Three years later...

 Well, today is the first of many milestone birthdays for the kids. 

Emily turns 13 today, so is no longer a "kid", she's a fully fledged teenager. 

Truth be told, she's been moody and "teenish" for the last few months, so it was only a matter of time for her age to catch up.

Holly, who will jump on any occasion with both hands, has been harassing Sue and I about Emily's birthday for weeks - can we have a party?, what decorations are we going to have?, need to get presents, etc. 

It got to the point that Mother's Day yesterday was more of a Mother's Morning, where Sue had pressies and breakfast in bed, then it was - we need to blow up balloons, have we got the bunting?, we need to go and buy party food. 

I'm glad the kids are growing up, but really lamenting, like most parents, that small kid phase where you're the centre of their world. I realise I wasn't the best teenager, and I'm hoping that our kids won't take after me, but time will tell. 

13 today for Emily. Still can't believe it.  

Birthdays

You're not supposed to have a birthday celebrations for each year you are. That, however, is exactly what Emily's enjoyed over the last week.

On Tuesday, her actual official birthday, we had cake and presents and hugs and all the birthday things. On Saturday, we had a BBQ for all our friends without kids who wanted to wish Emily all the best on her way up the single digit year ladder. Sunday saw us have the party with the kids, the finger food, the Hairy Maclary cake and the bouncy castle.

I arrived at work today completely exhausted from the events of the weekend. This MAY be the reason people have kids earlier in life - to handle birthday parties.

The sad thing is, she doesn't even realise what's going on. Yesterday, although she was whipping round the hall we rented and having a grand old time, she was COMPLETELY unaware it was for her. She would have reacted the same if we'd gone to a soft play centre for afternoon play.

I guess at this age, parties are really for the parents. You start the get backs this early on. We went to their party, so they have to come to ours. It doesn't end until your wedding is full of people you don't know, but who's kids' weddings your parents went to and your wedding is just the last in a long line of "get backs".

Now that we are three

It's been three years to the day since Emily entered our lives as a screaming, placenta covered newborn.

She's still at the age where events like Christmas, birthdays, etc. mean more to the adults around her than to her, but I guess it's the repetition and instilling into her that they are special times that makes them meaningful.

As a special birthday present to Sue and I, Emily decided to leave a number of brown presents in her bath... again. She was rewarded with a prison hose-down which she did not enjoy. Talk about being pampered on your birthday!

Overall, I think birthdays allow us to reflect on the past year or life to date and it's easier at three than say.. 38 to do, as you haven't done as much.

Emily's short life has been filled with a lot of travel, parents who have had to bring up baby with no real local support network and in all this, she's had to deal (rather obliviously) with a learning delay.

Birthdays for kids also brings out those "what you should be doing at this age" checklists, and I'm quite proud to say that Emily's doing almost everything she should be doing at two years old!

If  she's only a year behind, that's not too bad and in the past 12 months she's really really developed so here's hoping that in the next year that gap narrows even more.

We have to now open a bunch of cards and presents for Emily that she may or may not be aware are for her.

Come the weekend, we do it all over again, but with a bouncy castle.

Second birthday celebrations come to a close

So we had a house-warming bbq / birthday party, then my parents looked after Emily on her birthday (petting zoo and soft play!) and this past weekend we had a birthday celebration featuring the extended family and children.

I think it's got to the point where Emily thinks "Happy Birthday" is just another song.

We've taken stock of Em's first two years, especially in light of her visit to the health visitor for her 24 month checkup.

I've noticed she's getting much more responsive and receptive to things she used to dismiss outright. I read her a book tonight and she was quite attentive, whereas before she'd get bored of the photos and try and turn the page. She was SO interested I read it to her three times.

Also, I have an app on my phone called Toddler Lock. Anything she does it makes noises and bright lights... she used to look at it for a few seconds and dismiss it outright. Tonight she was actively playing with it for about 10 minutes.

I don't mean to make it sound like she's uber maturing over night. We played with plasticine tonight and I think I can best sum up her attitude as "confused". It's the first time she's seen or played with the stuff (at least at home) so I'm not expecting her to create an amazing 3D work of art, ready for the stop motion camera... but I can secretly hope a little!

Emily's coming along well. She's just shy of three foot, can say about as many words and I wouldn't change these past two years for anything, as far as she's concerned.

Emily is now two

It's Emily's birthday today. I, for one, can't believe she's already two years old. It was two years ago Sue and I sat (well, I sat and Sue laid out on a bed) on that hospital ward waiting for the next stage of our lives to begin.

When I think I've been in my job almost a year, it feels like yesterday I started. It feels like a lifetime ago Emily was born - and for her it was.

We celebrated her birthday by having a joint housewarming / birthday party yesterday. Mum and dad are looking after her today and we have a family do on Sunday.

It was quite funny this morning singing happy birthday to her, as she really doesn't understand a) the song or b) the concept of a birthday. She was happy to sing, but we could have been singing the theme song to Cbeebie's "In The Night Garden" for all the personal impact she felt.

Sorting out Emily's birthday present

With Emily's birthday fast approaching - next week she'll be two!!! - I've been on the prowl for some cool stuff to get her as a present.

I stumbled across this site recently which caught my eye. It's a shop in North Carolina called Lou Lou's Corner. I was looking for a few brands like Jellycat toys (Emily LOVES jellycat), Barefoot Dreams blankets and this Norwegian clothing brand I've just discovered called Appaman.

I was probably drawn to the site with the lure of a 10% off coupon for Jellycat stuff.

I'm still not decided on what to get Emily for her birthday, but this shop has made it a lot easier to decide.

Second birthday... or sorts

As the NCT crew all gave birth around the same time, the mums all decided it was best to have one joint birthday than a load of lttle ones - this just meant that we could do what we wanted for the individual birthdays and not worry about leaving people out.

We all met up today at Godstone Farm, just off the M25. Before we went I imagined some hick adventure where they just had a field of animals you could look at while the farm hands went about their business. The reality was quite different. It's truly a place for the whole family, with areas you can pet various animals, tea rooms, and a "Play Barn" for children older than Emily and her cronies. There were a fair few people walking around with presents as well as you can have kids parties here.

The weather yesterday was the icing on the cake. Warm and sunny made walking around looking at and petting animals all that more enjoyable. I'm looking forward to going back so I can take a tractor ride!

Birthday is here!

Well, it's been 365 days since we first welcomed the screaming bundle of joy called Emily into the world. I can't believe how quick his past 12 months has gone. We've gone through loads of stuff - ups and down, holidays, parties - and come out the other end a fully rounded toddler.

She had her party yesterday, so today was just Sue, Em, mum and I. Sue was working on some work stuff so mum, Em and I went to Wallington for a coffee. Later we decided to go for a drive to Boxhill, which on a day like today, never fails to impress.

We were going to go for dinner somewhere, but everyone had decided to go out to eat. No fear, we had a nice spag bol at home. I think Em enjoyed her day, especially as we webcammed Australia while we opened the presents they sent. We also opened the presents from Sue and I and my mum, so it was a good couple of days for present receiving for Emmers.

With her birthday here, I vowed I would stop updating this blog. However, as blog worthy events continue, I will document them here - first words, walking, etc. It's only right.

364 days!

Even though Emily is one tomorrow, we've had her party today. There was enough food and drink and loads of people came - friends, family and BABIES!

Emily also received a lot of pressies, which was nice. I was so preoccupied with making sure the day went well I almost forgot she'd get anything. There were toys and clothes and such, so the last thing we have to do for Em is send out thank you notes and her second year can officially begin.

Tomorrow is supposed to be a nice day weather-wise, so it will be nice to have a low-key family day to celebrate Em's official birthday. At 12.45 (or thereabouts) she begins her second year - an achievement that's come a lot quicker than either Sue or I would have believed.

She's developed so much in the last 364 days, I can only imagine what the next 364 have to offer.

Pre-birthday sorting out

With Sue off today, we decided to do a couple of pre-birthday activities. These included getting some food and a cake tin. More interestingly, we also took Emily to get weighed and measured.

Having undressed the little tyke, we discovered that she now weighs around 24 lb (or 10 kg). Back when she was smaller she was hovering ever so close to the top of the chart in weight. I think now she's slightly more active, she's actually dropped down to mid 80s. When she actually gets to running and being really active I can imagine she'll drop even more. At 81 cm, however, she's off the chart for height in her age group. This bears out as she is probably as tall as kids 6-8 months older than her. We've been told that her face looks older as well.

On Friday we also took Em to have her first haircut. Up to this point we'd just been letting it grow from birth and it was getting a touch unruly.

The place we took her was very geared up to cutting kids' hair - they had the small seats, loads of toys, and Emily got a 1st Haircut Certificate as well as an envelope of hair which we can give as party favours tomorrow (I'm guessing).

The haircut's made her look like a proper little girl, as she now has a very noticeable fringe.

Mum managed to find the place as well so the three of us watched as Em sat and very happily (if not a bit fidgetly) let the girl cut her bonce.

Another first for Emmers then.

Birthday approaches

It's hard to believe that Em's birthday is fast approaching. When I started this blog it was really only a document of Sue's pregnancy. I'm really glad I decided to keep at it and document Em's first year.

There's been so many changes in the last 11.5 months. She's gained eight teeth, started weaning (and self weaning to a degree), she's become more vocal and an actual joy to be around (before she just wasn't all that aware of her surroundings).

I'm constantly amazed how spending time with her can be so enjoyable. She doesn't really do much, can't hold a conversation and is quite dependent for everything - from drinks to replacing toys that have fallen out of arm's reach. For some reason though it works, and she's just a real enjoyable time pit.

I really look forward to what the next few years have to offer. As I've mentioned in this blog time and again, I'm quite cynical that all will be smooth from now until the end of her days.

If there's anything having a child has taught me, it's to look back, not only on my life, but the lives of those I've grown up with and just think about the choices we've made and where they led up to. Whether it's the teen mother, the tearaway junkie who had it all and threw it away or the high school loser who's now raking in the money.

All these futures are available for Em and I guess it's up to us to guide her properly so she can choose the right one.

Birthday adventures

Got back from Bognor today, having attended my cousin Louise's son Harley's first birthday.

Emily was (as usual) in fine form, smiling at one and all and making sure they knew she was a content little camper. Nothing could put her off her stride, not even headbutting the birthday boy (accidentally of course).

The only downside to the weekend was Emily's teeth. We're off the gel now and trying homeopathic powders which seem to work on the teething pain much better and quicker than the gel.

She is still going from being the happiest baby ever to the most miserable in a matter of seconds, all due to the ongoing teething issues. She's also still crying in her sleep, which is hard to handle, but Sue and I both know it won't last long.

Birthday!

It's my birthday today, and as a special treat, I got a present from my daughter. My first birthday as a dad.

The birthday cards sitting on the "mantle" now read - "to my husband", "to our son", "to my nephew", "to my dad" and ... oddly.. "to my sister-in-law".

Went out for steak tonight at Smith & Western and Emily was way over tired and didn't take kindly to not being at home or in bed. Sue eventually took her outside to rock her and feed her, leaving me at the table to guard the possessions - keys, phones, wallets, etc.

Em eventually nodded off during the main course and we had a nice quite meal (apart from the kids at the other table - which we hope to God Emily doesn't act like at that age!)

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