bubbity boo

bathtime with Dad on Wed 31st of May 2006

It's the first of june and I'm aware that things are still running along at a lick. We have almost one full bag of baby-gros that don't fit anymore and I was chatting to Kate on Tuesday, only to hear that Bethany is the same weigh as Zack and she's almost 6 months old ! Apparently boys are like that, Megan tells me.

My brain is still mush and right now I'm blaming it on the breast-feeding. I feel like there's a fog and I'm straining to see through it. Thick treacle and all that.
I decided to bunk the immunisation session on Tuesday at the doctor's rooms as Z was full of cold and not a happy camper, and I was feeling shattered after the weekend's driving.

We had a wonderful time in Scotland altho it was a very long way to drive for just a day or so together. Pia & Geoff were fabulous, and we felt so welcome and at home! We hope to get back up there before the end of the year to spend more time together and see even more of the surrounding countryside. Did you know that it doesn't get dark that far north in the summertime? - yeah, it's a bit like being in Scandinavia.


Zack thinks Jessica and Stacey are just the bees' knees.


Geoff goes ga-ga for Zack.


Pia doesn't manage to escape the Zack-magic either - he can even do it when he's asleep. Amazing !

I have bought some shampoo for the ever-worsening cradle cap. The olive oil is OK, but messy and Zack seems to get annoyed when we try and put it on him. I'm hoping the shampoo does the trick. I will report back.

news update :
Patrick's photos are now on the web, thanks to dad Eric. Check them out !!!

9 weeks och aye

Zack is 9 weeks old tomorrow, and I'm guessing is weighing in at around 6.3kgs if not more. He is doing very, very well and I thought I'd mark the occasion by noting some of the little developmental items that have gone on in the past while.

He is starting to say "a-goo" more and more. This is usually followed by smiles and chortles. He is responding to smiles and can give you a real dazzler when he wants to. This does wonders for every mummie's heart!

He went for 6 hours between feeds on Tuesday night (this is remarkable because he is usually on a 3 hour cycle), and I felt like a million bucks after all that sleep. I hadn't notice how much I was suffering from sleep deprivation, until I took a note of my mood the following day : I was upbeat, happy, coping really well, and feeling quite chirpy. I don't expect him to do quite so well every night, but I do hope it's the start of good things. He was back to a 3-hour cycle the next night, but he managed to do 4.5 hours last night.

He has been wearing no.2 Pampers nappies until now, and it occured to me this week that he is now beyond the 6kgs on the guide, so I should get him some larger ones. That means our little bub is going onto no.3's already. Whew ! it all happens so fast.
Also I took out some T-shirts for him to wear today, and noticed that they barely fit him anymore and I haven't put him in them at all. Tsk tsk. This is why I need Keith - he has set up a system of baby clothes so that I know what the next 'set' of sizes UP are, and can pull them out the drawer. It's odd how some of the stuff is good for weeks and weeks (eg. he can still fit into the yellow baby grow that we brought him home from the hospital in), and then other things, you can forget ! They just don't do up anymore.

He has had cradle cap (infantile seborrhoeic dermatitis) the last two weeks, and it's been particularly bad on his eyebrows. I'm medicating it with olive oil, as directed by the midwife, and it seems to be making a big difference. The problem is that he rubs it (oil) off every time you hug him, because he loves to nuzzle your shoulder. It's not too nice to look at, but doesn't seem to cause him too much discomfort.

We love skype ! and we love to talk to uncle Andy. It's wonderful being able to stay in touch and now to share pictures - as we both have a webcam !

Yesterday I went walking with Trish (and Caitlan) and Elly (and Anokye) up in Victoria Park. It was THE MOST BEAUTIFUL afternoon, and we breezed around the park and looked at the sky, the trees, the geese, the children playing. It has been so good to get to know that part of London a bit better as we tend to isolate ourselves to the Docklands and Vicky Park, as it is affectionately known, is such a boon for a mum who needs to stretch her legs out-of-doors.

We are driving up to Scotland for the Bank Holiday weekend. We will visit my mum's cousin Geoff and his wife Pia. It's going to be fab ! I must say that I was a bit silly in reckoning the travelling time, but they say it'll take us around 7 hours, which is not too bad. I just hope that Zack holds out for that long in the car - it can be quite tedious for little 'uns. A neighbour has offered us a horizontal sleeping cot that you can strap into the car and I would like to take her up on it.

Otherwise all we have to say is "Och Aye" and off we goooooo !

(back next week with photos of hairy coooos and all that)

survival tip no.1 - sleep when baby sleeps !

Well, you didn't hear it from me.
In fact, I've heard it from almost everyone else and still not put it into practice until recently. You know when you're brought to your knees by the situation that it's time to take some good old home-spun advice and DO IT, like the Nike advert says. So we did... in a manner of speaking.

Last night we fed Zack at 10:30pm, after giving him a bath and all was calm and delicious. Keith put him to bed, and we both rushed around doing things until midnight (our usual sad-O bed time). I remember looking at the clock and it said 00:22, although I know that Keith keeps it running about 10 minutes fast. It's still a bit of a gloomy announcement when you know you probably have 50 minutes to get some shut-eye before the little growling noises turn into a wail of starvation and armageddon.

Imagine my surprise when I woke up at 04:27 to a little cry.

Whoohoooooo ! ! !
Our baby has done the six hour stretch for the first time !
What a feeling of elation, and pride. I know that I'm feeling as good as I am today because I've had more than 2 hours of undisturbed sleep for the first time in 2 months. It also makes me see how my coping ability in the past week has been getting worse and worse - especially with the fever and infection. I feel great now.

I'm hoping we can help Zack sleep longer more often. We will see what happens.

mastitis roundabout

zack is now 8 weeks + 2 days old. I have managed to come down with mastitis again and this time it's been N-A-S-T-Y!!! I had a raging temperature from Friday evening until Sunday morning. Life seems to turn into a haze of sweat, shivering, feeding baby and trying desperately to sleep. Not nice at all. I thought the worst was over and went out for a lovely lunch with friends yesterday afternoon. I felt great.
Then last night when I got to bed after the midnight feed - so that's almost ten to one - I started feeling chilly again. Thankfully I could snuggle up to Keith and drift in and out of sleep. But I kept waking drenched in sweat, knowing I needed to get up and feed Zack. Yuck ! yuck ! yuck !

I don't wish mastitis on anyone, it is just revolting.

Amazingly, when I rang the doctor's rooms this morning they'd had a cancellation and could see me at noon. (what are the chances on the NHS???) So off I toddled, and now I'm on another stint of antibiotics. This time a heavier dose than before, and I'm hoping the penicillin kicks the infection for good.

Zack has been steadfast in his feeding though, so that's made things easier. He is happy to feed on both breasts and I'm going to try and express from the infected breast to try and clear the infection. The doctor tells me that mastitis is an infection of the tissue, so there is no cross-over to the actual milk supply. It makes sense, but I think all mums worry.

Wonderful news : more babies in the world !

Luke Andre de Oude - 14th May 2006
a baby boy for Walt and Cindy in Singapore

Patrick James de Oude - 22nd May 2006
a baby boy for Eric and Emma in Guildford, UK and a cousin to Luke

How awesome !

tues must be blocked ducts

went to norfolk with mum to show her the beautiful countryside and managed to head straight into a blocked duct. Thankfully I had some advice from a friend in the back of my mind, so took a warm bath and got out my comb and used that to massage the ducts. Using your thumbs just seems to bruise, so a comb offers steady, constant pressure. Hey it worked !

Had a lovely time in Norfolk, although it was TERRIBLY FAR to drive for just 2 days. Zack was very good, and we had a fun time driving through the countryside.

A night in with the girls !

Tonight, Zack, Mum and I hosted the NCT reunion. We had a good turnout - only 2 cancellations and 2 no-shows. It was great to see all the girls (and boys) and catch up on what's transpired in the 3 months since we saw one another last.



Caitlin while she was up and running, earlier in the evening.


Zack was in with some stiff competition from the other lads - Sonny and Fred. The girls were looking mighty fine, with little Ruby directing and Caitlin having a quick ZZZzz during the proceedings. Delightful !

5 weeks old today !

My beautiful baby boy is already five weeks old and I'm amazed at how quickly the time has gone. He is so very well, and I am doing better and better. So many people have said how well we both appear and I can't explain it - Zack just seems to be coping well with social situations, and I feel good / more sane for being out amongst adults every day or two. He does get tired, and so do I, but as long as we're careful and don't overdo it, we're coming along nicely. Last night was a bit manic as we were out with Greg, Charlie, Jackie and Claudio until well past 12:30pm, and we were feeling smashed afterwards. But that is the exception rather than the rule.
I'm coping with the feeding during the night and seem to get by on the regular doses of 2 - 3 hours with an hour long feed in between. He is progressing too and manages a 4 hour stretch every now and then, which is a pleasant surprise to me when I roll over and look at the clock and hear him wimpering for food.

My mum is so enjoying being here - cuddling her little grandson each day, and having some time away from home for the month. We took a stream of photos yesterday (Fri), so here are some lovely shots for posterity.

meeting zack's mates

On wednesday we went to the Wild Cherry in Bethnal green to meet up with all the girls from our NCT class. Zack got to meet his friends, and those he'll be celebrating his birthday with next year !

(middle pic) Amy with baby Ruby (5 days older than Zack)
(bottom pic) Rae with baby Myles (8 days older than Zack)

my mum arrives

My mum arrived safely on Friday to spend a month with us and Zack. Keith leaves today for South Africa, for Harley and Tamara's wedding on Thursday. I will really miss him while he's away - it'll be a week until he returns. I am pleased my mum is here tho' as it'll make things so much easier having a loving extra helper.

Sunday was the London Marathon, and Keith's put all the photos he took onto the Flickr website. We even saw the front runners (men) coming past which was quite exciting. This all happened while my mum watched Zack sleep. Very wierd going out without the baby, and yet you know you have to go home to feed him, so it's not a complete detachment.

wednesday must be mastitis

What a week this has been. Everything was going so well - just peachy in fact - and then Wednesday hit. I had to get up early because the electrician was coming over to repair the intercom system (it's taken me the better part of 2 months to get him to come and finish a job he started before Christmas, sigh). Then at 10am I had to dash off to Hackney so that I could register Zack's birth at the Town Hall. Took me a couple of laps to find parking, then had to cart the car seat a few blocks (running late by now) to the main doors. Thankfully they were very relaxed and directed me to the little office where we filled in all the necessary forms. I retrospect I should have taken the 277 bus from Canary Wharf, but I didn't think of that at the time.
On the way home again, I started feeling the most awful pain in my left breast, and thought that rather than putting it off I should go and see the doctor. Not having an appointment and just turning up on the doorstep of your GP's practice is not how the NHS do things, so I had to go onto a waiting list. Thankfully they had a doctor on call, so while I fed Zack, I could wait (on site) for the call. He rang me within ten minutes and was surprised to hear that I was still in the building. He took a very quick look and listened to my symptoms, only to confirm that I have mastitis.
It sucks !
Cabbage leaves have become my best friends, and although I pushed through and avoided taking the antibiotics for 2 days, I am now well into the course and will have to finish them by the end of this week. I hope it's making a difference - the pain and heat have certainly subsided.
Then to make things worse I started running a nasty temperature, so I came home and shook violently for about an hour, fed Zack, then waited for keith to come home. After that it was lots of sleep and sweating it out. It really does work.

Now Zack has a nasty little cold in his nose and snuffles his way through the day. He isn't his usual upbeat self - really very mizz and anxious. I do hope it's a mild one, and he'll be over it soon. Poor little chap.

first family

Zack had his first family visitors today : Caryl & Claire. Caryl got back from Australia this morning at 5am, and decided she HAD to come and see him before sunset. It was great to have some adult company and to see them both again - it's been 3 months since our Christmas Lunch. What happened to the time ? !

Things have been relatively uneventful this past week. Zack is doing well. We are getting into a regularly feeding pattern. Keith went back to work yesterday, and we miss him so much, but it's only a 4 day week (and so is next week), so we're easing ourselves back into 'reality'.

Keith's team at work have spoilt us rotten - gifts galore and so many good wishes. They can't wait for me to take him into the office to show him off. Today he got to work to find that they'd had a mouse-mat made for him with a photo of Zack on it. How cute !!!

Too quick !

I'm sure this is something I'm going to be saying for the next 20 years, but the time is passing too quickly. Zack is now ten days old and changing rapidly. He has gained quite a lot of fat under his skin, so the overall tone has changed. His hands are fuller, and marbled pink and white. On Monday night, both Keith and I noticed that his little eyes had changed - he just seems to be able to see so much more - they seem clearer and more focused on his surroundings.

He is such a delight to us both. We are ever the doting parents - sitting and cooing over him and his every grunt and snuffle. He is feeding very well, and we are learning what he needs and what he likes. I've gone off caffeine because he was quite iffy on Saturday when we went to Starbucks for a cup of coffee. To be honest I do like my coffee very milky so it's not the biggest sacrifice for me.

He took his second bath yesterday (Monday) and seems to be getting into it. He is quite calm and happy once he's actually in the water - it's the naked bit beforehand that winds him up quite a lot.

Keith has been a superstar in every respect. He has eagerly participated in every part of Z's care, worried about me and whether I'm sleeping enough, thirsty, uncomfortable from the stitches, and if I'm stressed out because things aren't getting tidied away. We've both tried to be as honest as possible with one another in discussing our feelings and expectations. We're trying to impliment the 'Baby Wise' feeding/activity/sleeping schedule, and intend to do so in earnest from tomorrow. We both feel that Z is now feeding well, and that he just needs his time a little more structured so that it fits together well. Tonight is a good example of the way we'd like to change things...

21h30 - feed
00h30 - due for another feed, sleeps through
01h30 - hungry

What we want to do is wake him up and get him to feed at the 3 hour mark (ie. midnight) so that we can then do 3am and 6am, or perhaps 4am and 8am. We will have to see what transpires in the next 7 days.

one week old already !

well, our beautiful baby is now a week old. Fatter for sure, but oh-so cute and just a delight to his mum and dad. Yesterday we had our first outing - we got to try out some 'gear' - popping Zack in the Ergo baby carrier that I'd ordered in the States. We dashed out of here at 2:15 after a feed, and up to Starbucks at Canary Wharf. I picked up some goodies at Boots and we made it home just in time for the next feed. Funny how easily our lives have slotted into a 3 hour cycle.

Keith had some great news when we were up there - his new camera will be delivered on Monday. This much-awaited piece of equipment is going to crank the photography-hobby up a notch. Small inconvenience is that they don't yet have the lens that he'd ordered, but we'll borrow one from a friend and that'll do for the interim.

It's the weekend, and we don't have any plans. We hope to get upstairs and do a bit of pruning as the weather's warmed up so much, but this may be scuppered by wind and rain. No, I stand corrected, we currently have blue sky and sunshine. Ah well, I'll have to see what it's like in ten minutes time.

IT'S A BOY !!!

Our beautiful baby boy was born on Saturday morning early : 03h10

he is just gorgeous !

cute extras

How cute is this little ticker ? spotted it on a friend's website and thought I'd get me some of that.

ante-natal appointment went well, except for the midwife's long finger nails probing my stomach. Eek! No thank you.

Baby is where it needs to be. Still moving all the time. Hiccups are standard activity - once a day at least. Mum is suffering a bit from heartburn (when will it end ?), and breathlessness, and Oooo, do those hips ache. I look forward to a good night's sleep sometime in the distant future.

I went for a session of reflexology yesterday and it was wonderful. There's nothing like it for setting the mind free to roam. I suppose it has a lot to do with enjoying the foot massage, but she worked the spinal and lumbar pressure points, those bits that will help with water retention, tight neck, and of course, getting my body to consider labour.

I have started working on a family tree, which is going very well.
Taking things a day at a time.

Another addition to our NCT class:

Myles Andrew Charles Adam, to Jean-Charles & Rae (on St Patrick's Day)

the time is fast approaching...

yes, it's not long now and our baby will make an appearance. We've had a good weekend – we drove down to Guildford on Saturday and spent the afternoon celebrating Emma's Baby Shower with her. We came home via the cinema where we took in 'the Pink Panther' which was quite bad. Sunday was a quiet morning, followed by a meeting at the All Souls Clubhouse for visitors of the elderly. I missed the last one, so felt I really needed to make the effort. It was such a good time too - meeting up with other people who visit 'over 60's' in Fitzrovia, the joys and frustrations, a chance to pray together for each of our 'visitees', etc. Oh, and I must mention the wonderful apple pie we got at the end! (Sad-O pregnant appetite thang). We headed home in time for church at 6pm.

A few more babies in our NCT class have been born, notably :

Ruby Gillian Steen, to Amy & Matt (cool photos!)
A baby boy, to Yvonne & Martin
Sonny Dixie Thomas, to Ian & Maria

More news soon. I'm off to an antenatal check-up this afternoon, and we'll see what they say.

visual testimony

Charlie, Ruth & Jackie.
Jackie did all the organising of this fabulous afternoon - thank you honey !


Charlie's mum Tina - has already offered to baby-sit and be granny


Theresa & Muna



Charlie helps Pooh do the Bartman. Totally.


An awesome pressie from Corne & Rene - the wrapping paper was disco-fest dazzle.


beautiful 'safari' activity blanket from Greg & Charlie.



More loot.


More loot.


At the end of the afternoon, the boys returned from their photo exhibition at the Natural History Museum.

two preggie mums

Emm & Ruth (taken at the baby shower)
Emma due 6 June 2006
Ruth due 30 March 2006

like a rock !

this pic - 36 weeks + 2

Yup! I think that my tummy is just about as hard as it's going to get. I don't care that there are still 3 weeks to go, there is NO way I'm expanding any more. Har (choke) Har (choke). It's sure to get even more so. Hmmm.... I do not want to contemplate the 'how'.

yesterday was hospital appointment day:
Only had to wait for an hour, and then the usual : fundal height measurement - 36cm (yes, 36 weeks = 36cm), and a wee listen to the heartbeat, all is well and bub is busy busy busy. Midwife said the baby needed at least another week inside, and that's confirmed by lack of engaged head. Ah well. Pleased to hear all is well, and hearing the heartbeat is always fun. I'm getting very used to the position bub has been in - big, hard back/bum on the left hand side, and legs/ arms kicking me on the right. Poor thing - must be very cramped in there.

Jackie posted me the pics from the baby shower, so I'll create a separate entry for those straight away. We had a great day together!

is it time yet ?

The first of March means we are now in the right month, which is exhilarating and daunting. It's such a good feeling to know that we've made it this far and bambino is just busy, busy busy inside - tho' I know it must be so cramped in there. I'm feeling quite tired after a hectic weekend and going a bit crazy with 'doing things'. I am my worst enemy - I just don't stop and rest.

Note to self : stop and rest !

Yesterday was Shrove Tuesday, which means very little in my life, but since I had some eggs in the fridge, I thought, "Whoohooo, I'll make pancakes and take them to church." So I stood over the stove for more than an hour frying pancakes last night. What for ? I'm not sure. They all got eaten and people were complimentary, but I did wonder afterwards why I hadn't just gone and had a nice nap before church instead of all the stress of mixing and frying and sprinkling of cinnamon. Silly girl !

Am starting to have Braxton Hicks (B.H.) that are more noticeable - mostly in front, but I had a few on my lower back this afternoon. From the quick canvas I did on Friday at the NCT tea, B.H.'s are widely different and variable. Some people have the standard - tightening of the stomach surface, while others (like m'self) have quite painful practice-contractions. Sheesh, it can be quite alarming, because you aren't sure if 'this is it!' or just another B.H.

Off to do some ironing !