Joseph @ 7 months - 20th January 2009

So it's an old photo now, but one of my faves all the same. The little man is really growing up now. 7.5 months old, 5 teeth (with a 6 on the way), confidently sitting up for play time, exploring absolutely everything, full of smiles most of the time, non-stop chatterbox and an absolute joy. He currently has another cold, and has been pretty poorly with it, but it hasn't bothered him at all. Unfortunately, he hasn't yet settled at nursery, but it's still very early days. He's done 2 full days so far; the first day went pretty well, he was very clingy, but was teething and suffering with his cold, so would probably have been clingy at home. He did get upset at times, but on the whole, coped very well. His second day was a different story. He seemed to spend his day crying, taking a break only to eat and sleep. It's such a shame, as I know he'll love it as soon as he lets himself, but it's difficult to know what to do in the meantime. We'll have to see what Friday brings. He may have just been tired on Monday, after a busy weekend.

Nursery for me, however, is going well. I have been based in a room now, which will help me to settle back in quickly. It always helps to know where you're going to be. Makes you feel more useful. I'll be working with 1-2s again, but in a different room - we have 3 for that age group. The children are great, and I'm confident that I will be able to work well with the staff. I am also due to finally start my NVQ very soon, which I am so excited about!

We are slowly making changes to make things work better at home and to make us feel better about the house, as we really can't afford to move, and I am loving this website for inspiration and ideas. I am starting to build up a wish list of things to get from Ikea, but need to get the thumbs up from Adam before I make the journey as, unfortunately, he holds the purse strings now.

I went to the crop a couple of weeks ago and managed to complete 6 layouts for Joseph's scrapbook, which I'm thrilled about. Had such a lovely time doing them and think I am starting to refind my mojo, so now need to keep the momentum going and find more time to create. There's another crop this weekend, so need to convince Adam that he would like to spend a day at home spending quality time with his son!

Now that I'm all caught up, I'm hoping to be able to post brief updates every couple of days from my iPod...

Joseph wakes for a feed at 5am and we go back to sleep after. Get up around 7.30. Coffee and toast for breakfast. We get dressed, pack our things up and load the car. We leave mum & dad's around 10.45. We visit Adam's Nana & Grandad - Nic and Glenn are there too. We then visit Adam's Gran & Grandad and have lunch with them. On the way home, we stop in at Natalie's to hand over cards and presents for her & Naomi. We leave around 4.45 and arrive home around 6.30pm. Unpacking and washing to do.

Joseph wakes up at 6am for a feed and goes back to sleep until 7.30. Cuppa and croissants for breakfast. Mum and I go into Leicester with Joseph to run a few errands before going to visit my nan. Adam spends the day with family. Joseph spends the afternoon fighting sleep, and finally falls asleep around 5pm. I leave him sleeping downstairs and go for a wallow in the bath. He wakes up, downs his bottle and cries for more, so mum brings him up to me and I feed him in the bath. So much for me time! I wash him and mum takes him off to get him ready for bed while I wash my hair. The little guy starts crying and remains distraught for quite some time. He's over tired. Big time. We walk to the local pub for a meal, hoping that he will fall asleep. He doesn't, so Adam and I walk round the block with him, while mum and dad go ahead. He's still not asleep when we arrive, but he's calm, and eventually drops off while we're at the table. I have a delicous meal of chicken stuffed with stilton with bubble & squeak, rounded off with a chocolate brownie and a cappucino.

7.15 – joseph still asleep. Am feeling good for a better night’s sleep. I get up and start getting on with some jobs for the day. Rinse out bottle and breast pump and put in steriliser. Sort out some paperwork

7.30 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

7.50 – make coffee

8.00 – sort photos with yesterday. Cross with myself as only taken 5 pics and all poor quality. The light in this house is so bad.

8.30 – not wanting Joseph to sleep too late, I go upstairs and start pottering, hoping that the noise and my presence will wake him up. He wakes up as I walk up the stairs. I feed him, get him dressed and also dress myself

9.30 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks. Realise I have to go out to Buggyfit in 45 minutes and haven’t had breakfast yet. Is it too late to cook sausage and bacon?

9.35 – start cooking breakfast

9.55 – eat breakfast

10.00 – feed Joseph

10.20 – head out to Buggyfit

1.00 – arrive home. Chat with Adam on the phone, feed Joseph, eat lunch. Check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

1.30 – start panicking about how much there is to do before we have to head out to mum & dad’s.

1.35 – change Joseph’s nappy, wash up, take a shower, pack the bags. Feed joseph, change nappy again.

3.10 – leave for mum & dad’s. traffic is bad, as get caught up in the school run

5.45 – arrive at mum & dad’s. eat tea. Adam feeds Joseph. Mum & I go out to watch Jekyll & Hyde at the Little Theatre in Leicester.

5.30 – Joseph has been awake for half an hour and is not resettling, so we bring him in to our bed.

5.50 – the little guy goes back to sleep

6.30 – Adam’s alarm goes off and he gets up

6.45 – Joseph wakes up

6.50 – feeding time

7.20 – Adam comes to say goodbye

7.25 – Joseph & I go downstairs and get more goodbye kisses!

7.30 – I make myself a coffee and we go back upstairs. Play with the little man while I drink it

8.00 – I have a shower

8.15 – I get Joseph dressed and then get dressed myself

8.30 – put Joseph to bed

8.45 – he falls asleep. I check email, facebook

9.10 – get ready to go out

9.15 – go to baby clinic. Joseph wakes. He’s only put on 4oz and it’s been 2 weeks since he’s been weighed. Health visitor seems unconcerned, even though I’m worried.

10.40 – arrive home. Joseph sleeps on the way. Peg washing out

10.50 – chat with mum on the phone

11.00 – joseph wakes up and I feed him

11.20 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

11.30 – put lunch on. Change nappy, and top as he’s been sick

12.00 – eat lunch of pasta in sauce. Order photos online for a present.

12.10 – get ready to go out

12.15 – leave for nursery, via the petrol station

12.45 – arrive at work. Spend a few hours at nursery, chatting with my friends and letting joseph get used to the environment. Sarah gives him a bottle at 2pm.
3.50 – arrive home. Joseph sleeping

4.10 – joseph wakes and is distraught. I give him lots of cuddles and apply teething gel.

4.35 – joseph calms down and is playing on the floor

4.45 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

5.00 – bring in the washing. Joseph starts to get whingey, so we play. I sort the laundry, Adam comes home, I make tea, feed Joseph, we eat tea, bath Joseph, put him to bed, look through some old photos, talk to the plumber on the phone about the new boiler, sit down and look at our finances and sort out the insurance claim from when the car got broken in to.

9.05 – our time is finally our own!

4.45 – Joseph is awake and won’t go back to sleep. Bring him in to our bed. After half an hour or so he starts to wind down and I think he’s close to sleep, so I return him to his own bed. He’s not impressed, so take him back out for a cuddle. He’s now decided he’s hungry, so I feed him. He falls asleep and I return him to his cot. This seems harder than when he was newborn.

6.00 – return to bed. Adam’s alarm clock goes off after half an hour and I do my best to stay asleep while he gets up, without ignoring him totally.

7.30 – adam comes to say goodbye and I go back to sleep properly

8.20 – joseph wakes up. He’s full of smiles as I change his nappy and dress him. I do my best to forget my tiredness.

8.30 – I go and make a coffee and return to the bedroom, laptop in hand

8.45 – Joseph is hungry. I feed him while checking email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks. He falls asleep on my lap.

9.10 – I risk moving the little guy. Procrastinate on the internet

9.30 – get dressed

9.40 – I text Sally to make plans for later and she calls back, which wakes Joseph.

9.45 – still not dressed, what have I been doing for the last 15 minutes?

10.00 – go downstairs to make breakfast. The plumber arrives to take details for a quote for a new boiler. Eat breakfast, wash up, make coffee

11.10 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks.

11.15 – play with Joseph

11.30 – put the little guy to bed. Sort laundry – it’s never ending!

11.50 – he falls asleep. Clean & tidy bedroom

12.15 – make lunch

12.20 – just as I take my first bite, Joseph wakes up. Bring him downstairs then eat whilst browsing the web

12.40 – using notes from this week, start analysing Joseph’s routine

12.55 – change nappy

1.00 – feeding time

1.20 – get ready to go out
1.30 – go out with Sally & Elliot to the Discovery Centre. Very interesting to see lots of old pictures of Bollington

3.10 – arrive home and sit outside with a glass of juice and a choc ice

3.20 – the little guy starts getting whingey so we go inside.

3.25 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

3.30 – play with Joseph

4.00 – feed the little guy

4.30 – go out to meet Adam from work

5.45 – return home. Have drink outside.

5.50 – Joseph starts crying big time

6.00 – Adam gives Joseph his bottle while I go to the chippy

6.30 – I return home. Joseph starts crying as soon as he sees me.

6.45 – Joseph is getting increasingly upset, but doesn’t seem hungry. Got a glimpse of broken skin on his bottom gums, so filled his mouth with teething gel! We suspected he was teething a couple of weeks ago, so it's good to see we were right. He fell asleep fully clothed on Adam, so we've put him to bed without a bath and PJs for now, as we get him up at 10pm for a feed anyway

7.15 – settle down on the sofa with a glass of wine.

6.05 – Joseph wakes, I go and get him and bring him to our bed for his feed

6.30 – Adam’s alarm goes off and he gets up. Me and the little guy go back to sleep

7.30 – adam comes to say goodbye, and joseph wakes up. Poo! He woke lots in the night and I’m shattered (even though Adam was the one who got up most of the time!) and was hoping for a bit more shut eye.

8.00 – change joseph’s nappy and get him dressed. He starts crying just before I finish. I need a shower, so getting dressed myself will have to wait til he’s in a better mood. We go downstairs, I put the playmat down, turn on the tv, but the little man is still whingy

8.15 – I give in and feed Joseph. He definitely seems more hungry now, and I guess weaning isn’t far away.

8.30 – put joseph back on his playmat, and he seems happy again now. Check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

8.40 – chat with adam on the phone

8.45 – watch piece about HSM3 on BBC breakfast

8.55 – send message to a friend

9.00 – watch Dawn French on BBC Breakfast

9.15 – take joseph upstairs and put him to bed.

9.20 – take a shower and get dressed

9.50 – laundry. Horrible weather today, and coupled with no heating, I’m not sure how I’ll get it dry. Check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

9.55 – make and eat breakfast of porridge, orange juice & coffee

10.15 – joseph wakes up. He’s got a dirty nappy, so I change him before taking him downstairs.

10.30 – joseph is still crying. Hungry. Again. I feed him while watching Supernanny. 2 hourly feeding is going to drive me nuts!

10.55 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

11.00 – feeling tired an unmotivated to do very much today

11.10 – feeling peckish, so make myself a coffee and grab a banana

11.20 – cuddle up with the little man on the sofa and watch some tv

11.55 – put joseph to bed

12.00 – put another load of laundry on. Check email, facebook, flick, blogs, uks

12.05 – can’t decide between getting some rest myself while the little guy sleeps, or ploughing on with the housework so I can rest later. Adam will be home late as it’s his badminton night

12.10 – make lunch

12.30 – chat with adam on the phone. Boiler is terminal and we will need a new one. Eat lunch of pasta in sauce

12.40 – I try and find places to hang wet clean laundry to dry

12.55 – joseph wakes and I take him downstairs

1.00 – I start working on some household admin

1.30 – I feed Joseph then change his nappy

1.50 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

2.00 – I continue with the household admin

2.20 – chat with adam on the phone. Chat with mum on the phone

2.30 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

2.45 – put Joseph to bed

2.50 – bravely peg washing on line

3.00 – Joseph still awake so I stay upstairs with him til he goes off

3.15 – chat with adam on the phone

3.20 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

3.30 – make drink of hot honey & lemon – my throat is really sore. Devour 2 fun size boxes of smarties

3.35 – return to the admin whilst watching Countdown

3.45 – knock on the door from, Luke – it’s raining, so dash out and bring the washing in

3.50 – Joseph wakes up. Go and fetch him and bring him down. Play with him

4.05 – return yet again to the admin – rain is lashing down
4.10 – feed joseph

4.30 – change the little guy’s nappy

4.35 – put washing in tumble dryer

4.40 – little man whingey, so abandon all hope of getting any more jobs done until after he’s gone to bed for the night!

4.45 – I play with the little guy, chat on the phone with mum, cook my tea, eat my tea, prepare a bath for Joseph (not an easy task with no running hot water), bath Joseph, get him ready for bed, feed him, put him to bed, put the wet laundry on the airer, make the bed, fold the dry laundry, put more wet laundry on the airer, sort the rubbish, tidy the kitchen, fold the dry laundry from the tumble dryer, clean the lounge and sweep and mop the downstairs floors.

7.45 – collapse on the sofa with the Sky remote and a glass of sherry!

Today's pictures are here

*I would like to say that I've been using a Word document to keep track of what I'm doing and that on a normal day my computer wouldn't be on all day and so my internet usage would be considerably lower. When its on I just can't help myself!*

I'm taking part in this project this week, and today is my first day. I'm sure I won't post a full run down like this every day, but this is what I've done today:

6.25am – Joseph wakes. I go and get him up and change his nappy

6.30am – Adam’s alarm goes off as I bring Joseph into our room for his feed. Adam gets up.

6.45am – Joseph finishes feeding and I lay him down next to me in our bed

7.00am – clock radio goes off – listening to Chris Moyles

7.30am – Adam comes in to say goodbye to us both. Joseph cries when Adam kisses him – his little face just crumples. (Adam’s just had a week off work and today is his first day back. Does the little guy know what’s going on, or is he just tired?)

7.45am – I get up and take photos of each room as it looks at the start of the day. A real mess after a few days away and from having Adam at home during the day!

8.00am – Joseph falls asleep. Still in our bed. I check my email, facebook, flickr, blogs and UKS

8.15am – go downstairs and cook breakfast and start tidying things up. Jamie Oliver talking on radio about his Ministry of Food show

8.40am – eat breakfast of sausage, bacon & beans

8.50am – make coffee and go back upstairs to get dressed

9.05am – little man wakes up and has a kick about on his playmat while I straighten my hair

9.30am – do laundry

9.35am – dress Joseph

9.45am – Joseph’s world ends for the first time today, as he is put down while I go to the loo and get myself a drink before feeding him

9.50am – feed Joseph while watching Supernanny. Cuddles with the little man

10.35am – get ready to go out to Rhythm Time

10.45am – pick Sally & Elliot up

11.00am – Rhythm Time

11.25am – Joseph falls asleep and misses the last 10 minutes

11.35am – drive home, dropping Sally & Elliot off on the way

12.00 – arrive home – let Tigger in. Open post

12.05 – Joseph wakes up

12.10 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

12.15 – hang washing out to dry and put another load in machine to make the most of the beautiful weather

12.30 – eat lunch of jacket potato and beans – more Supernanny

1.00 – feed Joseph and have some cuddles

1.15 – change Joseph’s nappy

1.20 – chat with Adam on the phone

1.30 – put Joseph to bed. Check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

1.35 – attempt to make bed but fail, as Tigger is sleeping on it

1.40 – clean loo and wash basin. Finish making bed now that contrary cat has moved

1.45 – look up book on library website. Joseph falls asleep

1.50 – head back downstairs to tidy up

2.30 – joseph wakes. Check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

2.35 – bring Joseph downstairs and put him in his bouncy chair while I finish off my jobs

3.00 – washing machine finishes so go outside to peg laundry out. Put Joseph on his playmat in the lounge while I finish off in the kitchen

3.30 – jobs complete, I sit down with a hot chocolate and watch a bit more Supernanny while I check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

3.45 – cuddles with the little guy

4.00 – feeding time

4.20 – change nappy

4.30 – go out for a walk to meet Adam

5.30 – arrive home, have a drink, bring the washing in and start preparing tea

5.50 – check email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks

6.05 – Adam joins me in the kitchen to make his lunch for tomorrow

6.15 – tea is served

6.30 – tea over, I prepare joseph’s bottle and begin tidying the kitchen

6.40 – adam feeds joseph while I wash up

7.00 – adam tries to run Joseph a bath, but discovers the boiler is broken

7.20 – joseph goes to bed. I check my email, facebook, flickr, blogs, uks while I wait for him to go to sleep

7.35 – little man fast asleep, I head downstairs to spend the evening snuggled up on the sofa with my husband

Photos can be found here

I had a lovely weekend. I had a good time at the crop and managed to start 4 layouts - they just need titles and a few embellishments to finish them off, which I'm hoping to do this week. It was also good to see mum and dad for a few hours. We just spent Sunday relaxing at home as a family, which is always nice. Adam seems to still be struggling a bit after being ill, so we're trying not to do too much.

So far this week Joseph and I have been to yoga, and shopping in Macc. Joseph was very good at yoga again this week, but the class itself was a bit of a let down as the usual instructor was on holiday and his stand in was rubbish! He was also very good in Macc and people kept stopping to admire him! The main purpose of the visit was to buy Joseph some new vests as, unbelievably, 0-3 month ones really are too small for him now! Most of his clothes should last for another few weeks, but as he is so long, and we are using terry nappies, it was too much of a struggle to get the vests done up.

Another lovely day yesterday. We spent a couple of hours outside again - Joseph playing on the floor, while I caught up with some household admin. We then went for a nice long walk to meet Adam from work. I'm already seeing my fitness levels improve and am coping better with all the local hills (of which there are many!)

I did some research yesterday in to post natal exercise classes, and found one called Buggyfit, which really appeals. As I had a c-section I have to wait til Joseph is 8 weeks old before I can start, but he's already 5 weeks, so not too long to go.

I'm really excited to be going to the crop tomorrow, and need to spend some time this afternoon sorting out what to take. I'll take Joseph for an hour or so, to show him off, then mum will ocme and take him for a couple of hours. Hopefully I can be really productive

Well, I’ve had a busy few weeks, but have achieved everything I wanted to do before the baby arrives. All the furniture we ordered arrived, and I have assembled it and put it all into place. Barr a couple of lampshades and a new bedside lamp, the bedroom is about finished. The nursery is complete – the only thing missing is the baby! And now the lounge is about done too. We still need to buy some new curtains and choose a new armchair, but other than that, it’s ready. We have a sofabed on order, and it should arrive in about 6 weeks. The house is now starting to really feel like home, and I am finally happy to bring a baby in to it. You can see the progress at Flickr

We still have about 3 weeks before baby is due to make an appearance, but we have a feeling it may arrive sooner. Whatever happens, we feel ready now and I am finally resting.

I've decided to take part in this project. I started a month late and have decided to make my day 26th, but you can see my May pics Flickr. Next month should be very different! I am hoping to find more time for scrapbooking now, and this project has inspired me so I’m feeling ready to get creative again.