Sept 08: They're under starters orders .... and they're off .... well, some of them!

[ILikeToMoveItMoveIt]

I thought I'd use this title as not all of our delicious babies are on the move yet, including mine

Starlight Yes you are a 'pushy parent' You have to be with a child with special needs.

There is a lot that can be done for autisitc children but you have to fight tooth and nail to get them.
Don't ever sit back and think that enough is being done, challenge them every step of the way and research as much as you can.
I know how you feel about being close to tears I felt like that for a long while and go through times like that even now.
tell your dad that if he can't be constructive and supportive to you then to keep his feelings to hisself. You need understanding at this time.

If you haven't already try reading The Autisn File. There is a lot of alternative therapies and such in there and gives you hope.

Youd think a parent with an autistic child could spell 'autism'

we are getting an 8 month check but at 9 months, not too far out. Not sure I like my HV she seems a bit of a div, not as bad as the ones at the clinic tho

Ooh, I have just discovered the post natal threads! Hello familiar names from antenatal threads !

I havn't read all the posts, but the opening ones about crawling have had me LOL. DS is crawling and cruising, oh yes. He can also do chin ups on the stair gate! Aaargh.

Ponymum apologies I didn't see your comment earlier about cows milk intolerance but I should be able to give you an idea.

Effy is intolerant to the protein in cows milk, which is slightly different to a lactose intolerance but I believe they can manifest themselves similarly.

There are a range of symtoms from rashes, to vomiting etc. Effy's intolerance is fairly mild, in that she can have up to 2oz of milk before it appears 2 hours later, but her reaction is quite extreme - she projectile vomits every 20 mins until every bit of bile has come from her stomach. Some babies can't even tolerate a drop of milk on their lips before having a reaction, others more like Effy.

If you are concerned you may have problems getting anyone to take you seriously. I spoke to the dr and Health Visitor four times, and this is after Effy had been hospitalised after the first reaction, before I insisted that they arrange for her to be tested. They had just kept asking me to try different types of milk until this point.

When the GP did agree to have her tested, he rang a paediatrician at the local hospital and she said immediately it sounds like she has it and recommended she be given Nutramigen to try. This is a formula milk where the protein has already been broken down somewhat so she has to work less hard to digest it. There are more extreme versions of this, for example Neocate, where the protein has been broken down to one molecule. Luckily Effy was fine with Nutramigen and has thrived ever since.

We have since been referred to the hospital, but in the meantime we are not allowed to give Effy any dairy, eggs or seafood apart from white fish, which has limited her diet somewhat. Cow & Gate do a brilliant egg and milk free pasta which has been my life saver.

On a positive note, 80% of children have grown out of this intolerance by the time they're 4.

Apologies for the length of this. Hope it helps.

starlight being a pushy parent should be a compliment! It means you're doing your best for your ds and not letting bureaucracy get in the way.

A is getting his crawling speed up and is very confused about when to nap - yesterday he was so grouchy in the morning I chucked him in the pushchair and went to vote, and he was charming to all the bored polling staff and then fell asleep.

Feeling a bit isolated from people at the moment - baby group yesterday was packed so couldn't talk to anyone (hearing aids can't cope with much background noise. 30 babies...), and then went for coffee afterwards but it was all obsessing over minutiae of baby weaning, which was boring enough when I was figuring it all out! I'm actually looking forward to going back to work, not just because my SMP has just run out.

Right, back to fighting for A's 8-month hearing test. The numpties on the phone keep hanging up on the relay person, asking 'can't I just speak to you directly instead of all this hassle', and then claiming he doesn't exist! Grr!

Ooh and I turned up at nursery yesterday to collect Effy and she was kneeling over a toy bucket with another child, trying to see what was in there. Was so proud - she's starting to be a little girl with her own ideas rather than just a baby iyswim.

ssssshhh don't tell anyone but I'm at work and I'm bored with nothing to do. I'm lying low though in case someone finds me something to do! Is that naughty?

Won't last long though, got proper timetable that starts next week.

That's sweet sunshine. My childminder txd me a photo of ds2 painting this morn! Dread to think what he'll look like when I collect him!

Debi we had parent's evening the other week and there was a pic of Effy in her book painting and the painting itself - I didn't even realised she could hold a paintbrush (bad bad mummy!).

We got a little report on her which said she's happy, confident and very popular !

sunshine thank you so much for the info. I think from what you have said that DD probably doesn't have a problem. Sometimes she is crying and unhappy after feeds, but then she has been so sick that that's not unusual. She has vomitted quite a lot after feeds, but I think this is to do with the ongoing cold / tonsilitis / brochiolitis / chest infection ... Her vomit is phlegmy and the doctors have explained that this is because she can't cough up phlegm / blow her nose as we would do, so I don't personally think it is to do with the milk.

I'll discuss it with DH some more but I think we have to wait until she is over the current illness before we can make any judgement about this. But if she is keeping down most of her FF feeds each day, then it is unlikely she has a problem, would you say?

notcitrus so sorry about your frustrations.

digi - so sorry to hear about your friends dd. Are they at Kings?

Hope you get the hearing test sorted out NC.

Enjoy your holiday Carrie!

Wow it's quiet on here tonight! DH is out for the second night running so I am very bored. Erin is asleep but is murmuring alot so I am keeping my fingers crossed she does not fully awake as I am enjoying slouching around.

Have a good weekend!

It's official. AF is back. Bleurgh.

saw my hv last night- onstage in a variety show!

blackout blind still working well, ds2 didn't wake till 7.30 this morn. And then dh let me go back to sleep after I fed him (ds2 obviously, not dh) until 9 when ds1 came and jumped on me.

Off to the rugby in a min, hope the rain holds off.

Boooo Scotland didn't manage to beat NZ in the cricket just now.

Pacita - me too I think we've had a good run of it.

Better go and dust off my mooncup

ILTMIMI yes, she's at Kings. Surgery booked for Monday morning. Keeping my fingers very tightly crossed for them.

pacita My period went AWOL for a couple of months after the first very dramatic post-childbirth one. But it returned at the beginning of the week, at least not as horrible as the first time. Less painful and less heavy.

Sooooooooooooooooo, DS has FANGS! No milk teeth for him, straight to the upper canines. I thought I'd felt something sharp yesterday, spotted them both today when he was laughing! At bloody last is all i can say, he's only been teething since January.

digi - I will keep my fingers crossed for them too. The ward she is on is one of the best Liver Pead wards in the world.

M also had his top canines before the middle top two. It really made me laugh, luckily they aren't that visible!

My AF put in a quick appearance last week. To be honest I wouldn't of known if I hadn't become the monster from Hell for a couple of days beforehand. It was so scant you could hardly see it.
Shouldn't complain I'm sure it will be back with a vengeance when I stop BF.

Who is still BF?

I'm still bf'ing, about 4 feeds a day - and still no af

I would still be BFing were it not for T drawing blood twice. I decided at that point (and after being bitten every feed for 2 weeks) that I had done my best to persevere through the biting, taking him off, saying no etc. So came to a sudden stop last week. Have only had to express off the excess a couple of times, despite the fact I was still BFing 4-5 times a day.

i'm still bf mainly just on a night, and when he asks, but trying to get him onto a tommee tippee cup, hes doing quite well with it. only thing with the bf is that he s biting really hard towards the end, then getting a bit excited and going back just to bite.
star there is nothing wrong with being pushy sometimes you need to be to get the appropriate care for your lo

am still bf but temporarily back at work so severely curtailed in day. Feeding about 4 times/day in total - morning, late afternoon, bedtime, dreamfeed (plus in the early hours if I'm unlucky ). Am getting bitten occasionally as ds has 5 teeth now. Ds refuses cups apart from a little water from tommee tippee first cup but my mother is trying to persuade him to take some milk from a cup too...

DG how are things with the theft business? Are the insurance coughing up as they should, and has the police got the b**s?

Ninja just got back from a walk in the park with Diego in your Ergo. He fell asleep, but really enjoyed it before hand. I've just sat at the computer to MN and transfer you the moneys. By the way, how do you use that funny hood thing? I was trying to support his head with it but did not do very well...

Re: AF - it's bizarre - have only bled a bit in the morning, then dried out the rest of the day. And painful too.

Still breastfeeding about 4 times a day, big one in the morning, then a snack mid day, a snack in the afternoon and bed time. The main reason I don't stop is because I hate making bottles (lazy cow emoticon). I guess I also enjoy the closeness Do you think you can transition from boob to tommy tippee chewy spout cup without bottles in between?

And do you know how much milk he should be having per day?

I stopped BF about a week ago. I have even attempted to leave the house in a normal bra! Alas, it seems things are not what they once were in that department. Damn, they used to be my best assets.

I am dreading the return of AF. I haven't had one since December 2007, and I am frankly not missing it at all! I have tried to figure out how to avoid them coming back, and the only answer seems to be I will just have to get pregnant again!

Planted my hanging baskets today. Also, when I was at the garden centre yesterday I got strangely inspired and bought some seeds for radishes and rocket. I have now planted them but have no idea how this works. I have never grown anything from a seed before, and have never grown food. Also, I planted them in old horse feed buckets. Not sure if that's a problem. I keep looking outside every half an hour to see if they have started growing yet.

My two have been an complete PITA this morning . Both up much earlier than normal (7am, which is late for some but still nearly killed me as i usually get time on my own for a while) then DS started throwing mega blocks at dd when I was changing her nappy and ended up with time out in his bedroom even before breakfast . Then DD grizzled through breakfast and DS make handprints on the table with his Oatibix. As a result I didn't even get a cup of tea until 10am and was a very harrassed mummy, pah. Ex P came round to take DS swimming though so I had a chance to relax while DD had a nap. I hate crappy starts to the day.

ponymum sorry your dd is still poorly. what a rotten few weeks you've had. I hope she's better soon and you can all have a gorgeous, healthy summer.

nc there's a mum at our baby group who is deaf and i wonder how she manages when the place is chaotic and insanely noisy . Sorry to hear your hassles getting A's hearing test sorted out.

Oh dear, they are both awake now after their naps. How long is it until bed time? I can see an afternoon of cbeebies coming up so I can get some peace and some chores done.........

ponymum I haven't had a proper af since Feb 06 (thanks to a combination of bf dd and ds and a litle help from the mini pill and latterly the mirena coil). Am hoping the coil keeps it at bay long term...