A full Quart!

Darling little Grace is three months old already and I cannot believe how quickly the time has flown. Already she is developing her own little personality and we can see she is going to become a kind and contented child. My heart melts every time she treats me to one of her gummy smiles and her whole face lights up with delight. Grace has taken to sucking on her hand rather a lot and dribbling so I do wonder if we are in the early stages of teething? According to the Dentist it is possible for her to teeth this early, so we are keeping close watch.



All of a sudden this week we have seen her taking more interest in the toys on her rocking chair, and we have so enjoyed watching her chatter away to the toys, particularly Crinkly Caterpillar, who she seems to have a soft spot for. One of the most heartwarming things is listening to Grace talk away to her toys if she wakes in the night (she is making a good range of sounds now) and then often after around twenty minutes or so she drifts off back to sleep. Matt the Husband and I have been blessed this week with a beer-worthy milestone... Grace has been sleeping through from 7pm until somewhere between 6am and 7am. What initially we thought was a fluke, we're now on the 5th night on the trot so "CHEERS" and finally some uninterrupted sleep. Or at least that is the theory. I have all at once developed insomnia that hasn't kept me company since late pregnancy so I am darned frustrated to be thumb twiddling at night when I should be sleeping. Hey-ho, it's nothing to lose sleep over.... ha!!



We did have an out of character grumpy stretch with Grace the other week, where we were treated to the kind of baby one might like to muffle the sound of with a jolly good set of ear plugs. I have experienced meltdowns in Mothercare and the supermarket, the latter of which I walked the aisles for what felt like half an hour trying to calm her down. Turns out she was suffering with wet eczema, and a little under the weather from her 12 week immunisations - nothing that a little Calpol didn't fix, a blessing in one dose.



We now have our regular cheerful Grace back, and at the 3 month marker weighs in at 15lb 8oz. If I had some time to spare I'd sit and work out how much milk she's had to drink to get to that weight, but I have supper on the go and mental arithmetic has never been my strong point.

The walking week

Autumn is upon us now the clocks have gone back, with it bringing beautiful mornings and the most wonderful colours in every direction on a walk. Combine with this early teething for Grace and a super energetic Daisy-woof, and most days this week found a tired and harassed first-time Mum pounding the pavements with a buggy. Pavements, park, woods. You name it, we walked it. For when walking, the world is quiet - no pestering from the dog, and a generally serene and sleeping (or at least content with the motion) Grace.

Grace taking in the flora at Newmillardam.


Asleep on a walk, a moment of serenity.


Daisy back home and content with her rawhide


The first-time Mum always feels better after a walk. The air clears her head, and provided she doesn't fall fowl by pushing the buggy through something, well, fowl, it usually serves well to get the day off to a good start. Thank heavens for brilliant sunshine and crisp mornings, and a note to the man upstairs if he's listening - lets have more of the crisp and sunny, and less of the damp and blustery. I look bedraggled and unkempt as it is at the moment, without throwing a dose of damp and blustery. The first-time Mother does NOT need help looking like a windswept scarecrow. She can achieve quite naturally what make-up artists and stylists on film sets in Hollywood take hours to achieve. I am a lost talent.

Anyway, thank you good weather, and thank you autumnal beauty for making our walks this week so wonderful.

As for the nightmare of early teething - that can wait for another post.

God bless x

Halloween Treats

Gracie hoarding the Halloween treats...

It all went swimmingly...

It's been a good week here in the Big-Mother House. So much so in fact that the the big-mother is now just about able to squeeze into her pre-maternity jeans which had her dancing round the house like a monkey. And a giddy one at that. Of course the fact that I can't yet sit down in those jeans is irrelevant, I am just happy to be wearing something with buttons at the waist as opposed to over-stretched elastic. Hurray me! Actually the real hard work starts next week when I dust off the yoga mat for a six week kick start to my practice with the yogi legend that is Joanna. Sheli has bravely agreed to join me so we can whine about our aches the morning after... got to love peer support.

As for Grace, she has been a busy little lady. As well as putting on a stiff upper lip for her first shot of immunisations at the clinic, she's donned her water wings and made her first splash in the local pool. Like Mummy, she is also a fan of peer support, so she was joined by not one little friend from our ante-natal group, but three! Eleanor, Ava and Logan all took to the water in their 'happy nappy' swim pants where they learnt the soggy version of 'the wheels on the bus' ('the babies in the pool go splash splash splash...') and had a great time bobbing around the waves getting used to being wet somewhere other than the bath. Next week her little friend John is also coming along!

Hanging out on the play mat


Grace has become rather fond of smiling now - it's becoming a regular thing and the best ones are certainly those she gives when she's greeted after waking from a nap in her nursery. She's also started seeking comfort from hugging and her little arms are learning to embrace and grip which is ever so heart warming when she does it. We like bear hugs in our house.

As for team triumphs, Matt the Husband and I have finally mastered the supermarket shop. After a disastrous attempt during week two, we have put the fear behind us and tackled the 'baby trolley' once more. Success is a) finding a parent and child parking space, b) finding a trolley suitable for carrying a baby, and c) finding the aisles clear enough for dawdling as shopping with a baby inevitably takes longer. THANK YOU TESCO!!

Grace showing off in her hired wheels


The only other thing to mention this week is that I have gone back to work. Not literally, but I have taken my first 'keeping in touch' day which passed in a flash and gave me a dose of grown up conversation (almost Roger), a round of buffet sarnies, and an Apricot muffin to bring home for the Mother-in-law as a thank you for looking after Grace for the day. Typically heavy traffic on the way home saw the muffin reduced to crumbs although I'm aware it's the thought that counts. Yummy. So yes, happy to be back in the chair, albeit a different one now that I have changed job roles, but a good feeling nonetheless. And my old role? The job couldn't have been offered to a more deserving person... WELL DONE SHELI!

Heart Murmur

Dear little Grace,

We had a follow up appointment with the Consultant at Pontefract Hospital this week. He wanted to listen to your heart again to see if the murmur that was present at birth is still audible. He confirmed it is, although he did say it is quite quiet so it may be that whatever defect is causing the sound is starting to correct itself naturally.

Your ECG trace was normal which is excellent news at it means the electrical activity of your heart is functioning as it should be and the defect is not having any effect on this measure. We now have to wait for a referral to see the Cardiologist at the Childrens Hospital in Leeds for an ultrasound scan which will tell us what defect is present. At the moment he thinks its either a PDA (Patent Ductus Arteriosus) or a VSD (Ventricular Septal Defect), both being a hole in the heart. I'll tell you more about those as and when we get a diagnosis.

Overall though he was really very pleased with your development, commenting you were thriving - gaining weight very well and being quite advanced for your age - we're very proud.

So keep on growing big and strong, and remember that your Mummy and Daddy love you x x x

This little piggy

Grace showing off her pinkies...



...so tiny! And yes, Matt the Husband and I finally got to pop the cork on our 'we had a baby' celebration bottle. It's been on ice in the refrigero for 8 weeks today. Chin-chin!

Every home needs a Frances

The Supernanny.

Every first-time Mum should have one. And with Jo Frost having her own TV show and thus far outside my humble grasp, I've taken up the services of her understudy. Frances. Now anyone who knows Frances, knows that she knows best. And what a relief it was to have a visit from her last week, taking the reins and steering me and Grace into a rose-tinted harmonious mothering experience. Well, almost.

With Frances 1 year BB. (Before Baby).



Frances was characteristically superb at getting me on the straight and narrow, but the rose-tint prophecy has been shelved to make way for REALITY. Putting things into perspective is something Frances does best, and I'm thankful to have such a great friend. In the space of a whirlwind lunch visit, Frances had me slowing down (yes really - why do you think I didn't blog last week?!), and taking stock. This is my life now, and I can't expect to rattle off 10 things on my to-do list before Matt the Husband has had time to eat his toast on a morning. (That's no.3 on my list by the way).

Grace with her Daddy.


Jokes aside, a cloud has lifted and I'm getting to grips with the task of raising a little person. And a hungry one at that.

With all the developing Grace has been doing, we have one hungry baby on our hands. Since I posted last, Grace has been working on her emerging smile, strengthening her push-up technique and becoming a versatile lady who can say BALLS to the routine and still be a contented little baby. (N.B. this is NOT a euphemism of the militant how-to book authored by 'She-who-cannot-be-named Ford'!!)




So a little more relaxed as I enter the eighth week with Lady Grace. We have had a weekend away to my Father's 76th birthday party where Grace met Great Uncle Frank for the first time. And along with it a visit to the legendary 'Norfolk Kitchen' for lunch as well as the rock 'n' roll service of an American Diner on our way back up the A1 to Yorkshire.

My Uncle Frank.