charlottep

i'm on mat leave currently and am now earning SMP only (have been for the last 2 months). my vouchers are still being provided by my company, which i'm very pleased about. i remember reading busymum's thread a while ago and it was for that reason that i made sure to stay enrolled in the scheme. Many thanks busymum!

pilsbury - i enjoyed regular hot baths during both pregnancies with no problems. try and resist the urge to google your concerns as IME it never provides the reassurance you're seeking, quite the opposite - i wound myself up into many a frenzy in my first pregnancy! Good luck and enjoy!

thanks for the advice, i've tried putting his nappy back on during his regular poo time (this was most unpopular, he is hooked on his big boy pants) and i have tried chocolate buttons. still no joy and now he's walking around holding his bum and saying it hurts! oh dear, poo land book next.

i've just started potty training my 2.5 year old little boy. Day 4 and we are having no wee accidents at all and he's going up to 2 hours between emptying his bladder - i'm really pleased with his progress on the wee front. Poos are a different matter and he hasn't managed one poo in the potty. He's either not pooing or doing them in his pants when he can't hold on to it anymore (sorry for too much info). He's always been very private when it comes to poos (pooing generally behind the curtains or under the dining table). I have tried to leave a potty in both these places in case he feels able to take himself off for a private poo, but no joy unfortunately. Any advice on how i can encourage him to poo in the potty - i've tried stickers? I know he gets the concept, but he's just not complying and i fear an issue will start developing if I don't play things the right way. Thanks!

Gussy, i've just came out of exactly the same cycle. Going off to sleep well, but then waking automatically at around 4am (the time my baby used to feed in the early months) and only being able to drift back off to sleep at around 6:30am, half an hour before my toddler gets up. It was driving me crazy. Towards the end Camomile tea seemed to help quite a bit - even though i wasn't feeling particularly stressed at the time, i think there must have been an underlying tension. However, the thing that's cured it permanently has been a recent trip to the States. I was so jet-lagged the whole time i was there it was awful, but since i returned home, i've seemed to have broken the 4am wake up cycle. I know that it's not particularly convenient or cost effective way of sorting out insomnia, but had a known that it would be so successful i would have done it a couple of months ago, as i was so desperate to sleep properly - fatigue and babies and toddlers is really tough. But in the meantime, i do recommend the camomile, just to see if it relaxes you some.

it could definitely be the teat, especially if he's spluttering a little or milk is dribbling from the the corners of his mouth during his feed. one other thing to consider, have you switched to formula in the bottle feed? i've been weaning my daughter off the breast and onto formula and she was initially quite sicky with the increase in formula, although 3 weeks into it now and i'm seeing a big improvement. i think she just needed some time to adjust to the change in milk.

I went for an agency which was recommended on this forum (perfecttouch) after 3 bad experiences with private cleaners, all over timekeeping and attendance. I haven't looked back since. The lady who runs the agency takes client satisfaction very seriously, and often seeks feedback on her team and is responsive to any additional requirements. The other benefit is that when my regular cleaner is away, a stand-in cleaner can be arranged so that there is continuity. All the cleaners I've had from the agency work bloody hard and my regular cleaner is great and arranges her time around my childrens' routines so as not to disrupt sleeps, mealtimes etc. I feel confident that if i were to encounter any problems with any particular cleaner these would be dealt with swiftly, which means that i don't really have to deal with any difficult situations myself - perfect!

yep, it still runs on Monday from 10am i think, behind St Thomas More's Church.

Take away my child benefit if you must, but then give me access to a community school that is consistently good and give me a tax break against my HUGE childcare bill. The logic behind this is flawed, I expect this crap from the tories, but the liberals have sold themselves out.

i arrived at 10 to 9 and waited an hour and a half. at one point there were more staff behind the coffee counter than at reception. apparently only two computers were working, no wonder it took so long!

Gina Ford (dare i mention her name) in her contented toddler book says that the toughest age gap is between 18 months to 2 years. i have to say (sorry snowboarder (and congratulations!)) that i agree! i have a 2 year old and a 4 month old - 23 months between them and it's quite a logistical challenge (involving the full range of slings, buggies, double buggies, car seats, etc), as well as an emotional one - i am exahusted by the end of each day! My two year old, is not yet compliant enough to make things easier. Although he's a great walker and has been for many months, he refuses to walk in any direction that i need him to, he won't get into his car seat by himself without a lot of persuasion, he won't get himself dressed (although he's able to) and he's still in nappies. He's also not overly fond of independent play and seeks my attention constantly - he is only two afterall. He gets upset that his needs can't be consistently met in the same efficient way that they used to be. He definitely felt the impact of the change and this has made his behaviour more erratic (poor little chap), which of course makes things tougher too. My baby, on the other hand, doesn't get nearly the same amount of attention that my toddler did when he was a baby and I sometimes feel enormously guilty that she's spent so long in her chair, whilst i've been negotiating another challenging meal time with her big brother. Having said that, she's very contented and slept through from 13 weeks (my son took 7 months), which i'm sure is partly due to the fact that i'm not in her face so much (if you get what i mean). Everything that Molly has listed as a benefit in having a slightly longer age gap, i think is spot on. The reverse is definitely my list of cons to having a shorter age gap. However, although i know i'm sounding negative (sorry!) i am CONVINCED it will pay off big time as they grow up and have high hopes that they will be the best of friends. Also, i think i would rather have 3 or 4 solid years of hard slog in one go - i can already see the light at the end of the tunnel. So on the whole, i know it's going to be worth it and i tell myself that each evening over a large glass of wine to calm my nerves! Personally, I think the ideal gap would be somewhere from 2.5 years, but i'm sure others will tell me that this isn't necessrily the case.

First baby induced 5 days late Second baby 6 days late

I had a similar experience to smiler, the midwife couldn't find the heartbeat at 16 weeks, I got myself very stressed about it and ended up in the MAU. It was all fine thankfully, it's just that sometimes it can be a bit tricky to find that early, so don't worry if they can't find it.

Gussy, i'm in a similar position, a 28 month old who is nuts and a 4 month old. I'm going to try out Didi Dance at the Dulwich Constitutional Hall tomorrow morning at 11am. Hopefully that will exhaust my toddler and the organiser tells me that there are lots of mums with babies attending with their toddlers.

Nymom, I'm planning on taking me son along who is just over two and loves music too, so that will be at least one boy!

I had tess in ED and thought she was great - balanced and supportive. Made some good friends that we still see two years later. I would recommend tess's sessions.

i think Elaine who works at the therapy rooms above health matters is excellent, she's treated both my babies very successfully

my son went to one long nap a day at about 15 months, but we did it slowly after he was showing very clear signs of not needing his morning nap, i.e. waking early and taking a long time to drop off at 9am. Perhaps instead of cutting it out altogether you could start by cutting short his morning nap, say no more than 10-15 mins just to take the edge off, but not enough for him to to wake up early knowing he can make up for lost sleep at 9am, if you see what i mean?

my 2 yr old boy loves dancing. can someone provide more details - when does this take place?? thanks

from what i've read the main risk is for newborns, especially in the first 4 weeks. At 11 months i'm pretty sure that it doesn't present any serious risk although they are very contagious so you may want to take action to ensure that she doesn't pass it on to another part of her body, especially the eyes - perhaps put some socks on her hands until you can confirm with the doctor?

Congratulations to you and ruby, a very heartwarming story!

My midwives told me that if I fed my baby every two to three hours during the day it was ok to go longer at night, they suggested to aim for a four hour stretch at night until birth weight was regained, although my daughter didn't lose any weight as she just cluster fed continuously!

Ruth - as you say that your little boy did sleep during your stint in hospital, any chance you can equip your husband with a sleep training plan and have him do the sleep training? Maybe he could take a couple of days off work - cheaper option than getting someone in, at least as a first attempt. I know from experience it's not always easy getting the OH to take on the burden, but it's just a thought, particularly as you're going back to work.

Once you become a member the prices aren't so bad, in line with what you'd pay for other classes around here. Also, in the initial stages you're getting a lot of one-to-one training with gianni, who also works a plan out for you so it's v similar to personal training. I'm sure if we could get together a smallish group of mum's with a similar level of fitness (i.e. not v much in my case) we could get some kind of economy of scale going. I'll ask at my next class. Btw, it's brilliant for the pelvic floor as well. C

i agree with Ruth, H&M is great, definitely the coolest place for boys in particular IMO and much more reasonably priced. Sparkle & Spin on Melbourne Grove carry a load of the nordic type brands with bold prints etc, but they're pricey and definitely not for the everyday.