Routine... what routine?!

My husband and I recently went to look at nurseries, sadly I have to go back to work when my little one is 3 months old. It is a mixture of Statutory Maternity Pay being peanuts and I wanted to get onto the childcare voucher scheme before it was due to end in autumn this year (of course, this is now not ending until 2017 but at the time it was different). Luckily, it is only 2 afternoons a week I need to put him into nursery, but I am dreading the first day!

Anyway, when we were viewing these nurseries they were really lovely and friendly, and we have decided on one we feel is a great, nurturing environment. (I am going to post a bit more about the search for a nursery, some tips, at a later date). However, one word that the Nursery Managers kept saying during our show arounds was routine...

"We will work around your routine"... "Just let us know what routine Archie has"... "We will write down his routine for his Key Worker"... Routine, routine, routine...

Link: http://knowyourmeme.com/memes

I had a slight oh my goodness moment! What routine? My baby is only 9 weeks old surely this is a bit early for a routine?!

Ensue parenting panic! Am I being a bad Mum by not imposing a routine for him? I don't even keep a strict night time routine. He is slowly getting one but I am loathed to be too inflexible with him at this stage. Although he sleeps well through the night now, usually going from 9.30pm to 3.30am then waking at 6.30am, I am not strict about bedtime.

Also, and please don't judge me... I sometimes bath him in the morning instead of at night. This feels like a dirty little secret of mine because I hear so many other Mums talking about a bath, feed then bed routine.

I now have about 6 weeks before he is off to nursery and I really don't know if I should be setting down a routine or should I go with the flow still. I could argue it either way really: a routine could mean he will be really unsettled if that routine is ever interrupted but does a lack of routine mean your baby doesn't feel secure in his daily happenings?!

Due to this I think I am going to have to invest in some parenting books and get an idea of what parenting techniques I am really going to stand by and use. I was a bit unsure, again, about using parenting books. I kind of feel that they lead you down one technique and I feel this could be too restrictive, as all babies are different.

Either way I think that the time has come to decide what kind of parent I am going to be, which I am sure to blog about. So watch this space.

DUI (Driving Under the Influence... of Milk!)

I know I am still new to motherhood so there are a lot of things I am still learning. One thing I have still not quite got a handle on is our pram. In particular driving it.

In fact, my really bad "pram driving" has become a joke amongst my family. Sadly, their joking has some fact behind it. I can hardly claim to be good at controlling the pram when in 24 hours I managed to run over a stranger's foot in the street, crash into a bin, bashed into a pavement several times and almost took out a shop display. I am worried I will accidentally drag out a shop display soon and get arrested for unintentionally stealing.

Yes, I am no good at steering my pram. I am so bad that I apologise to people in the street and explain I am new to motherhood and controlling the pram.

It doesn't help that the pavements where I live have so many potholes, pavement works and uneven surfaces that it is like a rally car/off road experience for my baby.

Yet another obstacle!

In addition to this, you also have other people to swerve around and other prams to negotiate. Which pram has right of way on a pavement? Someone really needs to create a "Pramway Code"... and I definitely need driving lessons.

I just hope I get better soon, if only for the sake of the feet in my local neighbourhood.

Does anyone else have this problem? It would be reassuring to know other parents struggle too.

Angelcare Soft-Touch Bath Support Review

I will be honest when it comes to this item I was pulled in by the cool design and adorable pink or blue options.

Despite being pulled in by the design and colours I can say that I am really pleased I bought it.

Bath time with my 2 month old is already lots of fun because he can sit in his Angelcare Soft-Touch Bath Support and splash around (and I don't have to hold him like I would in a baby bath). This is the major selling point on this item, for me anyway. Being able to have my hands free to play and wash my baby while he is supported and secure is a big plus! It makes bathing him so easy!

It is easy to use as well: it doesn't slip around in the bath and has a handy max line to indicate how far to fill up the bath.

The blue/pink mesh has a none slip surface so your little bundle is secure. Plus I think it looks really nice.

I have also used the item to sit him in it, in the bathroom, while I have a shower. Sometimes a fussy baby can mean you want to keep them close while you have a shower and the Angelcare Support has been useful for that.

The only negative I found was that I couldn't use it for the first few weeks due to my C section. I wasn't able to bend down over a bath, and pick out the baby, due to my recovery. Of course my husband was able to do this but I wanted to be involved in my baby's first bath time so we used a baby bath instead (for the first few weeks).

Also, as with most baby items, it does have a "sell by date" (when he wont be able to fit into it anymore, which will be around 6 months old). But it could easily keep for the next baby or you can sell it on.

This is not a sponsored post.

My struggle with breastfeeding...

My story behind breastfeeding and eventually deciding to put my baby on formula is something I would like to share on this blog. Mostly because there is so much pressure on mums these days to breastfeed. I completely understand why and wish I hadn't struggled so much with breastfeeding, and had been able to feel like I could continue. But I didn't, and because I didn't and there is so much pressure I went through a worse time than was necessary.

There is three stages to my experience with breast and formula feeding: pregnancy and pre birth, post birth and breast feeding and eventually formula feeding.

Pregnancy
Before I gave birth I would characterise myself as a pro breastfeeding, natural mother type. I was secretly judgemental about women who didn't breastfeed, especially ones that formula fed from day one. I assumed that I would naturally fall into an easy breastfeeding routine with my new baby. I did understand that it can be difficult to get a good latch and struggling at the beginning was normal, but I was still deluding myself into believing I would find it relatively easy. I researched getting a good latch, listened intently during antenatal classes and read the information given to me from cover to cover. Armed with all this I was so certain I would be a natural at breastfeeding, however this is not how it happened...

Post Birth and Breastfeeding
My labour lasted 35 hours and ended in an emergency C section, needless to say it was a long, tiring experience. Immediately after the surgery I was taken to a recovery room and was encouraged to breastfeed straight away. My son seemed to have a good latch immediately and the closeness you feel during breastfeeding is euphoric. All this only heightened my sense of breastfeeding being easy. However, within 24 to 48 hours my breasts had started hurting, which can be normal even when your baby has a good latch. I had been seen by serval midwives and breastfeeding supporters by this point, all confirming everything I knew and stating how my son had a good latch.

After 4 days my milk still hadn't come through, which it normally has by this point. Because of this my son was still only getting small amounts of colostrum and was constantly sucking on my breast wanting more (this is meant to encourage the milk but it can really hurt your nipples). I could tell he was becoming dehydrated too, his mouth and lips seemed dry, he was constantly smacking his lips and he got urate crystals in his nappy. I knew I needed to give him something more than what he was getting but my milk just wasn't coming. One night he was screaming constantly and trying to feed all evening so I called my midwife and she said if I felt like I should give him some formula to tide him over than I could. I knew this was what he needed so we did a midnight run to Spar and bought some of the ready to feed Aptamil bottles. He greedily drank just 1oz and then fell asleep contented... He had obviously been hungry!

More days passed and by day 6 my milk still hadn't come in so I was supplementing his breastfeeding with formula to keep him hydrated. It also helped get rid of his new baby jaundice. I was also pumping to really encourage my milk to come through. Sadly, delayed milk can be caused by having a C section and my milk arrived on day 7!!!

By this time my nipples were generally sore from my baby trying to suckle at only small doses of thick colostrum. It felt like it was more than that too, so I got the breastfeeding support worker and midwives to look at his latch. Again they said it was good but it just didn't feel right. Despite my milk coming in breastfeeding continued to hurt, and combining that with recovering from a C section really took its toll. I felt emotional and like every part of my body hurt! After all my silly beliefs I would be a natural at breastfeeding I was feeling very disillusioned and was strongly, secretly considering full time formula.

However, I was very afraid to actually say this out loud, even to my husband. Would I be a bad mum if I did this? I was scared everyone would judge me, even family and friends. Everything I had been told, especially by healthcare professionals, was that breast is best. You have to do the best for your baby etc etc... I was shocked to be informed by the teacher in antenatal classes that she couldn't, wasn't allowed to, discuss formula feeding during classes. She could only promote breastfeeding and if we wanted to know about formula we had to approach her one on one after class! I feel now that this policy leaves many mums feeling added pressure, which can be very bad during the fragile state you can be in during postpartum. It also means you don't know anything about formula feeding, in my case I needed to feed my dehydrated baby formula and could have really done with more information beforehand.

Formula
In this final stage of my baby feeding journey I have been the most content and confident with my baby. Once I made the decision to slowly move to formula full time I felt such relief.

The decision came about because my husband was going back to work after his paternity leave and I was still recovering from my c section. I couldn't even get into the shower alone, but now I was expected to care for a baby on my own during the day. All while still struggling with painful breastfeeding! It was at this point that I openly admitted to my husband that I wanted to move to formula and he supported whatever I decided to do. I needed to feel like I could cope with feeding my baby. We decided together that I would pump milk and give him a couple of bottles of breast milk every day while formula feeding for the rest. I would slowly reduce the milk I pumped until our baby became fed on formula full time. This lasted a few weeks, so my son had about 5 weeks of combination feeding. He definitely got a decent amount of colostrum too, as my milk took forever to come in.

Although I am happy my son is now on formula I do miss the closeness you feel while breastfeeding. I know that breast is best and wish I hadn't struggled as much as I had, but I wanted to share my story and say it is okay if you decide to formula feed your baby. Being a new mum can be hard, you don't need the added pressure about breastfeeding if you struggle or it isn't for you.

Once I told my family and friends I was formula feeding they were all supportive, not one of them judged me for it. Although I explained why I had decided on formula to them I didn't really have to, everyone took my decision and accepted it without judgement.

Most importantly my son is a healthy, happy 2 month old baby. He is eating well, growing well and hitting all his development markers.

I hope this helps some mums contemplating formula for one reason or another, especially anyone worried about the pressure you may feel about breastfeeding verses formula.

Chicco Lullago Travel Cot Review

As I mentioned when I reviewed the Cocoonababy (click here to see this review) I did get drawn into buying a few baby items I either didn't need or could potentially buy cheaper versions of. I blame the pregnancy hormones!

One item was the Chicco Lullago Travel Cot. I decided at 8 months pregnant that I wanted a cot for downstairs so my baby was always sleeping with me in the room, until he was 6 months old (as is advised). Instead of always placing him in his cot upstairs. Realistically I could have just bought a Moses basket to last the first few months and then started placing my son in his nursery. This would have been cheaper than buying the Chicco Lullago Travel Cot which is around £100.

However, pregnancy hormones took over and I bought it anyway. I am glad I did buy it. It has been invaluable! Sorry to be a broken record, but my C section really limited my movement after birth and having the Chicco Lullago downstairs was so useful. I couldn't really master stairs when I came home from hospital, especially not while carrying a baby. So having my baby sleeping downstairs meant I was free to put him down to sleep without moving around too much.

It also fits his Cocoonababy in it, which a Moses basket wouldn't.

It is really easy to assemble and disassemble. It becomes much smaller and has a handy bag with handles to carry it around. It has been really useful to take with us when visiting (and staying with) relatives to show off our new little bundle. It doesn't take up too much space in the car, and you need all the space you can save because taking a baby somewhere overnight requires a lot of stuff!

We can also use it longer than a Moses basket. The instructions say it can be used until the baby is kneeling and/or standing. I would guess this would be around 6 months.

The negatives are that it is more expensive (than a Moses basket) and I haven't been able to find fitted sheets for it, which I would have preferred.

However, I would still buy this item in hindsight and not just because the blue one matches my living room colour scheme (yes, that was a factor in my decision making process before I have birth!)

This is not a sponsored post.

Aptamil Ready to Feed Bottles: Offer at Tesco

I am a big believer in sharing a bargain when I come across one. Even more so now that I am a Mummy, with all the extra costs that come with having a baby. We Mums need to stick together and share any bargains we come across!

In the spirit of this I wanted to share a current deal for formula milk. If you formula feed you may have come across the handy ready made formula bottles. I find these invaluable when going out. You can just pop the formula into a sterilised bottle and feed your baby. They are quick and easy to use!

Anyway, formula feed rarely has promotions on. From what I have read this is due to legislation where formula companies and suppliers can not actively promote formula because the government want women to breastfeed, believing of course that "breast is best" (and therefore prevent anyone promoting formula). This can make formula feeding expensive.

However I recently found a deal in my local Tesco on Ecclesall Road for the Ready to feed Aptamil bottles. They are usually around 80p a bottle but Tesco currently has 2 for £1.10 on Aptamil Hungry Baby and Follow On Milk bottles.

Although this offer isn't on the First Milk which you can give a baby from birth (I assume because of the legislation) you can feed a baby (from birth) the Hungry Baby milk that Aptamil makes (of course, always read the label thoroughly). So I bought a large batch of the Hungry Baby milk as my baby is 2 months old and on formula.

I hope this helps formula feeding Mums!

Afternoon (Tea) Delight: Fancie in Sheffield

Through the fog of long and sleepless nights, endless nappies and constant worry there can be real perks to being a Mummy.

One such perk is "Mummy dates" (meeting up with other Mums): leisurely strolls in the park, coffee and cake and watching your babies play together.

And one place I love having my Mummy dates is Fancie on Ecclesall Road, Sheffield. Firstly I was enticed by there pancakes and full English breakfasts and now I have recently discovered their new Afternoon Tea.

I have on one previous occasion tried their afternoon tea and it was good but I went back recently and was very impressed with the changes they have made.

My friend and I got a deal on LivingSocial for afternoon tea with prosecco for two, so we strapped the babies in their buggies on a sunny day and went off to Fancie.

The afternoon tea came with mini brownies, delicious berry and white chocolate style compotes, macaroons, scones (with cream and jam), profiteroles and sandwiches in delicious thick cut bread. As well as a mini milkshake, glass of prosecco and tea or coffee for each of us.

All this for just £15.95 on the Living Social deal! I felt like that was a real bargain for all this, and it was such a nice outing. Sitting in the seating outside, soaking up the sun in a July heatwave while we cuddled our babies.

Anyway... I love sharing a bargain and the afternoon tea at Fancie definitely is, especially if you can get a deal on Living Social (which they regularly have on there).

Links to Living Social and Fancie Website:
https://www.livingsocial.com/gb
http://fancie.co.uk/

This blog isn't sponsored. 

Top 5 What I Love About Being a New Mum

Being a Mum can sometimes be hard work, there is no denying that.

But there are also things that I adore and make it amazing. I wanted to share my top 5 things about being a Mummy!

1. The attention your baby gets! I love it when I am walking down the street and other people stop and comment on how cute my baby is. I can't help but be a proud and smug Mummy... Damn right I make cute babies.

2. Cake, cake, cake... I have found that with all the mummy and baby groups and meeting up with other mummy friends that I eat a lot of cake and biscuits. My waist line might never forgive me but taste buds have never been happier.

3. A good ol' mummy moan.... I have always loved to rant and rave about things but now I have a whole other subject. Night time feeds, husband not helping enough, useless health visitors... All brand new subjects you can moan about with your new found mummy friends.

4. My very own battle story. I secretly love telling people about my son's birth. I was in labour for 35 hours and it ended in an emergency C Section so it was quite an intense experience. I know it must be very boring for other people but to us Mums it seems like we love to talk about it. It seems like our version of a soldier's war story.

5. And lastly, but the best thing, is holding your baby. I just can't describe the utter love you feel when you hold your little bundle. I can practically feel the hormones releasing from my ovaries as I cuddle him close and smell his beautiful baby smell. He could be a holy terror all day but the moment you hold him in your arms you just don't care about all the hard stuff that comes with being a parent.

Let me know what you love about being a mummy in the comments.

Job Title: Mum

I used to work in recruitment and one of the most memorable CVs I ever received was from a full time Mum trying to get back into work.

Having been doing that a while this lady understandably didn't have much on her CV for recent employment.

However she had decided to put down motherhood as her current full time job, and even described in detail all that this role entailed.

As an example, it went something like this:

Current Employment:
Full Time Parent
2009 - Present
Job Role Includes: Childminder, Chauffeur, Conflict Resolution and Peace Negotiator, Chef, Cleaner, Financial Administrator, Entertainer, Head of Purchasing, PA (intensive diary management) and Waste Management.

I thought this was in ingenious way of selling yourself, while also being amusing. If you can make nappy changing (aka waste management) sound good then you are very inventive.

I think this person could have really embellished more though, including the skills she had developed in the role of Mummy, such as:

Works well under pressure: because if you can stay calm when you have to arrive somewhere in 5 minutes but your baby needs a nappy change (during which he poos and wees on you) then you can handle most pressure situations!

Experienced in dealing with difficult customers: is there any client more demanding than a baby?!

Skilled at sales and negotiation: you really have to sell that £5 toy to your child when he is clutching onto the £80 toy he spotted in the shop (and you can see a tantrum brewing). Not to mention trying to sell broccoli mush as a delicious meal to a weaning baby!

Able to think outside the box: all parents have to have an inventive and active imagination to help keep their babies entertained. This isnt a box, it is a time machine!

Diary management: no one truly understands efficient time management until you have to fit 5 children's birthday parties into one weekend! Keeping your child's thriving social life active can take up your whole calendar!

And when asked in an interview why you are leaving your current job you can honestly reply that you are looking for a new challenge, ideally one where you aren't going to be puked on as much!

Fancie a good breakfast?

I am very sad and I have what I call baby dates with my son. On days where I have nothing planned but feel the need to get out the house I will often go and find a local cafe, have a nice breakfast or lunch and do a bit of window shopping.


 

One place that is the perfect place for such an occasion is Fancie, on Ecclesall Road Sheffield. This cafe/restaurant encompasses the cafe style culture of Ecclesall Road (if you live in Sheffield you will know what I mean), it has a stylish, relaxed setting offering everything from breakfast, afternoon teas, cakes, lunch and dinner. It also offers a variety of cupcakes which is what it first became well known for in Sheffield.
 

It's cupcakes are a deliciously extravagant treat, however it is their pancakes that offer a whole other world of sweet heaven. You can have them with berries and cream or maple syrup and bacon. They are made with almond flavouring as well, which really adds a whole other level of fluffy yumminess.

   

Having recently discovered these pancakes I am now marking Fancie down as a must for breakfast dates and wanted to let you know about it too. Especially as their full English breakfast also impressed me. 

If you are ever in the area and looking for somewhere to have breakfast I really recommend Fancie.
 

Link to their website:
http://fancie.co.uk/

This blog post isn't sponsored.

Cocoonababy: Review

One item that I fell in love with during my pregnancy was the Cocoonababy. I will be completely honest, I saw it and just loved it. I read all the sales information and decided I wanted it. It looked good and claims to help babies sleep and reduce reflux (which can be common in babies). I do feel like the reason behind me wanting it was because of the good sales pitch and the high price (it looked like a luxury item), it wasn't necessarily a logical want. My pregnancy hormones may have been influencing me.

However, I am so glad we got it! My son has been sleeping in it since birth, so for 2 months now, and he loves it! He sleeps so soundly in it. Of course, this could be down to many other factors as well (he may just be a good sleeper). But I can not deny that since birth he falls asleep quickly when he is put in his Cocoonababy. He is also very settled at night, and apart from the odd spit up he doesn't posset anywhere near as much as when he is lying flat on a normal mattress.

Although Red Castle (who make the Cocoonababy) would be unlikely to encourage co-sleeping I have found that this can be done with the Cocoonababy (of course, always be careful when doing this and I am in no way promoting co-sleeping, this is just my experience).

My husband has been sleeping in the spare room during weekdays, as he works long days, so I have been putting the Cocoonababy next to me in bed during these nights (without any pillows or duvet under or close to it). This was really handy at night as I had a C Section and getting around was hard at first. Being able to be next to my baby and soothe him without getting out of bed was so useful. I felt that he was safe in the Cocoonababy, while next to me in bed, as I was much less likely to roll on top of him (one of the dangers of co-sleeping).

From what I have read the Cocoonababy was designed in France for Neonatal babies and is even used in French hospitals. Some of the benefits can be found on the Cocoonabay website here, and include:

• improve the quality and the length of the child’s sleep.
• reduce the involuntary jerky movements which wake baby with a start and make him cry (startle or Moro reflex).
• limit gastric reflux (thanks to the slope of the Cocoonababy®).
• limit the risk of flat head syndrome (plagiocephaly).

I believe in complete honesty so I will say that I haven’t noticed it really reduce the startle reflex (my baby does that often even in the Cocoonababy) and he does have some flat head syndrome (but not much). The best benefits, that I believe are down to the Cocoonababy, are him sleeping longer (he is 8 weeks old now and almost sleeping 6 hours at night) and less gastric reflux.

The Cocoonababy is expensive and it can only be used for a few months, John Lewis sell it for £129.95 (Link), but it does have its advantages and I would get it again in a heartbeat. I guess in terms of value for me it has paid for itself in better sleep for me and my son, and it being so useful for co-sleeping in those first weeks (when I struggled due to my C Section scar and recovery).

If you have any questions about my experience with the Cocoonababy please feel free to ask in the comments below.
 
This is not a sponsored post.

Let them eat cake!

Sometimes I feel like the only thing I eat as a Mummy is biscuits and cake. Mostly because of all the coffee mornings you can end up attending as a Mum. Whether they are baby and Mummy groups or just meeting up with a fellow Mummy, this has meant that cake and biscuits has become the staple of my diet.

Often that afternoon coffee and cake, during a meeting with a fellow parent, is the first chance I get to eat. It can take the whole morning to get ready and pack everything you need for just a few precious hours out of the house.

Anyway, because of this cake diet, when I find a good coffee and cake near me it is like gold dust. All these coffee mornings and Mummy meet ups make me feel like I have become a connoisseur of the humble Victoria sponge. 

Luckily I have a few places to pick from when the need for cake arrives and Couch on Ecclesall Road (in my home city of Sheffield) has a top selection. But the king of cakes, both in Couch and locally (in my opinion) has got to be their Salted Caramel Brownie.

This cake is our reward as mummies... Place it next to a large latte and I melt. This brownie is beautifully gooey in the middle and you can really taste the salted caramel flavour (it doesn't leave you wondering where they hid the caramel like so many other cakes can).

  

I have also tried some of their other sweet offerings and can report that they are delicious too including various brownie flavours, carrot cake and Victoria sponge. They do seem to have a flare for brownies though, as their snickers brownie is also another top treat!

And if the mood takes you, Couch also offers an array of delicious breakfasts, tasty treats, tapas and even cocktails. I love a place that you can take a pram into, get a cocktail in the evening and not feel like you are a bad parent in the middle of bar. The atmosphere is relaxed and it has that stylish look where none of the furniture matches.

It is also worth exploring for the offers they always have on; £1 coffee weekday mornings, 241 breakfasts on weekdays, happy hours and more. I am a sucker for a good deal and their full English breakfast is well worth trying, and if you can go with a friend and get 241 then it can be really good value.

If you are in Sheffield then I definitely recommend this place - they also have another Couch on Campo Lane in the centre of Sheffield too.

Link to their website:
http://couchstuff.co.uk/ecclesall-road/
 
This post isn't sponsored.

I was way too cocky...

I was until recently one of those smug women who didnt have 1 stretch mark on their growing baby bump. Even as my bump got quite big (and people were very verbal about how big) I would smugly remark back "and not one stretch mark"....

Ohhhh how that has changed, I have got my comeuppance. About a month before I was due to give birth I noticed the first signs of those dreaded marks... and then they multiplied like bunnies (but a lot less cute).

I now look at my belly and have to accept that it will not be the same post pregnancy. I wouldnt say it was a well trimmed six pack before, but with a bit of breathing in it looked okay in a bikini. That wont be the case anymore...

However, as I mourn the loss of my mark free belly I realise that this is a sacrafice that I would willing make. It is my mark of "mummy-hood" and I will wear it with pride. I might not necessarily flaunt my post pregnancy belly but I will feel a sense of pride that those are the "love marks" of 9 months hard work carrying my baby.

I wish I could say that any of the creams I have used have stopped the rapid multiplying of my stretch marks but they havent. I think that if you are going to get them, then you are going to get them. All us women can do is moisturise and pray.