22 Week Bump Date

This has been a quiet week – everything was fine at my midwifes appointment, and she said I could go one the ferry to waiheke island (I thought I would be fine, but needed to check) – so looking forward to that in a few weeks’ time. Have also been loving wearing maternity clothes at the moment. I am not normally one who cares much for dressing up, but am enjoying wearing maxi skirts and leggings (well not at the same time). I can’t believe how quickly time is going – it’s just crazy that we are already more than halfway. My hospital bed has been booked – so that’s one more thing to cross off the list too. Here is what the bump has gotten up to this week.

How far along: 22 weeks

Stretch marks: Nope

Movement: All the time

Currently craving: Egg and Mayo sandwiches – I am not sure if they are really cravings, and I don’t have my mind set on them, but they are super yummy, and are my lunch of choice at the moment

Total weight gain: 2.0 Kgs

Maternity clothes: Not really clothes – but hubby bought me Sketches GoWalk3’s – OMG they are the best shoe ever – a definite must for prego feet. Also maxi skirts and maternity tops with the elastic on the sides – my current t-shirts don’t fit anymore.

Sleep: My bladder seems to have shrunk, and am having to get up most nights to go to the bathroom – which then means I can’t get back to sleep.

Best moment this week: – Baby soccer kicked Brad this week on the way to work, it was the first time he felt the baby kicking.

Big Brother: Thinks that my belly button is a port to the baby – and kisses and talks to it through there all the time. He also seems to want to talk to it while I am pushing him in the trolley and tries to list my shirt up in the shops. He is adamant it’s a girl and refers to the baby as “her”.

Miss anything? Not really

Gender: no idea

Symptoms: Pain at the top of my stomach (midwife says it because the baby is moving on up) – also my pubic bone is starting to stretch – it was the same with Keaton – it’s the worst pain in the world – especially when I get up from lying down.

Labour signs: no

Belly button in or out? The top is starting to become an outie, the rest is still an innie

Wedding rings on or off? On

Looking forward to: My next scan at 30 weeks.

Read about my previous bump dates here: Week 14, Week15, Week 16, Weeks 17 - 20, Week 21

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19 Month Toddler Update

This month I have noticed Keaton’s attachment to Bradley increase. For the first 18 months of his life, I was the person he would want when anything happened, however as he hit 18 months, I have become second to dad. He constantly wants to be around Bradley, and cries when he leaves etc. In a way it’s nice for me, as I have a break ,and can sit down and have some me time, but I can’t help but feel a bit sad that I am no longer his number 1. I am in  group on Facebook for New Zealand mums, and I posted about it on there, and apparently it’s a phase,  and it passes, so I better enjoy it while it lasts. Anyway here is what he has been up to this past month.

Eating: he no longer wants me to feed him, he does everything himself now, either eating from the spoon or with his hands. One thing he has started doing more of, which is rather annoying, is throwing everything off his plate and putting it on his highchair tray and then throwing his plate on the floor.

Sleeping: has been mostly good. I am not sure if we are sending him to bed too early, his bedtime is 7pm, however the last couple of nights he was stayed awake in his cot until past 8pm and then gone to sleep. I think he is getting enough sleep, as he sleeps 2 hours+ during the day and about 10 hours at night if he sleeps from 7pm – 6am. We are going to try the later bedtime over the weekends and see if that helps.

Loving: playing with his “kitchen booking toys”, riding around on his motor bike. He loves to pick flowers for my parents on the way to their house. Shouting people’s names (he puts his head back and screams them). Being outside – he is such a busy body, and can play outside for ages.

Hating: Shower time and brushing teeth again – he likes to “brush” his teeth by himself, but really needs my help, which he is not too fond of.

Doing: Potty time, he says “ wee wee”, and “ potty”, and will use the potty if I take him there and put him on it, but he has not learnt to ask to go to it yet.

Teeth: still has 20, no change here, although I think his last 4 molars are starting to move down, he is getting a rash on his face, and increased dribble.

Nappies: still in huggies walkers 10 – 15 KG

Clothing: slowly moving into size 18months / 2 years, the pants are still way to long, and most of his shorts are still size 1, his waist is just too small to fit them, however he can comfortably fit into size 2 shirts.

He had his first haircut which you can read about here.

Next month is Christmas - and I cant wait to see the difference in him this year vs last year, he gets so excited when he opens things, so just know its going to be awesome.

Check what he got up to last month here

Until next month xxx

Haircuts and Ice Cream

Keaton had his first hair cut over the weekend. It was a bittersweet day for me. I didn't want to cut it, I want him to have long luscious locks. I think a part of me also thought that once he had his hair cut, he was no longer a baby. I guess at 18 and a half months - he is not a baby. 


He was so good at the salon, he hardly moved, he just sat there in awe of what was happening. 

Now I'm not one of those people that find shaved heads, tennis ball cuts, or spikes "cool" for little kids (well most kids), so I made it quite known that he was to have minimal cut off. The stylist said we should shave it all off - as it will make his hair grow back thicker. Um - I never shaved my hair and its thick - so hell no am I going to have Keaton looking like a tennis ball. Each to their own i guess.

Spring time in Auckland is great - well in any country, but I think I appreciate it more now that we live in New Zealand, and we are super close to the beach. 
After our haircut trip we took a wander along beach and it was such a superb day out, we went and got Icecream. 

There is the cute little Icecream shop that closes over winter, and when its open there are always ques. We got there just before a influx of people, so didn't have too long to wait.

Keaton got to have his first cone Icecream - he ate it so well, hardly made a mess, and managed to get the licking motion going after watching us with our ones. He doesn't have a lot of dairy in general as he is a bit lactose intolerant ( he is semi okay with milk, but anything else does not agree with him), this was really a treat for him, and while he wont be able to have them all the time, I am sure he will enjoy them when he does have them.

Until the next adventure ...

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18 Months of Awesome

As I write this, it still has not sunk in… we have an 18 month old. Time has gone by so quickly. I am so annoyed with myself that I did not start doing monthly blogs when Keaton was born. Oh well, guess better late than never.

Anyway – here is what he is up to at 18 months

Eating  Everything, he is a really good eater, and there is little he won’t eat. He feeds himself with a spoon or a fork, and  has become less messy the more he does it. We also say prayers before eating, and he get so excited as we get to the end, as he says “Amen”, its just the cutest thing.

Sleeping: Luckily still sleeping through. He has been since 7 months. He goes down at 7pm, and wakes at 6am. The sucky part about that, is that its 6am everyday – 7 days a week. We don’t even use our alarm clocks anymore.

Loving: He has taken a liking to my parents neighbour’s son. Not that he has ever met him, but he knows his name is Peter, and every time Peter goes out, or Keaton sees a car that looks like his, he says “Peter”. It’s really cute how he picks up words that we unintentionally say.

Hating: Nothing really – apart from strawberries. He is not a fussy eater at all, but strawberries seem to be his nemesis at the moment.

Doing: Lots of talking, his vocabulary keeps on increasing, and it’s amazing how he is able to interact now. 

Weight: He is around the 12/12.5 kg mark

Height: around 80cm

Teeth: I think he is cutting his last 4 molars, so he currently has 16. We have been lucky that he has gotten his teeth quite quickly, I think by 16 months he had all but 4 left to go.

Nappies: he has moved into the Huggies 10-16kg (think they are the Walkers ones). Huggies are more expensive in New Zealand, but they really are a quality nappy, and will definitely stick to them with my future babies.

Clothing: Brand dependent. He is still quite short for his age, and he has a small waist. Some clothes are 6-12 months, and some are 12-18 months. I am trying to pack away all his smaller sized clothes, and put him in 18 month to 2 years. Most of the 2 year old clothing is too big for him, but there are some smaller brands that

he fits into. He has so many clothes, that if I don’t put him in the bigger ones early, he won’t get wear out of them.

Shoe wise, he is a size 3, but he has fat feet, so is wearing size 4’s. He seems to fit into Converse best, so is wearing those in a size 4 and size 5.

I have seen a lot of changes in Keaton this month. He is showing signs that he is ready for potty training, which is fun and exciting. We have had a few accidents, but I guess that goes with the process. He is also into playing with pots and pans, and his imagination is really coming out. My husband made him a stove out of a cardboard box, nothing fancy. He will stand over his “stove” and stir his pots and bang them. Other things he is into is watering the garden. He takes the watering can and makes "psssssh" sounds as he waters the plants, he a real busy body. He always has to be doing something.

I love all the moments I get to share with him, he is growing up way to quickly.
Click here to read my Mummy Monthly Posts

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Tantrums are like coffee, you will have at least one a day.

Keaton (who is 18 months old today) has mastered the art of back arching, dropping to the floor and screaming. I think it has especially peaked in the last month . From a very young age (like a couple of weeks old), he would cry so hard  he would stop breathing and start turning blue. It was the scariest thing ever the first time it did it. My sister used to do the same thing when she was small, and my mom used to take her straight to a tap and put cold water on her face and she would snap out of it.

I had to start doing the same thing, apparently it’s not harmful to them, and they won’t die, but it’s still scary. So from a young age, I knew that he would have a short temper.

And oh boy, let anyone try and make him do something he does not want to, take something away from him, or try and stop him from doing something he wants to do, the face goes blue, the kicking and arching starts, and you kind of have to try and take him seriously. 

The latest addition to his tantrum is the screaming and fist clenching. You can really tell he is frustrated, and I feel so bad that he get to that point, but it only happens because he does or tries to do something that he is not allowed it.

My dad sent me an article about toddlers and tantrums and it definitely is a good read.

It basically says that kids like to be in control and that they can feel overwhelmed when they lose that control by not being able to put their feelings and frustrations into words. Which will leave them no choice but to act out, as they feel that all their previous efforts to get your attention have been unsuccessful.

The tips from this article on how to handle tantrums can be found here.

Luckily we have not experienced any tantrums other than at home – I don’t think I am prepared for when they start to happen when we go out. At the moment we have him pretty well figured out, and know what buttons not to push in order to keep him happy.

There are so many different methods of dealing with tantrums, and its really hard to decide on the best method for your child. Smacking is not allowed in New Zealand, and I am fine with that, I personally don't think smacking teaches your children anything apart from its okay to smack others. Parents spend so much time trying to teach their children how to behave and act, and then think its okay to smack them when they don't behave, talk about mixes signals. I don't disagree with smacking under the right circumstances, but don't find it a fit for our family.

I also don't think time out is effective at this age, as they have no idea what is going on. At the moment, we just try to ignore him and when he is calmer, we explain that he cant do that when he does not get his own way, and also that there are somethings he just cannot do (like standing on the table). I guess time will tell as to whether this is an effective method.

On a more positive note - he has showed signs that he is ready for potty training, this is a new an exciting time for him and us, and am excited to start this process of him becoming more independent.

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Teddy Bear Nursery

When we found out we were pregnant with baby number 1, we decided straight away that we did not want to find out the gender of the baby. Easier said than done, especially when it came round to deciding a theme for the nursery. We wanted something that was as unisex as possible, and a theme that would be easy to find in the stores.

I had seen some really gorgeous teddy bear themed nurseries on pinterest, so decided on doing that. Once we had decided on doing a teddy theme – everything teddy bear related seemed to vanish from the stores.

I love neutrals, and I wanted the same for a nursery – so no bright teddy bears that clash etc – yes it’s a baby’s room – but it can still be done tastefully.

I am the type of person that loves a bargain – and hates to pay full price for anything. I also am not shy of op shopping (thrift store shopping). So naturally these were the first places I started looking. I also hit the internet and looked on eBay and Trademe (a NZ equivalent to eBay).  I had a set vision in mind, and knew exactly what I wanted to achieve for this room.

I luckily found 2 cot sets online, one was second hand, and the other was new. The second hand one came with a teddy shaped carpet, a cot bumper, linen, and a really large blanket. The new one came with a cot quilt, and bumper. They were perfect, and were great additions to the room.

One thing I managed to find was a teddy mobile – this was an All Black one, but it was in the right colours, and it was a bargain (again), so nabbed it up as soon as I saw it.

I also found a cupboard/ changing table on Trademe for $60NZD which I thought was a bargain, as it had enough storage at the bottom for nappies, linen and other bits and pieces, and also had the changing table on the top.

Next was to find a cupboard to put all the baby clothes in (I have taken over the master bedroom cupboard, so hubby has the other upstairs room cupboard for his clothes). Luckily my work were getting rid of some old shelving cupboards, and I grabbed. My husband converted it into a hanging cupboard with some shelves, and it’s been great ever since.

We purchased a cot and mattress, and used my grans old rocking chair (that also happened to go with the cot). Next we needed to decorate the walls. I am not one for stick on borders etc, so decided that I wanted some artwork that would be unique and something that could be updated easily. My one cousin was studying art at university, and I got him to help me. Firstly we painted a giant teddy bear on the one wall (thanks again to pintrest). I love this teddy, its subtle enough not to take over the whole room – but it definitely has the WOW factor when anyone saw it. On the opposite wall – again my cousin painted/drew different teddy bears for me – all in a neutral colour palette. I hunted op shops for frames, and laid them all out the way I wanted, before putting in the teddy prints. I then ordered the letters “Baby” (I think I paid about $5NZD for these off Trademe) and placed them in the middle of the pictures. They look absolutely amazing on the wall and will be super easy to change these out into something else when we wanted to update the room.

Last piece of artwork, was a fabric hanging my aunt did for me, again of a neutral teddy bear. This was made to measure, and fit above the change table/cupboard.

I absolutely loved the way the whole room came out. I loved doing it all with my husband and cousin, and on a budget. It just goes to show, you don’t have to spend a lot of money to make something look great.

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