15 things you may not know about Sesame Street

[Via: Medical Billing]

Why you should never leave dogs & babies alone

The poor dog is bound to get hurt.

Stage Mum on the loose!!!

In case you didn't see it on the newstands, or on my FaceBook, Twitter or anywhere else I can shout about it!! My baby girl made the cover of Cosmo Pregnancy - Baby Checklist, the new annual magazine. Loving her cute little ears and skirt for the wardrobe shot! Not to mention the numerous fashion and product spreads throughout the mag! I especially love the pink tutu!!

I am sooo proud of my little angel! She really loves the camera and even at home poses when I take happy snaps of all her milestones and cheeky little tricks. I think I really am going to be a stage mum!

Although her grandparents are probably even more excited than me! Nanny Burns has shown every single one of her hair dressing clients, the girls at the local shops, the bank tellers and the people at the post office and anyone else who stops to talk to her down on the South Coast. Plus Grandma has bought nearly every copy available in Gippsland Victoria and is even sending a copy to Aunty Helen in LA!

Stay tuned folks, for a book signing and special appearances at your local news agency. But not until I get her some hair extensions and fake nails! ;)

Domestic Goddess

It's not quite what I had envisioned but I do believe I am a domestic goddess!

This week I have made Brett's lunch every day, baked numerous lunch box snacks for work and experimented (successfully) with new dinner and dessert recipes. Plus preparing fresh and nutritious meals for Ava, being a full time Mum, doing endless loads of washing and shopping and keeping the house reasonably clean and presentable.

I still draw the line at ironing, sorry Burnsy but you know that was in the marriage fine print. Plus I still have a decent post pregnancy muffin top, my sexy underwear has been replaced with maternity bras and Bridgette Jones Knickers and we no longer have the additional income to visit the beautician & hairdresser - so all maintenance has been DIY and not quite as regular as pre-baby...

I have also decided to make our my environmentally friendly household cleaners. It's important to note that I have just started looking into it, and I am prone to whimsical flights of fancy, particularly when there is major effort involved so we'll see where this goes!

So in the domestic goddess stakes, I am probably more Alice from the Brady Bunch than Bree from Desperate Housewives. Lucky Burnsy!!

Tantrums & Tiaras

We made it to 6 months relatively unscathed! Even at a pint sized 5.8kgs Ava is growing steadily and even starting to get chubby little arms and thighs like all the other babies.

And with each age mile stone comes a new set of tricks and more hints of an emerging personality. She definitely knows what she wants, that's for sure! Whether it's my necklace, the microwave cord, the dog's ear or to feed herself she eyes off her target and charges on in. And when it doesn't work out she emits a mighty roar!

I have had to master the art of distraction. As she does not understand (or does not want to hear) the word NO I always have to have a hidden toy, a silly song or something to nibble on to take her mind off more interesting things like chewing the microwave cord or shuffling herself under the couch.

No wonder I resort to chocolate!! Brett says she takes after me, but I am sure I was never a princes was I????

Poor starving baby

Well our girl is definitely a Marshall. Having introduced solids last week she shoves each meal down like it'll be her last meal ever. She even squeals in disgust when the bowl is finished...

Who would have thought that my tiny petite little girl could put it away like her Grumpy Pa!! She even leaves a little on her chin just like Grumpy! Check out her fist feed below!

Murphy's Law

How does such a small cute little baby emit so much spew????

Yep, it's all about Murphy's Law when you have a baby. For instance, Ava fed well this morning, burped on cue then played happily on the floor in her pj's while I did a few things around the house. Not a peep out of her.

However as soon as I changed her into clean clothes, she started chucking. Not just a little spew, she started power chucking like the exorcist. On the flip side, I am still in my pjs, so for once I don't have to wipe down my clean clothes!

Ava has also started going down in her cot during the day. This is something I thought would never happen!!! I have been so excited that I do not know what to do with myself. In fact she is in her cot now, and has been for 30 minutes!! just waiting for her to wake before I finish this post.

Yep, there she goes... Until next time!!

4 months on

Ava is growing so fast, I can't believe it!! She changes and grows every day, and I am always amazed at just how smart she is. I could never have imagined just how life changing such a little person could be.

I never thought I'd see the day... But I have become one of THOSE Mum's who gets over excited & all gushy everytime Ava does something new. This video says it all really!!

I will start writing again, I have to make time to record this experience between poo, spew, smiles, development, wonder and all the other amazing things that come with such a precious gift!!

Time waster

Now that I am a Mum I can't imagine not having Ava in our lives. She is gorgeous and she is wondrous and puzzling and she has a set of lungs that would rival Pavarotti!!

It's true, babies are real time wasters. You can look into their eyes as they look at you quizzically or watch them sleep for hours (when they actually sleep!!) and then wonder where your day has gone.

I am lucky with Ava that on most days I can get a few things done around the house when she sleeps. Like the 3 loads of washing I now seem to have EVERY day & I even manage to get a shower & lunch each day although they need to be carefully planned and speedily executed!

However no longer do I have time to just randomly surf the net or update this blog as regularly as I would like to! But that's ok because I love every precious second I have with my baby girl.

No longer am I a Mamma to be, I am a Mamma!!!

Welcoming Ava Mae Leanne Burns to this big wide world! Born Friday 12 March at 5.31pm, weighing a tiny 2.76kgs and measuring 47.5 cm long.

The last 10 days are a bit of a blur, but I stare into the face of our beautiful little girl and know I am the luckiest person in the whole world. It's all very surreal and amazing and I still can't really comprehend the fact that I am now a Mum.

It was Wednesday night at my now weekly OB appointment when Dr Morris announced, you are having this baby on Friday.... We had been given a heads the week before that we might go earlier than 26th March however the reality of having a baby hit us like a tonne of bricks. We kinda freaked out.

Ava was born early at 37 weeks as she had moved from breech to transverse position (head up to sideways) and the cord had dropped underneath her and was sitting above the cervix. This would have been incredibly dangerous for Ava had my waters broken, so there was no question about going a bit early, even if it meant Brett was going to miss the first rugby game of the season...

Instead of getting facials and taking afternoon nana naps like I had planned after finishing work, the next few days were spent manically preparing last minute bits and bobs and registering for the operation and hospital stay. Luckily my amazing Mum came up on Thursday morning to help me while Brett finished up everything at work.

Leaving the house on Friday was so exciting and strange knowing than in just a few hours we'd be parents. And we were in for quite an adventure!!

Counting down the days

Eeek! As the big day looms oh so close and the reality and enormity of it all sets in, it's finally starting to sink in just how much our cosy little life together is about to change forever.

We have an idea of what's to come! Love, adoration, sleep deprivation, stinky nappies, endless piles of washing and the fact that we will embark on the biggest learning curve for the next 18+ years.

But I still cannot comprehend just how enormously this precious little miracle, that currently feels like an alien in my belly, will changes us both so profoundly as people and change our dynamic. Well I guess we are about to find out!!

Can't wait to meet our little peanut and introduce her to this big wide world. It's exciting, scary and there will be so much for us all to learn from her.

Now I wonder if she'll grow up to love Gaytimes, cup cakes and peanut butter & jam on toast as much as I do right now!!

Nesting

On top of baking, ironing, washing baby clothes and obsessive dusting I have rearranged the nursery again. Well actually Brett did all the work and I stood in the corner and told him where to move the furniture.

The nursery looks great and has everything our little girl will need and so much more!! She is one lucky girl who has been lavished with love and gifts already!! She has a clothes selection that leaves mine for dead, gorgeous bling shoes from her Aunty Vetty & Aunty Em, loads of toys, the hottest new pram from her Grandma and she even has floaties and her first little handbag courtesy of her adoring Nanny.

Brett is also sanding back and painting the rocking chair for the nursery and has spent the weekend finishing off the back garden. Not to mention the other household chores I have had him doing now that I am way too massive to mop and to clean awkward places like the bathroom.

So today he has gone to work for a rest while I finish up my last day of working from home and tackle the next few tasks - repacking my hospital bag and moving and sorting out the tupperware cupboard.

Babymoons are VERY different to honeymoons...

Where do I start?? Perhaps with the limited "12 months on 1 wage" budget we set for this little mini break, instead of the screw what it costs attitude we had on our honeymoon. So you could say that the accommodation was rather different this time around! FYI the picture above is from our honeymoon, not our babymoon!!

This time we had nanna naps every afternoon instead of cocktails by the pool. We debated baby names and argued over the TV remote instead of who was going to call concierge for more ice. Then there's the fact that I now sleep with 5 pillows, 1 of which is the same size as me. Ahh so romantic...LOL!

Now don't get me wrong, I had a great break and I would not change a thing. I feel just as relaxed, calm and happy as I did after our honeymoon even if I am 10kgs heavier! It was just a very different holiday and one we will remember very fondly as our last holiday alone together for a very long time.

Birth Class Part 2

Bossy, bossy midwife. That's the initial takeout we got from the last installment of our birth class last weekend. She was old and she was old school.

We covered all the important stuff like feeding, sleep, calming, post natal depression, vomiting & poo plus the collateral damage from the birth etc etc. She then took us through her 101 class on the best way (ie her way) to fold nappies and get baby on the boob etc. And this lady was the fuehrer of the breast feeding brigade!

Now I am all for breast feeding, it's my intention to breast feed for as long as I can so our little girl has the best start in life. Ok not quite until she starts school but at least for the first 6-12 months if I can. But this midwife would not even entertain the notion that some mums and some bubs don't or can't take to it. I felt sorry for the young, terrified girl who asked the 'What if I can't?' question. "Persevere, persevere, persevere it's worth the effort" and "NO it does not hurt, it's a little uncomfortable at first but you'll soon get the hang of it" were some of her mantras!

She was also horrified at the fact that I would not be able to give birth naturally. She looked at me with such pity and said oh you poor thing, like I was being marched off to be burned at the stake. Luckily for my emotional well being, I had already built a bridge and got over the fact that my baby's birth has had to be scheduled in and it won't be quite the huffy, puffy painful miracle that I had hoped for.

Like most courses and the books I have been reading, I took what I needed out of it and took the rest with a grain of salt. Meanwhile Brett nearly slipped into a coma as I had expected. If he wasn't so enraged at the midwife's bossyness, I probably would have had to call in the resuscitation unit. Lucky for him he is not required at my next class - beast feeding for beginners!

Birth class part 1

We attended the first day of our birth class today. A long 9.30-4.30 session that went through labour, drug options, types of delivery, caesareans, our fears and the infamous DVD we are all warned about! I found it all very interesting and Brett like all the other expectant Dad's there nearly fell asleep.

And against everyone's advice we both watched the DVD. I did give Brett the option to leave the room, as we were warned by many that it can scar a man. And it seemed to scar a few of the women in the class too, but I was actually really enthralled and amazed! I found it incredibly emotional and cried most of the way through it. Bloody hormones strike AGAIN! But I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that I won't get to experience the miracle or pain of natural birth.

The final day is next Sunday, fortunately for Brett no graphic DVD. But he does get to sit through breast feeding and we learn to change nappies and who knows what else!! I'm actually looking forward to it!

Birth plan! Pffft...

I have been reading plenty of books, surfing preggy websites and talking to lots of Mums. So I consider myself pretty well informed as far as preparing for birth and motherhood goes. I mean, you can't ever be truly prepared because every pregnancy, every baby, every Mum and every birth is unique. But I needed to read up on the most common scenarios and have a plan, then be prepared for that plan to fly out the window on the day.

Well my plan was to have a natural, (hopefully drug-free) non medically assisted birth. In theory I was open to that changing on the day but I like to think all this positive visualisation of the perfect birth was going to mean that's the way it would happen. What I didn't expect was the plan to change months before the due date and the choice to be taken out of our hands.

At 22 weeks I was told I have Placenta Previa. It's where the placenta has implanted itself over or very close to the cervix. About 5% of pregnancies are low lying and 0.5% of these (including mine) fully cover the cervix. 90% of such pregnancies will correct themselves with the placenta moving away from the cervix far enough for a vaginal birth, the rest require a caesarean section. Bugger!!

I was devo at first, I had a plan!!!! But then I thought there's still plenty of time for it to move. It can't be that stubborn can it? So until this week I was pretty hopeful the placenta would move, but it was not to be. At my check up Stephen confirmed the placenta was still firmly fixed over the cervix. And on top of that the baby is breach (that's why I feel like I am regularly headbutted in the ribs, cos I have!!) so it's pretty certain I'll be having a caesarean and we are tentatively booked in for 26th March.

So now my plan is simple. To give birth to our baby in the safest possible way so she arrives healthy and without distress.

Hormones strike again!!!

I spent most of yesterday in tears or on the brink of tears.

Poor Chewy got the snip and had his little cherry eye fixed up at the vets. So I spent the day fretting about my poor little pup. Such a big sook, and I always have been but the preggy hormones just magnify everything!! I can only imagine how I am going to be when our baby is sick or has to get a needle.

When I am happy I am deliriously happy, just the mere thought or feeling of our little girl sends me into ecstasy. Then it's the silly little things that put me in tears, like disagreeing over decorations for the nursery or running out of yogurt.

It's all ups & downs when you have torrents of hormones raging through your body! But the little miracle in my belly keeps me calm, focused and positive when I feel things are getting too much. Plus I think the yoga, pre-natal massage & plenty of nana naps are helping too!

Mmmm chocolate

I can't seem to get enough food, all I do is eat all day every day. No wonder I am getting HUGE!! Well that and the fact our baby is growing more and more every day. At almost 30 weeks she is looking very much like a newborn should. Her main focus now is putting on weight and growing and developing her lung function.

Maybe the fact she needs to pork up is why I am also porking up. I eat well - lots of fruit, vegies, chicken/lamb, whole grains, low fat dairy and enough water to sort out the Murray Darling situation. Then there's the chocolate, my goodness so much chocolate. I have always loved chocolate but never had to have it all the time. But now I can't get enough. Luckily I fill up quickly otherwise I would never stop.

For Christmas we received enough chocolate to open our own shop. However most of this chocolate has now been demolished. I'd like to say Brett helped but he really didn't get much of a look in... luckily for me it was mostly Belgian and swiss chocolate which is my fave1 Brett is a cadbury man, so he cleaned up on the Twix & Snickers bars while I demolished boxes of decadent Lindt, Farerro and more.

I guess I have some pretty serious exercise to do after this bub, but for now I am enjoying the ride.

This bed is too soft...

It's not just bub and Chewy that are growing! At 28 weeks my belly is growing faster than my stretchy pants and I can keep up with. And if I keep eating my weight in chocolate each night to to satisfy my cravings there may be no turning back!

I feel like a beached whale at times, especially when I attempt to roll into our bed. In fact I now have my own bed as ours is just too high and too soft for me. Yes I am aware I sound like Goldilocks...

I was keeping Brett up or he would just sleep on the couch as I toss & turn plus get up multiple times throughout the night for the bathroom or to microwave a heat pack for my back. So to give us both a better chance at getting some sleep before bub arrives we made up the spare room as my own. The bed is low, firm and comfortable, it's right next to our bathroom and now my body pillow and I can take up the whole bed. What more can a massive pregnant girl ask for!!

It's not quite the romantic pregnancy I had envisioned for Brett and I. I do miss snuggling Brett to sleep with bub kicking him in the back and I even miss our nightly bickering about who is taking up more room and needs to move over 1/2 a centimeter, however when you are this size and you need a good night sleep you have to do what you can!!