Monthly Archives: April 2013

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Territory Baby

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Tuesday, 30 April 2013: Twenty-Nine Days Old.

I don’t know if there’s rules around taking a newborn out on a boat, but considering Ayla’s a Territory baby we thought it’d be a great way to celebrate her one-month birthday.

Plus, Hubby’s been itching to take her out on the water since about 4.04am on Monday 1 April!

Ayla did us proud. She was fantastic and happily slept away in our arms or in her bouncer which we set up in poll position in the boat.

Ayla wore her cute little hat like a champ and the fresh morning sea breeze kept her cool.

And, it turns out she takes after Mummy when it comes to sea-legs… Not a single sign of sea sickness!

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Bright Colours

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Monday, 28 April 2013: Four Weeks Old.

Ayla’s beginning to react to bright colours and new sounds.

Yesterday I caught her staring at a Bugs Bunny cartoon on TV and today she was in awe of the colourful squeaky toys we put in front of her.

While I’m still so in love with little tiny baby Ayla, I’m super excited to see her grow… I can hardly wait for her first smile and her first laugh, to see her play with her toys, and to watch her turn toward me when I call her name.

In other news… the midwife visited today and Ayla’s all on track; she’s now 3.58kg and 52cm (she was 2.89kg and 47cm at birth).

Also, I got a good nights sleep last night so I’m feeling much better, but I still only managed a 30 min nap this arvo before mummy-duty called!

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Tired

Sunday, 28 April 2013: Twenty-Seven Days Old.

Never in my life have I been as tired as I have been in the last 24 hours.

I think all the activity of the last few days has finally caught up with me; BBQ on Thurs, Ayla’s blessing on Fri, then yesterday we went out for lunch and I went for a walk in the evening.

Ayla’s sleeping fine through the night, but the whole “sleep when baby sleeps” thing during the day sounds easier than it is!

Because I want to spend as much time as possible with Ayla when she’s awake, I’ve been waiting until she sleeps before I feed myself, have a shower or do the things I need to do around the house.

But now, I’ve got myself so exhausted and over tired that even when I try to nap my mind won’t switch off and my eyes won’t say shut!

Finger crossed for a dream-filled night tonight! Zzzzzzzzzzz

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Yummy Mummy

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Saturday, 27 April 2013: Twenty-Six Days Old.

Today I took my first steps (literally) toward becoming a yummy mummy.

But despite what some might think, my motivation does not stem from a dislike of my post-baby body.

In fact I actually like my jelly belly… It shows I created new life and have now entered a new phase of my own, and I’m proud to say I think I’ve done a pretty good job of both. So far.

Today’s (very light) exercise was more about doing something for me -giving myself a reward for bringing Ayla into the world – and it felt great!

PS – Ayla and The Dog loved it too 🙂

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Ayla’s Blessing

(Video is pretty dark, and it’s a little bit quiet, but it captures the moment!)

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Sun, Moon, Stars, All you in the heavens hear us! Into your midst has come a new life. Make her path smooth, so that she may reach the top of the first hill!

Winds, Clouds, Rain, Mist, all you of the air, hear us! Into your midst has come a new life. Make her path smooth, so that she may reach the top of the second hill!

Hills, Valleys, Rivers, Lakes, Trees, Grasses and the Seas, all you of the earth, hear us! Into your midst has come a new life. Make her path smooth, so that she may reach the top of the third hill!

Birds that fly in the air, Animals that dwell on the land, Fishes that swim in the sea, Insects that creep among the grasses, hear us! Into your midst has come a new life. Make her path smooth, so that she may reach the top of the fourth hill!

All you of the heavens, all you of the air, all you of the earth, hear us! Into your midst has come a new life. Make her path smooth, so she shall travel beyond the four hills with courage and truth, love and light.

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Thanks to our wonderful friends who came along to share the moment with us; Aaron, Alison, Brooke & Razz, Chrissie, Karla, Kerri & Collie, Shianne & Greg, Tommi & Randy.

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Blessing

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Friday, 26 April 2013: Twenty-Five Days Old.

Tonight, on the first full moon since she was born, we held a “blessing ceremony” for Ayla at the Foreshore.

The blessing was very simple, casual and lovely; nothing more than a few very close friends, a glass of bubbles and a short poem.

We asked the elements to look after her and make her safe, give her courage and show her love.

A bit alternative, we know, but considering we pray to the fish gods more than anything else we thought it fitting 🙂

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Big Day Out

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Thursday, 25 April 2013: Twenty-Four Days Old.

Today was a big day out and about for our little family, and it was our first proper social outing with Ayla.

Hubby and I have been lying low for a little over a year now and it was great to catch up with friends over a bbq and footy.

We were out most of the day and Ayla didn’t miss a beat! She was happy and calm and her usual well behaved self.

As for Hubby and I, we felt human again and even wrapped up the day with a visit to some more friends on the way home 🙂

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Mothers Group

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Wednesday, 24 April 2013: Twenty-Three Days Old.

Ayla and I had our first Mothers Group today, for mums with bubs aged 0 to 8 weeks.

It was a good experience, but strange in the sense that I found it hard to identify as an actual mother with an actual baby!

I guess we’ve been living in our own little bubble the past three weeks and although people stop us in the street to talk about Ayla, it was completely different to being in a room with 20 other first time mums.

I was just like the movies… We went around the room introducing ourselves and our babies, then shared our experiences from the past week.

Topics ranged from changes in poo colour and new settling techniques, to questions about breast feeding and advice on traveling with little ones.

Although I felt a bit awkward, it was good to hear from other mums and have a place to ask my own neurotic new-mum questions. We’ll go back next week for sure.

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Growth Spurt

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Tuesday, 23 April 2013: Twenty-Two Days Old.

I think Ayla is having a growth spurt.

Not only does she look visibly better, she’s like a bagless, bottomless vacuum when it comes to food.

Until yesterday, Ayla’s average feed has been about 6 or 7 minutes long and she’s been sleeping for 2 – 2.5 hours at a time.

TODAY, she’s feeding for at least 10 mins (one feed went for 30mins!!) and she’s easily sleeping one hour longer.

But, as much as the thought of her growing makes my heart race in fear, we visited a baby shop today where I found myself drooling over gorgeous doll houses, pretty dresses and adorable carousel music boxes.