November 09 - solids and crawling underway but sleepless nights still here to stay!!

[scarlotti]

New and shiny thread

funnily enough, talking about separation anxiety...he has decided now he is comfy enough sleeping next to me in DHs spot. so that means DH is on the sofa tonight! We used to go in to see DD, pick her up, quickly cuddle/shh and put her back down, tap her bottom, and leave. If she woke again, or got upset again, we kept doing it, then she knew we were there, but did not stay there long, or engage in conversation with her/talk in anyway, quickly. A version of the pickup/putdown/babywhisperer technique, but adapted to suit us/DD . worked well but not instant. Teaches them that you will always return if needed, and that they can go to sleep themselves.

Work still going ok thanks laugs although my colleague has today been moved to another office in prep for another colleague's maternity leave. If it wasn't for that mat leave, I think we'd be on redundancy notice again! The thought is much less frightening this time around, which is odd. With a child to provide for I need to earn but I guess my priorities have changed significantly. A lot has changed at work over recent months and not in a positive way so I'm going to keep looking carefully for a better job.

If I think about working full-time indefinitely, I don't like it! But I am sooo busy with work, being a mum, trying to study and make wedding arrangements that I think time is and will continue to pass very quickly.

TBC, iPhone going wonky...

On sleep and teeth - no teeth and quite hairy ursi - Ethan usually sleeps very well so I can't help with nuggets of advice. Also can't help Ethan much when we do have sleep problems, like three hours of crying last night before he'd nod off! Have had a few unsettled nights but no other signs of teething as yet.

What else was there...? Oh yeah - still no period despite only breastfeeding around 7am and 7pm for about 6 weeks now. Lah lah lah... And ridiculous baby brain! Can't remember five minutes ago.

And I love my baby! Haven't talked about him much on here recently. He had his first haircut - a number eight on the clippers! He pooed in the bath tonight. He's scared of his new toy - a turtle on wheels which should encourage babies to crawl and chase it. It encourages Ethan to crawl alright, in the other direction!!

Laugs agree with Miss re the teaching- it can be tough in the first couple of years and the quality of your mentors/placement school will make all the difference. GTP pays but on a PGCE you may get cheap university childcare? May be worth investigating, I don't know.

The holidays are certainly a bonus but otherwise I would argue that it really isn't a child friendly profession- e.g. you start before dcs school starts and end after their day ends so you are never there to pick up or drop off. It can sort of colonise your brains too so you are just thinking of teaching all the time. Planning takes ages to do well and if you teach English the marking load is horrendous compared to other subjects. Though you can organise this to an extent.

On the bright side it is a properly worthwhile job and you are doing something very real and human, as opposed to making money for other people! You have to keep telling yourself that...! Kids are great to be around, very interesting, keeps you youthful!

DWB I know what you mean- I have been at work a few times now getting ready for starting in September and like you, if I think about it it's bad, but when I'm there I'm completely absorbed.

teeth none here yet. Hope B feeling happier SirBoob

feeding H refuses the spoon, and alo shows disgust for any food which is not dipped in hummous (sp?) by chucking it straight over her shoulder.
She doesn't mind fish stew on a spoon but that is all.
She is a force to be reckoned with and queen of the high chair.

Books I am reading the Alistair Campbell diaries which are very funny if you like that sort of thing (tales of grown men acting like big primadonnas, flouncing out, slamming doors etc) Laugs I started Gate At The Stairs but put it down around the time she was describing the family xmas on the farm..if you think I should pick it up again I will!

Emmeline still has no teeth, but is definitely developing at a rate of knots- she is really trying to talk, and she and her big sister can actually play together now! Still no crawling either, but I'm sure it will come.

Ursi that will explain Bryn's lack of teeth then His hair always gets commented on... And he does have a lovely mop of hair And he has been called a girl before, apparently he is very pretty

Pav I hope Bear Cub is better soon. And at him latching himself on! B does that too, he has started tapping me and pulling my top down already if it doesn't happened fast enough...

Housing well, I was looking. And then a girl I mentioned a while ago (the one with the shit boyfriend) went to speak to them today about a cheap flat she'd managed to locate (she is due in two weeks) and they have warned her that she should not be looking for anything about £500 pm You can't even get a bloody bedsit in Brighton for that. So now I am in limbo. Thankfully Bryn's Godfather is very hot on these things and is going to contact the council and find out what is what for me...

Teething - he slept a lot better last night and so far tonight too but... No teeth So am rather bemused as to what is going on.

sirboob does this person you mentioned who said about the rent levels, does she have a baby? See because that makes all the difference. In Devon where rent is lower than Brighton, London and other areas, you would be able to get pretty much the full cost of a flat at a reasonable level, if you have a child. If you did not have a child, you would only be eligible for the bedsit rate, until you are i think 25, but it is different when you have a child, as a child has to have (or have the ability to have) their own room at the age of 1 i think.

I will look into it too for you if you like, although not the exact rates for brighton the general rule as I am back at work on monday and doubt i will have that much to do apart from do some digging and stirring up of stuff get on to this training course I want

"Can I get financial help?
Check out our information on the help you may be able to get. There are special rules on housing benefit for students and other people under 25. These will affect you while you are pregnant, but once you have children, you'll probably be exempt.

If you have been looked after by social services in the past, you may be entitled to ongoing financial support.

The rules are complicated so talk to an adviser if you need help. Use our directory to find one" extract from shelter website.

"If you pay rent to a private landlord, the rent your Housing Benefit can cover will normally be restricted to an amount set by a rent officer. If you pay rent to a local authority, your Housing Benefit will not be restricted in this way. If you pay rent to a social landlord, such as a housing association, your Housing Benefit will not normally be restricted in this way, unless the local authority thinks your accommodation is larger than you need, or your rent is unreasonably high.
You applied for Housing Benefit or moved on or after 7 April 2008
If you're the tenant of a private landlord, when you make a new claim for Housing Benefit your local authority will normally calculate how much rent your Housing Benefit can cover using the Local Housing Allowance rules. Local Housing Allowance rules will also normally apply if you move address, even if this is within the same local authority's area.
Under the Local Housing Allowance rules, when the local authority calculate how much Housing Benefit to pay you, they will not usually look at the actual rent you pay. Instead, they will use a standard Local Housing Allowance figure which has been calculated by a rent officer. The figure used will be the one which is based on the area you live in and the number of rooms the Housing Benefit rules say are needed for your household. This may not be the same number of rooms you are actually living in.
In some cases, it's possible for your Housing Benefit entitlement to be more than your rent, although you can only be paid up to £15 a week more.
However, you will often find the amount of Housing Benefit you are entitled to won't cover all your rent. If this is the case, you may have to make up the difference out of any other income you have, or find cheaper accommodation. You may be able to get further help with housing costs.
It's very difficult to challenge a rent officer's decision about Local Housing Allowance. If you want to do this, you will need to get specialist legal help.
For more information about getting legal help, in England and Wales see Using a solicitor and in Scotland, see Using a solicitor.
If you're thinking of moving into private rented accommodation, or of moving into another area, you can find out how much rent Housing Benefit will cover where you want to live. You can ask the local authority's Housing Benefit office to tell you which Local Housing Allowance Figure will be used to calculate your Housing Benefit." extract from CAB website - you need to find out what that rent level is, but it will be more than a bedsit.

Also, you really should talk the your social worker, or your old social worker. As said above, they have a responsibility to help you and provide ongoing support.

Yes pav, I am working 5 mornings. I hope it's going to work out well. We'll see. Lucky me (though not my bank balance)gets til the end of the school hols before go back so 1st September's my first working day, with children back on the 6th.

Oh and pav... it is me who's been away a lot and missing you all. I realised I had not been on for a-g-e-s and was missing the chat. Nice to see so many familiar faces around now.

Speaking of faces, I can't seem to see yours butterpie on FB. I'm sure we were friends but can't find you now so am going to add you. your initials are AD right?

Yep That's me!

Cheers Pav She's due in two weeks, so she is eligible for the same rate as me. But considering that is currently £840 pm, they can't really be cutting it down by £340 can they?!

miss oh dear that was very up my own arse wasn't it, presuming you were missing me specifically it was only that I had not been on either for a quite a while. I miss everyone here terribly when I am not on, and then i go to post and there is so much i have missed I can't keep up! So I read, fall asleep and leave it too long again. But I often find myself going 'oh bear cub has done that, i need to tell the ladies

After the most horrendous night last night with the cub waking every half hour or so, kicking his legs up and down and squawking in suddenness, and after me peering intently into his mouth this morning and nothing, not a jot to be seen, and nothing imminent, clearly. After all that, he was screaming at the meal table as he was off his food/hungry/did not want to eat, I saw this grey dip in his gums, that grey/blue almost hole that appears as the tooth pops up so there it is! His first tooth

Pav Hooray maybe now the tooth is through cub will settle better. I had a filling out, root clean up, liner in and new filling on top on Tuesday, and if I had been a baby I would have screamed all day long and the next day too! It was horrendous! I think teeth have so much to answer for! H has the same grey blue bit at the bottom in the middle and has been not screaming but totally refusing all food, and very not liking to be put down.

yikes yes, bear cub doesn't want to be put down either. Normally loves a nappy and change and screams the entire place down now, jazz hands, jazz legs, the lot, as if I have smacked his head hard on the floor or something. Poor little boy. I am so glad they don't remember this bit.

Pav apparently they remember nothing before the age of three Or so I keep telling myself every time I forget to read the bedtime story or get pointlessly exasperated with the chucking food over the shoulder behaviour!

Knock, knock... it's me.

Missed you all loads.

I hope all of you lovely ladies are doing well.

Pavlov hooray on the tooth for DS, poor mite. I always love your description of jazz arms: Lucy does the same sometimes, she also has this jazz cry, really gutteral, makes you chuckle

Yikes that does sound horrendous.

I'm in the MissI camp of lucky mums of babies teething without much hassle: Lucy's first tooth appeared earlier this month after one, a bit unsettled night.

SirB I hope you get your accommodation sorted out.

Laugs good luck with your decision about jobs. As said on here before teaching must be such rewarding work. I always think that taking on such a responsibility should be admired.

Sorry, I've only managed to read some of your posts. It's been a strange few days; my dad died on the 12th. We'd already left for England on that day so had to go back and only just came home this week. I'm still not sure of things, it had been a difficult relationship. Life is strangely the same, and not, iyswim. I'm really hoping to get back to keeping you company more often, I have missed you. Lucy's changed so much in the last five weeks that I do have a lot to brag about

Hope you all have a good night.

Woohoo I have a new nephew! DSIL had a very quick labour with her second, baby number three arrived this morning at 7:25, ten minutes after they arrived at the hospital! Joseph, ethan's little cousin and partner in crime no doubt!

pav I DID mean I was missing you specifically! And then I got embarrassed bc I realised, well, Miss, if you're not going to go ON and post on MN you can't complain about missing someone who's not been around much either.

Right, shall we stop this shamefaced/love in now and say we are all great and we all love each other tons and let that be the end of it!!!

Skorpion I'm very sorry to hear of your father's death, whatever the relationship this must have been very unsettling and upsetting.

skorpion sorry to hear about your dad.

skorpion sorry to hear of your dad's passing.

Think another tooth is threatening here too, the nappies I had yesterday were something to behold!!

DD has looked after Ioan today as my childminder was away. She did so well!

Hmm, I've just looked over at him playing on the floor ... to see that he's chewing ... that will be an old bit of cracker or rich tea that he's found [slatternly mummy emoticon]

Have just booked in my first fundraising event for my charity work - holding a pub quiz at the end of September in my local up the road. They were so helpful and friendly - am excited now!!

Thank you All.

These babies are changing so much! Lucy's grown a lot over the last few weeks. She sits up really well now, babbles away: babababa, dadadada. Growls a lot too, and is very strong. She grabs at my chest and arms whilst feeding and gives a mighty kneading - must make sure her nails are always short to avoid broken skin. She's also starting to show a bit of a temper... six and a half months in... goodness knows what she'll be like in a couple of years. We get the 'lovely boy' comments, too, and sweet old ladies in Poland stopped us all the time and squidged and kissed her feet

DWB huge congratulations to your DSIL and DB on the arrival of Joseph. How is your brother recovering, by the way?

Scarlotti is this for your trek? I bet you can't wait. Are you doing this alone or with friends or family? And well done to DD.

skorpion yes, it's for my trek am going alone but on an organised trek so with 54 other people that I don't know! Should be fun.

Am going to try and organise a Christmas event too in a local hotel - although whether I can pull something of that size off remains to be seen!

skorpion I'm so sorry, I totally missed your post earlier! How insensitive of me. Very sorry to hear about your dad. Hope you and your family are coming to terms with it.

Ethan also pinches and kneads during feeds. He nips my bingo wings as well. Ouch!

My brother is doing well, thank you. He still has pains and upset tummies but his digestive system is patched together and minus a large intestine so I think this will just be normality for him. His new hip has made a big difference to his mobility. He is delighted with his new son, the whole family are... maybe with the exception of his DD2 who, at 4, is a little put out to no longer be the baby!

Skorpion sorry to hear about your Dad. Hope you are ok x