Does your child know what a birthday is?

A birthday. The day we celebrate a person’s life and the fact they have reached another year older. It’s obvious that’s what it is. Isn’t it?

Today, I learnt that my fiveyear old had no idea what a birthday actually is! Just as a bit of a backstory, his birthday was last week and mine was 8 days before his, so birthdays have been high on the discussion list for a good while now. This is how that conversation went:

O: Mami, how do you remember when my birthday is?

Me: Because it’s your birthday, I’m a Mami it’s my job to remember.

O: But how did you know it was my birthday?

Me: Ermmm……Do you know what a birthday means?

O: It’s the day I get presents.

Me: Do you know why though?

O: No.

Me: Your very first birthday was the day you came out my tummy.

O: Whhhhaaaaaaaattttttt!?!? When I was borned?

Me: Yes!!! On July 9^th every year means you are exactly a WHOLE year older from when you were born. So it’s been 5 years since you were born. That’s why we celebrate birthdays, because you are bigger and we are happy.

O: Well wow! I did not know that! He said shaking his head

This conversation happened about 10 minutes into a 20 minute car journey with just me and him in the car. I spent the next 10 minutes tittering to myself as he occasionally muttered under his breath about how cool that was and how he did NOT know that before! It was like I had blown his little inquisitive mind!

It is funny the little things we just presume kids know, when actually they might have no idea at all! Do your kids know what a birthday really means?

My Captured Moment ~ A baby boy after three girls

This photo always makes me smile. It is of LV, my first baby boy, when he was around 5 weeks old. He was 5lb 10oz born so he was still a dinky one by this age. I love the shape he is pulling with his mouth. It’s almost as if he’s thinking ‘if I stretch my lips far enough a boob is bound to fall in!’

Every one always warned us we wouldn’t know what to do with a baby boy after having three girls. But at this young age the only thing we were finding different was the baby boy parts! Don’t get me wrong all babies pee on you (Ff had always been a champion at it), but little boys sure like to make a big show and dance of it! Luckily their aim gets ~~a little~~ better as they get older!

I promise I will share all of my pregnancy and birth stories with you at some point. But for now let me just say I was so grateful when LV arrived safe and sound and only slightly early. I’d had a horrible pregnancy full of pains, bleeding and threatened, early labours. So to me, he was my little fighter. He stayed put just long enough to cook to perfection, without needing any special care at all.

Have you had the experience of having a baby boy after girls?

My Sunday Photo ~ The Anderson Shelter

This term eight year old LV has been learning about World War 2. His homework this week was to make a model of an Anderson Shelter. He is my fourth child so far to do this particular piece of homework in five years!

At least I get a six year break before having to do it all again though 😀

A Very Merry (Poorly) Christmas

I hope you have all had a great time over Christmas and aren’t suffering too much from a post turkey & booze overindulgence hangover?

We have had a quiet few days here ourselves. With the littlest member of our brood feeling none too hot. Well, actually I tell a lie, he’s been feeling much too hot for the majority of the last week! Apart from his raging temperature which has caused him to be almost delirious at times, he’s had no appetite, been full of snot, coughing his guts up and generally been a very poorly little boy. But for the sake of the other children we tried not to let that put a dampener on our festivities!

How to collect a urine sample from a toddler!

It’s 100% guaranteed that if you take your toddler’s nappy off and you dont want them to, they will instantly pee on the floor, your lap, or in your bed.

But that one time you need really them to pee on command? It is like getting blood (or urine!) from a stone. That is until the millisecond your not looking and they pee on the sofa of course!

So having had to go through this ordeal recently I thought I would pass on my tips, with a little humour thrown in for good measure, because, well, if you don’t laugh you’ll cry right? So here are my: READ MORE »

Multiple Madness Linky #4

Hello all and welcome to Multiple Madness!!!

****Please remember that the whole point of linkys is to comment on other posts. Last week only myself and two others actually left any comments at all! I know things happen and sometimes life gets in the way, but I will have to start deleting those who repeatedly do not comment****

This is *the* place to be if you have any blog posts that feature twins, triplets or higher order multiples (for simplicity’s sake I will just say twins/multiples from now on!)

Having multiples is a completely different experience to having singletons. It is a uniquely hard, chaotic and yet wonderful experience, shared by only a few and their families. This is why I created this linky, so parents, family or twins themselves, can share with others who will get them and understand their special kind of joys and heartaches.

My thoughts about Ashya King’s parents and just how far we will go for our children

I rarely listen to the radio but yesterday we spent quite a while travelling in the car and every now and then I would here the news headlines about the parents who took their child from hospital without the doctors consent. At one point the news reader spoke about how the doctors feared he could die within 24 hours if not given the right care. If you haven’t heard/read about it their son, Ashya King, is five years old and has a brain tumour called a medulla blastoma.

Even at the time I thought no parents would put their child in danger for no reason and I wondered what could have happened to force them to take such drastic actions. At another point I considered the fact that maybe he was only a few days from death anyway and they wanted him out of the hospital and surrounded by loved ones.

In either case I felt sorry the parents at the same time as thinking maybe I was just being too trusting and they really were doing something awful and putting their child at risk.

About 30 minutes before feeling compelled to write this post I saw this video posted on YouTube by Ashya King’s big brother Naveed. Please, if you haven’t already seen this video, watch it!

The Great Debate: Breastfeeding in Public

Although breastfeeding has always been a very important part of being a mother to me, I find I haven’t really posted much about it. This is something I want to change and thought I’d start with this subject that seems to be plastered across social media, as well as every other form of media around. That subject is:

Breastfeeding in public

Or to call it what it actually is:

Feeding your child, with your boob, because they are hungry and that’s how they eat. You also happen to not be alone in your house at the time.

But I guess that doesn’t roll off the tongue so easily does it?

Basically, this:

There was a lot more boobs on show at the beach than in this picture!

Arguments against Breastfeeding in public

Having heard many differing opinions on this matter I am astounded at the absurd arguments against women feeding their children in the exact way our bodies were intended.

1) You have the people who insist that showing even the slightest slither of skin is immodest, I have even read one man claiming that women should feed their children through some type of thin fabric! Seriously, you read that right! Apparently it’s all the rage in some ultra modest countries. I can’t find any evidence of this myself, no matter what words I put into Google. Plenty of boob pictures, but not much fabric going on in them!

2) You then have those that sing the praises of the breastfeeding cover. If this is what a woman wants to use to feel more comfortable with breastfeeding while out and about then that is her choice. I have no issue with what other mothers choose do. But I am also entitled to my opinion and I think you draw much more attention to yourself while using one of these brightly covered oversized bibs (I’m sorry, but that’s what they look like to me) They sort of scream:

I’m breastfeeding over here but don’t worry I’m being modest about it, no need to look. No honestly! No need to look. Why are you looking at me?

My youngest pulls my hand away for just stroking his head, he hates my t-shirt being pulled down so it touches his face (see picture above). He would completely freak out if he was covered with anything.

3) We then move on to those that are not even satisfied with a cover. They insist that if we can’t find somewhere secluded, like the toilet, then we stay home to feed our children. Seriously? For the first six months or year or two or three or however many years a child and mother decide is right for them? Seems impractical to me! Of course these very clever people also have a solution for this:

Bottles, because that’s what they are made for! Wait, haven’t I heard that said about something else before now? oh yeah…

It’s simple see. We can give our babies pumped milk or formula while we are out of the house.

Of course they don’t have any solutions for those whose baby won’t drink from a bottle, who don’t want to feed their baby with a bottle, can’t pump enough(or any) milk. Or even considered the fact that we would also have to drag the pump along with us to relieve the engorged, painful, boulders that have started leaking through our tops.

Personally? I think it’s more modest to stick a baby on your boob than have a pump attached to it. You can actually see the nipple and the milk squirting out when you use a pump. I think that might draw more attention while sipping your coffee in Starbucks than just looking like you are cuddling a baby.

4) Of course didn’t you know babies can always wait until you get home to feed them? Apparently, according to some (okay one that I know of), there is no need to feed on demand and that all babies, no matter how young, should be taught patience. I’m guessing the person who wrote this on twitter was NOT a parent, or a very nice one if they were!

5) We then come to those who harp on the ‘natural’ bandwagon. That is, if breastfeeding is natural, then they should be able to whip out their genitalia and urinate in public, because it’s natural! What they don’t seem to realise is that urine, or faeces, is waste. It is the leftovers of what we have consumed being excreted from our bodies.

Breasts are not genitals and milk is not waste. Milk is a complex fluid, it is created by our breasts and contains the perfect ingredients to nourish and protect our offspring. Not to mention the fact that urinating in public can get you arrested. In most countries, breastfeeding is protected by law so…

6) Breastfeeding is a special time of bonding between mother and baby. This shouldn’t be brought into public as is it a sacred and personal time.

This statement annoys me, maybe this view is why a lot of people think it should stay a private activity? Yes, in the first few days or weeks breastfeeding is all about the bonding. Even for older babies, in the dead of night and you are snuggling alone just you and your child it is a special, quiet time.

But mostly? It is just milk. Its is only your baby feeding how your baby was meant to feed. It isn’t a special bonding moment when your toddler is tugging at your top for a snack mid ‘mammoth playing with blocks’ session, it is just milk. It is food or something to wet the whistle, so to speak.

Arguments for breastfeeding in public

Because we can, that’s it. Plain and simple. There is nothing to argue. Our breasts make milk, babies who breastfeed need to feed from them to eat, therefore they need to be exposed enough for a baby to latch on. Doesn’t matter where you are. And…

We should in any way we are comfortable with!

If you want to whip out your boob over the top of your t-shirt in the middle of a restaurant. Go you!

If you want to use a cover, a blanket, a shawl, a sling or whatever you feel comfortable with outside, or inside, your home. Then good on you!

If you prefer to remove yourself from the situation and go somewhere private. Way to go you!

I use the two-top method. A stretchy cami top, under a loose fitting t-shirt. I don’t like showing my belly and this method works great. You pull the cami down and lift the t-shirt. A loose t-shirt means that you show very little boob and what is on show is covered by baby’s face. This also means I can pull it down quickly when my little scamp decides that he needs to fling himself off my lap to go play. If you do this too. Yay! Great minds think alike!

Nobody should feel forced into breastfeeding in public if they feel uncomfortable, but also, nobody should be made to feel uncomfortable for choosing to breastfeed in public. As mothers, it should be our choice and our choice alone.

So I think you know my opinions on breastfeeding in public now. But I would love to know yours, even if you don’t agree with me! Debate is healthy, although nastiness won’t be tolerated!

Sensory play – Edible Sand

I recently made some edible sand for O to play with and even though he was a bit of a grump due to his teeth he still had a go. I’m not sure I would call it our most successful sensory play experience, he barely broke half a smile, but he did have a go and that’s all that matters!

Why do babies and toddlers need Sensory Play?

Sensory play is so important for children. They get to have a great time, usually getting quite messy, while experiencing new sensations and engaging with the world around them. One way babies and toddlers learn about the world is by putting everything they can get a hold of into their mouths. I mean Everything! So when you are making a sensory play for babies and toddlers you have to take this into consideration and provide things that are harmless even if they do start to shovel it into their mouths. There are lot’s of edible sensory play ideas out there, Pinterest is brimming with ideas! Obviously, even though it is edible, you won’t want them to sit and just eat it, but some tastes won’t hurt them.

Edible Sand

Edible sand castles, kinda

What you will need:

1/2 cup of sugar per colour (I used granulated)

Food colourings of choice

Sandwich bags

And that is pretty much it!

You can add as much sugar as you like but I wanted to keep it on a small scale as O was in his highchair. If I were doing this on the floor I would probably double/triple the amount.

Here’s how you make it:

Stage 1: Place you sugar into the sandwich bag and squeeze in your food colouring a little at a time. I used a gel colour, I’m not sure how well the liquid ones will work, they may be too wet but it’s worth a try!

Stage 1

Stage 2: Rub the colour into the sugar until its combined, you may need to add more but don’t overdo it or you will end up with a slightly rainbow child(you’ll see what I mean later!)

stage 2

Stage 3: repeat until you have all the colours you need, I had to put more sugar into the red as that was quite a strong colour.

Stage 3

When I first put O in front of the brightly coloured mounds he was a little confused. With hindsight I have realised that he has only ever really eaten in his highchair before, rarely sat there to play so I’m sure he was trying to figure out what kind of dodgy foodstuffs I was trying to con him into eating this time! Okay it didn’t help that I also gave him a spoon but I was winging it a bit lol.

what was this stuff again Mami?

But he soon got into it. He was happier to bash it rather than use his hands but had a great time sending bits flying everywhere.

Let’s just squish this bit here…

Here’s where we had a little bit of a mishap with the colour that I mentioned earlier, but we finally got a smile (I think the sugar rush might have kicked in lol):

hmm, I’m sure he wasn’t that colour a minute ago?

I’m guessing red is quite a potent colour as I had to add loads more sugar to try and dry it out a bit but as you can see from the photo I obviously hadn’t added quite enough, mix in a bit of saliva from his tasting and I ended up with one bright red baby and high chair! Here is a quick snippet of video I managed to catch, you can see his reluctance to touch the ‘sand’.

I think I’ll try this one again over the holidays when the kids are home and put it down on the floor so he can discover it for himself in his own time.

Have you tried any sensory play activities with your children? what are your favourites?

Parenting is hard work! Part 2

Catch up with part one here

Yesterday I explained how we are trying to deal with the attitude problems that were brought to light after our parents evening last week. This post will be for how we are dealing with the following problems:

‘Forgetting’ school books
‘Forgetting’ to do/hand in homework
Very poor handwriting and presentation
General misbehaving

One of major changes we have made to our lives is one that most people seem to think is a punishment for us rather than them. They have been grounded. But instead of being locked away in their room to mope around, they have been grounded OUT of their bedroom. They have to spend their time in the living room with us as a family and the only internet use they have is while they are doing homework. One of the benefits of having them with us all the time is that I can show them things that I took for granted that they knew. Like how to use your ruler to mark dots on your page so you know your lines will be straight.

Mostly though it has allowed us to talk more. I thought that they talked a lot before, come on they are teenage girls they really don’t stop talking! But I am now learning new things about them all the time. I feel a little sad that we didn’t try this before. Instead of everyone disappearing off it has brought us closer together as a family. Maybe this shock to the system is exactly what we needed!

I have also allowed them outside. Now I know that this may seem totally against what being grounded is about, but everyone needs fresh air and some space, our living room really isn’t huge after all. There are conditions to this freedom mind. They are not allowed off the street and are not allowed to hang round with their friends, luckily our street is up a hill so none of their friends will ever be ‘just passing’. If, in a few weeks they have started showing improvements I will allow them away from the street to go for a run, instead of going through the lanes around our house.

I thought I was doing a good thing by reminding the girls every day to do their school bags, plus getting them to sit at the dining table for roughly an hour every day after school to do their homework. Since they were coping so well in year 7 I stopped checking what they were actually doing. I thought by giving them independence and showing that we trusted them we were giving them what they needed.

This has stopped. I will now be checking everything, every day, and giving them something to do if they have no homework. One of the tasks I’ve set is copying out poems or pages of books to try and get them to write neatly. And you know what? They actually have really lovely writing! It mostly just seems down to how they hold their pens. Who’d have thought?

The only thing I’m not sure how to deal with is getting them to take pride in their work. They will happily hand in work that is full of errors and scribbles or rubbings out. I’m hoping once they see how neat their work can look this will make them want to make it look its best.

Please keep your fingers crossed that our plans work. I’ll let you know in a few weeks how we are getting on. In the mean time, it’s always good to get other’s perspective on things so let me know if you would approach this matter differently. Or if you have any suggestions on getting them to take pride in their work.