Update on the Fuzzibunz... poor... the absorbancy was no good and we had leakage even when she was in the baby bjorn sling (so sat upright). When the nappy came off, she was soaking wet, so no good at all.


We then tried another "all in one" (ie nappy has integrated waterproof outer). This one looked good in that it had a good leakage barrier (rather like on a disposable). It was very bulky on and I was concerned she wasn't too comfortable. The absorbancy on this one was better but we still had leakage out of the top whilst she was feeding. It also left red marks across her stomach which didn't look very comfortable.


She is now in a totsbots organic bamboozle with velcro (having finally dried!). The velcro was helpful in getting a good looking fit, but she is still quite skinny so there was quite a bit of bulky overlap. There is really only one more from the pack that I have much hope for (the rest seem too big or bulky before we even start), which is a totsbot fluffle microterry nappy (didn't have the drying problem), that uses a "nippa" to fasten it so it will be interesting to see if this gives a better fit.

Fidget is 7 weeks old today...

Today we stareted trialling re-usable nappies. How has it taken so long? Well, we were advised to wait and see what size and shape bundle was born before buying the nappies, which only a short while into this trial already seems like excellent advice. You can end up spending around £200 on your whole kit, which is small compared to what you can spend on disposables, but very expensive if you buy the wrong things. So she was born and for several weeks I was hardly on this planet never mind in a nappy buying place. Then there was making an application to a money off scheme, and then making an appointment with a nappy lady. So here we are 7 weeks later with a hire kit that consists of one each of a wide range of real nappies.

We started this morning with Motherease one size, which I had high hopes for and you can see here being modelled by Berrie the doll for my trial run...

But no sooner was it on, then Fidget decided to get right down to the testing with a big poo, at this point I established that the leg holes were not snug enough. Leakage was avoided, but only through careful handling of the cheeker!

We then went for Mothereaze Sandy's which were a much more snug fit and handled well against a big Fidget poo, but this is because they are in a range of sizes so the current size she will quickly grow out of.

We are now on the delightfully named Fuzzibunz pocket nappy. It looks promicing but the poppers would be better as velcro, as getting the sizing absolutely right was a little difficult.

My favourites before we started were totsbots bamboo, but they have already suffered a signifcant settback in that they take so long to dry. When we recieved the pack, we were advised to wash them again in our own detergent, which I did yesterday. Everything else is dry, but these are still in the tumble dryer, after having been tumbled dried once and put out on the line. So we will see.

Tune in soon for more nappy updates!!!

Little Fidget is very lucky to have been given lots of lovely clothes, yesterday she was looking particularly lovely in her skirt and yellow t-shirt.

She is certainly getting more active and keen to be played with. Up to now she has really only been happy and alert for a little time in the morning. But this week she has engaged with us much more, smiling and sticking out her tongue when we smile and stick out our tongues at her. Yesterday evening she was getting rather cranky but cheered up considerably when put down on her baby gym and able to enjoy some "tummy time"!

It seems that blogger now lets you load up video directly (rather than via u-tube) so I am going to try and test it out with a short video of Fidget with hiccups from last night....

M was kept busy this weekend with putting in a soakaway in the front garden for the downpipe.

On Sunday he spent the day looking after little Fidget so that I could get out and do some work in the garden, which was great. And on Monday he dug up the rest of our potatoes which are really rather beautiful...

There is another picture from today that now I have printed it out I can't help but post it up as well... isn't she a lovely smiler!!!

Fidget is 6 weeks old today, you know the drill by now... more pictures of her looking cute. Today for her photo session she was very smiley indeed, so here are a few of the best...

As she gets so excitable about her mobile we decided to buy Fidget a baby gym (with some of the money she was kindly sent), we choose a rainforest one with a butterfly mobile and musical cat type thing (no identifiable species!). Here She is getting used to her new friends ....

Yesterday we had a visit from an old friend (R) and her two lovely kids. It was a really nice day getting to have a good chinwag and Fidget having some other small people to stare at. R very kindly brought us some home cooked meals to go in the freezer (one of which we have already snaffled and was delicious!) she also took Fidget out to the park while I got some sleep, which officially makes her a staR!!!

Fidget is 5 weeks old today, so for today's birthday picture she is wearing some of her swanky new clothes that she was very kindly given. They are 3-6 months but not a bad fit already. The jeans look rather funky with the turn-ups - just like mum's. And I do like that shade of yellow, so much so that I decided to join Fidget and put on my yellow cardigan!

With our outfits coordinated we decided to hit the highstreet where Fidget could try out her first hoodie. I think she looks rather sweet, but I get the feeling she's planning something cheeky...

Fidget's skin is now clearing up, which is really good to see...

But our afternoons and evenings are getting into a routine where she is very fractious, thinking she wants to feed where it is really just wind, this understandably, puts her in a very bad mood. It will be alot easier when she is old enough just to take some Rennie, but in the meantime at least there are cute photo oportunities of her in her favourite winding position.

Little Fidget has been playing with one of the toys she received. It is a wooden rattle, that when placed in her hand she grasps and uses to up the damage factor on what she smacks, so we have to make sure that is not her head!

We measured her length today, which was 55cm which is pretty long already, she is almost grown out of 0-3 month clothes, but looks very skinny in 3-6month stuff. She is certainly a long slim bundle. We worked out from the notes in her baby progress book that based on our heights she ought to end up with a height in the 99th percentile!! No pressure baby!!

A busy weekend finished off by a walk round the park, where M got to try out the baby bjorn.

Today Fidget has reached the ripe old age of one month...can you beleive it already! The health visitor weighed her today and she is 8lb 12oz.

So to celebrate, M and I had a very nice meal with a pair of belgian buns after, Fidget was unable to partake in the buns, but was happy that she would be getting something that looked similar later on.

Fidget has been enjoying reading her book today, it is a classic tale of how much mummy and daddy love their baby, I'm not sure if it is because Fidget identifies with the main character of Baby or the bright patterns but she sure is fascinated!

We have also been for a wander round the garden today to look at what is growing. The runner beans are coming on well and amazingly have not been affected by blackfly, we are starting to get some tomatoes and the peas continue to provide even if they are growing wildly across the paths. We are also enjoying the potatoes, onions and garlic which M is creating into marvellous dishes in his new swanky kitchen.

Had a visit from Grandma and Grandad Challis yesterday which kept Fidget well entertained... she is getting much smilier day by day and we are now sure the smiles are not just wind (of which she does have plenty!). One of her favorite smiley things is to try to smack the animals on her musical mobile as they go round next to her changing table, maybe it means she'll be a vet or conservationist or possibly a circus ringmaster!

Yesterday Fidget was 3 weeks old...can you see any difference from last week?

Today has been a very succesful day with our first outing as the family Challis, we went into Bristol, managed to have lunch, feed and change her, have a nice time and come home without drama! Hurrah, here's to many more expeditions ahead, and many thanks to the nice people at Pizza Express.

I know that with the arrival of Fidget, the updates on the kitchen are not really of much interest, but last weekend M and his dad got the extractor fan and lights in, and then on Wednesday and Thursday the kitchen and bathroom floors went in...