December 2006 - Terrible Two's here we come!

[Olihan]

Here we go. I thought the title was apt as ds2 has morhed into a stroppy little horror overnight. His favourite expression at the moment is 'I cwoss with you, I sceam at you AAAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH' .

Happy Birthday ToddlerJabber and ToddlerEli .

DD is poorly again. I swear every bug in the vicinity has some kind of magnetic attraction to her . She has a bit of a temp, headache and earache today. I need to buy shares in Calpol and Medised I think.

Aoa, hotel is a very good idea - go for a posh one so you can have a vvvv hot, deep bath!

I'm off to fb to upload some pictures.

Feel much better today (thanks everybody) although its taken the whole weekend to get rid of that nasty pain. DH played super house husband yesterday while I took it easy!

LenniEd - If only I was fit and healthy Now you mention it I´ve had many more cramp like feelings than I ever did with my 1st pg... Great news on the weight gain, (DS that is!) you must be doing a great job

Indith - I bet your are well chuffed with DS - YAY! I can´t wait for DS to do the same

Thanks too for all the kind words regarding my feeling so lonely - it does help

Jabber - I did think of organising my own baby/toddler group a while back but ended up doing nothing about it and now I feel so lacking in confidence etc. Suppose I´m my own worst enemy

So most of you are up to your eyeballs in snow eh!!!??? Glad to hear it as I was getting a bit fed up of me being the only one. Here´s to stock-piling beans (bp!) and being holed up for weeeeks!!!!!!!!!

Lots of snow here too - wahey. Had to go to the massive Tesco to buy ds1 some more gloves as he lost his so went to school wearing a (mismatched) pair of ds2's mittens .

No snowing in here yet. We've got about 3 inches, I guess. School/preschool might be shut in the morning if the staff can't get in. Not sure if that would be a good thing or not!

The dog loves the snow, she had so much fun on her walk, diving into snowy tussocks of grass. Will have to take the camera tomorrow, black lab on white snow is very photogenic .

Big cheers for Eli's dd2 being 'normal' .

Bebe, glad you're okay now.

LenniEd, that's an incredible weight gain for a 100% bf baby . Double cream, indeed. Wonderful that it's going so well though, have you had a go at expressing yet?

Back to the doctor today - I have a huge list of questions for him, so hopefully I'll get some answers. I'm half terrified, half expecting that he'll sign me off again . I know I'm not really in any fit state to work (I couldn't even cope with talking to my boss last week), but I hate not working.

No snow at all here now, just really heavy rain.

Bebe, glad you're feeling better.

The snow made the front page of msn yesterday Link to slate article about how London copes (or doesn't) with snow, lol.

Just cold here. We had a huge ice storm a few hours north of us that has caused massive power outages. They are predicting at least two more weeks to get it fixed.

Hope things go as well as possible today bp. Just remember, rest is GOOD.

Good luck today, BP, or if yo've already been - how'd it go?

Jabber, do you have no power for two weeks ? Or, not you personally?

LenniEd, am stunned by your cream production and very impressed: gold top/star to you

Thanks for all the cheers

Hands rather full of bouncing dds and friends (theirs) so shouldn't even be here - will try catch up properly later

Thanks everybody!

bp I hope it went well at the Doctors and you got the answers and help you were looking for....

Not much to report this end. We haven't had any more snow today so hopefully this is the end to the rubbish weather...

Off to eat

Sounds like you had your hands full, Eli! Does it look like things will get back to normal tomorrow? I did hear that the Met had issued a new warning for you on Thursday ...

I had a good session with my doc - he has signed me off, of course, as I'm in no fit state to even get to work, let alone do any - but he answered my questions, and I feel more hopeful now. Thanks for all your good wishes. I do love this group, always supportive.

It's so cold tonight I think I might just take a hot water bottle and crawl into bed with DD2. (Still co-sleeping, of course. Will I never learn )

BP, I miss co sleeping with ds2. He's sleeping through most of the time at the moment but he still wants me in with him if he wakes and I love snuggling into his soft, warm, squidgy body. of your snuggles!

Schools all open today, none of this softy southern closing for a few flakes business up here .

no. we have power eli. We got very lucky and missed this one. That's the problem with where we live, always the fear of that one big winter ice storm. One year dh and I flew out just an hour or two ahead of a really bad one. Power was out for a couple of weeks and we were snuggled in with dh's father in NY

bp, glad you got some answers at least.

And yay! for cream lenniEd.

I'm glad the visit to the doctors has left you a bit more hopeful.

dd1 shares the bed much better than dd2. She's still at the stage where I get her head and dh gets her toes in his ears.

We ended up with both DDs in our bed - DD1 snuggled down at our feet sometime during the night She must have been cold, bless her, as she does sleep through now. As well she might, being 6.6!

Oh I miss co-sleeping with DD too . DS is too weeny not to worry about him still but DD will come and tuck herself in between us for 10mins or so in the morning if I'm feeding DS and its lovely. If only she'd sleep! She is a little radiator though so I don't miss waking up all hot and bothered.

Glad doc has given you some time and some answers BP, hopefully this will be the beginning of your gentle recovery.

Thanks for all the bf cheers - double cream ! Haven't tried expressing yet Oli, but have dug the steriliser out so am going to get everything sterilised today and then maybe give it a go in the morning. He has started sleeping 3-4hour stretches at night the last few days so I am waking up with very full boobs and he only half empties one and then goes back down until about 10am so I'd be glad of being able to express some then. Should I try the hand pump first or can I use the electric one straight away? I'm not going to hurt myself am I?

Hope you are both ok there``` - contributions from DD¬

I know I'm hardly posting at the moment, using free moments whilst nanny entertains the lo's, I should probably take more advantage but feel like they're my children and I ought to be looking after them.

[waves back at lennied] well done to you, wow, fab that you're feeding him AND enjoying it AND he's putting on weight AND sleeping well! (No, you won't hurt yourself with either pump but I'd start with the manual if it were me ,gentler introduction to the whole thing). Wish I could say the same for ds3, who is a bit of a nightmare at the moment but I'm trying to stick with it and hope that I can make it through to weaning. They're 18 weeks so not too long now.

bp, glad you're getting somewhere please don't think about work, they'll manage.

business looking like it can be saved, the contract 'lost' last week was given back overruled by Head Office so dp soooo relieved. I think I'll still need to go back to work though, if they would just have me for 1 day until the end of the year! Business troubles ,and the fact that I have to go back to work leaving the babies, no cleaner and we'll be stuck in this tiny house with tiny kitchen with 4 dc's for ever now hit me the other night and I cried my eyes out and then did some baking. As you do. If I could just get some sleep I could cope with it all. Sounds pathetic really, we have a lot more than other people have in many ways, I know I'm lucky.

Crikey (says Elibean, trying not to swear ) you're anything but pathetic, AQ. I'm so glad the business saved, but can't imagine coping with no sleep and 4 LOs in any sized house, let alone baking for them. You're so right about sleep making a difference, and at least that has to get better with time, right? (don't think about my experience, its rare, honest...)

Jabber, glad to hear you're not powerless

Good season for co-sleeping....dd2 actually slept through till 6am, then snuggled and coughed in with us till 7.30 by which time I was up with dd1 anyway. Lovely. Unlike her sister, who only ever did kick-push-toes-in-face sort of sleeping, she sleeps the right way up, snuggles, likes pillow and duvet, and is reasonably quiet (with earplugs, admittedly).

I finally worked out she was waking through hunger: her stomach must have shrunk so she was eating teeny amounts, so the past two days I've been feeding her up, giving her loads of milk (wish I had some LenniEd quality stuff, would have been faster ) and hopefully thats done it...

LenniEd, I only ever used an electric (Medela) pump - start on low speed, then build up! I loved it, could use it while MNing too...

I was baking for me, really it just cheers me up somehow doing something completely inessential iykwim?

Am so glad sleep for you, and eating for dd2! Wow, you must not be used to catering for her!

Thanks for posting AQ, I have been worrying about you and was about to email you. Things will get better, just take it one step at a time. Great news about DP's business. What a relief. Do remember to post on here: you are not being pathetic and it is extremely therapeutic

I'd go straight for the leccy pump Lennied. Those hand jobs are an effing nightmare imo.

The DCs are back at school today. More snow is predicted towards the end of the week though. The novelty's worn off a bit for me now!!

dh, who seems to be welded to his weather-forecasting phone says snow forecast is off now, Castles....have to admit am glad, much as dds would have cheered!

AQ, yes, ikwyum, absolutely

Keep baking...(doggy bags can be addressed to Elibean, SW London )

Have just signed up for the Pink Power Walk in May and am in . This is me taking an act of faith in dd's continuing health, and my own will power (far less likely)...

What is Pink Power Walk Eli?

Its a 16 (? thereabouts) mile walk in aid of Breakthrough, with 30% sponsorship money raised going to the Caron Keating Foundation. dd1's school is handing out application forms, and organizing training walks.

Which means I'll be walking for an hour per week and then drinking coffee with the Mums, which sounds good to me

And fundraising, of course

Its from Richmond Park to a school in Barnes, on 16 May, I think. Interested? Will give you website info (or you could Google) if you like, still time!

AQ, you are so not pathetic (and I sound so like my 16yo DSD - sorry) My DH always knows when I'm a bit stressed because he comes home to a kitchen full of baked goods. Baking through crises - at least it's productive!

It's snowing quite heavily here at the moment. I've just come back from the building society who seem to have agreed to lend us more money to extend . Now all I have to do is get back to work so we can afford the extra payments! Mind you, I only drove 30 miles, and had a little wander about the shops after my appointment. drove home and now I'm exhausted.

I have decided to do the cabbage soup diet for a week to try to shift some of the excess fluid I seem to be carrying. It might even cause DD2 to self-wean (I can't imagine my milk will taste anything like double cream with all the cabbage soup!) I'm sure the amitryptiline is only contributing to the effects of the steroids I was on.

AQ - nothing is forever, you won't be stuck there forever, and if DP's business survives the current crisis then he has done an amazing job. And things will get better financially, it looks like it might be slower here than in other countries but it will happen. Apparently approx 50 businesses a day are going under at the moment (according to DHs accountant) so anyone who gets through it is doing a damn fine job - that's what I keep telling my increasingly depressed DH! I'd be making the most of nanny time though - understand you saying they are your children etc. but she's only there for a few hours and you are there 24hours a day. Plus a healthy, happy, well rested mummy is top priority with everything that's going on. And you know what, I miss you so please come and vent more often. You've got me through some hard times in the past you know.

BP - Is the cabbage soup diet going to be good for you? Don't want you doing yourself any harm.

16 miles Good on you Eli, training programme sounds fab!

Oh, all this mention of diets and exercise... I really must get myself back on track with eating and exercise. I am permanently starving at the moment and need to shift a couple of stone, one for each DC!

Castles: "Those hand jobs are an effing nightmare imo." Oh so true

You're all so filthy minded..that's probably the reason why I feel so at home here!

That's good news about your DHs AQ and castles.

Jabber, don't suppose Northernmama is on your North American thread, is she? I don't want to just drop in and ask, thought you might know ...

How are things with your work sitch Margo?

Ooh not sure about the 'training' involved for the walk Eli. I don't have time for that at the moment. I'd be happy to just do a 16 mile walk though.

Cabbage soup! You're off your rocker BP And, Lennied, worrying about diet/exercise with a 4 week old I'd just enjoy having bf'ing as an excuse personally