August 2005 toddlers

[Azure]

Here is the new thread for the new year.

Update on DS2. He is confident walking and has a very camp run. We have taken down the main stair-gates as he can cope well enough with walking up and down (the stairs have lots of spindles), and he worked out how to open the gates ages ago anyway. Not many words - a form of mummy, daddy, grandma and grandad but that's it. He is a lovely, happy child with a beautiful laugh. If he wants you to come with him he grabs your clothes and pulls you along. He loves playing with cars (lining them up) & trains (we have all the Thomas ones plus tracks from DS1) and his favourite toy is the big sit-in coupe car at his grandparents', although he can't move himself forwards in it yet, only backwards. He's never needed a haircut, although his curls are long when wet. He loves baths and the swimming pool. I just wish he would sleep later than 5am.

[Azure]

DS2 is drinking gallons of milk - he has over 12oz at bedtime alone . We're still doing afternoon milk (after his nap) but if we're out & about I never bother, so it could be dropped. He eats quite well generally, but the quantity can vary hugely. Sometimes he eats loads, other times barely touches it. After a few days of waking at 6-ish last week, he's back to 5-ish . Sorry to hear about your bad day PP - hope it's better now. Hope things are more settled for you as well TL. QR my DH is away in the States from Sunday to Friday next week. I'm particularly annoyed because it ruins the bank holiday weekend.

I'm having a very cultural week this week - saw Billy Elliott on Tuesday and am seeing On The Town tonight. Two musicals in one week was bad planning, but never mind.

[pookey]

Qr, glad your ds sleeping has settled down. Thats good about your dp's drumming but understandably hard for you. I am so sorry about your friend and you and his family are in my thoughts now this evening

Tigerlion it sounds difficult with the bottles - one of the toddler books might have some good tips. Ds has a bottle after his dinner and I am beginning to get suspicious that he is saving his appetite for the bottle (boccie). I might try and reduce the amount gradually then try a cup. Also similarly to bramblina's suggestion how about a bowl of porridge to line his tummy before bed. DS slept through and until 8 today so have to admit I am reluctant to do anything to upset that! Tbh ds does not eat well at all and basically snacks all day. I think when I start maternity leave I will have to try and put an emphasis on better eating. thanks for the buggy recommendation will check it out.

Azure - hope you enjoy on the town should be a guaranteed good night. Went to see 'happy days' by samuel beckett quite recently and dp made us leave in the interval because he hated everything about it!

The conversation with dp was actually really positive because it helped me to understand why he doesnt want to do things he used to do when we first got together 4 years ago. DP is registered blind but has some useful sight, I guess periodically I will just have to readjust my understanding of how well he can see. He has told me that he has a degenerative condition but I always imagined that it would be a much slower process.

DS doesnt seem to have reached the terrible twos yet and I am dreading it! I am pretty sure when the baby comes in July and just before his birthday he might start to become a little more difficult. At the moment he is going to sleep without any fuss, chatting, playing quite well just generally being cute (if a little cheeky!).
He does still wake at night quite regularly though.

[kate100]

Hi all, remember me?! Have had some serious computer problems, but all fixed now.

My little chap is growing into a lovely boy, he's very happy and sunny and always smiling. He's still big for his age and is a good walker and is getting to be a good runner, usually after his brother, who is his favourite person in the world. He's not much of a talker, well, not any recognised language, more of his own language really, but he says it so expressively I always know what he wants. He's a good eater, sometimes to good, he somtimes hovers around the bin after the leftovers have gone in and looks put out that I haven't let him have them. He makes me laugh everyday at his funny little ways, especially the way that he dances.

I've been doing a day a week supply teaching, so that when I do go back I actually remember what to do and much as I love my boys it's nice to be out of the house for a day and also to earn some money, it's been nice to have a few treats instead of watching every penny like we had to when I wasn't working. We've also had a puppy, so we are now a household of 2 adults, 2 kids, a cat and a dog!! I'm actually running a zoo, or it feels that was sometimes, although at the moment, they're all asleep, so the house is quiet for once and I have 5 minutes to myself.

Sorry to hear that things are difficult for some of you, hope that things are better for you soon.

Azure, you've reminded me that we need to make a will and get some life insurance for me, DH is insured, but I'm not.

I had a wake up call about how quick children grow up, ds1's school place came through this week, I can't believe he'll be going to school in January next year, less than a year from now and it seems like only a minute since he was born. I was so nervous opening the letter, like A-levels all over again, but he got into the school we wanted, so it's all wotked out.

I'll try not to leave it so long next time

[queenrollo]

god...look at the time......

ds cried at 1am, his blanket had come off and he was cold. dp got up and went straight to the loo (it's habit) so i got woken from a lovely relaxing sleep/dreams to sort ds out (he was wailing) and then dp got back into bed and straight back to sleep.

and i'm still bloody awake ....dp is going today at 11.30am as he has a gig at the other end of the country, won't be back till tomorrow so i really can't deal with having ds all day when i'm sleep deprived.....

i'm just sat thinking and realising that i'm not coping....i'm existing, my only reason for getting out of bed every day is ds's smiles. i do have friends but no-one who can have ds for a couple of hours when i need a break, i just can't seem to connect with any local mums and i feel like i'm becoming emotionally dependant on my ds....he's 21 months old and he's my best friend.....

god i sound so pitiful don't i......... my life as a mummy is just a million miles away from anything i ever imagined.

[queenrollo]

i eventually got back to sleep at 5.45am..........dp got ds up this morning and took him out, i was woken at 10.30 with a smile from ds and a lovely cup of tea.

i'm not feeling as bad as i was in the early hours (god tiredness makes everything seem much worse) but i have realised i NEED to make some changes to my life or i'm going to keep going round in circles.

[Azure]

Queenrollo, sounds like you're going through a rough patch. Never underestimate the affect sleep-deprivation has on your mood or sanity. Would it be a possibility for your DS to go to a nursery for one or two mornings a week? I'm hoping that DS2 will start going to one from September because I think it's useful for his socialisation (and to do all that messy play that I'm reluctant to do at home!). We'll still have a nanny when I'm at work so it's for his own benefit. It would give you the chance to have a few hours to yourself.

Kate, glad to hear from you. Kids certainly do grow up fast - I couldn't believe it when we had to get DS1's school uniform for the first time.

[benandalex]

hi im new i have an august 2005 toddler his names alex hes a monkey never sits still currently has chicken pox lol. i also have a ben who is 4 on the 22nd of this month i hope u dont mind me posting

[queenrollo]

welcome to the thread benandalex......excuse me being down in the dumps!! actually i've cheered up now.........

have been thinking about putting ds in nursery one morning a week but am restricted to the one in the small town i live in, and i have misgivings about sending him there.......although it's attached to the school, in the last term before they start school the reception teacher has them two afternoons a week so they already know her when they move up. i like the idea of that......

money is an issue too.......it's £8 for 2.5 hours (don't know how this compares with where you guys are)....and i don't begrudge the staff getting a good wage etc, but it's just £8 a week i can't afford at the moment.

my driving lessons are going reasonably well....and being able to drive will improve things drastically.....i will be able to drop ds off at my mums and get stuff done, but mum doesn't drive so she can't come to me.

[pookey]

Sorry things have been so rough QR, wish I could suggest something to help. Maybe you could consider retraining or something, if you were working or studying it might help - my work sucks but it is nice to have a change of scene and interact with other adults beyond the whole mum and baby thing.

Hi benandalex and hi again kate!

Oh by the way I curse myself whenever I post about ds because he has this weekend decided the terrible twos might be worth a try afterall!

[queenrollo]

i do work....6 hours a week for the MIL..she does private tutoring and i am a teaching assistant. but because i don't drive, and have no-one to look after ds i haven't been for two weeks because dp's drumming work clashes!!
i have loads of gardening to do at MIL's but until i can drive i can't just pop down when it's convenient for me.....i'm relying on MIL to run me about and she's a busy lady! so i have to fit around her routine a lot of the time, which to be honest she has shifted around my regular weekly outings. my MIL is worth her weight in gold!

MIL is having ds while i have my driving lesson this morning and i'm thinking of asking her if she'll have ds one morning a week....if i can get the house in order i'll feel better. plasterer has nearly finished the kitchen now, so after 2 years we will finally get the kitchen done!

[PanicPants]

Hi all

And hello again to Kate, and to benandalex.

Lol pookey - you should never tempt fate!

QR, you do sound like your having a bad time of it at the moment. Love andhugs to you, it can be so hard sometimes, espcially when you've been up during the night

Not much news this week. Ds is being his normal cheerful self most of the time. But the cutest thing of all is that now ds will help clear away the table after dinner. He puts the placemats away in the cupboard all by himself!

[queenrollo]

ahem ........PMT? i got AF today.
i seem to be settling into some sort of normal cycle again after it all going haywire. it had not occurred to me that my mood swings were hormonal........so i'm off to the health food shop to dose myself with herbal remedies!

i feel a bit rotten that all i seem to do on here is moan, but this is where i come to release it all when i feel bad.

[bramblina]

Hi benandalex, what is your ds's date in August? Hello again kate!!

QR, I'm also feeling a bit torn, about thinking I should start leaving ds at the childcare centre an hour here and there, the only interaction he gets is at toddler groups which are few and far between just now, bank holidays, school exams nearby etc and I'm starting to get a bit concerned that I'm not doing him any favours by never leaving him, with dh being aways o much I don't think that's "great" either. I'm going to start another thread as there's too much to ask about it on this one, but I'll post a link as it would be interesting to see if any of you feel the same, is it to do with the age ds is just now. We're also quite rural and what you said made a lot of sense to me. Don't apologise for sounding sad, that's the beauty of mumsnet.

PP funny you say that, ds likes to help with jobs like that too, and likes to "set" the table, putting a fork (pronounced very dubiously!) at each place, then pointing to each one and reciting whose it is, "Mummy fok, daddy fok, dakan(Jaxon) fok" or juice or anything! Tonight we say down to dinner and he pointed to everything on his plate, and announced what it was, woccli(brocolli), tayto, daket(carrot), nice ham- this cracks me up! We were buying a packet of the nicer stuff you can get, thinck cut or whatever so I called it nice ham, as opposed to wafer thin etc, so now he thinks it's called "nice ham" and it's so funny! Also, when I started giving him a snack in the afternoons and he started copying everything I say, I asked him if he would like a "wee snack", as you would, well he now askes for a "wee nack" and it's sooo cute!

Ds cut the top two incisors this weekend, so only 4 left to go, he's been so good with his teeth I'm very grateful.

Today we were out in the garden, he was watering the flowers, when he grabbed hold of a poppy head and wouldn't let go so when I went near him to remove it, he pulled it and snapped it off on purpose! He got quite a row as he'd done it to be totally defiant, anyone else finding this?

[kate100]

I am the queen of PMT QueenRollo Poor Dh and the children have to run for cover when I'm due, I am hideous, I don;t like me, so I can't expect them to. I take evening primrose oil everyday which really helps and as I have a mirena coil I don't have it too often which is also a blessing. Keep going with the driving, it will be worth it when you pass, it was for me, ds1 was 9 months old when I passed my test and it made things so much easier, I could go where I wanted when I wanted and I had so much more time.

DS2 loves to help around the house, especially emptying the dishwasher and starting the washing machine. He's also great at tidying up, much better than ds1 and is preety handy with a dust pan and brush.

DS2 has all his teeth and has had for quite some time and one of has favourite things is to brush his teeth, he just loves it.

I know it's early, but any thoughts on birthday presnts, I have no idea, as I've had 2 boys we've got everything ds2 could want or need and we have so much stuff, the house is full to bursting and I'm madly e-baying at the moment, but I want to get my little chap something, I just don't know what. Any ideas gratefully received.

[suzi2]

Not much to report here... still winging it with DD and DS lol. DS has plenty of tantrums, anger and tears. Still very few words but he's getting a little more confident and says a few things. I wake in the morning with no idea about what mood either of them will be in. Anyone else like that? DS can be sweetness and light one day and hellish the next. He's struggling with teeth (incisors I think) so that makes him grouchy. I reckon at least half of his life so far has been struggling with teeth and grumpy lol.

He too likes to help to tidy up. He's very handy with the dustbuster these days . On Monday, he refused to eat his pizza. He then got a pan out of the drawer and 'requested' a wooden spoon. He put his pizza slices in the pan, stirred them around for about 10 mins, then took a fresh plate out of the cupboard, put the pizza on and ate it happily! Once he was finished he put the dirty things back in the cupboard . He also LOVES changing DDs nappy and when we're done, he takes the nappy for me and puts it in the bin. He's quite a handy wee helper.

[bramblina]

Oh bless suzi, how sweet!
Ds is usually happy in the mornigns just now but yes I can relate to what you're saying when he was cutting some teeth, not sure when. He's back to being happy for a half hour before I need to lift him, he was sitting up this morning, playing with his shawl (most prized possesion lol) and when I open his blind he gives me a rundown of all the animals in his cot. He's still a bit sleepy and clingy in the mornings so we don't lose the shawl till breakfast time, with a lot of distraction. Today he decided to play in his pushchair in the hall after luch, ended up sitting in it watching the fish tank and nearly fell asleep! 2 Weeks ago he actually did fall asleep on his little chair, shawl draped over his head, mesmerised by the fish! I got it on camcorder, noddy dog and all .
I passed my exam! I am sooo relieved! I now have qualification to be an International Transport Manager (and as I said before, dh's boss!) so we now need some money to then apply for the Operator's license- and that takes 9 weeks so it will be months before we're anywhere, still one hurdle over. And I managed to prove to myself my brain hasn't turned to mush afterall!
I had a guy over from the council today, I'm going to try to get a playpark up on our side of the village (which is 10 miles away) and it seems possible. Can you believe it though, there is no funding (from the council) for new parks, and all the money different bodies give away for such strange things, all we need is £20,000 for the kids! He's going to get things going and I can take over when he gets some costing and info for me. Here's hoping.

[suzi2]

Where has everybody gone??????

[bramblina]

thought the same last night suzi but I talk too much already so had to avoid posting!

Anyway, I'm still here!

[suzi2]

I think when it's drops off "threads I'm on" lists it loses people lol

Nothing to report here. Same as usual

[bramblina]

Ah ha but I have it in my "watching" one! Lol.
I have just tried to add a pic of ds to my page but it just didn't happen. Did the new page thing replace member profiles? I have a cute one of him in his kilt! Since last week when we point a cmaera at him he pulls the most amazing frown, it's hysterical!

[queenrollo]

i'm still about.....ds is using lots more words now, and has started saying 'mummy'....my heart melts every time he says it.

we're really looking forward to glastonbury now, can't believe it's only a few weeks away.

other than that nothing to report!!

[Azure]

I'm here too. DS2 has had a cough & a cold the last few nights, poor thing. He normally says "mum mum" to me, although sometimes still "dada". My wonderful nanny told me she was pregnant last week - I'm delighted for her, but unfortunately it means finding someone else for the boys. I'm sooo tempted to give up work, but we have such a large mortgage and I worry about the knock-on effects of pensions etc. as I'm in a good pension scheme at work. DH has said - half-jokingly - about taking a family gap year (or two), by heading down to New Zealand or Australia, DH getting a job there and renting out our house in London. Tempting, if only we had the guts. QR - rather you going to Glastonbury than me! I must admit I'm a more fluffy-hotel-towels girl myself, but have a great time.

[pookey]

I'm still here just a bit knackered - ds not sleeping so well and I am getting uncomfy with pg and very humongous - although bizarely only 2lb heavier (thanks in part to initial 7lb weight loss during nauseous phase). My dad is having his prostrate removed 4 days before my due date (6th July) but he seems fairly positive and has joked he will be glad to see the back of it .

I am feeling really happy right now and ds is adorable and likes running up to me saying 'culdle' and giving me teletubby hugs even down to saying aaah! he is very strong literally and physically and it can be a struggle to get him to so something he doesn't want. He isn't as domesticated as some on here but likes to be given a paper towel so he can do some cleaning (scrubbing random things like his push along toys or the side of a cabinet).

Ds has dropped his bottle no fuss, but it has not helped with his eating. All he wants are biscuits 'bicket, bicket, bicket, BICKET!!' I give him the organix ones but I fear they do not make up all the food groups.

Oh and i gave in and lopped off his curls which was very tricky and it looks pretty crooked, the strange thing is he looks more girly with short hair

[colinandcaitlinsmommy]

I'm laughing at myself thinking how crazy you pregnant ones are to be pregnant again with one toddler, and then I realize that that is exactly where I was 2 years ago. Oh well.

I can't figure out where the time has gone. Caitlin is so small compared to Colin at this age, but is so much more advanced in so many ways. I wish Colin would have had an older sibling to learn everything from. She used to call Colin "bub-bub", but is starting to be able to say Colin, but it comes out more like Collie. Its cute. She's getting to be a LOT friendlier with people, and DH and I have actually gotten to go out a few times without her, and she hasn't had a meltdown. She still doesn't have that much hair, but the hair she does have is starting to get longer and stick out funny, but I hate to cut it off, because it took so long for her to get any hair.

It is so nice to live where we do now, the weather is beautiful, in the low 70's and sunny, compared to being a month away from most days being in the 100's.

We finally have sold DH's mom's house. It is hard, because that is the last of her estate we have had to deal with, and it really hit us hard that she is gone now. I can't believe it has been six months since she died from cancer. The thing I think she would be happy about if she was still here is the fact that we are taking the money from the sale, and both of our kids will have complete college funds already.

We still can't get her to stay in her bed at night. She goes to bed okay, but still comes in our room at about 12:30ish. We are waiting for her to grow out of it. We tried to keep her in her room, but just ended up with hours and hours of crying several nights in a row, so both of us were fall down exhausted after a few nights, while she just took longer naps in the day to compensate for her being up all night. I've actually gotten used to her coming in there, and don't even wake up anymore when she comes in.

Glad to hear from all of you who are still posting. I forget to check this thread, because most of the time people comment on it in the mornings, when it is the middle of the night over here, and it falls off the page before I wake up.

[LazyLine]

My heart melted today when DS said "My Mummy"!

Was surprised as he has stopped saying proper words for the last few weeks in favour of constant babbling.