Week 29 was characterised by Joseph recovering from his chest infection - he had his first lot of antibiotics. These went down a treat due to their orange taste!

As you've seen before, Joseph has a shower with Dan nearly every night. For many weeks, Joseph was all floppy and didn't really interact with the water. That has started to change since his back/neck strength has improved...so much so that now he puts his face in the water, his hand up to the shower rose and likes to put his head under the water and look at it as it courses off his head.

Just to finish off the baptism post...Dan has put some photos up of the baptism but he did it as a link off last week's post. I've had some feedback that people couldn't find them so have a look at last week's and the link is in green. Here's a pic of Joseph and his new favourite person, his Godfather, Matt. Joseph was always really happy to see Matt when he was staying with us giving him lots of smiles and cuddles.

Mum and Dad were here for a couple of days enroute to Bristol to see Kate and her new baby, Alfie (born end of Sept). They bought Joseph a high chair from Ikea (rumours are that Ikea is opening in NZ late 2007 - thank goodness!!). Joseph is still getting used to it and he tends to bob around a bit, hence the need for a bolster towel! Here's pic of Joseph having his first meal in the high chair courtesy of Grandad BQ.

Week 28 (or 6 and a half months!) culminated in Joseph's baptism in Christchurch on Sunday 24th September. Dan is going to do a separate baptism post so this one concentrates on the day to day activities of a busy monkey!

We borrowed an "activity centre" from our friend Jennifer (she is my personal baby shop as she has absolutely everything and is very generous in allowing us to borrow lots and lots of stuff). Joseph LOVES his time in his work station and seems quite happy to suss out how to make all the toys/activites work. Dan had him outside so it was a super-duper learning experience as he could feel the grass on his barefeet as well!

We flew to Christchurch on Friday 22nd and remembered to document Joseph's flight.

In Christchurch we stayed at Mark and Lucy Sutherland's house - such a great set up (amazing views) as Joseph was able to use all of Ben's things - cot, highchair and toys. Here's a couple of pics of Joseph asleep in Ben's cot and also his first time in a highchair.

We're a bit behind with our posts so I've got two to do...this is for Week 27.

We got the all clear from Kate the physio in terms of Joseph's torticollis (ie his tendency to favour his right side). He now sleeps on his tummy so Kate said this was a sign that he has full range of movement in his neck. She gave me some tips on how to encourage Joseph to practice his sitting, so we're working on that. He is quite "tippy" but he's getting better. It is hard to get a pic of this skill as I'm usually sitting behind him trying to prop him up!

Solids continue to be a great hit with Joseph - this week we introduced broccoli, nectarine and chicken. Doesn't faze Joseph in the slightest! Unfortunately, he wants to help me feed him which leads to a lot of mess and I'm not sure how much food he is actually eating.

The biggest news however for this week is that Joseph cut his first tooth! The bottom left. It is super sharp and he insists on "kissing" my chin with it, it really hurts and he tends to leave a big saliva trail as well. I haven't got a pic of this yet as he tends to poke out his tongue and cover up the tooth when I go to have to look.

Pic of the week is of Great Aunt Aida feeding Joseph his morning tea bottle in the weekend.

Joseph is now 26 weeks old, well he'll be 6 months on Sunday, 17th September. Can't believe it really! His development has really come along in leaps and bounds in the past few weeks, he's rolling around like mad, talking away, eating anything that comes his way, trying very hard to crawl (and to teethe!) and even his sitting is improving although he still collapses and looks a bit like a buddha! He seems to enjoy his two days at Bear Park and all the teachers comment how laid back he is, how much more alert he is and that he gives really nice cuddles! I'm not sure what he actually does at Bear Park but I think he's holding his own with the rest of the babies/fantails (mostly girls!).

Joseph has three meals a day and we also introduced rusks with his dinner. This is the second time he'd had them and he'd worked out that they actually provide some sustenance. He had a good go on this one and pretty much scoffed it! They are very messy and I kept finding lots of little bread balls everywhere once he'd gone to bed.

I thought it would be prudent to show everyone that Joseph isn't always a happy baby and here's a pic of him crying! We'd just received a parcel from Grandma (nb bib message "Spoiled by Grandma") and I thought I'd put the bib on before I fed him. He didn't really appreciate this as he was hungry!

Finally, this pic is fresh off the press. I came upstairs to write this post and thought I'd better check on Joseph. I'm not sure if you can appreciate this photo but his mouth is actually wrapped around one of the cot bars. Needless to say I moved him into a more comfortable position.

Another busy week for Joseph in week 25 of his life! We've changed daycare days for September and Joseph is now going Tuesdays and Thursday (rather than Wed and Thu). The change didn't seem to worry Joseph at all and he slept and ate well on both days at Bear Park...he'll be going three days a week from October (in Dan's new job he has to work five days a week!). Here's a pic of Joseph and I heading off to work/Bear Park last Thursday. It's still a bit chilly in the mornings so I make sure he's got a fleece and a hat on.


Illegal cot activity is continuing in earnest and we are finding Joseph in all sorts of positions when he's asleep. I've checked with Plunket about the rolling vs sleeping on his back and they said if he's got the head control to roll then he'd be alright sleeping on his side/tummy. Several people have suggested we get him a sleeping bag suit so that he stays warm through the night so I'm going to investigate these over the weekend. Here's pic of Joseph after his morning sleep on Friday - nb only one sock, no blankets and presence of toys.


I'm always keen to document Joseph's outfits and here's one from yesterday wearing his newish jeans and his rugby top (thanks to Aunty Di and Uncle Ben) - I'm not sure how many more wears we'll get out of the rugby top but I think he looks cute.


We had Mother's Group yesterday afternoon - lots of fun with five (of the six) babies present. Here's another pic of Joseph and his friends...they're all so much more active than the last time we took pics. This shot is the best of the bunch and after this was taken they all started to collapse on each other. They're in boy/girl order this time - William, Sarah, Joseph, Lizzie, Taylor (Joshie is missing). Taylor and Joseph are by the far the biggest - we weighed them on Chantell's scales - Taylor 9.6kg and Joseph 9.2kg. The other's are in the low 6kg range!!!!

Week 24

Week 24 was another success for us and the weather was quite spring like at the beginning of the week. Making the most of this nice weather, Dan and Joseph spent some time outside on the grass on Tuesday and here's a pic to mark that occasion. This was the first time Joseph had been on the grass in NZ (only other time was in Noosa).

Joseph is starting to try and roll from front to back and the only negative side effect of the rolling is that he can now do it in his cot. He will wake during the night and escape from his blankets - we have discovered him in a variety of positions - feet through the bars kicking on the wall; arms wedged between the bars, head at the bottom of the cot. He is also starting to rotate himself when he's on his tummy and this also contributes to some illegal cot activity! Here's a picture from Friday when I found him on his tummy after his morning sleep.


The week culminated on Sunday 3rd September with Father's Day. We had a very nice day celebrating Dan's first Father's Day. Joseph made Dan a card at Bear Park (a couple of green paint smeary handprints on a piece of paper) and also bought Dan his favourite chocolate and a scratchy Lotto ticket.

Also, here is a link to a story about Joseph's day at Bear Park a couple of weeks back.

And for some Bear Park "back issues" here is a story of Joseph's first day at Bear Park on August 2 and a "tummy time" story from August 10.

I'm a week behind on the postings and here is Week 23's (week ending Friday 25th August).

Week 23 with Joseph was completed succesfully but a little bit differently than normal. I had to go to Sydney for a meeting on Thursday 24th and ended up being away two nights (Wed and Thu). I came back late Friday night and Dan really stepped up to the plate for parenting duties - so much so that Joseph was looking at me very strangely on Saturday morning! We had a very early start on Saturday morning (4am!) and we ended up bringing Joseph back to bed with us so we (J and me) could get a bit more sleep.

Joseph was "Fantail of the Day" on Thursday which means the teachers write a little story and take photos of what he's been doing and put it in his Bear Park diary. He was sharing his lovely smile with Jeya (teacher) and Josh (a morepork - one of the big kids) and Josh was bringing Joseph toys to play with. An all round positive sharing experience!

Dan took Joseph for his five month injections on the Friday afternoon and true to form they did not hold Joseph back at all. He was eating and drinking as normal and not grumpy. The trip to Sydney fast tracked our weaning process - Joseph is fine on the bottle but I have been suffering a bit as my body gets used to not having to produce milk!

Joseph's development keeps trucking along with lots of rolling over (still back to front) and he is exploring different textures by rubbing the hands over the carpet. We also think there are some teeth on the way as his hands are always in his mouth, his cheeks have been red, there's lots of dribble and his gums are quite swollen. Joseph is a star on the eating front and is having (and enjoying!) three meals a day.

Finally, I know everyone loves his mohawk but here is a pic of Joseph with his hair brushed down - he looks quite different. And I also managed to get one of him smiling!

Joseph marked his five month "birthday" on Thu 17th August - 22 weeks old on Friday 18th! Here's a tummy time pic taken on Friday.


We survived Joseph's first chest infection last weekend...he sounded like a little whimpering puppy as he couldn't cry as he had a very hoarse voice. We dosed him with Pamol and that seemed to break the fever. Once his appetite picked up on Sunday I knew he was getting better. Joseph was very clingy as well (very unusual) and I had a very sore back and strong arms after four days of carrying him around - my nine kilo sack of potatoes!

He was back to Bear Park on Wednesday and Thursday - no problems there! Joseph seems to have adapted well as he drank all his bottles, slept well and ate lots of lunch on both days. He is still a bit shattered when I pick him up and here's a pic of Joseph in his car seat once we get home at about 5.15pm!


On the milestone front, we have achieved two significant ones in recent days. First is that Joseph has starting rolling - from back to front (apparently front to back normally comes first!) and this morning Dan found him on his tummy in the cot with one arm wedged underneath him and the other down between the bars! Secondly, we have had two nights (Friday 18th and Saturday 19th) where Joseph has slept through (from 7pm to 5.30/6am). This is a very big achievement - something that Dan and I have been looking forward to for a long time!!!

Last pic for this post is a clothes one as I haven't posted any of his outfits lately - he's got a top on from Aunty Teresa, blue velour pants that are hand-me-downs from Tracey and a green sleeveless vest I picked up for $5! You can also see how his sitting has improved.

Another week successfully completed in the Quilian-Warren household: our 21st with Joseph.

Dan has already provided the weigh-in update and I'm supporting this with a pic of Joseph after a solids feed (showing great dexterity with the spoon and a sizable puku peeking over the top of his leggings!) and another of Nurse Joan measuring Joseph's length. She said (again!) that he's a bonny boy.


Joseph had his second week at Bear Park and here's a pic on Tuesday wearing a very cool aviation motif jumpsuit from Steve and Cheryl Hoyle and a red wrap around cardy that Grandma made - the cardy is a bit snug round the tummy so he'll be wearing it quite a bit over the next few weeks to get maximum wear out of it!! He gets completely shattered at daycare and has developed a rather raspy "creche cough" - he's happy enough but sounds like a 60 cigarette a day man with a very hoarse voice and cough!

There has been quite a lot of activity in the head region for Joseph with a rather large bald patch developing at the back from rubbing his head on the sheets. Plus he's been growing quite a bit of hair on the top and front so he's got a slightly unbalanced look going on.

Finally, and at long last, here's a pic of Joseph's friends at Mother's Group taken last Friday. They're arranged in oldest to youngest age order (left to right - Taylor, Joseph, Sarah, William and Joshie. Lizzie is missing but we've got MG again on Monday 14th so I'll get another pic then.

Weight Update!

Just a quick note to debrief on Joseph's visit to Plunket yesterday. He tipped the scales at 8.92kg (19lb 11oz). Here's an update of the family baby weight chart.
As you can see, he's beating our efforts 30-odd years ago pretty comfortably - me by about 50% and Sophia by 100% (eg Joseph hit 8kg in just over 100 days and it took Sophia 220 days)

Anyway enough of that I'm sure you all think. Otherwise things were all looking pretty good from the Plunket visit and the nurse said Sophia can cut out night feeds at 7 months - whether Joseph likes it or not! So Sophia's counting down for that.

Also, here's a link to Vikki's site with some photos from our Saturday in Brisbane with the Ashleys a few weeks back

Sophia here to document Joseph's 20th week with us - what a week it has been too! It was the first week of our new routine. I went back to work on Tuesday, Dan had his first day at home and Joseph had his first daycare experience. Dan and I agree that it has been a good week and that the new arrangement has been good for all three of us.

I am working three days a week (Tue/Wed/Thu) and am enjoying being back amongst adults! I am being quite strict on my hours and I can see the days just flying by. Dan enjoyed his day at home with Joseph on Tuesday and as the weeks go by I am sure they will start developing their own little routine. Dan did have a bit of help as Denise came for her usual Tuesday visit. Denise has been helping us out since Joseph arrived and usually comes every Tuesday or Wednesday for a couple of hours so I could have a bit of a break - it has been great for all of us.



Joseph had two days at Bear Park; he's a "fantail" and once he gets older and graduates to the toddler room (at 18mths) he'll become a "morepork". There's about seven babies - five girls! Joseph is the youngest by a couple of months and he has three carers, Bronwyn, Antoinette and Mentewab. Here's a picture of Joseph, Mentewab and Molly on his first day.



He was completely knackered on Wednesday and Antoinette said he hardly ate or slept as there was so much going on and he was just fascinated by everything and everyone. He was much more settled on Thursday - three good sleeps, two big bottles and a large serve of vegie mash!

The introduction of solids is going really well and Joseph has yet to refuse any food that that we've offered!! We've got our Plunket weigh-in on Monday 7th and I'm interested to see how much he weighs now.

Finally, here's the latest pic of the Warren family in Noosa...

Brisbane & Noosa

Well it's been a while since we've posted anyhing on the blog and a lot has happened. Mostly it was our holiday over in Brisbane and Noosa. This entailed Joseph's first taxi ride, bus ride, plane trip and train trip all in about 24 hours (OK, sorry but I work in transport). None of it seemed to be a problem for him, but as I was downloading the photos I noticed we haven't visually documented any of it, which I guess indicates that Sophia and I were being kept busy. So no photos, but it all went well. Joseph fell asleep as we were taxi-ing down the runway at Auckland and through takeoff but woke up a little while later and as there was so much to look at on the flight... until he couldn't stay awake any longer and fell asleep after we started our descent, including sleeping through what was a pretty hard landing. But on the way home he slept the whole way from before takeoff until it was time to get off the plane!

We had a three days in Brisbane staying 2 nights with Sophia's parents, then we picked up Gerry from the airport on Saturday and headed over to Auntie Di and Uncle Ben's place for a big family get together. Once again no photos from us, but the paparazzi cousins were taking control and Vikki is going to sort some photos out from that.

Then it was on to Noosa around lunchtime the next day for a week of relaxing. Here's a couple of pics of Joseph et al outside our apartment, which was a good place to hang out and got plenty of afternoon sun, plus a good view too.

Joseph really liked the no socks and short sleeves Queensland look as you can see.

Maybe not the best photo but here's Joseph's first introduction to the beach and sea...

...the same place where his cousin Harry was hanging out almost exactly a year ago. In fact here's a pic of Harry from last year I just found.

And here's another non-Joseph photo for a change. Gerry and I were out running one morning in the National Park and came across a koala walking on the ground just a couple of metres away. I think that's not very common and we hung around for a few minutes watching it until it headed back up a tree. Anyway a couple of days later I was taking Joseph for a walk and came across another one changing trees and this time had the camera with me. So here's quite a close up picture of it - pretty cool I thought.

Here's a picture of Joseph with Uncle Gerry at Chris Mullany's place in Maroochydore

OK, enough from me. You might get a few more photos and Sophia's take on the holiday in the next few days. But then again, there's lots more news around the corner, with Joseph starting daycare 2 days a week from next week (he had a couple of one hour "orientation" sessions this week and he seems to have fitted right in) and Sophia heading back to work 3 days a week - and I get to stay at home with Joseph a day too :) Then we'll have to start planning a trip to Christchurch, looks like September when the weather is warmer and we've got daycare work routines sorted.

Hi everyone (you have a new correspondent this week - Dan here, giving Sophia a week off). The big event of the week was Joseph's first feed of solids yesterday. He seems to like it ok - only a teaspoon or two at a time at this stage. Here's a pic of the big event (and a rare one with Mummy too).

As Sophia was saying last week, the bedtime wrapping was starting to get ineffective as Joseph gets his arms out if he tries. Anyway, he's going off to sleep fine with "arms free" even at night. So this is the new look:

Here's some cute other pictures from last week with Joseph sitting up wearing some big-boy clothes...

...and just after his shower.

We're off to Brisbane and Noosa this week, but will try to remember to type a quick update from there next weekend - lots of news I'm sure with a debrief of Joseph's first plane trip, passport stamp, photos with rellies etc.

We've passed the 15 week mark and things are going well (except for the little blip of little daytime sleeping during the weekend - I think there are too many different things going on and Joseph feels he just has to be part of it all!).

I am trying to wean Joseph off being wrapped when he goes to bed...two reasons, he's getting quite big/strong and it is an effort to get him tighlty wrapped and he's now well aware that he has hands and they are in his mouth at every opportunity; when we try to wrap him, he fights to get his hands into his mouth. Here's a pic of Joseph sleeping hands-free! We've now graduated to both hands being unwrapped.

I went to a talk at Plunket about introducing solid foods last Wednesday and two signs they said to look for were dribbling and hands in the mouth - we've got both going on so I'm going to look towards getting some food into him in a couple of weeks time.

It was a big week on the admin front as Joseph received his NZ passport and his Australian citizenship - he can always play for the Wallabies if he doesn't make the All Blacks.

Just a quick post to mark Joseph's 14th week...the weather has been extremely cold this week so we haven't been out much (therefore not much to report!).

We spent Monday with Kelly and William (mum and baby from mother's group). Kelly was trying some "controlled crying" and we were there for support! Tuesday Joseph and I had lunch with Denise in Titirangi - absolutely freezing out west with a killer southerly. Joseph's been wearing a lot of polar fleece and always a hat! Wednesday we made a quick trip to the osteopath for Joseph and that has pretty much been our week.

As you know, tummy time has always been a core competency for Joseph and here are a couple of shots showing his latest achievements. When he's on his tummy he actually makes crawling-like movements where he tries to pull his legs up and tries to get his bum up in the air. It is very interesting to see the development and hear how frustrated he gets.


More shameless parenting...Joseph is always smiley after a sleep and here he is earlier in the week.