The tooth hurts

My little bubby turned 6 months old today. Happy half birthday Reilley! To celebrate I got him a 2nd hand baby walker for only $10!. Bargain. I was going to get brand new but figured if he didn't like it I haven't wasted a lot of money. Good for the ol' hip pocket that!

I plonked him in and he didn't really get it. Not surprising considering it it yet another thing he has to learn! He will work it out anyway I'm sure. Baby has smarts!

He was in a grizzly, poop machine mood today too. Mum was babysitting while I had to work and he just wasn't the same happy baby I normally leave her with! Something was up. I thought maybe it was the change in formula perhaps? (Yes he is formula fed, not my initial choice but it had to happen). Later on in the night I get him gums again. They were super hard and lumpy earlier today but I wanted another feel to confirm there was no teeth.

Oooh sharp!! Huh? Hang on, sharp means teeth right? Oh my!! Reilley has sprouted a tooth!! His teething toys must have helped to break the gum. POOR BUBBY!!

'First time mummy' me decided to show her face and I went into overdrive!! Silly I know, but I just sort of got all worried!! Took his temp, it was a high 37.8, gave him panadol which he instantly threw up. 3 times. Worried he was too hot or too cold.....thirsty, but will it hurt his speck of a tooth?? Aaargh!! He was nothing. Just in a bit of pain and likely just not feeling great.

My advice for today - for people who like brand spanking new toys (like me) some second hand toys are great, so give them a go first!

Also, frozen teethers work an absolute treat! Especially the flatter ones. :-)

What made me start this whole blog....thing....

This basket of goodies is why I started this blog. Yep. A basket. It is called a treasure basket and I heard they are a hit with babies. Uh huh, not my baby who loves to play with something for a minute, then roll away to play with something else. OR find a tiny speck of something on the floor to play with.

Meh, what do I have to lose? I gathered a whole bunch of plastic items for Reilley to play with (this is a plastic themed basket) These items included:

• Buckets and cups
• Old CD
• REALLY old film canister (for all you old folk around who know what film is!)
• Tape measure
• Plastic container with rice inside
• Paperclip holder
• PEZ dispenser

Thats it. I really couldn't find many more items that may be 'suitable' for a 6 month old to play with. Ahhhh what the hell, this will do! I plonked it in the middle of the lounge and waited for Reilley to wake.

2 hours later.....

FINALLY he woke, after a change and feed I placed him in front of his treasure basket. OHHHH I MUST SAY....I tried this the other day but he got distracted by his other toys lying around, so this time I took them ALL away.

Needless to say it was a hit! For a while. He pulled out the cup and basket first, banged them together for ages. I atually took them away after a while to get him more interested in exploring the basket. He went through and slowly picked out each item and played with them.

I sat back and watched as he inspected each item, turning it over and around, tasting it, waving it about. It was actually really fascinating to see him looking at these items so intently! His favourite items were the CD and tape measure.

Getting started.....where to begin

Now this first initial post will be HUGE! I will explain the reasons WHY I started this blog, and where I began. 
Blogs. Never really wanted to start one, never really interested at all either. But now things have changed. I am a Mum.

Everything changes when you become a first time parent. And I mean EVERYTHING!! You can pretty much say goodbye to your old care-free life, now you have a helpless human being to look after. And helpless is an understatement! They can not do a single thing for themselves. Exept poo. And spew. Crying...

If you want to prepare for children, get a litre of milk and leave it outside for a week. Once the week is over, tip a little bit on your self each day for a month, and ONLY use a wet wipe to remove it. Or your sleeve. Or possibly leave it there all day. Once you can handle that, grab a sack of potatos and cart it around with you to every single place you go, even around the home. If you don't think its too bad, you will probably enjoy a child.

In saying all of this though, I really would change nothing. Not a thing. Seriously! Being a mother is the absolute best job in the entire universe, watching your tiny baby grow into a tiny person, learning new things everyday and then practicing these skills to refine them. It is amazing.

Then there are things I have learnt too. Poo and spew ARE actually ok. They won't kill me if I touch them. In fact, even when he spewed on my FACE, it didn't harm me at all. Who would have thought huh?!

There are also things I realise I never knew. Looking after babies is easy! (Providing you happen to give birth to an awesome child!) Reilley is the most content, happy, smart little boy. Oh, and totally gorgeous! :) He is cool with just sitting on the floor by himself and playing while I get house work done. Along with having an awesome little bub here are a few of the other things I have learnt:

• Lack of sleep is really not as bad as you think. (I have not slept better since having a baby!)
• Patience is a virtue.
• You can never have enough spew rags....
• The amount of stuff you can get done while baby sleeps is amazing!!
• The amount of things you can do with one hand is also amazing!!
• You CAN have too many toys - and frankly, it's not necessary.

Im sure there are loads of other things I have learnt too but for now that will do. By creating this blog I hope to inspire someone. Anyone at all. Just a single person I do not know, and I will be satisfied. I would like to be able to provide the average Mum with some neat and handy ideas for helping to raise their children, as well as a few other random, fun, interesting bits and pieces. Home. Garden. Anything that I, as a half SAHM, half working mother, can do.

So in saying that, I will get my blog sorted out, work out what I am doing and hopefully come back with a shorter post! :)