Listography...A week in pictures...

This week, Kate Takes 5's listography is a lazy one. Nothing at all to do with the fact that she was hungover for the majority of the weekend. At all. :D

Here is my week...

 

Will and Dave panning for 'gold'

 

Amber stealing Daddy's coffee ice-cream :)

 

We bought a new Didymos wrap, and have now mastered getting Amber on my back! Happy days.

 

Showing off my excellent parenting..giving my 6mo daughter a jammy dodger...

 

Both of my children are TV addicts! Look at them sat in front of Horrid Henry. For the millionth time!

Now you have looked at mine, go here and add yourself to the linky :)

An introduction to my little people...William

I was only 17 when I fell pregnant with William. Needless to say, he was a total surprise! The pregnancy was hideous. At around 8weeks, I started complaining of a sore hip. Within a few days, I was limping. and by 23 weeks had been diagnosed with Symphysis Pubis Dysfunction (SPD) and was given crutches and a lorry load of pain-killers to help me carry on with normal activities. The pain was excruciating, and I was taking regular Co-Codamol.

Around 25/26weeks, I started having very strong Braxton Hicks. At 28+6, halfway to Aberystwyth (to take my sister in law back to university) I started having what I thought we're BHs. In actual fact they were real contractions and so off we went to Aber. Hospital. What a nightmare that was, it's a horrible hospital, built on a hill, so lots of lifts and ramps!

They gave me lots of drugs to stop the contractions, and the 1st shot of Steroids, and 12 hours later the 2nd shot. As Aber. doesn't have a SCBU, they had to transfer me out to another hospital. The one I was booked into, the Countess of Chester Hospital, was full. So Arrowe Park Hospital it was. It apparently took about 3.5 hours to get from Aber to APH. I remember nothing off this, I was high as a kite on God knows what drugs!

The contractions petered out and eventually I was sent home. But that wasnt the end. To cut a long story short, I was in and out of hospital until 32 weeks when my waters started leaking. Baby was head down and I was told 'no swimming, no sex, and rest rest rest' . So I did, and the amniotic sac sealed itself up again. This is where the major issues began!

As the amniotic fluid had stopped leaking, COCH were happy to let me continue with the pregnancy, against my wishes, I wanted my baby out! During all this time, I was suffering terribly with SPD, and at 36 weeks, i fell down the stairs. Cue yet ANOTHER hospital trip. This triggered some concerns, and the following week, at my 37week ante-natal appointment, they decided to keep me in on bed-rest, to monitor my SPD and to give me some different pain relief.

The pain-relief team came round to see me on the ante-natal ward, and the decision was made to give me tramadol. I was reassured that baby wouldnt be dependant. How wrong was that!

At 38+3, I was taken down to be induced. 2 pessaries later...Nothing. The following day I was put on the pitocin drip. After 5hours, and a ceasearean. William Edward was born at 16.33pm, weighing in at 6lb.

Will and I both went up to the ward together. He slept most of the night, although the midwives did keep trying to wake us both so I could feed him. The breastfeeding was going ok. But I was not prepared for how painful it was going to be! :(

Originally, we were kept in to establish breastfeeding, but on the second night, Will started to cry this awful cry, he wouldnt settle, his blood sugars were all over the place. At 4am, the decision was made for him to be taken down to the NNU. I was informed that he was withdrawing from the Tramadol, and he was being put on Morphine Replacement Therapy. I was heartbroken. How could this have happened to my poor baby? Guilt is a terrible thing! I paced the floor for hours and hours, and desperately pumped to get my milk supply in. During which time, Will was given donor milk through a Nasal Gastric tube. the MRT knocked him out, he wouldnt feed and slept constantly. The paeds and OB/GYN consultant talked and decided to give me morphine and it would filter through into my breastmilk and Will would be weaned off like that. It was gonna be hard, but worth it to get him feeding properly!

Evetually, on day 4, we were allowed home. He was a very unsettled baby. He had colic, and cryied constantly for about 12 weeks. We rode it out until 16weeks and then started to wean, thinking my breastmilk wasnt filling him up. It made no difference. Neither did formula. One day, though, he just stopped crying so much.

Fast-forward to his 8month check-up with the Health visitor. He wasnt sitting up by this point. But the HV never followed it up. By 12months, he was rolling round, but still no closer to sitting independantly. I also noticed his feet looked different to my friends children's feet. Sort of twisted in. :/ I took him to the GP, she referred us to a Paeds consultant. I thought nothing of it really, in my mind, worst case scenario was gonna be an operation to correct the positioning of his feet.

But no. The day came round for the consultant appointment. I took Will by myself. Dr Murphy took one look at him and said the words that shattered my world. "I think he has Cerebral Palsy"

There are no words to explain the shock. I didnt even know what Cerebral Palsy was! But I knew it wasnt good. We we're referred to Wrexham Maelor Hospital to see a physiotherapist. She turned out to be an amazing source of support for me, and the only person with any faith in what Will could achieve.

Many tests later, MRI scans, Neurological reports, and assessments later, on the 1st October 2008 William was diagnosed with Cerebral Palsy. Aged 17months and 4 days. The prognosis was grim. How wrong could they be...?

Age 2

 

Age 3

Christmas 2011 in his new wheelchair

Going to Nursery School in his frame

Age 4...my big grown up boy!

Helping with his new baby sister!

Me and my babies, July 2011

Womanhood Versus Motherhood

Today I did a boudoir shoot with a photographer friend of mine, Holly. There in nothing like being up close and half naked with your friends, hey?! Haha!

A group of local mums and I are doing a charity calender, and Holly is behind the camera. The idea all came about after a conversation on our Facebook group, and Holly asked if anyone would be up for a boudoir shoot. I volunteered, so long as I could have a picture for Dave's birthday which is next week. Kill two birds with one stone as such.

Well there is a Facebook group for the calender, we've been in the local paper and are planning on a radio interview to boost our publicity. The more people that know about us, the more money we make!! :) Its for a good cause! We've had some feedback from other mums, saying it's fab, how much it would boost their confidence, etc. It got me thinking about 'Womanhood V Motherhood'.

Sometimes I find it hard, being a full-time mum, often I have so much going on, I barely get chance to go for a wee in peace, let alone the faffing and palaver of make-up and a fancy hair-do. I get my hair cut when I just cant cope anymore. I get my nails done for a super-special occasion. Most days include a smudge of mascara applied with one hand whilst breastfeeding a child in the other arm!

But today, I palmed of my children! (LOL) Will was at his dads anyways, and Amber went out with Dave's mum, and off I went to Ruthin to met with Holly. Having never done anything like this before, I was really nervous, but excited at the same time. I had packed a bag with loads of difference changes of underwear, and one of Dave's work shirts ;) and some heels of course!

Like I said before, I'm not overly bothered about a lot of make-up etc, nor am I particularly body conscious and quickly got into it, wandering round in my undies! :O

Driving home though, I reflected on the shoot, and how I felt about it. Holly didn't let me see any of the pictures she'd taken, and in fairness, I only asked once! I'm really quite proud of my body, including the stretch marks! I have had 2 children, breastfed one and still breastfeeding the other, so no perfect model physique here! I'm glad I did the shoot. I may be a mummy , but I am a woman too. It's made me think that perhaps I ought to put more effort in to ME, as Michaela, not just 'mummy'. Sometimes the importance of motherhood, blurs out the importance of womanhood.

It all made sense in my head, I was gonna become this glamorous mummy overnight, who walked out of magazine and onto the school playground. And then it and went wrong when my Mother in Law brought Amber back home, my heart melted and I realised why I don't bother with all that stuff...because I'd much rather be rolling round the floor with the kids, covered in paint and smelling of baby sick. Sort of. And I wouldn't have it any other way. My kids love me, and Dave does too. Exactly how I am. :)