Mid-August Testers

[NotNic]

Happy birthday twinny! 🎂 Hope you've had a wonderful day. Xxx Had a lovely day here in the sunshine. 24c / 75f - I'll take that for April! Almost tempted to get my summer clothes out, but I know that'll jinx things!

Bex really sorry to hear you got bad news. What's the plan now?

Hands - Finlay's behaviour has good and bad days. A mummy friend of mine reckons in really calm but I don't believe it. I feel like I'm losing the plot half the time. The not listening is really tough.

Things are fairly well here. I'm getting excited for the summer and I'm busy helping my sister with wedding stuff. She gets married in -3months and is so disorganised! We also went back to the pediatrician and Finlay has grown but is still at the very bottom of the height range they forecast for him. We go back in 6 mths to see if we are being referred to the growth specialists. He also thinks he might have a dietary issue causing the bloating. We have swapped him to lactose free milk for drinking and cereal and so far it seems to be working.

How's everyone else ?

 

[NewbieLisette]

Hey ladies :wave:

I feel terrible, just cant catch up these days! I miss my pg days with Melina when all I had to do was think about and plan for her, and chat with my bnb buddies I am now 23weeks and barely keeping track! LOL melina is VERY spirited as well and keeps mama on her toes! I am on a reduced work schedule since before the holidays so that helps a bit now cuz I am sooooo tired its not even funny! Like could fall asleep mid day at work if i simply blink too long

We are into potty training here and noticing since we announced the pg she has been regressing a little so trying to tread lightly and work with her educator at daycare so its not a traumatic thing for her....yesterday we went to the store to buy underwear! Stay tuned lol

Lets see if I can remember some of the last 10-20 pages i read through! WOW I have missed A LOT!

Snow congrats on your little girl! WOW thats soo awesome having one of each and so close together How are they getting along?

Hands my heart is with you, discipline and staying calm is very hard some days I'm sure! Hang in there, you sound like you are doing everything RIGHT so pat yourself on the back!

Bex sending good vibes hunni

Nic you have a second beautiful boy as well? WOW congrats hun! Sorry to hear about the dietary concerns and weight issues

Bea :wave: i hope things are going well for you too darling!

I promise to keep up at least the next few months before the new little guy comes and rocks our world! LOL scares me some days to think how will i ever keep sane with 2 but im sure it will all feel normal and fall into place once he is here...right? LOL xoxo

 

[Srbjbex]

Hello everyone - I've been a bit quiet recently, been very busy at work plus we went away to Germany to see my brother for a long weekend which was lovely. It's sooo much easier now travelling with Elliot on a plane now that he has his own seat. Annoying as it I to have to pay more, I much prefer him having his own seat rather than having him sat on my knee the entire time!

Not too much to report on the TTC front. Got our ICSI chat booked in for 13 May so just waiting for that really and haven't heard anything from the consultant in respect of my lap but I gave him a chaser on that yesterday as I know he has been away on annual leave. I'm still not used to this private healthcare thing and need to remember that I am a paying customer and I am well within my rights to chase!!

Lisette - great to hear from you. Good luck with the potty training. I'm so glad we did it with Elliot, life is easier and he's good with it now. We are lucky and it didn't take us look and he doesn't wear nappies overnight now either. So have you got a named picked out for your boy yet? I remember with Melina I think you picked the name quite early. What names are you thinking of?

Nic - hope you're doing well and glad to hear that you had a lovely birthday How tall is Finlay? I often think Elliot is short, but I think he just has comparatively tall friends!

Hands - Are you starting to feel a bit better now about where you live now that the weather is improving? Spring is my favourite time of year (it's also when we got married so it reminds me of that too!)

Snow - any house updates? And did you hear from your friends that were going through the IVF about whether it worked or not? I always like to hear positive IVF stories!

 

[InHisHands]

Lisette - I miss the old bnb days too. Is there such a thing as true free time any more? Good luck with the potty training. Are you using just the regular toilet or a port a pot?

Bex - I can't believe Elliot is already potty trained. I just don't know where I went wrong with Dexter lol He has it in his mind he won't use the potty even though he know how.... but he is going to have to learn this summer. I keep waiting for him to be "ready" because I don't want to force it... but he just isn't coming around. How did you know Elliot was "ready"?

What part of Germany do you visit? I've heard they have the largest indoor water park there.... so envious.

Nic - Any plans for Finlay's 3rd birthday?

Snow - Is everything back on a regular schedule? Any progress with selling the house?

As for us - Now that spring has come my asthma is out of control. I hate Georgia even more, if that is even possible.... My hubby is out of school ....YAY ... which means he should be home more often. Dexter is doing well.... he is still mouthy... but he is learning what "listening ears" means finally which is making my life so much easier. He is dead set against potty training though and he has to be potty trained by September. I really hope he comes around soon. Any suggestions?

He knows how to potty. He knows how to push pee and farts. He knows how to wash hands, flush, and pull down and up his clothes. I know he knows when he is peeing but not sure if he knows before just yet. His main thing is that he doesn't want to use the potty. He doesn't want his diaper changed either. If he could... he would just drag a 10lb diaper around all day.

 

[snowflakes120]

Just a quick stop by to say I'm thinking of yall. The house went on the market yesterday. We had a showing today. I need to bury a St. Joseph soon!!

 

[Srbjbex]

Eeeek. My gynacologist emailed to say there is a cancellation so I'm in for my lap tomorrow! !!!

 

[InHisHands]

That's great news Bex! whoohoo! Keep us posted.

 

[Srbjbex]

Well, I had my laparoscopy, and the short version of the story is that it didn't go as planned Turns out that my C-section caused a lot more damage in there than either we or my ob/gyn envisaged. He was meant to have a good look around and then remove the adhesions. But when he got in there he saw that my uterus was pushed at a funny angle right into my bladder. He said it was "horrendous" in there, and if I do end up getting pg naturally (super unlikely as it is) then the risk of ectopic is high.

He managed to get rid of a few adhesions on the right hand side, but the left was completely inaccessible and he was unable to get in there at all with his scope, and its basically stuck to my bladder. So what was meant to be day surgery didn't quite turn out that way as they ended up having to put a catheter and a drain in. Stayed in for a night and ended up coming home yesterday evening.

Next steps - well before we can even think about ICSI, I will need more surgery. He has suggested an MRI followed by repeat surgery to try and fix what is in there. But the surgery might have to be open surgery which is obviously a lot longer recovery time. feels like it really is one step forward and two steps backwards at the moment.

I need positive news - have you sold your house yet Snow

 

[InHisHands]

well some positive news is that you have your perfectly healthy little boy, and you did so naturally. I know you would love to have more and I do support that, but the good news is that you have had at least one to love and to hold.... and that right there is a blessing.

Keep your chin up, keep plugging away, and scoop up Elliot and just hold him on the sad days.

 

[Srbjbex]

Thanks Hands. It's onwards and upwards as they say...I'm not done yet!!

 

[InHisHands]

Well..... I guess we will be moving to the house I didn't want to live in after all at the end of the year.

We are having problems with the tenants... He kicked his wife out, but now can't afford the rent. *sighs*

Oh wells... what's one more move under my belt? We have to renovate some more before we can move in though.... oh the joys of picking out colors when we don't know what we are doing.. hahahaha

 

[NotNic]

Hi all. I'm here lurking. Things getting a little busy right now. My sister gets married in 8 weeks and is the least organised bride you've ever met. Much to the amusement of the other bridesmaids I gave her a huge kick up the backside telling off over whatsapp but it's meant I have ended up doing jobs for her. I've also had to sort a london hen do out at last minute after her bm who was organising it ended up flying out to LA for work. I'm doing her food and florist appointments with her tomorrow and got a whole list of to dos!

Finlay is having a 3rd Birthday party. I have booked a hall and an entertainer who is a musician and does a musical party a lot like our Bounce & Rhyme / Rhyme time sessions we have in the UK Bex. All Finlay wants is a dinosaur cake and his nursery buddies and he'll be happy. We are also doing a family BBQ on his birthday and plan to take him to the London Transport museum. We normally end up doijg a huge family and friend thing that isn't really about him (party games for the older children etc) so happy that oh agreed that we do something he loves.

We are having a little issue at nursery though. The preschool manager wants to hold him back until July (well August because we are at the wedding and on hols that month) when he is supposed to be going up when he turns 3. I'm going to find out tonight if he is behind or if its staffing. I've already kicked up a fuss and he will now start next month but I'm not happy. I've been concerned that his peers seem to be able t do more than he can. it may be that he isn't there yet to concentrate, or he actually isn't going to be academically minded which is fine but he still needs to be challenged. I did a writing game with him yesterday and was shocked that he can't do a tripod grip for the pencil. Have to admit with having Sebbie, I've really taken my eye off the ball. I I just thought nursery was making up for it. I know that not every child can do a tripod hold at his age, but if he can't hold a pencil properly he isnt going to be able to write letters, numbers or his name well. He can recognise f for Finlay and M for mummy etc. but that's it. In a year's time we'll be getting ready for him to be a school. Some children in his year will have two years of preschool behind them.

Hands whats the situation with hubby's job then? Are you going to a new base?

Bex - have you had a follow up appointment yet?

Hi Snow, Lisette and Bea! xxx

 

[NotNic]

Oh and forgot to say Bex we are slowly doing BLW. He still has the odd puree but I've been chopping Finlay's food for Sebbie and spoon feeding him. He hadn't got the hang of picking food up himself until I gave him beans on toast this week. I put soldiers on his tray turned back for the beans to find him shoving the toast in. He ate loads and got grumpy with me when I interfered! Hoping that it's clicking now and in a few weeks we can be almost fully blw, bar yogurts and porridge.

 

[InHisHands]

Hubby's job hasn't changed. We are just moving from the north side of town to the cruddy south side. That's all. It's a rather frustrating process.

 

[NotNic]

How come Hands?

 

[InHisHands]

It's frustrating because we are still stuck in our current lease, and we are dealing with a tenant who wants to get out of his.

We have to do renovations before we move in, but the tenant works nights so he wants to sleep during the day when Lowes wants to come in and make the changes to the home.

We have to move ourselves (the military moves us when we change bases), which is extra work and money that wasn't budget.

The school district on that side of town is completely a wreck which means we will have to pay for Dexter to continue his Private School 30 minutes away.... which means I will have to drive 2 hours each day just to take him to and from school.

The house doesn't have a garage or even a carport and we can't afford to put one in on top of the necessary renovations, so now our new cars are going to be out in the sun and bad crime neighborhood.

The house we own also is 700 sq ft less than what we live in now (about the size of 2.5 rooms), so we have to get rid of our formal dining room set and about half my son's toys. Which means I'm having to return things I bought for him for his birthday before I even give them to him.

I love the home we live in now despite the area and I hate to say goodbye....... but to top it all off.... the housing market is so bad in the area that our house is in... that even after doing renovations and living there for 2 more years.... we will still be UPSIDE down on our mortgage unless the housing market gets better.

It's just a LOSE LOSE LOSE LOSE situation, and I'm frustrated about it.... much less having to pick out colors and crap for a house that is nothing but a money pit.

 

[Srbjbex]

Hi all

Follow up appointment with Mr B was today and we left feeling super positive. He explained a bit more about the problem...so basically my uterus is bent over at my cervix so it's a bit like a triangle shape if that makes sense. Obviously this makes it tricky to get pg plus adhesions from my section and low sperm count to add into the mix! He is sending me for a hycosy and mri scan to get really good luck in there and work out the angles. While doing this he is going to do a mock embryo transfer. If in the mock ET he thinks it will work then he will let us go on with ICSI without further surgery. However if the angle is so severe he can't do it I will need further surgery to correct. But he is positive. ..and has done this many times before. So we left being positive too

Hands - that really does sound a rubbish situation. No wonder you're upset. I know you will lose money but could you not sell that house and just take the hit? Rather than spending the money on renovating a house you don't like?

Nic - that sounds a lovely party for F. Completely get what you mean about having a party for them now. I can see why you are cross wuth nursery. You need a proper explanation. ..and I'm not sure staffing is an appropriate explanation if that us the case. Childcare is expensive and it's their problem to solve not yours! If it's development then they should be sitting with you and explaining the plan! I'll be interested to see what they say!

Snow - what's new with you?

Oh and great work in the BLW. With yoghurts etc...just preload the spoon and leave them on his tray. Messy but he'll get it. And for breakfast try something like shreddies...easy to pick up.

 

[InHisHands]

Im staying positive for you too Bex!

As far as saving money.... that's not a good idea for 2 reasons. 1. People are foreclosing homes nearby and the buyers are buying them for 50,000 and then renovating them and flipping them for the amount ours is worth. So why would people buy our house un renovated when they can buy a renovated home for the same price?

2. We went to take measurements of our home. The renters have destroyed it. All flooring will have to be replaced along with doors ... as their cat has been spraying everywhere. There are holes in the doors as well and it looks like one took a crowbar to the master bathroom. We have no choice but to take his full deposit and eat the rest. It sucks.

 

[InHisHands]

Well girls, I do have good news. I went to a specialist yesterday to have a lung functioning test done to find out why I am having so much trouble breathing. This has been a process, so bare with me because I feel talkative right now....

The Specialist did confirm that I do have asthma... but more importantly he figured out what exactly was wrong, thus can prescribe a correct medication treatment plan... yay!

Basically I am exhaling normally, so normal standardized breathing tests show that i don't have asthma and that i have a normal breathing test. That is why no one has been willing to help me out after I did a breathing test back in February and they said I didn't have asthma. They all see that things are normal and thus I must be making it up or something.

But the specialist was able to identify an abnormality in my breathing pattern, that shows despite a normal breathing test, that i do in fact have asthma. Basically I flat line when I inhale... meaning I am taking more air out than I can bring in when my lungs are under stress.

After taking albuterol, my lung function became 21 percent better... yay! Only a 12 percent increase is needed for an asthma diagnoses. I'm so super happy that someone listened to me and actually helped me out!

Basically the plan now is to put me on steroids to help repair the damage to my lungs over the next 3 months... then to go back and see if my lungs can function without it.

 

[Srbjbex]

Oh that's excellent news Hands! Great to hear you sounding positive and great that you have got some good news. It's such a nvice feeling when you get a doctor who really feels like they have your best interests and are willing to offer real solutions! That's how I feel about the gynaecologist I am seeing.

No news here - just waiting for AF so I can book my hycosy. Hoping it arrives at some point this week!!