yay, happy 11 months to Jesse & Adam
hey ladies - sorry I haven't posted in a while, been a weird few weeks for us and I've felt a bit insular, kinda. but it looks like things are getting better so I feel better, too.
what happened was Chris was made redundant when the company he'd worked at for 5 years went down the pan. this was not unexpected by any means, in fact each month for at least a year we questioned whether or not he'd get paid, but it held together a lot longer than we thought it might. but it was still not so nice when it finally happened. he will get some redundancy and ££ in lieu of notice but we don't have it yet. so it was awful and stressful for a while because basically, we need to move house sooner rather than later as we are in the 1-bed flat that I bought when I was a single girl with 2 cats 10.5 years ago. this was ok when C moved in, and ok when Adam was tiny (but time obviously started ticking when I got pregnant with AE). now he is on the move and getting bigger, and needs his own bedroom, it's more urgent. to get a mortgage one of us needs to be earning a decent salary, as we would not get a mortgage on a garden shed on what I earn for 1 shift (8 hours) a week! C really wants to set up his own design agency but it's not a realistic idea right now because we need payslips for a mortgage, plus we have no room for him to have an office. he did get his computer and related equipment when his company went under, so he does have the hardware to start on his own but there is just no way it is a reasonable idea, with me home all day and Adam roaming around...
so I have not enjoyed him being home. at. all. which I feel awful about, but it's screwed up my routine with Adam good and proper. I could rant for hours about it but there's no point. I feel bad because C does help, and I get more rest/lie-ins than if he was out at work, but it's been like a pressure cooker in here sometimes because we seem to manage better when we each have AE alone and we clash quite a bit and accuse each other of "back-seat driving", which is madness but there you go. plus the hot weather has added to the awfulness.
BUT! thank the good lord. chris has got a new job.
he found out yesterday and we are so so so so relieved. it's less money than he was on before but that's the nature of his industry, salaries are down in the last year or so, but I don't care, it's ok, we can cope and fx we can move in the next 6 months now. And I can get settled back down with everything with AE as well. am also hoping that C ENJOYS the new job and it isn't a source of stress for him because tbh it was pretty bad for the last year him coming home every night and complaining and telling me how it was all falling apart. it got wearing hearing it all every day.
so it's not bad, 3 weeks from losing your job to getting a new one, in this economy! he starts in 2 weeks, but I am hoping the atmosphere round here will improve because the pressure of us imminently having no money plus being crammed in a tiny flat will ease off.
also, just to add to the stress, as those of you who are on FB may know, our car all but died while we were on our way up to my mum's for a few days last week. stupid rotting heap of junk. it had been playing up for a while, the clutch, so we had it in at the garage a few days before our trip and got a new clutch cable and a new throttle cable. £160. then when we were driving up north, it's a 300-mile trip, the stupid rotting heap of junk kept losing power on the motorway. it was so scary. thank goodness we had left v early, 3.45am, so as to get a clear run (ha) before the day got too hot. we ended up having to call Green Flag, but the mechanic couldn't fix it so we had to be towed the rest of the way. we'd made it halfway so we decided to press on and go to my mums rather than be towed back to London. not a good start to the holiday. then we took it to a garage in Hartlepool, who plugged it in to the computer and a fault came up, which the mechanic fixed - £310 for a new catalytic converter, which had apparently fallen to bits! We almost didn't get it fixed but it was going to cost us £200 to come back on the train so we thought, ack, do it, HOPEFULLY it'll be fine after that... but no.
same thing happened on the way home. losing power on the motorway. we had to stop on the hard shoulder 4 times. I was terrified, was certain we were all driving to our deaths. but we got home, alive, and decided that's IT, no more good money after bad, car GOES and we get something that we feel safe in and ok putting our precious baby into. so car went on eBay and Gumtree and sold the next day. so no car! heh. we should be able to get a new one, though, and am really looking forward to THAT.
phew. so that's my tales of mostly woe!
Adam is great, sleeping a bit better though the hot weather screwed everything up. he loved being at my mum's, ate her out of house and home! he's standing for a good while by himself and has taken a couple of steps, but I haven't really counted them as walking because they seemed really random and aimless! he is a lot better at getting his nappy changed as well, which makes everything a lot easier. he's just a little sweetie.
we have sorted out what we're doing for his birthday - we were having a picnic in Richmond Park but have changed that and we're going to have a little party in Chris's sister's garden - she's got a massive garden with a trampoline, and it's going to be mostly their relatives there anyway, as well as my parents and maybe my best friend, too. I need to think about a birthday cake! and presents! it's exciting, one month today!
soooo... sorry I have missed so much and not replied to anyone...
boothh, about the vomiting - Adam really never vomits, I honestly cannot remember the last time, months ago anyway. sorry to hear Jesse suffers, I'd have him to the docs just to make sure it's not something that needs attention. also, I was really, really sorry to hear about your mc. how are you now?
jelr, great that you have some time off work now! enjoy it
I LOVE the pics you put on FB of Natasha, she's a little beauty. re temper tantrums, Adam has started with that; he has done for a while but it's only fairly recently that I can connect it with him not getting to do something he wants. this morning he went to stand up at the CD shelf and we have always had it so that he cannot move any of the CDs, we jammed them in, but C had take a couple out so he was going to get in there and clear the shelf. well I wouldn't let him and insisted that we get on and change his nappy. WHAT tantrum he threw! screaming like a bloody banshee! he didn't stop till I removed him from the room. I find I have to get right in quickly and distract him with something fun and he forgets all about nasty Mummy not letting him into the washing machine or whatever!
nutty, great to see you posting here again!
spidey and heidi and cleck and aunty e, I am v envious of your beautiful baby rooms and decorations! one day perhaps I will have a room to decorate, but sadly no Target in the UK. wish they'd get over here, I hear all about it on another forum I post at, it looks like my kind of shop!
cleck, YAY!!! for Emma walking for Corey
what a little champion she is. I'm sure she knew she needed to let him see before he was going to be going away again. how are you enjoying Cali?
sam star, hi, and sorry to hear about Elinor's latest trials. poor little baba, she and you have a lot to contend with. how is she in general? personality-wise?
shiv - oh good for you on the weight loss! that's fabulous. am quite envious, heh. am stuck at 10st (ish, give or take a lb either side). no change since before the wedding! it's a bit of a pain because I gave up chocolate on June 1st, so 6 weeks ago now, not one chocolate bar has passed my lips! but I have been eating ice cream. not every day, though. and crisps, but also not every day. when I lost a stone before the wedding I pretty much gave up carbs, so am thinking I need to do that. grrrrr! really wanted to be prepreg weight by AE's birthday, so 1 month... a lot can be achieved in 1 month though
1/2 stone and I'll be happy. I sort of feel that my body has changed since having AE anyway, I am sure I am more muscular. I can fit into trousers I wore when I was 10lb less anyway.
ok, that's my mammoth post done. will try not to leave it so long next time...
I'm fine with it because I still BF and I assume teeth aren't all that fun with BFing. 
- but you know what I reackon life swings in roundabouts and that poor little thing is getting all her life's hardships out of the way and she will go on to be famous or have a hugely successful career or marry a lovely, gorgeous millionaire - I'm telling you she is gonna have some great times ahead for her for all this hardship that she is coping so well with.
