Hello again! This month I've been busy with some brilliantly exciting firsts...
My first festival: Ben & Jerry's Sundae (which, confusingly, runs on a Saturday too!). The Saturday was my favourite day ‘cos I had LOADS of Mummy's friends cooing over me, including aunties Vix and Nix (every baby dreams of being cuddled by twins, don't they?!) and Nat, aka 'Hot Nat' who pulled great faces at me. At risk of sounding old before my time, I have to say the bands all sounded the same to me. But that might be because the ‘rents kept putting my luminous green “ear defenders” on so I actually couldn’t hear a thing! Still, when I was perched on Daddy's shoulders, they got me loads of attention - people would "Awww" or mouth "Cute baby!" and point their cameras at me. All good practice for when I'm famous!
My first haircut: because Daddy said I was beginning to look “a bit mangy” (er, cheers, fuzzball!). I loved Eddie the hairdresser! He pulled lots of funny faces, then mummy fed me a bottle whilst he snipped away (“Don’t lose his Mohican!” she squealed as his scissors flew). I jumped a bit when the clippers went on, but I didn’t cry at all J. Mummy had snipped a bit of my hair beforehand to keep – not sure why as she’s got LOADs more hair then me!
My first business meeting! OK, I went with Mummy to meet all her colleagues. But I sat in on a meeting with Mummy’s big boss where she told him she was taking a year off to be with me – yay! To celebrate, we went downstairs, and I flirted with all the lovely ladies (especially Lindsay J) whilst Mummy caught up with everyone over pizza. The following week Mummy took me (along with Unca Ash) to meet mates Mike and Lou at her old workplace, The Telegraph. Mummy showed me off to her other ex-colleagues, and the five of us went to Chez Gerard (fancy!) and sank three bottles between us (two wine , one milk...). We’re such meeja lovies!
I saw loads of friends and family this month (most for the first time). Mummy’s Auntie’s Mira & Usha and their families (loads of presents!); Grandma and Grandpa B came down a couple of times; Daddy's niece Vicky; and we also went oop t’North to the Gramps where I met their friends: Margaret & Robbie (more toys!), Phil & Dot (a teddy!), Dawn & John (I LOVED Dawn - pictured - BEST cuddles ever!) and Elaine & John.
We also visited Mummy’s friends Nic and Rog and Daddy’s friends Pam & Rog! Pam kindly gave me a GINORMOUS box of bath products so I’d be “smelling sweet for years to come”. More like until I fill my next nappy – ha ha!
Oh and I went to my first fancy-dress party at Mummy's friend Jay's house. The theme was The Great Gatsby so I wore some new trousers with braces and my waistcoat. Very 1920s! Of course I had to get Mummy to dress up too...
In other news, Mummy went on her Buggyfit ladies night out and she got the other mummies to stay out VERY late in a wine bar way past their bedtime! One of her new friends from the evening, Emma, came back for tea and ‘hard-earned’ Jaffa Cakes after last week’s class (Mummy says Jaffa Cakes are virtually a health food with only 1g of fat and count towards her 5-a-day). Emma brought along her little boy Rory, 7 months, so I’ve got another playmate now – yay!
More new stuff: we did a Baby Massage course (Mummy massages me, I’m not learning to be a baby masseur, silly!). It's great! I just get to lie around whilst Mummy rubs me down and I get all relaxed and smiley. Some of the babies didn’t like it so much and cried loads. Couldn’t they tell this was my valuable “me time”?!
I’ve perfected the art of looking bemused at crying babies, all butter-wouldn’t-melt and what *are* they doing acting like *such* a baby, and their mummies sigh and “See? Luc’s a good boy! He’s not crying!” Ha! They don’t see me kicking off at bedtime, and are also blissfully unaware of the havoc I plan to create when I get moving...
Step one in my dastardly plan for world domination: ROLLING. I tried to hide my new-found skill from Mummy as the element of surprise is key: but then the Gramps saw me practising, then Daddy and even Auntie PK caught me at it - and they all told her, which somewhat blew my cover. She couldn’t believe everyone else had seen me roll before she had! So one day during Baby Massage, I decided to show her (and the other mums and babies) how to do it - and I’ve been rollin’ rollin’ rollin’ ever since! Mummy can’t leave me anywhere high up now as I roll onto my tummy during playtime, nappy-time and even bedtime. I can’t roll back yet though, which does somewhat destroy my cool when I get tired and have to cry to get picked up.
I’ve also been getting my legs toddle-ready by jumping about in my new Tigger bouncer – as he would sing “bouncy trouncy flouncy pouncy, fun-fun-fun-fun-fuuuuun!” (Sing along now! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dJFyz73MRcg)
And earlier this month I had my first ‘swim’ in Auntie PK’s pool. I loved splashing about in my swim pants (my tongue stuck out in excitement!) so much that Mummy has signed me up for classes in October!
Oh yeah! How could I forget?! My BIGGEST move yet was the one into my own room and big cot-bed. Mummy jokes that she’s not sure about if I’m sleeping better through the night now, but she certainly is!
Mummy’s also moved me onto ‘Hungry Baby’ formula which means I don’t wake up wanting feeding in the night. After my last weigh-in (over 16lbs now!) the health worker said that it wasn’t recommended and contributed to child obesity. Mummy pointed out that I was very active, she wasn’t over-feeding me and I’m not overweight – but she later told Daddy that she’d been made to feel like she was giving me the “equivalent of Maccy D’s”. After talking to other mummies, she’s annoyed that health workers make mums feel bad with their varied personal opinions, but she has gone back to normal formula for some feeds supplemented with my first solids – baby porridge – which even Mummy thinks is yummy!
So now I’m learning how to eat off a spoon. It’s great fun to shove my fingers into my full mouth and squidge porridge between my fingers, into my face, hair, all over my clothes and bib. I'm looking a bit confused in this pic as it was my first porridge feed, but I'm getting the hang of it now!
A whole new world of mess and tastes* awaits...
* (I mean apart from milk, Calpol and Bonjela now I’ve started teething)
Perhaps I’ll sample some of the local organic produce when I go on my first HOLIDAY next month..?
