Thank you for this. I have tried this. I can get the milk flowing out but then it clogs up again after a while. :( it's one stubborn plug.

I'm so frustrated I cried. :( I can't get my milk duct to unclog. I have tried everything. It's day 3 of this now. :( I called the nurse at my dr office (who won't see me but happened to be in this morning) and she said that I need to be seen in the next couple days because it's not clearing up but since they are closed I need to go to a walk-in clinic or urgent care centre (she strongly recommended against this due to everything going around right now). I've massaged so hard I broke the skin a bit. It's not infected at all and looks like it will heal just fine but probably only if I don't massage anymore. But how can I unplug the duct if I can't massage? :willy_nilly: The nurse admitted that all a doctor could do for me was confirm if it was a plugged duct and not something else and to give me an antibiotic if I should get sick. But that's going to be about 4 hours of waiting. On Christmas Eve. When I really need to be home nursing, right? :willy_nilly: And I'm scared it's going to get infected and why oh why oh why can't it just go away. :crying: But I feel 100% fine right now. It's not even painful unless I push on it. Although the wound stings a bit. I do have a bit of antibiotic ointment on it and keep reapplying. I'm not being callous, I'm watching and being cautious. I'm safer at home than at a dr. office right now, I'm sure of it. :ph34r: I even read on the internet about using ultrasound to break up a plugged duct. Called every physiotherapy office within 45 min of me and even though I would pay the $100 apt fee, none will treat me for this. :crying: Does anyone have an in with the Man Upstairs and want to put in a good word for me? ;)

Movie and popcorn Board game Video game

I don't know. Lol. I'm kind of paralyzed by it all. The thread going on right now about all the families who are very sick is making me want to stay far far away from the doctors office. I'm too scared about what I would bring home!!

Just don't do it. ;) Ok, I normally get caught up in this myself, which is why I no longer do all my Christmas shopping too early - or I will just buy too much in the days leading up to Christmas and get disgusted with myself for spending so much and having a ridiculous amount of gifts. This year I forced myself to only have a few gifts per child (and all said that there was nothing they really wanted). I figure if I miss anything, there's always the after Christmas sales. ;). It's kind of fun to watch the kids pick out what they want, even if it wasn't wrapped under the tree. :)

We have (and frequently use) those roll up mats. Yes, they really do work well. :)

My primary care is out of country on holidays until the new year. :glare: I'm not at the mastitis stage yet. I really don't want to get there. :crying: I ended up keeping them home. We took the time off school as well and played games and did crafts and baked lots. They thought it was great fun and had no complaints. Nobody ended up getting sick and it really was nice to have one less thing to worry about while I was at the hospital (and knowing we were coming home to a sick-free home).

Yup. This is what we have done too.

Thank you for asking. Sadly, not much better. I have been able to use heat and massage (and nursing) to get the plug to go almost completely gone but then it fills up again. :( This is TMI, but the plug is on my aerola so I can't massage while LO is nursing and the skin is extra sensitive in that location. Because of all the rubbing, I damaged the skin (it was always a small red blimp on the skin) and now I'm terrified it's something else like MRSA. It did start off looking like a red pimple, but felt like a plugged duct. It doesn't make sense that it would be anything worse, because I can get the lump to go away, just like any other plugged duct but the skin on top is now getting raw and that is stressing me out (and hurting more). I'm so scared it will get infected or worse.... So I have been massaging less and doing less heat, but that's not helping the duct get cleared. I'm going round in circles. I did buy Lecithin and have been taking that. I also read on a website about going to a physiotherapy clinic and getting an ultrasound treatment but not sure how likely I will be to get one on Christmas Eve (too late to go today and dh thought I should give it one more day). I did try an electronic toothbrush and the vibrations did clear up the clog all the way the first time but it filled up again and now when I do the toothbrush the clog gets smaller but not all the way gone. I have so many other things to worry about at this time. My child who had surgery is turning a corner finally but it would sure be nice to be well myself and figure out how to solve these nursing issues. :( I'm feeling really good otherwise so I really hope that this doesn't turn into anything else besides a plugged duct. Even if I go to urgent care, not many dr. are knowledgeable about b-feeding and the clinic is far away. I don't know if I'd get the help I need anyways. It's frustrating and hard for me not to worry about.

Ours usually wake around 8am. Dh and I typically sleep until 9 or so on Christmas morning (that's our Christmas present to us ;)). The kids know they can play with what is in their stockings and that usually keeps them occupied for some time.

We do date night too, when each child gets to stay up later than siblings and spend time with mom and dad. Usually we do it at home because of the other kids but sometimes we have one parent do something with the child. Here are some things we have done with our 7yo boy (I have more ideas for girls, but these have all worked well for him): movie (of his choice) and popcorn night video game (of his choice) with mom and dad- usually a racing game :) puzzles (usually a pick up a new one from the dollar store for this) Lego building- I've even bought a new set just for this purpose (a smaller set, of course) sculpting with clay painting on canvas crafts- Rainbow Loom, perler beads, felt/foam projects from Michaels whittling or other wood working projects board game of choice baking treat of his choice making dessert of his choice When going out with one parent we have done: swimming + hot chocolate after rollerblading + ice cream or slush after bike ride + slush going for a drive to go star gazing driving to the river to throw rocks or go fishing playground of choice I think most of these would work for a coupon, as long as there is the understanding that you can't always drop everything to, for example, go swimming at the last minute ;)

I can't see if you have a signature because I'm on my phone. What age is this for?

Could you please tell me if this is a good set to buy or if there is something better? http://www.amazon.com/Sister-Wendy-Complete-Collection-Painting/dp/B000GIXLTS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1387819126&sr=8-1&keywords=sister+wendy+dvd Thanks.

Some of my 9 yo's fave games (who also likes the above games): Apples to Apples Blokus Labyrinth Magic Labyrinth Qwirkle

I don't want to go into too many details on a public forum but I could really use some prayers. I was in the hospital a few days last week with my child who had surgery. I was uber careful while there to the point of being anal about hand washing and germ control. However, I did have to pump for my youngest and tried to b-feed when I can. There were many sleepless nights- I probably got 2 hours of sleep for several nights in a row. We are home now but my prayer request is two-fold. I was getting dressed to get some groceries and noticed a lump on my breast- plugged duct. It's red and the size of a pea. Ugh. I can massage it in hot water and it goes away to almost nothing but 5 min later it's back to being pea sized. :sad: I haven't had a plugged duct since my 3rd child but I know what to do but have some issues. My LO is having issues nursing all of a sudden and that's not helping things. No matter what I do I simply can't get this one to nurse well. :( Also, I am freaked out that because I was recently in the hospital this can lead to mastitis and a bad case at that due to whatever microbes I could have been exposed to on the surgery recovery ward. :thumbdown: I'm a total worrier at heart and this has me :willy_nilly: (many websites say mastitis can work out on its own ok, but if you've recently been in hospital, then immediate action needs to be taken) Christmas is going to be hard enough here. Due to many reasons all adding up we will not have any family with us this year. I don't want this plugged duct to escalate into anything that requires me to go to yet another hospital (my doctor is on holidays until the new year so only option would be an urgent care clinic and those are packed with whatever the heck is going around rampant right now). Could I please get some prayers- that this plugged duct resolves itself ASAP and doesn't escalate into anything else, that my LO decides that nursing is a good idea afterall and I don't have to continue my struggles, and also that my child who had surgery will recover nicely because things aren't going as great as had all hoped. I managed to get several hours of sleep last night, but ended up on my stomach, which probably could have been a good reason for this plugged duct in the first place. But I'm still so tired and with the exhaustion comes anxiety and now I'm just worried. I know it seems silly to you all at this point (There is a lot I held back from this post for privacy reasons- you can PM if need be) but if you'd pray for all this to just go away I would be so thankful.

Well, that's not quite true- I can cook, but I don't really have much technique. The more episodes of MasterChef the kids and I watched, the more apparent that became. :lol: My girls love to be involved in the kitchen and were really inspired after watching MasterChef junior. It would also be a great help to me if they started cooking because I am always busy with something else. However, I don't have a lot of technique so perhaps the best thing would be for the kids to start "fresh" with their cooking and perhaps get them a book or two. They are good about following step by step directions. We have quite a number of food allergies, which has also sucked the life out of cooking for me so having them take over would be fabulous. I've ordered this book for them: I would also like to get them a few more books that kids can follow but that would allow for interesting meal ideas while teaching them technique. I think I will also splurge a bit and purchase a food processor to help with the chopping and that will hopefully cut down on how much they have to wield a giant knife. :001_tt2: (If nothing else, I have to have garlic in every dish :D ) Currently my 9yo loves to cut the onions/garlic/vegetables by hand but it's a time consuming process and with our family size it takes a looooooooong time to cut everything necessary. I thought of maybe getting them this one: but I'm wondering if perhaps it's too "cutesy"? What does the Hive think of this one? I'm sure they would love it if Gordon Ramsay had a cookbook for kids but since that doesn't exist... what does the Hive recommend? FWIW- I don't own any cookbooks. :eek: I usually throw stuff together, make things my parents taught me, google recipes off the web if I know precisely what I want to make, or simply let dh take over and do all the cooking :p . The kids are wanting to learn not only how to cook but also more ideas of what to cook. Any book recommendation or things I should have in the kitchen for them would be great. I already have a KA mixer and a Vitamix. :unsure:

I have stoneware by P.C. too and really like it. I'm hesitant to buy their bread pans as they are quite spendy and I think I would need 4 or so to get the amount of bread I need. I'm not sure about spending that much. :svengo:

That's all I've ever done too! I'm going to miss that bread maker! Sadly, a bread maker loaf is no longer big enough to feed my crew for breakfast and I'm tired of running it 3x per day. On the bright side, I was able to justify the purchase of my shiny new KA mixer. ;)

I'm new to the world of baking bread with a KA mixer. I'm hoping not to botch too many loaves the first few times. :unsure: I don't have any bread pans- what kind would you recommend I get? I'll be making mostly WW bread and maybe, just maybe venture into the GF realm once I gain some confidence.

Even if she already has one, there are some really neat bracelets that can only be made with two (some even more) looms. A second loom wouldn't be the worst thing. ;) Ask me how I know. Ack. OTOH, don't. Lol. I don't want to go there right now. ;) (We have two looms and the kids have made a ton of bracelets that require multiple looms- they turn out very nice)

I'm sorry to hear. Wishing you a speedy recovery. ((Hugs))

I thought I had this in the bag but turns out I need some help. I really need some book suggestions for dd12 who loves to read. She especially likes Classics, has read Moby Dick 3 times, and is a big fan of Dickens. sigh. She also enjoyed Jane Eyre and Villette and anything by Alexander Dumas. I'm trying to get her a selection of non-classic books for Christmas. Lighter reading, I guess, that will expand what she currently reads. Last year some of the books I got her were: The Icarus Project said it was ok Princess Academy liked this one Ida B enjoyed this one The Graveyard Book read this before last year but really liked it The 100 Cupboards she said the writing was not very good and therefore it was boring Palace Beautiful enjoyed this one Penny from Heaven liked it Rules liked it Moon over Manifest bleh apparently Running Out of Time liked this one There were a few others that I got her but she hasn't read them because they didn't interest her. So... help me! So far, I've realized, the only book on my list is The Apothecary and maybe the Obsidian Mirror but the latter doesn't get the best reviews and is only available in hardcover for now. Please help!!

I thought I had this in the bag but turns out I need some help. I really need some book suggestions for dd12 who loves to read. She especially likes Classics, has read Moby Dick 3 times, and is a big fan of Dickens. sigh. She also enjoyed Jane Eyre and Villette and anything by Alexander Dumas. I'm trying to get her a selection of non-classic books for Christmas. Lighter reading, I guess, that will expand what she currently reads. Last year some of the books I got her were: The Icarus Project said it was ok Princess Academy liked this one Ida B enjoyed this one The Graveyard Book read this before last year but really liked it The 100 Cupboards she said the writing was not very good and therefore it was boring Palace Beautiful enjoyed this one Penny from Heaven liked it Rules liked it Moon over Manifest said it was blah Running Out of Time liked this one There were a few others that I got her but she hasn't read them because they didn't interest her. So... help me! So far, I've realized, the only book on my list is The Apothecary and maybe the Obsidian Mirror but the latter doesn't get the best reviews and is only available in hardcover for now. Please help!!

I've tried that too. The grumpiness that ensues the next day is not worth the help. They tend to get a little over exuberant in their help at night time. ;)

The worst of it is that my older 3 will clean on their own accord when their friends are coming over. But when they know it's just only us at home? Pfffffft. So, they do know clean and tidy from not. They're just selective as to when it matters. Boo. Maybe I need to have company over daily. ;)