I cannot quite believe

The speed with which time is passing

It will soon be July

And my tiny 27 weekers

Will turn seven

7!

And already our newest baby

Our last baby

Is approaching 7 weeks old

How can that possibly be?

She is such a blessing

Such a beautiful blessing

She fits right in to our family

As though she has always been here

I say it all the time

I cannot believe how fast the time is passing

And yet it feels like our Edie has always been here

Edie Mae
Edie is a beautiful baby

Characterful looks

Funny faces

Peaceful nature

She makes us smile everyday

Edie is a long baby

At 6 weeks she is 57cm long

And weighs in already at 11lbs!

Over the last couple of weeks

Edie’s baby acne grew worse

Aggravated by the extreme weather

It only really affected her face and chest

And at 6 weeks now it is definitely improving

She has started to get a bit of cradle cap

I am treating both the flaky scalp

And the spots

With Kokoso Coconut Oil

And honestly cannot believe the results

Edie’s skin is already so much clearer

And I think possibly even softer

For a very short time with the acne

Edie’s skin felt like sandpaper

Which was horrible

And I worry that it might have been uncomfortable for her

But anyway

That phase has passed

We have no routine as yet

But we have a gentle rhythm

Edie comes to bed with me around midnight

We then get a good block of sleep

From 12 til 4, 5 or 6

At one of those times we wake

Edie will feed, poo, chat and feed again

Back to sleep

We then both sleep for as long as David can allow

Usually til 8 or 8.30am

Then we get up and start our day

Edie sleeps for most of it

Mostly on me

But sometimes in her pram

Or in her swing

She seems to need movement for sleep at the moment

When not asleep

Edie loves conversation

She responds really well to sing song chatter

And has some lovely goos and gaas of her own

Edie loves her siblings

And they adore her

They are each establishing their bond

In their own way

Edie loves being sung too

And loves stories

She loves to look at people’s faces

Edie is a very smiley baby

And we have even had a few giggles

She is at a very cute nursling stage

Where she will break off mid feed to gaze up at me

And give me her biggest smile

An adorable gummy grin

I breastfeed Edie on demand

She is still quite sleepy

So some days feeds are about every three hours

Other days she seems to have a constant craving

As she is light

It is easy to feed her and still do what needs to be done

There is not much that I cannot do one handed!

Edie seems to struggle with her latch

It is not affecting her health or weight gain

She does not get frustrated at the breast

Even though she does seem to slip on and off

I think she might have a tongue tie

But I cannot see anything that is obvious

The Health Visitor has been a few times to see us

As we are under CONI Care

Thanks to The Lullaby Trust

She is really pleased with Edie Mae

And so am I

The GP at our six week check

Told me that Edie is perfect

Apart from one thing

A clicky hip

That may be a sign of hip dysplasia

Or could just be a clicky hip

Or could be nothing at all

We have been referred to the hospital

For a scan

And we will take our next steps from there

I am also a little concerned about Edie’s inability to hold up her head

I think Tilda and Bea were definitely more advanced at this stage

I wonder if it has something to do with the fact

That her length and weight are on the 75th centile

While her head circumference is on the 95th

That has to be part of why she struggles to get her head off the ground?

I am not too worried at the moment

But we will be keeping an eye

Last week

We registered Edie’s birth

Her official full name

Edith Mabel

Our Edie Mae

Our beautiful last baby

Edie Mae

Mummy

Six weeks post partum

And I am feeling surprisingly fine

Life is far from easy

But on the whole

I am okay

So far in her tiny life

Edie has been so very easy to care for

Giving me the strength I need

To deal with everything and everyone else

Family life is exhausting

Mostly in a good way

But there is no escaping the fact

That some days with four small children

Are just really really hard

As Esther and William are home educated

I have them with me all of the time

We are managing to keep up with learning

Focusing on maths and reading for the time being

We are not getting out and about as much as we used to

But that will change

As I feel fitter, stronger and a little more brave

I do take them all out to their classes

We have done days out

Even a meal out with friends

And I take them all up to our local park on my own

The logistics sometimes are just not manageable

If both Edie and Bea are having troublesome days

But I know with time I will get more confident

And we will settle into a rhythm

A routine that works

Physically I am definitely lardier and lumpier

Than I would like to be

My weight seems to fluctuate between 10 stone 2 pounds

And 10 stone 6

My ideal weight is 9 stone 3 pounds

And so I have a way to go!

I can fit into elasticated pre pregnancy clothes

But am a way off being able to do up a pair of jeans

The problem is that I have a very sweet tooth

And I like eating

Especially while breastfeeding

And because of that I am in no hurry to lose the weight

But I do want us as a family to start making healthier food choices

And to get out and about more

Doing physical things

I have a bit of a plan of visiting and reviewing all the play areas

In villages and towns around us

Who does not love a park in the summer?

This is something I would do with the children

During the week while David is at work

He is not really one for getting out and about

He likes to stay at home

And so that is exactly what we did for Fathers’ Day

And we actually had a wonderful time

On one of the hottest days of the year

Special days are always hard

As we face them without Matilda Mae

I thought that having Edie

Would make me very sad

Given that like Tilda

She is a May baby

In fact their birthdays are just 6 days apart

But I am not as sad as I thought I might be

I am not constantly making comparisons

I am enjoying Edie for being Edie

And that is a huge milestone for me

Starting to allow myself not to forget

Never to forget

But just to live

A little

And make the most of the children we have here

I still have a long way to go

New Baby Products

Making our life easier

Through the fourth trimester

Are a number of baby products

The Cuddledry Apron Towel
We have lots of baby and toddler towels

From Cuddledry

That we have bought over the years

But I had never until very recently

Tried their apron towel

This super soft hands free towel is worn by mummy or daddy

To keep their clothes from getting wet during bath time

You are then able to literally cuddle your baby dry

As you lift them out of their bath

Cocoon them in the cotton and bamboo

Cuddle them up to you

Wrapped up tight with the two layer towel

There are a range of designs to choose from

We were sent the grey stars

And it is stunning

I am so glad that we have had the opportunity to try

The original Cuddledry apron towel

I know now what gift to buy any friends or family having a baby in the future

This is a true baby essential

Skip Hop Camping Cubs Gym
As the weeks go by

And Edie starts to be awake more

She is starting to play more

And to take an interest in the things around her

She absolutely loves her tipi play gym

From Skip Hop

The Camping Cubs Tipi Activity Mat

Is perfect for play

Including tummy time

Edie always has lots of eager encouragement when she plays on her tummy

The tipi gym is a lovely addition to our home

And has lots of different ways to play

It is currently reduced in John Lewis!

Fisher Price Swing
When not in my arms

This is where Edie spends most of her time

This old Fisher Price swing has been such a blessing

In the recent hot weather

It has been too hot to hold her for long periods

This swing ensured that Edie was still able to get the sleep that she needed

As it rocks her back and forth, back and forth

Kokoso Coconut Oil
I had heard of Kokoso so many times

Word of mouth is a powerful persuader

To make you want to try something

To make you feel like you need something

And do you know what

Now I will never be without Kokoso Coconut Oil

In under a week we have already found so many uses for it

Cannot wait to tell you more

Enjoying a @shnuggle bath with a @kokoso_baby natural sponge and #Kokoso coconut oil #kokosobaby #shnugglebaby

A post shared by Jennie Edspire (@edspire) on Jun 18, 2017 at 12:34pm PDT

Shnuggle Bath
I absolutely love our Shnuggle Bath

Edie just needs a little more head control

So that she can sit unaided without her head falling forwards

Today she discovered splashing fun

Bath time #shnugglebaby in her #shnugglebath @shnuggle #babyspam #ediemae #rainbowbaby #babygirl #baby #6weeksold

A post shared by Jennie Edspire (@edspire) on Jun 24, 2017 at 4:26am PDT

Mama Designs Giant Swaddles
These super sized super soft swaddles

In a cloud design

Are wonderful

Perfect as a light cover on a warm evening or sunny day

Perfect as a sheet protector if you are co-sleeping

Perfect for all the many multitude of things

Mummies use muslins for

But these just seem too special for mopping up spittle and sick

So we keep them for sleep

And photo opportunities!

Little Green Sheep Organic Cotton Bedding
This Little Green Sheep Organic bedding is beautiful

I love the forest designs

The rabbit and the bear

I love the colours

They are both pretty and practical

They wash well

And dry quickly

So perfect for sleeping on and under and in

Meelight

I am still using the Meelight from Cheeky Rascals every night

It is a comfort for me

I like to be able to see Edie

I like to look at her

See she is okay

See that she is breathing

I keep the Meelight on the lowest of three settings all night

I turn it up for nappy changes and night feeds

It is so nice having a portable night light

That is simple in design

And easy to use

When Edie is grown I can see me using this

Meelight as a light for me

As a light for sneaky night reading

Trips to the loo

It would also be handy to keep charged in the bedroom

In case of a power cut

Another baby product with possible alternative uses

See the Edie sleeping … I love that I can watch her sleeping and check her breathing all night long with @meemoobaby #meelight from @cheeky_rascals #rainbowbaby #safersleep #nightlight #newbaby #newborn #babysleep #baby : @edspire

A post shared by Cheeky Rascals (@cheeky_rascals) on Jun 5, 2017 at 2:04pm PDT

Nanami Nanook Feeding Pillow – White Polar Bear
I love this pillow

We all love this pillow

It is perfect for snuggling up with when watching TV

The older children like to lie back on it

Edie does not get a look in

Not yet

Her time will come

We mostly use this gorgeous cushion

For baby play

And for taking weekly pictures

Nanook Bear is designed as a feeding cushion

But I find for breastfeeding that it does not really work

But for photos and play it is fantastic

Nanook from Nanami is available to buy from various places online

Including JoJo Mama Bebe and Natural Baby Shower

GroSnug
When it comes to babywear for safer sleep

I turn to Gro

The Gro Company are specialists in their field

Their products make sense

They facilitate healthy habits

And safer sleep

Edie sleeps in a light GroSnug

This is perfect for babies on hot nights

With either a vest or just a nappy underneath

This is perfect for a co sleeping baby

You can pop your baby into a GroSnug from birth

For me it is a swaddle without a muddle

And it also allows baby to sleep with their arms out

Edie Mae likes to sleep with her hands by her face

When Esther and William were in NICU

They told us babies put their hands to their face

For comfort

So I like Edie to have free movement of her arms and hands

And since our six week check this week

I am now even more aware of the importance

Of having space in the GroSnug for healthy hip development

Edie sleeps so well in this part swaddle part sleeping bag

I will be sad in 2lbs when she grows out of them

And that is all

For this round up

Our next Edie update

Will be when she is 8 weeks old

About to turn two months

I am

And will remain

In absolute denial