Family Photo - February 2012

I made a new years resolution... To take at least one family photo a month. February = massive FAIL.
Realising that I have not yet taken a family photo this month, last night I played around with my new iPhone and the thingy where you can flip the photo thing and see what you are actually taking a photo of! All cameras should have this! That would be the stop of the arm out stretched photos that everyone takes! I have always been too shy and embarrassed to ask someone to take my/our photo so we have quite a lot like this!

Do you ask people random strangers to take your photo?

I love this shot!

Abs had her 6 month shots late yesterday. I have never coped well with them... And as she gets older I get worse! There we were sitting in the Dr's surgery and in walked my husband! He is worse than me with needles, but he was there to support us! He was with Abs and the Dr while she had the shots and then after he gives her a cuddle he hands her to me.
She sobbed and sobbed and it was horrible. I am so glad we now have a whole 6 months till the next ones. But! Cheeky mite then gave everyone a huge smile and laugh as soon as we walked back into the hall and the waiting room. She slept really well last night too!!!

Abigail's 6 month stats:
Weight - 7.40 kg (Growing well! she was 2.8 at birth)
Height - 69 cm's (How does a girl with shorty parents have a height for age in the 95% percentile!)
Head circumference - 43.5 (10.5 cm's more than at birth)

January 2012 - Family Photo

another one on the way!

Via HERE

Yes! There is going to be a new addition to our family!!!

No! Not me! 

My sister is pregnant and expecting her first child in early September!

We are all very excited! Abi just wants to know where this cousin that we keep walking about is...

I have been having to keep this a secret for so long now... But finally we can talk about it!

I'm going to be an aunty! And I'm super excited about it. I love that Abi and the newie will be only a year apart in age too! I hope they grow up to be great friends.

Happy Friday EVERYONE!

I'm looking forward to a fun sunny weekend!
How about you???
And just because she's so damn cute (yes, even if I do say so myself!) here is Abi last night when her daddy way trying to feed her carrot...

No Daddy! I don't like carrot! (In fact I don't like solids at all!)

Enjoy your weekend and the sunshine!

Dear Abigail (SIX Months Old!)

Dear Abigail,

Today you are six months old! That's half a year! Only another six months till you are one! It was a whole six months ago that you were born!
Another amazing month it has been. You are oh so talkative now and have some great expressions too! We know when you are happy and we know when you are sad.
Only a few days ago you finally rolled over!!! It's been a long time coming and you still will need quite a bit of practice till you have actually mastered the art, but just being able to get over from one side to the other has made you happier.
Feet! You have also discovered your feet! At every opportunity your feet are in your hands. And as soon as your nappy comes off the feet all of a sudden ended up in your mouth! (You don't seem to be able to get them up and over with clothes on yet!)
You smile at EVERY BODY! Absolutely every single person on this earth! You are such a happy baby and its a shock when you get sad or upset.

Now dear Miss... What's this food business??? You are not at all interested in food. Nothing! We have tried so many different things, just trying to find one thing that you just might eat and not spit back out, or blow raspberries with... And that's yet another tick you have mastered... Raspberries! And your quite pleased with yourself and the total mess you make of your clothes!

Sleeping is getting better. Day sleeps are now down to two a day, but normally two very good sleeps (Yay for no more 40 minute napping!) At nights you go down normally with a minimum of fuss, but why are we still doing two nightly feeds most nights. Gah! Mummy needs some real proper sleep!)

We are absolutely adoring spending every single moment with you. You make us smile and laugh all the time. We love to cuddle with you and have little chats.

You are by far more popular with you nan and pop than mummy is! If I was allowed to send you alone on a plane they wouldn't send you back!

Keep growing and continue to become more beautiful every day.
I love you to the moon and back.

Your Mummy.


Dear Abigail (ONE month)
Dear Abigail (TWO months)
Dear Abigail (THREE months)
Dear Abigail (FOUR months)
Dear Abigail (FIVE months)

what have I done???

Oh my...

Look at this will you...

I've crazy changed by BIG mistake the langauge on my blog!

No idea what's going on. No idea how to change it.

And on such an important day for what was going to be such an important post :-(

Abigail is 6 months old today.

And until this is sorted I can't write her Dear Abigail post.

Somehow I have managed to get this out though...

It's time to say goodbye

Today Abigail and I are heading home to Sydney and home to husband and daddy.
We are so lucky that he doesn't mind us spending a bit of time in Melbourne while he works.

Abigail has finally started to roll!! And in the same day she also has started to suck on her toes!

Mmm! Tasty!

After much discussions with mum we finally agreed on a high chair to keep at mum and dad's house. Here is our new one! $47 on sale at Target. By Childcare and very similar to the Ikea one.
If you think that highchair could be for you then head to Target ASAP! The sale finishes today!

She actually loves it! Although this photo doesn't show it!

And finally to end our trip we did as we are told to do on Shrove (PANCAKE) Tuesday! and made pancakes! (Well Pikelets actually!)

YUM!

So back off home today and back to reality. Need to start thinking about work (me going back - Boo) And so so much more...

when mummy isn't looking

This is what my nana and pop do with me...

I munch on figs!

Feed me pizza

I drive the tractor

Dress me up in silly bows and tea towels

Give me cream off the pavlova mummy made

Feed me strawberries - I liked it before mummy looked at me!

"Help" with the cooking

And so much more! I love hanging out at my nana and pops house!

twins!

It doesn't happen very often...
And we were lucky enough to be around to see brand new babies!!!
And even some twins!

True LOVE

Today my parents celebrate 32 years of marriage.
I hope my husband and I have as great and as long a marriage as them.

Me playing around with new iPhone and instagram! (Photo from my wedding in April 2010)

Because we can!

We are heading back off to Melbourne for a week tomorrow!!! I'm missing my family. They are missing us. It's only been three weeks and Abi has changed so much... My mum pretty much begged us to come... I didn't need my arm to be twisted! So we are leaving the rain! Yippiee! Leaving my husband to work. Boo. And heading off for yet more time up in the air! My little one needs a frequent flyer account of her own! The way she's going she would be entitled to a round the world trip by her 5th birthday!!! So... Not that my posting has been all that frequent lately... But it's possibly going to be a little less frequent again for the next week. xxx

slowly does it

So Abigail's room still isn't done.... I AM A BAD MOTHER.
But! I'm getting closer!
When Abi was born we were given two prints that were a little different, a little quirky and super cute!
Finally I sent them off to the framers and we picked them up over the weekend.

And then because it started to rain instead of staining our deck (story of our lives) Erin hung the prints in Abi's room!

And yes... That is the TV that' supposed to be in our room STILL on the dresser... BAD FATHER!

And then! Because he was on a roll.... He FINALLY hung my painting in our living area above the lounge!

I love Sundays when we have no plans. I love pottering around at home and getting things done.

What did you get up to this weekend?

Sales and Stuff

Today I went to the Infancy sale in Balmain.
I walked up and met a girlfriend who took the morning off work! (It's that good she said!)
Here's my haul:

All up it was $61.... The dress was the most expensive at a 50% off reduced price of $23 ! The other bits and bob's ranged from $5 - $12 !!!
The little skirt was only $10 and Abi already has the pilchers the same and also the top that matches!

There has been a bit of talk lately about 4D scans... We had them done.
I'm glad I did, but wont worry for no. 2 (If there is a no. 2!)
We were advised to get the best shots you should get them done between 20-25 weeks. We had ours done at 22.4 weeks
Here's what our little bubba looked like back then:

It's been a little bit of an expensive week here... Because we have wooden floors and Abi is spending so much more time of the floor lately I thought the best thing was to get some type of matting.
I didn't want to spend a fortune, but I wanted something good and that would last.
I went to Clark Rubber, but I thought that their matting was a bit hard? And the squares were $10 each... To have them for a short time before Abi starts rolling around then crawling.... Nope... Not for me...
Then I went to Mothercare... They still didn't really have what I wanted, but I came home with a puzzle rubber mat that cost me $35. The ages for this item said 3+ years. I chose this in the end because at least it can be re-used when she is bigger as an actual puzzle too!

And because I can... Here's Abi after she woke up yesterday afternoon! That smile melts my heart!

Photo a Day Challenge (2-6)

So far I have been sticking to my photo a day challenge!
But like I sad... I'm going to post them every few days instead of every day. I have been taking the photo on the actual day though!

Day ONE posted...

Day TWO - WORDS (Trying to work out what to have for dinner... We didn't have either!)

Day THREE - Hands (My beautiful baby girls hand on mine)

Day 4 - A Stranger (Finally! After a rainy week, Abigail and I went for a walk and people watched!)

Day FIVE - 10am (My mobile phone)

Day SIX - Dinner (Lasagna... YUM! Best one I have made in a while)

Muffin Top

I have been spending quite a bit more time at home lately. I find that Abigail is a much nicer, happier baby if she gets to have some 'proper' sleeps in her own bed.
That being said, I like to have stuff to do while she is sleeping...
I've started trying out new recipes and baking a bit more lately.
Today she slept in till 9am! So it was nice to have a little sleep in myself. I was tired... I stayed up and watched 'The Sound of Music' last night... (and by looking at Facebook this morning I wasn't the only one!)
When Abi went down for a sleep at around 11.30 I decided I would try out a white choc and raspberry muffin recipe that I found in Julie Goodwin's (the first Masterchef) book.
Easy peesy and I had all the ingredients!

They are scrumptious! I have already had 2! The bottoms were moist and the tops nice and crunchy! I love love love the top of a muffin! BUT! Better be careful or I will end up with my own muffin top!

EDITED: To add the recipe! (I'm lazy... I just photographed it!)

The Newborn Revenge

A friend of a friend posted this on Facebook today... 
I have been in stitches of laughter and even had tears running down my face... 


Newborn revenge:

OK, here's my situation. My Mommy has had me for almost 3 months. The first few weeks were great--I cried, she picked me up and fed me, anytime, around the clock. Then something happened. Over the last few weeks, she has been trying to STTN (sleep thru the night). At first, I thought it was just a phase, but it is only getting worse. I've talked to other babies, and it seems like its pretty common after Mommies have had us for around 5-6 months. Here's the thing: these Mommies don't really need to sleep. It's just a habit. Many of them have had some 30 years to sleep--they just don't need it anymore. So I am implementing a plan. I call it the Crybaby Shuffle.

It goes like this:

Night 1--cry every 3 hours until you get fed. I know, it's hard. It's hard to see your Mommy upset over your crying. Just keep reminding yourself, it's for her own good.

Night 2--cry every 2 hours until you get fed.

Night 3--every hour.

Most Mommies will start to respond more quickly after about 3 nights. Some Mommies are more alert, and may resist the change longer. These Mommies may stand in your doorway for hours, shhhh-ing. Don't give in. I cannot stress this enough: CONSISTENCY IS KEY!! If you let her STTN (sleep through the night), just once, she will expect it every night. I KNOW IT'S HARD! But she really does not need the sleep; she is just resisting the change.. If you have an especially alert Mommy, you can stop crying for about 10 minutes, just long enough for her to go back to bed and start to fall asleep. Then cry again. It WILL eventually work. My Mommy once stayed awake for 10 hours straight, so I know she can do it.

The other night, I cried every hour. You just have to decide to stick to it and just go for it. BE CONSISTENT! I cried for any reason I could come up with:

My sleep sack tickled my foot.

I felt a wrinkle under the sheet.

My mobile made a shadow on the wall.

I burped, and it tasted like rice cereal. I hadn't eaten rice cereal since breakfast, what's up with that?

The dog said "ruff". I should know. My Mommy reminds me of this about 20 times a day. LOL.

Once I cried just because I liked how it sounded when it echoed on the monitor in the other room.

Too hot, too cold, just right--doesn't matter! Keep crying!!

I had drooled so much my sheets were damp and I didn’t like it touching me.

I decided I was sick of all the pink in my room so I cried.

It took awhile, but it worked. She fed me at 4am. Tomorrow night, my goal is 3:30am. You need to slowly shorten the interval between feedings in order to reset your Mommies' internal clocks. Sometimes my Mommy will call for reinforcements by sending in Daddy. Don’t worry Daddies are not set up for not needing sleep the way Mommies are. They can only handle a few pats and shhing before they declare defeat and send in the Mommy.

Also, be weary of the sleep sheep with rain noises. I like to give Mommy false hope that listening to the rain puts me to sleep. Sometimes I pretend to close my eyes and be asleep and then wait until I know Mommy is settling back to sleep to spring a surprise cry attack. If she doesn’t get to me fast enough I follow up with my fake cough and gag noise that always has her running to the crib. At some point I am positive she will start to realize that she really doesn’t really need sleep.

P.S. Don't let those rubber things fool you, no matter how long you suck on them, no milk will come out. Trust me.


And for good measure I thought I could add a picture of A that makes me laugh every time! We were still in hospital I think she was only 2 days old... NOT HAPPY JAN!

Is it wrong to have a naked NB photo here???

February Photo a day Challenge

I didn't jump on the January bandwagon, but have decided to do February.
See over here at FMS
Not sure that I will get a chance to post my photos every single day, so I will take them, but probably post them once a week.

Day one. February 1st - Your view today - The rainy hazy view from my bedroom balcony at 9.30am. Can you see Centrepoint Tower?

Have you, did you, are you taking part in a photo a day challenge?

stuck at home

On Monday I was stuck at home waiting for the courier to bring me my new iphone!!!
It didn't arrive... Boo. Some mix up with delivery and I wont get it till today.

It was hot too, so I had no need or want to really go anywhere anyway. But the problem was what were we going to have for dinner? Having been away, then having Australia day etc... I haven't really done much shopping and there isn't much in the house.

I scrounged around and found

A sad looking carrot, zucchini in the same state, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes and some onion

Well... What can I do with that stuff???
I checked out the freezer and found mince and frozen pastry. PIE! bit hot for pie, but hey. I'm not leaving the house...

I Chopped it all up and popped it in a frying pan to cook

Then added good old Gravox and reduced it down to a 'pie' consistency 

I only had puff pastry so I cooked the base first using my cute little heart pastry weights

And then I forgot to take anymore photos! But all I did was pop the meat and vegie mix in the base, pop a top on and cook that off till the top was crunchy and brown!

I felt so good using all the stuff we had in the house. The vegies would have ended up in the garbage that night (Monday night fridge clean out)
I'm so sick of wasting stuff and especially food. So it's my mission to start using up everything and to have minimal waste.

Ever made 'something' from 'nothing' and it turn out great, bad or somewhere in between?