I intended to start a monthly bucket list back when I started maternity leave but somehow just never got around to it so here goes now...

It's a BOY!

This is E on the left and C on the right ... TWINS!

When preparing for E's arrival, we bought an Avent DECT monitor and figured we'd bypass the need for video given we had the Oricom Babysense breathing mats for peace of mind. Fast forward to E's arrival and a few months later, us seeing the value in a video monitor to save us constantly checking up on him while napping. We bought the Oricom Secure700 digital video monitor when he was about 4 months old I think and haven't ever regretted it since. Its been on holidays with us and I can't tell you what a Godsend it is in a two storey house.

We have decided we definitely want a video monitor for B2 but we aren't ready to not have one for E yet - hopefully he will be transitioned to his own room by the time baby arrives and given its location from our bedroom, I would feel a whole lot more secure knowing I can check on him anytime.

I don't really want to have two parent handsets to lug around if by some wild crazy chance of fate, I have two children napping at once (hey, I can dream right?) so I considered an app based monitor that allows me to view baby on my iphone and this seemed like the way we would go ... indeed I had placed an iBaby monitor on hold in preparation.

We started reading to E from the day we bought him home and it has definitely helped instill a love of books for him. Now he will often go pull a book off the shelf to read on his own or bring to me, climb into my lap and start turning the pages. I try to make sure we read at least one story together each morning and a couple at night ... its a great way to wind down and calm him from dinner, bath and after bath playtime roughhousing with daddy.

Our favourites are:


Love You Forever - Robert Munsch
my mum used to read this to us so it was a no brainer to get it for my first born and he loves sitting and listening to it. I love the sing song type chorus and often say it to him throughout the day or at bedtime. We also have always talked about the pictures and it was one of the earliest demonstrations of his vocabulary when he started pointing things out.

On the Night You Were Borm - Nancy Tillman
This book actually brought me to tears the first time I read to E as a newborn and even now I feel emotions rise reading it to him. He loves this story and will lay next to me quietly to listen to the words.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar - Eric Carle
A classic for any child, this is the first story I ever read E and now as a 20 month old, he loves pointing out things on the pages, putting his fingers in the holes and listening to it.
Mini Movers series - this is a great set of board books my mum bought for E when he was tiny however as soon as he could go for a book, these were high on the hit list and he would demand we sit with him and point out the vehicles. Perfect for any little guy, the books contain diggers, dumpers, trucks, emergency vehicles etc and now E will sit and point out the vehicles to us, naming them.

Things I Love series - Trace Maroney
A gorgeous set for any children's library, I bought the sets for both my nieces as well. With stories about me, pets, bedtime, school, family and more, they are wonderful books to help build up a child and positively reinforce them. They even contain great talking points at the back for parents and E especially loves the books on Family and Grandparents.

My nose my toes & me - a flap book, this was the first one E had and he loved the game like nature of lifting the flap on each page, Colourful, simple and rhyming, its a great beginner book.

Where is the Green Sheep - Mem Fox
I was set for this to one day become high on the rotation list after years of reading it to friends' children and that day is now here for us. Mem Fox just knows how to write fun children's stories to share and this one is no exception. E has gotten so good that I will read part of the page and leave it to him to tell me which sheep it is... 'Here is the .... 'moon'... sheep' and he will shout out 'moon' at my pause.

E also has all the beautiful classics like a Peter Rabbit library, Fairytales Treasury, Blinky Bill collection, Dr Seus library and countless others such as The Gruffalo, There's a Hippo on the Roof, Dear Zoo, Spot set, Hairy McClairy and most of Mem Fox's works.

We've also added a few new books to E's collection thanks to Grammy in preparation for his coming role and I'm planning to introduce them this weekend:

There's Going to be a Baby
You're a Big Brother
A New Baby

And we have started B2's collection in a bid to play catch up with E's extensive library, so far adding:



Wherever you are my love will find you - Nancy Tillman
By the same author as E's On The Night You Were Born, this book moves me to tears in the beauty of its words and I look forward to reading it over and over to my children.

Kissed by the Moon - Alison Lester
I heard of this story from a friend who shared it with her first born daughter. The words and sentiment are magical and

Baby Bedtime - Mem Fox
By classic children's author, this story will be a big part of B2's bedtime routine I plan.


To the shared library we have also added:

The Crown on Your Head - another Nancy Tillman and just as magical as the first two mentioned earlier. I cannot stress enough that if you haven't read a Nancy Tillman story or don't own one, you need to add her to your children's library.