What I’ve Learnt In 11 Months As A First Time Parent

Hi all! 

Today I will be sharing with you everything I have learnt in 11 months a first time parent. We are only one month away from Abigail leaving infancy behind and becoming a toddler. How fast it has flown! She’s going to be 1 years old so very soon! I’m not ready….

Abi has officially sprouted all four of her top teeth. She went through a lot to get there poor thing. In this last month she suffered a lot which broke our hearts. She had her second installment of the meningococcal vaccine which really unsettled her. We had to take her to the doctors because she wouldn’t stop crying. The doctor thankfully said it was normal and it would pass within a few days. It’s short term pain for long term gain. We’ve also passed leap 7 with leap 8 not far away,

I feel like this is a really fun age. Abi is imitating our sounds, playing on the swings at the park, babbling non-stop, waving, pointing, cruising around the furniture and enjoying interactive, colourful books. She looks and acts much more like a toddler now as opposed to an infant. Overnight she started making modelling sounds with her throat and saying ‘no-no.’ It’s so cute! We are just waiting for her to take her first steps!

I’m thrilled to report Abi is doing so much better with food. She munches on pasta, noodles, bread, rice and baby snacks. She will eat coconut yoghurt, lentils and tofu if it is mixed in with her food but not on their own. She loves her iron fortified cereal for brekkie and is still breastfed. I’m so proud of myself for getting this far. I didn’t think I would breastfeed for this long but I still enjoy it and so does she. I don’t want to stop until after 1 years old and when I’m confident that she can eat most foods without gagging/vomiting.

We had some very exciting family news recently. My sister is getting married next year and Abi is going to be flower girl! She will be nearly two by then which will be perfect. We are all so happy. I cannot wait to get super cute photos of her in her outfit. I also celebrated my first Mother’s Day with a lovely card, an I <3 Mum mug and some vegan chocolate. Abi was saying mama a lot that day which made me so emotional.

Sleeping has been pretty much the same. Abi naps twice daily – usually for 1.5 hours each time – and sleeps all night from 7:30pm to 7am if we are lucky. She’s been waking a bit earlier recently but we just let her babble and play until it’s time to get up. I feel like shes going through a bit of a needier phase. She will only play for a little bit before wanting to sit in my lap or just be held. It feels like a bit of separation anxiety but I guess that’s normal and all babies go through it at some stage. She’s definitely showing more affection and loves being cuddled but ouch the scratching phase has begun! She bats at our face with her baby nails and it really hurts sometimes. We were told to just put her down when she does that until she learns it is not appropriate. On the plus side, the best feeling is having your child wrap their arms around your neck and put their head on your shoulder. Ahhh it’s everything!

One more piece of news which is baby related is that my dear friend Jade from @theadventuresofjade on Instagram gave birth to her first child Billie. It was extra special because she was born on my birthday. I feel so honoured to share it with such a precious angel.

That is all I have! The next post like this will be about her first year of life! I cannot get my head around it. That post will be more philosophical and provide an overview of what I’ve learnt in a whole year as a first time parent. Stay tuned!

Peace & Love xoxo