Moments...

I suppose I should warn you that this blog contains a high saccharine factor so grab a bag and get ready! Scott is gorgeous, he is just the happiest baby and I feel so blessed! love him with all my being! Not only is he gorgeous but he is smart and every day he develops a bit more. Its such a privilege to be a part of his life - I just marvel at the fact that he knows who I am and that when he sees me he gurgles and waves his arms about and just beams! He is starting to discover his legs and kicks off his blankies and seems to enjoy the fact that his mom and dad run to cover him... he already understand the concept of action-reaction!
Another part of his body that he has discovered is his little tongue - the little pink thing pops out of his mouth constantly and blowing spit bubbles is just great fun hahaha oh this may be TMI but hey its my blog ;-) sometimes when he's breastfeeding, the little man will look up at me and just grin so hugely that the nipple pops out of his mouth and he gets sprayed with milk which gives him a bit of a fright and he'll squeal hahaha so damn cute!!

Also for the last two nights he has slept right through (quite a feat for such a young 'un!) and then in the morning when I get him out of his bed there he is with this huge smile on his face just gurgling and 'chatting'! Our little man has also been sleeping in his own room - which is another amazing feat - I am so proud of our boy! I feel like a real mother at night when I put him down after his last feed - he is so small in his big bed and I lay him down, give him a kiss, tuck his blankets tightly around his little frame and walk to the door.. just before I leave him I look back and there he lies with his arms relaxed beside his head and that sweet face all safe and comfortable in sleep ... my heart just fills and I get this weird feeling in my stomach .. life is at that moment is bitter-sweet!
The responsibility for this little life is awesome and the rewards are so much greater than I could have ever imagined .. I promise to be the best person to my son that I can be!

2 months old

Scott is two months old .. where does the time go I hear you ask and quite honestly I don't know. I still have 4 weeks left of my maternity leave and I am starting to panic! We have been to check out a creche here in Uithoorn and it didn't leave me feeling particularly happy so you can imagine that the thought of leaving our precious boy in the company of strangers is just a bit much for Mommy (I still think I have some strong hormones floating about haha)
BUT let's forget that for now .. I'll tell you what has been happening with the little prince!

Smiles! Scott has been smiling up a storm this month and making his Dad and I just sooo happy! You have no idea how amazing and wonderful and full-on fantastic it is seeing that smile - he coos and gurgles and then like a light switch being flicked on he dazzles us with a huge toothless grin hahaha awesome! This boy is already a charmer and all the girls are falling for him - and how could they possibly resist those big brown eyes and button nose?
The most heartbreaking thing ever is waking up in the morning and as I open our bedroom door I can already hear little sounds coming from his room - he gurgles and sighs and as I open his door I am greeted by the biggest smile ever and his eyes crease and twinkle - just gorgeous - of course this ensures that my day can't get any better hahaha.

Oh Scott also had his first vaccinations last week - the first shot he took quite well a small little cry but then they gave him a hepatitis shot and then he cried so much I couldn't control my tears either so there we sat mother and child having a little weep. I must admit I was rather shocked by the big needle they used in that small little leg!! Other than the shot though the visit to the baby clinic was good - Scott now weighs .. wait for it .. 5,790 kg and has grown to 60 cm's - great huh??

Ijburg

hi guys :o) - its been way too long since the last update but what can I say - life is full haha
News on Scott to follow but first I thought I'd give a quick update on our new house. On the 10th of March we had a buyers afternoon where we got some more info on when we get the keys (week 22-26) and we also got a chance to see the house again. The facade is up and it looks stunning! the dividing walls are also up and the room allocations are in place. Its rather weird to see the spaces - they are slightly different to what I imagined when looking at the plans and the last time we went to visit when it was just a shell. It looks really good thus far though and soon they will be placing the kitchen and doing the bathroom and toilets... can't wait to see that phase!

The space is just amazing and we cannot wait to move in. Scott's room is the best in the house (figures the lucky fish) with big windows and loads of light. The lounge is also just GORGEOUS!!! long and bright and 50 m² I can't wait to get our new furniture in there and actually start living on Ijburg. We have gone looking for floors, curtains, cupboards, paint etc and I am really looking forward to making the final decisions on all the colours and everything - its going to be so cool decorating our first house :)
I've made a new album with pics of the house thus far - click on this link: http://scott2006.shutterfly.com/action/ and choose the Ijburg album to have a look.
If anyone is free round about June/July and fancies some painting and DIY you know where to come to :-) Alexandrine Tinnehof 5 ...

A month in the life of ...

Time truly does fly - Scott is one month old! Unbelievable ..
We are now truly on our own - Maman left us on the 18th of Feb and we are now truly on our own during the day. The first days were a bit weird - since Scott's birth there has always been someone else in the house and as Monday the 20th Feb started I kept waiting and listening for Muriel's footsteps coming down the stairs or another voice ... but it was just us! I do miss the maman but I am also enjoying this time with just my son and I.

The 20th also saw Scott's first visit to the baby clinic (consultatiebureau) and the little man has gained 33% of his birth weight already. Scott now weighs 4.740 kg and has grown 2.5 cm and is now 56.5 cm .. so cute!! I thought that gaining 1.5 kg's was a bit excessive but the doctor assured me that this was quite normal seeing that he was growing in length as well and that breastfed babies generally gain about 300 grams per week. He is starting to get a little fat now - not real fat rolls yet but his legs are just adorable - his dad and I constantly want to bite them- oh he is also getting little jowls hahaha and these too need biting now and then!

Shame so much is happening in his little life and its just fantastic to see him grow and develop - he is starting to focus on more things and I swear I see little smiles - he has also started producing tears which cover his little lashes when he cries and just break my heart! I never imagined that seeing him cry could upset me this much! I know that he tears are just a physical thing and that I should be happy that his tear ducts are opening and functioning well but my goodness he looks so 'zielig' when he cries!!
He has also started making more sounds lately - sort of cooing and gurgling and when he's awake you see him looking around and moving the little hands constantly.
Oh Scott may have my nose and mouth but he so has Martijn's facial expressions - sometimes its just scary how much he resembles his Dad haha and he has this frown which is just endearing and cute as hell... I can see him wrapping me around his little finger as he gets bigger - oh who am I kidding he's doing that already!

Photos online

Hi All,

I have created an online album for the boy :) click on the below link to view the first albums: day of Scott's birth as well as his first week - I'll be updating the site with the subsequent weeks asap ..
On this site you can also add comments - looking forward to seeing who's had a look!

http://scott2006.shutterfly.com

In love

Can you all believe that our child is two weeks old? On one hand I feel like he has always been here and then I think back and I can't believe that he was just born 2½ weeks ago!
Scott is growing like gangbusters and eating like a fiend - he has me up every 3 hours to eat and then when I am sitting there at 4 am feeling grumpy and tired and generally crap he looks at me with his big eyes and grabs my finger and my heart just melts as I keep falling in love with him every day!
How is it possible that he is so perfect and cute and adorable and smart! The lady from the baby clinic came by on Monday for an intake 'interview' as well as to check up on my mothering skills (checking for nappy rash etc) and to see how the new child is feeling in the world and she was rather impressed by how alert Scott was - all curious eyes and pensive face hahaha its like he is really studying his new world and will probably be filing his report soon!
Dad and I are still struggling with waking up at night but we have managed to put the little tike into his own bed and although it just breaks my heart to see him lying there so small in his big cot its for the best (or so I am telling myself) but Scott still has us pandering to his needs anyway because he is all fussy when things go quiet at night so we have a radio in his room which makes the nappy changes quite fun at 3 am when you herer the most bizarre radio interviews - shame let's hope his taste in music is not affected by the oompha bands and Dutch rock which is also played in the wee hours :-)
Oh wait before I sign off ... Scott has started sucking his thumb .. ADORABLE!!! He'll start fussing and pulling strange faces when I lay him in the pram and then when I go back to look at him there he is lying with the tiny thumb in his mouth and his little fist curled up over his cute little nose .. my heart just breaks - as the subject line says - I am so totally in love with our son!!

Watching from the sidelines (but some times on the field)

Hiya - Maman signing in
If the past week has been surreal, the day of my arrival can be described as floating in the stratosphere.
As I emerged from the arrivals hall at Schiphol I looked around but could not find my beloved daughter's dark curls amongst the throng of eager heads, nor that of my son in law. I settled in for a bit of a wait, leaning on the handles of my trolley. But alas a scant minute or three later I caught site of the Mart on his cell phone, craning his neck. We had the customary 3-kiss Dutch greeting and I asked where Lizelle was (thinking she was probably waiting outside the bustle- being 9 months pregnant and all). Martijn replied that she was at home - what, for the first time since visiting Holland over the past 10 years or so, she was not at the airport to greet me? But being so heavily pregnant, I reasoned, she is obviously forgiven. Then Mart informs me, as we briskly walk towards the parking pay-station that her water had broken that morning at 07h30 (and we are now at 11h00)... I am reeling... this baby is supposed to arrive a week and two days later! In his efficient manner Martijn tells me that Lizelle had reminded him to pick up some vlaai for me. (This is a little ritual Lizelle and I follow every time I land - we get a type of pastry topped with fruit and loads of cream at the airport patesary). 'Hell no' I said ' let's leave immediately - my child is in labour!'.
I saw Lizelle pregnant for 8 hours and then little Scott Francis van Rooijen made his entrance into the world at 19h26!
He is perfect and adorable and intelligent and charming and has a little dimpled cheek! Proving to be a lady-killer already - all the nurses wanted to take him home!
His mother has taken to her role like a duck to water and his father is fulfilling his role with exceptional flare.
I am grateful that I formed part of welcoming this new little life onto the planet and feel extremely blessed to experience this first phase of Scott's development.
I am sharing some of my favourite pics with you.
From a cold, but (thank God) dry Holland.
The doting Maman.

a kiss from Dad ... my guys!!

At the hospital just before heading home .. we can't believe it - did we create this little miracle? We already love our little boy.

Up and running ...

Big day today for us - the umbilical cord fell off .. the last physical remnant of the time spent in Mommy's womb!! Day 5 already .... and we are getting the hang of things :) Scott and I are discovering each other and we fall more and more in love with each hour. Is it possible that this little angel is mine?? Or in case Daddy reads the blog .. ours hahaha
Scott is starting to show his true colours - his first days were spent on his part looking about and just checking out the world, while I spent most of my time looking at him in awe and wondering if this was real. He has now decided he likes what he sees and has started 'voicing' his needs. He is such a sweetheart - once he has been fed, burped and changed he'll just lie there looking about and being cute .. Much like his mother hahaha
We are establishing our routine quite nicely and after surviving the 4th day baby blues I feel relatively back in control of things. Apparently on the 4th day there is a hormonal shift in the mother and boy did I feel it - crying and feeling literally crap! - completely out of control and helpless - I suppose that the fact that my milk 'came in' was no help either. I have become a milk making machine and I tell you Pamela Anderson aint got nothing on me .. if my career at Canon doesn't take off I'm sure playboy has a space for these babies haha Scott is loving it and eating like the proverbial little piggy!! It does however take some getting used to this breast feeding gig and as a woman you have absolutely NO idea what your body is capable of - just amazing!!
But enough about my lactating bits .. back to the star on the show - he has kept his Dad and me up and this too takes some getting used to. We are starting to recognise the various sounds he makes and have realised that not all crying is bad although boy does it ever break my heart to hear him cry and see the little face turn all red and scrunched up!! And have I mentioned that my sone has these amazing eyes ... so when you want to get annoyed and cranky when at 4am he is making life a bit tough he looks at you and the little hairs stick up all cute and then our hearts melt and we laugh and kiss the little cheeks .. and you know what else - he smells soooo GOOD!!!! As Mart put it we are such animals - we sniff him and kiss him and rub our noses against him constantly - we just can't get enough of our baby boy and actually I hope that we never will!!!

from peanut to angry raisin .. our (love) child is born

On Sunday 22 January 2006 at 19:26 - Scott Francis van Rooijen made his entrance onto the planet Earth - weighing in at 3.450 kg's and 54cm tall. In true familial style he was early and he made it in record time - both parents being impatient and rather single minded :).
I'll give you all a very quick run-down of how the day went ... you know you'll hear more about it later.

At 06:50 my waters broke and by 10 am contractions had started. As most of you know Muriel, the Mater, was scheduled to arrive at 10 and Mart had to go and welcome her on his own .. the poor Mater landed right in the middle of the drama which actually now that I think about it - probably suited her just Fine haha
From 2 pm till 5 pm I was instructed to lie down and breathe ... never before has breathing been that difficult.
At 5 pm my midwife came for a check and discovered that I was fully dilated which prompted an emergency run to the local hospital - Starsky and Hutch style - haha - myself and midwife in the first car my mom and Martijn following close on our heals.
By the time we arrived at the hospital 'pushing' contractions had already started and thus the real labour!!
From about 5:30 pm I started pushing ... Mart was amazing with tandem support and the Maman was ready with cold compress on forehead and junk ...
Scott - the star - did everything he was supposed to do, and then some. And by 19:26 he came into the world - an angry Raisin as his Dad puts it. He was all scrunched up and blue and despite all that, he was beautiful (no we are not just saying that coz he's our son!).
On sunday night i had to stay in hospital just tomake sure all was well with son and Mom and mondaymorning we packed Scott into his ski suit for his first ride home ... Dad drove very carefully :)

Day 3 of life and him and Mom are doing well - I am still a bit sore of course but I have never been happier and I cannot believe this little man is ours and that he is so perfect and that we are now in the presence of the kicking machine that was so recently in my belly :)
As his aunt Sune's gift put it (see picutre of little hat) - welcome to the World - Scott - our little miracle!!

Ramblings & the migration of the nose ...

I should get a dictaphone, actually I've been threatening to get one for years .. Why do I need one? Well because I get all these amazing thoughts and turns of phrase in the wee hours of the night but then I am so tired and body heavy that I can't get out of bed and don't write them down and in the light of day I sound so bland and pretentious ... In one word - it sucks. Oh and of course I don't see little Mart being happy with lights going on and the scratching of the pen in the night
Why is it actually that the good ideas and the bright thoughts come in the dark, when sitting on the toilet or in the middle of a meeting?? Is it cruel fate or just stupid coincendence .. I don't know what I do know is that its annoying beyond reason.

Now onto part two of my title - the migration of the nose.. this is a funny occurrence indeed. WHY does this happen .. I know the medical reasoning for this and I realise what with hormones and excess fluids in the pregnant female body its rather commonplace but my heavens .. my nose is large!! Actually my whole face has become puffy so it looks okay-ish ... kinda! I wonder if my nose will return to normal proportions after the birth of our beloved (already) boy? What if it doesn't .. hell that doesn't bear thinking about!!
And its not only the nose that causes me some consternation - I have also aquired some sausage fingers and my ankles have also moved off leaving my feet to connect directly with my leg hahaha my midwife says to eat white vegetables as this helps with water retention - can you all just see me nibbling on cauliflower as a midday snack when all I want is nougat!!

Deck the Halls ....

4 days to Christmas and it looks like snow .. at least that’s what I hope. The sky is grey and the air is still but unlike Lorelei Gilmore I am unable to smell snow but I do harbour the hope in my heart that we’ll have a white Christmas :-) Keep your fingers crossed and I promise that should the flakes fall I'll capture them for everyone!

I must admit however that I am feeling a bit ambivalent this year – I wish I were in SA in the sun with a prospect for a short trip to the coast but at the same time I feel the need to nest and get ready for the arrival of our child – hormones perhaps hahaha

Last week Martijn, my hero, came home with a gorgeous Christmas tree (real - Nordman) and made my evening! So last Saturday we decorated and what a great feeling that gave – stringing up the tinsel and fishing out all the Christmas decoration I had almost forgotten about …
Martijn saved me from frustration by untangling the lights (HOW do they get all tangled up like that – its not like they do much else but lie in the box all year!!!) and once all was on the tree and lit up ... beautiful.
Wish you could all come by for a glass of gluhwein and a look but here are some photos ..
Enjoy and MERRY CHRISTMAS from Mink and Mart

Mart and the angel ...

look at my man hanging up the angels :)
good preparation for when little van Rooijen arrives - imagine that! next year we'll have a third member in the van Rooijen family, so awesome!

serious work ..
ok so where exactly does that ball go :)

Decorations
the only thing missing were the carols playing in the background - definately a purchase for next Christmas!

Quickening

Child of mine

Oh the sound of your heartbeat my child ..
Your dad says it sounds like a locomotive
Our little engine of love
Your movements are so fluttery yet you make yourself felt
Your presence in-utero already so present
Our love for you already so strong

lizelle

Excitement …

Not since I was a little girl on Easer morning – when I saw this huge basket packed with gifts – have I been this excited!! Everything is coming together now for the arrival of the little one :o) the baby furniture has arrived, I have started getting the first ‘gift’ boxes from chemists and baby stores and my midwife’s smile just gets broader and broader. Mart and I have also attended our first ‘samen bevallen’ (delivering together) class = with 3 other parents to be we learnt what is happening in the mom’s body and what happens in labour and delivery as well as getting our first breathing exercises. It’s very weird that we are already starting to prepare for labour!!! Lord above – labour.. but with just over 8 weeks to go before due date I suppose its necessary! I do think it’s a good way to help the Dads understand what the process involves and what part they play. We have 3 more to go and apparently there is a birth video at some stage – I’ll tell you all about that and the Mart’s reaction to it hahaha

Back to the fun things now .. on Sunday we went by a colleagues house and she gave us bags full of clothes, bibs, blankies, sheets, nappies (for drying baby apparently) and duvet covers for baby …. Unbelievable and kind!
I can’t wait till I’m on maternity leave to wash all the little clothes and iron them and put them into the cute new cupboard – Dad-to-be has also been bitten by the excitement bug and is buying stuff for his son – I don’t know who I will find more adorable hihihi.
I’m trying to find a good programme to show the photos we have taken thus far – I’ll continue experimenting and send to you all ASAP.In the meanwhile see some photos of the belly and of Mart and I .. baby room pics to follow soonest!!


Hands on belly
this is one of my fave photos

I think it is rather symbolic - both of us holding our child - a bit romantic but hey who can blame me :)

Third Trimester….

Last week we passed the magical line – I entered the fabled Third Trimester of pregnancy. I received emails from the sites I’m registered to Congratulating me on this and at Monday’s visit to my midwife she smiled broadly and looked so proud of me ..
I read up some about this particular time in pregnancy and this is the moment where we can all breathe a collective sigh of relieve as our little baby is now Viable! Viable you ask? .. Basically this means that with each passing day our baby boy has a better chance of surviving outside the womb … the lungs are capable of breathing independently and the baby’s weight is enough to sustain life! Of course our planning is that he stays where he is till 31st January! But it is a good feeling knowing that should anything happen now our little one will be okay outside my body!
Oh BTW the third trimester starts after 28 wks :-) if you are interested in reading more about what will be happening to my body and Baby in the next 11 weeks click this link:
http://www.americanpregnancy.org/duringpregnancy/fetaldevelopment3.htm

This week is extra exciting as the furniture for the baby room arrives tomorrow YAY – I am so excited! We ordered everything more than 2 months ago – that’s Holland for you - and Mart sold some of his artwork to pay for it (we are alraedy starting to sacrifice hahaha for our child) and now finally it is arriving … we’ll take some photos this weekend to share it with all of you.

Ode to Autumn ....

Those who know me well know that I am definitely a spring/summer person - I love the first rays of warm sunshine in the spring - the smell of fertile earth and the promise of all this new burgeoning life. I especially love the sound of the birdsong in the morning as the little mites return from their winter sojourns ... Please do note however. That I am NOT crazy about the birds themselves (carriers of disease and general vermin) but their song is rather sweet :) I also anticipate that moment upon waking when you are still partially in dreamland but become aware of sunlight and warmth and then you get that delicious jolt as you realise it's SUMMER and the day is glorious and you have nothing planned but fun ... Hmmm I do LOVE summer! Well this year I experienced a feeling similar to that but the strange thing is ... its autumn ...? Granted it took me by surprise and it has required a few days to realise that the feelings I was experiencing was actually bordering on happiness .. It must be because the autumn in Holland this year is simply stated ... Beautiful. Full sunny days and mild, mild temperatures... No need for coats yet and stocking are safely in the drawer (unheard of for end October/Beg Nov). I read in the Spits (free newspaper on the bus) that this is the mildest autumn on record since 1901!? Now I ask you - how weird is that .. The summer was awful and we are experiencing temperatures of 20 degrees in November! Could there be justice in this world after all, a righting of events?
The romantic in me thinks that because I am carrying new life the seasons are mild for my comfort :o) ..... Do I have any takers on that theory? No matter - I am going to enjoy this fully - I walked to the busstop this morning and felt about 6 years old , I kicked the fallen leaves and laughed at the little gusts of wind that sent them spiraling all around my ankles! I think I will be saddened when the leaves have all fallen and the trees look grey, lonely and bare ....