Lilt and Jellytots most excellent adventure...

apple_muncher

Hmm - would be less than pleased at HIM bringing his nasty bugs to your place because he felt too ill to go to his own home! Grrrrr indeedy! Do hope Jelly improves, and you escape the lurgi.

Have you thought about missing out the potty and just going straight to the toilet? Possibly with a trainer seat so her little bottom doesn't just slip down to the water!

So sorry you are having such a rubbish holiday. Sending you lots of bug-free hugs xx

killerpeaty

liltdiddylilt wrote: »

also I have discovered alcohol and my amitriptyline do not mix.

Be careful on amitriptyline, if you start weeping uncontrollably on the stairs and get awful headaches, go back to the doctor! I don't on with it if you couldn't guess, I just couldn't stop sleeping and crying.

Hello again by the way

I'm sorry you aren't having a good time though. x

Greying_Pilgrim

Lilty - I can offer no practical help, but just wanted to send my support into the ether, in the hope that you have the strength to carry on.

Hope that Jellytotster gets well really soon and everything settles down on a even keel for you.

(((hugs)))

Greying

supersaver1000

Hugs too. I can remember it not being an easy time, but GP has a good idea. I bought a really cheap seat that was easy to transport around too. Jelly may prefer that. Keep up your spirits Litly. Apparently biological powder and tea tree oil are good for banishing mould, but it is disheartening. I'm sur I remember Alexk saying they had to redecorate every year because of mould and were pretty much constantly fighting it in places. Damp cottage, beautiful but old.

Have a good sleep Lilty xxx

liltdiddylilt

Hi guys!

First chance all day I have had to actually turn the laptop on and reply from here. Apologies I missed half a sentence in my original or second panicked post. I meant to say that due to a half naked child and endless washing I had got to have the heating on all day from 7:30 this morning. Jellys carpet is still soaked through in half a dozen places. It isn't a huge room and so I am going to do as I meant to this week and redecorate her room from glorious yellow to a pastille pink and blue. Never again a border. It has been ripped and driving me mad for over a year and it was so beautiful originally. I am not going to worry about my lack of painting skills and the carpet and then once it is done, and the potty training is basically complete, I shall have someone in to pop down a new one. Can't leave the landlord with this calpol covered scrubbed and bleached carpet :rotfl: and it should cost less than £100 to have it done right.

A HUGE thank you to EVERYONE for popping in. I have read and reread every lovely post and I thank you all for your support and suggestions. Were it not for another mum who is actually a friend of my big sisters (she has a 9 year old and a 18 month old) then I may have actually gone stir crazy today. My mums nitpicking insistence that I and all of my sisters and ALL OF THE CHILDREN IN THE WORLD EXCEPT JELLY were potty trained way before 2 and a half was what spurred this most recent attempt. Him was on board with her, and knowing that I will only get further poking and unkind jibberjabber pulling at my confidence as a mum if I didn't fall in, I went ahead and took the nappies away Saturday morning. Both Jelly and I are finding it utter torture.

In terms of her being poorly, she awoke this morning and was obviously repeatedly sick. All of the day befores food from lunchtime onwards was sitting in undugested piles on her pillow, bed, several piles on the floor, and even down the back of the radiator. And yet she did not cry, nor did she wake me up. In fact I was awake at 5:30 for some reason and at 7:25 when she came and stood for minutes in the dark looking into my bedroom, then just went back to bed. I followed her as usually she jumps on me, and discovered the aforementioned mess. She has however been bright as a button since then and no repeat unlike Him who has been continually sick since the afternoon when he got here on Saturday, only ceasing this morning. I don't blame him for coming here. 5 minutes walk versus an hour plus with a train ride to get home whilst feeling sick is a no brainer, but just caused a lot of stress for me personally and I am suffering with a bad headache now after all the pressure is off and jelly is nappy clad in bed.

Ref the damp, Jelly's room has two outside walls which no other room in the place has. This means it is a lot colder and a lot more susceptible to damp but since the wall was damp free I have no idea what the cause for this mould was. It has crept in from nowhere and when I took a good scout around on my hands and knees, it appears to be spreading across the carpet :eek: to the bed! She won't sleep with the heating on or a heater in her room as she gets too warm and wakes repeatedly. Tomorrow I am blasting a heater in there and leaving the door shut and the window cracked to try and dry it out!

Winter is an endless pattern of drying washing and then wiping the damp from the washing from t he walls, skirting board and inside the windows. It is a losing battle I vow I will not be here for the following year but so far have done this 4 times... sigh. I had a look at the heated airers but to be honest with you, it takes 2-3 hours per load in there, and it holds about a half of a normal washload in my 9kg washing machine... I get through 5-6 washloads a week, and with juggling work etc I just cannot justify the time spent messing with the airer. I want a tumble dryer but economical they are not. At least the heating serves a dual purpose of warming up this frigid flat!!

Next year I am moving out. Seems silly to put new carpet down and decorate when I have this plan in mind, but I can't live with Jelly's room as it is, especially now I peeled the blooming banner down and the paint under it is all peeled :eek:

Right off to try and catch up on a few diaries. Then when this headache eases I am going to sleep!

P.S PEATY!!!! lovely to 'see' you back chick. Hope you're ok. Amitrip works wonders for my back, but left me doped to the eyeballs for the first week. I've cut my codeine use in half with 20mg of amitriptyline at night so its a lot better in the long run.

Hugs xx

supersaver1000

Hi hon. Just a quick one. I was told not to put furniture right against an outside wall to stop damp forming - just pull it out a few inches if you can. I also bought a second hand dehumidifier which dries the washing and the air so makes it feel warmer and easier to heat. Was about £40 from flEaBAY.

Poor Jelly. Hope you all feel better soon

SS1Kx

liltdiddylilt

I've had a dehumidifier and an air purifier in her room since she was born, and it actually made things worse in there. The damp certainly soreads far less this year. I think antique wooden furniture has taken a hit. Its away from the wall courtesy of huge foot high skirting board keeping it away so the air can circulate, but there isn't enough room to open the drawers all the way out. I have to sit on her bed with my knees up to get her clothes out

Like I said, it is a losing battle. This flat has served us well, but the new additions from Christmas alone will make living here a nightmare. I need to move next year. Ad so I need to find another £300 minimum a month for rent. Which is why I decided to winter here this year. The last time I moved without thinking, I got myself into debt because I couldn't actually afford to live on my wages, with my job where it was and £200 of trains a month between me and it. So this must be strategic. A house with 3 bedrooms and a garden with preferably a bit of grass. Hopefully a separate dining room to house Jellys mess but if not, a lounge/diner like this one with more of a noticeable split would be great for separating it out. Unfortunately round here that sort of thing for less than £800 is rocking horse poop. And usually a hike to work, which would mean me needing a bike. Factor that into the deposit basically.

March. I shall move by March. Or April at the latest as the next influx of toys comes in then... lol.

Lots of love. I do so appreciate everyones support. xx

supersaver1000

Hiya. Hope Jelly is all good still and that you are ok?

It's a difficult one with the living accommodation isn't it. I'd like to move too - got a big mould patch that I can't reach and just feel like leaving them to sort it out themselves now as I've given them enough chances. We'll be off soon hopefully, so I'm going to make one last effort and then say poo.

I don't really want to spend a few hundred pounds more each month which could be going off the debt so it may be another year for us - or possibly our debt neutral day. Sometimes good things come up - keep an eye out Lilty. I need to declutter so that I'm ready if needed.

But then I'm moving over to you soon, so perhaps I need to wait

giblet1979

Oh sweetie - what a lot has been going on! I'm so sorry and really hope that Jelly (and him, mostly for your sake) are feeling much better. I can hardly believe that you've had to go through all that. Wish I was closer so that I could help out in some way (not sure how exactly but I would).

In the meantime, sending hugs and hoping that things are much better.

Gib x

p.s. Just caught up with your photos of mini-Jelly; amazingly cute, and as I thought, you are really pretty too! x

liltdiddylilt

Ah Gib. Drop the contents of your office and piles of post into your car and come here. I will do your tax return and you can play with jelly

She is much better, but I have canned the potty training. My initial thought that she seemed to be getting some semblance of control over her bladder was correct. However her holding it in for 5 hours straight just because she refuses point blank to wee on a potty is not good for her health or mine! She was having none of it. No toilet with the removable seat from her potty to sit on, zip. Finally got it through to my mum tonight just how soul destroying her constant jibes since Jelly turned 18 months old have been. She started to say that she had never said a thing (as usual, blinkers on where her own faults are) but I cut her off and listed a dozen things instantly that she repeatedly says or does which are serious confidence bruisers and a little bit heartbreaking since she see's Jelly on a video call 2-3 times a week, and spends a few hours with her every 6-8 weeks.

So I have a happy child, even though I am still jumping everytime she goes into another room as I keep thinking there is no nappy involved and she will just do her usual and wee on the floor the moment I am out of sight! Her bedroom carpet is still a little damp but the room has dried out exponentially today after I had 2 sets of heating on in there and the window cracked to dry it out. Ready for painting tomorrow!! Need to buy it first but am going to follow the wise advice of Him (who is happily leaving me to paint alone since he doesn't have to come til Weds...) and paint it with the white paint I have in the cupboard first! Jelly may yet be camping in the living room or the corner of my room tomorrow night in her bed if the room is mid-paint.

Thanks for all the hugs and support guys. I am feeling a lot calmer and less panicky now. I know I have made the right decision with the training. I will try again in 4 weeks.

Finances
Well.. a topic very MSE indeed here. Rare that my diary delves into financials but I need to write this all down.

I have a 'note' in my phone which holds info of all 3 of my bank accounts, and what DD's and what amounts come out of each of them on a monthly basis. I amend it when I want a picture of my income and expenditure and can quickly balance it against my YNAB to see my overspending on the stuff that is not set in stone.

I've used it, to figure out that after bills (which includes my £300 reg saver) and groceries/toiletries/household/spending money & haircuts - I have a surplus of £214 a month. Now on paper this is all very well but when it comes down to it, no matter what happens this cash disappears into cracks and holes. With me putting away so much for Christmas, home insurance, new shoes etc the last few months I think I have overspent a good portion of the surplus with alarming regularity. That can stop now. I still have money in the Christmas, and Christmas Food pots. Home insurance bought and paid for and in place as of the 8th November for another year. Shoes bought wearing Jellys thickest socks so some growing room there.. I am safe.

So I can start to plan my macbook. I will be buying it in January no matter what. I have one months 'surplus' to put towards it prior to that. The rest will be coming from my savings proper. And then I shall pay it back hard and fast until by March it will all be level again. By then I will also have added a further £900 to a regular saver from January again fingers crossed! On top of the £800 macbook cash, this makes me feel a bit better about things. I deserve one shiny pretty thing especially after suffering this windows one for 9 years

Right back to the important stuff... Gib I totally forgot I outed myself on one of those pics! :eek: make up free as well which is normally a no-go area but I have that new mother glow so I don't look bad. Rest assured it is a one of flattering angle blah blah blah!! :D thanks!!

Right, bed! Tea and bed... ooh sounds good. I've got Nice biscuits, and malted milks... and OMGGGGG fruit shortcakes. How did they last untouched all afternoon! Night peepities!! xxx

Note to self: copy INOD's choc torte recipe from GP thread...