Another one of ‘those’ blog posts…

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Yes, I am sorry. But this is another one of ‘those’ blog posts where I apologise for not writing for so long.

Life – as I always say – has taken over! I work more or less full time right now. Which is great for exercising my brain. But my god, do I miss my little boy. Needs must however, and the work is fun, engaging and what I’m passionate about. So it’s not dull in the slightest! I’m very lucky that I can work from my own office space at home, so I know Eli isn’t too far away. And the best thing? I know I can wear my onesie to the office, if I feel so inclined! But yes, it’s been pretty full on…

So much has happened in the past few months. We were discharged from the consultant who looks after Eli’s Torticollis back in May – due to their being no treatment, cure or support. We will self-refer should our situation change. But right now, *touch wood*, things are working as they should be. We also saw our consultant who looks after Eli’s Talipes on the same day. We will go back for a review in around November/December time. But overall, he was over the moon with Eli’s progress, as are we! We certainly have a very fast little runner in Eli. Well, he is an Olympic baby afterall!

Just this week we have started the 5:2 diet – which I hope to document through my blog and my Instagram (click here to follow me, @JudyPink!). Yesterday was my first fast day, (I’ll write a separate blog on this), and I survived!

I’m sure a whole lot of other stuff has happened inbetween (like Mother’s Day, Easter, failing 3 driving tests, Tonsillitis, being asked to be a bridesmaid, meeting Iggle Piggle, turning 28, Father’s Day… oh and seeing One Direction!) So I’m sorry I won’t be catching up on that stuff – probably for the best. BUT I do promise to try and spend a little bit more time on my blog again. I do miss my writing and documenting Eli’s progress and lovely outfits that he has 🙂 (Plus it means that Mr Memoirs can play on his PS4 at the same time! 😉 )

For now, I bid you a pleasant day!
MM.

REVIEW in association with Mumsnet: Pampers Baby Dry nappies.

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We usually use Pampers Active Fit, but now that Eli has a tendency for sleeping on his front, we found he leaked most nights! We had been looking at what other nappies were out there – first choice being Pampers as we’ve used the brand since Eli was born; and also use Pampers Sensitive wipes. THEN, Mumsnet HQ got in touch regarding testing out Pampers Baby Dry – perfect timing!

I was quickly sent a box containing a pack of Pampers Baby Dry from Mumsnet HQ. I Eli immediately opened the Pampers Baby Dry pack. I noticed first off that the nappies felt different (and had lovely illustrations, again different to the Active Fit ones). The nappies are still soft but the coating felt, well, more waterproof than the Active Fit. This seemed to bode well.

The fit was good. Perhaps slightly bigger than the Active Fit. But still flexible enough for my acrobat of a 9 month old! They certainly looked comfortable.

The quality of the product is very good – like with most Pampers products I’ve used; albeit, a Pampers product does generally cost more in price. But if you shop on the likes of Amazon, it usually works out the same price (delivered!) as the likes of Sainsbury’s or Tesco own-brand. So I’m happy to pay a little extra for the piece of mind that comes with buying from a reputable brand.

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The first night Eli wore the Pampers Baby Dry he slept through. Coincidence or not, he SLEPT 12 hours! I expected to find a small puddle where he woke from sleep the next morning. But he hadn’t leaked! AT ALL! The nappy was the fullest I’d ever felt – very heavy. But he didn’t leak! YES. I would say however, he wasn’t completely dry despite this. The top of the nappy at the front was clammy, not wet, just tacky, so his skin was damp too. This is however progress!

Overall, I think the Pampers Baby Dry nappies are great. Good value for money. Perfect for overnight. I think for during the day I’d go back to Eli wearing Pampers Active Fit – simply because I think they do just fit that little bit better on him. But we’ll certainly be sticking to the Pampers Baby Dry for night times! We’re very happy! Thanks to  Mumsnet HQ and Pampers UK!

Typical prices for Pampers Baby Dry – available at most UK stockists.
Carry Pack – £6.49
Economy Pack – £9.99
Jumbo Box – £12.99
Mega Box – £17.49
Giga Box – £22.99

MM.

I was picked by Mumsnet HQ to review this product, which I received for free. This review is in my own words and reflects my true opinion. Eli is 9 months old and wore size 4 Pampers Baby Dry nappies for this review.

Mr Eli has Talipes…What happened next?

Just hours after Eli was born, 6th August 2012.

It’s just dawned on me that I have failed to write about Eli’s Talipes! I did blog about it when I was pregnant as it was found when I was having additional scans at UCLH, you can see the original post here: Hospital Update: Baby Boy bump has (mild) Bilateral Talipes. And I mentioned it in the 4 week update I did, here: An Eli Update: 4 Weeks Young. But I haven’t updated my blog with the developments since…

So from the top, it was found during an additional scan at UCLH that ‘baby boy bump’ had mild Bilateral Talipes. As the weeks progressed and I got bigger,  it meant that ‘baby boy bump’ got more and more squashed up inside me. This was the cause for Eli’s Talipes; it’s “positional” due to him literally being too big for me!

As you can see, from the first picture above (taken just a few hours after Eli was born), the Talipes looks really mild. But it turns out Eli was quite lethargic after my traumatic labour and birth. It wasn’t until he was home that we noticed how much he pulled his feet inwards (picture below).

This photo looks distorted, must have been a strange angle! Eli is 4 days old.

We were seen by a Paediatrician just before we left Broomfield Hospital and we were told that Eli would need his hips X-rayed and of course, Physio. I was told to expect both appointments within a few weeks.

After 3 weeks, I spoke to my Health Visitor who advised to wait one more week and then chase. I chased and chased and chased. I was pushed from pillar to post between departments. I couldn’t believe how badly organised everything was. (Hence why I haven’t actually written about this until now!). It was an absolute shambles. I finally received an appointment for Eli to have his hips scanned when he was 7 weeks old. During the scan I was told his hips were absolutely fine! (PHEW!) And again, that his feet were an isolated case due to him being so crammed in (Sorry boy).

I was STILL yet to receive an appointment for his Physio at this point. But as we have common sense, from birth, we had been massaging Eli’s feet ourselves with exercises we found on the internetz.

8 weeks old, after his first set of immunisations.

-You can see Eli’s left foot is much straight, but his right is still pulling inwards.

We saw a marked improvement with this – until about 9 weeks, when it just seemed to not get any better. It felt like we’d hit a brick wall. I finally had my appointment with the Physio when Eli turned 10 weeks. I’d like to point out at this is appalling. It took 10 weeks to finally see someone and the Physiotherapist, although absolutely lovely, gave me the exact same exercises to do. She said that it’s the muscles and tendons on the insides of both feet that are tight; causing Eli to pull his feet inwards. She suggested that Eli might need plaster casts, and in her opinion, it would only be for a week. I already had another appointment organised with a leading Talipes Consultant at Broomfield for when Eli was 12 weeks old. Again, this is terrible – we should have had Eli seen by a Consultant WAY BEFORE he got to 3 months old. I’m extremely unhappy about how long it’s taken and the awful communication, or lack thereof, between departments.

10 weeks old feets 🙂 

Last week we finally saw the Consultant at Broomfield. He looked at Eli’s legs, hips, spine, neck and feet. Which we didn’t expect, but was really reassuring. He agreed that Eli has Positional Talipes and has advised a course of plaster cast treatments. The casts will go from his foot and up his thigh – to avoid him kicking the pot off! When the Consultant left I spoke with the Senior Nurse (who organised our first appointment for THIS week). The Nurse advised that Eli will wear the casts for up to a fortnight at a time and will then need to wear special boots inbetween plaster cast treatment, the Consultant did not mention this, so I’ll see on Wednesday of this week what the definite course of treatment will actually entail. This sounds like Eli would be undergoing the Ponseti Method, but like I say, we’ll find out this week.

I am SO SO pleased that our beautiful baby boy is finally getting his little feets sorted out. Better late than never I suppose.

I’d like to hear from you. Has your little one undergone treatment for Talipes? What was your experience? Can you offer any advice or tips?

MM.

Bump watch: View from above, 28+2 weeks.

I just shared this photo via Twitter for the #Snaphappybritmums theme of the day, which is ‘View from above’. So here we have it, this is how baby boy bump is currently looking from above, at 28+2 weeks.

MM.

 

 

Happy New Year!

My first post of 2012! Pretty exciting! I’m going to have a baby this year! Now that IS exciting. Exciting, exhilarating and well, scary! But I cannot wait!

I just wanted to give a quick note that today I am 10 weeks and 4 days. I feel huge. I have a proper bump. If I hadn’t have had an early scan already, I would definitely not be mistaken for having twins! I will have to take some photos of my bump in progress!

I’ve had a really bad cold the past few days – which I have struggled with at times due to not being able to have medication. But at least I’ve had a few days off because of the New Year, so have just slept and rested my feet up. Bliss. It’s back to work tomorrow though. BOOOOO!

Hope you all had enjoyable Christmasses and New Year celebrations – wishing you all the very best in 2012!

MM.