May 2009 - A new start. Mine's a large gin please.

[runningmonkey]

Here you go ladies.

Hi there,

Thanks for all your kind wishes. I've been back at work for 2days now. The early mornings haven't been as bad as I anticipated. Ds2 appears to have settled into the nursery which is good, except he won't drink anything whilst he's there. I just feel quite flat - not sure I enjoy the job. I guess it's early days. I'm shattered though. I might only be at work for 6 hrs but I'm on the go all the time - that's if the bloomin patients will agree to work with me I'm shattered when I get home and the boys just seem to run riot! Anyhow moan over -life is too short!

Febes hope you're not too cold this evening. What nice neighbours you have!!

Younger ouch for the nips. Ds2 tries that sometimes, I'm not impressed!!

Hinny the funeral sounds very emotional. {Hugs}

Sorry for not name checking properly - need to go and put clothes away - oh joy!!

Quick post before I do some work. muddled, glad it's going ok and hope it keeps getting better. I can imagine you're shattered. 'only' 6 hrs sounds like enough to me on top of looking after DCs afterwards.

Hinny, to you from me as well. I hope you're ok.

Also, at Spangle: glad to hear there isn't a baby in your gall bladder! hehe.

Spangle, try not to worry about H and nursery. I bet he'll settle in just fine, especially since he waved to a nursery nurse (good sign). Harper has her 1st settling in session in a couple of weeks. I can't imagine what she'll be like, I've never left her with anyone but DH. 'twill be interesting.

Febes, hope the heating is fixed by now [hopeful emoticon]?

ok, off to work. please kick me off here if I return. I neeeed to be productive.

Evening!

Err...yes...we need to get practicing

hinny - it must have been such a difficult day for you. Go easy on yourself.

Spangle - I found the first few times I left O v uncomfortable and hated the thought that he wasn't getting undivided attention from me. I found it much more difficult than he did though and we've both settled down into it now. It helps that DH and I are really happy with the nursery - set up and staff.

younger - sending you productive vibes

Febes - hope it's fixed. I'm freezing tonight and we've got the heating on!

DH has headhunters in touch again about a job abroad. You may remember a few months ago he decided not to follow up a job in Qatar as he didn't like the potential employer. Well this time the job is in Oman and he's much more keen. They have his CV at the moment and he reckons it's 50/50 as to whether they'll want him. It would be a 2yr contract.
It would be great in that he'd get a 6-fig salary tax free for 2yrs so I wouldn't have to work and we could easily do our extension.
I really don't fancy moving abroad though! (Bit of an unadventurous homebird me!)
I really should just stop speculating until we know more as it may well come to nothing...

Hello Blotted! Sorry, took me ages to type that post as ate dinner in the middle!

Evening all,

singing [hugs] It must have been a sad day for you today. It's still early days, so it's only natural that you haven't got to terms with it yet. Hope you'll get to know what's to be done about those gall stones soon.

ses Oman... How exciting, though I'd be a bit nervous about moving to an Arab country too. As a woman I've got this image of a place where you can't do much without being accompanied by a man. Probably completely wrong and prejudiced of me .

younger C accidentially nipped me a few times when her teeth were new, but removal with a stern no worked quickly and she doesn't do it anymore. She's a bugger for being lazy about positioning though and I have to watch her or she'll crack a nipple in no time.

spangle H will get better in nursery. Ds was a bit like that and he settled in the end.

febes Sympathies re the heating. That happened to me last winter during a cold spell, but we had a back up imersion boiler for hot water, so we were cold but clean That sort of thing always used to happen to me the day after DH went away to work for 9 days, NEVER when he was actually at home to fix it

C's been incredibly clingy today. I had to go to the GP earlier with DS and left her and dd1 with the ap. Well I thought she'd start crawling, she just launched herself forward while screaming trying to follow me out. She's been like that all week TBH. I think she's a bit unsettled with me going back to work. She's also been unsettled at night and I haven't had a decent sleep all week. Hopefully she'll get used to it soon.

I have a fat lass snoring next to me on the sofa. She's dressed (probably for the last time ) in her French long-johns, which make her look just like a sausage, they're so skin-tight.

My friend had a grand-mal seizure, following several months of seizures and her body obviously just couldn't cope and her heart stopped. Rather worryingly her son has seizures too.

I felt odd looking at an ultrasound screen without seeing a waving bean. Looking at gallstones didn't fill me with waves of love and joy. I'm guessing I'll have them removed, I've suffered for years. It's a 1 nighter in the hospital in all likelihood.

DH is watching a 'Wheeler Dealers' that we've seen before . What a shite programme it is. And he keeps making snidey little car-nerd comments. I feel the laptop may smack him on the head soon.

I have a glass of wine, I'm going to settle down and read the past few pages. Then I hope to do a big MC Namechecker tomorrow (after going into work to find out if I have a job).

Lalalalalalalalala

Have fun singing. Enjoy your glass of wine.

morning!
hinny I too find myself both smiling/laugh and sobbing at funerals, the full gamut of emotions. I don't cope V well with them on the whole so sending you more . Sorry to hear you've got loads of gall stones. when do you find out what they plan to do about them?
i'll be back on later to catch up NC.. i've not been on because of crochet pattern testing/re writing.. it's going well but interferes with my MN time!

Fi, so impressed with the pattern design... you're so lucky to be doing something you love and have a talent for.

Hinny, hope you relaxed last night and the glass of wine tasted good. good luck on the work front today.

today, just Harper and I. the girls are to return from the gparents tomorrow. I miss them but am having a lovely time with Harper. It's quite a luxury having 'just' one to pour my attention upon. H seems to love it and has been exceptionally amusing blowing lots of raspberries, 'talking' constantly, dancing to her playtable music, walking (with her walker) into walls so I have to rescue her, getting cheerios all over the floor, etc.

I've dropped the morning BF and she took the bottle of formula happily. I think she's ready to wean from me. i'm both and relieved. now, I'll just give her a night time BF before giving up altogether in a month or so.

Belg, I tried the 'No' in a stern voice when she's bitten, but she thought it was funny and wasn't too bothered about getting milk anyway . she seems to be bored with BF.

ok, time to run here. had a good night sleep so missed my shower slot. i'll try to get one at lunchtime maybe. speaking of showers, febes, hope your hot water is fixed.

have a good day everyone.

younger with dd1 I had to take her of as soon as she stopped proper feeding. The second she seemed to finished a nip would be coming, so I watched her like a hawk and took her off very quickly. She'd often have a little smile on her face before biting too, probably anticipating the fun she was going to have.

C awake every 2h last night. She slept better as a younger baby. I've decided to hang on until she's used to me working + definitely taking juice in the day and then I'm going to just stop night time feeding and cuddle instead.

belgina I feel your pain - H was the same last night even though he was on our bed. I'd thought his sleep was getting a bit better

spangle C was the same, fed every time and got upset every time boob was removed. I think christening cards are usually addressed to the parents, but to be on the safe side I always address them to parents + baby, because I'm not sure either

Gotta go now. I'm due at work in 2h and need to do a few more bits and pieces.

Just popping on in my lunch break- Spangle- i've just done a christening card for my nephew and the card said "on your christening" but i wrote it to my Dsis, DBIL and DN to cover all the bases . Also the present (a personalised photo frame) was addressed to them all as I'm not sure my DN would really be that bothered about it .

As for sleep, sorry to hear Belgina and spangle are having rough nights. I actually had the best night in a long time (if ever) with S last night (he fed at 11.15 then 5.30 and dozed in our bed until 6.30). The probable reason for this (and not the answer for others I'm sure) - we started CC again 2 nights ago after he screamed after his 11pm feed as he didn't want to be put back in his cot and I wanted some decent sleep as i was so knackered/ill. We brought him into our room and put him in the travel cot, and then just went over every few minutes but he got to the point (after 15 mins or so) where he would just stop crying suddenly and go to sleep (definitely behavioural).

quick post: bad mummy! Harper just ate an entire pear, pips and all ! at least I took the time to remove the stalk on both sides then left her to it thinking she'd just gnaw. emptying out the dishwasher I turned around and she had the last bit of it in her mouth, wouldn't let my fingers in, with a giggle chewed and swallowed.

at least she didn't choke (main thing I was worried about). is the worst I'll get is a bad nappy?

pula, glad you had a good night. Belgina, Spangle, hope it gets better soon. Spangle, that's great news about the sandwich and whole banana .

gotta go put H to nap and me to sit my bum down, ignore the housework and do some Work work.

ses just come on for a catch up and literally glimpsed the word Oman. Oh. My. Gosh.

My folks lived there for 10 years. It is a fabulous country. If your DH is offered a job there, go. Go. Go.

I am happy to talk to you about Oman if you would like. I can do it on here or on FB.

Anyway, was so excited by this, I had to post. I will now go and read the rest of the weeks stuff as I've not been able to get on for a while.

Laters........

Evening!! Had a long day at work today but it was good. DH came home and fixed the heating and hotwater without having to smash any walls in so we were warm last night and showered this morning.

I'll be back later for a NC. After I order our dinner .

Am so tired. Will try to NC but my brain is not really functionning too well so I apologise if I miss anyone or get people confused!

febes do you have hot water yet?And how did the viewing go?

belgina have you thought anymore about the 4 bed house? And to you for your uncle. I am also a supporter of euthanasia and can understand why he has made the decision but it must be hard for your aunt and family too.

younger LOL at the whole pear. You'll be seeing the pips soon I reckon! How are you feeling now? Has the anxiety receded at all?

hinny about the funeral. Not much more that can be said really. Hope you are ok and getting through it. And what did work say? Hope it went your way.

fi am another seriously impressed at your creativity. Not having an artistic or creative bone in my body, I am always slighly at those that do. And how fabulous is your DH to be supportive of your ambitions for NS.

spangle belgina here's hoping for better nights all round.

Good work with the CC pula. FIngers crossed that it lasts for you. It will give me inspiration if it does.

We have had a couple of shockers. R has sprouted 2 teeth, one on the bottom and one on the top and the poor lamb is in agony. He is on the maximum dose of calpol and nurofen, he had a temp yesterday, been off his food, bad nappies and drooling like no tomorrow. He was awake every 90 minutes after midnight,and was the same the night before.

Unfortunately for me this co-incided with two nights out. But the tiredness has kicked any hangover into touch. I think the two teeth have come through now so am hoping we are over the worst, for now anyway.

Headless blardy teething. You know, I really couldn't understand the fuss about teething. As a naive first time mum, dd sailed through teething without a whimper - occasional red cheeks, but no pain. Then along came ds, and swift introduction to teething pain. We're just going through the appearance of tooth number 8. Sigh. (although slight comfort that this at the moment is upsetting only daytime hours).

Younger a whole pear! V impressive. Don't think there is a problem with eating pips. Lovely FB piccies btw . Hope you had a lovely day with H.

Pula sneaking on on your lunch break eh? I've been tempted but felt I might get carried away and two hours pass before I notice....

Spangle no idea about Christening cards. I think the (very few) ones I've been to I've just sent to the parents.

Belgina sorry to hear about your uncle.
Hope work is going well, and really hope tonight is better for you.
IS C not crawling yet? I ask as B merely moves around in a bum hop manner with twists and turns, and detests being on his front. It's funny to watch him hop around. He won't be walking / cruising / standing for ages yet either, following in dd's footsteps.

Fi thanks for your response re the quilt making. Am debating whether I should attempt it myself. I'm definitely not one to shy away from a challenge but I am seriously shite at sewing. Am thinking the authentic look might add to the comedy family heirloom value.

Hinny the funeral sounded moving. Hope you're ok today and work visit was satisfactory.
Imagine how you'd react if your gallstones did wave back at you...

Ses exciting news re dh's job. What's two years....

Muddled 6hrs on the go will take it out on you. Then you go home and are flat out for 6 more hours! No wonder you're shattered.

Febes is your heating back on? The days are thankfully much warmer, but still freezing at night here.
Have you had any more viewings?

Jennster is dd2 any better now?

Llare dd gave me her home made mother's day card today. Dh had tried unsuccessfully to get her to hide it until Sunday, but she managed just over 24hrs. It's lovely - she told me it's a picture of B on the front (I can almost see the likeness ) and she's written her name inside decorated with lots of stickers.
Is anyone doing anything nice for mother's day?

Cherry running fi you are all so good at making things . I can make a mess - does that count ?

Saus I need to book the swine flu jab fgor the dc's. Am quite surprised that I have been asked to go in for the jab too. I'm hardly high risk - what's that all about?
Are you out tonight btw?

running ta for the quilt link and lovely cardi btw. It's lovely to see pictures of the finalised quilt on her website - it's exactly what I'm after. I am quite tempted by the make your own option, so maybe I'll just use it as an excuse never to throw away the dc's clothes "Oh - I'm just going to get a quilt made / make a quilt out of them"..

Flip how are the dc? Hope you get really spoilt on mother's day to gear you up and give you a break for the week ahead.

Blotted I know I don't have everyone on FB either. I must get round to adding everyone.

Hello to anyone I've missed.

Erm...toothbrushing . Must buy a toothbrush this weekend and get started.

Hope you've all had a good week, and any poorly children are getting better. The excitement of this week is the loft conversion is finally finished. Woo-hoo! We've moved up there (well, bed is , but need to look at buying wardbrobes etc), and scaffolding has gone. 6 months later (6 week job....).
Was dh's birthday earlier in the week so we're having the odd glass of wine to celebrate atm. DH currently watching some bad vampires vs werewolves type film.
My hospital visit was fine thanks to those who asked. I am being hooked up to a compoota and have to do pelvic floor exercises by following a line - think 'Songstar Vagina'. I presume after my 4 sessions of this we chat about how good / bad I actually am, and look at the next step.

Right, have attempted a 'clever' thing a la Fi's NC, where I have notepad open to type, and merely copy and paste across. Let's see if it works in all it's glory....

btw Belgina I think I was clumsy in asking about C crawling . What I meant to say is that B is far from crawling and prefer more inefficient ways of moving, and he is v v lazy so why move when he can get his sister to bring him things.

Evening all!

Sorry, I'm too tired for a proper NC, so

• sorry to hear about all the sleep problems. I feel your pain.
• loving all the crafty stuff!
• hinny, hope you are ok, funeral sounds hard, and so does all the stuff now.
• teething. Aaaarghhh.
• there's probably more, but I can't remember. Ought to do the split screen thingy!

The week has been ok, the girls seem to be on the mend, but A is now growing some more teeth. And believe or not (those who have met her) - the separation anxiety is getting WORSE! The way she howls when I even walk away from her, you really would think her world is ending. It is really hard for me, I feel like I can't win, ever. The other thing this week is that DD1's potty training has gone completely backwards.

Suspect there's no chance of me being spoiled on Sunday, DH's taxi is picking him up at 12. The worst bit is that his parents arrive on Thursday, so I'll have three days of them without him .

Sorry for the me me me post . Hope you're all ok.

So tired. Busy shift and sleep deprivation, not a good combo. On a positive note though: I've caught my 1st baby in a year, hurrah

reggie C only rolls. No bum shuffling or crawling. I think she'd be much happier if she could crawl though. As half the time she cries it's because I'm leaving her and if she could crawl she could just follow me.
Oh and your pelvic floor computer game thing sounded interesting. Are you sorted now or is there more work to do?

younger a whole pear, lol! My dd1 did the same with a strawberry once. It hadn't occurred to me to remove the stalk and she just ate it. Spent quite a while chewig though, but didn't actually spit it out

Right going to have a bite to eat now and do a bit of expressing (didn't get a chance at work) and then off to bed, I'm shattered.

boy or girl Belgian? What an honour to be the first person to touch a baby.

I have a cold, and other maladies. I feel very miserable right now and my poor boys are both suffering too.

I went to see my new client this evening and I really enjoyed talking to them about the work ahead. I was shattered afterwards; I had hardly any sleep last night.

hinny I've been thinking of you after the funeral. Did you find a suitable book?

belgina how is your uncle doing?

How do you feel after delivering a baby? That must be an incredible part of the job.

ses what an amazing opportunity! What a globe-trotting bunch this thread is turning out to contain. Do you think you'll go? So exciting.

febes how are the DCs? Any better?

flippinegg separation anxiety has hit here too. I can hardly leave the room to make a cup of tea without G screaming. The teething isn't helping. Hang in there on the potty training.

Reggiee impressive post! Great news re the extension. I'm sorry because it is probably wildly inappropriate but I am LMAO at songstar vagina.

younger I am also laughing at your pear story. You'll be looking for those pips for the next few days, I'll bet.

spangle I've only ever been to one christening and I can't remember what we did with the card. I think I'd probably write it to the parents on the basis that the baby in question won't be able to read it in any case.

muddled glad work is going well.

fi woo hoo at the cruising! Have you had any bumps yet?

sausage how is M after her SF jab?

younger I know what you mean about having just the one DC to look after. It is a real treat I think for me when my PILs have DS1 on a Tuesday. I love having the 1 to 1 time with DS2. It won't happen when I go back to work so I am making the most of it.

We're watching Lost but it is making no sense to me at all and frankly I'm not sure I care what happens to them now.

llare hope you feel better soon and I hope your freelance hr'ing goes well
reg glad to hear your loft is done and I too can make a mess but not much else (unless it's something edible, I can cook).
belgina moist-eyed at you delivering baby and I hope your DH sees sense and sorts out the 4-bed house. I think DH is a mw in training, as he has the 1 squeaky shoe at the mo I'm really sorry about your uncle. . I hope you can come to terms with it fairly quickly....
blotted your photos of G with and without fabulous hat are so gorgeous. She has beautiful, beautiful hair.
febes So pleased to hear about your sister's twins. And at winter bbq. I presume your DH is SAfrican if he braais (sp?). I'm sure you've mentioned it and I've missed it.......can I come round next time, SAfricans are rather excellent bbqers apparently!! I hope you have heating and clean hair......
pula hope all you and your DCs are ok and work is going well, I know your DCs had been poorly. And sneaking on MN on your lunchbreak !!!
singin the pictures of H are so, so beautiful - love those teeth!! I imagine you, H and George have had a lovely, quiet time! A whole pear! I think the pips may be like raisins and come out whole I hope the sleeping is going a little better. E sends I a wave and a (she waved with her HSM pompoms)
running that cardi . You are talented. And A is one beautiful girl!
flip I'm sorry to hear about the separation anxiety. S is similar . I hope you are feeling somewhat better, you've really had a rough time of it lately.
fi NS plans yay!!!!!!!! And get designing woman. I've seen the stuff you've done. Gosh you're talented
ses Oman . My dad lived in Dubai and then Oman. He loved it, as did I when I visited.
tum I hope you are feeling better about work, I'm so sorry it's been so stressful for you. Is it too early for a consoling gin?
headless Hope the head's better and the teeth are through
saus How is M today? And at you and your busy social life with lipstick-wearing and everything.
spangle H will be 1 soon (just reminding you in case you'd forgotten ). He's such a gorgeous little boy, I'm happy to hear about his increasing appetite. at your MIL, how is your DH coping?

I know I've missed so many people, massive waves to everyone.

My big news is that work said yes! I start back 1st April 3 days a week. . I'm really looking forward to going back to work - they created a new job special-like just for me. I hope I don't disappoint!!

As for the gallstones . Bloody things have plagued me for years. I await GP decision.

S kisses, claps and said 'mamamamamamam'. When I replied 'mamamamam?' she smiled and said 'dadadadadada'.