I think we bought a miracle bed!!
For two nights in a row Ellie has slept ALL night! Sunday night she slept 6.30pm to 6.25am and last night she slept 6.30pm to 5.30am. She has never done that before, so I am excited. I didn't have great sleeps, though. The first night I kept waking up worried that she hadn't woken and I think my problem last night is that I'm not used to sleeping through anymore!! I just hope she's going to keep doing it so I can get used to it.
Does it?? Really???
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(and you all thought it was gonna be dirty!)
Ellie's currnet nappy (walker) next to one of Bubby's newborn. Aww.
You really do forget just how tiny a new baby is when you bring it home when you've got a walking, talking, independent little miss wandering around!
Yesterday was a big day for the three of us. We eventually got on the road (after some stressful moments on the phone with Mum, a change of plan and some directions), Ellie slept for most of the trip which was great.
We met Mum, Ethan, Caleb and DJ (Mum's long-time friend from school) at Cockington Green. I'd never been there before, it was so amazing. It was really hot, though, so we did it quicker than I would have liked just to get out of the sun and heat.
Ellie had a great time playing with Uncle Max and Uncie Caleb, especially after lunch when they ran around on the grass - it even drew a crowd! So cute.
Mum and Ellie came with us to the UltraSound, which was lovely, Ellie even looked at the screen a few times! The lady was lovely and it was a very relaxed environment. I would recommend Bundles to anyone wanting a great 3d scan experience. This Bubby didn't want any face-on pics and had arms, legs - everything up in front of it's little face, just like Ellie did when we had her scan. So, we have lots of nice piccies of Bubby's hands and feet. I'll put some up soon.
The thing we wanted to know we found out practically straight away, I was so thrilled that it was so easy, I was very nervous that it would take too long and we would miss out.
BUT ...
I want to say Happy Birthday to James for yesterday.
I hope you had a good day, hon!
Love you xoxo
I'm so proud of my little girl! She really coped well with the weekend considering we got her up early Saturday morning and she spent so much time in the car. There were some grizzles but that's to be expected, really.
We did the quickest round of Ikea we have ever done, purely because we knew exactly what we were there for. Ellie loved watching the people, especially the little kids that were running around which meant we got away with having her in the pram for some of the time.
We dropped in on my grandparents on the way home for half an hour or so and Ellie ran around entertaining us all before we headed home. We were all so exhausted by the end of the day!
Yesterday, we returned James's dad's car and got mine back and then came home to rearrange Ellies room. I know, I did say we weren't going to put it up this weekend but neither of us could wait! Plus, I really didn't want the big boxes and mattress cluttering up my entry.
At first James started setting the bed up under the window because I have read to keep the cot away from windows to avoid strangulation by cords or curtains. The we decided having Ellie under the window really wouldn't work because she would stand up and pull on the blinds, which she proved by trying to reach them from the floor while we were talking about it. We stood there trying to figure out how to fit everything in the room and in the end we decided to put Ellie's bed along the wall the cot had been along and move the cot under the window. The reason we're feeling okay with this is;
1) The cord for our blinds are attached halfway up the window so there is no hanging cords
2) There's nothing attached to the bottoms of our blinds (like the beads or string) for Bubby to get tangled in
3) We don't have curtains, only shortish blinds in there
and 4) When the choice is Ellie or Bubby there it really is better this way.
I wish we had a bigger room and didn't have this issue at all! I am thinking that we will leave it like this for now and if I think at any time that it's not a safe option in any way we might have to look into swapping rooms with them, though I don't know how our bed would fit in their room!
We moved what James had set up (with some difficulty) and he finished putting it together, all the while Ellie was running around like a nutcase, she was so excited!
We put the matress on and Ellie and Daddy hopped on for a test. I think she really likes that she can stand there and look out the window.
We just happened to have been down to Allens earlier in the day to buy sheets... So, we made the bed and put her lovely My Little Pony doona on, it looked so lovely! (^Pic proof of James making the bed!)
Ellie was straight on there, sitting, standing and at one stage she laid down but I missed it coz I was using the video camera! She knew it was hers and she was so proud!
James moved Ellie's name to above her bed - this wall will stay pink no matter the outcome of next week's scan and the wall her name had been on will be painted green if Bubby is a boy (well, we're actually thinking about doing it anyway) and then he or she will have their name put on there, more to the left of where Ellie's name was. So, they'll have a wall that's 'theirs'.
I said she wouldn't be going into the bed yet, that we would wait but she was so into it that we decided to try her in it anyway, plus there was the fact that she would have stood in the cot and played with the blinds had we put her in there. I wasn't sure she would stay but James put her into bed and she settled straight to sleep, just as she would have in the cot. She looked so tiny!
James was adorable, he couldn't help himself going in there all the time to look at her!
She's had her little pillow for awhile now, we bought it at Ikea (surprise, surprise) the last time we were there and eventually got it out to help her one night when she was very congested to prop her up and help her breathe and she has used it ever since. She always looks like she's kinda smooshed into the pillow but she's really good at getting into a comfortable position where she can breathe. It was a big night for me, too - it was the first night without the motion sensors on while she was sleeping, at first I was a bit nervous but honestly, we could have stopped using it a while ago. I just didn't want to, it was my own personal security blanket!
She didn't sleep too great, but anytime I had to go into her she hadn't sat up. I don't think the bad night was because of the new bed as I noticed this morning that her 4th top tooth has finally come through. This morning she slept until just after 7 and apparently she looked pretty proud of herself sitting up waiting for Daddy to get her :)
I was worried that she wouldn't want to go down for a nap today, that she would get up and play with things in her room but she was an angel and I have just been into her because I could hear her talking to herself. She had a nice long nap and woke up happy, which I am very happy about. Normally she will cry whenever she wakes up, day or night so this is a nice change!
I am very proud of her :)
Tomorrow we're off to Ikea :) It's hard to believe Ellie will be going into her 'Big Girl's' bed so soon! We will wait to put it together until after next Saturday (27th) so we know if we need to paint the room or not (if we're having a boy). Once we have the walls sorted we will put it up and start off by getting her used to it, maybe sitting on it to have a story before bed or something.
I'm not sure how long it will be between putting it up and her going into it, we'll just play it by ear and take it as slow as we need to, although I would like her to be settled into it at least a month before Bubby arrives just so it's not one huge thing after another.
We've found the perfect Sofa Bed at Ikea, too, unfortunately it's out of our price range right at the moment. It would have been great to have something for people to sleep on when they come, especially come December as both my mum and dad will be here from Thursday the 4th (when we have Bubby) for a few days and then mum will go home to work and dad will stay for a few days/a week to help me out with Ellie, house work and washing. As it is I am not sure how we'll work their sleeping arrangements. A tent in the backyard maybe? :P
Anyway, best go get things ready to go early tomorrow!
Ellie will be 13 months old on Sunday and I wanted to make a list of the words she currently says to post, I am pretty sure I will be too tired to do it on the day as we will have had a huge day on Saturday at Ikea so I will do it now.
Proper Words - ie complete words or words that sound like the word they are
* Dad/Daddy
* Mum/Mumma
* Bub
* No
* Yea
* Ta
* Hello
* Bye Bye
* Okay
* Nan
* Yay
* Ouch (mainly when mimicking Daddy when she hurts him)
* Boo
Other Words - ie I know what they mean but if someone else heard them they might not!
* Baa - Bath
* Baw - Ball/Balloon
* Burr - Bird
* Brr - Moo (yes, a cow apparently says 'Brr')
* Mo - More
* Dere - There
* Bay - Baby
* Bgn - Five (I don't really know if this counts... but she always says the same thing when I ask her to give me five, so I'll just put it in anyway)
* Du - Duck
* Bow - Boo (She has just started saying Boo properly, so I have put it in the above list, too)
Random Words - ie I have heard them once or twice
* Good
* Dog
* Puss (when calling a cat to her :)
That's all currently, if she says anything new before Sunday I will be sure to edit. It's funny to hear her talking and know what she means, especially the words that she says really well.
I'm not really sure if she's meeting the milestones for her age or not but I think she doing well. 'B' seems to be an easy letter for her.
Today playing with our paper mache balloon
This morning Ellie and I started to paper mache one of her remaining balloons - well, I put paper on the balloon, Ellie just ate the glue (home-made out of flour and water). When the glue no longer held her interest she played in a little puddle I had made when getting some water out of the tank.
She got so messy I stripped her clothes at the backdoor before bringing her in and running a bath... into which I put her nappy and all... Silly mum. I decided I was probably in need of a goooood long sleep.
I tried to get Ellie to nap with me. She would stay quiet and still just long enough for me to fall asleep before she would wriggle and make some noise :(
My head and eyes feel like they're on fire.
This warmer weather is great :) Ellie is learning to use a cup to drink and makes too much mess inside so we're doing it outside in the sun. She's actually doing really well with the drinking part, it's the inbetween we have problems with, she will wave the cup around as she talks and soak us both. She was so funny, every time she would take a drink she would come up looking shocked, blow a rasberry and say something along the lines of: "Dodo dodo gdo" I'm not sure what that means, but it was exactly the same every single time!
The poor little thing has mozzie bites from Sunday afternoon's gardening, they're all big and red, she must be allergic like me. Last night we think they were very itchy and sore as she had a very bad night which didn't seem to be related to anything else. We've been putting calamine lotion on them to help ease the itching, which will hopefully stop her scratching. I keep calling it camomile and now that I am thinking about it I am pretty sure I asked for camomile lotion when I went to the chemist - how embarrassing!
In the past few days I have noticed Bubby has dropped quite a bit, this baby better not be coming early! It'd be just my luck to have one who didn't want to come at all and another that can't wait... I think I would freak if I went into labour before the 4th of December. Actually, I know I would. I would certainly not be happy if s/he decides to come before we get to 37 weeks!
Ellie had her first every ice cream on Friday afternoon, our neighbour gave her one, she was very into it!
Late yesterday afternoon, after I had had a sleep and Ellie had helped James with some gardening we went out to the beach. Unfortunately, it was very windy and Ellie seemed a little scared of the noise at first. She didn't want to get down and play at all, she was happy to sit on my lap the whole time and watch the waves, she enjoyed watching - as long as I didn't put her down. Next time we go we will make sure it's a calmer day for her.
I love this one :)
Cuddles with mum - the hand down my top is her thing these days... I'm not sure why she started but I have to find a way to stop her because she does it everywhere! Sometimes she will even pull at my top, like she's checking what bra I'm wearing or worse still... she squeezes me :O It's a very strange little comfort thing.
Aww
This week I need to get everything under control as well as get as much rest as humanly possible because the next few weekends are going to be VERY busy for us. Next Saturday we're off to Ikea to get Ellie's big girl bed, the Saturday after that we have our ultrasound in Canberra at Bundles Baby Ultrasound as well as catching up with my family as they're having a holiday - which is very helpful as they'll be able to have Ellie while we have our scan. The weekend after that we're finally off to Bathurst to see my fam, especially Josh who I haven't seen since our visit at New Years. I feel tired just thinking about it all!! I'm excited though, I've been waiting for these things for what seems like AGES.
I have so much I want to get organised before Bubby arrives (only 11 weeks, 5 days OR 80 days away) but I barely have seem to be able get on top of the housework at the moment. I do something and then I am tired and have to take a break (which is what I am doing now), Ellie is overly demanding of my attention currently so that drains me more, too - She is no longer happy to play while I get some things done, I am always having to entertain her or she's trailing after me whinging. I wonder if it's something to do with the baby being so close to coming, maybe she can tell something's going on?
I am getting more and more frustrated everyday when I don't get what I want done. I feel frustrated by Ellie's ability to make a massive mess in other parts of the house while I am tending to another. I feel especially frustrated by the overwhelming exhaustion.
Anyway, on to something more pleasant... Ellie has finally started saying 'Ta' when I give her things :) For awhile there she would only say it when she was giving me something (like she was telling me to say it)! She's a little it funny about it, whenever she says it she seems to whisper.
Okay, I think rest time is over... best get onto something else while Ellie makes a mess where I have already cleaned *sighs*.
*Please Note Sarcasm*
Oh, yes the joys. Ellie has started waking earlier and earlier, often before 6 o'clock and deciding that is when she is to get up. I have a few problems with this; 1) I'M TIRED!! She's still not sleeping through, I am really struggling with the lack of sleep and energy at the moment. 2) She's tired - she will get up and be grumpy most of the morning. She can be entertained some of the time but does spend a whole lot of time whinging because she's so tired. I am finding it extremely frustrating. Especially today.
I had a bad night last night with pains and Ellie waking so I didn't really get a lot of sleep and then she's up before 6, whinging the morning away! I am back to feeling drained of all life today, I think yesterday's pain (as well as last night) has taken so much out of me.
There are 92 days until my due date on December 13, 2008.
There are 84 days until my C-Section on December 4, 2008.
I am 188 days pregnant.
I am 6.2 months pregnant.
I am in my 7th month of pregnancy.
My 1st trimester: March 08, 2008 to June 06, 2008. (0 - 12 weeks)
My 2nd trimester: June 07, 2008 to September 19, 2008. (13 - 27 weeks)
My 3rd trimester: September 20, 2008 to December 13, 2008. (28 - 40 weeks)
Today I have been having lots of painful Braxton Hicks. Joy. I feel like they didn't start this early with Ellie but James seems to think they did. All I know is that I am not enjoying them!
Ellie and I have just had a shower after a lovely game of 'Swamp Monsters'. We still have a reasonable amount of mud and puddles in our yard, just recently Ellie has been happy to play on the grass and not get muddy but today she thought it was time to get back to it. I was sitting on the step watching and talking to her when she decided I was much too clean. She came over to me and started rubbing mud all over my arms so I decided to get into it with her and we became squishy, squelching, roaring Swamp Monsters! We made a lovely big mess.
I am feeling a bit better today, thankfully. The past week and a bit I have felt so terrible. Hopefully this means I am on the road to feeling good and having some energy! I am still going to take today relitively easy, I don't want to risk waking up tomorrow feeling worse again. I don't want to go backwards, I want to get my levels up and feel human again! James has been doing a whole lot of research and says alot of people do go backwards...
I am glad to have this diagnosis. I was starting to worry about how I was going to cope with a toddler and a baby because getting through day-to-day life was becoming such a struggle. If I sat or lay down on the couch I would fall asleep and wake up to Ellie touching my face. I was pretty lucky, she would stay close, play with her toys and sit on her lounge but I would wake up and feel horrible that I had just dropped off like that while she was up. Now, though, I am starting to think that once my iron levels are normal coping with everything wont be sich a big deal, so I am not so stressed about bringing a new baby home.
I'd best get something done while I am feeling a little better...
My blood test results came in on Friday, I was planning to call my doctor mid morning but he beat me to it and called me.
Thankfully, I do not have preeclampsia but I am severely anemic which explains a whole lot about how I have been feeling lately. James let me sleep in this morning, he got up and had Ellie while he got ready for work, I didn't even have a clue. I'm still pretty tired, I can't wait for her nap time! Right now she is watching The Night Garden and eating her lunch. She loves this show, especially the blue guy - no doubt I will know his and all the other character's names soon enough!
So, I am taking one iron tablet a day and have to go back for another bloodtest in three weeks time to make sure my levels are going up. I am currently doing a search for some iron rich recipes to incorporate into our meal plan.
Well, time to go - I don't have t energy to concentrate on a longer entry! Oh! Also, Ellie's pic is in a competition to be turned into Pasco Pop Art and if you're on Face Book you can go look and vote for her here :)
Ellie and I had a trip to the Doctors this morning for me to have a checkup and for her 12 month immunisations. We spent a whole lot of time in the waiting room, which was to Ellie's liking as she was he centre of attention! She met another little boy, neither of them were sure about the other so it was somewhat like a stand-off as they both stood looking at each other. The little boy did end up pushing Ellie at one stage and that was that for her, she was no longer interested in him.
She wandered around looking at people, taking toys to one lady, knicking one elderly ladies wallet and being generally entertaining by playing boo, dancing and making Mummy chase her. Everyone was really into her and she was very happy to be the centre of attention. It was very cute!
I got checked and have to have another blood test as he suspects I may be anemic and when I mentioned the headaches I have been experiencing he seemed keen to get me to have it done and return to him as soon as possible. I have to pee in a cup to check for protein and he checked for swelling which makes basically means he's checking me for preeclampsia. I don't have swelling and my blood pressure seems fine, but I have had horrid headaches, blurred vision, sensitivity to light, possible anemia and some abdominal pain - these symptoms/signs may or may not indicate preeclampsia. I'm not too worried currently, no point in getting too worked up until we know anything for sure. I also had a bit of a temperature but I have been feeling yuck again so that wasn't a surprise.
Ellie was checked and was perfect, no temp, no ear infection. For her immunisations I had to hold her on my lap and she had three needles in her legs. She didn't really react to the first one but the second and third made her cry and try to get away, it was horrible. I have never had to hold her before because our last medical centre had two nurses who did it. She didn't cry for long as she was offered a jelly bean, she got given a choice of a blue one or a pink one and took her time deciding. I think she was planning because she quickly took the blue one, popped it in her mouth, snatched the pink one and did the same! Cheeky!! They were her first ever jelly beans and she loved them (surprise, surprise). We had to wait 5-10 minutes to make sure she didn't have a reaction, giving Ellie another chance to wow all in the waiting room.
She was fine so we came home at 12. Our appointment was at 10.30 - it was a looonnnggg morning, lol.
She's awake now so we're going to do some drawing with her crayons now.
