(Week 31 – 9 weeks to go) “Stop talking about me!”

So Little Lara can now hear pretty well, so well in fact that whenever we talk about her, she gives Lara a nice big kick to let us know she can hear. She even did it last night when we were talking with Lara’s Mom on Skype. It’s so funny. She also responds if you poke the bump, which is a lot more fun for me than it is for Lara. The other time she likes to kick a lot is when Lara gets in to bed and go to sleep. This is apparently because in the day when Lara is walking around, the movement slowly rocks Little Lara to sleep, so when Lara finally starts to rest, Little Lara is wide awake and starts her exercise. A lot of the time this make Lara jump, which in turn makes me jump, which keeps everyone awake. I guess it makes good practice!

We got more gifts sent over from Lara’s best friend Amy, her husband Matt and their little boy Levi this week. They have been so generous, I think it’s mainly because Lara having a baby has given Amy a nice excuse to shop for girls things. But one of the gifts she sent over were some socks for Little Lara, which are probably, the softest, cutest, BESTEST socks in the world. Ever! I am getting me a grown up pair!

We also got another surprise present from Lara’s Mom, this time she sent us a rocking crib, which is absolutely perfect. It’s much smaller than her cot bed, so it means we can fit it in our room for the first few weeks, so we can help settle her in to her new non-womb life. I had a little practice yesterday of taking her out of the crib and passing her to Lara, so she can feed her. I pretty much nailed it, this parenting lark is easy! Well it would be if babies acted like teddy bears, I’m not sure they do though.

I have another video for you all, of the lovely, beautifully pregnant Lara. How gorgeous is she looking? She’s my Yummy Mummy!

(Week 29) All is fine and dandy

I’m sorry for the late and very short post, but I have been away all weekend with my brother and have just got back.

I am so tired, that my updates this week will be very short and just covering the important bits…

…Mother and Child are all good. Little Lara is continuing to kick away and did a good job of keeping her Mom company this weekend while I was away. Thank you Little Lara!

I’ll cover more next week, when we really start coming in to the home straight, with only 10 weeks to go! CRAZY!

(Week 28) The heartbeat

I finally made it to my first midwife appointment this week, and l am so glad I was at this one. They did all their usual checks at this stage in the pregnancy and everything seems fine. The Midwife even commented on how nice Lara’s bump is. She had a feel around the bump and told us that Little Lara is already head down and in position ready for departure. We’re just hoping she isn’t too ready, and can hold out for another 12 weeks.

But the most exciting part for me, was hearing Little Lara’s little heartbeat. Oh. My. GOD! It was just amazing. It was like seeing the scan all over again, but with my ears instead of my eyes. It was beating pretty fast as she is such a small little thing, but it’s so loud and so clear. I wish I had recorded it, so that I could show everyone, but I was so amazed by it, I couldn’t even speak let alone think of recording it.

I’ve been talking to Little Lara a lot, and I’ve been playing her some music too. This week she has mostly been rocking out to Jack Johnson, Oasis, John Legend and ‘Police and Thieves’ by Junior Marvin. We think she likes Jack Johnson the most, as that is when she gets her little groove on and kicks her Mom all over the place. She has taste, I’m a proud father!

Lara has started suffering with quite strong Braxton Hicks contractions, which basically makes the muscles of her uterus tighten. It’s supposed to help her body get ready for the whole birth thing, by strengthening various muscles. It’s pretty crazy how the human body works isn’t it?!  If you feel her bump when it’s happening, you can feel just how tight they are. They don’t last too long, but long enough for it to be pretty uncomfortable I would imagine. I think she is getting used to them now, but the randomness of them does catch her out sometimes.

(Week 27) Exactly 3 months to go

Today is exactly 3 months until Little Lara is due. 3 months was how long she had been inside the bump before we told people. Going by my memory that didn’t seem like a very long time at all. This all means, that I will soon be a Dad! Woohoo!

Little Lara is really moving now, and she is kicking her Mom a lot. This morning, we were at my parents house, and I had my hands resting on the bump, and she was kicking so hard, it was almost as though she was trying to kick her way out of there. Strangely enough, she got very shy when my Mum (Nana) tried to feel the kicking. Maybe Nana helps calm her down, or maybe she was just playing hide and seek?

MY cousin and his girlfriend came down from Manchester this weekend, and they are due to have a little girl in just 6 weeks, so she is a little bit bigger than Lara, but it was good for them to get together and discuss how pregnancy is treating them both. It was so strange to be at a family meal, and have 2 expectant mothers – it was a new experience for us all, and a very good one too!

My uncle, who cannot wait to be a Grandad, got us the most amazing outfit for Little Lara. It is the cutest thing, and so smart. I think we’ve decided that this outfit will be her going home outfit, because it’s so small and so cute. It’s a set of trousers, a top, a jacket and a little hat to keep her head warm. I love it!

Little Lara has got so many clothes now, not just that we have got her, but everyone is so generous. I’ve accepted now that the presents I get from now on, will be baby related, but that’s ok – I like it!

We really need to start getting the rest of the stuff together, and stop buying clothes, because apparently babies need a lot more than just clothes. We have a list set up with Mothercare, so if anyone wants to know what to get our little girl, check it out here.

For my birthday, Lara got me a Flip video camera, so that I can easily capture videos of our little girl once she is born, it’s perfect because it’s nice and small and easy to use, and I can upload videos straight to the internet, so everyone can see them quickly and easily. I’ve been practicing with it, by getting Lara to do her own personal update for you all to see. Here she is in all her bumpy glory!

My YouTube channel is here, so keep checking it, as I may not link to all the videos we put up, from the blog.