Last week was really special as the family in Toowoomba all came down to spend Anzac day with us at home. This was the first chance for Mary and Peter to meet their great granddaughter and I think Eleanor made a good first impression. It was a good excuse to break out the old camera and take lots of photos to mark the occasion.
Alison and I were forced to sit back and relax while the rest of the family dealt with food and assorted preparations. We may have protested a little at first but it was fantastic to put up our feet for a bit and talk while others cooed at the baby. Once the feast was ready to eat I got another opportunity to point out the benefits of purchasing the larger outdoor table to Alison. So much food but it was the company that made it a great meal.
The following weekend we took advantage of family hospitality once again by spending a few nights in Toowoomba with John and Sheena. I'm sure they enjoyed having Eleanor there to fuss over and show off to their friends and it was nice to have Aunts and Uncles pop in to visit. With the grandparents available to take care of the baby, Alison and I actually managed to get quite a few nights (and afternoons) of sleep so I think the dark bags under our eyes are starting to disappear.
It's funny how I've switched most of my internet time from researching gadgets and games to looking at prams and baby accessories. We had bought a bunch of stuff from a workmate of Alison's which included a pram and baby carrier. We found that neither of these were actually usable in our experience because they were too big; the pram because it wouldn't fit in the car and the carrier because Eleanor is just too small to fit in it. It was a little grating to have to buy replacements when we already had something available, but a quick trip to the store convinced us that the Baby Jogger City Mini was a must have. That easy one move folding action has been a life saver when packing up the car to head to the shops. Very impressed with the design of this stroller and I can see us packing it up for a trip back to Malaysia in the future.
The other huge success we've had today was with a new baby carrier. Little Nellie is very clingy and loves being held, and despite our best efforts to transition smoothly from cradle arms to the cot she often wakes up in a few minutes screaming for attention. After quite a bit of internet searching we found the Sleepy Wrap, which turned out to be one of the cheapest and yet versatile products on the market. The postman delivered it this afternoon and we can say that initial results are very positive. Nellie pretty much slept in it all afternoon and woke up in a great mood for a feed. The best bit is we went out on a walk with her and Alison had full use of her hands for hours without any worries.
The wrap theoretically handles up to 18KG of baby, and Nellie's weigh in at the Doctor's today marked her at 3.31KG so we have a ways to go yet. With the fabric spread over shoulders and waist it does seem to spread the weight very evenly so hopefully our backs won't give out before then.
Eleanor's Amma is going to be flying in tonight so we'll be heading to the airport soon to pick her up. She's no doubt very excited to see her granddaughter and her new iPad 2 which I spent the past two days setting up. No matter how much I love my technology I think it's pretty clear which one she's more eager to get her hands on.
Only have another week off work but I think we're finally getting the hang of this. Heck, we even managed to watch a whole movie yesterday afternoon (The King's Speech, which was excellent) and she slept right through it. In the next week we'll be celebrating a super Mother's Day, picking up Uncle Wing from the airport and there might even be a day set aside for me to grow a year older. By the end of it I might even be ready to return to the office, though I imagine that I'll miss my girls terribly.
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