The Nappy Lady

Blimey Pickle, you gave me a funny turn posting on this thread...thought you'd been keeping a little secret ..... ;-) Oh, just to say my first was born on 4th July 04 and it is a lovely time of year to have a baby - and very handy for future birthday parties as we mostly have ours in the park with lots of room to run around without causing chaos! Congratulations ladies!

....pah, so sad this has all come to pass after my youngest has turned 2....:-S ...hmmmm now whose baby could I take along with me I wonder??? ::o ;-) Enjoy it ladies, I think a bag of popcorn to help the cake along is essential. xxx

I know Keef, but it is universally understood so tricky not to use, mind you I think of it as Darling Husband, also DD or DS Darling Daughter/Darling Son. My own favourite is ROFLMSO (rolling on floor laughing my socks off). Did think for ages that when people put LOL they were sending me Lots of Love prior to realising it was Laugh out Loud!!

It is a really tricky age - our 27 month old is now going some days without a nap, other days (if given a really busy morning at the park etc.) will go down easily at around 1pm....or, worst case resists until around 4pm then collapses. As and when she does fall asleep I limit it to an hour, and if late in the day try to then give her a really active couple of hours, even if it means going for a 'dark walk' (torches out & great excitement), or mad hide and seek with her big sister around the house. I try to use it to my advantage really and often manage to work the day in such a way that she sleeps at the time that best suits me, or not at all, and early to bed instead - thankfully it seems to work either way for her, though bedtime does tend to be a little later sometimes on the days she has had a nap.

Yes - that's true, though ours are either not precious, or they are Emma Bridgewater, which I love....but they are at least easy to replace if necessary (fingers crossed it wont be necessary)..... I agree - felt like a total grouch for getting so cross about the spillages, but they were literally daily with the plastic Ikea tumblers and I was so sick of mopping up all the time. My youngest is totally addicted to hot chocolate at the moment - will down two mug fulls at a time given half a chance!

Hi all, Been meaning to share this discovery for ages, but have always forgotten to post until now. For years we've been using the Ikea children's beakers - the plastic ones which come in assorted colours and are shaped so they are narrower at the bottom than the top. Clearly this makes them relatively unstable, and if a little one knocks them they go over all too easily sending water, or worse expensive juice across the table! It seems all children have problems with these beakers, going by the various ones I've had around for tea anyway! I had some lovely china mugs which were given as gifts by various people, or came with Easter Eggs etc. but which I never dared actually let the girls use for fear of breakages. However, at some point a while ago I decided to try them and immediately we were spill free. I did spend a bit of time initially watching them and telling them to be careful, but the very fact that the cups are heavier, and very stable seems to help them and remind them to pick up/put down carefully. My eldest at 6 has a normal mug, with one handle, whilst my youngest at 2 has a mug with 2 handles, which does work better for her (she does use a 1 handle mug when necessary, but I can see it is harder for her to support securely). It was really the 2 year old I was most worried about, but she's coped just fine. Anyway, the Ikea plastic beakers are now well and truly dumped, and we haven't had a single spillage since we've switched. I realise this may seem (to quote Basil Faulty) "Bleedin obvious" to some, but it really hadn't occured to me what a difference a 'proper' mug would make, and I thought maybe others with major spill issues might be glad of the tip! Molly

Could you offer to buy a small garden bike store for them to put it in, is there space in front garden for one? If big enough could also put the buggy in it as & when necessary (or store 2nd single buggy in there etc). You can get a pully system that allows you to have bike suspended up high & then lower it when needed - need high ceilings though.....

If staying in a hotel outside the resort you could ask them to make you a simple packed lunch to take in with you? Those who have been - what age do you think is ideal? I have a 6 year old who is desparate to visit, but at just 2 I think her little sister needs to be a little older to really enjoy/get the most from the trip......???? I'm thinking when they are 4 and 8 it might be ideal. (Sorry to hijack the thread a bit sarz).......

Just to add - it is a non systemic topical pain killer, so you can use it alongside Calpol or Calprofen type meds if baby is really suffering.

The one I use is in a White box with blue & green print IIRC. It's a liquid but def. Says you can use on babies/toddlers in instructions - 1 dab on finger & rub on the sore patch. I've used for both mine & swear by it.

I get it from Krystal pharmacy in Nunhead. A lot of chemist think you can use it on children - tell them to check the instructions! Think it's the same one for adults & children. Xx

Madeira? Think that is pretty warm all year around isn't it?

Happy New Year to you all, may 2011 be a brilliant year for all of us...

Snowboarder, if you are getting a Phil & Ted's then the cocoon thing works pretty well as a moses basket I think for the first few weeks....maybe not what you want to hear, but I've heard a few people say that they used it that way, so easy to move baby around the house with them etc. You can get a newborn insert for the Ergo....think that's what I'd go for if I were you, tried pouch type slings but didn't get on with them so well. This leaves you more money to spend on breastfeeding tops, which are for the new baby, but for YOU TOO (Hurrah)!!, and the Stokke Chair, which I think you just HAVE to have, think how much use it is going to get.......

Just found these on line - not so much newborn related, but great for toddlers I reckon, much better than a normal dressing gown; http://www.hugfactory.co.uk/

littleEDfamily Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Oh, one CON for homebirth. Looked like a B-grade > horror movie afterwards (blood and gore). A bit > freaked out about that being in my living room. > Lovely midwives do clean up, bless them. BUT > BEWARE - 'used' towels should be washed in cool > water, or they will go green. Quite foul really. Good point - though not always the case....my birth no.1 was quite bloody (thew away the socks I was wearing etc), birth no.2 was amazingly lacking (even to the midwife), less than 25ml of blood loss in her estimation! So it can be either end of the scale. She said she'd never seen such a clean birth pool post birth, it looked pretty much like it had when I got in it! Top tips - get a big sheet of plastic from a DIY shop and lay it down, or use an old shower curtain, then put old sheets or towels down, or even one of those decorating dust sheets - if possible get old sheets and towels from charity shops or similar (maybe put out a plea here in the wanted section, then post birth you can just throw them away. You can wash it all before you use it of course so if 'feels' right.

Leanne, I've had 2 home births so no knowledge of hospital births, but if your first was only 3 hours I'd certainly agree with your midwife and recommend thinking about a home birth. My first labour was 5.5 hours, my second 1.5 hours (both of these timings are from established labour - i.e. contractions 5 minutes apart and making me actually stop whatever I was doing to breath through them). Both births were amazing, positive experiences where I felt completely in control. Didn't use (or feel the need for) any pain relief, even gas and air...very lucky I know. Had a birth pool for my second and it was wonderful - we did wonder whether we'd get it set up in time, in the end my hubby took a gamble and as it turned out the timing was just perfect - phew. You are very welcome to PM me if you have any questions, but I appreciate my views are very one sided and not quite what you are after. Personally I'd say it would be better to be mentally, physically and logistically prepared for a home birth on the basis that it may happen anyway if things go quickly, then if you do end up in hospital it doesn't really matter, but at least things at home will all be in place should they be needed. Good luck whatever happens....keep us posted!

Very clever - Snowboarder, I love your shopping prowess! I'm actually on line looking for stuff for me (ME!!) in the sales - what a treat!

F - maybe phone Kings & ask if you can use double pumps in SCBU if all else fails? Sorry I can't help.

OK girls, I'm storming the shed with back up supplies - chocolate and crisps for when we get the munchies!

Well I'm finding it is getting easier every day now my two are 6 & 2 and hubby and I have more time to enjoy each other / life in general than we have Klingon years, so don't agree with the comment that it gets harder. HH, I agree most took this thread as it was intended, no point worrying about those who are taking it all too seriously. Eggnog anyone?!

How sad that this thread can't be taken in the way I am sure it was intended - as a bit of a giggle. I think most of us said at some point that our partners are generally great....and don't most healthy relationships have their 'moments'? My hubby works very hard 5 days a week to support us, I consider it my role to 'run the home' in the main, work part time to fit around our childrens needs & do most of the cooking etc.....maybe I shouldn't just 'keep going' when I am ill, but I feel that is sort of part of what I should do too. Sharing the humour of the moment wasn't a big deal, and frankly I don't think anyone else has the right to judge what people choose to share, whether it be with a 'bunch of strangers' or actually people who have met up on several occasions. Nothing in my post that wasn't expressed directly to my other half anyway!

Snowboarder, you shOuld be able to request a phone call from a doctor at the surgery, even if no appointments. You just need him to advise (by looking in his book) whether you take (for example) night nurse. Or whether he can Prescribe something for you. It should be possible to do this over the phone - the issue is not what is wrong, just how you can treat it given you are pregnant. Xx

I bought some from a florists.....

Oh my goodness - have HUGE Christmas delivery due on Tuesday (catering for 9 on the big day, and 7 on Christmas Eve). I hope they turn up, otherwise I am going to be doing an emergency dash at some unlikely hour when hopefully the supermarket isn't too packed. Those who use Ocado, have you seen they are offering their annual delivery pass for about ?40 at the moment (?70 off the normal price)....free delivery all year once signed up - wooo hoo....