*tired*

Poor little sausage boy has an ear infection and a perforated ear drum... needless to say life has not been fun lately... sleepless nights are no fun but at least it is the weekend and Darren is home to help. As a family I think we all had about 4 or 5 hours sleep total and took Jake to the doctor this morning. I think I should have shares in my local medical centre we are there so often!



It is funny how quickly these come on though - on Thursday he was happily playing with his little friend Caleb emptying my plastic drawer!

He is growing up so quickly and learning so much from Caleb who is 13 months.



They get together and you can see Jake's brain ticking over thinking "now can I do that?". I think the only reason is he wanting to walk is so he can keep up with Caleb and chase him around the house more easily!

August and we are up to date!

August so far has been a big month! Jake has started crawling like he is chasing a bus, and sometimes it is hard to catch him, is standing up, and this week has started walking holding onto our hands. Wow... how quickly they grow up!





He has also expanded his vocabulary to include mumum, dada, nana, mmmg (millie girl) and many other "words".
Jake has developed a funny little three - legged crawl which I think is a precursor to standing because when he gets close to something to pull himself up on, it's that leg he stands on first.




Jake's favourite past time is the junk mail. He and Daddy will sit on the front verandah in the sun and "read" all of the catalogues and brochures that get delivered. It is particularly lovely out the front on the cooler mornings because the sun warms up that front area first thing and it's sheltered from most of the winds.





Poor Daggles struggles to watch TV in peace - as soon as Jake sees the remote or hears the TV switch on, he is after that remote and it belongs to him.... he knows the control of the remote is the ultimate power!!

Daggles even brought one home for him so he could have his own, but Jakey knows that it isn't the real one and will dump it as soon as he even catches a glimpse of the real one.

July brought Josie

Welcome Josephine Ellen Mai-Tsin Wong... my gorgeous little niece.

Josie was born on her due date the 4th of July at 23:02 after a 7 hour labour at the SAN Hospital in Sydney. She was 7lb15oz and a healthy 48cm long with a head circumference of 36cm.

I think she is just beautiful!

Darren looked after Jake for a day and flew me to Sydney to meet her and give Dee a hug... very extravagant but well worth it!

... sleep? .... ummmm .... who me?

When we got back from Sydney sleeping became a huge issue. Jake was extremely unsettled, in fact I would say as bad as he was right at the beginning before he was medicated. So back to the doctor and back onto the Losec for his reflux. Cross fingers and hope we get the happy baby back....



Well the Losec kicked in and the unhappiness settled down, but the nights didn't. Jake just wanted to be fed back to sleep by mummy and her nice warm breasts rather than try to put himself back to sleep. After a week, towards the end of June, I hit rock bottom. Sleep deprivation was killing me and I found myself yelling at Jake to go back to sleep at 3am after his 3rd wake and feed. He was hysterical, I was hysterical....not the best settling technique ... time to go back to the doctor.


We are very lucky to have an amazing GP who has had reflux babies and his level of empathy is amazing. Jake did not need the night BF - he was eating 3 huge meals a day plus fruit at morning and afternoon tea, and 4 breastfeeds. So my GP tells me time to do Controlled Crying... NO WAY I say... "it's ok" he tells me "you won't be doing it bcos you will be asleep... your husband will be doing it. You will spend the week on sleeping tablets."


And so I did.....


Wow .... what a difference sleep can make... and do you know my little monkey was rather upset the first time Daggles went in on the first night, but Daddy got him settled with lots of cuddles then he only woke once more. After that he only woke once a night and resettled very quickly each time. Now he may wake once or twice but generally resettles himself. If I hadn't had that week respite I think I would probably be getting treated to PND ....



So by the end of June, beginning of July, life was going pretty well until Jake's top two teeth cut....

They caused red cheeks, red bum, cranky boy and so much grief that I am not looking forward to the next set of teeth!

I hope the next set come in quickly and painlessly - but that would be wishful thinking!



So to bring you up to end of July Jake started crawling for real and started to get into everything he wasn't supposed to... all of my "dust collectors" and photos have been packed away, and I forget how tall Jake is - his hands quest their way along the table top looking for anything to grab!






But he is now so much fun and he is the best time waster around! We sing, play and have a ball every day... well most days.... and Jake is just the most beautiful boy - a lovely sweet nature and just a real cuddle bunny. He has also started posing for his photos and has developed a "pose" and a fake smile.

... June .... the continuation of no sleep...

SO we thought we were plain sailing - solids were going well the teeth had cut and life had settled down. The nights were a little restless but I'd just get up and give him a quick feed back to sleep. Easy....


The beginning of June we visited my heavily pregnant sister Dee, and her husband Sean. I really wanted to get to Sydney before she had the baby so I could see her pregnant and rub the belly, but I also knew that when she had the baby there was no way we would be able to have a conversation with both Josie and Jake clamoring for our attention.


The flight to Sydney went really well and the lady at check-in gave us the whole back row of 3 seats to ourselves - so even though Jake had a little sniffle we were relaxed and calm... thanks to the polaramine my doctor prescribed! But seriously he was a little gem and all was going well until we landed at Sydney.... let's just say that the service at Hertz was less than gold.... but finally we got on our way and headed to Aunty Dee's.

Jake is very lucky - not only does he have Daggles' parents for his Nana and Pop but he also has honorary grandparents in Sean's mum and dad. We have been very lucky that Paw-paw and Goong-goong have always welcomed me into their family and now have embraced Jake as well. It makes me feel like they have filled a big gap for me. I wish I had a pic of Nana Di and Poppy Pat but unfortunately I don't.
But needless to say Jake was spoilt by the grandparents and give lots and lots of cuddles!


We also had the pleasure of meeting Lionel - Dee's new Rex. He is gorgeous and the complete opposite in personality of the dear old Oscar. Lionel LOVED Jake and was quite happy to be mauled and prodded by him. He also loved sharing his tunnel with Jake and likewise they both played with Jake's toys! Lionel also loved having naps with us! He was a lovely cat and great company no matter where you were or what you were doing. He was lacking a few brain cells though....



Part of the trip to Sydney was Dee's baby shower. It was a little unconventional - we had Yum Cha - but it was a great morning. I really wanted to do something girly like a high tea bit found it hard to get her food intolerances catered for. However we played some silly games and Sean stayed around so Jake wouldn't feel like the only man, and fun was had by all! (Dee is in the black and white)



The only really challenging part of our Sydney trip was the nights... Jake just wouldn't sleep. He had been weaned off his reflux meds and initially seemed to be ok but it started to flare up while we were away and just got steadily worse. I was at the end of my tether and the only way either of us got any sleep was if he was on me. So I started co-sleeping, well he started co-sleeping, and I learnt how to sleep really really lightly so that you get no sleep at all! Poor little man just wanted to feed to try and ease the pain in his tummy and it only made it worse.It is so lovely though to have their warm little body snuggled into you!


Uncle Sean was a winner with Jake and they had some great times together! Sean is great with all kids but it was nice to have a sneak peek of how he would be with Josie when she came out. Jake also took the opportunity to show off his centrefold moves in preparation for his career as a model (not!).





Flying home was just a breeze as well - although when we first sat down I was very apprehensive. It was a full flight so no spare seats and we were sitting in a window seat with two huge gorgeous men sitting next to us. I was too scared to move in case I bashed the man next to me elbow and the woman in front of me was an absolute cow. Jake was not happy being confined to just the one tiny space so he decided to start kicking the seat in front of me ... complete mortification ... the woman in front gave me death stares etc and the lovely man next to me says to her ... "hey he's only 6months give him a break!" I could have hugged him! Then Jake decided to start playing with this man's arms and hands and then, joys of joys, decided to grab his magazine and shred it! Oh my god what could I do except apologise profusely....



Luckily (or not) Jake decided he wanted a feed ... it is hard enough to feed in an airline seat but I was really conscious of flashing my boobs at this man so tried to scrunch around in the corner.... unsuccessful.... so it was normal feed position with Jake constantly pulling off and smiling & laughing at me and this man. Finally he went to sleep and the rest of the flight was uneventful. All in all a good week in Sydney - except for lack of sleep!

April / May ....

April brought Easter and my own little Easter Bunny - not that he was too impressed! It was really very low key in our house and we both tried not to eat too much chocolate ... I really couldn't anyway because I was breastfeeding and it really didn't agree with Jake!





He still hated tummy time and was much preferring sitting up and having a giggle rather than that annoying tummy stuff!




But we persevered and started to see him pushing himself up rather than just lying on his tummy looking miserable!

He also started to really laugh and giggle at this stage!




Something else Jake discovered in April was the joys of a swing. In the past he used to just sit and look uneasy but suddenly the swing became great fun and now as we get to the park and see the swings the arms start waving, the legs start kicking and he wants to be there NOW!





I think it was at about now that I started to enjoy spending time with him as the reflux settled down and started to really develop a personality.
There were times in that first six months that I didn't like him or being a Mum - I was tired and I felt alone. I really missed my Mum too, and the reflux was a bitch to deal with.


When I look back at these photos I just fall in love with him all over again. He really is a beautiful boy and a beautiful baby, and yes things could be much much worse! Gosh he is healthy and (generally) happy and my only real trial has been the reflux. When he looks at me and smiles I just melt and he knows I am already wrapped around his tiny little finger!


May brought Mother's Day and it also brought two bottom teeth on the same weekend! I wish I could post a pic but unfortunately they rarely get flashed in a smile - only in a scream or a cry! OMG what a relief when they finally cut! What pain and misery two teeth can cause and he still has to fill his mouth up! This pic is just before Jake and Daggles took me out for Mother's Day.
It was also around this stage that the comments about breastfeeding "STILL" heated up. Why can't people just understand that I am still feeding and that is that?!?!?!?


When Jake was nearing seven months we started introducing finger food for him to pick up and feed himself - like toast - rather than me putting the toast into his mouth.

Welcome to the house of mess!!!!!!

when Jake met Millie ...

Before Jake joined us there was Daggles, myself and Millicent Jane - Millie the Manx.
Millie joined our family a few months after we lost our pusser of 86 cat years Chino. He was old and slow and .... basically a catankerous old geriatric! I was in my early pregnancy and really missed his company.


So we went on line to the RSPCA web site to look at the cats and see what was available. Initially I wanted to adopt another old cat because sadly these are usually the last ones to find a home. Then I saw Miss Frowny Face and fell in love. Daggles thought she was ugly and strange (because she had no tail). So we kept looking through - although "Stumpy" (her kennel name) stayed in the back of my mind - and decided to "wait and see" when we got to the shelter.

Well needless to say Daggles fell in love with the petite sweet little cat that looked at him with her big eyes and gave a pitiful little squeak. Then she got home! We were used to being owned by an old cat with a bung hip and now we had an olympic athlete! Millie chose her sleeping place - my head, pillow or on my face - and started to make herself at home.


When we started setting up the nursery Millie decided to start "testing" it out. The change table got her tick of approval - as long as she could look out of the window and recline on a cot blanket.


The cot also got tested and was found extremely comfortable!
Needless to say I was in big trouble when Daggles saw the pics I had taken, but she looked sooooo comfortable I couldn't bear to move her!




Poor Millie had her nose put out a little when I was in hospital because she was at home on her own (after having me home for 8 weeks) AND she was not allowed outside unsupervised. Every time Darren came home from the hospital there would be a sad little face looking out the window waiting for someone to come and play.



Daggles and Millie love to play in the tunnel together!





So Jake came home and Millie, Jake and I had a lovely afternoon nap together. At the beginning he was just a noisy smelly thing that occupied Millie's daytime playtime. She basically tolerated him in her space.... but now....





....well Jake is crawling and Millie is a tease - she walks past just out of his reach so he tries to lunge for her and she runs away! So he tries to follow her and she jumps into the nappy box or tunnel and then they both play with the box! They are becoming good friends - luckily Millie has no tail to pull, but she does need to have regular manicures in case of claws!

daddy's little man.....

So we have hit 3 months and are heading to 4, Jake is on his Losec for the reflux and is sleeping well again. The afternoons sometimes get a bit hairy as he reaches the end of his tether and we stretch the day so Daddy could bath or shower him when he gets home. This became the special time for them both!


New Years we spent with my best friend at her family's unit on the Sunshine Coast. Unfortunately we had a very unhappy little man who cried all afternoon on our first day, New Years Eve, and by the time he got to sleep and we all relaxed and had dinner we were exhausted! We played Pictionary in an attempt to stay awake but it wasn't very successful and we were all snug in bed by 11pm! I however got to see the new year in bcos Jake decided he wanted a feed at 11.45pm! Happy New Year mum! The next day he had his first swim in a big pool and loved it!


Jake really is Daddy's boy!! When they are together it is just amazing watching them interact. Darren is a wonderfully gentle man and when he and his son are together there is another element of gentleness that emerges and is so sweet. It's like the layers of the superficiality of everyday life is stripped away and all you can see is pure joy of being a dad!


It was about now, 3-4months, that I put my foot down and became cranky mummy regarding weekend naps. I love a nanna nap during the day and when Jake is asleep I try to have a lie down too - but always when he is asleep. On the weekends Darren loves a nap but always managed to have them when Jake was awake and I got stuck with him on my "day off". I love him to bits but the weekends are when I can have my time off. So the rule was introduced that we can only nap on the weekend if it was a family nap and everyone could benefit from the sleep... so far it is working well!


Poor Jake has a mother who dragged him to 4 photo shoots in his first 4 months of life - they were all "free" and I was sucked in by the marketing! There was one shoot in particular that produced some beautiful photos and we bought a package - as you do - but these were actually affordable! The photographer was awesome and Jake as in his finest cranky pants mood - I still can't get over the lack of tears in the photos! This feather shot is my favourite!

Four months brought several milestones - teeth, night waking and solids. Jake's teeth started moving with a vengeance but didn't erupt for another 6 weeks! He also started waking at night and feeding 2-3 times through the night as he went through yet another growth spurt!

Jake grew taller and taller and stayed above the 95th percentile in height, however his weight was not catching up. By our 4 month check up he had slid from the 95th percentile to below the 50th. Off to the GP we went worried that my happy boy was "failing to thrive". No worries about that! He was just ready to eat something heavier than breastmilk! So off we went on the solids journey at 4 1/2 months.....

Our first "meal" of Farex rice cereal and breastmilk was inhaled! He was starving! Within a week he was scoffing breakfast, by the end of the second week he was having cereal for dinner too! By 5 months he was into pureed fruits and veges and loving his greens!

Jake had been sitting up with Daddy since about 3 1/2 months - they had sitting classes every weekend - but now his back was so strong and he had perfected his balance by putting his hands in front of him if he started to fall forward. He laughs and sings in lovely operatic tones - testing his volume and range - and sings all day! He still hates that tummy time and would much prefer to be sitting up rather than on his tummy - but he needs to get into it... I look at my girlfriends babies and they are loving their tummies! Not my little man he'd rather sit up! He is just so beautiful!