Jeannie in a Bottle: Motherhood

Our favourite playground of the year would have to be George Street Reserve.

Location:

George Street, Marion, SA

Okay okay, I may be a little biased as it's so close to us. But seriously, read on to find out why I've deemed it our favourite for 2022.

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Did you teach your baby sign language?

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Beyond the fog of sleep deprivation, there's plenty of things that goes on in the mind of a first time mother. Not everything makes sense, but sometimes it feels like your love could write poetry too. Here's a list of random thoughts I wrote several months ago, back when motherhood was still fresh and new to me:

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I'll admit it. I'm a clingy and paranoid mama. If my baby is sleeping in her cot while I do something, I like to frequently check on her. One night as my husband and I got to enjoy a movie night in the living room for what felt like the first time since she was born, I couldn't help asking to pause the movie here and there so I could run to check on baby. Yup. We needed a baby camera! Thankfully, the Lollipop Baby Monitor came into my life. Read on as I break down my favourite features.

9:44 PM 19 comments

I first heard about the Galt Playnest when it was recommended by a couple of popular mummy YouTubers. The toy really appealed to me so I was quite keen to get it for my baby. It describes itself as a fabric covered inflatable with 8 play activities. The box states that it's suitable from 0 months. By the time my online order arrived in Australia, baby is now 5-months-old. Read on to find out how she likes it.

My 5-and-a-half-month-old baby relaxing in the Galt Playnest

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Any first-time mum would be very excited to buy all sorts of clothes for baby's wardrobe. Most especially if you're having a girl. It can be tempting to buy tutu skirts, frilly blouses, every closet item in pink, and don't forget - all types of ribbons and headbands! Perhaps you would expect that I, a girl who likes to blog and take Instagram photos, would buy every single thing I can think of for my baby's closet. But that's not actually the case. I like to think I'm a lot more practical than that. So what do I actually look for when buying clothes for my baby? Read on.

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I’m just like any other mum – a mum who’s on a budget but still wants amazing stuff for her baby (toys included), and thus, a die-hard Kmart fan. Before becoming a mum, I was already a Kmart fan because really, fun, cute, cheap – yes, please! Now that I have a bub to entertain, yes yes yes, Kmart, please!

With all the expenses that having a baby entails, you just really got to look at your budget. If I’m already spending on car seats and prams and feeding equipment, I’d like for the toys expenses to be kept low-key. You know your baby is going to outgrow or get tired of her toys in no time so affordability is a must.

When I look for toys, I like to ensure that they are affordable, fun, but also educational. To babies, everything is new and everything is fun to explore. They are just discovering the world and things such as sounds, colours, and patterns can instantly entertain them and stimulate their brains. If I can choose a toy that will also help my baby along with her learning, then I would always choose to do so. Today I’m sharing with your four toys that are not only affordable (read: super cheap), simple, but also highly educational for your 3 to 5-month-old baby.

5:59 PM 23 comments

A play gym is a staple in any household with a baby and for good reason. Play gyms not only entertain your baby but also stimulate cognitive and motor development. Play gyms are fun, colourful, and educational. The one we have is the Fisher Price Deluxe Kick And Play Piano Gym. My baby loves this play gym so much and even though she plays with it on a daily basis, she has not grown tired of it yet. Read on to find out why.

Fisher Price Deluxe Kick And Play Piano Gym Review

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I went from producing only 1 ml of colostrum per day to exclusively breastfeeding.

As a first time mom, I had high hopes to exclusively breastfeed my baby. Imagine my worry when it was Day 5 postpartum and my milk still hadn't come in! My baby was a hungry baby who loves to eat from Day 1. The midwives had helped me start to mix-feed my baby with formula. But it is of my personal opinion and decision to aim to provide breast milk for my baby as I believe it is what is best for her.

Nobody ever really talked to me about how breastfeeding isn't always "natural" and sometimes the journey is actually a struggle. But I was determined to fight for it. I wasn't giving up just yet. People had mixed feedback. When I mention that it is Day 5 and my milk still hadn't come in, people (health care practitioners and mothers alike) would either A - roll their eyes and tell me to "let nature take its toll and it will come in, just wait" or B - give me large worried eyes and either tell me (or quietly think) that "Oh. Well... not everyone has milk supply. You can formula feed." Neither responses really helped me. So I chose to ignore them all and focus on doing everything I could to improve my breast milk supply. I was going to fight for my baby.

9:01 PM 28 comments

If you've been following this blog for a while, you'd know that I always write a year-in-review post. I always love to reflect on the year that has passed, look back on the things that have happened, check to see if I've achieved the goals that I've set for myself at the start of the year, and then create a new set of goals for the new year. 2019's reflection is a little bit different. Today, I'll be looking back on my pregnancy journey because really, 2019 was all about having my baby. In fact, my goals completely changed and all our travel plans got cancelled because I got so sick during the times when our travel plans were scheduled. But that's alright, baby is worth it all!

My Pregnancy Journey / Progress Photos

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Our baby was due to arrive at the end of Spring and we were holding our baby shower at the start of Spring. So I wanted the baby shower to be Spring-themed: think greenery, blush tones, with a touch of gold (much like our wedding motif, ahh I am so feminine, it's so predictable, but I love it). To start, I prepared my vision board of how I wanted the party to look like and feel and then commissioned one of my best gal pals and creative extraordinaire, Shine - who somehow made the party look like I spent $5,000 on the party when I only spent a fraction of the price.

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A Love Letter To The Baby In My Belly
By Jeanne Lua

I want you to know that when I first saw your heart beating, I knew you were a miracle only God could make.

That when I saw you fully formed and happily swimming in my tummy despite weeks of me being so sick with nausea and vomiting and losing so much weight, I knew that you are such a fighter - and you're going to be tougher than I am.. but for now, and for every moment that you will need me to, I will fight for you.

9:41 PM 27 comments

The story behind our Gender Reveal is that we didn't actually intend on having a gender reveal party until our scan just happened to be scheduled a couple days before my husband's birthday party. And so we thought the timing was too perfect to waste. My husband had the awesome idea of putting paint in water balloons and having me throw them at his shirt. When I asked one of my best gals Shine if she could execute it, she suggested eggs instead - it turned out to be absolute genius!

Gender Reveal Using Eggs Filled With Paint

8:27 PM 46 comments

As much as possible, I try to avoid buying maternity-specific clothing as I hate the idea of buying clothes that I will no longer get to use after a few months. However, it's gotten harder to do this while accommodating my ever growing bump. Also, it's so hard to find good maternity wear! And I know I'm not the only one who feels this way as I see a fellow mum-to-be complain about this on forums everyday. Enter, Pink Blush. I feel like maternity-specific clothing stores are a rarity. In today's blog, I feature two pieces from Pink Blush that's so easy to wear and love.

Mauve Off Shoulder Maxi Dress

8:26 PM 33 comments

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