Sanne Panne

My daughter was 15 months when she started at the childminder and cried non-stop from 9am till 2pm when they called me to pick her up on what was meant to be her first full day (she'd had 2 settling in sessions which were a drama too). She did this 4 more times (just crying and completely refusing food/milk/water/sleep/cuddles), making me seriously worried that she'd never settle in... but one day she just did (maybe she finally realised that she would be picked up again at the end of the day) and she's been happy there ever since. I really thought my child was going to be that one exception that just won't be looked after by somebody else (in spite of being fine with my parents by the way, but I had spent much more time in that house with her and my parents so it was less of a radical change... and... err... very wrong maybe, but I did sneak off when I had to leave for the odd hour here and there when we were at my parents' house and it seemed to work very well...). To make a long story short: after my own experience I believe all babies will eventually settle. It's just awful if the beginning is so tough. Wishing you strength through this phase, it WILL work out!

twinmummy Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > 13th might be tricky for me I'm in Holland from 11-20 Feb but don't change any plans for me as I wasn't even there yet last time you all met :)

So happy the results were good! And no wonder your outlook on keeping/terminating etc has changed (or your real outlook on things has been "revealed" to you) because of all these major emotions.

sillywoman Wrote: > Don't worry millsa - if she lives in ED long > enough I'm sure eventually the lure of the family > room thread will overwhelm her (highest birth rate > in Europe & all that). Probably loads of us were > like that before we saw the light of a life filled > with poo, no sleep and sacrifice to > small-ones-who-must-be-obeyed. Aaah refreshing, I was being way too serious today, thank you (tu)

I don't think mums-with-buggies are generally disliked by people without babies/toddlers in ED (I never get any negative looks/reactions when I'm out with my daughter). I think the few "haters" on the forum just think they score (forum) points by being grumpy about "mainstream" people who "settle" rather than choose a more alternative/intellectual/independent lifestyle. All prejudice of course, no need to even go into why it's all wrong and why you can own a Bugaboo/Maclaren and still be an intellectual or talk about potty training on a forum and still have a non-mainstream lifestyle. And much more importantly, you don't have to be alternative or an intellectual to be an interesting, nice person. Anyway, I think it's at most ten out of the hundreds of people on the forum. The reason I'm waiting with the mums drinks till next month is that I personally don't feel too comfortable joining a group as a group - I somehow feel awkward entering a room as "the mums", "the rugby fans" or "the Europeans". Am not much of a big group person so I'd rather start small and with people I've "talked" with before...

Susie, regarding the dummies, you could be me a few months ago! I think I know exactly which dummies you mean, they are the silicon orthodontic rim ones in the transparent packaging and as opposed to other dummies the "teats" aren't flattened and don't have a tip that points upward (and they collect visible dirt under the rim that you can't brush or boil out, yum). You can still buy them on eBay for ?10 a pair (hahaha, crazy but I've done it twice) or... try the MAM 6+ month dummies, the "teats" of the dummy is nearly identical to the old Tommee Tippee one. Worked for my daughter. Check in the box that the dummies do indeed have the right teats (not sure if MAM has more than one type of 6+ month dummies) - the big Sainsbury's has them. As for teeth brushing, I used to just let my 17 month old chew on the brush (or lick it like a lollypop if I'd just put the paste on) but I recently turned it into a game where she needs to say AAAAAAAH (mouth wide open) and as a reward she gets the brush with yummy toothpaste in her mouth for a bit in the form of me brushing a few of her teeth. If she tries to grab the brush, I take her hands away and remove the brush and say "nooooooo, mummy will do it". Then I say AAAAAH and she'll copy me and on we go until all teeth are done. It took a few days but now it works. At the end she gets to have the brush all to herself with a bit of new toothpaste on it. If all else fails I have another tip that your son will hate but that has no risk of accidents (which forcing a toothbrush into a mouth normally does)... Better to first try creating a positive association though!

I'd love to join too if you don't mind (I only know Lorraine well from what I can tell from the nicknames, Lorraine it's Suzanne here. And I met Fuschia, you gave me a CD in exchange for a bottle of wine back in '08 - I'm the one with the Dutch accent ;-)). Not sure about this time if the plan is indeed to crash the forum drinks, I'd somehow feel a bit awkward doing that but I'd love to come next time if that's ok. Will follow updates! I have a 17 month old daughter and am expecting #2 in June. Would love to meet other mums as I'll be quite ED bound for the next year or two - and mostly at home from May onwards (now work part time).

Emma, my baby was LOA too and her head was in the right position. As for maternity reflexology, I can recommend Katie Sedgwick http://www.yell.com/s/reflexology-dulwich-south+east+london.html As for acupuncture, I can recommend Giles Davies http://www.gilesdavies.com/contact.htm Both local. My baby came 2 lovely weeks early, almost certainly because she was just ready to come out but you never know what the reflexology and acupuncture did to help!

"For example, by chance the earth is exactly the right distance away from the sun - any nearer we would burn to a crisp or any further we would freeze. By chance the earth rotates on its axis at the right speed to produce moderate temperatures and the other planets just happen to be there to prevent earth from shifting from its orbit. By chance we have gravity, electromagnetism, strong nuclear force and weak nuclear force all required for the earth to have carbon, oxygen and iron - elements vital to life. If the electromagnetism was weaker atoms could not combine to form molecules; if stronger electrons would be trapped preventing chemical reactions needed for life - so just be chance it's the right strength. If the strong nuclear force was weaker 2% weaker only hydrogen would exist. If stronger there would be no hydrogen" The circumstances under which our universe exists and behaves according to certain physical laws that allow our planet to exist at this moment are perfect, sure, but how many other solar systems or stars or planets may have failed (and are still failing/disappearing) because the circumstances weren't (or are no longer) perfect? The fact that our solar system exists is chance and most likely temporary and, more importantly, the fact that we're here to witness it is chance too because the circumstances under which life can exist are perfect on this planet but on how many billions of planets has life failed because the circumstances were not perfect? And how many times has life not started and ended on this planet before any bacteria came crawling out of the soup? I think the error in the "life is so perfect and the circumstances have to be in such a perfect balance for it to exist that it can't be chance" argument is that we don't fully realise how long it's taken for the universe and life to evolve to their current situations and in how many locations (planets, stars, random rocks) some form of life started and then ended again at either a very early (most often) or a somewhat later stage (less often as more conditions have to be met and more "accidents" have to happen). It's the fact that we are the result of one of the relatively successful combinations of circumstances and sequences of events that makes so many of us think we're special. And yes, maybe we are relatively special because life may not get to this relatively advanced state very often in this universe (maybe only a million times so far, and maybe only at two impossibly distant locations at the same time). But it's not because there's design behind it. It's because there's so much time and space available (of which we humans haven't evolved to really comprehend the size, maybe THAT'S the real problem!) that yes, it almost had to happen (and will happen again, here or elsewhere). I think humans take to religion because we are smart enough to wonder why things are as they are but not smart enough to truly comprehend space and time. I am happy accepting that I'm not smart enough to truly comprehend space and time. Logic points entirely in the direction of chance rather than design so I'll go by that. Sorry for poor language here and there, not a native speaker. Hope I got my point across... Edited to correct a typo

I also heard great things about Dr Nikolaides (not that he's necessarily nice but he's supposed to be very good). You can always consider going down the private path if you want to be guaranteed a consultant or professor to carry out the procedure. Good luck with the decision!

Spinning Babies as mentioned by Fuchsia is a good site. Almost too much information but if you have time it's great. Do you have an anterior placenta? I did and had a back to back baby for a while (from the baby's perspective it's easier to "embrace" the placenta than to rest on it with your back) - lots of exercise learned at pregnancy yoga and using the birthing ball may have helped because although she didn't turn completely the way I wanted her to (her back was slightly to the left of the middle of the bump), she turned enough to have her head in the ideal birth position. Acupuncture and reflexology may help too, I'm one of those who don't really believe in these techniques but will try them anyway "just in case" in situations like these - I'm not sure what they really did but if anything it was relaxing!

ryedalema Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Has anyone tried Discovery Planet at Surrey Quays? > It's open (according to the website) but we've > never been. We usually go to Gambado - but > likewise am shuddering at the noise/crowds. Surprisingly, the crowds weren't even too bad yesterday. But why oh why do they play this awful screaming disco music all the time? Don't need to hear the Teletubbies tune either but there must be something a bit more neutral...

Tulsie Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > > ....Sigh.....I'm slightly depressed that I know > all this.......hmmm, maybe wine will help....... Hilarious :))

pipling Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Hi there! > Piplings is not open on New Year's Day but open > every other week day and Saturday mornings.Come up > the hill or visit us at www.piplingsplaygroup > .com. Thanks, didn't know about Piplings - is it only for over-2's? My daughter is 17 months so maybe a bit young or can she come?

> However you > either have to have an egg-allergy (or tell them > that you do...) I believe that back in November the NHS sent a letter to all GP practices saying that if a pregnant woman will only accept the vaccine if she can have Celvapan that they have to offer her Celvapan because according to the NHS it's better to spend the money than to not vaccinate pregnant women at all. In that case there would be no need to lie about an egg allergy. Let me see if I can find an official link somewhere... I believe the letter itself is even available online. Hope my source wasn't wrong... will get back on this Found the link: http://www.dh.gov.uk/prod_consum_dh/groups/dh_digitalassets/@dh/@en/documents/digitalasset/dh_108855.pdf

No experience with long haul flights. For shorter flights I've found 8-14 months ideal (sitting up, snacking, being entertained by surroundings but not walking) but I'm sure 3-4 months with all the sleeping is a lot easier for long haul travel. Might be worth avoiding the hottest months there with a small one (I know, babies born there survive the heat too, but as a new mum it may stress you out if you're not used to it) but in your case the summer will just be over when your baby is that age!

What's your main reason for wanting her to quit? Do you just dislike the idea of a habit that may be harder to beat with time (and which will lead to heroin addiction by age 4 :)))? Are you worried about her teeth or her speech development? Do you dislike the look/idea of a toddler with a dummy in her mouth when out and about? I would guess it's easiest to deal with daytime usage first like the other posters said. Does she sleep well? Does she have the dummy in her mouth almost all night (if not, you don't even need to worry about her teeth that much)? Since she only has it in the buggy and car seat during the day it's not such a bad addiction anyway and it might therefore not even be so very difficult to beat the daytime habit! Good luck (my 17 month old has the dummy in the exact same situations as your daughter does and I'm also planning on getting rid of buggy and car seat usage first... hopefully before baby 2 is born in June as I believe that new sibling arrival isn't the right time to change any habits)

Keef Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > You're nice and close to Kings should there be an > interruption to the ceremony. ...and the wedding room is not a bad place to give birth in either. Seriously: you're brave for making plans around that date, if anything it'll be a good distraction should your little one be a bit late!

Would love to run into you if I go into labour at an unexpected moment like Bissy did!

I assume it's closed but it would be nice if it were open... (or any other baby/toddler club for that matter). Can only imagine the crowds at Gambado so avoiding that!

My husband just got onto a train from Farringdon which will stop at Peckham Rye (final destination Sevenoaks). It left with just a 7 minute delay. Not sure which other stations in central London are on that route but it may be worth a try if you're anywhere near.

Looks like trains are ok except for Southeastern (and Eurostar). For those coming home from central London it may be best to get to any train station, avoiding travelling through London Bridge if it's indeed closed (doesn't show as closed on TFL at the moment). Peckham Rye may be a good bet.

In Holland over 95% of over-the-counter baby paracetamol is sold in the form of suppositories: just paracetamol and (I assume) vaseline. Not sure if you could import it or if it's available here - haven't seen it anywhere, I always bring it back from Holland (don't have enough to start a little shop here unfortunately). Just googled it and it's available in the UK but very expensive (around ?20 for 10 suppositories). Ridiculous, at home I pay about ?2 for the same number... :(

HeidiHi Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Congratulations Quids!! > > Whenever someone gives birth that I know be it > family or friends, we always ask them how the > birth went ( and this is regardless to whether we > have children ourselves or not) and we expect all > the details! It has never ever put me off wanting > to have a baby, I think we all know it is not > easy, and if someone does not want to hear the > horror stories then they can just say " Thanks but > I rather would not hear it" I had no problems > with people telling me there stories and I don't > lie about my labour if people ask but yes, I don't > like the ones who say things like " Your baby will > be big/small, you will need a C section etc" no > one knows how our labours will go so they should > stop acting if they do! I think the essence is that you should not volunteer the information (especially to a pregnant woman) unless you are specifically asked. If you ask someone after she's given birth (which is indeed quite a normal thing to do - at that point everything is about the new mum) and you're pregnant, you know what you're in for. But if you tell a colleague you're pregnant you're not asking her to tell you her birth story.

Keef Wrote: ------------------------------------------------------- > Just to say that of course people need to talk > about these experiences. I simply mean these > people who seem to almost take pleasure in scaring > already nervous people. I agree, I was mainly being PC ;-)