Arlo's 3 Month Update And How Im Finding Motherhood

I cant actually believe Arlo is FOUR MONTHS OLD its so crazy! Its strange because it actually feels like he's been here that long if not a little longer but then at the same time it feels like just yesterday I gave birth! I have to say I never in my life thought id miss and want sleep so much haha everyday when I wake up I feel like I need another 12 hours just to function but that's never in a million years going to happen lol a girl can dreaammmmm.... He's started doing subtitle new things he can hold things now not very well and most things he holds he ends up dropping on his face or on the floor after 20 seconds of holding it although saying that certain things he can hold well! He also holds his head completely now by himself! I have always been so blessed with him and for the first 3 months of his life I had never heard him cry as a new born he never made a peep not even when he was hungry now he's reached 4 months and started teething he's become a bit fussy and can cry randomly for 5 minutes in the day but that's obviously completely normal! He has also started to try to roll over he just hasn't quite mastered getting his legs over but when you watch him you know its only a matter of time! He has always loved bath time and he has now learnt how to splash and my god my boys strong I get drenched every bath time! Sleep wise he will sleep for longer stretches now he's older and has one bottle a night and he's drinking 7 ounces every sort of 4ish hours during the day. I think that's about the main developments I've noticed really but I have to say he defiantly knows my voice and me now for sure he can be sat with someone and ill say something or ill be talking and he just stares at me and the same when I walk into a room bless him, its defiantly the best feeling. Sometimes I do feel like I'm not stimulating him enough but it is hard at his age and I try to remind myself of that. I cant even put into words really how I'm finding motherhood so far I know I love it but it is just crazy!! I have to admit am always comparing myself to others mums their always taking there babies to one baby group or another and going here there and everywhere! when I just about manage to get out once a week and rush to his swimming lesson on a Tuesday! But i do always do my best and that's all you can do as a mum and I do know deep down all Arlo cares about is milk so haha .Motherhood is really over whelming there's no break from it you know as soon as you have fed and changed them etc and you sit own its only a matter of time before your up again and the weight of responsibility can be hard and I do have my moments where it can be really overwhelming but you have your moment and carry on and I  think that pretty much sums up motherhood for me! I have to say the stage he's at, at the moments is amazing he's growing everyday and those morning smiles when I go into his room make it all worth it and you can just feel the love you have for them.

Arlo's Bedtime Routine

Our nightime/bedtime routine starts around 7-8 olcock. First at between 8 and 8:30 ill give him a bath and i do this every night, ive had a few people say to me they dont need to bath that often but im not actually doing it for the washing and cleaning side of it most of the time, its actually for routine purposes and he really enjoys them. While hes in the bath i don't try to keep him particularly quiet i let him get some energy out. I use the Angelcare bath support but now hes getting bigger and more mobile he is nearly getting himself off it so it might be time for us to give it up soon. Now after he's out of the bath this is when the bedtime wind down starts, Arlos in his own room so what i do is take him into his room and all i have on his his Chicco nightlight/star projector its not a bright light and it changes colours which are all very soft and calming, it also plays music which i have on very quietly, having the music on is a new thing i have started to try give him some bed time associations. i use the the whole Johnson's bedtime range as i will literally try anything that's meant to make babies sleep better haha! Its really nice stuff and i do think it helps somewhat. I rub the Johnson's bedtime cream all over his body and get him into his pj's and sleepbag,while im doing this i dont talk to him or make an awful look of eye contact to keep him as calm as possible (this is something i read online to do) it defiantly works! i always put him in a sleeping bag at night now he's in his own room as i know he cant pull it off or get underneath it so it gives me extra peice of mind. Next i just sit in the nursing chair i have in his room and give him a bottle i do make an extra ounce and try my best to get him to have it but he rarely does it just depends on how hungry he is so its abit hit and miss, the fuller the baby the better they sleep. Most of the time he falls asleep after his bottle or mid bottle and i just pop him in his sleepyhead in his cot. If he's is still awake after his bottle ill turn his mobile on for him and by the time it stops he's asleep. With his nightlight i keep it on for a few minute's after he has fallen asleep just in case he hasn't settled properly and then when he has i go in and turn it off. Once this is all done he's usually asleep by 9, so his bed time routine is only 30 mins to an hour long as its better to keep the routine short. The one thing i would advice all new mums with newborn's not to do is let babies fall asleep with there dummies or get used to settling with it because Arlo did and it was honestly the death of me, he was waking up to 6 times a night for me to put it in.So now i have cut it out completely at night sometimes they will have a little moan to start with but now hes really good at self soothing and settling himself.

My Mum Must Haves And Faves

(besides the essentials , cot ,changing matt, pram and sterilisers)

Tommee Tippee Day and Night machine- This had to be at the top for me i LOVE LOVE LOVE this machine its without a doubt the best money I have ever spent if your a mum to be please look into getting one if your not breastfeeding or combination feeding! i started off for the first couple of months with there original older model the Tommee Tippee perfect prep machine and invested in there new brand new day and night machine which has great added extra features for example it lights up so at night you don't need to turn lights on in your kitchen. I'm going to link a video of how it works down below but for a quick overview.. It makes up a bottle for baby and the perfect drinkable temperature in just 2 minute's! No waiting around for the kettle to cool for 30 minute's, no screaming baby, extra sleep time in the middle of the might. Its honestly AMAZING

The sleepyhead is quite a recent product to me and not something I've had since Arlo was born like most mums. For starters i hadn't really heard of it at all when he was born and like most people do i put him in a Moses basket. I first found out about them properly and looked at them when Arlo out grew his Moses basket around 3 months and the problem i was having was he was to big for the Moses and got lost in his cot bed so i was trying to find an in-between. He was also looking like he was starting to try to roll over and i didn't want him being in his cot and in the middle of the night suddenly rolling over and not being able to get back! The sleepyhead is designed to make this feel snug and safe like the feeling of being held, its also great for travelling and also gives you the piece of mind they cant roll onto there front.

BEST BOTTLES EVER, if your a mum and you haven't tried the mam bottles you need to!! For the first couple of weeks i used Tommee Tippee as they were very reasonably priced and seemed the most popular bottle but Arlo just didn't seem to get on with them at all the milk would just come pouring out the sides! i had seen the mam bottles when i was pregnant and thought they looked nice so and after reading about them i picked some up to try and it was instant the milk stop pouring out the sides he loved them! the teat is completely different from Tommee Tippee and is designed to replicate the nipple which it really does, Another great thing about the mam bottles which differs from most is there all anti colic and all self sterilizing Arlo never suffered with colic or even colicky symptom's which most do and i 100% put it down to these bottles.

Another fairly new product to me, This night light/star projected i think was orgiannly designed to go along side the chicco next to me crib but i use it without and just attach it to baby arlo's cot. I use it primarley for Arlos bedtime routine which i started around 8 weeks but it really become solid when he moved into his own room a couple of weeks ago, Without going to much into arlos routine i use this in his room with no other lights on when i am changing his bad to play quite quiet soft lullbys and for a soft light so i can see but and he knows its getting dark now its time for bed. It has many funcations ( shown bellow). Its also very reasonably priced and a great edition to little ones nursery.

The Tommee Tippee sanagentic bin is a bit like its name really lol. I keep this in Arlo's' nursery and once your done with a nappies you pop it in and it wraps each nappies for you in a individual bag that traps in the smell and they then collect in the bottom of the bin. The perks I've found with this is it saves your kitchen bin getting full up quickly and a major plus is NO smell! its not very expensive and I actually got mine on offer on amazon for £9.99 so watch out for offers, You do have to buy refills with them which aren't always cheap so you have really got to like it and find it handy!

Me And My Water Baby

First Time Swimming On The Right ( 6 Weeks Old)

                             

I first took Arlo swimming when he was 6 weeks old as i believe that is the youngest your aloud to take them! Rather than just taking him swimming i actually pay monthly for lessons and we go every Tuesday! its really nice to be with a group of other mums and babies ,for me chatting to the other mums before and after is always great because sometimes when the only person you can speak to most days is your baby you go ab it stir crazy don't you. Arlo's first time swimming was so exciting and he was an angel, he'd loved bath time since he was born and I found it such a nice way for us to bond i really cant recommend it enough! Now he's at the stage where he just wants to look and stare at everything it can be quite hard to get his attention in lessons lol and he spends most of it staring at the instructor! flirting if you ask me haha .In the lessons we sing a lot of songs and do various different things to get them used to the water and kicking etc,Arlo's just started going under the water and its a bit hit or miss some days it wont even phase him and some days he'll have a little cough and be fine if he swallows a bit of water but other times it can throw him off a bit and he can cry or have a fuss for a few minutes. I know so so many mums that feel nervous taking their babies for the first time because they think they will get upset or might find it stressful but just remember it comes natural to them they spent 9 months swimming inside us haha. And never feel like you cant go because how you might look in a swimming costume our bodies are even more beautiful now we have had babies don't let insecurities make you miss out on such a nice way to bond with your baby! I'm going to link down below where i take baby Arlo swimming in Southampton for all you local mamas, its amazing shirleyswimmingpool.co.uk

My Birth Story

Baby Arlo born the 18th of august 2018 at 7:03am weighing 8lbs 8oz

It only seems right that my first post be about birth as thats right where motherhood begins! Baby Arlo was born on august 18th at 7:03am but my actual due date was the 8th so when i had arlo i was actually 10 days overdue, i had to be induced after having THREE failed sweeps which i have to say was beyond uncomfortable! I went in for my induction at 8 am and to be honest not alot happened i was but on a CTG machine to monitor the baby and his movements. Now i am a very impatient person at the best of times and by now it was 11-12 and i wasnt even 1cm dialated and a midwife looking after the women in the induction suite came in and said i could break your waters but we have no midwifes available to look after you.. which as you can imagine was very frustarting espeically when your already 10 days overdue !      Eventually at 4pm!! i was taken to labour ward and into my delivery room and had my waters broken. Arlo's fathers mother didnt live far from the hospital and i was told it could be a slow process and where he hadnt eaten i said why dont you quickly pop there have something to eat and come back, but things after he left seemed to come on really quickkly i was having just gas and air and it just was not helping alot after a little while.. i was told that due to having to have a hormone drip the contractions would be more painful but in the end i decided to have an epidural, i had in my head before i went in i was going to have one.Arlos dad was still not back at this point and by the time he got back i had already had it and was just in my own little bubble watching eastenders on my phone lol. by 12 oclock i was still only 3cm! so i was a good way off and the midwfie said she would check again at 4 and she thought id be about 6-7 at a push fingers crossed,at 4 when she checked me she said was 10cm! but i had to wait an hour before pushing, i found it very hard to start with due to the edpidural i couldnt feel to push but i got there in the end and he was born at 7;03am. Arlo must have been on my chest for maybe a mintue or so and i thought i was going to be sick and i had this horrfic pain far worse than contractions and considering i had had an epidural the pain was blinding so his dad had to quickly take him from me and i was being sick and just crying in pain for atleast half an hour before one of the midwifes finally decided they best get a doctor! i was scanned in the end and given fentanoll through my epidural and it slowley started to work. The first time i got to hold arlo properly was at 9am almost 2 hours after i had him which was really upsetting i hadnt even got to dress him . Besides what happened after i had him i LOVED giving birth and i would relive it everyday i really really enjoyed it,the moment your baby is put on you,you just never forget.. Thank you so much for reading about my birth experaince i know everyones experiance is different although my labour and birth had to be brought on rather than starting naturally i found my whole experiance so beautiful.

About Us

Hi I'm Hazel 'Arlos Mum' and this is my little Mummy blog! Being a mum is your whole world and sometimes it feels like there's nothing else to your life now which is why I've decided to do a little something for myself and other mums (Because lets be honest no one has a clue what their doing) Anyway I'm a mummy to the most gorgeous 5 month old boy Arlo, born on the 18th of august 2018 and I'm 19 coming on 20, Although i could be classed a young mum I'm still a mum my experiences will not be any different to my fellow mums of 30, so I really hope you all enjoy reading and visiting my blog!