How Two Pink Lines Changed My Life...

Finding out I was pregnant with Aisling was a very big shock. Aidan and I had just moved home after a year long working holiday in the UK. We had fallen in love with the place and were intending on coming home, getting married, saving lots of money and returning back to the UK possibly for a longer stretch of time. So as you can imagine finding out I was pregnant two days after we returned home was very scary and a big shock. We made it work, though it was a struggle to adjust back to regular life with a baby on the way especially because from about six weeks into my pregnancy I was hit with awful all day morning sickness which meant I was unable to work. It wasn't until I was over 30 weeks that I started feeling better.

I found out I was pregnant before I had even missed a period. I didn't take the pregnancy test for any reason I just had a funny urge when I found the pregnancy test while rummaging through old draws and I thought I would take the test to stop it playing on my mind and I could move on. Boy was I surprised when that first little pink line appeared and then the second. Aidan wasn't with me and I called him into our bedroom and shared the news. I expected him to freak out more than he did but he was relatively calm.

I always felt she was a girl. Everyone I knew had little boys so I wanted to be different and have a little girl. We found out at our 20 week scan and asked the ultrasound technician to write it on a piece of paper and put it in an envelope. With that envelope in our hand we didn't last long the suspense was too much. So off we went to a little cafe in town and ordered coffee and cake and opened the envelope. Even though it wasn't a massive gender reveal party it was such a special moment that I still hold dear. To tell our family I baked the worst cake in the history of the world and filled it with pink cream so when our families cut the cake it revealed we were having a girl. Everyone was thrilled and immediately began buying pink!

I felt her first kick on a very special day. It was my deceased brothers birthday and every year we go out for dinner with my family. This year Aidan was working and I was on my own laying on the lounge watching TV feeling a little sad waiting to be picked up to go to dinner when I started feeling little thumps. It felt like the baby was head butting me. I was expecting to feel butterflies like so many people say but I had an anterior placenta which masked a lot of the movements and kicks for me. Later on down the track Aisling used to get the hiccups a lot which used to make my stomach jump around.

Apart from the terrible morning sickness I didn't really have any complications until the end of my pregnancy when a routine midwives visit discovered my fundal height was measuring low. I was sent for an ultrasound which discovered my baby was smaller than she should have been. I think I was 32-33 weeks at the time and the best course of action was to have more regular check ups and another ultrasound in two weeks. I can't remember if I had two or three ultrasounds all up but my last ultrasound at 36 weeks revealed that my baby wasn't growing much at all any more and my fluid was decreasing.

I went through the public health system for my pregnancy and I started seeing midwives but changed to seeing the doctors for a little more through care as I became higher risk with the morning sickness and my babies growth slowing down however I was disappointed in the continuity of care I was given. I felt like they didn't take my morning sickness seriously, I still feel guilty maybe my throwing up numerous times a day was why my baby was so small? Anyway I seen a different DR every appointment and my last appointment wasn't any different. I remember being disappointed that it wasn't the same DR from the week before as I had really liked him but this DR after consulting my ultrasound results and seeing that my baby hadn't grown much  and my fluids were decreasing went out to talk with her supervisor about the best action to take as I was almost 37 weeks which is considered full term.

When she returned to the room she told me that the best action to take would be to induce me as my baby was full term and she would be safer out than in. She then checked my cervix and declared me as "Closed, so closed" which didn't sound promising at all and rang the birthing suite to book my induction for a few days time. In the meantime I had to come in everyday for a CTG which is where they monitor the babies heart rate for a certain period of time to make sure baby isn't in distress.

I had a student midwife throughout my pregnancy and I'm so so glad I found her as it was so lovely to have a friendly familar face come to my appointments with me. It was also good if I needed to clarify any information I was given but didn't feel entirely comfortable with the doctor.

Anyway to summarize my pregnancy it was mix of excitement and nervousness. Some of the highs were the ultrasounds, finding out the gender, feeling her kick for the first time and that special feeling of carrying the baby of the person you love the most in the world. I loved preparing her nursery and washing and folding all her tiny baby clothes although I had no idea just how small I would need to buy. The lows were definitely the morning sickness, the not being able to work and the complications in the end.

This is one of the only belly shots I have from my pregnancy. This was towards the end. 

Lavender Sensory Play Trio...

Sensory play is important for our kids, it helps them develop all sorts of skills as they play and grow. Luckily there are many different fun things to make and explore and recently we decided to have a play around with lavender scented and coloured sensory items. We made play dough, rice and slime all lavender scented and coloured. I love getting my hands into most of what I make or prepare for Aisling and this was no different except it smelled so good!

There are many recipes available online for playdough some are no cook, some are cook and others are for thermomixes. So after you have picked and prepared your favourite, simply knead in some purple food colouring. I am very fond of the Wilton gel colours. Then add a few drops of lavender essential oil and it's ready for play!

Next up I coloured my rice. We love playing with coloured rice it's so versatile you can do so much with it! And it's so simple to make. I used 200 grams of plain white rice and put it in a plastic ziplock bag. Then because I was using gel colouring I stirred the colouring into a teaspoon of white vinegar then tipped it into the ziplock bag full of rice and kind of kneaded and shook the bag until the colour was all even. You can then tip it out onto a plate or tray in an even layer to dry or pop it in the oven for 5 to ten minutes to dry it out quickly, just watch it doesn't burn.

And finally slime! We've just discovered how easy and cool slime is to make. All you need is water, borax (which can be found in a supermarket or hardware store) and some school glue. Because school glue isn't readily and cheaply available where I live I've been experimenting with pva glue (Are they the same perhaps?) but I'm still indecisive over my results so I'll keep you guys updated once I've come to a conclusion.
✖️OK so I used two bottles of school glue then filled up the empty bottles with warm water and shook them and emptied it into the bowl with the glue. Add your food colouring and a few drops of lavender essential oil to this mixture and give it a stir. (From memory this is approximately 300 Mils of each)
✖️In another bowl add one teaspoon of borax to half a cup of warm water and stir it until it dissolves.
✖️Once the borax is dissolved combined the two mixtures together and knead with your hands. Don't be too concerned if there's a little bit of watery mixture left once it's all nicely combined. Just discard the leftover water and the slime is ready for play!

I had intended on using our lavender sensory trio as our play before bed as the lavender helps unwind and relax but Aisling loved playing anytime of the day. And as you can see with Aislings monster slime picture above the only limits as to what can be created is your imagination. Until next time xx

Meet the A-Team

Hi I'm Amy and I'm a wife and stay at home mother to two amazing little monkeys. A little girl named Aisling Grace (pronounced Ash-ling.) who has just turned three and a little boy named Archie who will be one very very soon.

We live in a town in the Hunter Valley, NSW, Australia. We've just moved into our dream house after living in tiny units with no yard. Its everything we need. A spare room we have turned into a playroom complete with a reading nook. A large backyard with two undercover areas. One is a smaller area I'm in the process of turning into an art and craft studio. Out the front is my favorite area of all, we have a large tree which provides lots of shade to play under. We've put the trampoline and slide underneath. And in my opinion it just seems like fairies could move into the garden. I love it and so do the kids.

So Aisling is our oldest child, she turned three a few days ago. She's a massive bundle of energy and character. There is never a dull day with her around, she never fails to make us laugh. Her favorite TV show at the moment is Peppa pig! She only discovered Peppa Pig when we were moving as I had it on the hard drive so I was able to put it on the computer for the kids to watch so I could pack and move while we had limited toys around. She has transferred her love for Peppa into real life where she nows snorts, jumps in every puddle she sees and refers to every one as pig! I am proudly mummy-pig. Aside from Peppa (We do limit TV) Aisling loves playing outside, climbing, cooking, painting and play doughs and slime to name a few.

Our little Archie man is our baby, there was an instant connection between him and I and he's hardly been away from me since he was born, he's a real mummies boy. Archie is breastfeed and we co-sleep. I love it and wouldn't have it any other way however there are moments when I get a little overwhelmed and just want my own space and the ability to leave him for longer than  few hours. But I tell myself he is only going to be little and need me for such a short amount of time. He started walking about a month ago just before he turned 11 months. Ever since he's been chasing his big sister around never wanting to miss out.

I've married my soul mate my Aidan, he's everything I could have asked for in a husband he's kind and helpful and the most amazing Dad to our kids. Although he can be a big procrastinator nothing is never too hard and he goes above and beyond to look after his family.

Follow our adventures as we play, cook, paint and craft our way through our days.