Staying Cool

Sunday morning Rob went off to the gym and me and the boys tried to stay cool at home.

Just after 12pm our friends from Cardiff arrived. Anna, Rick and Owain, who had broken his arm playing in his garden at home. He had a cool cast on.



We went to a local pub for some lunch and it was rather hectic. We sat in the garden on a bench which meant that Ellis couldn't eat his food properly as he was too far away. Rob fed Ellis and himself while I fed Leo and myself.

We stayed for a while and the kids had a run around before we left to go to the shops. We popped into Mothercare and then went straight home.

Monday morning is always hectic. We rushed out the door to our Sing and Sign class.

Ellis was really well behaved and sat by me just singing and signing away. Jane the teacher did comment on how well Ellis was speaking already. I was so proud of him.

Leo was hot and sweating in the car seat so I took him out and changed his outfit. This mean that he woke up and wanted a feed but I made him wait until we got home.

Ellis really enjoyed his fruit at lunchtime, even slurping out the remaining juice.



The rest of the day was spent just trying to stay cool at home.





Tuesday morning was again spent trying to remain cool. I'm really worried about Leo getting too hot as he is unable to control his temperature properly yet so he is constantly naked.



Leo is mainly awake from about 7am until 11:30am, so I try to keep him occupied with feeds, being winded, nappy changes and sitting him in his chair with his toys. The sitting in a chair rarely lasts more than 10 minutes though and I end up carrying him around in the crook of my arm.



I did my online food shopping while the boys had a nap and then after lunch we went to Charlotte and Faith's house for Mummy afternoon.

I haven't taken pictures for ages at a Mummy afternoon as I am usually feeding or holding Leo. It's a shame and I will try to do it more often.

We stayed for a nice long time and didn't get home until just after 5pm. I did dinner straight away and Ellis played in the garden with a bowl of water.

I bathed both the boys in the evening, not together yet but will do soon. I had a mare with the baby bath though as when I came to empty it, it tipped over and a huge wave of water went everywhere! It took forever to clear up and ate into my evening.

Leo managed to nap long enough for me to shower and then I watched a film which made a change for me.

I think tomorrow is going to be really, really hot and then it is going to cool down for the rest of the week.

Mum is away tomorrow so I have to take the boys to Music with Mummy on my own. I'm not worried but I know it will be hot, sweaty and tiring work.

Very Tired

I have so much to type about! What a busy couple of days.

Friday started out pretty much the same as any other, having breakfast and messing around.

Leo was a month old so I took some facial shots, which I love.











Then after Ellis had a small nap, we went to visit my active birthing Mummies with their children.

I took a wrong turn on the way and it took a lot longer to get to Claire's house then it should have done. We made it eventually and walked into her beautiful house where lunch was already served.

I grabbed a plate of food for Ellis who was really good sitting up to the table and Leo chilled on the floor.





I didn't manage to get pictures of everyone, and I will try next time, but here is Sophie and her little girl Maggie tucking into some food.



The toddlers, Ellis, Piers, Oliver, Maggie, Roman and Isabella all played really well together. They had a lovely play room filled with cars, trains, books etc and a garden with a trampoline. Ellis found a bath filled with water and I caught him drinking it!

The Mummies sat around the kitchen table eating, drinking, feeding babies and chatting away. It was so nice and I could have stayed there all afternoon but unfortunately we had to leave as Ellis had Little Stars in the afternoon.

I shoved some cake in my mouth, booked a date for meeting at our house and then grabbed the kids and ran.

We made it on time to Little Stars and Daddy was already there waiting for us. Ellis was really excited to see Daddy.

I fed Leo while Daddy sat with Ellis to do the warm up routines.





Ellis was a ball of fun and energy at Little Stars. He wouldn't stop running around and we had a hard time keeping up with him. He did well in tiring himself out though.

We went straight home and had dinner before bath and bed time.

In the evening Leo can be quite demanding as he seems to struggle with trapped wind quite a lot. You end up going through a cycle of feeding, changing nappies, winding and walking around talking to him. I don't think it is colic as such but he is just uncomfortable. I bought some Infacol to see if that will help. Time will tell.

Saturday morning we all got up and had breakfast together.





After I had cleared up I brought a box of toy's down for Leo. Ellis obviously found the new things very interesting.



In the box was Burt. Ellis' first ever rattle. http://topflumps.blogspot.com/2007/10/busy-weekend.html

It was strange seeing Leo with it.



First stop of the day was to Auntie Lucy's. Ellis had woken up at 5am so I was expecting him to sleep in the car on our journey there but he was still awake when we arrived.

Ellis played with all the toys and spent some time out in the garden while I sat and had a chat with Lucy, Craig and Ashlee having cuddles with Leo.



We left at midday and we were very hungry. We had planned to go to a local fete but couldn't decide what to do as we were so hungry. We decided to go to the fete to see if we could grab some cake and then go for a meal after.

Ellis slept for less than 10 minutes in the car. We tried to transfer him to the buggy to carry on sleeping but he didn't like it and ended up sitting up. He was so tired by now.



Before we left this morning, we tried out a sling that Charlotte, Faith's Mummy had lent to us. It was actually very easy and comfortable. I don't think it is as intimate as my fabric sling but it is much, much easier and cooler for such a hot day. We ordered our own when we got home.





Rob carried Leo at the fete and I pushed Ellis.



There were a few stalls and some Alpacas on show. They were so sweet but smelly.



We eventually found something to eat, yummy ice-cream.







We carried on walking around looking at the lovely houses and browsing the stalls. Rob bought some cake and gooseberries, while Ellis and I played games on a lawn of a very posh house.







Leo remained asleep the entire time and at one point I thought Ellis was going to fall asleep while walking. He manged to stay awake and I was sure he would sleep in the car on the way to the restaurant but he didn't.



The food was great and after we were all stuffed we went home.

I remember thinking what a lovely day we have had and then I looked at the clock and realised that it was only just 3pm! We still had the whole afternoon to fill, and we did.

I got all the toys out the garage, filled up the paddling pool and put Ellis in his sun suit. He wasn't sure of it at first but soon forgot about it once he saw the water.





Leo was unimpressed and just sat chilling by the back door, enjoying the breeze.



Once Ellis had finished with the water, he tried to teach Daddy how do marching like Nanny. It was quite successful from what I saw.





I couldn't believe my little boy, who had been awake since 5am, was still going. He was totally worn out by dinner time, and this is the result.





The cutest thing ever! We washed his face and hands and put him straight to bed.

Rob and I spent our evening doing plaster casts of Leo's hand and foot and messing around on the computers.

Such a wonderful busy day, I enjoyed every minute. We have friends coming to visit tomorrow so another busy day ahead.

Hectic Life

Leo was 4 weeks old on Tuesday so I took some pictures of him just chilling on his changing mat.











Wednesday morning was uneventful, other than Ellis talking to Leo about looking at the caterpillar. Very cute I thought.



We all went back to bed in the morning to try and catch up on some sleep and before we knew it, Nanny Rennolds was at the door helping us to get ready for Music with Mummy.

We walked down and it was really hot and we were running a little bit late, so arrived feeling a bit sweaty.

The group was good and Ellis did really well dancing like a doll and playing his drums. We then went to Sainsbury's for a nice cold drink.

We did a little bit of food shopping before walking back out in the sun.

I had promised Ellis that he could walk when we got to the park, and this seemed to tie in nicely with Leo crying very loudly as he needed a feed. I sent Nanny Rennolds on home with Leo while I walked/carried Ellis home.

Nanny entertained Ellis for a bit while I fed Leo and then soon it was time for her to go and for me to make dinner.

While I was making dinner, I turned around to find Ellis doing something very strange. He was lining up drink cans on the floor, but placing them in the boxes of the tile pattern, not on the lines. Weird.



Thursday morning the health visitor came over. She weighed Leo, who is now 9lb 13oz and went through a questionnaire with me.

Ellis went for his nap and I did some pottering around downstairs.

We had lunch, packed some bags and went to see Caroline, a new Mummy I met at my antenatal group.

We arrived a little bit late and I tried very hard to sit and relax, have a chat etc but unfortunately I just couldn't as there was so much stuff in the house that Ellis could just destroy! We stayed less than an hour before we got back in the car and went to Nanny Rennolds' house. Caroline is invited to mine next week so hopefully I can chill out a bit more.

We picked Nanny up and then went up the field to see the horses and chickens.





Ellis' favourite thing though was a car.



We watched Auntie Katie and Charley have a ride around the arena before going back to Nanny's house for dinner.

Ellis played in the garden for a bit and Leo had some nappy free time in the living room.





We all sat to the table and had some yummy dinner together. Ellis was really good and ate loads as usual. He really enjoyed sharing his ice-cream with Grandad.

We then went home, arriving a little later than normal.

I rushed around, bathing and putting Ellis to bed, feeding Leo a few times in between then having a shower while he cried on my bed. I fed him some more, got dried and dressed before going downstairs and clearing up the toys and plates etc. I then bathed Leo and fed him loads more until he finally went to sleep at 10:30pm! He is such a windy baby. I might try some Infacol to see if that will help a bit. I think he would be a rather content and happy baby if he didn't have pains all the time.

Feeling shattered now and can't believe how hectic life has become. I'm just not thinking about it and just getting on with it. It seems to be working so far.

Another busy day tomorrow. I have to take Leo's one month pictures, then we are going to an active birthing friend's house for lunch then back in time for Little Stars with Daddy hopefully.

We have a busy weekend planned too. Going to see Lucy and Craig on Saturday morning, going to Siston Fete around lunch time then on Sunday we have some friends over from Cardiff for a spot of lunch. Phew! I'm tired just typing about it.

Cuteness

Monday morning I put Leo in a nice outfit and took some pictures. He wasn't impressed and I later had to change his clothes as they were too tight.





We went to Sing and Sign class first thing. It was really, really hot and Ellis just doesn't seem that bothered anymore. Only 3 more weeks to go and that will be it.

We came home and had lunch which Ellis scoffed down in 2 seconds flat!



Then after a short nap we went to Nic and Ella's house.

I had to attend the local hospital for a physiotherapy session so Nic had kindly agreed to watch Ellis for me. I dropped him off, with a dirty nappy, and zoomed off for my appointment.

Thanks Nic for looking after Ellis and changing his nappy.

When I got back we sat and had a chat for an hour and then went home for dinner.





I bathed and put Ellis to bed and then Rob and I had Chinese and I sat and watched rubbish on the computer until bed at 11:00pm.

This morning I tried to capture Leo's smile on camera. I was only a little bit successful.



Ellis went down for a late nap and then my Mum came over to do my ironing. I think I may have to start paying her soon. I have thought about doing my ironing a couple of times but there always seems to be something else more important to do, like blogging. Thanks Mum you do a wicked job.

I woke Ellis up so that Mum could see him for a bit and then he polished off his lunch before we all got dressed and ready to go to Sally and Anna's house, which is where Mummy afternoon was being held.

I again had an appointment at the hospital but this time it was to register the birth of Leo. Sally said she didn't mind watching Ellis so I dropped him off and made my way to the hospital.

Luckily I had left early as it took forever to get a parking space. I finally found one, entered the office, spent 2 minutes completing some details and I was on my way again. It sounds really simple, but it was very hot and stressful. The ticket machine was the other end of the car park from where I had parked, so I had to carry Leo to the machine, back to the car, and then back past the ticket machine to the office! Then once I had finished I had to walk the length of the car park again, carrying Leo in his car seat. I was seriously sweating by the time I sat back in the car.

I soon arrived at Sally's where I tucked into some cake and a glass of water. Leo of course was hungry so I fed him a couple of times before passing him around for cuddles.







I tried to take some nice pictures of the kiddies.









They were all very cute today.







Back at home, Ellis continued to play out in the garden. He never used to like the grass, especially without shoes on so I was very surprised to see him marching around on it.



He then gave me a hand to hang out my clean washing, using himself as a clothes line. He put my CLEAN pants around his neck and started to say how nice his bib was. I tried to get it on video but he became shy!



My sister Katie came over in the evening and gave me a hand with the boys. She helped me to bath Ellis, read him his story and put him to bed while I had a shower and washed my hair.







While she was doing all that I had put Leo in his crib and I thought he looked so cute that I took some pictures and video.



Kate bathed Leo and then we ate our take-away pizza with a glass of wine. It was really, really nice.



We spent some time on the computer looking at Sims 3 which is a computer game that we both love. It was amazing! I'm going to go blind playing it I'm sure, but it will be worth it.

Very tired now and Leo is just stirring. Off to bed I think.