KAITLYN'S FIRST CHRISTMAS

Merry Christmas to All!

Kaitlyn enjoyed a fabulous first Christmas, spending time with both Grandma and Grandad and Nan and Poppy. And she was absolutely spoiled wherever she went!

Perhaps the best part of being a Mum at Christmas is getting to open Kaitlyn’s gifts, of which there were many toys, books and clothes, and I fell in love with everything. Some of my favourites included Kaitlyn's first swimming pool and swimming costumes (including a very cute two-piece), a collection of "Little Miss" books, the Possum Magic book, a CD of songs with Kaitlyn's name in the title, and some lovely things for her room. However it’s not really fair to single certain presents out, as everything was beautiful, and there were so many.. So much more than I could have ever imagined.

Kaitlyn took t the Christmas break with ease, particularly considering we stayed Christmas night at Nan and Poppy’s, along with Aunty Kym, Uncle Tim and Dylan. She was happy enough to just sit back and take it all in, having the occasional word to say when someone was listening. Once again she was completely fascinated with her cousin, her little eyes following him wherever he went. He on the other hand, isn’t quite so sure. He was happy enough to take a look at her (especially when she was crying), but didn’t seem to keen on touching her, much less giving her a kiss! It’s amazing to think that next year she will be the one running around the house, and Dylan will be speaking real words to us (this year he was speaking in baby babble)!

Ash and I had a really lovely couple of days, relaxing with both families and enjoying delicious food and a couple of glasses of wine. The two days made a lot easier by both families being more than happy to take the little princess off a hands for most of the day.

Here is a collection of some of the many many photos I took over the course of Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.

Wishing everyone all the very best for their Christmas and New Year break. Hoping your holiday is filled with laughter, love and the promise of great times ahead.

With love,

Kel and Kaitlyn

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

LIKE MOTHER, LIKE DAUGHER

I think I have decided what my New Year’s resolution should be – to worry less! I just can’t seem to help myself, but I find something new to worry about almost every day. This week I have considered visiting the doctor for a number of reasons including;

Is she throwing up too much?
Is she putting on enough weight?
Shouldn’t her skin be getting better by now?
Is she sleeping too much?
Am I feeding her enough?
The list goes on…

One of the things that no one ever tells you about motherhood is most of the time, everything you do is just a wild stab in the dark, and there isn’t always an obvious “right” way of doing things.

Regardless, Kaitlyn seems to be doing well – she has survived her Mother’s neurosis without scar, and is (in my opinion) looking forward to Christmas. We finished our Christmas shopping with Grandma on Wednesday during which time Kaitlyn was dazzled by the Christmas decorations and lights, while nonplussed with another sighting of Santa. Meanwhile I have been busily shopping for her first Christmas present… As she has no idea what-so-ever, Ash and I are buying something for her each and then surprising one another with it on Christmas day. I am definitely purchasing something gorgeous for her to wear, while Ash is buying some sort of contraption from Toys-R-Us.

In terms of milestones this week, Kaitlyn’s favourite thing to do at the moment is putting her fist and fingers as far into her mouth as possible. (Strangely enough she has been caught more than once sucking on two fingers – just like her Mum). Whenever left alone for more than five seconds, she is exploring her little mouth, fingers everywhere, generally resulting in throwing up afterwards. I have now charmingly nicknamed her the vomit machine, not the most attractive description, I grant you, but if the shoe fits... This has coincided with the introduction of the dribble. Although teething is another three months or so off (hopefully), the dribbling has begun and she has mastered it with such speed, I am changing bibs almost hourly. If she is anything like her cousin, Dylan, there will be enough to fill a swimming pool by the time she turns one.

She has also discovered the tv. Whilst it is terrific she is willing to share in my love of America’s Next Top Model, and Miami Ink, I have felt a little guilty for corrupting her young mind. So, this week I have started putting on a Baby Beethoven DVD (apparently, educational). To be honest the DVD drives me mad, however she loves it. Once turned on, she goos and gaas along with the music, and watches the puppets dance across the screen. Every once and a while I think I am one of those “bad mothers” who uses tv as a babysitter – but then I remember, I am getting time to do my housework, or wrap presents, so the guilt soon wears off. Anyway I’m not nearly as bad as Grandma who is trying to convert her to UKTV, in particular Coronation Street.

The other big change recently, is Kaitlyn’s expressions, they are so much more clearer now. If she is happy we get a big gummy smile - Grandma gets one every time she visits, and Dad get’s one as soon as he gets home. When she is not sure about something, she raises one of her eyebrows (so funny), and the upset look, well that’s not too hard to guess. It’s great to watch her little personality develop – she is becoming quite the young lady!

IT'S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE CHRISTMAS...

Despite the less than wonderful weather this week, Kaitlyn was in good spirits, perhaps in anticipation of her first Christmas…

Over the weekend, Ash and I attended a wedding in Ettalong, so Kaitlyn enjoyed her first ever weekend away, but wasn’t much help when it came to changing Dad’s flat tyre on the drive up there (not sure that Mum was either, to be honest).

We had a lovely night out while Nanna stayed back to babysit, and then we awoke the next morning for a special birthday breakfast for Nanna’s birthday. Kaitlyn was very influential in choosing the pink ipod for Nanna to take away on her trip to Europe next year - although Nanna had no idea what the ipod actually did, she did seem very happy with her gift.

On the way home, out of no where, Ash was overtaken by Christmas spirit – this is the man who up until now gave Scrooge a run for his money! So, we bought our first ever family Christmas tree and some lights to decorate the house. Then, we came home and Ash put it all up!

It’s great to see his little girl is bringing out the best of Christmas in him, and she is absolutely fascinated with the lights. Daddy was deserving of lot’s of kisses for his efforts.

The week itself got off to a slow start with Kaitlyn having the Monday blues – a grisly day which meant a bit of whinging and lot’s of feeding for Mum. However we took a walk to enjoy our now regular Mother’s Group meeting. Our group has slimmed down since the beginning to nice number of about half a dozen, and over time we are developing our friendships, and trying to work out this crazy new experience together.

On Tuesday Kaitlyn had her first ever Santa photo. Unfortunately at this stage I haven’t got a soft copy (they certainly know just how to charge!), however they will be emailing me a copy in January, so I will put together a bit of a Christmas montage after the million photos I will no doubt take. Kaitlyn was very good for Santa, especially considering I had to wake her for the photo. She actually didn’t seem that impressed with him (and it showed), more enthusiastic about the reindeer bib I had her in.

We were also ladies who lunched this week, catching up with close friend Kristen, who used to be my boss. Kristen had her baby, Alice in June this year, so the two little ones spent quite a lot of time checking one another out but not at the point yet where they can have a good old play. We were so busy chatting and enjoying a scrumptious lasagne that I didn’t get in a good snap – here’s the only one I managed…

This week Kaitlyn has been making even more sounds, and more regularly. In the mornings I love singing to her (even if it is a bit of Beyonce) as she goos and gaas along with me. She is also getting there when it comes to reaching out and grabbing. Her little fingers are starting to explore the world, especially when she is feeding and completely relaxed. And we continue to enjoy lot's of lovely smiles - she really is such a happy baby.

NINE WEEKS (ALREADY??)

Kaitlyn marked her ninth week in the world with an adventure or two, including her first important outfit purchase (the good stuff), and possibly the most dreaded thing in the world for a baby… Immunisations (the not so good stuff). (We have also had somewhat of a fashion week in the Parmenter household, so I will be punctuating my paragraphs with outfit shots).

Let’s start with the good stuff – Grandma and I went shopping this week for Kaitlyn’s Christening gown. Now anyone who knows me, knows I absolutely adored my purchasing and wearing my wedding dress (and still do – well not the wearing part, I am at least 20 dress sizes up these days), so I just had to have the right dress for Kaitlyn’s first big celebration. And for those with a baby, you know that if you are buying anything baby related, it tends to come with somewhat of an over inflated price tag.

I did a little on-line pricing, and was not quite able to believe some people would pay upwards of $800 for a gown (hey, who am I kidding, if I had that kind of money, I absolutely would spend it on Kaitlyn) and agreed with Ash (after many many hours of debate) on a fair and reasonable budget…(That’s my story and I’m sticking to it). Then it was time for me and Grandma to hit the shops..

We found the most beautiful long gown in ivory with matching bonnet and booties in the first shop we went into. Like the day we found my wedding dress, we saw it, and instantly we knew – we had to have it! So here’s a sneak peek….

I just can’t wait to see her in it!

On to the immunisations… I must say I was quite worked up about it all, after having cried when watching doctor’s only examine my little girl (the hip check they do is the absolute worse). Unfortunately the nurse we had wasn’t overfriendly – and I don’t think Kaitlyn took to her well at all. During the injections, I had to hold her down, all the while screaming (her, not me), and so of course I started to well up. At this point the nurse told me to stop crying – “Would you rather her have two needles today or 24 tomorrow if she get’s sick?” Believe it or not I didn’t hit her for six, but did think to myself how glad I was Kaitlyn wasn’t spending more than 15 minutes in her presence!

Two needles, and one horrible tasting oral immunisation later, we were good to go. Once home, Kaitlyn had a little trouble sleeping during the day – something tells me she was having nightmares about what had happened, as she kept falling asleep and then waking up, crying after about 20 minutes or so. Still we made it through the day and night, and she seems to be doing well now. Her infection has also cleared up which is just great – such a relief.

Kaitlyn has been babbling back to us a lot this week – she loves a good old chat, usually in the morning. She also seems to have a lot to say when her grandma is around – no doubt complaining about what a pain her mother can be! Her hand-eye coordination is improving every day – certainly I can see a difference, her Dad however is less convinced and doubts our child is the genius I proclaim her to be. She also seems to be getting into somewhat of a sleeping pattern, although continues to attempt to suffocate herself with her wrap. At least once a day, we peep in at her in the following position…

We are eagerly anticipating her being able to hold her head up permanently, (she is getting very good), and cannot wait for her first genuine giggle. Still, we don’t want to wish the time away, it’s great to enjoy her just as she is.

Time to go, Kaitlyn is looking forward to seeing her Grand-dad this weekend, who returns from a 3 week break in the UK.

KAITLYN'S FIRST ILLNESS

I started this week feeling quite good about my abilities as a new Mum – kind of in a groove with little Kaitlyn and looking forward to the week’s worth of activities I had planned.

That was until Sunday night, when my little one had a lot of difficulty settling down for her big sleep – not being her usual easy going self, I started to worry a little, especially considering the nasty patch of dry skin on both ears turning an unpleasant looking (and smelling) yellow colour.



For the last few weeks, Kaitlyn’s skin has been less than perfect (unlike the rest of her) with blotches of little pimples and dry skin all over her face and body (which, according to the Baby Love book, and my informed diagnosis is hormone rash). However the skin on her ears was different altogether, and it was when she awoke on Monday morning that I realised there was a clear liquid in her ear drum. After questioning myself for another 24 hours, I went in to see the doc, who quickly pronounced Kaitlyn’s ears as infected, and with it being highly unusual for someone so young to be so sick, we were to head off to the Children’s Hospital immediately.

Was I terrified? Absolutely. But at the same time, Kaitlyn was in remarkably good spirits for someone so sick, so I felt positive everything was going to be ok. After a five hour wait, we got in to see a doctor who took a good look over our little baby, and prescribed some ear drops and cream until the cause of the infection could be identified.

Now while the Doctor told us we were very unlucky that Kaitlyn caught a serious infection so early in her little life, you can’t help but feel exactly the opposite when you see some of the kids walking in and out of hospital. If this is the worst we ever go through, we are very lucky parents indeed.

It turned out Kaitlyn had contracted Golden Staph – highly unusual for an 8 week old to have had exposure to, as it is a bacteria that is resistant to some antibiotics and is mainly found in hospitals. While we remain in the dark as to its origin, Kaitlyn is well on the mend, and coincidently the rest of her skin in beginning to clear up too.

Of course she doesn’t seem too affected by all the drama – there’s too much sleeping to do!

WHEN YOU'RE SMILING...

They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so this is going to be a HUGE entry.

This week our beautiful daughter has been giving us plenty of smiles. She seems to have the most on offer when waking up from a nap or sleep – no matter what time of day. (Her grandma will tell you though that she brings out the biggest smiles of all).

I managed to capture a few on film… (ok I took hundreds, consider yourself lucky it takes so long to upload these photos, otherwise I could fill 10 blogs!)

All this smiling can make a little person very sleepy…

PARTY GIRL

Last weekend marked a special set of events for our family and friends, and therefore a busy time for our little family.

Dylan celebrated his first birthday and naming ceremony on Saturday the 8th of November. We kicked off the day by putting Kaitlyn in her first ever dress – just gorgeous! (Which she proceeded to be sick on, and I couldn’t bring myself to take it off – luckily milk is difficult to see on white.) Having a girl is honestly the best thing that could ever happen to anyone even remotely interested in fashion – it’s a dream come true, and to think I haven’t even shopped for her yet! (By the way, nothing but the best for our little one – both dresses are from the UK).



Back to the centre of attention – our nephew Dylan… Who was very well behaved on the day considering the line of people wanting to hold on to him all afternoon, while all he wanted to do was run around and discover things. He had a ball with the bubble making machine his Mum couldn’t resist buying for the event, as well as the jumping castle which the grown ups managed to steer clear of, thankfully . Ash and I were honoured to be chosen as one of Dylan’s set of godparents, although no photos of that on this blog, as at the moment, the body hasn’t quite bounced back as well as I had hoped. I feel as though it’s quite a special thing to be a godparent – I already have one godson, the very gorgeous and clever, Sam McAndrew.

Then on Sunday, we attended the christening of Enrique Caraballo, along with 40 of his closest friends! This event called for a white dress with matching cardigan, and a set of frilly knickers – I just have to keep these outfits to show her when she is older!

The day was filled with lot’s of divine Italian food – too much to consume in one sitting, and plenty of cuddles for little Enrique. The day was also attended by Daniela’s cousin who has just given birth to twin girls, sisters to a three year old boy. I have to admit, I sat in wonder of the woman.

I think about the fact it takes me half the morning to get ready to go out for a short shopping trip, or how quickly the time flies between feeds – I can’t imagine jugging twins and a toddler. Give that woman a big fat trophy I say, surely there isn’t a harder job in the world than that?

So Kaitlyn has now attended two parties, and was adored wherever she went. She is continuing to grow, now up to 4.55kg, and 54cms, and is starting to get into a routine on most days. While feeding continues to be a challenge, she is a great little sleeper, particularly at night when she gives me very little trouble at all (am I cursed now for saying that?).

She is starting to make sounds other than crying – little coos and aahs, and I just can’t wait for her to give us a little giggle. Her other big achievement is developing her neck strength which seems to get better every day. I think it’s because she simply can’t bear to not be involved in what’s going on around her – I call it “nosy”, the nicer description is probably “alert”.

That’s about all for now – more photos to get taking….

WEEK 1 SURVIVED FLYING SOLO

Just in case you had your doubts, I got through my first week flying solo with our wonderful little girl.

And I can honestly say it was bloody tough without Grandma, but we did get there… And here are the smiles to prove it.

Ok, so we did have a helping hand from Grandad, who did a great job of taking her for a walk, and getting her to sleep.

And then proceeded to talk about his little princess all night when getting home to Grandma.

So, how many more days of this ahead of me? About 6500 or so, according to my calculations. I think we will just take it a day at a time.