Quick Takes (volume 16)

--1--

For my New Year's Resolution, I decided to write down one memory a day in a diary. I haven't been very good at memory-keeping in general recently (obviously not here, but not in other ways either--I've hardly even been taking pictures!), so I thought this would be a simple way to do it. And, I hope that next year, I can continue to use the same diary, adding a new 2014 entry below 2013's, so we will be able to look back and remember what was going on this year.

You can see where this is going, right? I have not been doing well keeping up with this goal. It took me almost a month to even buy a diary, then another week or two to remember to write in it for the first time. Now I usually remember to write in it every 4th day or so, and have to try and remember things that happened. :/

But, I am writing down memories, even if not every day, and I will be so glad that I did in years to come. So, glass half full, right?

--2--

The whole first take is a round-about way of saying, I am totally going to be plagiarising myself from my diary onto these here quick takes (and probably in the future as well) so that I have something to share with you all.  

--3--

My birthday is coming up this weekend. 30. Can. not. believe it. I'm pretty sure I am not yet an adult, despite the marriage and kid and house thing, so I'm not quite sure how I am turning 30. Mostly I'm not too concerned about the milestone-y-ness of it, although a little bit of me is freaking out inside. Not really sure why, as I am pretty happy with how these first three decades have turned out, but. You know. 30!?!

--4--

We're planning on going to London on Saturday, to see the Science Museum (as I have never been) and probably take Gus to see the dinosaurs at the Natural History Museum as well. We'll see how long we spend in the first one, though, and how we're feeling before going into the dinosaurs. That is the awesome thing about museums in London--many of them are free, so you don't feel like you have to spend all day in there, to the point of exhaustion and crankiness, to get your money's worth. I think it will be good.

Plus, I am planning on getting lunch at the Real Food Market at Southbank Centre (mmm, posh street food) and dinner at Mildred's vegetarian restaurant in Soho.  It is going to be an awesome day :)

--5--

Gus is just excited because we will be going on a bus, a train, and an underground train on Saturday.

He has obviously heard me say (many times, probably) that he loves buses. One day last week I told someone that, and he added "And trains and tractors and trucks." Now he regularly tells me what he loves, whether those things, or certain books, or (kind of randomly) the orange fish on a blanket. Good that he knows what he likes!

--6--

building, with the machines in the background

I mentioned in my last post that Gus was playing trains non-stop. Well, since then, he has moved on to Bob the Builder. All day long, all I hear is "Let's fix something! Let's get to work! Can we fix it?" He's been watching (too much of) the show as well, so we are always repairing Mr Bentley's cottage or asking Farmer Pickles to help. It is quite amusing, although quite tiring to sit and watch / play with him for hours and hours is exhausting. He has spent the last couple weeks in a particularly needy phase. While I can acknowledge intellectually that it is just a phase and he needs me close for a particular reason of development or some such thing, emotionally, I just want to scream "Give me 5 minutes of peace!!!" Thankfully, he actually let me do things for short periods today while he played by himself, so we might be returning to a balance that is a bit easier for me.

--7--

Outside, Gus has been busy digging for bones everywhere we go. My goodness, can this boy get dirty! He lies down on the ground, just to get a really good look, and digs with his hands or a nearby stick. Luckily, he, and his clothes, wash clean (more or less). And really, we can't let a bit of dirt stand in the way of important discoveries, can we?

watching Bob the Builder with Dizzy

Hope you have a lovely weekend!  As always, check out Jen for more Quick Takes! 

Quick Takes (volume 15)

--1--

I'm probably going to jinx it by typing this, but I think Gus is potty trained. We started in November, and had some difficulties, but were doing pretty well by the time we went to the USA for Christmas. Then we had a bit of a disaster for three weeks, brought about by the combination of being out of our normal routine, jet lag and general tiredness, too much fun to be had, and probably an overly strict pottying schedule. So when we got back home in January (after the jet lag) we had a bit of a restart, where we let Gus actually experience what a full bladder felt like, and I really, really, tried to trust Gus when he said he did or did not have to pee. And within about 3 weeks, he was consistently asking to go potty, usually in time to actually get onto the potty. So glad we did it, but probably one of the hardest things we have done since becoming parents. Definitely wish we had done better at trusting and listening to Gus from the beginning of it, rather than just planning to do that, but it all came good in the end. And I don't think he is too scarred from the process!

--2--

Two of my favourite quotations from Gus during our potty learning adventure:

• "Big boys do not use the potty!"
• (As Jon is dressing Gus after Gus had an accident and did not want to sit on the potty) "I'm going to pee in the black trousers next." And sure enough, he peed in them less than five minutes later!

--3--

new haircut

Enough with the potty talk.  Next item in the "big boy" news category: we have cut Gus's hair! After the last time we tried to cut his hair (last May!) where he cried so much I had to stop the haircut after only a few minutes (and half done), I was too scared to take him again. We've cut his bangs (fringe) a couple of times since then, and that has been pretty much fine, so he has probably been ready for a while. And I actually did get up the courage to do it one day in the fall, and the salon I wanted to go to was closed for the day! So we went a few weeks ago. He climbed up on the chair, held a Percy train toy in one hand, ate a snack with the other, and looked out the window at the buses going past. And he was fine! He looked a bit unsure about it, but not upset, and I tried to stay really positive and upbeat about it. It was really not a big deal. We went out for lunch after, and two strangers called him a boy!  I generally didn't mind when people called him a girl (although it was beginning to bother Jon), but even I thought that getting called "Princess" multiple times on our journey to the US was a bit much. He also looks so much older now. Yikes!

--4--

It was Ash Wednesday this week. I noticed something while I was fasting this week. I cannot remember the last time I actually felt hungry and didn't immediately search out something to eat. We are so blessed to be able to have (mostly) nutritious food available at any time and place, but it is definitely something I take for granted. And really, the hunger that I felt was based on eating three small but adequate meals over the course of the day. A lot more than many people get. 

--5--

Also on the topic of food: I am taking an online course through Coursera.org on the American Food System and Public Health. It is so interesting. I am only halfway through the 6-week course, so there's a lot left to learn. But so far, I have been astonished by the amount of water and energy that it takes to grow our food, saddened by the deterioration of precious farmland that is happening due to intensive farming practices, and kind of grossed out by descriptions of industrial meat production. Of course, I'm already a vegetarian, so that last one is kind of to be expected. The real focus of this course is how the way our food is produced affects the health of the country, especially through "externalities" of the food production process, such as pesticide use affecting people living in rural communities, antibiotics in meat contributing towards antibiotic-resistance bacteria causing human illness, and how the health of future generations might be affected by the way we grow food now, among other things. However, our food and farming policy is not influenced by health concerns, although what we eat is intimately linked to our health. I hope that the next three weeks also include some solutions for how we can move toward a more sustainable system. I really do have a lot of thoughts on this topic--I should write a whole post about it!

--6--

just before his haircut, playing matching game

Gus seems to be playing trains all day every day at the moment. He still loves buses (loves them! one of his other favourite activities is to look at pictures on buses on Google images), but the main characters of his recent games are two engines that he calls James and Emily. He plays with Emily, and I usually have to be James. They travel all around the living room, pulling coaches, going through tunnels, meeting buses, resting in the shed, etc. It is so funny to listen to. As you might guess, he has also been watching Thomas and Friends, and sometimes I can hear lines from the show in his commentary, although often he makes his own stories as well. 

--7--

I'll leave you with a recent tidbit from Gus. When he was told it was time to get ready for bed, he responded,

The only option is to play!!

Have a happy weekend! And don't forget to check out Jen's for more quick takers.

Quick Takes (volume 14)

A day late (and a dollar short, no doubt), but here they are anyway, in all their quick-takey glory!

-1-

Gus has been very adverse to wearing a diaper this week. Well, once he has it on, he is generally fine, but he does not like to put it on. So we have had a lot of diaper-free time this week.

Tuesday morning, we woke up and I was starving, so I left Gus to play upstairs while I went down to make breakfast. When I got back up to bring him down to eat, the first thing I see is a dirty diaper, lying in the middle of the landing. My heart stopped. All I could think about was Jen's account of the poo-tastrophe that occurred in their house. (Short version: finger painting with the contents of a diaper) Thankfully, thankfully, I walked into Gus's room, and he was busy playing with his normal toys in a distinctly poo-free manner. Disaster averted! 

For now.

-2-

Sorry, maybe I should have eased you into this post, rather than just throwing the poo story at you right at the start. Hope no one's eating their breakfast while reading this!

-3-

On a happier note, it's my birthday today! The big 2-9. When did I get so old?  Jon's away on a good friend's stag do (bachelor party) today, but he will be back in the evening. We were planning on going out for dinner as a family last night, but Gus has also not been too keen on sitting in his chair to eat, so we decided we would wait till tomorrow lunchtime to go out, when we have a bit more energy! Jon's parents are taking Gus and I out for lunch today, so it should be a good weekend overall. 

Plus, I am getting a new camera from my in-laws! I am so excited. It is nothing special, but, seeing as my current camera is 6 years old and technology has improved a lot since then, I am hoping the new one will take some nice pics and videos (with sound!).

-4-

Also for my birthday, I have asked Jon to take me to see the Hunger Games movie when it comes out in a couple of weeks. So excited! If you haven't read the books, I definitely recommend them. Very gripping with a lot of commentary on our own society, although it's not in-your-face about it. 

-5-

I am loving Gus's talking at the moment. He seems to be picking up new words every day. He loves to label things, and will point out to anyone who will listen all the birds, planes, and balls in the vicinity (of course, usually that is me, and it can get exhausting!). It is so neat to be able to know what he is thinking. He must ask where Jon is half a dozen times a day. Usually I say that Jon is at work, but last Saturday he went out running, so I told Gus that. All week, whenever Gus asks about Pa, I say at work, and he comes back with "Running?". Yes, Gus, Pa is running. He runs 10 hours every day. 

When Gus talks about something, he often will just say every word he knows about the subject. We have a little birdhouse in the back garden, and some birds have been coming to it this week. One day we could see the birds in the box, peeking their heads out of the hole. I told Gus, "Look, they are playing peekaboo with you. The birds are hiding in the box." Ever since then, if he can't see any birds in the yard, he will just start saying "Bird? Peekaboo. Hide. Peekaboo. Hide. Box? Bird?" Ad nauseum. It is very sweet, but he gets quite worked up about it, and will often ask me "more?". I can't quite seem to explain to him that I cannot make the birds come back. Hopefully they will be visiting more often as the weather gets warmer!

-6-

The feast of St Joseph is on the 19th, so don't forget to start a novena for husbands today.  I get my novenas from PrayMoreNovenas.com, and they are emailed to me so I don't forget. I am still so bad at novenas that I usually miss at least one day, but it's getting better!

Also start planning your Italian feast to celebrate the day. Obviously St. Joseph wasn't Italian, but they do love him over in Italy. So it gives us a good excuse for some delicious antipasti, pasta and garlic bread. Yum yum.

-7-

One week till my brother-in-law's wedding!  I am very excited. Jon is best man, Gus is a pageboy (with an adorable little outfit), and I am doing a reading, so it will be a busy ceremony. But we are very blessed to have such a great family, and I think it will be a really good day. Please keep Tim and Becky in your prayers this week!

Hope you all have a great week! And, as always, thanks to Jen at Conversion Diary for hosting.

7 Quick Takes (volume 10)

-1-

We have had milestones right and left these past couple of weeks. The first was really more a milestone for me--I left my baby for 10 hours! Not on his own, of course, and with every intention of coming back to him. I went to a friend's hen do the other weekend and left Jon and Gus to have a boys' day together. A good time was had by all, and I think I was the most stressed of the three of us! I always think I should leave Jon and Gus to have an hour or two alone at the weekends, but I find that there isn't all that much I feel like doing by myself--I would rather spend the time with my family.  So it was a good opportunity for them to spend some time together and good for me to have a break. Next time, it doesn't need to be quite so long, though!

-2-

The day after the hen do, I was playing on the floor in the living room with Gus when he noticed an empty bottle under a chair (it was way too much to ask Jon to have Gus all day--for the first time--and keep the house tidy as well, especially when I don't do a very good job of tidying, and I have practice every day!). Anyway, Gus was really excited to see that bottle. Of course, I just wanted to shout, "I'm right here! What do you want a bottle for?"  Poor mama :)

-3-

As for milestones number 2 and 3, Gus started crawling and pulled himself up to stand for the first time on the same day. Where has my little baby gone?!  He had been army-crawling and bum-scootching for maybe 2 weeks already, but this Tuesday, he was up on his hands and knees and there was no stopping him. I, of course, am getting even less done than normal around the house. I feel like I need to watch him all the time. We have tried to baby-proof the main areas where he goes, but he keeps finding things that aren't really suitable for him that I didn't even think of. Constant vigilance!   

-4-

Our trip to visit the American family is getting close now--yay!  I am so excited. We haven't seen everybody since Christmas, and Gus has grown and changed so much since then, I can't wait to show him off ;)  The one thing I am not excited about is the flight. Gus and I will be going out first, with Jon joining us a few days later. Anyone have any suggestions for ways to keep a newly-crawling 7 month old entertained for an 8 hour flight? Please??

-5-

Do you know what I hate? Scented laundry detergent. Ugh. It is so awful. Laundry detergent is the most difficult part about cloth diapering. I use Ecover for my regular clothes, but apparently that is not very good for cloth diapers because it doesn't rinse out properly. Or something. So last time I bought the Tots Bots Potion, specifically designed for washing diapers at lower temperatures. But I didn't really think it was worth the price tag (not least because nowhere on the packaging does it tell you how much to use!), so I thought I would just go for some standard biological detergent. In the UK, they have two types of detergent, bio and non-bio. I do not know what the difference is (something to do with enzymes?), but I normally use non-bio. I read that bio works better on the diapers, so I thought I would try it. But I could not find any unscented bio detergent in the shop. Isn't that weird? They only have non-bio unscented. I bought one that said "with essential oils", hoping that it would mean the scent wasn't too awful. But it is. I just took the clothes out of the wash, and my head still hurts, just from hanging them up. Yuck yuck yuck. I don't think I can use that again. I might try the Rockin Green next time. What do you use for your nappies?

-6-

Gus is asleep in the bed next to me as I write this. He keeps moving. A lot. I don't notice it in the night when I am asleep, but today during his nap, he was practically up on his hands and knees at one point, before lying back down, completely asleep! He's obviously very excited about his newfound crawling abilities!

-7-

All week, I kept thinking of things I might put in my quick takes today. And now I can't remember any more of them. Oh well! Hope you all have a lovely weekend. And happy second birthday tomorrow to my nephew Ben! (That's way better than the card that I haven't yet put in the mail, right?)

Don't forget to head over to Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes fun!

Quick Takes (volume 9)

Today's takes are really quick: just pictures spanning Gus's life.  Hope you enjoy! 

And don't forget to check out Conversion Diary for more quick takes.

two days old:

one month:

two months:

three months: 

four months:

five months:

six months:

7 Quick Takes (volume 7)

-1-

Apparently I can't count and now have two editions of Volume 5 of my Quick Takes. Oops!  So this one is volume 7, even though there is no #6. This blogging thing is confusing!

-2-

After posting about baby-led weaning the other day, I came across a post of 10 Reasons to Choose Baby-led Weaning at Diary of a First Child. She has some things that I didn't think about on there, so if you are interested in more reasons for BLW, go check her out!

-3-

Ash Wednesday was this week--beginning of Lent!  Gus and I went to Mass on Wednesday, but he didn't get any ashes. I figured this was because the priest who baptised Gus on Sunday was saying Mass and distributing the ashes, and he thought that Gus probably didn't need to "Turn away from sin and be faithful to the Gospel".

-4-

I'm always so bad at Lenten fasting and prayer. I still haven't figured out what I should do this year.  I have a feeling I should limit my internet time. I usually just go on when Gus is napping, but it is too easy to "just finish reading this one thing" once he wakes up, which then turns into 10 things! But I am scared to do it--I don't really like doing things that are hard ;)

-5-

I saw this list of Top 10 Parenting Scriptures by Dulce de leche. I thought it was really good; I hadn't even thought about looking for Bible passages about parenting (I am not very good with my Bible, I must admit). But then I thought this might be a good thing to add to my prayer life for Lent--meditating on Christian parenting and God as our Father. I might need to search around for more passages, though, so if you have a favorite parenting-related Bible verse, let me know!

-6-

This past Sunday was Gus's baptism.  It was a really great day--lots of Jon's family were able to celebrate with us, although my family wasn't able to make it over. Gus was really happy throughout the Mass. At the welcoming at the beginning, we were up on the altar, I was holding Gus, then all of a sudden, the congregation started laughing. I looked down to see Gus smiling and making faces at everyone. During the rite of Baptism, Gus looked like he was really listening to everything Father was saying. Jon's stepdad said it looked like Gus was touched by the Holy Spirit. We are so blest!

Being anointed with the holy chrism.

-7-

Our washing machine broke last week. We tried to get it fixed, but that only lasted 1.5 loads before breaking again. So for my birthday yesterday, I got a new washer! We got it delivered today, and it is so quiet compared to our old one. I love it already!  And I am looking forward to being able to use the cloth diapers again--they were definitely taking a break while we were without a machine. No hand washing of diapers for me, please!

Hope you have a great weekend!  Head over to Conversion Diary for more Quick Takes!

7 Quick Takes (volume 5)

Welcome to this week's edition of 7 Quick Takes! As always, you can continue the fun over at Jen's place, Conversion Diary.

-1-

I have not been sleeping well this week. The annoying thing is, Gus hasn't even been waking up! He has been sleeping pretty restlessly, though, which has been waking me up more or less hourly from about 1 to 4 am. Combine that with my habit of not turning off the light till midnight, and you get one tired mama! Wednesday, I hardly slept a wink--even when Gus was calm, I just couldn't fall asleep. Luckily, last night was much much better. Hopefully I can catch up a bit this weekend!

-2-

WARNING: Skip to next take if you do not want to read about poop!

I have cut dairy out of my diet this week.  I have heard so many people say Breastmilk is the perfect food for babies, so there is very little waste.  Some babies only have a bowel movement once a week! Yeah, try telling that to my kid.  Every. single. diaper. was a dirty one. And not a little bit, either.  So I thought maybe something was upsetting his tummy a bit, the most likely culprit being dairy. So no more cheese for me.    Lunches are tough. I have never been much of a sandwich person anyway--I like a hot meal--but now I feel really strapped for ideas for quick and easy vegetarian lunches. Hummus and eggs, mostly, this week. Although not together. That would be weird.  And the plan to make a big batch of soup that never quite materialised. Anyway, I think it has been beneficial to Gus, so we'll keep going with it for a bit.

-3-

You all know how I love me my Moby wrap. I have mentioned it before, haven't I? If not, here goes: I love wearing my baby in my wrap. Whether you love wearing your baby or just love the look of cute little ones tucked up in papooses and such, check this out. Pictures of women from all different countries and eras, wearing their babies.  There are some super cool ones in there, too--baskets you carry on the back where the toddler can stand up and play with toys! And I do not know how people can carry a child on their head, but it  apparently can be done. (via Fill Your Pants Facebook page).  PS. It's in French, so I don't know what it says, but the pictures are pretty self-explanatory!

-4-

We're getting our family photo done this weekend.  I really need a haircut, but I actually want to grow it out again, and I hate paying someone to cut it when I want it longer. We'll see what happens. Gus will look great for the pictures, regardless of how I look!

-5-

My goal for the coming week is to finish writing Gus's birth story.  I have it mostly written, but it is 5 pages long, with probably one more page to go! So I either have to edit before posting or do a multi-part series. And my labour was fairly quick and uneventful. How do people with 24-hour labours write a concise account? Anyway, look out for it next week.


Updated:  I was rushing to finish this yesterday, and forgot to say that I have been spurred on to finish my birth story after reading Elizabeth's and Kaitlin's stories this week.  Thanks, ladies!

-6-

I finally called the hospital yesterday to become a milk donor!  I am blessed with an abundant supply of milk, and breastmilk is so beneficial to babies born sick, too early, or too small. It can be really hard for mothers to maintain an adequate supply if their babies are too small or sick to suckle, especially if the baby can't be held, and formula increases babies' risk of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) and infections. In the UK, you can see UKAMB for more information on milk banks and donating breastmilk.

-7-

One week till Gus's baptism!  Can't wait!  I just need to find something for me to wear and book a pub for lunch afterward. I also wanted to get a St Augustine and St Monica (St Augustine's mother) medal before the baptism, but it seems like it will cost me either about £1 for two (I want something a bit nicer than that) or £50 (not really in my budget for a necklace at the moment). Or I can get this $600 one! 

Have a great weekend! 

7 Quick Takes (volume 5)

It's Quick Takes time again!  Head over to Conversion Diary for more quick fun!

-1-

I have been drooling over wooden toys this week. Do people even own wooden alphabet blocks, Lincoln logs, or hammer and peg toys anymore?  They should, that is for sure.  But the one I want the most looks like this:

wooden stackable rainbow toy

I am in love! Check out Myriad toys for more, if you have an hour and some cash to spare!

-2-

I made two purchases for Gus this week to help him as he embarks on his teething journey. A wooden ring rattle for chewing on, from Myriad. I think this will also be great as he continues to develop his reaching and grabbing, which is super sweet.  The other thing I bought was an amber teething necklace.  Apparently the oils from the amber are supposed to be absorbed through the skin and help with the pain of teething.  I have no idea if it will make a difference or not, but I figured it couldn't hurt. Plus, he looks really cute wearing the necklace :)

-3-

Speaking of teething, I am hoping we were premature in our attribution of his symptoms to that. He is still super drooly and bites his and my hands all the time, but hasn't been as fussy in the I have no idea what you want sort of way in the past few days. I will gladly and thankfully take this reprieve.

-4-

Jon and I have just started watching The Tudors.  We started on series four, but are hoping to find the beginning at Blockbuster at the weekend. We both really like Tudor history. But I was thinking while watching the show that there are a lot of children's stories about Henry VIII, but either they leave a lot out or modern tellings embellish a bit, because there is a lot of sex in this show.  We have to cover Gus's eyes at those parts.

-5-

Our stroller finally arrived this week!  We got the Quinny Zapp Xtra. Gus and I took it out for a test run yesterday. He cried, loudly, when I put him into it, but then looked pretty happy once we left the house. He slept most of the way, so it couldn't have been too bad! Everyone seemed to be concerned that I needed a stroller because he is getting so heavy, but I am not really sure how I felt about it yesterday. I definitely still like carrying him and will probably continue to do so a lot of the time. It was nice not to have to carry home my groceries, though!

-6-

Now that I am a ravenous breastfeeding monster, I am always looking for easy healthy snacks. As such, I just had ants on a log. It was really yummy. Why haven't I eaten this in such a long time? Definitely in the rotation.

-7-

Will somebody please send the washing up fairy over to my house?  I haven't been very good about keeping the kitchen tidy this week.  But the house is still fairly put together, so I'll take what I can.  Domestic goddess I am not.

7 Quick Takes (volume 4)

I did start this on Friday, but got distracted (imagine!).  I figured I may as well finish it up and post anyway.  You don't care whether it is QT Friday or QT Saturday (or Sunday, as it is getting to be!).
 Check out more Quick Takes at Conversion Diary!

-1-

Since Gus has been born, I have been pretty relaxed about housework (too be honest, I am always pretty relaxed / lazy about housework!). I do laundry most days, but that's really about it. Everything else is either ignored or done when Jon is home.  Everyone says that 3 months is this magical age where fussy babies stop being fussy and stuff like that (not that we have a fussy baby), but I think part of me thought that housework would all of a sudden do itself at three months as well, and I just needed to ride it out till then. I realised this week, though, that the things I keep putting off are never going to get done if I don't actually do them. And if I am going to be home all day every day for the next several months, I won't be very happy with a cluttered house all the time. So my goal is to do 20-30 minutes of dishes every day and 20-30 minutes of other housework. I might have to work up to this goal, but I think it is reasonable.

-2-

We have been going to Baptism class the past two weeks, and this coming week we get to schedule the Baptism.  I would like it to be sooner rather than later, but I don't know if we'll be able to fit it in before Lent. There are about 20 families on the course, and our parish only allows one or two babies to be baptised each week, so we'll have to see when we can do it. The course leader said that it doesn't matter what age you have babies baptised, but I don't really feel right delaying it too much! I was baptised at a month old, and most babies I have seen back home seem to be pretty young, so that is what I think is the "right" way to do it. Here, the babies are mostly older, and I know it doesn't matter too much, but it still seems pretty weird to me to see babies sitting up at their baptism!

-3-

The problem with the Baptism course is that it is held 8-9:30 at night. We have brought Gus with us both weeks; the first week, we didn't even think about getting someone to watch him, as we had never gone anywhere that he couldn't go before!  It means that he has a hard time getting to bed, though. This week, he slept on the way to the church and the way back, but was awake the whole time we were there. By the time we got home, he was overtired and couldn't fall asleep again. Poor thing! 

-4-

Gus and I have had a few dance parties this week. His favorite was to songs about trains, featuring Johnny Cash and John Denver.  I didn't include Folsom Prison, though, as I thought that was too depressing for a dance party.  Have a party yourself!

Atchison, Topeka and the Santa Fe

-5-

I made this yummy banana ice cream today. It has only bananas in it, frozen, then whizzed up in the food processor.  It was really good, and felt really indulgent. Jon, of course, loved it. I will have to make it again, although the chances of finding overripe bananas in our house are very small, seeing as Jon eats bananas like there is no tomorrow. I think next time I am going to put peanut butter in mine,  or maybe drizzle chocolate over the top (don't want it to be completely healthy!).

-6-

Speaking of food, I am hoping to make some sort of energy bars this week. The blog Enlightened Cooking has several recipes; I think I am going to try the Lara-type bars first, which are basically just dried fruits and nuts. I have been starving all of the time lately (due to Gus's insatiable appetite, I am sure!), so it would be good to have a few healthy snacks on hand, and I haven't found any pre-made bars that I like and are a reasonable price. I would rather just eat cookies and cake all day, but someone told me that, even though breastfeeding mothers need extra calories every day, those should be coming from healthy foods. Hogwash!

-7-

My favorite thing this week: sometimes, when Gus wakes up, he opens his eyes, sees me, and gives me a huge smile.  Melts my heart!

Hope you all are having a great end to January!! Can you believe we are already done with the first month of 2011?!

7 Quick Takes (volume 3)

Man alive, it's been a long time since I last wrote.  There is a lot on my mind, but I can't seem to sit down and write it out, so I thought I would do a Quick Takes today just to do an update.  Hopefully I can write more in the next couple of days!

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We had a great Christmas!  The three of us travelled to the USA to visit my family, and it was definitely worth it.  We were a bit worried in the week leading up to the trip, as Heathrow was completely shut down due to snow only 6 days before we were scheduled to leave, and it took several days for it to get all the snow cleared and the planes back in place.  But the day that we left (Christmas Eve), almost all of the planes were going, and the airport actually seemed pretty quiet, although our flight was completely full.

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Gus did really well on his first flights--a good indication for things to come, I hope, as he will be making that journey regularly! I would definitely recommend flying with a newborn.  He mostly slept the whole way, although we did walk him up and down the aisles a bit (I guess we were lucky there were no long periods of turbulence).  Breastfeeding was a little tricky, trying to get a comfortable position where I wasn't flashing anyone and Gus wasn't kicking the man next to us!  We had an empty seat next to us on the way back, which made it a lot easier.  And I wore the Moby wrap the whole time, so I could just tuck him into it while he was sleeping and felt secure enough to get a bit of sleep myself (when I could get comfortable!).  I also liked to put him in it when the seatbelt light was on, as his only harness otherwise would be my arms.

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Everyone was so excited to meet him, as well.  He was the star of the show wherever he went, and he hardly had a moment to himself!  His cousin Ben (18 months old) was especially sweet.  One day when Ben was over, Gus started crying.  Ben saw Gus's pacifier laying on the table and brought it to him, then noticed Gus's blanket and brought that over as well.  He was so proud of himself for helping to comfort the baby!

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Gus is developing by leaps and bounds.  In the two weeks we were in the US, we all noticed changes. At about 7 weeks, he started really smiling a lot more, and in reaction to people.  Really exciting--and absolutely adorable! Also, from about 8 weeks, he has really started discovering his hands.  They are always in his mouth, sometimes the whole fist (or both!) and sometimes just the thumb. It was really sweet the first morning that I woke up and saw him lying next to me, just sucking away on his thumb, happy as could be.  And this week (9 weeks old), for the first time I took him out for a walk in the carrier, and instead of falling asleep within a few minutes, he kept his head up and looked around at the world.  It was probably 15 minutes before he decided to rest his head and go to sleep.  He is so curious.  Oh, and I almost forgot, yesterday he started rolling onto his side!  He has done it quite a few times now, so I don't think it was just a fluke, but I also am not sure if it is something he can do anytime he wants yet.  I thought maybe he would continue and roll onto his front, but it seemed his arm was in the way and he couldn't figure out how to get over it.  He didn't seem too fussed about it, though, and I am sure he will make it over soon enough!

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At the moment, I am quite pro thumb-sucking, although I am afraid I am going to live to regret it!  My theory is, if he sucks his thumb, he can comfort himself as needed, rather than me deciding when he needs comforting and how.  I also fear that if I use a pacifier too much, it will be used in place of actually attending to his real need.  This probably wouldn't happen, as I hope that I am a pretty attentive parent, but I do fear becoming lazy.   We do use the pacifier to help him go to sleep, as needed, though.  The sucking really seems to help him settle.  

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I still haven't ordered a stroller or cloth diapers, and Gus is 2 months old!  I really need to get on top of that, but they are both quite big expenses, and I hate to spend so much money in one go--I think Jon is rubbing off on me in that respect! I am planning on getting the Quinny Zapp Xtra stroller, which is suitable from birth to about 3-4 years old, has a seat that is forward- or parent-facing, and can be used with the carseat we have.  I haven't decided about diapers yet.  I think I might buy about 6 in two or three different styles and then get a few more of our favourite after a month or so.

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Pictures from Christmas!


Gus's first Christmas

Our family (oops, Jon's glasses are falling off!)

Four generations (my mom and her mom;  I don't seem to have a copy of the one with my dad and his dad, but will post it later)

Cousins

7 Quick Takes (volume 2)

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My parents have come and gone, now.  It was so nice to have them here, and they said they enjoyed it, even though most of the time we were sleeping or just sitting around doing nothing.  Well, there was a lot of cuddling the baby, as well!  

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Gus and I have had 3 days on our own, now.  We're doing pretty well, I think. Although it is a relief when Jon gets home each day.  The main problem I seem to have is that I love to hold Gus while he sleeps, but just about the time I am ready to put him down to do something around the house or take a nap, he is ready to wake up. I need to figure out how to put him down during the day!  I did try putting him in the sling one day in order to make my lunch.  It worked quite well, but mostly I don't think about it until he is already asleep and I don't want to wake him.

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We haven't really left the house since Monday, and I am getting a bit of cabin fever.  It doesn't help that a) we don't get out of bed till about 11 each day, b) it gets dark at 4, or c) it has been snowing and/or below freezing all week.  I was planning on going to the store this afternoon, but decided I should nap instead. I might go and meet Jon at the busstop when he comes home, even if bundling up the two of us is a lot of work for a 10 minute outing.

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Also because of the snow, we have cancelled two appointments at the US Embassy to register Gus's birth and apply for his passport. This is really getting quite annoying, since we want to go to the US soon. But the trains in the UK are not very reliable in the snow, and we do not want to get stuck on one with Gus, or stuck in London with trains stopped for the day.  One train got stuck overnight the other night in between two stations and wouldn't let the passengers off for 9 hours! It was not on our line, but still not a good sign.  We have rescheduled for Tuesday--pray the weather is good by then!

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Today was the first day on our own that I have been able to take a shower before Jon got home. I put Gus in his bouncy chair in the doorway of the bathroom and sang to him while I showered. It worked pretty well; he seemed pretty content throughout. Then an hour later he spit up all over me and my hair smells like milk. 

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Gus is still the sweetest thing ever. I expected him to have some sort of schedule--probably not one that matched with mine, but a similar sort of pattern most days. Nothing like that so far; I feel the days are pretty unpredictable in terms of when he will be awake or when he will be fussy, etc.  He must take after me in that respect, because Jon loves to have a schedule for each day--I bet he has eaten lunch at 12 everyday since he was born!

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Gus generally isn't a fussy baby, but he does have periods many days when he gets a bit agitated. When he gets really riled up, he will want to nurse, but be too anxious to latch on, even when he is all in position.  Then he will start making these funny snorting sounds--Jon calls him our little truffle snorting piglet. It is quite pathetic, but it always makes me laugh--good to lighten the mood a bit when both baby and mommy are getting a bit anxious!

For others' quick takes, check out Conversion Diary!

7 Quick Takes (volume 1)

Check out more bloggers' Quick Takes over at Conversion Diary.

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Due date today!  No signs of Baby being ready to join us yet, but it is really hard to not expect it to come in the next few days.  No matter how many times I tell myself that first-time mothers typically give birth 10 days after the due date, I can’t help but think baby will be here in the next few days.  Jon has asked baby to not start labour until Sunday afternoon, at the earliest, so he can get two more days of sleeping late this weekend!  No induction would be scheduled for at least two more weeks, so it’s not necessarily quite the end yet.

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Jon, bump and I had a photo shoot last weekend.  It was really fun!  I felt that we didn’t have many good pictures from the pregnancy—we never seem to take any pictures—so this would be a good way to get a few photos.  We go back tomorrow to view all the photos.  The sitting fee was only £10, and we get a free 8x6 print with that; unfortunately, that means that they charge quite a lot for electronic copies of the photos (I think the prints are pretty average in price), so I won’t be sharing any here.  If (probably when—see above comment about never taking any good pictures) we get pictures done of the baby, we might find somewhere that at least has an online gallery so we can share them a bit more and family can pick out their own pictures, but this was a really good last minute decision, I think.

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Tonight is Bonfire Night, also known as Guy Fawkes’ Night.  We celebrate the failure of the Gunpowder Plot in 1605, in which Fawkes and a group of Catholic rebels (freedom fighters, I am sure!) tried to blow up Parliament and kill the Protestant King.  Mostly it is celebrated with fireworks displays, and some towns still have big bonfires, apparently.  Traditionally, towns would burn effigies of Guy Fawkes and/or the Pope as well, but that doesn’t happen in too many places nowadays.  It always seems a bit weird to me, being Catholic, celebrating an event that has a definite anti-Catholic history, although I do think that it is good they were prevented from killing the entire Parliament and the King, regardless of their reasons.

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Anyway, there were some fireworks going off in the park near our house last night, and I could see them from our back yard.  I wondered how the baby might react to all the banging, but s/he didn’t seem to mind at all, really, and they were pretty loud.  I thought I might get a lot of jumping around, but no.  I saw in the paper that a zoo is doing displays of “bang-less” fireworks, good for both the animals and children that are afraid of the noise.  I do not really understand how they can make fireworks that don’t make noise.

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P.S. re fireworks: who wants to go stand outside to watch fireworks in November?  Don’t they know that it is cold out there?  Although, it does mean that you can set them off at about 6 and then go back home to your cozy house and a nice cup of tea or hot chocolate.

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I bought a little storage unit to put in the bathroom the other week.  It arrived last week, I took all the pieces out of the box, with its 8 different types of screws and dowels and such and 12 different panels to put together, and realised that the assembly instructions were missing.  And there was no way I was going to be able to figure out how to put it together without the instructions.  So I contacted the seller (on ebay) to ask to if he could send me a copy of the instructions, and I am still waiting.  While all the pieces sit on my living room floor.  To be fair, I ordered a second, bigger unit as well, from a different seller, and it is only half-way put together, so maybe I can’t put the entire blame on the seller.  But it would be nice to be able to have this stuff in place before the baby arrives!  Oh well, baby won’t care if we have storage space in the bathroom.  If anything, baby will be more concerned about the completely unfinished nursery (hey Dad, I might have a job for you when you get here!)—luckily baby will be sleeping in our room to begin with, and the crib is put together. See, we do get around to finishing the important things!

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Photo of me on my due date: