7 month update - 2 teeth, crawling & pulling herself up!

Hey Lovelies,

Welcome back to my blog page. Hope you are all well. Its that time again to give you a little insight and update to where we are at 7 months down the line. Manic is the first word that comes to mind & also what I am now calling Matilda ''Dora the Explorer'' Yep, my little peach is off here there and everywhere. I know they say girls are more advanced than boys but I honestly can't believe how quickly Matilda is developing with her milestones, and please dont think I am here being a show off - I really am not! I've had boy who didnt get any teeth till he was one, and didnt crawl till 10 months, and walked at 13 months to having a baby who now does 2 out of 3 and shes 7 months old, proof all babies really are all so different but equally all get there in the end anyway. Its been all go in the brown house hold, stairs gates going up & the cot being moved down to now its lowest level as at nap times when she has woken up I go into the room and she is standing up holding on to the sides!!

Matilda always loved tummy time, so I have a feeling from 0-5 months she has been really strengthening her back, neck and arm muscles, she is also a tummy sleeper so it was only natural for her to then lift her self up on all fours and wonder where to go next! After 2 weeks of being on all fours she took the plunge to move her arm followed by her chubby leg and before we knew it she was off! And now is doing laps of the living room, lifting her self up on the bottom stairs, toy boxes in Harry's room, sofa, literally I can't take my eyes off hers for a SECOND! Baby swings, Jumperoo, Chairs etc are now all redundant this moving baby doesnt want to sit still for a moment!

Its made life in one way super busy, as I am constantly checking she isnt going to knock her head etc as she is even leaning onto the patio door as she is loving looking out into the garden! But in another way life is actually a bit easier as I dont have a baby in my arms, she is quite happy to play, explore and follow her big brother she just needs to remember she is only a babba still and cant quite do everything, she is SO eager!

Routine wise, we still dont have a day time routine as such, I am really relaxed and because I am out and about most of the time she just adapts and adapts really well so I am not overly bothered however bed time routine is still as my last update, I need my evenings!!!!!!!!!!

Matilda is now sleeping through and dropped her 4am feed around 5 and half months. And will now stretch to a 6am milk feed (Boob or will have 5oz) but I always put her back down to go to sleep as Harry is usually up from 7am-ish.

Wake up - 7.30am

Breakfast usually porridge, weetabix or occasionally toast.

Nap 9.30am and this can be anywhere from 1 hour to 2 hours.

Lunch around 11.30 - 12.30 am - ish really depends how long she naps for. But no earlier than 11.30am.

Milk Feed - 3pm

Nap - 3.30pm (usually around 45 mins to one hour)

Dinner 5pm

Milk Feed & Bedtime - 6.30 - 7pm

I am now only breast feeding morning and night, any milk through out the day which is usually only an afternoon one I now give via bottle. Dr Brown Bottles Teat 3, & she will have water through out the day from her sippy cup. I havent got her weighed in weeks!! Bad mum I know but I am not concerned one bit, as I have said previously her brother was a totally different eater and really wasnt into foods at all until 9-10months, I drove myself mad thinking he would never eat foods!!!!!!!! Matilda loves her foods and so far has only turned her nose at brocolli. She is loving everything else, we are doing a bit of BLW and also spoon feeding and I am really enjoying the weaning side this time :-)

Her favorite foods to eat her self are;

Raspberries
Kiwi
Crackers with cheese spread
Bread
Organic carrot wafers
Banana
Meats (small bits of chicken)
Pieces of potatoes
Pasta spirals


Lots of Love x

C BEEBIES LAND & HOTEL - OUR STAY!

Well we are home from an awesome 2 day's at C Beebies and of course I wanted to give you all the low down as it most definitely is in my husbands words ''Vegas for kids!!!!!''

C Beebies Land and their Hotel is for 0-6 year olds. The hotel is situated behind the original alton towers hotel, and the park itself is within alton towers. Its location is actually really good and not too far to walk. Once through the main entrance it is a short stroll down and on the right hand side. 

THE PARK

The park is just as you would imagine it, its bright, colourful & has happy cheerful music playing, you are greeted by a staff member who is dressed in the C Beebies uniform who as you can imagine is full of smiles for you and your little ones. 

I cant tell you Harry's favorite rides as he had too many! He is 2 years old and not overly tall for his age and was able to go on all the rides with either Chris or myself. For most rides the height requirement even with an adult is 0.9 and they are strict on measuring so if you are unsure I would check your infants height to avoid any disappointment!

The park rides range from soft and gentle boat rides from in the night garden, postman pat's van infant's sat up front driving (on a track) and parents sat in the back, even Matilda liked this one :-), Go jetters flying aeroplanes! Octonauts roller coaster which was fairly fast for Harry being so young but he loved it and went on it 4 times! Tree top adventure which is a small tree house that goes along a track and gives a really great view of the whole park, its a good starter ride! This was the first one Harry went on, eases them in nicely. 

As well as lots of rides, there is a fair amount to do within the C Beebies land itself, you have the LIVE stage area which has seating, shaded areas, games, refreshments available, toilets also live shows from Bing and Flop and other C Beebie characters. I think they have 3 shows a day but all the information and times is on the board when you head towards the stage giving you the full run down! I quite liked this area to just take 20 minutes out, it was really hot when we went so we needed shade, and a sit down every now and again. There is also a children's adventure play area to have some time away from the ques, it included everything from slides, to monkey bars to a seated zip line. 

The park has a fair amount of benches to sit down on, as many of you will know who follow me I am breast feeding so I was always able to sit down and give Matilda a feed at the times I needed too. Toilets, vending machines all never had ques whilst we was there, but I am sure the weekends and school holidays may be different. 

The area within the live stage area sold snacks, like crisps, drinks, water, popcorn, and ice creams! If you wanted hot food like we did for lunch you just need to take short stroll across the park to the ''Pirate'' area where food and drinks were available to buy. Most places did take card but pop up stalls like the chocolate fountains or ice cream vans only took cash, but dont panic there were cash machines in and around the park.

So how did we find it with a 4 month old and 2 year old in the park? Overall we had a smashing time, naturally for Harry like all toddlers, there of course was the odd melt down due to mixed emotions and feeling over whelmed. He actually done quite well in understanding we had to que, and these ques ranged from 15 minutes to 25 minutes for the days we was there. He was very excited and couldnt decide what he wanted to go on first and for that reason to get the best out of your time there I would definitely recommend the 2 days unless your child/children are slightly older. With Harry being so young standing and queing all day was never going to happen for us, knowing we was there for a second day allowed us to enjoy it and go at our own pace, we didnt feel the stress of him missing out or feeling like we wanted to get our monies worth. Nothing worse than making a toddler do something they dont want too, we all know how that would end up. 

We got to the park at 11am on the first day as we was travelling up, and ended up leaving a round 4 so we didnt do too bad! On arriving to the park there is a bit of faff as to where/what you want to do with your car. So the best option we found was to park at the theme park, as its a 10 min walk to the park. Then once you have decided your done at the park and want to head over to the hotel, walk back to your car and drive to the hotel and leave your car there over night, it makes check in much easier! The next day we took the monorail to the park, then back to the hotel to collect the car once we had had enough and made our way home. Parking is FREE in both car parks when staying in an Alton towers/C Beebies hotel. Otherwise £6 at the park or £16 to park at the hotel.

C BEEBIES HOTEL

Aahhhhhh now this is where the magic begins for your little ones. Check in like most hotels is 3pm, so we arrived around 4pm after being in the park all day. When you first walk towards the hotel, you'll see the C Beebies theme and bright colours once again just like when you first arrive at the park. The music playing on arriving is so sweet and makes it really fun for your little ones! Harry ran in side with excitement as soon as we got close! You will be greeted by someone with a clip board who will be just out side the hotel and they will check your name and details, they are fairly strict and wont have non staying guests visit the hotel. Once you've been ticked off, you can go and check in to get your room card/number. We had a ''Bugbies'' Room which had a double bed, TV, tea and coffee facilities, fully equipped bathroom including a baby bath, infant toilet seat etc The toddler area was pretty cool! Double bunk beds, toy area, TV showing C Beebies channel (naturally!) a bean bag & some funky lights so it was safe to say Harry was delighted and in his element! So much so at dinner he kept saying ''I go and see my bed room mummy'' Lol

 

Entertainment at the hotel was really really good! I was surprised at how much they actually had going on considering you are there for the park really. But say for example its the afternoon, you've had too much at the park or its all got a bit to much for your toddler & they're feeling tired, you can come back to the hotel and there will be something going on to entertain them, anything from story time, to meeting post man pat. I believe these started from 3.30pm onwards and goes on right up until the evening, we had dinner and Harry got to watch a few shows which included bing and flop, andy's dinosaur adventure and then tots disco at 7.30pm! By 8.30pm we was back in the room bedding down for the next day! 

Food & Drinks at the hotel were good, I wouldn't say amazing but good, plenty of choice and very clean. The bar had a good variety of drinks, soft, alcohol including mocktails cocktails etc Costa available and also costa food selection!

Restaurant wise you can book any restaurant within the resort itself so in the hotels such as splash landings, alton towers but within C Beebies is the windmill restaurant, you pick a time and then if you need to change it I am sure they will be more than accommodating as we came down slightly earlier for breakfast and they were fine for us to eat slightly earlier. Breakfast was included in our stay but dinner wasnt so we paid separate for that. There was a fair selection on the menu for dinner, starters, sides, sharing platters, make your own pizza, then standard dishes for adults and then the usual for kids, and a selection of puddings too! Most kids places only offer like 3/4 options but there was a good selection available for both adults and kids. Frozen yogurt machine was available and I believe free of charge. Breakfast was fab, lots of fruits, cereals, muffins, toast, yogurts, and then also the option to have hot breakfast, neither of us had the hot so can't comment but it was all included. 

On walking into the restaurant all children receive a balloon which is then tied to their chair (dinner time) and the staff are all extremely friendly. Toddler seats are available and of course high chairs. The chef may even come over and have a chat for some feedback and then hands over a chefs hat much to my son's delight :) 

TOP TIPS

Try and book an over night stay that INCLUDES 2 days worth of park tickets and breakfast, this is what we had and stayed Monday/Tuesday.

Bring a picnic for your first day to keep costs down as in terms of lunches! Alton Towers has the most stunning grounds so if lucky with the weather you can sit out on the green and enjoy it! Burger and chips was £8 for one person so picnic where possible.

When viewing your photos after a ride, write the number down incase the baby needs a feed or the toddler needs a wee! We didnt write the number down and when we went back to buy the photo it tooks agessss for her to scan through them all.

Comfy shoes! Don't wear new ones, lots of walking!

Go with friends if you like your rides, your park tickets aren't just for C Beebies, they're for the whole park! So you can go and use elsewhere! My hubby doesn't like the rides anyway's so wouldnt go on with me but if he did, we didn't have any one to look after the kids, but we was there for them anyway :-)

Bring extra clothes for the evening, I literally packed for bedtime and the next day and some spare pants/bottoms for Harry but I didnt realise about all the evening entertainment so luckily i managed to improvise but otherwise I would of had to wear the same clothes down for dinner/evening entertainment which I know isnt the end of the world but as I say it was very very hot when we went so I was covered in sun cream and ice cream etc

Take cash out before hand as ATM's charge you.

Pre book your table online for dinner and breakfast so you know you will definitely get a table BUT as I say we was ahead of time and they happily allowed us to eat earlier.

For babies/small toddlers in a travel cot, they do provide a travel cot but NO cot bedding and I don't mean quilt/sheet etc I mean the actual mattress all they provide is a wooden type base for the bottom of the travel cot. No way could a baby sleep on that. 

Print your tickets off to avoid ques on your first day, they will scan the bar code and you will walk straight through. There was easily 200 people queing at 9 am in the morning!

The park on your second day opens one hour before for hotel guests so you get it to yourselves!

If you win any big cuddle bears, the stall will not hold them for you, you have to carry them around the park! Luckily for us, we won ours at the end of the day but the girl working told us someone didnt realise he would have to carry it,  & seeing a lad with a hug pink bunny in his back pack tanking around the park was hilarious!

For your meet and greet with the characters and once the show (in the park) has finished, a line will begin the middle of the floor area, therefore to ensure you dont have to que for ages, try and sit in the middle at the front so once they say to stand and form a que all you have to do it stay where you are and huddle together instead of having to go to the back

They provide buggies for hire for toddlers/small children, they arent fancy but handy if you dont want to bring your own! They wouldnt be suitable for us as Matilda is still a baby and way to small but say we just had Harry he could easily hop in and hop out, they have single ones and also double! Plenty of them as well, for £10 hire fee. A lot of people had these, do not worry about taking your own buggy though and where to leave it as every ride as a buggy park right next to it where lots of people left their buggies whilst they went on the rides. 

Obviously try and go in the week! We visited Monday and Tuesday, tuesday was the quieter day! 

If there is anything I haven't covered and you want to know just message me, I would definitely recommend it, and we will 100000% be going back next year!

Enjoy x

the second time round

Hey all,

welcome to this weeks blog post, I feel now that Matilda is 14 weeks old it's given me enough time to really know what life is like with 2, or at least a very very good idea. Were over the whole adapting to a family of 4 and routine is now in place for us. (blog post on this if you fancy a read!) But when pregnant I had all sorts running through my mind, how would I breast feed with a toddler - Once got the hang of things, I really enjoyed feeding my first so I was adamant I wanted to feed my second, breast feeding to me is one of the best things in the world, its quick, convenient, free & best of all for me it creates a special precious bond with my baby, so it had got me thinking how was this possible to achieve with a toddler running around? Then there was the thought of how would I be able to share my time equally so that my toddler wouldn't notice too much of a difference, then lets not even begin on could I love another child the amount I do Harry. But the funny thing is now when I look back all those thoughts literally feel as if they didn't exist, like did I actually even think those? Yes I did, a hell of a lot but now in reality boy was I silly because the ''second time'' round is like driving a car, you just don't forget and if anything handling my baby has been so much easier than I thought. 

I know what my babies cries are for; with Harry hell did I know, hunger, from wind, from tired, from cold, from warm. I literally had no idea what his cries were for but just went with it and trusted my instinct, sometimes it was wrong, sometimes it was right! I remember I couldn't bear to hear him cry in his car seat when driving so if I was driving or if Chris was, no joke, I wouldn't care where we was I would pull over, get him out and literally start to breast feed in my car on the side of the road. In those early weeks it was like every car journey that I done this.. Yup, I may sound ridiculous but I presumed he was hungry, hungry, hungry so I would feed and off we go again, was he hungry or just wanted comfort? I didn't know that back then! This time however Wow, it couldn't be further from what I have just told you. When I think back I am literally doing what the lady emoji does and putting her hand over her whole face, or roll my eyes & I say to my hubby all the time ''I cant believe I kept pulling over with Harry and just feeding him the boob every time he cried'' LOL - Now I know all babies are different, but with Matilda's cry when in the car I can tell straight away, aahhh its a cry for being tired she'll go off to sleep in a minute, ohhh shes too hot so I will pull her hat or blanket off, or she needs a burp, I can hand on heart say this time round I have pulled over once to take her out give her a back rub and out came a big burp. For comfort I always put the muslin cloth I feed with next to her face so she can still smell me when in the car and it works a treat! The second time round you seem to just know if your baby is bored, restless, over tired, hungry, cold/warm.. You are so much more relaxed on how to handle their needs, how I don't know but the first baby gave me my practice run!

Outfits & Milestones; I couldn't wait to get Harry in all these cool and cute outfits it literally felt just moments he was in baby grows, Matilda is still in all her baby grows 14 weeks later and I will keep her cosy in them for as long as I can, she has her whole child hood for outfits! The same thing goes with milestones, I couldn't wait for Harry to do the next NEW thing, I had no idea that really I should of been cherishing those precious small baby moments, Matilda my sweet girl take your time there is no rush, stay my baby for as long as you can!

Time keeping; I am actually better with time keeping now with TWO children than I was one. I wont lie some days I am like a crazy woman falling out the front door but one way or another we are out. But the days I would hang around because Harry was taking a nap, or I would get back at a certain time in case he got hungry as I wasn't confident back then to feed in public looking back it was all just sooooo time consuming!!! I felt like the first time round I wouldn't completely relax when out and about because I was too concerned about where I could feed but with the second one I feed any where and everywhere sometimes in a costa whilst having a coffee sometimes on a bench in the middle in the busy shopping centre!! Breast feeding the first time round gave me all the experience for the confidence I needed for the second. With my first I would pick certain times of the day for appointments or to meet friends to work around the baby - I mean what the hell was I thinking? Now as for choosing times for doctors/hair/dental whatever appointments or meeting friends I literally go with what suits our family life because I HAVE TOO! I don't have time to ''hang around'' like I did with Harry. If Matilda is sleeping and I need to leave the house I will pick her up and put her in her car seat and go, and guess what... She continues to sleep because its now what she is used too, HELL NO would I of  done that with Harry which was stupid of me because I would be sat there 2 hours later!!!! I honestly feel my second will be less of a demanding child, some of you reading may laugh and think I don't know whats to come as I have heard many of times ''if I had my second baby first I wouldn't of had another'' I can't help but think this saying comes because actually some may not have as much patience to go through ALL those toddler tantrums a second time round, the lack of sleep is do able with one child, but with two its a game changer all together, there is no such thing as sleep when the baby sleeps, the milestones have all been done with the first one so may not seem as exciting, awful to say but true, we all know what's ahead. And of course obviously we don't have that spare hand or moment to ourselves because we have another child to attend too! So is it really because the second child is the ''naughty one'' I could be wrong and regret writing this part ha ha we will see when Matilda gets to that age but a lot of what I have listed I feel plays as part in that way of thinking.. I am still game for a third! Anyway's due to all NON cooing cooing and being picky for choosing times & of course because the second doesn't have a choice, I am actually much more relaxed in working this way as all remains the same for our family life therefore the second slots in just great - What was I even worrying about?

Noises/Sleeping/General behavior; Aaahhh this one is a good one, so when Harry was a newborn I remember I would constantly worry (and don't get me wrong still at 14 weeks I will always have a quick check and will often wake in the night even when Matilda is asleep! Its mothers instinct - I think? Lol) was Harry ok, was he too hot? Was he too cold? Oohhh he hasn't fed for this amount of time blah blah blahh. You literally question everything about their behavior, and then you go and google it all and read forums upon forums of stuff  but the fact is the second time round you just know that babies will wake if their hungry, they will wake if their cold, trust that elbow when testing the bath water, you DO NOT NEED the digital thermometer to tell you the water temp Lol - its ok! Just relax. I remember when Matilda was 3 days old and I was building up my milk supply up, she had been asleep from 3pm and still hadn't woke by 10pm. I knew I was going to bed, so personally there was no way that young I was going to leave her with no feed, my first born had jaundice and took 3 weeks to clear! & also I wanted to get my milk in so I lifted her out the basket, fed her, winded her, put her back down and went to bed & got some well earned rest. Now with Harry I know I would of no doubt just sat up waiting for him to wake which would of meant no rest for me which is never good the next day with 2 kids!! My point here is to just do what feels right for you, some would say don't wake a sleeping baby and I do agree with that in some respect but once they're of an age, I wouldn't wake Matilda now & shes 14 weeks.

Breast feeding is DREAMY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yeeeehhh, omg with my first I was constantly googling about latching on and watching you tube videos, I took him every 2 weeks to get weighed. Harry was such a happy baby and always gained weight yet I was so obsessive about him being on the boob ''properly'' and different positions to feed him in. He would be feeding and I would still be googling stuff about babies being on the breast. The second time has been so so easy,  when pregnant I watched one you tube video just for curiousness, once she had arrived minutes after giving birth I just popped her on the boob and fed away. I honestly believe the fact I have not worried about all the breast feeding scenarios that I did the first time it has made my breast feeding journey so much more enjoyable. What isnt so dreamy is when Matilda is on the boob and I have Harry telling me he needs a poo poo, I am still working on being a pro multi tasker but I will leave that for another day haha.

Last but not least, trust your own experiences/instinct. Advice from others is nice in some ways but awful in others. For people who are natural worriers or take things to heart/easily offended my advice is actually just don't listen to others at all - Its your baby. If you want to cuddle your baby to sleep then do it, if  you want to be a bit more care free with your routine then do it, because do you know what, those newborn moments don't last for ever, be relaxed and stress free as possible. All the sayings of  ''your making a rod for your own back '' Put the baby down they will want to be in your arms for ever'' I listened to that advice with my first, and do you know I wanted so badly my baby to fall asleep in my arms sometimes for those sleepy snuggles but he never would, he wanted to be put down for his naps all the time - Which ultimately yes that is what I wanted but I also did want those cuddles of him in my arms, was that coincidence? who knows? But I can assure you now a second time round some days I will put Matilda in her cot for her naps but for 1 out of 3/4 of her naps where I can I will hold her and let her sleep on my shoulder, I love those cuddles because having a 2 year old toddler I now know how quickly they grow up so for the ''second time'' round even on the days that have been hard, tiring or perhaps didn't go to plan, take a breathe and treasure and enjoy every moment you possibly can, I have blinked and Matilda is 3 months old already!

Lots of Love xxxxxxxx

BABY MATILDA | 12 WEEK ROUTINE

Hello Hun's

I hope you are all well, its about the time I feel I need to get back on the blog post! This week marks Matilda turning 3 months old!!!! How is that even possible? 2 lots of vaccinations, still chuffed I am breast feeding and growing out of clothes so quickly....Waaahhhhh!

Now we are 12 weeks in, we've got our evening routine well and truly in place! And I won't lie I am really happy to have my evenings back with the hubby. If you read my previous blog you'll see that from around 4-6 weeks old I started taking Matilda upstairs around 6-7pm and was feeding in a calm dark environment so that she could tell the difference from Day to Night, I continued with that religiously and it definitely worked as she is so ready for her little evening routine now at 12 weeks old. So we do bath time at 6pm, sometimes Harry joins sometimes he doesn't, and will sit downstairs with daddy. Bath time we spend anywhere from 15 minutes to 30 mins I look for her ques and if she's yawning a lot then I will cut bath time shorter as she will become over tired. I use the angel care bath seat which I LOVE!!!! and also Tesco bath time bubbles or Johnson's bubble bath! I use a little cup to pour over her body when she's in the bath so she's always warm as the seat sits slightly above the water, and will also pour a little bit of water over her head and face as Harry used to scream blue murder at around 18 months if water got in his face/eyes and when trying to wash his hair it was bloody hard work! Thank fully he is now over this phase, but I am not taking any chances with Matilda so I am getting her used to water over the face and eyes etc

Once out of the bath, we use the Aveeno baby lotion and do a little massage from head to toe which she loves!!!! Lots of smiles and giggles, and then her nappy and baby grow goes on. At this point she is starting to get a little hungry/thirsty so I give her a feed, bring her downstairs to see harry and daddy, she usually sits in her chair for around 15 minutes and will soon start to show signs she's ready to go to sleep so I take her back up, feed her again from the other breast in the dark with the curtains closed and then she goes down for the night somewhere between 7pm - 7.30pm. 

My toddler usually wakes between 6.30am-7.30am so once he is up, I am and we head downstairs, sometimes Matilda is still asleep so I will leave her upstairs with the monitor on.

I don't have a strict day time routine and although I am a huge believer in routine I don't stress hugely on the day time routine whilst she's this young, so I follow her and this how it goes for the moment;

7am - Awake

Feed (Cant state oz as she is breast fed)

Sits in her chair whilst I make Harry's breakfast

8.30am - Sleep (this is where i usually get showered/dressed for the day! If I don't its a struggle to get out the door otherwise!)

9.30/10am - Awake/Play time/Feed/Head out to tots groups or shops

11-30/12pm - Sleep so if at home will snooze or if out and about will sleep in car seat/pram

1pm - Awake/as above so play time, feed nappy change etc

3/3.30pm - Sleep

4pm/4.30pm - Awake, feed, nappy change, play etc

This point of the day she goes her longest time awake, I don't know why I just presume because she knows the next lot of sleep is night time sleep? Who knows but I am going with it and following her.

6pm - Evening routine begins! & down for the night usually 7.15.

Just for any breast feeding mummies or pregnant mummies who are hoping to breast feed, during her time awake I can go from feeding her once in that time or maybe twice sometimes it all depends how she feels, sometimes she'll take a big long feed when she wakes up or other times she will have a little drink and then play/wiggle on the playmat and will then want some more, so I literally just feed on demand.

From my experience with Harry I assume as she gets bigger she will be awake for longer periods of time? Therefore her naps will club together rather than the odd hour here and there but whilst still young most babies can only handle so much and will need to sleep again or that how it seems for Matilda anyways. If you have baby thats slightly older than Matilda would love to hear your day time routines please send them to me!

Any Q's about our routine so far just drop me a message and don't forget to follow me on Instagram @mama.lauraelizabeth

xxxxx

Growth Spurts - What to expect when breast feeding

Hey all,

I hope you are well, Matilda is approaching 10 weeks old on Wednesday and recently gone through what I feel is her biggest growth spurt so far! I remember these well with Harry and for a lot of new mummies (including me when Harry used to have them!) I would really question/doubt myself especially if breast feeding...

All sorts of things would go through my mind...

Is baby ok?

Why isn't he/she napping for as long as they usually do?

Is she/he having enough milk?

Is my breast milk no longer enough for her/him?

The list really is endless!

Before I begin, let me put some of those to bed just in case you've thought/thinking them!

Is baby ok? - As long as baby doesn't have a temp, seems to be feeding normal and just generally fussing then all is good however if you ever feel something doesn't feel quite right it is always best to get medical advice.

Why isn't he/sleeping for as long as they usually do? All part of the growth spurt process, if they're sleeping a lot more, baby's produce a hormone called HGH - Human growth hormone, this happens when they're sleeping - Again very very normal.

Is she/he having enough milk? As long as you follow your baby's lead and feed on demand, then yes they will be having enough milk. Keep doing what your doing and follow their signals, it is known baby's can literally grow over night during a growth spurt in length and weight!

Is my breast milk no longer enough for her/him? YES YOUR MILK IS ALWAYS ENOUGH! The female body is such an amazing one, your breasts will NEVER be completely empty, your body will be able to give your baby all it needs and your milk supply will catch up in order to meet those needs.  Keep baby on the breast to encourage those signals for more milk supply! Do not panic and feel you aren't fulfilling their hunger, soft breasts and constant feeding is very common during growth spurts. 

If you have any other concerns or questions on Breast feeding and growths spurts then feel free to email me on thehappybalancemum@gmail.com

I am putting this blog together because 9 times out of 10, your babies behaviour is completely normal. In growth spurts babies can become fussy, clingy, they want feeding constantly, lots of cuddles, some sleep more, some sleep less - Matilda definitely napped less today! Yet her growth spurt a couple of weeks ago she slept tons and my boobs felt as if they was going to burst! 

I want to give you mummies some reassurance and to tell you do not worry. For me growth spurts for both my children last around a day or 2, although I have read they can last up to a week and for my 2 they usually happen in the day time. My best tip is if you feel/sense a growth spurt coming then to cancel your plans and keep that day free (obviously within reason!) For me luckily today I had zero plans and boy am I glad because I literally would of been no good to anyone other than Matilda :) if you try and attempt different you will only feel frustrated and be working against your baby rather than with, and that is no good for your stress levels and most definitely not baby's. They are clever little things and are very in tune with their mummies moods/feelings. Follow your baby's lead and feed on demand as much as you can to keep them happy, content and growing. It will pass I promise.

Growth spurt days need to be a day to relax and feed on demand.... Literally.  Matilda's recent growth spurt was from waking at 7.30am she was feeding and sleeping every hour and half literally on repeat. How do I know this? Because although I feed on demand anyway's I follow the EASY routine which I have found works more so as a guidance for us, it has allowed me to establish what her cries mean, so a I want to sleep cry, I am hungry cry, wet nappy cry and so on. Anyways back to what the EASY means... E - EAT - A - ACTIVITY (so play mat, rattle, sing song) S - SLEEP and Y - YOU. Growth spurts for us the A and Y definitely doesn't happen for her, she won't want to sit in her chair or lay on her mat and watch her brother play, well from what I can tell so far. And the YOU doesn't happen in growth spurts because us mummies are there like a machine for them. So its iust lots of the E and the S!!!! & the S in this recent growth spurt was lasting around 40 mins, she would literally close her eyes have a quick power nap and open her eyes again and repeat!

I was lucky to get a shower today and wash/blow dry my hair and do one lot of washing and tumble dry  - Not bad going for a growth spurt day eh! But a lot of new mummy's will stress/doubt themselves just like I did the first time round and almost feel as if they've gone back wards but as I say this is all completely normal and there are definitely a few more ahead for sure so bare with them and hang in there. Growth spurts can be confusing, they can be exhausting but grab your self your favourite biscuits, keep hydrated, iPhone charger, watch your favourite tv programmes and just roll with it! Once you actually know why and when they're happening I promise you, you will feel much more at ease.

Lots of Love x

BREAST FEEDING A NEWBORN WITH A TODDLER ON YOUR HANDS - TOP TIPS

Hey everyone!

Welcome to my latest blog, for those visiting for the first time, my name is Laura, I am 29 and married to Chris. We have 2 lovely children, Harry (2yrs 7 months) and Matilda (6 weeks!)

I have been blogging since August 2017, still fairly new to me, but loving the journey so far and have met so many lovely followers, supporters and fellow mummies! I blog about motherhood, beauty and lifestyle!

So Matilda is almost approaching 6 weeks old, and its been full on since she's arrived, keeping routine for our 2 year old, and still trying to spend as much one on one time with him has been such a priority for me. So I haven't been as blogging as much as I would like but all you mummies with 2 or more kiddies will know exactly what its like. 

Below are my tips for breast feeding a baby with a toddler on your hands! - I hope you find them helpful :)

Leave the potty out! So Harry has been dry in the day time the month after he turned 2 (I have another post on this so if you want to know how we got him dry at 2 years then head over and have a read!) and dry at night time 6 months after we got him dry in the day. As you can imagine I need to help him get his trousers down especially when wearing a belt, and even funnier, wipe his bum once he's done a poo! So we have a infant mini seat downstairs which when Chris is home or if I am free we will lift him and pop him on there, but if I'm home alone or breast feeding Matilda I will tell Harry to go upstairs and use the potty. (You could bring it downstairs if you want too but I just keep ours upstairs as when Harry wakes in the morning he goes straight on the potty) Also make life easier and ensure you have access to everything you need I.e. Spare pants if they don't make it in time, wipes etc So you can get toilet time done quickly and get back to the baby if need be!

Once you have established a rough idea of how often your newborn feeds, or if you know baby is on a cluster feed, then I try and plan ahead in regards to play times with my toddler. So for example if I know Matilda is going to need a feed or routing I will quickly say to Harry Right! What are we playing with now.. Shall we play downstairs? In your bedroom upstairs? And try and guide them in choosing what they want to play with as I know a 'new' interest will give me plenty of time to feed. For me if I didn't have this approach with Harry, I can guarantee I would get comfy ready to feed Matilda and Harry would start to say play mummy play mummy, bedroom mummy and then the mum guilt would kick in as I can't feed standing or kneeling/walking so I would have to keep saying in a minute!!! So I really found suggesting he choose where he was wanting to play and also changing up what he was playing with to something new so a puzzle, or colouring books, cars etc before I fed made my feeding time so much easier.

Any spare time I get, I play with him and get down to his level, the house work can wait. I find this really works for us in him understanding that mummy has to share her time with him and his baby sister. Once Matilda wakes and needs a feed, I explain I have to see Matilda now and he seems to go with the flow! And trust me, don't think I am full of energy in getting down to his level and playing with fireman sam and all else boyish... I am not! But it makes my day much easier with them both. For example right now Matilda is sleeping and as I am writing this blog I am in his bedroom with him and he is building a den, as I am typing I am also going through a line of bears asking them have they seen our torch! Lol!!!!!

When you have hubby at home feed elsewhere; so when Chris is home, I will often take Matilda up stairs and feed her, I don't have too. But 1) Harry doesn't see or feel what he may think that I am always feeding and 2) He gets time with daddy just them two! When Matilda and I come back downstairs he can't wait to tell us what he's been doing.. Even though its only been 20 minutes lol! 

Offer them food before you sit down to feed! Quick Snacks!!! Fruit, crackers, yogurts, raisens anything thats going to be quick for you to grab. I explain Harry mummy is going to feed Matilda her food now, do you want some food too? 9 times out of 10... Its a YES! He eats as I feed, it works for us!

Sing song time! Finally another good one that works for me is putting Harry's songs on, I use youtube thats linked to our TV in the living room, it comes with little interactive videos and will have everything from wheels on the bus to Johnny Johnny! We sing along and he still feels he gets all my time whilst I am feeding.

Lots of Love x

BSHIRT | Breast feed with confidence

Happy Saturday! So excited to tell you lovelies all about my latest collaboration with BSHIRT - a trendy vest top for us breast feeding mama's!

Did you know around 80% woman usually give up breast feeding up in the first 6 weeks of their baby being born? For some that might be due to lack of confidence, they feel their baby wasn't getting enough milk, struggling with pain in their breast or just generally didn't enjoy it. For me with my first born it was the feeding in public area, I was still getting to grips with mother hood and I was never and still not one to just get the boob out in front of people! Once I was over the first 6 weeks everything just seemed to ''work'' I fed Harry where and in front of who I wanted, but still using my muslin cloth or breast feeding cover. With Matilda I couldn't wait to start feeding again I love every part of breast feeding, the bond I get with my baby is indescribable. I will add though, I am NOT on the breast feeding mum brigade, although I feel its the most natural, beautiful and one of the best parts of motherhood, a happy mummy is a happy baby so whether bottle or breast fed, as long as baby is FED that is all that matters but I would encourage any mummy to give it ago. I fed Harry for 7 months and plan to feed Matilda for as long as I can!

So I was soooo ready to ditch off the maternity wear after 9 months of wearing what felt to me frumpy clothes, but I then remembered the lack of clothes, or perhaps I should say fashionable clothes for breast feeding mamas. I first saw BSHIRT online and was delighted to of received a vest top in the post to wear and feed Matilda in. My first thought was, this is a bit more like me! :-) the style, the shape. The top has a flap that you can lift just under your bra to allow easy quick access for your baby to feed from. There are no clips, or fuss and keeps your tummy/cleavage completely covered. 

Its long enough so when changing nappies, or bending down to play with my toddler my back is still covered and I love that I can team it with jeans, leggings, comfy lounge wear, wear it under a t-shirt or like I am in my photos just wear it alone! Finally something that's fashionable - Happy Days!

Size? - I went for a size 12 for room for my ever growing boobs with milk increasing and decreasing as I feed, and it was the perfect size for me I didn't want too tight, and found wearing it with my nursing bras it was the ideal size! I would recommend to go up one size from your normal size, maybe even 2 sizes depending on your body shape. So for me, although I am 3 weeks postpartum I am naturally bigger across my thighs and bum when I am carrying more weight so I only went one size up. 

Quality? - Made from Organic cotton, the vest top is of really good quality! I have worn and washed and it is still in shape as I first received it. Its so comfy, and can be worn alone or under neath a T-shirt if you prefer. Nothing worse than cheap material that doesn't stay in shape!

It comes in a range of different colours. I love the dark Grey! I can team with my silver jewellery as well as gold, and team with blue or black leggings/jeans! 

To buy your B Shirt - www.thebshirt.clothing

Lots of Love x

birth story and life since welcoming Matilda into the world

Well our beautiful baby GIRL is 11 day's old and its the first time I have done any blogging since we have grown to a family of 4. Tuesday 20th February was my routine midwife check and I was currently sitting at 41+8 days with my little comfy babba still in my tum! The closer I was getting to 12 days over due the more I was starting to worry about being induced, I had had such a pleasant labour and birth with Harry I really want to go natural and aim for the same with my second baby. My midwife assured me baby was engaged, cervix was soft it was just a matter of waiting for my waters to go and baby consistently putting pressure on my cervix to keep contractions going! She done me a second sweep, and she also advised to no longer use the ball but to rock on my hands and knees to twist the baby round a little bit more as second babies tend to dip in and out of your pelvis. After my second sweep, and hearing the babies heart beat, I was feeling much more uplifted and back to my positive self even with my induction now booked. I just kept telling my self baby will come before this date!

Me and the hubby left the midwife and headed straight into town for some lunch and a few bits we needed to get, the walk round our shopping centre definitely helped get some movement! By 7pm, I had rocked so much on the floor my knees were killing me, I had even been listening to a bit of hypno birthing music with my ear phones on, and headed to bed at 10.30pm, my words to Chris were I'm going to go and get some sleep as I think this baby is going to come tomorrow! I headed up to bed and started to feel contractions coming regular, so much so I had started my breathing techniques just as I did with Harry and started to monitor how fast they were coming - They just came from no where! I laid in bed for around an hour and phoned the hospital around midnight, I told Chris to ask my mum over to the house as Harry was in bed sleeping, I knew it was happening, the BABY WAS FINALLY COMING!!!! The hospital asked me to stay at home for at least another hour but I knew this was NOT going to be the case, I put the phone down and headed to the hospital as my mum arrived to the house. 12:30pm we had arrived at the delivery suite, had my checks, I was definitely in labour and sitting at 5cm. I was in the birthing pool by 1.15am, and 15-20mins later before I knew it, and you ladies know exactly what I mean, that pressure begun! I had a lovely midwife called Pauline and also a trainee in the room with us. I had no pain relief just a little gas and air as I did with my first birth and before I knew it I was transitioning to the pushing phase of labour. I could not believe how quickly I had dilated.

For any one thinking of having a water birth I would highly recommend it, just as I recommend hypno birthing techniques I find the whole part of being in the water so relaxing and for me personally it puts in me 5th gear, I know they say for some it slows their contractions down but this is not the case for me so do not let that put you off as you maybe like myself and actually it does the opposite! As soon as I had said to Pauline I need to push the gloves went on, the torch was lite (for viewing in the pool) and that was it, before I knew it I was pushing and staying very controlled with my breathing techniques, by 2:05pm on Wednesday 21st February we welcomed our beautiful baby GIRL into the world.... and still in her anatomic sac! 1 In 80,000 babies are born in their sac, and apparently its very very lucky. She was out and in my arms!! I had delivered her safely and I was so relived, we didn't even check boy or girl till a few minutes after Lol!!! I could tell she was a dainty little doll as I held her in my arms, our princess weighed weighed 6lbs 140z, my Harry was 7lbs so I wasn't expecting a big babba. I just could not believe and still can't 11 days on we have been blessed with one of each!!! Harry said all along baby sister, from day 1 he kept saying baby sister or baby girrrrrl and little did we know he was right all along. Out I came from the water for some skin to skin time, I am breast feeding again and she latched within minutes, she needed a little prompting and the midwife wanted to make sure she had had a good feed before we went home. I cannot thank my husband enough for all the support he gave me through out it all, and the fantastic midwives at the NHS. Matilda Rose Laura Elizabeth Brown, you may have kept us waiting 9 days but you was worth every single day of being over due, made up doesn't come close to how we are feeling. 

11am we were walking through our front door full of different emotions for Harry to meet his baby sister, excitement, emotional, nervous, happy... His reaction was super sweet but in true toddler behaviour he was soon back playing with his toys! I did manage to get it on video for a keepsake. Since being a family of 4, he has adapted really well to her being here. Children really are amazing. He had a few attention seeking moments in the first 2/3 days, hyper active moments which would then end up in a few tears but we soon put to a stop with a ''10 minute time out approach'' where one of us would take him upstairs and sit in his bed room with him and he would soon snap out of it and want to come back down stairs. Towards his new baby sister himself he is very affectionate, lots of cuddles and kisses! Lots of morning Matilda and night night Matilda. We are really making a conscious effort to still get that time with Harry doing his puzzles, colouring in, all his favourite things so although I don't feel any mum guilt yet, I am sure it will come! NO ONE prepared me for the emotional feeling I would have towards my first born, for 2 solid days I had a lump in my throat and if I tried to explain it I would just burst into tears, the emotion I was feeling was that all of a sudden my happy cheeky go lucky baby boy, was in fact no longer a baby, and all of a sudden felt a giant. I had been watching and listening to him one day by the door frame and realised he did not need me in the way his new baby sister did, it sounds silly but I felt I had lost that part of him, he needed me in other way's and that really scared the hell out of me. He all of a sudden seemed so grown up and independent and I didn't realise that until I had a baby in my arms. Thankfully, this isn't as raw as what it was last week, I still have the odd moment but as my husband said I can't stop time or him growing up but I can enjoy every moment of his next leap in toddler world and continue to be so proud of him. 

So we are loving life as a family 4! We need to get a our little princess registered, and have the health visitor on Wednesday! I can't wait to get her weighed again as she gained 70grams in her first week where as Harry lost and then jumped back up the following week, I have a little milk queen on my hands and she is feeding wonderful.

Lots of Love x

NEW NURSERY - BABY Number 2!

Hey Lovelies

I hope your well and welcome back to my blog. This week I am telling you all about our nursery and what we brought, re using, not planning to re use and why!

I have been blogging now since last august and for those that follow me, you will know from both my pregnancy journeys that we like the gender surprise so we have now done two nurseries up neutral and both are equally just as beautiful!

We did not want to re use use our first borns room as a nursery as to be honest this is now actually a little boys room! But originally we went for soft lemons and whites - I loved it as it was very peaceful which was the exact type of baby Harry was, very relaxed and chilled. Once Harry had arrived and I knew he was a boy, I started to add in Navy's and it worked really well. On my Instagram page you will see a photo of Harry's room and how its been easily converted into a ''Little Boy's'' room with out much fuss or cost!

So once decided we wasn't going to move Harry, we decided to start from scratch one the spare room and decided to go for Whites and Grey's! I wanted something different from yellow, and although I was left with cream to choose from, when we first bought our house my whole house was painted in cream and I literally never want to see cream EVER AGAIN! I will note the shade/brand of paints for the nursery and if there is anything I have missed then please just message me on email or over on Instagram - @thehappybalancemum

FURNITURE

Harry's 3 piece furniture set was from Mothercare and the cot purchased was a cot bed so we was able to take the sides off when he was ready so great value for money. The drawers came as a changing unit and once over the stage of changing bums we were able to take the sides off to create the look of just a normal chest of drawers. So as I was already pregnant at the time of moving him into a big boy bed, we decided actually to NOT take the sides off the cot and just buy him a new bed as I didn't want 2 cots, if that makes sense? So the cot moved into the spare room, and Harry's new toddler bed arrived :-) That then left us just the need for a new set of drawers and wardrobe for the nursery which both we decided to get from the Ikea kids/baby collection.. I am so pleased with them and they were half the price.

I didn't buy a nursing chair for Harry, I was tempted but so many people told me that I wouldn't use it as much as I thought and to put that money to something else, they do look adorable and amazing in nurseries but I took their advice and didn't bother so after I breast fed Harry for 7/8 months all over the house I of course wasn't going to then purchase one for the second nursery, I just didn't personally feel the need!

This gift above was from my lovely friend Zoe - It is full of baby grows, blankets, vests all wrapped up in roses. Its just to stunning to unravel at the moment but when I do I will give you all a sneak preview. 

CURTAINS AND COT LINEN

Curtains I searched high and low, I really struggled to find something that was fairly neutral and good in price and I ended up getting ours from Dunelm with discount off after Christmas, a saving of £15.00 and I think we ended up paying £44.99. They are the sweet dreams collection black out pencil pleat and I just adore them!!! I went for extra length as I wanted to ensure I get full coverage of the window just as I done with Harry's and he's always loved his sleep and gave me no problems so I am hoping for the same for the second baby! Lol!

Cot Linen I got ''The my first bed in bag'' linen set from mother care which is white and grey with sheep all over it, it came in a pack with a sheet, light weight cover, a fleece blanket and a coverlet. I have put the link here for you to go and view;

https://www.mothercare.com/bedding/my-first-bed-in-bag/243624.html?cgid=nursery_beddings#prefn1=collection&prefv1=My+First&start=1

I got the bumper bar protectors to stop baby banging their head or legs getting stuck from Dunelm and they were to match the curtains in the Sweet Dreams Collection.

ACCESSORIES 

I am an absolute sucker for accessories in bedrooms and lets be honest with baby nurseries you can really get carried away!

I featured in a past blog 2x bunnies we bought from the London Olympia Baby Show, which were grey and had a shabby wooden finish to them, they were the first 2 items we bought accessory wise for the nursery so we kept to the theme and they fitted in just great!

We have the gorgeous the Elephant fluffy soft rug from ''My 1st Years'' which is just adorable! I can't wait to get some snaps of the baby cosying up on it. Link below;

Door stopper - The Range

White hanging feathers - Country Interiors

White love hearts (scan photos) - The Range

PAINT 

Dulux - Matt Polished Pebble
Husband done the dada rail and painted white and gloss over.


https://www.my1styears.com/personalised-elephant-playmat-white.html

All of my boxes that contain socks, hats, booties, wipes, bubble bath, nappies etc are from a selection of home stores such as B and M, the range and HomeSense. I started getting these from last summer and have collected them to put out once nursery was finished. You can never have to many of these storage boxes/basket for things list above or some big ones for toys!

THINGS WE WONT BE USING A SECOND TIME

1) We will be using my angel care SOUND monitor, it was a god send and I highly recommend but we won't be using the heart rate monitor that fits in to the cot. We turned it off after 3 weeks of Harry being in his cot (he moved into his cot at 12 weeks old as he out grew his Moses basket so quickly) I won't lie initially I was anxious the thought of him being in this massive cot but after 2/3 nights I was fine and the best decision we made! We was so lucky to not have any transition issues. The heart rate monitor kept going off randomly and it was SO loud it was just a nightmare so we just didn't stick it out and feel the need for it.

2) Big baby bath - We purchased one of those baby bath's that go OVER the big bath but it was so heavy and large for storage it was a night mare, and I did wonder if I didn't have a natural birth and had a C section there was no way on earth I would of been able to lift that. So instead, the lovely team at angel care sent me the soft support baby bath support that the baby can comfortably lie back in and relax in the bath.  I am very much looking forward to using this, as Harry and baby can bath together. Its such a great size and easy to put away!

3) Steam Steriliser - I breast fed for 7 months so didn't need to sterilise much other than the odd bottle until I had weaned Harry off the breast completely, my steriliser is 2 years old so not old at all, but it needs descaling and it would leak occasionally which drove me round the bend. This time I aim to use the cold water sterilising method using Milton fluid or tablets and also the unit that you fill up with 5 litres of water. You can purchase the unit for £10.99 and all items stay sterile for 24 hours, you can put everything and anything in there from bottles, to expressing equipment, dummies, toys, tethers.

4) Cot canopy and cot bumper - I spent a fortune on the most gorgeous white canopy for Harry's cot that just looked soooo beautiful but the reality of it was actually just about the ''look'' and I was worried sick once he was in there he would pull it down and suffocate himself! Like wise with the bumpers, so off they came and off to the charity shop they went. As I said above I have decided to cover the bars with the velcro strips bumper bar strips as his legs used to occasionally get stuck in the bars, these should hopefully avoid that and they are no way as heavy as a cot bumper so much safer.

4) Our expensive fancy highchair - DONT go and purchase a fancy high chair like we did. They get covered and ruined in foods they go mouldy and end up leaving your chair looking other than nothing but rank! See below what high chair we have decided to use this this time round! :-)

THINGS WE ARE RE USING 


1) Moses basket - Harry always loved his Moses basket and although he wasn't in it long, it gave me breathing space day time and night time, as we he would often sleep for ages in there! I propped it up and would make it nice and cosy and snug and he was always fairly quite content in there, if he did have any tears or not want to be put down my biggest tip is to have a muslin cloth with some of your breast milk on there and leave that nearby their face so they think your close.

2) Clothes - Yes... Even though we don't know what we are having, we have tons of whites as I love the newborns in whites for the first few weeks, I think they look so angelic and lush. If baby comes out a boy hubs can get back up in the loft and I will wash each cello bag as baby grows as I have so much BLUE or if a girl, I will look forward to buying PINK Girly items! :-)

Some of Harry's neutral blankets, and his baby soft play toys!

3) Silver Cross infant car seat, good hoover out and wipe down.

4) Changing Mat but won't be re using a changing unit. I am going to include Harry in changing bum time so he feels a super happy big brother passing me the wipes and nappies. He also learnt to roll over fairly early and I was paranoid he would roll off onto the floor so I always ended up changing him on the floor!!!

PURCHASED NEW

1) NEW Chair Purchase - Is a 123 dream sheep sound and vibrating chair for the baby to sit in during the day time, I did have a chair with Harry but when he wasn't in his Moses basket he was in his chair so it is well and truly worn and used. So we decided to purchase baby their own nice new one :-)

2) IKEA High chair - You cannot beat the IKEA antilop high chair! Its plain white plastic, you can wipe it down so it looks clean and tidy! It comes with a tray so you have the option to take it out, its the best saving you will ever have!!!! Link below;

http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/chairs-stools-benches/high-chairs/antilop-highchair-with-tray-white-silver-colour-spr-29067293/

3) Outfits - So as much I will re use some of Harry's items, of course I couldn't resist buying some new stuff too, I recently had my baby shower and was completely spoilt rotten with lots of lovely mummy gifts as well as new baby items. So far I have purchased from John Lewis clearance range, Magnetic Mouse Baby Grows they are amazing for speed, the magnetic poppers!!!! Go and check their Instagram page/website they have the cutest designs, & of course Next (I am a huge next fan)

4) Cot Mobile - This is from the ''Guess how much I love you'' range and I used to love putting Harry in his room when he was a new born familiarising himself with it listening to the lovely music, it was very relaxing and peaceful for him, so I definitely plan to do the same second time round.

Hope you've enjoyed the read 

Lots of Love x

My first born baby... I love you xxxxxxx