Mummy helpline

Being a parent is hard. No question! Until that point you just had to make decisions for yourself or maybe a pet but now you are responsible for this tiny little human and it can be overwhelmingly terrifying. 

I’m generally a calm person who is quite confident in what I’m doing but there is no panic like that you feel when there is something wrong with your baby and you don’t know what to do! I can remember countless times where I have frozen while I madly debate in my head what on  earth I should do. Do I call someone? Should I go somewhere? Help?! Yet here I sit with my child peacefully sleeping in a house of calm (for the moment).

The truth is that there are constant scares along the way. Some bigger than others. However, we manage. Then the next time it happens we are that little bit more prepared and steadily it becomes something we can take in our stride.

I had a cousin call for some advice on their baby today. Something that was a similar experience to what I had with my daughter when she was little and the funniest thing happened. We spoke for a while and the more we spoke, the more I recalled the fear of the first time. Something that over time became “normal” but made me break down in tears at the time. Then it made me think of all the other frights we have had this past year. Things that made me feel sick to the stomach, yet I know I could handle calmer now if they were to happen again. Now that I know roughly what to expect, how to handle it, when to ask for help etc…

I loved the fact that I got a call for advice. It’s amazing how sharing your experiences about the same or similar thing, can make you both feel better. It’s comforting to know that someone lived through it, that someone has felt that terrified and helpless but it passed. That you’re not crazy for ringing the doctor again or continually taking your child’s temperature. We have all been there for one reason or another and probably will be again.

So I think one of the most valuable tools is your mummy helpline. Those friends/family that you call upon for guidance but importantly reassurance because being a parent is hard. Full stop!

Who do you call upon for support and advice? 

Wife and mother, x

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My baby is walking!

We have been so busy recently it’s been hard to find the time to do anything other than daily tasks but I am hoping things will settle down a bit again soon as I’m exhausted. So exhausted that I actually fell asleep putting our daughter to bed last night! I woke up a few hours later, in the dark, still not having had my dinner! Oh well, I guess these things happen…

In light of that I decided to have a quieter day today and rest as much as possible. So we spent the day doing a few household chores but mostly having a good old play together. All the toys were out, the room was in chaos but we had such a fun time together! Our daughters play has really developed again recently and changed now. She will properly make believe with you which I find so fascinating to watch. Cups of tea, pretend food, taking care of her dolly… It’s such a great new stage. I enjoyed the fact she got to burn off a lot of energy today, not that it helped her napping. In fact, she only napped a total of 15 minutes all day, which is just exhausting for both of us but we made it and have had a (planned) early night!

She has been very good at assisted walking with either a walker or a hand being held but she hadn’t quite decided to brave it alone until today. It took me completely by surprise, despite me having a feeling all day that she might try it. She was just seeming that bit more confident or daredevilish today. She was walking around the furniture and then all of a sudden, she let go and walked into the middle of the room! The utter joy from both of us was wonderful! Once she got so far she fell down and hasn’t been able to replicate it again yet, although it was very close to bedtime so there wasn’t much opportunity. It happened so quickly I didn’t have time to grab my camera but I’ll be ready tomorrow!

I still can’t believe she did it! I’m sad my husband missed it but I’m so happy that she felt confident enough to do it! There are so many precious moments. Some big, others small but truly moments to treasure!

Wife and mother, X

First pair of shoes!

I can’t believe we are already buying shoes for our little girl! I keep thinking back to a year ago, when she was so tiny and just lay in our arms contently. Now she is huge! Well, you know, one year old size! Huge by comparison to where she started hehe! She is just constantly on the go. I don’t know where this girl gets her energy from but I certainly wish I had some of it! 

While she is not walking independently yet, she does love walking around with either her walker or our helping hands. It has been on my mind lately to branch out and buy her first pair of shoes as while she still needs some assistance, I really don’t think it will be long until she does it alone. I also thought by having some shoes, it would give her the opportunity to try and walk around more. Up until now I would only let her have a cruise around inside the house but with shoes she would be able to do it anywhere which I’m hoping will help build her confidence. I think it’s also important to let her have the chance to experience toddling around a shop if she wants to; siting in a buggy must get old pretty fast when you are an active Monkey.

So today we did it! Daddy is just home from a trip away so we thought it would be a nice family thing to do upon his return. We ended up trying for shoes twice as the first store didn’t have any in her size, which was a really pain because our daughter screamed through the whole feet measuring process which filled me with dread at the idea of trying again! Thankfully the next shop we went into had a wonderful young assistant who made the measuring experience fun and distracted her as she did it. There was laughter and smiles which put me at ease too. There was also a fantastic selection of footwear to pick from! We picked some adorable little pink shoes with some pretty detailing on the front. They also have soft soles so aren’t as structured or heavy for crawling and a good first shoe to get used to the idea.

From the minute they went on her feet she was thrilled! We walked around the shoe shop, then around the coffee shop, then around a shoe shop for daddy (no mummy did not get shoes too, apparently I have too many?) and then walked through the car park to our car! She was having a ball and cried whenever she was lifted. 

I think it’s fair to say that she is thrilled with her first pair of shoes and once she realises she can walk without a hand, there will be no stopping her! I guess the next purchase should be some reins?!

Wife and mother, x