You’re 2 Years Old! (warning, VERY LONG POST!)
Posted by: Lo. on: December 23, 2011
It’s been a year since I posted on this blog. I intended to throughout the year, but life with a toddler leaves little time for much, and when I do have time I seem to spend on music and movies (and trying to relax).
So much has happened in the last year, since the lil’ one’s 1st birthday, we moved house from our tiny flat in Catford to a giant Edwardian in the North of London owned by a friend who was going to be out of the country for 4 months…in the end we were there for 9 months. Our intention was to move out of London all together and what a great end to London it was. A gorgeous area, a beautiful house, and great friends nearby. We’re very thankful to our friend who let us rent this space for a fraction of the cost it should have been. It really gave us room to stretch out and enjoy the gorgeous summer in North London. This is where Flapjack finally learned to walk…at 16 1/2 months of age. It seemed he never would! Truth was he was happy motoring around at the fastest crawling speed I’ve ever seen. It was absolutely ridiculous the speeds he got up to on all fours! 
The great thing about it was that he was LOUD and you could always tell where he was!
On the 5th of September we moved to Birmingham, to a 2 bedroom house…so warm and cozy which we absolutely love! Flapjack has changed and grown so much since we’ve moved here because we were finally able to give him some sort of free reign and let him spread his toys from one side of the house to the other if that is what he wants. Before, (due to living at someone else’s house, although our friend it must be said was pretty tolerant) we kept him fairly contained and it seemed like we were constantly telling him no. It’s a definite attestation of how exploration and free reign lead to development. His physical and cognitive development has gone through the roof since we’ve been here. In the few weeks since he’s turned two, we’ve noticed him trying to read some words…he certainly has the concept of words being made of letters that have particular sounds. He also counted to five properly in a cab last night on the way to town. He’s now prone to giving giant hugs and kisses and saying “I yub you Mummy/Daddy.” He’s always been an affectionate child, but he’s just learning to vocalise it now.
On physical development, he’s still rather clumsy and just learning to run. But he’s certainly getting better! He’s very nearly running and tries to jump, but isn’t really ready for that yet. I think we’ve been quite lucky on accidents…he had a lot at the house in London…mostly on the coffee table in the lounge…but we don’t have one of those here and I think that has helped cut down on the accidents. He has fallen out of bed a few times here but now he seems more used to the size of the bed and he’s not done that in a while. He’s fallen in the park a few times and scraped his knees and hands…but that’s about it. (whew) I’m sure there’s much more to come in the future. In many ways we’re so lucky to have a very careful child. He understands the concept of careful very well and often tells me…”Mummy, I be careful…OK?” Flapjack also had no major illnesses this year, just a few slight colds. We were very, very lucky indeed.
I’m always impressed with his sense of the absurd and I think his sense of humour is quite developed for a child of his age. Last night as we were reading a book about animals, he pointed to a fish and said “fish”. As it was a goldfish, I wanted to see if he knew what kind of fish it was and after some thought…he said “wet!” and then proceeded to laugh his face off for a few minutes. 
His love of animals and horses is beyond anything we ever expected. He reminds me so much of stories of my Mother as a child who loved horses and animals more than anything. He’s so tender and caring towards them, and I sometimes wonder if this is a theme that will carry throughout his life and he’ll want to work with animals like Nanny Dave and Grandpa Les do. We also hope of course that he’ll stay veggie when he gets older, but have both agreed that once he starts school and has free will that he’ll have to make the decision for himself. Funny that it seems so far off, but judging by how fast the last two years have gone, it’ll be here before we know it!
For the second year, we also went to America for 7 weeks. It was certainly more challenging this year but Nanny Dave was with us and she helped us so so so much. I’m not sure how next year will play out, as he understand more, I don’t know if he will be more apt to sit and watch us perform or he’ll want to run around. I guess time will tell.
I know this is getting rather long, this is what happens when you only post once per year! But I also want to talk about his 2nd birthday party. We had it here at our house in Birmingham and it so many lovely friends came! No children, but Flapjack seems to get more attached to adults so far, though we have seen him trying to make connections to kids when he’s playing at the park, or in a play area. When we’ve taken him to our local playgroup, he’s done mostly parallel play so we need to take him back and see what he does now. A few weeks makes such a difference these days! Anyway, his party was amazing and attended by:
Tim H.
Kev C
Mariolena
Gaby, Nat and Julia H
Fiona and Pete
Laura K
Richard and Jo
Wendy
He also talked to Nanny Dave, his cousins, and Uncle J and Aunt T on video skype. He was rather spoiled with presents, but also had no concept of presents…so it was a bit of novelty opening so many gifts. He got lots of books, a big easel, a small travel easel, headphones, chalks, paints and pens, a pizza making play-dough game, (which he plays EVERY day) puzzles, a Mr. Potato Head, a wooden train set, a wooden shape sorter, two stuffed horses (poppy and horse tumble), and a Mr. Maker DVD. I made him a Swedish horse cake, and his lovely friend Gaby made him a special cupcake with two candles which we used to sing happy birthday and he blew out his candles quite successfully! It was a lovely lovely day and he’s still talking about it. He doesn’t talk about the presents, but about all the people that he loves and how they played. I think having that many people around who care about him (and us) was a big deal for him. Thanks to everyone for making the trek here.
Anyway, now that he’s got the concept of presents…he’s asked me for a bike and a kitchen since the party. Good timing as that is what we’re getting him for Christmas. Our lovely friends Gaby, Nat and Julia have a play kitchen set with all the accoutrements that they’ve had since their kids were little and they are gifting it to Flapjack for Christmas. I forgot to mention that his other great loves besides animals are painting, and cooking. It’s always the first thing he does if we’re out and about…if there is a play kitchen in sight…or a real one for that matter he is running towards it. He even tries to go into the kitchens when we are at restaurants! I certainly hope he will retain this love of cooking as he gets older!
So a few last things….everyone asks…is he musical?? And the answer is..we don’t know. He certainly loves music and dancing and he seems to be very into percussion and quite good rythmically. We’ve only ever heard him sing a few times…I know lots of other little kids his age that can sing dozens of songs but he has yet to learn one to sing. Unsure why, I sing to him all the time and he listens to music with Steve every day. Perhaps it because we have never really exposed him to nursery rhymes? Perhaps that’s been a mistake, I don’t know…because we find most children’s music supremely crap, we just never bought him anything like that. I’ve sung him twinkle, twinkle, little star, the incy wincy spider, and you are my sunshine a bunch of times and he LOVES those and will request them over and over again. So perhaps we’ve gone wrong here. If any of you know of really quality nursery rhyme type music, let me know. If there’s a jazzy one, along the caliber of the Coal Train Railroad stuff that’d be amazing. They’ve just put out a new one. #EXCITING! I so wish that I still had my records from when I was a kid, the Christmas ones in particular. Unfortunately I can’t remember the names of them so even if I were to try and search for them, I wouldn’t know where to begin.
He’s peed in his potty once. Since then he seems to have little interest though he ALWAYS tells us before and after he’s had a poo.
He still uses sign language, but not as often as he used to. Verbal language seems to have taken over. He’s still learning new signs every day though. We guestimate that he’s up over 100 that he knows well now and probably another 40 or so that he’d recognise if someone signed them to him.
He’s learning words at an alarming rate. I’d say somewhere between 5-20 new words a day. His comprehension is amazing, and he speaks quite well, though he substitutes Y’s for L’s. He loves to play around with inflection and timbre, and gets quite excited about intricate sounding words and phrases. His whispering is really great, I remember never being able to whisper properly at his age but he can keep it up for a really long time.
Lastly, yes we are still doing attachment parenting. I’m still breastfeeding although we’re down to a few times per day now (ideally) and he still sleeps with us in bed at night. He has expressed interest in having his own bed…though when I asked him if he’d like to sleep in it at night he said no!! That he just wanted to play in it and have pretend sleeps, He most definitely expressed that he needs to sleep with us at night. This is a big issue with most of our family because they think that he will never want to move out of the bed, but I certainly see him already starting to become more independent and move toward that end. I find it quite likely that he will transition within the next year. He’s one of the most confident and independent kids that I know and I know in my heart that the parenting style that we’ve stumbled onto has made life easier for us and for him. He’s a happy, healthy, intelligent and loving little chap and I enjoy every day with him. I do feel like one of the luckiest people in the world, getting to spend my days with such a marvellous little man, one who can now tell me what he’d like for dinner and which book he’d like to read.
It’s been quite a few weeks since I started this posting and of course things have changed so much! I was having a lie-in this morning until Flapjack came in the room and handed me 5 pence for me to come downstairs and make him some sausages and beans on toast. He then told me that for the same coin, he’d let me have a ride on his horse Nathan. I need to teach him about the bartering system where we just trade services rather than involving money. 
He’s properly running now and whilst not really understanding the concept of Christmas, he’s very excited knowing that he’s going to see his Granny Beanz who is coming to stay for 5 days and his friend Gaby, Nat and Julia. (or Daby, Nat, and Joola) as he calls them. May you have a wonderful Christmas and the happiest of New Years! Thanks for reading! xoxox
Baby No More. One Year On…
Posted by: Lo. on: December 8, 2010
- In: Baby Talk | Feelings
- 3 Comments
I’m sat here smiling my love, thinking about how much you have changed and grown in the last year and how wonderful and challenging and brilliant you’ve made our future. From the time that we had the “OH SHIT” moment when we first found out that I was pregnant, to the morning sickness; the first fluttery feeling of you moving inside my tummy; when we found out that you were a boy and watching you move on the screen for the first time; to the day you were born and wondering if the 3 minutes I spent holding you were all I was meant to get…you have shown me so many things in life that I never knew I was missing. The love I feel for you is beyond imagining. I look at that brilliant little face and see flashes of your dad, of my brother, and sometimes even of my mother. And yes, I certainly see my own eyes staring back at me at times. You are a reflection of all that is good in the world and with your own personality thrown in the mix. A brilliantly funny, stoically determined, and infinitely inquisitive kind of mind. You are an explorer…on a mission to learn everything you can in the time you have. Your Daddy and I are your assistants, and sometimes your teachers…but I find that more and more you don’t need us for a lot of the things you have to do. I find you teaching us more than I would have ever thought possible. Thankfully you still like knowing that we’re here anyway. It’s good you know how to make your old folks feel needed. Thanks for that.
It’s been a year of wonder, of lots of advice; of lots of of idealistic parenting being thrown away for a few minutes in front of CeeBeebies and of trying to hold back and let you learn things on your own. That’s a hard one, cause we want to make things as easy for you as possible. You’ve started to show your frustration now by throwing little fits…but you’re always a reasonable kid in the long run, which I think it pretty amazing for your age. Good going!
Since our last update you’re talking a lot more…you go through periods of not making any sense at all to saying phrases and words we readily understand. You’re clearly experimenting hard with language and you’re loving it. The sense of pride that shows on your face each time we understand correctly something you’ve said is brilliant. You’re saying Yes, (which you pronounce “Yish”) Hi, Hiya, Hello, EJ need YUMS!, Mmm Good, Help me, That, Bluebs (for blueberries…your father’s fault as that’s what he calls them) You’re also calling me Woebeeelia which is quite funny.
You’re still not walking…though I know you will in your own good time. You still cruise a lot, and crawl around fast as you please with squeals of delight. You’re into everything…though you still listen quite well for a one year old. You have discovered how to open cabinet doors and the fridge at the new place…and I’ve caught you quite a few times trying to crawl into the washing machine. You love getting into things. You sometimes remind me of a cat….infinitely curious and will get into absolutely anything you think you might be able to fit into.
You’re finally growing some hair! It’s growing fast in a strip right down the middle, so you look like you have a natural mohawk. The stuff that is growing out of the back of your head is kinky and fuzzy which leads me to believe that you will someday sport a tree on your head similar to your Papa Steve. Good luck with that! You’re getting taller and taller and still staying about the same in physique. We need to weigh and measure you soon to see how much you’ve grown. You eat like an adult most of the time. I’m amazing at the amount of food that you put away. Faves are still blueberries, broccoli, pasta, cheese and curry.
Your Auntie Tess came in for her first visit to London and we had such a great time. You showered her with kisses and hugs and were quite sad to see her go. She helped us move from our flat in Catford to Muswell Hill. It was a sad time for me as I laboured for you in that flat…my water broke in the bedroom and you spent your whole first year of life there. I think you really miss it though you’re starting to get used to the new place. In the Catford flat you could crawl the length of it in about 20 seconds…make a loop and come back. I think you liked the bright front room, long hallway and the dark cave of a bedroom. Here you have to be carried to get from the bedroom to the rooms downstairs. I think you liked the independence you had at the old place. I did too frankly. It was nice to be able to go to the bathroom without having to take you with me! You don’t like being left in the vast rooms here alone. Sometimes you don’t realise that one of us is still in the room after either your father or I exit. I’ve seen you experience the panic of thinking we’ve left you alone. With the old place being so small, you could always hear where we were at any particular time, or come and investigate. There’s something to be said for that.
It is nice to have loads more room here and not feeing surrounded by everything around you packed into a tiny space. It’s also nice to have the things we don’t need at the moment in a place where don’t have to trip over them day and day out. The amount of bruises on my shins have been almost eliminated by the move. You also seem to hurt yourself less since we’ve been here. Good news, for sure. You have been acting out quite a bit since we’ve moved and a few days you were biting and kicking and hitting, clearly lashing out for something. I suppose it must have been the displacement. You’ve always done well with travel and new situations…but then we’ve always moved on to something else within a few days and we came here and just stayed. I think that was very confusing to you. I’m sorry to have to do that to you baby…but you’ll move many more times in your life and each time will be a sense of loss graduating into a sense of wonder at the unknown experiences the future holds. I still think that I will forever miss that little flat. It was one of the best years of my life. Well, it’s getting late little one and I expect you and your Dad back from your excursion fairly soon. I thought it would be good to look back in pictures and see how you’ve changed and grown since you were born. I hope to keep up on this blog in the coming months…but I feel good that I’ve been able to at least give you a record of your existence from conception till your first year and I hope that it will be something you can look back on and know how much you are loved and wanted and how every day with you is a gift. Even the challenging days. You…are…loved.
What? 11 Months? Really?
Posted by: Lo. on: October 31, 2010
- In: Baby Talk | Fears | Feelings
- Leave a Comment
Can you really be almost a year old now? Yes, we see it in you everyday…you’re starting to lose the look of a baby and look more like a little boy. It’s scary to us you know? Perhaps you should slow down a little.
This month has been a month of discovering emotions and practicing getting stronger in the skills you already know. I have a feeling that you’ll walk in the next 4 weeks, because you always seem to learn new skills one month, and then take a month to assimilate. You’re becoming a VERY practiced crawler…and are able to pull yourself up on things easily and sit down as well. You’ve also had less accidents this month which is great! Nothing worse than seeing your little one tumble head first into a glass table (EEK) or fall flat when he’s trying to stand. I sometimes think it’s harder on us than it is on you! You’re over it a few moments later, but we keep worrying.
You’re into everything these days and have learned the art of the stealth maneuver. I caught you a few days ago in the bathroom next to the toilet, just having knocked over the toilet brush (which had some yucky water in the bottom of the holder that spilled on the floor) and you were crawling in it! Thank goodness I caught you just as it happened so I put you right in the bath to get cleaned up. Yuck. I’ve learned to listen for the quiet these days!
We’re just about 4 weeks away from totally moving out of Catford, and as usual, haven’t even really started packing. All 3 of us are down with colds at the moment…your Dad keeps going away to work and bringing more than just money home. This is your 2nd cold in the last month. Thankfully I avoided the last one for the most part, but this one is getting me down! You’re out with your Daddy at the moment, though I had qualms about sending you out, but in the end my need for a little space won that argument. I’m feeling a bit selfish now. Ah the guilt of Mothers. We swim in it.
You’ve said some really interesting things this last month….you practice talking a lot and sometimes we’re amazed at what you say. This morning you sneezed and coughed a bit and said “I have a cold”. Now some would argue that there’s no way in hell you could say that at your age, but there it was. Very plainly. If you get lucky with language…you sure get lucky a lot! The other night you were cracking us up (until you wouldn’t go back to bed for 2 hours) as we came to bed late (gone 2 I think) and you woke up as we laid down to sleep. To wake us up you were whispering your own name over and over. Now anyone who hasn’t heard little kids whisper….it IS possibly the cutest thing EVER. After that you said a few more things, called one of us a WANKER, I think it was meant for your Dad really, and then kept me up for another 2 hours.
You’re also going through a bit of a fit throwing stage. You’re over them very quickly, but it’s all about not understanding why we say yes to some things and no to others. Why can I pull on Daddy’s nose, but not on Mommy’s nipple? Why can I take my trousers off but not my nappy? Why can I watch 3 Pomplemoose videos on youtube but not 8? Why can I play with the water in the bathtub but not the water in the toilet?? Ah yes. So you tend to throw a bit of a wobbly when we tell you no. It’s all part of the learning process I guess. From what I’ve read, you’ll start to listen to the word no in a few months, but you won’t truly understand WHY we tell you know for a few years yet..so we have a long way to go.
You’re really going through an interesting phase with clothing and nappies. It’s pretty cold in London right now and you tolerate clothes while you’re up and about…but you WILL ABSOLUTELY NOT sleep in clothes. We even had to switch your naptime/nightime nappies to pull up pants because you just would not keep a nappy on otherwise. (serves me right for teaching you how to do velcro!) You seem to tolerate the pull ups though you still protest a bit of course. It’s either those or you’re sleeping in the bathtub I guess!
You are officially eating cheese now which is fantastic! You still don’t seem to be able to tolerate yogurt. I guess it just has too much lactose in it for your system, but cheddar, swiss, and glouchester seems to be fine. You love love love cheese. Your eating is usually pretty good, but you have slowed a bit in the last few weeks. Sometimes you don’t eat much breakfast, though your lunch and dinner are still fine it seems. You’re signing a lot more with food to tell me that you’re all done or you want something else, which is very helpful! A few weeks ago I gave you some banana and you threw it on the floor and signed “ALL DONE”. Then immediately you signed, “MORE FOOD!”. I took that to mean that you weren’t eating any damned banana, and could I then get you something proper to eat? You are cheeky!
I think we’re about to do the great toy clear out when we move as you’re pretty bored with most of them. You play with your books and blocks and animals…but there are a lot of baby toys that you’re completely uninterested in now. We’re really picky about what we buy you (almost all your toys are hand me downs or were purchased by friends/family) because you’re more interested in playing with household items anyway. I think your first birthday is going to see you getting some musical things..cause you never seem to lose interest in those. We also want to get you a rag doll…as you have no dolls at all, but have seemed really interested in playing with them at other people’s houses. We got you a racecar walker, it’s only fair you have a doll as well.
It’s been a bit of a hard month for Mummy, I think knowing that I’m not going to the States in Dec, for the 2nd year in a row…and also because your Daddy will probably go for 3 weeks on his own. It’s hard to know that we won’t get a break from the cold greyness of London, and I’m starting to feel increasingly isolated from everyone. I’ve tried to start working on the things that I love in order to fill that space, but I think it may be too early and now it just seems as if I’ve piled more work on top of myself and I’m not getting the pleasure out of it that I should be. I think about people who are lucky enough to live close to their parents, or their best friends and have some sort of support network. I really don’t have that. Steve is an amazing husband and father, but he’s just one human. As the saying goes, it takes a village to raise a child, and I think we need at least one more person in our village. I wonder how single mothers do it really? It must be that if you know that there is no hope of help, you just get on with it. Perhaps I need to stop whining and just get on with it too. Anyhoo, I miss my parents, and my friends and my family in general. It’s hard sometimes. Hard but worth it. I look into your clever little eyes and know that each and every second that we’ve spent with you is helping to make you a strong and happy and healthy adult. I pray every day that you grow into a strong, happy and healthy person who is true to himself and others and who knows that his parents love him with all their hearts.
You are still the single most amazing occurrence in my life. You bring joy to me every day. You make me laugh a lot; sometimes you make me cry too…but mostly you just make me love. Thank you.
Faves this month:
Activities:
Standing up and sitting down
stalking the vaccum
crawling into rooms where you’re not meant to go
watching CeeBeebies
Music
Pomplamoose!
Daddy’s new music
Songs from Dr. Horrible
La La La Lemon
You are also singing, I forgot to mention this earlier. It’s brilliant! Good pitch too!
Fave toys:
Sticky covers for wipes
Daddy’s Card Reader
Blocks (we set em up, you knock em down! )
BOOKS!! YOU LOVE EM!
Fave Foods:
Curry
Quinoa
Blueberries
Kiwi
Grapes
Carrot
Broccoli
Toast
Cheese
Pasta
Words: (things you say on a regular basis)
Hiya
Hey
Yeah
(your own name)
Good
Book
Ball
In sign language:
UP
All Done
Food
More
Dog (though I’m not sure you know what it means)
Cheese
Proper Post at 10 Months
Posted by: Lo. on: September 30, 2010
- In: Baby Talk | Feelings | Food
- 2 Comments
Hiya Baby! Guess what? You’re 10 months old! How did that happen? Just yesterday you were…in your father’s words (a shitting potato) and now you’re standing up on your own and quite close to taking your first steps! We’ve been busy in the last few months, but I hope to write proper posts in the next few months.
After a long night…we are trying to wean you off of night feeds…and an early morning in which I awakened to find you eating parts of your nappy…(good thing they’re eco ones made of corn…but it was if you were saying…”fine! Don’t feed me! I’ll just slum it and eat nappy bitches!” Needless to say I was pretty disgusted!) I got up and cleaned a little to clear my mind and tackled your clothing drawer and guess what? Nothing fits you anymore! I’d been keeping cute outfits for months and months and realised that you’re never going to shrink back into them so I’d better put them on the charity shop pile. Even so I am so sad to say goodbye to monkeypants tennesee, and the swank gap bear suit and most of your cute growbags. Sigh. We did get some more wear out of your clownfish suit though! You wore it to Uncle Kevin and Aunt Jody’s wedding in Berwick! We figured that it was a suit (of some sort at least) and you were a major hit! Who can resist an adorable baby in a fish costume?? Nobody that’s who.
We took you a week or so ago to have you weighed and measured and you’re still considered underweight…not yet having doubled your birth weight…but you’re at the top of your class for height! Good work! So tall in fact that a Romanian lady in the same room was getting all upset because her girl was 5 inches shorter than you despite being over a year old. You’re a tall drink of water little man! You weighed 18lbs 6oz…I can’t remember the precise height at the moment…I’ll put it in later.
Let’s see what are you up to of late? Crawling everywhere….talking like mad…though we don’t always understand what you are trying to say. You now say EJ, bear, up, hiya, hey, mmmmm, good, mumma, dada, ning ning (which means milk for some reason) and I’m sure a host of other things we haven’t yet caught onto. Your level of understanding really astonishes me…I can ask you where your dog is and you’ll pick him up, or where Louis Lizard is and you’ll grab him too. You give me bites of food when I ask (and lots when I don’t ask too…shoving your food in my face). You LOVE food and sometimes eat almost adult portions of things. Pretty astonishing to me. Lately your faves are sweet and regular potato, whole apples, blueberries, nectarine, rice, wheat-free pasta spirals, hummus, and toast. You have 5 teeth and a few more on the way which helps with eating…and are the bane of my breasts! You’ve had a really bad cold of late and you’ve been biting so much! It’s facilitated the stopping of the night feedings really…though it needed to happen. You used milk during the night for comfort as well as food and we getting a bit cheeky about waking me up 4 or 5 times a night for a little drinky drink. I was beginning to feel like an all night pint of beer. You’re starting to ask less during the night but are loudly indignant when I refuse. I feel a bit sorry for Gurkhan, our neighbor as his bedroom is on the other side of the wall from ours and it must wake him up sometimes.
We’ve been offered a wonderful place to live after we leave here in November…we are house sitting in Muswell Hill for a friend who is going to the US for a while. His house is huge and gorgeous with a beautiful garden and right around the corner from one of the most gorgeous parks I’ve ever seen. We’re really looking forward to stretching out a bit…but I will be quite sad to leave this place. So many good memories here for us all…and I think you’ll miss the little cave that is our bedroom. You seem to love this flat so much. When we got home tonight from our hour long bus ride home…you squealed with delight when we came into the flat. Let’s hope you like the new place just as much. At any rate…I’m sure we’ll be moving back to South London once our friend is back next year.
So to celebrate your 10 month birthday….I made you your first curry (potatoes, carrots, apples, apricots, cinnamon, coriander, mustard seed, cumin, turmeric and garahm masala…with pilau rice) and you LOVED it. You ate an adult sized portion and seemed to have no trouble whatsoever with digestion. I’m looking forward to feeding you more exotic food. I’ve also taught you the concept of dipping…with toast soldiers and hummus, and you tried to dip your rice cake in my coffee today! Good work. The second part of your birthday celebration was you pulling yourself up to standing for the first time on your own. You did it three times in a row just for good measure…and also so Daddy could see and film it as well. You spend a lot of your time standing or trying to stand these days and I figure you’ll be walking by 12 months. We’ll see how it goes.
Fave toys:
Shakers, Books, Stuffed Animals, Car Rocker/Walker, Ball, the Hoover, Ipad Baby Flash Cards and Peekaboo Barn
Fave Music:
Dan Zanes, Banghra, his Mum and Dad, She Makes War, Pomplemoose
Fave things to watch on BBC IPlayer:
Third and Bird, Teletubbies, Cooking Shows
Fave Activities:
Going new places! Looking out the window, Riding the bus or train on Mummy or Daddy’s lap, stalking the hoover, watching Pomplemoose videos on youtube, watching snooker on youtube, crawling down the hall and busting in on whomever is having a cheeky poo in the bathroom, finding old food on the floor and eating it like we never feed you, playing with Mummy’s Ipad!
You’re everything we could have wanted in a little man and more. As much as we try and teach you new thing we learn from you as well. I’m so happy to be able to be here with you along every single step of development and be smart enough to let you explore things on your own as well…though we often want to make things as easy as possible for you…we know that you’ll never learn anything that way. Plus we don’t want you ending up on Young, Dumb and living of Mum in future…;) Alright little Beans…it’s late and I miss you. Time for snuggles!
9 months old and First Greenbelt
Posted by: Lo. on: August 29, 2010
I was skeptical when my husband said that Greenbelt with our 9 month old baby would be FUN. Steve is an eternal optimist and I a skeptic. Having been a part of some of Steve’s “fun” activities…I laughed off his latest suggestion with a dismissive wave and thought “camping with a baby?? Ridiculous!”
So what do you think? Friday found us scrambling for a train at Paddington after our direct train to Cheltenham was cancelled at the last minute. We weaved in and out with a heavily laden buggy full of supplies along with a suitcase and two bags all to no avail. The replacement trains were full of redirected people trying to keep to their bank holiday schedules in a rash of last minute cancellations. After some help from twitter and a few hours we finally arrived at our destination.
Some lovely friends who were driving had agreed to bring the heavier of our items to Greenbelt for us so we could manage on the train with the baby. We took Baby Flapjack out of the buggy and used it to transport the heaviest of our gear across the racecourse, while the baby rode in his Bjorn carrier. All thoughts of “why are we doing this” was replaced by joy at watching the baby’s total delight at being here. He was cooing and waving, laughing and squealing at all the delights that lay before him. It was dusk as we arrived and the animated figures moving in and out of lights and shadows was quite a sight to behold. There’s such a feeling of goodwill in the air at Greenbelt; that anything is possible with so many lovely people in one area and Baby Flapjack seemed to be well feeling it.
Yes, the nights have been a bit cold and at times in our excitement we’ve forgotten to give Baby Flapjack his lunch or dinner..but he always lets us know we’re being losers, and we always promise to try to remember for next time. So my advice is bring your babies to Greenbelt, it may be a bit of a faff getting here, but it’s an experience that none of you should miss. Even if you just sit at the tiny tea tent and hold court, you’ll be the better for it!
Today You Are An 8 Month Old!
Posted by: Lo. on: July 27, 2010
- In: Baby Talk | Feelings | Travel
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Wow baby. Touring was good for you. You’ve bloomed and brightened and are putting all you’ve learned to good use so quickly! The first major thing is that you’re pretty much crawling. You get around quite well on any surface with carpet, or on the bed. You’re still not there on hard floors yet because you’re not really picking yourself up off the floor enough and you just stick to the floor really. Poor chap. We got home on the 13th, and you’re still not over your jetlag and so really neither are Mummy and Daddy. This coupled with your teething made last week really interesting since Steve was away so much working. I was pretty worn out by the weekend!
So in your rapid fire stylee you’ve learned clapping, waving, crawling, and said your first word in the space of two weeks. Oh, and sticking your tongue out. That’s officially your new favourite thing. You laugh and then put your fingers up to feel it….UBER CUTE. Death by cute really.
You have two teeth now on the bottom, and more trying to come in at the top. You can decimate a cucumber in a matter of minutes now and are enjoying all kinds of foods. You love banana, oatmeal, cucumber, broccoli, goat cheese, yogurt, sweet potato, peaches and nectarines, melon of all types, grapes, and as of yesterday…wheat free toast. That’s quite a sizable variety of foods for an 8 month old I think! We started out on baby led weaning and from the very beginning let you feed yourself. Somehow on tour that just wasn’t always possible…I think Nana began to cheat on tour in the car when you were hungry and we couldn’t stop. She was feeding you piece of banana. We then started carrying around organic applesauce too which we’d feed you with a spoon. But each time you eat a new food we let you eat it on your own the first time so you can decide if you like it or not. I think you’re like your Mum and Dad…you just LOVE food. The only thing you’ve turned down so far is mango..and I think like me…you may be sensitive to it.
You fell asleep while playing with my guitar cable
You are into EVERYTHING these last few weeks have officially entered the danger baby olympics. We have to watch you pretty much every second. Even on the train the other day I turned my back for a second to look for which stop was coming up and you grabbed the bin liner and were trying to eat it. Thank God it was a new one that didn’t yet contain any garbage. You had your first big accident on the road….your Daddy, Nana and I were staying in a nice hotel in Arkansas I think…and they had really high beds. I was in the other room and heard this awful hollow kind of thud and then you crying your hurt cry. It was terrifying. I ran in the room and indeed you’d rolled out of the bed. You were unhurt but I was so scared (and at the time angry that there were two adults with you in the room when it happened) I had to leave the room for a second and then come back in so I could calm down. Once I held you, you and I both calmed down right away…but I guess that’s the first of many of those little incidents that we’ll have to go through. I wish I could protect you from every little cut and bruise and hurt, but then how would you learn? Too bad knowing that doesn’t make it hurt any less eh?
Your first real word, to my surprise was “mmmmMummaaaa!” You say it with such elongated seriousness…enunciating every little bit of it sharply and then look so pleased when it’s out. You haven’t overused it yet, but then once you learn that it brings me into the room that time will be over. You’re also saying something that sounds like “bear”. You’re saying it with a British accent, so not taking that into account when I first heard you say it…I thought you were saying “bah”. But Papa Steve has assured me that it is indeed bear…and you seem to say it about your teddy.
Us not long before we left for tour
Play has continued to change and evolve as you get more and more into playing by yourself for longer periods of time. You study everything delicately if it’s the first time you have seen an object or a toy, but after that if you can make it sound percussive…you will. Everything is a drum or a shaker right now. You spend a lot of your time seeking out power cables and trying to pull on them…this is a no no but easy hunting in this household as you can imagine. Your cot has now officially been turned into a playpenitentiary. Thankfully you actually like it in there, and rather than seeing it as jail, you play in there quite contentedly for sometimes 30 mins or so. I’m just glad to have a safe place to put you down if I need to do anything. You tend to continue to like toys that are not really toys. Crinkly packets, water bottles, boxes, cables (especially guitar cables), wallets, and feet. You love FEET.
Well, it’s getting late again my love and I want to go snuggle you. I think your Papa and I have given up on trying to get you to sleep outside the family bed for now. Lots of co-sleepers have told me that you’ll transition when your ready and I think we’re fine with that for now.
I’ll just leave you with this thought. On the last date of our tour, in Pittsburgh we were meeting with some old friends that we hadn’t seen in a long time. The gig was cancelled incidentally, but we all still got together at our hotel. One of the girls I hadn’t seen for 18 years….her baby was almost exactly the same age you are now when I saw her the last time. I remember how cute he looked crawling around on the thick brown carpet of the living room where they lived. He’s just graduated from High School…and it seems crazy to me that so much time has passed so quickly. When I was talking to K about you, she said there were many little details about her pregnancy and his babyhood that she couldn’t remember. Just little things that we were discussing…and I remember thinking at the time that there’s no way I could forget those things…but having reflected a lot on our conversation (it was one of those rare and wonderful conversations where you rediscover how much you liked someone and actually get to apologise and clear up some issues from the past) I started to realise that I’m forgetting too. I’m forgetting what it felt like when you moved inside me before you were born, the pain of labour, the little things you did when you were just born, how old you were when this or that happened. I realised how important this record of those things is; how I need this to remember. I think we are designed to forget…motherhood is the most emotionally overwhelming thing that’s ever happened to me. I’ve never been so emotionally invested and connected to anything or anyone. I think if we didn’t forget a little it would all be too overwhelming. We need to be ready to go on to the next stage with just a hint of the past clinging on to us like faint perfume. I think this is so we won’t mourn so much for the little moments of the past, because babyhood is so fleeting, but look forward to the new moments of joy that are just around the corner holding a guitar cable and sticking out their tongues.
Recent Milestones:
Clapping, which you do with one fist and one open hand
Two bottom teeth
Waving
Crawling
Sitting up well on your own
First word, MUMMA!
Second word: BEAR!
Sticking out your tongue
Lots and lots of raspberries! (you were a latecomer to raspberrries)
Pulling yourself to standing
You’re starting to LOVE books!
Fave Toys:
Wooden stacking rings
Monkeyrings
Whoozit Cube and shakers
guitar cables, water bottles, anything crinkly
You’ve gone from your crinkly baby books to books with words and pics….you love the Feelings sign language book, and look at my face after each page to see what EXCITED, or HAPPY looks like.
Fave Games:
Crawling and getting into shit
rocking in your cushy tushy (you tipped it over for the first time today and I caught you!)
sticking out your tongue and laughing
trying to sing
anything dangerous
Fave Music:
Coal Train Railroad!
For the Kids (the Kitty Kat song esp)
Mummy and Daddy (thankfully)
You’re 6.8 months old! Blame touring for the lateness!
Posted by: Lo. on: June 19, 2010
Good lord my little monkeypants! You’re growing up so fast! This past month and then some has really flown right by…especially since we’ve been on tour in the US since the end of May.
I’ve probably forgotten all the cool things that you started doing since you were 5 months…but you ARE ever so so cool. You are very very bright and it’s hard to get things past you. Your Grandma N was playing with you yesterday with your fingerpuppet book and she pushed the lion’s head backward through the front of the book and said…”Where’s the lion?” You studied it for a moment and then promptly turned the book over.
Guess what else? You’ve got big boy poops now! You’re eating banana, cucumber, apple, broccoli, potato, sweet potato and avocado. You make a right mess, but you’re doing well! Banana is probably your favourite food so far though you haven’t turned down anything that you’ve been offered. You’ve only had potato once, but we had to stop you eating it, because you were eating more than any new eater should! We’ll try again once we get time to roast you up some more.
Ever since your Nana joined us on tour, you’ve been a happy little man. You were proper ill for the first time after a few days in NYC, and have had a cough ever since. You had the flu, and were vomiting, and went through 40 nappies in 3 days!!! You poor little thing, you were such a trooper though, and acted like it was no big deal. I am looking forward to your cough going away. It does seem to be getting better, albeit slowly. We’ve also found that you have a slight allergy to pet hair/dander. I don’t know that it’s enough to keep you away from pets totally, but we’re watching you closely.
You’ve been great at the gigs, though we had a tough time sorting out your jetlag at first, but once you got on schedule you’ve started learning to love the gigs. At first you were sleeping through most of them, but now you sometimes make it through the whole gig with your Nana. Since you’re eating on your own now as well, you don’t always need my milk to fall asleep and will go down for either your Dad or Nana. It’s been great for me though I think I secretly miss being the go-to girl for lulling you to sleep! You are such an amazing little chap and no one can believe how good you are on the road. We bought you a new car seat before we left London and you love it. I think you enjoy going from place to place, especially with your Nana riding along with you in the back. You rarely cry, and really only when you’re fighting sleep or are hungry. You’re so interested in everything that the touring lifestyle seems to suit you the way it does your Papa. You love meeting new folks and staying in different places it seems. It’s a bit harder on me and Nana I think…but we manage. Between the three of us, giving you all the love, attention, and food you need has been a breeze on tour. Much easier than I thought it would be…though we haven’t really sorted out bathtime yet. At home you get a bath every other day, but on tour I’m lucky if we manage one every 4 days. If we let the bathtime go until it’s your bedtime, you scream your head off through the whole thing….so often we opt to give you a wipedown a couple times a day and a bath when the schedule/residence permits.
Well, there’s a tonne more I’d like to write, but it’s late here and I have some other things to do before I hit the hay. We’re all so proud of you little one, we love you so much. You’re gaining loved ones all over the world…you give love so easily. A baby flapjack kiss is well a well coveted thing it seems.
Recent milestones:
Rolling over and over and over and over with ease
holding yourself up in crawling position
Eating proper food all by yourself (baby led weaning)
Big boy poops!
Signing…milk, eat, all done, up
letting Nana and Papa lull you to sleep
playing on your own for extended periods of time
a bottom tooth is starting to poke through
Fave toys:
Whoozit cube from Auntie tess,
Polka dotted changing mat
Papa’s wallet
Mum’s purse
Nana’s lip balm
Baby wipes container
water bottle with marbles/rocks in
pulling hair and glasses
Fave games:
Shaking hands vigorously (I say “Nice to meet you!”)
ipod touch baby piano and peekaboo barn, baby phone
Peek a boo with Nana
Hubba bubba and aganomnom game (we say these to you and you giggle)
Fave music:
Coal train railroad baby!!!
Mum and Papa’s gigs
James Yuill
Russian Peasant by Alan Pasqua
Blue Adeline
MORE soon baby and thanks to everyone who has made touring with Flapjack so wonderful!!! You know who you are!!! xoxoxo
5 Months Old Today! Wheeee!
Posted by: Lo. on: April 28, 2010
- In: Baby Talk | Feelings
- 3 Comments
How can it be that you’re 5 months old today?? Seems impossible. I find myself looking at little babies on the bus and thinking…you were only that young for about 2 minutes. It truly goes by too fast. I am trying to remember to enjoy every minute, I think people forget to do that sometimes. Since you’re the only baby I’m having, I am extra wistful about the stages of your babyhood. I know that as you pass through each stage, that I won’t get to experience that again…at least not with my own child. I’m already getting really sad thinking that soon you won’t even need me for sustenance anymore. Each day you grow more and more independent. We watch you not only wanting, but enjoying the experience of learning to do things for yourself. Sometimes you even take my hands off your toys so you can do what you want with them and I’m not handing them to you. Often this means that you throw everything on the floor. This is great fun to you lately. I can imagine what it’s going to be like once you start eating.
Big changes this month are that you can sit up on your own for a couple minutes at a time….we’ve seen you pull yourself up with your stomach muscles and know it’s just a matter of time before you realise that you can balance by leaning on your arm. Also you are making moves towards crawling. At every opportunity you get on your tummy and try to propel forward. Again, once you learn what you need to do with your arms you’ll have it! You can hold yourself up quite well in the crawling position but when you try to use your legs you take a nose dive.
Second big change is that your decision making and dexterity have gone through the roof. I guess this ties in with the level of independence that you’ve developed of late. You see what you want, grab for it, examine it, and then throw it on the floor. Next!
Thirdly, you’re a total dancing queen! You’ve always liked it when we danced around the room with you but lately you’ve got your own groove going on. Papa Steve was telling me today that you were doing some proper hip-hop moves today. We keep hold of your hands while you’re standing on our laps and you do the rest. You love love love music and dancing.
You also love going outside. We go out for walks every day…I’ve joined the local library and we go there quite a bit as well and have discovered that Blackheath and Greewich is only a 15 min bus ride away so we’ve been going there quite often. Greenwich Park is breathtakingly beautiful and you’ve love the grass and the trees. You also like hanging out in Cafes as well, and people watching. Your faves are Leon, The Cafe de Mussee in Greenwich, and Cafe Paradiso on Shad Thames.
Last week my lovely Canadian friend Emma came to visit for almost a whole week. You really loved her! She got you looking out the window of our flat and you now can’t get enough of that. We spent about an hour and a half people watching out the window today. You especially like the big red double decker buses and when dogs pass. You seem to be really amazed by all the different music that emanates from each car.
Lastly you REALLY REALLY want to eat food. We’ve decided on baby-led weaning…but I don’t want to jump the gun with you as you’ve had a lot of digestive issues in the past, and seem to have a hard time with dairy. (each time I eat much dairy you have terrible gas pain, and get a rash on your bum) So I want to make sure that you’re ready before we start to give you any kind of food other than breast milk. If we can make it, I’ll wait the full 6 months. You’ve tasted a bit of apple (which you grabbed out of my hand and tried to shove into your mouth) you’ve also grabbed some curry off of my plate a time or two but didn’t quite get it into your mouth before I caught you! So according to some, you are ready to eat…but you haven’t doubled your birth weight, you’re not quite sitting up completely on your own for more than a few mins at a time, and you still seem to be thriving only on my milk so we’ll see what happens. I’m looking forward to telling the story of your first (legal) experience with food.
You continue to be a happy, friendly, fun loving baby who is an utter delight to be around and make the lives of everyone who is around you better for you just being in it. Thanks for being so amazing, for being ours.
Fave Music this month:
Junk: Paul McCartney and sung by me! This is your favourite song in the world and it never fails to calm you down and make you smile. May this always work for you.
Coal Train Railroad: This is GENIUS. I can’t say enough great things about this album and you LOVE it. No matter how upset you get, when Papa Steve puts this on, you’re ready to dance and smile and have fun!
Madness: You seem to like ska. DANCE BABY DANCE!
Favourite toys:
A sad note here…your friend the Duckalupagus went missing after a day out with Matt, Clare, James and Kari. We never found him. I cried and cried because he was your first toy friend and because he was so bloody cool!!! (I loved him too) There are plans in the works to make a Dupalupagus 2, but I know he’ll never quite be the same.
1. I Love Food crinkly activity book given to you by your Aunt Stacy. You love punching the kitty in the face for some reason. Lets hope this behaviour doesn’t translate into real life!
2. Soft Colorful Gund Ball from Jazzshark. It’s just a delight to touch!
3. Rings! Rings! Rings! Perhaps this should have been first. You just continue to love your linking rings from Auntie Tess.
4. Crinkly Pooh Blanket from Cousin Heather
We’re headed off on our UK tour in another week and then at the end of May over to the US! This will be a good trial run to see how you deal with touring. Lets hope you love it as much as we do!
Alright my gorgeous darlin’, it’s after midnight and probably about snuggle time. I’m getting baby withdraw thinking of you sleeping all alone in there! More next month!
4 Months, and Only One Day Late! (Get Me!)
Posted by: Lo. on: March 27, 2010
Hi little man! Not that you’re going to care if I get these posts out on time, but I feel quite proud of myself that I am getting closer to the actual day of you turning a particular month older. This is your 4 month birthday +1. Last night we tried to make it out to Brighton with your oddmother Lau, but ended up getting a bit lost trying to find a place along the road to feed you, as you were in a right state, and ended up at a Carvery/Pub thinghy, (which is hilarious as we’re all vegetarian) We ended up staying for dinner as they had a veg bar as well (next to all the meat carcasses, it was quite something to behold) and we had a very nice server. You were all fixed and happy once we got inside, there was so much to see in there!
You’ve changed quite a bit in just a few weeks…again grown so much taller…now the only baby grows that fit you are your “flapjack” ones given to you buy your great Aunt Linda and Uncle Ed. They bought you a whole bunch of things and had Flapjack embroidered on all of them. You also wore your Flapjack dungarees for the first time a few days ago. I’m telling you this boring tale of your clothes because you’re 4 months, and these are clothes for 6-12 months. You’re the longest legged 4 month old I’ve ever seen!
You are so taking after your Dad in the “finding everything interesting” department. So much so that I can’t get you to feed for very long. You always get distracted and forget that you’re hungry (until 20 mins later when you realise that you need to feed again!) It can be a bit trying for me as I’m getting even less done now that I was when you were newborn! You’re also going through a Mommy needs to see this stage, so you always want me in the room, even if you don’t really need me. So I’ve taken to putting you in your car seat when Steve isn’t around and you watch me cook or clean while playing with your rings. You usually give me about 20 mins at any one time and then you insist that we play together. (who wants to do housework when you can play with a supercute baby??)
Since you want to sit up all the time but can’t yet do it on your own (you’re getting there fast) we bought you a little chair of your own. It’s called a cushy tushy. As in the picture above. You like it, and it has a nice little tray that you can put your toys on, or computer, while you surf CeeBeebies…but you have yet to want to sit in it for longer than about 10 mins at a time. I’m hoping this gets longer as you use it more, cause you’re very secure in it and it would allow me to be able to do things like have a bath when your Dad is away. (like next week he’s on a masterclass tour) Thankfully we’re having some company and Lau is coming around to spend the night so we won’t be all alone.
Milestones this month….
1.You’re getting better at playing your baby games on the ipod touch. You’re much more accurate at touching the screen in the right places.
2.You’ve officially “found your feet” and when on your back are always holding on to them and putting them in your mouth. It’s very cute.
3.You continue to coo and try to talk. Besides consistently saying “hi” and “hello” I’ve caught a few other things that sound like English. Your talking is so so cute.
4.You’re proper belly laughing a lot now. Not just when I tickle you under the arms, but just spontaneously and when we make funny noises to you. Your laugh could turn the most crotchety old fart into a kitten. It could melt polar ice caps. (but don’t do that, they’re already going fast)
5.You’re terribly interested in food. I’ve continued to let you smell different foods, but am trying to keep you on breast milk solely for at least another month. You’ve already had lots of digestive issues and I don’t wanna jump the gun.
6.You’re learning how to push your torso up by the arms when on your tummy. You used to just push your face along propelled by your legs (which is very funny but could give you a nasty face burn)
7.You are starting to love anything that makes noise.
8. You became an American. We’re waiting for your passport to come in the mail. When you’re grown you’ll have UK and American passports and be able to work in the UK, Europe, and the US. That’s quite something. Now if only you had a Canadian Grandparent! I so want to live in Canada again someday.
Fave toys this month: continue to be your linking rings, iPod touch animal game, duckalupagus, bluedog, and the crinkly pooh blanket that your cousin Heather got you.
We’ve been going out on many walks together as the weather is getting nicer and nicer and you’ve decided that you LOVE trees. You’re amazed by them. You used to sleep on most of our walks but last week you were awake for about 50-60% of the time. Again, like your Dad, you don’t want to miss a thing. Well, I hear you calling for me in the next room sweetheart so I’d better go give you a cuddle. You continue to be a joy and a wonder, inspiring more love and devotion than I ever thought possible. The 4 scariest and best months of my life have just passed. Thank you for being the most amazing thing that’s ever happened to me. Stay tuned for more adventures next month!
Heya Flapjack! You’re 3 Months, and Then Some
Posted by: Lo. on: March 13, 2010
Hiya baby. You’re actually about 3 and 1/2 months now…but I haven’t had much time for anything of late but holding and feeding you. I’m not complaining lovely, it’s just that the 3 month growth spurt came with a vengeance and lasted about 10 days. 10 days in which you either wanted to be held or fed. The result is that you seem to have grown out of all of your clothes overnight. I can’t believe how big you’ve gotten! Again, you’re not a pudgy baby at all just tall and strong as a little ox.
I’m actually having withdraw at the moment. You’re asleep in the bedroom, and it’s about 12:30pm and after thinking to myself, if I only had a little time, I’m now having to keep myself from running in there and snuggling against you. I dream about having time to do things, but what I really want is to hang out with you.
The changes you’ve made this month seem to come on suddenly and overnight. Verbally you’re about the same but my oh my how your dexterity has changed. You grab EVERYTHING with your hands and put it in your mouth if possible. Your arms continue to get stronger and stronger, but you still don’t seem interested in trying to crawl. You can however, almost sit up on your own now. You’ve been doing the one thing that makes it certain that you’re related to my side of the family….rocking back and forth. Yes, my side of the family for some reason all like to rock (yes and ROCK) and apparently you do too. It’s made your stomach muscles very strong though, hence how you’re almost sitting up on your own at 3.5 months.
You’re sweet and funny and surprise us every day with some new behaviour. Your favourite toys at the moment are the linking rings that Auntie Tess and Uncle Jim got for you. You almost always have at least three of them in your hands. You also like my Ipod touch. There’s a program I got for you called Peek-A-Boo and you press a smiley face and then a random cartoon animal appears and makes and animal noise. You LOVE it. Your favourite animals seem to be the duck (of course) the pig, and the frog. You like to press the smiley face to make it work. Sometimes when the frog appears you just start giggling. Speaking of giggling you are sooooo ticklish. Under the arms and down your sides and when I change your clothes it makes you laugh. Your laugh and smile are so beautiful that sometimes I realise that I have tears in my eyes. It makes me realise how jaded and worn down by life we are. When I look into your little face and you smile at me, I see all that pure joy in your face and it’s like nothing else in the world matters but that tiny moment of pure happiness. Every day you teach me; to love; to be patient; to be happy.
We had out first Microgig here at the flat and you were in heaven! There were so many amazing people here to hold you and make over you! Usually you’re all about the ladies, but that night you were held by men all night long. You were making the guys as well as the girls broody! People should be warned lest you increase the population of London by default!
The day after you started into your growth spurt and your Granny J. was here. I felt a little bad that she was visiting at a time when you weren’t your normal jovial self, but she was great with you as always. She actually took you out for a two hour walk without us so we could clean the flat from top to bottom for the show and that was the first time you’ve ever been out of the house without us. Near the end of the two hours, I made Steve call because I was missing you too much.
I should wind this up and go and snuggle you now. I’m sure there’s a lot of other things I could talk about…how we’re gearing up to take you to the US for the first time in May and we have an appointment to apply for your American passport next week. Seems unreal. Would you believe that I was 28 when I got my first passport? I’d only been to Canada and Mexico up until then. My first trip abroad was to Switzerland. I still love it just a little bit more than everywhere else in Europe I’ve been. You were there in Utero, but believe me it’s much more spectacular on the outside. We’ll go again soon I hope.
Well, you’re Daddy just called and he’s on his way home from his gig so I’m going for now. More soon!
