29th March 2007

We had our midwife visit with Tracey at the birth centre today. Gracie and Duane came along too. Gracie had so much fun running around the room, and wanting to jump in the bath!

Everything is going well with Blobby#2. There dates are about 24 weeks….but I am thinking it’s more like 26 weeks! I guess we will see at the end who is right!! Tracey asked if I was interested in getting the birth photographed by a professional photographer for free. The lady wants to use birth centre photos for a seminar that she is attending! I am definitely interested. I think that it would be so special to have those moments on camera!! I hope that we can! We talked about Gracie birth and what I liked about that and what I would like to have changed. I told her that I will probably beg for an epidural but I don’t really want it! Just to talk me out of it! Also that I don’t want the baby bathed and I want Gracie to come in after we have had a feed! My blood pressure was good (100/60) and all my urine tests were fine. I am starting to get a lot more kicks now but still mainly on the outsides. Lots of rolling movements too which makes me feel a little sick sometimes! Duane is feeling the baby a lot more now too!

I weigh about 70kgs now but I am starting to fell quite heavy. I think that I definitely look preggars now but a few people have told me not really! My belly is a similar shape compared to Gracie. I tend to carry from the sides not all out in front.

Grace's last feed

Well we got home at about 1am this morning but Duane still managed to go to work at 6am.

Gracie woke at about 6am so I bought her in bed with me to get a little extra sleep! I was wearing a singlet top that always slides and exposes my boobs! Well Gracie must have had a flashback to a week ago and latched on!

I couldn’t believe it!

I didn’t want to say no to her so I just let her go! She fed for about 10mins and seemed to be enjoying it! It didn’t hurt which I was quite surprised about!

When she tried to feed of the other side, but after having a break it hurt me a lot! I guess it was dry sucking! She hasn’t asked again so I really think that now she has fully weaned! I am a bit sad but I am also grateful that we got to feed for so long!

Our last feed was very enjoyable for us both! I spent the whole time gazing at her and thinking how much my little newborn baby had grown up! When she had finished she pulled off and gave me her cheesiest smile! I thought then that this was our last! I have decided to do a collage of all our feeding photos and have it made into a black and white canvas! It will be something that she can keep! I am sure that at times it will be embarrassing to her but when she gets older she might appreciate how beautiful this time was for us together!

If this is our last time, I want to remember a few things.

I am so proud that we both stuck it out for this long!
The early days were tough.
We battled through 3 days of not attaching and syringe feeding.
Hundreds of different nurses banging your head and my boobs together like a pair of symbols,
The horrendous crack on my right nipple when my milk came in,
Your delicate little mouth trying desperately to attach to my engorged boobs, but just slipping everywhere,
The constant recurring bouts of thrush, the shocking pain,
Poor Mummy crying every time you were due for a feed, curling my toes as you attached and praying that you stayed there,
But then things got better,
You started getting stronger and less sleepy,
Feeds got shorter and weren’t painful,
It was now quite easy,
I really enjoyed our special feeding times,
Seeing in your eyes just how much you loved it,
That cute little half cry, half giggle just before feed time,
The little dribble of milk coming out of your smiling mouth,
I will always have the fondest memories of feeding you, my beautiful Grace.

We made it to 16 months! Hip Hip Hooray for us!!

~Feeding Grace @ 2 weeks old~

15th March 2007

Well I seem to have lost a week worth of entries! Bugger!

We had our spa put in on Monday!! It is so nice to jump in and relax! Gracie absolutely loves it too!! She loves splashing about and jumping up and down! The first day we had it she wanted to be in it all day! I think that we have a water baby on our hands!! We will have to get her some floaties though because it is so hard to hold on to her now…she wants to be off by herself! Duane and I have been going in it every night! The massage is really nice…but it’s also nice to just relax in! It’s so cold when you get out of a night though!! We have been keeping the temp at 34 degrees Celsius…as being pregnant I can’t have it too hot! The midwife said not to go above body temp! I love that we will be able to use it all year round though! We are even thinking about putting a tv outside so that we can watch Dvd’s and listen to music! Very nice!

We are off to Tasmania today! It’s the first trip Duane & I have taken there together since our wedding! It’s also going to be the first trip Duane & Gracie have taken together and also the first time that Duane will see our house down there! We are staying with Deb for 3 nights then heading up to Launceston for Angies high tea then through to Devonport for a week! We want to go to Salamanca markets and also take Gracie to Dr Harry’s hobby farm! She loves animals so I think that she would really enjoy this!
I am actually looking forward to coming down this time! I get a little bored and homesick when it’s just me and Grace, but I think that I will be fine having Duane with us! It will be a nice break away too!! I hope that Duane starts to feel better though. He is still feeling weak and doesn’t have much energy! Maybe the break and clean Tassie air will be good for him! I just hope that it’s not too cold!!

I am still feeling good! I am definitely feeling a lot more movements now! Almost every day I get to feel our baby boy wriggling about inside me! It never ceases to amaze me!! Duane even got to feel the other day which was nice! Actually when Duane had his hand on my tummy it was the most movement that I had felt! I still feel a little nauseous at time but nothing too bad!

9th March 2007

Another wet and overcast day today!

Gracie hates being cooped up inside but the backyard is so wet and muddy at the moment! I bought her a play stove the other day with all the cute little utensils and play food! She absolutely loves it! This morning I played with her and we did “pretend cooking” and then pretended to eat it! I am not sure if she understands what I am doing but she always copies! She loves me playing with her and I really need to make more of an effort to do it!

She also loves dancing so today whenever we heard music I got her to dance with me! She is so cute when she does it! I adore her to bits! When Duane got home from work we went to Rosser park to feed the ducks! She loves watching the animals and does the cutest little quack noise! But I don’t think that she realizes that the real life ducks are ducks! I think that she thinks that ducks are bright yellow, just like her one in the bath!!

29 years + 1 day old

Well I am officially only 1 year from 30!!

It was my 29th B’day yesterday! I can’t believe that it was 2 years ago that we conceived Gracie!! In 1 way it feels like she has always been with us, but in others it seem like it was only yesterday!!

I had a lovely day. Duane & Gracie woke me up at 5.40am (soooo early) singing happy birthday! Then Gracie came into bed with me for her morning milk! The weather wasn’t that nice but we still ventured out and went to playgroup! Gracie had a ball running around everywhere…and trying to climb the stairs to the stage! She is so quick…I don’t know how I am going to cope with the 2!!

After playgroup we went to Pacific fair for lunch and a bit of a shop! Beck, Cooper, Leanne &Chelsea all joined us! I also have to mention that Gracie seems to have a little cold! Well nothing really that bad just a runny nose. I dropped into the chemist on the way to playgoup to get some demazin. Because the weather was horrible outside I left Gracie in the car and just ran in quickly. Well by the time I came back she was fast asleep! She looked so angelic, I felt so bad waking her up for playgroup! But she was happy enough!

Last night Duane & I went out for dinner with Murray & Trudy. We went to Anand Sagar (Indian) which was probably not the best for Duane considering her hasn’t been feeling that great! He only managed a bit of rice and naan bread! Mine was yummy though…fish and prawn curry! Yummo! Even though it did give me heartburn and bad breath!

The Dews gave me a lovely black skirt and top…perfect for my ever expanding waist! Grandma looked after Gracie and she didn’t hear from her all night! My little girl is such a sound sleeper! She went to bed last night at 6pm and I didn’t hear from her until 5am where I just popped a blanket on her and she slept for another hour! I am just so proud of the way she puts herself to sleep! She loves her bed and loves her dummies!

Anyway….HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME!!!

5th March 2007

I just love my little girl so much!

She really is such a sweet and gorgeous person! She is happy and easy going most of the time! She just loves following me around the house doing our jobs!

I really think that this age is the easiest so far! Yes we have tantrums but they are only short lived thus far! She mainly gets upset if I take her away from something that she is enjoying.
Mostly that is climbing in a totally dangerous place!

She just adores her Daddy and can’t get enough of him when he comes home from work. Sometime she just stands and the window waiting and yelling “Daaaaaaad” hoping that he will be home soon!

She very rarely says Mum, but she is getting quite a little collection of works happening. She can say Dad, Mum, bub, Daisy (very clearly) sometime Lily, Duck, quack. A few times she has said pretty and lately she has been trying to say shoes! There are lots of other words that she has for tings but I am yet to work out what they are for. She comprehends a lot though…way more than we give her credit for! She also copies everything that we do! Duane was playing with an empty coke bottle and hitting Lily on the head. After he put it down Grace picked it up and gave Lily a huge whack to the face,. Poor lily gave a half whimper/half bark…it must have really hurt her.

We went to the information session for Steiner playgroup this morning. I like their philosophies but I really don’t think that we will be able to afford private schooling for our kids! I am fine with that because we have Gilston Primary just around the corner which I think will be great! I might go to the Steiner playgroup…haven’t’ decided yet! After that we went to McDonalds so the kids could have a play in the playground! Gracie loved it and had so much fun going through the tunnels!

Duane and his Dad were busy yesterday laying the foundations for the concrete! We are getting our spa delivered in the next week and I can’t wait! It will be so nice to go out there after dinner and have a nice relaxing spa! Might even be able to have a nuddie dip!

2nd March 2007

Can you believe that it is already March 2007!!! I can’t believe that I will be 29 in a few days…and then it won’t be too long and I will be the big 30!! It’s also hard to comprehend that when I do turn 30 I will be a mother to a 2 y/o and also have a 8 mth old baby! I still can’t quite believe that I have bought another person into this world and am about to experience it all again! Amazing!!

Duane is starting to feel better! Turns out that it was a viral infection but because he couldn’t eat or drink anything it got quite bad. He is now trying to eat and drinking lots of gastrolyte!. Hopefully he will be better soon! I have an ulterior motive though!! I want the concrete finished so that we can get our spa delivered before we go to Tas! I can’t wait to be able to jump in and have a nice (cool) massage! I am sure that Gracie will enjoy it too!

Gracie is being very demanding to Duane as soon as he walks in the door from work. She stands at his feet and does a few little grunts and puts her hands up! She just wants him to hold her all the time! She rarely does this to me though! She just loves her Daddy so much! Even when she has been hurt she always wants him not me if he is here!

The funniest thing happened last night! I had just gone to bed and was reading. I always check on Gracie before I go to bed and open her door. After I had gotten into bed I hear a funny little noise. Then it started getting louder and louder! It was Gracie having the hugest laugh in her sleep! It was so loud that it woke Duane up and we both just listened to her! It was one of her full on belly laughs…so I guess she was having a funny dream!! So cute!