Where's Tom?

We had wake ups at 11pm, 2.30am (feed), 5.30am today before Tom woke again at 6.59 - his timing isn't that bad! I went to get the little fellow up so Matt could open his pressies in bed with his family.

Tom was a little naughty, was on the bed for under a minute and managed to kick both bags of pressies off the bed onto the floor - he certainly has power and reach in his legs! Luckily there was nothing fragile in either bags, however, it meant the confetti lurking in the bag which was meant to mess up Matt's side of the room ended up on my side of the room !

As has become routine when we are with Granma and Pop Pop, I deposited Tom with them in bed - didn't bother to dress him as he is in his favourite dinosaur suit which we all like and enjoy.

After his nap, Tom went out for the day with Granma and Pop Pop. It was the first time that I had been away from Tom for a significant amount of time. It did feel strange, but as I had soooooo much preparation to do, the time flew! (Although they brought him back late - they said 4pm, and they didn't arrive back until 5.10!!!!!!!!!)

He had behaved himself very well apart from a 'poo' cry and refusing his milk! He was a happy chappie on his return. Mum and Dad then did his bathtime and bedtime whilst Matt and I got ready and went out for dinner to celebrate his birthday as it his birthday today.

Granma and Pop Pop come to stay...play!

Not a good night, Tom was awake at 12am (feed), 2.30am (feed), 5.30 (screaming - couldn't find out why) and then didn't really go back to sleep - more snoozing until I got him up at 7am.

Once he had gone back down at 9am, I did a quick scoot around the house tidying, cleaning etc as Mum and Dad are coming up today. Matt took us down to baby clinic as he didn't have much on and it was chucking it down. Tom only put on 2oz this last week. Wondering now if I should up his portions.

We then went for a drive down the A5 looking for Matt's lost registration plate - he came home without it yesterday - no joy.

After lunch, Tom and I went to Asda to get in provisions for the next couple of days - we have mum and dad today and tomorrow and then Pat and Bob, Jude and Richard on Friday - so our fridge is now bursting at the seams.

Jude turned up with pics of her big cat day out and then mum and dad turned up after a 6 hour journey to get here - oh, I didn't mention the weather has been rubbish - rain, rain, rain and more rain. Evening was spent eating, catching up etc.

Boys in the Bath

Not much to report for today I'm afraid. Tom didn't have a very good night - was awake at 10pm, 12am, 2am and 3am! In the morning we went round to see Carol at General for a catch up.

The afternoon saw us at one of the Telford retail parks desperately looking for something to wear on Saturday. Had a major problem in that all shops seem to be in the middle of sales at the moment, meaning there is very little 'normal' stuff to buy. However, did manage to find something in Sainsburys - hope I look ok in it - I'm sooooooo top heavy at the moment that it's hard to look normal, let alone 'yummy mummy' in anything!!!!!!

As I was in Sainsburys I thought I would look to see if duck was on special offer - I have a habit of being there when it is reduced - what do you know, it was half price, so one jumped into my basket and Matt was a very happy chappy when I returned home and showed him my purchases!

Matt had a light day - he had to take his motorbike in for servicing. As it was raining and cold (well for July anyway) on his way back, I suggested he take a bath with Tom, which he did. I think they both enjoyed it!

I'm beginning to sit

OK, today will be short and sweet as I'm not feeling too good - typical as it's Tom's Naming Day and Matt's 40th birthday on Saturday. I seem to have done something to my shoulder which means it hurts when I move it, when I breathe, when I sniff etc etc - not great! I'm hoping it's from sleeping awkwardly and it will go away. I'm also quite tired, so am going to go to bed early this evening to see if that helps.

Anyway had a good day today and Tom has been a star entertaining himself which has meant i haven't had to pick him up too much. Went to Group this morning (last one today until September - shame, I really enjoy it! One of the mums brought homemade chocolate cakes with her as she will be back at work in September so we won't see her again - they were very yummy)

Came home, Tom had lunch - carrot and nectarine and went to bed whilst i had lunch. We then went to Asda whilst Matt vacuumed and washed the downstairs floor - what a star - came home to a lovely clean and fresh smelling home.

Both Tom and I had an afternoon snooze, then dinner for Tom - sweet potato and nectarine. He then entertained himself for the afternoon. He is beginning to sit - is very wobbly and tumbles quite a bit, but he's definitely getting better.

Today I will SHOUT!

Tom wasn't as well behaved last night. We woke at 12.00 - needed settling, 2am for feeding and 2.45am - needed settling - so not a great night. We had a lazy morning, sorting things out for next week - I tried reading my poem out and failed - welled up before I even got half way! Oops - must sort myself out!

Tom was quite 'shouty' this morning, not sure why but he had a lot to say!!!! Today is the British round of the MotoGP, so we stopped in to see the 125s as we have a good rider. He crashed!

Popped out to the Clock Tower for lunch and then returned for the big race - our favourite, Valentino Rossi also crashed, but managed to get going again to come 5th. We then braved number 53 - it's Becca's 5th birthday and the house was full of very excited pink girls. We found solace downstairs with the adults and Tom had a play with Rose and her mum before being surrounded with the very excitable girls which he suffered very well.

Came home so Matt could feed Tom his first dinner (first for Matt, not Tom) - cauliflower followed by apple and cinnamon. He seemed to take after his dad in refusing the cauliflower but gulped the apple down no problem - hummmmm! He then started to cry his tired cry so we put him down - his naps were all out of sync today - he had his 3pm nap at 2.30 and only stayed asleep for about 30 mins, meaning he was tired at 5.30 rather than at 6.30!

An 11 and half hour sleep and a good swimming lesson - Tom is a star!

We had a fantastic night last night. Tom went to bed around 6.45pm and didn't wake again until 6.15am - we are getting there!!!!

We had an easy morning, doing not much - TV, nap and Asda for lunch we then went into Shrewsbury for Tom's last swimming lesson, which was a vast improvement on last time: no crying until the last 5 minutes, and even that was a bit half-hearted. I was quite proud of him. We then did a lightning tour of the shops of Shrewsbury, mostly provisions for next Saturday's do, including a smart outfit for Tom, which we hope he won't embellish like the left-hand photo here. That's broccoli by the way, we're not feeding him algae or anything.

We then had an early, and typically excellent, dinner at The Armoury before coming home for the usual bath and bottle. Tom did manage to incur his mother's displeasure by yet again rolling from his to back to his front while she wasn't looking. He's done it 4 or 5 times now, and Nik's missed it every time.

Nik & I are about to settle down and watch our first Blu-Ray film, 10,000BC. I'm expecting a terrible film that looks spectacular. (It was)

I'll only roll half the way - just in case...

We didn't have a good night last night. Tom woke up screaming at 10pm. On investigation we found a poo in his nappy, so we think that was the cause. Once we had changed him he became happy and wide awake again. Took a good hour to get him to sleep! He then woke at midnight, I fed him, then he woke again at 3.30 for feeding! So, he wasn't my favourite person this morning until I went in to get him and he greeted me with a huge smile (he knows how to work me the bugger!)

He wasn't hungry first thing, took until 9am to get some food into him. He went down for his morning nap at 9am. Some screaming sent me straight back upstairs - to find him on his front in the cot - he had rolled from back to front again without me seeing!!!!!!

Didn't really do that much today. Went to Breast Feeding Support Group this morning, brought Tom back when he was showing signs of getting tired. Spent the afternoon playing - he was on his mat for most of the day - he rolls on to his side almost makes it over, then realises that he might go all the way and then flops back. I think he is scared of going the whole way just in case he can't get back again. It was fun watching him though.

Jude and Richard came round at 5pm to sort out the TV aerial. As it turned 6pm, Tom and I went downstairs so he could say goodnight to them all to find Richard and Matt at the bottom of the ladder and Jude up it????!!!!! I did Tom's bath time (big splashes) and last feed - he took it all with barely a whisper and went straight to sleep, even though there was lots of banging and drilling going on with the aerial.

Harry Potter for Babies

Interesting night. Tom didn't wake up after 20 minutes wondering what happened to his milk. In fact he didn't stir until 10pm. We decided to go in and feed him the rest of his milk then in an attempt to get him to sleep through to the morning. He took the milk, but was awake again at 1.30. At 2.30 I gave up and fed him again. He then slept through to 7am. It seems that if you feed him at 10pm it has no or a negative effect on Tom's sleeping pattern, don't think we will try again. I will resign myself to 4am wake ups until he can go 12 hours without food.

Anyway, woke up to a bright morning, which made us all happy, however, it has already clouded over!

Today we went to see Harry Potter at the special newbie screening at Telford. Didn't realise how long the movie was (3 hours) so taking that into consideration, all the babies were very well behaved! All had a sleep a grizzle and a play so can't really complain. Went to a cheap pub for lunch and then returned home. Another grey, rainy day so think we spent it well.

Fruit and Veg is great for weight gain!

Had a good night, Tom only woke once at 3.30 for feeding, I was back in bed at 3.45, however, took about an hour to get back to sleep again!

This morning we had arranged to meet with Rachel Z to do baby aerobics in Shifnal. It was basically open air circuit training. Was good fun, especially to catch up with Rachel again and to do exercise with someone I knew - we were both fit as each other which was good.

Rachel invited us back for lunch, so we went and had a play. I haven't seen her for ages so we were nattering 10 to a dozen. Both babies have changed quite a bit, Oliver is far calmer, and now the same size as Tom. He's learnt to roll as well, but unfortunately can only roll one way from his back to his front, and then starts crying - not good!

We came back and went to baby clinic, Tom is now 18lb 6oz, so feeding him fruit and veg has had an effect, that's the most weight he has put on in ages. Came home and had a play, he was a bit grumpy as his naps were quite short today - he didn't manage his proper last feed, so we are expecting him to wake up shortly once he realises...

Today's pic of him on the playmat, the little bugger rolled from his front onto his back again - I was in the room, but not looking at him at the time! He chooses his timings very carefully!!!!!

Swimming is fine today!

Another good night - Tom woke at 4.30. Once again I thought about not feeding him - but the urge to sleep was too strong, and once again he wasn't interested in feeding when he got up! Oh hum...

We were going to see Carol this morning, but on calling her we had different thoughts, she sounded terrible, she thinks she's got swine flu so told me not to come anywhere near her, instead we braved the rain and went into Newport - I had a cheque to put in the bank and some birthday cards to get. The parking is free in Newport, unlike Telford and anyway Newport is nicer.

Came back, had lunch whilst Tom snoozed. Some people came round to collect the TV - Matt managed to sell it on ebay. It took two of them a considerable amount of time to get it downstairs and in the car - the car they brought was wholly unsuitable for the task, way too small - not sure how they got it in or how they were going to get it out?!

Tom woke up just as the TV went out the front door, so I treated him to lunch - I have increased his portion size as yesterday his food went down without touching the sides. Today it was sweet potato and broccoli. This afternoon he's having nectarine and banana.

2.30 saw us at Gray's Hotel for another attempt at swimming. Guess what, Tom enjoyed it. At one stage he was floating on his back with his legs crossed and in the air, smiling up at me. Yesterday when we tried the same thing he screamed with all his might! I tried the new swim position, which was fine, the old one, which was also fine. I also dunked him a good 6 times, and although he didn't come up smiling, he was ok with it all. I think in the 40 minutes he was in the pool he grizzled for about 30 seconds. So, the actual swimming isn't the problem, it must be something else that spooks him during lessons: the environment? the noise? the water temperature? I don't know, but I will keep taking him swimming with Kathy and Sam during the week to see if it makes a difference to lessons.

I hate swimming!

Tom had a brilliant night last night. He slept through to 4.30. I did think about trying to get him to sleep again without feeding - but I was too tired, and it is so easy to do...

We were all up again at 7am. Tom didn't want feeding at all - maybe I should have refused him food at 4? Had a easy morning, in fact Tom fell asleep downstairs on his playmat, he's not done that since he was a new born - he normally cries and tries to fight it, however, he was only asleep for about 20 minutes, when he normally sleeps for 40+ mins - so not great!

Went to Group this morning, only 4 people turned up, but they were the 4 people I normally speak to so it was good. One new lady spent some time talking about how she had 'failed her baby' as she couldn't breast feed, she got really teary, got me going as well. She tried so hard, but he wouldn't latch on. Made me realise how lucky I have been with Tom, good job he's a greedy baby!

This afternoon saw us at Rowton Castle doing Waterbabies. Not a great success as Tom spent more time crying than not! He was ok for the first 5 minutes and even managed a smile, but as soon as he went under water he cried and then he more or less continued crying for the rest of the lesson, although he did manage to go underwater one more time - for which he really let loose on the screams!!!!! I keep wondering if we are flogging a dead horse with the swimming, but keep being told that some babies are like Tom, and suddenly everything will click and he will enjoy it - but they would say that as that means we will spend more money on lessons. I'm going to try to take him once a week during the summer and see where we get...

Came home, dashed to the post office for Matt (he's had a sudden attack of ebay selling-itus) and then popped to Asda for some bits and pieces. Before we knew it, it was 6 o'clock and time for bath and bed. Tom objected to his bath - must be annoyed to be in water again!

Sweet Potato Beard - very fetching!

After the long day yesterday, we decided to have a day in today. So, had a nice lie in with the boys, one who was very happy to be awake, kicking and punching and another who was a little more subdued!

Managed to finish Matt's cake this morning. I showed it to him, it will be impossible to keep it from him until the day. Jude dropped in around 11.00 for tea and a natter - we showed her the cake, she seemed to like it - in fact she asked who had made it - which I took as a compliment.

We decided to go to Long Lane for lunch - usual bacon sarnie for Matt and Beans on Toast for me. Sam came over to say hello. On our return Tom had his lunch - sweet potato and cumin which was a success - although I think he preferred wearing it as a beard rather than eating it!

The afternoon saw me icing Tom's cake, whilst the boys watched MotoGP - good results all round, Vale won the race, and Matt liked the cake.

I spent a while in the kitchen making Tom his food for the next week, whilst he was napping and then we spent a pleasant afternoon playing in the lounge. He was a real happy chappy today, so it was fun being with him. Matt's taken him for his bath and last feed, although listening through the monitor, I think there is a bit of a disagreement going on...

Going Forward is Ace!

Tom was awake every two hours after his late night jaunt to the airport! Can't blame him though - his night was very much disrupted!

Today was the West Midlands Translators Walk, which took place in Herefordshire. As Tom now has complete control of his head, we decided he could go forward facing in the Baby Bjorn. Took us a little while to work out how to do it, but we got there in the end. The photo doesn't show it, but he loved it - in fact he spent the first half hour giggling - guess it must be a funny sensation floating through space. Being naturally nosy he had a fantastic time, didn't sleep at all for over 3 hours! Was a lovely walk - lots of views and a good cafe half way round which meant that Tom could have a kick around out of the carrier.

We were out late, so I took his sleep suit with us and changed him in the pub. He was good in that he fell asleep as we had our dinner. Unfortunately he woke up after about an hour and didn't drop off again - too much going on. Didn't start on our way home until after 8pm. Tom screamed for the first 40 minutes - he was fed, his nappy was clean, so I think he was over tired, and having trouble getting to sleep. In the end he cried himself to sleep - not a great journey. Such a shame as he was so good during the day - he certainly charmed everyone in the group - all of whom thought he was a fantastic baby as he didn't cry all day - too busy giggling.

Son and Father Reunited

So last night was interesting - Tom and I had to go to pick Matt up from the airport. Tom was very well behaved, I had to wake him up, put more clothes on him, put him in his car seat and put him in the car. I didn't get even a tiny squeak from him even though it took him until the M6 for him to drop off again.

He woke up again at the airport, but once again not a sound and then fell asleep almost immediately we were on our way home.

He took some settling down once we got home, but nothing too bad. I was hoping that he wouldn't wake during the night - but it wasn't to be, he was needing food again at 3.00! Poo!!!!!!

We were up again at 7, so not a whole lot of sleep for me (Matt slept very well though!). Today we were invited to Rachel and Mae's to play. So off we went. Had a lovely time, Mae really does look like her Dad, but she is full of smiles, expressions and noises, as well as still being quite vomity. Came home to find Dad had finished for the day, so went up to the lounge and watched some telly and had a play.

Do you like my tummy?

Last night wasn't so bad, he didn't wake again until 3.30 for feeding, then again at 6.30 - but I managed to persuade him to go back to sleep until 7am.

We went to group this morning - spent the time with Isabelle - Tom's junior by 3 days, who is rolling all over the place. In fact we were able to do lots of comparisons between boys and girls today and in all cases the girls were further developed than the boys, it really is true that boys are lazy.

Michelle and Seren came round to play for lunch. Seren is also rolling all over the place, Tom seemed unimpressed by her though, she would have rolled over him, given half a chance!

The afternoon was spent playing on the mat. Also caught up with mum and dad after their holiday in Scotland which they enjoyed.

Tom managed to have an afternoon nap, meaning he was easier to deal with in the evening. I gave him his bath and feed, he managed all of it without falling asleep this evening. It is now 8.40pm and he hasn't woken up yet - which is great. It means I've had time to make some booties for his cake, not sure about them, will get Matt's opinion before using them, there certainly is a lot to learn about cake decoration!

Talking about Matt, he is still stuck in Glasgow. In fact he's had a terrible day. His meeting finished very very early (his clients were keen to get to The Open) so he was left with a day to kill as his flight wasn't until 7pm.) He tried to go to the cinema, but they wouldn't let him in with his overnight bag and as he hates shopping, that means a seriously bored Matt. He then got to the airport to discover that his flight was delayed. It now looks like he's not going to arrive at Birmingham Airport until 11pm! Tom and I are probably going to have to drive out to the airport to collect him as there won't be any trains home. Oh hum!!!!!!

Today's pic - Tom is very keen to show everyone his tummy at the moment, he also likes to eat his T-shirts. So this is a typical pose!

Out of synch

So, last night wasn't so bad after all. He woke at midnight for feeding, and then again at 4.30am - don't blame him the tanks were a little empty at midnight - I didn't get to start pumping last night until after 9pm.

Both of us overslept this morning - if it wasn't for Matt texting me at 7.20, I don't know what time we would have woken up! The rest of the day was out of synch as a result.

Went to aerobics at 11am, Tom went to the creche and once again got a good school report, apparently more than happy watching the toddlers playing.

Came home, Tom went straight to sleep, so I managed a shower, and then we both had lunch. I put him in his high chair and offered him some sticks of cucumber. He was completely uninterested in them to start with, but did eventually pick them up and put them in his mouth, where he had a good suck.

After lunch we went down to baby clinic, he is now 17lb 15oz, his growth rate has certainly slowed quite considerably, but he now seems to be following the 75th percentile line, so everyone is happy. As you can see from the pic, he is beginning support himself sitting up. He isn't very good, topples over pretty quickly, but it's a start.

Tom didn't quite manage his afternoon nap. He fell asleep in the pram, but I bumped into Hannah and Becca, and unfortunately Becca woke him up, he didn't manage to get off again. By 5.30 he was fractious, so I spent 25 minutes singing nursery rhymes to him, trying to keep him happy. I took him through bath and bed, but he fell asleep during his bottle - not a suprise, he only managed two thirds.

At 7.30pm he awoke, so I gave him the rest of his milk. At 8.30 he woke again - not sure why, I gave him his dummy and he went straight back to sleep again. Guess what, at 9.30 he woke again, this time he couldn't be placated. The only way I could get him back to sleep again was by feeding him - I know I shouldn't, but it works so well. I'm certainly not liking this waking every hour in the evening! I wonder if he knows that Matt isn't here, and is playing up because of it?

Shouting Tom

Tom was pretty well behaved last night. He woke at 11pm - Matt settled him down again, and then at 3.30 for feeding. He then woke up screaming at 7am on the dot.

He had a longer than normal morning nap - oops is this going to cause trouble tonight. Then off to Asda and the Post Office (Chananja - there's a little something in the post for Raimo - let's hope this parcel reaches you.) After lunch, we took Matt to Wolverhampton railway station - he's off to Glasgow for his interpreting job.

Came back and had a play, it was pretty hard work - Tom wasn't in the best of moods and spent most of the afternoon shouting. He calmed down for 10 minutes when I put him in his bouncer, but mainly he was shouting, so much so I got a headache!

He had his bath and feed. Funny thing I noticed today - he holds the bottle as he feeds. When it is empty enough he can take the weight of it - very cute. Unfortunately he fell asleep half way through his bottle (not surprising he had gone 3 hours without napping which is a long time for him). When I say fell asleep, I mean he was in a complete coma - he didn't wake as I sat him up, inspected his nappy and winded him! I went downstairs and managed to marzipan one cake before he woke up. He finished his bottle and had a bit more and went back to sleep again. I marzipaned another cake and managed most of my dinner before he woke up again - this time he was screaming. I've never seen him like it before. He was in his cot, eyes tightly shut and screaming with all his might. Quite concerning really. I cuddled him and he nodded off again on me almost immediately. I put him back in his cot. I wonder what the rest of the night will bring, he's definitely not himself.

Sinking isn't fun, but swimming was ok

Last night Tom woke up twice for feeding, I put that down to him missing a feed during the day. I didn't hear from him after 2.30, so not too bad.

This morning we went to group as usual. I was asked if I wanted to be a peer supporter for Breast Feeding to which I agreed. It involves doing a course and then being available on the phone for Breast Feeding mums needing advice. Don't think anything will happen for a while though.

After lunch, we headed out to Rowton Castle for another swimming lesson. It went better than on Saturday, but he kicked off every time he went under water. The last time he was inconsolable. He also hated going on his back. We are going to Grays hotel again with Sam tomorrow to try again to get him used to it. We will get there.

Came home and played for the rest of the afternoon. Tom had some dinner - carrot and pear which he seemed to like. He definitely prefers fruit to veg. I did his bath and bed routine as Matt was out translating at various posh shops in the Cotswolds for a client. He's off to Glasgow tomorrow for two nights and won't be back until late on Thursday, so it is just me and him this week. I'm going to try to get some icing done for the cakes whilst he's away - we will see how much time I get and if I manage to get my head round what I need to do...

Why won't he roll for me?

Another good night - yahoo. Tom didn't wake until 4.30am, had a feed and was back asleep again within 30 mins. He woke up at 7am full of beans, playing with his feet and full of smiles and giggles, so obviously he had forgotten the trauma of swimming yesterday. We had a good play on the bed.

Today we went into Birmingham for the JET pre-departure party which was being held at a Chinese / Japanese bbq / buffet type place. Tom initially wasn't best behaved, he was very noisy, not screaming but talking very loudly and he completely refused to feed - very unlike him, no amount of persuading him would work - I took him out and found a quiet place for him, but once again he wouldn't feed, so I gave up. I guess there was just too much stimulation for him. I, on the other had took advantage of the generous portions and ate for England - I have an enormous appetite at the moment - something to do with having to feed a large baby - I have to work hard to keep his figure up! I haven't been full since I gave birth - I think I could quite easily eat 24/7 and never fill up - the sweeter the food the better!

In the end he fell asleep and fed once he woke up. In fact he was a really cheery chap when he woke up. He spent quite a bit of time with Matt and the new JETs charming them all. I was impressed, I would have been very scared of a baby at their age!

Came home. I put Tom on the jigsaw mat in the lounge, whilst I went in the kitchen to prepare his bottle. Came back into the lounge to find that Tom was on his front - the little bugger rolled again without me seeing! Next time I went in, he had just rolled back onto his back with Matt as his audience. Hummm. He then rolled from his front on to his back again with me watching which was good.

After his bath, he rolled from his back onto his front again - but I was in the shower! It's almost as if he doesn't want me to see him. That's four times he's rolled from his back to his front and four times I've missed it! By the law of averages I have to see him do it soon.

Sink or swim?

Being Saturday, we headed off to Shrewsbury for Water Babies (following lunch at Wetherspoons round the corner). It would be fair to say that the swimming lesson was a disaster. Tom started screaming his lungs out about five minutes into the lesson, straight after his first foray under the water, and just would not stop. In the end, Nik had to come and retrieve him before the end of the lesson. What made it worse was that the other 4 babies were all extremely well-behaved and did all the exercises like good little children. Tom may have been grumpy anyway, as 2.00 is generally nap time. Not sure what we can do about this, as it's quite hard to force him to go to sleep when we're out and about. We'll see how it pans out at the next lesson on Monday.

Before all this occurred, all was pretty hunky dory as Tom had a good night's sleep, only waking up once. I didn't fair quite so well as Nik sat bolt upright in bed at around midnight, switched the light on and insisted that we'd forgotten to give Tom something by syringe before we put him to bed. All very strange and confusing, and it woke me right up. In the end I had to go down to the spare room and play iPod games before I could drop off again. Hmmm.

We did manage one bit of progress today, though. Tom managed a very smooth, stylish roll from his back onto his back. Very encouraging, but why did he have to do it just when I was trying to put a nappy on him after his bath? Good to see he has a sense of humour.

Tom is 5 months old!

Can you believe that Tom is now 5 months old! Where has the time gone?

We had another good night. Tom didn't wake up until 4.30 - so had a good sleep. Of course woke up feeling tired, not used to such a long sleep! Anyway it seems as if he has got over his sleeping blip - fingers crossed! Although I'm not taking anything fore granted anymore.

Went to Breast Feeding Group, was very loud today, all the babies were wanting to be heard! We ended up leaving early, Tom was tired, but refusing to go to sleep because so much was going on, so we left early. Within about 30 seconds of being in the car he was asleep!

Got home, had lunch, then when Tom got up he had his lunch - parsnip and pears today. Next we went to the Library - I've been waiting 4 weeks for a book on Baby Led Weaning to come my way - the library promised me they would contact me when it arrived, but as I don't trust them I thought I would go and ask today (a case of 4th time lucky) it was there! So now I can read up on that and see what it is all about.

Spent most of the afternoon playing with Tom, he is so interactive now, he is fun to play with. Today he managed to sit up on his own for about 20 seconds before wobbling and tumbling into my arms. He really does change from day to day. I remember when Jacob was a baby, Lou telling me that he changed every day and that that was one of the factors for her not going immediately back to work - she wanted to see him change, not pay for someone to see him change. I thought she was being overly sentimental at the time, but now I see exactly what she means! She has turned out to be right about a number of things regarding me and babies - hummmmmm!

Carrots for Tom and Strawberries for us

It was a strange old night last night. Tom woke up crying at 11.30pm. Took me ages to get him settled. He was sick and then he fed, but then he had trouble falling asleep again - took me at least 4 visits before he finally got himself sorted.

I then woke up at 6.45am! I think that is one of the longest sleeps I've had. Of course my first thought was why hasn't Tom woken up, is he ok etc etc, but he started cooing to himself around 6.50 so I could lie in bed reassured he was alright. He got a nice big kiss when I went into his room.

Went to the under ones club at Oakengates. Some of Tom's

friends have now left as at 6 months babies move up to the 'big room'. Won't be long before we join them. Tom did his new trick infront of a couple of mums - rolling from his front onto his back - he got a large round of applause.

Came home, had lunch, and once Tom woke up he had lunch - carrot this time, just a taster to get him used to new tastes, textures etc. We then went to see Carol at General - she was distracted, with good reason, lots of politics going on at the office. She has requested that we come back in a week's time, when Derek is on holiday so we can have a good catch up.

Oh - forgot to mention, picked a huge amount of strawberries from the veggie patch today. I think the weeds have helped protect the fruit from birds / insects, as this is the biggest haul we have ever had. Can't wait for dessert tonight!

Good Tom

Tom was ever such a good boy last night. He woke at 11pm, but got himself back off to sleep, he then woke at 1am for feeding. After I put him down, he had a little grizzle, but managed to get himself back off to sleep and that was it until 6.50am - how good is that? Of course, I didn't fair as well, I just could not get to sleep after his feed, took over an hour - was worrying about 1st August - typical!!!!!

We had a busy day today, first of all to baby clinic - Tom has only put on an ounce, but I'm not worried, nor was the HV - different one this time. She said he looks very healthy so why worry? Indeed, I agree.

Next we were on the way to St John's Church for Aerobics (me) and Creche (Tom). He got a good school report again, whilst I ended up with a red face and stiff arms and legs!

Came home for lunch, then rushed out again to the butcher's for some pork chops (Matt's favourite - we haven't had any for a while). 3.30 saw me at the Dentist whilst Matt looked after Tom. Tom is now registered at the Dentist (NHS for him lucky thing) and I've been told to bring him with me next time, so he can start getting used to the environment.

Came home to find the boys watching 'In the Night Garden' on HD. Well one was watching it, whilst the other was more interested in playing with his socks - guess which one was which?! It wasn't long before Tom was needing a nap, so down he went, but I made sure he didn't have too long - I really want a repeat of last night.

It was intention!

Last night was slightly better. We turned Tom's night light off to see if that would make a difference. He didn't wake up between 10pm and 11pm which was good. In fact he kept going until 1.30. I fed him, got back to bed at 1.50, but was woken again at 3.20. Once again his eyes were wide open and he was full of beans. I fed him again, I know I shouldn't but it was 3am and I was in desperate need of sleep. The feeding sent him off again pretty quickly. He did wake again at 6.15, but he got himself back off to sleep without any help from me - phew. At 7.20 I woke him up for the day. He wasn't hungry at all which proves I guess that I shouldn't have fed him at 3.20.

We had a busy day today. 10.30 saw us in the swimming pool with Kathy and Sam. I have been wanting to take Tom swimming mid week to get him used to being in a pool, so he can enjoy his lessons more. However, as he is a bit of a cry baby in the pool, I didn't really have the confidence to take him on my own to a public pool - other people in the pool would think I was torturing him! Sam is in the class ahead of Tom and Kathy was keen to take him for extra practise as well. She goes to waterbabies in Telford, in a private swimming pool in a hotel, so we went there. It's a bit pricey, but we had the pool to ourselves which I think was important - nothing to distract him. I went through the movements I've learnt with Tom, he was a bit better but still a little grizzly. I then spent some time holding him as if he was having a bath and encouraging him to splash. At this he really relaxed, and started to enjoy it. In fact at one stage he was floating on his back with his legs in the air and crossed - looking very relaxed. He went under water 3 times, each time he cried, but each time he cried less, until the last time he just grizzled for about 30 seconds. I'm hoping this progress will make Saturday's lesson a little easier for him.

We came home for lunch, during which time Tom rolled from his front onto his back twice, so Sunday wasn't an accident, it was intention. This of course means that he now doesn't have to spend much time on his front (which he hates) clever boy! Glad he has learnt to roll from his hated position to his favourite position rather than vice versa - that can cause quite a bit of grief - I know from talking to other mums!

The afternoon saw us going to the Cordingley Hall to pay and finalise the 1st August and then on to Kamila's. She is looking very pregnant now - has 7 weeks to go and is in the middle of NCT and Parentcraft lessons. All very exciting! She is in denial, just as I was.

Came home to find the lounge in turmoil - the Freesat box had arrived, so all the cables had been switched around to fit it. Matt is very proud of his new purchases. Must say the HD picture looks very good.

Tom spent the rest of the afternoon making lots of different noises and generally going mad on the jigsaw mat. Lets hope he needs a good rest to replenish his energy!

Sleep Sapping Monster

Today hasn't been great - I woke up in a bad mood. Think I'm irritable through lack of sleep, unfortunately Tom has picked up on it and been grizzly today as well - what a pair!

As you can guess last night wasn't great, he woke up at 12.30 and 4am. I fed him at 12.30, but at 4am he just wanted to play and refused to settle, it took a good hour to get him down again - I had to resort to feeding him to get him down. I don't think he wasn't particularly hungry or he would have cried, but the comfort seemed to relax him enough to get him to sleep again. Unfortunately it was after 5am until I got into my bed again. Tom was then awake at 6! Those of you thinking why I don't give him solids to help him sleep through - well I did yesterday - he had quite a bit of banana - it doesn't seem to have had any effect at all.

Anyway, morning went ok, Tom, however, wasn't happy to go for his nap this morning - took a good 15 mins to get him to sleep - normally I can put him in his cot, leave him and he falls asleep himself. 10am saw us out the house on the way to the central library for bounce and rhyme. It was a really good session, the presenters had lots of energy - was much better than the Newport one I went to a couple of months ago. Rose and Abi were there, so had a good natter. Abi has also been playing up with regards to sleep.

Got home for lunch, then had an afternoon in. As I said, Tom was grizzly for most the afternoon. Again, he refused to go for his naps, crying and crying before finally falling asleep. I really don't know what is making him so unhappy / unable to get to sleep - he never had this problem before. I would nip it in the bud, if I knew how, but I am clueless at the moment...

Oh - almost forgot to mention, two 'interesting' things were delivered today - first, Tom's passport - very nice - they have redesigned it so all the pages have different birds on them. He will have that passport until he is 5 - I have a feeling he may change a bit between now and then. The other delivery was a new television. Whilst on holiday in Yorkshire we stayed in a cottage that had Sky. On Sky was NHK (Japanese Television channel which made Matt very happy). On our return home, Matt discovered that you can get NHK through Freesat, which is much cheaper than sky, so he ordered FreeSat. With FreeSat comes all the HD channels and our current TV isn't HD, so it only followed that we would need a new TV. The TV seems to have come before the FreeSat! Anyway our lounge is looking bigger and the TV stand isn't groaning under a huge weight anymore. It looks very nice.

So, it is now 6.15 and Tom is having his bath. An hour ago he did a MONSTER poo - it was enormous, as I picked him up, it poured out of his nappy through his clothes and onto the changing mat. It took a moutain of wipes to get him clean and the washing machine is now on boil wash - typical that he was wearing his nice dungarees and lovely vest. Anyway, he perked up immediately afterwards and became a nice happy baby again, so he wasn't catching a bad mood from me, it was his tummy giving him trouble.

A Roll - accident or intention?

An OK night. Tom woke at 12.30 for feeding, then at 4.30 (just needed settling), same again at 6.30 until I gave up and got him up at 6.50. Had a lazy morning, mainly because we couldn't decide what to do - especially as the weather was looking so unsettled.

During this time I put Tom on his front, which he is dealing with better and better. As we were watching him, he rolled from his front on to his back!!!! We aren't sure if he meant to do this - but he got a good round of applause for it. He refused, however, to do it again and started to cry as I put him back on his front.

11am saw us in Asda to pick up some dinner, some more jigsaw mat pieces for Tom and 3 bottles of ribena (they are selling 1 litre bottles of the sugar free concentrate for £1 which is almost a £2 saving - if anyone is interested - I'm a ribena addict) When we got back, Tom was asleep, so we put him in his cot and allowed him his nap before heading to Sam's Cafe for bacon sandwiches. (We were going to try out The Wheel -but a look at their menu showed that they only do large meals on a Sunday which we weren't looking for)

The afternoon was spent watching Wimbledon, starting off a new home brew (cider - yummy!), mowing & edging the lawn and general lazing around.

Swimming again

So, it didn't work, a sleeping baby doesn't make a sleepy baby. Although it was wonderful to get stuff done yesterday during Tom's monster naps, he decided that he didn't need to sleep between 12am and 4am, so I had a very broken night's sleep. I guess in future, I won't allow him to sleep for so long during the day.

We both had a lie in this morning, we had a Skype chat booked with Grannie and Grampa London for 9am which is normally his nap time, but by letting him lie in for an hour, we managed to have him awake, although he refused to smile!

We decided to go into Shrewsbury early for a spot of shopping, bit of a nightmare as money seemed to flow through our fingers - with both of us finding reason to buy bits and bobs.

After lunch at the Hole in the Wall, we headed towards The Quarry swimming pool for Tom's 4th swimming lesson. He did do better this time, although he did cry for quite a bit of it. He did manage to do all the moves and went under water three times - he came up crying each time, but at least he completed it. Maybe next time he'll be even better. Sophie - the baby who had hysterics the first couple of times actually enjoyed herself this time. Tom was the only one to cry. Oh hum - I'm sure we will get there in the end.

Returned home and then spent the evening having a bbq with the extended Gouge family out front. A very pleasant evening was had by all as always. Tom has already woken up once this evening, Matt has managed to get him back off, he was arching his back quite a bit. Could this be reaction to dairy again? Do I need to stop again? Dilemma dilemma...

Monster Nap Day

Last night Tom was up twice for feeding - 12.20am and 3.20am. I think the heat made him extra thirsty, his room was very hot after all. He did wake at 10.30pm, but he got himself off to sleep again - we could hear him sucking his fist and it seemed to work. Looking back at the photos of him in Devon, his cheeks were definitely very red, so I think the extra waking last month was due to teething, and for now the pain has gone away and he can get himself back off to sleep again. Another lesson learnt!

Today was a day of monster naps. This morning he went for a nap at 8.30 and didn't wake until 10.30 and then back to sleep at 12.45 not waking until 2.15! He has never slept for so long before, but it means that we now have a clean and tidy lounge and kitchen - they have both been vacuumed as well. I have never been able to get so much done during the day, although I'm now worried that he won't sleep tonight...

Went to breast feeding support group at 11, there were quite a few newborns - including one who was 2 weeks old and only 6lb - he looked soooooo small, and Tom looked soooooooo BIG! Kathy and Sam have said that they will go swimming with us mid week for extra support, so that might help us out and get Tom to the stage where he is more confident in the water.

Oh - have forgotten to mention that Tom now has full head control - I don't have to hold it up at all (unless he is asleep) and he chooses more and more to hold it up with no support. Today, he was very good at group and was on his front without crying for a good 5 minutes - it helped that he was watching another baby, Ben, in fact they were having a staring competition, very cute.

Also I am back eating dairy - yahoooooooo! I have had pasta carbonara and two cheese sandwiches this week. Tom hasn't reacted in his gaging, thrashing, arching manic manner, so I'm assuming his digestive enzymes have sorted themselves out and he is now able to cope with it. Although I desperately want to, I won't go overboard on the dairy and will gradually increase levels of it into my diet. Can't wait for blue cheese again...

He still hasn't managed a roll, but he is soooooo close!

Tom the Tigger

Yes it's hot hot hot again today. Tom started the day in clothes, but ended up in just his nappy.

We had a good start, Tom woke up at 2.10am for feeding and that was it. So can't complain and long may it continue.

He had a longer than usual morning nap, he went down at 8.30 and was still asleep at 10am, when I had the dilemma, do i leave him to sleep, or should I wake him up. As you can see from the pic on the left, he moves in his sleep, I certainly didn't put him down like that!

Once he was up, we went to Asda to get some bits for dinner, and then went round Michelle and Seren's for a catch up - our NCT group haven't met up for ages, I do feel quite lonely when I don't see them for a while, they really are a backbone when it comes to advice, reassurance and friendship.

Oh - forgot to say, in my haste to leave the house I managed to fall down the stairs so am nursing a stiff leg! Don't worry, I wasn't with Tom at the time (thankfully) and didn't suffer any major injury - might get a good bruise.

At Michelle's Tom tried really hard to roll onto his front, he was so close, but not quite there yet. Seren has just managed this new trick, I'm sure Tom won't be too far behind.

Came back to a hot hot hot house, Tom's 'cooler' room is a hefty 26 degrees, so I think he will be sleeping in his nappy tonight. Tom had a splash in his paddling pool on our return and a bounce, but mainly he grizzled, he was too hot, and who can blame him for grizzling?

Took ages to get Tom to sleep - he was too hot. We ended up going into the loft to get a fan to try to help him get off - he did in the end but it took a good hour which is unusual for him.

We had dinner in the garden and then I spent the evening picking gooseberries and strawberries.

Hot Hot Hot!

Today is ridiculously hot and muggy, all of us have been suffering!

It started off well, Tom did wake around 10.45pm, but he managed to settle himself back to sleep which was fab. He then woke at 1.30 for feeding and that was it - until around 7.20 when I got him up for breakfast.

We had quite a busy day today, this morning was aerobics in Muxton, so Tom went to creche for 50p - absolute bargain if you ask me. He got a good school report - I was told that he is a really placid baby - easy to please - bless him!

Came home for lunch (me) and snooze (him), then off to baby clinic for weighing - he is now 17lb 11oz which means he has put on over a pound in two weeks - so I'm certainly not starving him by not weaning him. Oh I gave him some more banana today for him to suck on - once again he took very little - was more an exercise for him to get used to something else in his mouth.

We also popped into the library - Tom got a certificate as he has been so many times. Walked back home, by the time I got back, I looked like I had been to the gym again - I was red hot and sweating, as was Tom. Tom went for another sleep and when he woke up, I treated him to some time in his paddling pool, which I think he enjoyed.

He is now in bed asleep, I can't wait to join him. I have a feeling he may wake more times tonight thirsty, and who can blame him?