'January 08 shiny new - year babies , Keep rolling , rolling , rolling !'

[lilyloo]

hope everyone finds it

Yep thought so just been in the bedroom and dh is asleep

yay hay Nathan aah we still no where near !

Lucky are you near a library ? Ours has bounce and rhyme sessions for lo's and dd loves it. It's free and they sing songs etc. Only half hour but get's you out.
Mother and toddler groups good too and you usually build friendships with other mums too.

DD on the go like a mad woman. Has had the dog's water bowl on her head today full of water
Have now got over £200 in my paypal account now courtesy of ebay so hoping that might help when my mat pay ends! Don't know how we going to manage then .
Work have rang asking when i will be back so said Jan and hate even thinking about it but needs must although my childcare will be more than my wage nearly thank god for tax credits!

Lilyloo - I have one more month of stat mat pay then nothing. ALL our bills arrived on mat today totaling £500 God knows how we will pay them

Did big shop for Ds's birthday today but did tescos value everything. Just got to get cake & candles.

At least at Xmas time the DC's aren't really old enough to demand specific toys. Bought a wooden train set on sale from tchibo so Ds will have that.

Simpson i have never been so organised for xmas.
I have a leap pad music station for dd a football table for ds and a baby annabell and car seat for dd all for the grand sum of £22 off ebay with p+p !
Have also got a wii game from morrison today for £15 they on speacial offer. That with my bargain woolworths bouncy castle will be about is bar their stocking and a few bits!
My full mat pay due this month next month it two weeks then that's it!
Are you going back ? I hoped not to be but we really need the pence money at the minute!

Simpson - this may sound a scrap mean but if you can get away with it: we didn't let ds open his party presents after the party (he was too tired and had to have dinner/bath etc anyway). Then that evening we peeked inside most of them and put a few away for 'later' in the year - we also removed the duplicates which are now in the present cupboard for passing on. He then happily opened the remaining (still reasonably large) pile of gifts the next morning and is totally unaware that any were missing. Maybe you could add to the dc's xmas presents that way? Especially since its going to be you not ds writing the thank you notes anyway! (Eek, just realised I haven't done ours yet.... ) Also, ds' party was quite cheap cos I made all the food - was just birthday cake, cupcakes, biscuits, sandwiches, chocolate krispies and a couple of bigger cakes. I grew the tomatoes, so it was just the crisps I had to pay for. Sandwich fillings were v cheap: did one batch egg mayo, one cream cheese and one tuna mayo. Prizes for different games and going-home bags were all from tesco (really cheap stuff eg 4 plastic watches for 50p...the kids loved them!)

Ummm. Brain gone blank again. Honestly, I have less memory than a goldfish at the moment...

Happy anniversary to all....and massive congrats to Nathan and Aaliyah

When are they supposed to have this development check thing? Haven't heard anything from anyone about it...but then, haven't taken T to the clinic since she was 4 weeks old. Maybe I should make more effort? [bad mum]

Lucky - you need to (gently) remind dp that he wants more kids...there's no way you'll be able to keep Aaliyah quiet if you're looking after dc2! He really needs to stop being so precious about his sleep now - after all, its hardly as though anyone else gets 9 hours uninterrupted sleep!!!

Frag - I know what you mean about not being ready for more just yet! But I must say that I've found the transition from 1 to 2 much less hard than I was expecting and in fact have generally enjoyed all of it much more than when there was just 1 child, even though I need to be much more organised about things. In fact, I've mostly been very surprised at just how much I've enjoyed my maternity leave this time round...I'm getting very at the thought of going back so soon....

Barristermum ...sorry I've been crap and haven't called.......I will try harder...honest!

Things to do out with kids: local library music groups and story times; some local bookshops do story times; church hall and other local playgroups - generally very cheap and really friendly; drop-in music groups (T loves singing along really loudly !); visiting old peoples homes (they are incredibly grateful and particularly love seeing babies...!); local parks; indoor play centres (eg clown town - not for every day but great for the terrible weather stuck at home climbing the walls days).

Things to do at home with kids (more for older than younger but sort of works for both): baking (pretty much anything) - works from as soon as they can hold a wooden spoon and bang it on the table/floor! - even when you don't need anything - homemade chocolate biscuits or cupcakes are so easy and can alway just be given to friends as presnts; making music eg wooden spoon and saucepan - great to sit them on kitchen floor and let them bang away when getting on with cooking etc; basic cooking - ds does most of the mixing/egg breaking etc and helps with chopping, counting and so on; art & crafts: finger painting, 'making' things (pompom people etc), making cards for birthdays or to say hello to distand relatives (ds and my grandma in manchester have an amazing correspondence going on...they send each other cards and drawings at least once a week now!); making an obstacle course with living room furniture and climbing around eg without touching floor; dead lions; hide and seek (hilarious with toddlers who shout 'i'm here' when you walk into the room and you have to pretend not to have seen them!); singing; doing the household chores together - eg 'helping' to make the beds, put the laundry on (toddler loads machine, presses button etc).

Bit of a brain dump, but hope that helps!

Right, got 30 mins before dh gets home, off to wash hair and sort out legs/underarms etc - why is there never enough time for personal stuff these days???!!!!

Have a feeling I am in for an old fashioned up every few hours night as Nathan did not have much lunch and refused to eat more than a few spoonfuls of dinner. he sounded like he was in labour though sitting in his high chair, and the evidence emerged soon after , so that may well have been it.

Had to take him to baptism preparation and he did not really feed in that overly bright church room we were in (have rescheduled next week's session for my own house- being clergy wife as benefits) so has only just gone down. Completely drained me on one side then tugged real hard to see if there was any more , so could really tell he had not had solids. Oh well, will see. I doubt he was planning to give me nice nights from now on.

Ginge you need more sleep , you were so of Nathan sleeping through (by my definition) that you did not notice your lo had two hours more .

Sorry about money worries. I think my pay is ending now too, but we do not have to pay for house and council tax, which means dh's income goes a lot further. Am waiting for tax credit decision though.

lilyloo - not going back to work although not told them yet!! Going to start buying Ds's stocking fillers next week or so,so I can do it with no rush of people.

Answer me honestly would I be mean if I wrapped a couple of 2nd hand toys that were Ds's that are in loft ie push along wooden truck, ride along toy etc? if I found a box for them??

Filly - cheers for tip will probably have to let him open pressies but any I know he won't missed will be "removed" to give to other Dcs parties Iyswim!!

Madmouse - Hopefully Nathan will be ok tonight, did he have much milk?? DD has gone through the night with not much solids but had a decent sized bottle to make up for it.

Am waiting up to resurrect 11pm dream feed to see if will help with middle of the night roarings. Have you tried doing a dream feed Gingeme to see if that would get George to go through ... it depends if you prefer an early night, it can be hard to stay up.

All this talk of work reminds me.. in 3 weeks time am back at work after 10 months off (due to DS late arrival though he will only be 8 months old). Things are really up in the air at work, they haven't filled the other half of my job share, boss is off sick with stress, people left and never thought to let me know etc. Colleague running the show has thrown a few ideas at me i.e. working 3 days, or even 4 days' hours over 3 days, but having thought about that I don't think I could hack it, if including travel time it would lead to 3 very long days where I would be out of the house for 12 hours basically .

LOL Lily DS keeps grabbing the dog bowls too, and grotty dog toys as well. he's gonna have a good immune system. He has carpet burned knees too!

Lucky if you sign up to Babycentre.co.uk mailings they give you ideas for new games each week to play with your LO according to their age. I go to a couple of toddler groups too, there are always a few with babies, so not just for toddlers.

We're going swimming tomorrow, then I need to get ready for trip darn sarf to parents (altho SIL baby still not here, 1 week overdue know, I know how that feels . Funny, cos nephew arrived at 37 weeks everyone thouh this one would be early!

Hey ladies, poor DS has a cold, he caught it off my nephew who brought it over from the UK! Poor little guy keeps waking up because he can?t breathe through his nose

LaTrucha ? I got the Babydan lite playpen for DS, it wasn?t cheap but it is worth every penny it also converts into a room divider.

Fragolina ? all the emotion will be exhausting, I know what you mean about the end of BFing. My DS does that back arching but his objection is normally to the buggy. I have a Bugaboo Chameleon and am delighted with it but in my opinion the Bee is just too small to be worth the price.

Simpson ? it?s so cute how they watch what you eat isn?t it?

Barristermum ? so glad to hear that you are ok, I?ve been thinking about you. Cerys sounds like a star! We?re hoping to get pg again soon, we?ll see.

Madmouse ? sorry to hear that DS wanted to join your anniversary celebrations! Congrats by the way. But hey, he slept through!!

Lucky ? wow, Aaliyah on the move too!

Betterhalf ? belated happy anniversary!

Hey Simpson DS?s activity station arrives on Sat.

I had forgotten about changing car seats what is it based on weight? What weight? 10kgs? Thanks

LOL Filly great idea re the pressies and interesting what you say about the transition from 1 to 2 kids. I think all of us are dreading the return to work will you still have to travel so much?

Gingeme ? hello

Lilyloo ? well done on the eBay sales. I must do that too, this month is my last SMP Like you, I?ve already got a few pressies but yours sound fab. I don?t want to go back to work either but we need me to

Angechica ? hello!

I wish mat paycould be replaced with something else to enable mums to stay at home if they wanted too!

Simpson not at all. It's omly the same as getting them off ebay which i have done! DD2 will be getting her leap pad and that's about it as i know she will love the wrapping paper most

Met couple on holiday: Norwegian hubby and Bulgarian wife, living in Norway. Mums there get 80% salary for 12 months as maternity pay. Hubby was taking his 6 weeks extra paternity leave which can be taken any time after first 3 months. How much more enlightened is that? I'd pay more taxes like they do for that.... I've been to Sweden before - they moan about high taxes, I'm sure their society isn't perfect but it's a darn sight more pleasant than much of ours!

Morning ladies.
How are we all today?
George slept till 5 again had a bottle and back to sleep. Unfortunately woke again at 6.15 with a smelly nappy and decided to stay awake
Dh bought our wii fit yesterday. Had a go on it last night. Its great fun and I did a whole 36 mins of excersise withoug even realising it. Mind you I do feel a bit achey this morning. Maybe that is because of the bedroom excersise we did after
Well its peeing down yet again today. Hope it stops around 12 I'm off to have my smear done.
Ah well off to clean my bathroom. Ds3's teacher is paying us a visit at 2.30.
Have a good day all

Hello ladies

It's been a while since I've been on but enjoying keeping up with all your developments. I'm back at work in 3 weeks and looking forward to it in some ways but the hour and a bit commute will be hell (long story but we weren't really thinking kids and commuting when we bought this house). Anyway, thanks to something I read here I've been able to negotiate going back part-time and using my annual leave to make up the difference. DH will be looking after DD initially as he's been home since late last year - hence me having to go back to work before I'd like to. Hoping to get DD into nursery a couple of days a week, partly to give DH a break for job hunting but also to get her used to it once (hopefully) we're both working again. Difficulty where I live is that the nurseries are so oversubscribed they're reluctant to do part time places. Going to look at a few next week.

Someone asked about buggies, we have a bugaboo chameleon which I have found brilliant. The only issue I have is that it's a bit fiddly to dismantle (compared to the folding ones) and also quite big and cumbersome to get in the car. I'm sure we'll end up with a Maclaren like everyone else.

We also bought the Babydan fireguard, initially to use as a fireguard over winter but like the other Babydan stuff you can also use it as a room divider or playpen. Very versatile and I'd certainly recommend it. The fireguard may even be a bit cheaper than the playpen as you don't get the padded cushion for the middle.

Anyone else getting tears of frustration as their LOs try to crawl, stand up etc. DD is extremely mobile now but still mostly by rolling and pulling herself around. She gets very upset when she can't reach something she want and she's also trying to pull herself up on the furniture which leads to more frustration when she can't get off her knees.

Oh dear, looks like nap time is over and I need to go and provide entertainment. Sorry no personals but good luck to everyone going back to work, particularly those of us that are a bit reluctant.

Morning all

Had a rough night with DD so am knackered. She is still snotty and showing signs of teething but can't see anything under her gums yet

Gingeme - well done on the exercise wii and bedroom not much of either going on here!!

Lilyloo - I agree with getting some money to stay at home. Things are going to be very tight for us as we bought quite a decent sized house last year.But no point me going back as all my salary would be eaten up by paying for 2 Dcs in nursery at £45 per day per child!! Though I am sure you get discounts if you have 2 at the same nursery. DH is even going to be working on Christmas day probably because he would get 5 times his salary!!

Angechica - I have family who live in Denmark and the high taxes are the same there but the wages are much higher to compensate. A much better system as if you are unemployed/disabled (as my aunt is) you can actually survive on the benefits you get

MrsMcjr - Let us know what Xavier thinks of his activity station!!

Rockdoctor - definately getting tears of frustration here!! As I type DD has rolled yet again and is flailing like fish trying to get bum in air to crawl

Madmouse -Forgot to say hope Nathan went through last night!!

just a quickie as charlie now awake as it took me too long to catch up, lucky dont give in to screaming all the time dh will have to grit teeth and bear it otherwise you will both be in for a rocky road for much longer than the few weeks it will take to get out of the habit - what filly said is right you have to act like you dont care if she is screaming and calmly just distract her with something else

off to gym this afternoon for induction and leaving charlie in creche!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ALso had childminder round last week for a few hours but i do hat other people even really lovely ones pawing over charlie, actually i dont like other people looking after her

charlie has just worked out how to get velcro bib off and eat it mmm.

Hope everyone well, well done nathan

Ahhhhhhhhhh

Dh just got back from hospital and his collar bone is going to take 12-18 weeks to heal. Grrrrrrrrrr

Oh nicky6 it must be so difficult leaving lo with other people. My cousin has just returned to work. Her dd is nearly 2 and she said she just sat and cried for most of the morning
Velcro bibs hate them. If you don't remember to fasten them before you wash them they bloody stick to everything
No mcclaren buggies here. We have a Quinny buzz, Hauck Disney buggy and I couldn't tell you what make our double one is
We are lending the double one to a friend of mine who is expecting no4 in Jan so we will just have the two single buggies. I might sell the Hauck and get another Quinny Buzz. They are brill.
Anyway George is moaning in his cot now.Have a good day all

Cross post simpson. Oh dear
My dh returns to work next Thursday Hopefuly he can get half term off. We are going to look after my parents house as they will be in Thailand

HI Girls,

Lots of people feeling the pinch. We are too!

My mat pay ran out last month.

It would help if they could just keep making the basic payments for National Insurance, wouldn't it?

Wow Lilyloo - £22 is fab! You are an ebay star!

Ange - good luck with dream feed. And thanks for the babycentre tip. Hope difficult work situation resolves itself.

Gingeme - glad DS enjoying school!

MM - how was your night? Did you have the nightmare you anticipated? And how's weaning going. Seriously considering it myself.

Simpson - reuse! reuse! especially while they're small and won't know. Hope colds have gone away.

Filly - thanks for the ideas of things to do. I'm a big one for reusing too. We were given five musical toys with a pully thing to start the music. I want to give a couple of them away as presents although am as I think they're pretty useless!

MrsMc - sorry for colds. Xavier still on the bottle?

So up and down here as to sleep. Brilliant night the night before last, nightmare yesterday. I'm thinking of more drastic measures, although I think she's really just teething. Anyone taken their LO to an osteopath? I want to but DH is dead against. Would any of you go behind your husband's back to do something like that. My gut instinct says no, but I'm sure it would help. I think I might take her to the GP and get the GP to tell me to take her to an osteopath! DH likes 'proper' doctors and so do I but I also like osteopaths...

Oooo - Fragolina - How's Tana and the cot doing?

Hooray! Just won BabyDen playpen on ebay for £36!

LaT - well done on winning travel cot

Think e bay may become my new best friend

DD not herself at all lots of screaming the teething powders seem to be the only thing that works ATM.

We have to go out a bit later and buy DS's birthday cake, mustn't forget candles!!

Careful Simpson. DH actualy banned me from Ebay at one point for over spending but yes you can get some real bargains.
Anyone know of anyone getting married soon and wants a beautiful size 10 wedding basque and ivory silk skirt? I'm selling them on Ebay for a firend of mine. Shawl and tiara too.

Ginge I remember you being banned do you think you can start again?

I am a huge eBay fan. have just bid on some pjs for nathan. i like two piece ones, not sleepsuits and they are hard to get except in more expensive shops.

Night was not too bad. Woke and fed briefly at 12.30 adn 2.15 and then it was suddenly 7.30 . He may have slept a bit longer but dh was so keen to play with him that he shot into the nursery at the first whimper

much much drool here and a lumpy jaw, but no signs of teethin ie screaming/pain so will see.

Susie after the first episode of Nathan screaming for social services and the fire
brigade I have not tried any more bottles. Have bought a doidy cup which he seems to like. He really actively drinks from it, so may try that with formula soon.

Nicky I also find it hard to leave nathan with others, mostly because I worry that he will drive them crazy. better get used to it as back to work in 2.5 months. Have counselling assessment on Monday morning, so will leave him in creche then. I must say i am getting a lot better in letting others have him though. In church he has such a fan club it sometimes needs managing , there is one lady no kids or grandkids she would have him all the time if she could. Nathan had an extended cuddle with a lovely man I know well and he really likes him. Then he was tired and hungry and I wanted to take him home. This woman kept asking for a cuddle and I had to be kind but firm in the end. Difficult in my role in the church, but I need to look after babe.

Just spoke to an old friend from Holland who had her fourth in July. All boys. This one is called Tiuri Nigel Maitiu. All very old names, I have found out Maitiu is an old form of Matthew as you can hear when you say it. Tiuri means something like 'valuable', wonder how he will get on at school, which is kind of my criteria.