Making allowances for baby, or unrealistic expectations?

During our recent acquaintance with the 9 month sleep regression, we were very careful that when Isabelle was asleep in the evenings, we were nice and quiet to ensure she wasn't woken. We were much more careful than normal, closing the living room door, and generally treading nice and quietly as we moved around the house.


Simon said to me as we climbed in to bed, victorious in her silence, "I never thought we'd be the sort of parents who creep around the house so we don't wake the baby".

In part, I agree with him. We can't change our whole lifestyle just because Isabelle is asleep. We can't sit in silence all night,  not flush the toilet, tell people never to phone or knock the door, and never turn the hall light on. Those things are part of everyday life and, luckily, she has never had an issue sleeping through them as they are simply things that have to be dealt with.

But, then I thought a little more. If Simon were to go to bed early, I would make allowances for him. I would turn the TV down, and move quietly in the bedroom when I went up to bed. I wouldn't turn on a light that would wake him, or talk loudly nearby. So, does Isabelle not deserve the same respect? Why should we expect her to sleep through things we wouldn't? Just because she's a baby and we think she should?

Then, that made me think even more - you can see my mind is a dangerous business! Do we have unrealistic expectations of what a baby should do? So, should we make some allowances for them because our expectations are skewed? For example, I do not go to bed and sleep all night without waking- I never have done. So why would I expect Isabelle to do that? Sometimes during the night I wake up thirsty and need a drink - so why wouldn't Isabelle? There are some days I am grumpy for no real reason...so why do I think Isabelle should be in a good mood unless she's hungry/tired? Can't she just be in a bad mood for no reason?

Maybe we have unrealistic expectations of our little people. Maybe we expect them to be the perfect baby, but are we the perfect adult? So, maybe we should be making some allowances where our little people are concerned - remembering that they are only human, and although are only little, they deserve all the respect we show to one another as adults.

PS - Izzy's beautiful name sign was made by Handmade by Her - a lovely mummy with bucket loads of talent, and two gorgeous babies to boot!

PPS- don't forget to enter my competition to win a baby carrier! 

Sensory play: simple water tray for babies

As you know, I love doing sensory play activities with Isabelle. I usually look on Pinterest for ideas but have found that lots of the ideas are for children who are older than Isabelle. This means that they probably aren't suitable for Izzy as she doesn't have the skills or understanding to use the materials. Or, as with many, I know the first thing she would do is pop the materials in her mouth which could be a potential disaster. So I am always on the lookout for BABY sensory play ideas, which are safe to eat, and easy for her little hands to manage.

One super simple sensory play idea for babies of any age is a water tray. We take water for granted as adults and probably don't think it's very exciting. But for a baby, it's just another learning experience and as much fun as anything. Isabelle adores bath time, so I knew she'd love a water based activity.

It was so simple - I filled our tray with water, threw in a few of her bath toys, put an apron on her and lay a big towel down - and off she went. Her hands were straight in and splashing about. I used a shallow tray so that she could easily reach all around it from wherever she sat.

This activity is great for teaching babies about, obviously, water. What it does, how it moves, what it feels like, how shiny and reflective it can be and what they can do with it. She enjoyed being able to plunge her hands in, and loved when I poured water out of the scoop for her to "catch". Unfortunately, it was a grumpy kind of day so it was a short lived activity, but one she really enjoyed and I know we will be able to do lots in the future.

To keep the activity interesting, next time I will add in some liquid food colouring to give us coloured water, and I'll also switch up the toys we use. I'll include some bath toys, but also some other household items that she can use for scooping water, and letting the water trickle through. I'll also make sure to add some items which sink, to help her begin to learn about floating/sinking and weight.

Here are some photos of our water session.

Ps! Don't forget to enter my competition to win a baby carrier!

Getting around the 'no snowsuits in car seats' rule

If you haven't seen it already, this article explains why you shouldn't allow your little people to wear snowsuits - or other similarly bulky/padded clothes - in their car seat. The basic idea is that the bulk of these doesn't allow you to tighten the straps of the car seat as tight as you normally would. As these snowsuits are really all air, in a collision, the air is squeezed out and suddenly, your little is rattling around in their car seat, not properly strapped in.

It makes a lot of sense, and since I saw it, I haven't dared put Isabelle in anything bulky like that in her car. That said, it's winter. It's cold. She needs to be warm and, sometimes, normal clothes, a coat and a blanket just don't quite cut it.

I accidentally came up with a great solution to this problem after getting a bit excited in the Next Christmas sale. Although I thought I had ordered a snow suit, when it arrived it was actually just a onesie with a fur hood. It's fleecy and warm, but it's thin and not anywhere near as bulky as a normal snowsuit. It's also MASSIVE on Isabelle. My little mind kicked in to gear, and I thought to myself..."I can use this as a snowsuit substitute over her clothes!"

To me, it is the perfect solution. It's an all in one, and nice and cosy so it keeps Izzy really warm. As it's really big, it fits wonderfully over whatever she is wearing. But, it's thin, so there is no worry of it acting in the same way as a snowsuit if I were to be in an accident.

So, instead of taking a chance and using a snowsuit, or piling blankets on your little and having to put the snow suit on when you arrive at your destination, simply buy a fleecy onesie in the next size up. I've already converted the mummies at my baby sensory class to my way of thinking, and hopefully you'll think it's a helpful little tip too.

Excuse the hat over the eyes look! 

Surviving a sleep regression

Until recently, I didn't really think sleep regressions were a real thing. I do now...

One Monday evening I put Izzy to bed as always. An hour or so later, she grizzled and Simon went to settle her. 45 minutes later, same again. And then again. Gosh, we thought, this isn't going to be a good night. At 11 o'clock after the 4th time settling her, I decided I couldn't do that all night so brought her into bed with me for the night. She slept soundly for the rest of the night, and we thought we were in the clear. Until the same thing happened again the next night...except it was accompanied by an hour of screaming. Nothing we did could settle her so...in to bed she came. And then the next night the screaming went to for even longer until she was brought into bed.

Three bad nights in a row? That's tough. The next two nights she slept in her cot, but woke every 2 hours or so and took a long while to settle. Then back to screaming and into our bed. Things came to a head on the 7th night when she woke at 11pm and screamed for two hours straight and NOTHING worked - including bringing her in to bed. Simon and I were tired, she was exhausted, and we were all frustrated.

So, what on earth was the cause? Welcome the '9 Month Sleep Regression'. I had heard of the 4 month sleep regression, which we had no issues with, but never one at 9 months, so it caught us off guard and knocked the wind from our sails. After some hasty Googling, we found out that we were not the only people to have their baby SCREAM at them for no apparent reason, and with no way to settle them. These other people had also experienced the 9 month sleep regression, and there was a general consensus on the cause. Imagine you have a big meeting tomorrow, and you have practised and practised what you need to say. It's likely you'll go to bed, have it all spinning round in your head, and have trouble falling asleep. Well, that's the same with Isabelle. Except, she doesn't have a big meeting, she just has LIFE.

Simon and I have said a lot in the last month just how much she is changing, and how much she has learnt to do lately. Every day, she seems to be doing more, and be doing things BETTER than before. She is stronger, understands more, can move better - she just has so much going on! So it's no wonder that when she goes to bed at night she has a little trouble switching off. The problem seems to be that she isn't getting in to a deep enough sleep, so she wakes more. And that is frustrating - I hate waking up during the night, so I understand why she gets cross. As Lauren from Mrs Hippo and Me said to me once "You can lie and stare at the ceiling, but they can't, so they cry". It makes so much sense. Isabelle's brain is churning with 'stuff', she isn't sleeping deeply so she wakes, gets mad about it, and cries.

Luckily, after that awful Sunday night things improved and, although she isn't quite back to normal yet, she is sleeping much better once more. So, what are our top tips for surviving a sleep regression?

1// Understand what's happening - once you know why your baby is waking more often, I think it makes it easier to deal with. It definitely made me more sympathetic. Rather than getting cross that she was sleeping so badly, and screaming so much, I felt bad for her that she couldn't sleep when she wanted to.

2// Put a plan in place - when you figure out it's a regression you are in and not just a few bad nights, figure out a plan that helps everyone get some sleep. Ours was: soothe her back to sleep until 11/11.30pm (when she would wake screaming) then I would feed her. Simon was in charge from then until 2.30am, and I took over after that. Once we had that in place, everyone got some sleep, the screaming stopped and things started to get better.

3// Be consistent - I've read a lot that you can neither 'sleep train' or 'sleep untrain' during a regression. Basically, it's not the time to try and get your baby into a new routine but, similarly, you can't really break the one you had before. Despite that, I still think it's important to be consistent with what you do. The first 6 nights we were all over the place so it's no wonder Isabelle cried - she was confused about what on earth was going to happen next! Once we were more consistent, she seemed much happier.

4// Don't do anything that you wouldn't normally do - even though you supposedly cannot create new habits during a regression, don't do anything you wouldn't normally do, just in case! So if you do NOT want your little sleeping in your bed full time, don't let them during the regression. If you wouldn't normally let them cry it out, don't do it now.

5// Do whatever it takes to help them out - as long as it complies with #2 and #3, do whatever it takes to soothe your baby and help them get more sleep. I sat in the nursery for 30 minutes after she fell asleep every time she woke, just because I knew she was only sleeping lightly and it was comforting for her to know I was still there. I didn't get much sleep those nights...

6// Have patience - I know it feels like it will never end...but it will.

7// Invest in a blanket and a onesie - sitting in Isabelle's room, cradling her in the rocking chair to help her fall back in to a deep sleep at 3am is chilly. My onesie was invaluable.

Now, maybe your baby won't hit the 9 month sleep regression; if not, you are so lucky! It is apparently the worst regression, so I am unbelievably thankful that it's (almost) over. It was tough, without doubt the toughest 8 nights we've ever had with Isabelle, but we survived! There were tears and screaming along the way, and not just from Isabelle, but the only lasting damage are the mental scars which Simon and I now bear!

Has your baby suffered from a sleep regression? Any top tips to get through it?

Playing with the big boys (and girls!)

Isabelle is a very nosey girl; she is constantly watching other people to see what they are up to, and loves being in her sling because she gets a great view of the world around her. She especially loves being around other babies and children, and having a nosey at what they are up to. At Baby Sensory classes recently, I've noticed her paying less attention to the activities, and more attention to what everyone else is doing instead.

Even better if the children she is watching are older - that is her absolute favourite. She loves to watch them run around at super speed, in to everything, and playing with their big boy and big girl toys.

The gruesome twosome back in September

And the one person that my little loves to watch more than anyone, is that big boy she sees so much of - Master Jacob. She is totally fascinated by him, and loves nothing more than watching him zoom about, in to all his toys, and chatting about everything around him as he goes. And - when the mood strikes him - he loves to be around her just as much. Last week, he played a great game of peekaboo with her at the dinner table, and the other day held her hand to 'help her walk'. They are such a sweet little pair, and I just know how much she loves being with him.


Luckily, we are such a close family that she gets to see her buddy all the time, and I'm so thankful that she has a big cousin to learn from and, in years to come, play with and have a great relationship with. And, of course, there is little Isaac. While he's too young at the minute for her to be as intrigued by his antics, soon enough these three little people will be running around causing havoc and headaches to the rest of us!

Two steps forward, one step back...

I'm sure other parents will know what I mean - sometimes it feels like you are getting so far with something, then all of a sudden a hiccup along the way seems to set you back somewhat.

I mentioned earlier this week that Isabelle was moving into her own room. This managed to combine with a week where she hasn't much been in the mood for self soothing and sleeping long stretches - unfortunate timing hey? (It did start the night before she moved, so I know the move wasn't the issue).

She has been getting somewhat back to normal again, but now likes me to sit in the rocking chair while she soothes herself to sleep. This feels like a bit of a step back, as she had been happy to be left in her cot at night to go to sleep no problems, and it had been bothering me that all of what we had achieved was now for nothing.

But, I know this will pass in a few days, and then she will be self soothing in her own room. For now, she just needs a little extra help to get used to her new surroundings. So we've just had to take a little step backwards in order to help us move forwards. When I think about it that way, it doesn't seem so bad at all.

Clingy Mummy Alert!

Today, 2 days shy of her 9 month 'birthday', Miss Isabelle has moved into her own bedroom for the first time. To be honest, if Simon hadn't moved the cot this morning (by himself, while Isabelle and I staged a sit in protest) I would happily have let her stay a bit longer. Say until she was 10?! We had set two dates before when she would go - at 8 months old, then New Year's Day - but she never quite made it out of our room.

I know some people will be reading this and thinking I am mad for keeping her in there so long. That said, I also know lots of lovely mummies who still have their little in their room too - which has always made me feel better about keeping her in with us for so long. Honestly, I always assumed that when we hit that 6 month mark, she'd be out of there and I'd be glad to see the back of her - but she stayed. I had told Simon she needed to be moved first thing in the morning, so she had her nap in her room too, and he set today as the final date as he was off work, and could move the furniture this morning.

Morning nap in her own room

I know some people think I am clingy, and I think they are probably right. I was counting today on my way home from the hairdresser and, in 9 months, I have left Isabelle with someone other than Simon fewer than 5 times, and I have left her with Simon fewer than 10 times. The longest time I have left her is 5 hours, and she was asleep for most of that.

I never thought I would be so clingy at all, and always slightly mocked parents who never let their kids out of their sight. I always said "Oh when she is sleeping well I'll ship her off for the night to my parents", and assumed I'd have no issue in going out during the day or in the evenings. However, every time I leave her, or even think about leaving her with someone, I can't help but think "What if she needs me and I'm not there?"

She sleeps face down - thank heavens for movement monitors...

I KNOW that it's silly. Simon, my mum and dad, my brother and sister, and my sister-in-law are all perfectly capable of taking care of Isabelle for a few hours, and I trust them all without question. But yet, I can't help that worry that Isabelle will get upset, and I cannot stand the thought of tears rolling down her cheek and me not being there to comfort her.

As per my New Year's resolution, however, I am working to change that. Isabelle stayed with my mum for a few hours at the weekend, and today with Simon while I got my hair chopped (I can tick that off the to do list). And tonight, she is sleeping in her own room. Yes, I am worried she will be lonely, even though she's asleep, and no, I am not looking forward to having to walk all the way to the next room to feed her when she wakes. I will miss hearing her shuffle round in her sleep, and miss the reassuring sound of her little breaths when I wake up to check she is OK. Just the thought is making me well up, and making me want to go and climb into her cot with her.

But she's in her room, and after tonight I'm sure I'll wonder why I was being such a silly mummy in the first place...

Is anyone else willing to admit they are a clingy mummy?!

Tried and tested top toys

One of the mummy Facebook groups I am lucky enough to be part of had a thread this week about our favourite toys for the little people. I find it so interesting to see what other people have, and enjoy, for their babies, and it always gives me some great ideas of new toys or books we can get for Isabelle.

It can be hard to pick new toys - especially since most people now buy online. The age guides can be so off, and it's impossible to tell if your little one will really love it, so it's always nice to have someone else test a toy before you buy it!

From my previous posts, you probably know by now that I have a whole host of homemade sensory toys for Izzy to play with - from her treasure basket to her discovery bottles - but of course she has plenty of 'real' toys too.

So, what little treasures has she got? What's her favourite? And, importantly, what is mummy and daddy approved?!

1// Music station:
We got this from a family friend for Christmas (after close instruction!) and I love it just as much I had hoped. Even better - Izzy loves it too! It keeps her occupied for ages, as there are so many bits to it, and the noises are in no way loud and overbearing (as I had slightly feared!). Her favourite bits are the tubular bells, and the sticks - to chew on!
Available on Amazon for £41 here

2// Sensory sound blocks:
These are one of my favourites, and she loves it when I look through the coloured perspex at her! As she likes anything which makes a noise these are a good little thing to have on hand for a moment's distraction, and great for teaching her about noises and words (e.g. gentle, loud) Another favourite Christmas present.
From Wonderworld

3// Wiggly worm:
this was a little stocking filler we got in a toy shop near us. She absolutely loves it, and it's great for taking out and about in the change bag as it's so petite!
Available here for £2.50

4// Clemmy turtle blocks:
Isabelle loves any type of blocks, but these have been a firm favourite since I blogged about these a while back. She really loves chomping on them (surprise, surprise!) and they are so easy for her to handle. Building them up on Clemmy the turtle's back and knocking them down provides endless fun!
Available from Loubilou for £17.49

5// Sophie la Giraffe:
If there is a house in the land which has a teething baby and DOESN'T have a Sophie, I am flabbergasted! At baby groups Sophies litter the floor, and I have actually brought other people's home (as well as our own!) before. This is all testament to the fact that Sophie is a great toy. Isabelle loves her, and gets excited when I give her to her. She is great to chew on during teething, and I think the tactile feel of the rubber makes her feel nice in little hands. She loves Sophie's squeak, and enjoys waving her round by the leg. Possibly the best £12.99 I have ever spent!
Get your Sophie here!

6// Lamaze Grip and Grab Flower:
I love anything Lamaze, and picked this little one up for just £3 in the same toy shop from which I bought the worm. It's kept in the change bag in case I forget other toys, and Izzy loves shaking it around. The black and white side was ideal when she was a tiny baby, and now she loves the coloured side, and shakes it around to hear the little rattle inside. It's easy to grab, and must be tasty as - shockingly - she loves chewing it!
From Lamaze 

7// Her noisy books:
We have lots of books for Isabelle and we read everyday, but we got Messy Pig and Crazy Cow board books for Christmas and she absolutely adores them! Much more so than any other books she has. She very quickly learnt to push the button to make the noise, and it's great to see her interact with a book so well. There are a whole series of these books, and more to be released, and I am definitely getting her more soon!
Available on Amazon for £3.99 each

Maybe you can tell we have major love for wooden toys in our house. I find that most wooden toys are more 'open ended' than electronic toys, which seem to be much more 'closed' and have a limited number of ways Isabelle can interact with them. I also have a real soft spot for Lamaze toys, as I just find them so wonderfully bright, cheerful and they have so much going on for Izzy to explore.

I'm currently working on a list of toys for her first birthday, so stay tuned to find out what bits and bobs we have making their way to us next!

Any recommendations from you for things she might enjoy?

Isabelle's first Christmas!

It may be a little late, but I wanted to wish everyone a very happy holiday season. We have had a lovely few days celebrating Isabelle's first Christmas, and she has been very spoilt!

For us, Christmas is all about family, and this year we spent it at home with my family. Now that we have Isabelle, we are trying to create our own little family traditions, and we started this year by inviting my family to celebrate Christmas Eve with us, and help get Isabelle ready for her first Christmas! We ate, drank and read "T'was the Night Before Christmas" to Izzy, before she was popped into her 'My First Christmas' jammies to get some shut eye for Santa's arrival!

We spent Christmas morning at home, making puddings for later in the day and opening gifts. Of course, as she is still so tiny, Iz hadn't a clue what was going on! However, she seemed to enjoy the wrapping paper, and the few presents we got her. She got a little rocking horse, two jigsaws, a book, a pull along dog, two Lamaze toys, a wiggly wooden worm and some sensory sound blocks. I also got her a little snowglobe, and am hoping to get her a new one every year to build up a Christmas collection. Her favourite so far is the worm! I got a big hamper of retro sweets, and lots of little bits and pieces as well, so I was also spoilt!

We then headed to church, and on to my parents' house for a big family dinner with my brother, sister, brother and sister in law, and my nephews. It was totally chaotic, noisy and hectic, and really wonderful. Jacob and Isabelle were absolute stars considering what a busy, overwhelming day it was. The kids got an insane amount of gifts, and the adults didn't do too badly either! The day ended with some family 'fun' as we played some board games....enough said! Boxing Day was much the same, a big family get together at my parents'.

Simon, Isabelle and I (and the dogs!) are now home and thoroughly exhausted. We're looking forward to some quiet time for the 3 of us over the next few days, making the most of Simon's time off.

Lots of holiday love to everyone!

Sensory play: discovery bottles

Following on from my last two sensory play posts, today's post is about our discovery bottles. This is an idea I found on Pinterest, and my new favourite website, The Imagination Tree, had some great ideas about what to put in the bottles.

These are a really simple idea - fill a plastic bottle with things for baby to discover in a safe way. Most of the bottle fillers are things which wouldn't be suitable for a baby to play with on their own (e.g. buttons), but allowing them to view them through the safety of a plastic bottle allows them to discover what they look like, how they sound, and how the things interact in a totally safe environment.

They are also extremely simple to make - I found the hardest bit was getting the bottles! A few special soft drink purchases were made to gather them!

To fill our bottles I gathered up:
- buttons
- Hama beads (used for making melt-a-bead pictures)
- glitter
- food colouring
- washing up liquid/dish soap
- pom poms
- pipe cleaners
- 'jewels'
- baby oil

Once the bottles were cleaned and dried, I simply filled each one with a different 'thing' to be explored. Most of the bottles are simply dry with with items inside, however two of my favourite bottles are 'wet' bottles - our lava lamp and bubble maker.

The bubble maker bottle is just water with a small amount of food colouring, and a generous amount of washing up liquid. It looks pretty unimpressive, until Isabelle starts to shake it when the bubbles appear. Safe bubble fun for someone too little to blow bubbles. The lava lamp is made of 2/3 water (with some food colouring) and 1/3 baby oil. Standing alone, it shows about separation of liquids, and when it is given a shake it creates a a great 'lava lamp' effect. A big pinch of glitter adds something a little extra to this bottle. I always superglue the lid shut once I am happy with the bottle, as the last thing my house needs is a glitter/oil/food colouring explosion!

As with her other sensory toys, I offer these to Isabelle every so often, and she loves to have a good shake of the bottles, a suck on the caps, and a peer at what's inside. Very simple to make, but a great way to allow little eyes to explore things they aren't able to touch.

Here was Isabelle's reaction to her Hama bead bottle...I think she likes it...

Isabelle approved: Savoury carrot and courgette muffins

Over the last few weeks, I've been worrying that Isabelle has been getting too much of the same foods for lunch. I don't usually eat lunch, so I'm not used to having to think of lots of different things to eat for lunch. As Isabelle loves rice cakes, I tend to give her those a lot with lots of different toppings -hummus, mashed avocado, cottage cheese, cream cheese... But I wanted to branch out and give her something a bit different, so decided to go for some savoury muffins.

These muffins are so simple to make - I made them during one of Isabelle's naps (30mins) - and they are lovely and healthy too. Isabelle loved them, and I'm planning on making lots of different varieties in the future (banana and date are being made tomorrow!).

(This makes 12 large muffins)

Ingredients
- 2 cups self raising flour
- 1 cup milk
- 3/4 of a cup of grated cheese (the stronger the better!)
- 150g of butter (melted)
- 1 egg, lightly beaten
- 1 large carrot
- 1 large courgette (or 5 baby courgettes)
- handful raisins

Method
- Preheat the oven to 180C
- Grate the carrot and courgette, and then squeeze out the excess water. Grate the cheese
- Sift the flour into a bowl, and then add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix together
- Add the butter, egg and milk and mix the whole lot together very well (at this point it will look somewhat like coleslaw...)
- Divide the mixture between 12 muffin cases, and pop into the oven for roughly 30mins
- Cool on a wire rack and enjoy! Store in an airtight container, or in the freezer.

So easy to make, and great to give to Isabelle as part of her lunch!

DIY First Christmas Decoration

Earlier this week I posted about our Christmas tree, and mentioned the decoration we made to celebrate Isabelle's first Christmas. It was so quick and easy to do, and will be a lovely keep sake for years to come.

Simon simply cut a sliver off the bottom of the tree trunk (we always do anyway!) and we dried it out in the airing cupboard. Simon sanded it down, and using just a normal coloured pen, some string, ribbon and of course a button, I made our very "rustic" (ie pretty rubbish!) decoration. I hung it on the tree straight away, but after Christmas, Simon will varnish it to keep it shiny and lovely for years to come. I may attach a photo of the three of us on Christmas Day onto the reverse side as well.

So there you go. Simple, quick, cheap, not very good.....but made with lots of love for my beautiful lady, and something for us to pull out each year. No doubt Isabelle will look at it in 15 years and mock me greatly....

Isabelle's 8 month check in

I know I say this every time I update you on Isabelle, but the time has flown again, and I really cannot believe Miss Isabelle is now 8 months old! That just seems SO old - she's practically an old age pensioner! 

In the last two months she has continued to grow physically and developmentally, and is such a joy to spend my days with. People always tell me how content she is, and she always has a big smile for everyone - even when she is 'playing shy' when she first meets people! 

I've been absolutely thrilled with how well she has taken to baby led weaning in the last 2 months. After the traditional slow start to blw, she has moved forward in leaps and bounds in the last 2-3 weeks, and loves lunch time in particular. She works so well with her hands, and with a pre-loaded spoon, and is eating more and more every day. She is now the proud owner of one tooth (finally!) and is using it to full effect to chomp through her food.

 

Vital stats:
Weight: 18lbs 9oz
Length: 72cms

Likes:
* Meat
* Her maracas
* Lying on her back and shaking all her limbs like a wild thing
* Plums
* Swimming
* Looking out the window
* "if you're happy and you know it"
* Being nosey
* Being in her wrap/sling
* Watching bigger boys and girls
* Playing with her friends 
* Christmas baubles
* Spaghetti bolognese and chilli con carne
* Talking
* Standing up
* Spoons
* Smiling
* The watch from her treasure basket

Dislikes
* Broccoli

Day to day life
The biggest changes in Isabelle's life in the past few months have been her promotion to 'big cousin' to Isaac, and our shake up in routine. I posted about this a while ago, but we made some changes so that Isabelle was putting herself to sleep at night (previously I always fed her to sleep), and she has done a great job of adapting to such a big change. Someday she may even move to her own bedroom! We also get up earlier and she takes more structured naps, so our days are just generally a bit better organised. We have been as busy as ever going to our different groups and meeting up with friends, and are still waiting for the day we have some 'quiet time' at home together!

In November we made a trip to Norfolk to see Granny, Grandad, auntie and great-grandparents, and while I'd love to say we had a great time, this coincided with Isabelle being really unwell. She was pretty miserable, as were Simon and I, but still managed to charm everyone with her smiles. She travelled as well as ever despite her illness, enjoying her flights as always.

 

Now we're heading towards her first Christmas, and some quality time with all the family. Her skills are developing every day, and I'm sure the New Year will see her starting to scoot about and the headache that will no doubt bring! 

Next check in at 10 months - and I'm sure the time will fly in!

Sensory Play: treasure baskets

I mentioned in my last post that Isabelle has a "treasure basket", so today's post is all about treasure baskets - what they are and what's in ours. I first read about treasure baskets over at The Imagination Tree (a great resource for lots of play ideas), and have heard lots about them at my Baby Sensory class, and had been meaning to make one for a while, but never quite got round to it. A friend shared with me some pictures of the amazing treasure basket she made for her son, and that spurred me into action to finally get Isabelle's together.

Treasure baskets (or as my friend calls it a 'box o' crap'!) are based on the idea of heuristic play - basically that babies and children have a natural curiosity to explore every day items. Ever had to wrestle your phone/remote/keys off your little one? That is a perfect example of a little creating their own heuristic play experience - they are taking an everyday object and exploring it. What does it look like, what does it feel like, what can it do?

A treasure basket is basically a load of 'everyday items' that you have gathered together, and deemed safe for your little to play with. They are items which they are free to explore, play with and learn about in whatever way they see fit. While doing that, they learn about different textures, colours, sounds, weights, sizes and smells. They can explore how things fit together, and learn how to put one thing inside something else, or simply how to throw lots of different things! The whole time, they are perfecting their fine motor skills while picking things up, and making independent decisions about what they want to play with, and what they want to do with each item. To make it, simply choose things you don't need or use regularly (or at all) and which you think your little might find interesting. You should try to include a vast range of items to include lots of textures, sizes, shapes, colours, sounds and purposes to help extend the sensory side of the basket. Traditionally, they basket should be round and low so a a little one can access it from all sides, and should be presented to your little just a few times a week so they don't get bored with the items. Similarly, most ideas say to regularly rotate the items, and you can even 'theme' the basket - for example circles, shiny, natural items.

To make Isabelle's treasure basket I used an old basket in which we had previously kept dog toys, then, I went round the house and poked in all the kitchen drawers, and anywhere I thought things may be lurking, and gathered up the bounty below! Literally....a box o' crap!

Amongst other things I included a hot water bottle stopper, a whistle, a fake flower, a cookie cutter, a cat collar, a Play Doh tub filled with rice, a flip-flop, wooden blocks, coasters, a flashing ball, a DVD, a duster and some teething toys.

I know I won't regularly rotate items, so instead I collected loads and I keep them in the larger basket, but present them to Isabelle in a smaller, round basket. That way, I am presenting different items each time, and keeping the play times fresh. Her favourite items so far are an old watch, a cup from a flask, the fake flower and the Christmas baubles! She is given play time with the treasure basket 3-4 times a week, and the items are great for distracting her for a few minutes during nappy changes, or while I dry my hair! I am now on permanent look out at home and in shops for extra bits to add in, as my treasure basket is seriously lacking compared to many!

Personally, two things I like about treasure baskets are that they are cheap, and they are very open ended. Unlike many toys, which do one or two things and that is all, treasure baskets have endless opportunities. A little can do whatever they want with the items, and interact with them in a variety of ways, which helps work their imaginations, and decision making.

So, a cheap and cheerful way to present your little with opportunities for sensory play, even just for a few minutes at a time. Next time they try to grab their phone, give them an old one from a drawer, and then drop it into your treasure basket for future use! You'll be amazed at how the explore the items we have deemed not worthy for every day use.

Thanksgiving week: Wednesday's thanks...

Wednesday's thanks: today I am thankful for...

- my iPhone. That may sound weird and materialistic, but the reason I am so thankful for it is the camera, which allows me to capture ever special, silly or strange moment of Isabelle's life. Almost all the pictures I live most of her have been taken on an iPhone, and it's so wonderful to always have a camera with me to snap that little face whenever she does something particularly fantastic.

-  Isabelle's relationship with her great granny. I've mentioned my granny before, and how much she adores Isabelle, but each week when we visit I continue to be struck by how much joy my little lady brings to my granny. Isabelle is always so pleased to see her great granny, and is always in such a good mood when we visit that it's clear the feeling of love between this pair is mutual.

What are you thankful for today? 

When mummy gets lazy...

I'll admit it - I am lazy. I have always been generally quite lazy, and I am a pretty lazy mummy too! I try to make life as easy and simple as possible - who doesn't? - but I've realised this week that my laziness may be having a negative impact on Miss Isabelle.

Everybody likes a good lie in, but babies are not well renowned for it. However, over the last few months I have been able to 'boast' a lie in (rising at 8.30am at the earliest) everyday. Not because Isabelle is so conked out on her own, but because I like to snuggle down in the morning for an extra while, and have used Isabelle's Kryptonite - boobs - to keep her compliant. This means we get up late and start the day late, and because we are out so often, we end up rushing around, so Isabelle's naps and meals are squeezed in whenever they fit, and naps are mostly on the go in the car.

My laziness also means that we have fallen into the bad habit of nursing her to sleep for naps and bedtime, simply because it's easier for me, and she is willing to do it too.

Ok, so neither of those things sound unbelievably horrific, but this week I realised that my laziness in those matters means that Isabelle's routine is not quite what it should be, and I am affecting her ability to self settle.

So we've had a bit of a shake up in the Jay household this week. No longer will you find me lounging in bed until 9am, no, the ungodly hours of 7am and 7.30am are my new wake up time. This means that we are able to get up, have breakfast together, and Isabelle can have at least one quality nap in the morning, uninterrupted in her cot. This is something she had been doing for a long time when she was smaller, but our increasingly hectic social life (!) meant it got somewhat shoved aside, as getting up later meant we didn't have time for this nap before heading out for the day.

I've also decided to take some time out, and that Isabelle and I will spend more time at home, rather than always out and about.

I'm hoping that these little chances will be for the better for little miss. Already I have been pleased to find that while she is having her reclaimed morning nap, I can get a few bits and bobs done around the house - and since she decided her morning nap would be an hour and 15mins today (unheard of - she only ever naps for 30 minutes!) I got so much done I didn't know what to do with all my free time!

And lastly, moving away from using boobs as the only way to put Isabelle to sleep. Of course this one is more tough, but I am very pleased to report that for three whole days she has not fallen asleep on the boob during the day once. Small steps with this one to pull her out of the bad habit her lazy mummy let us get into!

Small changes, but hopefully ones which will bring Isabelle's routine up to where it should be. Rather than having a lazy mummy hold her back for her own benefit....

Isabelle's baby cousin...

Our family grew by one person yesterday as Isabelle welcomed her baby cousin into the world!

My sister-in-law telling us she was pregnant in March didn't come as any real surprise as we all knew that there would be more babies before long! As soon as I saw the front of Jacob's "Shhh! I've got a secret..." t-shirt I just KNEW the back would say "I'm going to be a big brother!"- I just had a feeling that Helen had been a little off for a few weeks.

After suffering from horrible morning sickness and an awkward breech baby, little Isaac arrived safe and sound yesterday!

He looks just like his big brother did when he was first born, and when Isabelle and I went to visit him today, I just couldn't believe how SMALL he was! I know it's only a few months since Isabelle was as tiny as that, but I just can't remember her being that little teeny bundle.

Isaac is, of course, just gorgeous, and I could have just bitten a chunk of his cuteness right off!! I can't wait to get to know him, and find out if he is going to be a loveable, silly, outdoorsy, chatty boy like his brother, or if he will be completely different. I think he is going to be a really chilled out boy, and bring a moment of calm to our totally crazy family!

Whoever he turns out to be, one thing is sure - his has a huge family to love him. From his cousin, to his brother, aunties, uncles, grannies and granddads/grandpas, he is one very lucky boy.

No photos of the little one to share as yet - but I'm sure there will be MANY to come in the next few months! Instead, here is a picture of my own little lady when she was the same age Isaac is now - just one day old! 2

Weaning update...

So it's not almost three weeks since we began weaning with Izzy, and I thought I'd bring you a little update on how we are getting on!

As we decided to do (our version) of baby led weaning, we jumped right in to three meals a day, and I have to say finding time to fit breakfast and lunch in for Isabelle has really thrown me! Until she started eating, breakfast for me was a bowl of cereal shovelled in as we got ready to leave the house, and lunch was generally either non-existent, or something we had when out with other people. So it has been a challenge for me to rethink our morning schedule, in particular, to make sure we have enough time to have breakfast together. As Isabelle feeds herself, I like to leave 30 minutes for each meal, as she will have a chomp, then talk for a few minutes, then stare at the dogs, then the cat, then the washing, then another chomp...so it can take a while!

Overall, I am really pleased with her progress. I've noticed her motor skills improving a lot over the last three weeks as she works out how to pick various things up, and she is improving her skills every day. She has the whole "bite, chew, swallow" thing down to a tee and - touch wood - hasn't choked on anything yet. I did have to manually evacuate an orange segment after 15 minutes one day however, although only because we were going out! She was happy as anything rolling it around in her mouth!

The list of foods she has tried grows every day - from apples to avocados, cheese to celery, melon to mince, toast to tomatoes, grapes to green beans, and plums, pears, potatoes, peaches and pineapple and a whole host more - the kid has had a LOT!

So far, her favourites seem to be:
*plum
*orange
*strawberry
*cucumber

She will give almost everything a go, but so far she has refused to put broccoli into her mouth, and wasn't to interested on her first try with meat either. It's weird as she will pick up broccoli and feel it, but it is the only thing (I think in the whole house!) that she won't even try to stick into her mouth. The only other thing she has hated is yoghurt, which actually led to her crying!

Because we follow baby led weaning, at the minute she isn't eating huge amounts, but what I love is that she is very clear on when she has had enough; she simply won't pick up, or take from us, any more food. Some days she will attack her food like a ravenous beast, other days she isn't interested, but she still get plenty of milk and has managed to put on half a pound in one week, so we aren't at all worried!

She has also taken to drinking water well. We use a Doidy cup rather than a sippy cup, and she has started to indicate when she would like some water, and holds the handles well. Every day she dribbles a little less out, and gets a little more down, and she has actually out-peed a few nappies very quickly this week due to the amount she is drinking.

All in all then, she is doing wonderfully well. Both Simon and I are so happy we have chosen the baby led approach to weaning - it's hassle free from our point of view (save the cutting up of fruit/veg into a few stick shapes!) and has made our meal times such a lovely family time which we can all enjoy.

Over the next few weeks we hope to move her on to more 'meal' type foods, with the hope that by Christmas, she is eating the same meals as we are all, as much as possible. Stay tuned to see how she (and I!) get on!

Splish, splash, baby swim lessons

I am not a great swimmer at all. I like a bit of a splash around on holiday, but nothing more serious than that. However, I have fond memories of my dad taking me swimming at our local pool every Sunday, and both Simon and I think that swimming is a really lovely family activity to do. We also want Isabelle to be confident in the water from an early age, both to enjoy swimming and to be safe in and around water.

With that in mind, we started taking her swimming when she was almost 3 months old. There are loads of swim schools in our local area but, at £14 for a half hour lesson - £140 in total for the 'term' - we decided we would just take her to our local pool ourselves.

Very worried about it being cold, we ordered Isabelle a Splash About Warm In One, which is a fleecy lined wetsuit, so she would be nice and toasty in any pool. The first time we went I was very nervous, but we assumed that she would love it as she really enjoyed splashing about in her bath. Instead, she gave us the most non-chalent face she could muster for half an hour, and couldn't have looked less bothered about the whole affair! But, since she wasn't screaming, we chalked it up to a success and decided we would continue to take her each week - or as much as we could at least. At at just £7.30 for  us to go to our local pool, it was certainly much cheaper than the lessons!

However, a few weeks later I saw a great deal on LivingSocial for 8 swim lessons with a local swim school for just £40. Since that is even cheaper than it would be at our local pool, we decided to snap that offer up, and I'm really glad we did!

Yesterday was our last lesson and I have to say, the lessons were super. We hadn't quite managed to 'dunk' Izzy ourselves, but of course this was something the classes focused on. The main idea of the lessons is to teach small babies what to do if they should fall into the water, and all activities focused on teaching them to float on their back, be confident under water, and move to the edge and grab the bar to stay safe.

Izzy was the youngest in the class, but she did a great job every week. She wasn't worried about being dunked, and generally enjoyed splashing about, singing the songs, having a look at the other babies and playing with all the new toys. I think Simon and I both benefitted from learning a bit more about how to help her become confident in water, and we both know that we need to continue dunking her under and teaching her how to float if we want her to remember the skills she has learnt. So, overall, the lessons were a success. I have to say that we were both really surprised that, after the first week, Simon and I were the only parents who both went into the water with their baby - everyone else had one parent in and one on the side. But, for us, swimming is a family activity, and we want Isabelle to be safe and happy with both of us in the pool.

I think we will maybe take a break from swimming next week, giving us a chance to do something else on a Sunday afternoon, and will maybe only go once every few weeks from now on. But we will continue to take her swimming as often as we can, and help her build up her confidence and skill in the water so she is a little water baby in no time!

After a quick dunking! 

(Simon took the photos one week when he was sick and couldn't join us in the pool.)