It’s been more than two months since I embarked on my grand adventure. And since then I’ve met and stayed with two lovely families and explored Canberra and Tasmania. So despite the autumn chill, I made my way back to my home state. But before going back to bebe, I couldn’t resist an invitation from my friends Riley and Kyan. They promised me sightseeing and celebrations around Melbourne and I can’t wait to tell you what I have been up to.

Our first destination in the city was Federation Square. I was told that exciting things always take place here and today was no exception! We saw a unicyclist who also juggled some swords. How clever of him!  A documentary film called “The First Australians” was also being shown on the Square’s giant screen. We were so fascinated by the story, and although parts of it were sad, we learnt how important it is to value and remember our history.

After watching, we had a bit of a rest. I saw a group of fellow birds playing together. They looked a little different from me, so I was a bit shy to go over and make friends. But I was oh so happy when they said hi and asked me to play with them!

We had so much fun playing hide and seek (I think I picked a pretty good spot where I can hide!)  I even pretended to lay this egg! Everyone thought it was such a hoot!

As we continued to explore the city streets, I saw how vibrant the culture and arts scene in Melbourne is. Everywhere we went, we saw masterpieces both old and new.

But what would a day in the city be without good food and wine? After all, Melbourne IS the food capital of Australia. So off we went to a going-away dinner.  Dale and Maria even asked me if I wanted to go home with them!   When the night drew to a close, everyone got sad because we all had to say goodbye to Marianne and Carmela. You see, they are also flying off to their own adventure in Paris! They also said that if I visit the city, I am most welcome to stay with them. Hmmm… I should plan for that!

The days and weeks passed by and before I knew it, winter had officially arrived.  It was almost time for me to head home. And my host family did not want me to fly as it was too cold out.

In keeping with my quest for adventure, they taught me how to use public transport.  Getting around Melbourne even without a car is quite easy!

During the ride, I gave up my seat to allow an elderly lady to sit. I was quite happy to stay perched for the rest of the journey. After all, it is the “p-owl-ite” thing to do.  I am quite excited to return home. I will surely miss Riley and Kyan, but the adventure must go on!

In my eyes, my kids are the most beautiful children in the world. It is therefore a proud moment when total strangers come up to me to gush about my 8-month old daughter. Or it should be, until they start reaching in and doing any or all of the following:

- Grabbing a pinchful of her cheeks, either just the one side or both

- Holding her hand and/or letting her hold theirs

- Taking a dangly object (usually a keychain) and holding it up in front of her face within easy reach - which she usually does

Now, I’m not mysophobic (or someone who has a germ phobia). I have no qualms handing Baby K over to people THAT I KNOW. And I don’t exactly hand over the Dettol or ask them to wash up before getting the baby. But in each of these run-ins with strangers, the first thing that really comes to my mind upon contact with my daughter is, “Are your hands even clean?” And a part of me feels “ungrateful” for thinking this way. I mean, after all, this is a testament to how irresistibly cute my daughter is for them. But for the most part, I worry about where their hands have been prior to touching her.

In each of these times, I just do the grit-your-teeth-and-make-it-look-like-a-smile and agree to the adult cooings while slowly extricating bubba from the situation. Once the “offender” is out of sight, I quickly wipe or wash whatever part was touched. And it does not matter if I have her in the sling, the carrier or the stroller, those hands just find their way to her. And with a quickness that leaves me no time to react at all.

Should I be made of sterner stuff and actually stop people from doing this? On the one hand, my daughter is no longer a fragile newborn. Also, I do not want to be rude to people who are obviously just being nice. On the other hand, I STILL don’t know whether their hands are clean are not! Do I just trust that people who deign to touch babies only do so if they have just washed their hands? So how do I express the words, “Hands off please!” without either coming off as rude or nasty.

I’d appreciate your thoughts about this, fellow mums and dads!

Dear Sophie,

The sparkle in Kyan’s eyes when you two first met told me that an inevitable social milestone had happened: she has made you her first best friend. And since then, you always make her giggle and shriek with delight.

You with your long legs and super soft skin, those big, bright black eyes… No wonder my daughter always wants you two to be together! Whenever you call her with your sweet, squeaky voice, she never fails to light up and reach out for you. At all times you smell lovely. The spotted coat you always wear looks new all the time. Your cheeks stay rosy all day and your smile is unwaveringly chipper. There is just something about you that makes her want to give you a squeeze always, which she does!

All these make me a tad jealous – after all, I enjoyed being the object of all her affection until you came along, French and chic through and through.

Ok, ok… I AM stretching things a bit. Lately, it’s literally been a pain feeling Kyan’s “love” when she expresses it with her teeth and gums. And now that she has taken to munching YOU, she is in much better spirits.

I do admit that your arrival has been a relief to me, too. Kyan seems to have fully accepted that gnawing you is more fun than doing it to me. After all, your squeaks of happiness with her every bite must sound better than my screams of pain when she clamps her mouth tight while feeding. You, on the other hand, take the nibbling and dribbling with a smile.

So despite my earlier misgivings, I genuinely welcome you to our family, Sophie. Thank you for being there for Kyan through thick and, er… teeth. I know that you and our Koala Princess will enjoy being best friends. As her mummy, I guess I just have to learn to make space for and share her with other people. Or in your case - a handmade rubber giraffe.

Love,

Rea

Check out the Vuli Sophie the Giraffe Teether Toy here…

We bowled,

ate yummy food,

and most importantly (for me!), we shopped!

At day’s end, I was amazed with all that we were able to do. Even better was the absence of the aches (lower back for me, upper back for hubby) and exhaustion we got from our old sling!

Here are our observations:

Cons:

1. Because the fabric is sooooo long, tying it up with the ends not skimming the floor is impossible.

2. Putting bub inside the folds is a little unwieldy, but I’m thinking practice will make it easier.

3. It looks snazzy when wearing bub. But without her, we looked like we were in costume…   

Pros:

1. Sleepywrap’s elasticity is just right to make Kyan comfortably snug.

2. It did not droop the whole time she was on me, I didn’t feel that she was going to slide down or pop out over the top.

3. It provided such excellent support that not once did I catch myself leaning back or stooping my shoulders.

4. And the best part: my hands and arms were totally free to browse and pay for my shopping goodies!

That’s a full family approval of Sleepywrap from us!

Meet Rea, one of our new resident Road Testers.  Rea is Mum to Riley and Kyan and is from Victoria.  Welcome aboard Rea! We look forward to reading Rea’s Road Tests and also her Guest Blogs.