Nov '05 Toddlers plus baby bro's (& sis)

[Rodeo]

Here we are!

Morning! Good luck for this week CHACHA! Wow, home schooling you trendy thing ,there's a good thread on mn I think about it (which I'm sure you know about!)
I only have August booked off as holiday (although I have to go into 'old' work for last week of it) and then I start the new job on September 1st. Yes, I'm looking forward to it, though a bit nervous too! Here's to a good, positive week for everyone, and boo to the rain returning!!!

Rodeo wins full marks for observation and paying attention . We are indeed shopping for a second home, not quite in Brighton but in Goring by sea which is a posh part of Worthing I believe. We had lunch there with DH's family on saturday and it was lovely, the area is sooo gorgeous. We saw some great houses (just from the outside) and I can't wait to start shopping for real, which should be spring next year.

The time away in Brighton was fab, although the hotel was a bit pants and I've been having troubles going back on the pill so I had stomach cramps and headaches. Anyone else had that? I was on the pill for 14 years before having kids and now I'm trying to go back on it I'm reacting really badly??

Diege - grrr at 'friends' and their comments, I have one who always manages to have a little dig at noo. Not driving is not an issues, in fact I do drive and I'd still rather get around by walking/taxi (not the tube or bus anymore because it's difficult and dangerous).

Chacha - sorry to hear things are getting a bit crazy for you, think it must be a combi of boys and the terrible twos. Agree with Diege that it's hard to ignore the bad behaviour when they're doing something that threatens their or their younger siblings safety. I find noo quite funny sometimes when she's doing something just to get our attention - her books are held together by a lot of sellotape!!

DH off to the Edinburgh fest on wednesday until the end of the month. Must confess I quite like it when he gets away sometimes as I get to eat dinner with noo and go to bed at 8pm .

My cleaner is on holiday this month and we usually have her neice in to cover it, but she's not very good so I asked the person who babysits for us to do it, as her employer is on holiday so she has the month off and needs the money. The trouble is she's really rubbish and spends hours here without cleaning anything. Need to have words but can't risk losing her babysitting srevices so have to tread very carefully

Afternoon!
Haha, thanks Nova Sounds lovely anyway, I'm not surprised your excited! Not sure about the Pill. I've just pinched a months load from my sister as my periods always collide with a bloody holiday!
Diege, are you over your fraught weekend yet? It's so tiring keeping 3 entertained when they're off all week! Jess has recently started using 'Oi!' something I think she may have picked up from me over the hols She uses it in context too! Oops!
Chacha - Bottle ban has gone pretty well! She's got the hang of the anyway-up cups so has been having her bedtime milk out of them for the last 2 nights. She had been drinking out of cups in the day, but still using bottle at night. Though I'd imagine it'd be quite hard for Z seeing his little brother using them, maybe you could stop them at the same time? When Y turns 1?
Beks - good luck with your the start of your ironing empire! A local lady round here charges £12.50 a bag which I (and my friends) think is a bargain! I'm more of a iron as I go person - a full basket of unironed clothes depresses me - and mine was always full! So I now pack them out of sight
Hope Twinkle & Brownie are having lovely hols! Hello to everybody else - Londoner (the kids have finally managed to convince me to use Jelli Baff tonight!), L&S, GG & Feety - that's all of us now isn't it! 11? x x x

Hi guys,
Bleugh at the Jelli Baff Rodeo, you're a braver lady than I! How did it go? My kids assure me it returns to normal water after a while and you don't need to shower the kids off afterwards? How does it work?
ChaCha, wow, homeschooling, am v.impressed and I can really see you making a success of it too. Hope you managed an easier day today, it must be doubly hard with no respite at the weekends and with a poorly mother to worry about too, sending lots of strength you way{{{.
Beks, wow to you too, ironing sounds a great idea, things like ironing don't get done in my house much either- more in a to-order way like you Rodeo, but now if it was for money that's different isn't it and also ironing someone else's stuff is easier too like doing someone else's washing-up.. why is that? I think it's a great way to carry on with the SAHM but earn cash. My only suggetion would be to try and keep business and friends separate. Lol at your boys being pretty equal in the punch-up area, you took me right back to when mine were smaller, they really can give it some can't they! On a positive note, now older, mine are pretty civil to eachother and get on v.well.
Nova, what a bummer re: the pill, I have to say I noticed a real change in my body after each child and have heard others say this too. Perhaps a different type/brand might suit you now, or have you tried changing already? Perhaps worth remembering also that as it took 9 months for your body to change through pg that maybe it's still re-jigging? Lucky you on Brighton home, agree it's a lovely holiday destination.
Diege, hang in there!! The holidays are a very different can of worms and agree that it's hard when you don't get any space to think esp with your early starts. So glad you're looking forward to starting your new job, blimey can't believe September is only a few weeks away now, noooooooooooo! No more lie ins for me once the hols are over so I'm happy to prolong August tbh.
Love the pics of your girls btw and cannot belieeeeve how much hair L has!
ChaCha, also loved all your new pics.
Baby pointed to some graffiti on a playground climbing frame today and said "that's ree hobble" .
Hi to everyone I've missed, night!

A local shop sells that jelly baff Rodeo, but I think we'll stick to bubbles!

Have already tried changing pills, Londoner, but I think you're right. My body feels very different, especially after the second one, my hormone levels must be screwed! My friend also had the same though recently, although she didn't know it was the pill until she stopped taking it for a different reason. It's just a really convenient form of contraception for me - can I ask what you all do??

Noo hasn't had a bottle since we had miniman. Before then she used to have only one before bed using a cup the rest of the time. When miniman came along though I couldn't be bothered to clean her bottle and his so it went in the bin!! She now doesn't bother having anything to drink before bed and I must say it has certainly helped with the leaky nappy problems we'd been having and she doesn't wake up any hungrier. Perhaps you could do what I heard about someone doing with dummies - say that when they hit a certain age bottles start to taste bad, and paint the teat with that nail stuff that stops you biting them?? I just did what I did with noo's dummies and got her to throw the bottle in the bin and wave bye bye to it. If cups are the problem I find noo really likes to drink out of the water bottles that have sports caps. This is very handy for when we're out and about as we can all share the same bottle and I don't have to heave loads of different drinking vessels around.

Hi all,
Well done on the bye to bottles Rodeo & Nova, sounds like you're really in tune with you lo's and picked just the right time to change- it's so great when something just works isn't it?
Nova, contraception [sigh], it's a source of much thought in our house too and agree the pill is soooo great.... when it works... but when it goes wrong it can play havoc. Can no longer use the combined since having kids for same reason as you but am just trying out the mini-pill it's early days but so far so good. Had booked in for a Mirena coil after birth of Baby until on the day read a horrific thread on mn about it! Tbh dh and I have been pretty hap-hazard about contraception and have the family to show for it lol, but feel our family is complete right now (although dh is as broody as ever so who knows- if we won the lottery etc). I feel it's a tricky one on so many fronts, for example, if we had been using a more effective method/my counting had been more accurate we would only have 1 child right now and I am so grateful for each of ours. Anyway, you didn't ask for a ramble did you! I'm using Norgeston mini-pill. Good luck with the cleaner/b.sitter situation, softly softly eh?

It's raining here, better get on with tidying up........... which is pretty hard with a very demanding and clingy big baby atm, struth, she doesn't want anyone but me these days, anyone else? (Very flattering and all but boooooy do I get a bit frustrated at the constraits of this at times!)

Morning! Urghh horrible rain here - have promised the dds a trip to 'Jungle Jims' and Pizza Hut, but one of those days that you feel like staying inside! RODEO - what IS this jelly bath stuff?? Sounds like my lots would love it - anything slimy! Love J's 'Oi' - classic ; we have finger wagging and 'noooo!!!' - wonder where she gets that one from .
Good to hear drivers get around on public transport NOVA - made me feel better! Thanks for everyone's comments about my 'friends' non-driving dig - must be something going on with her I think for her to make such hurtful comments - others have also been on the receiving end . Hi LONDONER! Oooh do I detect the remotest possibility of a number five?? ; I have broody dh too! It'll be this time next year that I'll be ttc no.4 - maybe you might be persuaded by then
Oh and contraception...well, my cylcles went crazy after dd2, and vary from 23 to 35 days. Can't use the pill (blood pressure), and mini-pill resulted in dd1, when taken 3 hours late!! . We use 'natural' methods, that haven't as yet resulted in any mistakes! I'm particlarly careful at the moment, as a pregnancy annoucement wouldn't go down too well at new work I'd imagine!
One questions for those with 3 plus (not to scare 1s and 2s!); did you find that it was baby 3 that finally ruined your body? Sprang back to prebaby weight pretty soon after dds 1 &2, and while my weight is OK, my tummy won't ever recover I feel! Still a size 8 becaise I've got tiny bones, but have to squish in their 'coverings' into jeans etc

Diege, nah, my body was 'ruined' after ds1 by stretchmarks but have always managed to get same sort of shape back after. If you're talking more about loose skin then I found after the big gap before I had Baby mine had gone, think it takes time esp when you've lost weight quickly. Find I don't actually want to be tiny any more though and enjoy more of a womanly body these days so just happily filling out the loose bits. Like you I have always thought I would be pushing my body too far to spring back again each time and had low expectations but in reality it's been fine. I think if you've sprung back before you'll do it again although it might take a little bit longer each time is all.

• at you becoming pg while on mini pill, that's shaken my world a bit, I mean it wouldn't be the end of the world but it's not my plan and how did you find out you were pg and when? Discussed all sorts at length with the nurse at my gp's and she reckoned it was as effective as sterilisation which has quite a high rate of reversion, if that's the right term for the tubes reuniting - imagine? Can't use coil as am allergic to cheap metals dwaaaaarling and also to spermicide, great, last 2 children were conceived while using the rhythm method as I just didn't manage to get my calculations right despite having a clockwork body, am very glad I did though but can't keep on as we'd quite possibly end up with another 4 or 5!

I've just had Implanon fitted (the contraceptive implant thingy in your arm) cos I had to come off the pill with hbp.
SO far, so good. No periods after 1 slight bleed just after I had it fitted.
It lasts 3 years after which I'll probably have a sterilisation

Thanks for your input ladies.

Iklboo I saw something about Implanon on another MN thread yesterday so did a bit of research on it. My main fear is that the potential side effects are the same as the pill and I wouldn't want to feel the same way and then have to get the implant taken out again. Also it can make the bleeding erratic and one of my main problems atm is lots of bleeding at any point of the cycle. My sister also had the injection and bled for about 3 months, and my mum ended up with a hysterectomy because of heavy bleeding (along with other reasons), so I think it runs in our family. It's soooo frustrating and DH is patient but getting a bit fed up waiting for me sort it out. We really don't want any more children though.

How about a copper coil Nova?

Evening!
Jelli Baff was FOUL! Bleugh! Do not buy! Had an awful artificial salt & vinegar smell and it lumped together - the lumps didn't disappear with the 'back to water' powder so I had to fight to push them down the plughole! B & J thought it was great though but never again!
Nova, hmm, how about booking dh in for the snip?! That won't affect your hormone levels at all I had the injection between B & J and I found it really suitable, though dp says I was more irritable but that could just have just been him being more irritating !
Diege, hope you enjoyed your day (and Pizza)! We've got Pizzas for tea too, albeit frozen variety!
Hi Londoner! Aw at broody dh Do you think you could be persuaded?!
Anyway, children supposedly having an early night so better be off, bye! x

Evening . LOL at pushing jelly bits through plughole RODEO - in a strange way I want some even more now . Pizza was great thanks, though we got very wet on the way back from playbarn (where dd2 had massive tantrum ). It's sunny now though! LONDONER, ooh spooky,...I also have a metal allergy and one to spermacide, lol. My bits swell up to about 5 times the normal size, lol Oh and re: mini-pill pregnancy, this all happened when I had been seeing dh for 5 months , so was a bit of a surprise all round! I took it religiously at 8pm every night, but forgot that night and took it on return from pub instead (ie. 11.30ish). Apparently it's rare, but can happen, that being out even by a few hours can effect things. Period was 5 days late, and all my food tasted strange, and 5 bfps later, dd1 was on her way . So let that be a warning....
Right, bad menstrual migraine, so bed for me...

Hi, not been on for a while. Been busy at work, and sorting this kitchen out. Nearly there though thankfully. Got to finish painting, then we can start fitting. Wahoo! Had my hair done today. Couldn't decide the other day whether to have my colours put back in or go back to ginger, so I bought about £20 of hair dyes , dyed it ginger, but it wasn't as ginger as I wanted, so had it cut today. Then came home, dyed it dark brown, just waiting for the pink to be ready to rinse off now!

Diege - Beks post the other day should have given away what the PP article was about. I replied to a reques ton MN, but she didn't want me for that, but asked if she could use me for a future article.

Nova - my periods changed totally after having S. I don't like the pill for a lot of reasons. I don't like taking tablets of any kind, I'm useless at remembering to take medication, and since we've decided we definately don't want anymore I really don't want the hassle of it all. DP won't have the snip and I can't have the implant because it screwed me right up for the 8 months I had it in. Sorry, thats a bit of a ramble and doesn't really help, but just to say that it does seem normal for things to change after having LOs!

Rodeo - that Jelli Baff looks foul, adn by the sounds of it, it really is!

Well I'd better go, and see how pink my hair is!

Evening,

Lol at lumps down plughole Rodeo, sounds like sick, would have thought that was more than enough to put you right off Diege! Re: being persuaded to have more kids, tbh I think 5 would feel excessive.. even for me, it makes my brow furrow trying to imagine it and it just won't compute... can imagine having another baby but just can't imagine having a total of 5 children if that makes sense? I would be really happy sticking with the family I now have which is why the subject of contraception grabs me so. Hope you get your early night btw.

Thanks for the info on how your pg happened while on the mini pill Diege, wow, that must have been a challenge and a half in a pretty new relationship, you are obviously meant to be together. I will make sure I take mine on the hour ! Well done on your day out with the girls and I hope your migraine clears quickly.

GG, well done on the kitchen front and I hope your hair colour is a big success.

Right, back to James Bond.

Just a quick one, dp watching Resident Evil and all I can hear is limbs being torn off and blood spurting so I'm going to retire to bed...
Glad you had a nice day Diege, though had to LOL at dd2's tantrum - her and Joe are peas in a pod! Things will never be peaceful for us will they?! Hope your migraine has gone
Oh Londoner, if anyone can manage 5 it's you (in fact, I thought you had 5 already ) How was James Bond!?
GG, good luck with the hair colour! And come on, tell us about yuor article - I didn't get your cryptic clues!
Right, night all OH, before I go - showy off moment - I ran the furthest I ever ran tonight! 5, yes that's 5 miles! Was great! Took us an hour - got gassing to another woman and it went really quick

Wow Rodeo, 5 miles. Well done.

Hair looks good, just gotta put some purple in it now. Then my hair will fall out.

PP article was about pain free births. I'm one of those people that most mums hate because having babies is so easy!

Hello . We need a piccy GG! I'm sure it looks great. RODEO: 5 miles is fab! Does this mean you'll be lining up for 10ks? Dd2 has started waking at night again, with tantrum ; 3 nights in the riow now, so the start of a pattern I fear! Soo hard to deal rationally with them at 2am, especially when the reason given is 'it's boring at night'!! Am having a blockbuster afternoon with them today, as it's poring down again - think it will be 'flushed away' and crisps all round!

Oh Flushed Away, still haven't seen it all the way through, but have seen snippets lots of times and laughed so much. "Have you seen my dad?" He Hee! So funny!

2am wakings, oh no, feel for you, and yes, IKWYM about not being able to deal with it rationally, I think I'd just walk away muttering something. But when it's not you thats having to deal with it "it's bring at night" is quite funny. Sorry.

O's favourite is that he can't go to sleep without the light on because he can't sleep when its dark, so I tell him to close his eyes, to which he replies "I can't sleep with my eyes closed, it's too dark!"

Flushed Away on as we speak . Have just joined Blockbusters as our independent one shut down a few weeks ago - the power of the conglomerates . Having said that, not complaining about 25p per kid's film!! - also got Blades of Glory for me and dh tonight . LOL at O's reasoning about the dark GG! My inclination with dd2 would be hard core controlled crying, but her sister is in the top bunk and L next door, so damage limitation is always top priority!
Right, making the most of the silence...

Afternoon - rainy one here too, we went swimming this lunchtime with a friend, we were in the pool for 2 hours - not my idea of fun I can tell you!
Flushed Away sounds nice Diege Mine are watching Jump In on the Disney channel at the mo! Did you get to watch it too? Or do you do what I do and get carried away clearing wardrobes/cupboards etc while they're quite?! I do enjoy watching the Harry Potter or LOTR films with them though Feel for you with the night wakings, it's that time of night I just want to slap them! Joe's taken to coming in to our bed in the middle of the night Lumbering him back to his bed is preferable to being scratched by his toenails! Thanks for the running praise - I can see me getting talked into doing a local 10k in October, argh - we're doing a 5m run in September so we'll see (I think I may be mildly addicted )
Hi GG! Is the purple in yet?! Yes a pic is needed Are any nights out on the cards with your new hair? We've got a girls night out planned for Friday, I was going to wear some knee length shorts but some bloody insect has bitten me on the shin in the night - you should see the size of it it's the size of an egg! And it's soooo itchy! It better go down! Speak later x

Just got round to looking at your photos GG! They're amazing! Wow! I'm not surprised you had a brilliant time, it looks fantastic! And can I just say Sean is so gorgeous! All that blonde hair
BTW the link from Yahoo to the pics is wrong, but I just copied from www.photobox.... etc to address bar

Hi . Off with dd1 now to get the train to mum and dad's. Speak to you all Sunday!

Right, after a good discussion with a dear friend yesterday, I'm actually considering getting my tubes tied. DH has already expressed his non-desire to have the snip, and I need to do a bit of research, but the more I think about it the more I like the idea. Any experiences out there - friends/family who have been through it?

Hi Nova My tubes are now tied or clamped or whatever they do! Had it done with last section. I have had no ill affects physically, was a bit worried that I'd feel broody but haven't in the slightest yet. Not sure if that's because I know I can't, or if because I feel my family's complete or some hormonal thing because they're tied!
I had to have mine done for medical reasons so slightly different to yours but if you are completely sure then it is an easy(ish) option though pretty permanent [Rodeo stating the obvious now!]