Posted in Singlemum

What is a Bullet Journal?

When I first was told about this concept I took one look at it and thought WHAT THE ACTUAL HELL. However that was when the link just took me to pages and pages of codes and words that I didn’t quite understand!

That was until I found Pinterest. Wow! The idea of all those pretty colours and clear (almmost) organisation got me hooked.

I’ve had a paper diary for as long as I can remember. If I don’t write things down I will forget. I have a day to page one now for work, which is super shiny and fabulous and from paperchase (of course).I’ve always got a notepad on the go too. I love stationary! I am very very visual and when I’ve tried to be organised in the past or got a holiday countdown and want to track my fitness. I get addicted to draw graphs and plans. My notebooks end up being just a big mess of scribbles and I lose the pages I wish to keep for ‘blog ideas’ or ‘quotes I like’ or ‘ideas for my book.’ The ideas for my book is a biggy, I often get hit with triggers regarding the abuse I have been a victim too and its like a light goes in my head and I am like ‘oh yeh.’

So for me the bullet journal idea is fab!

I could use it for work but to be honest for what I do I need a proper diary so that is staying, plus it was expensive and a Christmas present. Some people use it for work and personal but I’m sticking to just personal.

I even FaceTimed my equally enthused bullet journal sister and we spent an hour sorting our first pages out together. It was comforting and fun.

I decided I needed to go straight in and start, over thinking it would put me off another week (as it did my sister) and so be it if I go wrong. It adds character right! Like how I got all confused and put that November had 31 days so now December is all wrong, but hey ho.

I bought a notebook that has dots and page numbers already noted. It has an index page too. The dots are great for drawing lines.

It is lacking colour at the moment but I want some colouring pencils to help with that.

The beauty is it doesn’t matter if there’s no order because it’s meant to be random. It’s meant to be unique. I’m excited to use it more and really get in control of my life.

I’m sure I’ll add to it and change it as well which is fine. I plan to be super organised now and waste less time. I WASTE FAR TOO MUCH!

It’s going to help with my book writing, my studying and my half marathon training. I also plan to get more bloody sleep and eat much much better.

2018 Goals – TO BE THE BEST VERSION OF ME

Watch this space. Anyone got any bullet journal blogs?

Would love to read xx

Posted in baby, Birth story, breastfeeding, life, love, Newborn, Parenting, pregnancy, pregnant, relationships, sex, singlemum, Strength, Uncategorized, Women

Baby had her first bottle 🍼

It hasn’t been an easy decision and I did ignore the health visitors advice for a week. The breastfeeding gurus on Monday told me to just feed more but realistically with this current set up it’s pretty impossible. I don’t have the support a woman needs who wants to exclusively breastfeed, I still get pain and I need to start trying to sort a routine. 

So today she had her first bottle with formula. I’ve also given her expressed in a bottle and she has fed on me since too so it hasn’t gone too bad. Hopefully she now gains some weight. It also gave me a sense of freedom already. 

She’s such a good baby , she’s literally amazing 😍

Yesterday afternoon I struggled. I hit a low again , sobbing out loud with that heart wrenching pain. He went to hers after work at 6am and although I thought I’d be ok with it I really wasn’t!! All his betrayal makes me sick and the fact he’s still going there makes me so angry and hurt! Wednesday afternoon his texts were pleasant and he even felt the need to text ‘xx’ . We spoke in the morning and I still felt positive like we could sort it out eventually. He ended the call saying ‘love you too.’ 

Evening came and he text saying ‘can I make it up to you I feel ill’ if it was his first excuse and he’d been brilliant for past 4 weeks I would have accepted it. But no … it’s not on. I made a comment about how he’s making excuses just to be with her … THEN he said ‘listen stop bringing my girl into our arguments.’ Is he fucking serious ??? His girl ?? Yet he has been with me for 3 days , stroking my face, kissing me, holding our baby talking about how he’s going to win me back. All done in front of his brother at times! Then he has the cheek to disrespect me like that! Mugging me off in front of a 20 year old girl. NO! This is where this stops!! What was I thinking anyway allowing him to continue with two lives. Even before this I had made the decision it had to stop. I had to be stronger … he needs to miss us now and lose us for even a chance of him fixing up and stop being such a selfish prick! 

A phone call to his bro and a suitcase and 5 bin bags later I took all his stuff to his dad’s house. I sent messages with abuse and he still text saying ‘I will always love you.’ No matey you fucked up. Showing off in front of someone who is half the person I am! He also text saying he was going to come straight from work. Again I told him no! He can’t just pop by whenever he pleases anymore! That girl child is welcome to him. He won’t change for anyone and I felt good for the first time in a long time!! I know he’ll regret this. I know he’ll be back. I know this little set up he has with blondie won’t last and he’s only enjoying the fact she’ll take his shit! 

He had gone to work and at 3am I woke to messages saying ring me and also saying ‘I know you’re awake!’ I did what I said I wouldn’t do but called him, same old SHIT! About how I hurt him, how he wants a woman he can trust. Who will support him no matter what. The boy is deluded. I’ve given him the chance of a proper life and he throws it back in my face. I’ll give it to him he does manipulate the situation so I’m apologising , I’m still saying after everything I’d still be willing to give us a chance. To that he just says how he doesn’t think I’ll mean it and as soon as I’m myself again I’ll just leave. He continues to go on about how well I was looking when he was in jail and how it hurts so bad that someone else had me. It’s all very childish and it’s all the same stuff we talk of. I need to leave him to it now. No amount of talking will make him see sense, he needs to realise for himself and it’s very likely I won’t still be around when he does realise. End of the day … if he REALLY didn’t care, didn’t want me and had ‘moved on.’ He wouldn’t spend hours talking to me about this stuff. He wouldn’t want to confuse situations by having sex with me. He would just say ‘I’ve left, I love Ariana and can we not make it about us anymore but only her’ .. the talking is frustrating ! Why bother if he knew 100% we were never going to work. 

Today I woke up feeling sad. Thinking maybe it is all my fault , how maybe I shouldn’t have told him my mistakes (as he suggested) and how gutted I was. That was until I read a few entries of an older blog of when he was in prison. It was hard reading the posts about how in love we were, and how strong it was making us and how he was my soul mate. Then I read a post where I was questioning my loyalty to him anyway. It was deep it was raw .. pretty much summed up how much of a prick he was before he  went too. 

Reality is … he’s never treated me right. Only time he did was when he was behind bars, and of course he would then. I’ve given nearly 3 years of my life to him, had his baby and he still questions my commitment!? What a messed up boy! 

By this afternoon I again was thinking how maybe me keeping a distance would make him come good. I have to have a little hope, even if it’s not for a relationship but for our daughter! She doesn’t deserve a pop by dad who only wants her when it suits him. 

He wasn’t interested in organising seeing her through a mutual person so I suggested he has her on his own at mine. Suggesting this Saturday night only put me under the spotlight with questions! Where am I going? Who with? What am I doing? He was clucking all ready! 

This afternoon he text asking how we both were, then said how he missed Ariana, asked where I was then finally said ‘please don’t ignore me’. I replied with ‘yeh we’re cool thanks’ nearly 2 hours later and nothing more! His reply 

See!! He’s not well! He’s a very confused boy and if he doesn’t sort himself out he will lose far too much and then regret this for the rest of his life ! 

I didn’t reply. He’ll be at work now, and I can’t lie I rather think about him being at work during the night than being with her. I know I cross his mind, we both will. He admits how it’s bloody constant, I literally think of nothing else at the moment either and even the most selfish person in the world wouldn’t be able to block all this out. 

I need to stay this strong. This time it can’t just be days .. it needs to be weeks. Months even! When he wants to see Ariana I need to leave him to it with her, I can’t be around him as he just makes me weak. It won’t be a daily thing either and I won’t be the one asking when he wants to see her. He knows what he needs to do. 

I’m just taking each day at a time xxx 

Posted in life, pregnancy, pregnant, relationships, singlemum

Who knew … cabbage leaves !?

How is my baby 6 days old already ? These days are so precious and yet are going so fast. I’ve even looked at my beautiful baby and felt bad for moaning about being pregnant so much. I grew her , I kept her safe and look at how much joy she now brings.


I know I’m bias but she’s beautiful, I feel so blessed and daddy is absolutely still besotted by her. Yesterday at my mums comments were made on how you don’t know she’s here and my sister even said ‘when will she cry?’ She often fidgets like she’s about to but it never develops only when she’s hungry. It helps that she gets lots of cuddles too. 

My niece who is 4 held her for the majority of the day. She didn’t want to give her up , it was so lovely to see. So she has a big cousin AND a big sister … 


I got a bit emotional last night, my first daughter hasn’t spent the night here since I was admitted into hospital. As me and my mum dropped her back at her dads last night I did realise how much I’m missing her. All my attention has been on Ariana and I feel bad, but then I realise how much love I have for both of them and I well up. I have been so lucky that my daughters dad is a really good father he’s been very supportive in a time where many men may not have been. He’s been taking her to school, picking her up and his sister too has been great. All this support, I am so lucky! I really wonder how new mums do it who are not so lucky. I also couldn’t imagine having children close together, hats off to those mamas! My friend is off work tomorrow so she is happy to take me to do the school run. I am so excited to have her tomorrow night. My two babies ❤️

So the cabbage leaves!! Day 6 and I’m still exclusively breastfeeding, there’s still been tears and cries. Pain that makes you hold your breath. During the night last night I had thought again about just getting a bottle (luckily I do not have this option to tempt me in the middle of the night ) as even Dominic said should we just go to bottles. I know it’s not what I want but when she’s fighting the latch and then latching on and I feel the excruciating pain, whilst super tired! I feel it’s the way forward.

She latched really well this morning, but my left breast has been out of order for most of the day. As I was feeding, the health visitor called me and reiterated what others have said about cabbage leaves. I have instantly felt like it has made a difference, they are not as engorged and I don’t feel like I need to hold them for some relief. The health visitor recommended (although admitted that she shouldn’t be) nipple shields. I’ve used them today too and that has also provided some comfort . I haven’t always kept them on for the entire feed but it certainly helps with getting my nipple into the right shape with less uncomfortableness. Here’s hoping we are seeing the finish line in this pain!!


When she’s on me it really is the best feeling and my focus is that end goal! 

10:15pm and I’m dropping asleep already! The half a packet of biscuits haven’t helped and that’s very naughty of me! I weighed myself yesterday .. 4 stone up even still! 

Oh well! I’ll lose it 💪🏼

 

Posted in Uncategorized

No breasts … No opinion! 

The topic on breastfeeding can always be a heated one. I remember it previously when I was a member of a forum, it would go out of control. Bottle feeding mums would feel shamed whilst breast feeding mums may have put themselves on a pedestal. It does seem now that society are adapting more so to the ‘a fed baby is a happy baby,’ rather than ‘breast is best’ comments. 

However when your own boyfriend has strong feelings around the subject that can prove difficult ! I’m so tired right now to even go into any coherent explanation but let’s just say he’s assuming breastfeeding is easy and me saying I don’t imagine myself going longer than 6 months is me only caring about me. Grrr! Maybe grow your own breasts with milk and see how you get on mate !! I remember with my daughter how hard it was, she didn’t latch on very well and it does make you concerned. I’m going into this with my mind open. If it doesn’t work out, I won’t feel ashamed and all I ask is my boyfriend supports me with that too. I have a breast pump and some bottles to express. I have no intention to buy formula in ready but all I can do is my best! Maybe me saying that I won’t be doing it after 6 months does make me sound selfish and maybe even a little hypercritical since I don’t know how it’s going to go or feel if I am breastfeeding exclusively. Oh well I can’t change my thoughts , I just hope he doesn’t judge if it doesn’t go to plan as that will be very upsetting !!

I flipped out again too, earlier tho and that again was due to his unnecessary comments regarding the decorating. I need to calm down but he needs to reign in his comments ! Men!! They don’t think before they speak I swear. 
Breakfast – frosted shreddies

Lunch – cheese and ham toastie

Dinner – jacket potato cheese & beans

Snacks – popcorn and sweets & cinema. Strawberries