March 09 - there is no snooze button on a baby that needs milk.....!

[meep]

over here ladies

added a pic...

boobz a heart murmur sounds so frightening, but it sounds like your LO is under good care and observation.

more children seem to have murmurs than you would think, and it doesn't mean less quality to life. fingers crossed yes, though.

you wouldn't know to look at dd1 she has this problem, but i believe she one of the lucky ones as a third of children in her condition do not make it.

we don't know the future, but who does? fingers crossed for our dd1 too.

Oh she's so pretty! How adorable.

The Dr even hesitated to put it on my notes let alone tell me about it she was that sure it was an "innocent" murmur, which is nothing at all and just echos on the stethoscope when listening to her heart-beat. She said it was up to me whether to have a scan or not, as 3 years ago they wouldn't have referred her as it was so small and the NHS only has limited resources... but now that there are more scanners and more Drs, she said the option was there to have the scan if I wanted it.

So she didn't seem overly worried so neither am I. Indeed, fingers crossed though!

x

Morning ladies.

More pics of little Rosie on my profile.

Boobz just to give you a little bit of comfort - I had a heart murmur as a child - was checked and was fine - in fact they can't even hear it now - and it hasn't affected me in any way at all. You sound pretty chilled about the whole thing - fingers crossed for cutie Pen (lovely pics)

kanga what a great pic - so sweet in her dress. I hadn't realised your dd1 had a heart problem - is she okay?

Glad your break was good slick - it is a lovely place - but there are just so many rooms - it is no wonder that they haven't updated them all!

Quick question, ladies (will come back later and respond to others' posts, promise!) --

A friend just brought back three kinds of teething gel from the UK -- Bonjela, Calgel and Boots store brand. I've noticed that the Boots gel has a higher concentration of lidocaine hydrochloride (0.6%) than the others (0.33%). Is there one you'd recommend over the others from experience?

I thank you.

TBH I haven't ever found them that easy to use as the gel slides off the gums! But maybe I have't got the technique right! I've only ever used the Calgel tho. I don't know why I'm posting. I don't think I can be of any help! Sorry! I tend to use the Ashdon & Parson's teething powders as I've always found them more effective. Maybe I should persevere with the gel more.

Meep Lovely pics, she's really coming on eh?

Kanga How frightening for you all that heart trouble with your DD. Hope she continues to be ok. xxx

Re: heart murmers, I've heard the same as Meep, that they are quite common and often nothing to worry about and that sometimes people have them without even knowing. Good luck with it anyway Boobz.

Rosie is a doll! and your other dd is lovely too. What gorgeous girls we all have - where are the boys?!

corgi
i always end up throwing away open, used once, expired teething gels.

as slick says it is hard to apply. I used the teething powder on dd1, and certainly easier to use. i am not much help either sorry.

normal calpol says it can be used for teething, check with your GP.

thank you all for kind comments, we think she is pretty gorgeous too! bit of a bias there i think.

meep/slick
dd1 has a condition called dilated cardiomyopathy, which simply means enlarged heart. her left ventricle was so damaged by the virus, unknown to us until breathing difficulties arose, that it is taking time to repair itself. which we hope it does fully. there is no cure. she has been on a number of medicines to support her in the meantime. v. scary.

another vote for the powders here - these are the ones Corgi. You do get some odd looks from people without children as you are unwrapping your little paper wrap of white powder and popping it in your babies mouth

Have also used teetha granules

Agree - Calpol great if it gets too bad ie/ in the middle of the night

For no scientific/proven reason I have always gone with Bonjela. Saying that I have an array of teething implements: this - but nothing seems to be as good as a good chew of my fingers

Can I just say - OMG - Rosie is having a nap and the bl**dy breathing monitor beeped. It beeps once then gives a few seconds before the alarm goes off. went to check on her and she is fine - sleepy but awake and has just nodded off again. I know that it is probably due to it being in a cot now so maybe not at the right setting - but it gave me a hell of a fright.

What a horrid day! Walked to DPs work to meet him for lunch and ended up just getting a lift home as I was soaked!

I was tempted to get one of those monitors, quite glad I didn't. I'd probably still go in to check on her every five mins. anyways and if it did that to me it would be in bits in the bin. bl**dy technology.

We're trying out the big cot here too. First night last night, went down fine and was only up twice. Her crying sounded weird though, was maybe a little scared at not being where she usually is. was nice to have the bedroom to ourselves again though.

Not tried teething gels here yet but have bonjela in the house so will probably just use that.

everyone has such gorgeous little munchkins. I put up a new(ish) picture (will need to get the others off the camera) and one of the final day of my bump. good times. I took Juno to get her portrait done but the photographers were cowboys and most of them are out of focus. wouldn't mind if they had told me this and I would have just paid the £30 for the 6 prints but they didn't let on and let me pay another £20 for the disc of blurry ones. grrr. last time I go to a travelling photographer.

Hi all. Scan City for me, having to be monitored closely as fluid levels for both twins are low (low-but-safe in twin 2, below the levels of adequacy in twin 1). Things had evened out a bit at the last scan (was 10 days after the first) but still need to improve - explains why I'm carrying so small, although I do have a perceptible bump now - would be a bit worrying if I didn't I guess, I'll be 21 weeks on Tuesday. I carried absolutely tiny with James too and there appeared to be no problems then, all very strange.

Didn't find out the sexes by the way, but she wrote it down for my ex (to be sent to him as he wanted to know) and rhythmically it did sound very much like 'girl + boy', so that's my bet.

Jimbo has taken very well to solids (we've progressed to slices of banana now, they're a hit) but he refuses under any circumstance to eat anything unless he's breastfed for at least 15-20 minutes beforehand. Has anybody else had this problem, and is there any way I can move things along?

megzy I am a bit like you about bl**dy technology - but dd1 stopped breathing when she was in dh's arms just after she was born (was fine within minutes) and it totally freaked him out. We spent the first 6 months of dd1's life going up and down the stairs every 10/20 mins to check on her and I would catch dh checking her in the middle of the night. Looking back it was a really stressful time for all of us - including dd1 who was getting woken up all the time by us!

The monotor has really helped dh relax this time round - if he wakes up in a pnic he just has to look at the monitor and see the green light blinking away to know she is brething.

I did ask him if he'd know what to do if the alarm did go off...............

Have just put the mobile over Rosie's cot - and I can hear her chuckling over the monitor - cute!

megzy Rosie is still in our room - the cot fits just down my side of the bed - plan is to make the move for Rosie and dd1 to share at around 6mo!

loli hope everything goes okay for your wee babies - must be very stressful for you - look after yourself.

Love all the photos, all the babies are gorgeous.

Lolli hope the new bumps are OK, presume they will continue to monitor things carefully for you all.

No thoughts on teething things yet as we don't appear to be that far progressed.

Mae is starting to get quite clingy and is starting to cry if she can't see her mummy and is even at some points literally stretching her arms out to me when she is with her dad or grandparents.

meep, re monitors, that sounds scary, but the pros obviously outweigh the cons for you and DH!

megzy, Juno is very cute too. i am shocked at those photographers. i seem to be constantly bombarded by companies offering free sittings, and a selection of free photos (in the hope you'll buy more i assume). if i remember correctly one offer even came with the hospital bounty bag....

lolianja sounds like you are very level headed about your little bumps...fingers crossed for you too.

as for little man's solids, can you try reducing the BF by a few minutes each day, and alternating with the solids? ie half a BF, bit to eat, bit of BF, bit to eat, finish BF?

well here we visited the local hospital for the fourth time this week...mon check reflux, wed get 4 mth jabs, wed night get ds2 head seen to after falling heavily off swing, fri go again to get antibiotics for dd2 cradle cap which is infected...i really need my own parking space at that place!!! or a loyalty card.

Oooh Meep That is a fright for you darlin'! Glad it was nothing. It is horrible. I go and check HHB sometimes and he is so still I get freaked out and have to nudge him slightly. We are the same, we have the cot in our room and plan to move him through at 6 months - depending if he is regularly sleeping through. We have now thought about putting a partician (oh, feck there's another word I can never spell - used to be a proofreader too - partitian?? ) wall in the wee ones' room as I think DD2 is just going to wake up all the time. But first we are about to move the bathroom over and turn the bathroom into DD1's bedroom so I am currently sorting those plans and details out.

Anyway, side-tracked there.

Loli It's never an easy ride making twins so it must be extra hard for you in your situation. I can't believe you are managing to bf whilst pg with twins?! You must be exhausted! In fact, I didn't even know you could bf when pg. Oh well, there you go.

Jolly I'm surprised she is at the clingy phase already! Maybe I'm remembering wrong, but I'm sure mine typically went through that about 9 months. Will watch HHB with interest....

I have added some new pics of the Slickbird clan (apart from DH) and have decided to put a face to my name seeing as DH actually took a photo of me while we were away - usually I take all the photos and you'd never know I even existed in this family!!

I have started feeding HHB in his sister's highchair as we got rid of the old big one and got a cheap dinky one from Ikea and it's really good, esp as you can buy an inflatable insert which helps your baby go into it earlier - ie you don't have to wait til they are sitting up by themselves. V good. Would recommend. Pic of FB in said highchair looking very pleased with himself!

lovely lovely pics of the clan slick!!!

i can't wait for our LO to be sitting up, she will be so much happier. she just goes tense with excitement if i hold her up to look at her brothers and sister playing!

mine too were typically clingy at 9/10 months. dd1 still is...

Thanks Kanga!

I know what you mean. HHB is dying to get stuck in and join in the fun! I think at that stage, it really will be a mad house!

But I guess I can always take comfort in the fact it'll never be as crazy as your gaff!

yep it's crazy here all right, but fun too!!

i don't notice so much as it has built up over time, but it gets pretty boisterous sometimes, and our neighbour UPSTAIRS thumps on her floor. we just ignore her.

at least they are all in bed at reasonable hour...we don't party late into the night with loud music, that sort of thing.

yet

I think it's safe to say that all the March Mummies are in awe of "Mamma Kanga" .

@Slickbird - It's doable but harder, even though he's not on 100% boobmilk anymore. My breasts are murdering me at the moment and nothing seems to help (they weren't bothering me too much to begin with) and it's knackering - I get drowsy doing it and just want to sleep after it's finished. J doesn't feed very often, he just feeds for a very long time - he has always fed for 45 mins absolute minimum and sometimes upwards of an hour. I'm having to start combining with formula though as my milk supply's reduced quite a bit over the last two or three weeks and feeding/expressing is nigh on impossible sometimes. My midwife said it's nothing to worry about and that J may have begun to stop wanting my milk at this point but I'm seeing no signs of that. She also says I?m doing myself no favours by continuing breastfeeding and tiring myself out needlessly? doesn?t seem to understand how far from a walk in the park it?s been to get him to accept anything other than breastmilk! He hasn't really taken to the formula I've been trying him on and I'd imagined that by now he'd be on 95% formula and some solids but it hasn't been that simple. I feel a bit useless when I read about people getting their babies from 100% breastfed to 100% formula and solids 2/3 times a day in about a week!

can I join in being in awe of "mama kanga" - I only just cope with 2!!

slick I can't believe how grown up wee Boab looks in his high chair - and all that hair - wow!

I am definitely a fan of the Ikea highchair here if anyone is interested. So cheap - easy to dismantle and pop in teh car if needed - and you can put the seat and tray in teh dishwasher. No crevises for food to hide in.

I agonised over whether to get a Tripp Trapp with dd1 and am now so gald we didn't given teh difference in price between teh two.

And I have to say that the reason I went for the Ikea one was because it is so thoroughly recommended on MN

Impressed at your plans for moving bathrooms etc slick. We only have 2 bedrooms upstairs and I dream of sticking an ensuite on ours and making the existing shower room into a 3rd bedroom. But I think we are going to try to sell and buy a more traditional house with garden instead of an upper villa. Depending on what we decide to do about schooling we might even consider a move to your neck of the woods (not that we'll find anything that much cheaper than the city!)

jolly, Rosie is getting clingy too. Dd1 was like that - howled if she was being held by anyone but me or dh - even if she could see us. I got so stressed at how she would cope in nursery/with my mum & dad - but it changed on Christmas day 07 when she decided that other people were fun too!

And - yes, another clingy phase around 9/10 months and actually forever after but easier to deal with !

Dh did the early shift this morning - so I napped and read my book in peace and quiet in bed - ahhhhhhhh! Dd1 flew into my arms and showered me with kisses when I did get up - so sweet. Rosie is napping but I expect a full body wriggle when she sees me.

God - my spelling is terrible - sorry ladies (especially proofreading slick)!

and meant to say - nice to put a face to the name slick - maybe I will be brave enough to post a pic of me one day.................

Well Meep I'm hoping you are going to tell me how to spell 'partitian' as my spelling's gone right out the window since being preggars!

That'd be good if you moved out our way Meep, we love it out here and it's so equidistant for so many places; Edinburgh, South Q/ferry & bridges, Linlithgow, L/ston. Is great. We are lucky where we are as it's a wee hamlet and is a bit of a nature reserve. Our garden is ginormous, but our house (lower villa) is still not ideal and not really big enough for the 5 of us. I do wonder sometimes if we will move too. But I daren't mention it to DH as it's not been that long we have been here.

Anyway, if you do move out this way, we can go for coffee!

Ohh, DD2 moaning calling. Back later.

partition!

!

PARTITION!! That's it! It came to me. After looking it up in the dictionary!.

Just went through to DD2's room to an almighty smell only to discover she had done a poo, and fairplay, still had her nappy on this time, but she had stuck her hands in to investigate and it was all over her hands, arms, legs, feet, back, stomach, bedclothes, Mr Custard....

I have bathed her and put everything in the wash (Mr Custard is next) but I can still smell it. I think I'm going to be sick....