Yesterday: A normal day in photos

We're the type of family that likes to make the most of the weekends, whenever possible we try to have a family day out. But during the week, as I don't drive, its a little harder to do anything much more exciting than a visit to the park, a few hours at playgroup or a new activity from Pinterest. Sometimes we just have normal days. The days where nothing is planned, where the kids just play as they please and I try to master the art of drinking a cuppa while it is still hot!

Yesterday was one of those days. Yesterday: A normal day in photos

I woke myself up with a morning coffee while they boys had their breakfast. Toast and banana for Niall, porridge for Rio.

 

Rio tried to do his alphabet puzzles but little Niall wanted to see what his brother was up to and join in!

I then got a parcel I forgot I'd even ordered and got the boys dressed for the day.

 

Rio made fun out of tidying a messy hallway and Niall ran around for a while whilst me and Rio used our matching hoovers to clean up.

 

 

Rio chose mushrooms and mackerel for lunch, followed by fruit and fromage frais. I forgot to photograph Niall's but he had sweet potato mash, quickly followed by a bottle as nap time was overdue and he was doing his little dinosaur noise.

 

 All winter we have been telling Rio he can play on the trampoline again when it gets sunny. He certainly didn't fail to tell me the sun was out yesterday, and had fun burning off some energy.

 

 

I love sitting back with a cuppa (hot this time - result!) and watching them play together. They have such a bond already and the older Niall gets the more it grows. Nothing makes him laugh like his big brother. I love how in a morning, he naughtily tries to wake him up on purpose.. Niall is an early riser in comparison to Rio, and while he wakes with a smile now..im sure in a few years that will all change!

 

 

I so wish that I could capture on camera his eye colour difference properly, I wonder if it will change? Rio discovered that cups sound like horse hooves and had lots of fun clip clopping around. He then had a rare afternoon nap.. that's what fresh air and a trampoline does to you!

 

Craig got home from work and cooked tea (chicken, sweet chilli rice and peppers) while I went to the gym. I read Niall a story and got him to sleep while Rio was unwinding downstairs and having quality time with Daddy. I then hopped in the shower and into bed leaving Craig to watch Frozen while Rio drifted off.

 

A normal day, a normal family, but I couldn't be happier!

One week on..

Baby Niall is a week old. I don't even know how that happened. One minute he was being born and the next..

Its been such a great week. Hectic, messy, chaotic, but great. We're just trying to get into a 'family of four' routine so that we can actually get out the house, or get things done but at the moment we are just cherishing him..the rest will come later.

He's lost a bit of birth weight, which isn't surprising as i'm breastfeeding but we're keeping a diary of his feeding times and durations, and hoping that at the next weigh in he's not lost anymore/put some back on. So far he is 3.7% down on birth weight and they allow 10. They keep reassuring me a few oz really isn't a lot for a breastfed baby and even formula babies tend to lose this much or more at first. He's down 4oz now. He's quite a booby monster in the day, it doesn't satisfy him, so we think my milk needs fattening up so that he is getting more calories. He's got a lovely routine on the night though..12:30,3:30,6:30..so we really cant grumble.

He developed jaundice and spent the first 4 or so days fast asleep but that has gone now so we are finally seeing his eyes open more and him become more alert.

Rio is still being a doting big brother. I don't think there has been a day that he hasn't said "he's got loads of hair on" or "he's beautiful" about 10 times. He's so helpful and loves it when we let him hold him and have a cuddle. Its made him grow up so much overnight. And he suddenly feels sooo heavy when I lift him onto the trampoline, into the bath etc.

Every has always said "ooh boys always wee when you take their nappy off", but with Rio this was only the case once so we have had quite a shock with little Niall. Both me and Craig have been peed on..epically! So has the midwifes scales.

His head control is also amazing for one week old. In fact he was doing it from birth but my gosh..when he has skin to skin or tummy time on your chest he lifts his head off of you and turns it over to get back comfy etc. He likes to push off with his feet too. His head strength can be abit of a pain when he's too anxious to get on the boob though, I try to direct him for a latch and he totally dominates!! Haha.

This week also brought me my first time alone as a mum of two. It was daunting at first but I managed to get us all downstairs, fed, changed, the pots done and activities sorted to entertain Rio. Going to the toilet posed a bit of a threat but I soon mastered a "are you still sat there Rio" system haha, where I basically shouted every 2 seconds to listen to see if he was still sat on the sofa or had moved to try and get Niall out of his swing. Genius eh? ;)

Postpartum wise i've pretty much bounced back this time seems as though I didn't need stitches and it was another amazing birth. A week on I am back into my pre pregnancy super skinny jeans for which I have the breastfeeding to thank.

Baby Haul

Today was a gloomy one in Yorkshire so we opted for a spot of lunch and shopping at Kiddicare. Whilst out that way we also took the opportunity to have a look for a few baby outfits at the Mothercare Outlet..and im so glad that we did! Not only was everything half price, clothing was also buy one half price get another 75% off!

 This for example was already on sale from £10 to £5, to £4.. so we ended up getting for..£2 in conjunction with another item!

We bought 6 packs of socks, so the offer did still apply, 3 for this Little One and 3 for Rio.

Little One's drawers are already overflowing, what with my Next obsession, but when we see bargains like this we cant just leave them there!!

Have you found any good deals lately?

Pregnancy + app! My New obsession!

Although this baby will be my second, I still find myself obsessively scouring websites for week by week updates of what the Little One is up to in my tummy. Although I have opted out of the emails this time I do still like to know what he looks like, and how big he is. When I saw on twitter there was an app to do this and more I jumped at the chance to try it out!

With the Health and Parenting Pregnancy + app, not only can you see what the baby looks like you can also..count kicks! A god send in later pregnancy if your ever worried about reduced movement.

I love how its tailored to you and very personal. It knows your name, tracks your weight, your health, tells you what to eat etc..heck it even has a list of names to help decide if your struggling. Talk about everything in one place!

The app can be downloaded and used for free up to 14 weeks (which I think is amazing as I know from personal experience this 'danger zone' can be utterly nerve wracking and when you do most of your 'research')..  after that you can opt to purchase the version to continue to unlock all the features.

I was sent a code to try the full product for free but as id recently switched contracts to a blackberry, not an iPhone I opted to buy this through the windows store instead and now have this on my laptop. I was very kindly offered a refund but protested as this product really is worth every penny and more..the contraction feature alone cost me more last time!

Pregnant ladies, this one is for you!!

Is it strange that I also got slightly giddy when I saw there was a baby app for the first year coming soon too?? Eeek!

Little one: 16 weeks..pregnancy process!

I think this is the first week that has gone slow in my pregnancy so far. I don't know if its my impatience for the 20 (or in my case 21) week scan..or the fact that my next midwife appointment isn't until the day before I turn 18 weeks! Everything just seems to of slowed down now people know and July seems ages away. People keep asking me if we know the sex every time they see me and i'm finding it hard not to scream to be quite honest. If it wasn't for Rio's bump kisses, little movements and my OH drawing love hearts on my bump in Bio oil I think I would of quite happily stayed in bed this week.

But enough of the doom and gloom and onto the exciting stuff!!

 

 

Apparently little one should be measuring around 10cm now and over the next three weeks will double in weight whilst adding cms in length.

 

Sickness:

No actual sick, just a few days when ive suddenly felt really terrible and at times dizzy.

 

Sleep:

I'm still going to the toilet a lot in the night, and im finding it harder to get comfy. I don't think this is pregnancy/bump related, just a phase im going through maybe? I'm managing to sleep until 8:30 when Rio wakes up though, so that is a bonus! I may purchase a nursing/pregnancy pillow though.
 

Movement:

Little ones movement still varies, the little kicks are getting more frequent at night which is very nice! I quite like the sensation of them rolling over under my skin though, as I did with Rio. Sometimes I just get little bubble pops.. hardly even noticeable at all if it wasn't for me laid there, filled up on cold juice, hand on my tummy, concentrating with all my might!
 

Other:

Naughtily bought a new moses basket this week, but we are keeping the rocking stand from our old one. On the hunt for maternity clothes that make a petite lady like me feel good about my bump not frumpy and a good maternity bra! Still considering home birth.

 

 

Tomy Be Baby Starlight Dreamshow Yellow

A while a go I was sent a Tomy Be Baby Starlight Dreamshow Yellow to try. And although my first impressions were very mixed I decided to keep with it for a while longer..and on Sunday night I was so glad that we did!

Rio's cold progressed and moved on into a cough resulting in him projectile vomiting three times in the night!! He was beside himself, he hates being sick. He was inconsolable and as a spur of the moment last resort I fetched his "night light" into our room and pressed ON. Magic! Within two minutes he had gone from distraught to fast asleep! Me and my OH just looked at each other in awe..and then watched the projections on the ceiling in sheer fascination!

 

 Its so easy to use too. I cant even trick Rio into thinking the "batteries have run out" as he knows to use the switch at the side in correlation to the on/off one! I do however still stand by my original opinions. This product would definitely benefit from a volume button, as at night I find it too loud to be soothing! And that it is more suitable for use from a younger age, I can see little ones loving this, and being absolutely fascinated. (I've already seen this in a few nursery pictures here in the blog world).

Overall I think as far as value for moneys concerned, this ones a real winner! And will definitely be keeping it close to hand to pass on to our next one..if Rio lets me!

The right time for a toddler bed?

The day that Rio learnt to pull himself up was the day that he fell out his cot. Every milestone is a suprise to a first time parent, but nothing is more suprising that seeing your baby fall and not being able to do anything about it. It seemed to happen in slow motion. I ran as fast as my legs would allow and I didnt even get close. Luckily Craigs legs went faster and he managed to catch Rio's foot CM's before his head hit the ground. He got a graze on his arm but it could of been worse, so much worse!

I know some of you will be thinking, well you should of lowered the cot! We did, this was on the lowest setting, all it took was an unbalance of weight. For a while he slept surrounded by a barricade of pillows. And i slept with one eye open, the cot back at the side of my bed. Then my sister noticed the same bed as her little boys (See here) advertised on a selling page at such a bargain price that we didnt look back! We obviously didnt keep the mattress for hygiene reasons but its pretty easy to pick one up. I think John Lewis even have a range of childrens mattresses .

My little boy, had a big boy bed!

There's alot of controversy about what age is right to make the transition. Everyone worries about them falling out. With us it was a no brainer, a case of 'would you rather him falling 10cm, if that, onto an old mattress or from the full height of a cot?'. Rio loves the freedom and I love watching him run across the landing and climb into bed when I say "its time for nan-nights".

You as a parent know when its the right time for your child to no longer be in a cot. Some people do it early, some people do it late. One size does not fit all. I do know one thing..the transition from toddler bed to normal bed for Rio wont be for a long while yet!

Play mate & chicken pox

Ive never never seen Rio move, or let me get him ready so fast as when i say, "do you want to go see Jacob?".  Hes at that age where he'll happily play independently but he blooms around other toddlers.

Its strange to think these were only took yesterday as today he is covered in spots. Thats right, my little mister has chicken pox.

Dear Rio

Today is your first birthday. Where has time gone? It seems like i met you only yesterday, 6lb6oz of perfection suddenly there on my belly. Seven minutes, thats all it took, that flew too. The past year has been the best one of my life. You've changed me so much, its like i was meant to be a mum. You've been ahead in every thing you do and while thats amazing, its also scary. I imagined you taking a few steps at one not running around the house with a ball. Your ball crazy, like your dad. You seem to have his skills too, and one day soon he will teach you everything he knows. Everyone asks "is he good?" i always tell them the truth, your a godsend, we dont know we've got you. You've got such a cheeky personality though, your little face makes me chuckle everytime. Words cannot describe how happy you have made me, and how much i love you. You won't remember your first birthday, but i hope you enjoy it anyway.

All my love always..Mummy :) xx

 

If you havent already read it, Rio's birthstory can be found here..

http://walkingtalkingpollypocket.blogspot.co.uk/p/rios-birth-story.html

11 month update

When Rio was born and people asked how old he was, i loved being able to say it in weeks..but there comes a time when you have to start saying it in months. When next month comes i feel that i'm meant to move on and say "hes a year old". But i wont..i refuse! Its too general and sounds far too old..maybe if i say "he's 18 months old" etc, i can convince them (and myself) that he's still a baby. But he's not is he? He's a little toddler. Dont get me wrong i love watching him grow up, and cant wait to have a conversation with him but..wahh!

- He says things like "quack quack" , too adorable!

- He's a pro walker but refuses (even though he can) to get up from the floor when he's fell over, and crawls to the next object to get back up again.

- He's got super cuddly and loving, mainly for me :) hehe

- He's got 7 teeth with the 8th on the way

- He can understand everything you say and responds in the right way

- He's still ball mad, even more so now he can walk around kicking it.

- We chose his godparents

- He's obsessed with watching me flush the toilet, strange child

- Rio had his first hair cut, and needs another one already!

- He's started escaping during nappy change time.

- When you say "go nan nights/sleepies" he's put his head on the pillow and closes his eyes

- He finds you jumping in the air hilarous, i tend to leave this one to Craig.

 -We havent found a food he doesnt like yet
 

Sorry for the lack of posts and comments on yours..my laptop screen is playing up so im having to plug it into the tv, which is kinda cool but a major nuisance.

A year ago..

A year ago today i was full term with Rio, talking about how painting your toe nails whilst being pregnant is a chore, and telling you to not even get me started about blind shaving!! Haha. I recommended that cervix lighting should be renamed 'lightning' because thats certainly what it felt like. And i looked like this.  (this was actually took two weeks before but oh well)

Little did i know that i could let alone would grow alot bigger than this!

Looking back on it now makes me miss my bump. Miss my little baba kicking, wriggling and hiccuping inside me. But makes me happy that i started blogging. It makes me look at my 11 month old terror napping on the sofa with his daddy and think.. "god where has the time gone?".

If i could give an expectant/new mother any advice at all, it would be to take far too many pictures, especially of those first moments, because looking back..it is nowhere near enough!

Rio's first haircut

As much as i loved Rio's curls, they were getting crazy. So we finally gave in and took him for his first hair cut.

Aww nice and neat ^^ the curls were back at the back by bedtime though, much to my delight :)

Happy mothers day everyone, and if like me its your first..an extra special happy to you!!

'The' update

Other than the birth story, i think this is 'the' update in mummyworld blogging. Well other than getting pregnant again but i'm not planning that one yet.

Rio can walk!! Wahhh writing that makes me sad. Okay it doesnt, im secretly happy clapping inside and doing a little dance but still, i should be sad. My little baby has reached a major milestone. 'THE' major milestone.

^^ Where did he go, how did this happen ;)

Something just clicks in Rio overnight. One day he cant do something, the next he can. Everyday he knows something new. One day he couldnt sit up..at all! The next he could..like a pro! The same for crawling..well snippering..it took him a while to get out of that little stage ;) A few days ago, hell even yesterday, he'd only do 4/5 steps, then realise what he was doing and sit down! No amount of coaxing could get him to try it again. But today.. something clicked. Step step step step fall. Hear mummies praise. Get back up. Step step step step step fall. Over and over again, until suddenly falling wasnt a big deal. Then he got wise and started putting his arms out and up for balance, even stopping in between groups of steps every now and again to re centre. Yes sometimes he falls after 4/5 steps still, yes he still aims for the furniture or me. But he's doing it. And i guarentee by his first birthday there will be no stopping him. :) Wahhhh!!

He also has two new teeth, also over night..what a trooper!

Thats seven now. Sometimes he uses them seven teeth to bite now too! i guess this is one of those bad habits you have to learn children not to do. *sigh* .. even though it was midly amusing when he clamped onto Craigs nose as he was nodding off..for me anyway ;)

Off to bed, sleepyhead!

As a mummy to a boy, i have major girl clothing envy when out shopping. I like 70% of girl clothes and yet find it so hard to really fall in love with something for Rio, apart from PJ's. Boys really have the advantage on cool PJ's.

 

I'm a sucker for anything 'cute dinosaur'. We often refer to Rio as Rio-saurus or saurus so my insides squeel when i see things like this! He even says rawr sometimes now..that reminds me of a tweet i recently saw. "Anyone who thinks rawr mean i love you in dinosaur obviously hasnt watched jurrasic park..it means im going to eat you". But just for today, i'll pretend it means i love you ;)  Next sleepsuits & vests wash so well.. which is great for me seems as though Rio seems to stay in one size for so long. He's 11 months in 9 days and these are 6-9, with some growing room! This pack is £15-£16 in store. And can be found here http://www.next.co.uk/x51892s2#133147x51 The middle ones my favourite!

 

 

 

Primark have some Mr Mischief ones that are a gorgeous shade of blue for £6.

 

And these yojojo ones were amazing from Asda before the mess ;) promise.

 

Storytime for saurus!

I'm a bookworm, so was delighted when i noticed that Rio loves storytime. Today he even tried turning the pages with me. My heart melt. See, ive said it before and i'll say it again til you get bored of me, "its the little things in life that makes you smile".  I've spent so much money over the years on books, spent so much time down the aisles at the library..i still do now sometimes even though i own a kindle.

Then i discoved carboots & charity shops. Its only sane with the amount of books i want to get Rio that i do the same for his too. I love the idea of reading a book and passing it on. Yes, some are keepers that you will read and reread but its never good to be a hoarder. Unless you've got your own in house library, then hoard all you like you lucky person!!

A few posts ago i mentioned the potty poo poo wee wee book i got for 10p, after research i noticed had i bought this online, via sites such as ebay , it would have cost me between £11-52, used!! I really like this book and i think its great one for both parent and child around the potty training age. The ended put such a smile on my face, and my dads when he too sat and read it to Rio.

This week i picked up two more books. I'm not 100% sure on the cost as two books and a top came up to £1. Bargain. I was too stuck up in my teens to even shop in primark, now look at me scouring charity shops. Thats motherhood for you.

 

 I really loved the meaning behind this book. Augustus has lost his smile, no matter how much he looks he just cant find it. Until he realises "its the little things in life that make you smile" ..see i told you ;)

This book didnt do it for me as much as the others i have mentioned. I liked how it was a story that got all the woodland animals to sleep. As thats how i see it being in our house. Bath, bottle, book, bed. But other than that nothing really set it apart.

As usual im open to book suggestions in the comments :) i do actually buy them sometimes ;)

Bit of a different post for me, let me know your opinion on that too!

Making the most of the sunshine

It's no secret that sunshine in England is as rare as _______.. i want to say rocking horse shit am i allowed to say that on here? Urm, fill in the blank with something rare of your choice. So when it made an appearance today i popped Rio into his pushchair and took him on his first trip to the park. I know i know, 10 months old and hasnt been? What a bad mother. This one even has ducks..bonus! Two birds with one stone and all that.

 

 



We both had such a lovely day :) ..baby group tomorrow if we are up and ready in time. Why do they make these things so early and at the other end of yonder?

Im giving out medals

Yep..im giving out medals to all you mummies that can feed your baby and not get food anywhere. My dad can..oooh he sits there and perfectly disposits the food into Rios mouth leaving him all clean and pretty. Me? Pshh i just pile it in,and wipe off the excess with the spoon..sometimes he'll even clamp his lips and turn his cheek to me so i get it on there too!! Its worse when you having nothing in the house thats 'baby edible' and have to use one of those jars..bright orange food making your baby look like a simpson when you wipe it off!

 

Oooh thats better!!

2/52 (project 52)

My baba's photogenic

Rio's a terror. He's getting pretty good as scooting around, so good that when you go into the kitchen to pop the kettle on you come back to a card covered floor..those cards 'were' attached to the door! Cheeky child.

It was mad friday yesterday, the world didnt end btw ;) the only thing 'mad' about my friday was the christmas asda shop. Yep food shopping and indian takeaway is as mad as it gets in this house.

Normal Fiance's buy you flowers. I've been asking Craig for ages to get me some, hey if you dont ask you dont get. What did he turn up with the other night? A poinsettia, a bloody christmas plant! Oh well its the thought that counts eh, ungrateful biatch!

It was text santa last night on tele, i got a text santa hat whilst in asda, i tried making Rio pose with it for a photo but he wasnt having none of it. Never the less he says 'text santa' everybody ;)

Ooooh i knew i was forgetting something, only joking and last but no means least!! A collage of some of our family photoshoot photos :)

Here it is..

the update i predicted a few posts ago. Little Rio has done some over night learning again, last time it was sitting up and this time its crawling. Well one legged snipper crawling but still..super proud mummy right now :) He now has an obsession with crawling upto the bathroom bin and pulling it over though..hmm! Craigs been trying to learn him to stand with the sofa because when you grab his hands he stands hiself up. He does okay for an 8 month old, when he's not bouncing that it! I swear this child isnt going to walk he's going to bounce around everywhere like tigger!

Rio's made me a calendar

I've started taking Rio to 'playgroup', yes he's a little young for most of the activities but nowerdays alot of parents take their babies along to 0-3 groups etc, so i thought id join in. I was quite shy most of my life when it came to meeting new people and making new friends up until i started working in retail, and even having Rio..but being a mum is a talking point! I dont want Rio to be like that, being social is great. So off i went expecting him to only be able to sit there playing with toys but nope!

He had a go at feeling different textures and especially loved the tray of cornflakes and rice crispies (when he wasnt trying to eat them) so im going to go out and buy the cheaper version for him to play with. It encourages him to pick up things with his finger and thumb too. I spotted the older kids playing in glitter paint and making calendars, and the lady in charge of that area spotted me being nosey haha, and asked if id like Rio to make one. He loved his hand painted and sqwelched it about. The aim was to get his first hand print but he wasnt having none of that, ooh no it was far more fun making a mess :) Proud mummy moment. Rio's first picture, aged 8 month.