Pages

Monday, February 28, 2011

Bond, Baby Bond

Stay with me on this one, it gets a bit rambly, but I do have a point:

So by now you would have heard about the Bonds Baby Search 2011. Well I'm over it already and the polls have been open less than a day.

I wasn't going to enter Tricky because I thought I would have to put his real name on the entry - but I couldn't see anything in the rules that expressly forbade it... So I entered. I'm pretty sure he's the only baby with a pseudonym in the competition. That makes him cool, right?

Anyway, I'm well aware though that almost every person that exploited entered their child honestly believes that their gorgeous girl or beautiful boy are by far the most adorable creature ever to walk (or crawl) the earth.

I'm a little bit different. Sure I think Tricky is the cutest thing I have ever seen, but I'm under no impression that people who are not directly related to him also share my passion for his toothy grin and chipmunk cheeks.

Tricky's Bonds entry photo

When voting opened today I naturally went straight to Tricky's page with my finger all ready to click VOTE... but there was a system error.

The mums of the 50,000 other entrants were also trying to vote at the same time. Plus the dads, the grandparents, the friends and of course all the Aunty Pennys.

Meh, no biggy, I'll come back later, I thought to myself.

Tonight I went to try again and whilst I could now access the site, the voting button was not working. I wondered (out loud on Twitter) if I was the only one experiencing it but MrsGMach of Our Life in Blog Form said she was having the same troubles too.

So I checked the Bonds Baby Search Facebook page to see if there was a "We're trying to fix it" message, and came across some very mature, well written comments from people who were wondering if perchance the system would be up and running any time soon:


Seriously, Ms Pixel (not her real name, though it was there, for all to see), is it really that important that it required swearing and shouting? Dude, take a breath.

What Ms Pixel is failing to realize is that as with all voting things like this, there is a 'Voter's Choice' winner but the rest are actually chosen by a marketing department.

It's a just a competition. Winning it will not guarantee you happiness or health. Winning it will not even guarantee you fame and fortune. 

So here's the link for my Tricky. Vote for him or don't vote for him. He will still be the most beautiful boy in the world to me whether he gets a hundred votes... or just my one.


___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Friday, February 25, 2011

FlogYoBlog Friday - The Anticlimax Edition

Happy Friday, peoples!

They say first impressions are important. So we put on a nice dress and tart ourselves up a bit when meeting someone new. The blogging equivalent of that is making up a story about FYBF gallivanting around the place and photoshopping your friend's logos in the hopes that you'd all say "OMG Glowless, you are so talented and witty, of course I will follow FYBF to your place while it's on holidays!" 

The problem with first impressions though is that they can be pretty unrealistic. That perfect image will soon fade and the real you is left sitting there in a jeans and a tshirt, with no makeup on, hoping that people will not vomit at the site of you. The blogging equivalent of that is the massive anticlimax of this post after last week.

But I'm hoping you'll forgive me and hop right back on the Blog Flogging train if I give you free stuff - I've even bundled them all together for you over in the sidebar under 'Current Giveaways'.

I have gone a bit giveaway-crazy lately, mainly thanks to it being less than one month til the Aussie Bloggers Conference! I promise, when it's all been and gone (and I'm back in Perth, crying that I miss everyone) that I'll revert back to my usual sarcastic, non-generous self.

Enough blabber, let's Flog!

The Rules
(As stolen from Lori, thus making Baby Jesus cry... sorry)
  1. Follow Where's My Glow? 
  2. Bow down at the alter of Mummy Time; Blog-goddess, all round groovy gal and creator of FYBF
  3. Grab the FYBF button and post it on your sidebar or in the post you're linking up
  4. Link in your favourite/best post from the week
  5. Follow at least 1 linkyer/blogger (Be nice and spread the comment love)
  6. The list will be open for linkyers on Fridays (and for the foreigners Friday as well)
  7. A new and fresh link list will open every Friday. And you will have to link up AGAIN. The previous link list does not carry over to the following week
  8. Because I live in Dullsville Perth the list will open around 7am AWST - I'm not getting up at 5am and the last time I scheduled a post it didn't work
  9. Ripping off my stuff- including these rules- makes baby Jesus cry. if you are doing your own blog hop, please write your own rules. You know who you are
FYBF






___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

A Gnome By Any Other Name - Giveaway

Tonight I was fortunate enough to have a night off the whole Mama thing and go to the movies with Aunty Penny and Lani & Boo from Me & Boo and see Gnomeo & Juliet!

A classic love story re-told Gnome style. I have not laughed so much in ages! It was so adorable, I loved every minute of it (even the beginning bit of ads because it gave me time to adjust to the 3D glasses).

My favourite character was Featherstone (the flamingo), followed closely by Nannette (the frog) - I've always tended to like supporting actors over the big stars, and these guys cracked me up.


There were plenty of jokes for adults (as evidenced by Aunty Penny cacking herself the entire time) and was exciting enough for kids (as evidenced by Boo sitting through the entire thing and shushing Aunty Penny hehe). There's even a wicked soundtrack by Elton John that will have you grooving along in your seat.

When the movie finished my little posse even clapped because we enjoyed it so much.

On our way out to the toilet (cos that's what you do after a movie) we had a moment that just proves everyone in this tiny little city knows each other. It was like six degrees of Kevin Bacon in blog form. There was a chick standing in the foyer, looking like she was waiting for someone... she looked really familiar... but I wasn't sure...

There was that moment when you do the 'should I, shouldn't I' dance in your head. If you say hello and it's not them, well it's pretty embarrassing. But I figured I'd already embarrassed myself so much earlier in the day that this, in comparison, would be like water off a duck's back. So I asked...

"Um, are you Jody? From BM-I Don't Care?"

She didn't even have to answer, I could tell from the look on her face. I'm pretty sure her thoughts at that moment were "Who the eff are you, woman?" but it came out as "Ahh, yes?".

I knew it! I'd only seen a proper photo of her earlier that day (avatar pics don't count!) because she's doing a guest post for me soon. 

It was followed by introductions, laughs, photos and a lot of mutterings of "what are the odds?" Three Perth bloggers, in the same cinema.

Anyway, where was I?

Ah yes, the awesome movie. But more importantly, the giveaway! I have TWO in season double passes to give away.

To enter, leave a comment below telling me what your favourite Shakespearean play is - it's that easy! No following, no tweeting, no facebooking, nada. Just a comment. Go! Do it now!






Entry is open to Australian residents only. Entries close at 8pm AWST on 4th March 2011. The winners will be chosen using a random number generator. The winner has one week to reply to the notification email at which point it will be re-drawn.

I received complimentary passes to Gnomeo & Juliet courtesy of Porter Novelli via Aussie Mummy Bloggers. All opinions expressed are purely my own.

___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Thursday, February 24, 2011

The Key to Success (or my front door)

Continuing on with the theme of blogging about the embarrassing, stupid things I do, I bring you today's post.

I had put Tricky down for his nap and was so tired (though it was only 9.30am) that I thought I'd try to have one too. But then the postman came on his little bike and the allure of a man in high vis gear was just too much for me, so I went to empty the letterbox. At that point a whisper of a breeze decided to come and slam my door. Brilliant.

I was outside. Tricky was inside. On top of the unbrushed hair and bags under my eyes, I had no keys (duh), no phone, no shoes, NO BRA and was still in my PJs. What a sight.

Tina had only just told me to put a bra on but I didn't listen. I've learned my lesson.

I looked up and down the street - the elderly lady two houses up was watering a few plants in her front garden. I hurredly walked up to her, holding the junk mail and letters across my bra-less boobs and by the time I had gotten to her the tears had started.

"I've locked myself out of the house and my baby is inside! Alone!"

Why did I add "Alone!"?. It was pretty bloody obvious from my tears and choking voice that he was in there by himself.

Mrs Neighbour took me inside her immaculate home whilst asking me to excuse the mess, then sat me in front of their phone. I went blank. What was Map Guy's number?! I always just hit his name in my phone, I never dial his number.

I started to dial Aunty Penny's number (the first mobile phone number I ever learned so it has stuck with me all these years) but it hadn't even connected yet when I had a sudden flash of brilliance and remembered. Hurrah!

His voice sounded so mature and commanding because he answered using his 'work voice'. And then there was my voice. All meek and squeaky like a mouse; "I've locked myself out *sob sob*. Tricky's inside *sniff sniff* Can you come home?"

It would be about 25 minutes til he would be home so Mr Neighbour walked me home, insisting that he would try his own house keys in our Fort Knox-worthy front door. Mrs Neighbour just rolled her eyes and wished me luck.

Not surprisingly his keys didn't work, but I wanted to hug him for even trying. He made sure I was OK and returned home to Mrs Neighbour, to no doubt talk about how strange it was to see a crying, bra-less woman standing on their doorstop in PJs.

Map Guy rolled up, a knight in shining armour a Black and White taxi and let me in just as Tricky was waking up from his nap and starting to cry. I'd been outside for almost 40 minutes.

I went and got these for my neighbours, it's so nice to know that there are kind people who will take pity on a girl in her jammies.


Have you locked yourself out?
___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Simply Awesome - Giveaway

It's less than a month til the Aussie Bloggers Conference! I hope you're all happy dancing as much as I am (cos I feel like a tool if I'm the only one dancing).

When you see us on the red carpet (there is a red carpet for me, isn't there, Brenda?), with paparazzi bulbs flashing, you can shout out "Tricky, who are you wearing?!". He probably won't answer, ya know, since he can't talk yet, but I can answer for him. Simply Colors.

Simply Colors have provided Tricky with some funky personalized shirts to wear to the conference and a great little sleeping bag for the hotel.

I was able to choose what I wanted on the shirts and sleeping bag so it meant I got to have a go at their interactive online order system. It's such a clever system - you can see exactly what your item will look like right there on the screen (but without the text box around it obviously!).


I can't believe how spot on the computer image is compared to the finished product:

If you're unsure, the screen capture is on the left and the real one is on the right
And here he is not sleeping in his sleeping bag. Yeah.



He has one other awesome shirt but you'll have to wait til the conference to see it!

It's impossible to order in just a few clicks because once you've designed one shirt you will go through and do another, then a hoodie, then a bag, and oh I might just try a rugby shirt while I'm here and before you know it, it's been an hour and the kids are going feral because you forgot to feed them. Oops.

So you want one, right? Well, duh, of course you do.

I have not one, but TWO items to give away - a personalized short sleeved tshirt (sizes to fit up to a 10 year old) or a personalized bodysuit/romper/onesie (sizes up to 3-4 year old)!

 
If you'd like to get your hands on one then all you have to do is:
  • Be a follower of Where's My Glow and Like it on Facebook
  • Like Simply Colors on Facebook
  • Leave a comment telling me what your favourite Simply Colors product is
  • For an extra entry Tweet this giveaway -  you can say something like "Gimme my simply awesome Simply Colors tshirt @Glowless! "(leave a separate comment)
  • For an extra entry share this giveaway on Facebook (leave a separate comment)

The winner will get to choose their own design, but if you get stuck, I'd recommend choosing one of these:

Entry is open to Australian residents only. Entries close 8pm AWST on the 10th of March. The winner will be chosen using a random number generator. The winner has one week to respond to the notification email at which point the prize will be re-drawn. The first winner will get to choose if they'd like a shirt or bodysuit and the second person will get the other one.
___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Wednesday, February 23, 2011

Cured

I've spent the last ten years in and out of therapy; like a submarine, I'd surface when things were going bad and find myself someone who would listen to me rant and rave, then, when it was all hunky-dory I'd go solo again.

I was evaluated for Post Natal Depression just after Tricky had his first operation and was found to have a high enough score on the little questionnaire thingy to get a stamp on my head that said "insane" diagnosis. I did a nine week group therapy course and found it really helpful but wanted to keep seeing a counsellor as I knew I had a few stressful events coming up (like Tricky's second round of surgery) that had the potential to bring me down a bit.

I was 'matched' with a therapist who did things differently to all my other previous therapists. After years of doing therapy one way I was more than happy to give something else a go.

Over four sessions I had to do some very interesting stuff like say what TV character I identified with or wanted to be when I was a kid (easy, Punky Brewster cos she was so cool and had a gorgeous dog), draw a picture of my boundaries (I even used coloured pencils in case it was being marked), write with my non-writing hand when answering some questions (which strangely gave me a massive sense of de ja vu) and some other talky-type stuff. On a scale of 1 - "That's some pretty deep shit" it rated only about a three, as evidenced by the fact that I only cried once.

Apparently, seeing her for four sessions is all I needed...
Those pesky counsellors of the past were just ripping me off by helping me work through my problems. Working through things is so last season.

Apparently, all these years I have battled with mental illness was because I'd just 'taken on too much responsibility'...
So the two years when I stayed at home all day, every day, sometimes unable to get out of bed, surviving on a disability pension, mustn't count then. My only responsibility then was to get to therapy so I'm pretty sure I wasn't taking on too much; and I was nuttier than a fruit cake!

Apparently I just need to reward myself more by going to the hairdresser...
If only I'd known that my split ends caused my depression, anxiety, social phobia and personality disorder! Here I was thinking that they were just a bit ugly and covered them up by rockin' a classic messy bun.

Apparently, now that I know this... I am cured. CURED I tells ya!

Don't let my sarcasm detract you from the fact that this is, of course, brilliant news.

Any of you reading this with mental health issues, quick, what was your favourite TV show? BAM! Cured! You're welcome.

Although I was in quite a state of shock at the end of today's session when she declared that we'd worked through a lot and identified all my issues, and therefore I didn't need to come back, I did manage to actually form words and ask her what she thought I should do if I wasn't coping?

"When you say "I'm not coping", that's just your opinion. You're judging yourself. Try not to do it."

Riiiiight. Thanks for that. I've come to you for help and you're gonna shrug your shoulders and say "try not to do that". Brilliant.

So my feelings of inadequacy as a mother will now be getting cosy with the dust bunnies because after that advice I'll be sweeping them under the carpet from now on.

Have you had a weird therapy experience? 

___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Monday, February 21, 2011

Burpy Bibs - Giveaway

Tricky is a messy eater. Actually that’s quite an understatement. Food goes everywhere.

It’s not that I’m that bad at aiming for his gob, it’s just that some of it comes back out again.

Because he’s so interested in everything around him, his head swings from side to side like one of those wide mouth clowns you put the balls in, and as a result the food likes to drop not only down his front where his bib is, but down the sides of his shoulders on to his clothes.

It is not unusual for the kid to need a change of clothes and a bath after a meal.

So when Aden + Anais sent me some amazing Burpy Bibs that covered Tricky’s shoulders I danced around the kitchen singing the Hallelujah (not the angelic one, the Dr Alben one - you know, where the chicks dance around wearing shower curtains).

Click on the film strip for a closer look at the  Burpy Bib in action!
Ooh nom nom nom!
No Mama, I do it.
The other thing that I really like about them is the way they do up at the back with a simple press stud – the other bibs we use that are long enough to do any sort of clothes-protecting are all of the over-the-head variety, which means when I yank them off gently pull them over Tricky’s head, half the food that was on them is now smooshed in to his face, no matter how carefully I do it.

Their design is just genius. They can be used as a burp cloth when you’ve got a spewey small baby and because of their contoured shape, they stay on your shoulder as if they were glued down. And because they’re Aden + Anais it means they’re super soft muslin and look awesome with their chic prints.

For reducing the amount of washing I have to do and therefore saving me time and money, and for looking completely funky, (and because when put on backwards they make a great baby cape) the Burpy Bibs are being awarded the coveted Where’s My Glow Seal of Approval!
So without further ado I bring you the goods! Aden + Anais have given me a set of Burpy Bibs, to give away to one lucky reader!
To enter:
  1. Follow Where’s My Glow - you do already though, right?
  2. Like Aden + Anais on Facebook
  3. Leave a comment* below telling me which design you’d prefer by checking out the Aden + Anais webpage.
  4. For an extra entry share this competition with your friends via Twitter by saying "I want my @adenandanais Burpy Bibs from @Glowless! http://bit.ly/fd5wWL" (leave a separate comment once you've done it)
  5. For an extry entry share this competition on Facebook (leave a separate comment once you've done it) 
The giveaway is open to Australian residents and closes at 8pm WST on Monday 28th February 2011. The winner will be chosen using a random number generator.

*Make sure you sign in to Disqus (the comment widget) with a valid email address so you can be contacted when you win. If you’re having trouble with Disqus you can email your entry to glowless{at}wheresmyglow{dot}com. The winner has one week to reply to contact email at which time the prize will be re-drawn.


______________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers' Conference thanks to
HealthyChart, Baby Goes Retro and Simply Colors

Friday, February 18, 2011

Flog-sitting

Welcome, Floggers!

What on earth is Flog Yo Blog Friday doing at Where's My Glow? Well, let me tell you a story...

Once upon a time there was a little blog hop called FYBF. Her Mummy (Time), raised her with great care; nurturing her, educating her, and hardly ever smacking her. She grew up big, strong, and surprisingly well adjusted.

The time came for FYBF to move out of home. To go to some Random University where she could learn about all the important things in life like philosophy and hangover cures.


But, like many a young blog hop, she had an incurable, insatiable, undeniable need to travel; to see the world, or at least another URL. So off she popped to a far away, Wander-ful land for a backpacking holiday. It was a lovely time and she even sent a postcard.

On her return from the US of K, she stopped in briefly at her mum's to get a free meal and her laundry done. Typical.

Which brings us to the present. She was going to jet set off again to see if she could find the illusive Paddington Bear in Peru but thanks to a typo at the travel agent's, she found herself on a plane to Perth. On arrival she found the only thing 'Paddington' around here is an Ale House. Figuring that was just as good, she decided to ditch the fat bear for a Fat Yak and for the time being will be crashing on my couch.

And they all drank heavily lived happily ever after. The End.

Don't worry, next time I won't be so long winded.

The Rules
  • No rules this week, do what you like and we'll get down to business next week!



    mummytime
    Let's get Floggin'! 


 ___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Mappy Birthday

No, that's not a typo in the title, it was me trying to be funny because tomorrow is Map Guy's birthday!

He'll be 28... if you've been playing along at home, right now you'll be thinking "OMG! She's a cradle-snatchin' cougar!" and you'd be right. I am 14 months older.

For the next ten months our ages will appear one year apart, then I'll hit the big 3-0 and (just like every year) we go to being two years apart, as if by magic. Well, magic and dodgy maths.

Being the loving, adoring wife that I am, I wrote him a poem:

There once was a guy who liked maps
Who had a baby who wouldn't take naps
His wife was lazy
And a little bit crazy
And wished he'd wear assless chaps

What? I never said it was a good poem.

Hands up if you're now picturing Map Guy in assless chaps? I know I am. He does have a very nice bottom so I'm sure he could totally rock that look.


Happy Birthday Map Guy,

As a present I give you this video. It's the song that was #1 in Australia on the day you were born according to This day in Music. I'll tell my Mum, she'll love you even more.





Love always




___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Spring has Sprung (In Summer)

WARNING: We wish to advise you that the following post has been written on less than three hours of sleep, is not in chronological order, is long and rambling and contains an F-bomb (or two).

It's OVER! Spring has most definitely sprung now that Tricky's Go Go Gadget springs are gone!

This morning he went in to theatre as a Bionic Baby and emerged with help of the Blue Fairy (his surgeon in blue scrubs) as a Real Boy. Eat your heart out, Pinnochio!


The day had some ups and downs, and because it's good to end on a high, let's go down first:

Tricky spent almost an hour in the post surgical recovery area where you are monitored until you are sufficiently out of anaesthesia and your vital signs are good. He just refused to wake up.

My poor little poppet would open his eyes for less than a second then promptly fall fast asleep. His oxygen levels kept dipping below 85% and at one point got to 79% - that's not life threatening stuff, but it needs to be monitored and he had to be on oxygen for the first hour to keep it up before being moved to a ward.

In the hand over from surgical nurse to ward nurse (who I'll call Nurse Dimwit) his low oxygen levels were mentioned and it was stressed they needed to be monitored and that he had to be on oxygen if they fell below 92%. So off we went with Nurse Dimwit to the ward where a new pulseox machine was set up because the one already attached to him in surgery (and bound to him with his IV) had a different cord to the machines on the ward - clever huh? As if there weren't enough bloody cords and drips hanging off him already.

He still hadn't woken up, was a little bit gray and breathing quite shallow, but hey, he was attached to a machine so we didn't think anything of it... you can see where this is going can't you? An hour later a different nurse walked past our machine, does an exaggerated double take like you'd expect in a cartoon, then calls out to Nurse Dimwit "Did you set the alarm parameters on this?"

Tricky's oxygen levels had been under 85% for a whole fucking hour because Nurse Dimwit didn't turn the alarm on. No wonder he was fucking grey!

I was livid. I couldn't talk. I just sat there as big, fat, silent tears rolled down my cheeks - like the ones in the movies, except my nose was red and my eyes were puffy.

I did the fuggo version of the silent movie star cry a few times; when the four year old in the bed next to us was crying out in big, heaving sobs "I...want....my....Da-... -ad" and when the tweenage girl a few beds down laid there by herself for an hour and a half while her parents waited in the 'Friendship Room' still thinking their daughter was in surgery thanks to a monumental communication fuc... no, two is enough.

But it wasn't all doom and gloom... I did, after all, promise to end on an Up:

Going in, the anaethetist prepared me for the worst case scenario of a child going under. There was a possibility Tricky would cry, fight against it, shake as if having a fit, make snorty noises (like his Mama), roll his eyes back in his head, then go limp. The limp bit was the bit I feared most.

They were so gentle and kind with him, bringing the strawberry scented gas mask to the side of his face and trying to get him to play with it, rather than just shoving it on. He wasn't interested so they did have to shove it on, but that's not the point. They tried to make it as gentle as possible.

He fought it a little bit and cried out, trying to pull it from his face... but then he started to go a little weak and at that first sign, they said "Now Mum, give him a kiss and we'll see you soon". They weren't rude or abrupt, but they were very commanding, knowing that he was about to go completely under. As I kissed his cheek, his whole body relaxed in to the bed and I turned and left so quickly that I fumbled with the door.

I even made it all the way back to the 'Friendship Room' before crying. 

A short while after all the oxygen issues were sorted (I told you it wasn't in chronological order, it's instead in bad news/good news order), it was like someone flipped Tricky's on switch. He went from hard to rouse to hard to keep still within a matter of minutes. All he wanted to do was climb up on the bed rails, pull on his TWO pulseox cords and bang on the oxygen machine. He was so difficult to contain... it was lovely.


He then slid right back in to his routine that we've been trying so hard to maintain. His new found (and hard fought for) talent of sleeping through the night is the only thing that is keeping me sane. He simply replaced his morning nap with morning anaesthesia and didn't miss a beat. I realize he hasn't had a chance to sleep through, seeing as the surgery was today, but it's a start and I believe in starts!

So it was a stressful day but exciting at the same time. After a checkup in one week (that is scheduled for 8:31am I might add) and six weeks, he should only need to be monitored once every year or two - according to the surgeon we just have to wait and watch him grow. I'm looking forward to it.

___ . . . ___ . . . ___

Thank you so much to all the wonderful people who left a comment on my previous post sharing their personal stories, wishing us well, thinking of and praying for Tricky. It was so lovely to feel such support from people I am yet to meet. Thank you.




___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Tuesday, February 15, 2011

The Next Step

Tricky’s second (and hopefully final) surgery for his Craniosynostosis is tomorrow.

For the first round of surgery we were travelling in to the unknown. I had no point of reference. I hadn’t had to deal with a baby needing surgery before. I hadn’t had to deal with a sick baby before. Hell, I hadn’t even had to deal with a baby before! I had no way of knowing just what we were in for.

Everything was new and scary.

It was like the first day at a new job when you don’t know where to go, don’t know anyone’s name, oh, and your baby is about to have his skull cracked open.

But this time? This time it’s still scary, still nerve-wracking… but different.

Last time it was major surgery. Days of morphine, special care nursing, neurological obs and machines that go PING. This time it is merely day surgery… a few hours later and Bob’s your uncle, kid is fixed, off you go, don’t let the door hit you on the way out.

Last time I was worried about how he’d feed afterwards, if his eyes would swell shut, if he would still be my little Tricky. And whilst that is on my mind now, my worries this time revolve mainly around the anesthesia.

At 14 weeks old, Tricky fell asleep in my arms before surgery and a lovely nurse with a divine Irish accent, gently lifted him from me and took him to theatre. I only saw the waiting room.

These days, as an inquisitive eight month old, it’s a rarity for him to fall asleep in my arms; and whilst he will quite happily be handed around to most people for cuddles, he does have his shy, only want Mama moments… which means it’s highly likely I’ll have to go in with him.

To the shiny, white, sterile cocoon.

I will have to watch him be anaesthetized.


Go pale and limp.

As if dead...

And I am shit scared.

Map Guy has said he will do it. But there is something stopping me from accepting his offer.

There is a strange mix of emotions going through my head. My thoughts are swinging madly between fear and the deep yearning to protect a child. My child.

I should be able to do this. I shouldn't give it a second thought.

He's my baby and he needs his mother.

He's my baby and I need him.

I read Fi’s post over at Calm Blue Ocean, about her daughter who had to spend some time in hospital and why she chose to be the one to stay, and it resonated with me.

Some would call it martyrdom whilst others will call it protective instinct. Fi suggests it might be her control issues. Whatever it is, that drive, that force... it's powerful. 

This is not just my job, it's my life; my blood; my baby.

If he can go through two skull surgeries before he's nine months old, then the least I can do is be there to hold him.

To see all posts relating to Tricky's Craniosynostosis journey click here.
To find out more about Craniosynostosis click here.

___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Monday, February 14, 2011

7 Inches...

When I decided to call this post "7 inches" I put it to Twitter to guess what I was talking about and the guesses, in order of popularity were heels, penises, salami, hair and a roll of cookie dough. One of those is correct.

Meet Damien. He's my beautiful BFF Bec's hunk-o'-spunk husband.

Nawww aren't they cute together?!

In true Aussie Bogan style, he gets called Damo a lot.

After a few drinks, it becomes Daayyyymoohhhhh and he looks like this:

Rockin' out, probably to Metallica
His most prominant feature, other than his baby blues, is his beard. His face fuzz. His chin warmer. Bec has been known to call it the 'Lady Garden' of his face, though it's not so much 'Map of Tazzie' as 'Map of Portugal'.
Image credit to the one and only Map Guy
I've known Damien for about eight years (I've known Bec since year one), and have never ever seen his chin. It has always been covered in beardy goodness.

It is almost 7 inches long and he has resisted Bec's nagging encouragement to shave it off... until now.

He's going to be Brave and Shave for a Cure as part of the Leukaemia foundation's World's Greatest Shave!


If you'd like to support Leukaemia research and see the naked chin of Damo, then you can sponsor him by clicking the picture below... if Damo reaches his goal of $200 by the 12th of March, then all his naked-chin-glory will be displayed here on Where's My Glow? for you to see!

Too cool for school

Click here to check out the Caroline's Angels giveaway
___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Friday, February 11, 2011

Pick Me! Pick Me!

Did you know I have been nominated for the Kleenex Mums Best Blog Post of 2010?

The nomination process was long and hard. One that consisted of me saying "Yeah orright, I nominate my bastardized Christmas poem" and voila I was in.

Well if I don't nominate me, who will?

I chose the poem because I was proud of it, even though it was silly, and because it was one of my most commented on pieces of the year. I almost cried when Disqus decided to eat my comments - I can still see them but no one else can (feel free to comment again on the post, you know, to stop the tears).

It does however mean I'm up against blog posts that are either inspiring, heartbreaking or well written... sometimes all three.

If you'd like to vote for me (or the best blog post, whatever) then you can check it out by clicking the logo below.

Voting for me will make you look ten years younger and ten times more appealing to the opposite sex (or the same sex if you prefer)*


*May be complete bullshit


___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Sleeping Like A Baby - Giveaway

Tricky has never been a good sleeper. On his better nights he’d wake up screaming a minimum of four times and a few times it was as many as eight. One time it was thirteen. THIRTEEN! My Mum came over the next morning to take Tricky for babycino and I opened the door, thrust him in her arms and told her not to bring him back. Sleep deprivation is a bitch.

Mix his constant waking with a little bit of insomnia and I was living surviving on about four hours of broken sleep a night.

“He’ll sleep through the night as soon as he self-settles” I was told.

He has self-settled from a month old. Put him in his cot, leave the room and he’d fall asleep. Sometimes you’d have to go back once to make him lay down again, but most of the time that’d be it. The times he would just stir or slightly wake, he would go back to sleep by himself, albeit after moving to the other side of the cot and turning upside down.

But he would cry out in his sleep, really loud, sad, sobbing cries and his own crying was waking him. He’d wake screaming so he’d keep crying. I have no idea if he was dreaming of someone taking Mama’s boobs away or what, but he would go from sleeping peacefully to full on screaming in less than a second.

Anyway, after implementing a rather strict routine of sleep and feed times, he was starting to get the hang of it and we got it down to waking once or twice a night. Then I spoke to Caroline Radford and Caroline McMahon from Caroline’s Angels (the baby sleep specialists) and in our fifteen minute chat they gave me a few tips… the next morning I woke to hear him babbling in his cot at 7am… he had slept through AND woken up happy!

After eight loooong months of no sleep there was much singing and dancing in the street that morning I can assure you. And it has continued with the bare minimum of setbacks which I’m pretty sure was just teething related. I am over the moon!

So now you have the opportunity to get a little Angel Action for yourself.

Up for grabs is an Angel Wings Membership valued at $59.00! You will get three months of online access to the Caroline’s Angels extensive sleep and behavioural solutions catalogue. Their wealth of information will be at your fingertips and you’ll be able to download articles to view and work through at the pace that suits you and your child’s developmental stage.
They have 37 years of combined experience on everything from toilet training, to eating and of course, sleeeeeep, and winning this means you (or a very lucky friend) have exclusive access to it! If a few words to them got Tricky sleeping imagine what three months worth of access to their library will do for you!

Entering is simple:
  1. Become a Follower of Where’s My Glow? it’s a little button over there >>> that says “Follow” (required)
  2. Like Caroline’s Angels on Facebook (required)
  3. Leave a comment below telling me what you would do if you had wings!
For extra entries
  1. Like Where’s My Glow? on Facebook (leave a separate comment)
  2. Tweet the following:
“I want my Angel Wings from @CarolinesAngels and @Glowless http://bit.ly/gKem2a "

Since it’s an online read-only source the giveaway is open to everyone. Entries close Friday 18th February at 8pm AWST at which time the winner will be chosen using a random number generator. The winner will be contacted by email and has one week to claim their prize - if the prize is not claimed by this time it will be redrawn.
  
___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Thursday, February 10, 2011

We've got Perthonality

No, I don't have a lisp, I'm just stealing the term normally associated with "personalities" and celebrities that come from Perth and using it for my Bloggy friends... cos they're the closest things to celebrities I'll ever know.

This morning I ventured to the other side of the Swan River to Colin's house to meet up with the Perth Chapter of Aussie Mummy Bloggers. Everyone knows Colin, he's the evil genius Daddy behind Super Parents.

I got to catch up with @Felicakes from My Life in Mono and her 5 month old Little Tiger (who I was lucky enough to meet when she was a newborn and OMG she's grown so much!), and meet @_MissyBoo_ from Me and Boo and @rachelf_78 from Because I Said So, who brought along her 8 month old Smiling Tiger (I'm sensing a Tiger theme here...).

No, not that Tiger
Four women, three babies, two plates of food, and one Colin. Awesome.

At one point all three babies were being breastfed at the one time... it could quite easily be mistaken for an ABA meeting. @rachelf_78 started us off and it made me look at the clock and realize it was time for Tricky's feed too (he's on a feed routine now, more about that tomorrow), then @Felicakes joined in. @_MissyBoo_ felt right at home seeing as she's a lactation consultant, and Colin? Well Colin's had kids so he didn't mind one bit, though we did joke about what he would tell his wife when she got home!

But wait, there's more! And it's not steak knives.

Using the powers of the Interwebs there was a Special Guest Appearance by Brenda of MummyTime, just like Heather Locklear all those years in Melrose Place - seriously, Heather, you were in the show from the beginning, you were definitely not a special guest.

It was oh so exciting to meet the people I've only met through cyber space but a little bit nerve wracking too... I suppose I should get used to meeting Bloggers IN REAL LIFE since the conference is a mere 37 days away! Squeeeeee!

Oh, and by the way I've been singing this song since I wrote the title, enjoy!




EDIT: See what Felicakes and Colin had to say about our meet up!
___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to

Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Beetroot Vs Pork Crackle - Guest Post by CRAP Mamma

I love guest posting on other blogs but I've never hosted one at Where's My Glow? before... that changes today! I'm having the day off and calling in a blogsitter - my very first guest blogger, Jacqui from CRAP Mamma - it's her first time guesting so please be gentle and show her some comment lovin'.
___ . . . ___ . . . ___

A couple of months ago I was lucky enough to win a HealthyChart from Glowless at Where’s My Glow?

A Healthy What? I hear you ask. A HealthyChart is a magnetic rewards/incentive chart for kids.

Now my boys aren’t real rewards-chart-type of kids. Maybe I’m not really a rewards-chart-kinda Mum. So when I was told that I’d won it I’ve got to admit I was a little skeptical at the benefits it was going to have on my family.

That was until I received it in the mail.

It was colourful.

It was pretty.

It was eye-catching.

Yep it was going to be a winner.

Endorsed by busy mums and CRAP ones

It took pride of place on our fridge.

I thought I’d use the chart for my nearly five-year-old – Mr Cuddles.

Now Mr Cuddles is really a pretty good eater but like most pre-schoolers his repertoire of food could be much improved.

Enter HealthyChart.

We found it really educational.

It made him me think about introducing him to new veggies so we can use the different magnetic tiles that hadn’t yet been used.

It was a great bribery encouragement tool:

“Just try this beetroot so we can put another magnet on your chart mate”;

“But it’s red!”;

“Yes I know mate, but you get a magnet just for trying it”;

“But it’s red Mum!”;

“You’re right mate, it is red, but you get a magnet just for trying it”;

“Alright then, but I’m only going to have a little bit okay?” – Yeah!!! *Happy dance*
 
Mr Cuddles is gonna be a big strong boy
It was great to use for one-on-one time with Mr Cuddles to talk about his health. These chats often led to other conversations about him growing ‘big and strong’ through eating well , drinking lots of water and exercising.

It was a focal point when we talked to him about proteins, carbs and vitamins.

“Proteins build your muscles, carbs give you energy and vitamins keep you healthy mate.”

We talked about fats. I had to explain to him that whilst roast pork crackle is very yummy, it’s actually no good for us. That took a lot of convincing.

We talked about moderation.

Anything that gets my boys talking and thinking about good health is always a winner in my book.

Although - note to self - when placing magnets on the fridge, be sure to place out of reach of Baby Mischief (nearly 1) because he thinks the tiles taste like the food that’s pictured on them and has tried to consume a few of them unsuccessfully. That would be an interesting nappy change…..

Thanks very much to Glowless from Where’s My Glow for hosting the competition and Margaret from HealthyChart. Mr Cuddles loves it and so do we x.



___ . . . ___ . . . ___

Jacqui is a hilarious chick who blogs over at CRAP Mamma

She has three small boys who are super cute and keep her very busy, but thanks to her CRAP philosophy she's able to laugh in the face of adversity and adapt to anything that life throws at her, including record flooding and cyclones.

To find out if you're a CRAP Mamma or Dadda (I hope I am!) head on over to her blog and check out The Path to CRAP. Plus she's just joined Twitter (@CRAPMamma) so you can stalk her there too!

___________________________________________________
Meet Glowless at the Aussie Bloggers Conference thanks to