Water Baby…

Last weekend the little dude started his swimming lessons.  I am not a very confident swimmer and I really didn't want to pass this down the generations and felt the best way for Max to not follow in my footsteps was to start him swimming early.

After a lot of research on the various types of courses available for little ones and the facilities at each venue we decided to go with London Baby Swim.  We were a little surprised when the address turned out to be a residential property, but once we made our way down the side path we were pleasantly surprised.  The facilities are pretty basic, but the pool is spotless and both the pool and the surrounding areas kept at a very warm temperature to ensure the babies don't get cold.  The instructor was very professional and with only about 8 babies per class she was able to give a decent amount of one to one attention.

first dip...

mastering front crawl… (faces blurred for privacy)

I'm not sure if the little dude really enjoyed his first lesson, he spent most of the 30 minute class looking vey confused…the only time he cracked a smile was when they were given mirrors to look at themselves!

who's that handsome chap!

 I had originally thought that the class wouldn't be much of a lesson, just a splash about to get kids used to being in the water, but even at this early stage they are being taught that the edge of the pool is a safe place and how to hold on.  After every new element they always 'swim' back to the edge and hold on.  I'm so impressed that these vital skills are being taught as such a young age.

cuddles after swimming under water...

This Saturday was his second lesson and he seemed to enjoy it a little more…fingers crossed his enjoyment and confidence will grow every week.

Ruby Woo...

Yesterday we celebrated my parents 40th wedding anniversary…40 years!?!  Having just passed our first anniversary 40 seems like a long long way away!

My parents are a real example to me they have been through some very tough times together, (and lots of good, of course!) and yet they've still made it to the big 40!

To mark the occasion the whole family got together for dinner at the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) Headquaters in Poole.

beautiful reminder of the life saving work the RNLI do

congratulations!

the little dude tucking his napkin in ready to eat his Uncle's dinner!

view of the lifeboats from the restaurant terrace

twin sails bridge 

reflections

the happy couple

it might have been Mum and Dad's day, but this little dude stole the show

sleepy cuddles with Granny...

before joining the boys for some table football...

and then telling Grandad all about it!

we ended the day with a family selfie!

Riggers restaurant at the RNLI headquarters is run as a charity with all proceeds going to help the RNLI continue the amazing work they do.

This Week I'm Winning...

This week has been a good week…nothing particularly spectacular has happened, its more that lots of little things came together this week.

1. I managed to get my 12 week update live on time

On time…that deserves a smile!

2. I got through the HUGE mound of ironing that has been sitting mocking me for far to long…AND I have managed to keep on top of it

3. I made something…nothing major just a card, but its baby steps towards restocking my ETSY shop (more on that later!)

4. We made it to our baby massage class…on time and Max enjoyed it!

5. The little dude started having his naps in his cots and I worked out there is a pattern to his napping

Nap time...

6. I finally got on top of my finances…essential when trying to budget on statutory maternity pay

7. Celebrated squeezing into my pre-pregnancy jeans by having a sort through and clear out of my wardrobe…it feels great to have only things I love (and fit me!) in my wardrobe now

Clothes to be passed on to my little sis and the charity shop...

8. And last, but not least I finally made a start on our thank you cards…sorry they are so late folks!

Feels good to have made a dent in my to do list…fist bumps all round!

11 & 12 Weeks...

Its a twelve week miracle…I'm on time, Max is twelve weeks today!

12 Weeks Today

These last two weeks have been so much fun, I feel like the little dude has made a huge jump in his development and his little personality is really starting to shine through.

Watching the Tour De France

Max is such a cheeky smiley baby who can easily be distracted from crying with a silly noise or face.  He has some pretty awesome faces himself…my favourite is the one sided eyebrow raise!

The Many Faces Of Max

He's started to become a little shy around new faces…unless you are a pretty blonde, in which case you will be showered with smiles.  Such a flirt already!

So Smiley!

We're still loosely following the EASY routine.  In terms of the activity element it's much more interactive now as Max needs more entertaining.  He loves his play mat and can now intentionally hit the hanging toys rather than waving his arms around and hitting whatever was in his path!

It Takes A Lot Of Concentration To Catch An Octopus!

We're also making progress with sleeping (unfortunately not sleeping through the night yet!).  We swapped Max's crib for a cot and he is sleeping much better…no more whacking his hands against the side and waking himself up!  He's also managed to fall asleep without being held a few times in the last couple of weeks.  This development is kind of bittersweet for me as I know he needs to be able to self settle and its a big part of him being able to sleep better, but it also feels like the first of many steps away from me.

Sweet Dreams

We love you more and more everyday Max

9 & 10 Weeks...

I am so behind on weeks 9 and 10 as we are officially nearly into week 12.  From week 12 I think I am going to drop down to updating once a month.  So what has the little dude been up to in 9th and 10th weeks?

9 Weeks

10 Weeks

It was a busy few weeks which involved lots of new discoveries…the main one being his hands!  Many hours of fun are now being had sucking on those chubby little hands and desperately trying to suck his thumb.

We had a couple of nights where he dropped his last feed (11/12ish) which was absolute bliss unfortunately this break through coincided with his first lot of jabs so we were back to feeding every 3 hours after that…fingers crossed we'll get that longer chunk of sleep again soon as it really did make a huge difference to how I was feeling and functioning through the day.

Big sunglasses for me to hide the bags under my eyes…little sunglasses for the dude!

We also started attending a free baby massage class in one of our local children's centers.  The first class was a bit of a disaster and we only managed about 10 minutes of massage, but we managed the full session at the next class so I think it was just a case of getting used to it.  We are incredibly lucky to have such amazing, and free, resources where we live and David the teacher is great at putting all the Mums and babies at ease especially when the babies start to get a bit ratty!

We also celebrated Mr O's first Fathers Day!  The little dude 'made' Mr O and my Dad cards…he also bought Mr O a Starbuck's voucher to help him get through those long days at work when he hasn't had much sleep!

Happy Fathers Day Daddy and Grandad

We love you more and more everyday Max

Me And Mine: A Family Portrait Project - June

I can't believe Me and Mine has come round again so quickly…where is this year going!?  I had a bit of a panic this morning when I realised that it is now July and I didn't have a family shot for June.  Then I realised I did…phew panic over!

This months picture is pretty special it was taken in Poole, Dorset as Mr O and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary.

On Saturday June 22nd 2013 Mr O and I said 'I Do' at my Mum and Dad's church in Poole, we then celebrated surrounded by friends and family at the gorgeous Shell Bay Restaurant on Studland.  The day was absolutely perfect and I wouldn't have changed a thing.  

On Sunday June 22nd 2014 we headed back to Shell Bay for lunch, this time with our gorgeous new addition.  I truly feel like the luckiest and most blessed girl alive to be stood in the exact same spot a year later with my husband and a baby boy…what a year! 

Please indulge me as I share a few photos from the day taken by the super talented Mr Phill…

Getting ready

Mr O is very particular about how his tie is knotted!

Finally time to put the dress on...

The big reveal to my Dad

Having a quick look at all our friends and family

Mr and Mrs O!

The ferry across to Shell Bay…yes we made all our guests get on a ferry!

It was a 'little' bit windy!

Photos on the beach

Like I said it was just a bit windy

There's the wind again

The ferry back to the hotel

 I wish I could do it all again, this time with the little dude there!