New places, new tastes...

Hi! A busy few weeks again - I don't sit around in my Bumbo (see pic) all day, you know!

So – my first holiday was ace. Mummy, Daddy and I took a road trip at the end of August/beginning September to explore for lions and tigers and...um, ok, family and friends, OK?!

We stopped off on our first day at Chippenham to see Auntie Jenny and Grandma P and I showed off my sitting-in-my-Bumbo skills whilst Mummy fed me baby porridge. (Daddy calls it ‘podge’ and Mummy’s started saying that too, so I will too from now on!)

Yes, I have started on solids, at 4.5 months as milk wasn’t filling me up enough already! Mummy started me on baby podge as she could take it with her on their holiday. The real stuff comes later!

Back to our hols though: after a quick break in Chippenham, we drove onto Falmouth a.k.a. the ends of the earth - or Auntie Barbara and Unca Rob’s gorgeous place by the sea. Mummy felt so inspired by the coastal scenery she actually went for a run every morning, but she didn’t take me – I had lies-in and cuddles with Daddy instead J.

We had a lovely chilled time there for 3 days – Auntie B looked after me one night so the ‘rents could have a ‘date night’ (whatever that is) but the highlight for me was going on a boat for the first time to a little village called St Mawes, where everyone cooed at me wearing my shades in the lovely sunshine (Oi! I’m meant to be looking cool, not cute!). The growed-ups stopped for a cream tea (I had a bottle) and then we took a wander along the beach, but Mummy said the sea was too cold for me and she wanted my first time in the sea to be in Mauritius (we’re going!)

After Falmouth, onto Bristol and lovely Auntie Nicky, who played with me lots and took some great photos of me (look very closely and you can see my first two TEETH peeking out!), then on to see Auntie Illona, an old friend of Mummy’s who she realised she hadn’t seen for 8 YEARS so it was a lovely reunion for her to see Illona, Ken and their children Ella (11), Scarlet (8) and new boy Leo (who was a bit older than me, about to turn 1). There were LOADS of toys to play with and the girls fussed over me lots so I had a lovely time in the biggest, most gorgeous house Mummy and Daddy said they’d ever seen!

Then back via Chippenham on our return where we stopped at Daddy’s friends’, Martin & Sam’s house. Their kids Tom and Tegan played with me loads too, and Tegan was so kind she even shared her cold with me..!

So over the next few days back I’m afraid I wasn’t very well: all snotty and poorly which was horrible for everyone because I couldn’t suck my thumb to sleep as it stopped me breathing, and then I’d start crying because I couldn’t breathe or sleep, and because Mummy kept trying to squirt medicine up my nose and medicine into my mouth and squeeze goo out of my nose AND rub gel on my gums as I was all teething-achey too. One morning I was screaming so much, Daddy *sucked* at my nose; and it made me feel SO much better, I stopped crying immediately! Although Daddy looked a bit ill himself afterwards and said something about ‘bad oysters’...

Of course then Daddy got my cold, then Auntie PK and Noah and finally Mummy who thought she’d got away with it. (I was saving her till last, of course).

So for over a week we didn’t really go anywhere as Mummy and I weren’t feeling great, and I didn’t feel like eating much so we stopped the podge for a bit as I wasn’t even finishing my milk feeds.

After that week though, Mummy got better and turned into a PUREEING DEMON! She has had to dwindle their own supplies to make way for all my frozen cubes of homemade apple, pear, carrot, parsnip, courgette and sweet potato puree, with, I’m promised, more to come! I apparently pull the funniest faces when she feeds me the apple puree (a bit tart for me) but my favourite so far has to be sweet potato. I’ve also tried mashed avocado and I like to chow down on pieces of pear.

I do like to try and feed myself so Mummy strips me to my nappy (she has discovered the hard way that carrot stains do NOT come out), sticks me in the Bumbo (which renders me pretty immobile) and covers me in a muslin (tied like a barber’s cape). Then she hands me a piece of fruit or a second spoon and I get some in my mouth and mush the rest up in my fingers and into my face, hair and finally my *feet*. SO MUCH FUN!

More fun: I had my first go on the swings this month - I’ve only been twice so far but I LOVE them! We went after Buggyfit; Mummy’s been going lots lately as we have a beach holiday coming up and she’ll have to wear a swimsuit. Daddy and I think she’s the most beeeeooootiful lady in the whole world ‘cos she’s my Mummy (I’ve started to give her BIG hugs and kisses by clamping my open, slobbery mouth onto her face to show her J), but she’s not happy about her ‘jelly’. Women, tch!

We’ve not been getting out for our long walks as much now the weather’s getting worse – we get stir-crazy in the house. Mummy did buy me some toys when we were both ill, but I spent the next 20 minutes playing with the paper bag they were carted home in!

She’s also started taking me to Mini P’s and Jumping Jellybeans (baby music and dance classes) for something new to do. I get to bang drums and shake maracas and there are loads of other babies and mummies to flirt with! It was lovely too as I got to see Solange and Monty again after their month in Portugal. Although I did notice he was WEARING MY SOCKS which was very confusing. I kept staring at his feet for ages. (Turns out his mummy asked MY Mummy where she got my cool socks that look like trainers and she bought some too – so I’m a style icon already!)

Talking of being a style icon – I got my first casting call for a modelling job! Mummy put me forward for an agency as everyone kept saying how cute I was; they took me on, and last Monday we went for our ‘go-see’ (as they call it in the biz) for a pharmaceutical company. Mummy said she couldn’t believe their baby boy was pushing drugs and Daddy laughed. I didn’t get the job though; even though they said I was “soooo cute” (and I flirted with all the ladies) they did also comment on what a wriggly baby I was. Mummy reckons I wouldn’t sit still enough and cost the shoot too much money! Oh well, Mummy said she loves me anyway, we had fun and I met a cutie who is going to be in the new TK Maxx campaign so I’m sort of hanging out with models already. (Shame he’s a boy, or that would sound a lot more impressive...)

What else? Socially: I had a couple of boys’ night in with Daddy when Mummy was out with old Telegraph mates for Mike’s leaving drinks and then with Auntie Chrissie to see MC Solaar. Daddy has started taking me for Sunday walks in the park and we hang out in Starbucks. He found me my first conker too – he seemed far more excited about it than I was – I’m not allowed to chew it, so I don’t see the point - but he assures me I’ll understand when I’m older.

I’ve also had a bit of qualidee lady-time: When Daddy went to Paris on business – Mummy invited his friend Auntie Cazza over for cuddles, Auntie Chrissie also came and looked after me a couple of times. She’d slept in and missed a train, and then a plane, so she figured she’d come over and spend time with her favourite boy – me! – and give Mummy and Daddy a break so they had TWO unexpected but lovely date nights – one to see Inception (Mummy said it was “a waste of a good babysitter”) and then for a posh meal for their 6-month wedding half-anniversary.

We also had Sunday lunch with Cazza and her hubby Geoff – I was a bit grizzly with my teeth and Daddy forgot my blanket (again) so he put his jacket over me and after my nap I was happy and VERY squealy again! We nearly had an incident when a glass lampshade was knocked by a man lifting a chair high up – it fell by mine and Mummy’s heads, but I'm not called Lucky Luc for nothing!

Mummy has also been ordering stuff for my nursery, finally! And is currently waiting for all that to arrive - it’s all going to be spotty and stripey in lots of colours – and she’s cracking on with my illustrated alphabet – she’s up to ‘N’ for ‘Narwhal’ (here’s a song about them that has stuck in her head ever since http://is.gd/fJ3jv) – an animal Daddy told her about, it’s like a whale with a unicorn’s horn. It sounds COOL, even though I don’t know what either of those look like either!

I also spent a load of quality time with the Gramps B this month, as Daddy took Mummy away for a couple of days for her birthday. During this time, I started to try and clap (to “If you’re happy and you know it...”)! Mummy, Daddy and the Gramps have all also heard me trying to speak proper words – I have made sounds that sound like “heyo”, “hey” and “ha” as greetings to get their attention. I also was the star of the show at Mummy’s "Surpiiise!" birthday party – I wore my new T-shirt which says “My Mum Rocks” and I got lots of cuddles again from all the guests before Auntie Clare took me to hers for a bit of shut-eye whilst the growed-ups carried on...

Anyway, I've got to go play now - my next big exciting post will no doubt be coming from the other side of the world when we go to MAURITIUS – my first time on a plane – woooooh! See you then J