Sunday 18th December 2011 – Eight months old

Busted.

Don't try and smile your way out of it!

Today you reached eight months old little fellow.  We’ve had quite a busy month, with some ups and some downs, and a little scare in between I’ll have you know! I’ve been steadily plodding along with my driving lessons, apparently improving with each one, although I still feel as though I’m just fooling the instructor into thinking I know what I’m doing.  I also had my 25^th birthday, and we spent the day shopping and then had a meal with Donna, Karen, Matt and Liam.  We went to a buffet restaurant and had to queue for ages to get in, and even so, you were really well behaved and had strangers laughing at some of your antics.  Dad also treated me to a day out in London, and we watched the theatre show Blood Brothers, which was really good.  It was nice to go out and enjoy each other’s company, and just have some alone time, as we really haven’t had any nights or days spent together since you came along. We tend to save our babysitting points for special occasions, as I’m still cautious to let anybody else look after you, and we don’t want Nan to feel as though we’re taking liberties with her.

You also attended your first ever birthday party, which was Amelia’s second party.  You being you, were full of beans before the party, and then decided to fall asleep when you arrived. Typical.  After that, however, you got a little bit ill for the week after, so we spent a bit of time indoors trying to nurse you back to health, and trying to not exert too much energy as when you are ill, you definitely do not like to sleep!  You didn’t seem to improve, and started to refuse food, which is alarmingly unlike you, so I took you to the doctor and he diagnosed a cold and told me to keep an eye on you, but there wasn’t much else they could do for me.   So we tried to keep going out over the weekend to a minimum, but you gradually deteriorated so I made a return trip to the doctor on the Monday.  This time he prescribed an inhaler, and we went home to see if there was any improvement.  On Tuesday morning I gave you your breakfast after Dad went to work, and you threw the lot of it back up.  You had also developed a horrible cough, which was really violent, and later on that afternoon, you had a coughing fit which was so bad that you started to choke.  Being on my own, and not yet being qualified to drive, the only option I had was to call an ambulance. If i’m honest, I was petrified. The ambulance carted you off to the paediatric A&E unit in Lewisham Hospital, and they were really good with you.  They performed all manner of tests, even an x-ray, just to be sure that there were no hidden nasties resting on your lungs that they hadn’t picked up on.  In the end, the conclusion was that you did have a very nasty cold and cough, and the hope was that we had seen the worst of it and you were going to improve over the coming days.  Which is exactly what you did, and when you reached the point of consuming a whole bowl of dinner and a yoghurt again, we knew you were back to normal.  Fatty.

Cuddles

Just after this, we also noticed that during the illness, you had also cut your first tooth! It’s little self made its way to the surface of your gum on Thursday the 8^th December 2011. I have to say it is taking it’s sweet time to get up and out how it should be, but then everything about you has been lazy Olly, so why should your teeth feel any different?  You also attended your second birthday party of the month – Maddison’s second party (busy bee, already getting a nice little social life for yourself), and the last ever Redskins Game to be held in Streatham Ice Rink. 

Dozing on Nanna

This was quite a momentous event for your dad and I, but especially your dad, as he has spent almost 13 years going there to train for and play ice hockey, and every friend he now has in his adult life has come from that rink.  It was also the place that inadvertently bought us two together through your aunty Karen, so in effect, if it hadn’t of been, neither would you.  They also had a day of celebrations there which included an ice skating gala, a public skating session and then the last ever Redskins game, which consisted of old and new players alike,  making up two sides and playing for the very last three periods the rink ever saw.  Your dad played for this match, as he was a previous player for the team, and he wore your Uncle Perry’s shirt as Perry couldn’t attend as he was away schmoozing round Florida with your Aunty Chloe.  Alright for some.  It was a brilliant game, and your dad’s team won, and everybody ended the night by coming onto the ice and taking photos.  Three of the players, and our friends, Conor Sheehan, Louis Lockwood and Jack Tarckzicki, also decided to use your mother as a puck and dragged me on my backside from the centre of the ice into one of the nets.  At least I was involved in the last ever goal at Streatham.  Only four of us can now truly say that. 

Bubble playing

Puckering up

We have really settled into our roles now kiddo.  I’ve got a good routine going, and you are so usually well behaved that everything gets done and dusted.  You are brilliant at entertaining yourself, but equally you are so much fun to play with.  When you’re left your own devices, you usually go to town in your jumperoo, sometimes talking away to yourself, and other times watching the Baby Einstein DVDs that have turned out to be a fabulous purchase.  You watch them intently, and when the sketches come on that involve hand puppets, you actually laugh out loud at their antics. 

Raspberries

Every time we take you out and about you make me so proud.  You charm the pants off of people, and they are always telling me how beautiful and well behaved you are, which makes me smile. 

We’ve had a few new things this month.  One is that all by yourself, you have come to the realisation that with a certain movement of the tongue in the mouth you can make a clicking sound.  You seem to be particularly fond of doing this while we are driving, which alarms us for the first minute when we think something is wrong with the car before we realise that you are giving it some welly again.  You have also really begun to show interest in your hands.  If you’re not holding them in front of your face, staring intently while moving them in circular motions, you are instead poking.  These days, anything you touch is first explored with a cursory index finger prod, rub and then wobble, and if it satisfactorily meets your expectations, you may go for a whole hand grab.  You also initiate quite a few finger wars, and believe me, it is taking quite a bit of strength not to pin your arse!  The other finger fun that you seem to have mastered is this bizarre index finger point towards your mouth while staring into the middle distance, perhaps trying to look as though you are pondering at the world.  The finger does not go into your mouth, and mostly doesn’t even go onto your mouth, but usually it is found hanging out around the mouth, to the side of the mouth.  You are very strange my son.

Bundles of fun

We have some other new firsts for this month as well.  After extensive instruction, involving my hands and then yours, you have now mastered the art of clapping.  You even get a nice little noise out of every one you do now, and you understand the word clap when someone says it to you.  Aunty Donna reckons that I sound like I’m slaying ‘Pleb’ when I say it however.  Don’t listen to her.  She is stupid.  Your second word also appears to be ‘bub’. I love the way that you say it, because where you are lacking somewhat in the dental side of things, you look like an old man when you do say it.  Your lips all pucker up and you look like you’re impersonating a puffer fish. 

Sleeping has seen a massive improvement this month as well, primarily because you moved to your own room! If I had of had my way, you would still be with us in our room now, but your dad needs to be able to put his foot down with me once in a year, and I let him use his chance for this year then.  So off you went into your own room, and you couldn’t have cared less – you slept right the way through without a peep! The only person who stirred all night was me, so you made me look like a right twat Olly! Admittedly, even now I have the baby monitor on the bedside table next to me on full volume, with the camera on, and short of sleeping on top of the thing, there’s not much else I can do.

Beautiful boy

In the way of movement, you are still taking your sweet time.  You are definitely sitting up for a lot longer, and you are beginning to stop throwing yourself backwards, although I have been caught out on occasion, and you did end up with a nice clout to the back of your head earlier on this month when you did it as Aunty Donna was showing me a photo she had taken of you.  With regards to crawling, you still couldn’t care less. It’s almost as though you know us minions will bring forth any such thing that you require so you seem to have adopted the stance of ‘why have a dog and bark yourself?’.  Although you have added ‘if the dogs aren’t barking, scream as loudly as possible and throw a hissy fit until they give in’.

Matching with dad

With regards to eating, you are still scoffing anything that has been put in front of you.  You have now devoured all sorts of things like salmon, beetroot, and celeriac, and you have developed a real taste for spinach.  Anything that contains it seems to disappear before we can properly cool it down.

You’re turning into such a fantastic little boy, Olly, and I am just constantly proud to be your mum.  You’re funny, affectionate and loving, and you’re only eight months old.  I think you’re going to be one hell of a dude.

Love Mum xxx