Hey carol,
Isabelle and Cake :)
I think I fixed images :)

Let me know how you go

Cheers

Matt

Matt I need help! Can't seem to see how to upload pictures now - I need the filepath? also says I am exceeding my disk quota of 10Mb by uploading a 53.5kb file using the Attach feature (which is how I think we do pictures now) Can you double check that this is right?

After Emma waking 6 times in the night the first night in Tassie I thought we were in for a rough holiday at Mum's but she got used to the change of scenery and settled into only two to three wakings. On one night she even woke twice but put herself to sleep - without me needing to get up! She hasn't repeated that performance since :(

Mum was very supportive while we were staying with her even though she was just as perplexed as me with what to do because her three girls, especially my sister Alison were really good sleepers from quite early on. Why, Emma, did you not inherit those genes?

"My goal is to help you and your baby sleep all night - without either of you crying along the way." from the No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley. By the way all those new Mums-to-be that I know, I greatly recommend this book and please read a copy before baby arrives so that you start off with good habits. p64-89 especially for newborns. It makes it easier than trying to correct later. So far I have found it to be the most obvious explanation of what to do to avoid a lot of problems. Other books etc mentioned what to do but I just failed to translate it into practice until this book.

I was going to be a little tougher from today and not succumb to using the boob to soothe to sleep during the day. At least then we would have a no boob strategy for when I start going to work next week - Arrgg! I can't do the controlled crying / leave her alone to cry it out strategy at all so if Emma is upset, and it is not the boob for comfort, then I am holding her in my arms, patting and saying comforting things. I won't be as able to resist the boob in the middle of the night though. The crying seems so much louder when you are half asleep and the whole house is quiet - plus the neighbours said this morning that they could hear Emma in the night! I didn't know that before - no pressure of course.

We are still persisting with the Pantley pull off technique though so far with mixed success. I keep needing to re-read the book to commit back to my plan and check that I am doing the right thing as it is taking a while and I get disheartened every couple of weeks and tempted to use more crying and be tougher. Today the Maternal Child Nurse said the best solution was to get tougher. "Just think about what message you are sending when you always offer the boob". ie how will she learn not to expect it each time. Hmm maybe the message is Mummy is not going to comfort you when your really upset even if she knows how to. If you are going to go down the no cry path then you really need a copy of the book to re motivate as there is so much advice out there that encourages crying.

Still the no cry solution is a more long term one so it can't be rushed. Emma will sort this out in her own time. She went down so well tonight. I told her a story about everything we did today after her bedtime goodnight to all her toys and at the end, when she was calm, I put her in her bed. I tucked her in finishing the story and she fussed for a while and wriggled then settled down to sleep. So good. Hmm maybe it will be a good sign for tonight...

Grandma visited this week to catch up with Emma who is now 6 months old.

 

Grandma had lots of playing, kisses and hugs with Emma and it was lovely to have her here. We took Emma swimming for the first time at the Yarraville pool and Emma enjoyed it - putting her ears in the water and splashing about. She looked very trendy in her swimmers too - thanks for those Gran - yes they are 000 but still fit.

 

For my birthday we had a great lunch out with the parents group...

 

We had a cold snap recently and Emma tried out her polar fleece - it is a bit big at the moment but won't be long and it will fit perfectly.

 

Emma is growing up fast and is loving tickles and funny noises, this little piggy and horsing around...

 

She's not a big fan of tummy time..

but she does like blocks even if its just knocking them down...

 

Mostly she is just very cute...

We are now back from our X'mas holidays in Tassie. Thanks to all of our family who had us stay, feed us great food or spent time with us. Our now 5 month old baby Emma was wonderful - hardly any complaints during the day and just a bit more waking up in the night. This was completely understandable as she was in a new place, visiting new people every day and receiving a lot of attention. Her favourite seemed to be Rastas (my Mum's puppy) who she watched running about the place with Grandpa's (all of them!) a close second.

 

We went kayaking with Nathan's sister and her kids Alex and Chloe...

 

We spent time with Emma's cousins...

 

She is growing up very fast and is just starting to get interested in solid food. She's very ready with smiles and laughs for friends and also strangers. I can't help attaching a photo as she is so cute.

 

Hope you had a great X'mas and New Year - I didn't send cards this year.

Emma is growing up fast and loves dribbling, talking (only vowels at the moment), standing up (with assistance) and will smile and laugh for anyone (most days). While she has been sleeping though most nights she has stopped recently - possibly a growth spurt? All in all she is a great baby and we are looking forward to taking her on her first trip away from home - back to Tassie for X'mas. All our family we will see you soon... back in early January.

 

We managed to get out into the garden on the weekend and finished off the path at the front of the house. I have been digging with Emma in the bouncinette or pram and have nearly finished the vege patch. This weekend we will buy some more soil (with added manure) and I will mix it in with the existing sandy dirt. Hopefully there will be enough to improve the beds out the back and down the side of the driveway as well. I'm not sure what I will plant out, a few things are a bit late to start now but I think zucchini and carrot will still be ok especially if we get some late spring rain. We are on restrictions here but we can water two days a week - so I will be setting up some dripers and a timer. Mostly I have been using the babies bath water to water so far so with any luck I won't need to use the tap water too much. We have considered getting a tank but with no where to put it we'd have to get an expensive narrow one so haven't investigated that too much yet.

 

Emma is going really well. She slept through two nights out of four this week so that hopefully is a trend that will continue. She is so much bigger! You can really see a lengthening in her face that makes her seem much more grown up - and that she can make eye contact, laugh, smile and baby talk with you. It is going rather quickly and I can see that soon she will be bored of hanging round the house with Mum. Just as well we have started attending a parents group and met a few babies her age that she can start playing with.

 

Matt, Christine and baby Isobelle visited for the weekend and Emma had a nice time being introduced to Isobelle - when they were both awake!

 

We had a lovely get together with Alison, Anthony and Tor on Saturday afternoon. Alison brought some yummy nibblies and there was cheesecake too. Tor sang a self-composed song dedicated to baby Isobelle and Emma on his guitar. Emma and Isobelle both happened to be awake and happy for the duration and were very impressed by Tor's musical skills.

 

On Sunday we had brunch with Matt's family who were also in Melbourne and spent some time in the Williamstown park. Emma had her first train trip with the pram which was surprisingly easy - well on a Sunday there was plenty of room.

Auntie Jill and Uncle Ross also stayed recently and Emma had a great time getting extra hugs with them...