Bit of a conundrum, really.
We need to move house, I'm desperate to move really, we're running out of space. I mean, we've been running out of space since we moved in to this cottage but with Benjamin's arrival and all the associated paraphernalia, we're SERIOUSLY short of space. To move around in the front room, we need to put the playmat away. The buggy base now lives permanently in the boot of the car. I've been putting the playmat/babygym out on the bed upstairs with the squeaker-com on, just so I can get some work done.
Anyway.
We've seen a couple of houses to rent in Worthing, in the area we want to move to, but we each don't like some aspects of one of the houses.
Steve doesn't like the fact that the hot water tank is in the main bedroom in the property that I like, and I see his point - he can't stand a hot bedroom, it stops him sleeping well (and me by default as it makes his snoring a lot worse!).
The other property is really close to a level crossing, and has very limited parking - one side of the street is off-limits during the day Monday to Friday. The level crossing beeps VERY frequently and would drive me nuts.
So, do we go for a short-term let? Bearing in mind there are very few of them in the right area as well.
The other things I have to put into consideration are that I'm still trying to get my milk supply back up as I want to continue breastfeeding Ben for as long as possible - I've been doing a little bit of research and realised that to make a good go of it I really need a few weeks straight where we can just let all routine go to pot and just concentrate on demand and supply. So would moving house interfere with this? Probably...
Then there's ..... well, that's it really. I suppose sleep training is another thing that we need to take into consideration, and as our newly discovered free evenings (which have come about by giving Ben another bottle of formula which basically knocks him out) are going to go by the wayside anyway we might as well go all the way and attempt this sleep training thing.
So we are going to be knackered anyway. And trying to move house as well..... well, maybe it is a bit stupid to try and do that right now.
But I so desperately want to move.... I need space, I want to be able to move about freely in my house, I want everything to have its place AND BE IN IT, and for everything to be easily accessible. I want warm rooms that aren't draughty, that I don't have to wrap Ben up like a penguin before leaving him under his babygym. I want to be able to invite friends round and for there to be space for them AND us to sit down - and space for babies and toddlers to not get into too much mischief.
Basically,
I want it all....
And I want it NOW.
So:
Do we stay or do we go? Do we stay and wait, and hope that a better offer turns up? Or do we move and put up with the little things that annoy us, so we are closer to our friends and have a little space to stretch out in?
Answers and thoughts on a postcard, please. Or in a comment if you prefer.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
I must be mad...
That's the second time that thought has invaded.
I want to be pregnant again, I want another little one...
The first time was at Jamie and Debs' wedding, just before Christmas. We'd left Ben with his grandparents while we took the photographs and, during the day, being somewhat distracted, I was absolutely fine. There was no chance to miss him! But at the reception, at the Wedding Breakfast, we were able to relax. And there were so many bumps, and so many babies, and I started missing my baby. And then, out of the blue, I starting thinking - I want another one!
This first time the thought was VERY quickly followed by another stream of thoughts yelling STOP THINKING THAT are you inSANE? STOP STOP STOP STOP SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP.....
And so the thought slunk away into a corner, biding its time.
Last night it reappeared. I don't know why - perhaps it was because my world was asleep, Stephen and Ben upstairs all tucked up, me on clean up and tidy up and express duties, looking at photographs of the beautiful and pregnant Hazel H, and my hormones decided to start getting all broody again.
Now let's face it, I didn't have the greatest of pregnancies, I didn't have the nicest of birth experiences, but Ben, when he smiles at me, when he smiles at that other baby in the mirror, when he gets all shy and buries his face in my shoulder, it makes it all worth it. And I'd do it all again without reservation.
Just not yet.
I want to be pregnant again, I want another little one...
The first time was at Jamie and Debs' wedding, just before Christmas. We'd left Ben with his grandparents while we took the photographs and, during the day, being somewhat distracted, I was absolutely fine. There was no chance to miss him! But at the reception, at the Wedding Breakfast, we were able to relax. And there were so many bumps, and so many babies, and I started missing my baby. And then, out of the blue, I starting thinking - I want another one!
This first time the thought was VERY quickly followed by another stream of thoughts yelling STOP THINKING THAT are you inSANE? STOP STOP STOP STOP SHUTUPSHUTUPSHUTUP.....
And so the thought slunk away into a corner, biding its time.
Last night it reappeared. I don't know why - perhaps it was because my world was asleep, Stephen and Ben upstairs all tucked up, me on clean up and tidy up and express duties, looking at photographs of the beautiful and pregnant Hazel H, and my hormones decided to start getting all broody again.
Now let's face it, I didn't have the greatest of pregnancies, I didn't have the nicest of birth experiences, but Ben, when he smiles at me, when he smiles at that other baby in the mirror, when he gets all shy and buries his face in my shoulder, it makes it all worth it. And I'd do it all again without reservation.
Just not yet.
Saturday, January 10, 2009
My Prayer
I am so grateful for those moments when my whole world seems to be at peace - or holding its breath, waiting for something to happen. I stood, looking out of my kitchen window, at a frost-bitten world, holding a sleepy Ben in my arms, waiting for him to start the process of crying himself to sleep, enjoying the peacefulness of the moment and the beauty of what I was holding and what I was looking at. I thank God for moments like this.
I started thinking about my wishlist for what I'd like our next house to have, and realised there are more important things to wish for in a house!
I pray for a house that we can grow into, somewhere we can put down roots at last, somewhere Ben can grow up in. I pray that our house is close by to our friends, that we can easily be in and out of each others' houses - without the need for a car journey. I pray that our home becomes part of the community, that people - friends and strangers alike - are comfortable in our home, that they find a welcome rest from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
And now my little boy is asleep in my arms, my husband is asleep in bed, there's coffee in the pot - peace reigns again. If I could reach I'd take this opportunity to cut Ben's nails!
I started thinking about my wishlist for what I'd like our next house to have, and realised there are more important things to wish for in a house!
I pray for a house that we can grow into, somewhere we can put down roots at last, somewhere Ben can grow up in. I pray that our house is close by to our friends, that we can easily be in and out of each others' houses - without the need for a car journey. I pray that our home becomes part of the community, that people - friends and strangers alike - are comfortable in our home, that they find a welcome rest from the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
And now my little boy is asleep in my arms, my husband is asleep in bed, there's coffee in the pot - peace reigns again. If I could reach I'd take this opportunity to cut Ben's nails!
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Christmas Chaos
Have I really not blogged for that long??! Shame on me.
Well, where to begin...
We spent Christmas in Manchester. We stayed in 4 different places, slept in 5 different beds, battled flu and coughs and colds, spent a day without Ben, took our 1st set of official wedding photographs, unpacked maybe 7 or 8 boxes of the billions that remain in my old bedroom (Rachel Evans be warned, get those boxes unpacked now or you'll regret it 6 months down the line when you've forgotten what's in them), threw away 3 binbags full of junk, 1 tub full of paper to be recycled, repacked 6 boxes half the size with things we actually want to keep and actually took a boxful back down to Sussex with us.
Before heading off to Manchester a few things of note happened. Ben's weight gain wasn't what it should be and I got given orders to start packing away more calories than I had been getting to improve my milk supply; Ben had his first set of immunisations (that was a traumatic day, for both of us) which later caused a bit of feverishness which then developed into a proper cough and cold, just as the Lurgy hit me and Stephen. And, I took my prescription for my insulin in to the chemist, so it would be ready to collect the day we headed off to Manchester. Only I forgot to collect it. So I had to get the lovely Christine Phillips to write me a private prescription for the insulin that I ran out of (stupid me) and discovered JUST how good it is that I get free prescriptions. Even having to pay for prescriptions is better than paying the full price. My word but medication is expensive when you have to pay full price for it - which is what I had to when I discovered my medical exemption certificate was not valid for private prescriptions.....
Ben and I went off to the baby clinic again this morning for the New Year Weigh-In, to find he's gained a full pound in weight (just under half a kilo) and 3cm in length in the past 3 weeks - despite being poorly!! We've been on a demand-feeding diet yesterday and today to get my milk supply back up after my poorliness, and it seems to be working. He also seems to be teething already, so we've got a gummy teether and some gel to try. It's great seeing the smiles become more frequent, the colic getting less, the sleeping getting easier. I guess because he's been poorly the past couple of weeks, everything has seemed much worse - and now he's getting better, it feels like a massive improvement.
We really need a new house. The rent runs out in August and we won't be renewing it - those of you who've seen our cottage will understand! I can't imagine a crawler crawling around in here, it would be madness. There's nowhere to put anything, and trying to make this place baby-proof would be like trying to push treacle up a hill. I love that analogy... But seriously, we need to move house. Neither of us think it will be too hard finding a house we like and could afford, but it might be a bit harder trying to find someone who will give us a mortgage.
What would I like in my next house?
- a decent sized garden at the back
- off-road parking would be a bonus, but I really don't want another house that opens straight onto the road/pavement.
- 3 bedrooms (one for us, one for Ben, one for guests / the photo studio / music room / office)
- kitchen/diner because we enjoy entertaining
- a living room big enough for my keyboard
- ceilings that you can't touch just by standing on tiptoes and reaching up
- doubleglazing, central heating that works, none of these daft spotlights that heat up the room without the need for a radiator
- room for a tumbledrier as well as the usual washing machine and dishwasher
- lots of space for storage, and an easily accessible loft
- now this might sound daft, but a blue front door.
- and finally, it has to be close to our friends' houses, within easy walking distance! And not just to where they live now, but to where they will move to...
Only a small list. But I think it's important to know what you want, and to be specific in your prayer requests. I could be even more specific than that, but that would be getting silly.
I went into the greengrocers today, asked about the Christmas Veg Boxes they did, and Nick told me they hadn't had as many orders as they'd have liked but they broke even. Almost to the pound! That's a relief, at the very least. I might be starting back working there again in a couple of weeks, wrap me and Ben up in the Moby, and go and get the invoices sorted out on a weekly basis. There's also talk of various bits and pieces I can do at home which is great. Hurrah, I'll be back at work soon!
Right I am going to make the most of Ben being asleep, and do the washing up and get everything ready to make dinner - tonight we will be eating chicken curry pie, with buttered carrots, and a bottle of red wine.
Chicken Curry Pie
ingredients
short pastry, made with 8oz flour
2 diced chicken breasts
jar of sainsburys basics curry sauce (7p, can't beat it!!)
method
make pastry, line pie dish, bake blind
cook chicken, add sauce, heat through, tip into half-cooked pastry case, cover with remaining pastry, bake.
Buttered Carrots
peel and slice carrots
melt 1oz butter in a lidded saucepan
add carrots, cook with lid on for 10 minutes on low heat until softening
take lid off, turn up heat and cook, stirring continuously, for about 5 minutes.
That's it really. Mmmmmmmmmm
Well, where to begin...
We spent Christmas in Manchester. We stayed in 4 different places, slept in 5 different beds, battled flu and coughs and colds, spent a day without Ben, took our 1st set of official wedding photographs, unpacked maybe 7 or 8 boxes of the billions that remain in my old bedroom (Rachel Evans be warned, get those boxes unpacked now or you'll regret it 6 months down the line when you've forgotten what's in them), threw away 3 binbags full of junk, 1 tub full of paper to be recycled, repacked 6 boxes half the size with things we actually want to keep and actually took a boxful back down to Sussex with us.
Before heading off to Manchester a few things of note happened. Ben's weight gain wasn't what it should be and I got given orders to start packing away more calories than I had been getting to improve my milk supply; Ben had his first set of immunisations (that was a traumatic day, for both of us) which later caused a bit of feverishness which then developed into a proper cough and cold, just as the Lurgy hit me and Stephen. And, I took my prescription for my insulin in to the chemist, so it would be ready to collect the day we headed off to Manchester. Only I forgot to collect it. So I had to get the lovely Christine Phillips to write me a private prescription for the insulin that I ran out of (stupid me) and discovered JUST how good it is that I get free prescriptions. Even having to pay for prescriptions is better than paying the full price. My word but medication is expensive when you have to pay full price for it - which is what I had to when I discovered my medical exemption certificate was not valid for private prescriptions.....
Ben and I went off to the baby clinic again this morning for the New Year Weigh-In, to find he's gained a full pound in weight (just under half a kilo) and 3cm in length in the past 3 weeks - despite being poorly!! We've been on a demand-feeding diet yesterday and today to get my milk supply back up after my poorliness, and it seems to be working. He also seems to be teething already, so we've got a gummy teether and some gel to try. It's great seeing the smiles become more frequent, the colic getting less, the sleeping getting easier. I guess because he's been poorly the past couple of weeks, everything has seemed much worse - and now he's getting better, it feels like a massive improvement.
We really need a new house. The rent runs out in August and we won't be renewing it - those of you who've seen our cottage will understand! I can't imagine a crawler crawling around in here, it would be madness. There's nowhere to put anything, and trying to make this place baby-proof would be like trying to push treacle up a hill. I love that analogy... But seriously, we need to move house. Neither of us think it will be too hard finding a house we like and could afford, but it might be a bit harder trying to find someone who will give us a mortgage.
What would I like in my next house?
- a decent sized garden at the back
- off-road parking would be a bonus, but I really don't want another house that opens straight onto the road/pavement.
- 3 bedrooms (one for us, one for Ben, one for guests / the photo studio / music room / office)
- kitchen/diner because we enjoy entertaining
- a living room big enough for my keyboard
- ceilings that you can't touch just by standing on tiptoes and reaching up
- doubleglazing, central heating that works, none of these daft spotlights that heat up the room without the need for a radiator
- room for a tumbledrier as well as the usual washing machine and dishwasher
- lots of space for storage, and an easily accessible loft
- now this might sound daft, but a blue front door.
- and finally, it has to be close to our friends' houses, within easy walking distance! And not just to where they live now, but to where they will move to...
Only a small list. But I think it's important to know what you want, and to be specific in your prayer requests. I could be even more specific than that, but that would be getting silly.
I went into the greengrocers today, asked about the Christmas Veg Boxes they did, and Nick told me they hadn't had as many orders as they'd have liked but they broke even. Almost to the pound! That's a relief, at the very least. I might be starting back working there again in a couple of weeks, wrap me and Ben up in the Moby, and go and get the invoices sorted out on a weekly basis. There's also talk of various bits and pieces I can do at home which is great. Hurrah, I'll be back at work soon!
Right I am going to make the most of Ben being asleep, and do the washing up and get everything ready to make dinner - tonight we will be eating chicken curry pie, with buttered carrots, and a bottle of red wine.
Chicken Curry Pie
ingredients
short pastry, made with 8oz flour
2 diced chicken breasts
jar of sainsburys basics curry sauce (7p, can't beat it!!)
method
make pastry, line pie dish, bake blind
cook chicken, add sauce, heat through, tip into half-cooked pastry case, cover with remaining pastry, bake.
Buttered Carrots
peel and slice carrots
melt 1oz butter in a lidded saucepan
add carrots, cook with lid on for 10 minutes on low heat until softening
take lid off, turn up heat and cook, stirring continuously, for about 5 minutes.
That's it really. Mmmmmmmmmm
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