Doubling Up

When you're expecting a baby, people always ask you whether you've "got everything". When pregnant second time round, the question then becomes "did you keep everything?".
I've always thought that you don't really need a great deal of stuff when you have a baby (although stuff does accumulate really quickly). Whatever you're missing, you can always get creative...

When we had Gracie, she wouldn't sleep in her cot, so we co-slept. Now, with Ella Mae, we do the same. She has a great cot bed which we intend to use for her naps, but at the moment she isn't keen. Like all babies, she likes cuddles, and finds that far nicer than a cot.

Having a baby that likes to be held most of the time is tricky when you have a 4 year old that also needs you. I have mastered giving Gracie a shower whilst wearing Ella Mae in a sling (babywearing is brilliant - it means you're hands-free). But certain things are easier if baby is in her cot.
Lots of parents have a Moses basket for this. It is small and cosy, and can be carried from room to room. You can also put something in it that smells of you, to comfort baby. However, being a "How much?! You must be bloody joking" kind of girl (yeah, ok, I'm a tightwad) means that a Moses basket / carrycot isn't something I would buy if I could possibly help it.
And so, ladies and gentlemen, I give you the cheapskate's Moses basket - the baby bath.

Seriously. I make it snuggly by putting my dressing gown in there. Works a treat. Now I can keep an eye on her whilst having a shower. And the bath is easy to move about, so I can take it from room to room if required. And yes, it is the bath that belonged to Gracie, we kept it.

I'm incredibly pleased with my discovery - after all, weren't babies kept in bottom drawers in the olden days (absolutely no idea whether that is actually true)? And didn't people bathe their babies in the kitchen sink back in the day (ditto)? It's good to make things multi-purpose - for example, we currently use Gracie's old playpen, now dismantled, to hang our washing. It drives me insane to be honest, but no matter...

I'm sure, with a bit of thought, I could come up with loads of things I don't need because I use something else for that purpose. In fact, I think we all could.
Go on, give it a go. You might surprise yourself.

Cinematic delights

So Gracie and I went to the cinema. Aside from the Parent and Baby screenings that we went to when I was on maternity leave, we've been to the cinema three times now. That's not many times, I grant you, but Gracie tends not to be the sort of toddler that sits still when required.
Our first visit was rather something: a premiere screening of The Croods. Not bad for a first cinematic experience. The only problem with this of course was that, on our second visit, not only did Gracie expect her friend Lily to be there to meet her, she also expected face painting and free snacks...
That aside, the second visit was fine. Because it was Toddler Time, it was £3 for Gracie's ticket. As the accompanying adult, I go free. The film was half an hour long, perfect for her attention span - well, it would have been had they not started the film about 10 minutes early, but you can't win 'em all...
Which brings us to our third, and most recent, visit. A very reasonable £1.75 a ticket meant that I didn't object to paying £3.25 for popcorn, biscuits and a drink for Gracie. To be fair, the cinema did also throw in a couple of free white chocolate buttons. Well, I say "throw in" - Gracie actually just helped herself, and asking her to put them back isn't very hygienic. The film was an hour and a half, so Gracie did well. After three trips though, I can see that she still has a lot to learn about cinema-going:
1. Just because a trailer is more than 30 seconds long, this does not make it a film in its own right.
2. A quiet bit does not necessarily mean that it is the end of the film, especially when you're only a couple of minutes in.
3. Boring bits aren't more interesting if you watch them upside down.
4. Not every film would be improved by the presence of Tinkerbell.
5. Just because a female character is dressed in purple, it doesn't automatically follow that her name is Rapunzel.
I don't know, maybe I'm expecting too much. I guess I'm just going to have to keep on taking her...