March 2008 - Now we are two

[merryberry]

New thread idea good jfly!

See what I did, now we are two - for those with new number 2 and expecting number 2.

And all the rest of us who get at least 2 tantrums a day from the 2 year olds.

Thank you .

Ff is a demon for olives too - anything even slightly salty to be honest.

Milk - she has a mug full in the morning with her breakfast, sometimes two, and at night she has a beaker full, again, sometimes two depending on how busy the day has been/how early she had dinner. I put it in the sippy beaker at bedtime purely because she has it while watching ITNG, and is easily distracted. How is GG with a normal cup/mug - maybe offering the milk in one would make it a 'big boy' thing and you could ditch the bottles that way. Ff was never particularly bothered about it being in a bottle because she was on the boob until she was 16 months, so was happy with beaker or bottle after she rejected me self-weaned.

We're alternating duvet and sleeping bag, depending on the weather at the moment. As with all things with my child, putting the duvet in a Peppa Pig cover meant it was instantly accepted. ( I liked Peppa at first, but now I am beginning to loathe and despise her, and her passive aggressive mummy. EVERYTHING in my house now has Peppa Pig on it. Everything. Books, cereal bowl, cup, garden chair, football, potty, bedding, and there are what seems like hundreds of stuffed Peppa and Georges.

Am wallowing in the luxury of being both child and revision free, hence long post. Grandma and Grandad arrived first thing this morning to take Ff back to their house. Bloke and I are going to go crazy this evening and walk the dogs AFTER 6pm, and stop on the river for a drink, which was a favourite pastime pre-child, and tomorrow is local town's annual Beer and Blues festival - live blues music and real ale.

Anyone have plans for the weekend?

I finally seem to have got rid of the sleeping bag, just 2 nights ago! DS has been in his big bed since Feb, with duvet and pillow, but wouldn't use either for 2 months (and would end up at the bottom of the bed all curled up or sleeping across bed with feet and head dangling over edge but never in anything approaching a normal sleeping position)

He finally started sleeping at the head of the bed on the pillow about 3 weeks ago and then despite demanding it for months about 4 nights ago he started saying "no" to grobag when getting pyjamas on and only asking for it after stories, so 2 nights ago i hid it under the bed while he was in the bath and he forgot to ask for it after stories and curled up under the duvet happily! he may revert back of course, but at least i now know he will sleep without it.

one thing i did do in exasperation to try to get him used to the duvet was to put him in a very light sleeping bag and then put duvet over him, and emphasised how cosy it was. he did wake up a bit hot and bothered on the odd night and needed lots of water to drink but was essentially fine. i think this got him used to the duvet before his emotional crutch grobag was removed.

Milk - DS never been that fussed so not sure i can help. Only wants it in morning and varies between 50ml and 200ml in the morning (plus spoons in the excess milk on cereal)

Olives are his favourite thing in the world though, particularly kalamata

I've just realised that I seem to have made my boy grow up very quickly in the past month - sleeps under pillow and duvet, drinks from open cup, walks to nursery rather than being pushed, no longer carried up or down stairs. I'm clearly counting down to new baby arriving! Now if I could just get him interested in potty training...

Can I just say that turtle is fab!

turtle - the cocoon arrived just now. Bump and I are very grateful

we had unscheduled 4 hours at a&e, gg's bottom teeth went through underside of lower lip as he got tripped by ds1 in run to see tigers at zoo. oh my emotionally over worked giddy aunt. ds1 more upset than gg!

Oh bless them both. Are you home now? Are they ok?

And do you have wine?

think gg will be fine, scarred but fine. ds1 will be upset for life i reckon. keynote memory - the day i fucked my bro up.

i had wine. is nearly all gone. and dont' drink much, so a whole bottle, phew.

am a bit with dh who collected ds1 from a&e after 2.5 hours, took him home and i got home 40 minutes before he was due to leave for a friendly drink....having been at a&e for 4.5 hours and in traffic for 45 minutes for a 2 mile trip....who said about 5 inutes after i walked in the door and hadn't decontaminated/put wine in fridge/made up milk bottle/run bath/had a breath that didn't involve sad kids....

'i'll go now ok?'

erm, no, i'll have a cup of tea and thrum down to a less overwrought state for 10 minutes while you cuddle gg. actually.

Poor DS1 - with any luck GG won't even remember.

As for your DH...I think, and I know this is controversial and maybe even a bit sexist, that they don't 'get' the whole childcare/trauma thing like mums do. Mine would have been the same - thinking that the afternoon had been dealt with and was all over now, so fine to just leave.

Finish the wine. Enjoy it. Early night. x

You're right Ff. oops cryhavoc. It is very problem solved.

He needs to get back here and capitalise on drunken wife though

ARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!

The little monster I call my daughter has only just gone to sleep - all because Daddy wasn't here to say goodnight to her.

Oh mb, sounds like a horrendous afternoon, glad you're more drunk relaxed now.

I agree that turtle is fabulous, just 'cause she is!

Ff congrats on exams being over, feels great huh? I am loving having now work to do apart from my job, but that's only a coupla days per week.

Think I might try and escape into the countryside or beach tomorrow, it's horse racing weekend in my town today and tomorrow and it's full of drunken twats. I don't think I can cope with it all weekend.

Hello ladies. I thought these two poems that Psammead has written might amuse you.

Particularly pertinent for me and DH at the moment as we struggle to find a name that is not one that 23 other children the same age will have, is one that we both like and is neither too chav nor too Notting Hill. Sigh...

hey ladies, am going to be a party pooper for Monday, absolutely shattered after all the driving in last week & will scream if I have to spend another "travelling" day with the offspring for at least a year.

Really will manage it one of these days, sigh.

ps Aunt, no news, she's starting radiotherapy on Monday but still hasn't had new appt to discuss results of other blood tests. Meanwhile her & my mum's brother also in hosp with breathing diffs & irregular heart beat, so went to see him during the week just in case it's last chance...that was quite amusing as E kept getting up on the bed beside him & I kept having to grab his hands before he pulled some of the tubes out

dh is in charge on monday. i'm working. sorry. i forgot

Ah yes i'd forgotten too! I'm still up for meeting tomorrow, anyone else free? I can get to most places in London and can come over to Ewe or Turtles neck of the woods if necessary.

I forgot too and am now working! Sorry ladies.

Turtle slightly frazzled but still up for meeting. If it's me and Ewe and Timmy can we do Ewe and my neck of woods as we live 20 mins away from each other?

ewe x-post!
Shall we reschedule?

and they say that mumnesia is a figment of our imagination

I love that P doesn't speak properly. He just told me his dinner was in his pum-bee(tummy) and he says budda-bye for butterfly. I hope it lasts.

Just checking in. Hello all! Hit 28 weeks this Sunday, but already feeling very third trimester... Work crazy but calms down in 2 more weeks and then only 5 weeks before mat leave

I'm trying to get DS used to the idea of a potty in the vain hope that I won't have to deal with 2 in nappies. Have switched him to pull ups a week ago so he gets practice in pulling shorts and pants up and down, and now trying to get him to sit on potty at regular intervals with view to going cold turkey on nappies in a few weeks if he seems to be getting it. But I feel completely clueless as to how to approach this. Anyone tried it yet?

I am planning on total cold turkey in a few weeks, meg. She knows what the potty is for, and tells me when she needs to go, mostly. I'm doing it all at once because she had a complete tantrum after a successful potty wee and didn't want a nappy back on. So, my plan is to sit it out until I'm sure she is completely ready then no more nappies.

Have been very toddler-groupy recently, and have made a good friend with a boy 6 months older than Ff who she adores, so, coupled with exam craziness we've been busy busy busy. Today, for the first time in what feels like months it was just Ff and I and it was lovely. We had a nice wander around town, this happened and then this afternoon we had a bit of a walk, played with her duplo, and did some colouring. Awesome.

And now, beers, curry and football.

Ewe when are your results?
Anyone have nice weekend plans?

My only advice to you, Meg, is if he isn't 100% ready DON'T DO IT. If he tells you he needs it, etc then by all means go for it but you are in for a nightmare if not. Honest. If you do decide to go for it, put him in pants and don't look back or it's just too confusing. I have (polishes nanny badge) potty trained 9 kids so far and there is no way P is even close to being ready. If you wait til the time is right then it only takes a few days max. Also...if it isn't working by the time you're 35 weeks...ditch it and come back later

p.s. I have nice weekend plans. I'm seeing Ewe this morning.

Thanks cryhavoc and turtle - v useful. Glad you both think cold turkey is the right approach - seems like the most sensible option to me, but was worried it would be a bit stressful!

I think DS is getting there but not quite ready to switch to pants yet - he will consistently tell us he needs a nappy change unless there is something very distracting like Bob the Builder on tv or a visit from gps. Likewise he'll sit on the potty if there is nothing else distracting him. And he will often wee and then go and find his potty and sit on it. So he gets the idea but not sufficiently to be fully aware and certainly not ready yet for cold turkey. We haven't done anything to encourage this other than put a potty in his bedroom, so I'm thinking that if we start to be a bit more proactive about it then he might respond well as once he gets an idea in his head then he does tend to get it quite quickly.

Move to pull ups is going okay - he will do it except when very tired. Once he's happily doing that consistently himself I'll try encouraging sitting on the potty as a regular thing. Just conscious that I have about 2 months before there is no point for ages, so might as well see if we can encourage him to be ready!

Anyone for Legoland meetup next week? I need to go again to justify my pass. Have a half off voucher for the first taker.