Service interruptus continues...

We are still in the apartment without the joy of tv or internet; thank God I have a mobile so don't miss the phone too much. We have been promised the keys of our new house before the end of the week, although The General has just dropped the bombshell that it may take a while for the connection to our media supplier to be up and running. I will try not to be too sad, and will post again when I can!

Get me to the church on time

Well, the church or anywhere else for that matter. Since I had Beautiful Girl, it is impossible for me to be anywhere on time. I used to be chronically early and being on time was almost as bad as being late. Not for anyone else, mind you, I was always the one waiting for them. It was a character flaw instilled by my father who is never late. I was even on time for my wedding. Yes, about a third of our guests (the ones who don't know me so well) arrived after I did. The car pulled up in front of the church at bang on 2pm, and I was walking up the aisle at 2.02pm. The General wasn't surprised.

So, now that I have Beautiful Girl to manage too, I find it impossible to be on time any more. She always needs a feed, a nappy change or a costume change just as we're walking out the door. Last night she decided to mix things up a bit, and I got the costume change, right after she projectile vomitted all over the only nice outfit I can fit into. So the General and I went out for dinner (our first proper date since she was born) and I was in a, thankfully new, cardi and jeans.

I find Sunday mornings the hardest. I go to church most Sundays. The congregation I attend is pretty small so the number of services per week is limited to one – 11am Sunday morning. It's a pretty reasonable time and day for religious worship, but because it's the only option, it's important for me to try to leave the house on time. Since three months ago, it doesn't happen. Beautiful Girl always manages to wake up just as I'm about to leave and wants to be fed, watered and changed. It doesn't matter what time she goes to be the night before, or how many times she wakes during the night, on Sunday mornings, she wakes at 10.30, just as I need to walk out the door. We then have a lovely 20 minutes of smiles and giggles while we're changing her nappy and getting her into her Sunday best. She always seems to want a chat while she's feeding too, which makes a usually quick and easy process entertaining but drawn out.

I may have to get over my fear of waking a sleeping baby one of these days. Either that or go back to being a Catholic and a choice of services over two whole days...

Exercise hurts

I just needed to remind myself.

Why brain, why?

I have my best ideas in bed, when I'm just about to fall asleep, and I can never remember them in the morning. It is most irritating.

Going grey-cefully?

I've been hearing and reading people discussing this recently, and I have to say, I'm tempted. I've dark brown hair, and in the last 4 years it has gone very grey. I've been highlighting or colouring it for about the better part of 10 years now, since my early 20s, so if I keep this up, I'll be dying my hair for the better part of about 50 years (please God). Since I'm not very good at doing what the hairdresser (or packet) tells me, I dye it about 4 times a year, which is 200 hair dyes, and even if it's only a home job, I think the last one I used was about €15, and a whole lot more in a salon so it adds up pretty quickly. Then there are so many stories I hear about chemicals in other parts of my life that are less of a choice, food, water, etc, that I wonder do I need to expose myself to this too?

And then I think of how my roots already glow in the dark in certain lights (the lift in our apartment for one!) that I wonder am I actually brave enough, and will I look like a 70 year old with a 3month old baby?!?

Multi function baby

I might be a bad Mammy...Beautiful Girl loves playing airplane, and I love doing it for her, because it's great for my bingo wings!

Things I didn't know about having a baby until I had a baby

I saw a post on a Mum and Kids forum about this recently, and it got me thinking about the things I never thought about before Beautiful Girl came along.  I know these aren't all of them, so I'll probably update this when the brain farts allow.

• you can get stretch marks because of giving birth, even if you had none beforehand
• you can still love your child absolutely, even if that fierce rush everyone talks about only kicks in a while later
• some midwives should not be as downright mean as they are
• it takes months for your, um, digestive system to get back to normal
• there should be an advanced course in how to pick the right kind of nappies
• a baby can still be cranky after a 4 hour snooze, a big feed and a clean nappy
• if you don't have a pre-pregnancy “figure” no-one will know how long it takes you to get it back
• having your waters broken by a friend of a friend is a bit too close for comfort
• if you hate housework, and in particular washing up, breastfeeding is great
• it can be acceptable to talk about poo to another adult
• doctors, midwives, public health nurses and your own mother do not always have the right answers
• sitting under a small child for hours on end is a great excuse to get through box sets of tv shows
• perfect strangers are really nice to you when you have a baby out in public
• it sucks more than I could ever have know when I realised I really will have to send Beautiful Girl to someone else every day so I can go back to work and we can afford to eat as well as pay the mortgage...