A challenging week

After five days of totally being off her sleep schedule, it seems Riley is back on track today.  It has been exhausting!  My baby girl has been in play mode at 2:30am, 4am, 5am, at all the wrong times.  On top of the insane idea that 4am is a great hour to play, she has been up till 11pm at night.  I'm not sure why we had this change in schedule.  She has also been very clingy to both mommy and daddy and very sensitive.  She must know that things are about to change.  Baby number two will be here any day now.

This week has been very challenging.  With lack of sleep, my hips constantly being sore, the baby running out of room in my belly, a sensitive one year old who is constantly in arms, I am ready to give birth and get my body back.  So little one, any time you would like to make an appearance, your family is ready to meet you.

Holding onto the moments

As the arrival of my second daughter quickly approaches, I am finding myself feeling a little sad.  I want more one on one time with my baby girl Riley, who is turning one next week.  I want to spoil her and give her all the attention I can before there is a newborn fighting her for it.  I know I need to give her the freedom to play by herself and be independent, so there is no drastic change when the baby arrives, but I selfishly want to be with her every moment.  I am cherishing the cuddles at 2:30 in the morning when she snuggles on my shoulder and coos herself back to sleep.  I just can't get enough of her. 
I wonder how she is going to adjust.  Everyone says she is too young to be jealous of the new baby.  She certainly doesn't understand her life is going to be turned upside down in 6 weeks.  I guess we just wait and see what life throws at us, that's all we can do.  Enjoy the ride.

Drop in centre

I have been meaning to go to our local drop in centre, a 4 minute walk down the road, but Riley always seems to have her big nap in the morning.  Today I decided, she can push her nap.  What a fabulous experience!  The moms and nannies were so nice and helpful, and the kids were great.  There were so many toys to play with and the snack was fresh and healthy.  I was really please with Massey Centre.  Riley had so much fun and almost lasted to very end.  She was so interested in the older kids and what they were playing with.  She definitely needs to learn to not take toys away from other kids and how to share, but that will come with time and experience.  I will make a point of going to Massey Centre at least twice a week.  I can't believe I waited this long to go, silly mommy!

Introduce yourself

Have you noticed that when you meet other moms and dads at the park you seem to only mention the kids names and forget to even introduce yourself?  In my short 10.5 months being a mom, I have noticed myself do this and I am now making a point to mention my name.  We as moms, are notorious of putting our kids before ourselves.  It is no wonder that you sometimes find yourself wondering "who am I" and feeling like you are loosing your own identity.

I suggest trying to make an effort to introduce yourself and tell people a little about you, instead of focusing the whole conversation about the kids.  You are important too!

Strange Situation

I took Riley to Withrow Park yesterday.  It is much bigger and busier than our little neighbourhood park around the corner from our house.  Three little four year olds from the parks camp took an immediate liking to Riley,a little boy and twin girls.  They all wanted to push Riley on the swing and enjoyed her gleeful giggles as she swung back and forth.  The girls were very gentle, barely moving the swing, but the little boy was just a wee bit aggressive.  When he wasn't shoving the swing with one hand, making it twist in all directions, he was grabbing at her hands and trying to touch her face.  The camp councillors were on the other side of the park not paying attention to the kids on the swings.  I found myself in a strange situation.

It is not my place to discipline and correct a child's behavior that I just met five minutes ago.  I wouldn't want some stranger telling my kid how to behave.  But no matter how many times I asked him not to touch the babies face, or that Riley did not like having her hands grabbed, this little boy kept going back for more.

I finally had to take her off the swing and take her over to the wading pool, where I knew the camp kids were not allowed to go, just to escape this little boy.

I think I will wait a little while before returning to Withrow Park.

All Hail to the Single Mom

I would like to do a shout out to all the single moms out there.  I don't know how you do it.  There should be an award for surviving being a single parent.

I say this, because I had food poisoning this week.  Thank God, my husband was off work the next day to take care of Riley, because I was useless!  I was weak, still had stomach pains, had not slept the night before so I was in a daze, I pretty much lay on the couch and watched the day go by. 

At some point during my hazy day, I thought, what would I have done if I was a single mom.  Call in for re-enforcement?  But what if no one came to my rescue?  I guess I would have pushed through, as us moms do on a regular basis. 

Talking twins

You think I would have enough of baby talk by the end of the day, but I can't get enough of this video.  It is just so much funnier with twins.

Live and learn

I took Riley to the park today and the wading pool is now open!  I have never seen the park so busy.  Kids in bathing suits splashing in the water, chasing each other around the playground, and moms looking on from the park benches under their umbrellas shading them from the sun.

Since I didn't know the pool was open, Riley did not have her bathing suit or swimming diaper on.  But she really wanted to go in.  I figured she would just wade around, as the water was freezing cold!  Nope, my little fish plopped right down on her bum in her clothes and splashed around like she does in the tub.  She was enthralled by the big kids swimming around her.  She sat there laughing at them screaming and splashing each other, and she did not mind getting splashed as well.

We had a great time at the park.  Tomorrow I will make sure she is in her bathing suit and most importantly, the swimming diaper.  Today I learned that the swimming diaper is essential when being submerged in water.  Her diaper was so soaked and heavy it added 5lbs to her at least.  Oops.  Well, you live and learn.

Up since 3am

My body has turned against me.  If Riley wakes up any time after 3am, which is most nights, I can't get back to sleep!  So here I am posting a blog at 5:20am because I can't sleep and the little one in my belly is doing somersaults (it is play time).
I try everything to get back to sleep; count sheep, think of blackness, sing lullaby's in my head, tense my muscles then relax, after an hour of tossing and turning, I give up and make my way downstairs to work.
I experienced this lack of sleep with my first pregnancy, but not this early on.  My belly has expanded a lot quicker this time, as it did not have much time to recuperate, and I am feeling very uncomfortable already.  I'm not even 6 months along!  It is amazing how different these two pregnancies have been.

Wish me luck, I'm off to count sheep again.  Baaaaa!

Lil' bean n' green

Riley and I had a wonderful time at Lil' bean n' green this afternoon.  We saw Gillian and Danny, played with Shawn and Jethro, and listened to Gillian read her amazing book Climbing Kate.  We met some new friends, including an 11 week old baby who was almost the size of Riley!  He was huge! 

The book was received with great success from moms and the little ones.  Jethro even helped his mom read the book by finishing her sentences.  It was very cute.

Go the F*k to Sleep

I was thinking of this book at 3:30am this morning, which was forwarded to me last month from a fellow mom, and then yesterday from a single guy friend with no children.  The book's explosion of success just proves that as parents, especially moms, we are all thinking it, even if we don't say it out loud.

Now, my little monkey, go the f*k to sleep.  Mommy needs a nap, cause you had me up all night.  There, I said it.

Climbing Kate book reading at Lil' Bean n' Green

Come check out the book reading and signing of Climbing Kate at Lil' bean n' green on Friday June 17th at 3pm.  They have great coffee and treats, and after the book reading, you and your little monkeys can play!  It is bound to be a fun afternoon, not to be missed.