Our Mischievous Monkey

Well, it has been an awfully long time since I have posted an entry... not sure why... it just hasn't happened. So I figure I'll take the next few posts to update about our family.

The first is about our mischievous monkey, Elisha. Elisha is now 16months old. He may not be growing in stature all that much, but definitely growing in his thought processes! He is still (and I suspect now will always be) a small little guy. Weighing about 9.5kg (that's right about the average weight of a 10-12mth old) and is about 73cm tall. He is still in size 0 clothing!

However, his appetite isn't representative of his size. Elisha eats all the time. He loves his food and unlike his brother (who only eats because he has to), Elisha eats just about anything. He loves fruit, he'll eat his veggies and pretty much whatever I serve up to him. It's wonderful to have the experience of a child who actually enjoys a wide variety of food.

His words are few and far between. The only consistent words are 'daddy' and 'bye' (accompanied with the backwards wave). Just yesterday he put the two words together and can be heard saying 'bye daddy' when Adriaan leaves for work. It is very sweet. A little frustrating for me that he hasn't worked out how to say mamma yet... he just whinges and gets my attention I suppose. He has also never really picked up the whole signing thing - although he has just started signing 'eat', so we might see some progress yet!

Elisha is our little adventurer. He will often go off on his own and explore. He is a climber, finding his way to all sorts of heights. He has worked out how to get to things that are out of his reach.. such as moving the bathroom step to the toilet door to try and open the door handle. Yesterday, I found him on top of the dining room table. I think it must be his way of trying to be taller! He has a cheeky grin and glee in his eyes whenever he is trying something new or mischievous. Can make it very hard to discipline him!

He also loves the outdoors. Since walking at 13months, Lishi has loved following Caelan around the backyard and often venturing further than his older brother. Like any kid his age, bark and sticks are a real hit. He is social and loves to interact but yet also is happy to go off and play on his own.

He has a larrikin spirit and knows how to push his older brother's buttons. My father once described Lishi as 'street wise' and I am beginning to see that this was probably quite an accurate description! He is also very physically oriented, at both ends of the spectrum. He may be small, but he is definitely going to be the rough one! At the other end he is extremely affectionate. He snuggles right in, trying to mesh his cheek into mine and loves loves loves his cuddles. He will often stroke my neck or hair as he is hugging me.



Elisha has developed a bit of a curly top (noticed particularly after bath or a sleep) unlike his very straight haired brother. Kinda suits his shaggy personality. He is a delight to our hearts and it is a joy to watch him grow.

Elisha's birthday party

A little late, but here are some photos from his big day.

The happy birthday boy!



A typical 'pose' Lishi gives for the camera.

Uncle Tim looking right at home!


Lishi playing with cousin Luke


Elisha and Pa cheeks


Caelan singing with Tim

The best family photo we could get!


Ash and Lishi

Birthday cake time!

More Pay! Better Conditions!

Apparently Elisha is on strike. My only problem is I don't know what the demands are. 5am Sunday morning was the last time Elisha had a breastfeed. Since then, he has flatly refused the breast, crying and pushing me away everytime it is offered. He was having 3 feeds a day up to this point. I was probably going to drop his lunchtime one after Christmas and just be down to morning and night feeds. He's not really that happy about the whole thing himself. The last two days he has been extremely grumpy, trying to climb all over me and yet not really knowing what he wants (only what he doesn't want!!)

Googling the problem, I found that this is called a 'nursing strike' where bubs can flatly refuse to breastfeed for a variety of reasons. One of them is teething and possible sore gums. He has two teeth just about through. So I am hoping this is the issue for him and when they are through we might push through this awful stage. Apparently, these strikes usually only last 2-4 days - we are on day 3 now.

He is now over 10months old. I aim to breastfeed my kids until they are one, then go straight from breast to cup. We are so close, it is frustrating. At one point, I probably wouldn't have thought this event would worry me but it does. I feel frustrated (let alone a little sore), and a little bit grieved. I do feel a bit robbed. I might have even kept up his morning feeds for awhile longer- especially when he wakes at 5am. I could feed him and put him back in bed. This is much harder to achieve without the breastmilk. Don't really want to have to start 5am breakfasts!

So at the moment I am back to expressing breastmilk, to keep up my supply. I figure I'll do this until he cuts his teeth and maybe a day or two longer. If he still isn't interested I guess I'll call him weaned. I suppose this gives me some small insight into some of the grief other mums must feel when they have issues feeding much earlier in the bub's life. So I guess I should be grateful for 10 good months of mummy's milk.

And it is just like Elisha to do this. Caelan was my textbook baby. Elisha is my unpredictable one. Just when I think we are in some sort of pattern, he throws it out the window and changes all the rules on me. I guess he figured it was time to throw another curve ball!!