How do I look after a baby again?

First pregnancy:
Weekend lie-ins
Naps, remember naps!
Nursery sorted by now
Hospital bag almost done
Everything bought in preparation…

Second pregnancy+toddler:
Erm, what day is it?

Feeling pretty exhausted right now. Can’t believe I am almost 36 weeks pregnant! Where has the time gone? Two weeks left of work, although could easily have packed my laptop away now. I’m also in full on nesting mode and desperate to deep-clean the house! I’m pretty OCD about cleaning so it ramps up a notch when pregnant. Anyone else the same? Last time I had my husband pulling everything out the kitchen cupboards to clean...Just feeling quite unprepared in every sense of the word really. I held my nephew the other day who is 8-weeks old and thought – how do I look after a baby again?! A baby and a toddler?! The Braxton Hicks contractions are ramping up now, pretty much 24-7 but just trying to think of them as good practice/fucking annoying...As well as the slight panic, nesting taking over, exhaustion – I am feeling more excited every day. Just not quite sure what day it is….

Can't fit into my own pj's anymore...!

As I mentioned last week – Rafe has had hand foot and mouth. Which for anyone whose child has had – will understand how awful it is. Even more awful when for days, although I knew he was a bit off and had been sick one night – I thought he just had a stomach bug/was teething. I noticed what I thought was a midge bite on his hand, he had been chirpy and seemed better, took him to nursery – only for them to ring a few hours later and say they thought he had hand foot and mouth. He had spots on his bum and they noticed them on his feet – and when I got him home I noticed he had ulcers on his tongue. Just felt so bad for not realising how poorly he was and that he had hand foot and mouth. He wouldn’t eat much – apart from ice lollies and yogurts and was really clingy for days. The ‘nee sleep routine' went out the window – he just wanted to be cuddled and to hold my face. Was a pretty exhausting week, husband was away and I needed a few wines to be honest – but he is so much better now. And running around like a tornado! He is obsessed with lions and runs around or points at his lion teddy saying ‘rara, rara!’ Which just brightens up any one’s day. Even after 2 hours sleep with a him holding on to your face...

Getting Rafe to sleep has obviously been a difficult task so the week before of trying to get him down without cuddling has gone out the window. So starting again now he is better. Some nights he will go down after 10-15 minutes – but wake-up and need settling within the hour. And screams and screams - which is a laugh a minute. But then the other night, he went down within 10 minutes and slept through. PRAISE THE LORD! So a Russian Roulette at bedtime but isn’t it always?!

Now he is on the move, he needs entertained even more. Try and get him out and about as much as I can but when we are in the house, he gets bored so quickly. We have mountains of toys – and loves books – but just want some ideas to keep a 19-month entertained in the house, both fun and educational?! Any good Instagram accounts to follow for ideas? Any good games? Good books/toys? Want to try and get him to say more words too. He understands so much but is still limited with words. He can give you all the noises of any farm animal, lion (his fave), car and motorbikes noises etc – he can master those. But actually saying dog – rather than 'woof woof' he does not do. Only 'real' words he says are mama, dada, hiya, yeah yeah (when he is singing to The Beatles!) and randomly bear. The rest are all sounds of what things make - or his own babbling. It's hard not to compare (and I really make an effoet not to) but there's a boy at swimming, a few months older than Rafe who is saying so much – and basically copies what his mum says - it’s amazing! But he is not Rafe so just need to remember that. And all kids develop in different ways. He understands a lot of what you are saying and asking him to do – and is vocal, just not quite putting a huge amount of words together yet. I mentioned this a few months' back and was reassured - think once again, I just need to stop worrying about everything!

So from one exhausted and worried mum to another – till next time!

Faye x