About to Pop!

Another quick update...

First off, happy New Year to you! I hope you had a wonderful Christmas and you're all set for 2012

I'm 39 weeks pregnant today. Our gender scan showed that we are expecting another baby girl, and we're so excited. This was a photo from our 4D scan:


And this was me on a day out at the beach a few days ago:


She's due on 10th January. I've been having lots of contractions, and have had many muscle pains along the way, so I'm beyond ready for her to arrive now. Apparently she has other ideas though, so at the moment it's more of a battle of wills!

Signing Off

I've been absolutely impossible with keeping this blog updated. So much is going on in my life and I can't seem the find the time to post anymore. But here's a quick update on what's going on with me...

I'm pregnant again! I'm actually 17 weeks already, so almost halfway there. That's how silly this has got; I meant to announce my pregnancy on here as early as I did with my last, but I constantly forgot to do so. We had been actively trying for another baby for six months when I got pregnant, so we're over the moon. We are finding out the gender of the baby at our 20 week scan on 24th August, and we are so excited.



My daughter is now 15 months old; she's walking and talking and throwing tantrums to boot. She certainly keeps me on my toes! She has a gorgeous mop of blonde curls, and they bounce when she walks. She has a fantastic sense of humour, and I can't get over how much I love my little girl.


I'm trying to teach her a few baby-related things in time for her little brother/sister's birth; like treating a baby (or in this case, a doll) gently, about hugging and kissing it and generally being kind. I'm not sure it's working, although she's naturally fairly good-natured so we will see. There will be 21 months between them, so I think it's a nice age difference.

My husband and I recently celebrated our second wedding anniversary; how fast did that come around, and how much has happened since we tied the knot in 2009?! We celebrated by going to lunch, and in the evening we went to the cinema. The last time we've seen a film at the cinema was our first anniversary!

Anyway, all this is a little bittersweet, because I'm also here to announce that I'm going to stop posting on here now. Not because I don't want to, or don't enjoy it, because I do; it's just that I have no time at the moment, and with the new baby coming along in January, I get the impression I will have even less time.

Please feel free to leave messages if you wish; whenever you like. I will be checking in every so often to catch up on the blogs I follow, so I will be around; just silently stalking :)

Thanks for all the support and comments over the past few years; you've all been great! But for now (until I have more time), I'm signing off...

Back Home

We're back home. I never thought I could call Hubby's Homeland "home" after only having lived here for a year, alas it has happened. I never ever thought I would love it more than I love my own country. I'm patriotic and I love my country, but the way of life here is so much easier; so laid back and... nice.

Anyway, we're settled again (although my suitcase doesn't seem to think so; it's been sitting in the bathroom doorway for the past 2 weeks awaiting an unpacking). The day after we returned, we had to baby proof the house, since Baby C is so mobile. When we were away, she started crawling and hanging onto things when put against them. She also started using a walker, and became pretty good at walking with help from adults.

Now though, she doesn't stop. She pulls herself up on things, makes her way around the room with them and is reaching every nook and cranny; our things are not safe! It's only a matter of time before she's walking unaided. I'm so proud of her!

Next week will be her first birthday. I know, it doesn't feel like it should be; where did the time go? I've been planning her birthday, and actually getting quite excited about the big day. We've invited our friends and family to the beach for the afternoon, and we've bought everything we need to make her birthday cake etc. Now we just need the horrible weather to clear up...

Back to Work

...For now.

It's official; I am a terrible blogger. It's been 4 months since my last post! I am still here, I promise, though not as much as I would like. Let's see what's been happening...

The last time I posted, my dad and brother had just been to visit us. Well, in November we went back to Homeland # 1 for almost a month. It was only supposed to be a three week trip, but we got caught in the snowfall, and our return flight was cancelled.

My dad flew in on 20th December and stayed right through until New Years Day. It was lovely to have him with us for Christmas. Baby C had no idea what was going on at Christmas, although I like to think she enjoyed herself.

At the moment I'm back at work. Well, sort of. I'm still officially a stay at home mother, but I am working my notice after my maternity leave. Unfortunately that's meant that I've had to fly back to Homeland # 1 with Baby C, while leaving Hubby in Hubby's Homeland (as he's also working) to do this. I started back at work on 15th February, and I finish working on 30th March.

Unfortunately Baby C has waited until now to pass a few milestones, so naturally Hubby is sad that he's missed her crawling and her first teeth, but it was unavoidable.

Speaking of which, Baby C is now ten months old. Count them: ten months!! I don't know where the time went! Here are a few recent photos of her:

Happy Hallowe'en!

Holy cow, I need to start posting more often.

I've been busy lately; my dad flew in! He stayed for a week, and I was so happy to see him again, and he was excited to see Baby C again (though he tried to hide it).

Baby C is now 6 months old - how on earth did that happen? Can we rewind, because I'm not comfortable with how easily time seems to slip away these days...






She's blowing raspberries, giggling, sitting up (almost unaided), eating lots, rolling over, and generally causing havoc all over the place. I dread to think what things will be like when she's crawling, because I can hardly keep up with her as it is.

In three weeks I will be flying out to Homeland # 1 (my home country) to visit family and friends. Baby C will be meeting both of my grandmothers (her great-grandmothers) for the first time during this trip, so I'm really excited. This will also be the first time she's met our extended family (my aunts, uncles and cousins), who have so far, only seen her on Facebook.

Anyway, back to Hallowe'en... I realise a lot of you get really into this event, but I'm a real product of my parents, and I don't care much for it, so this evening I've banished myself to the house, lowered the shutters and am praying no mini witches or ghouls darken my door in search of sweets... because I didn't buy any. I know...


Source

Ahh well...

Weaning!

I'm afraid it'a a little long-winded, so forgive me if I don't go into the details, but we are officially weaning!

Baby Girl started life as a very average baby; 7lb 8oz at birth, and bang on the 5oth centile thereafter. Until recently. Over the past month or two she has been slipping centiles, and is currently on the 15th centile. Not too bad you may say, because many premature babies start off in the lower portion of the centile charts, but Baby Girl was previously very average, so for her to be slipping now is a bit of a concern.

She has also been going off her milk. I know; not exactly great timing.

The decision was therefore taken to put her onto a hypoallergenic formula, to see if she had a milk/soya allergy, or intolerance, or to check if she had a subtle form of colic, as she's been showing a few signs of pain when feeding.

We also took the decision, along with a dietician's advice, to wean her slightly early. I got very excited, spending ages in the kitchen cooking up a storm, and I have been feeding her pureed carrot and banana, as well as baby porridge. And she loves it! Here are a few of the best photos:

Teething Woes

Where has my happy baby gone? She's been replaced by a grouchy, grizzly, dribbly little monster. A gorgeous little monster, but scary nonetheless.


Baby Girl is teething.

I've suspected it for a while, but now I'm sure. Well, as sure as I can be, considering she can't tell me what hurts. She's been like this all day; she's happy one minute, screaming the next. She's off her milk, off her dummy and off Captain George (her favourite toy). There's nothing I can do to pacify this little hurricane.

I tell a lie; she likes to use my finger as a chew toy. If I let her, she will chew on my nail until the cows come home. Last time, I was there for an hour.

And the world seems to be working against her, because each time she drifts off to sleep, the phone rings and subsequently the caller hangs up just before I go to answer it. Then this is what happens:


Not happy.

So I gave her a dose of Calpol, camomile tea and she finally drifted off to sleep. I hope that's it for the night. There best be a whopping great tooth at the end of all this...

Shake Up

I felt it was time for a shake up, so I've renamed my blog. It's a little more apt considering the focus of my life at the moment.

What do you think?

News on the Housing Front...

I was going to update you on the housing situation, but all in all, nothing's really changed. We still haven't received the paperwork for the purchase of Hubby's grandmother's house, so we're still living cramped in this little one bedroom place.

The flat we're in feels more claustrophobic each day, because as Baby Girl gets bigger, she requires more space, and we have to deal with less. I'm happy to do that, because she's more important, and if she needs floor space, it's our responsibility to find it for her. It just means that nothing else can be in the room but her!

I'm going to a friend's daughter's third birthday party tomorrow, and I went shopping for a gift this afternoon. Do you remember Sylvanian Families? I used to love them when I was a child, and I've already considered buying them for Baby Girl when she's older. Anyway, I bought these ones:

And I have to admit, I was a little sad to have to wrap them, because I would have quite liked to keep them. I never really did grow up!

National Day

Sometimes I worry that life has got away from me. When we were planning the wedding, I started writing a journal, so I could remember it for the rest of my life. When I got pregnant, I continued to write about my feelings, excitement etc, but with the morning sickness, it all went to pot on our honeymoon. Since then I've printed off all the online journals I had, and have been trying to add them to my real journal ever since.

I now have over a year to catch up on. And because I'm so behind, I've not been writing much recenlty, and now I get the feeling that I'm losing all of the precious memories of Baby Girl. She grows so quickly, and it's so easy to forget the "little things". I say little things because to the world, they are small, but to her, and to me, they are massive.

She laughs, and it lights up my day. She blows a raspberry, and I want to grab my camera. She sighs softly in her sleep and I want to squeeze her and never let her go. All these tiny things, I'm forgetting.

My conclusion: I need to blog more.

On another note; after my 2lb loss last week, I put on 3.5lb this week. I am beyond annoyed, because I'm now officially into new territory. I have never been this heavy, and I'm not impressed. So back on the diet I go...

Part of the reason for my gain is because we celebrated National Day last week. National Day normally comprises of a political rally (which I go to but don't listen to), followed by lunch with Hubby's family, and then whatever else you fancy. THis year Hubby was working, but finished at 4:30pm, so in the evening we went to his parents' house for a BBQ.

On this day, you also dress yourself in the national colours of red and white. I cannot tell you how much fun I had shopping for Baby Girl, and using National Day as an excuse. She had 7 outfit changes, just in case of a pooh, sick or dribble incident, and she actually went through 4 of them.










And just a few more to keep you filled in; these were taken a couple of days ago:

Round Up

Okay, okay; I didn't stick to my promise of blogging more regularly, but I'm still around. It's only a short one for now, because it's gone midnight and I should really be tucked up in bed. So time to give an all-round catch up...

I've had a lovely summer so far. I say so far, because here it's still summer. The days don't really turn autumnal until late October. Day-to-day it's another story; catch me in the street and I'll tell you I'm hotter than the sun; catch me in the morning and I'll tell you I'm more tired than I've ever been, but really? Really, I couldn't be happier.

The hot weather is beginning to ease off now, and while it's still in the high twenties and humid; it's bearable. I celebrated my 26th birthday this summer; I didn't do anything special, but I enjoyed time with Baby Girl, and she gave me plenty of smiles to keep me happy.

Speaking of Baby Girl, it's been such a whirlwind! She's almost 4 1/2 months old, and it literally feels like a few weeks. She's found her voice and squeals for hours on end, before she collapses and falls asleep. She also laughs; a really gorgeous filthy laugh that in turn, makes me laugh too. When she laughs, my heart fills up and I cannot describe how much love I have for this precious little thing. She's also learned to blow raspberries. When I first caught her trying, I was really excited for the day she would manage it, but now she has, I've realised that it just means I have to be evern quicker to wipe her face, because if I leave her, she ends up looking like a rabid dog!




She's got fantastic head control now, and I'm just waiting for her to perfect sitting up unaided. She sits on my knee for ages - I think she likes waching TV - oops. And this morning she rolled from her back to her front for the first time. I'm so proud of her.

Hubby is enjoying his job, which makes me happy. When he gets home I ask about his day, with the hope that he will be able to entertain me with crazy things that have happened. And as for me, there's not much to tell. I'm gradually feeling more at home in Hubby's Homeland, but obviously it will never be the same as Homeland # 1.

Some of you may recall that in the run-up to my wedding, I was on Weight Watchiers, and I would post about my progress here. Well, I'm happy (but also kinda not happy) to announce that I'm officially back on the wagon. I started last Wednesday (1st September), so I've been going for a week already. There aren't any meetings here though, so I'm doing it with a friend here, who had a baby three weeks after Baby Girl was born. The good news is that I lost 2lbs! I celebrated by having a scone with cream and jam for breakfast. Well earned I think...

You can follow the rest of my weight loss progress here, or my clicking on the "Lara's Weight Loss" icon to the side of my blog posts.

A Year Ago Today

This day last year, I found out I had my beautiful baby girl growing inside me. Obviously that day changed my life, and here I am one year later, mother to a gorgeous girl who continues to amaze me each and every day.

Some days have been hard, and others have been like a dream, but I wouldn't change a single second. I love spending time with my daughter, and I love watching her grow. I just wish I could pause the special moments and experience them forever, because like everyone says; they're over far too quickly.

Baby Girl turns 4 months old on Friday; and what a whirlwind of a four months it has been. I just hope the next four months feel a little longer, because if it continues like this, she may as well have her birthday tomorrow, because it will only feel like a day has passed until she's a year old. Phew!

Bumbo!

If that smile doesn't say approval; I don't know what does. Money well spent!

Window Shopping in Ikea

Window shopping in Ikea is never a good idea, because I walk away wanting everything. Hubby saw an advert on the TV this morning and suddenly decided that despite our shortage of money, he wanted to have a wander around the wonder that is Ikea.

I don't know if I've explained our housing situation already, but I'll tell you again. We're applying to buy a flat which is currently occupied by Hubby's grandmother, and is leased from the government. They allow long-term residents, and their family to purchase the flat for a cut-down price. The flat in question is on the third floor, has two bedrooms and is ideal in every way for us to raise Baby C. Hubby's grandmother finds the stairs hard to contend with now she's becoming less confident on her feet, and she doesn't need the extra bedroom, so wants to move to a small, one bedroomed, ground floor flat, preferably nearer to her daughter (Hubby's mother).

The flat we're currently living in is all of those things, so we're hoping to swap. For that reason, we're kind of in limbo with our living situation at the moment; we don't want to change this flat too much, because we know we will be moving, and it will have been a waste. But on the other hand, we really have no time frame as to when we can move, because the paperwork is taking it's sweet time to come through.

So when we go to Ikea (I don't really know what we were thinking), all we can do is window shop and dream of the future and what we might be able to have. We did fall in love with this item though:


Now, I realise it doesn't look like much, but it's exactly what we need. We have a little round table in the corner of the room, but because of the amount of things we have, we can't get it clear of clutter. We want a desk to be able to work on our laptops, because let's be honest; your lap is the last place you want your laptop when it's 35c outside. We would also love to raise Baby C to see that having dinner around a table (even if it is a small one) is normal.

And of course the massive shelves allow us to store some of said clutter. They also sell boxes which fit into the shelves, so that they look a little tidier. We're thinking of using red boxes to contrast with the white.

It took a lot of will power not to buy it there and then. But it was made a little easier, because I was looking forward to our next stop, where I was about to make my next purchase:


A BUMBO!!!

For those of you who haven't seenn these before, they are basically little chairs that you can sit your baby in for feeding, for playing, or just so they can sit up and look around. They take up less space than a highchair (which was my main reason for getting one), they're lighter, and they're just so cute. I have been after one of these since before Baby C was born, and believe me when I say it's been no easy feat.

I have looked high and low, near and far, and enquired in all the franchises around here that I know should stock it, but to no avail. Nobody has even been willing to order it in for me, even when I offered to pay extra for shipping and taxes. So it's taken a little shop 2 hours away from Hubby's Homeland to be able to find it. And they only had this scary bogey green colour (it's the colour of Shrek), and I paid well over the odds for it, but I don't care, because it's a Bumbo, and Baby C likes it!

Three Month Check

I'm here, I promise! I've just had a look at my blog and noticed that I've only posted four times since Baby C was born. Four! This has got to change.

So from now on, I vow to post more regularly. I can't promise you I will post weekly, but certainly more than once a month. So here goes, a quick catch up...

Baby C is about to turn three months old; I can hardly believe it. She changes every day, and I look back at the first photos of her, and she doesn't even look like the same person. She started smiling when she was siz weeks old, and now you can't stop her grinning back at you. You can just look in her direction and she's already flashing a mad grin your way; she's incredible.


And she chats more than ever. It's getting to the point where you chat to her and she responds. She clearly has a lot to say; if only I could understand her!

She's much more aware of things around her now, and she would much rather be sitting up looking around than lying down all the time. So I try to sit her up on the sofa, and then this happens:


I guess it's a bit too exciting for her after all! She's also paying more attention to her toys, which is good. We bought her a toy cow, which she seems to love, so that was a good investment. She was given three comfort blankets when she was born, so I pulled them out of storage and gave them to her, only to find that she preferred her muslin square


I can tell she's going to be one of those kids that prefers to play with the box, not the toy. Never mind. I suppose I can always pass them on to a friend in the future.

Her head control is getting much better. She doesn't take too well to tummy time unless she's lying on someone's chest, at which point she's looking around at everything, her eyes wide and her mouth open in wonder. We bought her a doorway bouncer a few weeks ago, and while her head control isn't completely there, we put her in it for a few minutes today; just long enough for a couple of photos:


It will be at least another month until she's able to use it unaided, so for now she'll have to make do with her activity mat.

In other news, we went back to Homeland # 1 to introduce Baby C to the rest of our family and friends. We had such a great week, even if it was chaos from start to finish. We were zipping around the country trying to see as many people as possible in the limited time we had. My mum, dad and younger brother had already met Baby C, but for my stepmum, older brother and sister-in-law it was the first time, so I made sure I got lots of photos for her when she's older.

We also made sure we saved enough space in our suitcases for a shopping spree. I'm actually a little ashamed of how much we brought back with us...



And that's just the baby stuff. But in my defence, we bought an entire bed-in-a-bag, bath towel, rucksack, and we were given a whole pile of clothes from a friend, so I guess it's not as bad as it looks! I only bought myself a top, and that was only because Baby C threw up on me when we were out, and I had nothing to change into, but Hubby bought a couple of things for himself, and we bought some DVDs, which we ended up having to leave behind with my mum until next time because of the weight restrictions.

Travelling with an infant was harder than I thought it would be, but in a way it was also easier. Dealing with a baby and an airport was hard work, but she was so good in the plane, I can be nothing less than proud of her. She cried a little during take-off on the flight out, but we gave her a bottle and she went to sleep. Landing in Homeland # 1 and the return flight, we didn't hear a peep. She was as good as gold.

the rest of it is just day-to-day stuff which, for now, can be forgotten. Now that I hope to post more frequently, you will be hearing about a more varied selection of events, opposed to the baby updates all the time!

I jsut want to add that if you're still reading along; thanks for being patient with me. I'm so busy, but haven't stopped thinking about all my fellow bloggers, and I really hope to be back here properly now.

Baby Shopping is Not the Same as Mummy Shopping

Baby C is 7 weeks and counting. I now know what everyone means when they say they grow so fast. It seems she's changing on a daily basis, and I can hardly keep up. Her feet are starting to reach the end of her buggy, her socks no longer fit, her bodysuits won't stretch over her nappy and she's realising that her dummy is not, and should not be given in place of food. Hmmm...

I'm so excited to be going home in a couple of weeks. I haven't been back since we left in February, and I am so looking forward to seeing everyone again, and for them to meet the baby. My brother, SIL and stepmum still haven't met her, as well as all my extended family. My dad said we should try to arrange a get together with his side, and hopefully we can do this on one of the weekends. Shopping for flights is proving to be expensive; it doesn't look like we can do it for less than £500 ($800). So much for being able to fly over there every 8 weeks.

I can't seem to stop shopping for baby C! Every time I go into town I look around for clothes for her. She's finally starting to grow out of a few things, and I'm realising that perhaps I shouln't have spent so much money on buying newborn clothes!I have so many things for her to wear now (I think even more clothes than I have!); I have decided to take advantage of the sales and shop ahead for next summer. However, I am finding more items in the full priced section than the sale. Oops. I've ordered a few things online and had them sent to my mum's house, and will bring them back with me when I see her at the end of the month.

So far C has been sleeping in a moses basket on loan to us from a friend, but at the rate she's growing, she won't be able to fit in it much longer. We have been discussing getting a cot for ages, but didn't do much about it until the last week, where we have been discussing it and looking at options available to us. We measured our bedroom yesterday and found it was just about able to house a double bed as well as a cot, so we scoured the websites of the local businesses and ORDERED IT TODAY! This is the one we're getting:



It will take up to 5 weeks to come into stock, and when it does we will put her in it straight away. I'm so excited, because we can finally start thinking about proper bedding. I can't afford any of the cute sets, but I'm hoping to make a few nice things, and just get some coloured sheets to match. There's a brand in the UK called Cath Kidston, that does beautiful fabrics:

http://www.cathkidston.co.uk/c-104-cotton-duck.aspx

But they're really expensive at £18 ($25) per metre. It's too expensive for me to make an entire item from, but I was thinking of getting a metre and teaming it with a cheaper fabric and making a quilt. It's only an idea at the moment, I don't know if I will have the time for anything like that, but I would love to give C something like that.

Snatching a Quiet Moment

I thought I'd come onto Blogger while I have a peaceful moment. Not much to update you on, but just to let you know that I'm doing well and busy juggling... everything. Chloë is almost 5 weeks old now, and growing fast. I took her to be weighed last week, and she was a whopping 9lb 7oz; 2lb up on her birth weight. I've been combi feeding her for a month, but on Monday we made the permanent swtich to formula, due to a number of reasons. I feel guilty for my choice, but I know I made the right decision.

Hubby started work last week, and so Chloë and I had our first week at home together. Things could have gone smoother, but Chloë decided it would be interesting to test me by throwing a fit for hours on end and refusing to settle. Here are the latest photos:

First trip to the beach:



In her bouncer:



Tummy Time:



Dressed up:

The First Week

The past week has gone by so fast, I can hardly believe it.

Chloe is a week old, and already she's changed. For the first few days we were muddling our way through caring for her, but now it seems we have her a little more figured out. That doesn't mean we have this down to a tea; far from it, but we're understanding a lot more, and she's getting less frustrated waiting for us to figure out what she wants.

I had a lot of trouble breastfeeding at the beginning, which made things a lot harder. She would be so angry, and I would be at a loss for how I could help her, but slowly slowly, we're getting there and things are going a little smoother. Hubby has been incredible, and for that I am so grateful. He's patient and he reminds me that she's only frustrated because she can't figure out how to feed, and not because of anything I'm doing wrong.

We've gone to town a few times, and when we get home without having come into any obstacles, I feel pretty proud. I never thought something so simple would give me such satisfaction!

This is baby Chloë at a week old:

Life Suddenly Got Serious

First of all; happy due date to me! It seems like only a couple of months since we found out we were expecting a baby, but time really has flown. I know I said I would update you on the pregnancy in my next post, but it turns out I'm here to announce the birth of my beautiful baby....

GIRL!

I went into labour on Tuesday 27th April, and Baby Girl was born on the same day; weighing 7lb 8oz, 48cm long and with lots of blonde hair. I know everyone says it, but I am so in love.

I woke at around 8am on Tuesday feeling cramps in my lower belly. Although not painful, I couldn't sleep through them, so chose to get up. When I got up they intensified, so hoping it was the real thing, I showered and waited as long as I could before waking Hubby. The poor guy had a migraine, so he was almost as useless as me as we tried to finish packing my hospital bags.

We had our 39 week appointment with the midwife at noon, and decided we would still try to go. As we were walking to the hospital, my mother-in-law passed and picked us up, taking us the rest of the way. The midwife took one look at me and realised I was probably in the early stages of labour, but too early to stay, so advised us to go home and wait it out there.

We headed back to spend the afternoon with my in-laws, but straight after lunch I went to bed, and then the contractions got stronger. You may know that my mother-in-law was a midwife until her retirement, so she spent an hour or so coaching me through my contractions and reminding me to breathe; something you're not normally coached on here until you get to the hospital.

When the contractions were 5 minutes apart and lasting a minute each, we headed to hospital. Walking into the hospital was hard, because the contractions were coming every minute or so at that point, and I was having to stop and breathe through them before I could continue.

Arriving, my lovely midwife Tina booked me in, and I got straight into a warm bath, took some co-codamol and waited it out. Pretty soon I was on the gas and air (good stuff; I strongly recommend it). When my waters broke in the bath, I got the "sudden urge to push", which I promise you, you can't ignore.

They wheeled me through to the delivery to examine me, and smacked me into the door on the way in... whoops!

At this point I was inhaling the gas and air so much so that I was falling asleep with it in my mouth. I heard them saying I was fully dilated, and in my head I was laughing at the poor woman that had to deliver a baby without any more pain relief. Had I not been so high at the time I would have panicked, realising it was me that had to push this baby out with nothing more than Entonox in my system.

I spent about 40 minutes pushing, and towards the end I was getting lazy, telling them I couldn't possibly do it (I bet everyone says that). And when I thought I'd pushed out half the baby's head, they tried to motivate me further by saying "you're doing so well, we can see a coin-sized part of the baby's head!"

Then I started freaking out again. That much pain for a coin-sized amount of head?!

But Tina and my mother-in-law were incredible; they knew exactly what to say to spur me on, and I found the determination to get there when Tina told me she wanted the baby out in the next contraction. She only meant the head, but somehow (I still don't know how), I managed to have the entire baby born in the next contraction.

The midwives had to catch her because she came out so fast!

My labour was 6 hours, but only 2 hours were spent at the hospital. I spent three days in hospital, and came home yesterday. Hubby and his family have been so wonderful while I've been away; painting, cleaning and clearing the house for our return, and it's finally starting to look like a home fit for our little family.

But now for the photos; my beautiful baby daughter, Chloe:

10 Days and Counting

First of all, let me apologise for not having updated in weeks. The trip back up to get our things went... interestingly. You would think that after the events of the trip here, we would have a problem free time going back, but that wouldn't be any fun, would it?

We broke down... again. It turns out there were a few problems with the borrowed van, the worst of which being a busted suspension, which we discovered on the second day. Luckily we found a garage that could fix it same day, so we were only delayed by 5 hours before we were back on our way. Other than that the trip was largely uneventful, and we made it back to Hubby's Homeland on the fifth day.

We have since unpacked a few things, although the majority of our things are still in boxes stacked up in the hallway:


We're having to ignore it for now though, because we have more things to deal with...

DIY

At almost 39 weeks pregnant, this is our sitting room:




You didn't think I would be that disorganised, did you? You see, unfortunately while the house we are living in is decent enough, the paint was peeling off in the lounge and bedroom, so we thought it more sensible to sort it out before the baby was born, opposed to having it breathing in the dust and paint fumes.

Well, that was the plan at least, but it's taking longer than we thought it would, because it's not simply a case of repainting, but removing the old plaster, replastering, sanding the walls to smooth them for painting, and finally repainting. We had hoped it would only be a small percentage of the room, but it seems to be around 60% of the room affected. We're halfway through sanding the walls, and I hope with all my might that it will be done by the time I bring the baby home.

The due date is 10 days away


It's lucky in some respects that Hubby still has no work, because he is making himself useful doing all of this DIY, so I can't complain much. In regards to his job; he had the maths and English tests, followed by the fitness and roleplay in March, and he finally had the interview yesterday. They have said it will be up to three weeks before we hear back, so for now we're stuck in limbo. The good news is that Hubby will have time at home with the baby once it's born; something many dads don't get, so I'm happy - even if our savings are dwindling.

I will update on the pregnancy in my next post, but for now, I just wanted to let you all know that we are doing well and manically trying to ready ourselves for parenthood.