Dec 08 babies are nearly one - PARTY TIME!

[EffiePerine]

As I accidentally filled up the old thread I thought I'd better start a new one

Well done Effie - good work.

Thanks all for tips on Ironman - I just find DH so hard to talk to as he kicks off and so I get nervous saying it. But we do need to have the conversation... It's hard work. I really wish he'd just realise that it's going to be hard work and decide not to do it off his own bat. He does it with 3 friends and none of them have children and he really hasn't noticed. Time to point it out, I think!

LadyT - I agree about tinies doing ballet. I videoed my niece doing hers a few years ago at the age of 4 and she is a total malco. As she skipped uselessly past me, she had her tutu tucked in her knickers at the back. One of the sweetest things I've seen!

Re my scan - I turned up at the hospital at 3.30 and they stop doing them at 11am! Oops! So I had a good long think and have decided not to go for an early one because there isn't really any need - it's just me being impatient!

I've also had a bit of a result - don't need to do NCT a second time (not sure if I would have done anyway!) as two of them are pregnant too! We're all due around the end of June - how cool's that??!

Thanks for the new thread Effie. Great name.

I am so nervous for my brother. I really hope he passes his driving test. Might give me a kick up the arse to get on with it.

This weather is a bit depressing.... Quick q - if you are eating out and it's getting close to or just past dc's bed time, do you attempt to get them to sleep in the buggy or keep them up and entertain in a highchair at the table or something similar? we did the latter last night but battled for half an hour trying to get him to sleep first.

I'm suppose to be doing my stuff for work, but i'm perusing the menu at the Harvey Nichols champagne nail bar......

effie thanks for the new thread!

Dr refuses to use the word 'asthma' as DS is under two. But i was chatting with a friend at Toddler Group yesterday and she was saying her DD was exactly the same as DS. When she turned two she went to the Dr's and he said they couldn't diagnose asthma in the under4's

Anyway he woke at 1am last night, and as soon as I picked him up he fell asleep, I put he down he cried etc etc. I was so tired I lost it, put him in his cot and screamed at him that he would just have to cry hhimself to sleep. Anyway he did - he woke at 7.40am!!!! DH says we should now try and implement some form of CC as it obv has its advantages. I'll let you know.

thats a nice chunk of sleep daisy.... good luck for more... we did the CC quite a bit - worked a treat

Yay!!! My brother has just passed his test!!!!!!!

Glad to hear it Kayz! So when are you sitting yours (from a non-driver)

Daisy: if it worked I'd be v tempted to try again. I;ve been escaping to the sofa downstairs in a bid to get more kip. Thing is, this worked for a while but now DS2 is very restless again and refusing to settle even for DH so we may have to try something more drastic. Or wait and see if he improves again.

Hello everyone,

Just a quick stop in from me, afternoon coffee break, think I'll have a , yum .

ladyT My DD does the crying thing sometimes when we come back to her. Usually when she has had a lovely afternoon with her grandparents, I think it is just conflicting emotions, not being able to express "I've had fun but I love you and am glad you are back".

Your DH's anniversary must have been difficult. Hope you are feeling ok.

You asked how my job was going. It's OK, very busy and I'm still trying to settle into a good working dynamic now I'm job sharing but can't complain really.

kayz Congrats to your brother, although I do think all the very best drivers passed third time

daisy Not sure if this is helpful but my brother was diagnosed with asthma because he was coughing so much at night he was being sick. Hope the powders help.

rub We tend to try and get DD to sleep rather than keep her up but find it easier if we can do the bedtime routine and then into the pushchair. It was easier when she was younger, the older they get the more wilful and determined they are I find.

trace Sorry to hear you are having a difficult time with L. I think sibling jealousy (if that's what is bothering her) is normal and understandable. DH's DB put washing up liquid in his bottle , they are now the best of friends. There is a 7 yr age gap between them so not disimilar to P and L.

beans That's good, ready made mat leave friends.

Is anyone elses previously good sleeping baby (sorry I know I should be grateful she was been a good sleeper so far!) started waking? DD has been waking once or twice a night for about 2 weeks now on and off, and I don't know if it is because of all these coughs, colds and viruses we have had (she is still coughing in the night) or if she is getting into bad habits and wants to be brought into our bed! She is teething again too, tooth number 9 has appeared, so it might be that too. Blimey, look at the time, ahem, back to work...

Hi all have been lurking but been cheeky and not posted because I'm to lazy.

Sorry to hear cough continuing and bad crying things Daisy but hooray on the 7.40 wake up. The reason they don't diagnose asthma in little ones is their airways are proportionally much smaller than adults so therefore even the slightest inflamation can make them cough and wheezy so if they diagnosed it there would be so many kids with it and apart from possibly being wrong they would have messed up stats and kids on their books with 'asthma' who hadn't been in for years. It doesn't change the treatment if a kid needs an inhaler or asthma type treatment they will get it. It's annoying but it won't or at least shouldn't change the treatment.

Lady sorry to hear about O laying on the guilts, welcome to the rest of your life. It's hard and it hurts but at least she is already good at expressing her emotions, you wouldn't want her to be a walk over would you.

Rubena, we tend to go with the flow when out to dinner, if J looks tired we put him in the pushchair and one of he goes for a quick walk to get him to sleep if not he just stays up with us and enjoys the night out.

Hooray on 2nd interviews and interview experience, I find I'm happy with an interview if I just don't embarass myself.

Beans, I have been thinking about your DH, and I do really feel he may not realize what he is getting him in for. Training for a ironman is full time work. I've had friends who are experienced triathletes step up to the ironman and have trained loads and actually didn't make it. It takes about 12 hour! You start early in the morning and finish after dark. What is his competitive experience. Has he done a triathlon or at least a long distance event like a marathon? It's a nearly 4km swim followed by 160kmI'm ride and then when he's tired from all that he then has to run a marathon! Bloody hard work. I think he really needs to think it through a bit more. Sorry to err on the 'is he bloody crazy' side as normally I'm right up for extreme sporting stuff but well he's bloody crazy.

Hello girls

Very good news on your brother's test Kayz. Your turn next . I know it seems like a huge mountain to climb, but I can honestly say that driving is one of the best things I have ever done. Makes such a huge difference to the whole family, esp as DD1 is now 4 with her own social life. After years of putting it off, taking refresher lessons 2 years ago was a godsend. I'd never be able to get around locally on public transport with 3 under4, even though I can (and do) get into London on the train with all 3. Buses are a nightmare. So if you have the time and the cash, I'd really recommend it. I could barely drive 2 miles without getting tooted and bursting into tears, but now I do long journeys without worrying and am even going to buy a people carrier (to fit all three darlings in)!

Right, am off to get no 2 and 3 from nursery. No 1 is right next t me being a pain. She kept me up half the night with various spurious ailments, and now keeps saying "mummy, why did you tell Karen you were half dead? You are alive!" Must be careful what I say. Back later.

Kayz - congrats to your brother, I'm sure you'll be next!

Beans - Veggie's post about Ironman reminded me that I also had a friend who did Ironman. He had lots of experience doing triathlons but stuff actually scaled down to work part time (I think 3 days a week) so that he could fit Ironman training in and not give up on seeing his DCs. In fact both he and his wife ended up part time working (probably another story about quality of life). Anyway, it does sound a bit mad! Glad you've got some mat leave buddies - it really does help!

Daisy - glad you got a bit more sleep, hope they do treat your DS properly and the powders work. Am constantly on the watch for asthma here as we already have food allergies and eczema and asthma is just part of the same package...

Hello all - found you...! Sorry for absence, we've been having some "trying times" at the mo whereby she's been waking up again at about midnight and taking half an hour to settle - doing the seeming to be asleep thing but as soon as I get more than a foot away from the cot she yells - and then having a tiny shout about once an hour from then on, not enough to need help but enough to make sure I'm awake [yawn]. And the ends of the day are getting v dreadful, from about 4 onwards she just won't be put down which means trying to make her tea is virtually impossible, even if she's managed to be distracted by a toy the sound of the gate on the kitchen door closing sets her off and I've ended up having to close the door on a screaming baby as the sound is too much to take on not enough sleep. She's her usual lovely self in the morning but refusing to nap means she's just turning into child of doom in the afternoon and my heart starts sinking at about lunchtime!

Have left her to eat her tea next to me while writing this [bad mummy] but just had to get it off my chest. I love her dearly but she is proving such hard work at the moment. No idea how the nursery people will cope with her for a full day on Friday given that the only answer to a lot of her woes seems to be !

Will catch up later once she's in bed, sorry for the moan so early in a new thread

veggie your explanation makes so much sense (as always). I am just so worried he may be asthmatic as I am, and was quite bad as a child. Plus DD has excema and as Invis said they tend to be part of the same package.

Eczema is very similar to asthma it's asthma of the skin in a way. Where asthma is an inflamation of the airways eczema is an inflamation of the skin often when kids suffer from asthma they get eczema too.

Unfortunately things like asthma can be hereditory and that is hard for you when you remember you childhood. However I can say things have definitely improved in treatments even in time I've been a nurse. I would say if your not happy with what your GP is doing just keep at them as even if they can't diagnose asthma they can use the same treatments and should be. I hope tonight is ok Daisy.

Invis I was going to say something to you but I can't remember what it was, hello anyway.

Hooray for your brother Kayz, but you know what this means...

Rub thank you!! We have just ignored DS2 this morning and after about 10 minutes of crying he has gone back to sleep. Just need to get him to stay asleep now.

I know I really need to get on with driving. I'm going to start going out a lot more with Mum so I can build up my confidence. I really want to be able to drive, it'll be nice to be able to go out without worrying about buses.

Thanks for new thread Effie.

Hope your DS had an ok night Daisy. DD, DS and I all coughing here. I absolutely hate it - partly because I also remember what a PITA it was having asthma as a child. I am trying this at the moment. And I think it might be truly miraculous - all about teaching you to regulate your breathing. Apparently most people with asthma breathe about 80% more than they need to and it's this that inflames the airways. Am sure is impossible to teach a very small child but apparently has had great results on primary school aged children; even those with v debilitating conditions. Anyway - risk of sounding like a crank. Veggie is (as ever) also right about the meds.

LadyT as JB said your DH's anniversary must have been difficult - I think that sometimes one of the worse things about anniversaries is that the light and the weather are similar to when awful thing happened - so your subconscious is affected really powerfully too. You are an inspiration though in the way you seem to cope with things and crack on. Have to confess I have occasionally given myself a bit of a kick inspired by your attitude.

Rube good luck with being back at work. If we've missed normal bedtime for whatever reason I just try to keep them happy and quiet-ish so wouldn't bother trying to get them to sleep but do hand over copious amounts of inappropriate food (chips/chocolate...). DD had become a fiend for raisins. Which is v handy as she will spend half an hour trying to get them out of the little box. Although the other day she got so frustrated she tried to eat through the cardboard to get at them. That's my girl

Syb am in awe of you getting 3 on the train...but totally agree with you about freedom car gives you (go on kayz).

Beans I have to say I would be v unhappy about ironman. But then DH is more of the reading than running up a hill type.

Effie best of luck with the application. You may as well go for it anyway - even if you change your mind (she says trying not to feel too bad about mucking people about).

JB - 9 teeth wow. DD has yet to produce any full grown ones. Hope she's sleeping a bit better.

JJ is there any way you or she can sleep in separate rooms? Just so you get some rest. Maybe you are and she's waking you up through the walls. If you're not getting any sleep everything feels ten times worse. A night on the sofa? DD is also grumpy at tea time. She seems a bit better since I started giving her stuff to eat a bit earlier. Thinking of you though. And don't worry about nursery - they are used to the caprices of babies

Aub - are you feeling better? Will definitely email so we can get a coffee.

Kayz - Glad to hear it, do it a few more times and I'll bet he'll stay asleep longer each time... Give it a good go though... I should write a book too... "the Rubena sleep technique - ignore, repeatedly... turn the monitor off" (nice parenting huh)
I wouldn't function without a car... seriously Kayz - it is SO worth the hard yards now - you will not believe how you managed when you don't have to tackle the public transport... And the cost too - when I went to the last meet up, I drove to the nearest station with lifts and the parking for 24 hours was slightly cheaper than the bus fare just to the station!!

Someone was asking about pig flu jabs? Asked dh last night - he can get it but didn't bother I asked why - he said I rarely get sick and I don't see the point of it - nice

lol @ urbane pacifying with junk food - not a bad idea I bet I will proceed with that when the novelty of flapping the napkin wears off

Beans, did you tackle the ironman subject yet?

katie where are you????? update this month??

Ah, just to prove my rant the product of an unreasonable mind she had a much better night last night... urbane she is in a different room! But our house is v small, and I'm a v light sleeper (can I blame that on my parents somehow...? ) so wake up at the first noise. Apparently this is quite common in mums, dammit.

We're practicing our 'getting everyone out of the house' routine this morning so I shouldn't be here but just wanted to apologise for whinging, and tomorrow she has a full day at nursery so I can do a real catchup in peace I have to say, it's not a moment to soon tbh, we really need a bit of time off from each other. Love her hugely, but as DH pointed out, if he and I were together 24/7 it's very unlikely we'd still be married!

rubuena took a leaf out of your book last night with DS. He woke (predictably) about 1am. I went in picked him up he falls asleep in my arms, so i put him down he screams. So I jumped back in to bed put in my ear-plugs and never heard him again till 6.30am! He was smiley and didn't look like he had been crying for 5 hours so I guess he went back to sleep. DH said he heard him about 4ish but after a couple of whimpers he went off again.

kayz get thee driving again! Honestly, I love driving, don't know how you manage on buses/trains with two

Right 2nd interview this morning, not actually sure I want the job (or is that just me being a bit lazy). Still experience and I am pleased I impressed at first interview. Not too sure whats expected of me though...well if I get it maybe it was meant to be.

jj if you want to be a bad mummy like me I can highly recommend ear plugs. I can still hear him when he cries but not quite at the same high pitched level iyswim

BTW his cough was noticeably less last night , and during the day. Maybe these powders are working [hopeful, fingers crossed emotion]

Daisy: so gflad you got a better night. Good luck for your interview!

LadyT: as others have said, you are doing so well at a difficukt time of year. Don't feel you have to be coping and stoical all the time though.

Invis: I worry about asthma as well, I have asthma and DH has eczema and both DSs are a bit sore and coughy on occasion. On the eczema side, I've started using a solid shampoo (from Lush) on the boys and it does seem to help. Aqueous cream is all very well for washing but not good on hair!

I am another non-driver, but the plan is for DH to pass his test first when we have some spare cash for lessons, then I will start learning. I have a sinking feeling that I will be learning for years, but I can't really put it off any longer.

I will get learning I promise. Then I can drive to my Dads and get the train to London and come to a meet up!

We have got Diprobase from the GP for eczema. The boys both have it. DS1 has it really bad and we spent ages following the HV's advice and using a calamine lotion which wasn't helping. The GP told us that it tends to make eczema worse.

Does anyone else get screamed it if you leave the room? DS2 just screams and screams which is quite horrible to hear. Going to the toilet is getting to be quite a struggle. I have to either listen to him scream his head off or I have to take him up with me and then DS1 wants to come up too.

Kayz: yes! But DS1 doesn't let me go to the loo on my own either (this may be one reason I am now sitting in an office!). I think it's a sign of motherhood when you close the bathroom door, not for privacy but to stop the baby getting out...

I wouldn't mind taking him but our bathroom door is broken so it doesn't shut. So DS1 comes running in and flings the door open. DS2's bedroom is opposite the bathroom so there is his window. I have stopped opening his curtains.

kayz DS won't let me leave the room without him, unless DH is there. He becomes quite hysterical,like I'm never going to return! He is really bad for it more than DD ever was.