Meeting a sibling for the first time…

Lovely friends of mine have just welcomed their second child and their first born has coped really well with meeting her little brother.

This got me thinking about when H met E and the advice we received going into it.  Their first meeting went really well… we couldn’t have hoped for anything better.

He walked in and we had huge cuddles and kisses… it was the first time I had been away from him and I hadn’t seen him for two nights. I had E wrapped on the bed and I was standing waiting for my little man to walk in. We had big cuddles and then I just let him go and explore. He went straight to the phone and then E squeaked… all of a sudden H looked and saw her and exclaimed… look Sis, it’s Sis and he was so interested so we had a look and they got to meet. he was fascinated with her facial features. After a minute he was done and we went on to check out the rest of the room and open some presents.

From then on he was and still is a wonderful brother. He is very patient and on the whole very loving and protective.

Here are my top 5 tips for introducing your older children to their new sibling…

1. Have a present from the baby for the older sibling/s

2. Don’t be holding the baby when your child/children walk into the room. Have your arms free for cuddles and kisses

3. Let them find the baby of their own accord

4. Allow the older child/ren pay as much or as little attention to the baby as they want. Don’t push the issue

5. Lots of cuddles and kisses and make yourself available as much as possible

Any tips to add to it? Would love to hear your meeting story…

Jx

From the archive… Favourite first books…

In honour of Book Week I am reposting this from the archives… We still love these books and read them most nights to E before bed.

Hello Baby and 10 Little Fingers and 10 Little Toes by Mem Fox are without a doubt two of our first favourite books. Both of my babies love these books…

I read 10 Little Fingers and 10 Little Toes to H in utero and I believe it’s the reason it fast became his favourite. It is currently E’s favourite book. At the end of the book the little baby in the story gets three little kisses on the tip of its nose… we kiss the tip of our finger and touch their nose three times. H got to the stage and E is there now that they know it’s coming and look up at you when you’re reading the last page waiting for their kisses.

H adores books and always has. E is loving them more and more and I get such a thrill to see her get excited when we sit down to read these two books. They are a big part of our bedtime routine… every night we have a book before bed. For me, it ensures the children are reading/read to every day and it’s a terrific wind down/sleep cue for them as well…

I highly recommend any new Mother’s or expecting Mother’s to add these books to your collection. They are beautiful stories and the illustrations are gorgeous…

For anyone looking for a great baby shower or baby gift these are terrific… the board books are terrific as little exploring and excited hands can’t rip them. It does take a little while for them to learn not to rip pages so board books are a definite plus…

Where is the Green Sheep and Time for Bed, both by Mem Fox are also favourites.

Are these books in your collection?
Please share your favourites and must haves, I would love to hear them…

Happy reading… Jx

All photos copyright Jess Flett

Patience is a virtue…

Anyone who knows me well… knows I am not a hugely patient person. Becoming a Mother meant I had to grow patience literally overnight.

Let me tell you… it’s still a work in progress and some days are better than others…

I find screaming on the inside, taking 3 deep breaths and counting to 10 slowly great coping mechanisms!! hahahaha….

Actually, in all seriousness, stopping and taking 3 deep breaths… taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly really does help…

Some things requiring my patience at the moment…

Toddler tantrums… now H is 3 he can turn them on at will and knowingly turns up the volume. When they are younger they don’t have control over their emotions like they do at 3 so I’m finding the tantrums at will a big adjustment and requiring a lot of patience

Dirty Nappies… changing several dirty nappies a day… we have some serious toilet training coming up when the weather warms up a bit.

Early waking… I literally dream of the day I can once again wake naturally of my own accord.

Repeating myself… having to repeat myself several times to get something done… like sit and eat, get dressed, sit down instead of stand on the couch… just to name a few.

Routine change…  E is in the process of dropping her morning sleep so we are doing the daily dance of will you won’t have one… I remember it being like this with H so I know I have to ride it out but it still requires patience.

Fussy eating… spending time cooking a meal only to have it looked at and declared Yucky!

Being a parent is quite literally the hardest thing I’ve ever done and as the saying goes… you reap what you sow. So I continue to grow and practice having patience and enjoy this wonderfully frustrating and rewarding thing that is parenting.

Because, at the end of the day, I wouldn’t have it any other way…

What’s frustrating you at the moment? Can you sympathise, empathise? Got any patience to spare?

Jx

Favourite first books…

Hello Baby and 10 Little Fingers and 10 Little Toes by Mem Fox are without a doubt two of our first favourite books. Both of my babies love these books…

I read 10 Little Fingers and 10 Little Toes to H in utero and I believe it’s the reason it fast became his favourite. It is currently E’s favourite book. At the end of the book the little baby in the story gets three little kisses on the tip of its nose… we kiss the tip of our finger and touch their nose three times. H got to the stage and E is there now that they know it’s coming and look up at you when you’re reading the last page waiting for their kisses.

H adores books and always has. E is loving them more and more and I get such a thrill to see her get excited when we sit down to read these two books. They are a big part of our bedtime routine… every night we have a book before bed. For me, it ensures the children are reading/read to every day and it’s a terrific wind down/sleep cue for them as well…

I highly recommend any new Mother’s or expecting Mother’s to add these books to your collection. They are beautiful stories and the illustrations are gorgeous…

For anyone looking for a great baby shower or baby gift these are terrific… the board books are terrific as little exploring and excited hands can’t rip them. It does take a little while for them to learn not to rip pages so board books are a definite plus…

Where is the Green Sheep and Time for Bed, both by Mem Fox are also favourites.

Are these books in your collection?
Please share your favourites and must haves, I would love to hear them…

Happy reading… Jx

All photos copyright Jessica Flett

Newborn Photography Inspiration…

Three days ago, good friends of mine, A&E, welcomed a beautiful baby girl into their family and it got me thinking about newborn photography.

I love newborn photography. I really wish I had H photographed professionally when he was brand new. I did take lots of photos of him and I have some really lovely ones but nothing quite like these…especially ones as a family.

Image via Pinterest

Image via Pinterest

Images Copyright of Caroline Tran

Images Copyright of Caroline Tran

I have also found some links to tips for photographing newborns here, here and here.

This is a great blog post by Katie Evans Photography – 5 tips to take beautiful newborn pictures in the Hospital…

For more inspiration please check out my Newborn Photography board on Pinterest.

If you have any comments or tips I’d love to read them…

Jx