Rhodri's 10 Month Update

Rhodri's 10 Month Update

Hello there! I know posts have been thin on the ground recently, but I am working hard at developing some sort of work/home/blog life balance. I have a few posts in the pipeline and am grateful for all of you who read my blog and who are patient as I figure out how to juggle everything

My baby boy is now 10 months old.  He is in to everything. Everything is a toy, and belongs to him! He seems to change almost every day, constantly growing and learning. Now that I'm back in work it seems like by the time the weekend comes around and I can spend the full day with him, he's learnt so much without me. He's more and more like a little boy, and less like a baby every day. I am loving watching the changes and development. Here's what's happened in the last month!

Weight: Rhodri hasn't been weighed this month, judging by the return of his appetite I think he is probably right back on track. 

Height: We haven't had this checked since last month. He's not likely to be measured until his 1 year check up.

Clothing size: Around two weeks ago Rhodri moved up to his 9-12 month clothes. I probably could have held out a little longer as the arms and legs seem slightly too long. He was in that awkward stage where 6-9 was starting to get small and I'd rather his clothes were too big than too small.

Sleep: He sleeps 7pm - 6.30am. We do sometimes have to wake him at 6.30am so that we can get him out the door and get ourselves to work, but more often than not once he hears us stirring he starts to wake also.

This months milestones: 

• TEETH!! Holy moly! We went two and a half months with just the two bottom two teeth, when finally one of his top front teeth came through. Then two weeks later he is teething with three more top teeth! The poor little man is teething like crazy! We have made his first dentist appointment for next month, and hopefully by then the three teeth will be through!
• Rhodri is learning more words/sounds. Mamma and Dadda he has down to an art. He's working on Yes and Bye at the moment.
• In the past week Rhodri has been standing unaided for a few seconds. Not for long, but we are getting there and his balance is noticeably improving.
• He can walk when holding on to furniture or our hands.
• Still not crawling, but he has recently moved from a sitting to almost crawling position before lying down and giving up... it's progress!
• He is showing signs of being sociable with other children. Although he can't talk to them, he mimics the sounds or crys they make to try and grab their attention.
• The health visitor visited me after my first week back in work and said Rhodri showed signs of Separation Anxiety. He wasn't overly upset, and he quickly warmed to her again and showered her with smiles. But showed that he was certain who his Mummy was and who the stranger in the situation was.

This months special outings:

• Rhodri has had a few outings to the park. He loves the swings. Slides are mildly interesting. Nosing in on other peoples conversations is of course the best part of any outing.
• We continue to spend Thursdays visiting his Aunty and cousins. Sometimes when he's really lucky his girlfriend is there too. He's very fond of women. Flirt.

Baby gear love: My brand new woven wrap. I'm still getting to grips with it but I am enjoying trying out different carries using my wrap. I am building up the confidence to take him out minus the pram and with just the wrap.

Baby's routine: You can read our bed time routine HERE. 

Around 6.30am he wakes up, he has porridge and a bottle before brushing his teeth and being dressed for the day. We tend to leave the house around 7am dropping him off before heading to work. His grandparents play with him, take him out and just enjoy him of course. He naps around 9 for two hours. Has a bottle and lunch around half 11. Second nap half two ish for an hour. His last bottle after the second nap. I pick him up around 4.45pm. When we get home he has dinner and we resume the normal evening routine. Thursdays & Weekends Rhodri doesn't go to his grandparents and so I try to maintain the routine while still making memories and enjoying quality time together.

Highlights of the month: 

• Rhodri is constantly babbling and chatting. He laughs and giggles alot. Seeing him attempt communication is so rewarding and enjoyable to hear.
• Rhodri claps, waves and does a lot of dancing. I find it so lovely to see him enjoying movement and music. It's lovely to see him so happy.
• Getting home from work every day and getting smiles, kisses and cuddles is the best.

Rhodri's monthly favourites: 

• Toy - Anything musical
• Teddy - Goodnight bear.
• Food - Cauliflower, banana Pancakes and toast.
• Music - He just loves music. Sam Smith, Taylor Swift, Sia, Meghan Trainor... pretty much anything in the top 40 are his favourites. He loves Queen and Bon Jovi too. Anything he can bop along to!! 
• Activity - Standing, walking, dancing.
• Person - Mummy & Daddy of course!
• Book - The Gruffalos Child.

Rhodri's monthly dislikes:

• Being left the first few days Mummy went back to work.
• Being dressed. Particularly dislikes putting coats on - this continues to be an issue.
• Being put in/strapped in to seats, chairs, prams. He wants to be held or walking and doesn't particularly like being restrained.

Thats all for this month. As always thanks for reading!! xoxo

Rhodri's 9 Month Update

9 Month Update

I now have a 9 month old! That's a pregnancy... how crazy is that?! This month has really flown by and with only two weeks left until I return to work I've been filling our days with lots of fun activities. As much as I've loved that quality fun-filled time together, it does make time fly by even more. So lets take a look at what's been going on since Rhodri turned 8 months old, up until he hit 9 months old. 

Weight: Weight wise Rhodri has fallen slightly under his growth line. We know this is because he was quite poorly for almost two weeks this month. During that time he refused solids and he dropped from three bottles a day to two on a good day. Since getting better he has returned to his eating pattern so I'm sure he will be back on track soon.

Height: The health visitor measured him at his 6-9 month check and he is now 71cm long. This puts him just shy of the 75th percentile line. So he is long/tall but not massively. 

Clothing size: 6-9 months still.

Sleep: He sleeps 7pm - 7am most nights. When he was ill Rhodri woke at 10pm, 12pm & 4am every night. As soon as he was better we reverted back to his normal sleep pattern.

This months milestones: 

• Rhodri has learnt to wave. He was very keen to show this talent off at the beginning of the month but as time has gone on he doesn't wave as often, usually only when the mood suits.
• Rhodri has learnt to pull himself to a standing position using Mummy for support.
• While sitting on the sofa Rhodri will shuffle down on to his back, roll on to his tummy and then scoot off the sofa so he is standing up and holding on to the sofa.
• Rhodri is recognising who people are. So if I say 'Where is Nanna?' he looks at his Nanna.
• Rhodri says Dadda clearly. He sometimes says Mamma but usually reserves this for when he's upset.

This months special outings:

• We took Rhodri to an indoor play centre with his cousins. He was too young for most of it, but thoroughly enjoyed the ball pit!

Baby gear love: There's nothing in particular ... calpol with a syringe I guess? Anything that makes giving medicine easy is a plus.

Baby's routine: You can read our bed time routine HERE. 

Daytime wise he wakes at 7am, has porridge for breakfast, has a bottle, plays in his door bouncer or walker. Around 9.30am he goes for a nap. This is usually for about 2 hours. He then has a little play until 12pm when he has lunch and his second bottle. We play with his more interactive toys until about 2.30pm when he goes for a second nap. This is usually an hour nap. Once he wakes up we tend to play with his sensory tent and then he goes in the door bouncer or walker for a bit as well. This takes us up until dinner time which the bedtime routine covers :)

Of course there are days this differs slightly, if we go out he tends to avoid naps as long as possible and playtime isn't so scheduled but you get the gist.

Highlights of the month: 

• It was really miserable when Rhodri was ill, but the highlight of the month was seeing him starting to smile and babble again when he was feeling better. They were the sweetest smiles I've ever seen.
• He's a lot more vocal and I love that. He's always been very babbly, but after he was over his illness this has been a lot more noticeable.

Rhodri's monthly favourites: 

• Toy - A musical yellow starfish mirror toy
• Teddy - goodnight bear and his caterpillar
• Food - Banana pancakes, lamb & winter veggies, cauliflower.
• Music - Sam Smith 'Stay With Me' 
• Activity - Standing up holding on to the coffee table and bashing the table with coasters, remotes etc.
• Person - Mummy & Daddy of course!
• Book - The Gruffalos Child.

Rhodri's monthly dislikes:

• Medicine.
• Being dressed. Particularly dislikes putting coats on.
• Being strapped in to prams/car seats.
• Afternoon naps

We are still waiting for more teeth to arrive. His first two came through just before he turned 7 months and although he's been teething this entire time, no other teeth have come through yet! It looks like more are coming, but I said that last month!!

That's all for this month. As always thanks for reading! xoxo

Today.

I'm not happy today.

That's a hard thing to write or admit on a blog isn't it?

I am honest with you all about my life as a first time mummy, I share the fact that Baby brain sends me doolally and has me walking up and down my street like a crazy woman checking if my front door is locked. I share the fact that I sometimes spend too much time day dreaming over the crusts from a loaf of bread. I even shared the pictures of myself 9 stone heavier.

Despite that we all tend to keep a little something back don't we? Especially on the blogging front, we write comical stories about nappy changes and the constant lessons we learn as parents. We write touching and endearing posts about how much our children mean to us. Sometimes we share some artistically taken well edited photos... or if you are like me you point, shoot and "that'll do."

We share the ups and downs in a very toned down way. An approach I seem to have adapted to my everyday life too. When I've had a rubbish day and I really want to scream & shout I rarely show it. If I shout around you then you need to know I've really hit my limit because I don't do sad or angry very well any more. I have one setting 'I'm fine'.

I think the only two people who ever see the full good, bad & ugly these days are my mother and my husband. Mum gets the day time rampages over the phone, and hubby gets the left over emotions after a day of either calming down or winding up.

On the days where the post man woke the baby up from his nap with ridiculously loud knocking, even though we have a door bell. The days where you've just cleaned the entire house so naturally baby spits his food everywhere and the cat kicks litter everywhere. The days where the nappy leaks everywhere and no amount of wipes can clean this mess. The washing machine gives up, shortly after the nappy leakage. The days where you think, if one more thing goes wrong I'm going to scream. Those are the days I find myself smiling and saying "I'm fine" before I even have a chance to think about it.

For the longest time I've felt the pressure to not show how I feel. To not say it. Like it's a bad thing to admit I feel something other than happiness.

So today I'm going to take a moment to say that I'm not OK, and that's alright too.

I'm a Mummy and I love it. Honestly it's the best thing that's ever happened to me, and on the days where I don't feel happy I feel an overwhelming sense of guilt. How dare I not be happy when I have everything I ever wanted and more. How dare I! Well let me tell you, I'm human and sometimes I'm unhappy because I woke up on the wrong side of bed. Sometimes I'm unhappy because we all have private battles and wounds that have barely healed. Being a Mummy, and loving it, doesn't mean we can't be sad sometimes.

So I am admitting I'm not OK, that I don't want to smile but I will for my little boy. I'm admitting that my heart aches a little today, especially today. Pre-Rhodri it would be one of those days I would have crawled back in to bed and hidden under the duvet for the rest of the day. As I watch him play my heart is filled with love & joy, but there's a piece of my heart missing and it's aching today.

Today is a battle, a very private battle, and there I go keeping a little something back again. I guess we all have those things that remain private, but today my blog won't tell cute stories, or make jokes about how forgetful I can be. Instead I just want to leave a message for you all:

It's OK to not be OK. In this world where being positive is such a virtue, where we are frowned upon for wearing our hearts on our sleeves and we too quickly find ourselves saying we are fine when we are not. We sometimes forget that we are allowed to be human, to be hurting, or to just be having a bad day. So let me say it again. Today I am not OK, and that's OK too...

Liebster Award Part 2

Having been nominated and written my Liebster Award post (linked) I put it to one side. I don't know if all bloggers do this, but I like to give myself at least a few hours after initially writing a post to think about it and to re-read it. Just in case there's anything I want to change. So thinking I was all done I sat down to some twitter when a 2nd nomination came through from MummyBexM.  

Thank you MummyBexM for the nomination! I won't do the whole post all over again, I've already given the rules, my 11 random facts, and picked 11 nominees so in this post I'm just going to answer MummyBexM's questions and of course tell you a little bit about her blog!

A relatively new blog and a new mum to her almost 4 month old little boy. She blogs about her life as a mummy, throws in some lovely pictures of her family and also writes some really informative posts to help other mums on things like sleep routines. A really enjoyable read. Be sure to pop over and say hi!

The 11 questions I've been given are:

1) When and why did you start blogging? 

This is a question I touched upon in my first Liebster Award post. I originally started my blog, which was then called 'Just Add Colour' back in October 2012 shortly before my wedding day to share some of the hints and tips I'd picked up along the way for planning a wedding. 

Eventually the wedding posts got mixed in with beauty, recipes and a lot of other random stuff. I eventually took a break from blogging for personal reasons, the break was about 16months. In May 2014 my little boy was born and in October 2014 I decided I missed blogging, but wedding blogs weren't for me anymore so my blog was renamed Blogging Mamma and my lifestyle/parenting blog was born!

2)What recently read blog post have you enjoyed? 

There's a few, especially with all the Christmas posts recently. But one that springs to mind is Plutonium Sox post The Little Things. A lovely mix of getting to know the blogger, some lovely pictures of her two girls and a lesson I stand to learn that children aren't materialistic and Baby R doesn't need half of what I got him, because Christmas told me to!

3) If you could learn a new skill, what would you like it to be?

I'd learn to drive. I wish I'd done it when I had the time and money earlier in life. Would make things much easier now with baby. Especially when I go back to work.

4) If you could have any 5 guests over for dinner who would they be and why? 

My Grandfather and My Nan who passed away many years ago now. But I miss them like crazy and if I could have them over for dinner and have them meet my hubby and hold my son, it would be the best thing ever.

Michael McIntyre because I find him hilarious, and I think there is nothing better than a good laugh with good company.

J.K. Rowling because I am a Potter fan and I'd love to spend an evening with the woman who created my favourite characters.

Brendan Carroll in the character of Mrs Brown. I'd probably eat very little and just laugh all night, but laughter is the best medicine.

5) Who is your favourite fictional character? 

Elizabeth Bennett from Pride & Prejudice or Dumbledore from Harry Potter

6) What question would you like to ask the Queen, if you could? 

If you could have done anything in this world, if you weren't royal so didn't have the obligation to rule the country, then what would you have chosen to do or to be?

7) If you won the lottery, what would your first 3 spends/buys be? 

I'd buy my parents, sister and my hubbys parents & siblings houses.

I'd build my dream home.

I'd pay for a big family holiday for when Baby R was old enough to remember. Make some memories for him.

8) Which is your favourite film and why?

Fried Green Tomatoes At The Whistlestop Cafe. It's the perfect mix of sadness, love, humour and addresses big issues like domestic abuse and racism. I just love it.

9) If you were a biscuit, what type would you be?

I'd probably be something like a digestive. Rather plain and boring, but reliable and perfect with a cup of coffee.

10) Where in the world would you like to go/visit? 

If I could I'd love to do a cruise and visit loads of landmarks etc. But if I had to pick one place it would be Sorrento in Italy. I'd love the food, the gorgeous weather, the beautiful town and scenery. Plus it's close enough to go visit Pompeii which is on my bucket list!

11) If you could be in any film, TV or book which would it be and why? 

This is a toughy. There's far too many to choose from. As a child I'd always imagine I was the heroine in my favourite books or films.

I know it's odd but I always wanted to be the Little Princess. To be such a kind and warm hearted person in such dire times. To have an imagination that kept me going, and of course to be reunited with my very rich father. I just love the book, and if you love a book enough you tend to want to be part of it. 

OK so that's my 11 questions given by Mummybexm! As always thanks for reading xoxo

Liebster Award - Discover New Blogs

I was very kindly nominated (Thank you) for the Liebster Award by Yogaberry, a yoga loving mum of two who not only enjoys, but teaches yoga. Her blog is a lovely mix of family life, Yoga and her thoughts on things like being honest to your children, and loads more. Go over to her blog and enjoy!

I had never heard of the Liebster award until I was nominated, but after reading Yogaberry's post and doing a bit of research I have surmised that basically it is a way of discovering new, smaller blogs and for those bloggers to get to know each other. The rules are as follows:

1. Acknowledge and thank the blog who nominated you.
2. Look for an award image that you like, and post it on your blog.
3.  Answer the 11 questions asked by the person/blog who nominated you.
4. List 11 random facts about yourself.
5. Nominate 11 blogs with under 200 followers to receive the award.
6. Let the bloggers know that you nominated them.
7. Give them 11 questions to answer.

Here are the questions I was given -

1. What are 3 things you learned in 2014?
I learnt to make the best of what you have. Things aren't always going to be lollipops and sunshine but that's OK. The happiest people aren't those who have everything, but those who appreciate what they have. Cliche? Maybe! But it was definitely my main lesson in 2014.
I learnt lots of practical things about being a mum. Like how to do things one handed, things that 8 months ago I would never even have attempted one handed. How to change a nappy. How to change a nappy in a rush. How to take a bodysuit off without pulling it over a babies head (envelope sleeves, brilliant invention and very useful when baby catches a stomach bug!).
Finally I learnt the beauty of patience. I've never been particularly patient, but my son has taught me to slow down a bit and enjoy the little things in life. 


2. Why did you decide to start blogging?
I actually decided to blog a few years ago when I was planning my wedding. I fondly called myself a budget bride and set about arranging my wedding for half the cost of your average UK wedding. I decided to share some of those tips. I enjoyed it so much I started to share other things I liked and learnt. I took a break from blogging for personal reasons but when my son was about 4 months old I decided I wanted to record my journey in to motherhood and my blog seemed like the perfect place. So 'Just Add Colour' was renamed Blogging Mamma, and wedding posts were replaced with lifestyle/mummy posts.

3. What is your favourite blog?
I have a few. But one of my favourite mummy/beauty/lifestyle blogs back from before I even started blogging on Just Add Colour is Sprinkle of Glitter. I found her blog, which in turn led me to her YouTube videos. I find her blogging style very relaxed, down to earth and easy to read. Even her longer posts are easy to digest. I like the mix of beauty, mum posts and arty project type posts. There are many blogs I love now, and it's hard to pick a favourite but there's a definite soft spot for the first blog I started reading regularly.


4. What would you do tomorrow if it was your last day?
I would spend the entire day with my family and my closest friends. We'd all spend the morning playing games with Baby R until he went for his nap. Then we'd all have a cuppa and chat/laugh until Baby R woke up. We'd go down the Mumbles (a beautiful area of South Wales) for the rest of the day, eat ice cream, walk on the beach and take far too many pictures then come home and put Baby R to bed. We'd order a takeaway, watch a film and talk until we were too tired to stay awake. I'd go to bed and cuddle my hubby until I fell asleep. Sounds like the perfect day to me!

5. Who do you admire and why?
That's a toughy. I admire a lot of people of course but it's tough to single one out. I'm going to go with my father for this one. I've always admired his work ethic. He's always worked hard, taken opportunities others wouldn't because they involved sacrifice, worked through illness and pushed himself to work his way up the ladder. There were times this wasn't easy for him, that he had to spend a lot of time away from his family for work reasons. Yet he traveled a long way (approx 360 miles each way) to see us almost every weekend. For as long as I can remember he's been learning new things outside of his work life too. Whether it's been organised lessons or teaching himself new skills. But I really admire that. I think it's an excellent quality in a person to have a good work ethic.

6. What is your favourite cake?
Coffee cake.

7. What are 3 things you would like to do or learn if you had all the time and money in the world?
a) I'd learn to drive. It would make life so much easier if I could put Baby R in the car and head on out. Instead I rely on buses or Hubby when he's not in work. We can't afford for me to learn with the average hour lesson costing £18.
b) I'd like to go on a world cruise. Stopping at places like Pompeii, going on Safari in Africa, visiting hot & cold countries. Just experiencing as much of the world as I could. Not everywhere obviously, but to swim in the bluest oceans, lie on the whitest sands, taste different foods. It's something I would love to do if I won the lottery.
c) Build my own home. I've given this whole all the time and all the money thing some thought over the years. See if I got to design and build my own home, decorate it exactly as I want it, have all new furniture and mod cons I'd never need to move house ever again. As someone who has lived in 6 houses since 2007 the idea of never moving again is very appealing. So yes, to build my dream house.

8. What book have you really enjoyed reading in 2014? 
There's two I want to mention. I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings by Maya Angelou. An inspirational woman and a story that made me weep many a time. Guess How Much I Love You by Sam McBratney. Childrens books are not always the most thrilling to read but I really enjoy reading this one to Baby R.


9. What's your favourite snack?
Yoghurt, toffee or vanilla flavoured are my faves and when I want to feel like I'm being good I'll chop up a banana and chuck it in my yoghurt.

10. What did you want to be when you were a child?
What didn't I want to be? My answer when I was asked was -  a dancer, pop singer, shop owner,  book author, teacher, chef, doctor (who rides a horse to appointments) with children. I even had it scheduled so I could fit all my professions in. I decided I really could have it all! 

11. What is your blog post that you most enjoyed writing so far? (send me a link)
From my Just Add Colour Days - Bully For You It was a very hard piece to write for me. But I really enjoyed the therapeutic nature of saying what was playing on my mind.

From my newer Blogging Mamma Days - Dear Baby R I feel proud of this post and the original paper copy that now sits in Baby R's memory box for him to re-open when he's older.

11 Random Facts About Me

1) I have lost 9 stone in weight in the last 3 years. I hope to loose the final 2 and a bit stone in 2015
2) The first wedding ceremony I ever attended was my own. 
3) I love marshmallows. Prefer flumps, but will eat mini, or pink & whites.
4) I once wrote a poem about pink Yorkie bars. It was for A'Level English and earnt me an A.
5) I have never broken a bone (touch wood).
6) I am deaf in one ear.
7) I grew up in England but am Welsh and now live in Wales again.
8) I love Harry Potter. So much so I dressed my son up as baby Harry for Halloween! Ha!
9) Once I put baby milk in the washing machine and washing powder in the baby bottle. Don't worry didn't give the bottle to baby. Realised what I had done pretty much straight away. Got to love baby brain!
10) I love coffee. I drink more coffee than is advisable and still fall asleep easily at night. Must be immune to caffeine by now.
11) I am allergic to peanuts.

The 11 bloggers I want to nominate are (I don't know that your blogs have less than 200 followers, turns out it's quite hard to find out how many followers a blog has. Mainly due to all the different platforms you can be followed on, so I've gone with the amount of followers on Bloglovin and if you're not on Bloglovin then goodness knows what number I used. I appreciate you may have more than 200 in total but I tag you anyway!) :-

MummyBexM
Plutonium Sox
Play At Home Teacher
Welcome To My World
Stuff Babies Need
FUZZYPEACH
The Diary of an Unexpectant Mother
Academic Mummy
Slummy Mummy
Mummy's Retreat
Dillydrops

11 Questions For My Nominees

1) If you could only ever eat one food/meal for the rest of your life what would it be?
2) What's your favourite, non-blogging, related thing to do?
3) If you could meet any celebrity (living or not) who would you want to meet and why?
4) What is your biggest pet peeve?
5) Main goal for 2015?
6) Link your favourite blog post written by someone else.
7) Link your favourite blog post written by you.
8) Are you a planner or a spontaneous kind of person. 
9) What non physical trait of yours would you change?
10) What made you begin your blog?
11) Tell me a quote or mantra you identify with.