Whatever you want, whatever you like, be WISE and AVID, so do your sums, and get it right....!

[DolceeBanana]

New thread...sorry bit lame compared to normal, but thought I'd bite the bullet (as it were)....

bet it Chesneys Tracey

Bloss....wowee! Gorgeous photo and love jacket!

Loobylu- can I be added too purleese? Thanks

Interview went ok thanks Verity. was able to answer all the questions, although I think I babbled/rambled slightly on one of them. Basically, I didn't embarrass myself, so that's good! Another one in London tomorrow with an hours written exercise (dont know what!?) beforehand.....

Well ladies, I'm hoping my agony is over. I've had renal colic!! Won't bore you with the details of my day but it involved drinking A LOT!!! Looking forward to putting this whole episode.behind me as the pain has been going on intermittently for 3 weeks. Hope none of you lovely ladies have to experience this, makes labour pains feel like a walk in the park!!! Anyway relieved it's not a gynae issue and feeling much better. Thought I might have to miss the MOAM for a while there!!!

cake- I like your disco ball top and the day dress.
BTW, you looked lovely at 11st.

fritzi- sorry to hear that things are not good with your DH. Have you tried having a heart to heart with no distractions?

choo, I don't like them, sorry. I am weird with sandals though as I have very ugly feet.

Thanks Looby, it does all feel a bit relentless at the moment, compounded by DD still waking a lot and DS hitting the terrible twos hard. I feel a bit like I'm reneging on everything I ever held to be true (imperative to be at home for at least first two years of each child's life - only my opinion and not a judgement of anyone else's stance) because actually, I'm struggling to remember who I am. DH feels a bit betrayed as i've always held so firmly on this opinion.

Anyway, you didn't ask for that emotional outpouring - sorry!

I like that Marlene Birger top LTEC.

Thank you, thank you for sympathy and wisdom. I will talk to the teachers. It's all a bit strange though. I've literally never met the French one, and I only know the 'English' one because she was ds3's teacher last year in nursery. I almost never go to school, but even if I did I wouldn't see them. There was a meeting in September, but I wasn't able to go. All rather odd. I'll make an appointment though.

Tracey it's horrible isn't it. I'm always amazed that they protest so little about being thrown to the lions every day.

Cake I don't think you should buy any of those things.

Zembo- that sounds awful! I assume they have some treatment for you?

Oh good Zembo - v.pleased to see you back!

I can't see your Choos Choo

right ASOS trying on sesh has yielded the following results

these are very comfortable but like galoshes and put me in the mind of a trendy young German tourist at Camden market

ditto these

this in purple looks promising but plonkers have sent me two in same size so can't really tell re fit

this is soooo short at the back due to my big bum but also flimsy material means that it static-clings - yikes!!

Not very good then!!

Zembo so glad you are okay and NY bet you wowed them with your brilliance and competence

*zembo, I'm glad that's sorted and it wasn't gynae related.

No wonder you've been in so much pain Zembo. Hope you're being taken care of well and that treatment will see it sorted quickly.

red- two under 2/3 yrs old is really hard work, especially the exhaustion of having a baby disturbing your sleep.
I think we all had ideas of what sort of mother we would/ wouldn't like to be prior to having DCs, whether it was being a SAHM until they had all left school or going back to work ft at 2 weeks. However, when you actually have DC, things are often very different. I don't think you can always predict how you will feel and I don't think you should feel guilty for considering going back to work earlier than planned either.

Apologies for missing anyone/anything.

Zembo Hope you have found some answers today and are on the mend.

Tracey Poor you and ds. Gosh the minefield that is life. It makes you appreciate your own parents an awful lot.

Fleecey Glad tody went as well as it could.

Fritzi I am sure everything will be fine and dh is just a little stressed. Thinking of you.

I am off to bed soon as am knackered after a rather traumatic afternoon at work.

One of my team had a stroke in the office and is now in hospital. Just praying he is OK

Anyway NY what is the do??

Talking of the Forces there is some truth in the theory that girls are more likely to be born to fathers who have just served in a combat zone. Can't remember the science behind it but an incredible amount of daughters born in dh's regiment at certain times.

Diets? God I am dreadful. Can be very disciplined when required but more likely not to be! Luckily we are quite active!

Hope your team member is ok HF - that sounds terrible.

The do is a course Dining In Night. Now, at a standard RAF Mess that would be knee length at least, down to full length (more people calf/full length than knee IFYSWIM.) Most people following the 'shoulders covered until the loyal toast' rule. Is that roughly what to expect at Shriv, or am I miles off?

Poor you zembo! Renal colic is supposed to be more painful than labour! Were your symptoms v atypical? I hope the stone has passed now and that you don't get any recurrences!

NY Just a quick one - I would say a lot more relaxed than that. Although I would still go for elegant cocktail dress or even a long soignee number. Is there a dress code?

Zembo Great news

Roman Sorry that ds is having such a hard time. Good advice on here.

If there is a Dress Code ( which there probably is....) then it has passed DH by! I will nag again. I guess I was going on the fact that the dress code for everyday wear in the Shriv Mess is MUCH more formal than most RAF messes, so I thought that might translate to formal functions as well.

Off to email DH and demand he does better research!

Thanks Looby, you speak a lot of sense.

Off to bed - I can't complain about being tired if I'm not getting myself to bed at a decent hour!

cake They are the Vacetta Leather Flat Sandals. Not sure what is wrong with the link.

Fritzl sorry you are feeling down. No words of advice but

Zembo glad you finally have a diagnosis. I have googled and it sounds extremely painful

NY glad interview went well.

cake what is the fabric like on the Diaz? Definitely looks like a great dress for the price.

I like the A&O sequins but you do have lots of sequins. BTW what are you wearing on Saturday?

Not keen on £50 tees cake but I ummed and aahed over the stripe Kain dress too. Think the MB sequins are a bit too blue rinse cruise ship for me, prefer the silver

Snap choo Have no TV taste at all. Speaking of telly, did anyone see Silent Witness tonight?

Glad to see you back here zembo and that you?ve got answers

red when I was pregnant with DD I resolved to breastfeed, use washable nappies and not to use a dummy. Broke every single rule and beat myself up bigtime. When I had DS I stuck to all three rules. Both are perfectly happy. I think we give ourselves so much grief yet our children don?t know these ideas we have in our head and it passes them all by.

fritzi sounds tough. Hope things look up for you and your DH soon. Work/children can put such a strain on relationships and I think cake hit the nail on the head that sometimes it?s just too difficult to talk about these things for fear of the consequences. Important not to let things slide too far though and to spend a little time together to get to know each other and become a team again.

hf that?s awful. Hope he?s recovering.

gosh hf that's awful. Will be thinking of his family and him.

Choo I think you can do better than those sandals, there's something not quite right with that zip

red hope you feel better and brighter after a good night's sleep

Have wanted a tee in the style of that exxy one for ages but just bought this for free (gift vouchers) so that's that covered. Still tempted by Kain dress though, think it would be a very easy chuck-on dress for mornings when I'm running around like a headless chook

tracey we move on w'end 12th. Great news about the progress on yours!

Choo I don't know what I'll wear on Sat night yet but it is essential that I dazzle. Will see how I look at the end of Operation Beautification. On which note, good night!

Zembo, I don't really know what is involved in RC but it sounds excruciating. Worse than labour pains? Argh! Poor you.

On the domestic drudgery vs expectations thing, a really good friend of mine was always, for years pre-DC, desperate to be a SAHM and to be brilliant at it, all love, creativity and stimulation. When her DC1 was about 8 months' old she realised that she had become obsessive about the timing of the second class post and had developed the habit of reporting to her DH if it was late! She said that it was the most exciting thing about her day and she realised that after everything she wasn't cut out to be at home. She went back to work earlier and was happier for it, and really throws herself into her time with her DCs.

Not to say that work is the answer, but you certainly aren't alone in feeling that you need something else.

My bugbear: cleaning the bloody highchair. At least 3,000 times a day. Ugh. Roll on summer and eating al fresco and brushing detritus onto the grass.

Must just report that DH is eating Christmas pudding (which he's dug out from the freezer) with honeycomb ice cream and it smells divine. and and . does the Bonsoir diet mean I can have some in lieu of breakfast??

Fritzi maybe a regular date night would be less pressured/intensive than a weekend?

NY, what is a Shriv? Good luck for the next interview and glad today's went well.

Fritzi, just typed out a huge response to you but then deleted it as I don't feel I know you well enough (yet). Condensed version coming up, feel free to ignore .

I hear you re: weekend away. It sounds like you and DH need to reconnect. For us what worked was having 'down time' together. Just sitting next to each other on the sofa in the evenings rather than doing our own thing at opposite ends of the house. It was as if by the process of osmosis/diffusion we remembered that we were still each others favourite person. DYKWIM?

Zembo, so pleased you have sorted out your problem. Hope the pain goes away soon and you feel like your self again.

Fleecy, tough day by the sound of it and many tears shed I'm sure. Good of you to be there.