I'm here!! Will be back tomorrow for a long post and to read all the posts!!! My boys are 3 next week! Where did the time go?

LOL Jen, we all just forgot who you were .

Chaos here as usual and my computer is playing up which has curtailed my EB time .

The girls start kindy next week! They are very excited. Where did my babies go?

Nicole I have to wait till next year till my girls start kindy, I know what you mean about where did your babies go, I want to know where mine have gone

Rach Not long till your boys 3rd birthday, cant wait for the party!

Nothing much is going on here with us, the girls are doing well, we finally have Kasie's eczema under control, we found out she has eczema with ciriusis(sp) but after some exspensive cream she is looking normal!

Better keep moving.

Hi girls

Nicolie - What day do the girls start kindy? I would be so teary. Mine start preschool on Wed and I am upset considering them going one day a week.. yes I am a sook! Must say I am kinda looking forward to the peace for 6 hours! Did you get the job you went for?

Jen - YOur christmas break sounded great! I will be joining you on the study front and will be trying to not venture into too many EB forums. I want to stick to only a few.. Lets see how I go. I can get lost in WDYT, Misc & Venting for hours.. Not to mention hot specials - but that is the shopaholic in me! How are the boys going with daycare being in separate rooms?

Maree - It sounds like you had a great Christmas! I laughed at the comments on driving v flying!

Melinda - I can't believe your two are 2! How time flies! Welcome to our little (slack) group! The pics are great!

Well its my boys birthday tomorrow and they will be 3! I can't believe it! We are having a quiet day today in anticipation for the weeks events! Tomorrow we are having morning tea / lunch with friends at a cafe, dinner with Grandparents and Aunt/Uncle, WEd is first day of preschool, Thursday is shopping day, Friday MIL arrives ), Saturday will be entertaining MIL, Sunday is party, and Monday MIL leaves . MIL is ok actually but she drinks a bit TOO much and is Irish so I can't understand a word she says - especially when she is p*ssed which is a lot of the time. She adores the kids and DH so that is all that matters (and strangely she thinks I'm a wonderful DIL).

Okey better go and do a few things while Playschool is entertaining the monkeys. Bye!

ETA - took out some emoticons - were way too many!

Just bumping this up..

Well the boys had a great birthday. They were very spoilt. We have their party on Sunday afternoon - just an afternoon tea, which should be fun.

Not much else going on. Just getting organised for uni to start - which is on the 18th Feb.

Anyhow better go.. need to do some housework and start organising dinner because we are having a leg of lamb and roast vegies.

Hi all

We've all been busy, obviously, if the lack of posting in this thread is any indication!

Just a quick post from me to say hi - we are still here. Things are going well for us except Eleanor is very tired lately and having some disturbed sleep - which means we all are. We have an appointment at the ENT on Monday to check her tonsils (they are enlarged) as there's some concern that her breathing and sleep are obstructed, hence the tiredness. It's causing some going to sleep issues as Harriet isn't as tired but it's difficult to put them to bed at different times. Hopefully Monday will shed some light on things - although if an operation is the solution, that's another set of issues!

Jen - reading your post about the boys concerns about monsters, I wondered about rather than giving them ways to deal with the "monsters", reinforcing that there aren't any monsters. I'm not sure how you'd do that now if the old approach has worked - but the monster spray etc tells them there are monsters but here's how you deal with them - so there are monsters to be scared of. When we read stories about ghosts or other scary "imaginary" things, we make the point that they aren't real, only in stories - so there's nothing to be scared of, rather than agreeing that there are scary things but here's how you deal with them. Not sure if that would help? Hope you get it sorted soon.

Best go and spend some weekend family time! Any tonsil stories gratefully received!

Hi Ladies

My girls have settled well into school now. Both are coping well & making friends. I thought I would have more time with them at school, but I have less time.

Jen~ My girls have gone through the "toilet issue" that you described. It's frustrating! We went through that ages ago & now this week Kateleigh is doing it. It's really only at night. I think that the change of going to school has unsettled my 2 a little. Both have been waking a lot with nightmares as well. I think it's just a part of the change & I'm sure for us it will stop soon. Mine will demand me watch them go to the loo & it drives me mental! It's annoying b/c really there is no need for me to be right there, but for some reason they need that. My only suggestion to is to go with it & try not to stress about it. I have felt the same way though & have yelled, "You are not a baby, now get going" but that approach doesn't work. I hope it settles down for you.

Rach~ Wow your boys are 3 already. I hope you had a special day with them. I think it gets easier once they turn 3 .

Marree~ As you know Danika had her tonsils out (1yr ago). The op was OK. She did get a nasty infection afterwards. Would I opt to do it again? YES in a heartbeat! Her health has never been better. She's sleeping better, she doesn't gag on food, she now eats meat & she doesn't get sick. We have an appointment to see an ENT for both Kateleigh & Solomon this week too.

Belinda

Edited to fix dodgy spelling...

Jen~ I can understand your frustration. Every now & then we have bouts of nightmares & both mine will get scared to even go into their room after their shower to turn on the light. I HAVE to do it, then they are fine. Kateleigh is most afraid of the dark. Anyway, them not being able to know what's real & what's not is so true. A few weeks ago we were having dinner & a discussion about something. My girls are now 5, so a fair bit older then your 2. They said something about Shrek. They both thought that Shrek was REAL. I then explained he's not & someone made him up. The next question was "Well is Bindi real?" I had to explain that she's a person so she's real. It's such a hard concept for them to grasp. After I said Bindi was real they said "Well can we go to her house?" I must admit that I DID use bribes for TT. I think that as parents we do the best we can at the time. I have learnt a few things so hopefully things will continue to go a lot smoother with Solomon .

Belinda

Hi all, slacker reporting in .

How did Eleanor's appt go Maree? Poor thing, it sucks getting no sleep (as we all know LOL). BB, I can't believe your girls are at school .

Our 2 have settled into kindy really well (2 days a week). They have only been going half days so far, but start full days next week.

We had a parent teacher meeting today and the teacher informed me that they are mixing with the other kids and not sticking together too much, so I was very pleased. She did say she paired Hannah up with another little girl today for something and Hannah hesitated for a moment, but was fine.

The other thing that came to light today was that there is a boy in their class who is anaphylactic to nuts, and allergic to eggs and dairy...so nuts are banned (which I expected anyway), and eggs and dairy are strongly discouraged. I have no issue with it (other parents did), but it's going to make packing lunches interesting! Paige has already requested a ham and cheese sandwich for lunch on Monday *sigh*.

The kids are learning about "Go" (healthy) foods and "Stop" (junk) foods and the teachers will be monitoring the lunch boxes to ensure the kids eat all of the "Go" foods, before they are allowed to touch the "Stop" foods and - here's the good part - providing "feedback" to the parents on the content of the lunch boxes. Yikes . The kids don't eat heaps of crap, but I'm still scared that I'll get in trouble for something (eg I don't consider homemade fruit muffins too much of a sin).

Not much else to report really. The girls have finally started swimming lessons and loooove it. DH is off to Sydney for a week, the week after next. Work still sucks, but I'm trying to be positive about it (hard). I didn't get that job applied for, but applied for 3 others last week so fingers crossed something comes of one of them.

Lastly, some wonderful news today - one of my friends had a baby girl. On Valentine's Day (which also happens to be her wedding anniversary - double ). We are going to meet her on the weekend, can't wait!

Hi girls

Another slacker signing in..

Nicolie - That is great that your girls have settled in so well at Kindy. OMG at not being able to have dairy, nuts and eggs - I understand why they do it but it makes it hard doesn't it. I guess it just gives you an opportunity to be creative! And you can have the cheese, yoghurt etc waiting at home for afternoon tea! Bummer you didn't get the job. I hope that one of the other ones you applied for is the one for you!

Belinda - That is so interesting that your girls thought that Shrek was real. I didn't even think of that.. at using bribes for TT. We have and they still don't work! I can only dream of no nappies.. *sigh* Thanks for your comment that it gets easier when they turn three - I so hope so!! TBH my DD is so much worse than what the boys have ever been... I honestly am SO scared of her when she is older. She has the biggest attitude, holds her breath til she goes purple if she doesn't get what she wants, and is just a real Miss. I am thankful that she isn't a twin cause I think two of her would drive me bonkers!

Maree - How did Eleanor's doctor's appt go? Is she oK?

Kim - Hello!! How are you? We really need to catch up! How are the girls going at pre-school. Are you finding the half days ok?

Jen - How are you going? Back to Uni yet? I saw you are doing WW (i spied you on the WW site!! Not many other mummy's with your boys names! ). I went back to WW today as I have put on 10kg in 8 months . So I have 13kg to lose to get to my Ultimate goal. I am determined to do maintenance and to become a lifetime member. I always quit before maintenance (i have done WW numerous times!), but this time I am going to do it!

I have started Uni. It is already freaking me out tbh. I have so much to do. I have been doing a bit of study every night and on Wednesday I have afternoons to study (when DD is asleep and the boys are at preschool). DH and I have agreed that Saturdays are my days to go to the library to study for 6 hours. He wasn't too impressed to start with but I put my foot down and said that he needs to support me in this. He is usually quite good but with this he wasn't. So I went off my nut at him! Needless to say I have Saturdays to study. I wanted to try to get the boys into pre-school for another day but we just can't afford to put them in for 2 days (as you girls would know it is expensive especially on one income!!), and we also can't get another place cause they are all full... ARGH! Dramas.

Sorry girls - you just copped my whinge of the day!

Anyhow better go - gotta go and do some house jobs before the kids go to bed. As soon as they are in bed I will be studying...

Ciao!

Rach Hi Yes we should catch up and have a cuppa!Your place or mine The girls are enjoying the half day preschool, even though last week Taylor had a few days of tear's, we seem to think that she is getting use to been out every after noon instead of 2 times a week the poor kid, plus we have the girls in separate rooms. Hpw is uni going?

How is everyone else going? Hi to every one

Hi girls!

Gosh Rach, you sound like you a right into the dwing of study. Good for you! I don't think I could be that disciplined. I did a few external units for my post grad, and I was hopeless last minute crammer .

Kim, how are the girls going in seperate rooms? Mine are together. I don't want them to be the freaky twins who are always together, but at the same time I don't want them to be traumatised (and I suspect seperating them now might be traumatic for them). Argh, who knows? Guess I'll just wait and see how this year goes for them and decide at the end of the year what to do next year.

The girls drove me nuts with fighting today! Paige was baiting Hannah all day, and Hannah was being a sook about it (which made Paige do it more of course LOL).
I let them have some chips after swimming lessons today (because I wanted some ) and they pointed out with horror that chips are a "STOP" food and not a very good lunch. Oh the inhumanity!

The day ended nicely though. I let them stay up and watch Monsters Inc, and they let me braid their hair so it will be all kinky tomorrow for the birthday party they are going too. A nice girly evening with DH away . They made me promise to let them come and sleep in my bed later tonight...and I made them promise that they went to the toilet first, or wore pull ups .

They are really missing DH already. He left last night and there were a lot of tears . This morning we made a calendar for them to cross the days off until he gets home - complete with pics of everything they have planned this week. It's pretty cute. They are trying to make me take photos of everything so they can email them to DH - swimming lessons, pictures they drew and the dog wearing a lanyard with the day care key on it. Weirdos!

Hope everyone's well. Chat soon!

Just bumping us up!

Does anyone know if Jen is still around??? I think her posts may have been deleted.. If so and if you are reading this Jen I hope all is ok.

Be back tomorrow as I am just finishing off a uni assignment.

Hi Rach

I know that Jen isn't a member of EB anymore. She chose to leave as she wanted to totally focus on her studies. She found EB too distracting (which I can understand). I still keep in contact with her via her blog .

Belinda

Ahhh cool Belinda! Thanks for that!

Speaking of studying that is what I should be doing!

Nichole The girls are going pretty good apart, they give each other a hug when they see each other of a lunch time and they hug each other after preschool too, I have found that they have stopped arguing and fighting a lot since they have been in separate room's at pre school, the girls aren't traumatised at all. It is a personal choice but I have found Taylor has came along way and can write her name and Kasie is becoming more independent. It has been a great exprience for my girls.

Just bumping us up with nothing much to say LOL.

One word update from me: GASTRO . We've all had it this time around, so not a lot of fun! Thankfully we all seem to be over it now.

One piece of good news - the girls are finally night trained. Yay! Still having the occasional accident, but on the whole we are out of nappies!!

Kindy is still going great, and the girls are really enjoying their swimming lessons. I am so impressed - they actually seem to be learning something! There are 4 kids in the class altogether, and guess what - the other two are twins as well!

Oh, and one last piece of happy news. Work are actually sending me to a conference - in Melbourne . I'm going to get a whole week of kid-free time, staying in a hotel, catching up with an old girlfriend and shopping, oh, and going to a conference as well .

So, how is everyone else?

Hi guys - this thread's been slow lately, hasn't it? We must be busy! Well, Miss Eleanor had her adenoids and tonsils out yesterday. Quite a day for all of us. We were at the hospital at 7am, she was in theatre at 8.45. I held her while she had gas through a mask, then placed her on the bed, gave her a kiss and left. I felt really comfortable with the surgeon and team and although I had a wee cry, that part was okay. She was brought back to the room about 10. She slept for a while and then the vomiting started - poor thing. She vomited blood which was scary for all of us. Eventually after 3 hours of this, they tried a different drug (anti-emetic) which helped. She ate an iceblock, had a drip for a while, and then wolfed down two biscuits, jelly and ice cream. We were allowed to come home about 6. If she hadn't started eating and drinking we would have stayed. Well, we got home and she kept on eating - ham, bread, cheese! She asked for more food but I thought that was enough! She woke once in the night, had pamol and ibuprofen and then slept through until 7.30. I feel like we're in a honeymoon phase and I don't expect it to last but I'm happy she's had a good day. Today she's eaten toast, yoghurt, rice crackers, cheese, chicken, potatoes, jelly and, at her special request, potato chips!! She says her throat is "not too bad". She wasn't keen on the medicine (she never really is) but I made a sticker chart and that seems to have done the trick. Apparently the old days of all soft food are gone - the new thinking is that rougher foods help to stop scabs forming which can fall off causing bleeding and pain. I'm amazed at my wee girl and hoping things stay on this course - but ready for the worst.

The surgeon said her tonsils were "enormous" - maybe she just feels much better already? Her sleeping is much quieter.

I'll post again soon - fingers crossed she stays this well.

Take care all

Maree~ Did she come home the same day she had the op done?? Danika had hers done Jan last year & both Kateleigh & Solomon are booked to have the same op in July. Danika has never looked beack & she is SO well now, so I hope you experience the same too.

Nicolie~ Glad the gastro has gone, but it truly does suck! Have fun in Melb shopping, cathcing ip with girl friend & of course the conference

Belinda

Hi Belinda - yes, we came home the same day (there for about 11 hours all up). Day 3 post op and she still amazes us - eating normally, not complaining about her throat except when she wakes in the morning (so after 12 hours without pain relief). Still have to cajole her to get the first lot of medicine in for the day but a miracle recovery so far (fingers crossed it continues). Yesterday she was running around the house - I told her not to run - so she started skipping!

Nicolie - sorry I didn't say "poor you" last post about the gastro - I was a little preoccupied . And "lucky you" about the conference - I relish any time on my own these days whether it's work or play - a week will feel like a month pre-kids! My tip is that if the conference is going to be full on, buy gifts for the kids before you go away (if you do the gift thing) and take them with you. Often shopping is not possible when you're away for work and that way you don't have to stress about finding a toy shop or buy something at the airport.

Hi girls -

We dropped off the entire multiples board so I had to search to find us!

Well not much going on in my neck of the woods. I have my final medical next week to start back at work. I am going back 2 days per week for a break and can't wait. So hopefully after my medical they can give me a date to start so I can get CC sorted.

The kids are doing well. The boys were assessed last Friday for speech therapy with a private speech pathologist. They need it - which I knew! We are doing a term with the private speech path until we get to the top of the public waiting list. We decided that since we will only be out of pocket $15 per week for each of them that it was worth it.

It is my DD's 2nd birthday on May 31. I can't believe she is entering her 2's! Where did my baby go? No more babies in this house anytime soon though - I am looking forward to going back to work and not being known as just "Mummy".

Anyhow look forward to chatting girls!

Rach

Jeez, you're good Rach. I kept meaning to bump us up...and then forgot LOL. Glad you're excited about going back to work (crazy woman!).

It's been chaos here! DH is working really long hours and my work is crazy too. Although I officially work 2 days/week, I have been working every night from home as well just to keep on top of the intray (I should be doing it now but I'm over it for this week). I was in Melbourne last week for a conference and stayed on a few extra days to catch up with some friends and hit the shops. It was really really relaxing! Staying in a hotel, no housework, no cooking, no refereeing the kids. Poor DH wasn't relaxed though LOL. He's off to the US in June for 2 weeks though so he'll get his own back! He's off on a much needed night out with boys tonight...and working at 7am tomorrow, that should be interesting .

The girls are still loving kindy. I enrolled them in pre-primary for 2009 today . This week they had a special Mother's Day afternoon tea for the Mums - sang us a song and made us scones. So cute!

How is everyone else doing?

Happy Mothers Day!!

Nicolie - I can't believe that your girls are starting pre-primary next year!! I presume that is the first year of primary school - like Kindergarten in NSW (i.e. Monday-Friday 9am-3pm kinda thing?). Mine start in 2010 and I am so going to melt down when they do! Isabel will be starting in either 2011 or 2012. She is a May baby so I am thinking of holding her back til 2012 - will see how she is coping and where we are living as well.

How did your DH pull up for work after his night out? Your trip to Melbourne sounded good (apart from the work bit ).

I am planning a big tax refund shopping spree to Sydney! I am going to IKEA to get all the bits and pieces for our house that I have been after for ever - like a new desk, a few bookcases, rugs, clocks, lamps, bar stools etc. So I have written my list and DH has just been rolling his eyes at me! I am quite excited about it. He wants to get a new lounge as well so I think I have convinced him to get one I love from Freedom.. so we will see..

For Mothers Day I got a new exercise DVD off the kids. Very exciting - but it was what I wanted so I can't complain!

Anyhow better go - we are off to my parents for lunch, so I need to do a few jobs before we can start getting organised. DH is going back to Canberra tonight for this week so I am not looking forward to that..

I am still here, I have start causal work for Woolworth's doing night fill, it is great and I love the money and time away from the kids.

My girls start school next year I am so amazed of how time has flown! I will be a wreck when they do and I have told DH he is to have the day off work to entertain me

For mothers day I got a cashmere jumper, a huge box of chocolates for my eldest children, Taylor brought me a coat hanger that is crockett and has a little bag of pot Peri on it along with a hankie with a smell soap in it. So sweet and so Taylor just matches her personality and Kasie got me 2 little silk bags that have chocolate and bisicuts in it they are the snack size, that is so Kasie always thinking of food They brought it at the preschool mothers day stall!

Anyway I hope everyone is well.

Good to see you Kim, you slacker!

Well nothing much going on here today. Had a friend drop in for coffee so that was a nice change to our boring monotonous routine!

Tomorrow we have groceries first up, then racing home to drop them off and then meeting some friends (including Kim ) at Maccas for morning tea / lunch. Will be good to let the kids run riot and not have it be at our house which seems to constantly resemble a disaster zone!

Better go - the boys just woke DD up and she was only asleep for 30 mins so she is being a grumpy bum! Good thing though as it is too late for her to sleep any longer than that!!

Hi everyone

Good to see us on page 1 again!! Last time I posted we were having a dream recovery from Eleanor's tonsillectomy. Alas it didn't continue and a week after the operation she had a fairly severe secondary haemorraghe (that spelling isn't right!) - about 500mls - and we had to call an ambulance. It was the scariest time of this whole parenting journey and I am so grateful that she's all right. She (and I!) spent 2 nights in the hospital but now 2 months later she's 100%. Despite the complication (rare but not unknown 7 to 10 days after surgery as the clots come away), having her tonsils out was the right decision. She is sleeping so much better and eating well. In two months she's grown 2 cm and 2 kilos and is now almost the same height and weight as Harriet again - she had dropped behind. Her tonsils were so big they were obstructing her sleep, and when a child isn't in deep sleep, they don't secrete growth hormone.

Apart from that, things are going well here. The girls start school on 1 August - their 5th birthday! Scary and exciting. They seem ready but am I?! It will be a big change for us as it means our wonderful nanny (who has been with us since the girls were 6 months old) will be finishing. I'm going to change from 4 full days at work to 5 short days so I can pick them up after school. They may go to after school care for a few days later on but I think at the beginning it will be nice for them to come home and relax.

Hope everyone else is well. Nice to hear everyone's news. Nicolie - the week away sounds like heaven! I'm going away next week for a girls weekend (2 whole nights!) with 3 friends from my antenatal group - it's to Blenheim,, top of the South Island (NZ) and a great place for sauvignon blanc (my favourite) - we're going on a wine tour. Should be fabulous.

Talk to you all soon.

It was great day today hey Rach Good to let the kids run feral and have a cuppa at the same time!

nakigirl My goodness haven't you had exciting times!Sounds like you have it all worked out for when your girls got to school!
My girls start school in January next year they will be 5 I think Taylor is ready but not sure about Kasie. Taylor can right her whole name including surname Kasie just doesnt seem to care so we are working on her to write her name.

ANyway best keep moving!

Hi all, nice to hear some news again!

Wow Maree, sounds like Eleanor had a nightmare time, poor lamb. Glad she's OK now . Make sure you have a few SB's for me. I love a South Island SB...mmmm...which reminds me I must check out a long weekend in Margaret River this winter LOL.

Rach, yep pre-primary is the first year of compulsory full time school in WA. This year they are in kindy 2 days/week, which is optional, although I think almost everyone goes!

I'm jealous that Rach and Kim can catch up in person LOL!

We had a lovely day today. I took the girls out to a little cafe for lunch. I hadn't been there for ages, it used to be one of my faves. It's hidden in a little suburban street and does fantastic brekkies and lunches. Then I took them to my hairdresser for major haircut. They've gone from waist length to shoulder length hair and look so funky! Then we wandered down the street and bought lots of flowers to bring home . A lovely girly day and not one bit of housework in sight LOL.