Entertaining visitors

For a change, grandma and grandad came to our place for tea. We usually go to their place, but their oven is broken, so they brought the food, used our oven, and we all shared a meal.

Lasagne! I had some. It was good.

I tried to stand up in my high chair again. I was quickly sat back down. Then dad shoved a pillow between me and the back of the highchair, and it meant I didn't have enough space to wriggle myself to a standing position. Dad said a side effect would be a much comfier high chair.

I showed grandma and grandad all my fancy bath moves. I don't usually have an audience in the bath, so it was a little overwhelming, but I soon got back into the swing of standing and splashing and playing with Ernie and his boat.

Rewrites

We have lots of books to read. Some are better than others.

I have some Golden Books, just like the ones mum and dad had when they were little. But mine are in pristine condition, no tattered corners yet...We were reading one the other day when dad announced 'these are written really badly'.

Today we were reading a different story and dad announced 'this is written really badly'. So he made up his own story using the pictures.

Instead of the playful dog getting bored with the red ball (yes, they actually used the word 'bored'), the playful dog practiced bowling like Warney! We also thought we could do a better job than rhyming 'inside' with 'night'!

Dad enjoyed the new-improved story a lot more. He says we're actually going to rewrite it properly, print out the new words, and stick them in the book.

Next, we're going to rewrite Scuffy the Tugboat...

Socks off!

I'm learning things so fast mum is having a big job trying to keep up.

Today I figured out how to stand up in my high chair. Apparently it's not as cool as I thought, because mum did not clap, like she usually does when I do something clever. If there was the opposite of a clap, she did that.

Good thing I'm always supervised in the high chair.

My socks are always coming off, usually by accident. But today I figured out how to whoosh them off with a couple of tugs. It wasn't the best day to try this trick, being one of the coldest days I've ever experienced. This little coastal baby is in for a shock come proper winter time.

Mum did notice me in the car making a few moves with my sock, as if I was trying to get it back on. I didn't manage to do it, but she was impressed with my efforts.

Eating with the grown ups

I've eaten at the table for a while now - my little high chair pulled up next to mum or dad, but today was the first time I've eaten the same thing as the adults were eating.

Tuna Mornay and rice.

It took me a while to get the hang of it. The look on my face after the first bite was something along the lines of I'm thinking of spitting this out' - but I didn't, and after the third mouthful I was fine.

I think we ended up eating the same food because yesterday when we went shopping dad grabbed a few cans of baby food. We like to have a few cans of food in case we run out of my homemade meals (not the breastmilk - it's hard to run out of that!). Dad noticed there were lots of cans we hadn't tried. Cans with age limits much closer to mine. They'd still been getting me the 6 month cans and there are cans for 10 month olds. We got one, opened it up, and saw it looked pretty much like a sloppy version of a meal mum would make.

Funny legs

I spent most* of the day laughing.

Dad discovered my ticklish legs and we had a great time joking around this morning. The balls of my feet are a bit ticklish too. But tickles are only good in moderation...Too much is not so good.

We read a few stories before we went shopping. My interest in books is coming back. I still get a little distracted around storytime, but dad is quite impressed that I like to point to point to all the faces of the people in the book.

I skipped my morning sleep, and slowed down a bit as the day went on, but by the time it came for my bath I perked up (like I usually do) and resumed laughing when dad squirted water from my little plastic whale.

*There were five minutes where I cried. This was caused by an ambitious head-first move off dad's lap onto the floor. It was only a ten centimetre fall, but it hurt, and left me with a little lump on my head. I forgot it soon after, and went back to laughing.

Something old, something new

I'm back to my rolling over on the change table trick. I think it's hilarious. And when mum or dad try to flip me over onto my back I get a little whingy. Nappy change time is time for acrobatics!

Speaking of nappies, I'm trying out some new ones. I've been in the one brand since I was born. We were given lots of advice when I arrived into the world, and one piece was 'there's a reason why cheap nappies are cheap'. Some friends had tried out all the available nappies and ended up using the premier brand, so when it was time to buy a box, we went straight to the good ones.

My supply was running low yesterday (I think we got down to about 6 at home, and none at grandma's - grandma had to 'recycle' a nappy for me on Monday!) we couldn't find any of the good ones for a reasonable price, and when mum saw some cheapies on sale she thought we might give them a try. So far, so good...But they don't have Pooh Bear on them...

Earl of Sandwich

I had my first sandwich.

Just like the Earl of Sandwich, we were in a hurry, and instead of giving me some mushed up avocado, and then some toast fingers afterwards, mum put the avocado on the toast, and voila, my first toasted sandwich!

I have a new food trick, after each spoonful of breakfast and tea today I stuck my finger in my mouth. It made a bit of a mess, but dad thinks it's just me discovering where all the food goes.

Put your hands in the air

Mum says what happened today was was one of the best moments of her life.

I was sitting in my high chair, dad was on the computer, and mum was in the kitchen.

Dad played a song on the stereo, and did a little dance for me (like he always does), mum joined in (like she sometimes does) and I started to bop up and down in my chair (like I've just started to do).

After that, they both put their hands in the air in time with the music, and then I joined in too!

It was a simple thing, but very special. Mum teared up - in happiness!

Rock and roll - bringing families together since 2008!

Blowing kisses; I got it right!

I got the blowing kisses thing finally figured out!

I still do a few from my ear, or my cheek, but I figured out where they are supposed to be aimed from. My mouth!

I still think high fives are much cooler.

We went to playgroup today and I found other kid's hair fascinating. I still tend to play with the other kids as if they were toys, and not people. They reckon little kids take a while to figure out how to play with each other...

Twenty 20 cricket saved our night

I had a bit of trouble sleeping tonight.

We're still blaming the prune juice. One of mum's friends told her it's full of sugar, and even though it helps make poos soft, it helps give you gas and an upset tummy. So....no more prune juice for me.

Our usual trick for a restless night starts with a cuddle and a walk around the room. Sometimes that's enough, and I'll sleep the rest of the night. It didn't work tonight. Then, we'll try having a cuddle with mum in bed. It didn't work. Then, a quick feed in bed to help me drift off back to sleep. It almost always works. It didn't tonight. The final straw usually involves me and dad and the loungeroom couch. It didn't work. Dad got very tired walking me around the loungeroom. He remembered that Isometimes quieten down if there's something to watch on the telly. I don't watch much telly, but desperate measures...

So dad turned it on, loaded up the video with the previous night's 20/20 cricket match and we lay on the couch at 3am watching sport. I eventually drifted off to sleep, but woke up with a jolt when the video stoped playing and started to rewind at the end of the tape. A great reason to buy a hard disc recorder!

Blowing kisses sounds good

Even though I said blowing kisses might not be the coolest thing, we have been having a few practice sessions lately.

Dad will blow me a kiss, or two, and then it's apparently my turn to give one back. I usually just stare blankly, or wave, or clap (two perfectly good past times), but I have not been into blowing kisses. Until today.

I sent one back. Well, sort of. I raised my hand and placed it towards my face...Everyone got a little excited...I bypassed my mouth and went straight to my ear, and then did the customary 'kiss' extended arm move. Everybody laughed. Blowing kisses never sounded so good. 'Sounded so good'; get it? Because I 'kissed' from my ear! Ahhhh, I guess you had to be there...

Somewhere you really didn't want to be was near my bedroom at three o'clock this morning. After sleeping beautifully for the last couple of months I've pulled out two bad nights in a row. Lots of crying and squirmyness. Dad wondered if I had a pain in the tummy. He thought it may have been the prunes. We have no proof. But we certainly had a lot less sleep than we needed.

Prune juice and Kevin Sheedy

I have been up to my old 'beetroot face' trick at the breakfast table lately so mum decided it was time to give me a little help in the form of some prune juice.

I had my first taste of it today, and I liked it. Dad thought it might be a bit strong, so mum watered it down a little bit for me. Throughout the day dad caught me farting. He blames the prunes.

We've heard some stories of kids being constipated, and we certainly don't want that, so a few preventions seem to be the way to go.

The other big news of the day was that we went to the park to see the 150th anniversary celebrations of the AFL. They had kicking and handball competitions. I was a little small to do it on my own, but dad helped me handball through the target. It took us two goes to get it right. At point blank range! I wore my jersey. I was the littlest lion there.

Kevin Sheedy was there signing autographs, and he gave me a cuddle.

Speaking of prunes, my baths have been quite long lately, and my hands and feet have gotten all pruney! I love bathtime.

Trendsetter

I am a trendsetter.

Mum told the ladies at last week's friday get together about my love of pegs. Olive's mum decided to see how she would go with some pegs of her own. She loves them too! Her mum handed her a peg the other day and she grabbed it with her left hand, then she handed her another one, and she grabbed it with her right hand. Then she offered her another peg...And she opened up her mouth and chomped on it! That's peg dedication. That's very cool.

There was some discussion about bath times at today's lunch. We do ours after tea, but all the other kids have their baths before tea. The only trouble is the possibility of getting dirty at tea time (especially if you start feeling creative with you food!) One of the other mums said she got a pillow slip, cut a hole in it for the baby's head and arms and voila; a cheap, no fuss mess-eliminator-for-kids-who-have-already-had-a-bath.

It's grandma's bithday today. We gave her a little sculpture titled 'grandmother'. She liked it. She and grandad left for their home after brekky, so it was just me and mum for a few hours before our next visitor; dad's best buddy, and best man Ben - all the way from Cairns. We had never met each other so there were lots of getting to know each other looks.

Baby on board

This has been on my mind for quite a few months; why do people have Baby on Board stickers on their car?

Does the baby carseat, dangly toys hanging from the windows and cartoon sunshade not scream 'baby' enough?

And why do people stick them on the car anyway? Is it a warning, 'don't get too close, I've got a baby on board, and I'm not afraid to use it'. Or maybe it's a heads-up; 'I've got a baby in here, which means I'm not concentrating on the road as much as I should be'. Or maybe it's a safety issue; 'you might be planning to crash into me but please reconsider, I've got a baby on board'.

Whatever the reason, we don't like them. They're not cool.

Pegs are cool. Stick a picture of a peg on the back of your car instead.

Hanging out with grandma

I spent most of the day with grandma. My other grandma. The one who lives a long way away.

They are visiting to do some work on the new house, and I took the chance to play with grandma while the others were pulling up old lino off the floor. Lucky us!

I had a two hour sleep this morning. Mum put me down in the cot before she left, and I lept and slept. When I woke up I didn't seem to miss mum at all. It was only when mum got home I ealised she'd been gone and I had a little whinge until she gave me a big cuddle.

We all went to tea at the other grandparents place, and it was great to have 4 grandparents doting over me. I was the centre of attention.

I tried climing the stairs. Only got up to the seventh one, I think it was because I tired myself out trying to climb down the stairs earlier. I tried to go down frontwards. Everyone told me it wasn't the smartest thing to do, and they worried I might fall face first. I didn't, but I never managed to get myself down. I decided to stay at the top of the step and play with my high chair!

Left or right?

Mum gave me some peas at tea time. I picked them up, one at a time, using my pincer grip.

I used my right hand for the first few, as I was leaning on the left hand. Mum said I might be a right hander. Dad's not so sure. He repositioned me so I was leaning on my right hand, and I grabbed the rest of the peas with my left hand. He was impressed.

It took me a while to finish the peas, one at a time. A few fell on the floor.

We had afternoon tea at the new house, in the backyard - it's the cleanest part of the house! Mum and dad and grandma and grandad had a packet of salt and vinegar chips, and thought I might like to have a little taste (I think they were thinking I might screw up my face). I liked it. Enough to dive into the packet to get another one! I wasn't encouraged to eat any more. Fruit and veggies are my staple, and even though chips are made from potatoes, I'm told it's not the same. Drat.

I remember you when you were little

My other grandma and grandad came to visit today. I haven't seen them for a long time. They say I've grown a lot.

I showed them all my new skills, and some of the older ones I've perfected.

Crawling, clapping, waving, pointing...I did it all, much to their delight.

We heard that one of my younger second cousins can blow kisses, so dad gave me a crash course at the breakfast table. I think I'm too busy pointing to worry about blowing kisses. I've got too many other things to do, like mastering my spoon. I tried to feed myself brekky this morning. I'm not as precise as I need to be with the spoon - I can get it into my mouth with no worries, but loading it up with food is a bit tricky. So dad and I ended up holding the spoon together. I think it was more a case of him helping me, even at the time I was sure it was me doing the helping . We managed to finish the feed, and a lot of food actually made it into my mouth! It took a while though...

That's the point

I started pointing today. With my index finger. At a dog.

We went to a barbecue and I spent a good deal of time checking out the little dog that lived at the house we were visiting.

I slowly pointed my finger at her until she leaned forward and licked my hand. I pulled back fast, but slowly extended it again. Another lick. Ooohhh! It was very interesting.

As well as the pointing and the dog, I enjoyed lots of cuddles at the party.

Get me out of the car

We drove to the big smoke today to get some lights and towel rails for the new house. This doesn't sound too exciting, but I did enjoy watching all the people and looking at new things.

I did not enjoy riding in the car.

In the olden days I would fall asleep five minutes into a trip and stay asleep until we got to the city. Today I waited five minutes, and seeing it didn't look like we were going to stop I wailed. And wailed. It made for a very sad, and very long, and very loud trip.

When we arrived, mum took me out of my carseat and gave me a hug. I smiled.

I ate a piece of watermelon at Ikea. It took me ages to finish it. Everyone laughed as I swished it from one side of my mouth to the other.

After buying the lights and towel rails we loaded up the car and headed home. I waited five minutes. I cried. And cried. We stopped at a service station to make sure everything was ok, and I stopped crying immediately. In hindsight it was probably a bit too early. Definately too early to flash a couple of smiles. As soon as those smiles were made public mum and dad knew it wasn't an emergency after all. Mum explained that we can't not get in the car because that would mean living at the service station. So we all climbed in and headed off again. I waited five minutes. I cried. I stopped when we got home.

I met a cow

We went to the show tonight.

We had one hour before they closed the gates, but it was plenty of time to check out the horticultural section after walking past all the lights and sounds of sideshow alley. I'm a bit little for those kind of rides. Give me a swing instead.

We made it to the pavillion to find out it shut an hour before everything else shut. So we didn't get to see the stuff we were after. So we went and had a look at some people riding their horses instead. I was quite interested in the horses. And then on the way out we walked past some stables where we found lots of cows. They were very interesting. And smelly!

It don't mean a thing, if it aint got that swing

Dad and I spent the day together.

We headed up to the new house to supervise the new kitchen going in. We circulated between the kitchen and the backyard, keeping out of the road of the workmen, but keeping an eye on them to make sure they did everything right.

After a couple of hours dad said that it wasn't fair for me to be 'working' all day so we jumped in the car and went on a search. Dad said it would be worth it. He finally found what he was looking for. A swing! With a 'seatbelt' for little people.

He strapped me in and gave me a little push.

Weeeee!

I laughed. Dad laughed too, and was happy we shared another first.

He pushed me a little higher, and I kept laughing, so he pushed me a bit higher and I looked a bit concerned. He slowed it down and the smile returned.

After we had our fill of the swing we noticed a flock of galahs feeding under a big tree. We walked over to them and one flew away, I found the flying quite fascinating. So dad picked up the pace, and ran straight towards the other birds. They all flew away. I thought it was great.

We went back to the house and found the builders had messed up while we out, but dad said we can fix their mistake, and that playing in the park was much more important.

Stand up and be counted

I followed mum around the house today, finding all sorts of things interesting in every room we went to. If I wasn't playing with the wide assortment of goodies in the study or the loungeroom, I was grabbing onto the closest piece of furniture, or people, and standing up. Standing up is great fun. I'm still a bit wobbly, but practice makes perfect, right?

Though I fast to climb up, mum is impressed with my caution on getting down. I demonstrate my carefulness in the bath. I don't just let go of the sides of the bath and let gravity do its thing, I slowly descend until I'm safely submerged back into the warm waters. It sometimes takes a bit of time, but it's better to be safe than sorry, right? Mum likes it that I'm a careful baby. Careful most of the time. Sometimes I play the 'lurch backwards' game. Thankfully I only play it on the couch, I'll throw myself back and laugh, and when mum or dad pull me back up, I'll throw myself back, with lots more laughs.

More words

Dad's happy I've added another word to my vocabulary; "Dadadadadad".

He heard me say it once, a couple of weeks ago, when we were having a wrestle in the morning. But he was sleepy, and later thought he must have dreamt it when all I said for the rest of the day was 'mumumumum'.

But there's no senying it this time. I spent a good deal of the day saying it. Often to mum.

It wasn't the only thing I said to mum. We had a fantastic time playing peek-a-boo. I even joined in, yelling ‘ahhh boo!’ That's two-thirds of 'peek-a-boo'. Mum says I must be very clever.

When dad got home from work I was back to the good old standard 'mumums'.

Around my normal bedtime we had to go out and do a bit of wallpaper removal, so they packed me up in my grobag, buckled me into the car, and by the time we got to the new house I was asleep. I slept right through the job, and even through the last minute trip to the supermarket to buy a scrubbing brush. A couple of hours later I was tucked up in my own bed, still asleep.

Caution; don't read while eating

Another first, but there's nothing much to celebrate.

I did a proper spew.

Not a milky one, I've done a few of those, this one was a proper one, with orange chunks and everything.

Mum went to bed early, she had an upset tummy, and around 3 o'clock this morning I let out a big noise, and most of last night's tea. Dad ran in and got me and I cried, and I think he almost cried, but he got me cleaned up and even though I was a little pale, I was back to my smiling self not long afterwards.

Dad stayed at home today to look after me and mum, they call it family leave. Mum's feeling much better now, and I had a normal day, playing with my favourite toy, a blue clothes peg.

Defence substitution

Mum is the last line of defence in out household. Dad does what he can with me, but if it all gets a bit too crazy, mum is always there to save the day.

But this afternoon mum got sick, and so dad had to take over the reins.

He and I played and read stories, and then he gave me my bottle to help me fall asleep, then another bottle because I sucked the first one down so fast that I was still wide awake. The second one almost did the trick, and after a walk around and a lie down on the couch I finally fell asleep much to dad's relief. He says he stills finds it a huge accomplishment to send me to sleep. When he sees my little eyes close and when my head hits the pillow (and stays there) he says it's like kicking a goal.

Now that's a ball!

Mum and dad had to do some house renovation stuff today, and instead of dragging me around to visit another kitchen shop they thought I'd prefer to spend the morning with grandma and grandad. It's not that I'm a bad shopper, or that I cramp their style, quite the opposite, but it's much more fun to play with toys than stare at paint samples!

Grandad introduced me to the biggest ball I've ever seen. It's a exercise ball. A big bouncy one adults sit on to help their posture, and to do exercises. I was a bit hesitant at the start, but when I discovered I could push it and make it roll, I loved it.

When dad came to collect me he picked me up and plonked me on top of it and bounced me up and down. It was great fun.

Funny face

I've been doing funny faces today. I think it's because of my new teeth. I'm playing with my tongue and my teeth and I'm often caught doing very serious 'frowns'. But I'm not sad. I'm just exploring.

Mum and I went out for lunch with some other mums and their kids. Lots of stories were shared, and I spent some time with Olive, who's my age. We don't really play together, we're a bit young for that. We just hang out. I was fascinated with the older kids, especially the three year olds, they can do all sorts of things. I kept my eye on them.

Bye pool

Dad took me to my last swimming lesson today. We're not going to go next term, because it's getting a bit cold, and because there's only so much "the wheels on the bus" one can take before screaming "let's sing another song!"

I wore my new boardies in honour of the big day and I got lots of comments. Usually the other kids just wear swimming nappies, but I like to wear something over my swimming nappy.

Dad had the morning at home with me and we had a great time. He likes giving me a bottle - it's time to sit and be quiet and even though mum's feeds are a lot better, and natural, dad says he really loves having that time together.

We also had fun reading a story. We got through 'the saggy baggy elephant' one and a half times before I got restless and tried to eat the book.

Timing the wave

I'm starting to wave in context.

Ever since I figured out how to wave I'd wave at everyone and everything. People, trees, cars, power poles, I'd wave to them all. But sometimes my timing would be way off. Someone would wave goodbye to me, and I'd sit sit for a while, usually until they'd gone, and then I'd vigourously wave to where they were standing before they walked away.

But today I got my timing and the context right.

I waved to the swimming teacher, and I waved as dad drove to work. He was very proud, but it also made him sad that he had to leave, when he saw me wave he wanted to turn the car around and just hang out with me all day.

He's been trying to get me to do some high-fives. I don't know if I'm really understanding the whole high-five concept yet. But I often laugh when he slaps my palm with his and says 'high five'. It's a cross between a clap and a wave, two of my most favourite new skills.

Seen and not heard

Sometimes people should be seen and not heard.

We were at the shops, waiting in the line, and I was playing a game of peek-a-boo with another shopper. A lady said to mum 'your baby is a very good boy", mum said "yes, he's a great shopper", and then the lady said "ah, that'll change".

It's a funny thing to say. Not funny 'ha ha', funny strange.

We've encountered a few of these types of remarks in our travels.

"They might be good now, but wait till they're 2" Or four, or 14...We've heard them all.

Maybe they've had bad experiences with babies, or they're just sad people, but it's still really weird that a total stranger feels comfortable enough to announce such things.

Mum says we should all be allowed to enjoy every moment of being little and happy. Maybe I won't always enjoy shopping, but at the moment I go with the flow and always have a smile for mum, dad, and all the other shoppers. Even the ones who say dopey things.