Sensitive kids group

[OmarsMum]

Tacey- glad Alice is having a good time in drama. Omar is doing hiphop loool, not his thing as he still stands & observes rather than joining in.

Polaris- hope things are getting better now, I only have one so I have no advise Hun, but Omar is the same when it comes to clinginess especially when he's tired. He literally jumps on me when I'm sitting, he asks me to carry him a lot, & he's so whiney. But some days he's an angel, very cheerful & plays on his own

Daisybee- can't imagine what you're going through, on going change of routine is a killer. Hope Jordan is better with teething

We were so busy the past few days, we had an exhibition & we attended 3 days in a row, Omar stayed with my mum, he was fine but she couldn't get him to sleep at night, so his bedtime shifted to 1 am again! He started to take naps again which wasn't helping, he's on 2 meds for his rash & one of then is sedative & he has to take it twice. On Friday & Saturday out meeting with our Turkish clients were casual so I took Omar with us, but we stayed out till 12 am both days. It was so exhausting,

Today we had to go to my parents place for lunch, then I had to take Omar to a follow up apt at the dermatologist, his hands are getting better but they're still itchy. He fell asleep at 9.30 pm as he was soo tired bless him. We still have another follow up at on Wednesday.

Our trip to Thailand was ok, it was exhausting, Omar suffered because of the heat, he used to sleep for 2-3 hrs in his buggy he was whiney but he had a nice experience, we had elephant ride, we went to a fantasy show with tigers, elephants & monkeys, we went to a floating market, we did loads of activities,

His fav time was at the resort in Phuket, we were staying in coconut island in a private villa with private pool by the beach, we stayed there for 5 days. We spent a nice relaxing time there, transportation was by boats, there are no cars in the island, it was a new experience,

He wanted to go back home each & every day! He missed his toys, his friends, his classes, everything!

Flights weren't fun, they were 6 hrs, & 1.5 hrs to Phuket, Omar got really bored, he slept in the long flights for 2 hrs, but he was so whiney after waking up.

Food was challenging as we don't eat meat other than fish abroad in non Muslim countries, Omar doesn't eat fish, their yoghurts are not tasty, he refused to eat them, in the island I had rice, tomato paste, tinned beans & peas. The villa was fully equipt so I was able to cook for him a stew with rice, in bankok he lived on cereals & pizza.

It was a nice experience in general but very exhausting with a toddler. Next time when we plan to travel abroad we're going to choose a place with minimal traveling & shorter flights.

May was an exhausting month, I really want to stay at home those days, I don't have any energy.

 

[Cleo]

DaisyBee- Megan's fear of buses/moving cars sounds really hard. Is there any way you can do a few trial runs just to get her used the idea? And maybe just a little at a time, like the first time you just go and watch the bus drive by from a distance, the second time you go to the stop but don't get on, etc etc, taking it as slow as you can. Easier said than done, I'm sure.

Al the travelling must be taking its toll, but it's definitely for a good reason. I'm so sorry to hear that your dad is unwell. The gardening bit sounds a bit insane though!

Glad Megan's got a little friend that she really likes! It makes it so much easier when they've got someone they get along with.

Polaris- I am soooo not looking forward to dropping the naps entirely. It sounds so frustrating!

Tacey- so glad Alice is making friends at drama class, although 3 hours does sound like a bit much! Good thing it was only for half term. Have they put makeup on her again? I don't think F would have responded well to that at all. Whenever we see face painters at festivals and outdoor events, DH and I always laugh and say "there's no way!"

OmarsMum- I loooooove that Omar is doing hip hop! That is awesome! Sorry to hear he has a rash though--hope that clears up soon! Thailand sounds amazing, but exhausting. It really throws them off schedule and takes them out of their comfort zone hey? Hopefully you guys can stay home for a bit and recover from your vacation!

Nothing too new with us. We're transferring F to a big boy bed tonight (he's still in his crib!) and I'm just crossing my fingers that it goes smoothly. He's been adamantly against it for weeks, but in the past couple of days he's said that he wants it, so here's hoping! I've got it all pimped out with car and truck sheets, pillows and what not, so I'm hoping that will lure him in!

We're having a hard time wording things with F when he misbehaves. I feel really stuck because we are as gentle as possible, but he still bursts into tears, which then requires me to cuddle him, but I'm not sure if that's defeating the purpose of the lesson, iykwim? So for instance, this morning he was annoying L by getting right up in her face and shouting and I led him away from her and said "f, please don't scream like that in L's face. She really doesn't like it." I wasn't harsh, I was very even toned, but I think he could see that he may have done something that bothered her (?) and he started crying, saying "but I WANT to scream in her face!" Plus I feel bad, bc instead of comforting L, who isn't at all pleased that she was screamed at, I'm comforting him bc he so upset at what he's done, or what he's been told not to do, and he's sobbing uncontrollably in my arms. What an awesome start to the morning...

 

[DaisyBee]

Cleo - that's a good idea to transition slowly for the idea of the bus. Hadnt thought of that. We were talking about seeing if we could do some trial runs. Its a public bus, although we live in a pretty rural area so it's different than a city bus. And yet not a school bus. For the preschool time they have a bus that is only those kids which makes me feel better about it as it seems almost crazy that she will be getting on a bus by herself and the only adult on the bus is the driver.

My dad is feeling better! I'm so relieved. It's taken it's toll though, he is pretty exhausted. The trips are worth it and for a good reason. Its just hard to find the right balance. I feel guilty if we are going too much, and yet if we aren't there I feel guilty as well.

The garden is insane. Especially since my dad only has enough energy to watch from a lawn chair and give instructions as to how he wants it all done. I know he loves his garden which is why we are all trying to make it happen, I just don't understand why they couldnt have done one 1/4 the size this time.

We went on a picnic this weekend... And it was too much for Megan. She spent the morning anticipating it and being excited and by the time we got to the park she was ready to melt down. She ate 3 bites of food and then wanted to play. But once playing she was melting down and we had to go home. She was really upset we were going home, but she really Was so over the top we didn't feel we had a choice. Dh worries about those types of things happening at preschool. She can't handle surprises or anticipation of any kind. Well if we tell her in advance she can't handle the wait, but otherwise it's a surprise, right? Lol so things have to be planned exactly right.

Omarsmum - have you figured out what's caused the rash? Traveling with kids is so tough isn't it? Thialand sounds lovely and exhausting all at the same time. I hope you can relax some in June!

Any of your kids sensitive to chocolate( caffiene) or sugar? We have always limited megans intake of them but it's been obvious that she is hugely affected by them. Both turn her into a different child and both affect her sleep. We are finding as she gets older other people think they can give her more sugar and chocolate. When she was one it wasn't an issue, but at 3 1/2 everyone assumes she can have them. And then I'm the bad guy or I find out after she has eaten it.

Cleo - its hard to find the right balance with 2 kids sometimes isn't it? I worry that sometimes Megan gets more of my attention during those times as she is the squeaky wheel. I'm hoping that since I realize that, I can find the right balance.

 

[LaughOutLoud]

Hi guys, havent been on for a while and actually forgot where to find the group!
Dasiybee good to hear your dads feeling better.
OM- wow, your holiday sounds amazing, shame the flight was difficult.

I'll come back later and respond as I need to catch up on a lot. Take care all.

 

[LaughOutLoud]

Just saying hi and hope everyones doing well. Its been a while since anyone has posted.

 

[cutie4evr01]

Hi all, I hope you are well! I will try to take some time the next couple days catching up because I haven't been on BnB very much lately, but I wanted to just update briefly on how things are going here. Christina started preschool 2 weeks ago, she goes 3 full days/week. She is doing really well and seems to enjoy it. She was nervous the first day but went in without any tears, and luckily she was the first one there so she had a little one-on-one time with her teacher before the other kids arrived, which I think was really good for her. We get a little report daily about what she did that day, how she ate, slept, etc., and so far her reports have been great. Her teacher says she is "sweet, kind, polite", etc., and she has been the line leader 3 days out of the 6 she's been there (I've been told line leader is a reward for good behavior). I think she is very very shy and quiet while she is there. She mainly only speaks when directly spoken to, and is a pushover - when other kids take her toy or cut her off on the slide or something, she just hangs back and lets them. She does this at the park and on playdates also, so I expected it. The only person she stands up to is her sister. I am so very proud of her for going in each morning so bravely and adjusting so well - I think even 6 months ago she wouldn't have done so well.

She had a few months of really good behavior at home, but for the past few weeks she has been pushing boundaries a lot more. I wonder if we've hit that 3.5yr disequilibrium phase. We are being much firmer about some of the things we were letting slide before (dawdling, back-talk, etc.). I know these are just normal 3-yr-old behaviors, but previously we weren't so consistent about consequences because we didn't want her to get too upset. I wonder if we babied her too much, but I really think she couldn't have dealt with it before. When she was younger, if we punished her with time out or with a consequence, her "upset" over that would quickly spiral into a full-fledged meltdown that she didn't seem physically capable of coming down from for 30 minutes or more. Now she can have a small screaming fit over not getting her way for 5 minutes or so and then she can get over it and calm herself down without getting stuck in that major meltdown state. It makes it a lot easier for us to follow through with strict consequences, whereas before we were always concerned about getting her too upset.

She is still as perceptive and intuitive as ever. She has a million questions a day and her imaginative play is even more complex. She's had imaginary friends for over a year now, but now she makes up all sorts of complicated stories and scenarios about what her and her friends are doing. Today she told us that she was pretending she was 50 yrs old so that she could drive and she was driving Caitlyn to the park without Mommy and Daddy (totally random!). She's also learning a lot - she's understanding each letter has a sound and has really gotten the hang of what rhyming means, she can read a few sight words and now can do simple subtraction. We've been doing some simple science experiments (DH and I are both scientists), and she's loving that sort of thing. She is much braver at the park about going on equipment other kids are on, and when no kids are around she will climb/slide on anything, even the really high ones. Today at story time we saw a little girl she knows and she wanted to sit beside her (with me too of course) - she was so happy to see her friend there and actually initiated conversation with her a couple times. I feel like she's really starting to bloom.

Caitlyn continues to show us that she is NOT a sensitive kid - she is so different from Christina. She is super advanced verbally (she talks complete sentences, like 7+ words sometimes, using pronouns, possessives, etc., counts to 30, recites the alphabet, has memorized some of her favorite books - she is amazing!), but aside from that I feel like she is the epitome of a "normal" kid. She is a little shy around strangers but quickly warms up, she has no problem playing with (or at least around) other kids, she is happy to go off on her own without DH and I, her "issues" are more common things like snatching or hitting (which we never dealt with before since Christina never interacted with other kids), she understands time out and it's effective for her - she sits quietly on the stair for two minutes and then is happy to apologize and get on with her playing (whereas Christina still screams the whole time she's in time out).

Overall, Christina is doing really well these days. I have been feeling guilty a little bit lately about (my perceived) lack of attention Christina is getting these days. On my days off I like to take the girls out to fun places (soft play, library story time, etc.), but I feel bad because Christina wants me to follow her around and play with her or at least watch her, but I'm forced to trail Caitlyn the entire time or else she will literally run away out the door or get into something she shouldn't. Then since Christina follows me around she ends up just doing whatever Caitlyn wants to do rather than what she would really like to do herself. She hasn't said anything about it - it's all just in my head. I try to take Christina out for some one-on-one time to make up for it, but I'm looking forward to Caitlyn getting a little older so they can enjoy the same things. And I'm sure this is probably the normal division of attention that all parents of two or more deal with; I'm just not used to it because when Caitlyn was smaller she was so laid-back and has always been able to entertain herself for long periods, so Christina has pretty much gotten most of the attention her whole life while Caitlyn was happy to do her own thing.

Anyway, thanks for reading if you made it this far, and I will try to catch up on what everyone else is up to in the next few days.

 

[DaisyBee]

I wrote a reply and then got kicked out of my browser so lost it!

Cutie - thanks for the update! It's great to hear that preschool is going so well! And sounds like overall even though she is testing boundaries she is doing really well. It's also interesting hearing you talk about Caitlyn and how the girls are different. I'm realizing that with jordan as well. She was really fussy last weekend and it was deja vu for baby hood with Megan. Megan was never quite happy , and seems like Jordan is just so happy a lot of the time. Jordan isn't intense at all, where Megan is. I do see her getting overstimulated sometimes but it's so much more manageable.

I'm wanting to see if we can get this group active again. I miss it!

 

[OmarsMum]

Hi all

I have a lot to talk about but I'm too busy to update.

Miss you all, I will try to update & read posts in the evening when I'm back home

 

[DaisyBee]

:wave: I've been busy too... I think maybe summer as well maybe we are all busier?

We had megans school screening which is mandatory for kids here before starting kindergarden, but they want them to do the screening at 3 so if they need some intervention then there is time. Megan refused to let them do the hearing test. Lol I'm not surprised, she was so upset! She did fine in everything else though. But she came home saying she didn't like that school. That evening in bed she cried and cried and couldn't be consoled. She said there were too many teachers ( they had each part of the screening done by a different teacher in many different rooms so it was tons of transitions. None of the teachers even introduced themselves or gave her a chance to warm up.) she also didn't like the hearing test. She was saying she doesn't want to go to school anymore, etc. She finally accepted that it wasn't school, it was only a screening. She says " I don't want to go to screening anymore!" lol her preschool teacher was subbing for the class we are taking her to this summer the other day, so it was 1 1/2 hrs with both her teacher and the teachers aid for her room this whole next year. I made sure we were there as knew that would be a huge advantage for Megan meeting her teacher. Before we got out of the car she said she was nervous. I asked about what... And she said, about meeting her teacher. We talked about it and she then seemed ok, and once in the room was fine. She is much different than the teacher Megan has had for most everything the past year who Megan adores so it will be am interesting transition I think for her.

Weve all been sick and keep getting better, then sick again. Jordan has been miserable somedays wouldn't even play. She also got her 2 bottom molars at the same time. She had a fever, red throat, lethargy... She refused all food and most milk for many days. I didn't get anything else done but hold her. Poor girl.

We had a girl come babysit the day I took Megan to her screening. We had her come once when I was home to play with the girls and she seemed great. But came home from the screening and found she hadnt listened to any of my instructions which we had gone over many times and I also wrote them down. No white noise on. So the moment Megan and I walked in at 1 pm Jordan woke for the afternoon. which ok, so no white noise, but she is in the cold basement and wears a sleep sack anytime she is sleeping as it is colder down there with ac running. No sleep sack on her. Her door wasn't shut. Then I see her blankie was sitting on the floor upstairs, not in her crib with her. Then see the diaper and wipes I set out on the couch for her - she hadn't changed her before putting her down for nap. That night dh came upstairs after putting Jordan down for bed and said look what I found, it was her bottle from nap in her crib. We don't give her a bottle in her crib. We hold her in the rocking chair with it, and then when she is done lay her in her crib without the bottle... She is awake when we put her in. It's not that hard! So I had already had arranged she would come play with the girls a few days later so I could get some things organized in the basement. Im trying to have a garage sale... Anyway.. Thought ok I'll be home, she is just going to be playing. But then realiZed she let megan just get totally would up and didn't try to even direct the kids at all. So now ive been looking for older babysitters - college girls that will still be around the area year round. Going to be doing interviews this coming week.

Megans preschool teacher asked if she is somewhat of a perfectionist. Haha - it's the one thing on that sensitive kid checklist I said I was unsure about. So maybe I'm just in denial about it, if her teacher could see it within 5 minutes.


Oh and I've decided I'm not ready for daycare yet. It's a huge decision as I basically had already people anticipating me opening soon. But with my dad and Megan starting preschool I don't think it's the right timing. Megan is feeling so much better about school when I tell her I will be driving her. One of my friends said she would drive her on Tuesday's and that made me feel horrible inside. That I've done all this time of sahm and am not even going to be driving megan to her first school experience. Selfish maybe.. But I'm finally getting to the point of enjoying my role more vs just so hard work, and I want to be there. I don't know how Megan would handle a big thing like preschool and coming home for down time only to find other kids are here for the whole rest of the day til dinnertime. We've all been sick for weeks, and haven't seen my dad in 6 weeks between dh's work and us being sick every weekend the past month. I have a cold right now and normal things I would go to, but dads immune system is so bad right now. He caught a virus last month and it was horrible for him. He is getting worse. Even without seeing him I can tell on the phone. I need to be spending as much time there as possible I think.

 

[Tacey]

Busy days here too, but I'd like to get the group active again - I've realised how useful it is having people who understand and have experienced similar things.

Christina seems to be coming on in leaps and bounds Cutie! I've yet to see how much Arthur will differ from Alice, but he's already very different. Managing the needs of two is definitely tricky, but as you say, hopefully as Caitlyn grows in independence, you will be able to do more with Christina.

Daisybee, obviously I don't know your whole situation, but I think postponing daycare sounds like a really good thing. You're under a lot of pressure already, and taking a bit longer to get going is probably going to benefit you all in the long run. Sorry to hear your dad has been worse lately. Hopefully Megan will get on well with her new teacher. Does she start in September like UK schools do?

Alice seems so much more grown up these days. She still has meltdowns, but they're much shorter, often only a minute or so rather than the hour we were often getting a few months ago. She's smiling at people if they talk to her and occasionally replying. I'm a bit cross, because she's started calling herself shy. It's a word I'd been careful to avoid, but the childminder has said it a few times, and Alice has latched on to the idea. At times, she uses it as some sort of get out clause when I suggest doing something ("I can't - I'm shy.").

She's remained interested in the idea of friends, but it's not going too well. She's socialising with more girls who are slightly older now (4) mainly due to dance class. She's been trying to make friends by holding hands, talking to them or out right asking if they'll be her friend. So far, they've not responded well. Pulling hands away from her to go and hold another girl's hand, and saying they don't want to be friends. This doesn't appear to worry her at the moment, but it makes me sad. She's not a girly girl, and this lot are all very pink and Disney Princess orientated. Two of them laughed and told her she was wearing a boy's coat when she put on her blue raincoat. It didn't worry her at all. This surprises me a bit, as she's so sensitive to many things, but apparently not social cues. Long may it continue.

She performed at a dance award ceremony last weekend. Well, that sounds a bit grand - she pranced about and smiled, and got a medal. She was so delighted. It was in front of about 40 adults. She clearly loved joining in - I couldn't have imagined that not long ago!

Wow, this is getting long! Sorry! Just one more thing. We're getting a lot of attitude all of a sudden. "AWWW mum!" and "Bor - ing" seem to be favourite phrases (no idea where from!). It all feels a bit fake, as if she's trying on a persona. Anyone had anything similar? I'm mainly ignoring at the moment in the hope she'll give it up soon.

I think I need to look at the checklist again. Things have altered so much, she might as well be a different child!

Edit: Checked them all except hard to get to sleep after an exciting day. She's always out like a light bang on 6pm!

 

[Jchihuahua]

Hi ladies, I'm still reading and love to hear how your LOs are getting on but I've not had as much time for the forum lately as this is my busiest time at work! and I'm tired lot at the moment with being very busy at work and also pregnant!

Will update as soon as I get the time.

 

[DaisyBee]

I think it's easier to write a book when we haven't been writing for a while! I have tons I could say!

The dancing sounds like a wonderful thing for Alice! Hopefully it's something that she can continue with? Megan has been talking more about dancing and tutus lately and we've wondered if its something we should pursue.

I think it's so interesting to see how our kids change over time. Things that seemed like a big deal 6 months ago no longer are an issue. And new issues like friends and school are here way too soon! I mentioned to dh about cutting megans hair as she is SOOOO sensitive about it. I can't get it combed as much as id like as she just cries and cries. I said it's just hair, maybe we should cut it shorter. Dh said - we just need to be careful with her starting school. We don't want her to look too different from all the other girls. Isnt that sad thats even a thought? Similar to the blue raincoat. Megans raincoat was actually a boys raincoat this year as I liked it better than the girls one. Its navy with dogs on it.

Polaris - how is claras sleep these days? Any better?

Jc - are you finding out sex of baby or is it going to be a surprise? I remember how exhausting pregnancy was with Megan to run after. can't imagine how tired you are!

 

[cutie4evr01]

Yay! I'm so happy to see this group coming to life again - I have missed you all! I certainly understand how difficult it is to find the time to get on here and update.

Daisybee, sounds likes postponing daycare will be the best thing for you all. I think letting her transition to preschool before dealing with the transition of having a daycare at home is a great idea. And if you can afford it, you should definitely enjoy this years while you can as we'll never be able to get them back. That is so frustrating about the babysitter too. We haven't found one that I really like either. We've used a couple of high school girls if they are only watching Christina or if they are coming after the girls have gone to bed, but I've yet to leave Caitlyn with anyone except for my (adult) neighbors, and even that was many many months ago. I'm nervous to leave her with anyone now that she is older because she's a handful. But on the other hand we miss out on things due to not having childcare, so I'm looking forward to leaving her with a sitter occasionally once she is a little older and not so reckless. We have a wedding on Aug 3 we would like to attend and probably will take Christina with us, but there's no way Caitlyn would sit still and quiet for that long so we'll probably have to leave her with a sitter for that, but I would prefer an adult. I wish we had some family nearby! Good luck in finding someone you like/trust. We cut Christina's hair to just below her shoulders - it's much easier to comb through. She had been asking for a haircut for ages though so she was happy for us to do so and loves showing people her haircut. She has a friend who is 4 with the cutest little bob haircut.

Tacey, Christina is seeming a lot more grown up as well. She has always seemed quite mature in some ways, but lately we notice she really does seem much older than her peers. She too calls herself "shy" even though we have avoided it, but she doesn't use it as an excuse. I'm sad to hear how some of those children are treating Alice. I'm sure they don't mean any harm, but really how do 4-yr-olds already know how to reject and make fun of other kids? They must be learning that at home or from older peers. I'm glad she's not bothered by it yet, but those are precisely the sorts of things I worry about when thinking of Christina going to school. Even when she does understand they are being cruel, I think she will just take it from them but I think it will hurt her deeply because she is so sensitive and such a people-pleaser. The dance recital sounds so adorable! We've been wanting to get Christina in a dance class again, but she doesn't want to go unless I'm in class with her, since that's how the 2-yr-old class was arranged. We've signed her up for swimming lessons which begin next week (DH in water with her) and for soccer lessons which begin in August, both of which she's very excited about.

We don't have much attitude around here, but we have had a bit of backtalk, i.e. I ask her to do something and she says "No" outright, and also lots of demanding, such as "I need milk!" or "give me your keys!" very emphatically and sometimes repeatedly if we don't jump up right away. We have been telling her she needs to ask nicely to get what she wants and that generally works. For too much backtalk we give her a warning and then a timeout if needed. I know that probably doesn't help too much, but I think your approach of just ignoring the attitude is the best way to go.

 

[OmarsMum]

HI ladies, it's nice to read about the progress of our kids here, we've been busy lately.

Omar is much better socially. A friend visited with her 2 daughters (6 & 3) yesterday, the last time they visited (6 months back I guess), Omar was really overwhelmed & he asked them to leave, he refused to share toys, & he wanted to spend all day in the bedroom.

This time he was totally different, he was so excited, he shared toys, they played together, but everytime they left his play room to the living room, he went on cleaning up & putting his toys back in their places

Last week I had a major clean up for the house, I moved all Omar's toys to his playroom, he went crazy, he threw a huge tantrum & it took him around an hour to calm down. He didn't want all the toys on the shelves in his room, he acted the same when I was rearranging the clothes in the wardrobes & changing their places.

He goes to my bathroom to rearrange my creams & makeup, he cant see anything not in its place.

We went to a resort last week, he cried nonstop when they changed the bedsheets next morning, he wanted "his" bedsheets.

2 weeks back we also went to a resort, he refused to swim & he started screaming saying that he cant swim! he can swim, he loves water but he wasn't in the mood. last week he was fine, but it was the resort we always go to, so I guess he didn't like the new resort?

We're still going back & forth to dermatologists regarding his allergy, he had blood tests. it was on Sunday, I was so proud of him, he didn't cry, he asked the nurse if it's going to hurt & if they're going to take out lots of "ketchup" (blood) out of him. the tests came out clear, nothing wrong, it's an allergic reaction to something but they still cant figure out what

His sleep is much better those days, we had 13 hrs of sleep with 1 wakeup only 2 days back!

He's also too close my nephew those days, they're best friends. My nephew is very smart, he's 2.5 yrs now, he's learning a lot from Omar.

He's also doing great in classes, & he's joining in at the hiphop class (never thought omar would enjoy a dance class)

I have a big issue with his attitude those days, he's very bossy & controlling, he orders me around. he asks me to play Candy crush on the iphone, if I don't win he says "you don't know how to play, you lost!, you should win & get more stars", then he snatches the mobile in a n aggressive way to show me "how to play"

If I don't do something the way he wants, he shouts at me! I ask him firmly to talk nicely, he gets irritated then he starts to cry while cuddling me.

He's more emotional than before, he tries to hold his tears in & he starts to talk nonsense when he's hurt, but he ends up crying.

I will comment on posts later, I cant concentrate, its 12 am, & I'm dead tired

 

[Tacey]

JC - hope you're doing well (despite the tiredness) - not too long until Summer now!

Cutie - Swimming and soccer sound great! Is Christina happy in water? I took Alice to the swimming pool for the first time in months, and was pleasantly surprised by how she coped. As for dance class, it is sad that some of the other children are behaving in such a cliquey way. I didn't expect she'd have to navigate social issues like that so soon

Thought you'd like to see a picture from the awards show. I've got videos too, but there's some of the other girls on there, so I'd better not post. So proud

https://i783.photobucket.com/albums/yy111/laylatacey/Dance%20performance/fb_zps53772587.jpg

 

[polaris]

Hi everyone!
Yay I'm so happy to see this thread coming back to life again. I haven't been on B&B very much (apart from one sleep thread in Baby Club with my fellow non-sleeping baby mums!) and I am too tired to post properly right now but I will definitely come back and comment properly tomorrow.

Clara's sleep is really still very bad. She wakes up a lot throughout the evening and night. We did CC with her a couple of months ago and it was very traumatic to be honest, and unfortunately not very successful, she cried A LOT and although her sleep did improve, it only lasted for maybe a week or two before she reverted back to her old ways. I've actually gone back to full-time co-sleeping which has definitely saved my sanity. However she is currently teething badly and really suffering with it. Much of my energy has really been in trying to get her sleeping properly and just generally trying to function on not much sleep.

Thomas is doing so well in many ways. He is making great progress socially and he's really looking forward to starting preschool in September. We are having quite a lot of tantrums and defiance at the moment though and it definitely does feel like a phase of disequilibrium. It's interesting that some of you are also struggling with general "attitude" at the moment. I will post more on this tomorrow. Tacey - I was very sad to read about Alice's attempts to make friends and the mean responses of some of the other girls. This is a big fear of mine with Thomas as I do feel that he would take it to heart and just go inside himself.

My other big news is that I have just had formal confirmation of my application for an extra six months of unpaid leave. I will now be off work until the middle of January. I am so relieved and happy about this. I would have been due back in the middle of July and I was really struggling to see how it would work out as Clara is really very attached to me and very dependent on nursing for sleep/comfort/etc. I'm so happy I don't have to worry about that for the moment!

I will post more tomorrow!

 

[Cleo]

Hi girls! I promise I will get on here soon and catch up on everyone but life is a bit chaotic at the moment. We're in calgary where the floods have hit and even though we weren't directly affected, we've been trying to get food and clothing donations together to help those who were. Plus, DH has been home all week (as he can't go downtown to work bc of the destruction) and he's driving me bonkers!!!

 

[DaisyBee]

Megan has always seemed very mature as well. Her class this summer is for kids 2-kindergarden. Multiple people have asked me or her if she is 4 and they are shocked she is 3.

We've actually started talking about stopping regular timeouts with her. They don't seem to help at all. They just seem to make things escalate even more. She has been good with sleep more often. Last night she woke at 3:30 and couldn't fall back asleep. But the nights before that she has been going to sleep decently and sleeping through.

We have 3 interviews set up for sitters... Ages 19, 20, 21. Im hoping 1 of them is mature enough to be the responsible person we need. Megan is excited about one of them coming tomorrow. She was asking if she is older that coral which is a name of a girl we had come for an interview but I haven't called back. She didn't even smile at the kids and barely talked to them during the time she was supposed to be playing with them for an hour of me paying her while I stayed home. Just so the girls could get to know her and I could see how she was with them. She was telling me I should go to the mall tomorrow or to a wedding and then ill come home and we can eat lunch and have a nap and Cindy can go home.

OM- I can't believe Omar still has these allergy issues going on, those kind of came out of nowhere, didn't they?! Megan has a hard time with change as well. Its worse if she watches me move things around.

 

[Quartz]

Hello

Glad to see activity on the thread. Not had a chance to digest all of the updates completely but everyone seems to be doing great!

As for us for the most part Samy is doing really well. We seem to have cracked the social stage (Tacey I remember the hand holding phase as trying to make friends we had some success but at other times she would be ignored) and she has now made friends and get invited on playdates. She seems to be as social as any of her preschool friends (although to be far they are quite a sensitive bunch).

We have finally cracked cosleeping and she is in her own bed with a good bedtime routine and is excited for starting big school in September. In many ways she is grown up now and we are looking at a time in the not so distant future where playdates and parties will be without me which is a huge step and having seem the other children she is as set for starting reception as any of them (which considering the trauma getting her settled into school was is a miracle).

The only thing we have at the moment is a fear of enclosed spaces and locked doors. It seems to be an accumulation of many things but started at her swimming class when school children started to come along and take over the changing room she used to use with all her fellow classmates. They are very noisy and for now we have to get changed outside as she wont be in a changing room with the door locked. She is also refusing to use the downstairs toilet which is in a side extension since she went out there to wash her hands and i did not realise and closed what was the old back door on her. Knowing her I am just taking baby steps with it to get her over it!

 

[Jchihuahua]

I love this photos of Alice at dance. It sounds like she's making great progress. I also felt sad reading about the cliquey girls not making frinds with her when she's trying so hard.

I posted in toddlers a few weeks ago about two of Daisy's friends at pre-school, who are actually a year older than her, being unkind to her, leaving her out, running away from her, pushing her, telling her they don't like her and she's just a baby. She has known one of the girls since her toddler group and would always say she loves this girl and call her toys after her then this happened out of the blue and it has had a HUGE impact on her. She hasn't wanted to go to pre-school since and every morning the first thing she says is that she wants to stay at home. It has affected her behaviour, her eating, her sleeping and she has been so, so unhappy. She hasn't been made to feel like that ever before in her life and she really didn't understand why it was happening and because she is sensitive it has knocked her for six. It is one of the hardest things we've had to deal with with her as it is awful seeing her unhappy.

In other news we are expecting another baby boy!