May 2007 babies. Shoes needed? Surely not...

[largeginandtonic]

Here we go ladies.

DOH MID job not Benson >

hi. hope you are ok PJ and getting somewhere with the sleep (everything somehow seems muche easier to handle when you get some decent sleep)
scoot..hows was docs? dont be fobbed off...
well done all those giving up smoking too ....
im still trying to lose weight but not doing that well. I have good intentions and excercise...did a session on monday at the gym and I did a power plate thing yesterday which was interesting and wierd. (and im seeing a personal trainer tomorrow) but then today i cooked a jamie oliver fish pie which has loads of cream in it....opps!! i get bored of salads jacket potatoes and the like. DH cooked a fabulous paella on sunday and we all ate outside with glasses of rose to wash it down with. Freddie ate handfuls of it too...at least i know he's not allergic to shellfish now!). Was delicious and made me think we were in spain (it was very warm here sunday evening) but then i looked up how many calories and felt instantly very guilty....

MID - I think a 3 month trial is a fab idea for the job. You will have plenty of time to work out if you're happy with it and there's no pressure. I really hope it goes well and you find your decision easier than expected.

MKG - Happy birthday indeed!

Scoot - Let us know how you get on. x

Happy Birthday MKG, hope you have had a lovely day with M&C.

Scoot how did you get on at the Drs?

MID, i think the 3mth probabtion is a great idea. Its great to have the option to see if it will work for you or to think of an alternative option.

Today i have bought some quite scary items for my kitchen today in the shape of a slow cooker and super duper mixer thingy. Just need to learn to use them now. Should be a doddle though as i am going to buy the new cooking game/program for the Nintendo DS (been advertised on tv). 250 receipes and talks you through it!!

Just a quick question about trainer cups (it might sound daft but i will ask anyway). Jack is 3 and still has a bottle of milk at night and in the morning as does Ella. I want to move him on to having it in a cup and ditch the bottle but realise that i should do Ella at the same time so that J can see that E is being a big girl and that he should be a big boy. Does anyone have a cup that they would recommend - i have no idea where to start!

Anyway Up cups have always worked well for us April, not too babyish for Jack, but Ella can use them too. When Jack gets more comfortable he/you can just take the lid off and use it as a beaker. No extra fiddly bits to clean and no bloody top to lose.

But I am behind the times and there may well be much more groovy options available nowadays!!

AM, we bought a cool one for J, she has water in it but I will probably use it for milk as and when I change over. It's a nuby one, cup is shaped like a nuby bottle and it has a silicone spout instead of a teet. It is very similar to a bottle but not. iykwim, would make a comfortable transistion I think. Will see if I can find it and link a picture.

like this The one we've got is not this one, I can't find it, but it is almost the same.

AM-I have a few ideas, but you might have different one's there. I'd suggest anything with a straw for Ella. If she can't get the motion of lifting up the cup, it's a good place to start.

MKG, happy birthday for what's left of it. And let us know when you do, hope you find out what you want to next month as it were.

Thanks, I have a nuby one already and she is ok with drinking water from it but doesnt like taking milk in it. Ella does use straws already but i wasnt sure about it for bed time. Looks like i will be spending some time looking round Mothercare at their cups :-)

Well poor dh has had t spend all night in Jacks bed! J doesnt like me going to him in the night mainly because dh has pandered to him for too long. Everytime dh got back into bed J woke and called him back. Very frustrating as he had been going through for about 3weeks or more. He does have a snotty cough at the moment which is probably not letting him get into a deep sleep. Have had to bribe talk him into letting mummy put him to bed tonight and get up to him in the night, will cost me a toy car but luckily i have a stash in the cupboard

Doidy cup?..worked with both L and M..but you have to be ever watchful as its got no lid and they tend to chuck it and its contents when your back is turned..you can get it off NCT website or from John Lewis..

Well I went to the Dr and it was OK..He is sending me for blood tests to see if im anaemic and to test for Thyroid problems(which run in the family) and if they are all fine then im to go back and discuss other options like anti depressants..im not keen on taking anything TBH..Think it might be a slippery slope..It was horrid really at the Dr's..But I am glad I went..it represents a step forward at least and I do feel better for having done something...

Thanks again all x

Had better go and try and look half decent for Ascot.I dont feel much like it but a day out might do us good really..
Look for me on the Telly!...have a nice day all..

Glad it went ok at the Dr's for you Scoot. Hope the weather stays nice for you today. Enjoy

Have a lovely time at Ascot scoot, you'll look gorgeous and the day out WILL do you good. xx

Day 6..... nearly a week

looks like its gonna be great weather today for Ascot! Have a lovely time.....r u wearing a hat!?
also re the doidy cup....how long did it take for them to get used to it? ive just starting using one but its proving difficult coz he gets frustrated as he wants to hold it and do it himself but is too heavy handed and pours it all down himself!
(he will manage a few sips by himself and be very proud of himself....looking up and smiling at me...then he gets a bit cocky and the whole thing goes down his front!)

just spoken to nursery manager and freddie is now booked in full time from august 11th...feels very final now.
i did have a little cry about it last night. only 6 weeks left with my little darling....even set DH off. he feels very guilty and sad that I have to go back to work too but im trying to be strong.
he got very angry with his 16 yr old for not looking for a holiday job. she has just done her gcses and he thinks she should work (or she will have no money to go out or do things with her friends over the hols) but i figure she is still a child really and shouldnt be forced to work if she doesnt want to? but then dh says why should he fund her doing nothing? its a tough one but at the end of the day she is still a child. she will have many many years of work ahead of her...
what do you think?

Have a brilliant time Scoot.

I'm fine thanks everyone. Dh and I are getting on fine, although he didn't get in til 9 last night, so not much time to fight!

We have L's christening on Sunday, and I don't want to cause an atmpsphere at that, so I'm not starting anything right now, especially as 3 of my friends are staying over on Saturday night.

The sleeping is still the same, although I was wondering if my mates might help me with it on Saturday, ha ha. Or maybe I'll just head off to the pub and let dh do it...

April - L drinks water happily from her cup too, but won't drink milk out of it either! Aren't they funny?

MKG - Hope you had a great birthday.

Well done Scoot on the docs, and have a fab day out at Ascot, we need some pics puuurrlleeesssee. A friend here had thyroid problems, similar symptoms to yours with the tired and weepy bit. After a few trials and errors with medication she is back to her normal self, so fingers crossed.

April, sorry. Each time I hear about poor wee J, I think how lucky I am to be blessed with good sleepers, tis a rare night when I am woken by one of them.

MrsJB and Tilly, woooooohooooo, just think, you are over the worst of it now. Its all plain sailing from here on in .

MID but a 3 month trial is a good way to see if it works all round.I'm sure F will be just fine at nursery, in fact at about 18mths they start to get bored being at home so much. Fwiw after having 3 darlings, I am starting to get bored being at home and am seriously thinking about looking now for a job.

As for the 16 year old question, tis a difficult one! They all seem so worldly wise nowadays that it is easy to forget that they are actually still little. However I did have a Saturday job at 16, as did all my siblings and it certainly made me feel more independent and respect the value of money more. And it made it easier to spend it on things I wanted (errm clothes and booze I think ) rather than justifying to my mum the things I had bought on my allowance.

Have a fab time Scoot!!!! You so deserve it! Glad the docs was ok, at least you will be all checked out.

MID i think she should get a job, i had a job at 14. It meant i learnt how to budget and handle my own money. It was a huge lesson in life without any 'real life' pressure. It develops social skilss and will give her an insight in to career choices in the future. I dont think it is mean it is an excellent opportunity.

MrsJB well done on the non smoking!!!! You are doing fabulously well! How is A doing with it?

Pink glad it is ok at home. Don't sweep it though, keep it there. What are you wearing to the Christening? Links please!

My boss is at Ascot today too. Hope you have a lovely day Scoot.

After today only 3 days to go to Mat Leave -woohoo!

MID - I also had a Saturday job at 16 just for pocket money - Woolies - really enjoyed having money of my own. Presuming he does mean just a little job and not a full time factory type job MID I'm sure she would be fine.

C only drinks out of a cheap non spill lidded beaker bought on Blackpool Pier with his name on! (and his bottle of course). He will drink milk or juice - I am dreading something happening to it. He has an any way up cup and two different Boots Cups and a Nuby bottle and doesn't seem to be able to drink out of any of them!

Glad to hear things a bit better PJ.

MID maybe she should find a job she may be interested in - say maybe horses or kennels if she's into animals or make up counter if she wants to do beauty therapy, rather than just taking say a shelf stacking job - wich dont get me wrong is fine but as you say she has many years of drudgery ahead of her - if she is going to work I would hope it was something that may interest her and put a positive light on any future work she may take on

SCOOT well done on going to the docs its the 1st step, I dont see any harm in anti d's - they arent like they used to be, can just be hard trying to find the one that suits you - as I'm finding out, and Im not even bloddy depressed hope the blood test reveal something, hope Ascot is fun

APRIL we use a nuby straw ones but havent used them for bed or milk yet am still fighting the fact the fact he is growing up and is not really a baby - althoug he is not walking yet so is still in my eyes a baby, just a very very big one lol! Willow has her milk and biscuit in a cup or non spill type thing but it doesnt look babyish, she has that sitting up in bed while we have story or while i'm doing ds milk she will drink it downstairs

Off to have haircut and work today, mum having kids from 3pm, I am being a model at a tony and guy salon - so will probably come out with some asymetric cut!

Have a great day Scoot - I went to Ladies Day last year (and left my 8 week old dd all day - bad mummy) - deffo need to see pics. Glad GP is taking some positive action.

MID - forgot to say - congrats on the job. 3 month trial sounds good. IMO, I think dsd should find a summer job - I had saturday jobs etc from when I was 14 and I think its important to develop some independence and financial experience

PJ - glad things are calmer at the mo. Hope L's christening goes well (again - pics will be required - obviously)

MJ - day 6 - you clever non smoker Day 4 for me - yesterday evening was v.hard (resorted to raiding dsd's sweetie drawer and nicking lollipops ) but I'm already feeling better

Can't help with cups - T is another one who'll drink water from cups but looks at me as though I am barking mad if I give her milk from one

OK, have tried to find pics of the outfits, and can't, so...

I am wearing a white cotton dress from Gap, sounds a bit shit, but its gorgeous, and really appropriate for the 'heavy rain' forecast. Not. Especially as I'm having a spray tan on Saturday and having my hair blown on Sunday.

Lexie is wearing a white Chloe (!) dress that we bought her ages ago, just a white dress, not a gown or anything.

MID - great news about the job! Hope it all works out, and hey, if it doesn't, no harm done.

On the work front, I started work at 14, in a cafe in Southport for £1 an hour. We used to do 5 hours, get a fiver, and spend it all in Woolies in the station on the way home. I have worked ever since and all through Uni. My 21 year old cousin has never worked a day in his life and is now off to become a barrister. He has no concept of the value of money, and does not take responsibility for himself. He 'expects' my aunty to fund everything, he's just spent 3 years at Warwick Uni, which she paid for, and she is a single parent. He never gives her a word of thanks, in fact, this week, she discovered that he is actually £1400 in arrears with his Uni rent, as he didn't pay the rent with the money she gave him, he spent it. He is the least streetwise, selfish person I know. Because of witnessing this, L will be down the mines at 5.

MJ & Tilly - you are doing so well, keep it up!

Sky - at the Blackpool Pier cup.

A acting like I'm trying to poison her by giving milk in a cup. Tried the NUK Learner Bottle as it's so like a bottle but she took one look at it and pushed it away. Tried again this afternoon just now and she wailed. Put the milk into NUK normal bottle (which is what I weaned her on originally) and she went mad until I put the milk in her usual Tommy Tippee Back to Nature. Tsk.

Did managed to get her to eat breakfast this morning before having milk so that was something at least. She usually insists on milk first, then just plays with breakfast.

MID - I had a baby and was living alone in a flat and going to school when I was 16... So I'm afraid I have no sympathy at all for a 16 year old who wants to loaf around and do bugger all and expect mummy or daddy to pay for it!

I worked from around 14 in the summers, though in Ireland we had 12 weeks holiday so it was easier to get a job.

I think after GCSEs it's definitely time to start fending for yourself a bit.

DD is 13 and has little concept of the value of money and it p'sses me right off. I'm trying to teach her by making her do jobs around the house for pocket money. We can afford to hand over a generous allowance, but there's no way in hell I would. I think it's unfair to her, because I don't want her to get used to that and think life owes her something.

She already knows things like if she wants a "gap year", she'll have to work and fund it herself, despite the fact we could afford to do otherwise. (She's not too happy about that, but I figure she'll thank me one day. )