The Fantastic Five

 Fourmums.com, The Old Fashioned Housewife  No Responses »
May 112012
 

So, here I am sat typing out a blog post – it seems like it’s been forever since I’ve done this.  In fairness, it has been a while.  And so much has happened since the last time that I feel a bit out of sorts and almost like I’m being a bit naughty logging on again – like I’m intruding on someone else’s party.  Weird, huh?

Well, I guess the most important news, that won’t be news to most of you no doubt, is that we got to welcome our newest addition Earthside just over three weeks ago.  Mr Bump made it into the world, peacefully in water, caught by Mummy on 18th April 2012, weighing a respectable 8lb 1oz.  The labour was long for me but the whole experience was just lovely!  The only thing that could have made it more perfect would have been a shorter labour but then that wasn’t the way it was meant to go.

Life since Mr Bump’s arrival has been chaotic, HARD and totally amazing, all wrapped into one.  Little Miss Sunshine has been struggling – she doesn’t like sharing “her” boobies with the baby, and she is showing obvious signs that she’s struggling emotionally (out of the blue tantrums etc), but we’re trying to be gentle and she’s working through it.

Having five children (four being five and under) isn’t for the fainthearted, but it is pretty damn special.  Sorry I’ve been away so long and I’ll try and get back to post as often as possible.  Waving frantically to all who’ve noticed my absence, and blowing raspberries at everyone else!

 Posted by at 2:33 pm

Going Overdue

 Organised Madness  4 Responses »
May 072012
 
352-woman-cartoons

Excuse a very personal post.  There is only one thing  on my mind this week, and this is what it is!

I wonder what it is about nearing the due date that triggers extreme denial – or is it only me?  Once I had got past that magic date with Abigail, it was as if a switch in my brain, marked ‘expect a baby’ had been flicked to the ‘off’ position.  My response to being overdue was, “Ah, well, looks like there’s no baby in there after all, then.  Let’s get on with life as normal!”  Six days later, my mother had to persuade me that I was in labour while I argued (in the five minutes I had between contractions) that first babies were always late, first labours always had false starts, and I was going to go back to bed in a minute… Continue reading »

 Posted by at 11:59 pm

Three Babies, An Exit and A Sabbatical

 Fourmums.com  No Responses »
Apr 272012
 

First thing’s first… CONGRATULATIONS Jocasta and Jo on the births of your little ones! Two new babies in a week here at Four Mums and we couldn’t be more delighted that both ladies had wonderful births at home. We hope they are both resting and enjoying their new babies. Amy won’t be far behind them, as she is now entering her birthing month!

Chloe has decided that the time has come for her to move on to other things and we wish her every success, thank you for being a part of the team.

Some of our more observant readers may have noticed that for a while now there have actually been FIVE Mums here at Four Mums. Being busy mums, we found that most weeks there was someone who wasn’t able to contribute to our Weekly Topic, so we all thought it best to stick to a staff of five for a while in order to try and get four articles out each week. Well, now that Jocasta and Jo have tiny newborns, Amy not far off birthing her baby, and Chloe leaving us, we have decided to switch to a more informal organisation for a while. You will no longer be seeing a Weekly Topic, but each week one or more of us will try to post something interesting or pertinent, sometimes loosely based around a topic and sometimes not.

We will be bringing the Weekly Topic back once we are all settled into life with bigger families and have a bit more routine in which to slot blogging time into! Did I say “routine”?! Surely not!

I hope you’ll all stick with us and join me in wishing Jocasta, Jo, Amy and Chloe all the very best for whatever comes next for them all.

Love from Holly and the Four Mums Team.

 Posted by at 2:08 pm

The Best Advice

 Organised Madness  1 Response »
Apr 262012
 

Today I am answering the question, “What is the best piece of parenting advice you have ever received?”

Hmmm. What’s the one piece of advice that I’ve taken most to heart, that has stuck with me through my first two and a half years of being a parent, and that is currently seeing me through my second pregnancy?  What one thing has always been right and always been relevant?

Well, I’m going to tell you.  Here it comes.  Are you ready?  This is it: Continue reading »

 Posted by at 2:40 pm

Asking For It

 Fourmums.com, Good Intentions  No Responses »
Apr 242012
 

Advice, from the moment you get pregnant you can guarantee you will get lots of it, whether you want it or not.  Everybody will have something they think you won’t be able to live without knowing.  They mean well, mostly.  The thing about advice is it’s a two way street, a bit like listening.  If somebody tells you a story that you don’t really want to hear then you are more likely to hear it than listen to it.  If somebody gives you advice that have neither asked for nor want to hear then you will not take it on board.

As mothers we need to be comfortable enough in our own ability to take on board the advise which suits our parenting style and reject the rest. I think that once you’ve been doing it for a while you work this out. You also work out that the best time to give advice is when it is asked for and not before. Continue reading »

 Posted by at 12:00 am

And the Winner is…

 Guest Blogs  No Responses »
Apr 172012
 

Four Mums are delighted to announce the winner of our Real Nappy Week Giveaway: Szilvia, from Hungary.

Szilvia entertained us with her heartfelt and open story. Congratulations Szilvia, your free cloth nappy will be with you shortly.

Here is her story for everyone to read:

I am a mum of three daughters, and it is strange enough that all of them are in nappy-wearing age. My eldest is 15 months old, and the two younger are 2.5 months old, they are identical twins. Continue reading »

 Posted by at 12:08 am

Napologetics

 Fourmums.com, Organised Madness  1 Response »
Apr 172012
 
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Apologetics (from Greek ἀπολογία, “speaking in defense”) is the discipline of defending a position (often religious) through the systematic use of information. – Wikipedia

Napologetics, therefore, would be the discipline of defending the use of cloth nappies.

And there’s plenty to defend.  I mean, I’ll be honest here, brothers and sisters: I am a very recent convert to cloth nappying.  When I first had my baby, I knew nothing about it.  The first time a friend told me about the benefits of cloth nappies, sisters and brothers, I was morbidly fascinated, but not persuaded.  When that same good friend lent me a bag of nappies of different kinds, and showed me how to use each different kind, brethren, I confess to you, I promptly forgot all her advice, became terribly confused and hid them underneath a bed.

Brothers and sisters, it was not until my child was a toddler, producing solid poos, that I revisited this idea of using cloth nappies, and the seed that had been planted by my friend truly took root and began to grow in my heart.  And even then, my sisters, the path was not easy.

You see, unlike many of my new cloth-nappying family, I had never had any trouble with disposables. Continue reading »

 Posted by at 12:02 am

Cloth Nappies: Easy Peasy

 Liberal and Loud  No Responses »
Apr 172012
 

It’s Real Nappy Week again already. For those involved in the wonderful world of fluff the year can’t go fast enough from one RNW to another. We live for the auctions, offers and incentives available from retailers. A big part of the point of the event is to raise awareness about cloth nappies. Most people are not aware of the amazing variety out there, they believe it’s all terry squares, soaking, scrubbing and bleaching. Cloth nappies are an archaic thing of the past. Why bother when you can use disposables now? Disposables are modern and so they must be better. When I was pregnant with my eldest I remember a friend of my parents’ saying “You’ll never stick at it.” I can only imagine she said this because of what she believed was required of parents using cloth…

But it isn’t so. No folding, no soaking, no scrubbing. Nappies today come in a huge variety of shapes, sizes and designs. Terry squares are still out there and are by far the most economical option, but there is so much more to cloth than that. A nappy for every budget and every occasion. Pocket and all-in-one (AIO) cloth nappies are as simple to put on as a disposable, many fasten with velcro (applix) but some use poppers, which tend to last longer. Fitted nappies require a separate cover or wrap but can’t be beaten for absorbency, so make great night nappies. Continue reading »

 Posted by at 12:01 am

Bum Fluff

 The Old Fashioned Housewife  10 Responses »
Apr 172012
 

This is a post that many of you may have read before but the topic of cloth nappies has come up and I think I’ve already covered most of my thoughts on the subject.

So, lets get down to the nitty gritty of bum fluff – and I’m not talking about the not-quite-as-fine-as-it-used-to-be hair growing from a pubescent boy’s face either! Today I’m talking cloth nappies.

I’m curious. Cloth nappies work out cheaper. They are better for the environment. They are sooooooo much easier than they used to be and lets face it, they’re sooooo much cuter!!! With modern washing machines and the antibacterial properties of most fabrics, it’s no longer necessary to soak our nappies and the variety is immense. There are nappies out there to suit every budget and for those who do chose cloth, it can often become somewhat of an addiction. I sure wish that I had more disposable cash to spend on some of the beautiful nappies currently available. So, why is it that cloth nappy users are still so hugely in the minority?

Click to read more of Jocasta’s post…

 Posted by at 12:00 am

Blessed Be

 Liberal and Loud  No Responses »
Apr 102012
 

I was raised in a family with no specific religious make up, though both of my parents have a spiritual side. As I grew up I picked up the occasional hint of their beliefs but they never indoctrinated me in any way, they didn’t belong to a group in which to indoctrinate me. I remember asking my dad once if he believed in God, I must have been about seven, and he gave me his honest answer but was sure to emphasise that different people have different beliefs. On another occasion I asked “If we’re not Christian, why do we celebrate Christmas?” I remember seeing the glimpse of panic in my mum’s eyes. How on earth do I answer that one? She was asking herself. She gave me an answer that would, years later, form the foundation of my own beliefs; she told me that before Christianity, there was an ancient family festival at the same time of year and that we celebrated that family festival.

Despite my parents not raising me deliberately to believe the same things they did, many of my eventual beliefs did come to resemble theirs. Whether it was a case of me picking up on their beliefs and years later finding that they made sense to me too, or just plain coincidence I do not know. They certainly never gave their beliefs a name for me to latch onto and when I first started to explore Wicca and Paganism I believed I was rebelling!
Continue reading »

 Posted by at 12:05 am
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