Sept 08: The End of an Amazing year

[Pacita]

Here we are: the thread that will see our LO's first birhtday...

Has been quiet here over the weekend and today.

We've had a very busy weekend. Had all our family down from Scotland for Andrew's dedication yesterday. It went really well and I think everyone had a good day. Had everyone back to ours for a bbq after and had a nice afternoon catching up with everyone.

Also me and dh did Go Ape- a high ropes course thing on Saturday which was really good fun but I haven't been able to laugh or sneeze since as my ribs and stomach 'muscles' are sooo sore. It was brilliant fun but hard work.

Was good to have everyone down but I'm shattered now, not sure how I'll make it to Friday. And have people coming to view the house tomorrow and it's a tip!

debithescot I am so glad you had such good weather for the dedication. How lovely.

It's my birthday tomorrow! And just for a change, this year I haven't just got home from hospital with a new baby and a big row of stiches across my tummy!

debi I've been itching to get to 'Go Ape'. I'm planning to go with my sister next summer . And I'm terrified of heights .

I am pleased to say that the pesky steriliser is finally out of my kitchen, it was picked up by a nice Freecycler today. How I hated that thing, and how neurotic I am to sterilse until 1yr . The joy of having an extra foot of work surface again!!

ILTMI can you tell us about the hedgerow, I'm intrigued.

Oh, and I had my post-op check up today and everything is healing up well. Now I can start driving again, it's 2 months since I drove anywhere!

Thank you for being interested in my hedgerow Meglet!!

There is a long hedgerow that is about 50 yards from my house that borders the houses and a field. I have walked down there many times, but not this time of year so it seems. It was dripping with blackberries, sloe's, hazelnuts and elderberries.

The blackberries are going into a crumble, and if I've got time to pick some more I may make some flavoured vodka.
The sloe's will make sloe gin
I'll roast the hazelnuts and make some cookies.
I left the elderberries there as I didn't know what to do with them!

I thought of Hopefully and her move towards self-sufficiency when we were picking everything.

Glad to hear all was well at the post-op check. Hurrah for getting on the open road again!

We're off to a music class this morning. We went for a taster session a while ago and M loved it, hopefully that will still be the case. He has started to move and bop when he hears music and sometimes claps too. So sweet!

Just one birthday today, Lollipopmum and then there are about 4 a day for about a week! God we were so busy this time last year.

Debi My nephew is going to Go Ape on Sunday, he has been looking forward to it for a couple of years now. I won't tell him about the sore muscles it might put him off.

Happy birthday Ponymum and Lollipop baby!

Happy birthday ponymum.

Debs dh didn't ache at all after doing it, I think I must have jarred something in my ribs as the bit where they join onto my sternum (is that the right bone?) is sore to touch as well as aching. I'd still do it again tomorrow if I could though.

Meglet Can I do it with you and your sister? We did it at Alice Holt Park so I need to do it at Bracknell too to see which is best.

It hasn't stopped raining at all today, been very gross. We went out in it this aft and I was jealous of ds1 jumping in the puddles so I joined in too even though I didn't have wellies on. We were soaked through but it was fun

everything on this thread is in bold but no other threads are. Has my computer gone crazy?

Woah crazy boldness.

ILTMIMI we have GOOD NEWS (sorry have to use caps coz whole thread is bold) on the house...the survey was done today and its fine, our mortgage has been sent to the underwriters, woo hoo! Just the searches to be done and we're ready to exchange. This time last week I'd never even set foot in that house and now we nearly own it! I took my mum to see the outside of it today and she approves (phew!) but it would be hard not to. I also showed her the-house-that-got-away and she coudl see why we loved it, I had a brief pang of wondering whether or not we did the right thing but I know we have. She's offered to come up and look after the kids when dh and I need to go shopping for a new kitchen!

debi I'm so glad your ds's dedication and bbq went well, ours is this sunday! The family are gradually making their way up the country, mum is babysitting tonight while dh and I go out for dinner. And she babysat this afternoon while I had a haircut and went shopping for a new winter coat!

Cold is still minging, looks like I'm driving and dh is drinking on our date tonight!

Hey everyone! Happy birthday Ponymum. ILTMIMI I'm quoted? Is it really embarassing? Am I off on one of my rants?

Good luck with the final bits carri

Has anyone noticed the Sep09 postnatal thread? There are about 4 babies. Were we a baby boom?

Glad it's going well CarrieBo - how exciting!

I don't think you were ranting Starlight! I'll find it again and write it on here for you.

I would have thought there would be more Sep 09 babies than that. Every MW I spoke to said that Sep is the busiest month.

LOL at starlights "one of my rants" .

Debi, I think we will go to the Go Ape just over the border in Dorset, I'm sure that's where my sister went before. You are welcome to come along. You can watch me crying when I get up too high. I always get giddy when I try abseiling (sp?) on activity holidays, or go over high bridges, or up tall buildings, or watch programmes about climbing.... etc. I need to get a grip as I would love to do proper climbing.

All the threads are in bold for me too.

I noticed the Sept 09 thread didn't seem that busy too. Did the credit crunch make people put their sensible heads on last Xmas / New Year?

LOL I thought the bold was because my kiddies keep interfering with my computer.

ILTMIMI You didn't say that it wasn't embarassing!

Hi everyone, feel like I haven't been on here in ages even though I dropped in on Saturday. Been so busy with work, anyone would think I had a full time job. Feeling very detached from being a mum although happy to have a steady flow of money coming in. But there's a constant nagging in the back of my mind that DS is missing out on something because I'm not with him ensuring he gets the best stimulation.

But this is the deal with being a working mother though isn't it.

Anyway glad to hear things are all ticking along nicely with houses and post-op recovery and foraging.

Still no news on which show dsis is featuring in, but can hardly believe after waiting all this time that she's finally going to be on this weekend.

Is anyone else still breastfeeding at bedtime? I am wondering about what would happen if I had the occasional night out where someone else put ds to sleep without getting feed from me. Say, for instance, if I had to be in a tv studio.

Digital, you're not very good at keeping secrets are you?! .

I still feed at night (during the night, in the morning, in the day ... )

DH puts M to bed once or twice a week, she takes a bottle no probs, but doesn't tend to drink much from him. It's not a problem though.

If you're possibly a leaker you might want to wear breastpads though if, for example, you might be wearing posh clothes for a hypothetical possibility of a celebration.

How exciting!!

M's been ill throwing up all Sunday, and still v. wobbly and under the weather.

Boiler broke Sunday too and the internet's been on the blink AND DH came back from 4 days on a stag do in Benedorm too tired to help with the kids and just went straight to bed

So a great week here

All is improving now though and we finally have curtains up, a nursery door that closes, a washing line, an outside light, a gate, a sink that works and a shelf for the TV thanks to a fab handyman

Anyone seen IMO recently?

she's on holiday in France ninja

Still crazy bold here too

Thanks!

Yes - still bold here.

Might have to browse investigate while working

NINJA it's not just our thread and mn are on to it thread here

This bold thingy is doing my head in a bit.

I had a faaabulous birthday yesterday. DD was brilliant with the babysitter and did not stir at all for the whole night! We'll have to do that again!

The meal was sooo yum. I just have to share: I had an amazing potted chicken mousse with elderflower jelly, and tiny little rye toasts and spicy crispy things, and DH had a runny duck egg with a little lobster sandwich. My main was a little square of pork belly which had been slow cooked for 24 hours (melty mmm) and we shared a tarte tartin with amazing fresh bramble icecream. Mmmmm. I can't believe that's the first time we have been out for dinner since DD was born, but by god it was worth the wait.

Now I have to pack for our holiday, leaving on Sunday and flying to a gite in France. I am all in a muddle over what to take and how to work the flight thing. I understand they will not let you take baby food on the flight unless you open it for security. But if you open it, you have to throw it away. What do you do? We have two flights one after the other so it's going to be a real pain. Or should I just take dry food like bread etc? She won't like it much. Please help. Also tell me what I am likely to forget to pack.

I'm here! Haven't been on for aaaaaaages and ages. Not sure about the new bold look . RL is such a PITA, isn't it? 2 holidays, then lots of knitting for overdue birthday presents, then visiting my mother to preserve the rest of her fruit (pears this time), then an article deadline. When did life become busy? I'm a freelance journalist, I'm meant to be poor, but with an easy life, not poor but busy!

Have I missed any major drama? One of you must be PG by now!

ILTMIMI very impressed with your hedgerow. Also quite envious, as all the sloe trees round here are appalling - I literally managed 3 sloes in an hour's walk this morning. And sloe gin is one of my favourite things

Can't believe T is 1 tomorrow, it's ridiculous.

Ponymum your meal sounds yummy.

Meglet, sounds like the Go Ape round the corner from my ILs - we've been wondering when the offspring will be old enough to stay with ILs while we and BILs/SILs go on it! Sadly a while seeing as ILs can't get to the floor to pick up a toddler/crawler...

I'm still feeding A before bed and on average once in the night. Got home at his bedtime last night and he was Not Happy that MrNC had fobbed him off with a lemon souffle (which he loves, and there wasn't any whole milk in... a bottle of semi-skim might have been better). But after I fed him he slept the whole night!

Now if only he'd do that more than once a fortnight...

Hey all I'm back - did you miss me? Have had a mammoth holiday (month away in France, New York and Bermuda), have been back at work a week, and am now married and DD is 1.

Hope all is well. On the play pen things, good friends of our had one of the Babydan ones - it was known as Abu Graib!

Wedding congrats, Sunshine! Are you going to post some photos for your nosey friends?