This week I decided I needed to supplement my one hour's worth of exercise per week (Tap class) with something a little more aerobic. And since Zumba appears to be where it is at these days, then Zumba it was.
Frankly it didn't matter which days of the week I could fit it in, nor where I lived. There are Zumba classes at four different locations within a mile radius of my house. Where ever there's a sports centre, leisure centre, village hall, school hall, dance school or gym, you will find a Zumba class.
After a quick Internet trawl of the Zumba.com website I found local instructor Lucy Perry's profile. This looked like an instructor I could get along with. She's an ex-contemporary dancer (as am I), and a quick phone call later, which turned into a 10 minutes chat, concluded that we would indeed get along. So off I trotted.
Zumba is a 70% Latin based workout, 30% dance based (at the discretion of the instructor) workout. We did a bit of an Irish jig for that section. I couldn't stop smiling!
If you are looking for an effective aerobic fitness programme that is a lot of fun, then Zumba is definitely for you. But be careful not to take the claims at face value and be realistic! Some sites claim that you can burn 1000 calories a class. That's as maybe, if you leap about with the same enthusiasm and energy as the instructor. More likely you will find yourself in a class of 'marchers' who step instead of jog, waft their arms out instead of punching, and skip instead of jump. These people may well become very disillusioned at the success of the class if they are searching to loose weight, because they are too busy being self conscious to really let themselves go.
Me? Well I'm a realist and not at all worried about what I look like in class. I gave it my all, came out with a face as red as a tomato, my hair plastered against my neck, panting heavily. It was great fun and my aim is to get fit and have fun, so I will definitely be returning!
Another great more detailed review of Zumba can be found at weightwars.co.uk
Click here to find your local class! and to read more about it.
Have fun!
Tuesday, 22 November 2011
How to: change a nappy!
There are many many things that no-one tells you before you give birth to your first child. There are many more things that no-one shows you before you give birth. Mostly because those who have given birth forget what it was that they didn't know beforehand! It's such a fast learning curve.
I do remember not having the first clue how to change a nappy (diaper- for you folk across the pond) and having to actually ask the nurse in the hospital what to do. So, with the help of a dolly that is unfortunately covered in face paint, (and that's a dolly, not a baby. I do so hate it when women refer to dollies as babies, and it can be dangerously confusing for young children with new siblings), so with the help of a dolly, a dolly-size nappy (for ease of demonstration) and a baby size nappy (so show you how the elastic on them works), here it goes..
1. Be Prepared
Ensure you have got everything ready. If you are using disposable nappies with wipes, then you need a couple of clean nappies within arms reach (sometimes one isn't enough - I'll get to that in a minute!) You also need your packet of wipes open already, with one wipe already sticking up ready to grab (it's not as easy to get those things out of the packet one handed, especially if it's a new packet). Finally you need your nappy bag/sack ready and "open", so that the used nappy can be dropped straight into it. (A nappy bag/sack looks much like a sandwich bag, but is generally scented and degrades faster than other plastic bags making it a good plan to keep odours at bay in the short term and to protect the environment in the long term.) Make sure the bag is within your reach, but out of reach of the baby!
Those of you sticking with the washable reusable nappies will need a couple of clean nappies ready and a safe place to keep the dirty nappy until the washing machine is next turned on.
If you are avoiding wipes and prefer cotton wool and water, then you'll need a bowl of water and some cotton wool balls within arms reach.
All of you will need a changing mat on a flat surface. Changing tables are good to start with, but be wary of them after a few weeks. You can't step away from them at all, as you can guarantee that the day you do will be the day your baby decides to roll over for the first time ever. You don't want them rolling off.
2. Establish the Damage!
The first job is the disposal of the old nappy. With your baby lying flat on their back on a changing mat, release the sticky tabs on either side of the nappy one at a time. Whilst you do the second one, ensure to hold the front of the nappy still. You don't want to release it until you are absolutely ready. This is because, both boys and girls have an early tendency to wee the second the air gets to their bottoms. In the case of boys this is often straight up into the air, right where your head is! The best plan is to lift the front of the nappy gently upwards, peeking under to establish what damage you are facing, but keeping good protection between the two of you. Lifting the nappy slightly in this way will, as I said, often cause a further wee. So I often used to wait in this position for a moment, talking to my baby and letting her kick her legs a little.
After a minute or so, holding the babies ankles with one hand, use the other hand to gently wipe the front of the nappy down the bottom (from front to back), pushing the front piece of the nappy against the back piece.
This 'folds' the nappy, keeps any contents covered up and out of reach of any loose kicking feet, and provides continued protection under baby in case of further toileting!
You then need to wipe the area clean. I did this, at least to start with, with the old nappy still in it's folded position. This enabled me to slot any used wipes into the edge of the nappy. Wipe gently and carefully (with either wipes, or warm dampened cotton wool balls (not hot!)). You should always wipe from front through to back. This is particularly important for girls, who could get infections if poo is wiped into their 'front bottom' (to use my 5 year old daughter's terminology!)
Once you are happy the area is clean, remove the nappy entirely and place into the nappy bag/sack or nappy bin for washing.
Many disposal nappies now have a handy tab on the back of them. I didn't know what this was for for ages! If you pull the tab it releases a strip of sticky tape that you can use to wrap around the nappy holding it closed. It's very useful!
Finally wipe clean any other area you may have previously missed. If your child has done a poo, ideally the poo should be deposited into the toilet before you then put the nappy itself into the nappy sack. (I appreciate this won't always happen, particularly if you are nowhere near a toilet at the time!)
This is a good time, if you can bear it, to leave you baby without a nappy on for a few minutes. The air will reduce the risk of nappy rash, and baby will enjoy a good kick unhampered by a nappy.
The difficult bit is putting a new nappy on in such a way that it a) doesn't fall off the second you pick baby up, and b) doesn't leak.
Leaking nappies are caused by three things. Either the nappy is too big for baby, and therefore you can't get a snug enough fit to avoid leaks. The nappy hasn't been put on correctly and therefore doesn't have a snug enough fit to avoid leaks. Or the nappy is too small for the volume that baby is now producing, meaning no matter how snug the fit is, it will still leak.
The answer is fairly straight forward.
If you look carefully at the disposable nappy design you will notice that there are two elasticated sections. Just like pants, the elasticated section on the inside (that I am pinching in this picture) is supposed to fit snugly around the top of babies legs without it being folded over or crumpled. To check this, simply slid your finger around the nappy at the top of the leg to ensure the elastic is placed correctly. For washable nappies, it's a case of practising with your folds to ensure a snug fit. I haven't used washables myself, so if anyone has any pictures to help demonstrate the folding, please send them in!
And finally, those sticky tabs or safety pins! I've seen babies nappies done up so tight the poor baby has cried from tummy ache. In my experience the sticky tabs may touch each other in the first few weeks for newborns, but generally speaking, after that, there's usually a gap between each tab of approximately a finger width. You can check the tightness in the same way to check is a skirt fit you correctly. Again, simply run your finger around waist between tummy and nappy. You should be able to do this comfortably, yet snugly. You'll then learn, throughout the day, if you did it too loosely or not!
And there you have it. Do that 10 times a day for a couple of weeks and an expert you will be!
I do remember not having the first clue how to change a nappy (diaper- for you folk across the pond) and having to actually ask the nurse in the hospital what to do. So, with the help of a dolly that is unfortunately covered in face paint, (and that's a dolly, not a baby. I do so hate it when women refer to dollies as babies, and it can be dangerously confusing for young children with new siblings), so with the help of a dolly, a dolly-size nappy (for ease of demonstration) and a baby size nappy (so show you how the elastic on them works), here it goes..
1. Be Prepared
Ensure you have got everything ready. If you are using disposable nappies with wipes, then you need a couple of clean nappies within arms reach (sometimes one isn't enough - I'll get to that in a minute!) You also need your packet of wipes open already, with one wipe already sticking up ready to grab (it's not as easy to get those things out of the packet one handed, especially if it's a new packet). Finally you need your nappy bag/sack ready and "open", so that the used nappy can be dropped straight into it. (A nappy bag/sack looks much like a sandwich bag, but is generally scented and degrades faster than other plastic bags making it a good plan to keep odours at bay in the short term and to protect the environment in the long term.) Make sure the bag is within your reach, but out of reach of the baby!
Those of you sticking with the washable reusable nappies will need a couple of clean nappies ready and a safe place to keep the dirty nappy until the washing machine is next turned on.
If you are avoiding wipes and prefer cotton wool and water, then you'll need a bowl of water and some cotton wool balls within arms reach.
All of you will need a changing mat on a flat surface. Changing tables are good to start with, but be wary of them after a few weeks. You can't step away from them at all, as you can guarantee that the day you do will be the day your baby decides to roll over for the first time ever. You don't want them rolling off.2. Establish the Damage!
The first job is the disposal of the old nappy. With your baby lying flat on their back on a changing mat, release the sticky tabs on either side of the nappy one at a time. Whilst you do the second one, ensure to hold the front of the nappy still. You don't want to release it until you are absolutely ready. This is because, both boys and girls have an early tendency to wee the second the air gets to their bottoms. In the case of boys this is often straight up into the air, right where your head is! The best plan is to lift the front of the nappy gently upwards, peeking under to establish what damage you are facing, but keeping good protection between the two of you. Lifting the nappy slightly in this way will, as I said, often cause a further wee. So I often used to wait in this position for a moment, talking to my baby and letting her kick her legs a little.
3. Disposal
After a minute or so, holding the babies ankles with one hand, use the other hand to gently wipe the front of the nappy down the bottom (from front to back), pushing the front piece of the nappy against the back piece.
This 'folds' the nappy, keeps any contents covered up and out of reach of any loose kicking feet, and provides continued protection under baby in case of further toileting! You then need to wipe the area clean. I did this, at least to start with, with the old nappy still in it's folded position. This enabled me to slot any used wipes into the edge of the nappy. Wipe gently and carefully (with either wipes, or warm dampened cotton wool balls (not hot!)). You should always wipe from front through to back. This is particularly important for girls, who could get infections if poo is wiped into their 'front bottom' (to use my 5 year old daughter's terminology!)Once you are happy the area is clean, remove the nappy entirely and place into the nappy bag/sack or nappy bin for washing.
Many disposal nappies now have a handy tab on the back of them. I didn't know what this was for for ages! If you pull the tab it releases a strip of sticky tape that you can use to wrap around the nappy holding it closed. It's very useful!
Finally wipe clean any other area you may have previously missed. If your child has done a poo, ideally the poo should be deposited into the toilet before you then put the nappy itself into the nappy sack. (I appreciate this won't always happen, particularly if you are nowhere near a toilet at the time!)
This is a good time, if you can bear it, to leave you baby without a nappy on for a few minutes. The air will reduce the risk of nappy rash, and baby will enjoy a good kick unhampered by a nappy.
4. Round 2
The difficult bit is putting a new nappy on in such a way that it a) doesn't fall off the second you pick baby up, and b) doesn't leak.
Leaking nappies are caused by three things. Either the nappy is too big for baby, and therefore you can't get a snug enough fit to avoid leaks. The nappy hasn't been put on correctly and therefore doesn't have a snug enough fit to avoid leaks. Or the nappy is too small for the volume that baby is now producing, meaning no matter how snug the fit is, it will still leak.
The answer is fairly straight forward.
If you look carefully at the disposable nappy design you will notice that there are two elasticated sections. Just like pants, the elasticated section on the inside (that I am pinching in this picture) is supposed to fit snugly around the top of babies legs without it being folded over or crumpled. To check this, simply slid your finger around the nappy at the top of the leg to ensure the elastic is placed correctly. For washable nappies, it's a case of practising with your folds to ensure a snug fit. I haven't used washables myself, so if anyone has any pictures to help demonstrate the folding, please send them in!And finally, those sticky tabs or safety pins! I've seen babies nappies done up so tight the poor baby has cried from tummy ache. In my experience the sticky tabs may touch each other in the first few weeks for newborns, but generally speaking, after that, there's usually a gap between each tab of approximately a finger width. You can check the tightness in the same way to check is a skirt fit you correctly. Again, simply run your finger around waist between tummy and nappy. You should be able to do this comfortably, yet snugly. You'll then learn, throughout the day, if you did it too loosely or not!
And there you have it. Do that 10 times a day for a couple of weeks and an expert you will be!
Saturday, 1 October 2011
Potty Training - How to?
Our youngest daughter is being an absolute trouper at the moment. She has stopped wearing her pull up nappies during the day. And although I have had to deal with a fair few accidents. I strangely get the accidents when we are at home and not when we are out and about. Perhaps because I am overly conscious of the need to visit a toilet whenever there is one nearby when we are out, but at home we just kick back and relax and everyone forgets to go.
Either way, she's doing much better than her sister did at this stage in the process and I put most of that down to the age that we've done it.
Our eldest started Nursery at 2 1/2 years old. Nursery, at that time, required children to be, wherever possible, toilet trained. So we attempted to stop wearing nappies and placed a potty in the corner of the room when she had only just turned 2. It was quite hard work. She regularly had accidents at Nursery, which went on for months. And having a portable potty didn't seem to help, as there was no requirement for her to 'hold it' long enough to walk through to an actual toilet.
With our youngest I deliberately waited until she was nearly 3 years old. And although she hadn't started telling us she needed to go, we found ourselves with three clear days at the end of the summer holidays when her sister was off on a vacation with Grandma and Grandad and I was off work. So I thought I'd give it a whirl. The pull ups came off, and I began to ask her regularly if she needed to go. Though I don't subscribe to the "put them on the potty every 15 minutes" method. Come on! You're bound to get lucky doing that. No one learns anything and it's frankly a pain. Do it at sensible times. Often if your child eats and drinks when you do, your schedule will be not far off hers!
I quickly discovered that she always needed to go half an hour after having a drink, and then again 10 minutes after that. The regularity of it helped me, and her. But when I took her to Nursery that first day in September I was under no illusions that she'd be able to stay dry all day. She'd managed it at home really quickly (and surprisingly), but there'd be too many distractions surely? Apparently not. The first few days at Nursery she came home dry. I was amazed. We have had accidents, but they are less than once a day. And she's improving all the time. And strangely she's only now starting to shout out "I need a wee-wee" when she disappears into the toilet, rather than just going. This helps (as I often need to run to the bathroom to check that the step is in the right place for her to get up, and the child seat is on. It seems that she was ready to get on with it, but wasn't interested in telling us before now!
My recommendation is not to rush. Leave 'toilet training' as long as you can. Don't feel pressured to do it. After all, is not you that's doing it, it's your child. Let them tell you when they are ready, and it'll be far easier than you'd expect. Or at least leave it until they have half a chance, as many children simply don't have that kind of control physically until they are at least 2 and a half, if not older. The worst move is to do it too early and end up upsetting your child, who will try there best, but just not be able to comply.
Either way, she's doing much better than her sister did at this stage in the process and I put most of that down to the age that we've done it.
Our eldest started Nursery at 2 1/2 years old. Nursery, at that time, required children to be, wherever possible, toilet trained. So we attempted to stop wearing nappies and placed a potty in the corner of the room when she had only just turned 2. It was quite hard work. She regularly had accidents at Nursery, which went on for months. And having a portable potty didn't seem to help, as there was no requirement for her to 'hold it' long enough to walk through to an actual toilet.
With our youngest I deliberately waited until she was nearly 3 years old. And although she hadn't started telling us she needed to go, we found ourselves with three clear days at the end of the summer holidays when her sister was off on a vacation with Grandma and Grandad and I was off work. So I thought I'd give it a whirl. The pull ups came off, and I began to ask her regularly if she needed to go. Though I don't subscribe to the "put them on the potty every 15 minutes" method. Come on! You're bound to get lucky doing that. No one learns anything and it's frankly a pain. Do it at sensible times. Often if your child eats and drinks when you do, your schedule will be not far off hers!
I quickly discovered that she always needed to go half an hour after having a drink, and then again 10 minutes after that. The regularity of it helped me, and her. But when I took her to Nursery that first day in September I was under no illusions that she'd be able to stay dry all day. She'd managed it at home really quickly (and surprisingly), but there'd be too many distractions surely? Apparently not. The first few days at Nursery she came home dry. I was amazed. We have had accidents, but they are less than once a day. And she's improving all the time. And strangely she's only now starting to shout out "I need a wee-wee" when she disappears into the toilet, rather than just going. This helps (as I often need to run to the bathroom to check that the step is in the right place for her to get up, and the child seat is on. It seems that she was ready to get on with it, but wasn't interested in telling us before now!
My recommendation is not to rush. Leave 'toilet training' as long as you can. Don't feel pressured to do it. After all, is not you that's doing it, it's your child. Let them tell you when they are ready, and it'll be far easier than you'd expect. Or at least leave it until they have half a chance, as many children simply don't have that kind of control physically until they are at least 2 and a half, if not older. The worst move is to do it too early and end up upsetting your child, who will try there best, but just not be able to comply.
Wednesday, 28 September 2011
Yummy Mummy's Diary
Sept 27th 2011
Weight: Over 11 stone (rubbish). Alcohol: half a bottle of Rose (not bad - still made me slightly squiffy as not eaten much). Number of times checked clock so not late for school pick up: 78. Number of jobs on To Do list for today: 12. Number of jobs completed off To Do list for today: 1. Calories: Not counted as suspect too many for family of four not just me.
6am: Dragged self out of bed and managed to shower without crashing into anything. Eyes still not open during morning coffee.
6.15am: Manage grunt of welcome to hubby and children. After pause to consider how rude I seem manage faint apologetic smile. Note to self - ring bank later to pay credit card bill.
11.30am: Fourth coffee of the morning is sooo good. Am feeling positive after meeting with techy guy who taught our team how to make use of things like 'naming cells' and 'macros' in Microsoft Excel. Emotions swung from indignance at cheek of anyone thinking I wouldn't know such basics, to sheer wonder at the time I could be saving for more coffee and biscuits. Realise haven't been utilising proper reporting tools to their full effectiveness and feel quite excited about it.
11.31am: Realise that reporting tools are being upgraded and new knowledge may be worthless before had chance to show off. Chunter to self at desk causing some disconcertion in colleagues. Remember to ring bank but realise not lunch yet, so can't make personal calls.
4:00pm: Have frustrating afternoon not accomplishing anything on To Do list and forgetting to ring bank. Rush home to do it, but forget as soon as in door.
5:00pm: Can't get online as need to renew various techy packages on system first that I don't fully understand. It takes far longer than you'd expect having watched computers on telly, but first sip of wine takes the edge off the frustration. Happy that hubby is home early. Think will ring telephone banking later.
7:00pm: Got kids to bed early and hubby at Gym so start on mumschores. Kettle on. Washing on. Check if computer update has finished yet (no). Ring telephone banking and manage to sort out bills. Hurrah! Can tick something off the list. Tidy playroom after tripping over toys. Empty school bags. Read school letters and made notes in diary to remind self to: dress up eldest as an explorer on Friday for school (and take £1), complete a drawing to be turned into Christmas Cards (profits to school), sort out a harvest festival box (not too big). Then, refilled school bags. Checked reading books, library books, pe kits, spare pants etc all packed. Hung up earlier discarded coats. Drank rest of glass of wine and another cuppa. And a cake (homemade!). And considered a biscuit. Was strong and distracted self with emptying the washing machine.
8.00pm: Couldn't sit on sofa without another glass of wine and a packet of crisps and realised my mother always eats crisps at night. Am turning into her! Mild panic followed swiftly by thought that it wouldn't be all bad. Mum's alright afterall!
9.00pm: Loosing magnificantly at scrabble. Last go the best I could manage was 'Oil'. Well what are you supposed to do with a Q, L, and a selection of vowels of which U was conspicuous by it's absence?
9:08pm: I strongly feel that the world is playing tricks on me. 4 Os? Come on!!
9:09pm: Apparently OOR is a word. Don't know what it means. But it's been accepted.
9:15pm: Just remembered I haven't practised spelling's with eldest for weekly test on Friday. Never mind. Have two more days left.
9:16pm: Gaah! Spilt wine.
10pm: Am gggooin to bedddybyyessss. Nott hapyyyy. Lost Srccaabbel.
Hmmm. Finished reading Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason today too. Was marvellous. Fabulous. Love it.
Weight: Over 11 stone (rubbish). Alcohol: half a bottle of Rose (not bad - still made me slightly squiffy as not eaten much). Number of times checked clock so not late for school pick up: 78. Number of jobs on To Do list for today: 12. Number of jobs completed off To Do list for today: 1. Calories: Not counted as suspect too many for family of four not just me.
6am: Dragged self out of bed and managed to shower without crashing into anything. Eyes still not open during morning coffee.
6.15am: Manage grunt of welcome to hubby and children. After pause to consider how rude I seem manage faint apologetic smile. Note to self - ring bank later to pay credit card bill.
11.30am: Fourth coffee of the morning is sooo good. Am feeling positive after meeting with techy guy who taught our team how to make use of things like 'naming cells' and 'macros' in Microsoft Excel. Emotions swung from indignance at cheek of anyone thinking I wouldn't know such basics, to sheer wonder at the time I could be saving for more coffee and biscuits. Realise haven't been utilising proper reporting tools to their full effectiveness and feel quite excited about it.
11.31am: Realise that reporting tools are being upgraded and new knowledge may be worthless before had chance to show off. Chunter to self at desk causing some disconcertion in colleagues. Remember to ring bank but realise not lunch yet, so can't make personal calls.
4:00pm: Have frustrating afternoon not accomplishing anything on To Do list and forgetting to ring bank. Rush home to do it, but forget as soon as in door.
5:00pm: Can't get online as need to renew various techy packages on system first that I don't fully understand. It takes far longer than you'd expect having watched computers on telly, but first sip of wine takes the edge off the frustration. Happy that hubby is home early. Think will ring telephone banking later.
7:00pm: Got kids to bed early and hubby at Gym so start on mumschores. Kettle on. Washing on. Check if computer update has finished yet (no). Ring telephone banking and manage to sort out bills. Hurrah! Can tick something off the list. Tidy playroom after tripping over toys. Empty school bags. Read school letters and made notes in diary to remind self to: dress up eldest as an explorer on Friday for school (and take £1), complete a drawing to be turned into Christmas Cards (profits to school), sort out a harvest festival box (not too big). Then, refilled school bags. Checked reading books, library books, pe kits, spare pants etc all packed. Hung up earlier discarded coats. Drank rest of glass of wine and another cuppa. And a cake (homemade!). And considered a biscuit. Was strong and distracted self with emptying the washing machine.
8.00pm: Couldn't sit on sofa without another glass of wine and a packet of crisps and realised my mother always eats crisps at night. Am turning into her! Mild panic followed swiftly by thought that it wouldn't be all bad. Mum's alright afterall!
9.00pm: Loosing magnificantly at scrabble. Last go the best I could manage was 'Oil'. Well what are you supposed to do with a Q, L, and a selection of vowels of which U was conspicuous by it's absence?
9:08pm: I strongly feel that the world is playing tricks on me. 4 Os? Come on!!
9:09pm: Apparently OOR is a word. Don't know what it means. But it's been accepted.
9:15pm: Just remembered I haven't practised spelling's with eldest for weekly test on Friday. Never mind. Have two more days left.
9:16pm: Gaah! Spilt wine.
10pm: Am gggooin to bedddybyyessss. Nott hapyyyy. Lost Srccaabbel.
Hmmm. Finished reading Bridget Jones: Edge of Reason today too. Was marvellous. Fabulous. Love it.
Monday, 19 September 2011
Back to school! Aaaaagggghhhh!
I always thought that my children would go to school to learn how to read, write, count, solve problems and generally become more intelligent than me. I never quite realised how much homework is code for mumswork.
Cheeky Monkey number 1 is starting her second year at school. This bizarrely puts her in year 1 (I thought they taught them how to count?) We've had to buy a homework book off the school for £3.50 which you can't do the homework without (so someone can count). She now has a weekly spelling test of words that it's up to me to teach her. And I thought that I paid taxes to fund teachers to do the teaching for me?
So now I have mumswork. Hopefully it'll make friends with mumschores and mumscleaning and they'll all sod off to the pub and leave me in peace?
Cheeky Monkey number 1 is starting her second year at school. This bizarrely puts her in year 1 (I thought they taught them how to count?) We've had to buy a homework book off the school for £3.50 which you can't do the homework without (so someone can count). She now has a weekly spelling test of words that it's up to me to teach her. And I thought that I paid taxes to fund teachers to do the teaching for me?
So now I have mumswork. Hopefully it'll make friends with mumschores and mumscleaning and they'll all sod off to the pub and leave me in peace?
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