Love, bubs and life on our little farm

But my pants now longer do up... so hit DFO I did. So much for other peoples xmas presents - bah! I was a Christmas grinch and got myself some lovely flowy tops and dresses to cover my protruding bump (must take a new belly pic!). Forever New has some great long line work blouses - soft 100% cotton and very pretty. I also got a very summery Witchery baby doll singlet in soft pinks patterns with a brown top half. I am slightly less convinced on a very pretty 60's swirly mini dress in pinks and purples but the fabric was too pretty to say no and I think it could be tucked into a nice work skirt to "serious" it up for work...

I am a hater of maternity clothes - seriously how do they make them so mumsy. You can't force me into a pair of cropped cargo pants at the best of times (d-a-g-g-y and soooo not slimming!) so I am not going to pay a fortune to wear some when I am feeling less than glam anyway. Don't get me started on the long peasant style maternity skirts (so early 90's) or the poofy, sorry "floaty" tops (because my top half needs to look bigger!).

So yep I was the size of a small whale last pregnancy and still wearing my own clothes - thanks to the black and white elastic belly bands purchased from Ebay for $5 each. They hid my open flies and held everything up. I also found some great stretchy waisted pants and skirts from Valleygirl etc and bought some tailored pants in size 12 to give me some extra room. I probably spent less than one item of maternity wear from that great offender of mumsiness Pumpkin Patch Maternity Wear.

Of course the maxi dresses get a big shout out too - best.things.ever when you are not keen on tightness around your tummy.

And for work tomorrow - well I have just remembered that I bought that gorgeous plum coloured Calvin Klein dress that falls so well over the bump and will help me make the most of my new cleavage (hey need to enjoy it while I can!).

I might be a Mum but am not planning on looking like it until I can help it :)

I am a happy girl and not just because I survived my hens weekend in Sydney - I even managed to dance the night away and not look a teeny bit pregnant. Great fun to let my hair down but a few glasses of bubbles wouldn't have gone astray!

No I am blessed this time because I have been granted a wonderful promotion at work - I have advanced a whole level which now makes me a senior scientist rather than just "scientist". Well its important to me ;) especially as it has taken most people there about 10 years to get to that level and I have done it in three. So I am definitely glowing at the moment - its nice to be good at what you do and love it too. Not only that - but the promotion is being back paid - so we will eventually get a lovely couple of lump sum payments, not to mention the increased pay rate will be very welcome during my maternity leave at half pay. Life was good anyway and we are so blessed in our life so this is just a very tasty cherry on top.

To add to my good mood, my nausea is finally lifting - I have not had to eat every 2 hours today just to stop from gagging - whoohoo! And my parents arrive today and Dad is babysitting Elka tomorrow so that Mum and I can have our Day Spa day - can't wait! Bring on the massages and pampering :)

I wish and hope everyone has moments like this xoxo

Before we get hooked into the Christmas spending, we have to purchase our next years worth of hay first. We normally buy 100 bales and get it delivered by a truck - this is a costly exercise - over $1000 but much cheaper than trying to buy hay in small amounts through winter when it is out of season.

So I am currently waiting for the truck to arrive -the shed is tidied and waiting. Packing 100 bales of hay safely so it doesn't fall or combust is tricky and will have to wait for Jase to get home from work as I am not allowed to hoik them around now that I am pregnant. In the meanwhile - they can be thrown out onto the driveway at the entrance of the shed and for once I will be hoping for no rain - at least for today!

I had my NT scan yesterday and bubs is looking pretty perfect as are my risk stats. A nice relief. The 12 week scan is lovely as bubs is so little that they fit on the screen but you can still see all the little body parts - amazing stuff.

Now.. I head to Sydney for hens weekend tomorrow - I have clothes organised that are relatively slimming for the bump but I am still battling the nausea and the dizziness is getting worse so its going to be a demanding trip to be in a party mood the whole time. I will do my best!

Feeling a little better - still sick and quite dizzy but not nearly as bad as before. Have only put on 1kg or so despite eating lots of chocolate and ice cream - again it seems pregnancy has brought on a sweet tooth for me). Am feeling my appetite starting to grow too.

I am a little short tempered though - I do get a little frustrated when Elka pushes the limits or when I have cleaned up spilt milk for the 5th time in 5 minutes etc. I am hoping that the second trimester will bring a little patience for me along with the extra energy and well being I am crossing my fingers is coming my way!

My sciatic nerve plays up every now and then. But overall I am getting through long busy days at work with little more than some achy feet. I am blessed with being strong and healthy and I do appreciate it.

I have had my bloods for the NT scan done and I am having the scan on Thursday - looking forward to it! Although I had sneak peek at bub the other day at the obs as he scanned me to check for the heartbeat again. So very cute - they become little mini-bubs from blobs so quickly!

Looking forward to finally telling all my workmates so I can wear fitted clothes again.

Fingers crossed all will go well on Thursday. Bring on the second trimester - I already have a pregnancy massage booked for next week - can't wait!

My little one is growing up big time now. She is chatting and repeats just about every word we say now. I think she must be learning about 10-15 words a day. She is good at stringing words together now too. She often chatters that "Mummy said..." and then off into her own language. I would love to know what I am saying!

She is doing great at toilet training. She is getting good at telling us she needs to go and we have caught quite a few wee's on the potty and the last two mornings she has done her morning poo on the potty. She has also been successful using the potty at daycare too. She gets rewarded with a stamp on her hand which she wears very proudly. I am so impressed at how clever she is but its something you can't really "brag" to other people about cause really who wants to hear about poo's and wee's lol! Aahh the glamour of being a parent!

She is very good at pointing out her body parts - she can do nose, ear, eye, mouth, head, hair, shoulder, neck, chin, tummy, arm, hand, finger, knee, foot and toe and say all of them. She loves to pull my shirt up and pat my tummy and say "baby".

She sings little snatches of Baa Baa Black Sheep which is her favorite song.

She gives big smooches accompanied by a very loud drawn out "Mwwaaaaaaaahhhh" which is so cute. If she gives anyone else a kiss then she always finishes by demanding a kiss from me - so sweet!

She understands complex instructions and loves to push things and be a little naughty to get attention. Her naughtiness is often puncuated with a huge smirky grin on her face.

She is a great eater - very coordinated wiht her fork and spoon now. She loves to have frozen fruit ice blocks and loves cold water. She loves to sit on the bench and help me cook - we cook mini cupcakes and she loves to have them for morning and afternoon tea.

She feeds the horses tiny handfuls of hay through the fence and tells Sooty to shoo when he is trying to sneak out the front door. She gives her dolly's bottles of milk, wraps them in blankets, pats them to sleep and pushes them in her little toy stroller. The other day the cat was lying on the floor in the way of her toy stroller so she stood there yelling "beep beep"! Which is something I say to her when she in the way of me. I hadn't realised that she had picked it up - made me laugh!

She is so smart and aware of everthing going on - I can't believe she still has so much growing to do!

I love living in a semi-rural location - the people are just not as rushed or as rude as the city. Since I work in the city, I get to see both ends of the spectrum most days. Driving in the city areas is pretty nasty stuff these days - but out on our country road I find myself relaxing and letting people in or giving them lots of room for an easy merge and I nearly always get an appreciative wave.

I often stop on the way home from work to pick up milk etc at a lovely little country supermarket/greengrocers. I am normally juggling milk, fruit and a toddler and often the person in front of me will smile and wave me through the check out first. I think that is so thoughtful and the gift of that persons time is very much appreciated by me.

I also find that grocery shopping up at our village - I will quite often have someone offer to return my trolley since I am trying pull Elka, her water bottle and everything else out and into the car. When I mentioned this to my Mum she commented that its sort of a country thing that everyone takes the time to return their trolleys anyway, let alone a strangers as well!

And the other day whilst getting petrol, the lady sales assistant came rushing over to say hello to Elka and to offer her a lollipop (OK points here for being so lovely - but I wasn't too keen on Elka eating the lollipop -which got stuck in her hair and thrown out hehe).

I just want to make sure that in my hectic days, I also take the time to make those small gestures to other people. Letting someone ahead of you at the checkout that has a small child or has less groceries than you... or helping someone in need load their car etc, even letting someone in front of you at an intersection when driving with a wave. I am definitely going to try to fill my days with some good karma!

We have worked all year without Jase taking any rec leave so we decided he deserved a few days off. So we had Thurs-Fri off and headed to my parents beautiful farm in the Byron Bay Hinterland. Its green, lush and so relaxing. The house is timber with huge verandahs and beautiful views to the National Parks ranges and to the coast (you can see the Byron lighthouse at night). The chickens and horses are there for pats and feeds, there are koalas and wallabies to admire. I feel my tensions falling away when I stay there. Not to mention my lovely parents who make every visit feel special and full of nice things to do and yummy food!

I especially enjoy watching Elka play with her beloved Nanny and Poppy. She literally ran to both of them for big hugs when we got there. Its a wonderful rest for me and I love seeing them soaking up their time together. They had lots of toys saved up from my childhood for Elka to play with - they certainaly don't build them like that anymore!

We spent a lovely day at Byron Bay where Elka got herself completely drenched in her only change of clothes so we had to buy her a tourist T-shirt to wear LOL. Well Poppy had to buy her one since he was responsible for her falling headfirst into the water (and he dragged her out by her ankle as he didnt want to put his shoes down from his other hand - great work Poppy!). I am constantly amazed at how Byron Bay and Bangalow have changed since I was a child, they are different places now. But I don't dwell on the changes - I just try to appreciate the lovely shops and nice cafes for what they are and hope that at least the hinterland area will stay relatively quiet and not become crazy-touristey.....

Its nice to be home now - I have had a rough week of sickness unfortunately and today my boobs have decided to behave like they did when my milk came in - ouch! And not so comfortable in 33 degree heat!

Now Mum and I are planning our next Day Spa day - cant wait!! Jase is treating me to an hour pregnancy massage - ooh bliss and I am going to get a few other treatments too since I can't use all the plunge pools and spa's in the Bath House...

Maybe the thought of that will get me through the hectic week of work that is fast approaching. How to hide my huge belly too! I am 12 weeks on Friday - wow! But still a week and a half until my NT scan so I am not keen to tell work just yet.... Hmm where did I put my loose tent clothes ;)

Had another one of those moments where I went "whoa I am so blessed.." and I thought I should acknowledge my special little everday moments from the last 24 hours that add up to me being a happy person.

I am 10 weeks today - that has gone so quickly. I am welcoming double figures with my nausea slowly but steadily improving. I feel pretty yuk most of the time and I get strong waves of urges to vomit but its not constant like it was. I even woke up this morning and gritted my teeth waiting for the ickiness to hit but instead I felt OK for awhile - oh happy days!

Most notable symptom at the moment is my strong food cravings and aversions - I just have to have a certain food and won't rest until I get it. In the last few days it was cucumber sandwiches - unfortunately the homemade variety aren't as good as my craving which was based on the ones I have had at Hyatt High Teas in Canberra - sigh. Jase has informed me that we are not flying to Canberra to have said sandwiches damn it. He tends to draw the line at driving all around SE QLD like we did searching for my perfect caramel slice last pregnancy.

Otherwise my sciatic nerve has decided to come to the party all ready. If I lift Elka too much or lie still too long then I can barely move my hip. Looks like I will be finding time to book some chiro sessions to get through this time. Fortunately this time round I have learnt to slow down - a necessary skill learnt from the tedious sitting around stage of having a newborn. So I can handle the fact that I am less efficient and achieve very little in a day. Although nesting has hit all ready - I have spent all morning cleaning out our walk in pantry (we will never starve in a lockdown emergency!) and its now sparkling and I am a happy girl. Hormones are a funny thing.

3 weeks until my NT scan -cant wait.

Here are my first belly pics

I hit the Bright Bots Warehouse sale this morning as I do every couple of months. Its just perfect for getting lovely soft cotton clothes for Elka and I needed to get her a new swim suit too. My little diva also spotted the sunglasses and insisted on getting a hot pink pair - that she wore from the cash register onwards, so cute!

So I got in early, missed all the crowds, enjoyed Elka being able to walk since you aren't allowed to take in prams and left feeling smug with a batch of great clothes for cheap...

In fact I finished so quickly I thought I would stop by my other favourite outlet shop in the same suburb. And that is how I came home with a plum stretch Calvin Klein dress! Hmm not what I set out to buy today but I couldn't go past the fit and cut and it is perfect for flattering a baby bump. And it was a bargain - the usual argument, I was SAVING money by buying it ;)

So I have been dragging my sorry sick butt around recently - enjoying the delights of early pregnancy such as gagging at all smells and thoughts of smells and experiencing tiredness so intense even your bones are tired. But one of my best friends is getting married soon.. in Hawaii.. and we are waiting to hear whether we are coming into some money. If this money eventuates, well then Jase and I are on the plane, sarongs packed, as fast as you can say "Nanny and Poppy, could you please mind Elka?" I really really want to be at this wedding but current finances are very tied up with our house extension and me needing another batch of maternity leave. So at the moment I am just hoping and wishing and tearing my guts out with guilt that I possibly won't be there on one of my friends most important days.

In the meanwhile, I have just found out that her Australian hens night is scheduled for 4 weeks time. Arrgh! I want to make it as special as possible for her as she organised my amazing hens night that was touching, beautiful and wild and fun all at the same time. So hence me needing to snap out of the pregnancy funk of eating reluctantly, working, grumping about being fat and falling into bed.

Did I mention that the hens night is in another state and that the hen is a party girl from way back and was even an events planner in glamorous old Sydney.. so she has some high expectations. Urrghh please please if you are reading this - leave some hens night games/experiences that you have loved in the comments :)

I have started trying to tidy myself up... got to book a hair appointment to fix my 2.5 inch long roots and to shape my eyebrows again. I have pulled together a hopefully passable going out in Sydney glamourous outfit, that suitably shows enough skin to blend in but also hides my chubby belly bump that unfortunately currently just makes me look thick through the middle. But how to survive the looooong night of teetering around in heels to noisy clubs when I can't have a drop of sparkling and I am normally tucked up in bed by 9pm? Hmm haven't quite worked that one out but am hoping adrenaline, guilt and a sense of duty will get me through!

Oh how I am hoping the worst of the illness will have passed by then!

I started this blog to be a record of my pregnancy with Elka. And it will now serve to be a pregnancy blog again...... I am happy to announce that I am 9 weeks pregnant and due on the 4th of June. Another winter bub :)

If you know me in real life, I apologise for not telling you - I have been pretty slack with announcements, mainly because its not yet that magic 12 weeks and also because the morning sickness has nearly killed me and talking about babies and pregnancy only makes it worse! But I don't like not being able to blog my experiences with this pregnancy so I am ready to come out on here :)

I am using the same obs as last time - very strange to find myself sitting back in his office again! A scan revealed a healthy looking little blob with a heartbeat so all is going well so far.

I have the same 24 hour nausea that I experienced with Elka's pregnancy but this time it is even more severe - alot more gagging and vomiting and stronger dizziness and queasiness. Its not been fun. Just in the last week I have also had extreme tiredness - not useful with a toddler!
I am already showing this time round - making dressing for work a little tricky (have told my bosses but not all my workmates). I was shocked this mroning to weigh myself and find that I have lost a kilogram (57kg) as I was sure with all the poor eating that I have been getting by on, that I was piling on the weight. So far, the best solution is peppermint choc chip ice cream with ice magic - mm healthy! But is soothes the stomach and calms the heartburn too. I have had heaps of cravings - mango chillers, ice, thai samosas, pickled onions and the list goes on!

I have been despairing at not being able to buy the summer clothes that I would like as they more than likely won't fit. But I have comforted myself with some cute maxi dresses instead ;)

Now just to (im)patiently wait for the 12 week scan and for the sickness to pass!

I heard Summer today. The sound of the sun beating down on the crunchy grass, the crickets sawing and the baby magpie demanding a feed. I love Australian Summers expecially on the land. The heat, the endless blue skies, the birds - it all reminds me that its nearly Christmas - time for family, relaxing, holidays, beach trips and lots of cold fruit and BBQ's.

I am looking forward to Christmas time. I am planning some holidays to relax at my parents gorgeous farm. Mum goes all out at Christmas - the house and gardens always look amazing and she cooks for weeks in advance. I adore Christmas shopping - wandering around finding lovely gifts to spoil my loved ones. I love picking our real Christmas tree out and the fresh pine smell it brings into the house. Elka is going to love Christmas and all the trappings.

We went to the first pool party/BBQ of the season last night and it was great fun. I have started buying lots of fun Summer dresses. I am ready for it now :)

I have neglected my blog :( I have been so busy I am afraid - work has just been crazy and life is too with interstate trips and lots of farm work to do...

I feel bad as some lovely people have even given me blog awards! Thank you! That means a lot to me as I write my blog to please myself not any one else so its nice to know that even still some people enjoy it!

I now have a killer head cold and a toddler teething her molars so I wish I had something lovely or fun to post but alas unless you want to hear a whinge about how much work I need to get done on my scientific grants or how we are slowly and very dully moving forward with our house extension plans... not much to say!

The horse front has also been quiet as Spech is having some corrective shoeing done at the moment in order to get his bad foot to grow some new sole (which is working well!) but means he is on rest from competitions.. I have been giving Sam a little bit of work in the meanwhile but am not feeling too motivated at the moment.

In bright news, despite more dust storms, bushfires and high winds, we have had over 30mm of rain in the last week and our paddocks are green and shooting lovely fresh spring grass :)

I did buy a lovely dip dye/tie dye skirt the other day... that is about as exciting as my summer shopping has been recently...

And that is me for now :) xoxo

Little Miss Elka has started talking a lot lately - she has a great range of words now for a 15 month old and tries out new ones daily. My current favourites are "Tate-toh" - potato :) and "Nnnnnnnneigh" - for the answer to the question what noise does has a horse make?

But she is also stringing together words into sentences now. "Dadda.. where?" when she is looking for Dad (the answer is always work of course!), she can also say "here you go" and "where'd it go?"

But last night was her first really independent sentence to communicate exactly what she wanted and it melted my heart. Jase gives her the evening bath but she likes me to come in too.. however I was in the kitchen cooking and she came hooting out from the bathroom crying for me. So I picked her up - she looked me intensely in the face and said and pointed to the bathroom "Bubbles.. want Mum!". She calls her baths bubbles as she gets bubble bath in them. I was so impressed that she had made herself understood so clearly! So yep - she got Mum ;)