Things I am grateful for #6

So ….. sorry it’s been a while but things have been pretty busy with us. There has been even more birthdays, hen dos and outings, amongst other things. More significantly we have come to a conclusion on the allergies front. As you may have read on this blog before, we have been investigating whether Arlo has an allergy that could be the cause of his discomfort/ reflux/ general tummy troubles!! We have been to see a paediatrician and it seems Arlo has got a moderate milk allergy. It’s useful to know what we can avoid to make him feel better but he is currently going through a epic teething patch so it’s hard to see the improvement!! But this post it supposed to be about being grateful so let’s get back to that…

6 things I am grateful for in the past month…

1. Living out some childhood classics with Arlo such as feeding the ducks! It’s so fun to do proper mummy things with Arlo like going to the duck pond. Its the kind of thing I loved doing as a kid. There are so many other classics such as going to the park, getting excited when you hear the ice-cream van coming into your street and rushing out to buy one, camping in the garden, playing barefoot outside, making mud pies…. I could go on forever. I can’t wait to see Arlo experience all these and more. A lot of the best ones are outdoors too, mother nature has a lot to offer! They are all simple things but they make childhood rather magical….

2. Enjoying some me time. This month I have been rather self indulgent at times and have enjoyed some personal treats. I’ve tried to find time to do my hair and nails, have long baths and I have even been on a road trips and been on nights out in different cities. I think its important to recharge your batteries and do something for you. Happy relaxed mummies are more likely to have happy relaxed babies after all. Although it definitely is not all self indulging and relaxing as the teething & sleepless nights are driving me mad at the moment. That is 7 teeth now! Yes 7 in the space of ten weeks… its mad as it seems he is getting them all at once ….but we weren’t talking about negative things remember!! I suppose I should be grateful we are getting it out the way….

3. FINALLY getting a diagnosis for Arlo. Like I said before- Arlo’s allergy to cows milk has been confirmed. Well sort of… it is so hard to diagnose this kind of allergy! All I know is when we tested him with dairy he became super grumpy and poopy and refluxy and really itchy so I’m in no hurry to give it to him again any time soon. It’s a relief to know what has been bothering him but it’s just a shame it took 7 months to get there! Good news is he will probably grow out of it which is positive. For now I just want him to comfortable.

4. A really (surprisingly) fun hen weekend! At the start of the month I went along to my close friend’s hen weekend for 2 days & nights. It was the first proper time away from the baby overnight. I was so nervous and thought I would be miserable the whole weekend but it was actually a right laugh and it was good to let my hair down!

5. A super daddy! Antony gave me no reason to worry while I was away and he and Arlo got on just fine without me. Even without the boobs! He sent me this picture of the two boys (baby & cat) napping together while I was away – very cute.

6. Mummy friends! It sounds lame but that’s what they are; other mums I have made friends with since having Arlo. It’s good as we have a bit of a moan & get things off our chest that our other friends without kids would get bored of hearing! We also have a laugh and it means Arlo has developed his own group of friends.

Once again lots to be grateful for. I will try and not leave it so long next time. Thanks for reading!

 

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We made it!

I can’t believe it but he’s 6 months old this week! Where has half a year gone? It seems it has gone in a flash but at the same time I feel like I’ve known him forever. It’s been a bit of a roller coaster and a massive learning curve but also the most amazing adventure of my life. I have had down days when it has been so hard I’ve sobbed ( I mean proper crying, like a child) and there have been days where I have thought I might combust with happiness. I’m not often proud of myself but during the past 6 months… actually during the past 15 months (including preganancy) I have indulged in a little self respect and pride. I have been amazed at what the human body can achieve and how much we can endure. Here is a list of reasons why I am proud and why other mothers should be too:

1. I grew a human! And it was really difficult at times. Nausea, exhaustion, pain. Pregnancy throws a lot of challenges at you but we overcome them knowing that our babies are growing happily inside. In the third trimester I also suffered from symphysis pubis dysfunction (SPD), swelling and high blood pressure but everything was always forgotten when I felt him wriggle and kick.

2. I went through labour and surgery. I surprised myself during labour. I handled the pain better than I expected. Although it was tough…really tough…. the strongest thing I felt was excitement. I was finally going to meet my baby! I was doing OK and managing the pain with gas and air but was really disappointed that everything came to a standstill at 9cm dilated and my (rather large) baby was back to back. By this point it was going so slow I needed some extra pain relief and I went on a drip to help me fully dilate but after another wait there was no progress. When I was told I needed a caesarian I felt like I’d failed. All that hard work, so close to the finish line and I couldn’t quite make it… not on my own anyway. I’ve got nothing against having a c-section. I think whatever is the safest way for mother and baby is best but going all the way is something I really wanted to achieve and after all that contracting I felt it was my right as a woman to birth my child. It wasn’t to be. Turns out having a spinal block when your contracting is pretty tough ‘keep still’ they said ‘lean forward’ they said. I can’t! I’m in pain and have a massive bump in the way!! Recovering from surgery with a newborn is pretty tricky too. So I just want to say ‘well done body, you tried and we got our baby here in the end!’

3. I’ve fed my child myself. Breastfeeding is exhausting, its frustrating and its awkward but somehow, amazingly I’ve managed to do it for 6 months. I know not everyone is able to breastfeed so I am truly grateful that I can. I wouldn’t have managed without the support of midwives and my husband but mostly I was just really determined. Arlo’s tongue tie resulting in poor latch, oversupply, fast letdown, too much fore-milk, reflux/allergy- whatever breastfeeding threw at us we did what we could to overcome it. There have been a lot of tears but we have really tried. It turns out that Arlo’s reflux could possibly be an allergy (most likely to cows protein). It explains a lot. It explains why feeding has been even more of a challenge than it should have been for us both but we have made it this far and I hope some goodness has got into him even if it has upset his system too! I want to continue for as long as I can before returning to work and I am in the process of cutting foods out of my diet in order to find the allergen. I had already tried eliminating things but chose lactose free products or soya which apparently are not good enough so sticking to oat/ rice/ oil based products instead. I hope I can find out whats causing the problem. I really want my baby to be comfortable and I’m not ready to give up breastfeeding just yet, although even if I did there’s the issue of him not taking bottles- read my ‘Battle of the bottle’ post, but we will cross that bridge when we come to it!

4. I am alive! My baby is alive and we are happy :). I am ssoooooooo tired but I have survived 6 months of motherhood and although there have been a few issues with feeding/ sleep/ illness along the way for the most part Arlo is happy and thriving. Don’t get me wrong there are times when you miss the freedom and  feel like you are going crazy but I wouldn’t change it for the world. Becoming a mother is all I’ve ever wanted. This is just the beginning, there is so much more to come. I can’t wait for all the next milestones and all the exciting things we will be able to do as a family. It’s going to be so fun!

If you are a mother or a father there is a lot you should be proud of too. You are raising a little person and that it amazing. Go you!

Linking up with #HappyDays Linky and #TheList

Things I am grateful for #4

It’s been a very busy fortnight (well ok ok it’s been longer than a fortnight but like I said we’ve been busy) and I’ve not had much time for blogging. If your new to reading this then let me explain. Very fortnight I like to reflect on all the wonderful things going on in our life and why I am grateful for them. You can read about my last ‘gratefulness’ post here.

So this fortnight/ month I am grateful for:

1. Making it to 6 months! Read more about our journey during the past 6 months. We had pretend cake, sang to him and he even recieved a pressie and card from one of our best mates!

2. Arlo’s development has come on a lot in the last 2 weeks. His hand eye coordination is improving all the time which means he is beginning to enjoy finger foods. He is also interacting with toys and people more and just generally seems more alert and aware of the world around him.

3. In relation to point 2 above. He can roll over! He’s only done it a few times but can go from his back to his front and vice versa. He’s also getting so close to sitting up independently. His brain has been very busy at the moment!

4. Another mini holiday! We enjoyed a long weekend in Clacton-on-sea with some friends. We had fun swimming, going to the arcades, bowling, playing in the park and chasing bubbles!

5. Being a big kid. Now we have a child of our own its a good excuse to visit the park and have some fun. You’re never too old for the swings or a climbing frame!

6. Easter! Another long weekend as a family 🙂 yay! Although it’s bad timing as I am not eating dairy currently. As I mentioned in my last post, Arlo has a suspected allergy and we are working out which allergen my be sneaking into my breastmilk. Apparently cows protein is the most common culprit so I have started by cutting that out. However, my lovely husband surprised me with lots of dairy free products including a dairy free chocolate egg so that I wouldn’t feel left out <3.

Hope you’ve got lots to be grateful for and I hope you had a HAPPY EASTER! Have some chocolate for me.

Linking up with Ojo’s World #r2bc & Mummy From The Heart