***Lion Cub Mommies-Back In Action!***

[jelr]

Shiv: WooHoo for Sophia going straight to sleep, that is brilliant and I love her room, It is gorgeous. I really love the owl height chart. You have been my guinea pig for the big bed so I'm hoping Natasha's move when I stop being scared enough to do it goes a smoothly.

MJ: Oh Best of luck with the swimming, we hope to take Natasha when we are away for the wedding as the hotel has a pool and she has only been once too last year when we were on holidays and the same I feel bad because she does love the bath, so hopefully she will like the pool this time, she was a little wary the first time.

Cleck: Totally understandable you are not going to be able to get on here as much not that DH is home, do try and pop in when you can though as we would miss you if you went all together. I'm so glad that Emma is getting more used to DH and I'm sure those kisses will come in time too.

Spidey: So glad you mommy friend came back to you and you are meeting up again once she settles into her job. :thumpup: at getting DH to do all those jobs over the long weekend.

Sorry you girls are finding the weight hard, I do know how upsetting it can be to see those scales go up, but I know no matter what you both put on you will lose it all in no time afterwards. Still not easy worrying and feeling uncomfortable in yourself though

Well birthday night out went really well, there were 12 of us for the meal after as some more were able to change stuff around and then we went up to the local hotel and had a couple of drinks and then of course we had to be greedy and come back to the house and have more drinks - I'm fine today though but am shattered tired, getting too old to be sat up half the night and even though I could have had a lie in stupid body clock woke me up at 9 so I just got up and went over to enjoy the beautiful weather we have with Natasha.

Natasha is back to herself thankfully, I do see a little bit of a 2nd molar peeking through so I think that was probably it. I hope they dont take months to come in like the first lot. She is loving having my brother home from London and was a bit wary of him at first yesterday when he arrived but warmed to him quite quickly and was having a ball with him today. We all spend the day over in my mams out in the garden as the sun was splitting the trees.

 

[Mary Jo]

I'm so out of control... today I have had...

a bowl of bran flakes with a few cheerios and prunes (and milk)
a double cheeseburger, large fries and a side salad from McDonalds (at Bluewater)
a bag of McCoys grilled steak crisps (from a multipack so not a proper size bag)
2 chocolate digestives
a small box of orange juice
cold roast chicken, egg mayonnaise, 1.5 tortillas, houmous, coleslaw, salsa, sour cream dip, spinach, cucumber, raw carrots, spring onions, tomato.
a Twirl (also from a multipack)

gah. gah gah gah.

I'm not even hungry now but I can't stop thinking about ricecakes, cream cheese and marmite. and cheese.

Jean, yay for your birthday celebrations! so glad it went well, even if you are tired today. it's a bit too warm for me right now, not as bad as it was at the beginning of last week, but hot and sticky. Adam is also getting at least one 2nd molar as well, I felt a hard lump in there last week. poor babies. still, once they're in, that's it till they're what, 6? hope Natasha doesn't suffer too badly. I have been giving Adam apples and raw carrots to chew on, he seems to enjoy them.

 

[Shiv]

MJ - other than the Maccy D's that doesn't sound too bad, and i would assume you don't have that every day. at least you are getting plenty of good stuff too

Today i have had:
breakfast - skipped because i laid in until 11am
Lunch - cheese, ham and salad sandwich, some grapes
snack - 2 toffee crisp biscuits (99 cals each)
dinner - roast chicken, roast potatoes, yorkshire pudding, carrots and brocolli
snack - bag of discos (multipack size), lump of cheese and an apple
double caramel magnum!

I hope that makes you feel better, or at least that you aren't alone!

jelr - glad you had a good birthday night out - i told you plenty of people would go! Good work on not having a hangover I hope you manage to get your work done quickly this week so you can start your summer holidays

 

[Mary Jo]

ok, Shiv, I don't feel quite so alone now... as the for McD's - I did have it for dinner last night as well, after work. I always eat badly on work days, though yesterday wasn't as bad as some weeks:

breakfast - branflakes & milk
lunch - tuna & cucumber sandwich, garden salad with sour cream dressing (from Waitrose), bag of Branston Pickle mini cheddars, a whole 400g punnet of strawberries
early dinner - bowl of carrot & caraway soup, croutons
dinner - double cheeseburger & large fries

usually I can't stop myself having extra crisps and chocolate at work, and I usually have a tuna layer salad (which is full of mayo and about 500 cals) but I think Waitrose have stopped doing it. so it wasn't as bad as usual...

I do try to eat salad and stuff, actually I don't have to try I kind of want to anyway (not as strong as a craving but approaching it). so that's a good thing. I don't crave the bad stuff, I am just plain greedy.

yet another night that Adam isn't wanting to go to bed. he goes up and is ok for about 20 mins, and then the screaming starts. it IS warm up there, but I don't know, he's just not very tired. he slept from about 1.15pm to 4.30pm. maybe I will need to curtail his naps. I never used to have to, but it is a fact that on Fri, when he didn't nap and I was at the end of my rope, he slept well at night... argh. I'm just not ready for no naps!

 

[Shiv]

Now that is a fine day for eating MJ, You didn't snack on crap at all, which is of course my downfall, my meals in themselves are pretty healthy, it is the chocolate and crisps that do the damage. Although at this mornings weigh in I had onlyput on 1/4lb since last week, so I think the 4lbs I put on in 2 weeks is trying to even itself out a bit! So I am 19 and 3/4 lbs up in 28 weeks. Not great but I guess 30lbs is still achievable especially if I go a bit early like with Sophia.

I am going to try to walk a bit more this week, Town is a one mile walk away, so I am going to do that at least twice and try to do my pre-natal DVD twice.

As for naps, i have started waking Sophia from her nap at 3pm as if not she is not tired enough to go to sleep at night. You don't have to lose the nap altogether, just choose a time (for Sophia it is 4 hours before bed time) and make sure he is up by then. Seems to work ok for Sophia. SHe slept in her big girl bed from 7pm - 8.30am last night, and I woke up to her saying "careful not to fall out"!

 

[Mary Jo]

awww, that's so sweet - "careful not to fall out"! at least you know she listens to you!

not even 20lb at 28 weeks, that's good going, Shiv. I predict between 30 and 35 for you. which I'd be thrilled at for myself.

hope nobody minds but I think I might keep a track of what I'm eating, just to keep myself aware and accountable.

so today so far:
bowl of branflakes and milk
egg & marmite sandwich (homemade, well, from a tub of egg mayo)
salad - spinach, carrots, cucumber, tomato, with a tbsp of houmous
might finish the apple that Adam didn't really want at lunchtime

which is all good. might be quiche for dinner, and more salad (or veg, I have some green beans and broccoli that need cooking), depends if it cools down because C gets arsey if I have the oven on when it's hot outside. or I might cook the quiche before he gets in and we can have it cold and he need never know the oven was on...

we have some crisps and 1 small Twirl. maybe I should have some ricecakes and cheese to snack on tonight instead?

re naps, that's a good idea, Shiv, you think 4 hours before bedtime? that would be about 5pm for Adam, but yesterday he was up at 4.30pm and we still had a battle. he's gone up for a nap now, but he isn't sleeping, I might have to go and intervene. we were out all morning, he's had his lunch and I thought he was tired. grrrrrrr.

oh and re exercise. I am so lazy. got bus down to my AA meeting this morning but did walk back (not quite a mile, maybe 3/4). and I only walked because my friend had parked her car halfway back to the flat so I walked with her (and it's uphill on the way home). usually I'd be on the bus. when (if if if if if if PLEEEEEAAASE) we move, the shops are close by but the shopping street in Sutton is very long, so from our house to the far end is about a mile, and the station is at the far end. I think if was to go to the station specifically I'd get the bus but probably not if I was shopping.

 

[Shiv]

MJ - maybe make it 5 hours before he goes to bed that you wake him up then?

More than happy for you to record your food intake here, in fact i might join you. At best it might help me to stop being such a pig, at worst it'll give you ladies a giggle!

Today i have had
2 weetabix and glass OJ
Cheese, ham and salad sandwich
fox's classic biscuit
homemade spag bol, one slice of garlic bread and baby corn
usual evening snack of discos, cheese and apple
prob about to have a 2 finger kitkat

Not a great day but if I am honest it doesn't get much better than this!

I also walked into town and back - knackering in this heat!

 

[Mary Jo]

that looks like a good day, Shiv. do you drink tea/coffee/fizzy pop at all? I drink far too much diet coke, but hardly ever coffee or tea now, occasionally some tea at work, and the odd decaf coffee if I'm out but rarely at home (I have developed an aversion to instant coffee).

so today in full:
bowl of branflakes and milk
egg & marmite sandwich
salad - spinach, carrots, cucumber, tomato, with a tbsp of houmous
bag of McCoy's steak crisps (from a multipack)
1 chocolate digestive
cold roast chicken, houmous, coleslaw, salsa, sour cream dip, 1.5 tortilla wraps, spinach, carrots, cucumber, onion, tomato
bar of Dairy Milk (also from a multipack)

have definitely had worse days but this is fairly typical. I really should cut out *some* of the junk. crisps OR chocolate.

didn't eat the apple Adam had rejected. he did for with good reason, it was really sour. weird, it was a Pink Lady, I thought they were meant to be sweet? and quiche was off the menu. way too hot to bother cooking it.

as for naps - very poor day. no naps! not even one, well, maybe he did nap for 10 minutes, but I'd be surprised. three or four times he looked tired and I took him up, and left him but not long after he was up and banging around. I don't understand. at least *I* wasn't too exhausted today so I wasn't too horrendously frazzled. and he wasn't in a bad mood, just a bit hyper. a lot hyper, really. and then after his bath he fell asleep on me while watching some stuff on YouTube (Charlie & Lola are somewhat out of favour but he loves Noddy for some reason) and C put him to bed without his milk and his stories - and even cleaning his teeth. which is not good, but I wasnt risking him waking up again.

grrrr. I'm just not ready for no naps! I can't be dealing with it now. I'll have to rethink my entire day's routine! ffs!

 

[Shiv]

I forgot to say earlier - but egg and marmite? I love marmite but I can't imagine this combo!

I think our days intake of crap was fairly similar, if I could cut down to just one choc/biscuit thing a day i would be happy!

I don't drink tea or coffee (just don't like it, or coke for that matter, maybe it's a caffeine thing?) or fizzy drinks. I read somewhere that fizzy drinks can make heartburn worse though? I drink no added sugar squash, apart from a glass of OJ with breakfast it is all i drink.

Sophia only had a 40 minute nap today, but she slept in late this morning so not too bad. i was saying the same to David about not being ready to have no naps, (who if he had his way would stop the naps), how on earth will i cope with a newborn and a toddler who doesn't nap. It wouldn;t be so bad if Sophia was happy with no nap but she is a grump!

Spidey, cleck and jean - how do your LO's nap these days?

Happy July 4th to Spidey and cleck I hope you've had a great long weekend.

 

[Mary Jo]

Happy 4th July, Cleck & Spidey! what are you doing to celebrate?

Shiv, it was such a teensy weensy scraping of Marmite, I barely even noticed it... but I quite like the combo. though I prefer it on ricecakes not bread. I much prefer ricecakes to bread full stop, but am trying to eat more wholemeal bread to encourage the poo fairy.

wouldn't surprise me if caffeine is implicated in my heartburn. but I'd be a (more deeply) miserable cow without it, not to mention the headaches. am not that keen on squash/cordial, though I like water, but plain water is one of the worst thing for heartburn for me. I drink fizzy water if I buy it when out, as someone suggested it was good for heartburn, but I haven't noticed much difference. I have been drinking real orange juice with Spatone iron sachets, as it's meant to help absorption of the iron, and it definitely helps neutralise the irony taste, but it brings on the heartburn terribly. what's worst is I can't take Gaviscon or anything immediately after it or *that* will hinder the iron absorption! so I just suffer.

why would David stop Sophia's naps? Chris is appalled by this turn of events, he needs his breaks as much as I do! the thought of dealing with a newborn AND an Adam who doesn't nap is scary. I am thinking we'll have to have a plan to get out and about every day for him to get tired out. I'll do playgroups every day if it's what it takes (even though I don't like playgroup for myself unless my friend is there).

 

[Shiv]

I think David thinks I force Sophia to have a nap (good luck trying to force a toddler to sleep ). He doesn't really see teh cues that Sophia is tired until she is overtired and then won't nap. So on weekends when are a bit busier out and about, i will say she is getting tired we should head home, by the time we get home she is overtired and won't nap, so he thinks she was never tired in the first place - if that makes any sense!

 

[Mary Jo]

ahhh if it were possible to *force* Adam to nap, believe me I'd have been doing some nice heavy forcing these last couple of weeks!

but yes, I see what you mean. Chris used to get very pissy with me sometimes when he had Adam on Saturdays, when he wasn't doing what he'd do with me and take 3-4 hours in the morning and then 1-2 in the late afternoon. like it was my fault he wouldn't nap as well, or maybe he thought I was exaggerating? (I never did.) I think the difference was I had him on a pretty steady, dull routine, I only went out at times he'd usually be awake, I fit in my needs and requirements to go out around him rather than going out when I liked, staying out as long as I liked, and expecting a magical sleepy baby/toddler to nap when *I* decided. and it bugged me when C thought he could do what he wanted and Adam would nap as usual, because not only did he not nap (and then was overtired and found it harder to sleep/relax later, and it was all not nice) but C seemd to think that I actually have it easy staying home with him as I have practically half the day to do what I want! whereas when he stays home with him he is lucky to get an hour! he did eventually twig that what I said worked and he has had some very nice lazy Saturdays since.

toddlers are tricky little creatures, though. I get anxious if Adam falls asleep in the car (when we aren't going to be in for long) or the pushchair because it can go either way - he can stay asleep while I transfer him, and sleep a few hours more, or he can wake refreshed after just 20 mins and that's IT. that does my head in, especially when I am also tired from being out (it's what happened Friday).

 

[spidey]

About half the things you girls eat I have no clue what they are

We didn't do anything special for the 4th. DH was off work and all the stores were open, so we did some shopping. DH is at the forge tonight making a toilet paper holder and a towel holder for our newly redecorated bathroom. He said earlier that I'll be on my forum complaining that my good for nothing husband isn't even home on the holiday

Kira had her worst meltdown tonight. I decided to make chocolate cupcakes with Kira. She patiently waited for the 20 minute cook time, but stupid mommy accidently turned the oven off around the 10 minute mark when I adjusted the timer (it's a digital oven). When I checked the cupcakes at 20 minutes they were really raw so I stuck them back in... over and over until I finally figured it out. Then I turned the oven back on and they started cooking again- at which time Kira refused to leave the oven and cried. Finally they were done and they were too hot to eat, and thats when she completely lost it, poor thing. And when I cut one up into tiny pieces so it could cool faster she completely flipped! She sobbed uncontrollably until a non-chopped up cupcake was ready to eat, and then she was okay.

Nap times- Recently Kira sleeps from 9:30pm-7:30am and naps from 1:30-3:30 or 4.

 

[Shiv]

Oh dear about the meltdown bless her, BUT I'd have probably had a meltdown too if someone had made me wait that long for cake

You can pretty much guarantee that anything that I eat that you haven't heard of is junk food!

I am typing in here now to try to stop myself going to the kitchen to get some chocolate. If I can hold out this afternoon then I can have some tonight without feeling guilty!

 

[Mary Jo]

ha, yes, Spidey, it's probably junk... how about Marmite? do you have that? (I know it's available in import stores but no idea how widely available/known it is.)

awww, poor little Kira! I've never baked with Adam yet because I don't think he'd appreciate waiting either. when we have moved (if if if if PLEEEAASE) and I have a separate kitchen, I will, because I'll be able to keep him away from the kitchen and play outside or in another room, and hope he forgets! I am planning to do a lot more cooking from scratch, and meal planning, because we'll be on quite a tight budget. it's what I've always wanted to do but been too lazy. story of my life...

Shiv, for some reason I have no problem resisting chocolate during the day. only ever have it when at work, and that's down to boredom! come the evening, after dinner, and I have been known to walk out on a tv programme I was watching in order to buy it. crisps on the other hand - my downfall. have already had 1 bag today (Seabrooks cheese & onion).

today was shaping up not too bad till the crisps:
branflakes & 1 chocolate weetabix (we had a sample box they gave us free at Bluewater)
the crisps
egg mayo, marmite and cucumber sandwich, with salad (raw carrots, onion, spinach, tomato) and some houmous.

Have decided not to stress on the napping today. Spidey, Kira's routine is pretty much exactly what Adam's used to be - about 10 hours at night and then 4 or so hours during the day. I loved it. so last night he fell asleep early, 8.15pm, on me, and slept till 9.15am. so that's a long sleep for him, 13 hours. which is good... but I would prefer a 10+3, and get a break myself. because I didn't get a good night myself, since he's turned into a really inconsiderate co-sleeper, I have found myself perching on a couple of inches at the edge of the bed a few times because he's forced me over, feet in my back or face. it's too hot for that! (which is probably why he does it, he's trying to get some space!)

today we went out this morning to a local cafe where there is a garden and play area, and he got filthy (eating mud) so we went home and had a cool bath/shower, then lunch. he's now been up in the bedroom for the last 30 mins but isn't asleep, so I will probably go and get him out soon (though he is ok). I just think, if I expect a nap and I am disappointed I will feel worse than if I don't expect it and he surprises me. I'd take him out this afternoon only I am really hot now and can't be bothered!

 

[Shiv]

I just had some grapes

 

[Mary Jo]

*kicks pebble*

 

[Shiv]

it's ok MJ - I have BIG snackage plans for tonight

 

[Mary Jo]

come on then, vicarious snackers are curious.

 

[Shiv]

Well I am VERY proud of myself, we decided to get a DVD tonight so I went to blockbusters and got the DVD and David wanted a tub of ben and jerry's. Anyway I looked at bags of chocoltae for myself and managed not to buy one! First time for everything!

So my snackage will consist of my usual, discos, lump of cheese and an apple. Plus a 2 finger kitkat!