To celebrate his coming of age, Samuel has spent the day chattering. He especially likes Daddy time before he heads to work each day..those two can have some conversations. He is trying really hard to hold his head up so that he can sit in his new seat, but he’s still a little bit smaller than the other kids his age so we’ll be trying again in a couple of weeks. We are liking baths more and more and Daddy is enjoying teaching Samuel to splash(generally involves getting lots of water over Daddy while Samuel looks on bemused).

We read, in a few of the trillions of pamphlets, books and websites that get thrown at you, that the time between three months and teething should feel like more of a routine and allow you to predict a little easier when the naps and feeds will be. So, predictably, Samuel has spent the first day of month 4 refusing to sleep, wanting to feed every hour, and insisting that he never be put down. Ever.

We are happy to take the rough with the smooth, because smooth Samuel is the cuddliest bundle of joy that we could have imagined and we are very much looking forward to what the next chapter brings.

Yes, it’s fair to say that Samuel J Lasky has inherited his Mum’s love of a chat. No holding him back when he gets going, and his first sentence was officially “Agoo ngug ooowaa”. What talent.

We have made a few new friends at Mum’s group, which is great for me and for Sam. There is a range of ages – Sam is one of the oldest but also one of the smallest! One of the little girls, Stela, was born at 26 weeks, so she is super tiny. Having Sam at 36 weeks was stressful enough, I can’t even imagine what that was like… Yesterday, a few of the littlies laid down on a mat together. Sam was OK while he was on his own but it wasn’t long til the situation deteriorated. He was joined by 3 others, and therefore 6 more flailing little arms, and Stela didn’t wait long to bop him on the nose! When she tried again and her hand landed on his mouth he simply proceeded to suck her fingers!! It has to be said though, Sam will suck anything. Lying next to him one morning I went in for a kiss and he started sucking my nose. Hard! Funny boy…

It has been a busy few weeks. Nanny Nomi and Graham came to give us a hand with Sam and managed to keep themselves pretty occupied at the same time. After a lot of walking, bike riding, and a soaking in the Blue Mountains, they headed home with mixed emotions, but it won’t be long til we’re visiting so that keeps everyone smiling.

We also celebrated Grandad Lasky’s 60th birthday this month. Sam’s first trip out to a busy restaurant, and thankfully he coped pretty well. I always swore that I wouldn’t dress my child up but that promise fell apart pretty quickly when I spotted a certain suit at the shops. Couldn’t resist, and it’s safe to say that he made an entrance!

It’s been a strange month for me. Once Lask went back to work and Nanny Nomi left it was back to normal and time for Sam and I to get used to being on our own. He is generally sleeping really well through the night, from about 8pm-4am, but then refuses to go down for much more than half an hour at a time during the day. I really can’t complain as the night sleeps allow us to get some kip, but it’s impossible to get anything done in the daytime, and it’s hard to keep him happy if we go out. Thankfully he should be able to entertain himself a bit better soon, so I can leave him in his rocker with his toys while I get through some jobs. He is very alert, loves to look around and take everything in, and is starting to grab at things… Look out hair!

Yep, this has been the fortnight of visitors. He has loved meeting everyone, when he was awake of course – a few people came and went without him even knowing about it! And we have been very lucky that friends from overseas have been able to fit us in while they’ve been in Oz(big hello to Nicole, Hannah & James). Others are more persistent of course, with my Mum & Graham landing and refusing to leave for 3 weeks haha

So what else has happened. Well Sam has continued to be a fan of food – he has grown (via two slightly chaotic and loud growth spurts) from 2.78kg (6.1lbs) at birth to 4.5kg(9.9lbs) in 8 weeks so all going well. His legs have changed from string beans to little chubby chunks that we can just fit his nappy round. He has also grown to 55cm long, so all is going well. To be fair, with parents like us he was never going to have a problem with eating.

We had the first round of immunisations last week and I don’t think I’ve ever seen a face turn so red. But he was a brave little man and the tears only lasted a couple of minutes. Not sure if he and that doctor will ever be friends tho. Dreading the day when he actually knows what the needle is and cries before it  hits…we’ll deal with that when it comes I guess. The up-side of the jabs is that Sam can now begin his journey as a social animal. Playgrounds here we come! We have also been to two mum’s groups, which I have unexpectedly loved – if nothing else it’s reassuring when you ask “Is this normal?” and every other tired head in the room nods “yes”. I don’t really have friends in this area with babies so I’m hoping this will be a good way to start.

We have been moving with baby steps when it comes to getting out of the house, only really venturing to the doctor or the supermarket. So yesterday was a huge adventure when we all headed out to the Harbour Bridge and climbed to the top of the pylon. It totally knocked Sam’s sleeping patterns out of whack and I don’t think we’ll do it again before we recover a little, but it was definitely an achievement all round.

Sam can now:

• Hold his head up really well
• Kick his legs into Mummy’s tummy really hard
• Sleep from 8pm-4am (most nights!!)
• Do one really huge poo a day, very loudly. His favourite location for this? The car seat. Hence 3 car boot changes so far :o)
• Coo (roughly translated as something that sounds like un-goo)
• Smile when he is happy
• Focus and move his eyes from side to side following things
• Also cross his eyes. Requires a ‘Control/Alt/Delete’ reset action

The long sleep at nighttime means that Sam now needs a lot of attention during the day, so we’ve been very grateful to Nanny Nomi for helping out. But we’re slowly getting the hang of it all and Daddy is enjoying his last week off work. Don’t get me wrong, we have some times when nothing seems to go right and they are tough, but we are both still very much in love with this little boy, who we are getting to know better every day.

First things first, we want to say a big, big thank you to everyone for the incredible collection of cards and gifts that we have received for us and for Samuel. We have been so, so spoilt and it has been awesome to know that so many people are happy that he is here! He is going to be the best-dressed, best read, and best educational-toyed boy in town!

Time is flying, he is 6 weeks old already and some milestones are being hit.

• First Christmas – 4 generations of Laskys in one room, and I think Sam got more presents than everyone else put together!
• First 7 hour sleep – Hallelujah! Doesn’t happen every night but we’ll take the 8pm-3am run when we get it!
• Graduation to newborn size clothes! He can now officially fit his tushy into some of the clothes we bought for him to wear when he was born…
• First smile – yep, we’ve experienced the ‘sleep smiles’ for a few weeks now, but this morning I was extremely emotional to see a proper happy smile for the first time. Daddy hasn’t seen it yet, but that’s probably because he doesn’t stop singing…

And in the next week:

• First New Year’s Eve – will likely be spent looking out of our kitchen window where we have a (limited)view of the Harbour Bridge and therefore the fireworks. We’ll probably only catch the 9pm kids fireworks this year, unless Sam wakes us up at midnight for a conveniently timed feed. How rock n roll!
• First jabs – coming up next week. He didn’t react to the needles when he was in hospital so I’m hoping that will continue(please).
• First meeting with other children – mother’s group starts next week. Will provide a full review, I’m a little afraid…

In the last 6 weeks Sam has met a whole heap of people, and many of them via webcam. Already a very technologically savvy young man, he’s clearly going to take after his Dad in that department. But as much as he has enjoyed waving on the webcam and farting his way through chats, we are all very, very excited to be seeing Nanny Nomi next week. As you all know, I have always been pretty independent, and no more so than since I’ve moved over to Oz, but I have really missed having my Mum here over the last few weeks. In reality this is probably the best time for her to met Sam – he’s more interactive, more alert and awake for a little longer each time, so it is going to be awesome, but Europe certainly has felt like a very long way away lately.

As for Lask and I, we are enjoying having Daddy at home for 4 weeks. He is really bonding with Sam and enjoying Daddy time. He has become the official nappy changer and bath man in the house, and of course continues to cook us up a storm. I am enjoying being able to eat stinky cheese and salami again (phew), and have even had one cheeky beer(woohoo!). Feeding is going well and I’m enjoying how it helps me bond with my little boy, so the G&T will have to wait a little longer. After 6 weeks out I am finally allowed to drive again and we’ve started to venture out a little more. It still feels like we’re leading an expedition to the North Pole every time we leave the house, but I’m really enjoying little walks to the park and getting a buzz from the free things in life. Next step is venturing out to somewhere that doesn’t have baby changing facilities or a private place to feed – given how bold I’m used to being in my past life, it’s crazy that these little things are seeming like major obstacles, but I’m sure it’ll all get easier with time.

We think we may have navigated Samuel’s first growth sprut. Correction, I managed to bumble through a few extra nappy changes in the middle of the night whilst Ali bore the brunt of a demanding little boy who wanted to eat every two hours and wouldn’t settle.

Poor Ali had three days of muddling around with vomit on her clothes, not sleeping and generally being at the service of Sam, who just couldn’t settle down.

Most of the guides we were given said that newborns cry on average for about two hours every day and while we thought we were lucky with our little man, he definitely kept up to pace for a few days there. I had been back at work for a few weeks and don’t think I’ve ever seen Ali look more relieved when I’ve walked in the door. Anyone who’s been through a few days of a sick baby or one that won’t settle will know what it’s like when you’re at the end of your rope, there’s nothing quite like feeling your baby finally drop off on your shoulder while you’re taking them for a walk round the block.

Growth spurts aside, Sam is becoming more and more aware of his surroundings by the day. We’re lucky enough to be able to play for a while occasionally after a feed and he is able to hold his gaze longer and longer.You also get the feeling he fights going to sleep sometimes because he wants to stay up and play.

So besides all that, over the last few weeks Sam and I have been hanging out a bit more… I was going to play Star Wars for him yesterday but for some reason he fell asleep. He’s getting really good at looking round the room and trying to find where mummy has gone when she walks into the next room. Sam is also getting very good at saving up massive poos for me to clean up when it’s my turn to change him.

The unseasonable Sydney weather hasn’t helped us much this week. It’s been a cold and rainy start to summer, and of course we only bought little short suits because we though he would be boiling through December. So we have been dressing the little man in the 3 full-length sleep suits that we have. Even though they are size 0000(i.e. tiny baby), he looks like a clown in them and his feet don’t reach the end! So that has been the cause for much amusement in this household…

The weather has also meant that we haven’t had much chance to get out and about. So Samuel and I have had a lot of indoor bonding time. I’ve been a bit nervous about taking him out, especially after the warnings from the hospital about exposing such a little one to whooping cough(there’s a small epidemic here) and other nasties before he’s vaccinated, but also due to the nappy-busting poo explosions we’ve experienced! We’re taking our time getting used to routines and starting to get comfortable with how this little man works…we’ll get there but for now we’re hibernating!

Samuel still doesn’t have much awake time, but when he does he is starting to acknowledge sounds, copy facial expressions, and be a little more aware. He seems to be dealing well with the paparazzi (Lask) too. He gets pretty restless and easily over-stimulated in the late afternoons/evenings so we spend most of our time when Lask is home from work trying to settle him down. Our evenings are definitely no longer our own!

I, of course, am trying to turn myself into a domestic goddess, keeping up with the washing and cleaning etc. but spend most of my time in some kind of trance, figuring out if now is a good time for a nap! 3 weeks down and it is still taking some getting used to, but I think we’re doing OK in our own little way.

Lask has been back at work but should be starting to take some days off next week and will then have a nice bunch of time off over Christmas. Can’t wait for us to do some things all together. Very excited about that. He is still playing chef, making sure that I get my veggies and don’t survive on Cadbury’s alone (you know who you are) :o) We’ve become a family and a team and it’s totally, fantastically, awesome.

Samuel has definitely established himself as the centre of attention at 6/98 Alt Street. He has received all kinds of beautiful gifts and cards, and already met his fair share of visitors.

It’s taking a little time to get used to the fact that there is no routine! For the first week at home we had a pretty good schedule of 3 hour sleeps and happy eating, but in the last couple of days he seems to be a little more alert during the day and evening, and sleep is officially for baby wimps! The nappy change has never been a popular time, the only time he cries at the moment. Mr Lasky Jr doesn’t like a cold tushy, this we have established. Today we had our first poo explosion – right through the nappy, onesie and wrap, and the washing machine is going to start claiming overtime payments soon. But despite confusing the heck out of daddy and I, the little man is pretty amazing. I think he’s inherited the ‘Lasky Logic’ (i.e. there is none to anything he does), and I think I was more confident organising 150 delegates than 1 baby, but for now we’re taking it one day at a time, trying to make sense of the different movements and noises, and hopefully we’ll start to understand each other.

I can’t believe he’s been in our lives for 2 weeks already. It has been tiring, but it has been more than I could have ever imagined. We can’t wait til his little personality starts to come out and we can have some play time together.