radical cross stitch, theological debate, Easter bunnies, changing bags,and a baby brother...it must be June 08!

[spongebrainbigpants]

Welcome to our new thread .

Thanks guys - going, I also walk M in the buggy but can't do it for long on days when A is at home cos he won't tolerate it!

Rolf, thank you for telling me that cos that's exactly what I've been doing and feeling really bad about it , but do you know what? It's starting to work! I had to sling him in his Moses basket today at 2pm cos A was just stirring, and he fell asleep on his own in 5 mins . Small steps .

AH, crap isn't it? I know I want to go back but it has to be something I enjoy doing for £80 a month .

Amber, I'm with AH on being impressed that you paint with Luke at home! Not a chance here - that's what he does at nursery! We also have a Children's Centre nearby that I went to for the first time on Monday and that had painting, messy play, sticking, all sorts - it was great! A made loads of mess and then someone else had to clear up .

Oh, should say M slept for 2 hrs this pm which is why I'm slightly giddy with happiness - A and I had such a lovely afternoon singing, playing and reading. Just like the old times .

Is somebody going to come up with a clever new thread title?

Sponge - reading your posts is putting me right off having another child as I know I would be inm exactly the same situation. What I have said to myself though is that a year of suffering with sleep deprivation (and everything else) is nothing compared to a lifetime of happiness with the little ones and so I can bear it. My FIL thinks I am mad to consider another.

I have been painting with Luke because he has been home with me for 3 weeks so has not had access to nursery messy play! We have also been doing sticking and I bought some doggy stickers which has has loved sticking on paper. Believe me next week everything will change!!

J helped himself to another apple this afternoon, I saw him push the chair up and climb up so that mystery is solved, he must have moved the chair back again last time to hide the evidence. I didn't have the heart to take it off him as he was so pleased with himself and so keen to eat the apple. I think he ate the entire thing including core as I can't find any remnants anywhere, will probably find rotting apple stashed somewhere in a few days.

Sponge - I used to spend hours trying to settle J to sleep when he was a few months old, until I realised that if I just left him he cried for a bit then went to sleep, I think it was me being there that was keeping him awake, so I wouldn't worry too much about just leaving him.

They managed to change the MW appointment to a late one on Thursday so that got sorted.

DH has gone out for his usual Tuesday night mountain bike ride in the Peaks tonight and then MIL rang me to tell me that they have 6 inches of snow in Chester, hope DH manages to get home OK, would just be my luck to go into labour tonight with him stuck somewhere! (Got no reason to think I might go into labour tonight by the way, just worrying unnecessarily)

Sorry Amber . Presumably you'd be able to afford to keep L in nursery though which would make things easier - the days when I have both of them are sooo much tought .

IKWYM about thinking of the future though - that's what I'm focussing on. AH, can totally sympathise with the thinking about having another - I still feel broody from time to time even though I know dh would never agree to another baby and I'm sure it would kill me (possibly literally!).

As for new thread title, expanding on BDQ's suggestion, how about:

"New Year, new thread, new names, new words, new clothes, new goals . . . but NO resolutions!!"

ktpie, is your dh cycling in the snow?! I'm impressed!

How about 'The noughties are over, but the naughties are here'?

Sponge - nothing blooming stops him, he is mental. Why anyone in their right mind would set off at 7pm on a cold snowy winter night for a couple of hours mountain biking I don't know.
Hope things improve for you soon Sponge, couple of weeks time and I'll be right with you, well a couple of months behind

My idea of messy play is letting J have 10 minutes with some play dough, that's enough for me. Now and then I let him do some colouring in as well if I'm feeling especially adventurous.

Are you due in two weeks ktpie?! Bloody hell, where did that time go?!

I can beat that re: your dh - my friend who is now 5 wks pg after her SEVENTH IVF is planning to drive from Southampton to Heathrow and back tonight in one of the worst snow falls in living memory to drop her mum off for an 8am flight . I've phoned her and texted her to tell her not to be so stupid but she's determined. Tbh, I can't believe her mum is letting her do it - my mum would never risk my pg just to drive her to a bloody airport. She'd walk rather than put me through that .

Oh, I lost the post I did this morning. It's no longer here. Odd. Or maybe I imagined it.
Had a bit of an issue here - went to work, dropped off Iestyn; DH left to catch a train just before lunchtime and I went to the car with him to get his stuff. As I was leaving my office, I thought 'should have my mobile but never mind'. I then saw an old friend who has just started a job (hooray - but it's 6 months natch) and so he walked with me to buy a sandwich, then suggested I ate it in his new office which doesn't have a window. (That's academia! ) Got talking, went back to my own office at 2.15 and nursery had closed, tried to phone me, failed; DH was on a train and out of reception; my parents fetched Iestyn but couldn't get hold of me. Oops. It never snows here! This is the biggest snow I've seen since I was a child.

Abdn sounds like you need to come to Wales for your holiday! Anglesey is like Cornwall only cheaper, and the whole country is basically like Scotland only better.
I've been to Toronto. It was fab.

There were lots of other things but I'm going to do my Davina workout first. About time. (Sybil thin legs in general here, thigh and calves; alas, I'm like a lollipop with my flabby middle! In my head, I now see you looking much like Elle McPherson though!)

Sponge, I was going to suggest leaving M to cry but I thought it would make me seem very cruel! We always left the twins to cry for 10 minutes ish - my motto was let's just give them 10 mins and see what they do. Often they would fall asleep. GF actually says leaving a baby to cry for 20 mins is OK (that always seemed a long time to me but I sometimes did it anyway). We always used to leave them crying in their room and shut the door so we could have our dinner in peace .

I did the ironing, it wasn't too bad, and then MIL rang to ask if I wanted her to take the DTs for the afternoon. Bliss! We got them all wrapped up in hats, waterproofs and wellies and they spent the afternoon in the snow in the PILs' garden. I went to bed .

The City v United semi final tomorrow night has been called off cos of the snow. Unfortunately it has been rearranged the 19 Jan, when MIL has tickets for us to go see Strictly Come Dancing. I never really wanted to go to SCD but she asked if I wanted to go with her and SIL, so I said yes (then she bought me a ticket as my birthday present ), but I already have a ticket to this match (£40) and it is the first semi-final in 30 years, the biggest game for City since I started watching them 21 years ago , so I have told MIL I won't be going to SCD. I feel pretty bad. But what can you do? There is no way I'm missing a semi-final to go and watch a show I never even wanted to see in the first place. [bad DIL]

[stern] TediBers I'm starting to keep a note of your friendly Scottish comments!

We did finally get some sleep last night - about 3 hours in total. Not what you want when it's your first day back at work! I was running on empty today.

Sponge very pleased that M slept for a couple of hours. Sorry that the childcare costs make returning to work hardly worth it - have you factored in things like childcare vouchers (if your org's do them) and child tax credits (if you get them)? I was so pleased when the Government backed down on scrapping them.

I started this post a while ago, so of course have forgotten everything. Am off to put my feet up, catch up on some tv and have my first creme egg of the year - DH bought it for me today . They've been in our shop since before Christmas, but that's just wrong. It's akin to having alcohol before midday!

Ooh, ktpie S loves munching on a whole apple. He gets quite giddy about it. Are you really due in two weeks? Bloody hell. When's puree due? Can she still not get onto MN? Did she not get a new lap top for Christmas? (Hazy recollection of a lap top related FB status).

Ooh, that Howies website is nice abdn. I really liked their women's t-shirts altough sadly out of stock in my size in all the ones I liked. You'll have to let us know when the new season stuff is out!

Right, am away to eat my creme egg now.

DG, I have just been tucking into the last of the Creme Egg choccies out of the Cadbury's Heroes! I am absolutley famished at the moment - I had to get up at 6am this morning to make myself a Vegemite sandwich. It takes me back to when I was pg with the twins . I really should be eating something a bit more nutritionally balanced than chocolates though. Maybe later

Sponge, I am totally with you on the G&S infertility storyline . From start to finish it was very annoyng: 'we have to have sex twice a day if I am going to get pregnant' and 'we'll keep trying until Christmas and if nothing happens we'll look into adoption' Eh? Like they are the only two options!

Goddess that must be where I'm going wrong. A creme egg would never last in our house long enough for me to say "I'm off to eat my creme egg". I am proud of myself if I can hold off until I've taken off my coat . I really do have a greedsugar problem. Sorry you had such a crap night.

DS2 got some secret agent sunglasses for Christmas (they have a little mirror so he can see people coming up behind him) and DH said he looked like Agent Smith (from The Matrix), which DD1 repeats as Agent Sniff .

They go back to school tomorrow. Dreading it - they've been great this holiday, on the whole, and it's been such a treat not to have to race out in the morning.

Ktpie glad the mw appointment got sorted out, and I can't believe you're so close to hatching!

Abdn I haven't been to Toronto but I'd love to. It sounds brilliant.

Hang on no, four weeks until I'm due! I'd be in more of a panic if it was two weeks. I annoy DH all the time by saying a couple when I actually mean a few.

Neenz - I'm not a football fan but would pick football over SCD any day.

DG - glad J isn't the only one excited by eating an apple. Hmm creme eggs, need to finish all the Christmas chocolate I'm surrounded by first, I'm trying my best.

I texted DH to say that if it started to snow heavily to come home, he just texted back with just "Ok".

I'm not too happy about all the admissions of skinny legs on here, skinny legs are something I'm never going to have. Mine are chunky and horrible.

I think Puree is due about a month after me?

DH is home!

neenz I shall take it as a compliment that you thought my witty new name belonged to puree!

sponge nothing new to add, but some support heading your way!

tedi me, me it was me! now I really need to know what it actually means! I often worry about nursery being unable to contact me, as there are areas in my department where I have to spend several hours at a time which have no phone signal.

bugger I, too, hate those horrid people who tailgate in this weather and don't clear their windows. imbeciles.

Today, I bought wellies. so far, I haven't fallen over in wellies. I will let you know if the are the solution! ( i have falling over issues generally, smallish feet for my height - top heavy figure!)

I think we should have one of those really cool rhyming thread titles - any suggestions tedi?

The babies are babies no more, there are siblings here and on the way - last count four? Good eh?

[disclaimer: this is a joke. ]

'tis a marvellous suggestion biscuits .

My creme egg was luvverly btw. Rolf, my restraint was uncharacteristic - i'm terrible for guzzling sweet stuff!

I am failing to keep up. Happy New Year anyway.

Sensible shoes: I would second the Timberland recommendation. I have had long brown Timberland boots from about 4 years ago, and I love them. Very comfy, warm etc. I have some flat black non Timberland boots too and they are rubbish in comparison. I also have Timberland sandals for the summer that I love. They are so comfy. I liked the short boots that someone linked too. Tempted...

Sales Shopping I went out to buy short sensible boots and shoes, new underwear, and some tops on Saturday, and failed to buy anything. I am hopeless at shopping. I think I need a local friend who is a bad influence. Since then though, I have been doing my bit for the economy by getting a few tops in the Boden sale (first Boden purchase in about 3 years). I have also bought some yummy looking yoga gear from the Sweaty Betty sale. I don't do enough yoga to justify the purchase but I was at my yoga class yesterday doing a down-facing dog thingy and caught sight of my post baby tum dangling in the mirror . How Surrey do I sound buying from Boden and Sweaty Betty ? In fact, my Boden delivery arrived today. It was delivered by a lady in her own hatchback with her daughter in the passenger seat and the car was stuffed full of Boden bags. I clearly live in the spiritual home of Boden yummy mummies if they can afford to get one lady to take the area's deliveries and then take them house to house. Actually I knew that anyway because they hold stock clearances at our leisure centre every so often. Last time they had one I could not get a parking space to go swimming.

Deb - so sorry about your Dad and DH.

Sponge - sorry too that things are still tough. Bear in mind that yesterday when you felt low was 4 Jan: a day when most people feel quite glum about stuff regardless of what they do for a living.

Hi Paro

Nice to have you back Poppy. I had been thinking about you and hoping that despite being AWOL you were ok.

Crazy Surrey people here cleared Waitrose of all veg, fish and even loaves of bread today. The threat of snow had sent them out panic shopping. I ended up with a strange trolley of what was available including "golden trout" because it was just about the only fish still for sale. We have no bread though as they genuinely had not a single loaf of sliced bread on the shelves. This is Surrey Dahling not the USSR.

Ok, there were lots of other things to say, but have forgotten. Will try to post tomorrow.

New Thread here!!!