And I'm definitely with you about needless gadgets ailsa. I think I spent a total of £9 of my own money on preparing for Alice (on clothes at an NCT nearly new sale) and everything else was donated/Freecycled/bought by parents. She's obviously going to cost a lot more now she's actually here but at least babies don't know/care if their gear is second-hand or improvised.
It probably helps that we have no space for anything anyway. But thank god someone else fulfilled Alice's pressing need for a giant corduroy bunny:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/159/336141847_70fb1e064d.jpg?v=0
― Archel (Archel), Saturday, 30 December 2006 06:52 (seventeen years ago) link
It's my opinion that the most important thing you can give your children, the thing they will truly remember, is your time, and I personally think that the small conveniences of modern living that truly give us more time to spend where we choose are well worth it.
― jaq (jaq), Saturday, 30 December 2006 08:37 (seventeen years ago) link
Very true. I was going to say, with all this "can we afford it?" talk - the hurtin' isn't just on your wallet (and you can control that to a certain extent by being thrifty), it's on your free time, which (with two or more kids especially) may well dwindle away to nothing.
example-now typing one-fingered with fussy T in crook of arm...gotta go
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Saturday, 30 December 2006 09:05 (seventeen years ago) link
Toys? We have a lot but Ophelia prefers taking out all the paper out of closets. The first half year you don't need much at all.
We didn't think about the cost of having a baby. Mostly because it wasn't a problem. (Being the worrier that I am, it does However I didn't realize how much money can/is spent on a baby! WTF man. I did switch from yr fancy ass (hah!) Pampers to a cheaper (and imo better) alternative. Saves us a ton of money. Same goes with those towelettes: 1 euro instead of 3 euros. Hey and I knit her sweaters. ;-) Just kidding. But if I wanted I could save a lot of money on clothing by knitting all her sweaters (instead of buying'em). Still, no designer clobber for Ophelia. It's ridiculous even if you have the money.
We get £127/month in Child Benefit
WTF! We get about 55 pounds. Oh wait is that for two kids? I put all the money on her savings account.
Archel, that's one of my favourite baby pics EVER.
― nathalie (stevienixed), Saturday, 30 December 2006 09:11 (seventeen years ago) link
Oops, this is what happens when you turn around and look at Ophelia crawling around: you forget to type the rest of the sentence.
― nathalie (stevienixed), Saturday, 30 December 2006 09:57 (seventeen years ago) link
the most OTM post on any parenting thread evah.
― m coleman (lovebug ), Saturday, 30 December 2006 12:39 (seventeen years ago) link
― LynnK (klynn), Saturday, 30 December 2006 15:54 (seventeen years ago) link
One month:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/123/338594661_3b4e731ae8.jpg
Three months (on Boxing Day):
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/150/338630898_62d68693f9.jpg
― caek (caek), Saturday, 30 December 2006 19:01 (seventeen years ago) link
― sunny successor (katarina), Saturday, 30 December 2006 21:10 (seventeen years ago) link
― nathalie (stevienixed), Saturday, 30 December 2006 22:21 (seventeen years ago) link
― Joe Isuzu's Petals (Rock Hardy), Saturday, 30 December 2006 22:46 (seventeen years ago) link
― nathalie (stevienixed), Saturday, 30 December 2006 22:47 (seventeen years ago) link
― Joe Isuzu's Petals (Rock Hardy), Saturday, 30 December 2006 22:51 (seventeen years ago) link
― ailsa_xx (ailsa_xx), Saturday, 30 December 2006 22:53 (seventeen years ago) link
― Joe Isuzu's Petals (Rock Hardy), Saturday, 30 December 2006 23:04 (seventeen years ago) link
― PPlains (PPlains), Saturday, 30 December 2006 23:42 (seventeen years ago) link
― ailsa_xx (ailsa_xx), Saturday, 30 December 2006 23:43 (seventeen years ago) link
― jaq (jaq), Sunday, 31 December 2006 00:18 (seventeen years ago) link
(My baby overheating or getting a chill during the night is just one of the things I'm looking forward to worrying about!)
― Meg Busset (Meg Busset), Sunday, 31 December 2006 15:02 (seventeen years ago) link
Ah shit, sleepsuit is something different. Replace sleepsuit with sleepbag. Worked wonders for me!
So it's onesie+sleepsuit+sleepbag. Room temp about 21 to 18 degrees celcius.
your kids are all spoilt.
There are few things that cause a knee-jerk reaction but the line 'you're kid is spoilt' is one of them. I know you don't mean it the wrong way - or at least I hope not - but argh how I hate that line. :-)
― nathalie (stevienixed), Sunday, 31 December 2006 16:45 (seventeen years ago) link
1. No freaking WAY we would use cloth diapers. My mother-in-law disabused us of any thoughts of cloth diapers, and I'm glad she did.
2. With twins there is no chance for anyone to be an absentee parent, which is good, except when you want to take a break.
3. Last night, we switched from those fluffy terry-cloth-like baby suits to thin cotton ones, and wrapped them up in fleece swaddlers. They slept for 8 HOURS! I don't know if it was that, or the fact that we tanked them up with milk and formula before bed, or if it was just random, but it was awesome. Maybe they had been getting too hot in the night. If you use swaddlers, and the houe is relatively warm, I don't think you need blankets at all, at least at first.
― schwantz (schwantz), Sunday, 31 December 2006 16:59 (seventeen years ago) link
― ailsa_xx (ailsa_xx), Sunday, 31 December 2006 17:05 (seventeen years ago) link
― Archel (Archel), Sunday, 31 December 2006 21:25 (seventeen years ago) link
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Sunday, 31 December 2006 21:55 (seventeen years ago) link
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/147/340259556_fd5ef5b113.jpg
― Andrew (enneff), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 07:59 (seventeen years ago) link
― ailsa_xx (ailsa_xx), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 12:25 (seventeen years ago) link
CONGRATULATIONS ARCHEL FAMILY!
I did wonder about you at one point during the hoilday, you know.
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 12:54 (seventeen years ago) link
I managed to sleep from 3am until 9am today thanks to Matt doing early morning feeds, hurrah! Alice and I may even venture out later on to celebrate my relative lack of tiredness.
― Archel (Archel), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 13:39 (seventeen years ago) link
Apologies for the confusion; I could call my kids by their middle names, if you like - Galvin and Greer. But that makes them sound like sheet music publishers from the turn of the 20th century.
Do you want to see something sad? Do you promise not to forward to Social Services? Ava, the morning after clocking herself on the edge of a chair (check out the shiner on her left eye):
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/161/340782436_f8f00f3207.jpg
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 13:59 (seventeen years ago) link
― PJ Miller (PJ Miller), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 14:04 (seventeen years ago) link
Stop it with the Ava and Tallulah confusions!
Mine were first!
― Andrew (enneff), Tuesday, 2 January 2007 23:28 (seventeen years ago) link
― Beth Parker (Beth Parker), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 00:07 (seventeen years ago) link
― luna (luna), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 03:08 (seventeen years ago) link
Oh, bless!
Ava's eye really coming on a treat now - will post some more pix to Flickr when I get the chance. She'll love me for this when she's 13.
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 09:12 (seventeen years ago) link
― nathalie (stevienixed), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 09:19 (seventeen years ago) link
― NickB (NickB), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 13:58 (seventeen years ago) link
I just recovered from a 24-hour stomach flu that had me puking every hour or two. I don't know what I would have done if my husband couldn't have stayed home with me, it was miserable. I lost six pounds and I was already underweight. I think my milk production went down, we tried giving Louis cow's milk and he was totally not having it! Everyone is fine now though.
― teeny (teeny), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 15:32 (seventeen years ago) link
― Beth Parker (Beth Parker), Wednesday, 3 January 2007 16:07 (seventeen years ago) link
Shiner, day four:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/155/344624551_159b47b473_m.jpg
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Thursday, 4 January 2007 00:26 (seventeen years ago) link
― sunny successor (katarina), Thursday, 4 January 2007 03:14 (seventeen years ago) link
Teeny, man, that's so crap. Hope you recover quickly. :-( I've been having mad crazy migraine attacks and they SUXOR. :-(
― nathalie (stevienixed), Thursday, 4 January 2007 09:45 (seventeen years ago) link
That's wonderful. I get Ava to sleep that easily maybe one night in six or seven.
(So, are we staying in the sandbox? I think we should. It feels a bit like lingering in the pub when everyone else has gone to the gig that was the original reason for meeting up.)
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Thursday, 4 January 2007 09:51 (seventeen years ago) link
― luna (luna), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:27 (seventeen years ago) link
― Ned T.Rifle (Ned T.Rifle), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:33 (seventeen years ago) link
― Ned T.Rifle (Ned T.Rifle), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:34 (seventeen years ago) link
― Ned T.Rifle (Ned T.Rifle), Thursday, 4 January 2007 23:36 (seventeen years ago) link
― Ned T.Rifle (Ned T.Rifle), Tuesday, 9 January 2007 09:00 (seventeen years ago) link
Ha - it's all about routine and things have been a lot better in the last month. "Dummies and puppies?" Ava asks as I'm towelling her down post-bath; her cot contains a few pacifiers (yes, we'll phase 'em out eventually) and a couple of plush dogs, y'see. And off she goes.
Wearing her mum's specs:
http://farm1.static.flickr.com/164/386827890_6340eaf7f3.jpg
Out in the snow:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/188/383710319_e7168e6806.jpg
Tallulah gets ready for snow outing:http://farm1.static.flickr.com/66/383706273_03a6352d92.jpg
― Michael Jones (MichaelJ), Monday, 12 February 2007 14:25 (seventeen years ago) link
AWWW AWWW AWWWWW AWWWWWWWWWWWWW
you just broke me
― emsk ( emsk ), Monday, 12 February 2007 14:27 (seventeen years ago) link
― Meg Busset (Meg Busset), Monday, 12 February 2007 17:44 (seventeen years ago) link