NaBloPomo 3 COPING….

This is how i cope my beutiful babies, does not matter what happens as long as i have them all will be right with the world!

NaBloPoMo 2

Well i missed yesterday as i was very hectic getting my babies ready to spend their first night away from me and with there Daddy. While packing all their little bits i had to wipe away a few tears as it is not every mother that lets their 11 week old son out of their site for the night.

The children stayed with Daddy at Grandmas for reasons i do not want to put on here as to personal. I was given the opportunity to get all glammed up like i used to in the good old days and go out with my to wonderful sister in laws and my gorgeous sister in law to be for a very quiet hen do (she still had to wear a tiara and sash she did not get away from it entirely).

We met in Croydon as is it was central to all and had a wonderful catch up gossip and meal. It was great to see them as i am very close to them and all of my ex husbands family as i have known them for 18 years! And i intend to keep it that way for my sake and the childrens.

When i got home i had to go straight to bed as the flat was so empty and quiet. My sons crib was empty next to my bed and i woke up often thinking it was feed time and at 4am when my daughter normally shuffles sleepily into my bed i woke up with a start wondering where she was. I have had a lovely relaxed morning and blogging this from a hot bubble bath ;0).

But i am now ready for my babies back and to give them
big lemon squeezers!

NaBlOpoMO Day 1

Well today I had a visit from one of My dearest friends Chelle McCann and she convinced me to join in with NaBloPoMo to take my mind of the current events in my life and I rather daftly agreed!

I have recently been left by my partner of 18 years and Husband of 6 years 5 weeks after giving birth rather traumatically by emergency C-Section to my son at 35 weeks weighing with him weighing  just 3lb 8oz. I had a horrific and very toxic pregnancy that caused my arthritis to flair to levels of pain I did not know existed and caused me to have to use crutches from May to recently as my legs were so swollen I could not walk!

I am going to use this blog a day as an opportunity to write about my progress since my husband left and how I am doing as a newly singly Mummy to my 4 year old daughter and now 11 week old son. This project will help take my mind off the current  raw and emotional state i regularly find myself in and work through some of the crap that is being thrown at me.

I will say this year has been awful BUT the best thing that has come out of it is my gorgeous son, my children keep me strong and literally get out of my bed every day ;o)

So bring on the challenge and it will be with a  tiny baby and a 4 year old in tow!

Babymoov Change Bag Review

Before I gave birth to my son I was desperately researching change bags, I wanted one that was big enough to take all the items you need for a new born baby but would also be able to take the items I needed for my 3.5 year old daughter ie juice cup spare change of clothes and snack pots.

I had spent ours trauling the internet and all the most popular brands of bags were way out of my price range and had been used recently by friends who had babies and they said considering how much they had paid they were just not big enough. However there was one brand of bag that kept catching my eye it was reasonably priced chic functional and appeared to be big enough to contain all that comes with a new born and a toddler and this was the Babymoov change bag.

I put a tweet out on Twitter to see if anyone had used this brand before and Babymoov themselves kindly came back to me and I cheekily asked if I could review the bag and luckily for me they said yes and promptly sent me the bag and I have not been disappointed.

I have the grey and red with white polka dots Babymoov Chic bag above it comes with a plethora of accessories  I love that the fold out change mat is on the front of the bag attached by two little metal clips, this makes it really quick and easy to use no more rummaging in a bag one handed with a baby screaming in you arms, it folds up really neatly and has pockets on the inside large enough to hold a number of nappies and a small pack of wipes so you can always be prepared.

The Babymoov bag also has a bottle bag that is insulated on the inside and is clipped to the outside of the bag for ease of use. I can fit a carton of prem baby milk and a small feeding bottle in this bag so it has ample  space for a large bottle and certainly keeps everything warm or cool depending on what you have put in there. There is also a little dummy bag that again attaches to the outside of the bag and can hold two dummies at one tine

The best thing about this change bag is its size the bag itself on the outside does not look to big but when you open it up it is like a tardis inside it has pockets so that mum/dad can put their personal belongings in it an also has a see through plastic wallet that is perfect for holding nappy creams and hand sanitisers ensuring no nasty spills in your bag. I used the bag as my sobs hospital bag when he came very prematurely and it was perfect I could fit a small pack of nappies in it and clothes thankfully they were small.

The bag is made from a tough wipe clean waterproof material with a very elegant spotty print design on the front the bag retails at £44 and can be purchased on a very popular website.

This change bag is fantastic it has little clips on the side of the bag so that it can be attached to your buggy handle or if you prefer it fits beautifully in the bottom basket of the buggy.

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Babymoov is a French company that has been going for 14 years and they have many wonderful products on their website. Babymoov are just cracking the British market and I feel honoured to be one of their first British Mummy Bloggers to review their products, please go take a look at their website you will not be disappointed!

• Detachable changing bag mat pocket with changing surface (55 x 45 cm)

• Removable insulated bag with universal fastening system

• 1 transparent pocket (nappies / clothes)

• Soother pocket with universal fastener

• Polar fleece

• Adjustable universal stroller harnesses

• Multiple storage compartments and pockets

• Possibly of using the soulder strap on the changing mat pocket and isothermal pocket

• Reinforced base and metallic and magnetic clasps

• Carrying comfort: adjustable quitted shoulder strap, carrying handles

4 trendy colors: Baby Star, Baby chic, Baby Natural, and Babyfly.

Dimensions: 27 x 20 x 36 cm

Our New Arrival

I am releasing this blog post on my sons expected due date 16th September as a little tribute to him already being a month old!!!

Well our little boy made a very sudden appearance on the 16th August 2012. After a very troubled pregnancy and finding out at 33 weeks i was going to have a tiny baby it was agreed i would be induced at 36 weeks on Tuesday 22nd August but our little man had very different ideas!!!

On the Wednesday the week before the much anticipated induction i started to feel quite poorly getting stomach aches and period pains and migrains one after the other i went to bed feeling quite out of sorts. I woke up on the Thursday feeling like i had an elephant sitting on my head and cotton wool for brains.

My awesome mother in law came to visit me and i described what was happening and she confirmed that it soundedlike the early signs of labour. I burst into tears on her as i just felt awful and i kept loosing my vision with the migrains, (now my mother in law is never quite sure what to do with any of her daughter in laws when they do this as she has only raised four burly boisterous boys!) she handled it well with a much needed hug.

After she Left a few of my friends arrived two with their 2 week old son which blew my mind as i was holding an 8lb 2oz baby who was over double the weight we new my son was going to be! I confided in my friend that I was haveing some unusual stirrings that were getting quite uncomfortable to which she confirmed that this is how her labour begun. But still at 4:30 I jumped (well hobbled on crutches) into the car To colkect C from nursery with my friends words of “if you need anything at all” ringing in my ears.

Well by 6:30 on 16th August I had started to think that maybe this was a little more serious than I first thought and contacted the labour triage unit at Brighton Hospital, I was also quite worried by the lack of movement I had felt from my little fella they advised me to come in when I was ready to be monitored on a CTG. I had to chase the hubby a number of times as he was working late finally he walked through the door at 7:30 not fully grasping my worry and urgency, he did however pack me a fabulous cheese and pickle roll for my trip. I said goodbye to C saying see you in an hour not knowing that it be a full 8 days before I returned home with a tiny baby in my arms.

Once at the hosital I waited 40 minutes to be seen I had just made the decision to go home when they were ready for me and this is where the fun began! I was put on the CTG monitor to have a trace done, within 20 mins my tightenings got more regular and then suddenly the baby took a massive dip and so did his heart beat. The small empty quiet room I was in suddenly filled with doctors and midwives I was made to lay on my side and told not to move as my position could possibly be the problem. They monitored me for another 20 mins in which time the babies heartbeat kept dropping.

I was made to change into a hospital gown, have an internal exam from a very delightful (dishy) obstetritian, call my husband to arrange childcare for C and get to the hospital asap as we were having the baby in th next 45 minutes not once realising myself (more like i was in denial) that I was about to have an emergency c-section. I was marched down a corridor with my butt hanging out my hospital gown and walked into a room and felt rather shocked to discover it was an operating theatre!

I was promptly popped onto the operating table pulled and pushed in every direction to get my spinal block in which was not was not easy due to having arthritis in my spine and all my joints below my spine. I have to say at this point I am so glad my husband was not with me as everything was happening at such a fast and frantic pace it would have been quite scary to witness. My husband arrived just as our baby boy was pulled out, he was outside the operating theatre when he heard his son cry and thankfully was there to hold my hand while being sewn up and to hold our son as I was having a very itchy reaction to all the drugs I was pumped full of. It was atvthis point that we were told that if i had not arrived for treatment at the hospital when i did it could have been fatal for my son and I, his placenta was tiny and in tatters, I had 3 day old muconium in my stomach and his cord gases where depleating, my word to Mums to be always trust your instincts and what your body is telling you always better to be safe than sorry!!!

We were allowed to hold our son for 20 minutes before daddy had to take him upto the Trevor Mann neo natal unit for special care and this is when I started writing this blog post trying to take my mind off the fact that I was not holding my new baby.

We were told our son would be in special care due to his tiny 3lb 8oz size for a month but were delighted when after just 6 days they let our now named Freddie George join me on the maternity ward for 2 days before both being let home to join our family, Freddie is now part of a Neonatal outreach programme with the Trevor Mann unit he is their first patient to participate where premature babies get to be monitored at home and we could not be happier.

I have made this blog post as light hearted as possible as my pregnancy was to put it politely horrific and it made me seriously ill since May loosing my mobility and use of my legs, having an 8 day stay in hospital with extremely swollen legs and joints due to a severe arthritis flare up and suffered a number if irritating skin conditions, BUT that is now all behind me and to be forgotten as i have my perfect family and and very healthy little boy!

Pregnancy, Arthritis and Me

Now I am rather excited as on the 30th April my hubby C and I trotted off to the hospital for my 20 week scan, my daughter confirmed she wanted to know what was in mummies tummy! As soon as they started the  scan we new instantly it was very obvious we are having a boy.

This has delighted C no end she has only ever wanted a brother and has previously told me that if it was a girl she was going in the bin.

Now being arthritic and pregnant is not always a happy Combination. I have Ankylosing Spondilitis which is in my spine and hips and has a weakening effect on the muscle skeletal system which leaves you very prone to inflammation and a lot of aches and pains. I have a lot if issues with neck movement and am now suffering with reactive arthritis in other joints.

I am currently having major issues with my knees normally my left but this week has thrown a curve ball at me and my right knee has swollen so big it resembles Frankensteins knee.

Now this dodgy knee is making life very difficult as I am struggling to get around unable to look after C and get her to nursery as we don’t own a car, this has loaded enormous pressure on my already very tired and busy husband. I am currently on crutches and on Thursday spent 7 hours in A&E having my knee drained several times which to put it politely was bloody painful. Now as i don’t have family nearby who can help out so I had to spend all that time on my own while my husband looked after my daughter at home, their is nothing lonelier than being stuck in hospital in pain and pregnant while having excruciating treatments done to you. I shed many tears and all I wanted was a hug or a comforting hand to hold. I know it sounds like I am wallowing in self pity and to be honest i am a bit! my condition is painful and not always visible so many people just wonder what the hell is wrong with me this time.

I have this Jubilee weekend been particularly poorly my knee has been so huge that I have been unable to bend let alone walk on my leftt leg, then my right ankle started to swell, I was so uncomfortable that my specialist called me in for emergency treatment which was painful but so worth it and I am hoping that in a few days I will be back to my normal chipper self.

I hate being in pain and I loath my condition! I have had it since I was 21 and runs in my family along with rheumatoid arthritis and it has struck many of my family young and  old, I thank my lucky stars that I am not as bad as some. My condition is no walk in the park it is uncomfortable and painful and can get me quite low. Being in constant pain is physically and mentally draining and having a toddler and being pregnant just burdens the situation.

BUT that said I would not change my situation for the world I have a beautiful daughter a son on the way a fabulous husband who has been with me since the day I was diagnosed and a home I am proud of (it may not look like a palace but it is mine!)

I feel that 90% of the time my condition has actually made me a stronger person I can handle a lot being thrown at me, I can now laugh heartily at the things that used to wind me up and have more compassion and understanding towards others

I really believe the saying “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger!”

The Lorax

We were very lucky a few weeks ago to be invited to an early screening of the Lorax by Universal Pictures, to say we were excited was an understatement!

We had a very early start from Brighton with a very over excited 3 year old C who I think could of ran to the train station in seconds flat without ordering a taxi. We took this picture of our excited daughter with her Lorax ticket on the train journey up to London. 

When we arrived in Leicester Square and entered the Odeon Cinema Our excitement just got higher along with the noise levels. We have never seen so many excited children in one contained area. We guided straight to where the Lorax himself was greeting children and families. My daughter was at first very nervous as you can see from the photo but after having a good stroke of the fluffy truffula  tree she decided that blowing the Lorax a gentle kiss was the answer and she was not disappointed  as the adorable fluffy orange creature blew one gently back to her. There was so much going on and we had arrived pretty late so sadly missed the photo booth and face painting which my daughter was later distraught about BUT she did however have her first ever taste of candy floss we were not allowed to take the stick away from her until every last scrap had gone! 

The attention to detail that was put into the build up of the experience prior to the film was astonishing we were greeted with refreshing melon truffula trees and edible grass, lollipops in every colour and as round as your head and the balloon sculptures were as big as the kids and the face painting that we witnessed was stunning and sparkly.

We made our way into the cinema we were greeted to a bag of orange Lorax popcorn on every seat which my daughter could not wait to tuck into, she donned her 3D glasses straight away and was not disappointed as we were treated to a very amusing little skit by the minions from despicable 2 which had us all leaping back in our seats this just got everyone in the perfect mood for the actual film. 

The film is based on the 1971 book The Lorax written by Dr Seuss the film is all about a land that is beautiful and rich with a bounty of animals and greenery and the stunning truffula trees. The trees are all looked after by the Lorax voiced by Danny DeVito who is their voice, but a young man called the Onceler comes along to prove to his family that he can be something and starts to chop the trees down to make his thneads. As time goes on all the trees disappear and the land becomes barren and thneadville is born a world so artificial you have to by air in a bottle and is run by a tiny villain of a man. There are those that remember trees and still some young people who dream of the day they come back.

A 12-year-old boy Ted (zac Efron)searches for the one thing that will enable him to win the affection of the girl of his dreams Audrey (Taylor Swift) . To find it he must discover the story of the Lorax, the grumpy yet charming creature who fights to protect his world. The 3D animation was astonishing and so clear and clean, the film was fun and lively with a very true message. My daughter is only 3.5 and she was gripped from start to finish and found it entertaining and amusing and adored all the very lively musical numbers. This film is done in such a way that even the youngest of children can understand the message that looking after your planet is a good thing. The Lorax has really stuck with my daughter and still 4 weeks on she is talking about it, and she adores looking at the pictures we took and has really taken the Lorax himself to her heart and has asked when she can get a Lorax toy.

I cannot recommend this film enough it will keep children and adults entertained it is so worth watching and has such a beautiful message the final words of Dr Seuss at the end of the film sum it up perfectly “Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. Its not.” -Dr.Seuss

A Fresh New Beginning!

This Easter proved for  my husband and I a wonderful fresh new beginning! We had some much needed time together as a family and shared some really special moments with friends.

As a little family of three it has often proved that we struggle with quality time together my husbands job is extremely busy and can often have him working long hours in the office and away, or working ridiculously long hours at the dining room table.

Come the weekends it is my turn to work doing SEO blogs at the dining room table while the hubby takes C out for some one to one time which they both adore, but this means the three of us get no time together!

But having a long bank holiday weekend together made us all feel so much more united,  we went on an egg hunt set up by one of my very dear mummy friends in our local park we decorated eggs and did the kids did an egg rolling competition (the seagulls definitely got more out of this than we did).

We then went onto a friends house for lunch and this were we realised that life was going to be so much easier. We have always been about 4 years ahead of our friends in buying a home, settling down, and having kids.

We for a while felt a distance from our friends, this was no fault of anyone’s our lives had just taken a different path we chose to have a child which we new would stop us just being able to go out at the drop of a hat. It was fine while C was a small baby as we did not have to fit her into a schedule, but after a year and starting nursery we realised that a routine was essential especially as C was quite poorly.

But this Easter proved a significant change for us, when we rocked up to our friends house a good 30 mins late we discovered that there were more married people in the Room than single (and I know me saying this will rankle some readers as it should not matter if you are married single or other) and the other thing that genuinely took us by surprise was the number of kids in the room two of our friends have had twins, another had a little boy 8 weeks ago and the hosts were 5.5 months pregnant to, so us walking into a room with a 3.5 year old daughter and pregnant bump did not feel nearly so daunting as it normally would.

It has to be said we are incredibley fortunate to have the friends we do! we have been friends some of thems since school some 18 years (this is were the hubby and I met in the 6th form and we have been together ever since).

They are genuine honest and incredibly supportive, and whenever C is around they are amazing with her and entertain her they have never once grumbled that we have bought her along they seem genuinely entertained by her and always provide activities for her to do.

And now C will he the boss she is already allowed to hold the babies and feeds my friends twins. She has proved herself to be very helpful if a little bossy.

We feel like we are no longer the odd ones out and realise we just had to be patient things would catch up to us, we now feel more inclined to try and arrange things to do that are child friendly and it won’t put people off. We have realised that even though sometimes life can pull you away from each other or close friends if you give it time and patience you will be drawn back together for that much needed refresh and you can start the next chapter with a clear and an open heart.

All we need now is the sun to make an appearance so that we can get all the kids out to have some BBQ’s fun and games, roll the summer!

A visit to Warner Bros

We had the pleasure of going to London to visit Warner Bros offices for a parent bloggers event. They had Companies such as Blinkbox and Knowhow Movies who offer a no subscription or late fee service, you can rent films online which can be watched the same day you download them! You can watch them on you PC laptop, games console they can be watched in full HD to give you that cinema experience . We got a preview of the Lego Batman 2 DC Heroes computer game for the Xbox 360 Playstation Wii Nintendo DS Nintendo 3DS Playstation Vita and PC.

The event was very child friendly they had Batman lego to play with that my daughter adored and is now demanding I get for her and ipads set up with the latest educational games for children of school age, but my daughter was most excited about meeting Mumble the giant stuffed penguine from Happy Feet she was so in awe of him that she could not get to close!

We were given a very generous goody bag to go home with some of the latest Blu-ray triple packs  which contain a copy of the film on Blu-ray, DVD and an UltraViolet digital copy so that no matter where you are you and your family can enjoy your favourite film in whatever format you please.

On the train home we asked Cami for her feed back on the day with a little bit of cheekiness and intervention from her friend!

The Adams Family is Growing

I have been desperate to write this post but had to wait until I had my first scan to announce it to anyone and everyone! I now want to shout it from the roof tops I AM PREGNANT!!!! My little family of three is in September going to be a

Cami practicing her big sister skills with my friends son Flynn

foursome!

My Husband and I had to get over the shock at first even though we had been trying it still came as a bit of a surprise. I have been on long term harmful medication for my arthritis I came off it last June to prepare my body and get it back into a state that would be able to accept a pregnancy. I had a full on family Christmas and I let my hair down, I had a few drinks (and for those of you who know me will know that I don’t really drink and have not done for a long time) but for some reason this Christmas I just went with the flow little did I know I was going to find out in the new year I was going to have a baby.

Oddly enough the day before I did my test C kissed my tummy and hugged me and said Mummy there is a baby in there! I just laughed and said “I don’t think so you are my bubba at the moment, maybe one day” but I had an inkling and did a test the next day and hey presto it was positive.

It has not all been plain sailing as at 9 weeks I had a scare and all my pregnancy symptoms disappeared leaving me fearful that I had miss carried this has happened before and left me in rather a bad way (a story I really do not want relive) but after a call to the midwife and a scan at the EPU clinic they found a good strong heart beat much to my utter relief.

I have had horrendous morning sickness but I am kind of glad as it means everything is a going as it should do, this pregnancy is in no way going to be easy as I have been off my arthritis medication for so long and it is starting to flair, I had chronic SPD when pregnant with C and been warned by specialists that I will need a lot more care during this pregnancy to help me handle my pain, which will probably be worse this time round, but I am prepared I want to try and enjoy this pregnancy as it will be the last time I will be doing it! I have been heartily advised to not have anymore children due to my condition my body is just not strong enough.

My other fear and I have again been warned it could happen due to my weak immune system is a Polymorphic Eruption of Pregnancy (also known as PEP) I was left neck to toe in a very itch papule rash for the last 3 months of pregnancy and was unbearable and disturbed me 24/7, I had mottled scarring for 3 months after giving birth, I am desperate for this NOT to happen again and would not wish it on my worst enemy.

I realise I sound quite negative when I am actually very excited and desperate to find out what the sex is, C has demanded a brother no pressure then ;o) I will be happy with whatever I am given. I feel very lucky to be having a second child; I am most excited about giving C a sister or brother as she is the most gorgeous caring and nurturing little girl who will be the most amazing big sister. C has already declared that she wants to help! She said “I will do the wee nappies Mummy and Daddy can do the poo nappies” she really does melt my heart.