Weekly Chat 12/13-12/19 - Page 3

[Faerieshadow]

Rae, sorry to hear you've got rotavirus in your house, no fun!!!

Jenn, sounds like a wonderful mini=vacation! Gorgeous pictures, and even if the FB people are ridiculous about it, I think that nursing pic is great.

Tara, love the dress, you look terrific.

Carrie, glad you got your purse back!

Am I missing anything? I've already forgotten.

AAM: One more final to go and I get a month off. : I can't wait, I'll finally be able to focus on Christmas presents for the family. I had a great visit with my dad, things are getting back to normal now. DS had his first Christmas program at school last week and it was so cute. We took some pictures before we left because I'm trying to make a Christmas card. But my dumb computer has issues with javascript and I can't order it through any company, and I don't want to take my card into the store to do it because I've got nude preggo pics on there that the world doesn't need to see. So, because it doesn't look like I'll be able to send them out to anyone, I'm going to post them here.

family shot
the kids
silly girl
DH and I

Yes, we have no tree topper yet. And little miss Elina refused to smile until the second that dress came off and then she was all smiles and coos. Go figure.

[sonshine_rae]

lovely ... it seems it's my turn now to have Mastitis.... must we always have at least one or two in our DDC with mastitis????

I feel soooo yucky, Nathaniel is such a mess from his illness (melting down every few minutes)..... Ian is just being a 2 yr old..... and Samuel thankfully is being a good baby lol.. though sleeping more then might be helpful for my boob issues (of course).

And of course this has to be the day that DH has extra meetings and one is over lunch so we won't get to see him all day... aka no extra help at lunch time (he works very close to home and usually comes home to eat with us/help out a little mid-day).

*whine.....* Sometimes being 'Mommy' isn't fair... you have to keep going when you are yucky ill..... sigh

[mamanurse]

Originally Posted by Faerieshadow

family shot
the kids
silly girl
DH and I

Yes, we have no tree topper yet. And little miss Elina refused to smile until the second that dress came off and then she was all smiles and coos. Go figure.

This Jew didn't notice the lack of a tree topper. I only saw a beautiful family in front of a Christmas tree

[mamanurse]

Originally Posted by sonshine_rae

lovely ... it seems it's my turn now to have Mastitis.... must we always have at least one or two in our DDC with mastitis????

I feel soooo yucky, Nathaniel is such a mess from his illness (melting down every few minutes)..... Ian is just being a 2 yr old..... and Samuel thankfully is being a good baby lol.. though sleeping more then might be helpful for my boob issues (of course).

And of course this has to be the day that DH has extra meetings and one is over lunch so we won't get to see him all day... aka no extra help at lunch time (he works very close to home and usually comes home to eat with us/help out a little mid-day).

*whine.....* Sometimes being 'Mommy' isn't fair... you have to keep going when you are yucky ill..... sigh

Being mommy REALLY isn't fair sometimes. I know when my hubby's sick he holes up in our room and hides. He doesn't have to deal with the kids or the usual household stuff. When I'm sick, somehow, I still have to deal with the kids all day and then *maybe* I might get a break when he gets home from work or he *possibly* brings home something to eat so I don't have to cook dinner. I hope your boobies feel better soon and the pukies go far far away from your house Rae!

AAM: I got reemed by my MIL this morning for having a Star of David on top of our Christmas tree. I was under the impression it was a snowflake, but she informed me it looked more like an SOD since it has 6 points. She demanded that we take it down and I refused. Such a stupid thing for her to get pissy about.

Olivia's getting her flu booster today. She had her first last month and apparently since she has never had it before she has to have a booster. We normally don't do flu shots in our household (even me for work), but I REALLY didn't want Hazel to get the flu and it will be all over the hospital I work in when I go back from maternity leave. We're going to go out to lunch at a nearby kid-friendly place that has a nice play area. Should be fun.

Dh and I DTD last night and it was pretty good. Hazel was asleep in her swing in the living room. One thing I'd forgotten, though, was what fountains my bewbies turn into. I couldn't believe the wet spots on each side of my chest. We'll have to lay a towel up top next time

Big OVERSHARE, I know. I can't be the only one with this milk fountain thing though.

[Baby_Cakes]

Rae, Poke root! I could not believe how fast it worked.

I'm so sorry you're dealing with illnesses. You're right that we all seem to be taking turns!

AAM - slight threadjack here, dealing with my girlfriend who is having the destination wedding again. Sorry to bore you all with this - scroll down if you can't be bothered, lol. OK, so. I talked to her. I told her that Dec 29th was going to be a very hard time for us to make a trip to the DR, that it was b/w two very important family holidays, that we'd have to rush back to get home by New Years, and that it was probably the most expensive time of year to fly.

1. She didn't understand why we had to be back before New Years. I had to explain to her that now with a baby, there are Aunts, Uncles, GRANDPARENTS that want to be around for these things. Also that it wasn't just any New Years, it was her first. AND I explained that flying out the day after Christmas was going to be very difficult b/c it's a very busy travel day for anyone, and even tougher with a 1 year old - and not a cheap day to fly, either.

2. She was disappointed that I could not commit to being her matron of honor. Even so, I explained that I still wanted to be part of the planning and if the date changed I would still LOVE to be in her wedding. She said there wasn't much planning to do b/c the resort really takes care of everything, anyway. So I knew she was pissed that I was backing out.

3. This is the doozie. She explained that she didn't think planning this wedding over the holidays was a big deal b/c her entire family was going to be together.

I have so many problems with that last one. I asked her if she was inviting many other friends other than family, and didn't she think they might want to be with their families over the holidays?? She mentioned a few other friends she was going to invite and I think finally started thinking about the fact that many people might have a hard time going to this wedding that time of year.

THEN she says that the only other time she has a break is either March or April. Wait a minute. She's a TEACHER. Doesn't she have the WHOLE SUMMER OFF???

I'm just baffled by this whole situation. I'm completely confused by her behavior and lack of consideration for anyone besides herself. I mean, WTF?

Then she tells me that her fiance's sister has also just gotten engaged and now she feels there's a competition to get married first b/c she (my friend) got engaged first. So now I feel like she's just rushing this wedding so that she gets done first! I told her I didn't feel like that was a good reason to rush her wedding and plan it for a day when so many people, myself included, might not be able to make it. Because, really, what's the point of having a wedding if your closest friends cannot attend?

I'm just so baffled by all of this, I personally can't believe she's acting this way. I mean, she really wants to get married but she waited almost 6 years to get engaged and now this? It's a bunch of BS, YKWIM?

And now I have to get her a Christmas gift! LOL! Wish I could buy her a clue.

[TaraRae82]

Originally Posted by Baby_Cakes

OMG you guys, there is a September 2009 DDC! Holy crap.

Well, duh....we got pg in Jan silly lady! I know...it's hard to believe it's been almost a year since we all saw those 2 beautiful lines!

[mamanurse]

Originally Posted by Baby_Cakes

And now I have to get her a Christmas gift! LOL! Wish I could buy her a clue.

laughup

[TaraRae82]

Oh, can I brag for a minute without anyone wanting to kill me? I bought a size 6 jean to get me through PP until my normal size 2 jeans fit. Well, they started falling off of me at about 5wks PP and last week (9wk PP) I was meeting a friend for lunch and shopping and decided I was tired of pulling them up so I tried on my pre-pg jeans and TA-TA's!...they fit! HOORAY!

ETA:

OMG!!! Ally Rae is sleeping in her swing! YES! I feel good that she feels so secure knowing I'm here and I've responded to all of her needs that now she can sleep a little on her own. Although, it's also a little sad that maybe she doesn't need her Mommy to sleep anymore.

[Amber Lion]

Originally Posted by TaraRae82

Although, it's also a little sad that maybe she doesn't need her Mommy to sleep anymore.

I know what you mean. I was telling Dh how guilty I feel when I need to put Addie in her swing and how I only do it when I absolutely have to... and he scoffed and said, "Look at her! She LOVES her swing!" and I realized that yeah, she was having a great time in it... without me. :

Carrie - I don't understand how anyone could choose to have a destination wedding, at any time of year, and then get miffed that someone they wanted to be in the wedding couldn't make it. I mean, not everyone can afford to fly to DR for someone else's wedding! And of course other people not related to her have their OWN families they want to see for the holidays! Dude, that friend has lost her marbles!

Jenn - I really don't know about fountains... but my milk does generally flow when dtd... it's just that *someone* is usually enjoying it at the time! Ha! MY turn to overshare!!!

Rae - sorry you've got illnesses at your house! I was just recently indoctrinated into the "Being Mommy isn't fair" club when I had a cold just a little bit ago. It royally sucked! Hope you're feeling better soon!

Faerieshadow - your family is so gorgeous!!!

AAM: Well, I walked to the bank today with Addie in the wrap and almost ate it a couple times b/c of the ice! I hadn't even thought about that and so it took me forever to walk really, really carefully. I just had all these terrible images of me falling on top of Addie and her getting hurt. It sure was beautiful with all the snow though; I live on the edge of a big city park that I walk thru to get to the bank and the creek was all ice fringed and the trees and pathways covered in a white blanket. I'm from Central California - snow is still such a novelty to me.

So Dh is going to be gone this weekend like I said, but it looks like he'll have Xmas week off of work! Which is awesome in terms of getting to spend time with him and terrible in terms of he was going to make our rent money that week! Don't know what we'll do, but I'm sure we'll make it work somehow. It's not like we wouldn't still have to pay all our bills if Addie wasn't here, but somehow it makes it all a bit more stressful having her here. (Although, I guess I'd still be working, but I was hardly bringing in anything to speak about)

I may have done a bad thing. I agreed to back up my doula for a birth coming up asap. : I didn't really want to, but the pg woman is a friend of ours, she's desperate, and my doula already has 2 clients due right now. So, hopefully they'll all give birth at different times and it won't be an issue, but if it comes down to it me, Addie, and a newbie doula will be at this woman's birth. I've no idea how I can be effective with Addie there... but I guess I can just give the newbie doula advice and have her do all the hands on work. I'm kind of excited to see/help at a birth since now I've gone through it myself, but I really didn't expect to get back in the swing of things so soon!

[mamanurse]

Originally Posted by TaraRae82

Oh, can I brag for a minute without anyone wanting to kill me? I bought a size 6 jean to get me through PP until my normal size 2 jeans fit. Well, they started falling off of me at about 5wks PP and last week (9wk PP) I was meeting a friend for lunch and shopping and decided I was tired of pulling them up so I tried on my pre-pg jeans and TA-TA's!...they fit! HOORAY!

ETA:

OMG!!! Ally Rae is sleeping in her swing! YES! I feel good that she feels so secure knowing I'm here and I've responded to all of her needs that now she can sleep a little on her own. Although, it's also a little sad that maybe she doesn't need her Mommy to sleep anymore.

I don't want to kill you, but I'd kill for your body

I kinda KWYM about baby not needing you to sleep. Hazel only slept on or with me the first 4 weeks and now she only sleeps on me when we're otta the house. I sorta miss it, but do admit that I enjoy having the ability to sleep and do chores without a baby on me.

Originally Posted by Amber Lion

Well, I walked to the bank today with Addie in the wrap and almost ate it a couple times b/c of the ice! I hadn't even thought about that and so it took me forever to walk really, really carefully. I just had all these terrible images of me falling on top of Addie and her getting hurt. It sure was beautiful with all the snow though; I live on the edge of a big city park that I walk thru to get to the bank and the creek was all ice fringed and the trees and pathways covered in a white blanket. I'm from Central California - snow is still such a novelty to me.

Are you in Ashland or Medford? For some reason S OR sounds familiar to me. We got snow and ice in Portland, but I lived in MN for 5 years and am not fazed by it. I wish you lived close

[Baby_Cakes]

Originally Posted by TaraRae82

OMG!!! Ally Rae is sleeping in her swing! YES! I feel good that she feels so secure knowing I'm here and I've responded to all of her needs that now she can sleep a little on her own. Although, it's also a little sad that maybe she doesn't need her Mommy to sleep anymore.

I know how you feel. Sometimes when Nora is asleep, I just want to scoop her up and nap with her in this real almost psycho "Don't you want to sleep on me????" sort of mood. I'm going to be a mess when she goes to kindergarten.

Originally Posted by mamanurse

I don't want to kill you, but I'd kill for your body

:
I truly admire your discipline, b/c I know that is why you are now a size 2. I am a 12 b/c I lack discipline! I cannot WAIT to be back in my pre-preg pants. Shirts - eh, I can live with huge bewbies. It's these hips I cannot stand!

I'm baking cookies for DH's holiday party and I drank a glass of wine to mellow out. Hooh boy, am I mellow. A tad punchy, really. I'm just glad he's got the baby and I'm in the kitchen baking cookies, if you know what I mean.

[sonshine_rae]

Tara I long for your discipline to exercise LOL!..... I'm in a size 16.. instead of a 10.... bah.... at this point I'd be happy to get down to a 12 even. That's really neat that you are back in your regular pants already !

[audsma]

A new milestone!

nak
In regards to babies sleeping by themselves, Em, Carrie, and Tara (sorry if I missed someone): I think we're going the other way here. Bryson needs me more now to sleep. He was fine being put down for the first month. Now he needs to be worn, or has a limited nap span. Lucky me w/ an energetic 5 y.o. who wakes him all. the. time. or his love of body heat. (I know, hot water bottle.) Still, I'm loving it as I felt so much guilt and frazzled from the lost sleep in the weeks we weren't cosleeping. Plus, I'm getting lots more "me" time to read while I nurse him down.

I like what Em said:

Carrie - I don't understand how anyone could choose to have a destination wedding, at any time of year, and then get miffed that someone they wanted to be in the wedding couldn't make it. I mean, not everyone can afford to fly to DR for someone else's wedding! And of course other people not related to her have their OWN families they want to see for the holidays! Dude, that friend has lost her marbles!

My sentiments exactly.

AAM: I had lunch with a former student yesterday, thanks to my new Facebook membership, and found out that I have a babysitter in town for when I want to have "hands free" as she put it. I am thrilled. This woman, who I taught 7 years ago, and attended her wedding (on Petri's birthdate, Maryann) has moved back into town and I am thrilled to have her here. She came in to my classroom 6 years ago to cajole me into having a baby, and I had to bite my tongue from telling her too soon that I was pg with DD. She was Audrey's first babysitter, and got me through some tough moments with her ease of wisdom-- you gotta love the 18 year olds who are such confident old souls. Now, she's a NICU nurse and really intrigued by attachment parenting, interrogated me on cloth diapers, and might be my ticket to yoga 1 or 2 days a week! Love it. And, you mamas made that reconnection possible! (I know I would have seen her around town eventually, but I found her now, and I'm thrilled.)

And, might I just say :!

Let me just get sappy for a moment. I want to thank you ladies for all of the support you have given me and each other since I joined you in February. I feel like such a more competent mother now than I did with DD as an infant. You have made me laugh on days when I needed to. You have made me realize that I'm not alone when I felt so alone IRL. You have provided reality checks and wisdom beyond compare. I drew on your strength to birth my babe vaginally, giving all of us the best possible start to this family of four. And, as a bonus, you reconnected me with people in my life through the peer pressure to join Facebook (not just my former students, but people to whom I've not spoken in 20 years, too). I am forever grateful for the many gifts you have given me, and I am so pleased to share post 1,000 with you all.

[Orionbelt]

OK...someone shoot me...not only am I crazy busy with a newborn, a 21 month old and my three year old but now I am trying to potty train my oldest. I so don't have time for this but it needs to get done as she just turned three last week. Wish me luck and any advise would be appreciated!

[heidirk]

Originally Posted by Baby_Cakes

2 drops of the poke root tincture cleared up my sore boob in one day! No joke! I highly recommend it!

teeheee. . . i'm sorry Carrie, but i have to laugh b/c i'm the one who recommended it to you in th first place!

i'm so glad it worked for you! I had to take it for three days this time bafore the sore spots went away! I was taking three drops, twice a day, so it must have been a bad one! several times, it's cured the hot spot in one dose tho'.
I'm sooooo glad i have that stuff!



ok, off to readthe rest of the thread now!

[neveryoumindthere]

DD1 was 2 1/2 when we really started working on it. What worked for us was letting her run around without undies on for a few days. The feeling of having something on always led to an accident. Also, when I decided to really commit to potty training, I gave her a huge full Gatorade bottle (1/2 gatorade, 1/2 water) to drink throughout the day so as to provide MANY potty opportunities

And as an aside, although it seems daunting at first, we EC'd the next one pretty much from birth. My experience with potty training was so awful with DD1 that I started reading up on EC before my 2nd was born and I started with her at 9 days old. By 15 months she was totally using the potty on her own. By about 6 months she would 'sign' to me that she needed to pee. It was/is awesome. Even now, my 3 yo has better bladder control than my 5 yo, fwiw.

I'm having a harder time reading ds' signs this time around, but I'm still taking him to the potty occassionally so he doesn't get used to just going in the diaper.

HTH

[Baby_Cakes]

Originally Posted by heidirk

teeheee. . . i'm sorry Carrie, but i have to laugh b/c i'm the one who recommended it to you in th first place!

i'm so glad it worked for you! I had to take it for three days this time bafore the sore spots went away! I was taking three drops, twice a day, so it must have been a bad one! several times, it's cured the hot spot in one dose tho'.
I'm sooooo glad i have that stuff!

Oh, you did? Haha! Well, it really does work so it can't hurt to repeat it! In case anyone missed it the first time!

So...any tips for helping me and Nora get up before 11 am? We just cannot seem to do it. She still doesn't go down until 1 (at the earliest), and I NEED to get on a better schedule. Work starts back up in just a few short days and this is going to kill me. I mean, we do all the typical winding down things starting at about 9:30 pm, and she might sleep from 10 or so until midnight - but then she's up again not wanting to sleep until 1:30 or 2. But then she wakes to eat only once (around 4 or 5) before 8 am. The problem is that I cannot get myself up at 8 am when she eats. If I could do that then I think it would work but I am so far off in la la land that I would literally need toothpicks to keep my eyes open.

So, then she wants to sleep till 11 or 12 noon! Like right now, she is sound alseep next to me. And I know she needs her sleep otherwise she wouldn't be sleeping, so I'm not just going to wake her up earlier.

Any advice?

[Baby_Cakes]

Originally Posted by audsma

Let me just get sappy for a moment. I want to thank you ladies for all of the support you have given me and each other since I joined you in February. I feel like such a more competent mother now than I did with DD as an infant. You have made me laugh on days when I needed to. You have made me realize that I'm not alone when I felt so alone IRL. You have provided reality checks and wisdom beyond compare. I drew on your strength to birth my babe vaginally, giving all of us the best possible start to this family of four. And, as a bonus, you reconnected me with people in my life through the peer pressure to join Facebook (not just my former students, but people to whom I've not spoken in 20 years, too). I am forever grateful for the many gifts you have given me, and I am so pleased to share post 1,000 with you all.

Awww! :

This group definitely helped me make every decision I have made so far as well. From the decision to homebirth, to the wonderful bf'ing support, and now the pp support - words cannot explain how grateful I am for the friends I've made as well.

[heidirk]

audsma- and everone else, too. . . I've appreciated having you all to talk too. DH has even noticedhow much happier i am and is glad i ave ya'll.


no advice on PL ing, sorry!

carrie-actuslly, i'd start trying to get her up 1/2 hour earlier very two days or so, then she should be ready to settle earlier after about a week of that. that's what worked for ds1. hth


sorry, one armed typist here.

[TaraRae82]

I agree audsma. You're very sweet to get all sappy. This group has been SO crucial to me and I'm truly blessed to have you all.

Well, after the great day we had yesterday with Ally's sleeping on her own and everything, she refused to sleep last night. She fell asleep at about 1am and then was wide awake at 1:45 and didn't go back to sleep until 3am. SHEESH. And we're back to her not napping unless she's being worn. Oh well. One day at a time.

I need to rant for a min (not about DH, can you believe that?!). Feel free to skip over this.

Ally Rae's insurance application was denied because we declined the PKU and they require it to underwrite even though they admitted it's well within our parental rights to decline. So, now, we have to have the test done and pay OOP and submit the results OR, run the risk of really needing the insurance and wait until DH can add her to his group plan next Sept. I need to take her in to see her dr anyway about her belly button (not healed and still looks odd) so we're going to have the PKU done then and pay OOP. This totally sucks. I feel like we're being punished for making a decision that was within our rights as parents. I know the test isn't a big deal, it just makes me mad on principle. *sigh*

/rant over; Please return to your regularly scheduled MDC'ing.