Well, as I've decided to make a concerted effort to be better about posting on this blog, I think I'm going to have to rename a few things....
Firstly, my Little Monster and Even Littler Monster will be changing.
I was SO convinced that I was going to have a girl the second time around, that I thought Little Monster and Little Princess would make referring to the kids so easy. Yup, cue two boys and the original monikers are not so easy.
From now on (until I decide to change them again!), they will be referred to as Mac (my oldest) and Warrie (my youngest)
Husband has become Mr M - its just so much easier, down from 7 letters to 3 letters plus a space! Result!
I shall remain Melissa or Mrs M - unless I can come up with something better!
Looking forward to starting my Gratitude Project tonight!
Showing posts with label Little Monster. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Little Monster. Show all posts
Tuesday, 1 April 2014
Monday, 13 August 2012
The birth of my Little Monster
It all started on the 4th of October...
I woke up early in the morning with a new and different pain in my belly... I knew straight away, that this was it - Baby was on the way. What I didn't know was that it was the start of 3 & 1/2 days of pre-labour - lucky me!
After 24 hours of contractions, I called my midwife to let her know that I thought I might be heading to hospital soon. Boyfriend and I camped out on the sofa bed with my hospital bag at the door, but the contractions slowed right down during the night, and I was able to catch a few hours sleep. The same thing happened again the next night... talk about frustrating!!
On the Wednesday morning I went to the hospital to see my midwife, who did a stretch & sweep (once again, lucky me) and announced that I was 3cm dilated... which was very pleasing, as I didn't want those three days of pain to have been for nothing! She then sent me home with some panadine forte and told me to try and get some rest.... FAT CHANCE!! Within 30-minutes, my labour started for real ("Ahhh so THAT's what a contraction feels like!!"), and I spent the next 7-hours wandering around our flat wondering what the heck I had got myself into!
At 6.30pm, with contractions coming every 3-minutes, I made the final call to the midwife telling her to expect us in the hospital within the next 30-minutes. As soon as I was showered and ready to go, Boyfriend pulled me into the nursery and asked me if I was ready for what was about to happen; to which I promptly burst into tears and said "no!"... He then asked me to marry him - to which said "yes!" :) (heck, I would have said yes to anything at that point!! hehehe)
And then we were off!
All throughout my pregnancy I had hoped to have a natural water birth, but I had maintained my feminine right to change my mind at any given time and use all the drugs available to me ;)
I started off well. I spent a about an hour in the bath and tried to relax and go with the flow. But the contractions were getting stronger and faster, and at about 10pm I asked for the pethadine - I had now been in some sort of pain for about 80hrs with not an awful lot of sleep, and I was exhausted. In our ante-natal classes, we were told that some women can almost sleep when they have pethadine... unfortunately for me, that was not the case. Every time I tried to lay down and close my eyes, another contraction would hit me and I would have to get up, pace the room and moan with pain.
The pethadine also made me feel a heady combination of overly hyper, very woozy and pretty sick - and it's not easy to be heaving over the toilet and get through a contraction at the same time! The pain relief was minimal, and about an hour later I decided to try the gas.
At this stage (according to Husband, I don't really remember), I was making some pretty scary/weird sounds - my midwife said I was starting to transition. I couldn't get the timing with breathing the gas right; probably because the contractions were coming in fast a furious, and the pain was pretty much unbearable, so I requested an epidural.
I had to wait for about another 10mins before they could get me into a delievery suite (it was a busy night apparently!), but by golly it felt like years!!! Finally I walked the 20m to the delivery suite - stopping for two contractions along the way!
I then found out that I was 8cm dilated, and my body was spasming with each contraction. I had to argue with the anesthesiologist as to why I should have an epidural; she maintained that I was too far gone and wouldn't be able to stay still for long enough for her to give it to me.
My wonderful amazing midwife stood up to the silly cow and told her that I was not too far gone, and I thought that I could stay still for long enough. So after explaining the risks to me, AGAIN (I'm in labour lady, not stupid!!) I finally got the drugs (staying still and contracting wasn't easy, but I wanted those drugs, and I wasn't moving for anyone!)... and it was almost instant relief :)
But when they put the monitor on, the Baby had a "non-reassuring heart rate", so they called in an obstetrician who decided that rather than doing a blood test from the scalp, it needed to be delivered straight away... and at 1.58am (on his due date, the clever little man!), my Little Monster was brought into the world by ventouse delivery.
It was love at first sight, and every day since then he has found new (and usually very entertaining!) ways to make my heart sing.
{images from here, here and here}
I woke up early in the morning with a new and different pain in my belly... I knew straight away, that this was it - Baby was on the way. What I didn't know was that it was the start of 3 & 1/2 days of pre-labour - lucky me!
On the Wednesday morning I went to the hospital to see my midwife, who did a stretch & sweep (once again, lucky me) and announced that I was 3cm dilated... which was very pleasing, as I didn't want those three days of pain to have been for nothing! She then sent me home with some panadine forte and told me to try and get some rest.... FAT CHANCE!! Within 30-minutes, my labour started for real ("Ahhh so THAT's what a contraction feels like!!"), and I spent the next 7-hours wandering around our flat wondering what the heck I had got myself into!
At 6.30pm, with contractions coming every 3-minutes, I made the final call to the midwife telling her to expect us in the hospital within the next 30-minutes. As soon as I was showered and ready to go, Boyfriend pulled me into the nursery and asked me if I was ready for what was about to happen; to which I promptly burst into tears and said "no!"... He then asked me to marry him - to which said "yes!" :) (heck, I would have said yes to anything at that point!! hehehe)
And then we were off!
I started off well. I spent a about an hour in the bath and tried to relax and go with the flow. But the contractions were getting stronger and faster, and at about 10pm I asked for the pethadine - I had now been in some sort of pain for about 80hrs with not an awful lot of sleep, and I was exhausted. In our ante-natal classes, we were told that some women can almost sleep when they have pethadine... unfortunately for me, that was not the case. Every time I tried to lay down and close my eyes, another contraction would hit me and I would have to get up, pace the room and moan with pain.
The pethadine also made me feel a heady combination of overly hyper, very woozy and pretty sick - and it's not easy to be heaving over the toilet and get through a contraction at the same time! The pain relief was minimal, and about an hour later I decided to try the gas.
At this stage (according to Husband, I don't really remember), I was making some pretty scary/weird sounds - my midwife said I was starting to transition. I couldn't get the timing with breathing the gas right; probably because the contractions were coming in fast a furious, and the pain was pretty much unbearable, so I requested an epidural.
I had to wait for about another 10mins before they could get me into a delievery suite (it was a busy night apparently!), but by golly it felt like years!!! Finally I walked the 20m to the delivery suite - stopping for two contractions along the way!
I then found out that I was 8cm dilated, and my body was spasming with each contraction. I had to argue with the anesthesiologist as to why I should have an epidural; she maintained that I was too far gone and wouldn't be able to stay still for long enough for her to give it to me.
My wonderful amazing midwife stood up to the silly cow and told her that I was not too far gone, and I thought that I could stay still for long enough. So after explaining the risks to me, AGAIN (I'm in labour lady, not stupid!!) I finally got the drugs (staying still and contracting wasn't easy, but I wanted those drugs, and I wasn't moving for anyone!)... and it was almost instant relief :)
But when they put the monitor on, the Baby had a "non-reassuring heart rate", so they called in an obstetrician who decided that rather than doing a blood test from the scalp, it needed to be delivered straight away... and at 1.58am (on his due date, the clever little man!), my Little Monster was brought into the world by ventouse delivery.
| Not my Little Monster - but almost as cute! |
It was love at first sight, and every day since then he has found new (and usually very entertaining!) ways to make my heart sing.
{images from here, here and here}
Wednesday, 8 February 2012
Dear Universe - I want a new home!
We are looking for a new home to accommodate our growing brood (long story, will bore you with it in another blog!)
We thought we had found it - scrap that, we HAD found it, but so had 10 other interested parties and for the first time in my rental life, I didn't get the place I wanted.
Obviously it wasn't meant to be.... though I still dream about the house, and how my life would be in it....
So in order to find our dream home, I am throwing my heart open to the Universe and asking for a little help (hmmmm, and not dissimilar to the letter that conjoured up Mary Poppins... Imagine this letter is being sung to a jaunty showtune!)
{image from here}
We thought we had found it - scrap that, we HAD found it, but so had 10 other interested parties and for the first time in my rental life, I didn't get the place I wanted.
Obviously it wasn't meant to be.... though I still dream about the house, and how my life would be in it....
So in order to find our dream home, I am throwing my heart open to the Universe and asking for a little help (hmmmm, and not dissimilar to the letter that conjoured up Mary Poppins... Imagine this letter is being sung to a jaunty showtune!)
Dear Universe
I don't often ask for help, and the few times that I have you have listened and provided.
Husband and I need and want a new home. We don't want our children to be apartment children. We don't want to always be worrying about the noise levels, and how it affects our neighbours.
Please, please, please help us find our dream home.
It must have:
- 3-bedrooms (although 2 large bedrooms and a sunroom would be equally acceptable)
- A separate living/dining area (although a large combined living space would do just as well)
- A garden for my Little Monster and #2 to safely run crazy in, with a shady tree to have picnics under (must be low maintenance - I need to be eased into the whole "gardening" thing....)
- A shower and a bath (combined is fine with me - I just need a tub I can soak and relax in!)
- A lock up garage (or at the very least off street parking)
- A decent sized kitchen (eat-in is fine especially if the living space is combined.... and I'll go out on a limb here and ask for a dishwasher - hope that's not being too greedy!)
- Be secure, so that Husband won't worry about us when he is at work
- Accept a cat
Most importantly, it must be within our price range and have a landlord who doesn't put the rent up every six months; if s/he can wait til I go back to work before putting the rent up, that would be good... If they didn't put the rent up for a couple of years, that would be awesome!
Thank you for listening Universe. I patiently wait your response...... although I do need to be moved/settled by the end of April!Well, I've asked. Now to keep looking and hope that the Universe is listening.... Watch this space!
{image from here}
Friday, 3 February 2012
Arghh F**k!
So there I was, 5am, fast asleep; trying to make up for an already distrupted night's sleep... (thanks to Little Monster believing that our bed is actually his)
When BAM!
I awoke in agony, with my leg nearly perpendicular to the bed, toes splayed wildly, and a cramp in the middle of my calf.
Needless to say, I swore like a sailor for the few minutes it took to regain control of the muscle.
Unbelieveably (well, at least to me!), when I was telling Husband about the reasons behind my broken sleep, he had very little sympathy for the cramp incident.
Instead he told me that given that the Little Monster had been in bed with us at the time, my language had been less than desirable, and that I might want to tone things down the next time I woke with a cramp....
Seriously.
Am I going to have to watch my lanuage whilst giving birth?!
I mean I get that there was a child in the room (not by my choice) and he shouldn't be subjected to some of the bluer words spouting from his mother (which by the way, he completely slept through).
But when someone is unceremoniously woken up in unexpected and breathtaking pain, instinct takes over and common sense does not always prevail...
A girlfriend at work suggest that I wake him up in the middle of the night with a swift kick to the bollocks and see if he manages not to swear.
And as I hobble around the office with a bruised calf, I can't even begin to tell you how tempting that it sounds.
When BAM!
I awoke in agony, with my leg nearly perpendicular to the bed, toes splayed wildly, and a cramp in the middle of my calf.Needless to say, I swore like a sailor for the few minutes it took to regain control of the muscle.
Unbelieveably (well, at least to me!), when I was telling Husband about the reasons behind my broken sleep, he had very little sympathy for the cramp incident.
Instead he told me that given that the Little Monster had been in bed with us at the time, my language had been less than desirable, and that I might want to tone things down the next time I woke with a cramp....
Seriously.
Am I going to have to watch my lanuage whilst giving birth?!
I mean I get that there was a child in the room (not by my choice) and he shouldn't be subjected to some of the bluer words spouting from his mother (which by the way, he completely slept through).
But when someone is unceremoniously woken up in unexpected and breathtaking pain, instinct takes over and common sense does not always prevail...
A girlfriend at work suggest that I wake him up in the middle of the night with a swift kick to the bollocks and see if he manages not to swear.
And as I hobble around the office with a bruised calf, I can't even begin to tell you how tempting that it sounds.
Does anyone else have a Husband/Wife/Partner/Significant Other like mine - sometimes the most caring and loving person, and sometimes the most cold and unfeeling bastard?
Wednesday, 25 January 2012
Grouchy
You know when you're grumpy for no {really} good reason?
You know when one minute you're feeling up beat and happy, and you want to just chat the day away with any one who will listen... and then the next minute you are channelling Oscar the Grouch, and just want everyone to bugger off and leave you alone??
Well that's me today.
This morning, despite a very broken night of sleep thanks to Husband, the Little Monster and the Bump!, I woke up in a pretty jolly mood.
I managed to get the Little Monster to daycare on time {the bus gods were smiling on me this morning}, and more amazingly, I managed to get into work ON TIME! Such a rarity; such an achievement! hehehe
I had my performance review at work, which went really well - yay!
AND I have found a replacement daycare spot for the Little Monster whilst his usual lady is away on holiday.
So all in all, it had been a very good morning.
Then it all changed.To be fair, I know exactly what set the Grump off; it was getting caught in a torrential down pour whilst walking back from the replacement daycare place.
I did have my brolly with my, but it's one of those cheap Two Dollar Shop specials that doesn't actually offer much protection.
So, my jeans are soaked from the knee down.
Because I wore my thongs for the walk, my feet are frozen.
And because I'm starting to feel really pregnant, I am now tired and sore from the long walk.
So really, I'm pregnant, tired, sore AND grumpy. What a delightful combo...
My advice? Steer clear of me until tomorrow!!
Or at least until I've had a kilo of chocolate :)
How do you combat the Grumpy Monster when it unwittingly rears it's grouchy head? What are your coping mechanisms? {maybe I can borrow them?!}
{images from here and here}
Wednesday, 28 December 2011
Just touching base
I wasn't going to write any posts on my trip; in all honesty, I hadn't anticipated having the time to!
But this afternoon, the opportunity presented itself: my Little Monster is happily engrossed in SpongeBob, Husband is laying on the sofa with his book and the rest of my Family are hanging by the pool or playing squash.
A tropical downpour has just passed over; the sound and smell of it reminding me of my childhood years growing up in the Tropics.
All is well in my little world.
And to top it all off, we had a lovely Christmas full of the usual overdose on food and wrapping paper.
This trip has been so wonderful, as I get to spend long overdue time with my Brother and Sister-in-Law, as well as my Dad, his wonderful Wife, and my half Brother.
But the best part for me, has been watching my Little Monster playing with his Cousin. These two little boys have only met once before (at our wedding), and within hours of their second meeting they were laughing and giggling like long lost buddies, and I am pretty sure they were even conspiring to get up to lots of mischief together!!
I am desperately NOT counting the days that have already passed, the time is already going to fast... Instead I am trying my best to cherish each moment with the Family, to burn each memory on my brain so I can always refer to them when I need a pick me up
I hope you all have had a wonderful Christmas with your families (or just some good old fashioned time out, if Christmas isn't your bag, baby)
I shall finish this post with a little bit of a gush... feel free to reach for a sick bag!
I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family! We live spread across the globe, and yet when we are together everything just seems to slip back into place; conversations flow and the laughter is almost never-ending.
I truly am a lucky lucky girl
But this afternoon, the opportunity presented itself: my Little Monster is happily engrossed in SpongeBob, Husband is laying on the sofa with his book and the rest of my Family are hanging by the pool or playing squash.
A tropical downpour has just passed over; the sound and smell of it reminding me of my childhood years growing up in the Tropics.
All is well in my little world.
And to top it all off, we had a lovely Christmas full of the usual overdose on food and wrapping paper.
This trip has been so wonderful, as I get to spend long overdue time with my Brother and Sister-in-Law, as well as my Dad, his wonderful Wife, and my half Brother.
But the best part for me, has been watching my Little Monster playing with his Cousin. These two little boys have only met once before (at our wedding), and within hours of their second meeting they were laughing and giggling like long lost buddies, and I am pretty sure they were even conspiring to get up to lots of mischief together!!
I am desperately NOT counting the days that have already passed, the time is already going to fast... Instead I am trying my best to cherish each moment with the Family, to burn each memory on my brain so I can always refer to them when I need a pick me up
I hope you all have had a wonderful Christmas with your families (or just some good old fashioned time out, if Christmas isn't your bag, baby)
I shall finish this post with a little bit of a gush... feel free to reach for a sick bag!
I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family! We live spread across the globe, and yet when we are together everything just seems to slip back into place; conversations flow and the laughter is almost never-ending.
I truly am a lucky lucky girl
Tuesday, 4 October 2011
A post where I completely contradict myself
I've been feeling old these last few weeks... most likely because my birthday is just around the corner, and that usually triggers a bit of a funk.
Add to that the little voice inside my head that says OH NO YOU'RE NOT, everytime I laugh and tell people "I'm 29 again!"
It doesn't help that Husband always (ALWAYS) backs up this voice, AND then tells everyone exactly how old I am. Obviously he still needs some work.
It's not that I miss being young - although if I could be 27 again, I would do it in a heartbeat.
And if I could be 20 again, knowing what I know now....? Yeah, I'd probably give it a crack too; maybe being armed with some knowledge would give me a bit more self-confidence. Probably not J
I miss the freedom of youth; the spontaneity of dinners out, trips overseas, hangovers, sleep-ins and excess energy.
Hmmmm maybe I'm confusing youth with motherhood??
Maybe I am just missing the "me" that I was before I had a baby?
You know the most ridiculous part of this post? I don't want everything that comes with youth.
I love my life. I love being married, and I love being a mum J
I don't want to be out clubbing until dawn, stumbling down the street in shoes I can't walk in unable to hear what my friend is saying because the music was so loud and my hearing is shot.
(Although I am very partial to a bit of a boogie, as long as I'm home by midnight J)
I don't want to wake up at 3 in the afternoon, hungover as all hell, wasting what's left of the day.
(But a sleep in til 7.30am would be divine!)
I just want to the energy, and to live with the freedom of choice once, maybe twice a month. To go out with Husband to see our friends and not have to worry about who is going to do the morning shift with the Little Monster.
I don't want to be young, but do I want to be more youthful.
And thankfully, that is something I can change!
Do you miss being young or youthful? Is there any age you would do over again or avoid at all cost?
Monday, 3 October 2011
How time flies when you're looking a photos
It's been a while since I was here - sorry 'bout that.
No excuses. Well actually a few excuses, mostly work is really ramping up for me at the moment, so I can't blog at work (can you believe the unfairness of it all!), and I hate being on the computer when I get home from work.
So I thought I would make the most of the time whilst the Little Monster was down for his nap, and come write a witty and insightful post on my long weekend.
But I kept looking at the blank screen.
No words were coming, so I thought I'd hit Facebook up for some "inspiraton". And then I got caught up with Facebook, and seeing what my friends are up to.
Then I realised that I haven't added any photos of the Little Monster since APRIL.... that's awful!! Considering how fast toddlers change, it has been FIVE MONTHS since I showed my friends any new pictures of my son. How slack!
So after downloading/filing all the photos appropriately, I have spent the last 40-minutes reliving the Little Monster's April to September in photos.
He is gorgeous and I love him.
I can hear the Little Monster stirring now, so I won't get the photos up today - but they're ready to go next time I find a spare 45-minutes at home.
I hope you all had a lovely weekend... and a fantastic long weekend if you were in NSW!
No excuses. Well actually a few excuses, mostly work is really ramping up for me at the moment, so I can't blog at work (can you believe the unfairness of it all!), and I hate being on the computer when I get home from work.
So I thought I would make the most of the time whilst the Little Monster was down for his nap, and come write a witty and insightful post on my long weekend.
But I kept looking at the blank screen.
No words were coming, so I thought I'd hit Facebook up for some "inspiraton". And then I got caught up with Facebook, and seeing what my friends are up to.
Then I realised that I haven't added any photos of the Little Monster since APRIL.... that's awful!! Considering how fast toddlers change, it has been FIVE MONTHS since I showed my friends any new pictures of my son. How slack!
So after downloading/filing all the photos appropriately, I have spent the last 40-minutes reliving the Little Monster's April to September in photos.
He is gorgeous and I love him.
I can hear the Little Monster stirring now, so I won't get the photos up today - but they're ready to go next time I find a spare 45-minutes at home.
I hope you all had a lovely weekend... and a fantastic long weekend if you were in NSW!
Friday, 16 September 2011
A balancing act
I have been struggling recently. Struggling to find balance in my life
I suppose I am looking for nirvana - that balance of being a worker, a mother, a housewife, and ME. And right at this moment in time, I feel like I am failing at all of them.
In my nirvana, I would be a stay-at-home-mum, with the Little Monster in daycare just two days a week to learn and practice his social skills, whilst I do housewifey things and even manage to get a pamper session in!
In my "slightly-more-realistic-but-still-nearly-ideal" world, I would be working three short days a week. On the two other days, I would have one day to myself to do housework or maybe even go to the movies on my own (bliss!), and the other day would be spent with playing the Little Monster, or meeting up with my Mum's group friends in a park somewhere and letting our kids run wild...
Here's my current reality:
Work:
I'm not putting the maximum effort in at work. I know this, I can feel it. It's not that I don't like my job, it's just that my focus is all off.
Because my attitude it all wrong at the moment, I am having to stay back late to get things finished. Which means that I miss out on time with the Little Monster.
Mothering:
I feel like I don't spend nearly enough time with the Little Monster during the week. I try to get home in time for dinner, but more often than not I am home just in time for bath-time and a little play before bed. Hardly what you would call quality time.
I do have two full days on the weekend with him, where we pack in a lot of mother/son bonding time. We wander around the shops and have a babycino, or go to a park. We have lots of giggles and lots of cuddles.
But I still feel like I am missing out on so much.
I am so thankful for our wonderful Family Daycare Lady. She loves the Little Monster almost as much as we do, and he loves her right back. She is awesome at telling us about the little things he gets up to, or the new skills he has learnt.
The fact that he is happy at daycare means the world to me, and lifts a small part of the guilt I feel leaving him there four days a week.
I am also very thankful for my Mum, who has the Little Monster one day a week. And for my Father-in-Law, who has him on the days when Mum can't - I love that he is building a close relationship with his grandparents!
For some unknown reason, I have it in my head that I should be able to be the perfect housewife/mother package as well as hold down a full-time job.
And it's such bullshit, because I was was hardly the picture perfect housewife before we became parents - although I was much better than I am now!
I have signed up to a blog to help me get things under control, (thank you The Organised Housewife!) and I am slowly (ever so slowly!) but surely regaining control over my complete lack of interest in housework.
This is my biggest fail of all.
I can't remember the last time I did anything for ME (Husband's erratic work hours don't help with this). The most I do for ME, is exercising 2 or 3 times a week.
Sometimes I feel like the Universe is against me on this; nearly every single time I have told Husband about something I want to do for ME and we've set aside the time, he gets a phone call or an email offering work.
And because Husband is just making a firm start in a new career (not to mention the fact that we need the cash!) I don't feel like I can say "stuff the work, I told you about my ME plans first!"
I feel like I am juggling so much at the moment, and something has to give.
What am I saying, something already has - the time I allocate to ME
The first step, I guess, is to take a step back and reassess my priorities - maybe I'm being to hard on myself. I am usually harder on myself than others, so it is quite possible that all of this is a manifestation of my guilt, causing it to seem so much bigger than it is.
Maybe once I have done that, finding the balance will seem more achieveable - and I might get a snippet of ME time!
How do you balance your life? What are you strategies when things feel out of whack? Do you get regular "ME time"?
Thursday, 25 August 2011
The day I (sort of) became a housewife
For the first time in my life, I did something housewifey.
Today I woke up with the overwhelming urge to make lemon and sugar crepes. Not sure what prompted the urge (I haven't made crepes for years!!), but figured I should just run with it... anyway, it would be a lovely treat for the Little Monster.
So I googled a crepe recipe - thank goodness for iphones!! - and set about making a culinary delight for the family.
Husband came into the kitchen shouting "Who are you and what have you done with my wife!?!!"
But to be fair to him, it is the first time in almost 9 years that I have ever made crepes for breakfast, and on a workday at that!
They weren't very attractive crepes (hence not using my own photo), but they were yummo! I gave the Little Monster half a crepe with jam (didn't think it would be nice to give him to the daycare lady all hyped up on sugar).... he had a mouthful, but wasn't impressed.
However, when he had a mouthful of Husbands sugared up crepe, his eyes lit up and I could almost see the sugar rush happen before my eyes.... So daycare lady; sorry about the hyperactive child this morning, I hope his come down wasn't too intolerable.
What deliciousness have you surprised your family (or yourself!) with?
{image 1}
Wednesday, 10 August 2011
Oh how I wish I drank coffee
I am a bleary eyed Mother today... and it's all my own fault.
Way back when the Little Monster was a wee thing (about 3 months old), he miraculously slept for the first time. I shared this joyous occasion with my mum's group, with all the energy and the smile of a new mother who has finally had some decent sleep.
As punishment for what he considered to be "showing off", the Little Monster spent the next week making sure that I woke up every two hours; feeding, cuddling, nappy change, singing, shushing - he wanted the lot.
So once again, I bounded into my mum's group full of energy and a great big smile. And once again, I was punished for my naivety.
Lesson learnt; no more discussing my son sleeping habits.
Oh how quickly we forget...
Yesterday, I had an email from a work friend who is on maternity leave with her first child. She was desperately tired, and asked me how old the Little Monster was when he slept through.
I cheerfully replied that our Little Monster was a bit slow in the "regularly sleeping through department" (I call regularly at least 3 times a week, and he was about 15-months), but that now we usually get five full nights a week.
Apparently, I was showing off again.
Last night, the Little
Which meant that I didn't.
As I said, all my own fauly really.
Image from here
Monday, 8 August 2011
I heart my family!
Oh what another wonderful weekend!
I’m not sure what has changed, but the last few weekends have been such a fun filled family time. And at the end of those weekend, on the Sunday nights, as Husband and I lay in bed we look at each other and say “I have had a GREAT weekend”
This weekend we played in the park with the Little Monster’s cousins, and fed ducks with the grandparents. We went for a walk around the block. We had a family “Masterchef Finale” dinner with the in-laws, and the Little Monster was spoilt for choice of where to get his cuddles (and chocolate!) from. And we had a kajillion family cuddles – the best kind in my mind! JIt’s funny when I think back to what a great weekend entailed for us in our previous life; meeting up with friends, copious amounts of alcohol, lots and lots of laughter and a sleep in.
These days, it would seem that a great weekend for our family requires the following; meeting up with family or friends preferably in a large child friendly space, copious amounts of children’s paraphernalia strewn all over the floor, lots and lots of laughter and an early night.
This will sound strange to say, but I finally feel like we are a proper family – we do things together, we have conversations (some more one sided than others!), we enjoy each other’s company and we have fun as a family. Maybe it’s because Husband is no longer working on weekends. Or maybe it’s because the Little Monster has reached an age where we can interact and actually interact, if that even makes sense
Or maybe it’s because I am starting to find my role as A Mother to be more rewarding, and it’s starting to feel a little bit easier.
Yes there are always challenges, and there are often moments of “arrrgh!”, and I know that there will be plenty more!! But more often than not, when the Little Monster looks at me with his big blue eyes and says “More {insert word} Mumma. Pease?” I think to myself, Isn’t this fun? Aren’t you glad you’re his Mummy?And you know what? I most certainly am!!
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