6 months in (Now nearly 7), the search for day care & long distance travel.

So here we are - 6 months in (It's now almost seven by as publish this!) It's quite hard to believe we have reached this point and as I try and recall some of the past 5-6-7 months I find it all a bit of a blur to be honest.

The chaos and uncertainty of the first 2  - 4 weeks was followed by a further 4 weeks of tiredness and exhaustion. A settling period descended from weeks 8-12, before finally feeling like we had mastered the basics from about week 12. For me, weeks 13 - 26 weeks have been far more enjoyable with a more interactive chilled a slowly improving sense of mastery of this role we call parenting

Now at six months (now seven) I feel like the baby can start to adapt to our routines a little more easily and the balance of life is leaning more towards the family as a whole rather than all daily considerations being only about what the baby needs. This has been especially important as having another child in the family has meant priorities for everyone have changed and making sure that other siblings get time and attention has not always been easy, (well for me anyway!).

As the baby's sleeping hours stretched out to almost a full (full) nights sleep I started to get a sense of what felt like a normal functioning brain.

Unfortunately now the baby is teething (many new parents will come to hate that word), sleep has become something a far more precious commodity - a commodity that I am not getting anywhere enough of. I would sell my soul for a month of uninterrupted sleep!

I watched a facebook video of parents talking about op tips for bringing up kids with a very soppy ending saying oh it's all worth it because you have something to love more than you can know. Well yes, I have feeling towards my child, that is certainly something I have never known before (as this is my first biological child), but I'm sorry, right now life with a young baby never stops being anything other than a series of jobs you don't get paid for, smelly nappy changes, a drain on finances and a way of systematically dismantling any shred of a social life.

Well ok, I'm being a touch dramatic, but there are days when I think, 'hmmm ok I'm over the baby chores, the nappies, the poor sleep, the crying shriek, and if I'm honest - the lack of being able to be out much later than 10pm! Yes I may be sounding a little pitiful, but I want other new parents out there to know it's totally ok if they have days where it feels like it's not all rainbows and ponies!

Solids & Poos = Beware!
We are now feeding the baby some solids - blended and pureed fruit, mash, vegetables. Ay yes using a spoon to feed the little one the first few times was pretty sweet..... Now I'm just putting a warning here about the next content....
for any global traveller you will know what happens to the consistency of your poo (faeces) when you live in another culture and eat a totally different diet. It helped me understand why in Vietnam there were water hoses in stead of toilet paper to clean yourself afterwards.

Well we recently started using solids and oh boy did things change in the nappy (diaper) department...
It got a whole lot more smelly and tougher to clean up. I tell you what else I learned after just one mistake... wait until after the first 'bomb' to make sure the second bomb doesn't catch you out shortly afterwards.

The follow-up issue that came with the introduction of solids was just how sensitive a baby's bottom is and how sore they can get. Our little one got a really sore bun.. I mean not just a rash... a really deep red soreness that looked like it was beginning to blister.....

Honestly I was winching at how sore it looked (This is a reference photo and not my baby's bottom).

THE OCCUPATION BIT
Its been a funny old few weeks. The reduction in my favorite occupation of sleep has definitely impacted my physical and cognitive performance. By the the end of the week I am noticeably struggling to get through some work tasks that require focus and intense concentration. Today I struggled to use a self-checkout machine at the supermarket purely out of tiredness. I simply couldn't understand where I had to put my basket full of shopping.  The other day whilst trying to make some baby formula, I found myself trying to screw on the top of the baby bottle to the flask. It was not even close to fitting but a 10 year old child had to point out what I was doing wrong.

The continued participation in baby caring tasks has definitely got me feeling like I have achieved a sense of mastery (within reason of course) for caring for a little one. The difference I have found with this occupation of Parenting is the emotional attachment placed on the majority of the tasks required by the role. Yes many of the tasks are staring to feel boring and mundane, however because they have the attachment of another person's survival (especially your own flesh and blood) the motivation to complete the tasks well is high. The pressure of completing the tasks correctly is also high as the sense of guilt and/or shame if something goes wrong (like a sore bottom) can be a tough consequence.

I understand now why so many people said to me: no matter what happens, 'just give yourself a break'. Great advice indeed!