Being a mum ...

Wow ... where does the time go ... its taken me 4 months just to get round to typing this blog. Its amazing how much of your time one small pink squealy girl can take. Making it out of pj's by midday and getting out of the house by 2 p.m. seems quite an accomplishment these days ... wait, erm, maybe that's not so different from my hangover Sunday mornings from weekends in a past life. Getting up at 6:30 a.m. every day though, for those of you that know me well, you'll realize what an accomplishment that is for me ... especially caffeine-free. And lil' Keira Collin's isn't quite so little anymore. Our gorgeous little chubster is growing at an alarming rate ... on the plus side, I developing some hefty bicep and shoulder muscles. All the things that used to be so easy like popping to the supermarket and or nipping into the bank are not quite so easy anymore. I used to think that drive-through atm's, bottle shops and even drive through Starbucks were for fat lazy people, now I realise they are a lifesaver for little mum's who get to stay in the comfort of air-con in 90 degree heat and not have to cart little snoozing or screaming babies in and out of the car seats to pushchairs to supermarket trolleys constantly.
So, being a mum? Well, it's definitely a life changing experience Going from 20 plus years of doing whatever the hell I liked to having to devote 99% of my time to this beautiful little girl took a little adjusting ... but she's worth every second of it ... she's developing quite a personality and while those vocal cords create some ear screeching squeals, they also create some heart melting moments like her new word ... 'mama'.
Its so amazing to watch this little part of you grow and develop and we are such proud parents ... I wouldn't change this lifestyle for the world.

Keira 4 months old

Keira found her hand

Well... for those of us who have children we know the sacrifices we make for the sake of offspring , but for those who only simply "admire" the never ending "joy" of parentho0od....Please cherish the free time and simplicities of life for all of us.

Australia Trip

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Here are the newest photos we took from our trip to Sydney. Keira definitely made us proud by keeping quiet for most of the time while in the air. Although she did make up for it once we had landed.

3D Ultrasound Video

Here is the link to the 3D ultrasound video download that should have been put on here ages ago. It is 124 Mb so make sure you have enough space to download and watch it if you want.

Cheers!

Keira Ultrasound.avi

Picture Widget Album 1

Here are the first of many pictures we are planning on posting. We thought that rather than trying to send pictures to everyone that we would just publish a large number of the ones we have taken and everyone could just pick the ones that they want.

We will be leaving our on our "around the world" journey home next week and we will post many pictures from Australia as well.

CYA

Grandma & Grandpa Capper

I would like to thank these two great grandparents for everything they have done to make this much easier on the two of us....whether it be much needed advice or the willingness to babysit first thing in the morning so we can catch up on some much needed sleep, they have been there.

Thank You!

Beauty and the Beast!

The only time I can really photo Keira is when she is asleep. We are planning on publishing baby photos of Angela and I along with Keira to see if we can get other peoples opinion on who she most resembles.

Mum and Baby

Angie... being a great little mum.
I was told to publish some photos of her and tell everyone that she loves your comments so keep them coming... she will catch up with e-mails and phone calls as soon as she is feeling better.

Finally Here

Afer almost 10 months of waiting, her ladyship has blessed us with her presence. The midwives at the Countess of Chester are to be commended on a job well done! I think I forgot to mention in earlier post that the labour lasted for a total of about 18 hrs...so I think Angela needs to be congragulated on a job well done as well.

Happy Birthday Keira!

Keira Collins

11 May 2007, 5:58 am

8lb 0 oz's...and full of joy!

Countess Of Chester Hosptial

Chester, Cheshire

England

10 days late, but healthy as can be!

9 May 2007...Inducement day!

We arrived at the Countess of Chester on 9 May 2007 at 6 AM under the impression that this wasn't going to be a very long process, seeing that the labour was to be induced....Boy were we in for a surprise! I will let Angie post her comment on that day as soon as she is feeling better...so as not to over publicise the events to follow.

April 29...Still No Baby

We were waiting to see which countries doctors would be closest to the due date because we were given different dates from the UK and US doctors. 27 April ...came and went. Then 29 April...also came and went

Still no sign of any baby!

10 days to go ...

With only 10 days to go ... I squeezed into my jeans, button-popping maternity shirt and

tottered along in high heels trying to balance my 'little' Buddha belly so I didn't topple over to meet up with the girls for dinner ...

I just managed to fit my belly behind the table ...

and after three courses ... well, the seahorse (or should that be sea monster now) was ready to burst! Now that's what you call a full belly!

Chester

Here are some of the places we were able to visit whilst waiting for Keira to come around. Got to meet some of the "Locals."

The Cappers

You could not have asked for a nicer bunch of Scousers! The Capper's far exceeded my expectations as a good loving bunch.

Meet the Brits

Well it's off to the UK to meet Angela's family and prepare for the new addition to the family. We decided that giving Keira the option of dual citizenship could only benefit her later on when she wants to start traveling...so we decided to have her in the UK.

9 Month Roller Coaster

End of September to present

Of course, since that time, the terror, fear and trepidation parts have crept back in from time to time … the thought of having to be responsible for the first time in my life … the thought of being a parent … the thought of giving of alcohol and caffeine … I mean, who wouldn’t be afraid! And there were the hormones from hell for a while … poor Shawn deserved a medal … one minute I’d be happy, the next I could sob for hours for no particular reason … thankfully that all stopped by the time I was about 4 months … and the rest of the journey … well, I can honestly say I have loved being pregnant … there are times when it’s a little disconcerting to look in the mirror and see a basketball shape sticking out the front of your shirt … and there are uncomfortable times when I feel my belly is going to pop or my ribs are going to break with the strain of the stretching … but when you feel that little baby moving around inside … I have to say being pregnant is an amazing experience and we’ve never been happier …

A Testing Time

9^th September 2006

I had the suspicion that something was not quite right … I’d been away with week with work for a week, so when Shawn came to pick me up at the airport and I apprehensively suggested that maybe, just perhaps, there might be a chance I was pregnant. That word can certainly invoke a lot of emotional responses … terror, fear, trepidation, happiness, excitement, wonder … all at once.

We headed off to find a pharmacy … which are normally on every street corner in the States … but today, we ended off driving for bloody miles and finally found ourselves in the seedier side of town before Shawn slammed on the brakes, leapt a fence and ran into a dodgy local Jamaican chemist store. Brandishing the little ‘stick’ he came running out … but being the dodgy side of town the only option to test it out appeared to be the local Taco Bell bathroom … not exactly the place I’d pictured in my head when I’d thought of this moment, but what the hell … its amazing how much joy two little stripes can bring about. We were both so excited and couldn’t stop smiling (or crying!). I have to say that was one of the happiest moments of our lives.

Happy Birthday Angie..

19^th August 2006
Well, they say life begins at 40 … and it certainly did for me. I spent my 40^th birthday lounging in luxury at a 5 star hotel in Las Vegas with Shawn, Matt and Mary where we drank copious amounts of champagne, partied our little my socks off and danced ‘til dawn. I don’t think I could have organised a more apt final fling if I’d tried … for not long afterwards it was time to hang up my little dancing party socks for a while.

Beautiful Beginnings

Here is the beginning of a beautiful relationship.