November 2014 - the one where they answer back.

[MrsAukerman]

New thread.
Hop aboard.

So cute moggle! Sounds like a brilliant trip. I would be dancing on the spot to get all that 'free' money

I ended up buying dd2 a pair of silly jelly sandals in next - size 3. They are passably ok but slightly on the small side and not practical for running etc. she is making do with a pair of old canvas shoes from next (they were dd1's) which are size 4 but they are getting smelly as its been too warm for socks here!

She really really needs crocs but in size 3-4 which crocs don't seem to do. It's 2-3 or 4-5. Annoying. Having the same issue with dd1 who needs size 7-8 which doesn't seem to exist. Tried the dunnes crocs size 8 on her which are huge- but only a fiver so will keep them for next summer.
I am actually obsessing about croc sizes here. Anyone know of good dupes that might carry those sizes?

Not that I want to feed your obsession, but I have read that they make the official crocs in about three different countries and the sizing is slightly different in each.. plus there are width options too... it looks like a minefield! I like with sandals at least it is easier to see if they are an OK fit round the toes!

Yeah halfstar that's why I didn't snap up those crocs in tkmaxx - the sizing is weird.

DS is pottering about in bare feet a lot these days anyway! It's been roasting here for 2 weeks! About to go to the playground now and spend 20 bloody minutes on the swings bored out of my mind

Anna keep positive, last few weeks before DS goes to nursery and then you will have time for yourself.

I'm still recovering!! I'm actually wondering if part of it is due to the 5:2 diet I'm on. I've still got terrible stomach cramps. Great for the diet though :)

I'm terrified about losing the sleepsnuggler. DD refuses the grobag and any form of covers. Even when she joins us in bed not even a millimetre of toe may be touched by duvet. and she wriggles so much in bed I doubt a duvet will last long so when winter comes around and she doesn't fit the sleepsnuggler I will be stumped.

Welcome back moggle - sounds like a great trip and wow to the bonus of a refund!! 'Kind hands' is really working for us now. She still does it but stops immediately when we say that combined with the sign for 'hurt'. Won't be long before she uses it against me though, this morning when I strapped her in tight to her car seat she said 'ow mummy that hurts' along with extremely exaggerated signing for hurt.

We abandoned grobags around when she turned 1. Was always worried about her standing up in grobag and tripping in it against the cot bed frame. So as soon as it was official ok for duvet, we did the swap.

Still just about in a grobag here, can't wait to get rid. Too hot for one really but the one night it was left off she woke to have a scamper around the cot and then a cry. Dh gave her a pillow the other night as a last resort to get her back to sleep:
Dh: (after three hours awake with her) 'well what DO you want then? Do you want a pillow?'
Dd: (sorrowful sob) 'YEAH!'

And that seemed to do the trick so she had last night again and slept through. Who knows.

Still obsessing about the crocs here, they really are good shoes for smallies. But I'm going to have to go to an actual shop armed with either the kids or their current shoes

Ps Strawberry I laughed so much about your Dd holding out her arms to random surly teens to be picked up. Must be priceless to watch and I bet they are secretly chuffed
No way would dd2 do that, she's still quite cautious with strangers.

We find the pillow works to help them get to sleep but after that he's halfway down the cot wedged horizontally anyway!

halfstar we noticed that DS was really messy the first 2/3 nights after abandoning the grobag. It was like he had discovered his legs again! It was bloody annoying actually as he just gleefully kicked the bars for about half an hour. He still does it, but not for as long now.

At the playground there was an Amelie, an Evie Mae and a Robyn all DSs age. Am busily noting down all girls names now lol. Though Amelies mum said she was already pissed off with everyone just saying "Emily".

anna I think there is a book with most baby names to make the choice easier.

Oh we have loads of name books! There's too much choice, that's the problem!

Everyone! Go make this:

Put 4 very ripe bananas in freezer for at least 4 hours. Then chop them up and blend them.

That's it. Fucking delicious banana ice cream, proper creamy texture and all with nothing else needed. Put some bananas in the freezer tonight and you can give the toddlers guilt free ice cream tomorrow.

Thank you Annabel Karmel.

Half star that's my df ice cream of choice :)

We still user grobags just brought 18-36mth ones got 1tog for summer and a thin muslin one for v hot nights.

Evening all - seems like AGES since I last typed here....we've been away for a week to visit the in-laws (most successful visit yet as DD 100% fit and healthy, was being a right cheeky monkey - which GPs loved....; and was generally the star of the show).

We're still using grobags - like eastmids have the 18-36mth ones in 1tog but am also considering getting the 0.5tog one as monitor is currently reading 27 in her room (but, she's currently asleep wearing a short-sleeved vest and she was the same last night when it was bloody hot). I'm a bit nervous about going to duvet as am convinced she'll kick it off / push it away / will use it as another excuse to shout out...

Sleeping is pretty consistent here at the mo - 10 hours to the dot. Normally it's 7pm-5am, this morning it was 6.45am-4.45am. It's not the end of the world, but I'd love another hour sometimes! Also suddenly having temper flare ups at bath / bed time. She used to love the bath, now she can't get out quick enough and our entire bedtime routine has gone out the window. She's only happy if she's sitting on me and I'm reading the book (as opposed to DH); she fights getting into the sleeping bag etc etc. BUT, as soon as we pick her up and say our few words before putting her into bed, she's absolutely fine and there's not a peep out of her once she's in bed....strange...maybe a version of this 18mth sleep regression????

Apart from that, no more teething (at the mo); no words (at all); and she's become really very helpful - in a very cute 18mth old kind of way

haven't Do you do any signing? Saved many a meltdown before dd could talk. Although your probabaly has a much longer temper than dd who loses her shit in a split second!

Our childminder says that because we forgot to pack her yogurt in her lunchbag she said 'no yoghurt' at lunch. Do babies even have a concept of something not being there???

Mmm I love that banana ice cream. It's delish with some peanut butter added if you want to make it a bit more protein y.

We still use gro bags here and will for a while I think. She's still very wriggly. And the bag is a massive sleep cue for her, so I don't want to to fix what ain't broke. We'll probably wait til a few months before she's going to move into a bed which won't be til next spring at least (barring any advances in climbing skills!). Have been looking at pillows though.

Re ice cream: DH buys frozen fruit and ice cubes, but you could surely freeze normal fruit and make your own ice cubes, and blends them to make ice cream. I don't know if that would work in a normal blender. He bought a stupidly expensive, very powerful one a couple of years ago, which is only used to make ice cream now the novelty has worn off.

Re gro-bags: I bought a couple of 18-36m ones, so I hope she stays in them for ages. I can't remember when DD1 didn't use them anymore. At the moment she is sleeping in a vest but still has gro-bag on, probably because I can only sleep with something covering at least the bottom half of my legs so I assume she would want to be covered too.

She sleeps through the night more often than not at the moment, but both DDs are getting up increasingly early and it takes forever to get her to sleep. Previously we had to wake them at 7am to get ready for the school run, but now they are waking up just after 6, or just before 6 today, which is not a time we want to get up (though I appreciate some of you would be grateful to get up that late). At bedtime I used to feed her to sleep and put her in the cot. That doesn't usually work anymore, so I feed her and put her in the cot awake and sit near the cot. She tends to lie down and talk to herself and sing for a while, then keep sitting or standing up, then cry louder and louder. Often it is 9pm and I am still there waiting for her to go to sleep, fed up and waiting for my dinner. If I try to leave the room, she cries even more, but I wonder whether she would cry for less time and sleep sooner if I just left her. Just leaving her to cry at bedtime is not something I have ever really been up for for either DD, but sitting there until 9pm all the time isn't working.
Also, because she is going to sleep at 9ish, waking up at 6ish, sometimes waking in the night, having about 1hr nap at best, she is tired and miserable for much of the day (and so am I).

happy we are having to sit with him too. Luckily he demands to go to bed at 6.45. Then he bounces around like a loon for 30 mins before settling down. Asleep by 7.30.

So even though he's up at 6am these days it's not too bad. He's still shatters though and went for a nap at 11.15 this morning and I'm leaving him till close on 1 now to try to catch up a bit.

He's happy and settles eventually if I'm there but would cry if left and tbh I don't have the energy to make a drama of it right now when he does go down for 7.30.

But if it was any longer I couldn't hack it tbh. What time does the whole thing last for you?

Haven't ours is 6.30-5/6 usually 5 and this morning 4 but better than up every hr.

Evening everyone. Glad to have found you all again!

Ladydolly, no haven't really tried the signing thing except for "please" and "thank you" (and that was only by accident - I thought she was kind of doing a "whoops" thing by putting her hand to her mouth until nursery enlightened me about the Makaton signing they do....

Eastmids totally agree that the solid sleep is better than being up during the night. Her 10 hours (to the dot) sleep yesterday was 6.45pm - 4.45am. Tonight she didn't fall asleep as soon as her head hit the mattress and I had to go in a few times until around 7.30pm when she fell asleep. I'll be able to test the "10hr theory" tomorrow and see if she wakes up at 5.30am!

Welcome back weeonion - what's your news?

Hi all! Summer finally here, hooray! Lots of time outside and splashing about in water. Lovely. Ds has started saying bye bye to his wee in the toilet, and apparently said 'wheel' to dh when they were out for a walk today.
He's still in a gro bag. Just to stop him getting off the bed, though some of my friends said that their little ones walk around in theirs, so maybe he would stay put.

Getting a bit fed up of the wake ups though. 2am every night, milk, then sleep. What can we do....? Feed him more during the day, feed him less, held back on naps, always the same... Grrrr

So lovely to read through about your rollicking toddlers! Where has time gone!!

Dd2 rules the roost here. Very bossy and seems to think she is the same age and therefore has same capabilities as her big sis. V v v different kids with dd2 being alot more confident, sociable and out there. She never stops chattering and repeating us and will push her stool over to fridge and get her water bottle herself. Has also realised where the stash of family biscuits and treats are.

Dd1 is good. She was recently in joseph the musical on its uk tour and v excited to be on stage with Joe mcelderry. She has 3 more auditions lined up for shows. I honestly NEVER thought this would be part of my mothering but it as helped her shyness.

Anyhow lovelies - what's the news with you all. Annarose - congrats!!!!!!!!

I obviously need to be going to sleep earlier to deal with getting up before 6am everyday, but that is hard because I want to fit in some evening and it takes until after 9pm to get her to sleep most of the time or I don't get home from work until after 9.30pm. DH and I do not take it in turns to get up early with them, because I leave the house for work at 6.30am, including on some weekend days, so both of us have to be up early then. However, it was half-term last week, so I was off work and DH only worked half the days and still no lie-in for me at all.