Playing with my best friend

We all had our customary good sleeps last night, so Tom woke up in a completely insane mood, as is the norm, and spent half an hour knocking seven shades out of his parents on the bed before being dressed and prepared for nursery.

I had another easy day today, just a short translation job in the afternoon, so I did a bit more work on my website and then acted as cake photographer again, a role I'm fulfilling more and more often these days. I bought a macro lens for my SLR a few years, not really knowing when I'd use it. Perhaps I subconsciously knew that I need it for icing photography in the future.

Tom arrived home having not had a sleep at nursery, so he went down for a couple of hours, leaving me with enough time to shout down the phone at an Adobe support person who told me that paying £300 for a copy of Acrobat Professional a year ago doesn't entitle me to any free support even though the software has a known and well-publicised fault. In the end I slammed the phone down. I'm seriously considering getting a pirate copy of the latest version.

We had a play in the garden before dinner, as you can see, with Jodie copying her little brother's enjoyment of the slide. It was very sweet. She never strays far from his side despite the fact that she still gets regular and merciless beatings from the Dr. Strangelove arm that Nik mentioned a couple of posts ago.

Then it was a new food, eggy bread, for tea, which he really enjoyed, before a quick play out the front with the Gouges. Then the usual bath -> bottle -> bed routine for him and a Japanese stew washed down with G&Ts for us.

Nik here, here's a picture of my latest cake which I actually charged for - hurrah!

Murrrder!

Another good night, which meant more morning madness around the bed. Morning was spent getting Tom's feet checked (you are supposed to check every 6 weeks) - they haven't got any bigger which meant that we were able to buy him a pair of sandals on line for a fraction of the price Clarks charge.

Came home, had lunch (Tom had 2 crumpets today - he really does like them) and then off to bed. I made a maderia cake ready for decorating tomorrow (my first order), made some changes to my website and then saw a man about a wedding card (telephone marketing, didn't know what they were talking about so said they could visit). The product the guy wanted to sell me was ridiculous - the reasons he gave me for buying into it were flaky, plus he couldn't give me any evidence that I would get any return on my investment. He didn't stay long!

The afternoon was spent entertaining Tom inside and out. He is so mobile now, that he went and got on his see saw, even though it was on the veggie patch!

Oh, I forgot to mention his first word - not sure I should be excited about this or not, but his first word seems to be 'murrrder' spoken with a Glasweigan accent, in fact in exactly the same way Taggart would say it. Should I be worried? He has said it more than a couple of times, Matt's heard him say it as well.

And, all his canine teeth are now through (well the pointy bits anyway), That means he now has 16 teeth, just 4 back molars to go until he has his full compliment.

Don't think there will be a entry tomorrow, got Sophie's birthday cake to finish and my last sugarcraft lesson of the year - boo hoo!

Lots of cakes

Another good night, surprisingly he didn't wake up at, couldn't quite believe it - it was so hot last night and he hadn't had any drink.

Daddy was on morning duty with Tom whilst I baked, baked, baked. I've decided to get my cakes out there and baked 36 cup cakes and a lemon curd layer cake to give away to a Primary School, Telford Operatic Society and the local Dr's surgery. We will see what happens - hopefully more orders (but let's hope it gets a bit cooler, it is hard work dealing with buttercream in this heat)

10am saw us on the way to a tennis club in Shrewsbury to cheer on our neighbour Paul, who had reached the local men's singles final. Unfortunately he didn't win, but Tom had a wonderful time in the club, playing in the bar area and chatting up girls, he had 4 or 5 girls all wanting to play with him at one stage, which was brilliant.

We had lunch at Long Lane and then came home for the football. Tom went to sleep and I decorated all my cakes. England played a rubbish game, so I didn't miss anything!

Tom got a bit bored, so he had some outside playtime before dinner. I gave him a crumpet with cream cheese for dinner today. He gobbled it all up. I gave him the same yesterday and it all got thrown on the floor - just goes to show that you should keep trying new things.

Couple of things I've been meaning to mention - Tom has what we call his 'Dr Strangelove arm'. Quite often his arm will pump up and down, and if you are in its way you get thumped. This pleasure is normally reserved for the cat, who seems to just take the punishment rather than move away! He thumps quite hard, so really she is a bit silly! It usually appears first thing in the morning when he is full of energy, and we haven't found a way to stop it yet, as soon as you let him go, it starts to manically pump again.

As I've said before, his walking has really come on in the last couple of days. Yesterday he was practising turning. He would walk from the sofa into the middle of the lounge, stop, turn round on one heel, and if still standing (about a 50% chance) walk back to the sofa and then start all over again. All done with lots of giggling of course!

Photos - top one is my fav from yesterday. Bottom one is of some of today's cakes.

Oh and breaking news, sounds like I have an order for a dinosaur cake from the Operatic Society for Sunday - a grandson has demanded one and Grannie doesn't have time to make one. Yippee, let's hope it comes to fruition.

Tom gets a sunroof (and a grazed knee)

Matt and I have been having real trouble sleeping of late (thinking of asking Tom for advice). Last night we didn't do any better. Tom woke us up crying around 1.30am. We are so unused to being woken by him that it really disorientated us. I put the light on and prised my weary eyes awake, by which time he had finished crying and gone back to sleep! Took a while for the two of us to get off again.

Anyway, as is usual, Tom was a happy, clappy chappy when we went to get him and looned around our bedroom this morning. He then had a massive breakfast and another play before his morning nap and then swimming.

Swimming was a great success today, he smiled and giggled all the way thorough it, and did everything he was asked to do, including the piggy back swim which he normally refuses. In fact all the babies were on good form. Both boys came out of the pool looking very pleased with themselves.

Next stop was Newport for some provisions and then The Lamb Inn in Edgmund for lunch. Can you believe it, we had the whole garden to ourselves which was fab. When we came back, Tom had a little play outside with the girls. He fell over and grazed his knee - arrrrr! He didn't cry and I didn't realise until I saw the blood, what a good boy, and the first of many more.

Change of author.

We came back for Tom's afternoon nap, which he took for a full 2 hours. It was 3.00 by the time he woke up (or rather, by the time Nik went in to wake him up), so we just drove a few miles down to David Austin Roses in Albrighton. It was a glorious day, so the rose gardens were looking terrific, but it also mean that it took a very long time to get served in the tea room. Plus, they only have 2 high chairs there, not nearly enough, so we had to tie Tom's cloth chair thingy onto a very high-backed wooden chair. Not ideal, but he was in such a good mood that he didn't complain at all. After our afternoon tea, we had a good wander round, with Tom sheltering under his new sunroof (see photo). I managed to get it for 99p on eBay, and it also comes with a rain hood as well. It makes him look even more important, and he certainly got his fair share of admiring glances/comments as we walked around.

He had his dinner and bath as usual, but we thought we'd try to give him his pre-bed milk from a more "grown up" bottle. Big mistake. He wasn't having it all and went off in a big way. Tears and screaming. There was nothing to do except just put him in his cot without any milk in the hope that he'd calm down. It's been 5 minutes now, and not a sound, but on a hot night like this, I can't believe he won't wake up thirsty at some point. We'll see.

Oh yes, today's other photo is Tom's first proper grazed knee. The first of many, I'm sure. He tumbled over while charging around with his walker this morning.

Fun on the farm

Another beautiful day today. Morning was spent buying ingredients for the big bake off I'm doing tomorrow and then I put Tom down for a long morning nap ready for our visit to Hoo Farm for lunch.

Tom was very good in that he slept for a good 2 hours, meaning he was fresh and ready to go. We had a picnic on arrival and met up with Rachel and Olly and then we did a circuit of the farm. We initially had Tom in his rucksack, but he wasn't having it. He wanted to walk, and walk he did (some freestyle, but mostly holding on to one of us). Since Wednesday his walking has really come on, he is much more confident and more importantly, he doesn't dive at at end, meaning he is able to stop and start and turn corners. He still has his arms up in the air and is wobbly, but he is really beginning to get there.

Anyway, he really enjoyed walking round the farm and he giggled like a loon. In fact both boys were on really good form. Olly recognises the animals and is able to point at them (Tom's not quite there, guess we have been concentrating on walking so much recently that everything else has been put on the back burner). We ended up in the soft play area there which was fantastic, better than the one in Jungleland. Must have been in there for a good hour and we had it to ourselves which was brilliant.

As the boys enjoyed it so much, both Rachel and myself decided to get an annual pass so we can go as many times as we wish. I know we will certainly use it a lot - Tom has all his animals to learn if nothing else (although I'm not sure where else you will find Alpacas and Llamas on a farm?)

Came home, Tom had another short sleep before dinner, bath and bed.

Busy

So I have been busy, busy, busy. Spent yesterday on the computer catching up with admin - you wouldn't believe how quickly time flies when Tom is in nursery. He hadn't slept so I brought him home and put him straight to bed, giving me another two hours to do some work.

He woke up sleepy and grumpy. It took two biscuits to perk him up again, but once he had, he was back to his usual self, looning about the garden etc.

Today, Tom went to nursery as usual and I spent the day in the kitchen. Made some chocolate cup cakes with a ganache topping (still hasn't set, but maybe the weather?). It's Sammie's birthday tomorrow, her other half is in The Falklands with the army, so I thought I would bake her some as a treat. Quite pleased with how they have turned out.

I then set to making lots of decorations. I have decided to do 3 selection boxes this weekend. One for the Drs surgery (via Rose), one for TADLOP (local operatic society) via Rose as well and another for Michelle's school (they are having a big meeting on Monday with Governors, Michelle reckons they will be putty in my hand). I have made mortar boards and scrolls (it is coming up to graduation time), cricket bats and wicket pads, animals, roses and daisies (the photo shows some, but not all of them). Hoping that they will look good enough to create some orders.


Tom, once again didn't sleep at nursery. For the first time, he walked over to me rather than crawl which was nice. He looked really stable on his feet. (Typical he didn't look stable again for the rest of the day!) Put him down in his cot again once we got home and finished off the decorations. Once up we popped over to Asda to get some bits in - was completely deserted (England were playing and for once actually won!) then had a play in the garden and outside.

Then dinner, bath, story and bed.

Happy Day

We had a happy day today - Tom was in a good mood and the weather was fantastic.

The morning saw us down in the town park for the launch of Breast Feeding Awareness Week. Over 50 people (mums and babies) turned up for a walk in the town park. No-one expected so many people, was a great booster for those organising it. The press were there as well, so Tom and I may be famous again.

We couldn't bring ourselves to go straight home after the walk, so we decided to have a picnic. Went to the Town Centre to get some provisions and then we had a happy lunch in the shade of a tree. (Tomato pasta again for Tom - so you can imagine what he looked like - why do I always wear white in these situations?!)

Tom had a play on the equipment before we came home (had to keep shouting at him in the car to stop him falling asleep). After a 2 hour sleep we went to Asda (rubbish I know on a good weather day) to stock up on nappies (down to our last 2!), beer and food. We got back in time to have a play outside with his walker and then dinner (as you can see from the photo, not all of it went in his mouth - you should have seen the floor - there were splats everywhere) and then back outside to play in the garden before bed.

As you can see, he helped his Dad bring in the laundry.

A lovely day in Oxfordshire

Just had a lovely day. We drove down to Upton House (a National Trust property) near Banbury to meet up with Tom's Grannie and Grandpa. They haven't seen him in the flesh since his birthday, so were keen to see how he has developed.

We were a little worried after yesterday's performance, but we needn't have. He was a gem. Had lunch in a pub nearby (gorgeous location, but inefficient service meaning we had to wait an hour for food - but Tom handled it well and stayed cheery for most of it.)

We then went to Upton House, another gorgeous location with beautiful gardens. First stop was the restaurant for tea and cake. Tom would have ate all the cake given a chance, Matt was most upset when I made him give part of his fruit cake away! Tom had a happy time, showing Grannie and Grandpa how well he can walk, he even managed to kick a football about (maybe he should try out for the England team - he was passing the ball and kicking very nicely - unlike them!) and he walked down a number of flights of stairs, chuckling the whole way.

Before we knew it, it was 3.30pm and Tom was getting tired. We said our goodbyes and made our way home. A good day was had by all, Tom was an angel.

Grizzle

Poo - I had almost completed the post for Friday, but somehow have lost it! Can't remember what I was going to say now.

We spent Friday in Shrewsbury. Did a fair bit of shopping which Tom took with good humour and then we met up with Rachel and Olly in the Quarry for a picnic and play. Olly has been walking for 3 months now, even so, Tom was more nimble on the play things, especially the slide. Rachel had to manoeuvre Olly and push him down, when Tom does it all himself.

When I got home, Marg from next door came out to see me, it's Jane's parents Ruby Anniversary this week. She had just given Jane my flyer - a case of bad timing as she had just bought a cake from Tescos for it. However, she wanted it decorated with some ruby coloured roses and asked if I could do it - by tomorrow - gulp! As England were due to play tonight in the World Cup I agreed (just as well as the game was rubbish), so I spent the night playing with sugar paste. I've not made free hand roses before, but think I have done an ok job. Shame I didn't get to her a week earlier, as then I would have got the full order. Oh well, next time...

Saturday saw us swimming in the morning. For some reason Tom is very clingy when first in the pool - he attaches himself to either me or Matt like a monkey - arms and legs wrapped round with no chance of removing him until a good 5 minutes or so when he relaxes. He is then fine, and enjoys the rest of the lesson.

We then went into Telford Town Centre, needed to get some bits and pieces for the house and garden (we had a leak his week from the bath into the lounge so need to re-paint the ceiling. One of our neighbours is a handyman, so he came round and fixed it and got paid in cakes). We then went to a pub for lunch. Unfortunately Tom decided to grizzle at this point. He wouldn't eat anything other than raisins for lunch, not even chips which are normally fail safe. He did chat up a Japanese couple sat opposite from us though which was good. Matt did his usual party trick of talking to them in Japanese. They, as is usual were taken back - I guess you wouldn't expect the average person in a Wetherspoons pub in Telford to speak Japanese. Turned out that the husband works at Ricoh and asked Matt if he can do some translation for them - so might mean he gets some work, makes up for a very poor lunch!

Tom then grizzled and grizzled and grizzled. I bought him a banana from Asda which placated him for a while, but it wasn't good and meant that he forfeited a trip to the park - silly boy! We came home, Tom went straight to bed. I did some web updates (the pics I promised are now up). Got him up after 2 hours. He was not happy, we had full blown tears. Nothing would placate him: biscuit, drink, nappy change, teething gel, cuddles etc. We took him out front, he carried on screaming, then Becca brought out some millionaire's shortbread they had made earlier. I gave some to Tom, it had immediate effect, he cheered up and became a happy chappy again - I guess he needed a sugar rush and our biscuits (Rich Tea) just weren't up to the job. Well done Becca.

So, we then had a lovely play time outside, Tom running up and down with his walker, getting in the way of the Gouges who were playing football. He stayed out until dinner time, scoffed up all his nosh (not surprised considering he didn't eat any lunch), played outside again until bath time, then bottle and bed.

We had roast chook for dinner then Matt watched a programme about pythons whilst I finished off Jane's cake. Hope she likes it. Will get Matt to take a pic tomorrow.

Sorry, forgot to take a pic of Tom today, but we are meeting up Matt's parents tomorrow so we should have plenty tomorrow.

More cakes

So, over half a week has gone again with no blog update, it is getting harder and harder to get round to them now I'm trying to get the business going, every spare second (of which I don't have many) goes into that.

Anyway, Tom is well and enjoying the sun. Monday saw us at probably our last session of Gymbabes. Tom was able to use all the equipment without any trouble, so I'm thinking there isn't anything left for him to achieve, other than to walk properly which is what he needs to do to go up to the next class. Might give the next set of sessions a rest and then by the time Gymbabes starts up again in September he should be walking really well.

Tuesday saw Tom at nursery and me at the University of Wolverhampton (in Telford) on a course run by the Inland Revenue for people starting up small businesses. Was a good course, I understood most of it and was able to clarify a couple of things I was having trouble with. Picked up Tom, he had had a good day, but hadn't slept. Brought him home and put him in his cot as I usually do. He cried, then he screamed. He refused to go to sleep. Not sure why and we never got to the bottom of it. I ended up getting him up and then we spent a grizzly afternoon together.

Had sugarcraft lesson at night, finished off the Harvest Mouse Wedding scene we have been working on. Managed to keep 2 poppies together, but they weren't great. I was quite happy with the models though, especially the groom. (If you want to see the rest - either go to The Lily Pad Bakery Facebook page now or www.lilypadbakery.co.uk after the weekend and you will find the rest of the pics.)

Tom had a good sleep and went to nursery on Wednesday morning. I came home and had a very productive morning. Made and iced some more cup cakes. Finished decorating a birthday cake, got the photos of the Harvest Mice done, made some more flower paste, ordered some cup cake boxes and listed my business on various free sites. Google still hasn't found me and until it does, my website is pretty much useless as a marketing tool. Anyone out there with any IT knowledge, I would appreciate some advice on how to get my website found by google.

Picked up Tom from nursery, he had had a sleep (apparently he was shattered - I wonder why?!) meant that he came home in a good, happy mood which was great. And he had a good afternoon nap as well. Once awake, I took him to the clinic for weighing as it has been a while (about 6 weeks). Thought he would have put on a lot and everyone remarked on how much bigger he is, but no, just 1 ounce. Oh well, he is slipping down the percentiles, but is happy enough and very well, so I'm not worried.

Popped into Asda on the way home. I went to George and bought myself some new summery clothes, none of my old clothes fit me anymore as I have changed shape so much. I came away with a couple of purchases, but not sure about them, they are a little more girly than I normally go, not sure if I'm doing a 'mutton dressed as lamb' impression or not, although Matt says they look ok.

Thursday saw me doing the last session of the first aid course and Tom in creche. First aid course was slightly better today, but still not brilliant and I left as soon as I could. Picked Tom up from creche and got a good school report, 'He's my favourite pupil, always happy and smiling' Always very nice to hear.

Came home, Tom had a sleep and then we went out to meet up with Rose and Abi. Went for a walk in the park, the walk was much longer than planned and we chatted for longer than we planned, which meant the babies didn't get as much play time as we would have liked and we had to march home. Even with that we got home an hour late for dinner. Oops! Tom didn't like me for it, but I managed to get some dinner down him and he had an OK bath and bottle and is now asleep. Rose took some photos of the two of them together, I will post them up here when she sends them over. Anyway, was a lovely day.

Sunday fun day

Despite the weather going off in a big way today, Tom had lots of fun. We all had a good sleep, which was just as well, as we had a 10.00am appointment at Quackers Play Barn in Priorslee, arranged by Jane, a fellow Water Babies Mum. It's not huge as play barns go, but we were the only group in there and therefore had all the equipment to ourselves. Tom loved the slide and went down I don't know how many times, always grinning from ear to ear. He was generally faster down than either of his parents, which I'm sure made it more fun. We stayed for a couple of hours and then headed up to golf club for lunch. Lovely service as always, and Tom fed himself some tomato and sausage pasta. Lots of fun, as you can see from the photo.

We came back for Tom's siesta, planning to head out to David Austin Roses later on, partly because it's very nice at this time of year but mainly because you get a great view of the Cosford Air Show. The weather, however, had other ideas, and it's been chucking it down here since about 2.30. So, Tom had a long nap and then got in plenty of walking practice, up and down the lounge and landing. He's really enjoying his extra mobility these days. See the video for evidence.

As I write this, though, there is a lot of shouting/crying coming from the kitchen, from which I can only deduce that dinner is not going well. We'll see.

Picnic in the hills

As you can see, I've got behind again - setting up a business really does take time, which is hard when you have very little to play with, meaning the blog is having to take a back seat.

Anyway, it looks like Tom is wanting to drop his morning nap:( He managed both days at nursery to go the full session without a nap and not fall asleep on the way home. On Thursday and Friday I managed to put him down for a morning nap, but then he didn't sleep very well in the afternoon. Today I put him down as usual at 8.45, but I could hear him playing in his cot the whole time. He then did swimming without too much trouble, fell asleep in the car for 20 mins on the way to the Cardingmill Valley, had a good time there, didn't fall asleep in the car on the way home and then only slept for an hour once back home. Not good, but they say they tend to grow out of it between 1 year and 18 months, so I guess it's right. Just means I now have to be more organised in the evening as I've now lost my 'getting things ready time' in the morning.

I also discovered yesterday that he is happy to walk 'freestyle' for an audience, but not so much for Mum and Dad. We met up with the NCT group on Friday at Rachel Z's house for sing and sign. Rachel's lounge is very big, and Tom was walking all over the place to the other mums - he got loads of attention. Would he do it when we got back - NO! Would he do it today - NO! He is definitely more stable on his feet, but hasn't quite understood that people stop and start walking in an upright position. He has to aim for something and then dives for/at that something when he is near enough. He'll make a good football player if he carries on like this.

As I mentioned earlier on, today we went to the Cardingmill Valley for lunch. We popped into Tescos to pick up some sandwiches and a pasta salad for Tom (he doesn't really go for sandwiches, but is happy to tuck into a pot of pasta - at the moment anyway) He had another go at walking, but the ground was uneven (or he was being lazy again - not sure which).

Once up from his nap we had a up and down afternoon. Lots of crying, but also lots of giggling. He had a grizzle when I put him in his cot, but it only lasted about 15 seconds and that has been it. He has been sleeping well at night recently, maybe that's why he doesn't need so much sleep during the day?

Do you like my hat?

So, we said goodbye to Vera on Tuesday morning and then Tom went to nursery and I got onto my computer to catch up on admin. Time went ridiculously quickly and before I knew it it was time to pack up and get Tom. Didn't get half of the things I wanted done. Oh hum never mind.

Tom didn't sleep at nursery today and came home full of energy, very weird. I put him down for a sleep (he cried at first which isn't like him) but he eventually submitted (maybe overtired). He was in a really bad mood when he woke up - kept on lying prostrate on the ground and crying, or just burying into me. I wasn't sure why at all, but it was very difficult to get him to stop crying, I tried lots of different distractions, but most of them didn't work.

Gave Tom his dinner and he immediately perked up - he was hungry! Nursery told me that he had eaten up, but I think that maybe he threw most of it on the floor. So anyway he had Tom the happy chappy back which was nice - as you can see he was trying out Wilberforce's hat - it quite suits him don't you think.

I went to sugarcraft lesson in the evening - a very frustrating night. We were making poppies, but I had huge problems, my petals wouldn't stay on the wires, a very frustrating night, came home empty handed.

Another fantastic night of sleep for all of us. Took Tom to nursery in the morning, whilst I grappled with poppies again, and failed again - ended up calling Brenda for some advice (she's given me some alternative methods which I will try over the weekend) As I didn't get hold of her immediately, I gave up and decided to focus on the fairies for Sophie's cake which I did with success.

The rest of the day centred around Matt, he has a 'gummy' eye. Went to the surgery to get checked out. He was then sent to Eye Casualty at the Princess Royal so we went their after picking up Tom. From there he was sent to the GP walk in clinic and then told to come back in 2 hours. It all got very complicated with transport and Tom's naps, but with the help of Marg next door we managed it all. (Turns out he has allergic conjunctivitis and could have just gone to the Pharmacist for an ointment - typical!)

Tom wasn't too happy being carted around, but he once again cheered up after dinner and went to bed well.

Oh, one thing I have forgotten to mention is that Tom is now stroking Jodie gently. It has taken a long while to teach him, but he seems to have got there now and I think Jodie is happy.

Moo!

Another happy day, Tom really is having a good time at the moment and therefore, so are we.

We had our usual morning play followed by an early morning nap. Vera, Tom and I then walked to Asda, when I say walk, I mean Tom walked about half way, holding on to Vera and me and then he sat on my shoulders the rest of the way. We got our provisions and then Tom walked half the way back before sitting on my shoulders again. That is the longest he's walked to date, I think he is doing really well.

Came home, did a quick photo shoot of the lemon cakes we made yesterday (will hopefully make it on the blog tomorrow) before giving Tom an early lunch and then an early nap.

1.30 saw us on the way to Bridgnorth (it really is a military operation getting his naps right on a Monday). Had a fantastic session at Gymbabes, Tom managed the obstacle course on two feet (with Vera and I holding his hands). He was pretty stable and confident, but quite a long way off doing it himself without the help. He also managed the songs at the beginning without grizzling which he hasn't done for ages. It was a really happy time.

We popped into Cinnamon afterwards for a drink and naughty cake (thanks Vera) where we also met up with Rachel and Olly. Managed to have an almost sane conversation without too many interuptions from the tots, although they did make a lot of noise with the toys.

Came home, Tom was quite vocal on the way home, I think he was tired, but he refused to go to sleep. Oh well, got home and he cheered up, he had a good dinner and a good play (see video clip), bath and bed. Another really nice day.

Oh - have to mention his T-shirt today, courtesy of Matt from his trip to Edinburgh. Nearly everyone who saw him today commented on how cute it was. It certainly does suit him.

Another happy day

Another very happy day after a great night (just one grizzle around 10pm which he sorted out himself). We had a happy morning, playing on the bed and around the bed and then a good breakfast before going for his morning nap.

Once up we headed off to Asda to pick up some cakey things (Vera wanted to make some cup cakes with me), then to Wyevale to pick up some vegetable plants (never got round to sowing some seeds this year) and then the golf club for lunch. Tom finished off his pasta from yesterday and as you can see from the video, made a right mess.



We came home, Tom had a nap and we made lemon cup cakes (experimented again today. Put some lemon curd in the middle as a 'suprise' which worked well). We also made some daisies to put on them. Matt got back from Scotland around 3pm and looked suprisingly well for someone who had riden through rain, hail, fog and snow to get home.

Vera got out a walker that Julie had given her for Tom when he woke up and we took him outside with it. He LOVED it, it is much lighter than the trolley he has been using, meaning that he was able to steer it around obstacles. He spent quite a while on it and was very pleased with himself.

After an OK dinner we retired to the lounge for a pre bath play. Tom did some freestyle walking and managed longer and longer lengths, by the end he was doing about 6 paces, but more importantly than that, he was able to recorrect his balance during his walks without falling over which I think is a huge improvement. A couple of times he even changed direction, deciding to walk to Vera rather than Matt.

He was an absolute charmer for the whole day, he was full of hugs and grins. Even gave Vera a spontaneous hug, which I think she really enjoyed. Think the teething is over for a while :)

A very happy day

A fantastic night, didn't hear from Tom at all, not even a cough. And he woke up in a really good mood as well which was fab.

We had a good play and breakfast and then he was very good in submitting to his morning nap nice and early in time for swimming.

Swimming was ace, he didn't cry or grizzle at all, in fact he laughed through most of it. Was a great lesson, one of the best ones to date, AND he was the only one to walk over the wobble board (even Max wouldn't do it today which is really unusual).

Got home and waited for Vera to turn up which she did just before 12, so we quickly put a picnic together and headed out to the Town Park to enjoy the sunshine. Had a nice time and Tom continued to be in a good mood and he managed to eat a big portion of pasta which is really unusual as he normally rejects pasta. He also managed to play a bit of football!

I showed Vera a bit more of the town park including the Japanese garden and then went home so Tom and Vera could have their afternoon naps. I took advantage and read my Cake magazine and then did a bit of gardening.

Tom woke up in a bad mood, didn't enjoy me changing his nappy at all, but once that was done he cheered up - he had to, he had a birthday pressie to open from Vera - a musical ball which he immediately liked which was good.

Spent the rest of the afternoon in the garden until Tom's dinner time then back to the usual routine, bath, bottle, story and bed.

One thing I have forgotten to mention is that Tom now comes to me for hugs, he'll come over, climb up on me and throw his arms round me and cuddle in. Is really heart warming and I love it.

Also, for the first time ever today he walked on his own. He walked from the chair in the nursery to his cot. Only two steps, but he did it on his own without any coaxing from me, in fact I almost missed it. A small step for him, but a huge developmental step, I wonder if he will do it again tomorrow?

Hugs before Daddy leaves

Another good night. Tom woke up screaming around 10pm, so gave him half a shot of nurofen, a hug and kiss and that was it, he slept through. Unfortunately, he woke up early - 6.45am, I think the early sun is having an effect on him as that is the second morning running he has got up early.

He came on the bed for a play as usual. He was having some nice cuddles with his Dad. I tried to capture the moment, not a great pic, but a nice memory. Matt rode off around 9pm, he's off to Edinburgh for the weekend on a J-net do. Vera is coming up tomorrow so I've only got one day on my own. Which is fine as I have so much work to do on the computer.

After his morning nap, Tom and I nipped into Wellington - I needed some craft scissors which I had been told were available from Wilcos, bingo, found them. Also got some more ribbon from the market and remembered to get some receipts - it's all outgoings at the moment. HOWEVER, I got my first order last night - a 1st birthday cake for a baby I know from breast feeding group - with fairies on top, so have already done my research and got lots of ideas on how to do the fairies (hence the mission to buy craft scissors) Very pleased.

We also popped into Morrisons to get provisions for the weekend. For the first time ever, Tom decided to have a melt down! I have no idea what caused it, but suddenly all was wrong with the world and he let me and everyone else know it. He also tried to climb out of the trolley. Unfortunately Morrisons don't have straps on their trolleys so I ended up having to carry him. Have you ever tried to carry an upset baby whilst steering a trolley around a store. THEN, have you ever tried to empty a deep trolley whilst holding a baby - not easy, suffice to say my arms were burning with pain! Oh hum!

The afternoon saw us hosting the NCT girls and babies for sing and sign and then playtime in the garden as it was such a lovely day. Went well, and managed to get rid of the rest of my cup cakes. Tom only started grizzling around 4.30 which is late for him recently. He ate an OK dinner and cheered up before bath, bottle and bed. Haven't heard from him yet.

Oh, have updated my website with some pics - the two sets of cup cakes and a celebration cake with chocolate roses which I cobbled together earlier this week with some bits I did at night school.

More Cup Cakes

Another good night, and then a happy morning on / off the bed (he can now get off the bed by himself) before taking Tom to nursery. I was in baking mode again, cup cakes were the order of the day - chocolate ones with orange frosting (tried something new today and managed to get a moussey frosting which was good. Used the chocolate decorations I have been making over the last couple of weeks. Was quite pleased with the results (although some swearing occurred as the tower fell over and a couple of cupcakes fell on their noses - not good)

I also spent some time making a mouse groom for college, was really pleased with the results, but you will have to wait sometime to see the results as I have to learn to make poppies and wheat first. Oh, BTW I spent most of yesterday on the computer and have now ordered my business cards and flyers - very exciting.

Collected Tom from nursery at 1pm. He had had a sleep from 11 to 12, so wasn't ready to go down again. Matt was a little light on work today, so we decided to walk to Asda, all 3 f us. Tom managed to go about half the distance and spent the rest of the trip on his Daddy's shoulders grinning away.

By the time we got back, he was tired and I managed to put him down, so I could continue playing with my cakes. He woke up at 3.30, but was in full grizzle mode. He is still teething. In fact when I put some teething gel on his gums, I felt one new tooth. I tried every distraction I could think of, but he was quite upset. We then decided to watch the new DVD of Tom videos, including one of him swimming and it did the trick, he was transfixed by watching himself. This meant we then had a good dinner and then a cheerful play with the girls outside. Will remember that for the future.

Today's new game: we say "Tom, where's your head" and he puts both hands over his face. Fantastic, except he does that for everything, "Tom where's your leg?", "Tom where's your foot" both hands over his face. By the end of the day, he was putting both hands over his face in response to just "Tom".