Laura Chelmick | For You and Your Baby

Supporting you and your new baby, through workshops, 1:1 advice and my
Loved by Laura shopping/advisory service.

I empower you,
What I do is who I am,
Knowledge, Nurture, Guide.

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Easter lockdown 🐰☀️💛🐥 I hope you all had a lovely sunny ☀️ Easter weekend at home 🏡
We have the best neighbors and had fun having bubbles over the fence for a little ones birthday and even an Easter egg hunt from an amazing neighbor who was a secret Easter bunny 🐰 feeling very grateful 🙏🏼 I am really noticing Nico being a sponge of exactly how I am feeling. As soon as I feel anxious, he is attached to me and literally will not let go!
I find our daily walk really helps to focus/ clear my mind. I have started listening to podcasts/ audio books when he has his morning sleep in the pram and it sets us up for the day ahead.

My tips for managing anxiety; 🌱Get outside in the nature
🌱Facetime with someone special 🌱Dance in your kitchen! 🌱Breathe deep
🌱Focus on today 🌱Listen to podcasts/ audiobooks 🌱Happy news only!
Lots of love, Laura & Nico ☀️
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#easterlockdown #easterbunny #ninemonthsold #stayhome #managinganxiety #foryouandyourbaby #grateful

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Rainbows 🌈
It’s been so lovely seeing all the rainbows in the windows on my daily walk with Nico. I always point them out to him.. 🌈

I thought he was too little to create our own rainbow so I have been putting daily quotes in the window and teddies 🧸
However yesterday we got the paints out and we created our masterpiece! 🌈 I did attempt the hands but at 9 months the feet are a much easier option! 🦶
Such a lovely activity for little ones 🌈 ‘Be a rainbow in someone else’s cloud’ - Maya Angelou 🌈💛💜❤️💙💚
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#rainbowsfornhs #babyplayideas #babypainting #holdontohope #lockdown #ninemonthsold #foryouandyourbaby 🌈

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Hi Everyone! Thinking of you all in these very strange times.. I hope you are all safe and well .. We are taking one day at a time, getting out in the fresh air for our one walk a day and most of all feeling Grateful.
I keep thinking, what can I do to support new parents? I have been trying to think of ideas whilst looking after my very active boy, who is now 9 months old and into everything.. especially climbing and being cheeky at nap time!

I am SO passionate about everything baby.. My 'Loved by Laura' List on my website is a free resource of all my favourite brands and products. It has been built upon my years of experience working as Laura Poppins and now my must haves as a first time mum. You can find it on my website www.foryouandyourbaby.com
I feel like I have SO much to share with you, I just can't seem to find any time to write, so this morning I am up before Nico and the time is NOW!
To start off, I am going to talk about Play.. When I start writing I find myself wanting to talk about everything in one post but let's be realistic, Nico is going to wake soon so right now I will talk about my top newborn PLAY must haves which are still going strong.. Etta Loves Muslins -An absolute must have! A sensory explosion for baby and have so many uses .. Feeding/Cover up/Scarf for you
Car seat entertainment
Sensory den over the baby gym, or now the travel cot which is Nico's 'offfice!' Also look fab as bandanas!
They are made out of supersoft bamboo and are specifically designed to support early visual development! They are a portable sensory experience.
www.ettaloves.com
see my VLOG on my website.
Tiny Love Into the Forest Mobile
I have talked about this a LOT, but Nico STILL absolutely Loves the music box when he plays in his cot.
I have been able to drink hot tea and have showers whilst he has had many hours with his buddies! See my VLOG review!
Lots more coming soon.. I hear him waking!
Tonnes of Love Laura & Nico xxx .
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#babyplayideas #bestbuysforbaby #babyproductreview #newbornbaby #whattobuyforbaby #ettaloves #sensoryplaytime #tinylovemobile #lovedbylaura #foryouandyourbaby

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Happy World Book Day 📚
We've been a bit quiet on here as Nico was poorly for the last month. It started with teething symptoms which turned out to be a tummy bug, then a cold and lots of sleepless nights! The lack of sleep triggered my anxiety and it was survival mode of making no plans and just getting through the days. It did mean however that we had lots of time for reading books! 📚
I have always loved enjoying books with little ones, in my Laura Poppins days I would always have a new book in my bag.
I want to share with you a few of my favourite books that I love to read with Nico who has just turned eight months. Books are not just for bedtime, in fact we do them after meals in the highchair and during playtime. He loves to crawl so we often read on our tummies! 📚 Dear Zoo and Oh Dear by Rod Campbell - Nico loves to lift the flaps and find the animals. I have started playing the story CD in the car and its really helped car journeys. 📚'That's not my..' He loves this range and really enjoys the sensory experience of the different textures. 📚The Little Black and White Book Project - Nico has loved these since birth and as they were gifted to me they have been shared with lots of other little ones all around the world! 📚’Where’s Mr Lion..’ By Nosy Crow. This range has lovely felt material rather than paper for those little fingers to lift - and a mirror at the end of each story. Nico gets so excited to find himself! 💛

I am also trying to be mindful of being on my phone less and picking up a book so Nico can see me reading, although this is much easier said than done as he is at the stage where you need eyes in the back of your head!
Lots of Love Laura and Nico xx 💛

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Holding baby and holding you 💜

I worked as a Professional Nanny & maternity nurse for 16 years, as Churchill said so well... ‘ find a job you love and you’ll never have to work again..’ that was my life.
Yes there were tough times but it was truly an incredible career. It was my life rather than a ‘job’. 💜

For my latest blog I wrote for @bibado about the transition from this role to motherhood, see link in my bio. 💜

It’s been another tricky night for Nico with his teeth.. I’ve been reflecting on my work with new parents and this photo captured by my amazing mum speaks to me.. I was there to help, yet my role was to always empower the parent, being there but also melting into the background. 💜

I realise now it must have also been so hard for those families that I worked for when I moved on.. I remember one mum saying ‘but I don’t know how to be a mum without you..’ 💜

Everyone needs to be guided and supported on this crazy journey of motherhood.. 💜
If you know a new mum (not just with a newborn) tell them how amazing they are.. leave them a note.. write a card.. pop over a goodie bag with a magazine and some treats, take baby for a walk if they need a break.. we all need to feel like we have those to ‘hold’ us. Instagram often paints a very different picture to reality. 💜
I’m so grateful for my support network.. you know who you are! 💜
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#foryouandyourbaby #firsttimemum #firsttimeparents #newbaby #supportingnewparents #honestmotherhood #nannytomummy #empoweringparents 💜

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8lb 11oz 💛
The weight of your baby is one of the most asked questions in the early weeks (that and sleep!) Getting Nico weighed has always been a trigger for my anxiety, even now at 6.5 months getting him on the scales makes me sweat and all the memories come flooding back.
Nico was a fairy big baby, he was born at 42 weeks, by c section. This wasn’t part of the ‘plan’ yet at the time was completely the right decision for us and I’m so grateful for incredible memories of Nico’s birth.🙏🏼 I knew from my career as a maternity nurse that it is perfectly normal for new babies to lose weight in those early days. However, for me it felt like a test of my skills of ‘mothering’.. and I was failing each time he was stripped and put on those scales. The only way Nico was happy in the early weeks was to be constantly feeding. I remember feeling so judged, and that I ‘should’ be doing better.
Finding out he had 100% tongue tie was another trigger for me as I felt like I had failed him by not finding this sooner. (For more of my feeding story it is saved in my highlights)

Last week I knew it was time for another weigh in, I drove to the clinic and felt the anxiety kicking in. I tried to talk myself out of it as I’m not worried at ALL about Nico’s weight now, but the anxiety took over. I felt myself shaking inside and sweating.
It was empty at the clinic and I decided to be totally honest when the HV asked how I was. I explained my anxiety and how I felt at each clinic.. she gave me time to talk through my whole experience and suddenly I felt lifted. Bottling it up for all those weeks had made it into an issue that didn’t even need to be there. Nico relaxed as he felt the tension from me fade and it was the first ‘weigh in’ that I didn’t sob after! (He’s now a chunky 21lb!) I just wanted to share this story as if you are feeling anxious about baby clinic just know that it’s totally normal and just let the HV know how you are feeling. Hiding anxiety is like trying to hide a frog up your jumper..and when it jumps out it’s the best feeling.. let the frog free!
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#foryouandyourbaby #babyclinic #firsttimeparents #babyweightloss
#anxiety #tonguetie #sixmonthsold

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Anna Grace Taylor 💜

I would love to introduce you to my incredible friend @annagracetaylors
I feel like I have known her all my life, yet its really thanks to this platform that we connected. 💜

Before we became friends, Anna supported me through her skype sessions and angel card readings. I remember when I was going through challenging times in toxic relationships and longing to be a mum, Anna was there to ground me and help me see my own light. I remember feeling so much clearer after our calls, loved and supported. Its really hard to even explain what Anna does but have a look at her page - she is the most caring, genuine beautiful soul. 💜

Anna also suffers from Cerebal Palsy (CP), this is not who Anna is and it doesn't define her in any way, yet life is so much harder for her than it is for you and I. Going for a walk/run, a dance, a drive.. things that we can take for granted are not easy for lovely Anna. 💜

As she is approaching her 40th this year (she looks about 21!), Anna has taken on board to walk 40 miles before she is 40! This is a huge task for Anna who can walk with the aid of crutches.. but she is so selfless that she wants to raise funds for Gabe, a little boy who also has CP. As he is young, there are so many more options for him with treatments that could dramatically help him improve his mobility.💜 As I know so well from my research and learning with little ones, its during the first six years of life where the magic happens. 💜

I am planning on doing some walks with Anna and Nico to help raise funds, but please go to Anna's page and donate if you can. The link is in her bio, thank you 💜
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#friendsforlife #angelichealing #cerebralpalsyawareness #raisingawareness #gabesgoal #annagracetaylor 💜

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Front Loading your day 💛

When I was in my early weeks of motherhood, I had the lovely @theboobladyibclc over to help me with feeding Nico. As well as empowering me on my feeding journey, she also gave me lots of tips.. One of them was to ‘front load my day’. 💛

In simple terms in means being as productive as you can in the early part of the day, making the evening much more relaxed. Nico was also a lot easier in the morning than early evening which is normal for new babies. 💛

It makes me feel like I am ahead of the game, and ready for the day! 💛

This morning I am doing exactly that.. it’s 8am, Nico has had a feed and is playing happily watching his fave @tinyloveglobal mobile and I am making a delicious recipe from the awesome @lizzieloveshealthy book! 💛

Dinner will be made by 830am!💛 Happy days! It’s even easier with the slow cooker.. and the best feeling when you don’t have to think eek what’s for dinner at 6pm. 💛

Such a great hack for new parents! Give it a try! 💛
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#frontloadingyourday #foryouandyourbaby #familymeals #timemanagementwithababy #firsttimemum #lizzieloveshealthy #gamechangers #aheadofthegame

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