[ChantelM]

Runnybabbit - I just looked up the Thermomix and it looks awesome! Do you mind if I ask how much it costs?

[runnybabbit]

Oh Chantel, it costs waaaaaay too much. We paid $1939. The price hasn't come down with the A$ improving, so I think Thermomix Australia (sole distributor) is making a BUNDLE. :/

You can get it off eBay from Europe for a couple hundred cheaper, but we figured it wasn't worth it with potential warranty issues and stuff.

The irritating thing is being unable to get it in stores. If you could, I'm sure it'd be a lot cheaper. Recently there was a very new group buying site (like Scoopon or Groupon) claiming to sell Thermomixes for $999. It remains to be seen whether the offer was legit or a scam.

Having said that, we had freshly cooked risotto for lunch, soup and freshly baked rolls for dinner last night, and tonight we had a starter of garlic prawns and then freshly baked naan with dahl.

I am really loving the freshly baked breads, and I'm already seeing a big change in the way I shop -- nothing in jars or bottles, it's all fresh food and grains, flour, etc. So I think in the long run we'll be better for it, for sure. The $$ just hurts, though! But it's really nice having homemade stocks and breads. I love my Thermie already, but I'm not a fan of Head Office's monopoly on Thermomix in Australia.

I think mands has one, too. And she's much less of a TMX newbie than me!

But hey, go onto the Recipes subforum, there's a TMX buddies thread, and the ladies there are happy to chat to people thinking of buying TMXes. When you get a home demo I am pretty sure it is obligation free as well. Okay I will shut up about the TMX for now.

au lit WOW, look at those teeth! Love the cheeky smile, he looks like he could be such a monkey.

mands I know what you mean about not knowing a lot of people. I am generally an introvert so I am happy with my DH and my close friends, who are unfortunately scattered all over the globe (Singapore, Boston, Sydney). I kind of miss having a geographically desirable kindred spirit!

AFM my MIL arrived two nights ago and I have missed her, I love my MIL. We've had some nice brunches and coffees already, and Nathan is lapping up the additional attention.

We've been trialling a dreamfeed of a massive amount of EBM, as much as he'll take, up to 180 ml, and twice in a week Nathan slept through. And then yesterday Nathan broke my Ameda double electric pump. It was my fault for leaving it on the sofa, he pulled it off and it hit the floor with a thud. And it is dead. Just bought another one, goodbye $250.

Another sucky thing that happened: we got an inflatable splash pool from ELC, and today Nathan was out the back in it. I was taking photos of him, and he started leaning out to get a ball that he'd thrown out. I could see he was about to smack his head on the pavers, so I immediately went to grab him. And the Canon SLR was slung around my neck. The camera swung forward and SMACKED him in the head. So he ended up in tears and has a GIANT egg on his forehead, thankfully hidden by his hair. (The camera is fine.) But I felt so awful. Poor Nathan, it sucks for him to have such a clumsy mum.

Okay that is all for now, I've eaten so much naan and dahl and I haven't been able to break out of my post-prandial stupor for the last 20 minutes, hence this long post. I feel able to go upstairs and have a shower now.

Edited for sense.

This post has been edited by runnybabbit: 12/04/2012, 09:03 PM

[ogglyn]

Mands - happy birthday to Lachie for yesterday I really like your party menu, am probably going to do a copy of it for R's party! We will probably have the same number of people. The only thing is I don't think I would trust my cooking skills to make a good roast, so we'll BBQ.

I've been thinking about making this cake ( http://www.taste.com.au/recipes/19063/peach+yoghurt+slice ). I made the slice a few weeks ago and couldn't stop eating it. R loved it, too. So I'm thinking of making it with peaches, pears and strawberries, in a round cake pan and decorate it with fruit on top. Thinking of doing a clown face on top because R gets the giggles if he sees a clown The only thing is I think the original recipe is a bit too sweet so might play with it a bit before the day. We might end up having his party 1.5 weeks after his bday because we have another couple of bday parties in early may...

Not much else happening here. R is getting more and more mischievous.

One of his favourite things at the moment is the $20 Ikea tunnel.

[ChantelM]

Thanks Runnybabbit - It looks amazing. Not sure I could convince my DH that it is worth that much though
Oh no, poor Nathan, don't you just hate when you do something clumsy. They are so quick now though. Axel fell out of our back door a couple of weeks ago! Woops! Thank god it was only a step, no damage done. Made me feel bad though!

AFU - Axel has come down with some sort of bug. I heard him cry a little about 9:30pm last night and then he stopped. I had a feeling something wasn't right, I went to check him and he had thrown up everywhere! Then today I managed to get him to eat a piece of toast at breakfast but he refused food for the rest of the day, he didn't even really want his bottles. I managed to get him to drink them though, I just worry about dehydration. He has slept so much today. Hopefully he is feeling better tomorrow, we are supposed to have a play date at Lollipop Playland, it will be his first time

[purple_daisy]

Hi ladies how are you all? I guess we are all pretty busy with our active littlies at the moment since nobody has posted here in a week.

Chantel how is Axel now? Has he gotten over that bug?

DD has come down with a bad vomitting bug today too. She was a bit whiney after childcare yesterday but still ate her dinner and had a BF at night. This morning I went out leaving DH to have daddy time for a few hours with DD. I got home to a very frazzled DH, a withdrawn and unhappy DD and a house and car that smell of vomit Seems the first phase of projectile vomitting started when DH was putting her in the car after shopping, then he lay her in the boot to get her dirty clothes off and she let forth She basically didn't hold anything down from breakfast right through till 6pm when we got some hydralite into her. Such a stressful time when they are sick

Have a great night - oh and I saw an ad on tv that baby warehouse is offering big discounts for its "crazy sale". They aren't in my city but have several outlets and I think an online store so am going to check it out for car seats.

This post has been edited by purple_daisy: 21/04/2012, 07:45 PM

[ChantelM]

purple_daisy - Axel is doing ok now. He had the bug for 4 days! Vomiting and diarhoea (sp?). Poor little guy. He is doing much better now, still being rather clingy with me though, I think because he didn't want to leave my side when he was sick and slept on me etc, for the whole 4 days.

Well, Axel is 1 on Wednesday! I can't believe it. Time has gone so quickly. We have his 1st bday party on Saturday, there is about 60 ppl coming, should be a good day. I have hired a ball pit for the littlies so hopefully that will keep them occupied. My Mum is coming from QLD on Thursday night. I am so excited, I haven't seen her since early Feb.

I will have to check out the Baby Warehouse sale. We have one pretty close to home. I might wait until after his bday party though, I am sure he is going to get lots of pressies!

Hope everyone is doing well.

[runnybabbit]

Hi everyone! Nathan turns one tomorrow; we had his party yesterday and it was lovely. We made it a morning tea party and had nibbles and a sweets table, from 10 to 12 so that Nathan could still have his afternoon sleep and we didn't have people hanging around for too long.

It was really nice -- I'll have to post pics soon.

In the meantime my MIL and my parents are staying with us. I'd forgotten how crabby being in close proximity to my dad makes me! Grrr.

[ogglyn]

Runnybabbit - Happy 1st Birthday to Nathan

Purple daisy - how's your DD going? Hope she's starting to keep some food down again. When R had it, we had to give him tiny amounts (10-20ml) very often (5-10 minutes) until he started keeping it down more.

ETA:

ChantelM - happy birthday to Axel for tomorrow

AFM - I start work next week. Was hoping to have the house a lot more sorted than it is by the time I start work. Was also hoping to lose a bit more weight so I don't have to shop for clothes. I'm only about 4kg over what I was before both pregnancies, but it's taking me ages to lose weight and all my extra weight now is on my tummy so all my old clothes don't fit well. I've tried so many different styles on but nothing I've tried works for my current figure. ( except to make me look pregnant!) Very frustrating. If any of you have any tips for office work wear for post baby body, let me know

Robin has been making 2 to 3 steps between things for weeks now, and made 7 steps the other day, but other than that isn't really interested in walking. He's super fast at crawling. I've given in and put a gate to block off the kitchen. It's his favourite place to play, that and the shower/bathroom. He's emptied many drawers, been to the bin, started taking things from the pantry, and I was taking him back to the living room all the time, so enough's enough should've done it months ago. He's started to complete some of the songs we sing, and joins in when I read to him. I'll sing to him "and that brings us back to..." and he says " do do do do do" And we read "10 bears in a bed" and he loves to repeat "rollover" a bit like " rowowow".

I've given up trying to take him to crèche for now. He has pretty bad separation anxiety when i try to leave him there. Will probably try again in a few months as it's a fantastic service. And for the same reasons, we've employed MIL to look after him while I'm at work. He's really good with her, and vv. We'll probably try him at daycare again closer to 2yo.

This post has been edited by ogglyn: 24/04/2012, 09:53 PM

[au*lit]

Happy birthday to Nathan and Axel! I can't believe our babies are turning one already.

I hope that Charlotte and Axel are better now.

Chantel my mum and sisters all have a Thermomix. They all love them. My nieces (11 and 12) use them to bake and cook different things. I've also got a couple of friends who aren't really cooks and they love them because it makes things quicker and easier. That said, I can't justify the money for one right now.

Mands, gorgeous photo of Lachie, sounds like you went all out for the party. Did you take the photo on a black and white setting or did you add the effect afterwards? I've got a good camera now but don't know how to use half the functions

Ogglyn I think I'm pretty lucky with Henry. When he's going into a cupboard and I tell him 'no', he generally stops. But someone has to be there to see him to tell him no! He's allowed into the cupboard with the plastic containers and regularly empties it and spreads the contents around the floor. He's also got a basket of plastic bowls, plates, etc on a low shelf in the kitchen that is for him to play with.

He still isn't saying anything identifiable. He loves to point at things and say 'ba'. If I was a bit more excitable I probably would say he's saying 'mum', 'dada', 'bye' and 'hi', but he's just not saying them consistently in the right context.

He's also standing and doing a bit of cruising. Today my niece said he let go and stood for a second before falling - it's a first but I didn't actually see it so I don't quite believe it! Also trying to climb up and over everything (including stairs - eeek!).

AFU I've been having breastfeeding woes. I posted over on the breastfeeding forum today. Henry's teeth are really causing pain and suffering! He's not biting as such, but it's just that the teeth combined with a shallow latch mean that I end up with his teeth digging into me (complete with indentations) are really painful.

Anyway I am going to cut back on his feeds and try some advice on adjusting his latch (not that I'm confident about that ). I hope that we can keep going with fewer feeds because I don't feel ready to wean yet. But if the pain continues I will have to stop.

Anyway, hope you all are well!

[Small Potatoes]

Au*lit I am having the same problems with Lachie and here is some information I found

With an older baby, the weight of the baby can cause baby's mouth and teeth to "drag down" on the breast tissue. See if you can position baby so that her weight is supported well. Use pillows or a chair with arm rests to support her as much as you can. When she is nursing on the left side, bring her bottom in a little bit closer and vice versa. Don't let her nurse in a position that lets her weight and gravity cause her mouth to pull down on your breast and nipple. Try moving her body slightly in different ways (higher, lower, side to side, etc.) till the pressure on your breast is lessened.
Latch baby on and position her head so that it is tilted back more to get the pressure of the top teeth off your breast. For example, if baby is nursing in the cradle position on the left side, bring her body toward the right a bit. This will bring baby's chin up, with her head a bit cocked back, and that moves the pressure of baby's top teeth off the top of the nipple. Don't let her chin rest on her chest.
Some other ways to get baby's head tilted back more: ask your child to look at you while she nurses, or hold a book up high to read to your child and have her look at the book.
When you support your breast with 2-4 fingers underneath and thumb on top, push in against the chest wall with your index finger just before offering the breast. This will cause the nipple and areola to point down more, so that they don't rub against baby's upper teeth. This technique is often suggested for moms who have nipple soreness due to their nipples rubbing up against the roof of baby's mouth.
Ask baby to open WIDE and show her with your own mouth. Tell her that it hurts mommy and ask her to try again until it feels better.
A generous application of lanolin before and after feeding may be helpful, as will rinsing your nipples with cool water after feedings. When babies are teething they produce more saliva which can be irritating to nipple tissue. If baby is eating solids, sometimes food particles left in the mouth can also irritate nipple tissue, so it may help to rinse out baby's mouth or give baby a sip of water prior to nursing.
Any time you experience soreness, go back to the basics of latch just as you did in the early days.
It's also possible that some of the tenderness is a result of ovulation or an impending menstrual period. Many moms of older babies are more bothered with latch on and baby's teeth during these times.

I find that for me the rememdy is supporting his weight well so he doesn't pull down. Means I need to go back to using pillows.
I took the photo in colour and then converted to black and white in photoshop. I don't like the bw settings on the DSLR I have as it looks to flat, plus if I have a colour versions I can do any sort of adjustments.

Chantel a friend of mine who doesn't really cook, got a thermomix and is loving it.

Happy Birthday Axel

Ogglyn I am about 5kgs above all my pre Will weight and have the same problem. I went into hospital with cysts and the nurse thought I was pregnant as I have a belly but not much in the way of legs and a*se. No tips sorry - I like layering.
Runny Babbit

Happy Birthday Nathanl

I can't believe our babies are turning one!!!!! and my last baby is no longer a baby . Lachie had his one year check last week and is 25% for length, 50% for weight and off the chart for head circumfrence (all actual not adjusted). DH had a big head when he was a child and his Dad called him butter box head.
AFM I have done 3 peices of assessment for uni and have another one due at the end of next week. I have been going to monthly ACM (Australian College of Midwives) meetings and am just loving getting out and about and really enjoying my degree. The only thing I don't like is that I am part-time and in hindsight I could have coped with the full time work load, but never mind.