Babies Born ~ May 16th-31st 2009 #8

Hi all! I got fed up with Kyson's current playgroup recently and looked into a new one. The people in his current one were all nice, but the group was so unstructured and with all the illnesses lately and people just not turning up, he hasn't even had playgroup there for the last 3 weeks. And when we do get to have a play, the toys there aren't amazing and he seems completely bored with it. He's always cranky and very clingy. The toys are all either really babyish or too old for him. I continually try to get people interested in crafty stuff (like finger painting), but no one has any motivation and I seem to be the only one that bothers setting anything up. Sometimes if I set stuff up then the others will let their kids join in, but a couple of them seem to not want to deal with the cleanup (of their kids, lol) and just keep their kids away from anything messy.

Sooooo, I decided to look into whether there were any Montessori playgroups near here. My bestie has her son in Montessori and loves it, and I really liked the sound of how it's run and stuff. I found one that's less than half an hour away and took Kyson for a visit today. I was so surprised that he was happy there and keen to get down and have a look around and start playing with the toys. If you don't know anything about Montessori playgroups, they are very learning based and focus on the child and not social interactions for the parent (I figure that's what mother's group is for). They have an amazing assortment of toys and activities around the room, and little tables and chairs for the kids. They basically get the kids to choose and acitivity, take it to a table or to a mat on the floor, play as long as they like, then take it back before getting a new toy. Granted, it's not quite that strict on a 15 month old, lol. The toys are generally all learning based and are self-correcting, so a child knows if they are doing it right without having to be told. For example, if they are doing a puzzle type toy and the last piece doesn't fit, then they know they have done something wrong. Again, that's more appropriate once Kyson's a bit older, but he enjoyed playing with the toys where you put the colored rings on the sticks, and had some fun learning to scoop water from a jug into a bowl (although half ended up on himself hehe). It's more expensive than normal playgroup ($10 per hour), but I figure it's giving him a lot more than the current one so it's worth it.

Oh, and I got to see the baby yesterday at my Ob appointment. I was really nervous going in there that something was wrong, but she was perfect. Heartbeating at 148bpm, and she's relaxing laying face-up across my belly with her head on my left and in a breach position at the moment. Ob said that doesn't matter though because she'll do acrobatics for many more weeks to come.

Hope you are all doing well. I'm just still finding myself very tired at the moment. My 10yo DSS is still coughing pretty bad and waking up to 10 times a night having coughing fits. He's been off school for about 5 weeks now. And Kyson had two molars cut through the gum yesterday evening, so last night was pretty wakeful and I'm guessing tonight will be the same. Hopefully my DSS will be going to school tomorrow though so I can get an extra nap in with Kyson hehe.

Take care all!!! xoxox

Hey Girls, just a quickie as about to head to bed

KL - How exciting that you got to see Apple Blossom - give that belly a rub for me :) One of my g/friends takes her daughter to a Montessori playgroup also and she loves it too!

Amy - Sorry to hear about your neice, hope she gets better soon, and Phoebe too with her tonsils. Can you send some of that warmer weather you are getting over here!. Oh, I meant to say, when I was on my way from the Airport to the Hotel in Sydney, we drove past this restaurant called the 'Chocolate something', I cant remember the rest of the name, anyway, I wondered if that was where you went for your birthday that time?

BG - sounds like you guys are making some serious progress with the house prep - Nice work, post some pics!!

BM - great to see you around the traps again :)

CatherineL - Good Luck with bubs upcoming arrival, your pregnancy has FLOWN!

As for us, as you may have seen on facebook (my video), Bailey is zooming around pushing his walker so hopefully soon he will 'let go' and attempt some walking :) He is coming ahead in leaps and bounds of late, I think the influence of childcare is playing a big part, he is feeding himself with a spoon really well now, talking up a storm, can put all his shapes in his tupperware shape-O with ease and is just so clue-y with everything, seems to understand EVERYTHING we say. He is loving childcare now too. Has a little cry when I leave, but when we get there now he actually puts his arms out to his carers for them to take him from me. His principle carer is an Amy (all Amy's are lovely) and the baby room team leader (Janelle) just adores him and is first in line for a cuddle when we arrive each day. The other day one of the Toddler Room carers that used to be in the Baby Room came and stole him for a while and took him into the toddler room and apparantly all the older kids were following him around LMAO, he crawls around the place like he OWNS it - definately his mothers son hehehehe. So its all going much better than I ever could have anticipated - it lessons the mother guilt considerably :o

Nay
x

Just stopping by to say hi quickly!
BM welcome back!!
Catherine - congrats on the pregnancy and all the best for the coming weeks!
J- 30 weeks already??!! crazy!
Krystie - you're nearly halfway??!! OMG! insane!

Hi everyone!
Not much happening... been super busy of late. Lots going on with family.
Lachie's party is this weekend which should be good. Other than that I'm a free woman as netball has finished, and were not doing swimming lessons this term. WOW... a full day at home on a weekend will be something very different for us indeed.

Hope you are all going well. I am going to be SOOO busy in the coming months with so many weddings and things happening, but I'll pop by when I can.

Allira's 15 months old today. I still remember my first post in the belly buddies thread.

xxoo

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Allira's 15 months old today. I still remember my first post in the belly buddies thread.

xxoo

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I was actually reading our old Belly Buddies thread the other day - how far we've all come!!

Bailz woke as I was posting in here last night, and then all hell broke loose! He pretty much cried all night until 4am. Took him to Drs today, has a nasty ear infection, ABs will hopefully start to work soon. We have one of my g/f babies 1st birthday tomorrow but wont be going, not fair to take a sick baby out, nor fair on all the other babies that will be there. So Bummed, feel like I am letting her down, but nothing I can do

Anyway, just waiting for the Pizza Delivery guy, then will scoff some dinner and head to bed - am shattered after only 2 hours sleep last night!!

Nay
x

I was always told ear infections, aren't contagious so if CJ has been ok in herself is fine to take her out. You might be surprised at how quickly the AB's cheer Bailey up. I have been sick all week, some sort of gastro thing which keeps coming and going, no one else has it, is a bit weird really, and sort of really bad tension type headache with it so have been trying to limit my computer use. First proper AF this week so maybe that is contributing.

Hiya Girls,

Well I haven't written or read for nearly a month!!! That seemed so long it is crazy. Life for us has been pretty busy with DH going away to UK for nearly 2 weeks and then we have been sick for almost 2 months. Every cold under the son we have had. Eventually Jemima started vomiting and I took her to our GP who diagnosed bilateral ear infections... poor bubba the AB's cleared her up pretty quick but gave her diarrhoea for 5 days. Suffice to say it had been a busy time as a single mum. Darren got home but went straight away onto 8 night duties. JEmima missed his so much it has put her sleep completely out of wack.

I have tried every thing but now it seems that she is distressed every morning at about 3-4am...... just wakes up and thrashes around. I don't know what will help. Although I suffer DH suffers worse cos once she finally goes to sleep she sleeps till 10am but he has to get up and go to work at 7am or whatever it is. Last night she woke at 3.30 I took her into bed then but she woke DH at 4am. He finally couldn't sleep at 5.30 or so because she was thrashing so much and had to be at work at 8.

I kinda get that she is a baby and that this is what some babies do, and whilst I am ok because she slept till 10.45am this morning letting me catch up on all the missed night sleep. My DH hasn't slept well since he came home from the UK. Right now as he is trying to study for his exam in FEB next yr it is meaning that our whole family focus is on getting him thru his exam. I must say that I just wish it was over....I am so past it I have said to him on more than one occasion that we don't care if he is a senior house officer we just wish he wasn't studying so much. Anyway he really wants to finish what he started and I want to support my man, but I am thinking maybe I have to go and sleep in Jemima's room just to make sure he doesn't get to interrupted by her frequent night wakings. I have lost all hope as to what to do atm.. I have a regular night ritual with her and music playing and still for the last 3 weeks she has woken regularly in the night too keep me up for hours. I cried on my next door neighbour today cos I was so tired. How embarrassing!!:redface: Oh well Frank my next door neighbour is pretty understanding but still. I am worried. I don't want to sleep apart frm my hubby but my baby is keeping us both up at nights. I cope well with the frequent night nursings it is just the night wakings that kill me.... being awake for 2 hours from 4 am is not ok as far as I am concerned... I feel for you [COLOR="rgb(255, 0, 255)"]Naomi[/COLOR] if that is what you are coping with!!!

Other than all my whinges Jemima is going ahead with leaps and bounds!!!! She says "Ello" into my phone and "bye bye" with waving. She also says "puppies" "babies" and of course mummy and daddy. Her favorite at the moment is "tish" which means finished which we say as we sign the word finish to her. She will use it to say she has had enough of her bath or food or anything really. VERY clever I think:) Yesterday we went to a BBQ, and she is so socially interactive that she had 3 of the doctors that DH works with dancing with her on the dance florr as she did pieroettes on the dance floor. It was hilarious seeing full grown men bending to the whim of a tiny baby girl. I must say it made her daddy consider shooting classes for when she was 16.... LOL

ANYway sorry for a selfish rant. Things have been going well with BabyMammas. Selling lots or wraps to people. Not trying heaps because I like ppl to just have a relaxed approach and not be pressured but I have put up heaps of new colours lately which are selling really well.

Anyway I must off to bed.

Hope you are all well, love lots Bella

MWAH! xxxxxx

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being awake for 2 hours from 4 am is not ok as far as I am concerned... I feel for you Naomi if that is what you are coping with!!!

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Fortunately our 4am wake-ups seem to have settled down a bit - in the last few days while Baileys been sick he's slept to about 6-7am, hoping it stays this way :) But I feel your pain Bella, being up all night just sucks, and I always feel like wreck for days after. Baileys sleep was better before he turned 1. He used to sleep from 630pm through to 2 or 3, then resettle pretty quick and sleep until 7am-ish. For a few months now he wakes at 11pm-ish, then a few hours later and inevitibly spends a fair chunk of the night in our bed - otherwise we are up and down constantly. Sometimes he is restless only an hour or so after bed time. Oh well, not much we can do - that's they way he is. :doh:

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I was always told ear infections, aren't contagious so if CJ has been ok in herself is fine to take her out. You might be surprised at how quickly the AB's cheer Bailey up.

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Thanks Vic, the Dr said the same about it not being contagious, but it was a cold, wet and blustery day and the party was outside (although undercover) so we decided to stay in the warmth, and seeing as he was a runny nose etc didn't want the other Mum's to bag me for sharing snot germs LOL

Re your weird sickness - maybe its your body adjusting to AF returning? When I went back on the full pill I started getting migraines, but when I changed back to the mini pill it seems to calm down. Hope you are feeling better soon :)

Hey chicks.
So sorry to hear of the illnesses and night wakings! I understand as it has been a similar story here. I have actually decided to night-wean Phoebe - I am far too selfish for this gig now. She was very peeved on the first night and it took about 2 hours for her to go back to sleep, even with me cuddling and patting her. And she cried a lot. I just can't think of what else to do as she won't sleep in my bed, she just cries and wants to be held and rocked. When I was feeding her, she'd have a feed for about 45 minutes, then go back to bed and 20 minutes later she'd wake again and want another feed! It was killing me. So after that first night it has gotten better, she is getting used to me settling her in her cot and I hope we can sort through it soon. It is already better, although I feel more tired because I have started to catch up on a long time's worth of sleep! I am doing it now because DH is away so I'm not sleeping well anyway - what's an hour or two here and there settling a small girl?
Bella: Had to LOL @ the thought of all those grown men dancing around Jemima! Very cute!
Vic: Sorry to hear you have been crook - re the gastro thing, the girls had a bug that was very on-again off-again... it was very weird indeed. Hope you are better soon. (And hey cool for getting this far before AF returned! Woo hoo for that!)
Nay: I haven't seen your vid, but I can just imagine Bailz scooting around with his walker. SO pleased that CC is going well for you!
We went to Max Brenner for my birthday... not sure if there is one in the city. The actual store we went to is a long way out from the city though. There is a shop called "The Chocolate Room" in Parramatta (Sydney's other city out west) where we went with some BB girls on a meet-up for desert. It was AMAZING! There were about 50 different hot chocolate flavours to choose from!
KL: That playgroup sounds great. I am glad you and Kyson are enjoying it. Hope your DSS is better? 5 weeks is SUCH a long time to be off school. Hope things are better around your place soon.
Catherine: WB and congrats on the pregnancy and impending birth! I wonder how quickly this one will arrive? Looking forward to reading your BA.

I am getting really tired of Phoebe's cranky behaviour. She chucks the BIGGEST tanties and is rarely happy to play independently. I think she is tired but I cannot get her to sleep for longer than 2.5 hours per day, and generally it is more like 1 nap of 1.5 hours. It is draining not knowing what to do for her - I just have to carry her around and not get anything done.

Anyway, looks like it's bathtime and the wailer has started up again so off I go.

Lots of love, girlies. xxx

I just wrote a post and lost it!!!! Will write another one soon.

:wall:

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I just wrote a post and lost it!!!! Will write another one soon.

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Oh I HATE it when that happens, it takes me a while to get motivated to write it up again!! I feel your pain!

Ok motivation back.

I have been MIA a while because wanted to come back and post with good news on the job front - well looks like I have a four month contract with my old company starting on Monday!!!!! Hooray - I was getting depressed with job hunting and the fact that because DH had already gone part time we were down to 1/4 income of what we had before CJ. I am looking forward to it I think - ask me at the end of next week! I am over my sickness no idea what it was at all, I decided to come of the mini-pill because although had avoided AF till recently had had bizarre spotting so decided would like to just go back to nothing and see what body does (no TTC though need cash first - ;-()

Amy - Hope Phoebe gets less cranky soon, CJ definitely demands more attention these days, normally demanding one of her night garden books be read to her, or Each Peach Pear Plum is the other favorite of the moment.

Naomi - Thanks for the info about shoes etc for brace babes, I asked podiatrist and as CJ has only just started standing and trying to walk he said to take a photo each month and check feet are turning in, if not sure to send him the pics and he will tell us and assist with shoe buying.

CatherineL - Congrats on pregnancy

Jess - Welcome Back

Nicky - Glad Lachie's party went ok and hope weather is good for your DH race thing on weekend

BG - Eeew at E eating a snail! CJ is a real guzzle guts so if we had a garden wouldn't surprise me if she did something like that. Her appetite at the moment really amazes me.

Hi to everyone else.

Hey again,
Sorry was a bit negative last post... My moods are quite transparent, LOL.
WOOOOHOOOOO @ the job Vic!! Congratulations :thumbsup:
Thanks for the understanding re Phoebe's cranks. I am often in a crank myself which of course doesn't help. (Like the other night.) Wonderful that CJ enjoys books! We have had some very special times reading with Natalie, and even now she loves having books read to her... and she "reads" to her toys and to Chippy the chipmunk on my iPhone, LOL! I hope it is something she continues to enjoy through school - I didn't enjoy reading in school and I think I missed out on a lot.

Phoebe slept through last night, if you don't count her waking at 9pm after I transferred her to bed from the car (we'd been at my parents'). I went in and gave her a cuddle and popped her back down ready to pat, pick up again, pat etc and she just sighed and went back to sleep! OMG! It may never happen that easily again but I hope we are turning a corner.
The girls are playing more like sisters these days. Still mostly independently, but there are some lovely share-y moments and some almighty squabbles as well. It is fascinating to watch.
Phoebe loves television! And she is so fast on our stairs now - she has an interesting style! She walks up on hands and feet but when she comes back down she slides down feet first on her belly, LOL! It is hillarious.
Anyhoo, my mum is arriving soon so I'd best get myself organised to go. xx

Congrats on the new job Vic! That's excellent news!

Hi everyone. Been scarce because we're STILL sick. I was nearly at 100% for 2 dys then BAM. Now I've got blocked ears, sore throat, runny nose, headaches and a cough... joy joy joy.
We've got hubs and FIL's race drive tomorrow and we find out at 7am if it's still go. I think it will be.
The kids haven't been well either, so we are going to rug them up big time for tomorrow.

Ok well, dinner time. TTYS.

yay for the job Vic!!

sorry i haven't been posting much. between work, keeping the house organised, E's teething sleep refusal and me being unwell (and still not knowing why) it's been a full on couple of weeks. Next week i'm working five days (gulp!) but at the end of the week i should be fully retrained in MY job, so work won't seem to bad. i'm reconnecting with friends that i lost contact with due to family issues (mutual friends - i didn't want them hurt by being in the middle so i pulled away kwim?) - 4 years and lots of emotional stuff to catch up on.

Hooray for iPhones and the ability to post one handed. CJ is sick and sleeping across me, is typical with me starting work tomorrow DH will take day off if necessary. We never made it to aquarium on Friday she looked too sad when we got into the city. She had a high temp 40 on Friday evening and yesterday was 39 But she slept very fitfully in our bed last night this morning temp was 37.5 so seems to be improving although would not eat much lunch today. Fingers crossed she sleeps well today and is ok tomorrow - why this week!

Poor little CJ - she has an ear infection and hand, foot and mouth virus!!! DH took to docs as I was at work (first day) - she has the little blisters from the virus in her mouth poor thing. Anyway hopefully she is already getting over it as should only last about 6 days and it started late Thursday I reckon looking back, she has antibiotics for ear infection but they can't give anything for the virus. Work was fine, DH did the hard yards with CJ today as she just goes into hysterics at the slightest thing probably because she is ill, past two nights I have had to go to bed with her at 7:30 to get her to settle, tonight so far so good in her own cot (now I am thinking maybe prefer her in with me so am close to make sure she is ok!) - I am going to go to bed in a minute to try and catch up on the Zzzzzzs - was ok at work today but five days on not much sleep I think would struggle. Hope everyone else is good.

Vic - Glad you survived your return to work, and hoping that CJ recovers quickly for you, poor little munchkin.

Nay
x