The Alice

I have made my career in working with computers for a reason. Computers, and the internet, are predictable. You do A using method B and get the result of C. There are very rarely any problems, and if there are Google always has the answer.

Parenting is totally different. If you do the bath, baby massage, book and quiet time it does not necessarily mean Elfie will sleep. More often than not she will end up downstairs with us wide awake, and then we have to do a few relay runs up and down the stairs to switch on lullabies and pick up dummies before sleep arrives.

And then, one night, BOOM. She will go down straight to sleep after her bath and we think we’ve cracked it. We can cook properly, drink wine and watch crap TV. Blissful.

Until the next evening, when she’ll be up again, wide awake and wanting to be entertained.

There is no answer for this on Google… argh!

Originally posted on my mumplusone blog.

I promise that I will no longer be that smug new mummy, the one who has the perfect baby who sleeps and eats when she should. I say this because Elfreda has been awake since 11am and is now completely overtired. It’s 9pm and she’s been screaming since 6 – I am writing this as her Dad has taken her out for a drive in a last-ditch attempt for sleep.

The last week has been very tough for all three of us. I can see Elfie growing in so many ways, and it seems to me that she is now clever enough to want to be doing things but lacks the motor skills and co-ordination. I think a fair amount of her grizzling this week (and there has been A LOT) has been the consequence of frustration. I know this is a stage and it will pass but it’s difficult to remind myself of this after 4 hours of wailing when all I want to do is relax in front of the TV with a glass of wine.

To try and overcome the six-week blues I plan to get out and about; Elfie had her best nights sleep last week after accompanying us to a rugby match so lots of fresh air is on the agenda. I will be attending my first Mother and Babies group on Monday, a day at the farm on Tuesday and an arts workshop on Thursday. The baby is far to young of course to take part in any of these activities but I’m hoping to make some new friends and get her used to different activities.

Originally posted at mumplusone.

Read my most recent blog post at mumplusone here.

- Firstly, I am so relieved to be at the 24 week viability stage! Especially after watching a particularly emotional episode of One Born Every Minute last week (there was a 23 week old baby in the neonatal unit). I feel like a weight has been lifted.

- My sleep has gone crazy again. I’ve had a couple of very late nights worrying (I’m afraid I have to blame this book – it had me concerned that we weren’t being frugal enough) and this morning I woke for the day at 5am having had a particularly vivid dream about zombies. Weird.

- My sinuses, oh my god. On a bad day I can’t wake up when I breathe and by the end of the day the pain has spread from my nose to my forehead and feels like an elastic band tightening round my brain. I am so sick of blowing my nose and earache!

- We took a trip to the hospital early last week (first time visiting the Labour ward!) because I felt like I’d pulled a muscle in my stomach overnight, and the following day I hadn’t felt any movements from Baby H at all. Of course as soon as we sat down in the waiting room baby started kicking, but we stayed to get checked out – anyway. There was a heartstopping couple of minutes whilst the midwife found baby’s heartbeat, but it was nice and strong after that. Baby has been kicking, punching, rolling and twisting ever since.

- I have a big bump! Finally! None of the miserable commuter bastards on my train noticed yesterday morning when I was feeling particularly exhausted and desperate for a seat, but I blame their tendency to avoid eye contact for that.

- My lower back still hurts pretty much all the time. The less said about the better (though I enjoy my nightly back rubs from Will).

- I have gone up 12lbs from my pre-pregnancy weight, which feels like a lot but I know is really quite average. I’m trying not to treat my mouth like a personal dustbin (I have eaten what I want, when I want ever since I got over the initial sickness) and am on a bit of a health kick. This means cereal for breakfast, mid-morning granola and yoghurt, salads for lunch and a healthy dinner. I’m still allowed my McDonald treats after my blood tests though… and pudding. And easter eggs.

- I’ve had a lot more bad moods (sorry Will, I love you for being nice to me even when I’m mean). I blame the lack of sleep and sinus pain.

- I have less than 10 working weeks left in the office. Not that I’m counting or anything…

- I need to wee – very often during the day but nighttime is the worst. Will and I have swapped sides of the bed so I’m by the bedroom door and can get out to the bathroom quicker. This is making me feel weird right now, almost like we’re living in a hotel, or like we’ve re-decorated our bedroom or something…

- I need to wee so much because I’m so bloody thirsty all the time. I’ve noticed that when I’m thirsty I get very headachey and tired; there’s definitely a correlation between this and dehydration.

- I have definitely started feeling the baby, I can now tell the difference between my stomach gurgling and baby movements! Daddy got to feel a kick today, too. I’m really looking forward to the movements becoming more obvious – baby seems to be asleep a lot of the time at the moment (like her mummy) and I’m eager for her to be more wriggly!

- My sleeping pattern has never been so sensible and settled as it is at the moment. I go to bed around 10.30 and am asleep just before midnight, and then up again around 8. I still find mornings difficult, but then I did before the pregnancy so I don’t think this is a baby thing. I just don’t like getting up…

- My appetite is back! Aside from the roast potatoes and mayo craving, I’m also eating a packet of salt and vinegar squares every day and I’ve gone from hating the sight of crumpets to not being able to get enough of them.

- I’m happy! So happy, compared with my mood two to three weeks ago. I know this has a lot to do with getting so much more satisfying sleep but I feel like a cloud has been lifted. I’m no longer worrying and am able to happily get on at work a lot more. I feel so contented, and it’s a wonderful feeling.