MAY 07 Post natal - This time a year ago it was all just beginning, look at us now...........................

[Mrsjaffabiffa]

Morning........

Aw LG&T m'lovely. What can I do to help? Can you aim for an early bed for the brood tonight and have some time to chill out, wee tipple etc? Wish I lived next door, I truly do.

JW, great pics of a lovely wee fella. Loving that Daddy is Daniel Bedingfield's double too! Does he sing to you?

Had the Tank weighed this afternoon.....

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how big can this baby get?

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20lb 6.5oz!

We're on the 99.6th centile, M is officially huge. Very lovely hv was very congratulatory and said that she'd expected her to leap up a centile between the last weigh in and 6 months ready for weaning when she'll probably slow down a bit. She's lovely, very continuum concept, loves folk music. Told me today that she was Truby King-ed as a baby and got frostbite in her hand while left in the garden. Eventually the kind old lady next door sneaked into the garden and started putting the pram in her kitchen to warm her up.

Mathilda has had 3 naps so far today. 30mins 45mins and 1hr20mins. Going to try for a little catnap now and then hope for a 7pm bedtime. No tears at all today. In fact she's completely chilled out.

Julie lovely pics, A is so very cute.

HDWP i cannot believe how big that little girl of yours is, you must truly be feeding her double cream. Perhaps we should advocate gingerbread as a milk enhancer? Im going to try it

LG&T, get thee to Norfolk. We live next to the river, actually on the broads network so overlook some beautiful lakes. DH's grandma has just bought a narrow boat (thereby answering the question 'what do rich folk buy when they have everything?') and I'm sure we can keep the brood amused- let them loose with a boat and we'll make the local news round up I guarantee. We have a couple of canoes and an inflatable dinghy too. Heck we'd be top story. "Lady not from round these parts allows veritable army of children to invade broads. She said in her defence 'it's all Hugs' fault'. Said lady who we cannot name for legal reasons has been told to get orf our land". You can come and marvel at my enormous baby. I think it's 97% gingerbread and 3% whatever the feck the farmers are spraying round these parts.

Tank is having a nap, that's 4 naps in one day. I can't quite believe it.

blimey just seen how many spelling mistakes on my profile.

LG&T I know its not the same but I remember when nannying there were some days I felt like I was on a never ending treadmill of washing, cooking and school runs.

I think it would be a great idea to hook up with SOH and take over Norfolk - can just imagine the headlines.

Mum2G poor you we have so far escaped colds but I have a feeling they are on the way have a very ominous scratchy throat and muzzy head.

What does everyone do for teething poor old A is struggling one side of his face is all swollen and red and had a good old look in his mouth during a screamathon this evening and am sure I can see a white on his gums where his incisors (sp?) come through?

Is everyone geared up for more bringing up baby tonight - I cant bare CV but its like car crash telly cant not watch and shout at her - even my DP gets pissed off at her.

Lol SOH. How fabulous too on the nap front. 20lbs wow, even bigger than J! Must be all those artificial growth hormones that these country folk use.

LG&T, sounds like you need a stiff large one.

97%Gingerbread, wow on the weight front! I have just put a parcel together for you containing 4 grobags. 6-18mths and 1 &2.5tog. The pink ones were from Lupins (lups hope you dont mind)but as Ella is still fitting in the 0-6mth ones i have no need at the mo. The blue ones were ds's (i have pink ones for Ella). I hope they are useful to you.

Also a big well done on the nap front. Makes such a difference when they do actually sleep in the day. Ds only ever slept if we went out in the car, for a walk round the village or in buggy infront of tumble dryer! We didnt want the same with Ella so i have made sure that she has naps when i want her to have them and most importantly in her bed!

Just posted some recent photos...

Benson, fabulous photos! I love the one of the two of them in bed, Aidan doesn't look half as chubby as my chubster though, is he very long too?

Since having my identity crisis I seem to have wiped off my details and photos so I too have downloaded some more recent photos.

Cam obviously your children are absolutely stunning, J is a wonderful match for M but I just have to say... you have a cream sofa! How the hell does one keep that clean? M likes to leave various fluids in a trail wherever she goes, a cream sofa would never survive here. And your house looks very tidy. I'm extremely . I can't brush my hair on a daily basis.

AM, you have no idea how much I need grobags. I have bid on 7 so far on ebay and been outbid at the last minute every time. How much do you want for them?

Had a shaky start today. M wouldn't settle last night until 8.30pm (dh was here for bedtime which is a rarity and she wanted to play with him- sent him out of the way in the end) but still up at 6.30am so didn't have enough sleep (although managed a 7hr stretch without a feed which is unheard of!). I tried till 7am to get her to have more sleep but she wanted up. DH played with her for a while but she rapidly got very angry, lots of eye-rubbing etc. So, back to bed and it took about half an hour to get her to stop screeching and groaning. She has had an hour's nap now and is awake and playing. So far she seems very content but I'm hoping the slightly shorter sleep last night doesn't affect today too much.

Did we all watch Claire 'forcefeed or starve' Verity last night? Stupid childminder woman at the end 'Mia's the type of baby who will take advantage, give her an inch and she'll take a mile'. Firstly she's six farking weeks old and secondly, she's been in a routine from an hour old so how the blardy hell do you know what she's like. I wasn't aware she was allowed to have any sort of character you miserable, wouldn't be allowed a dog if I had a choice in the matter, unfeeling, unnatural, cold, callous and frankly horrifying witch. All in my opinion of course, no reflection on MN etc etc.

awwww Cam and Benson your little munchkins are gorgeous!

OMG Ella is 6mths old today!! That's half a year!

Must get back to packing.... ho de hum

SOH, the 4 that will go in the post today are yours! The one i bid on ebay for i got for 99p plus postage. Grand total of 3.29. That one should arrive whilst i am away, so if you would like it then i can post it when i get back.

Benson and Nairobi your kids are soo cute. I really must update mine.
Well I am determined to enjoy my last proper day with R. The new shopping centre opened in Derby yesterday so I thought we might give that a whirl. It will give me a chane to look around in peace without dh and ds and R loves being pushed around and admired by strangers!
I think we have definitely cracked this daytime sleep malarkey with her now. It's taken long enough but she is like a different baby now we're getting it right. She is so happy, she plays contentedly with her toys and is a pleasure to be around. Let's hope it continues once she starts with the childminder.

AM, get thee packing woman.

LG&T, how was last night?

M has just learnt a new noise. It is:

"GGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHGGGGGOOOOOOOO".

It clearly has magical properties too. Only they don't manifest themselves until she's repeated it 27 times at increasing volume. Then mummy's head explodes. Clever, huh?

Abby you sound remarkably calm! If I was going back to work tomorrow I'd be sobbing. But then I'm a wet lettuce and you aren't.

Still working on the 'what can I do from home so I don't have to go back to work yet' dilemma. So far I have 'put M up a chimney' and 'sell my soul'.

Yes I did watch the evil witch women last night - she is horrific.

SOH i used to always get outbid on ebay until my DP started using auction sniper - it does take some of the fun out of bidding but if it is something you really want its great.

Lots of marvellous photos of our cherubs.

Got to go sit in a smelly garage today and get our windscreen replaced they have told me I cant drive the car for an hour afterwards! Have never heard that before last time I had it done they changed the window and I drove it home immediatly afterwards. ho hum

97 - I've done it before so I can do it again - honest! I do feel quite calm to be honest, I am looking forward to work in a way. I need some me time back. It's just sods law that R has really settled this week and is so much fun at the momnet. Hey ho, only a week back and then it's half term!
Just added 2 quick photos at the bottom, will do more when I've got time.

any tips for getting baby a bit longer at night? (apart from starving them like ms verity)
freddie feeds generally at 7 when he has 8 oz formula 11 2 and 5 all bfed. would really love to get rid of the 2am one. he cant really be hungry? only 3 hrs after last and doesnt feed for long....at 2
i suggested to a very tired OH about trying a bit of "controlled crying" and i dont think hes keen. but i cant think of anything else to try?
maybe another 8 oz bottle at 11?
dh thinkings weening is the answer... (baby is 18 weeks old)
mind you he thinks hes cold when room is 20 deg...i keep saying thats the right temp for babies room.
dh is knackered...(so is mummy actually!)

MID you could try giving him a bigger feed at 11 and then when he wakes at 2 just give him cool boiled water. I tried this with ds around the same age and eventually he decided it wasn't worth waking just for water and slept through that feed.

Yeah what Abby said MID. Also bear in mind that the biggest growth spurt is now so extra calories often essential for all the developmental changes. I'd avoid cc and weaning for a bit longer and see if Freddie settles a bit in a week or so. At 18wks I was up an awful lot in the night and M has shot up a centile, but is calming down again now.

Abby, lovely pics and a wipe-clean sofa. Very sensible.

I can't bear the idea of returning to my library. It's so quiet. No AAAAHHGGGOOO and AAAAIIIIEEEEAAA over and over again?

thanks. gonna try bigger feed at 11. another bottle so i know what hes having. and try the water trick.....
lets see!

when you say "eventually" aby...how long did it take for him to stop waking up? week? more? less?
just as a guide....to know how long to persevere before trying something else!

If I remember correclty it was about a week but certainly no longer than that. I never bothered with R because she only woke twice from Day 1 anyway.

thanks v much xx

does anyone baby have ecxma?

does it get worse if you take them swimming? (chemicals in the pool..)