APRIL 2008 - The One Where They Try to Escape from Cots & Highchairs

[Soph73]

Can someone please add "our babies" as my machine will probably blow up if I try it

VS - you are being talked about!

Sal - is R okay?

Hello MHaH

No-one liked Mimi's present then?

Ok, I should have remembered that with a baby 5 mins are, well, a bit extended...

Firstly, Ladybee - sorry, can only offer my sympathies (and perhaps moan with you), as R does exactly the same and i can't get him to change. i've tried grobags (well, still uses it every now and again), but he seems to get frustrated as he can't turn around easily. i think there's no winning and hopes he'll get over it!

Littlerascal, I'm from Graaff-Reinet in the Eastern Cape, where are you from? You must be SO looking forward to your holiday. I always find going this time of the year good, as it breaks up winter a bit. However, your timing's better than mine - at least you know it's cold now, whereas I left when it was still ok here, so still in a bit of shock.

TSC, your cat made me laugh. Our cats used to eat any electric cabling (well, Gobolina still eats rubber bands, so the preference for the plactic stayed), and now R seems to have caught it as well... Watch out - you're warned!

Ellie, hope you survived the outbreak of general illness in your house! I bet you're right on the sympathy though - hopefully the no-fun-day avoids regular repeats.

What a cool gift, Scorpio - I see the reviews are all really good. I've said it before, but you're all too organised for me. Help me pick something for R. Needs to be small, I don't do big christmas presents, but would like something special... (That's not asking too much, surely )

VS, bloody hell, you've got a lot on tomorrow!!! Good luck, and hope you have an easy night - I think you, probably more than most of us (well, me anyway) gets the vote for most deserving tonight.

MommyHasaH, re the facial and relaxing - don't worry, you should feel better than before the facial tomorrow. Same as detoxing, during you're always feeling rubbish, but afterwards it's all good. I'm rather jealous of you having a facial, actually! Where did you go? Somewhere local? I planned to go to Neal's Yard London Bridge therapy rooms often when I stopped working (not sure if still, but they used to have specials on mondays for £25), but i'm almost returning and have only gone once. and that was while still pregnant!

Scorpio, my essay just took a while to type up! Loved it!

MommyHasaH - yes, luckily he's fine - it's really light etc, but it could have broken, I felt so bad when it happened, as I saw him crawling and laughing at his reflection, yet didn't think of taking it away! So no more "i'll do it later" anymore. Packing away and Ikea trip this weekend.

No, come back, I'm jinxing this thread!

I reckon I get a deserving vote too please? school fayre today- I started sorting at 9 (after doing baking / programmes last night), worked through until 5 with Bas in my arms all but one hour! On the toy stall which is normally manned by 4 but only I turned up.

Am effing shattered! But very, very virtuous
And cold, stall was outside!

Bazzy has a cold poor mite though despite the streaming nose is still grinning and happy, just waking lots to have a snuffly-feed

Supposed to be going in to sort crap leftover toys tomorrow but not going to, going to shop then to snuggle on sofa with Bas. Sod 'em , somebody elses turn.

Very cool gift Scorpio! I have been so slack this year - the only gift that I've bought were for my nephews, and that was only cos my mom was going to Dubai (where they live) and offered to take them!

Sal - as a something small presents, we are thinking of getting Gigi something like this or this or this - haven't decided yet. And I know it won't mean anything to her now, but after Christmas it will go in her special keepsake box and will hopefully mean something to her when she is older.

Ooh might get a bauble for Bas, they're lovely

we finished our shopping last week

Ooohhhh, that's beautiful!!! The clear glass one (2nd link) is my favourite, I think I'll get R that - such a nice reminder for years to come. (And anyway, I might as well give R a cut-off piece of cabling for a "now" gift, he'd be well chuffed! )

Peachy, fair enough, after such a day a Special Circumstances joint favourite might have to be arranged! Phew, don't know how you survived that. Don't know how you could have the energy of even thinking of major clean-ups around the house... I suspect you might have cracked already!

Mimi had a bauble last year with her name on it, we have it again this year. I was only 24 weeks last xmas, but knew her name!

DH has got me chocolate

Scorpio. I'll have to hint harder, no chocolates here. Hmm. (Then again, my complaints about not fitting into any suits yesterday might have put him off slightly. But still.)

I am so shocked. A friend of mine has a lovely little 5-year old daughter - a beautiful, adorable little girl, and apparently she got seriously burned by some coals or something at a barbecue. I still can't understand quite what happened (my mom didn't have all the information, and I don't want to call her so late), but seems like she has serious, serious burns in her face and her one hand. When they clean her wounds she has to be under general anesthetic, so it must be very serious. This is horrible, I'm so incredibly sad for her but don't even know what to say. I'll call her anyway, I'm sure she'll turn her mobile off if she doesn't want to speak to someone, but I remember I found it hard once when something happened when people avoided me because they didn't know what to say. It's just so horrendous.

Aww, sal, just be sure to say what you're thinking, I know from when DD was in hospital I HATED the tiptoeing, I just wanted people to be tactless and say the truth.

Yes, that's why I want to call her - I've got nothing to say, because what exactly can you say to change anything, but I just want her to know I'm thinking of her. It's so easy for people to ignore you thinking they're being kind, but in the end you end up lonely.

Call her, tell her honestly 'Fuck man, that's shit, really shit, poor girl' not 'Hi, how are you? It'll be fine'
(The swearing is optional)

Will do - I hate the "it'll be fine" if it most likely will not. The worst I've ever experienced was when someone, after my brother's death, told my mom that her son was addicted to drugs and that my mom should be glad that my brother died, because at least he never knew that kind of life. What a horrible, horrible thing to say. She might have meant it well (I hope!), but surely an "I'm so sorry" would have been better!

My favourite line was 'That's awful, I'm really sorry, and I have no idea what to say because I've never been in that situation but I'm here if you want to moan, shout or cry'

(From my best friend, there's a reason she has that job!)

Oh that is lovely, sounds like the perfect friend. I think I'll steal that one if it's ok with you.

Completely.

Agreee, do not sdo the itll be fine- I still get it ith the boys and nce or twice i've lost it and snapped back 'why, you've got a cure for fucking autism have you?'

Completely understandably if you ask me!

Morning all. Well, I eventually got the holiday pics up - man, was that schlepp! Here are my favourites of Roelof: www.flickr.com/photos/aucamp/3083660966/
and www.flickr.com/photos/aucamp/3083678502/

sorry, forgot about links: www.flickr.com/photos/aucamp/3083678502/ and www.flickr.com/photos/aucamp/3083660966/

sal- thats terrible. poor little girl. VS- i like that response you gave. hate it when people do the tilt of the head and say it will all be fine.

im from joburg then cape town then joburg and now my folks have moved to durban. so yea- get a beach holiday!!! sooo hot there apparently- my nephew is only in his nappy 24/7!!

had such a bad night sleep with teething ds. didnt want to settle from 1.30 - 4. so wanted to bring him into bed with us but he crawls off so i dont get much sleep. so I landed up climbing into his cot with him so i could get some sleep!! quite comfi!

lol LittleRascal - well, there's co-sleeping and then there's co-sleeping, I guess! Yes, you'll soon get used to the nappy-only - most days R was only wearing a t-shirt and nappy! Makes nappy changing easy! Make sure there's either aircon or a really good fan - Roelof struggled the first couple of days. Oh, and take non-toxic mosquito spray with you. (Sorry, you might have already covered this, but thought I'd share the bits that I didn't think of in advance.) Oh, and btw, if you're using readymix formula, you can't get that there, so be warned with water and powder.

hi - have managed to elbow parents off the computer for long enough to read replies since my post. Sorry still just scanning, so am being very rude and not able to comment on what's been going on except to say - hello Sal! nice to see you're back, Benedict is also obsessed with electric cables and am very sorry to hear about your friend's daughter, I think the suggestions you've had so far are exactly right.

• was it the TheShipsCat who still has a sicky baby too? B is just as bad as ever, am vaguely thinking about asking HV about it when I get back, for some reason I had 6 months in my mind for when it should get better...that came and went and I'm still cleaning up vom 4-5 times a day.
• BabyBee wears a sleeping bag, it's quite loose though, and he still manages to get his knees up to crawl. The bumper is an idea I'll take home with me, the cot here is narrower than our one at home so am sort of hoping he won't be able to grab hold of the bars and pull himself over in a wider cot?

Swaddling does seem to be working though, and he's fine with it now, I think he was pissing himself off with his own restlessness.

• Scorpio, good suggestion re distraction at nappy change, have now got a little stash of toys that I frantically hand him with 'oh look, isn't THIS exciting' and try to get the nappy done as fast as possible.

I miss mumsnet Will be back in a couple of weeks, when I'll be complaining about the weather, crying at you all because I have to go back to work and despairing of our baby who has decided that taking ALL of the books off the bookshelf is the most fun in the entire world.