You see, the thing I didn't mention was...

You see, the thing that I haven't mentioned is that I shouted too. I was very angry and outraged that some random shopkeeper would shout at my girls and was even angrier that he was not even feeling the slightest remorse, in fact he felt he HAD to.  When I called him up later to let him know, he all but said they deserved to be bawled at from half way across the shop.  I mean how else are they going to learn that being loud is sometimes unacceptable??!!! I know he was stressed and busy...but hell aren't we all at times, it doesn't mean the kids should cop it. "Children reflect the treatment they receive"

I've been focusing too much on the guilt of me doing it too(again)(and in public), of humiliating them and me. So much was I focussing on the negative, which I have a dreadful tendency to do, I was forgetting that I got everyone up and out the door without any shouting, coercing and nagging.  It was an easier morning because the girls weren't at school today due to late night ear pain and awakenings and sore noses from picking so G-damn bloody much.  I digress.  We first took the dog for a walk, fresh air a must when not feeling great, then we went to the hairdressers because Ellie an unexpected burst of enthusiasm about hair cutting (in other words, she didn't change her mind, again) and then to the dreaded deli, after consuming chocolate and potato scones. In hindsight, I see now it was the end of a long day of high stimulation. They were hungry. I was tired and under pressure. I was having a ridiculous conversation with the woman behind the counter who was being quite unhelpful and obstructive especially given my lack of cooking and storing of frozen foods knowledge.

I should have stopped. Taken a breath. Taken them outside and calmly explained that they could not run round the shop and they needed to stop making so much noise. I should have removed them from the situation. Told them they had to stay outside or go back in the car but that they could not come back inside the shop at that moment.

What annoys me most is that the majority of people think its normal and ok to shout at children and feel justified in doing so. Most people feel no remorse for their behaviour or even consider apologising for shouting and being mean unnecessarily. I do think it was. Unnecessary. 

Most people that I have spoken too, have a memory of being shouted at by someone other than parents and their lingering memory is fear and upset.  How can that be positive?

Meltdowns - hardly any

Losing the Plot - a big ole public one..oh the shame...

Breastfeeding - still going strong.  I'd have loved to have seen the reaction had I needed to do it in that shop!

Day 2 - So almost perfect...if it hadn't been for that pesky mummy

Someone forgot to tell Millie we could all sleep in today. The other two slept a bit longer.

Perfect opportunity to sort my blog for yesterday I thought. Someone forgot to tell Millie and Maia and Ellie that mummy wanted to do that. Not change nappies, make breakfast, talk, feed, interact. Harrumph. The unreasonableness of them!!

Gave up and sorted my family out mumbling about how other people manage to do other things.

Ellie 15months

Decided to take Millie for a swimming lesson at the local pool. I say lesson but it was more of a getting used to water, which was freezing, whilst singing those songs. You know the ones...five little boobs, wheels on boobs, happy and you boob it. So not my thing!! Millie didn't cry but she didn't smile once either. Started getting her used to back swimming which is what I used to do with Ellie. When she started to fall asleep in the water sling, I knew it was time to come out.

Thankfully and amazingly she lay happily on the changing table till I was dressed, didn't complain about getting a nappy on and fell asleep during milk!! Maybe I should take her every day. So lovely to have a happy kicking baby instead of screaming lovely one!

I love how the girls are always happy to see me even though I've only been gone an hour. I think when that stops, thats when I should worry.

Ok . It would seem we are unschoolers on the tv front today. I'm tired. It's the weekend. I wanted to play a game of golf on the wii!! Which turned into finding a free month on Netflix - oh crap. Not good for a tv addict like myself. We all watch a cool vampire kids film which I miss tons of trying to calm Millie but I bet they will watch it again and again and again and again. What is it with watching things over and over? Then we find SouthPark and I am not sure but try a little. Typically it's the one where chef leaves then comes back talking very wrong about sex.  Are they all that rude? I stop that one when I hear him ask a kid for anal :-0. We opt for RugRats All Grown Up!! What a clever idea, very cool!!

Kim the twin all grown up!

By now I am getting twitchy at the amount of screen time going on and the amount of time hubby has spent in the car installing a hands free kit he got for a tenner. I try to go upstairs to post my day one blog since Millie is sitting calmly for a change but somehow the girls notice and Ellie sneakily sends Maia up to say that Millie is crying to get me to come back down and sit with them more!!

They then find spongeboob square poop. I cant bear the thought of sitting through that and need to take Millie upstairs to feed and change her anyway. By now it's 7pm. Hubby has been out in the car since after lunch and I think enough's enough. By some amazing feat of telepathy (and the scowl I give out the door) hubby comes in. He joins me upstairs whilst I'm sorting Millie's nappy and trying to work out if we can pick up tickets on a Sunday that I forgot to get for our family drama workshop (!!!!very excited) when Ellie comes up and says she is hungry. Damn. Dinner.

I can't usually manage dinner till Barry gets home from work to take over holding Millie by which time all I want to do is flop into bed. Anyway I passive aggressive sweetly say "daddy will be down in a minute to make you something". Hubby being the super dad he is agrees!! I go downstairs and see Maia has fallen asleep on the sofa (timing. The secret of good comedy apparently).

Then, I do the unthinkable. I turn off the Netflix. Ellie comes back in and realises what I have done and freaks out. I realise she is tired and hungry as well as angry that I turned it off and I try and carry her into another room whilst suggesting she gets a book for me to read but she really loses it. Starts calling me stupid and idiot and mean and horrible.

I fun chase her up the stairs but she accidentally (I hope) kicks me on the forehead. It's unbelievably sore and I have to go downstairs to stop myself 1) crying and 2) lose the plot. I can tell she wants me to go back up and connect but also she is too annoyed with me to let me so comes down and as she is unable to work Netflix yet puts on a video instead. I tell her I am going outside on the hammock and ask if she wants to join me. She says yes but only after she has watched three more things. I leave her to it and two minutes later she has calmed down and has joined me outside where we sit and chat for half an hour whilst hubby makes dinner. I decide not to push for Ellie to join us at the table. She chooses to eat in front of the tv.

After dinner Ellie and I were about to take the dog for a walk because he hasn't been out since Thursday evening but Maia woke up and became very upset at the thought of me leaving. She is just discombobulated from waking up on the sofa and I sit with her for a bit till she has calmed down and suggest that if she finishes her dinner she can join us but she doesn't want me to go out at all. Maaaan it's never easy. I start to feel stressed at the differing needs of every living thing in the house relying on me, dog included.

We eventually make it out the door and manage a few goat and troll storytellings before midges stop play.

Normally by this time, 9.30pm, it would be the end of the night but as Maia slept earlier, she is not ready for bed. I can tell Barry is itching to get the girls to bed so he can go out and is getting antsy so I tell him just to go.

I am too tired by this point to try and even attempt bedtime and anyway I have decided not to mention 'that' word all holidays and see if the girls can self regulate. So we all settle down to watch Tarzan. I'd love to say the night ended with us all snuggled watching a film together and they fell asleep on the sofa but Millie woke up and the action of me moving and taking Millie to the toilet and for a nappy change (she was dry!!) alerted Ellie to the fact that she was lying on her own on the floor. She wanted on the sofa too, fair enough. She HAD to be beside me. Maia refused to move up so I could be in the middle. Ellie was getting upset. Millie was getting upset. It all got really stressful again, I literally felt a brain cell explode. I'm afraid I lost it :-(

Maia cried. I cried. Millie who had been happily feeding cried because she fell off during the kerfuffle. I was so pissed off with shouting as I had almost managed the whole day without losing it.  I just didn't understand why Maia wouldn't move and didn't have anything left in me to try and sort it consciously. I said if she wouldn't move I would just take Ellie up to bed (she was desperate to fall asleep next to me).  This obviously made Maia cry more at the thought of being left alone but still refused to move.  Then, for some unknown reason, possibly tiredness, I physically moved her onto the floor instead of up the sofa a bit.  She eventually calmed down and crawled back onto the sofa.

Harmony restored. Film finished. All in bed asleep by midnight.

Long live diclofenac, my pain medication

Meltdown - one spectacular one

Losing plot - one spectacular one

Breastfeeding - happily

Pooping - only a few frothy ones

Scary Wolf

Meltdowns - many
Losing the Plot - many
Breastfeeding - realising I don't see it very often IRL anymore!!

Emotions in motion....HA!

I think I have may have underestimated the effect of moving could have on all of us.  I have tried very hard to keep things as smooth and routine and 'normal' as possible.  In the first 2-3days I organised the kitchen as fast as I could to get the food source happening, but obviously everything is in a different looking place. Then I organised the kids clothes and books how they used to be but in a different position..same wardrobe, same drawers, simply cos we needed to keep their furniture.  We organised the living room and finally after 5days, the TV! We kept Ellie going to school (not sure if that was best move, but then I am biased!) and even I managed a nurture nature and some brownie and bread making.

But the girls really are having a hard time adjusting and Maia in particular has been quite destructive, ripping wallpaper, food dropping, more mess making than usual (which i know is normally quite high!), ignoring, hitting me(not major, like faux hitting) and  disruptive at other times, especially bed time.  

It all came to a head yesterday and after much upset, anger and crying..from all, and major calming down needed from me, we had a bedtime chat.  We talked about missing the old house and what she missed, the bathroom was first on her list, the wooden toilet seat..I wondered about this until i realised the toilet seats feel diffrent here and in a sleepy state, its nice to feel the familiar on your bottom!  There were other such random items, light fittings, wardrobes not being where they should be (in Brenfield) but the most telling was the missing sleeping next to us, which is what thy did in the old house.  I had kind of prepared them for this before moving, explaining they would be in a double bed together, but nothing can really prepare for that.  The first few nights it was really working, together in a double bed, they started as far apart as possible but by morning were always together.  Then the other room was sorted and the bunk beds went up and the novelty for there took over, the next night was in a tent on the floor next to the bunk beds.  We have given them the choice of where to sleep.  

We finally talked about all the things we did like about the new house and she managed to come up with quite a few, but they were becoming more and more random until I realised, she was feeling calmer and was ready to fall asleep.  

The upshot is, we have brought Maia back into our bed for a wee bit to help her feel more settled.  I know most would think we are crazy but we already feel its helping...We have at least 3months to settle her back to one of the other choices of beds in preparation for the new bubbah!  The only problem I can forsee is that there would not be room for Ellie too.  I will have to find a different way of helping her feel more settled or its bunk beds for Barry!!  Aah Barry, his study has been his priority!

grrrr boxes

So in 8days, we have sorted out most of the 'living spaces', now its back to sorting out our 'emotional spaces'.

Upset, unsettled children are hard to be with. I can be hard to be with too. Real emotions are hard to be with.  I can be hard to be with too.  Most people put a lot of time and effort into not showing their real emotions.  Not dealing with their feelings.  Pretending everything is under control, in control, sorted and happy.  Kids have no such (dis)abilities.  They are as real and raw as they come. I can be like this too, just hopefully not as much. Thank G-d!  

Meltdowns - phenomenal!

Losing the Plot - OMG I should have been filmed!

Breastfeeding - soon, so very soon!

Not just another midwife. Interventions, Intuition and Timing

Another reiki session with my midwife Alison. Today we did it sitting up straddling a chair and  her hands felt freezing on my back.

We also discussed her and my minimum and maximum intervention levels during labour...so now feeling safer more connected and our trust is building YAY!!

I realised last night one of the reasons I felt Maia's birth stalled and events turned the way they did was in part due to having NO trust or connction to the strange woman who were in my home..one of whom could easily have been the 'drive by leafleting' person.  

Ina May Gaskin in her book Guide to Childbirth, states "A woman needs to be emotionally supported, undisturbed by strangers or people that could make her fearful, free to eat and drink as needed, and freedom to move helping baby's descend into the birth canal"  The all important Sphincter Law takes effect here. (A conversation with Ina may Gaskin here)

Last night, I wrote in my birth questions book: -

"If I have no interventions, are you able to know things are ok?  What is your minimum intervention requirement?"

Which led me to question 'what constitutes an intervention?'  For me, my list was :

Internal - I don't want to feel pressurised into having an internal due to the midwife following protocol or not feeling confident.  So unless one was absolutely necessary(vaginal exams - When are they really necessary by Brenda Manning), I would prefer not to, unless of course my curiosity wants to know too!  During Maia's birth, I felt the fear in the midwives who wanted to examine me and felt like I ought to whereas during Ellie's birth, I felt it was a relaxed request for information and even although I would have preferred not to, I was slightly curious myself.

Temperature - A high temperature in labour can be an indicator of infection.  When I went into early labour at 36+5 with Ellie, I dutifully charted my temperature and her heart rate until I was absolutely convinced that I was indeed in labour and she was definitely coming that day!  with Maia, I kind of did it automatically because she was slightly early too (37+4).  It can be a comforting and not so invasive technique in early labour should the need arise and one that can be done by myself.

Baby's Heart Rate - Which would she be using, a machine or a foetal scope? She prefers the machine simply because it is easier and IS less invasive than the scope.  The scope seems like such a cool instrument to me and makes me think of simpler times when machines were not invading labour and taking over.

Positioning - During labour, there can be occasions when a suggestion to move can be intrusive and unnecessary.  My question surrounding this was WHEN would she feel it was appropriate to make a suggestion? 

Palpating - How often would she feel the need to do this? How much could she tell from this?  I am still at a loss to know how the midwives were not aware that Maia had completely turned the day before (my own knowledge of this was pretty shocking too, HOW could I not have realised that was what had happened?)  It took them nearly 12 hours to work this out.

Feeling - I am not sure now whether I was meaning instinctual feeling that there was something amiss or whether i meant gentle feeling rather than full on palpating but as I also wrote,

Looking - How much can she tell just by observing.  I am inclined to think I was wondering about her level of knowledge and intuition.  Obviously not something that can be sufficiently known or answered in one session.

So, these were my thoughts the night before.  

Funnily, I had completely forgotten that Alison was coming today for reiki but I am very pleased because it meant everything was still fresh in my mind.  Serendipitously, Barry was also off work and had taken Maia out so we had peace and quiet to discuss things.  When I told her I had some deep questions, she was quite open to bringing them up, even though it wasn't our midwife appointment, feeling her role as reiki and midwife were interconnected now.  When she heard the questions, she pointed out that this was usually something she discussed at 35weeks (I am nearly 20) but she could tell I wasn't going to rest easy unless we discussed them!!

Alison's basic modus operandi is to arrive and observe for the next 30-40minutes after which she generally finds her base line information in terms of my blood pressure, my temperature, my pulse.  She will palpate me and the baby and check the babies heart rate.  NICE Guidelines state that these interventions monitoring should be done every 15minutes taking a whole minute to listen to the baby's heart rate.  Alison let me know that I had the option to opt out of these at any time and she would state in my notes that it was entirely my decision (she has a statement prepared).  Also, if a woman has had normal blood pressure throughout her pregnancy, the likelihood of there being issues during labour is minimal, although it can happen for example with Placenta Previa.

Even knowing that this is how she proceeds has alleviated a lot of my concerns and she also made it really clear to me that she is able to garner information simply from observing my movements and body language and listening to the noises I make.

During my reiki treatment, I was regaled with one of Alison's own birth story's (it was fresh in her mind, since it is her son's birthday, another timely occurrence) which opened with statistics of her birth attendances she had had to that point.  She said she had 3 years without a CS and 2 and half years without a transfer. 22 Home Births in a row without transfer! The CS rate of her practice is about 10% ( about 50/50 elective vs emergency). She had been an NHS midwife and was taking a break from the system to have a baby and reassess her needs within the establishment.  They basically illustrated to me that there had been very few 'problem' cases and she was fully knowledgeable of normal births, before and after becoming an independent midwife.  It was also so lovely to hear one of her birth story's and how times have changed and how it helped augment her decision to become an independent midwife.

The upshot is, my concerns and questions were listened to and discussed and we are that one step closer to the birth I am hoping this one to be.

Meltdowns - no one is here!!

Losing the Plot - I'm all alone

Breastfeeding - been thinking about the whole newborn feeding again recently 

Stressed Some?

Its really hard to do a hypnobirthing relaxation cd with 

Ellie spinning in middle of room saying 'daddy marzipan, daddy marzipan, daddy marzipan' 

over and over.  

Its really hard but I'll still try.

its really hard for me to not be a stresshead
pretty much everything stresses me out
and makes my head spin
which makes it really hard for me to parent in a nonstressified way
in a calm manner
in a gentle manner
in a quiet manner
in a patient manner
in a kind manner
in a loving manner
in a manner that makes me feel good about myself
and makes my children feel good about themselves
Its really hard but I keep on trying

Its really hard to know if its working

It's really hard to know if I am working

It often feels like I should try harder

and so I do

Meltdowns - a few  (but not with me)
Losing the Plot - not today  (easier since they were not actually in the house!!)
Breastfeeding - not just now  (but pondering tandem)

Is it really all down to just being lovely?

You know, I don't know what i am doing half the time.  Being a grown up is really hard.  Being a grown up with kids is waaay of my scale off knowledge and often it feels, my capabilities.  But tonight I managed.

It started off as "ok, Maia you choose two poems, Ellie chooses two poems, a book each and a song, then its bedtime"  I've started feeling like I need to specify how the evening is going to pan out, if not for their sakes, since I know they won't remember exactly what I said or do it in that order, it was really said out loud for my benefit so I know my limit.  The problem is most nights the girls have a different limit which is definitely way more than mine at 8pm on a Friday night.  

This quickly changes into Ellie reading one of the books she has chosen. I always forget she can do this and is something that every time it happens I am in awe and wonder..ok maybe not every time but I still think its pretty great that she can now give me a break and entertain herself and Maia in one stone, erm....I mean that she gets and gives such pleasure with her reading abilities.  Oh hell its great that she is reading at all instead of watching Scooby fucking Doo.

Then it was Maia's turn, she picked her book.  There was a slight altercation about who was reading the chosen book but it was sorted quickly and essentially all three of us read.

I stuck to my guns on the number of books, and we moved onto the poems.  Maia had hers already chosen.  I know realise she had it chosen right at the start, but when Ellie started reading, I let that be the starting point instead.  Thankfully Maia had been ok with Ellie reading first.  She knew the poem she chose would be read out.

So we had our two poems, which actually turned into way more, because Maia's favourite was done with her name and then with Ellie's name inserted as well as the original. Ellie read her favourite one to us.   I also chose one and whilst I thought Ellie had wangled another one, I had said two each.  Anyway,  I was getting tired by this point and  had decided it would be gentler to go with the flow than try and stick to my feeble plan!

Then we had Ellie's outstanding rendition of Baby Mine, relieved only by the fact that she missed out a few verses the second time round.  I'll ask a few people, husband included if it would be mean to post her version.

Then it was my turn to sing (not recorded thank you very much), then it was sleep.  And if they go to bed happy without any major plot losings from me, than I am happy.  The fact that it was before 9pm made me even happier.

Meltdowns - minimal

Losing the Plot - depends on your definition -  does this count? 

Breastfeeding - reminders now that milk is gone but will be back

Slightly Sad Slightly Elated

I never in a month of a million Sundays expected anything to come of it. I never in a month of Sundays believed they were ready.  I never thought it would happen so fast.

My. Girls. Are. In. Another. Room. In. ANOTHER BED. Alone, without me. Without me being able to touch them in the middle of the night. Without me being able to hear them breathing and moving and snorting and grunting and farting and talking in their sleep...talking in their sleep for heavens sake....its the best thing to hear, and now I can't.

The playroom has always been the playroom, its never had a bed in it and whenever I called it a bedroom the girls would instantly correct me 'its the playroom mum'.  Last week we finally bought the bunk beds that we have been talking about for months, well ever since Ellie started watching Peppa Pig (Preppy Pigshite as I used to call it) so that's probably nearer a year.  Up until our proper concerted efforts to find bunk beds, I didn't believe anything would come of them.  Given the fact that Maia still wakes for milk early morning and goes back to sleep, snuggled between Barry and myself and Ellie still gets upset if I ask her to sleep in the side bed, which is attached to the main bed, I wasn't convinced they would even entertain the notion of sleeping in them. Alone.  

They went with Barry to go and buy the bed and on the way they played a game 'We are going to get something exciting, can you guess what it is?'.  I will tell you if its bigger or smaller than your guess (who says kids don't learn at home).  Here are her guesses:

Fairy Lighting, Crown, toy Church(???), swing, horse, car, cloud, toy bush, toilet, floor

So Barry said "It's been taken apart and so we need to put it back together again" (crap clue if you ask me).  Ellie's final guess was 'toy elephant'.

We had already decided we were not going to put any meaning onto the bunk beds other than the fact that they are fun.  We made no mention of the fact that they HAD to sleep in them, that they were even for them or that we didn't want them in the bed.  Although in all honesty, lately, with my back seizing issues and needing more space in bed, I have definitely been vocal about that need.  I was very clear though, to tell Ellie it was nothing to do with her, I still loved her even though she was beside me in the side bed instead of beside me in the main bed.  There really is literally my arms length between us (and the small gap down the middle of the two beds).

The bunk beds were assembled that same afternoon, Ellie was beside herself with excitement and  although I'm not sure she is ready for this, Maia was spending the whole time letting me know the beds were for her and Ellie and NOT for mummy and daddy.

We have always felt night time parenting was just as important as the day stuff. So that meant co-sleeping and staying with them till they fell asleep, breastfeeding, stories, songs, discussing the day and being there when they woke up.

So, come bed time I figured, OK this is actually going to happen, so lets see where it goes. It went till after 11pm is where it went.  I think the girls we too excited to settle & kept finding toys to bring in with them, share with each other, pass down, dangle down, throw up, throw off.  They got out of bed, into each others, out to the toilet, into the main bed...back and forwards for two hours.   I am afraid to say my patience was shot by the end of it, there was some shouting and I even considered just closing the door and leaving them to it.  Eventually after much craziness, including Maia chucking me out of her bed and then the whole room.  Ellie wanting us in her bed but nothing on her bed.  Maia wanting me back in her bed and then out again but stay on the chair, they fell asleep.  Barry, all 6ft4 of him with Ellie on top bunk and me sitting on floor beside Maia on bottom bunk.

I figured that Ellie would probably wake in the morning, as usual and would either shriek in fright and upset because I wasn't there and Maia would wake and plod through quietly.  Well I was wrong!

Ellie came in quietly, making her way from the top bunk no problems about 6amish and went straight to sleep on the bed beside me.  Maia woke up 7amish, cried, refused to come through, refused to allow daddy to pick her up 'cried' only for me and had a miss because she wouldn't move.  I brought her to the main bed where she had milk and fell asleep in her usual spot between Barry & me.

I recognise it has only been three days so it may not last.  We were both shocked they were so keen in the first place!

The jury is still out for how I feel, slightly sad and slightly elated. Nothing has really changed for me since they both still wake me in the morning, except now, as I said, they are not in arms or ears reach any more and they are not beside each other.  For that I am very sad.

Meltdowns - in a bunk bed

Losing the Plot - in a bunk bed

Breastfeeding - am I in the minority that can say 'in a bunk bed!'

Preppy Pigshite

Peppa Pig has a lot to answer for:

1) She had Ellie blowing raspberries at everything and anyone, constantly for a month

2) She has encouraged my girls to want to be in bunk beds and not the family bed

3) She has made the phrase 'I'm very good at this' common place in our home

4) My husband LOVES it

Here is my confession I don't like Peppa Pig, I find her a conceited, boastful and selfish pig, nothing like Hamilton. She is constantly telling us how great she is at everything she does. Telling us how good she is and how she knows how to do everything.  This has meant Ellie often says "I'm good at this aren't I?"  I have always advocated Alfi Kohn's Good Job theory and made efforts not to go down that road, so I was unsure how to respond to this 'boasting'  It grated on me.

The Pig Family also eat a PHENOMENAL amount of cakes and biscuits, every episode practically.  Then they introduced Mr Potato, an exercise spud as if this would counteract and excuse it.  If felt I was being made a fool of by a vegetable.


Mummy and Daddy Pig NEVER lose it and laugh too maniacally for my liking.

Finally they ALWAYS portray daddy pig as dim witted and slow and mummy pig as the one who sorts everything out.  Hardly equal partnership modelling.

The girls instantly recognised
this as George, not Peppa!!

Given my thoughts, I was quite reluctant for Preppy Pigshite, as I affectionately call her, to enter our home, but as I give the girls almost free reign in their viewing choices, it was only a  matter of time before she found it. Oh Boy did she find it.  Episode after episode she was engrossed in for months and months till I thought I was losing her to the royal pink pain in the ass!

For the sake of our connection, I too had to become engrossed in Peppa Pig stuff galore and showed my enthusiasm with Peppa Mazes , colouring Peppa, Peppa games, Peppa pictures, wearable Peppa stuff, plastic Peppa stuff, edible Peppa stuff.  ALL OUT Peppa warfare!!

You know what?  We have finally come out the other end, she's moving on to something else, still has a fondness for the freaky pig family (wants pics for her wall by her top bunk).  We've had one or two arguments about the amount of Peppa viewing but I've come through *this* phase feeling our connection in tact and her need for autonomy met.

I wonder what the next fad will be...after the werewolf one!!

Meltdowns - NEVER on PP, except George going waaah

Losing the Plot - NEVER I mean NEVER on PP

Breastfeeding - on PP HA!!!

Dollshouse

I have really wanted to get the girls a dollshouse for ages but they are mega expensive for my design tastes.  So I then really wanted to make them one and had this grandios idea of doing it with real wood and from scratch.  I tried to encourage/persuade Barry to do it but to no avail.  So then I decided to just go for it, after someone suggesting using a bookcase and someone else suggested shoe boxes.  

I thought for a bit about bookcase, I looked on some roadsides for throwaways and I am still checking skips for my next attempt, but I was itching to get started for fear my motivation might wane, so on the way home on Saturday, I ran into a shoe shop and asked for some boxes!  I got 4, all different sizes! 

 I  went about making this a bit backwards but it was really fun actually!!

Meltdowns - in a dollshouse!

Losing the Plot - in a dollshouse!

Breastfeeding - in a dollshouse!