Mia is now 3.5 months old and time just seems to fly past. She is growing like a mushroom and changes all the time. She has started smiling which is brilliant, she is so cute when she smiles. She has also found her voice and 'tells us stories' all the time. It is an exciting time as she learns new things all the time. I am looking forward to the next stage since she will be more alert and interactive than in the first three months.
Mmmmm, I wonder???!!
Happy!
Go Scotland!!
My days have pretty much settled into a routine now. Up in the morning for a feed, dress Mia, breakfast, prepare bottles, do washing, empty bins, cross trainer, shower and dressed. Small play session with Mia before another feed. Then get ready and load up the car for an afternoon walk with the dogs while Mia snoozes. The afternoon is Mia waking for the next feed before playing in the afternoon before bath, supper and then bed. She is absolutely brilliant at sleeping in the night and loves to sleep. She goes to sleep at around 8-8.30pm and sleep through to 8am which is great - we were not very keen on the sleepless nights!!
The next task is going to be weaning when she starts showing signs she has had enough of milk and wants to eat something more interesting. I think this will happen in the next month or so. That will be fun as well as very messy no doubt!! I am going to try and be a really good mum and make everything and try and provide a wide range of food to test her taste buds. Hopefully I will stick to my good intentions!
I have managed to start back with agility training every second Thursday and even managed my first show in 6 months in January. It was interesting to say the least. Both dogs and handler were very rusty. I made some really basic handling mistakes and got a bit lost with my footing in places. The dogs generally were great given their lack of practice. Barney did well and did his contacts well if not a bit slowly. Pebbles was as keen as ever but has regressed a bit to sticking to me too much and yipping her way round each course!! We had a great time though and it was great to spend a day out of the house with my lovely doggies :-)
I have been very dedicated at using our cross trainer every day for the last 10 weeks and it has not made any difference at all!! Drastic measures are needed and I am going to a boxercise class tonight. I love boxercise but hate the first few weeks when I am not sure what I am doing and when I am not fit! It better work though as I have to go out in public in my swimming costume in a few weeks when we take Mia swimming for the first time....
That is going to be interesting since Mia is not sure of new things and likes to tells us as much in a loud voice. Yes, I can see us trying to hide and/or disown our screaming baby. Fingers crossed we are wrong and she does us proud and loves to swim. She certainly loves bath time!!
Well, how amazing! Mia is already enjoying her first christmas and look it is very, very white!
The first picture is of the front garden and view and the second picture is the back garden. A lot of snow! It is so deep that Pebbles disappears and has to resort to leaping to get through it! Still they have enjoyed many a snowy walk with their dad trying to find their balls in the snow.
It was Mia's first christmas so we felt we needed to mark the occasion with a special christmas outfit to wear on christmas eve and christmas morning. I think she likes it and definitely looked very, very cute!
Mia had her own pile of presents to open on christmas morning but as you can imagine she had no idea what they were or what the presents inside were either!! Still it is the principal I guess and she will be able to play with the toys before next christmas.
Posing with Mum
Posing with Dad
Are all these for me???!!!!
Yippee!!
It was great to have Mia this christmas and can hardly believe she will probably be toddling about this time next year - yikes!
We didn't forget the dogs though and here they are opening their presents which they always seem to be able to sniff out from all the other presents! They both enjoyed a christmas bone although Barney seems to prefer hiding his rather than eating it. On taking some rubbish out to the bins later that morning I noticed a small pile of snow up against the garage wall and lo and behold lurking underneath, hidden from greedy Pebbles, was Barney's precious bone. Even funnier was having realised that Mum must have found the precious bone he later came back and re-located it under another pile of snow up against the bins!! I am not sure of the whereabouts of this bone anymore........and I am not even sure Barney can remember either :-)
Christmas outfits!
We enjoyed christmas lunch at my brother's house with his partner Hazel and my lovely nieces Mhairi and Edie. As usual the lunch was excellent and we were utterly full when finished. We also enjoyed opening our presents to each other.
The girls! (Hazel, Gran, Mhairi)
Mia with Auntie Hazel
Mia with her fab cousins
Mac totally exhausted from the day's efforts
So that is christmas over for another year. It will be our turn to host it once the nieces decide they do not need to be where their presents are and once Mia gets old enough to want to stay at her house. It will be good fun when she is that age but I have a lot to live up to after many years of excellent hosting by my brother and Hazel!! Thanks guys.
Well, we are now officially parents to baby Mia who was born on 25th October 2009 at 2.22pm, weighing 7lbs and 3oz.
After a short stay in hospital Mum and Mia got home on Wednesday 28th October. Since then Mum and Dad have been settling into the new routines and trying to get our heads round the fact we are now parents! Last week there was no Mia, this week she is here and she is real and we are responsible for her - yikes!
To say that she is gorgeous is an understatement. In our eyes she is absolutely perfect. She is so cute and so very, very small.
Proud Dad - 1 Hour after Birth
Baby Mia - 1 Hour after Birth
Mia - 4 Days
Mia - 4 Days
Mia - with her Cousins
Mia with cousin Edie
Mia with Uncle Graham
Life has been pretty hectic since her arrival and we are trying to get our heads round feeding and sleeping patterns. It is all very new and a very steep learning curve! We do wonder if we will ever be able to leave the house again or how you are supposed to look after a baby when there is not 2 of you!!
I am sure it will all get easier and we will get into our own little routine. It is all so amazing, exciting, daunting, and so, so worth it! One look at her cute little face is enough to make us smile and remember how lucky we are to have her.
Wow what about this picture - BF in 3D at 27 weeks!!
So amazing!!! You can see her face and she looks so contented.
Malcolm and I decided that we could not stand the uncertainty of not knowing for sure if BF is a girl so off I went for a sexing scan today to get a better idea given that I am now 27 weeks and it should be more obvious. And it was confirmed that BF is a girl :-) Phew is all I can say given the amount of pink things already purchased!!
During the scan we also got a 3D picture as above. It took a while to get since BF had decided to put both hands and legs in front of her face and the scanner could not get a clear picture until the very end. It was well worth waiting for the shot though since she looks adorable. Yes, I am biased!!!!
I will start this post with the Champ class that Pebbles took part in since it was first up on the Saturday.
In the jumping class Pebbles went clear, not the tidiest clear and certainly not the smoothest but a good clear which is what was needed. In the agility round, not long after, she also did a clear round, again not one of her best rounds but solid. And I have to say that as a combination it was probably the best 2 qualifying rounds we have done in a Champ class this year so I was pretty pleased. This was shown by the fact that she qualified for the final and we were 4th last to go which was a really good position to be in.
The course for the final was really good - a few little twists and turns and a really tricky weave entry which really made me think hard about how to handle it. In the end I went with the entry that kept Pebbles on the left hand side but meant she had to go straight past a tunnel entry without going in. As usual I was pretty nervous but have to say that I am definitely getting better at handling the Champ classes and we started off really well. Pebbles negotiated the hard turns brilliantly tight and, I have to say, did the whole of the first half of the course really well. She was focused, smooth and doing really tight turns. Fantastic! Then came the hard weave entry and once again Pebbles did not disappoint as I pulled her away from the tunnel entry and then pushed her back for the weave entry she followed me exactly and did a great entry and weave. At the end of the weave I pulled her back towards the cloth tunnel and then disaster - I forgot the course!!!!! Instead of letting her take the jump straight after the tunnel which poor little Pebbles was all set to do I had a brain melt down and pulled her left and onto the see saw one obstacle too soon. It was then that the crowd groaned and as we finished I wondered what had gone wrong. Yes, I didn't even realise I had missed the jump until someone told me as we crossed the last jump. To say I was gutted would be an understatement - it is the first time ever that I have forgotten a course and can't believe I did it. There have been a number of sleepless nights since I can tell you. It is one of those things that keeps playing over and over in your head!
What disappoints the most it that when I think back it was a great round for Pebbles and immediately afterwards I reckoned would have put her behind Tash (who did a lovely clear round) and finished 2nd, outwith the course time. However, the worst thing about it is I think she might have been faster, possibly even won it, but I will never ever know. And it is this not knowing that is the worst. And I really feel that I let Pebbles down, she had put everything into the round and my mistake ruined any chance we might have had.
So I have made 2 Champ finals this year which I am really, really pleased about but have to say both finals could have been better! I can only say now though that it can't possibly get any worse and I need to just get on with it and try to beat the nerves so that next time I give Pebbles every chance of at least getting a clear round.
The rest of the rounds that day passed pretty much in a blur since all Pebbles rounds seemed to happen at once. She did manage a 2nd in agility and Barney also managed a 2nd in agility despite me really working his contacts which lost a lot of time. His contacts all day were really good, especially his A frame which is definitely getting faster and more consistent.
Onto Sunday and I was lucky enough to have Malcolm there doing some videoing so for a change I have videos of some of our runs. I will start with Barney:
In the jumping round it was a nice flowing course but with plenty to think about. Again Barney did well with the tight turns at the start, not normally his strong point. The turns at the jumps nearest the camera were a bit wide but all in all he did well and listened to my commands really well. He finished with a good clear and placed 1st Grade 6. Well done Barney :-)
Next Barney does an agility round where my main focus all weekend was to get his contacts. As you can see he did a really nice weave entry and did really well on the tight turns in the box after the weave. His dog walk was OK, he got the contact but it was a bit slow. Definitely better than earlier on in the year so I am really happy with the progress. The A frame again was slow but he really got the contact position which again is getting more consistent. Unfotunately there was a bit of a mix up at the cloth tunnel at the finish and he stuck his nose in before deciding that he had seen me run past so popped back out again!!
Pebbles started with a clear in agility which she did really well again despite the nightmare handling. I forgot where I was going after the weave and we nearly missed the jump until I did a mad push out, then after the A frame and jump I forgot where I was going again! Then if you look closely you will notice that naughty, horrible Mum manages to give Pebbles a kick in the face, enough to knock her sideways, as she comes out of the cloth tunnel. It completely floors her and she stands stock still looking dazed until I go back and get her to take the final jump! The poor wee soul and she still managed 2nd despite all this.
Then she went onto an elimination in the jumping round. She backed jumped. This seems to be a common thing when I send her over a jump and then move back to the next jump, rather than go round the jump wing she looks at me going back away from the jump and follows me over the jump. The good thing about this is that she is going over the jump even as I stop ready to turn back, previously she would have stopped as soon as I stopped. And rather than go right up to the jump wing and bring her round I have been trying to stand back and let her go forward on her own. This has not quite worked yet!! Pebbles still watches my every move and won't work too far away from me like Barney. Still the rest of the round was pretty solid.
She went clear in the final jumping round with a steady round and although I have no idea if she placed I doubt if she was fast enough. It is hilarious to watch my handling of Pebbles. I must stand up straighter and try not to stoop to her level! Something to work on I think!
I have to confess though that I was finding it really difficult to remember the courses all weekend. I think on the Saturday it was a mixture of nerves as well as what I am going to call 'pregancy brain'!!! Yes, I think the hormones were having fun with my memory as I struggled to remember where I was going some of Saturday and most of Sunday. Lets hope it doesn't get any worse for the Fife show!!!
From this show, my favourite show of the year, we went straight to Yellowcraigs caravan site, a mere 15 minutes down the road, for a weeks holiday which I was sorely needing. It was great to get a rest and simply enjoy walks on the beach and a few meals out. The weather was unbelievable as well with shorts and tee shirts worn every day until the Friday. It was like camping in France. I even got a tan!!
The 'bump' is now 26 weeks old - yes, nearly 6 months down and only 3 to go. I am really starting to notice the bulk of the 'bump' in everyday life. It is heavy and thus makes normal activities more tiring. Still amazing to think that in 14ish weeks there will be another human being in the Fairweather family. I can't wait!
So what news of BF? Last week Malcolm and I went to the PRI for the 20 week scan. We were very excited and looking forward to seeing BF again and to hear its heart and see it move.
It was amazing. BF has developed so much even since the 12 week scan. We could see fingers, toes, spine, heart, brain and lots of movement. Everything was fine and all the necessary bits and pieces were there in the right place and were the right size!! We had decided we wanted to know the sex of the baby before going into the scan.
It turns out that there is a high chance BF is a girl :-) Wow, we were all convinced it was a boy! It is not definite and it could still be a boy but for now it is a girl. We are both really thrilled although were advised by the doctor not to decorate the nursery pink and to keep all receipts just in case it is wrong!!
So here are a couple of pictures of BF at 20 weeks - the first of her feet and the second of her side on:
I have started to notice a 'bump' now at 21 weeks which is really strange. I have even had to go and buy some maternity tops! It is getting really real now!
Other than that life has been pretty normal with no agility shows for a few weeks. It has been good to get a chance to get things in the house sorted. We have managed to clear out the nursery and the wardrobe - no mean feat I can tell you given the junk that was in it! It is looking great now though.
The other main task for me has been shopping - my favourite hobby! I have been on a few trips out with my Mum and we have managed to buy a few baby essentials as well as a few little outfits which are so cute :-) I have also spent time ordering stuff from the internet. The next shopping trip will be to Mothercare to get the rest of the essentials on the list. This won't be until mid-August now though since we have agility shows and our next holiday to fit in before hand.
So from the weekend after next things get very busy and before I know it the agility season will be over for me (am stopping at the beginning of August) and I will have BF to concentrate on. And of course it won't be long after that that I am on maternity leave - yippee!!
Well I am just recovering from the sun burn from a really, really hot weekend in Lanark. The good news is that Mum managed to join me in the caravan for the weekend to keep me and the dogs company. She was a great help and it was great to see her back in action again after all her trails and tribulations and operations :-)
On the Saturday we started with the small and medium Olympia qualifier. This was the event that Pebbles won last year to qualify for the semi-finals completely out of the blue and where Barney finished 4th to also qualify completely by surprise.
This year Pebbles finished 3rd which was a brilliant result again although did not qualify and Barney finished 6th again not qualifying . I am glad they both did brilliantly but also glad they did not qualify because I would not have gone to the semi-finals anyway because they are too late in the year for me to manage the ‘bump’! I don’t know what it is but Pebbles seems to like this event because she did a brilliant round, really smooth and fast. What a star. Barney also did a really smooth round and did really good contacts so I was really pleased.
The rest of the weekend was a mixed bag with Barney managing 2 Grade 6 jumping wins to take him only 1 Grade 6 agility win away from Grade 7 – yippee! My aim this season was for Barney to get to Grade 7 so I am thrilled he is doing so well. I just hope he can get the last agility win before the end of the season.
Pebbles did some really good rounds including a great agility round over Joanne Dall’s really, really long course. I couldn’t even get the commands out by the end of the round it was so long and I was so out of breath!! And I was not the only one! Still she managed a great round to finish 2nd – well done Pebbles. She does so well for such a tiny wee thing.
The main issue that arose over the weekend was both Barney and Pebbles popped out of the same weave 2 poles early with Barney doing it twice. The format of the weave was as below:
My theory is that in almost all occasions the dogs go from the weave forward to another obstacle so keep driving forward where as in this example it was a sharp turn with nothing out in front. I was not sure how to deal with it either – should I stay level with them, lag behind or go ahead? This is definitely something I am going to work on over the next few weeks. Instead of weave entries I am going to have to think about weave exits! I will have to try and vary the position of the first obstacle after the weave and see if I can handle it differently as well i.e. do some next to the dog, some behind the dog, some ahead of the dog and some away from the dog. I think I need Kenny’s help with this one though!
I would like to say on a really positive note I sent both dogs into the weave on my left and crossed behind to go down the left side of the weave. Brilliant! It is great to be able to cross behind it means all the training is paying off. I will have to keep doing this in competition when possible to keep it working.
So that is all the shows for us for a while now. We are not going to Prestwick next weekend because we are going to Darren Dods’s wedding on Saturday and then there are no shows for the next 2 weekends. So the next trip will be Clyde Valley show at Irvine at the end of June. That will give us some weekends at home to get the nursery organised J
Happy!
It was Mia's first christmas so we felt we needed to mark the occasion with a special christmas outfit to wear on christmas eve and christmas morning. I think she likes it and definitely looked very, very cute!
Posing with Dad 
Are all these for me???!!!!
Yippee!!
Mia with her fab cousins
Mia with cousin Edie
I have started to notice a 'bump' now at 21 weeks which is really strange. I have even had to go and buy some maternity tops! It is getting really real now!
