March

F: Well, another month has flashed past. March was really busy and fun. We started off with a visit to the Aquarium. I liked the fish and especially stroking the starfish. Katy was also pretty keen. 

 

 K: After the Aquarium, Frances and Daddy went home and Mummy and I went to meet Helen and had a nice lunch. I flirted shamelessly with her and all sorts of other people. I am getting very jolly.

 I am also quite bouncy now.

 F: The next exciting thing was that Uncle John and Granny Mary and Uncle Mark all came round, and Graham and Mette (who stayed to look after me when everyone went out). Granny read me stories;

 and I entertained everyone in the bath, while people drank champagne.

The next day Mary and Sameer and Asha and Isaac came to see us. It was lots of fun - all together, we were quite loud, and I think the parents had a nice time too. 

After that, the next big event was ballet. I went for a trial lesson. At ballet, there are no Mummies and Daddies. Mummy said they would let her in for the first lesson if I wanted but I rejected this offer with scorn, as clearly it is much the best to do it without Mummies and Daddies. I got a star. Ballet is my best. You have to do pointy toes. Sometimes you have to jump on stars or run on your tiptoes. At first I didn't have the same clothes as everyone else but I did have my hair in a bun (this is me in the park after my first ballet lesson): 

 But Mummy got on ebay and soon I had all the right bits and pieces. This is how a ballerina sits down, you know:

K: We are having a lot of fun in parks at the moment. I still like swings a lot. We've also been to 'gym' a lot. This is a place where I sit on mats while Frances hares off into the distance, pursued by any available adult:

F: We also went to St James's Park and met Kirsty, Leo and Genevieve, which was brilliant. I made cakes the day before so we could take some: 

 Leo and I admired the pelicans and fed the ducks with a lot of bread.

 K: Genevieve and I also admired one another (and threw food around together later on). We were born on exactly the same day.

 F: Then Leo and I played picturesquely in the daffodils. Mummy said we couldn't pick any that were standing up but if they were already lying on the ground it was ok, so we collected bunches of somewhat scraggy ex-daffs.

I enjoyed playing with Leo a lot and would like to do it again. Mummy seemed to like seeing Kirsty too, which was a bonus.

What else have we been up to? I've been round to Gen and Alastair's a few times, which I like a lot. 

 
K: Mainly for me it has been all about eating. I like eating quite a lot - mainly bread and fruit, for choice. I am particularly enthusiastic about oranges. But basically I will have a go at most things. Oddly, I wasn't that bothered about pancakes on pancake day, (though we had some) but I am getting increasingly competent in the eating department. 

 I've also been to see my friends Cosmo and Matilda - we are all getting lots bigger: 

 F: We've also been taking advantage of the weather to spend time in the garden. I continue to hunt worms a lot, and gently potter around the garden with trowels and saucers of this and that: 

I also feel that the ideal garb for mowing is a witch's hat. 

And we've also started enjoying Mile End Children's Park now there's some sun. Daddy is best for going down the big slide with, and Katy and I like the big swing.

K: Last Friday was my half-birthday. Mummy and Daddy and Cessy even sang 'Happy Half-Birthday to You', and Mummy took a whole lot of video of me and Frances doing ordinary sorts of things which she's planning to do every half-birthday.

F: Last weekend we had another big treat, because Granny Jenny and Colin came to see us again. We had such a nice time together - we went to the City Farm after Colourstrings on Saturday.

 

K:   In the afternoon we went to see Daddy's rehearsal and then had a nice meal. I met a very nice person called Pat who entertained me excellently. 

Unfortunately due to a combination of protests and the Central line falling over, the journey home was something of an epic. I chose to spend it largely asleep, and Frances was brilliant and cuddled and kissed me gently without waking me, and did just as Mummy asked even though it was late and very very crowded on the bus we eventually rammed our way onto.

Then on Sunday we went to the Great Big Slides in Victoria Park (which we have discovered because the other play-park there is shut for rebuilding). It was a shame when they had to go on Monday - I really enjoyed seeing them a lot. 

This week we went to meet Helen Dawes and on the way we went on the Big Wheel again, which was great.

On Friday we went to Ikea and I went in the playing place that is just for children, not Mummies and Daddies. I liked it so much that when Mummy came to get me I asked to stay longer. We bought a big kitchen for Mummy and Daddy and a little kitchen for me, but neither of them are ready yet. Mummy says when the big kitchen is built, they will build my little kitchen. 


On Saturday we went to see Uncle John at his old flat. It was great, apart from the unfortunate incident involving Uncle John's pink pills. I will never, ever, do it again, I promise...


Today we have been doing a lot of packing, because we are going to Lanzarote. It is hot there, and they might have ice cream that you hold. We have to go on an aeroplane for a long time, but not as long as Thailand. More news when we return...


K: I am obviously not very aware that we are going to Lanzarote, but I am getting quite clued up about other things. I understand quite a lot of Mummy's strange vocalisations, especially when they are accompanied by signs. I am trying very hard to say 'Hello' (I say Eeeh-yurhg, but I really mean Hello) and I know that it goes with enthusiastic waving. If you clap, I will slap my knees. And I can play 'peekaboo' all by myself, with a towel or a t-shirt or indeed a pair of Daddy's boxer short (clean, naturally). I am very pleased with myself, all in all: 

 

February

F:  Well, fans, another month has flown by. What have we been up to? At the very end of January I wasn't very well, and kept on being sick everywhere. As always, as soon as Mummy and Daddy took me to the doctor, I perked up like anything. The only real shame was that it meant we couldn't go and see Sebastian and Claire. However, we did find some things to do at home, suitable for the convalescent. Chief amongst these was 'findin worms in the garden'. I am a keen gardener, and a lover of worms. I stroked him very gently. I also brought him his own sick-bucket to be sick in, in case he was feeling sick (my illness having made a strong impression on me).

Another excellent convalesent activity for the poorly-of-tummy is Banging Things Loudly. Daddy and Katy and I did some saucepan-banging, and Mummy and Katy and I played very loudly indeed on my xylophone. I am very interested in letters now, and I know that xylophone begins with X even though it sounds like Z. Z is for zebra, you know.

I managed to time my illness for a period when Mummy was required to have a lot of meetings. She is talking of going back to work. I am not so sure about this, myself, and it led to me spending a lot of time tricycling around the kitchen saying "Actually, I can't, because I am goin to a meetin at work now on my tricycle. I am goin to a meetin at Number 2 xxx Street" (Mummy's meeting had been in this street, though not at Number 2). 

One Monday, we went to a special day which was a bit like nursery, but not in the usual place and Mummies and Daddies could come to, to find out about 'how children learn through play'. I was a bit bemused by this, especially as we were the only people there. However, I obligingly played with all the things and showed Mummy and Daddy how it is done. Mummy was especially taken with the gloopy cornflower. Katy enjoyed the attention, too. 

Where else have we been? We went to Christchurch, and Mummy did some singing. Due to poor planning, it was 'all age worship' and I elected to leave after a bit and go back to the playground with Daddy. Mummy didn't blame me, and Daddy was frankly delighted. 

The week after that was Uncle Victor's birthday. I made him a chocolate cake. I insisted that it be square, and I carefully arranged about a million tiny while chocolate drops on top of it. The creative process did result in me being just a touch choclatey...

  Uncle Victor liked it, anyway, and he also admired Katy. 

K: YAAAAAAAAAAAAAA! I am shouting vigorously to attract your attention. I do this a lot. I also blow fantastic rasberries. BFFFPPPPT! I wave my arms in your general direction. 

I am finding all sorts of jolly things to do this month, besides becoming increasingly loud. I have suddenly realised what playgrounds are all about. I like slides, but swings are the best. They make me cackle.

 I also understand some patterns of words. If you say 'One.....two.... three...!' before you do something exciting, I will get all excited on 'three', even before you chuck me in the air (another hilarious pastime). I look at the cat when Mummy or Daddy says 'cat', and I sometimes look at Daddy when you say 'Daddy'. Mummy thinks I can understand 'sister' as well, and I do often flap my arm when people say 'wave' (and 'splash'). 

After Uncle Victor, the next excitement was going to Cambridge to see the Beales. It was very nice to see them all, although I did do a fair bit of sleeping. They are all very good with babies and I was mightily entertained. The following week I had my last lot of injections. I cried when I saw the nurse, even before the needle came out - I'm really not daft. But I was actually quite brave about the actual injection and calmed down inside a minute. And that night I slept all through - the first time in a very long time - which got Mummy and Daddy very hopeful - the fools. I'm basically not interested in feeding during the day, you see, as there is usually something more interesting going on, so I make up for it at night. 

The following weekend was pretty epic. On the Friday we went to see Dr Cranfield, and then suddenly a Very Important Meeting for Mummy was pulled forward at short notice and there was all sorts of to-ing and fro-ing and in the end I went along to the meeting too (it was smack bang when I needed feeding). I was very good, though, and lay quietly on the sofa, even if I did abandon my teething beads there for Important People to sit on later. After the meeting, we went off to see Stephen and Natasha and had a lovely time with them. I slept in a clergy study, which was very superior. The next day we came home (via Colourstrings - I love Colourstrings and sit enraptured) and Granny Jenny and Colin were here! It was excellent to see them both and I got lots of cuddles (and Frances gave lots of instructions). Then on Sunday we saw them again at the Museum of London Docklands, and after that we went off to Charlotte and Elizabeth's party in Cambridge. 

F: You have to let ME tell about that bit because you wouldn't sleep and then you cried. Charlotte and Elizabeth's party was my best and I liked it a lot. There were a lot of people there and I stomped about. I also got loads of other adults to read stories to me one after another, which was really good. And there was a lot of exceedingly nice food and a cake like a caterpillar and another one like a butterfly which Victoria let me help decorate.Then we had to come home because it was a bit late and I had missed my nap and Katy was crying but I was even pretty good about that, you know. Actually. 

Then on the Monday we saw Granny Jenny and Colin some more and went to the Museum of London (not Docklands). There were woolly Mammoths and Romans and a place for making things and building tall towers (and knocking them down). I had a lovely time, and then we came back home again and I made Colin a cake which we all ate after my nap. I really enjoyed spending lots of time with Granny Jenny and Colin and kept sacking my parents and telling them to go away so that I could spend time with Granny. After they went I wandered around the house saying 'I'm a bit sad that Granny Jenny and Colin have gone home' in a disconsolate way. 

K: I spent most of the afternoon trying to half-inch a bit of cake, and have been so vigorous in my attempts to seize the parents' food that Mummy and Daddy finally caved and let me start trying a few things to eat. Mummy had been planning to hold out for five months, but we ended up a few days early. Still, I was pretty keen, I can tell you. I started with broccoli, and it made me very happy:

Since then I have been sampling various delights, mainly vegetable (with the odd bit of fruit, and, recently, a bit of yoghurt, though Mummy and Daddy are trying to hold back on baby-yoghurt because I have figured out that it is sweet, and lunge madly for it). Sometimes I just play, and sometimes I actually ingest the odd bit of this and that (quite possibly by accident). So far I have had broccoli, beans (they're a hit), potato (sort of), pasta, carrots, cauliflower, mangetout, squash, apple, pear, plum, rocket (we were out), and various bread products. Oh, and rice cakes, and yoghurt. Not bad, really. 

 

On the Tuesday of half-term, Matilda and Cosmo came to see me (they brought their mothers, too). We had a lot of three-baby fun involving staring at each other in a slightly cross-eyed intense way while our mothers talked and talked and talked about baby things. It was fun and we're going to do it again. Then in the afternoon we went swimming, but as it was half-term, there were no lessons so we all just went in the pool together. It was excellent, and it made me laugh. 

F: Yes, and I jumped in all on my own with no hands! Mummy catched me and then Daddy catched me (I am quite good at the past tense but sometimes get tripped up by the cruel practical joke that is the English language). Swimming all together was fun - although I did check that next time I would be back in the Big Girls' Class. 

The next excitement was on Friday, when Uncle John came to see us! I haven't seen him since Thailand (except on Skype) and started off a little bit shy. However, I soon came round and started telling Mummy and Daddy to go away so I could play with him on my own in the park. He has some good moves on the Big Slide. We also had a lot of fun in my room in the evening. 

Saturday was good too, as we went to see Sebastian and Claire and Little Baby Thomas and someone Mummy referred to as Marina, but I pointed out to her was clearly called Mina (that's what everyone said and what she said too). Mummy tried to explain about nicknames, but I wasn't having it - "You're sayin in wrong, Mummy." Mina and I had a lot of fun and we also had a lovely lunch. Unfortunately (possibly becuase Mummy and Claire were discussing potty training - but who knows?) I fell off the dry-pants wagon with a bit of a bang and had to come home in Mina's trousers. I was immediately sobered, though, but the fact that I didn't get a sticker on the dry pants bit of my sticker chart that evening, and have been immaculately dry ever since. I am highly motivated by stickers, which I get for 'being brave' (especially in relation to hair-brushing), and for 'nice sharing' (especially in relation to Katy), as well as 'good eating' (with cutlery). I do quite often pop upstairs to award myself some stickers, but so far only after discussion with the relevant sticker authorities.


On Sunday, Mummy and Daddy got me tickets as a surprise, and we went to see Dinosaurs Unleashed at the O2 centre! We went on the boat and it was amazing. I went a bit quiet just before we got to the dinosaurs because there was a dark bit with a film and some waiting and there was roaring and I was a bit apprehensive, but once we were in I was perfectly happy. I liked looking at all the big models and listening to the lady talking about them. I was slightly disparaging about my parents' claim that the dinosaurs could move, since in my book weakly waving your tail, swinging your head to and fro, and opening and shutting your jaws isn't really moving (not like, say, speeding across the plain chasing a smaller dinosaur). But I wasn't dissatisfied. Here I am with Tyrannosaurus Rex's head: 

I got a new book about dinosaurs, too, and a squishy Stegosaurus (which unfortunately I like to chew, so probably at some stage either I will break it, or Mummy will remove it). After the dinosaurs we went to Pizza Express and I was in seventh heaven because for some reason the parents let me have doughballs with nutella as my pudding. I was completely silent as I carefully spooned every last particle of nutella into my mouth. Yum.

After all that excitement, it was rather nice on Monday to have a fairly peaceful day. We went to the Mile End play session and had a nice time, and in the afternoon Mummy and I made bread, and some mints in the shape of butterflies to send to Graunty Lizzy for her birthday. I liked mixing the bread dough with my hands, and punching it after it had risen, but the kneading went on a bit too long for my liking and I wandered off. Still, it was pretty yummy in the morning.  

That's about it for February - but here are some pictures to finish off with. The first shows my tendency towards teenagerdom (though possibly when I am a 14-year-old lovely I will be better at washing my face):

 K: And here are a couple of me, showing my winsome side as I snuggle up to Daddy (or try to crawl over him):

 ..and demonstrating just a very little bit of my determination to be on the move. I can roll over onto my side and back again, and do this repeatedly; and using this movement, I can rotate 180 degrees towards a desired object (or the stairs, or other danger...)