Emski

Thanks SB - glad there's been a dramatic improvement for you. Baby Emski seems tired - yawns, rubs eyes, gets ratty - after the 2hr and 3hr active periods. I shall try leaving her longer, but was worried about her getting over-tired, and therefore even more tricky to get down! Gah indeed... She does eventually go to sleep if I leave her, but we never used to have to go through this...

Can anyone offer me any advice, or tell me how long these highly frustrating habits might last? Baby Emski is 10 months and causing me much trauma by: 1) Generally refusing to sleep more than half hour at nap time. 2) Being increasingly difficult to put down at nap time, crawling around cot and pulling herself up on the sides. 3) Bashing the spoon out of my hand at mealtimes. 4) Eating bits of dust or any tiny thing she finds on the floor. She sleeps really well at night, and isn't a fussy eater. I give her finger foods as well, and am just not sure whether, when the bashing starts, she's eaten enough or wants something different, or what? The naps will occasionally last an hour, but not often enough. I read Snowboarder's thread a while ago, and am following the 2hrs, then 3hrs between naps pattern, which generally seems to be when she starts getting tired. I know she can sleep longer, but she hardly ever does! And she won't go back to sleep once she wakes as she's sitting up in her cot, playing, by the time I get there. Grr! Thanks in advance for any suggestions, or promises that these are short-lived phases!

We've just started using a Little Life rucksack-style carrier with our 10-month-old. She seems to really enjoy it; also liked being in a papoose. I haven't worn it, but hubbie says it's incredibly comfy and much lighter than it looks. Not sure how expensive though - we were given it. You don't say how old your baby is? Needs to be good at sitting up. Would highly recommend this though!

My teacher husband's schoolbag was stolen from our car (parked near the library on Woodwarde/Eynella Rd junction) last night. There was nothing valuable in it, so it's probably been dumped somewhere nearby. Some contents have been returned (thank you the kind people who found them in their front garden this morning!), but if you happen to find any schoolteachery items where they shouldn't be, we'd very much appreciate a PM. Thanks

I'm afraid I agree with the theory that prettying up the pavements on certain roads is a waste of time and money. But my main query is why no pedestrian crossing was put by the entrance to Dulwich Park on Court Lane (bottom of Eynella Road) when it was done up a couple of months ago? With the huge number of children crossing here I'd have thought it was pretty much a requirement. Those extra cobbled ramps certainly don't do the job. Incidentally, I don't think Mr Barber deserves some of the aggression he receives on this forum. Give the guy a break.

Also a vote of full confidence for the Brierly. My midwife was lovely, and am still in touch with her 8 months on. She wasn't on call when I went into labour, but I'd already met the midwife who did attend a few times, and was equally happy with her. It was a really busy night so they weren't able to have a second midwife attending, but as it happened I ended up having to transfer to Kings anyway due to failure to progress. Having been up with me since the previous evening, my Brierly midwife waited til I'd been assessed, was happy with the plan of attack (!) and had had the epidural before handing me over to the Kings midwife. I think she knew the hospital midwife and knew I'd be OK with her, which I was. I guess some women might prefer more continuity of care, but since I'd been having contractions for 3 days it probably wasn't reasonable to have the same midwife with me the whole time! I'd really wanted a home birth mainly due to fears of the hospital being horrible and feeling I wasn't in control of the experience, but it was all much better than I'd expected. Do get on the waiting list asap though - you can change your mind about where you want to have the baby pretty much up to the moment you're ready to push...

I complained about one of the docs at DMC and got a call back a couple of weeks later. It was over Xmas, so wasn't too put out by the delay. I'm not sure whether they would be the right organisation to complain to about Seldoc tho. Pretty bl**dy serious complaint, however!

I would firmly advocate that positive thinking and training yourself not to be scared of birth/contractions does help. I did a short course on hypnobirthing with a lovely local practitioner, Natalie at yoursmaternally.co.uk, and coped well with several days of contractions. Sounds a horror story, but they genuinely didn't hurt while I was in the right mindset. Unfortunately I had my heart set on a home birth, so when I had to go into hosp due to failure to progress, I lost my focus completely, and then it bl**dy hurt!! I tried reading the Marie Mongan book but was far too airy fairy for my taste, and made a lot of claims I simply couldn't believe. I found the term 'hypnobirthing' very misleading, as in my case (and as several above say) it had nothing to do with what I would think of as hypnosis. Would highly recommend Natalie. Maybe you could give her a bell to see if she thinks you have enough time to fit in sufficient sessions? Good luck!

Hope it went / is going as well as possible! Congratulations on gettin' wed, and hopefully on your beautiful baby girl by now too. Emma and Dan

I tried RLT, sex, curry, pineapple, long walks etc etc. At 9 days overdue I booked acupuncture at the place above Health Matters with Daniel. Contractions started that evening! Perhaps coincidence but has some backing from studies. I'd certainly recommend it if you're desperate. He offered a freebie session the following day if nothing happened - wasn't needed though! Good luck

Sounds like you've pretty much decided on a time, but just in case I can change anyone's mind, I'd like to vote for an afternoon session (don't mind which day, but pref not Thurs if poss). It seems like all the playgroup, sing sessions and so on are in the morning and there's not much to do in the afternoons (apart from 1 o'clock club). If I'm wrong, please let me know!

NHS Direct (being helpful for once) suggested taking our 6-month-old into a steamy shower room to help loosen mucous. Cough mixture not advised by them, or by my GP bro-in-law. I'm not sure there's a huge amount you can do, unfortunately. Baby Emski's lasted a couple of weeks - doesn't sound like the same thing though.

Afraid (for all those who have spent a fortune on different bottles) that I agree. With MiniEmski she stopped taking the occasional bottle we'd been giving her from 8 weeks at around 3 months. Apparently it's quite common at this age and perhaps due to them getting more strength in their tongue (!), so able to push the teat out. It took a month (on and off) of battling to get her to take it again, which was quite traumatic (we kept at it for an hour each time, trying to comfort her between screams) - mainly for my husband, since we'd also read that it's more likely they'll take one from someone who's not mum. However, persistence paid off eventually, and she's now having a bottle before bed every night. We tried a couple of diff teats/bottles but I honestly don't think they made any difference. It was a complete battle of wills, and I know there are many who would find it impossible to keep trying in the face of such an upset baby.

I bought some LilyPadz and they don't seem to stick on at all. Tried washing and air-drying, as recommended, and still no joy. Quite annoyed as are expensive. I have quite small boobs - don't know if this could be the problem?! Washable ones are great once nipples have 'settled down'. I don't rate the Natracare disposable pads at all: they seemed to stick to nipples, which would be agony if they're bleeding/cracked.

As everyone seems to agree - you can't tell! A midwife put the fear of God into me by saying my bump was too small and sending me for an extra scan at 38 weeks. I was convinced something was horribly wrong... As it turned out, baby measured perfectly average and weighed a perfectly average 7lb5oz at birth. Incidentally, I was also informed by random people in shops, at the bus stop etc etc that I was definitely having a boy due to the shape of my bump. And that perfectly average baby? Is a beautiful girl...!

Moisturising frequently - at least twice a day - with something soothing and fragrance-free should make a difference. I have had eczema myself since a baby, and paranoid about my 5-month-old developing it. I use diprobase - seems good. Also, keep nails as short as possible to stop scratching. Most eczema is worst in winter - the cold weather, dry atmosphere from central heating, and dramatic changes in temperature as you enter/leave a warm house seem to contribute. Mine improved a lot when I went to Oz for a few months over our winter. Not sure you can get that on the NHS though... Good luck!