Belle

I'm not familiar with that name - does it have a generic name ? Side effects we've had from reflux drugs have been more errr nappy related shall we say! I'd guess it's just a cold but of course wouldn't take that as a medical opinion. I think for us omeprazole, which is the drug we settled on for my little boy, took a few weeks to kick in. Some people seem to see an overnight differencce, we didn't - though increasing the dose certainly helped , could be worth discussing that with your doctor if no change in another week or so?

ooh flatout bear sounds amazing! i always buy those bhb baskets for friends as we were sent two and they were the best present. For baby number 2 i bought myself 4 of the A&A swaddling cloths mentioned above (just regular ones though) and recently sent some to a friend and she raved about them, so think they make a good gift. Even if you don't end up swaddling they're great as light blankets/extra sheets/sheet protectors/pram shades when baby is sleeping...when browswing their website i notice they do a comforter which is basically a muslin with ribbon edge, which wd make a nice present too i think...

just finished reading steve biddulph's book about contented children, and he writes about the need for both soft and firm love. He does it in a mildly annoying/almost trying to trademark the terms way but the general principles are good, in my opinion...

ps don't understand why a child having a nap at any time is somehow bad parenting?!

I can vouch for her being a journalist - she worked on the Scotsman for years, before moving down here, and I've crossed paths with her professionaly and indirectly (she lived with a relative for a while) - as far as I know this is all genuine. But yes given the vehicle - the mail - it's written with a certain slant, as you'd expect.

my s on is same age and starting to do this a bit. i have tried to limit some of the stuff which is causing his imagination to run riot - he watches scooby doo for instance which I think is prob a bit scary for his age. This is prob really obvious but it's something I let creep in when I was pregnant and too tired to argue. I find gentle things like peppa pig good pre bed. one tip i read somehwere recently is not to do the 'look we're keeping the monsters out' etc routine - that in fact this perpetuates the myth that there are monsters. instead it's meant to be good to reinforce the idea that they are not real. So now we do a lot of 'they're just pretend though, they aren't real' and this seems to be helping. I went in the other night and he was scared one was behind the door so I took down the stuff hanging there but made a point of showing that they were just harmless things etc. Could you get him some new cuddly toys to have in bed with him? Havcing never been interested till now, since the arrival of his little brother who has his own set of cuddly toys, my 3 yo is really into them so that's helped too...I sympathise as we have had the 4 in a bed scenario and it wasn' tmuch fun for us!

yes please!

poor you, this sounds really tough - though as can see from littlemoo's post, not uncommon - and though my son was older when his little brother was born (32 months), I do remember a few unsettled nights at the start. He also was quite clingy and upset that I wasn't around so much - wnated me to do everything, which of course I couldn't. Think Fuschia makes a good point - maybe try to get some time with him during the day, though lord knows it's hard with a newborn around! say when the baby is sleeping? or do special things at the weekend just with him, nothing major but e.g. I took my son for a haircut just me and him...i found he settled down pretty quickly though he was older as I say. Also was thinking: i don't think my younger son gave us an 'evening' until he was about 7 weeks old, so when he wouldn't settle in the early days i just brought him back down - it does take them a while to get the hang of the whole 'sleep in the evening' thing after all. So maybe just bring baby back down so you can have a drink/bite to eat/time with husband? There's plenty time to instil a routine... x

it's brilliant, and much in the vein of that book of poetry 'go the f**k to sleep', love it. will play to my husband over dinner!

I still don't bath baby every night, and if I'm on my own I'm less likely to - though sometimes it's easier to dunk him in than not as it distracts him at that classic grizzly hour. i have a bouncy seat in the bathroom he sits in, and i set up the changemat just outside bathroom door with his bed clothes, clean nappy etc. 3 yr oldgoes in first, then baby, then dry baby and dress him quickly on mat, chatting to 3 yo so he doesn't get bored and attempt to climb out. Then baby goes back in bouncy chair while finish and dry toddler. Then all downstairs - milk and tv for 3 yr old, baby finishes feed that was hopefully started earlier during 3yo teatime, or if not then has full feed then. if i'm on my own the next bit depends how calm baby is...if i think i've a good chance of getting him down easily i nip up and do it whilst 3 year old engrossed in tv. more likely htough, have to go up with both, then my preference is to get toddler to 'help' me put baby to bed, then go and do stories - if baby cries i leave toddler to 'read' his books or choose next story whilst i calm him. This has a 50/50 success rate as sometimes 3 year old just really wants my attention, but he's often really good. And in truth i am v lucky in that husband is often back for bedtime, if not bathtime. my preferred tipple after is g&t :)-D i would say: go easy on yourself. skip one or both baths when it's been a tough day. if you know your husband is on his way home and you're knackered, hold on for a bit - late bedtime won't kill them. My view is to prioritise toddler as he 'knows' if he's being shortchanged, but obviously if baby is crying e.g. with wind, then you have to go to them. You will get into your own swing of things, don't worry!

i have had so many fights with them over repeat prescriptions - basically have a weekly mass stress out over my baby's meds because of the flaws in their system. We are hoping to move this year and I think I'll move practice if we do.

oh that's interesting...will PM you! catgirl - generally goes down for the night awake but sleepy (aided by the fact we do bottle, bath, bed rather than the usual order, because of the reflux I don't like to feed him right before going down). with night wakes it's different though - impossible to calm him by shush pat, always have to pick him up,and usually hold fairly upright for a while, and then when he does finally calm down he falls asleep, or if it's a feed can fall asleep after that, so prob does go back down sleeping in the middle of the night quite a bit. I think if I let it happen he would feed for comfort but at the moment the two night feeds are def hunger - takes loads, then annoyingly isn't that hungry come 7am. I would be quite happy with two, or even three wakes for food alone, it's all the other wake up calls I can't cope with! So loud too...not the 'fussing' people like the baby whisperer seem to talk about, proper screaming! Have considered wonder weeks too though it's an awfully long one if that's what it is...will also PM Nicola.

I know, I know that 4.5 mths is still really young. however my littler boy is a pretty extreme case. Currently wakes every 30-60 mins throughout hte night. Used to get evenings but has started waking every hr during those too. Am a zombie and we need help! When he wakes he's not always hungry - feeds on average twice a night - but is way more than 'unsettled' - is shrieking. He does have bad reflux but we're satisfied that this is now controlled by medication. Like most kids he has a perma cold at the moment and is also teething...but he has never slept well so am not sure it's something so transient as that. I will see the GP this week to rule out any ear problems but other than that am out of ideas. So, obviously not about to sleep train such a little one but am sure have seen talk of gentler methods on here e.g. someone has mentioned millpond sleep clinic? Or night nanny to come and tell us what we're doing wrong?!

hi there - i am feeling similarly frustrated, can't believe how hard it is to get an 'emergency' appt. I have heard forest hill rd practice is gd (in fact i was a patient there about 10 yrs ago when it was pretty good, don't know if it's changed much). given your forum name you might be quite close... the other thing is that it's sometimes worth calling dmc again in the afternoon as they do get cancellations...I've managed to get a few 5pmish appts that way.

yes I'm definitely finding without a downstairs loo we still need to have the potty to hand - that's after starting potty training just before xmas. Also means he can just go without assistance. But of course don't exactly want to live with a potty in the sitting room forever! We use the potette as we're lazy and it means can just bin the contents straight away - find cleaning poo out of a potty a nightmare. Size of potty def an issue with boys - we initially had a cheap John Lewis one but quite often find the wee goes everywhere, which is bad as he then thinks it's like having an accident, when it's not his fault at all.

Hi - just got this done by Shot by the Sheriff (if you google shd come up), a studio based just off Northcross road in the little courtyard next to Jo Partridge. For a tenner they did my 4 mth old with zero fuss, using a bumbo and have all the requirements sorted, so you don't need to worry about whether it'll pass muster with the Passport Office (had several attempts with my first son). They also give you a keyring with the baby's pic on it as an extra. I think it's well worth it.

Hmm I think I'd be a bit annoyed by the present request tbh. Would be one thing if you'd asked 'what wd you like' and that was the response. But I see anniversary presents as more token than something on that scale, so I wd def have had the same reaction. And I do totally feel your pain re fitting little one's sleep etc round the day - the reason we get stressed about this is cos if they don't sleep well it's no fun for anyone, particularly not us on the drive home!

got one in soup dragon today. they're also for sale at Dulwich DIY and poss AJ Farmer from what I glimpsed.

Where's good for sledging round here? Brockwell park poss bit far to trek with a 3yr old...

yes you're right - in my first pregnancy i had to stay in for it as they were pretty sure (and were right) it was pre eclampsia. for my second pregnancy it was a precaution as BP was normal, so probs why they let me be at home. I know someone who was a teacher right in the middle of exams who insisted on doing hers as an outpatient too. a tip if you do have to stay in - make sure they get you started straight away - i was in for a night before they remembered to start it all, which added time onto my stay.

F - I did several 24 hr urine collections in my last pregnancy from home. Wasn't much fun carrying the jug of wee into Kings on the bus but def preferable to a stay in hospital.

in our case, son had v red face. sore eyes, after a weekend with a dog - because of my own history, I suspected an allergy (though later turned out more likely was a virus given other symptoms and other kids he'd been in contact with having same thing) - asked doctor what I shd do and she said piriton, keep an eye on same thing happening again so you know if there's a pattern, but really only cause for worry is breathing difficulties...

I have exactly the same allergies, causing asthma and sore eyes/rhinitis/eczema. In my experience I've had this kind of reaction in an indirect way, eg at times when I've come into contact with someone who has a cat or dog (maybe one who's particularly fluffy/is moulting). I'm also v allergic to pollen and some perfumes, so can get this from being in certain houses - was she on a playdate somewhere new? Could be a new allergy though I guess, but GP said same to me recently re my little boy ie that unless breathing difficulties, not to worry as such.

I'm sure I read somewhere that children shouldn't ideally vary more than two centiles between height and weight...my son is between 75th & 98th height but 25th weight...but had his 2.5 yr check and nothing was said so presume nothing to worry about, just wonder if others have heard this? sorry, a tangent I know... I do find the whole centile thing v confusing.

oh this is great - hadn't realised about either tippee toes moving here or the new play area. will def be along with baby number 2.