Nov 2008 - because there was no thread space to think of a clever title!

[Yorky]

Had to be done soon, hope it works!

Evening all

Obs wow at M's eating - we are a long way off being able to give the Hamster what we are eating without it being mushed (unless it is finger-food type of food).

Coolkat I agree with Daisy - personally I would hold off switching around but I am always on the cautious side. I haven't decided when I am going to switch the Hamster around (even though he is practically outgrown the carseat) as he must be nearly 20lbs but his neck strength is really quite poor.

Fudge I have had early slots for the Next sale for as long as I can remember - my friend says it is random but I don't think I would be that lucky. Not sure how you would qualify though.

Glad I am not the only one busy on the Next website today

Has anyone else dropped a feed yet? The Hamster usually has 4 bottles a day but we have started to miss the 3pm one occasionally depending on where we are etc and just give him a snack instead (like today, he was asleep until well past 4pm and he was going to have his tea at 5.30 so just gave him a small amount of veg puree and a biscuit - is this ok do you think? I am not doing it everyday but sometimes it is easier to give him food than trying to find somewhere to heat up a bottle etc if we are out and about.

Ceebee we miss the 10am feed in the morning and if Becca starts getting unsettled unsually offer her a breadstick and feed her at 12.

Thanks ladies, I think you are probaby right and need to hold off. Its going to be a long journey down south next friday! Her neck strength is good sits up fine but may as well wedge her in it for as long as possible!

pops head around the door to pass on message. sparkles could you email twinklingfairy to catch up and see if you going up her way anytime.

Hope everyone ok. Really sorry I dont get on. Very lucky if I get on FB everyday just to put on a quick post. Lots of photos on there if anyone wants to look.

coolkat i would put her in the next stage seat but keep her reclined as much as possible, which is what i do with O. He has been forward facing for a couple of months but is mostly reclined, mainly in case he falls asleep.

Tomorrow is dd1's last day at primary school, I can't believe she has grown up so fast.

Ahh Tegan and I'm getting soppy because it's DS's last day at nursery school! It all flies by so fast.

Next sale- well I got a VIP slot last year and bought loads, but I have not ordered from catalogue this year so I didn't get a slot.

I seem to have a lot of girls clothes at the moment, and DS doesn't wear half as much stuff except his uniform now .

Food. Mimi tucked into her corn on the cob tonight- she really loved it . She eats most things and gets a bit cross if I try to help her so best leave her to it. DD1 was much the same at this age. I find they go through big eating phaese then decide they mainly want milk for a bit- so WRT dropping feeds I would just go by demand as they may change their minds for the odd week or so. MM I reckon you will prolly be ok with morning and evening feeds but you may get the odd manic night feeding period, as you are letting Plum choose her own feeding intake (which I do with mine, too).

Obs I have been lucky but so many people I know have done this, however I nearly let the pram roll into the road whilst waving to a friend a few months back.. makes me shudder to think of it .

Leaving baby outside in pram, well I've left them in the yard with kitchen door open but we don't have much of a front garden- it's actually a grass driveway. Friend had her mountain buggy stolen from front porch once- ina nice suburb too! No baby in it, thank goodness! I tend to wheel ours into the hall as it's quite cool in there.

Rain is pouring here, too.

It's thunder and lightening here Pinky. Thanks for tips on feeding. So far the Plum has devoured everything put in front of her which has made it easier for her to drop the milk feeds.
obs loved your christening photos. You look really glam and gorgeous!

Obs Love the christening pics on FB - you look so glam! Pleased work agreed to you reducing your hours and it sounds as though you've got a busy 6 weeks coming up!
Am also of M's eating. E has now mastered finger foods and is eating quite lumpy (or should that be "textured" ) purees, but she's nowhere near the stage of having what we eat. Unless you count jacket potatoes. I saved some of the mince and bolognaise sauce we had tonight for her dinner tomorrow but I'll be whizzing it in the Babycook first.
Coolkat Hope your journey down south goes OK next week. We've been wondering what to do with E's car seat too but reading the various posts on here recently we've decided to keep her in her infant carrier for the time being. She's still got some headroom and fortunately she's quite happy being rear-facing.
As for sleeping outside, E still only sleeps in her buggy for her daytime naps so with the nice weather she's usually outside. In my defence, our back garden is totally secure with a locked gate and I have the baby monitor by the open kitchen window so that I can hear her. She loves being in the garden, whether she's awake or asleep
On the subject of sleep, E is getting much better and now having a long nap after lunch and a shorter one in the morning, which is great. It's the evening and night-time sleep I have yet to crack as we're still co-sleeping. I basically feed her to sleep lying on the bed next to her and then creep away once she's asleep. She refuses point blank to go in her cot awake and I can't transfer her without waking her. I believe Pinky you once said you fed your LOs to sleep - were you then able to transfer them to their cot? I'm loathe to change something that's working OK at the moment, but I would like her to go into her cot at some point. I don't want to do CC or anything like that because she's come so far on her own since the days she would only sleep in the sling so I think she'll probably eventually master going to sleep alone too. DH keeps asking when she's going to go into her cot so I'm conscious that he's not going to put up with having her in our bed forever.
Also Daisy, you mentioned earlier that your DH was able to re-settle Bumble last night - how did he do it? I'm wondering if I'm perhaps too quick to go in and stick my boob in E's mouth sometimes Although when I do she still takes quite a lot and will pull off herself once she's had enough and fall asleep. I've tried to just soothe her but with little success - perhaps DH would be better at it. Only problem is, he's only around one week in three in the evenings because of his shifts.
Apologies for the long post!

Hello
Hope everyone is well.
coolkat I have been toying with the idea of putting Millie into next stage car seat as she seems a bit squashed in and is making a bit of a fuss when putting her in her car seat, but then she makes a fuss when I try and put her in her pram etc too, we have a car seat that is a stage 1-2 it can go rear facing and forward and it reclines aswell, but she has room at her head so may just wait a bit.
chocgal I leave mine in the car to pay for petrol I also dont blame you for writing to the consultant.
ceebee & cricrinmillie is only eating mush too I am getting a bit disheatened about it to be honest, if anything catches her throat she vomits
obs these things happen dont be hard on yourself. BTW your fb photos are fab!
Our car has been scratched by a little boy when I was away at the weekend, he is 6 and has vandalised a few cars recently, I phoned the police but there is nothing they can do, I didnt think there was but need a crime ref no for insurance, I asked them if they would speak to the boys parents as if it was my DS/DD I would want to know, but they have been to them before and have been told to get lost by the mother!

Nice to have you back MM

Hi Cricri

Sounds like you and E are making great progress with sleeping!

yes I do feed Mimi to sleep and did my other two. DD1 was a bit more tricky because of the silent reflux, but DS and Mimi I would always put down in the crib afterwards (if they ened up in with me so be it).

But I wouldn't be too precious about stirring them. Mimi I feed then put down in her crib and zip her into the sleeping bag. Sometimes she will wake a bit but usually will self settle in a few mins.

I think you could try popping her down and waiting- if she is just grizzling a bit.

Mimi sort of shuffles about and stomps her feet, but not crying. I find that sometimes she has fed and comes off awake and is making her little shuffly moves, so I put her down and she settles herself.

A music box or small toy can be very helpful in settling them if they are tired and don't want to feed.

You will find that she will stop falling completely on her milk from time to time. I usually just sit on the bed near her until she goes to sleep.

I no longer know what to do with Becca, she seems to be constantly screaming, she is fed, clean, teething gel, had cuddles and I have just put her in her cot, she is screaming but she does it al the while. I can not hold her 24 hours a day. I have done wrong haven't I?

Today I wish I worked the school holidays

Coolkat you haven't done wrong. IMHO i don't think you can do wrong with babies.
They are all very different creatures. Don't feel down I am sure you have done the best for her and you are a fantastic mum.

coolkat - You are a fab mum and have tried everything possible. Becca is safe in her cot to give you a quick breather to compose yourself. Sometimes being left for a min to calm down after trying everything I find works or sometimes Alyssa might even nod off as was just fighting it and trust me can she fight! You are not doing wrong. Not like you were leaving her for ages and taking off to the pub or shops. If none of that works I would of tried distraction or got a new toy (prob one of DS's) for her just to take her mind off whatever has caused her to work herself into a frenzy.

Anyone been to Menorca or in particular Cala'n Forcat on hols? Just been able to find a little bit of info but not much really and no hotel or resort maps like I can normally find.

sorry not much time to post, but just wanted to say to coolkat, that bumble is a bit like that at the minute; he is fone when we are out, but at hoime when it's just me him and Dd he is always whinging and crying. I'm wondering if it's boredom and we need a change of toys?

and cricri, I'm not sure, but I think DH picked him up and cuddled him for a bit then put him down with the dummy. You could try it with E on one of DH's home weeks, you might actually find that it works over the course of the week that if she realises there won't be any boob coming her way she just won't wake. I do find that if bumble has fed lots in the day he has started to not need feeding as much at night; maybe a few days of ramping up the solids and daytime BFs together with DH settling her might do the trick.

We are going to try that next weeks as I am getting to the point that I NEED my sleep. We did a sort of CC with DS1 (although I had no idea it had a name) when he was about this age and it worked within a weekend....harder when you have other DC though.

I was just thinking that we hadn't heard from twinkling for a while; I hope she is OK.

Coolkat you are a lovely mummy.

I think this period is a bit like the just before talking toddler stage- they want to do it all and get really cheesed off that they can't. Fir instance Mimi is trying to work DD1'S xylophone and is so frustrated now she is just sat here shouting at it. She's throwing things at it now- a real tantrum. Bless.

Some babies/toddlers do want to be held carried all the time- it's ok- I know it gets a bit tiring for us but it is ok, quite natural for them to want this. You have not done anything wrong, and it is a phase that passes, and I think more quickly iif you go with rather than against it, IMHO, not that I know mnuch of anything, though x

Hi all,

Just managed to catch up on everything on this new thread, so am finally up to date!

coolkat, you are so not a bad mum. P is not good at being left on his own either and needs constant attention, although like bumble he is fine when we are out, which makes me think he is bored at home - of the surroundings, his toys, maybe even me!! I guess some babies are just like that and it doesn't mean us mums have done anything wrong.

citymini - well, I bought it and it arrived earlier this week, but I haven't even had a chance to take it out of its packet yet and as I don't have the raincover yet I don't suppose I'll have much of a chance to use it this weekend, but I am looking forward to having a go with it sometime soon.

sleeping, no good here either. Still nowhere near sleeping through the night. Going to work this week has made me realise I'm going to have to do something to try and get him sleeping through, as it's so hard to do a day's work when you've been up 2 or 3 times in the night. I'm going on holiday to Spain next week, and when I get back I'm going to start weaning him off the breast and onto formula, so we'll see if that makes a difference. If not then I thought I might offer him water when he wakes up at night, in the hope that he will soon realise it's not worth waking up if there's no yummy milk on offer. And if that fails then I think I will have to resort to CC, boo.

harrogate - weather forecast is not good for next week, looks like more rain, so our plan of a lovely picnic in Valley Gardens might be scuppered. Do we have a plan b? Is there somewhere indoors we can go? I know Harrogate has a small shopping centre, is it Victoria something? Could we meet in there if it's raining? 11.00 sounds like a good time to me Daisy

Evening

Rain here too actually pleased as DH won't be golfing tomorrow so will be around to help with DS.

coolkat I don't think you did anything wrong either, how is Becca now?
pinky I love your attitude to parenting, I wish I could just relax a little and not always be wishing for the next stage.
juanitad I'm soon going to be in the same boat as you being up overnight then working the next day. I don't want to change your decision about bf if that's what you have decided but my DS is ff and doesn't sleep through!
I'm too lazy to try any kind of sleep training, at the moment I just give him a bottle when he wakes overnight then falls back to sleep within 20 minutes usually. I'm happy with this just now & hope I'm not creating bad habits!? I of course might change my mind when the reality of work hits!!
Hope everyone has a lovely weekend.

Coolkat you are definitely not a bad mummy so don't even go there! It sounds like all the babies are the same at the mo (maybe a developmental stage??) - I know the Hamster is (and has been for a few weeks now). He screeches if you leave him in a room by himself (even if just for a few seconds) and even if you are in the same room, he will start crying after 5 minutes of doing something - I feel I am constantly switching him around from his nest to the floor to my lap etc - god I can't wait until he can crawl! Again, he is absolutely fine in public - in fact, people always comment on what a happy, smily baby he is (whilst me and DH are muttering under our breath 'if only they knew' )

Juanitad about your trip to Spain. I don't blame you for trying whatever you can to get P to sleep through - so so hard when you are working. I can't believe you have been at work for a week and are now on your holidays already

Little tip which I picked up from another thread if anyone has leftover purees in the freezer (like me!) - use them as spreads on ricecakes/sandwich fillings/on toast. I tried parsnip and pear puree spread on a ricecake today and the Hamster wolfed it down (followed by most of his brother's marmite on toast - I feel DS1 has twigged a way to get out of eating his food - and then one of the big petit filous yoghurts). God that boy can eat when he puts his mind to it!!

Hi coolkat I echo what the others said you are not doing anything wrong, becca just being a baby, hope she is settled now.
daisy hope you get some success with the controlled crying. jaunitad I hope you get some sleep also, and is your citymini lovely , I am so tempted to sell my buzz and buy one.
chocgal when you have your next baby you wont be wishing for the next stage
We are just back from the circus it was quite good but was very cold in the tent and my bum went numb! I missed your post on pushchair and have had a look but cant find it can you point me in the right direction!!

coolkat i echo others thoughts too. M can just about be put down for around 5 minutes before screaming for me, and that's on a good day. However, DS2 was impossible to put down, even at this age. Just think he didn't want to be on his own. Always squawking at something and so you have my full sympathy because it was sooooo wearing. I still haven't forgotten it, and (seriously) that is why there is 6 years between him and M. Didn't know if I could do it again. So don't think you have done something wrong, sometimes, it is just the way it is and you have to AND WILL DO get through it.
Like ceebee said, i feel like I'm constantly moving him from nest to rug to gym to lap to highchair just for a bit of entertainment. In fact, he is currently on my lap as i type! Have been looking on ebay today for some new baby toys.

Sorry, gotta dash, it;s DH's birthday so can;t ignore him!!!!

Hi everyone, just nipping in to wave and complain about being knackered as DD was up every 2 hrs last night and DH was sent home ill on Weds so he is shut in the spare room wanting more sympathy than he's getting!

Enjoy Spain Juanita

I am just thinking that is what I have been doing with millie nest, gym, jumperoo, lap! I have just started this thread here, it is something I have been toying with for ages and am just researching it at the mo, I saw you were thinking about being a lollipop advisor daisy, have you thought anymore about it??

There's a big soft play centre in Harrogate. Never been though, and if it's raining and the first week of the school holiday it might be a bit mayhem!

Am I the only one with older children? If I am, I can see if DH's parents will take the older two for the day so we can do coffee and stuff rather than soft play.

Alternatively, we could postpone until the weather is a bit better?

jaunita, you must have got home from work pretty early today!!

My presents of wine and chocolate must have gone down well with DS1's teachers as he was pupil of the week this week and got a headteacher's award and his photo on the Wall of Fame! Ah well, better late than never I suppose

DD not too great today; we had to leave the beloved Stay and Play early as she was just flopping all over me and lying on the sofa and getting really upset about everything. She has a sniffle, so I hope it isn't the dreaded piggy flu.

soft play

ellie, I'm still toying with it (lollipop that is), but they have , imo, some seriously silly loyalty clauses regarding future working for other nappy agencies or setting up as a seller yourself that has got me concerned, as I would, ultimately, like to have my own nappy business.

did you look at my thread daisy, I have no replies yet but am seriously thinking about it, there is a small business gateway in my town,I may make an appointment this week or when DH come home, I would not like to be tien and would like to give independant advice IYSWIM.