Tip: Immunisation

When you are visited by your maternal health nurse they give you all of the info for your local community immunisations... What they don't tell you is that you can go to your GP and have your baby immunised there... We didn't know this for Marley's first immunisation and went along to the community option, we were there for close to two hours, waiting to be served, then waiting for the oral immunisation then waiting for the injections... All the while you are around sniffly kids with your newborn, listening to all of the children cry when they get their needles, its a pretty horrible experience... On the other hand if you book in to be the first appointment of the day at your GP (to lessen exposure to randoms sickness) you are in and out in 15 minutes, without the build up and constant heartbreaking crying of other kids...

Tip: Bibs

If you have a dribbly baby, much like mine, you will find yourself with a store of bibs... I have found that the button up bibs are best as the velcro ones get stuck to other things in the washing machine, sometimes ruining other fabrics... As your baby gets older it is also easier to rip off velcro bibs, while button ups seem to stay on...

Target matenity bra

The Target maternity bra is not super supportive, but super comfy, great for bed (in those early months when you need to sleep with a bra on)… I do love these bras, for at home, wouldn't wear them out as they don't do your boobs any favours... Only downside is they only come in black and white...

Bonds maternity/breastfeeding singlets

Bonds singlets

These come in great colours and are very supportive… The downsides are that they don’t quite keep their shape and run a size too small… Having bought only one size bigger then my pre pregancy size coming out of hospital I had no chance of fitting into the ones I had bought, so maybe get one a couple sizes big for the initial start and then once you have lost some of the weight try the next desired size on? Like the Target ones the bra pops down which gives an amount of exposure but if you are wearing the singlet under a normal top then the top comes up, bra comes down and you cant see anything except what the baby has in its mouth... 8 months on I am still loving these singlets, highly recommend them...

Target breastfeeding singlets

Target singlets

In my experience there were two singlets for breast feeding available from Target, I have two of each...

Version 1
This singlet is just a plain singlet which has the fold down tabs with slits where your nipples can pop out to feed... This is the ultimate in discretion, but there is NO SUPPORT at all! How do they expect women carrying an extra kilo or so in boobs to waltz around with no support? I highly recommend not getting this one!

Version 2
The style of the outside of this singlet is the exact same as the other, but it has a built in bra, the supportive bra bit folds down which does allow an amount of exposure, but I recommend wearing these singlets under your normal top, so the top comes up, the bra come down and there is hardly any skin outside of what the baby needs... It also has the bra clip at the back so you can adjust the size of your bra between the usual three options as you change of the time you feed... I highly recommend this style on par with the bonds maternity singlet...

Fifteen Restaurant Melbourne

Fifteen Restaurant Melbourne
http://www.fifteen.net/restaurants/fifteenmelbourne/Pages/default.aspx
Basement, 115-117 Collins St(Enter via George Pde)Melbourne, Victoria
Reservations:1300 799 415

It has become a bit of a tradition to come here for Marks birthday, for a few reasons... One is its nice to treat ourselves to a beautiful meal... Two, they do a lovely vegetarian option, and seeing as though Mark is a vegetarian that helps... Three, all profits go towards helping more young people get into the program...

A nice space, we were seated in the less cosy area this time, unfortunately the wood seats aren't comfortable enough for a two hour meal, they really should keep this seating for the express customers and give the more comfy seats to those eating the 6 course degustation menu...The service is always spectacular, it hasn't yet disappointed... Strangely they have changed the pricing structure so that the vegetarians price is the same as the meat eaters price which seems a bit rich to me, but more profits for the kids I guess?!? The cheese board went from being full the first time, to 5 or so cheeses last time down to one cheese this time... It does make sense as I'm sure everyone is always too full to eat it, but its a noticeable drop in cheese there!

Overall I did enjoy my meal and I am assured that Mark enjoyed his, though I was a little disappointed in a couple of the courses, we will be back next year!


Starter:
Cheese rice and tomato in a batter covered in salt with aioli - one of the best parts of the meal!!!



1st course vegetarian option:
Bread salad - there wasn't a vegetarian option on the menu for this course, we thought it might have been a bit of an afterthought...



1st course meat option:
Porchetta ‘di testa’ with Fifteens pickled vegetables
This was probably my least favourite course, not hot on uncooked meats...


2nd course:
Ribollita: a thick Tuscan bread soup with cavalo nero, cannellini beans and lashings of Oliveria's Fifteen olive oil

This was a hearty soup, but it lacked seasoning and really felt like something I could easily whip up at home...




3rd course vegetarian option:
Rotolo of baby spinach, baked ricotta, sliced mushrooms, marjoram and lemon with nutty brown butter, crispy sage and Parmigiano Reggiano





3rd Course meat option:
Tagliatelle with a rich beef shin ragout, rosemary and orange gremolata and Parmigiano Reggiano
The tagliatelle was lovely, the star of the show was the beef which melted in my mouth...



4th course meat option:
Slow roasted, crispy Berkshire pork belly with oozy parmesan polenta, jus and salsa verdi
This was by far the most outstanding pork belly I have ever had, not too fatty, the pork tore away and melted in my mouth, the crackle was perfect, the polenta complimented it all, just freaking divine!!!



4th course vegetarian option:
‘Torte di verdure mista’: ricotta and mixed seasonal vegetables in a rustic pastry case with crème fraiche and pangrattato




Orange sorbet to refresh the palate before dessert



5th course:
Orange and vanilla frangipani tart with mascarpone
On its own the tar was lovely, a little heavy but with the mascarpone it lightened it up, a delightful dessert!



6th course:
Goats cheese and fig chutney
It was supposed to be farmhouse cheddar but they were out of it
I was far too full to try this but Mark said that the strong cheese was good...

Whip It

Whip It was on my list to see immediately after going to check out the Victorian Roller Derby League a few months ago... Was a brilliant night, and if I was ten years younger maybe something I would want to do... In any case the film was great, a big like Bring It On with fishnet stockings... Not much, but a bit... Great performance by Ellen Page, and most of the cast, a good job on Drews first directing job... The story felt a bit off track at times, sometimes it didn't quite gel, but was still entertaining and I didn't check my watch once in around 2 hours...

Funny People

Went to this film with one expectation - to laugh - and spent the first half of the movie laughing... The second half of the movie was good, but almost a different film to the first, it was humorous, but a bit more character focused... I didn't mind that too much but it did make it feel a bit longer then it needed to be... In any case I definitely think that if you are into Judd Apatows films this one shouldn't be missed!

Tip: Clothes for the early days

When you bring your precious little bundle of joy home you will probably already have many many outfits , so before you get to that point keep in mind that in the very early days (sizes 0000 and 000) there is a good chance that you are going to be too tired to be changing your baby into tricky outfits... I highly recommend just buying a bunch of onesies, babygros, rompers, whatever you like to call them... They are easy to get on and off, easy to change nappies, just plain easy... I would save my cash for hot little outfits for when they are a little bit bigger and you aren't quite as tired...

Up the Duff - Kaz Cooke

Up the Duff - Kaz Cooke
From www.kazcooke.com
The new edition of Up the Duff is out now, with all the favourite features including week-by-week info on what's happening to you and the baby and Hermoine's hilarious pregnancy diary, plus new stuff for blokes, all the latest on medical tests including when to have them and why, what you need to know if you're trying to get pregnant and what to do if it's not happening, help with feelings about post-baby body image and sex, and all the latest medical and emotional help you need, including stacks of recommended websites, contacts and books on special issues.

This book was recommended by a friend... If you only buy one pregnancy book this should be it... The week by week low down is very user friendly and makes for good reading for both you and your partner... Humourous but factual, Mark read this to me once a week so we were both up to date with how my pregnancy was progressing...

Target gym get up

Target gym get up

A lifesaver for the ever growing belly as you continue to work out… The pack included everything for a work out session (maternity singlet, t shirt, leggings and belly band), and for a reasonable $60… The downside is that the quality isnt quite as good as expected, but they easily last one pregnancy which is still really good value in my opinion...

Note: Targets belly bands arent good quality in general, the pumpkin patch ones are great and keep their shape all the way through...

Tips - Toys

A good idea is to buy toys that are machine washable...

From around 3 months babies want to put EVERYTHING in their mouths so your toys need to be clean, the best toys we have are the ones that can be thrown into the machine as soon as they are dropped on the floor with no fuss... We have a lot of toys with mechanisms in them so they cant be washed, this is a pain, making time to surface wash them us just another thing on the never ending list of things to do...

The Contented Little Baby Book - Gina Ford

This book is great to give you an idea of how our day could go with a new born... You might want to keep in mind that this sort of strict routine may not work for everyone... At 7 weeks I implemented it, tailoring it to suit our needs, and from the first night she was sleeping 9 hours straight through the night... That in itself makes me feel like this book is worth its weight in gold... There is a lot of information, and reasons for the routines and most importantly the actual routines... Definitely worth a read, I treat it like a bible!

I love you, man

My expectations were high for theis film, I would have been fuming if we went to all the trouble of going to the movies and seeing another film like Observe and Report which sucked... This film did not suck by any means of the word! Well written, well acted, 'laugh out loud' several times funny... Just see it!

From www.rottentomatoes.com

After years of swiping scenes from the leading men in such movies as KNOCKED UP and THE 40-YEAR-OLD VIRGIN, Paul Rudd finally headlines a star vehicle of his own. Unlike those Judd Apatow productions, it's John Hamburg (ALONG CAME POLLY) who directs I LOVE YOU, MAN, albeit with many of the touchstones of Apatow's highly successful freaks-and-geeks-with-heart aesthetic. In other words, this is not an Apatow film, but, with the male capacity for--and simultaneous inability to express--fraternal love as its core comic conceit (and emotional centerpiece), it may as well be. Rudd plays Peter Klaven, a real estate agent with a blossoming career and an imminent marriage to Zooey (THE OFFICE's Rashida Jones)--basically, he's lucky in all things except male bonding. The narrative arc centers on his quest for platonic man-love--as opposed to, say, finding the girl of his dreams--and follows the boilerplate dictates of a standard rom-com with a subversive wink. In this case, boy meets boy, boys bond over their common love of Rush and Andre the Giant, boys break up and make up, etc. Rudd and co-star Jason Segel (FORGETTING SARAH MARSHALL), a fellow Apatow alum who plays Sydney Fife, the Type B object of Klaven's affection, imbue their roles with winning charisma and elevate the plot with real and nuanced chemistry. With a whip-smart pace, the film continually tills fresh comic ground as Hamburg finds punctuation points in every scene and never lets a gag overstay its welcome. While the supporting cast features many memorable turns by the likes of Jon Favreau, Jaime Pressly, and Andy Samberg, I LOVE YOU, MAN ultimately belongs to Rudd, who approaches insecurity and social awkwardness with the same dead-eye marksmanship that Peter Sellers did for slapstick.

New kicks...

After having Marley I have not really cared too much about things for me, clothes and kicks have fallen by the wayside as I have embraced motherhood with every ounce of my being... But lately Mark has been doing a bit of over time and we used the cash to get some new kicks... The top ones I have wanted for years, literally, and to my surprise they were restocked in a limited Asian release and surprisingly when I saw them my size was one of two sizes left... Definitely a sign! So I bought them... The blue ones were an impulse by encouraged by Mark, I'm hoping that I can pull them off, not usually into shiny shoes!

Changeling

I meant to watch this long ago and on finding it again I put it on... It was quite stressful to watch, I think the fact it was based on true events made it worse, but was definitely a good film... Great acting, story, costumes... It is just a shame that life for a woman was that effed up back then... It makes me glad that I am not living in that era...

From www.rottentomatoes.com
At first, Clint Eastwood's CHANGELING could appear to be following too closely in the footsteps of his earlier Oscar winner, MYSTIC RIVER, since both films center on a missing child. But while his previous film was based on a Dennis Lehane novel, CHANGELING carries a particular weight because it is based on a true story, and one that isn't largely known. Angelina Jolie stars as Christine Collins, a single mother working in 1928 Los Angeles when her son goes missing. A boy is returned to her months later by the police, but she is shocked and disheartened when she realizes that the boy isn't her son. Joined by a crusading pastor (John Malkovich), Christine battles for justice against the corrupt L.A.P.D. while she continues to search for her child. Eventually her fight against the cops lands her in a mental hospital, where she is surrounded by others with a similar plight. At times, CHANGELING is incredibly difficult to watch. Jolie gives an authentic, anguished performance, and the on-screen tragedy is quite disturbing, largely because of its basis in reality. But Eastwood has crafted another Oscar-worthy film that is certainly worth sitting through, even if a tissue or two is required. Screenwriter J. Michael Straczynski had been best known for his work in science fiction (BABYLON FIVE) and graphic novels, but he makes an adept transition to feature drama with this film. Its unusual focus--on the victim and her struggle for justice, rather than on the criminal and the crime--brings further depth to the film. As always, Amy Ryan (an Oscar nominee for GONE BABY GONE) perfectly morphs into her role (this time as a prostitute imprisoned in the mental hospital), and the film's many child actors are compelling to watch.

Observe and Report - Film

Being a fan of Seth Rogen we made the most of a date and went to see this film... MISTAKE... This film was so very bad that I fell asleep in the cinema! I sat through the first 50 minutes, it was not funny, nothing much happened, to be honest I'm not even sure why it was made, or whether someone held a gun to Seths dogs head to make him do it! So very bad, do not pay to see this movie, and its probably best avoided altogether...

Juju Sundin’s Birth Skills Book

This book gave me a feeling of empowerment before I even went into labour… For the first twelve hours of my labour we used lots of the skills mentioned and I did feel that they helped… It was also a good way to involve my husband in the process, both reading the book, planning the techniques and utilising them... After twelve hours I opted for an epidural, but would recommend this book even if you are planning on an epidural...

Juju Sundin’s Birth Skills Book

Taken from http://www.jujusundin.com/

This objective of this book is to bring you and your partner right ‘inside’ the classes in my specialised birth skills education programme in Sydney.
So many of you are wanting to learn powerful and effective skills to help you through labour pain. So many of you want a clear, simple, yet informative manual for your partner who may be resistant to long detailed childbirth, parenting and breastfeeding books. It is sometimes difficult for these same partners to extract from these books the vital information and practical ideas to help you on the day. They need to know exactly what their role is during labour and exactly how to help you through your pain – and even if you have chosen a medically assisted birth, your partner still needs to know what to do for you at home, in the car, in the car park, getting you through the hospital entrance, in the lift, and during your initial monitoring. So many of you are in country areas and do not have access to these classes. This book is also for the busy working woman who doesn’t have a lot of time and is saying ‘just tell me what to do and how to do it – I want the short list and I want the detail and it has to make sense’. This book is also for all the women who are feeling anxious and fearful about childbirth. I can assure you Sarah and I both relate to you, and we wrote this book for you too. When I am on the phone taking my class bookings, I think off the top of my head, about 90% of women express their fear of childbirth. What I say to them is, ‘once you come and learn about the labour process, all the powerful positive hormones and chemicals at play, how you can influence those AND learn powerful tools and techniques to help you, then your fear will be turned into a working machine of positive, powerful, purposeful action. And, your partner will learn exactly what to do to help you with this. Sarah and her husband used these same tools and techniques for the birth of their two children. When I first met Sarah her attitude was ‘I’m just going to have an epidural’. By the end of the course her attitude was ‘bring it on’.So this book is all about the tools and techniques I teach, and have been teaching over a thirty year period, and all about how the learner experiences those lessons. That’s where Sarah comes in. You will learn from me, and you will experience the class as though you are right next to Sarah on the floor. Many couples say that what they learned at classes was inspirational. I find what Sarah has written in Birth Skills inspirational. We loved writing it, and we hope that you love reading and learning from it.

Aveda Ante Natal Massage Chadstone

Aveda Chadstone
Shop 408,
Chadstone Shopping Centre,
1341 Dandenong Rd
Chadstone VIC 3148
(03) 9948 8324

I was given this massage for my 30th birthday, I upgraded to a full hour, figuring it would be best for me and the baby... I wanted to use it while I was pregnant as I was having some coccyx pain and they advertisedpregnancy massage so I thought it would give me some long term help...

On entering the staff were lovely... Maria was my masseur, and we had a good talk about my needs etc as a pregnant woman before we got to the room... The waiting area was lovely... The room was a beautiful space, lovely ambiance, but very small... There was lovely relaxing music on, but half way through the massage it became more like electro with loads of bass, making me think more about moving then being still...

Maria started with a foot soak and massage which was lovely, and really set me up to think that this was going to be the best massage ever... But after that things went a little downhill, they advertise as having pregnancy massage which is why I chose to go there whilst pregnant, once in they said that they don't have pregnancy beds so the massage would have to be on my sides... Getting a pregnancy massage when you are that big on your side just doesn't make for comfort, besides the hope of being on your tummy is half the excitement...Maria gave me what felt like a rub down, no deep work, nothing to make me feel better long term, just a very light running of the hands over the body... I specifically stated that my coccyx was killing me and yet she didn't go there at all, strangely she did rub my belly, she did ask first, but I was caught completely off guard and agreed...

The second half of the massage was on my back, which really hurt my hips and butt... So by the time it was over I felt like I needed a massage... The best bit was the scalp/face massage at the end, I probably would have been happier if she just did my feet and scalp/face - the definite highlights...

Avenue Q at the Comedy Theatre

We got our tickets for Christmas and have looked forward to it ever since... I didn't really know what to expect, but I didn't expect to see the puppeteers, which totally threw me... It took a little while to get used to the idea of seeing them and through out the show I phased in and out of focusing on them...

Really well written, very funny, great characters and songs... 'If you were gay' was probably my favourite, but most of them were quite amusing... Was an adult take on Sesame Street with actors and puppets interacting, and some of the puppets are obvious parodies of Sesame Street characters, awesome... If you are a fan of Jim Henson's puppets/Sesame Street its worth checking (even though it is not affiliated with them), if you are even slightly curious about what its like you should check it, if seeing puppets shag is going to ruin all of your childhood visions of puppets then do not check it!