I sorted this in April and she didn't tell me been trying to get hold of her to see if it's negotiable as its alot money.

Then I get an email this morning from childminder baby is going to (none did babies and pick up from my son's school) saying her husband is going back to old job so no longer her assistant and she can't take on new mindees now.

Can I just become a sahm the answer is no and actually I earn most husband would love to be a sahd but we so cannot afford it bloody hell

oh bless u east hope u manage to find someone else suitable soon. when do u go back to work?

seems a bit unreasonable to charge for school hols if she isnt working them, fair enough if u are contracted for those dates & choose not to use them but otherwise - hmmm mine only charges for the dates he attends as agreed between us at the start of each month. am sure there are many others out there who will do the same.

I put dd down on the floor today & turned my back for a few mins & she had moved about 2 feet. no idea how but she did it argh!

Omama I go back in September I know children set own terms and have used 2 before who don't do drop off to his school and some charge for their hols others not etc but hrly rate varies. There are only a few childminder in the village and they all charge the same per hr but at least one doesn't charge for holidays they are all full for days we want annoying as others had space when I looked in April, she never mentioned this holiday charge. No before/after school club, is a nursery which ds went to but went downhill and would be ok just before/after school but will only get a place if send baby there too which am not happy to do.

Waiting to hear back from couple childminder for baby in village we live, ds1 goes to school in next village not sure what we are going to do yet. There is a childminder who can have both but isn't my kind of person baring in mind all are full she has only one toddler in her care she was immaculate and I got the impression she wanted to play yummy mummy about town with my baby and she is known to collect own child from school in.hot pants, crop top and high heels!!!

eastmids what a nightmare! V unreasonable of the childminder not to mention these charges initially. Good luck with sorting it. I discovered this week that I am too late to book annual leave for half-term in October or February, because too many other people have already got those weeks, and my work does not allow us to take annual leave Christmas or new year week which is also school holiday. Having a child at school might turn into a logistical nightmare. We received forms from the school about after-school club but nothing about before-school which we also need.

DD2 seems to have decided she is only interested in breakfasts that she can eat with her hands, so no more ready brek. She has never been interested in toast, but can't eat weetabix (with just a splash a milk so she can hold it) everyday.

Trust Sleep Tedhniques book arrived. Looks like there might be ideas of how to get her in the cot. She is sleeping for longer stretches sometimes, but still fed to sleep almost every time and spending most of the night in our bed. Need to get DH on board though as he can't feed her to sleep and doesn't really want to share the bed with her when I am at work. He is off work for 2 weeks now before starting a new job. He says he is going to do more with DDs (he's never bathed DD2 or dressed her and only once got up with them so I could have a lie-in). So will wait and see.

We also have childcare issues. Moving house this summer but neither nursery in new village has space for dds. Dd1 had been with a CM to date but is due her 15 free hours from September. Dd2 has been with the same CM since 6mo and getting on great, but now it looks like our only option is to keep dd2 at the CM and put dd1 in a montessori near the CM. It will mean about a 20 min drive to and back every day and unless dh can do dropoffs (which I'm probably going to make him do tbh) it will mean a crazy amount of driving each day considering I only work mornings. It's a pain because the nursery in new village would have been an 8 min walk and both together instead of 15/20 min drive and two dropoffs

But it looks like we'll just have to suck it up for a year, then dd1 will start school in new village and hopefully space open by then in nursery for dd2.

East - that's ridiculous! Our CM charges a rate per day for each child and if either can't make it no charge. She is really great. Hope you can sort it. It's mad how childcare is such a stress for so many families.

How were all your babies after their 3rd set of jabs? Dd got hers ( v late ) on Thursday, been a ratbag since. Night from hell last night.

I just scorned DH's commitment to looking after Dd2 in my earlier post, but he has actually volunteered to look after her for a couple of hours today while I go to something with DD1 which will be much easier without a baby. Just hope she doesn't cry the whole time and put him off , but we have to start somewhere before she has her all day when I am at work.

Greenstone we had a terrible 24 hrs after them. High temp and general ratbagness. Awful. Calpol made little difference. Thankfully it passed. It never happened with the others.

We are really concentrating on getting longer naps here everytime. The book says it takes two weeks so am trying to be patient but they definately are still on a 30 min length naturally still.

This morning he fell asleep at 9.30 and woke on the dot of 10. I tried shhhing him back to sleep in the cot but he started smiling up at me little fecker. Previously I'd have gone "oh well, nap over I guess" but the book said DO WHATEVER YOU CAN TO GET THEM BACK TO SLEEP so I actually oicked him up and rocked him back to sleep. Result! He's still asleep now!

Hopefully this all leads to a natural longer nap cycle eventually?

So I decided to try something new tonight. He went to sleep about 8 and was up his usual (9, 11, 1, 3 and 5). I am not hardcore enough to go cold turkey on feeding him at night so I fed him at 1 and 5. The other times I rocked him back to sleep. The 9 and 3 am wake ups were awful but I stuck with it and it worked. DP tried at both but DS is not having any dad love at night at the mo.

We will stick with this for a few days and see if it makes any difference.

He was up at 7ish and DP took how away so i could have a lie in. For a baby with no routine he is running like clockwork at night the moment!

Sorry for the essay! X

Greenstone and Omama childcare is a nightmare and once in school that wrap around care and hols are a whole new ball game. I am going to request Oct half term Xmas week as no childcare only first week school hols do holiday club run here and if they say other have booked it I will play on the fact I have been on mat leave no discussion with me about booking leave before I returned in case others want same which should work.

I rang cm today and she said not neg others pay it!!

We have used 2 cm in past and one charged if we were off and not if she was other charged 50/50 for our hols n hers and nothing if she was sick full if we were and first was 50p more an hr but over a yr worked out about same.

Childminder in my village are £3.50-£4/hr and school village £5/hr. Nursery is £45-50/day baby is going to a nursery on a fri from Jan but they do 7-11hr day and charge diff rates and is £42 for 7hr which is all need on a fri if my request for change hrs is accepted. We can't afford 4 days nursery and its more cost effective to do full time work n nursery as they offer full time reduction I just don't want to work full time.

Anyway bored everyone enough with my childcare issues am off out tonight yes twice in a fortnight prob won't go out for another year!! I am having wine and baby will sleep all night (ok the wine will happen baby sleeping less likely)

Breakfasts is now a whole weetabix!! With fruit, lunch was bbq sausage casserole and a fruit pot and dinner is cooking beef stew with shin beef and mashed sweet potato and dumplings baby in seperate pan as just Tom puree and water no stock even has teeny dumplings in.

Went out for 2hrs with DD1. DD2 and DH were fine, and she even had a nap for a hour :). Was nice for DD1 to have some time without DD2.

She had weetabix dipped in ready brek for breakfast after refusing the ready brek in favour of almost-dry weetabix. Lunch was falafels and hummus then melon, dinner was veg chilli with potato wedges.

Amazon delivered a tub of dairy free cheese flavour sauce mix, so will try that this week.

DH has ordered a roof rack box so we can go on holiday in 9 days (we only booked this week). He has realised there is no way we can fit everything in our car that is so small the pushchair takes up the whole boot.

anna interesting that you say you don't think DS has CMPI anymore. I don't really believe my DD does either, but the paediatrician says to keep her milk-free until she is 1 (though we have already established that the paediatrician is an idiot who doesn't know what she is talking about!). I consider reintroducing dairy anyway, but am still worried about making her I'll and wrecking her sleeping which has just started to improve just in case she does have it.

east what a bloody nightmare!!

happy porridge fingers? crumpets? would she be happy with holding the spoon? dd holds a spoon that I load up for her and then I have a spoon that I sneak into her mouth now and again.

1st tooth arrived yesterday, no drama. 2nd one coming through and making a big flipping entrance. Put her down at 7, got halfway through my curry when she kicked off, calpol, calprofen, bonjela, redo of bedtime routine, rocking, patting, shushing, stroking, finally fell asleep on the boob. Trust techniques will have to wait til after tooth debut and holiday.

Breakfast of fruit cereal and apples slices. Lunch lamb curry and swede chunks. Dinner of crumpet with almond butter and mango chunks (which were way too slimy to eat).

Ok so just get in from eve out whole bottle wine (ok I know bit excessive) and baby awake husband said he woke 10min ago now on boob and husband making me tea and toast oh why did I drink.

Haha. Last proper day of holiday yesterday and similar feelings re drinking! Was definitely tipsy at about 5 and lay down to feed ds for a nap and we both fell asleep.
He did adjust well to camping in the end, more daytime naps due to a shorter night. He also only woke once last night which is amazing and included a 7 hr stretch. We're going to have to consider the fact I may get my periods back soon if he keeps it up / improves more at home.

MesA my first was exclusively bf and slept 11hrs from 15weeks although v frequently in day he also had 3 naps a day totalling 3-4hrs and my periods didn't re appear til 9mths.

After such good sleeper guess I am getting pay back now after that feed when I got in he woke at 4 and then 6.30 he got send for weetabix with daddy then.

Teething ++++ here Inc chomping down on my nipples ouchy

Interesting re long gap at night and continued amenorrhea. It's funny, we were all set on just letting nature take its course with regards to TTC no2 but the first night was so hard camping that we decided against another (now changed mind back!)

Amy so you're not going to bother with contraception at all? I'm on period No. 3 but stopped BFing at 10 weeks. I got my first one in March. My cycle between No.2 & No.3 was 54 days! But between No2 and No3 was 38 days so its getting better.

I'm using Clue which is a BRILLIANT tracker app. We're planning on starting TTC in Sept, so hopefully my period will be fairly predictable by then & I can predict ovulation. We're using contraception till then on the rare occasion it happens.

Have to get baby out of the room before then though! Talk about a passion killer!