December 2012: we thought the terrible twos were bad, here come the threenagers!

[Barbeasty]

Spangly new thread.

WL, how is Dd2 now? I hope the clinic appointment goes well and FX crossed for your DM tomorrow.

Nutella i looked and there is no face with its tongue sticking out but if there was i would be sending you that right now.

H goes to bed quite late between 8:30-9pm but tends to wake up around 8:30-9am. With lots of wake ups in between. Although she has just come back from a weekend away at her Morris Dancing championships and it took me till 11:15pm to get her to sleep. I had missed her then she threw her bedtime i'm not sleeping routine at me.

Stacks, i think some children do tend to lash out when they are 1st settling into a new routine/nursery. I think they are just testing the boundries. T will hopefully settle down soon.

nut hope the dummy grumps end soon. At least you only have to get through this once. I'm going through something a bit similar with DD, trying to stop feeding her at 2 years. It's a bit harder when they can try and reason back with you "just a tiny bit milk mummy, then lay down and sleep? Please?" It's really helped her sleep though, so I'm trying to stay strong.

pidg check out dynamic earth. It's at the base of Arthurs Seat and would probably be right up DS's street. It's not too big, and has a specific walk through path to follow. Might be aimed a bit older than he is, but my two enjoyed it at younger age. There's a tiny soft play in the basement too.

wl hope the seizures turn out to be not serious. It must be so scary to watch, I hope she isn't too worried herself?
Hope there's good news at your mums scan.

My two go to bed around 7, starting at 6:30 for teeth, pjs and stories. They're both up around 7 too, on a good day. T sometimes closer to 6. E can take an age to get to sleep, sometimes as late as 10pm. She's always obviously tired before bed, but can be much harder to settle if she's too tired, or not tired enough. You've got to find that sweet spot.

hales how did she do!? I love the sound of Morris dancing championships! So cute. It sounds like you didn't get to go with her?
stacks stopping feeding T at 3 was a tough battle. I feel your pain!
Dms results were good - all tumours stable and biggest one shrunk by a third!

Dd2 was worried at bedtime so slept in with dh but was fine and happy this morning - the tooth fairy had been so exciting new focus.

Stacks yes I'd heard of it and kids are free until they're 4. We fly home on his 4th birthday :o

WL, brilliant news well done to your mum, she is doing amazing.

H loved championships i will put some pics on fb later and no i never went with her, it was MiL, SiL DSD and H who went. I worked the majority of the weekend whilst being worried sick. Its the 1st time MiL has had her overnight. But everything went well for the 2 nights. Dp went to visit on the Saturday. And they had themed party nights on the Friday and Saturday night, so she has been kept busy.

WL so glad to hear some positive news about you Mum. Hope she is feeling well.

hales I look forward to seeing H and her Morris dancing

pidj nice timing with the birthday. We managed to fly to my Mum's for our last holiday and not pay for DD. We flew home a week before she turned 2!

There are days I still want a third. It would make so many things more expensive and we are almost out of the baby phase.... but one more baby to snuggle... it sort of appeals some days.

DS is doing better with no dummies. We have agreed that he can maybe have a new McQueen car when he has managed 10 nights with no dummies. But I said that doesn't come from the dummy fairy, that's from mummy, because I am so proud of him

And today he slept from about 7:10pm until almost 7:30 am!! Yeah... I'm not sure he needs a later bed time yet.

Thanks nutella, she is. Apart from the first round, she's been tolerating the chemo really well and after today has just one more session to go. I'll be taking her to the spa for the arvo to celebrate.

nutella sounds like ds is doing really well. Great shout on the pressie from mummy - love that idea.
3 babies is fab for us, but it is more expensive and harder work than 2 - people will tell you that the 3rd just slots in etc which is true to an extent but they still need time/attention/care/clothes/shoes etc. I would never have made any other decision although at one point I wanted 4 and that is most definitely not going to happen!

I've just had an email to say R is ready to move up a swimming level. He's only had 9 lessons no carols and they had 4 weeks off in august! I'm not sure if he's talented or the teacher's sick of him already...

It is bloody hard to catch up Stacks, Iv forgotten most of who said what already!!!

wl glad to hear your mum is tolerating the chemo well, battle on! And hope DD clinic appointment goes well, I still panic if one of my service users seizure, it's the unexpected nature of them.

Stacks I remember having some of those rope stilts when I was a child made out of old milk formula tins (back when formula came in massive metal tins)

F is a brilliant sleeper, although DH is terrible for sticking to a bed time. I like to have him in bed by 8, but DH often keeps him up until 9.30 playing together.

F comes up on the loved names threads all the time, but apart from the other F in this group and one in soft play a couple of years ago Iv never met another F. I get the impression K is not a popular name, strangers give the awkward "that's nice" when ever I say it!!!

K is finally big enough for a sleeping bag, but he does not like it! Gave up trying to make him sleep in it last night, but I'm determined to get him to sleep in it tonight, they are so much easier than blankets in winter.

Pidj well done to R, do you have to get in the pool with him in lessons? I want F to have lessons but DH works shifts so can't guarantee I can leave K with someone every week.

No now he's 3 he goes on his own even as a total novice. I retreat to the viewing gallery with my crochet for half an hour! S could come too but dh finishes at 4 anyway so just logs off early

That's fab pidg!

I want to start the kids at swimming lessons. T had them from a tiny baby, but hit a point where he just screamed through every lesson. It was over £10 for a half hour, and I didn't feel like paying for the privilege any more. He could scream at home for free. Both T and E love swimming now and have loads of water confidence, I on the other hand am an awful swimmer and perhaps always will be. If they fall in somewhere there's no way I could save them, so better get teaching them how to save themselves! I think our local ones are all parent + child, and I'm not sure I'd be allowed in with 2 though. I'll have to look into it and make sure, don't want to miss out on half hour of crochet!

Glad your mum is doing well with the chemo wl I was amazed when I finished mine up how healthy I felt. I didn't really notice the gradual decline I'd had with the cancer, surgery and chemo, but when it was all done it got much better really quick. I think your mum's case is more complicated than mine, but hopefully she'll notice an improvement too.

Iv had a tummy bug today, back and forth to the toilet a million times. Seems to just be me as DH and the kids are fine, though E was sick earlier in the week. I've had the D, she had the V, hopefully between us we've done this bug and it can go do one elsewhere. I did however still have to take the kids to a birthday party this afternoon, not much fun! I just stood back and observed, didn't touch anyone or anything. Still felt weak and dizzy and not really up for the screaming kids, bouncy castles and soft play. Kids had great fun though, and would have been so sad to miss out. It's a real shame though that I didn't get the chance to talk to any of the other parents from T's nursery. I'm really trying to get to know more people in the area, and more mum's particularly, but oh well.

Oh stacks I'm so sorry to hear that you've been through the horridness of cancer and chemo. I had no idea. I do hope you're all clear now?
Fx your tummy is better soon.

Pidj well done to R you must be so proud of him.

So how good are all your DC at listening? H is truely awful. Even her teachers are commenting on it. She is booked in for a hearing test but i think its more shes just ignoring me till i scream like a banshee.

As proud of him as you all are of yours

We have spates of it Hales, mostly he listens then does his own thing till I go banshee though

A doesn't just ignore us. He tells us, very calmly, exactly why we're wrong and why he's going to do what he wants.

Well done R. Keep up the good work!!

We have less straight ignoring and more refusing or running off and hiding if we say something T doesn't like.

Beasty, A is going to go far .

It's a massive problem with H at the moment even my dad told her off the other day, and she can normally do no wrong in his eyes. My main worry is that she seems so reckless about everything and she does everything at 100 mph and following her own rules. She is going to have a bad accident soon i can see it coming a mile away.

It's good getting her hearing tested Hales. Everyone thought one of my neices was incredibly naughty and eventually she was diagnosed as deaf in one ear.

I only booked her in for it due to the not listening and i truthfully i feel guilty for thinking she was clumsy and then finding out she couldn't see very well. So i really don't want to miss if she is having problems.

Oh bless her (and you) hales

T isn't good at listening, though I realised the other day that I've been saying "listen" whereas what I'm expecting is for him to process what I'm telling him. He often hears what is being asked of him, very rarely does what I'm saying or responds to what I'm asking. Even if it's something like what drink do you want with dinner, or what game do you want to play. He struggles to stop moving, playing, talking or thinking long enough to switch his attention over to what's being said.

I've been trying to think of a way of improving things, but not figured anything out yet.