10 things I love about breastfeeding

I have been making some changes to try to get Grapie to sleep better at night, and while it's too soon to evaluate its success yet, three days in and there has been a definite reduction in the amount of milk feeds Grapie is having at night (as I can tell from the uncomfortable feeling in my chest!) As she doesn't have milk during the daytime, I know that once she is sleeping well at night and not waking for milk, that will be the end of our breastfeeding journey together. She is 14 months now and I never had planned to breastfeed for this long, but the thought of stopping still makes me a bit sad.

So as its nearly national breastfeeding week, I thought I would share with you my favourite things about breastfeeding my two girls and what I will miss:

1. Instant baby-calming - when your baby is tired, grouchy, hungry, hurting, but the second she latches on, all is right in her world again. Bliss.
2. Falling asleep together while feeding - at night we lie down cuddled up to feed and both drift off to sleep
3. Milk drunk babies - so cute! Just blissfully dozing after a satisfying feed
4. Fuss free feeding - no sterilizing, no equipment, no warming, no planning required, just always available, on demand
5. It's free 
6. That it was the hardest thing I have ever done - in those early days, of pain, mastitis, bleeding cracks and awfulness but somehow I got through it and came out the other side. I'm proud that I did.
7. Magic milk - the health benefits are amazing, and I love the fact that the milk changes as her needs change. Magic.
8. Weight loss - I'm not going to lie, this is a huge added bonus for me, I'm sure I wouldn't have ever lost my baby weight otherwise!
9. The smell of milky baby breath 
10. How much my babies loved it - and so did I.

So that's my top 10 favourite things about breastfeeding, what did you enjoy?

It's National Stress awareness day today. I'm already pretty aware of my stress levels. At good times they are high, when the girls are both playing up, stress levels ate through the roof! Of course the main reason for this is the fact that I haven't had a decent nights sleep for 3 years now. Or the fact that I can't even have a shower in peace, never mind a relaxing soak in the bath. Or that 'me time' now consists of doing the washing up without being nagged! But that's life as a mum, and I wouldn't have it any other way (ok, that's a lie, I want sleep!)

But as a typical mum, I am great at putting everyone else's needs before my own, but that's not necessarily a great idea all the time. Stressed mummy equals kids playing up, picking up on it, knowing that your attention is somewhere else, and acting up accordingly. Or at least this is what happens in my house.

Last Christmas, I wad given a voucher for an evening with my partner at Nirvana Spa, which I hadn't got round to booking, mainly due to not wanting to leave Grapie. But she is 14 months old now and I think thats probably long enough for me to deserve an evening out. So I have now booked my date to go, next month on my birthday, and as my other half is coming too it will also be our first date night since Grapie was born!

I have never been to Nirvana Spa before and I'm really looking forward to going, the facilities look amazing and we are having a floatation treatment to, which involves floating in a mineral rich pool in a state of total relaxation

But the thing I'm looking forward to most is closing my eyes, lying back and relaxing without anyone shouting MMMUUUUUMMMMMYYYYYYYYY!

Chocolate Sparklers and Fireworks

Today was bonfire night and we had some friends round for some dinner and Fireworks. My partner and I both associate fireworks night with hotdogs from our childhoods, so that's what we made for dinner for everyone. And Princess and I made something extra special for dessert, chocolate sparklers!

They were really easy and fun to make and were very popular, especially with Princess! We started with some chocolate fingers, some melted chocolate and some crunchy chocolate sprinkles. We dipped the chocolate fingers into the melted chocolate, then dipped them into the sparkes and let them set. Easy and delicious!

Then we had some fireworks. Grapie didn't like the fireworks so I watched from inside the patuo doors with her where she felt safer. But Princess, who can sometimes be a bit sensitive to noise, watched them outside with her ear defenders on and loved it. I love this picture of her watching the fireworks

A grouchy day for Grapie

Poor Grapie has had a grouchy day today. We all have coughs and colds at the moment and last night sleep rates as 1 out of 10 (or even less, it's not every night I take both girls downstairs at 3am and put on a dvd!)

But even taking that into consideration, she's still been grouchy. So I rhink that she may be finally getting some teeth! She's 14 months now and until last week only had 4 teeth. She got one last week (not in the order the charts say she should get them) but sooner or later she's bound to get some.

So Sophie giraffe has come out of hibernation (G apparently thinks that giraffes roar like lions, she's been roaring every time she sees her today!) No dinner has been eaten, it's definitely been a case of teeth glorious teeth rather than food glorious food today. And the Calpol is at the ready. Hopefully it won't be a huge drawn out affair and it ill be quick and easy for her. Or at least I'm crossing my fingers and wishing for it to be over soon. Because teething sucks! For all involved.

Light at the end of the tunnel? A plan for sleep

Last week I wrote about how it was time to think about a plan to get sone more sleep for my while family. Grapie has been teething all week but the time has no come to introduce some changes. I am using Elizabeth Patently's book, The no cry sleep solution as a guide. This is what i will be trying:-

• Introduce a lovey- I tried doing this when I first got the book, we took her to a toy shop and got her to choose a cuddly toy, the one she was most attrated to. She chose a duck and is becoming more and more attatched to it but not to the point where it comforts her a night yet.

• Introduce a song as a sleep association- we already have this, I sing her twinkle star

• Bedtime routine- we alreadt have a bedtime routine of bath, milk bed but I am starting to tweak it a bit to make sure that it works for Grapie as well as Princess. I have introduced a little baby massage with some lavender lotion, and a story in her room.

• Change the sleeping environment- at the moment Grapie has her milk and falls asleep on my bed, then I put her in her cot when she is asleep. After that she comes into bed with me when she wakes up and often doesn't go back to her cot. But today we have made a big change. We have taken down her cot and she will be sleeping on her matress.  We have got a special bed guard for the side and a gate for her door to prevent night wandering. And tonight she had her milk and fell asleep in her own bed. The plan is that she will gradually spend nore and more time in her bed and eventually get used to sleeping on her own.

So, according to the book, we should carry out the changes for 10 days then do another sleep log to she if there has been an improvement. So I will report back in 10 days with my results. In the meantime, wish me luck!

#BEDN

Squirty bug alphabet game

This is a game that I made up to play with Princess, to help her with her letter recognition.Ii drew some bugs on the floor with chalk, just  rcles with legs or wings, and write a different letter in the middle of each one.

Then Princess uses a water sprayer to squirt each bug as I call out each letter. Simple but great fun, this is a game that is requested often! Sometimes we use numbers instead of letters, especially the teen numbers that Princess is less good at recognizing. As a variation, sometimes I draw cars instead of bugs, or clouds, but bugs is definitely most popular! And as an added bonus, all thst squirting is strengthening her hands resdy for lesrning to write!

#BEDN

Blog every day in November day 1- Introduction

For the month of November I am taking part in a challenge to blog every day.  This challenge has been set by Elizabeth at Rosalilium, who has also set up a month long list of topics and ideas to serve as inspiration to those taking part, such as Bonfire night, relax and hobbies.

The main reason I wanted to take part, apart from liking a challenge, is that there is a whole host of other bloggers taking part in the challenge and the idea of doing something as psrt of a community of bloggers and getting to know them appeals to me.

So, to start, a little bit about me. I an a 32 year old mum of 2, originally from South Wales but now living in Berkshire, where my other half is from. I met said other half 11 years ago in Sydney, Australia when I was backpacking round the world, and he took me to Sydney hsrbour for our first date. I have 2 lively girls who are 3 and a half and 1. I started blogging about 6 months ago, mainly about crafts we do with the children and family life, and find writing my blog had become an important escape for my brain from dsy to day life. If I could wish for anything in the world, it would be a good nights sleep!

Let the challenge begin, I look forward to getting to know some fellow BEDN-ers, so feel free to say hi and