any other over 35 first time mums?

[AngelUK]

Good morning ladies
You are very kind in regards to my paintings. Thing is, and I am not saying this in false modesty, it is easy to paint faces in black and white and of people who will either never see the painting or whom we do not know intimately. As soon as we do know a person intimately, my portrait skills fall short. I have attempted portraits of my parents and it was... not good. It wasn't bad, but it was not really my parents, I didn't capture them, although it looked like them, if that makes sense. And when it comes to a baby or small child, no, I would not dare attempt it. But thank you so much

Borboleta I am glad you got to enjoy some aspect of the movie too, even if it was just the hot men. Vin Diesel and the Rock aren't my types but I know they have nice bodies, so there is that, hehehe. I hope you drooled loudly over their flat tummies and six packs, to pay your DH back for his belly comment .
Actually I was hoping that Dominic at least was losing some weight, or rather not putting on any more. He was rather round at his 1 year check up 2 months ago but I think his weight stayed the same since then. But I guess he is still not slim. Sebastian I am not sure about. I know he has put on weight but I haven't checked against the curve in his health booklet if it is too much. It is so hard to say also as we find it difficult to measure their heights but it should all be in proportion I guess. Dominic was always above the 98th curve (I think) for height, so being a little heavier wouldn't be so bad. I just don't know. But I certainly never have to worry about them being undernourished lol. Actually both boys are good eaters, As I said Dominic will eat anything, including the fluff off the floor. But Sebastian loves all the food we give him too, just as long as it is a stage 2 baby food. I guess when he has some molars things will definitely change lol

Charlie how lovely to have a longer post by you again. How are you feeling today? And how is Sophia?
Rear Window is one of my favourite films too! Grace Kelly's clothes! To DIE for! As for the King and I, is it wrong of me that I had a huge crush on Yul Brynner when I was young? I still find him very compelling, he walked like a jungle cat. So sexy lol

Sabrina Finn is so clever using his truck for transport! I love that! And I am sure it will increase his confidence.
And as for films, yay another fan of Rear Window and The Clothes! My golly that black and white evening dress! Sooo stunning! And I LOOOVE Mr Blandings builds his dream house! Makes me laugh so much even though I have seen it innumerable times Do you like the Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn movies? I love them too! And yes Hitchcock is great though I don't like Psycho, Vertigo or the Birds. But otherwise golly yes! I love I Love Lucy too! I must have a look if I can download a few, it's been years since I have seen one. Have you seen that film with her and Henry Fonda called Yours, Mine and Ours? How I loved that when I was small! lol
I hope your filing at the tenant court will get your neighbours evicted. What a nightmare!

Clio do you mean my posts are informative cause I try to systematically answer everyone? lol Well as I said to Borboleta, that is cause I have two windows open side by side: One with the thread and one with my answers. So I just go through the posts that came after my last one. I still manage to forget much that I want to say but as my posts tend to be very long already I guess that is just as well lol
Maybe J is a little young for potty training or maybe he thinks the current set up just too comfy. The son of a friend of mine was early in all his developments and but refused to go on his potty till he was 3 1/2 years old and only then cause he had to go to a creche a few days a week and he was the only one there who was not potty trained. He said he liked how warm it all felt around his bottom So J not wanting to do into his potty could well be that he knows what it means but he chooses not to use that option yet.
What you say about your joint sounds dreadfully painful! As for cortison, I know it is not a healthy thing in other ways as my mum had a few shots on her hands before giving in and having them operated on. But if it is your ligament then how would a hip replacement work? Is there no other way to permanently shorten the ligament?
Your post about the marijuana doesn't offend me at all. I don't actually see how it could any one. After all morphine is a lot worse and they do prescribe that! My friend Andrea has been struggling with morphine addiction for decades now. She has been on Methadone for years as morphine must be injected every 3 hours, even through the night. But of course Methadone doesn't help against the pain. Marijuana isn't a legal painkiller in Switzerland either (and it doesn't do anything for her anyway) but surely that would be preferable to heavy duty opiates?
As for my boys being tall, yes I think they will, at least according to their curves and their predictions. But Dominic is at least 2cm taller than Sebastian and always was.
I don't think I could bring myself to rehome Alfie. He isn't a problem kitty as Felina was (remember the psycho kitty we had for a month?). And yesterday evening he was lying on my lap and I could gently stroke his back and head for a good 10 minutes before he peacefully jumped down and lay on the floor but close by. So

Leeze how wonderful to hear from you! Was worried you might leave us! As long as you post from time to time how you and Kia are doing we will wait for you to have more time :saint:
I hope you had a nice time with your parents, I loved the pics on FB! But I am sorry Kia is still sleeping so badly. I don't know how you survive. I think back with horror and terror to when Dominic wouldn't sleep. It was a time of torture and seems we struck it lucky to have only had to endure it for so "short" a time!

Hope everyone else is doing ok?

I have to go in a minute to drop off my car for MOT and servicing so just a quick one about us:
Most of you probably saw a few piccies of the boys' photoshoot on FB but we kept two back cause we want to give them as presents to mothers, sisters, brothers and godfathers and they wouldn't be a surprise if everyone had seen them already. But I think it would be safe to show you the ones we selected. Do you think this ones will make nice presents when framed etc? I must admit, I love them!

Dominic


Sebastian

 

[kosh]

I'll try to write properly later but OMG, angel - those boys!
(the first is Dom, right?)


----
eta: Love the painting!!

 

[Storm1jet2]

Morning ladies!

Angel I loved the photos of the boys, they are just gorgeous! Have you thought about doing painting portraits of young children? My dad does the odd watercolour so I know that paintings can be incredibly time consuming and often people underestimate the amount of time and effort involved. But really you have such a talent it seems a waste that you aren’t painting at the moment, maybe now the boys are sleeping better its more of a possibility?

SK I am so glad I don’t live next to your crazy neighbours – I hope you get something sorted soon as it must be incredibly frustrating. As for my BFP so quickly – I do really feel for you ladies who took somewhat longer, the 2WW is torture and I’m not sure my sanity could take it long term… I do however appreciate that I got my BFP incredibly quickly and make me admire all those ladies who took longer all the more!

Clio L has long legs that and she is a little climber – she is nuts. I have taken a photo of where I intend to put the little playhouse at my dads and I must get round to uploading it soon. As for you post on the slightly illegal drugs, you need to live in NI, yes its still illegal but by heck is it widely available. I did have an ex who smoked every day, simply because he liked it and I can tell you now for him it was the most important thing in his life – it took me over 4 years to get out of that relationship and I didn’t realise how bad it was until I was out. He literally couldn’t do anything without having a joint first and it drove me nuts – he truly was addicted. I do however have no issues with people using said substances for medicinal purposes

Actually I can’t remember if I asked this before – but seeing as we are all older I was wondering if anyones OHs have children from a previous relationship? Mine doesn’t but I did have 2 long term relationships where they did and I found it incredibly difficult having to deal with someone elses child… it was never going to work for me but I’m curious if anyone else has step children…

As for L, the poor wee dote has a bad case of oral thrush! The worst thing is I never noticed – how bad is that – nursery had to tell us, so we have gel to go on her mouth given to us by the dr who prescribed it over the phone and didn’t even want to see her???? My mum would have had it occasionally and my SIL is tortured with it but I’ve never had it orally myself so I didn’t even notice. Poor wee poppet – she is still eating and still in great form though.. L also got to go to the toddlers room in nursery yesterday which she loved – they move between 3 rooms and get to go out into the conservatory to have their lunch at little tables were they feed themselves, yesterday it was curry – you should have seen the state of her lovely pink tshirt and turquoise jeggings! They also have nap time where they all lie down at the same time on mats – I couldn’t believe it when they said she lay down and went to sleep for an hour and 45 minutes – wow! She seemed to really enjoy her day and she wanted to show me her new room – I’m glad she is getting a little more excitement in her day

As for me and dot (currently known as) so far I have gone from being completely constipated with the terrible cramps to running to the loo! I’ve pretty much had heartburn every day so far too… can’t wait to the MS kicks in fully as I’m already exhausted… If I remember rightly I had stinky MS from 5-14 weeks with Miss L, I’m desperately hoping it’s not too bad this time, cause let’s face it I have a toddler to run around after this time Nothing seemed to help my MS with L it obviously wasn’t at the stage that I required medical intervention but I distinctly remember the dry heaving in the morning and the sporadic vomiting during the day…oh man I really don’t want that again…. This time I’m starting out my pregnancy heavier than last time and last time I put on about 4 stone! I cannot afford to do that this time, so I’m hoping if I try and cut the crap and eat healthily I can avoid it. Last time I basically ate rubbish the whole time, I was obsessed with the foods I wasn’t allowed to eat but never bothered trying to eat any of the good food….. If I put on 4 stone from here I won’t be able to move….. eekkkkkkkkkkkkkkkk I will eat fruit and veg this time and lots of fibre! I will…. I’m also starting to feel nauseous – already!

Ok I better post this before I forgot It’s already afternoon and not morning anymore

 

[clio]

Angel--I don't expect J to actually use the potty for another year or so. And I don't intend on doing anything about it for the next year, unless his interest continues to increase. The few times I tried to put him on it without a diaper was for experiment's sake: I wanted to see what he'd do. And what he did was get off. I'm just normalizing the potty and reading to him about it, even if he's not ready to use it yet. He loves to put the removable part--the part you "tinkle tinkle toot" into--on his head, though.

And you're right, I don't actually think a hip replacement would work, but I like to dream... And while I don't know what part of the pelvis they replace, it's probably not the SI joint. But your poor friend! I know that methadone helps with the withdrawal from morphine, but what does she then use as a painkiller? The doctors here are happy enough to write you a prescription for painkillers, but it's always for something highly addictive. The ones I have now are okay, addiction-wise--they work on the brain like an antidepressant--but they are really ineffective, apart from giving me a lovely nap. So my doctor keeps pushing and pushing the harder stuff; fentanyl was her last suggestion, and that's pretty potent. But I've been a casual pot smoker since undergrad, and I know it works. OH and I did an experiment; we got enough pot to last around a week, and when J went down at night I would smoke. The pain went away immediately, stayed away all evening, and as the week went along, the anti-inflamatory aspect of the drug reduced the inflammation more and more every night. By Friday I was basically pain-free, even during the day. But once I was out, I was back to where I was before. My mother is even interested in it now, because of her arthritis--it's been shown that it not only stops the pain of rheumatoid and osteoarthritis, but it can also reverse the damage to the joints. Stupid, closed-minded Alberta!

Oh, and those photos! Can they even take a bad photo? Sebastian looks beautiful and incredibly sweet, and Dominic, like always, looks beautiful and frech!

Storm--that must have been really tough being with someone who smoked "chronically," as we say here. People like to argue that pot isn't addictive, which is true, in the physical sense. But it can be incredibly psychologically addictive, that's for sure. I'm lucky--I can take it or leave it, just like I can alcohol and cigarettes. But I've known a lot of people like your ex. It is sad when a substance becomes more important than the people you love.

As for previous marriage(s) or kids, neither of us have either. Back in his late 20s, OH was engaged to a woman he had been with for eight years, but who was also horrible to him. Luckily, she called off the wedding just two weeks before the date because OH would never have had the courage to do it. Apparently, when the two of them told his parents that they had gotten engaged, his father's first response was: "WHY???"

Oh, to have a tall boy! It's so strange--I'm tall-ish with long legs, OH is very tall and his legs go on forever, and here is this short, stocky kid of ours. But I wouldn't like him climbing out of his crib, so there is some mercy there. What a little monkey L is! I bet she loves playgrounds with all the things she can climb. Oh, and yes, I'd love to see a pic of where the playhouse will go!

I'm sorry the m/s is starting already. You might want to invest in a bucket, though. That's what a friend of mine did as she looked after her toddler while pregnant with her second.

Question for all--when you brush your LO(s) teeth, how do you do it? Before, I'd just lift him up to stand on the bathroom counter and go from there, but now I can't lift him all the time anymore. I intend to buy him a footstool, but I think that won't be high enough for my little shorty. What do you guys do?

 

[Storm1jet2]

https:/ [URL=https://s1118.photobucket.com/user/storm1jet2/media/BFP/IMAG0917.jpg.html][IMG]https://i1118.photobucket.com/albums/k614/storm1jet2/BFP/IMAG0917.jpg[/URL][/IMG]


Clio can you see this? L house will go up in the corner with minimal shrub cutting!

Ps in the morning L stands on a little plastic stool thing and at night I do her teeth in the bath

 

[SabrinaKat]

having a horrible day - LO screaming with teething and various temper moments, so I scream back and he looks shocked and then if you go and comfort - he starts biting and I am so cranky, too (AF is late, but absolutely NO way am I pregnant, so I have a build up of hormones and I haven't lost any more weight (have kept the 8 1/2 lbs off though!, so decided to kick-start on Sunday, so I want chocolate and ice cr eam and lots of junk food so I have....a salad.) GROWL!

that is perhaps the end of my rant...and it's 20 C outside and I feel fat and frumpy....GROWL!

thank you...that is all...sigh

bye!

 

[Borboleta]

Hello everyone,

Sabrina: I am so sorry you are having a bad day. Isn't it amazing how hard it is to watch a crabby baby when we are crabby too!!! I wish we didn't have PMS after we became mothers !!!

Clio: like you I am in favor of whatever medicine can help you feel better you should take it. I thought your week trial of Marijuana very interesting. So it did help you. Is it hard to get more? Call me old fashion but believe it or not I have never tried drugs before . OH says that I get my high from life . But have been around plenty of people that do it. I think I told this here but my dad was the first person that offered cigarette for us to try and I hated!!! I was probably 10 years old. I coughed like crazy. And he made us try whiskey and beer too . No need to say hate alcohol unless is a strawberry margarita or a sweet drink like that. I told OH when thiago is older I think I would like to go with the same approach. And if he wants to have friends or party with friends that involves drinking he should do it at home or call us to go pick him up from a party. And OH did his share with drugs so he can talk to thiago about the bad things .
Oh, and my MIl had a right hip replaced and she loves it!!! Se can't wait to have her other side done even though is not hurting her !!! I will ask her about your case and see if something like that would help you.
And OH does not have kids from previous relationships that we know . Thank goodness.
I brush thiago's teeth in the bath. But if I am in the living room I just put him on my lap and lay him back so we can brush his teeth. He already knows and just lays in our lap to have his teeth brushed but off course we have to let him do it at one point.

Angel: you are really an angel. I was reading your post this morning about the cortison medicines and just than I remembered that I was not suppose to be putting my cortisone hand cream for the vitiligo every day, but do it one week yes and one week off !!!! And I completely forgot about that!!!! Thanks for reminding me .
And I just LOVE the pictures of the boys!!! I am sure your family will adore the ones you picked. Can't go wrong with any of them. Seb's eyes just go deep on your soul and dom's curly hair and his cute little nose !!!! Isn't it funny how one has curly hair and the other one is straight?
Ad I always like skinny man until I started dating OH and he loved working out and lift weights so my taste for man changed a bit . I just love to hear a man that has a deep voice . Very masculine !!!

Storm: I am glad to hear you are getting all the pregnancy Simptoms so early. That is great news!!! And I love where you are going to put L's house!!! I love watching house hunters international and see the beautiful English gardens.
Is L still Sttn for you?

Leeze: glad to see you here again. So sorry to hear your sleep is still not improved. How do you manage?

Today we went for our 15 months check up and thiago just woke up a little crabby so loads is crying at the doctors ! He got 2 shots: varicella and dtp. Poor think, than he really cried hard!!! He is on 46% of weight and 85% on height. The next appointment we won't need to get any shots !!! Do you go to the doctor every 3 months? We do . Oh, and he is saying "Bo" for acabou ( finished or all done) when one of his tv shows are over or he is done with something. Very cute.
I am a little worried with OH that told me today he has been feeling a little bit of chest pain. I think it is stress and tried to talk to him but I just wish someone would just call him for an interview and decides to hire him. I told him that we thiago and I love him and things are just bad now but it will change. And that we need to go day by day and not think of the past and regret things that we done that cannot be changed now.

Okay, enough of that. Hope all your ladies are doing well including, Charlie, Claire, Rowan, kittylove and kosh.

 

[SabrinaKat]

just a quick note - LO is in teething hell -- he even bit another child in creche (I am mortified, but it seems he was reaching in for a kiss, but decided otherwise! I asked them to please apologise to the other parents...gulp!) and then, he was in okay spirits playing with me this afternoon and he was trying to stand and he fell backwards (from a sitting position) and knocked his head into the corner of a wooden toy (box with shapes, etc) and THERE WAS BLOOD - eek! I rinsed with a cold compress (sp) and put a little antiseptic cream and watched him before nap-time. He gots loads of cuddles, but seems okay....I'm in a better frame of mind (got some decent sleep last night, but still no AF (it's 36 days+ and with the thyroid meds, it ranges about 26 to 31 days, so I do not know what is going on (definitely NOT preggers as have not DTD for months)....

hope all are well? Borboleta - it must be tough (so hugs to your OH)...

bye!!!!!!

 

[Storm1jet2]

We have good weather! Woo hoo, how did that happen! So much so I've,been outside lots, watered the plants etc and hosed L, lol she loved it, then she was pouring water over her head etc.. my little water baby. That and a flexi tub (big buckety thing) full of water and she was one happy wet girl.. also her oral thrush is almost gone, excellent gel from drs so she's a happy girl. Must go, time for bed, love to all xxx

 

[AngelUK]

Good morning ladies

Thank you all for your lovely compliments about my boys

Kosh yes, Dominic is the one with the curly hair. I added names to the pics now
How are you and G doing? Still difficult to entertain him on the metro?

Storm I am glad L's oral thrush is getting better. Do you know where she picked it up or is this just one of those things one can be prone to like cold sores?
I don't think I will attempt to paint children or babies. They are much harder to do than adults cause they have no angles and shadows to their faces and without those it is hard to capture the character I think. Painting is indeed very time consuming but with water colours at least one doesn't have the problem of not knowing where to store the canvass while it dries. I could only paint in the sitting room while the boys are asleep and I wouldn't know what to do with the wet canvass while it is their room during the day. But I find water colours by far the harder medium to paint in as it allows for virtually no mistakes. So this wouldn't be an option either for painting children.
I loved the pic of L in the tub! Soo cute! Hard to believe it was/is this warm at the moment though isn't it. Long may it last
I absolutely love where L's playhouse is going to go! And if she is like any child I know, she will love it too! As I child I dreamt of hidden huts and secret gardens etc (and that was well before I ever read the book). It will be magical Also, your dad's garden looks beautiful
As for step kids, nope none. But I have an ex who had a daughter from a previous relationship and since he had main custody of her, she was there most days when I visited him in Chicago. She was only about 2 1/2 and very sweet but yeah it was difficult as I knew nothing about kids and suddenly was supposed to be cook and entertainer for her. But that was an issue with him rather than her...
Lydia's nursery sounds really lovely! How many kids are there per staff?
I am sorry you are suffering already with your dot! Heartburn sucks and I had it throughout! I should have had shares with Rennie. But now I found out that I like the small strawberry flavoured Gaviscone much better as they leave less of an after taste. Wish I had known those during pregnancy! Which ones are you using? I would suggest you try and get some MS meds if it does get bad again. Like you I had it till 14 weeks and though I only threw up 4 times in all I don't think I would have felt up to it to run after a little live wire like L! I am still hoping that this pregnancy will go easier for you though

Clio you poor thing with that hip! It sounds really bad! I had to google SI joint as I had no idea where it really was! I somehow didn't realise one had a joint there! Golly how dreadfully it must hurt!
As for Andrea and the painkillers, well she usually tries to endure it as she is very reluctant to take any of the morphines she has. Usually it is Pethidine and I am pretty sure she is back on that now. I haven't heard from her since her second op but after the first one, they gave her some stuff that gave her such horrific and almost psychotic nightmares that she couldn't shake them off when awake. So I am hoping no more of that, what ever it was.
I think that if you can afford it and can get your hands on pot then go for it. I have never tried any sort of drug in my life (unless you count nicotine and coffee and of course prescribed meds and I have had the occasional alcoholic drink when younger) so I am not really the person to advise. But like Storm, I feel if it is helping your poor joint then you should go for it!
As for the pics of my boys, you are right, we chose those 2 pics cause we thought they best capture the boys' characters and Dominic is indeed frech (love it!) but in a loving funny way. Sebastian is full if mischief too but he is mainly very sweet and affectionate
As for your question about when we brush their teeth. We do it after their meals when they are still in the highchairs. But it is very difficult cause while they don't mind having their top teeth done it is almost impossible to do their lower ones, they fight us and try to push the brush away with their tongues. Sebastian now mostly refuses to have the brush in his mouth at all unless he can hold it. He throws his head from left to right so that we cannot get in there. If we hold him steady he cries and since we don't want teeth-brushing to be associated with tears we are a little stumped as to what to do

Sabrina I hope F is ok today and no bad effects from his fall? How scary to see blood!
I am glad you had a better yesterday but am sorry you had a horrible day before and while F was feeling grumpy from teething. It is difficult, isn't it, when one feels bad oneself to be extra patient with them. I know it well And as for feeling fat and frumpy, I know that one too, especially now that it is warm here and I see ppl in short summery dresses So tons of from a fellow sufferer

Borboleta I think your idea of offering T alcohol and cigarettes when he is young to make him hate it is a good idea. My dad this with us and while it certainly worked with the alcohol, I did start smoking when I was 16. I wanted to be one of the cool grown up kids too . My OH has had experience with all sorts of drugs too but he doesn't have the same attitude towards them as I do. I don't want my boys to do them, ever but he thinks they will probably try them out and if it's nothing more then that, it's ok. I don't want him to convey that relaxed attitude to them though. When I was 14 there was a shocking bestseller book out in the German speaking world which I don't think got translated much into other languages though it was also made into a film. But it was the truthful story of a girl and her life from the age of 12 to 16 who lived in Berlin and who went down the slippery slope of pot smoking to heroine addiction and prostitution to finance her addiction. The book was called "Christiane F. - We children from Bahnhof Zoo" (Zoo is a Railway station in Berlin where those children hung out) and there was absolutely nothing glamorous about it at all. The girl told the story herself in her own words and so matter of factly and so completely that you were left in no doubt that her world was hell but that she couldn't quite see it and just accepted it. She got off the heroine for a few years but as far as I know she got back on it later and is probably still on it now, if she is still alive. My mum gave me this book and it horrified me and scared me so much that I never was tempted to do drugs at all. I wish there was a book like that for my boys when they are that age. :/
So your OH has a body like Vin Diesel and The Rock? Whoohoo! I have a skinny man but I cannot deny that Hugh Jackman's torso makes me drool! lol And I know what you mean about liking deep voices too lol It is sexy!
I am sorry your DH still hasn't got a job. I bet it gets him down, poor thing. I really hope things will change soon

As for us, well it seems that my car's heating and A/C motor was fried from all the water that keeps pouring in so I have to get a new one. With all the things I have to replace and the various repairs, I am now facing a bill of over £1200. ACK! I hate spending money on that sort of thing lol Ah anyway, I am getting the car back today AND I am getting my hair cut so that should make up for it lol
The boys are ok, they had a super long nap yesterday afternoon and one hour of that Dominic was asleep on me again. SOO cute!
We went to the park again with them yesterday and Dominic was screaming with laughter when he flew through the air on the swing.
Btw I don't think I mentioned it before but my Dominic is back to his old sunny smiley self. He had a phase of whining at the gate if you remember. And while he still cries at the gate when he wants us to come back, it isn't incessant and not when we are with him. Phew! Just now he and Sebastian were playing peek-a-boo with each other again. Sebastian was hiding behind the playpen and every time he peeked around it, they both giggled. I tried to film it but they saw me and they stopped. Ah well. I just love hearing them laugh and giggle together while I'm sitting here and typing or reading. Best sound in the world is your child laughing, isn't it? Shame they stop when I go to them lol
Ok got to go and get dressed and ready to pick up the car. I hope all are well? xxx

 

[Kitty_love]

Hi girls! Been keeping up, but not found the time to post in the last couple days.

Barboleta - we have a 2-story foyer as well with a little banister look over if that makes sense, ceramic tile on the first floor foyer. It's right outside his bedroom, so I think we may have to do the lock thing too, just for safety, as there's really no hallway or anyplace to gate it off.

When we first moved in to our house, Tabitha kitty did jump down from this banister 2 stories down, only once. Her little chin clunked down on the floor and she looked so stunned when she landed, i went out the next day and got a runner rug for where she jumped in case she kept doing it, but never again. She's always been a fearless jumper, should've known she'd try that leap!

Blake is formula fed, Barboleta. I pumped (and pumped and pumped) for about 2 months, most of that time Blake was in the NICU, but my supply was consistently low, then really dropped to almost nothing after 8-9 weeks. I kept hoping once he came home my boobies would realize yes, you did have a baby , but they didn't. I was really disappointed about it during that time, but looking back I know I really did my best. Even if I had plenty, I would've only been allowed to bf Blake 1-2 times per day, he needed spec preemie formula and we needed to monitor the amount.

Clio - No, looks like Blake will be in this summer, have another appt in a few weeks for shots, but they (drs, nurses) just look at you in the eyes and say a cold could kill him, don't let others anywhere near him unless you're sure they haven't been exposed to anything, no church, no stores, no restaurants, etc.
Not sure how we could ever be sure someone wasn't exposed to a cold?? So, yeah, their stern warnings have us too scared to take him anywhere. So sad because our zoo has a big dinosaur exhibit this summer only , but I guess Blake is too little anyway. Next summer he will have lots of fun firsts! I do get to go out sometimes on the weekend, but I guess I'm lucky I don't get too upset being indoors in the summer. I don't do well in the heat, so it's ok.

I think it's great that you're getting J used to potty now as he seems interested, maybe make it easier for him in the long run? He sounds very inquisitive and clever! Could you post the name and author of the potty book he likes? I'd appreciate it, so I could have it on hand.

Storm - still so excited for you and your big news!!! And so fast! We were only ttc buddies for a month! and tell your mom, moms can keep secrets, right? maybe your good luck will rub off on me, I've got an 8-day wait ahead of me now...

Angel - wow, really great painting!!! Amazing! I am so not creative, so I am even more wowed by people who are.

Charlie - glad to hear the new meds are helping! And aki aki, oh soooo cute! Blake actually reached out to grab Tabitha this morning, and Tabitha allowed it, even sat still for a few minutes while Blake felt her fur! Although she looked at me, like really? Do I have to? Our other kitty Samantha still doesn't want to get too close.
Fun that S is enjoying her food experiences! Will have to make sure Blake gets to discover orange wedges after your description, so adorable! What's eggy bread? Is that like French toast?
And Beyonce helicopters? Sounds kind of exciting! Not too into her music, but I be the neighborhood kids thought it was great! Do you live near enough the stadium/concert location to hear when there are events?

Ok, Blake needs a cuddle, but I promise I'll finish my post soon! xx

 

[Storm1jet2]

Kitty hun I would tell my mum by she died when L was 4 weeks and 1 day old xxx Sorry I just assume people know cause most of the ladies on here do, but I guess I haven't mentioned it recently. It makes me sad she won't know and makes me miss her more, that's why I'm not keen on telling my dad as I know he too will be sad about mum xxx

 

[Kitty_love]

Angel - "real men make twins" - I love it!!! I was going to go the picture frame for his desk at work route, but dh mentioned a new video game he'd like. Funny, since I think he's only played video games twice in the last 6 mo due to Blake, but might as well get him something he wants?

And I know youre right about all the babies being in the plastic tubs. I think it just got to me as it was almost 3 weeks, and he kept banging and banging his hands/arms against the sides. Actually, I think that's what got him home a little early...on Friday each week the drs changed, so 2 days before his release we met a new dr (older, female, very no nonsense type). She looked over his charts Friday morning, examined him, said maybe time to schedule circum soon. He was still not finishing his bottles - rules were finish all bottles for 48 hours, pass the car seat test, check for weight gain after another 24 hours, then next day release. Well, the dr computer station was right next to Blake's 'bed', so she spent quite a bit of time near him, and kept commenting on how he looks ready to go and poor baby banging away. I saw her check his hands for bruises, too. She asked nurses to swaddle him tighter, he hated it and always his arms "escaped". So on Sat she told us to sign for the circum, she'd do it that day and maybe he could go home tomorrow! The nurses started chattering about him not finishing his bottles, but dr said the kid can go if he finishes 2 of his 8 after the circum. Nurses told us not to get our hopes up, policies are in place for a reason, but he was released on Sunday afternoon. Dr put her hand on my shoulder and said with her experience, she can tell he'll be better off at home!

I'm nervous about the BLW mess, too! I'm a bit of a neat freak when it comes to my kitchen, guess I'll be getting over that! We will wait until Blake's adjusted age to do that, though.

Those pics of your boys are absolutely adorable!!! Thanks so much for posting!


Barboleta - yeah for date night! Fast and furious 6? I think that's the movie we saw filming when we were in London last year...we were down by Big Ben later at night (11 I think, I wanted to hear bong, bong - one of my fav London things) and we saw lights toward St James Park. So we followed and saw some people watching, only saw bikini girls, motorcycles, one guy with a huge camera told us what was going on and let us take a peek.

Bottle time, I will catch up, I promise!

 

[SabrinaKat]

another nice day here! Finn seems in good spirits, so hopefully will continue?

kittylove - we had the same problem-ish. LO was in NICU (born at 36wks) and they wouldn't let him home until he drank more formula and it went on for 13 long days....but on day 12, I/we went and got larger size teats and he gobbled it all down, so came home the next day! At home, we had to burp him a few times a bottle, so it was still time-consuming and tricky, especially at night. Then he got reflux, so that was hard, too, BUT fortunately, no real food problems, especially when we started weaning (orginally TW (with a spoon), but he seems to prefer BLW (we cut up and offer the food, and now, is able to 'use' a spoon (but be prepared for applesauce, yogurt to be on the floor -- he will eat a bit from us, but then, wants the spoon)......

a humorous LO story (I think) -- Finn loves the telephone and can tell the difference between the real, working one and the fake 'extra' one, but he now knows how to use the real one! If he is sitting on daddy's lap, he wants that telephone and will crawl over to it (on the couch), pick it up and start dialing numbers. However, when the recorded voice comes on to say, 'please try again', he actually presses the button to cancel and then tries again and he will talk into the phone saying 'um' and 'ah' as if he is talking to somebody....!

must go - massive poopie and somebody needs a bath!

bye!

 

[Kitty_love]

Oh, Storm. im so sorry. I do believe she is watching over you and thrilled for you.

 

[Kitty_love]

Clio - as for the medical mj, I'm with you. If it helps people (and has less side effects than most drugs advertised on tv), then people should be able to get that relief! I'm really glad you've found something that helps you, ever thought of moving to Colorado? Kidding, kidding.

I love that we all love cats! Ours were actually dropped off at the vet I was working at (in between jobs) in a cardboard box in the middle of the night. Not sure if I shared this story or not yet, but they were in a cage at the vets for a few months. One, Tabitha, was cuddly, while the other, Samantha, was fiesty and protective of her sister. There started to be talk of separating them or declawing them to make them more "adoptable". So, a few days later they came home with me, and yes, I did name them after Bewitched!

Angel - those 2 pics from your photo shoot are fantastic!!! Your family is going to love them for sure!

Storm - pic of the garden is lovely! What a nice spot for a playhouse - she's a lucky little girlie! No, no stepchildren here. I really hope your ms isn't so bad this time around. I didn't watch what I ate while preg either and paid for it. I think I gained well over 40, but didn't get weighed the last few weeks. I never liked ice cream that much until I was preg - vanilla with choc fudge swirls and choc peanut butter cups - mmmmmmm! I also love broccoli, but couldn't stand the sight or smell of it preg. Oh, and so cute about L playing in the water!

Sabrina - we all feel like that sometimes (flabby and icky). I remember a few months ago, I broke down to Dan crying that when I ran up the stairs to get Blake, my stomach jiggled more than my boobies! he said nothing, of course. And we've dealt with the reflux too, it's REALLY nice to hear a positive story about how well Finn is doing now - thank you! That telephone story is precious! He sounds so smart and cute, can you believe they understand so much? Seems complex, but they're putting it all together so soon!

Blake's doing well. His new discovery is his feet - he spends a lot of his awake time holding onto his right foot, so cute As far as not so cute, yesterday he puked out of his nose. Poor guy was so upset and cried real tears. I felt so bad for him. Thank goodness for the bulb snot sucker thing, cleaned his little nose up and he was back to his normal self. Gave him a big all over coconut oil massage to make him feel better, he loved it!

 

[Storm1jet2]

Ah kitty the cat story, I got my first, Storm from a woman round the corner who's cat had kittens, my second was got as a companion cat for Storm, Jet... He was dumped at the cats protection league in a box with 36 other kittens! They reckon someone just cleared out a farm .. I had a 3rd Jazzpurr from another animal sanctuary but after 5 difficult years with him (health and mental health) I had to get him put to sleep my 4th (now 3rd) Lily I was meant to be short term fostering.... I've had her 7 year's... I guess she's staying! I have a 4 year old choc lab too who has a bad back leg, 3 goldfish (one only has one eye) and a 25 year old terrapin that lives at my dads.


Just felt like an animal update

 

[AngelUK]

Urgh Alfie just brought home a black bird! Part of a wing is in front of the bathroom, the rest behind the bed on OH's side and naturally OH isn't home when I need him! I am not picking up the carcass or I will be sick! I hope Nick comes home soon I am so squeamish when it comes to stuff like that.
Oh gosh, so Alfie is not only not cuddly and bitey and swipey AND a good hunter too. Should have known it would go hand in hand, my half wild Schnitzel (though very cuddly when she wanted cuddles) was the same

 

[Storm1jet2]

Angel, get a nappy bag, put over hand lift dead bird bits . I had to lift rat bits at my dads last week, Poppy who is 14 killed 2 rats!

 

[AngelUK]

EWW!!
Yeah what I did was put a load of kitchen paper on top of the bits and then the nappy bag on top of that and then grabbed. Essential part was not to have to look at it while picking it up and not feeling details while in my hand.
With rat bits however I would wait for Nick to come home. After all, he loves horror movies so there is no way he can be freaked out by that, right
Thanks for the advice