2nd birthday

Lance turned 2 years old yesterday. We started the day with some breakfast in bed, a birthday song and candles to blow out. He was loving it! I am not exaggerating if he was eating for an hour straight, just taking his time and enjoying the luxury.

After he had finish we got ready and headed of to the Blair Drummond safari Park and met up with his grandparents, cousins, aunties and uncles. We spent the day running around after the four crazy toddlers and trying to show them all the cool animals they have there. But they all seemed to enjoy themselves.

We headed home for a quick shower and change and met up with everyone at the brewers fayre for some dinner and soft play. An excellent finish to a busy day and I think all the adults were ready for bed at 8 o'clock 😊

A big thank you to everyone who made the effort of congratulating our wee boy and who helped make his birthday special. We really appreciate how loved and cared for he is.

Xx

Pottytraining madness

It's now been 6 days since we started pottytraining (or toilettraining I should say as he doesn't like the potty but sits on a toilet seat instead).

It all started when I noticed he was about to go, so I offered him the toilet and he went and did number 2. So I thought oh well let's just keep going. I had been reading this book about pottytraining in a weekend and I had my plan all set out and was ready to go.

In the afternoon of day 2 we had still not had a pee in the toilet and I was so ready to throw in the towel. I had been wiping the floor what felt like at least a hundred times and I couldn't see any progress. Was he just not ready? Was I doing something wrong? Why was it not working?

I did some more research on the subject but decided to find other sources and methods to see if I could go down another route. After sleeping on it I woke up ready to take it one day at a time. That day I noticed he could hold his bladder a bit longer each time and he would let me know that he was peeing when he did so instead of rushing him off to the toilet straight away we spoke about it and I let him show me where he was supposed to go to pee, but would still not go when he was on the toilet. At least it gave me that little ounce of hope I needed to not give up.

The next day we both needed to get out the house so I put a nappy on him while we went shopping and to an afternoon music class, but decided to put him on the toilet after every meal to try and at least keep it in his mind. That day I could see him actually trying to go and he would tell me what he was trying to do and where it comes from etc. Another small step but oh so important. I still only got him to pee twice in the toilet but he was at least trying.

Day 5 and day 6 have both been very successful in my eyes. We've had number 1s or number 2s almost every time and a couple of dry nappies in between. Today I went back to having him in underwear when he was at home and managed all day without any "accidents".

Once again I have been put in my place by this wee boy, there is no rushing him and the more you try the more he fights it. So as soon as I stopped being so pushy and relaxed a bit, he did it his way and at his pace. I was so set in my plan and what I had read in this book that I completely forgot about adjusting it to Lance. Those first 2 days were so hard but the last 2 have been very rewarding. I'm just going to take baby steps and help him figure out this whole thing. I feel bad for ever doubting him!

Xx

New sibling

The past week I've noticed such a big difference in Lance's approach to other kids and babies. He used to get a bit nervous and was a bit standoffish if they got to close to him. Now all of a sudden he wants to cuddle and kiss everyone. He gets really excited when he sees other kids and babies. Fingers crossed he will be this excited to meet his new sibling when it's time 😊

I'm starting to feel very ready for this baby to come. I can feel myself mentally getting ready for what's to come. I'm sure it will still be a big shock and that I have no idea what I'm in for. But I'm ready to take on the challenge. A couple of weeks ago I was freaking out just thinking about it and felt so overwhelmed by the thought of having two kids. I think it's had a lot to do with getting the nursery prepared and getting bits and pieces ready for the arrival.

I am a bit nervous about how I will cope after this baby, since I struggled to bond with Lance for the first months and the post pardum depression was nagging away at me for the first year at least. I'm hoping for a different experience this time.

I'm just trying to enjoy these last few weeks of being able to bond with Lance and watching him grow and develop every day.

Xx

Sweden holiday

I feel like I have been slacking a bit with my blog posts. Sometimes I feel like I don't have anything big to share or had time to collect and analyse thoughts and feelings and therefore I don't write anything at all.

We have just gotten back from a two week holiday in Sweden and me and Lance are taking it very easy and trying to find our rhythm again. It's been so intense, fun, amazing and inspiring that we ended up exhausted. I tried my best to not overwhelm him too much and only take him out on one adventure per day. I forget sometimes that every person he meets leaves new impressions and every situation he's in needs processed. But with him refusing naps and not sleeping very well during the night, he struggled to keep up sometimes and ended up grumpy, confused and very sensitive.
His speech is coming on so fast as well, which is obviously adding to the need for sleep.

I'm so happy Lance has so many cousins the same age, it was great to see him socialise and getting to know them a bit. He is quite reserved and likes to just watch the other kids and take it all in, but he came out his shell a bit more and was dancing and running around with them all.

He looks like a proper wee boy now, definitely not a baby anymore. And to think he's going to be 2 years old in less than a month is crazy. But I'm so excited to see more of his personality come out and getting to know him as he grows up and into his new role as a big brother.

Xx

Swenglish

My little boy is firing out the words right now. It's absolutely amazing to hear him trying out a new word for the first time and keep trying until he gets it right. I couldn't be more proud of him. He's been waiting and waiting and taking it all in and all of a sudden he decided he was ready and started counting to ten in English. All the times we have been counting in Swedish and daddy's home for one week and out comes English. I would love to know what's going on in his little head. All these different words must be flying around and he's trying to figure out why mummy calls things differently to daddy.

I can already hear how some Swedish words are said with an English twang and vice versa and with other words he nails my accent completely. This will be such a fun journey to follow and I'm intrigued to see what comes out next.

Xx

Small steps, big victories

Some things might not seem like a big deal to others but it's the small victories and steps that are the most important to acknowledge and celebrate.

Today we are celebrating Lance going to sleep without any dummies for the first time. I was so nervous about this and have been going back and forward on the subject. I wasn't sure when would be the best time to take them off him and how I would explain it to him. Or if I should just let him decide when he didn't want them anymore. As it happened he started chewing holes in the silicone a couple of days ago and I've had to bin one dummy after another and this morning the last one got binned. So for naptime we didn't have any left and there was no time to go buy new ones. After some whining he managed to get to sleep without it and I could not be more relieved and proud of him.

Another big step he has taken this week is sitting on the toilet without freaking out. He's not keen on the potty so I bought a toilet seat for him instead. On Thursday he sat nicely while I brushed his teeth and yesterday I managed to get him on it three times while we counted to 20. He is still to have a pee on it, but as I wrote earlier it's the small victories that matter. One little step at the time. Building the foundation for success and it will happen! It might not be a big deal to someone else but for us two big and very important steps towards a confident and independent wee boy.

Xx

Testing testing

Over the past few days I have had to run more than I have in the last year. This boy is testing me non stop. I have been so spoilt with a well behaved toddler, who would actually do as he was asked. I always knew this day would come but I was secretly hoping that maybe I was one of the lucky ones.

At least I know that he understands what I'm saying. Anytime I ask him to do something, he gives me a cheeky look and does exactly the opposite. And then looks over his shoulder to make sure I'm watching and hopefully chasing him.

I seriously need to get in shape if he's going to keep this up. And it does not make things any easier being 24 weeks pregnant and having to sporadically sprint off after a toddler. Hopefully it's a phase, please let it be a phase!

Xx