Four Months Old

Well almost, we're a day early but we fly to Greece tonight and I don't know if I'll be able to get internet access there.

So, the monkey is four months old and too big for 3 - 6 month sleep suits! She's now officially in pyjamas and I'm not going to bother with sleep suits any more as she is so long they don't do up between her legs.

She's just started getting interested in toys (rather than feet) and Spotty Dog is her favourite. She is learning to reach out and hold things (and put them in her mouth) so I imagine we'll be getting more and more toys cluttering up the house over the next months.

She still likes feet though and can be easily distracted by them. She's also spending more time on her side when she lies down and so it may not be too long till she rolls over.

She's sucking her thumb like a good 'un and has occasionally managed to get herself back to sleep by doing so (although DBF and I get kept awake by the furious sucking). She even fell asleep in her cot watching the mobile the other day which was the first time she's slept without being fed or rocked so that was a great milestone for us (we know she can do it now even if she doesn't all the time).

She's still on two bottles a day as well as breast feeding and when we get back from Greece I'll work on getting her on all bottles and into a proper daily routine as I've got less than four weeks till I go back to work then!!!

That's it I guess, here's some photos - the first is her four month snap shot (please forgive the close up of a hairy DBF), the second is her with Spotty Dog (in her new pj's) and the last is photographic evidence of her foot fetish...

This may be the last blog for a couple of weeks but hopefully I'll get a chance to log on and give you an update while we're away.

The difference between English and Greeks (No 1)

Organisation.

As in we English are organised and the Greeks are not. It's a simple fact and one that I've learned to live with over 8 years but I don't think I'll ever really get used to it.

I'm super-organised, always have been. I also hate being late and I like to have plans in place to ensure that lateness doesn't occur.

Now I will admit that there are plenty of English people who are disorganised and late (my Sister is a prime example) but with the Greeks it's defective gene and I haven't yet met one that doesn't have it.

I'll also admit that to those who are not quite so anal about organising things those of us who are must be pretty irritating. DBF resists my planning on more or less a daily basis and I think now he just ignores me and gets on with floating through life safe in the knowledge that if there's something important to do I'll mention it.

A great example is Christmas. My large extended family comes together at my sister's house to celebrate and basically eat until they can't move. Every year I ask DBF to ask his parents to join us and every year he says he can't possibly speak to them yet because it's not even close to Christmas. No we're talking about discussions being held in November, not April. To me, his parents should be able to make an informed decision by then but to them it's an alien concept.

Greek people decide on the day what they're doing. And it can often take half the day to finalise that decision which is why they eat and party later than the rest of us. Going to Greece drives me nuts because I can get out of bed and ask what we're doing that day and be told one thing, by the time I've showered it's something completely different and by the time I'm dressed it's something else again. Also, nine times out of ten it's likely to change again before we're out of the door.

This is one of the things that really does my head in about being there and something that I'm going to have even more problems with now DD is involved as I'll have to get her ready too, think about what she needs, when her feeds are going to be, etc. I'm hoping that her arrival will mean that they too become a bit more organised but I'm not betting on it.

The main reason this is my topic of the day though is packing. I spent yesterday ironing clothes and planning what DD and I are going to wear for the week so I know what needs to be packed and when. I asked DBF four times to get the suitcase down so I can start loading DD's stuff in and I also told him not to wear anything this week that he wants to take with him as I can't guarantee getting it washed and ironed before we go.

I know that he'll pack Friday morning before he heads off to work and I know that he'll spend time looking for something particular that he must have with him that will end up being at the bottom of the wash basket or screwed up under the bed.

I'm just hoping that DD has inherited the organised gene...

No worries?

I was talking to a friend last night and she asked me if I was worried about the trip to Greece. Worried? Too right. My worries (rational and irrational) start with the plane crashing and work their way on from there...

In no particular order:

- The plane crashing (total paranoia fear I always have when flying)

- DD getting travel sick (my first bout was on a plane when I was three months old)

- DD screaming for the whole four hour flight

- Me getting travel sick

- Our luggage getting lost

- DBF's whole family turning up at the airport at 2.00am to meet the baby

- Me and DBF's family having our usual non-understanding each other fall out so the holiday becomes a complete stress for everyone

- DBF's family having issues with my parenting skills

- Totally inappropriate gifts from his family (I still have to work on appearing genuinely happy on receiving something I hate)

- My inability to speak Greek

I'm sure there are more but that's the ones that are most on my mind. Don't get me wrong, I'm a strong and capable person and I'll cope with all of the above but I just wish that it would feel a little bit more like a holiday and a little bit less like 10 days of stress.

Also, DBF doesn't cope too well with the guilt that his parents can lay on him. Before DD it was 'when are you coming home, what are you doing with your life?' type stuff. Now it'll be 'we never see the baby'. And I'm sure there is also an element of 'and we just don't get on with your choice of partner' in there as well. This means that if he's stressed, I get more stressed - if he can't cope with his family, why should I be able to?

It makes me sad that DBF feels that me and his family don't like each other and nothing will ever change that. From my side it's not true, I do like them but I find them very difficult and the fact that communication is mainly done through translation I don't think we have a chance to really get to know each other. To put all this another way, I have been to Greece twice in the eight years we've been together which should clearly illustrate how much I enjoy going there...

Well, maybe 'not enjoy' is not the right expression as I do have fun when we're there, it's the fact that every meeting between me and his family seems to end with more misunderstandings between us than ever and so I feel the less I see them, the better.

One thing is for sure, I must improve my Greek. I've been saying this for eight years now but as we want DD to be bi-lingual and as we've truly cemented the relationship as permanent I think it's much more important than it has been in the past. I hope that as DD learns, I will and once we get through this knackering first few months I hope I have more energy to learn.

Anyway, I've got a week to go and I'm not losing any sleep over it (sleep is waaaay too precious!) and I keep telling myself that as long as I do my bit, maybe this'll be the breakthrough visit.

Routine, what routine?

Just was I thought we'd got sleeping a bit more sorted DD went and proved that she rules this house and we'd better not forget it.

She'd been doing 8 - 9 hours a night for around four weeks and I guess we got complacent because we got a real shock a week or so ago when she started waking up again anything from 2 to 5 hours after she'd been put down.

This coincided with me getting sick and DBF having to be much more hands on around bedtime (he does his bit but it's normally me who has more success getting her to sleep) so I guess she was probably just reacting to a change in her routine but even so, it was as if she picked the worst possible time to start waking up again.

So it came as some relief when Sunday night she slept for seven hours (she did wake up a couple of times and make vague chatty noises which I studiously ignored) and now it's 8.00am and she's not awake meaning that she's been 8 1/2 hours in bed.

My brain takes a while to catch up with these changes though - I had a rough night last night because I kept waking up expecting her to be awake. I guess we'll need a few more good nights before I'm back to thinking she'll sleep through regularly and I'll be able to relax into sleep properly.

Having said that, the trip to Greece is looming ever closer and I know she'll be thrown completely when it comes to routine once we're there. We decided a while back not to get too worried about getting her settled into a decent routine before Greece as the whole way of life over there is far too different and it's very difficult to get them to change just to accommodate us.

We've got four weeks after we come back before I go back to work so that'll be the killer time of getting her to change her body clock. The real test is going to be getting her to sleep around 7pm instead of 11pm and also getting her to sleep without her being on the boob as I'll also be stopping breast feeding over those four weeks.

Something to look forward to!

Three's a crowd?

So I've been thinking about this for a while and I've decided that the correct number of people needed to have a baby is three, not two.

Sure, two is fine for the initial bit and is obviously the minimum requirement for the process - my theory kicks in after the birth part of the whole scenario. I have considered the benefits of an extra person around during pregnancy (painting the nursery comes to mind) but I think one to gestate the foetus and another to run around moaning that they'll 'never go mountain climbing because they have to be a grown-up now and they're not ready for all that responsibility yet and are you sure the little stick thing showed a cross not a line' is probably enough.

No, it's after the birth when you need three people. To be honest, it doesn't matter whether it's two girls and a guy or two guys and a girl (or I guess three of each in these days of turkey basters and surrogate mothers) but what is important is that at least two of the three are producing milk (hey, this is my theory so if we need a little genetic engineering so that men can lactate I don't see why it should be a problem).

The benefits to all of this are immeasurable - whilst it's managable to have a child with two parents (after all people do it all the time) it would become a breeze with three. Feeding could be done on a rota basis. One person would be guaranteed a full nights sleep out of every three. You've got a sorted baby sitting situation as one stays home and the other two go out. One goes to work, one looks after the baby, one does the housework.

See, I told you I've been thinking about this a lot...

I'm sure there are downsides to this theory (such as what does the child call the third parent) but I haven't come up with any so far that outweigh the good of it all. LOL

A Meme!

Okay, I've seen these loads of times on other blogs but this is my first. The idea of this one is to highlight every phrase of the list that is relevant to you and then to add another phrase to the end. I've seen this one around but I picked it up from Lorna's blog.

I am bisexual.
I am homosexual.
I've run away from home.
I listen to political music.
I collect comic books.
I shut others out when I'm sad.
I open up to others easily.
I am keeping a secret from the world.
I watch the news.
I own over 5 rap CDs.
I own an ipod.
I own something from Hot Topic.
I love Disney movies.
I am a sucker for hair/eyes.
I don't kill bugs.
I curse regularly. But I am trying to stop!
I have "x"s in my screen name.
I've slipped out a "lol" in a real conversation.
I love Spam.
I bake well.
I would wear pajamas to school. I did a long time ago when I was at school...
I own something from Abercrombie.
I have a job.
I love Martha Stewart.
I am in love with someone.
I am guilty of tYpInG lIkE tHiS.
I am self conscious.
I like to laugh.
I smoke a pack a day.
I loved Go Ask Alice.
I have cough drops when I'm not sick.
I can't swallow pills.
I have many scars. Most are tiny but I now have a huge caesarian scar
I've been out of this country.
I believe in ghosts.
I can't sleep if there is a spider in the room.
I am really ticklish.
I love chocolate.
I bite my nails.
I am comfortable with being me.
I play computer games/video games when I'm bored.
Gotten lost in the city.
Saw a shooting star.
I have had two serious surgical procedures.
Gone out in public in my pajamas.
I have kissed a stranger.
Hugged a stranger.
Been in a fist fight with the same sex.
Been arrested.
Laughed and had milk/soda come out of your nose.
Pushed all the buttons on an elevator.
Made out in an elevator.
Sworn at my parents.
Kicked a guy where it hurts.
Been skydiving.
Been bungee jumping.
Broken a bone.
Played spin the bottle.
Gotten stitches.
Drank a whole gallon of milk in one hour.
Bitten someone.
Been to Niagara Falls.
Gotten the chicken pox.
Crashed into a car.
Been to Asia.
Ridden in a taxi.
Shoplifted.
Been fired.
Had feelings for someone who didn't have them back.
Stole something from my job.
Gone on a blind date.
Had a crush on a teacher/coach.
Celebrated Mardi Gras in New Orleans.
Been to Europe.
Slept with a co-worker.
Been married.
Gotten divorced.
Saw someone dying.
Driven over 400 miles in one day.
Been to Canada.
Been on a plane.
Seen the Rocky Horror Picture Show
Thrown up in a bar.
Eaten Sushi.
Been snowboarding.
Been skiing.
Been ice skating.
Met someone in person from the internet.
Been to a car show.
Going to or have gone to college.
Done hard drugs.
Taken painkillers.
Met a celebrity.
I like playing practical jokes.
Been in a hot air balloon.
Been to University

Foot Fetish

My DD would appear to be suffering from this condition.

For some reason feet are her latest fixation. No, not her own, other people's.

Currently she's happiest sitting on my knee gazing intently at my foot. She can do this for hours (okay, several minutes at a time anyway). And she's not fussy about whose foot is involved either - DBF's foot is just fine and she was checking out her Gran's foot intently last week too.

I'm not sure what it is about feet but if it keeps her quiet then who am I to judge? I'm just thankful that we haven't spent loads of money on toys yet as she's shown absolutely no interest in any that we do have yet, it's feet that keep her happy.

I'm hoping that she gets over this obsession soon though as we're off to Greece in two and a half weeks and I don't really want to try and explain to the in-laws that their grandchild gets her kicks from staring at people's feet...

Good news!

DD's weight is perfect!

So perfect in fact that the Health Visitor I saw questioned whether the last one was maybe wrong! I have to say that if I hadn't seen the scales register the weight last time myself I'd have been likely to agree with her but anyway, I don't care about that anymore, I'm just totally happy that we're back on track.

This Health Visitor told me that I should hold off solids to as close to six months as I can as they are now recommending milk only till six months. Talk about mixed messages! Still, I'm happy to continue with milk for as long as possible given the hassle and end result smell of the alternative.

DD hit the 25th percentile line bang on this time and is 12lb 3oz (5.54kg). She is filling her 3-6 month clothes though as she's so darned long. I may have to stop buying sleep suits and body suits as she's so long in the body that they don't do up and the next size up are so baggy as she's so skinny.

Still, as I've said before, better to be long and thin - here's hoping she stays that way.

As for me, I'm feeling a bit better - not so snotty but I have a terrible headache and am still running a bit of a temperature. Thankfully it's the weekend and DBF will be around to help with DD more so I can get some rest.

I'm sick...

It started with a bout of the sneezes yesterday afternoon and this morning is a full blown icky cold.

I don't feel as bad as I think I should feel which is good but it's also making me think I'm going to feel worse by the end of today.

This is the second time I've been really sick since DD was born - the last time DBF bought the germs into the house but this time I have no idea where it came from so I have no idea how long it's going to last.

I'm reluctant to go to the doctors for antibiotics as I've had two courses of them since May and I know that the more you take the more your body forgets how to fight germs itself so I guess I'll get through today and see how it goes.

Thankfully I don't have much to do this week that's important but my parents are coming tomorrow and we're supposed to be having lunch with DBF so that may have to be cancelled. I may also have to postpone getting DD weighed on Friday as it's a mother and baby group and I don't think it's fair to spread germs there.

I hate being sick but my main concern is DD getting it too. We somehow got away with it last time when both DBF and I were sick and she remained fine so fingers crossed we get lucky this time too...

Good things and bad things

Bad thing - DD didn't sleep well at all last night. We're definitely spoiled now as she regularly does between seven and nine hours a night so when she wakes up after three and a half I feel really cheated. Especially as it took me over an hour to get her back off to sleep again. Still, it was incredibly hot and sticky and I couldn't really sleep so I don't know why I expect her to.

It wouldn't have been so much of a problem if I hadn't had a 9.00am doctors appointment this morning so I couldn't catch up with my sleep when DD had her morning nap as she didn't get one...

Still, the doctors was a good thing as I managed to sort out what travel sickness medication I can take whilst breast feeding and I'm going to be okay to travel. There's a whole rant involved with this topic but I'll cut it down to my useless doctor telling me I'll just have to do without and get on with it and the decent doctor I saw today (same practice, different GP) telling me there's no problem to use the patches that I use normally.

This is great news as, if you've read previous posts, you'll know that I suffer serious travel sickness (the last bout resulted in DD's arrival in the world!) and the idea of getting on a plane with nothing to aid the sickness filled me with dread.

Our second appointment of the day was a retirement party at my place of work. This should be a good thing but it's not. The lady who is retiring wasn't due to leave until November but was diagnosed with terminal cancer at the end of May. So really this wasn't so much a retirement party, more a 'so long it's been nice knowing you all' party.

It's true that it's always the nice people that crap happens to. I've worked with this lady for four years and she's always happy, ready for a chat and generally up for fun. Now she's planning her own funeral and saying goodbye to people.

I don't have anything profound to say about all of this but I am glad that I got to see her one last time and that she met DD as she spent nine months listening to my pregnancy tales and sympathising with me.

That's all for today, DD is catching up on her sleep now and it's the start of the weekend - two good things that, whilst they can't outweigh today's bad, they are enough to keep me going with a smile on my face.

Have a nice weekend people and don't forget to hug the people you love.

Three Months Old

So we've survived another month and our little monkey is growing like a weed (lengthwise at least). She moved into 3-6 month clothes a week ago as she was too long for 0-3 sleepsuits and body suits and I've just spent half and hour packing up all her other 0-3 month clothes as none fit now.

She's exploring her hands more and more now - she spends a lot of time with them clasped across her chest Les Dawson style or with both of them waving triumphantly aloft. She's also getting them in her mouth to suck on most tries (although when she misses she does a great impression of Bruce Forsyth as the fist settles just under the chin)

She's constantly on the move and can roll onto her side and back again with ease. She can also propel herself backwards at an alarming rate when lying on the floor by bending her legs, digging her heels in and pushing. I'm keen to start taking her swimming soon as I'm sure this leg action will translate well in the water!

What else? Well, she attended her first party (and had beer and soda water spilt all over her), she did her longest road trip so far, attended a Cross Stitcher's Get Together, had her first immunisations and got her first passport.

She also had her first taste of solid food and, whilst she appeared to like it okay, it'll be a while before the next try.

She's also the nosiest baby I know. She's only happy in her pram if she's propped up enough to see out and is no longer lulled to sleep by the motion of it which means shopping trips can be brief as she makes her displeasure known big time if we stay in one place too long.

That's about it I guess and I can't wait to see what the next month brings. I'll leave you with a picture taken yesterday. Her latest pleasure seems to be sticking her tongue out but she hasn't worked out yet that she can't do that and get her fist in her mouth at the same time...