June 08 - a Coalition for all (even those with May or July 08 babies).

[DomesticGoddessInTraining]

Abdn liked the title so I just went ahead!

Thanks Eddie. The room will have a lot of red I think, so not too keen on orange with that. S's room gets a lot of sunlight too, so it could be VERY bright! I think I'm just not too keen on blue too. I had originally wanted to do opposite walls blue/green.

Sorry the night wasn't brilliant. Have you tried offering water instead of milk yet? Does M have much breakfast when he wakes?

Domestic My girls have a green room. I used Sanderson paint in light green almond green - it's a lovely warm colour.

Oh yes, red and orange not good! In that case, I would definitely go with the green . We're considering green for the boys' room as we go a bit overboard on yellow a lot of the time!

As for M offering water is going to be our next tactic I think - we've tried it before (about a month ago) and it was a disaster but it's a month on and a lot could happen .

DGT I spoke too soon - it started raining here around mid-afternoon and it's miserable now.

Random holidays are very good - less fuss and competition for holiday lets etc!

Rooms - DS1's room was originally green at his request but now they're sharing a yellow room. I love blue and would make my room blue but I don't really want the boys to have the stereotypical blue room - plus they face north...

Eddie fingers crossed that the cc keeps working - it's early days but hopefully he'll start sleeping a bit more.

So not many blue fans! Does anyone think blue would be nice? I can kind of see DH's point that all the other bedrooms are green (although they're very different shades), the kitchen has a green accent, the hall has a green carpet, and plan is for en-suite and wc to be green. But I don't actually like blue bedrooms...

The DTs' room is blue! And the nursery for the new baby is blue too. I love it (Man City colours of course!)

I feel like I could murder someone (DH ) - I am hoping it is my hormones gearing up for labour, but it could just be tiredness. I feel premenstrual... DH annoyed me this weekend cos he cut the DTs' toast with the wrong knife

I'm not a big fan of blue for a bedroom cos it's a very cold colour. I also second AH on the whole 'blue for a boy' thing, and finally it's the Tories colour .

What about yellow? A pale yellow would like nice with lots of red and it's a lovely sunny colour too .

Bedtime disaster. M screamed himself in a frenzy, I cracked and fed him and he drained the whole bottle .

Back to square one . . .

Lol, x-posted neenz! Take it you're not bothered it No3 is a girl then?

Btw, just thought of you - have piccies of twins from a friend of a friend on my FB page and they're in a twin sling, never seen one before and was quite ! Can't imagine you could carry two babies like that for very long?!

Lol at cutting the toast with the wrong knife - is that a heinous crime in your house?

The room is currently a pale yellow/lemon. It doesn't really work with the stuff we have I don't think. Also, S's room gets loads of sun around bedtime and the yellow just seems to amplify it! I find blue a really cold bedroom colour too (although maybe that would actually help in S's room). Oh I don't know, maybe we should just leave it lemon and think about what colour it should be whenever we get round to moving!

Green would work so well though...

ROFL at wrong knife for toast (though not at hormonal Neenz obviously )

Eddie - did you crack and feed at bedtime? Were you trying to drop bedtime feed? I'd have thought you'd want him to have a good feed at bedtime so he's not hungry in the night?

DGT I like a blue bedroom for myself - just not the boys as all their bedding is blue too and it would be too much. If S's bedroom faces south (like mine) then the room could probably cope with a blue... but my DH is refusing to let me paint ours because he feels blue is too cold...

how wrong was the knife? serated? chopping?

Eddie was it bedtime you were feeding him? If so, it should be okay, he'll know it wasn't the middle of the night..

p.s. thinking of you poppy - but on another note - did you see that stage? I'm livid at Contador... (goes back to tdf thread).

What about using stickers on the walls to brighten them instead? Don't know where poppy got hers from but think you can get them from Amazon/ebay?

As for feeding, we were trying to feed him before bed/out of the nursery to break the 'suck to sleep' connection. So we had given him big tea/milk, etc, downstairs and then bath/story/cuddles/cot. Cue: screaming .

It's 8.40pm now and A has just started crying hysterically .

Struggling to cope .

Oh, I'm sorry Eddie. Sounds like a nightmare.

Does M have a dummy? I'm a big believer in taking one thing at a time and if you want to focus on cutting out the night feeds maybe it's not a good time to mess about with his bed time feed? Apart from anything else, it's probably quite stressful for you so could then affect your own sleep? I think if it was me, I'd probably leave bedtime feed alone just now and try a dummy/water for the night wakings.

We have some jungle stickers for S's wall. I shall revisit the issue with DH and report back. Fascinating as that will be!

A asleep now. He wanted his pillow back in his cot, despite the fact that he threw it out only 30 mins ago .

M doesn't have a dummy unfortunately - we tried to introduce one last month, but he was totally unimpressed and spat it straight out!

The thinking was that if we weaned him off the bedtime feed he wouldn't need to "suck to sleep" at night and would learn to self settle, but I don't think it's going to work with M in the way it did with A .

Ho hum . . .

DGT I'm a blue fan!! P's room is pale blue (IIRC Dulux Arctic Mist), and it looks lovely with a white Victorian iron fireplace, white furniture, window frames etc. However we chose this colour about 2 years before we were even TTC P when it was a study. When I was pg with P we decided it was good enough keep, and figured that if it was a girl then it would be good for her to have a blue room. My only regret is that we chose a cheap dark blue carpet that I have never liked, and is too blue. The room gets lots of afternoon and evening sun, so I am glad it isn't a warmer colour. The only other thing that I don't like is that the landing is greenish (apple white walls and a green carpet), and I have never liked the complete contrast between the two rooms. So, if I were you DGT I would be inclined to work with the green themes throughout the house. Generally though I think there is something quite calming and sophisticated about blue and white bedrooms, and would certainly consider it if I were to redecorate my room.

Eddie did M drain the bottle upstairs on top of a bottle before bathtime? Don't forget that it is v hot here today (29 degrees you will be pleased to hear Scottish folks ), so maybe he genuinely needed it.

Neenz LOL at the wrong knife. Your poor DH. It's bad when you feel really angry with OH's and know that it is hormones, and yet still can't help but feel irate with with way that they are breathing. I've been there...

Bugger thanks for the Glasgow perspective. Are you from the North East? I wonder whether you would have an easier time than a Southerner? I am fear that I sound v posh and v Home Counties which isn't always a good way to make a positive first impression. It's only since asking about Scotland in the last few days that I have finally deduced that DGT is the only genuine Scot amongst the Scottish ladies

Lots of x-posts.

DGT The pre-bath bottle was the advice that I was given by my HV to break P's suck to sleep habit. It worked really well for us. Until we broke that habit he simply had no idea how to re-settle himself in the night without a quick BF. As I say Eddie, it's hot today, so try again tomorrow and see how it goes. It sounds like last night with only 10 mins was promising. If you can get rid of sucking to sleep at bedtime it will also mean that you can brush his teeth after his bath and then not worry about him having milk as he goes to sleep.

DH spread soft cheese on the toast with a normal knife and then used a sharp vegetable knife to slice it - why? A dinner knife cuts toast perfectly adequately!! Why dirty two knives? Told you: hormonal

No not bothered if baby is a girl and has a blue room - in fact that is preferable . We have lots of colourful posters etc in DTs' room. I have never thought of blue as a cold colour but we do go for light shades of course.

Difficult one with M's bedtime feed - cos he drained the bottle you'd think he must have been hungry...? Did he go to sleep sucking the bottle. Don't be dishearted, just try again tomorrow (and if necessary tonight). I'd be really hard with A cos he is old enough to understand it is time for sleep. E cried/sobbed again when I put her down tonight (again no sleep at lunch even tho I put them down later - 1.30-3.30pm). I just left her for 5mins then went in and cuddled her for a couple of minutes saying 'shh, time for sleep now', then put her back down and she sobbed for another couple of minutes then went to sleep. I'm not sure what it is -it is so unusual for them to be upset at bedtime. It could be cos she is overtired but I think it might also be her trying it on a bit.

neenz Fraser's being very trying at bedtime lately too - either acting like a complete monkey or sobbing (which ends the instant I lie down with him) - i think it might be an age thing. And eddie the pillow thing sounds very familiar!

Sorry about the horrible sleep situation Eddie.

T has been sleeping horribly the last couple of nights. I left her crying upstairs for ages, and eventually went in because the noise was bothering the others () and she had taken off her PJs and nappy, and wet the bed . I've brought her downstairs for a bit now. I feel half dead today, after a 4-5.30am stint this morning, so I can only begin to imagine how awful you must feel Eddie. The advice all seems good - I'm afraid I don't have anything to add as I've been hopeless at sleep training the girls.

Poppy thinking of you. Hope you're ok.

DGT I quite like blue but DH doesn't so we don't have any. I have a friend who has F&B Lulworth Blue in a north-facing bedroom, and it's a lovely pinky-blue colour. I don't think it would work with a jungle theme though. Very helpful aren't I! I think that if you like greens then stick with them. We have gone a bit OTT with yellow but we really like it. Lots of the same colour gives some continuity anyway.

Neenz hope your hormones have settled down now. I won't be coming up to Formby for a bit .

Sybil how is the packing going?

We're back from holiday now. We could happily have stayed there all summer. DH is in love with the national library at Aberystwyth - he showed me where he'd been working and it was really beautiful. He's straight into a trial now so the holiday is well and truly over It's lovely having been away so early in the summer - we keep thinking it must be the end of August and then realise that we have all of the school holidays to go.

Not been around - did anyone miss me? I have in fact been on impromptu holidays. Last week I wasn't well, and then on Thursday night there was a big storm and we had a power cut...which lasted until lunctime Saturday. So we all went on holiday to my Mum and Dad's house, but as a result of the powercut my boiler has broken ( My house is lovely but jerry built) and so Iestyn and I have been at Mum and Dad's all this time. God, it was lovely. Shame my parents are so against me selling my house and moving in...
Plumber coming later today to fix the boiler so I've packed up and planning a night in my own house.

Rolf NLW is wonderful. I'm going there myself next week, actually, but I adore the place. Despite everything (I worked there for 4 years...). It's a lovelier library than the BL but then the BL is modern. And in King's Cross. Did you go to see any of the displays? One of my manuscripts is on permanent display - it's the only law manuscript with pretty pictures.

Can I share my turmoil with everyone? Much hand holding needed. The history dept at Bangor have advertised a job, and I'm applying.

Dewin, good luck with the job application . And v impressed at you having a manuscript displayed - wow!

Thanks for all the sympathies/tips etc on sleep. M woke at 1am and 3am and took just water and went back to sleep! Unfortunately him and A were then both up and wide awake at 5.30am and M would not be placated by milk then either (he drank the whole bottle but didn't go back to sleep .)

Feeling thoroughly fed up and sorry with myself today - I'm becoming a mum I don't like v much either as I'm being so short temperered and snappy with them. I nearly smacked A yesterday cos he was driving me so mad . I just feel like crap all the time - I'm so excited about my new job but also dreading how I'm going to cope with work when I can barely string a sentence together at the moment .

I was also talking to my NCT friends yesterday and realised that I was the only one in the group who has NEVER had a night away from the kids. Not once. In over two years. Please tell me someone else is in the same boat and I'm not the only one who's social life now sucks on a grand scale?

Apologies for the whingy self-absorbed post .

Eddie I have never spent a night away from dd and she's 7 this year! Ds has left me to sleep over at friends/cub camp but I have never left him. I don't think it is that unusual, some people just don't have that kind of job/babysitter.

Good luck with Bangor Dewin I very nearly went there for my first degree then opted for the sporting delights of Loughborough instead.

Packing not particularly well advanced if I am honest. J being ill has delayed it all so have to work extra hard for the next week.

Dewin I can definitely make sure you get that job. My lovely friend has recently been offered a wonderful academic job (really, it solves lots of particularly worrying problems for her and is long (ish) term). And I knew she was applying and wished her luck and prayed for her. So I can do the same for you .

I didn't see the displays at the NLW as (don't tell social services) we left the children in the car whilst DH v quickly showed me the library. I bet DH saw it though as he spent 3 days of our holiday there and will have wandered around. It was a little bit like Senate House in London with the beautiful art deco details, but so well maintained. Has it always been that well maintained? Even the carpets looked new. We could smell the lovely pine trees and the view of the sea was amazing. We daydreamed that we had a little cottage nearby and could spend the summers there...

Sitting waiting for attempt no 2 at baby b's scan - not playing ball so I'm eating sugar and jiggling.