mum

3 Tips For Coping With Sleep Deprivation

October 6, 2019 Jen

Jasper has never been a great sleeper, he is amazing in every other way but sleep has never been a strong point, so I am quite well versed in sleep deprivation. Before Jasper was born I used to be one of those people that loved sleep and needed around 10 hours sleep most nights. Now you will hear me say things like ‘we had a really good night last night’, when I got 6 hours of sleep and that’s without even mentioning that it was in 3 blocks! So I thought it could be useful to share my top 3 tips for coping with sleep deprivation.

A day time nap with my baby (this was before he started to nap in his own bed)

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other mothers

#othermothers Summer Challenge Roundup

September 20, 2019 Jen

Over the summer I took part in the #othermothers challenge on Instagram. It involved a different prompt each week, as listed in the picture below, to create a post on. I took part in the first 6 weeks but missed the last week because we were away at cbeebies land. I thought it would to be nice to share what I posted each week in one post as a roundup. If you want to see what other people posted check out the #othermothers hashtag on Instagram.

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motherhood

15 Month Old Baby / Toddler Update

September 9, 2019September 15, 2019 Jen

How am I writing Jasper’s 15 month old baby update already?! He is 15 months old today and walking pretty well now so he is definitely a toddler (even though he will always be my baby). I say this at every single stage with Jasper but he is just at an amazing age at the moment. He’s learning new things every day and understanding more and more and it is so amazing to watch. I love looking back at these updates* to see how much he has changed and I hope they might be useful to someone wanting to know what to expect with a 15 month old.

20190909_114500 — Jasper’s hand and feet prints at 15 months old.

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Recipes

Potato Cake Recipe – Healthy Snack Idea

August 18, 2019August 18, 2019 Jen

I am always on the hunt for different snack ideas for me and Jaspy to try to keep things varied and interesting but that are also healthy. So when I had some leftovers potatoes, I thought it would be really good to try and create some potato cakes. They turned out really well and Jasper liked them too (he ended up taking them to soft play and toddler yoga as his snack) so I thought I would create a recipe. Potatoes are a good source of energy, potassium and vitamin B6 so it makes them ideal for toddlers and for all the mummies and daddies running around after them too! This recipes also utilises leftovers so there is less cooking involved which is always a win.

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motherhood

Baby Firsts – Jasper Takes His First Steps

August 13, 2019August 13, 2019 Jen

About 2 weeks ago, I was just pottering around in the kitchen and Jasper stood up at the door and took like 6 steps towards me. It was literally the craziest thing and I wasn’t expecting it. He had been standing and pulling himself up for ages and had taken the odd step here and there but not really without holding on.

Action shot of Jasper practically running across the park!

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Pregnancy, Birth and Breastfeeding

My Story of Group B Strep Infection – Group B Strep Awareness Month

July 28, 2019 Jen

The Group B Strep Support charity focuses on raising awareness of the Group B Strep (GBS) infection in babies during the month of July. Although rare it is the most common cause of infection in newborn babies so I thought this would be a good time to share my experience with GBS and raise some awareness too.

After we arrived home after being discharged from the hospital. I’m very emotional but look at how little Jaspy is.

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motherhood

Transitioning Jasper in to a Bed

June 25, 2019 Jen

Over the weekend I changed Jasper’s cotbed from a cot to a bed. He has never actually used it as a cot, he slept in his Snuzpod for his first 5 months and has coslept with me ever since. I have tried on a few occasions to get him to sleep in his cot but it just resulted in him waking up crying every 15 minutes and lots of banged heads on the bars. Jasper has never been a great sleeper anyway, so I up until now decided it was best to cosleep so that I could at least get some sleep between wake ups. But I feel like now he is at a good age to be introduced to the idea of his own bed and bedroom.

Telling his teddy all about his new bed!

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Pregnancy, Birth and Breastfeeding

My Breastfeeding Journey – Breastfeeding For Nearly A Year

May 22, 2019May 22, 2019 Jen

Hi everyone, as I am nearly a year in to my breastfeeding journey (I can’t believe Jasper will be one next month!) I thought it would be a good time to reflect on my experience and share my story on here. Overall I have had such a positive breastfeeding experience and I feel so incredibly grateful that I was able to breastfeed Jasper at all, let alone for so long. I felt really passionately about wanting to breastfeed so I thought by sharing a positive experience it might help break some of the stigmas surrounding breastfeeding and help someone that’s pregnant who wants to breastfeed feel like they are able to. I know that breast is best but ultimately as long as your baby is fed, you have to make the decision that’s best for you and your baby and it doesn’t matter if you are unable to breastfeed or choose not to.

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motherhood

Maternal Mental Health: My Story Of Separation Anxiety

May 5, 2019May 5, 2019 Jen

With maternal mental health week drawing to a close, I thought I would share my story of learning to cope with separation anxiety. Before I had Jasper I had never really suffered with anxiety or any mental health issues really. And although I was aware that having a baby could lead to things like the baby blues and post natal depression, I had never really given it much thought and I really didn’t think I would experience these conditions. I now realise that maternal mental health is so important. It’s not surprising really given that you go through a massive life changing experience. Then mix that with all the hormones racing through your body, it’s no wonder that your mental health could need some support.