Christmas Greetings

Taking this opportunity to post a few recent that photos of Zoe that I'd intended to have printed and posted to family with Christmas cards. Oops! Have also included one from this week, after we put the Christmas tree up for the second time this year (on account of removing all the furniture to the bedrooms for a week so the living areas could be tiled). The Christmas tree is one that we put up every year since I was born so it is more than 34 years old. Apparently Pa Hemmings worked in a factory in Sydney that made them, so Mum used to say that 'Pa made the Christmas tree', which is a nice take on the true story, I guess.

Two quick stories I've been wanting to tell about Zoe here - one funny and the other not so. The first is that, while being changed on our bed a couple of weeks ago, Zoe ask 'what's that Mum?', pointing at the ceiling. She'd spotted a gecko. We hear them all the time but had never seen one linger for so long, so I called Ewan to come for a look. As he was chasing it around the room it jumped (they have awesome 'flying skills') and landed spreadeagled and right way up on Zoe's bare belly. She didn't seem to notice and I was in shock, and then just started laughing before brushing it off on to the floor. I think the gecko is still lingering in the bedroom, but I like to think it found it's mate outside under the eaves somewhere, which is where they seem to live.

My second story is that Zoe managed to climb out of her cot a few nights ago, and clearly fell head first over the side. Ewan went in to investigate the ruckus, and she was walking out of the room with blood, from seemed like a cut to her gums, around her mouth. Of course, we were as upset as she was, and since that night she has refused to sleep anywhere but our bed or her pram, which she is getting a little too big for. I did try her in the cot the next night, but caught her trying to 'escape', so that I think is the end of that. I'd guess that she has spent maybe one of her 21 months sleeping through in the cot. This now means that I need to lie down with her in out bed to get her to sleep, and the obvious thing to do is for me to stay there (Noah and Erica, I know you understand all of this!), but her 7-730pm bedtime will need to be revisted. Despite all of this, we're just very grateful that she didn't break any bones.

19 months old

Dear Zoe,

Mummy is sorry she hasn't posted for so long, so let me make amends by describing some of the cool stuff you've been up to. Today you had your 18 months chickenpox vaccination, which we delayed for a few weeks because you were very sick when it was due. You were being very funny and charming in the doctor's office, playing hide and seek behind the curtain and trying to climb up on to the bed. Until you got your needle, and cried and cried. The ladies at reception said they were very sad for you. What was funny was that you didn't like having the band aid on your leg, and wanted me to pull it off.

You really enjoy being outdoors, either at the beach, park or in the backyard. At home you constantly say 'outside', although today you started putting two words together. I make you put on your hat, and you love putting sunscreen on yourself and me. Once out, you make yourself busy playing in Harry's water bowl, moving his bowl around and offering it to him, and filling and emptying your watering can. It is very hot and sunny and although I make you wear a long sleeve shirt as well, we have to come inside during the middle of the day, which makes you unhappy. Down the beach you like to wander around looking at and collecting stones and shells, and like to hold Mum and Dad's hand and jump in the little waves.

You spend every Monday with Aunty Sally ('Sal'), and Ella and Myia, and always come home exhausted. Ella goes to dancing on Monday afternoons, and when you go inside to watch Ella gets embarassed, because you run up to the girls and pretend to be part of the class too. You love dancing, and start moving when you hear music that you like on the radio. On Tuesday, Thursday and Friday you go to family day care at Cherrie's.

A couple of weeks ago Myia celebrated her first birthday at Shaws Bay, which was exhausting for you but lots of fun. Mummy made a whale cake with blue icing for MyMy, and you went paddling in the bay. I haven't been able to get organised for you to have swimming lessons yet, but you are fearless in the pool at Aunty Sal's. In fact, you are fearless when it comes to climbing and bouncing and sliding...but pretty shy with new people. And Mummy loves you very much.

Garden pictures

I've been meaning to post some before and after pics of some of the work we've done to the house. Here's some 'before, during and after' pictures from the front garden, which was the first thing we tackled. Even though the plants have only been in for six months, I think they're looking pretty good. That's red kangaroo paw flowering wildly in the after pic.

Winter with Zoe

We're having such lovely mild weather, which means more time and fun outdoors - before it gets too hot! My favourite here is from Sunday's finger painting session. Zoe is eating dog food, which is a byproduct of her favourite backyard activity at the moment - feeding Harry dog. Her second favourite is to play in Harry's water bowl, but I've tried some replacement therapy and she's now content with a watering can under the tap.

Mummy's off to work

Am back to thinking about appropriate posts for Zoe's blog. Facebook is a waste of time, literally. And now that I'm employed [I'm a bit gobsmacked, but starting to get my head around it and am even a little excited], I won't have time for that kind of stuff. And there's still the matter of my PhD to complete. Sooner rather than later.

So I start work next week, but was able to negotiate for an 80% workload until the end of the year, which is a relief. I think four long days of care, although one of them will be with Aunty Sally, is sufficient for my 16 and a 1/2 month-old. I've extended her 6 hour per day family day care place to 7 hours this week, and will make it 8 hours per day the following week. That doesn't look too bad written down, but I've been agonising over the whole thing for weeks now, wondering how we will make it work. Ewan has agreed to do the pick ups, and he might even be a stay-at-home Dad for a short while, if things go well [for me, he's secretly panicked at the prospect]. Zoe is really sick at the moment, probably with some kind of virus that gives a sore, hoarse throat, hot flushes, persistently runny nose and a good dose of whining and whinging [I'm trying to be compassionate...] so I might not even make it to Uni tomorrow, which is a good start to a new job!

Weaning followup

Poor Zoe - I've discovered facebook, so have been otherwise occupied this past week. That, and an appaling performance in a job interview, the outcome of which could change our lives in rather dramatic ways, by sending me back to full time work, has otherwise distracted me.

Ewan says his less than 48 hours as sole carer of Zoe last weekend went well, although she was apparently quite sullen for most of my absence. For my part, I missed her dearly, and spent much of my time spotting other people's babies, wondering how old they were. I even found myself in Pumpkin Patch in Paramatta, looking at baby clothes as much as mums and their bubs.

Anyhow, despite the intense physical discomfort that producing milk with nowhere to go brings, and a few long nights filled with Zoe's screaming and tantrums, things have settled down nicely. Zoe seems to have accepted rather easily [she's 16 months] that Mumma's milk flows no more, and even slept through the night five days after her last feed. She hadn't done that for at least six weeks, I think. Despite my initial sadness, I can now see that the time was probably right, although I think I would have gone for another few months if I had felt a little more supported.

Weaning

If I can stick to my resolution - and I am frequently doubtful - tonight will be the last time I feed my possum. Tomorrow I'm heading off to Sydney, alone, to do some more interviews for my studies. I'm not so worried about leaving her, as I'm sure she'll be just fine having less than 48 hours with Dada, but am sad about the end of our special time, after 16 months. Truth is, Zoe is keener to feed at night [usually twice] than before going to bed, so the hardest thing will be finding other means to lull her back to sleep at 2am. We introduced a cup of warm milk through a straw a couple of nights ago, which she is happy to have, mostly because of the straw novelty, but won't be offering anything else later than this. So wish us luck. At least I get a chance to sleep through for two nights in a row!

Bake, bump and squeeze

Oh my. It is almost the end of June, and I haven't posted for Zoe this month. Here's a photo record:

• first cake baked - with Ella, for Daddy's birthday
• best bump - fell down the steps at the caravan park on Bribie Island, where we were to celebrate Jake's first birthday and
  
• current fascination - tucking oneself into tight spaces. Here she is in an upturned stool. Other times it is a drawer or cupboard.

Toddler in the city

The whole family has just survived four days in Sydney, during which I spent a couple of nights inteviewing gaming machine players for my research. We included a visit to Pa's house on the Central Coast. Zoe was very upset on the flight there, and nothing we did managed to console her for more than a minute. I'm annoyed with myself for not feeding her - I'm still breastfeeding - because I was embarassed about the man I was sitting next to. Now that Zoe's little older [14 months old], there's some open disapproval about my breastfeeding, although it is mostly expressed as concern for my wellbeing. And it comes from my family. While I might post my thoughts on that some other time, I do feel a bit anxious about how strangers perceive the whole thing.

We stayed with Great Aunty Pat at Jacksons Landing, which is one of those planned, high density industrial redevelopments, right on the harbour. This meant that there were loads of waterfront, child friendly parks and playground, all of them with pram/wheelchair access, which made getting out and about really easy. Zoe is much happier when she can explore widely, and where there are opportunites to practice her stair climbing. She also loves swings, and is happy to go back and forth for long periods of time.

The flight back was a bit easier, probably because I dosed her up with an antihistamine/decongestant shortly before we got on the plane. She is 'loaded with the cold', as Ewan would say, and we had a wakeful night the night before because of that, so I can justify doing this, to some extent. And it worked a treat. She fell asleep in my arms during take off [after charming the women who were seated all around us], and woke shortly before landing. With a dry nose and clear eyes. The irony is, I would have felt comfortable feeding her that time.

We've decided however, that even though the trip went well, I'll travel by myself for work next time, and Ewan and Zoe can stay home together. Suits me fine!

Bye!

Zoe's favourite word at the moment is 'bye'. It is very cute, particularly when she uses it out of context, like when she should say hello. Or when she said it to everyone we passed down the street last week, making them all smile. After spending more time than usual with her Dad, she has also started saying 'da da' and pointing at her Dad. This makes a nice change from, Mum! and Ma m!, which means everything from 'another biscuit please' to 'I'm stuck between the chair and the wall' [this happens more than you'd think].

Bub and Dad

Here's a cute picture sent to me by our friend OJ, who is sitting just outside the frame of this picture. Zoe has her book upside down, which is okay, because the pictures look good from any angle, I'm sure.

Growing up

I'm frequently amazed by how quickly Zoe is becoming a little person - with a personality. Then I'm reminded that she's still got a long way to go, particularly with learning how to manage her emotions. Her current response is to start yelling-crying [let's call it 'crelling'] and sit or lie down on the ground. Poor dear. Hopefully, as her language skills improve this will lessen.

Still not too many words beyond 'Mum Mum!', which is used for almost everything, but with different intensities and 'ta', which is very cute. To my surpise though, she says 'what is it?' or 'what's that?', which is something she's picked up from the slightly older kids at family daycare.

More teeth

Yesterday Zoe let me have a peek inside her mouth, and I discovered five new teeth, all on the upper side, including one molar. I'm happy that this might mean an end for her ongoing discomfort and hopefully stop her biting and chewing on some rather unsanitary objects.

Still not much hair on the front part of her head yet though. We joke that she has a hairline like her Dad's, but at least her's is moving in the opposite direction. I was similarly challenged as a bubba, apparently, so am not concerned for her at all. As to what colour her hair is? Aunty Sally would call it 'ash', which to me looks a little bit blonde/grey, but I don't know where it will end up. Probably mousey brown, poor dear.

Music, sweet music

It's fun to see Zoe respond to music - on the radio, from our collection, or from her PlaySchool CD's. She starts bobbing and dipping and even spinning [who taught her that dance move?!], and a big smile comes across her face. Priceless. If she's sitting in her high chair she'll start tapping her feet. What a cute boo boo.

Ella is very much into dancing, and we've been to watch her pre-schooler's dance class a couple of times. I was surprised at how intently Zoe took it all in. Aunty Sally, Aunty Melissa and I all spent too much time in dance lessons and getting ready for performances, so I hope we're not heading down that path with our girls. Unless they truly really want to.

Favourite toys

Zoe's favourite toys at the moment are: -

* books - for turning-the-pages-practice, but more recently, to have a story told. We read 'Guess How Much I Love You' and 'Hairy Maclary' daily.
* her cousins. Ella is worshipped - even when trying to pick Zoe up but knocking her over and Maya is patted on the head, like a dog. Both are greeted with squeals of delight and wide smiles.
* shoes - there's a stash in her cupboard, which she picks up and carries around. We only bought Zoe's first real pair last week - and they've spent more time being carried around and deposited in odd locations [we found them in the laundry basket, after several days, but thought they'd been put in the bin!]

Water play in time of drought

We had a lovely post-daycare play in the back yard yesterday. Zoe was less obsessed than usual with Harry's food and water bowls, playing instead with containers of water I put out and going for a trot around the perimeter every couple of minutes. I decided to water the small amount of new turf with the hose - yes, we continue to cultivate grass, which is very naughty, but better than bare dirt - and Zoe ended up running through the spray, which was very funny for her and me. This was after her tea, so I literally hosed her down in the backyard, thinking that would suffice for a wash. It bought back lots of memories of playing with the hose and under the sprinkler with my sisters and other neighbourhood kids for hours at a time on hot summer days.

What a shame that we can't behave quite so irresponsibly with water anymore. This morning, boffins from the local water authority were on the radio, talking up their water restriction challenge. Oops. Felt guilty yesterday but feel guiltier now. It's very hard to stick to the environmental program with a baby. Not only the extra water, but the disposable nappies [we still use cloth at home] and wipes add immensely to the amount of garbage we bin. I think we've doubled out output, which was very low to begin with.

After the outdoor shower, I let Zoe run around inside sans nappy [trying to deal with a little but of nasty nappy rash]. Just as I was contemplating putting a nappy on, I looked down to see her in a squat, with a nugget of poo at her mouth. Aargh! I scared her so much by yelling with surprise that she stumbled forward, through the offending pile of, well, you-know-what, smearing it all over the carpet. Oh my goodness, what a mess. Thankfully, Daddy pulled up from work at just the right time, so I gave him the job of cleaning the carpet, while I washed Zoe down in the bath. For the second time. At what age do they handle the toileting on their own?

Toys in the toilet

Zoe has always enjoyed wandering down the short hallway to the laundry, from where she can sometimes see Harry the dog. If there's a basket of pegs or washing there, she'll happily play for a few minutes. I had made a point of keeping the adjacent toilet door closed, occasionally leaving the bathroom door open if the shower screen is pulled across. So I am a little surprised that twice in the last two days I have fished toys out of the toilet bowl. It was clever and funny the first time [she opens and closes the lid]. Amusing the second. But I think now it is time for a sign on the door to remind Dad/visitors of Zoe's new game.

Mmmm. Cake

We had a lovely party on Sunday afternoon for Zoe's first birthday, by the water at Shaws Bay. While it was all a bit lost on Zoe, she did appreciate her first piece of birthday cake and seemed amused by the other kids and babies that were there. This included Jessie and Duncan, Ella and Myia, Ezra and Tallulah and Jake. Wow, from the noise it seemed like there were more than that! Aunty Bev and Uncle Jim came down from Byron too, which made it extra special.

Since it was a first birthday, I made the cake from scratch, including hand beating the cake and icing. Only because I couldn't find the electric beaters. I bought the decorations. We had originally forgotten the cake, remembering only when we went back for Ewan's sunglasses. Oops. Have to say I thoroughly recommend the party in the park option, which we did thinking our backyard was too small and messy for that number of kids.

Climbing

Now that walking is second nature - we can manage most surfaces and even inclines - Zoe has turned her attention to climbing into, over and on to toys and furniture. Mummy has turned her attention to showing Zoe how to climb down. She is starting to get the hang of that one too.

Another cute photo attached [well, I think so] of Zoe chewing on an apple. It was very cold and juicy so very nice on the gums. I know it is a potential choking hazard, but I've been breaking lots of rules for several months - peanut butter, home made pesto with cashew pieces today, egg white. Geez, I might even spread some honey on her toast in the morning. The food 'rules' for bubs are as bad as they are in pregnancy. Anyhow, if she had managed to break a piece of apple off, I don't know what I would have done, except that I am getting skilled in fishing bits and pieces of non-edibles out of her mouth with my fingers.

Meat

I put aside my aversion to handling minced meat and attempted to make little meatballs for Zoe last night. Ergh! From mixing the egg and grated carrot through with my hands, to frying the little buggers in oil, the whole process was not only messy, but challenging to all my senses. Although I managed to get cute little balls of cooked-through meat, they were black on the outside and appeared most unappetising. Think I'll stick to the lentils, beans and fish-as-protein approach that I've been following, and Zoe can wait until she can have barbeque'd meat cooked by Dad.

Wallking

Zoe is definately walking now, with purpose and direction, although it can get pretty wobbly. This is a big 'step forward' from the short stumble she has been doing during the last couple of weeks. Today, she started coming up from sitting to standing without the aid of furniture or toys - I'm amazed at how quickly she's acquiring new skills and lots of confidence. I've read that once babies reach this stage, they become dogged in their quest to improve their walking skills, forsaking all toys and playthings. It is true that she has been pushing her red ride on car, and anything else that will move, like washing baskets and large books, around and across the loungeroom for a couple of weeks now, so that was maybe the beginning of this fascination. She's also quite keen on climbing up steps and sitting on her car.

Another feature of the 'new' Zoe, perhaps associated with her 'quiet, determined' temperament, are the tantrums she is thowing - tears and screams - when she gets bored or is unhappy with a situation. At feeding time she combines this with throwing the spoons and food on the floor, which makes this three-times-a-day ritual quite challenging for Mum. I've calculated that I have washed that high chair tray a minimum of 180 times already, and I'm guessing there's at least another 12 months of this to go. Joy.

Sleeping confessions - Part II

The cot sleeping trial went reasonably well last night, in that Zoe resettled in the cot after each waking/feed. And although I did miss night time cuddles with my little possum, I guess I did have a more settled sleep myself, particularly between the 230am feed and Ewan's alarm going off for work before 6am.

This morning's sleep was a bit more problematic. I tried to follow the 'lie baby down 15 times then leave her for 20 minutes or as long as you can stand to hear her yelling' recommendation. Problem is, she worked herself into a sweaty lather pretty quickly, rather than the intermittent yelling and chatting of last night. But I persevered, and, after an hour of lying her down when she stood, holding my hand on her back and a few out of the cot cuddling sessions, she fell asleep in my arms. Which was very cute even if it is very 'naughty'. This took an hour. I'm wondering how the afternoon sleep with go.

Good news from here is that it is raining, which is lovely for the new garden we planted out yesterday, and long overdue. Makes for nice sleeping weather too.

Sleeping confessions

Our sleeping arrangements have been a tad unconventional since Zoe's birth. I guess we've been doing what works for us, which of late, has been Zoe going to sleep strapped into her pram [don't tell DOCS, but this has been so that she can't throw herself out], then coming into bed with Ewan and I or, even more recently, into a separate bed in her room with me.

This works for a baby, but not for an almost-one-year-old-almost-toddler. So today we put the cot back up, grit our teeth and put Zoe down in the cot. And it worked! Okay, she's only been asleep for 15 minutes, and she yelled for the first 10 minutes after being put down, but I feel better knowing that this technique might work [its not controlled crying, something else from a book called Save Our Sleep], and it is the first 1/2 hour of the night, but at least she is safe, and can move around during the night without me worrying that she'll crawl off the end of the bed. That said, there's still the two or three night feeds to come, and I haven't really decided how or if I'll deal with those.

First steps

Zoe has been 'cruising' for several weeks now, but in the last few days has had the courage and encouragement to let go of furniture and the push cart. Mostly she balances on the spot, flapping her arms or clapping, but today she took 3 small steps before collapsing with excitement. It is very exciting for Mummy too.

Fun with Nisbet

Zoe has this month met her Grandma and Grandpa, who have come across from Scotland for a visit, along with Aunty Sheona and Uncle Ronnie. Nine Nisbets flew to Sydney a fortnight ago for Uncle Donald and Aunty Litsa's Scottish-Arab wedding, which was a hoot. Today, another gaggle of us met at Brunswick Pub for lunch. Yesterday we visited the very beautiful Tweed Regional Gallery, shown here in the photo of Zoe with Uncle Ronnie. Zoe has been zooming around the house pushing her ride on car, turning it around when she runs into walls and furniture. AS and UR have also been coaching her to stand and clap, a task that she has taken to surpisingly well. Looks like she is not too far away from walking.

Wish you were here with us Aunty Julie!

Peekaboo!

Xmas - New Year update

We've been to Sydney twice since my last post, the first to visit my Dad, and more recently, for a family holiday on Dangar Is on the Hawkesbury River. During this recent trip, we threw a 60th birthday party for Dad at a restaurant in Woy Woy. The family photo is of Bob with all his girls.

Zoe was variously over and underwhelmed by the Christmas Day festivities. It was generally too noisy and busy for her. The only festive type photo I have is this one of her chewing the [wrapped] candy cane attached to one of her presents. You can see her present from Santa and our baby proof Christmas tree in the background.

The last photo is of our mosquito bitten bubba coming home from holiday. We had a lovely time, although the babies really need to be older to enjoy this type of river-beach holiday. A vomiting bug also took Zoe, Ewan, myself, Ella and Myia a few days to recover from, which dampened things a little. As my sister has dryly noted, breastfeeding doesn't seem to be provide as much protection from sickness as it is purported to, although in my defence, it was probably easier to keep my Zoe hydrated than if she was bottle fed.