Happy Birthday Helena!

I am really excited because tomorrow is Ellie's birthday! She is 1 year old! I wasn't here when Ellie arrived, but Mum says it was exciting because it meant I wasn't far away. Mum remembers that Ellie was very small and very beautiful... and she is still small and beautiful, but I think she can do a lot more stuff now.

Left to right: Ellie, July '08, Feb '09, April '09.

So what this means is two things. Firstly, tomorrow I am going to my first ever birthday party! Mum and I are making some cupcakes today to take with us. I don't actually know what cupcakes are but it sounds fun anyway.

Secondly, my birthday is only five weeks away!! We are having a party too, at Grandma and Grandad's house in Emerald Beach. It's supposed to be a low key affair, but if I know Mum she'll get carried away and make it into the social event of the year. Willow and Ryder are coming with Aunty Bec, and Aunty SJ and Coco are coming too. Josie will be there, of course, with Uncle Sam and Aunty Jodie. Oh my goodness, I can barely contain my excitement!!

In the meantime, I have a lot to keep me busy. I have to practise my crawling some more. I don't want to... crawling is SO boring! But Mum says you have to learn to crawl before you walk... or is that walk before you run? Well, either way, apparently there is a procedure I have to follow. All these rule, pfft! The most fun thing in the world is walking around the house holding onto Mum and Dad's fingers until they turn blue. Those silly parents of mine try to refuse, but I manage to convince them every time.

The other day, they brought in a wooden trolley on wheels. It was very nice, I'm sure, but they kept putting it in my way when I was trying to walk. I couldn't understand what they were doing. Why would I want to walk with a trolley when I have them? Weirdos. Dad ended up pushing me around in it for a while which I put up with to keep him happy.

Talking is fun too, though I haven't ventured past "Mum" and "Dad" yet. I just wanted to master those two before I moved onto more complicated vocabulary. I do however make lots of squealing, yelping, cat-with-furballs type of noises, all with their own meaning. Mum and Dad get me, so that's all that matters.

Lots of love,
Amelia Joan.
xxx

Bathtime

Hi everyone,

Crawling is my main focus at the moment. I can commando crawl across the lounge now. I still don't really like it, and complain when Dad makes me crawl instead of picking me up, but I am starting to realise the benefits. For example, I can now get my hands on that wine rack I've had my eye on, and all the cords behind the TV are no longer a pipe dream!

A couple of weeks ago we went up to Grandma and Grandad's for Easter. Uncle Sam and Aunty Jodie were there with Josie and I was so excited to see her. I also saw Willow and Ryder and Aunty Bec. We had a lovely time. It was a bit strange being somewhere new, but I tried to be adaptable. The best thing was that Mum, Dad and I all slept in the same room, so I tried to wake up as early as possible so we could all play together. They were really happy about that.

Last week, Mum and I went on a (very small) plane to a place called Broken Hill, which is where Mummy lived when she was a baby. I met a LOT of people, who all seemed to love me a lot. Grandma and Grandad were there too and we had a great time.

I missed Daddy though. When I saw him at the airport, I was so excited! I didn't say anything except "dad, dad, dad" for the next 24 hours so he knew how much I missed him. I now can say "mum, mum, mum" too, which Mum is very happy about!

On Sunday, we had a great day! Mum and Dad took me to a place called a playground and I went on a swing for the first time. What an amazing invention that it!!



Hope you're all well and happy.

Lots of love,
Amelia.
xxx

I know I've said this before, but the past month has been an incredible developmental stage for me ('mental' being the significant part of that word!). In looks and abilities, I have changed so much, so quickly, Mum and Dad can't quite believe it. Probably most significantly, my hair has grown and people are not calling me a boy as much any more. Lucky, as Mum had started to get a complex and began dressing me in pink! Thank goodness that didn't last!

OK, so I am not quite crawling, but I am certainly giving it a good shot. I still get quite frustrated on my tummy, especially when Dad is using the iPhone as bait (boy I love that iPhone!), but I can pivot around and sometimes even drag myself forwards.

What I can also do, is say "dad!". Dad is very pleased. Sometimes it sounds like "dead!" but perhaps I am channeling a NZ ancestor. Mostly my soliloquies go something like this: "Dad! Dadadadadad (raspberry), bubububub, dead! dead! Dad!, aaababababaaaaa, yyaaaaaaaay (squeal!!!!!!)" I am very eloquent. I also like to sing along with Mum when she sings songs to me. I bounce up and down and hum along to the music. Sometimes I even play my piano. Perhaps I am channeling Mozart?

I get to play music and sing when I go to Babies Into Books (BIBs) at the local library with my friends. Ellie comes too, as do most of my friends from mother's group. We have so much fun! Although people often come up to me a steal my bells when I am ringing them. I am being bullied because I can't crawl, but mark my words, there will be vengence. Just give me a few weeks!!

Happy days... and nights!!

Hello friends and family,

Hope you are all doing well. We are all fantastic here! I have discovered something called sleep! Mum says not to get too excited - things do change - but I think secretly she is celebrating the fact that I am sleeping from 7pm until 7am every night. It has been lovely for everyone. I am still managing about 3-4 hours of naps during the day too, so Mum is enjoying some time to do things other than hang out with me. I don't know why she would want that, personally, but hey, each to their own.

I have nothing else too exciting to tell you right now. Life is just a happy blur of swimming, eating, going to the beach and playing with Mum and Dad. Oh, and saying 'bababa'. That's my activity du jour. So instead of writing you a long blog, I thought I'd add a long video of me... just being me. If it doesn't play below, click this link to watch it on You Tube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8l419ApZbk

(Yes, I know, I am only 8 months old, but I am very tech savvy!)

Lots of love,
Milly
xxx

PS: If you are wondering about the picture above, yes, it was that cold in Sydney a couple of weekends ago. We've had the full spectrum of weather this summer!

Water Baby!

With up to 40 degree temperatures here in Sydney, there really has been nothing worth doing except getting in the water. I have been loving it!! Mum first took me in the pool at my friend from mother's group Charlie's house. Mum wasn't sure if I would like it, but what's not to like? It was like a giant bath, plus all my friends were there. Fantastic! Since then, we have been to the pools at Colloroy and Dee Why nearly every day.

Of course, not all my water experiences have been fun. I was having a wash in the laundry sink a few nights ago (saves Mum and Dad's backs!) when I slipped under the water. Daddy grabbed my arm but it slipped and I was under for about two seconds. Mum said it felt like a lifetime, which seems a little dramatic to me. Anyway, Dad pulled me right out of the water and tipped me upside down while Mum whacked my back. I don't know what they thought they were doing!! I was fine! Cold and dizzy from being upside down of course, but otherwise fine. I got back in the sink, gave them both a reassuring smile and got back to the business of sucking on the flannel. My parents can be very strange sometimes. The next night when I got in the sink there was a rubber mat under my bum. A bit uncomfortable, but hey, as long as there is a flannel to suck on, I don't mind what I have to endure.

To calm nerves and build confidence (Mum and Dad's, not mine!), we started swimming lessons today at the Brooke Withers Swim School. There were lots of kids in the pool, most of them with their daddies. Mum thinks it's nice that it's a 'Dad' thing to do, and I think so too. Our instructor, Rosemary, was very nice and liked to have a cuddle, but she also liked to push me and my new friends under the water! It was a bit bewildering, but I didn't mind it too much. Dad was a bit scared and tried to only pretend to put me under when he thought Rosemary wasn't looking, but she saw him and made him do it properly. He is such a scaredy-cat, but Rosemary and I made him feel brave and we did it a few times. Mum just sat on the side of the pool, taking 106 photos when she wasn't covering her eyes during the scary bits.

I am off for lunch and a nap now. I am exhausted!! All this swimming really takes it out of you.

Happy New Year!!!

Well, there is really no excuse for not writing for so long, except that I have been particularly busy, what with growing and developing this past month. But with a new year upon us, I resolve to blog regularly! I have lots of pictures and videos to share with you, so I hope that makes up for my negligence.

(See? Look how cute I am in this picture. Doesn't that just make you want to forgive me immediately?)

A while ago now, I made the amazing discovery that I can control things! If I kicked my legs in my bassinet (my old bed - I'm in the big cot in my own room now!), I could make my mobile move. If I swipe at my turtle toy hard enough, it sings a song. And if I cough like I am choking, Mum and Dad will pay attention to me. I can forsee lots of fun with that! I am now able to grab things nearby and pull them towards me (like Dad's teacup) and pass objects from one hand to another. Life is becoming so much more interesting!

I have been having lots of fun with Mum and Dad lately. We like to tickle each other and slobber on each others faces. OK, well, they tickle me, and I do the slobbering, but it's all good fun. We lie on the floor and laugh and joke around. I love it! We also do some serious stuff, like rolling. I am very good at rolling from my front to my back. I can get from my back to my front, but somehow manage to get my arm trapped every time. Very frustrating!

Recently, I have learned to sit up on my own. Mum and Dad have to stay close to me, because sometimes I am still a bit unsteady but I am getting pretty good at it. Lucky, too, as Mum bought me a highchair, which is much more comfortable if I am able to sit up! When I am in the highchair, Mum and Dad, and even Grandma, have been giving me some weird stuff which goes in my mouth. They said it's called 'food'. I am not sure what to do with it, but it is not unpleasant. In fact, I quite like it. Mainly I just move it around my mouth and stick my fingers in it. It's messy but fun!

Last week, we went on a plane again, this time to see Aunty Jodie and Uncle Sam in Brisbane. They had a great surprise for me: a cousin!!! She is called Josie and she is much littler than me, but apparently we are the same age and everyone seems very happy about that. I thought she was beautiful, but she didn't do much. She seemed to just sleep all the time. I think maybe she was tired from working a lot, because I heard her mummy say something about long labour. Anyway, I think we will be the best of friends soon.


While we were in Brisbane, we stayed in an apartment with Grandma and Grandad all week. It was great to go for walks with them every morning. One day, we also went to see Mum's aunty and uncle, Chris and Dave. Everyone kept saying 'merry Christmas', and wearing silly hats, I think to keep me entertained. The best thing was I was given lots of pretty paper to grab, tear and chew. It was a fun day.



Hope you are all well. Mum and Dad and I wish you a happy 2009. Keep checking the blog - I promise there will be more regular updates from now on.

Love,
Milly. xxx

Let's talk about me.

OK, I know it seems like we're always talking about me, but usually it’s about what I've been doing, rather than how I am. I have changed so much already in the past four months (that's right, I'll be four months old in a few days!) and Mum says I still change every day.

So, at four months, I can:
- hold my head up steadily. I have been promoted to the 'big kid' stroller now, which is cool because I can see much more of the world.
- recognise Mum and Dad's faces. I am always very happy to see them, especially first thing in the morning when we all wake up.
- blow raspberries. We all blow them at each other as a form of communication. When I wake up in the night, instead of crying, I blow raspberries to wake Mum up. And all through 'Mums and Bubs' yoga last week, I used this sophisticated technique to get Mum out of downward dog and back to paying attention to me!
- chuckle at my parents' funny antics (see my video in last post).
- grab things: toys hanging on my playmat, teething rings (yes, teething rings! My gums seem to bug me, but more on that later), rattles, Mum's necklace, Dad's chest hair… When I grab my hanging toys I shake them and try to grab them with my feet as well.
- sleep for up to 5-6 hours at a time at night. I have been waking twice between 7.30pm and 6am, which Mum says is just fine, but last night I only woke once, at 2am, which she says is even better.

I am still exclusively breastfed and will be for at least two more months. I think I might decide to eat new food around December but until then Mum and I are happy with the way things are. I have been feeding often during the day – around every three hours - but this means that I sleep better at night, so all for the greater good.

I am not sure what I weigh exactly, but Dad weighed me on the home scales and it said I was just over 6kg. Some of my friends in Mothers' Group weigh up to 500gm-1kg more than me, so I must be around average. I am going to the doctors again next week (not sure what for, but it can't possibly be as terrifying as last time... or can it?) so I will be weighed then.

I am generally a content baby, happy to go wherever Mum takes me each day. I love going out for walks and get excited when I am put in the pram. We go for two walks every day: one morning walk in the pram to the beach, then another in the evening in the front pack as a bit of a wind down. Before I go to bed each night, we follow a little routine: walk, then nappy change, wrap, lights and noise down, and 'Calm Baby' music playing. Mum then feeds me to sleep and I usually pass right out. I do reserve my right to wake again and ask for another little cuddle, or a bit more food if I fell asleep too soon, but I try not to make too much fuss.

Lately I have started putting everything I can in my mouth. At first it was just to satisfy an overwhelming urge to suck, but now I have started needing to gnaw on everything too. I am salivating like Homer Simpson in a doughnut factory! I think I'm still a bit too little for teeth, and Mum says that my gums aren't swollen, but things can start moving around in there around two months before the teeth actually show, so it is possible that is what's happening. It is a pain in the ...well, mouth, I suppose, but it's amazing to think I will have teeth soon!



In my spare time, I enjoy hanging out with friends, watching the wind blow leaves on the tree outside, singing along with Baby Einstein and cuddling my favourite toy, the Whosit. I also like hanging out on my tummy. It's great fun! I'm not rolling yet, but I have been practising by putting my legs in the air and tipping on my side. Won't be long!

Lots of love,

Milly.

xx

Amelia's Funniest Home Videos

Non-stop parties and a trip to A&E.

When we got home from England, we had just one day to relax at home and we were off again! On Friday morning, we got on another, much smaller, plane and flew to Grandma and Grandad's place in Emerald Beach. It was Grandad's Big Birthday and we were having a party.

On Friday night, Mum and Dad and I were all pretty tired, of course, so I tried to let everyone sleep. I got up for supper at around 9pm and fed as normal. Mum said it was cute that I was so tired I wouldn't open my eyes. When I got up again at midnight, and still wouldn't open my eyes, it wasn't so cute anymore! My eyes seemed stuck together and I had a big red patch over the right one. I was still hungry though, so I told Mum to feed me first, then we could go to the hospital. No need for anyone to panic! While Dad and Uncle Sam were moving the Kia and the VW so we could get to the Mitsubishi, I did open my eyes but Mum and Dad thought it still looked bad, so off we went.

The A&E was surprisingly quiet for Coffs Harbour, 1am on a Friday night. We saw the nurse and then the doctor. Oh, Doctor Jurgen...sigh. He was lovely. I smiled and giggled and fluttered my manky eye at him. He liked me too, I think. He said I was 'alert'. But he couldn't tell us what was wrong with me and said maybe it was an allergy or I'd rubbed something into it. Mum thought maybe Sudocreme. He sent us home with a wink and a script for drops. The next morning, the eye was all but healed, and was clear by later that day, so it remains a mystery.

Saturday night was the big party. Grandad had invited lots of his friends and we all had a lot of fun. There was a jukebox and drums and a big cake with lots of candles! Willow came with Aunty Bec and Uncle Dax. Willow seems very grown-up these days, but then she is nearly one year old, so I guess that is very grown-up. I was very tired and had to go to sleep early. Even Mum and Dad couldn't keep up with Grandma and Grandad and they went to bed too, while the party carried on regardless.


It was lucky we did go to bed early, because Sunday morning we were up and off again. Back on a plane for a swift hour flight back to Sydney. I thought we might get a chance to chill out at home for once, but no! Mum dresses me up in a pretty dress and off we go to another party! This time it was a wedding - Mum's dear friend Lani married her long-time love Micah. It was a special wedding with lots of people, dancing, clapping, and tossing Micah up in the air. Of course, I slept through it all but Mum said it was lots of fun anyway.

Phew! That was a busy weekend, after our busy two weeks in the UK, but it was worth it. Now we just need a holiday to recover from our holiday!

AJ
x

England Baby!!

Well, the mother land was not what I expected, but it was pretty cool anyway! Three weeks ago, Mum and Dad packed a suitcase of my clothes, toys and nappies and took me on an aeroplane to visit my family in England. Flying in the plane was a lot of fun. I think Mum and Dad were worried that I wouldn’t like being on the plane, but I loved it. I only cried for about ten minutes and slept peacefully for the majority of the journey, and even when the plane broke in Singapore and we had to wait 16 hours for a new one, I was a joy to be with. The same cannot be said for Mum and Dad!

Our first week, we stayed with Grandma and Grandad in Broadwater. They really looked after us, cooking and washing and helping to look after me. My routine was blown right out of the water, of course. I had been sleeping through the night the week before we left, so Mum had a bit of shock getting up two, sometimes three, times a night. She was being a bit of a whinger about it, if you ask me, but Dad and I decided we would leave her in the mornings, so she could get some more sleep and she was less cranky then.

I met a lot of new people in the UK. Mum and Dad’s friends are all really nice and they seemed to like me too. I got lots of presents! Even when I was tired and cranky and giving Mum and Dad a hard time, people still seemed to think I was cute.

During the first week, we spent time with Great-Grandma Flo, Uncle David, Uncle Lee, Aunty Liz, Rob and Jackie; Stu, Dee and Noah; Matt Hedges; Matt and Emma; Dave and Jo and Liz. We had days out to country pubs, visited a real castle in Arundel, had a BBQ at Rob and Jackie’s place and a roast dinner at Grandma’s.

On Saturday, Uncle Lee got married to Aunty Liz. It was a beautiful day and everyone was really happy – especially Uncle Lee and Aunty Liz! I got to wear the beautiful new outfit Grandma bought me. I looked pretty cute. I wasn’t as happy as I probably should’ve been on such a joyous occasion, but I was still adjusting to being in a new country. Mum and I missed half the ceremony, all the speeches and the extended family photo, but we had a good time anyway.

The second week we stayed with Grandpa and Grandma at Rose Cottage. We had a lovely time. The weather was very warm and sunny (which everyone kept saying was the best it had been all summer… and it was autumn!), so we went for nice walks around Worthing, having cream teas and visiting baby shops. During this week, we also caught up with Stu, Lu, Freda and Isla; Ben, Lisa, Lydia and Eden; Dave, Bernice and Alicia; Sarah and Oliver, Lizzie and Noah; Aunty Sue, Jamie, Sam, Sandry and Mia; and Giselle and Luke. Wow, I really am popular, aren’t I?

Before we knew it, it was time to come home. Luckily the flight home was not delayed and it was smooth sailing all the way home. I didn’t cry once and slept like the baby that I am (Mum says she wants to get a flight simulator for our bedroom!). Seems I really am the perfect child after all.