I had always intended to do Monthly updates for Darcie on this blog but, of course, life got in the way and that hasn’t happened. At all. I did one Six Month Update and then never got around to it again. She has now just turned 16 months, but I thought rather than play catch up on all the updates I have missed, instead I’m just going to do a general post on life with a one year old.

I’m sure this post will end up being a long one, but the upshot of it is this: I love this age! (more…)

Dear Darcie,

Tonight I fed you for the last time. Don’t worry, you’ll still be getting solid food and coconut milk and all of your favourite things but this is the last time you’ll have my milk. This moment has been gradually approaching for months and I know in my heart that you are ready to stop now. I think that really you have been ready for a while and that it was me that needed to carry on. I really needed you to keep needing me. I wanted to keep providing you with the one thing that only I can provide. Or so I thought. But as I sit here now, holding your soft warm little body in my arms, I realise that it’s not true. There are so many other things that only I can do for you, because I am your Mum and that is something that nobody else can ever be. (more…)

I recently wrote a post Dear New Mummy that was shared on Bump, Baby and You and became my most ‘viral’ post so far. It was shared nearly 500 times and had thousands of likes and comments from women saying that it was exactly what they needed to hear and that it had brought them some comfort and reassurance. This was amazing to me; I love that a blog post that I wrote on a random stroke of inspiration ended up resonating with so many women one way or another. Head over and read the post if you haven’t already but here is a section that sums it up:

“You’re going to be bombarded with advice over the next few weeks, months and probably years of your life. You might not want to take on any more, but if you listen to one thing, please let it be this.

Hold your baby. Cuddle them in close. Bond with them. Forget about everything else right now. You and your baby are the centre of the universe. Please forget about the housework; the cleaning, the tidying, the food shop. If you have visitors coming over, let them help you with it all, and if you don’t have many visitors coming then who cares what the house looks like anyway. You will only get this time with your child once and you will kick yourself so hard if you don’t make the most of it.” (more…)

I think any breastfeeding Mum knows the struggle of finding clothes that are nursing friendly but that actually look nice as well. This has been a big personal battle for me, especially in the beginning when they are feeding so frequently and there’s not chance of ‘well maybe she won’t need a feed…’ (more…)

Dear New Mummy,

You won’t believe me, but I know how you are feeling. I know that you’ve never felt a love like this before to the point that you can’t even understand how you ever existed before this beautiful little bundle came into your life and nestled into your arms. But you are also tired, so tired, and so overwhelmed. You probably don’t believe me when I say that I know how you are feeling, because no one has ever loved a baby as much as you love your baby. And no one has every felt as tired as you do now. (more…)

We transitioned to the Chicco Oh La La Stroller when Darcie was around eleven months old. Our Mothercare three-in-one Xpedior pram had does us so well since she was born but as I was taking the bus more and more it felt like time for a much more lightweight and easier to fold down stroller. My mission for a new pram was basically to find something as light as possible, that I could fold up and down with one hand and that wasn’t going to eat too far into our mortgage fund. The Oh La La Stroller ticks all these boxes and I actually really love the design of it and the light grey colour. We got ours for £80 which is so affordable compared to a lot of other strollers that I  had my eye on and it weighs just 3.8kg which is the lightest we could find anywhere. (more…)