New Friends

Himeji Castle with its wrapping on

Another poo in the toilet this morning :0)

Today we had arranged to meet up with Arline, one of Matt's translator friends in Himeji - she's over for the conference as well and was visiting one of her clients/friends in Himeji. Both Tom and I have met Arline before - in Spain in 2010 - when Tom was 18 months old. We kept telling Tom this and although I don't think he can remember he gave Arline a huge running hug when she found us in the station. (Took her and us quite by surprise).

Her friends, The Matsumotos had a big car and a booster seat which was good because it was raining today. It wasn't much - just spitting rain but the walk up to Himeji castle is long enough that we would have got wet and hot (although it was raining, it was still quite warm, meaning we become boil in the bag sweaty numbers if we wear anoraks).

Tom and a fish

The Matsumotos seemed really nice (although they don't speak much English but you can get a good sense of a person without being able to speak their language). They drove us up to the castle. We walked through the grounds and explored the buildings at the bottom of the complex. Tom had a moment when we arrived (too hot in his waterproof suit maybe?) but after a kind lady gave him a sweetie he cheered up and in fact led us around the buildings. Now every Japanese castle I've been to has a collection of empty rooms and this was no exception - Tom picked up on it "No beds in the rooms" I'm assuming this is because everyone slept on futons which were kept in cupboards so there was no furniture in the rooms.

The main castle is currently undergoing a massive restoration - they are taking off and restoring all the roofing tiles and redoing all the plasterwork - a huge task that will take 3 years. They have built another building over the castle - keeping it dry for the work. However, rather than close the castle, they have created a couple of viewing platforms within this building meaning that visitors can watch the workmen - this was really good and in fact I found it more interesting than just seeing the castle anyway.

Work in progress

Once we were done in the castle, we got Tom his stamp (most places of interest in Japan have a commemorative ink stamp which you can collect. This being Japan they aren't vandalised meaning they can be set up pretty much anywhere. We thought it would be good to collect them for Tom as a memory jog / memento of his visit) we then all got back in the car and headed to a restaurant for lunch. It was an Italian restaurant so Matt had pasta and I had pizza so Tom had a choice - guess what he decided pizza was best! The food was good, Tom ate well. He began to get bored so I got a couple of things out for him to play with - his most favourite being the 50p magnetic drawing pad I got him before we left ( these have been a godsend - his main play thing on the plane and since we got here - I wish we had bought his big one with us now but I thought it too big and cumbersome).

Tom and his new best friend

Suddenly Tom decided that he was going to get to know his new friend and went to see Mr Matsumoto. Mr Matsumoto is the head of an Elementary school and you could tell - he was completely at ease with him and they were both giggling and being silly for a good hour and a half! So much so that Tom got all sweaty from playing so hard. It was lovely to see him so at ease. I hope that he is like that with Hiromi as well when he sees her.

Mr Matsumoto has been to the UK a number of times as he set up a school exchange with a school in Gateshead - I was impressed the kids that exchange are only 11/12 - Japan is very different from Europe. He said the hardest thing for both sets of kids is the change in food - MacDonalds is all they have in common.

The Matsumotos and Arlene - a fab lunch

Before we knew it it was 4.30 - we had been there for 3 hours. The Matsumotos drove us back to Himeji station where we got ourselves some Japanese ready meals for dinner and some fab looking buns for breakfast tomorrow. We then boarded the train back to Aioi, had dinner, bath & bed. Another happy day.





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Location:Himeji

Onsen Day

Managed another OK night's sleep last night. Tom slept through, Matt and I kept waking up - but that's nothing new - we do that in Telford. I still haven't quite got used to sleeping on the floor yet and wake up aching every morning. Matt's ok and Tom hasn't seemed to notice there isn't a mattress on his bed. Even more weirdly, he hasn't noticed that his pillow is full of beans rather than foam or feathers - believe me it is quite a different feeling - so much so that Matt refuses to use one - and he's the Japanophile!

Anyway we didn't get going until about 8.30 and unfortunately Tom soiled his nappy whilst gooning about meaning we didn't get the opportunity to use the sticker bribe to get him to use the toilet.

The new pyjamas

After much deliberation about what to do today we finally settled on staying in Aioi and visiting its onsen (spa). So we caught the bus back down to Peron Castle armed with towels. Matt took Tom in with him so I had a lovely relaxing time. My side had about 3 or 4 old ladies in it - all of whom were using the sauna and cold bath so I had the run of the baths: a jacuzzi, a purple bath, an outdoor bath and some bubble beds (well that's what I call them - narrow bits of bath divided up with metal rails so they fit one lady at a time and full of bubbles - coming at you from all angles - feels great). Luckily, having been to a number of onsens I know more or less what to do but it is still a little nerve-wracking walking into somewhere naked and unable to read any of the signs and notices. Anyway no-one glared at me so I think I did OK - also I wasn't the biggest lady there, which was comforting for me.

Anyway I truly relaxed and even found time to blow dry my hair (first time since the Gala Dinner in Cosford). I met Tom and Matt back in reception - they had had a good time - apparently Tom felt completely at ease and was quite excited - especially with the outside bath - especially as you could see the inlet and boats from it. Apparently he charmed quite a few of the men there.

Once we had all cooled down and drunk some cold water, we headed out for some lunch and found a restaurant specialising in Okinomiyaki so decided to go for that. They also did some snacks: deep fried mochi filled with cheese - wow, what is there not to like about that? All 3 of us gobbled them down in no time at all.

We then stopped by the park we played in yesterday for some sliding and swinging and football before heading to the shops to pick up some rice for dinner tonight. On the way home all 3 of us lost energy (too much relaxing in the onsen - my legs felt like lead and it was a real effort to move them). Matt ended up carrying Tom home who then went straight to sleep.

We gave Tom an hour's nap and got him up, but we had real trouble waking him up and he continued to snooze for the next hour. Dinner of Hayashi Rice (beef stew) perked him up and he was fine afterwards but glad to go back to bed.

A good day: Tom was very well behaved today: Matt said he was a pleasure to be with in the onsen which was fab (also no remarks about his scabby back which was good) and he ate all 3 of his meals without us nagging him which was lovely.

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Location:Aioi

Exploring

Two little daikons

We had success last night. Tom didn't cry and we had a job waking him at 8am! We both faired better as well - sleeping for longer than we were awake AND we didn't go to bed until after 10pm.

This morning we had another poo in the toilet - so happy. Yesterday we bought him some really funky transportation stickers (no Dr Yellow this time I'm afraid) and told him he would only get them if he pooed in the toilet. This morning he happily went to the loo to try and had success on his second attempt - we were all very proud. He got his sticker and wore it with pride for the rest of the day. Let's hope the sticker bribe doesn't wear off too quickly.

Today we decided to stay in Aioi and do some exploring. Our end of town is very quiet - we figured there must be more to it. So we got a bus down to Port Park not really knowing what to expect. At first we thought it was miles and miles away, but the driver took us through every residential area in the town until we finally got there - turns out it was only about a mile away - oh hum. Port Park is on the coast - Aioi is at the bottom of an inlet in the Inland Sea. Here there are ship builders (Matt knows one of them from his patent work) and a nice patch of green and promenade alongside the shore which we walked down (not a whimper from the lad which was surprising as it was quite breezy). Aioi is very proud of one thing - its Dragon Boat racing, which it holds over one weekend every year - everything in the town is geared towards this (murals, drain covers etc) and it just so happens it is this coming weekend, so we are planning to go and watch them. Alongside the promenade was a statue of a Dragon Boat which we posed alongside for the customary photo.

Drinking Doctor Yellow

We carried along the promenade until we got to Peron Castle which is an Onsen (spa). Came across a farmers market so looked at the produce, guessing what things were and got some info on the Onsen for a visit later in our stay. Opposite this was a retail park so we had a look round - one of the stores was a huge supermarket full of wonderful looking things (especially the deli counter - full of sushi, tempura, croquettes and things on sticks) whilst nosing around I came across a children's carton of drink with a certain Dr Yellow on it - couldn't believe it, as soon as Tom saw it he had to have it and as soon as we got out of the store, he ripped open the straw and drank it in one breath - we still aren't 100% sure what it was other than a milky drink of sorts.

We then found a park with a funky slide in it - made from rollers meaning you go quite fast and get a bottom massage as you go along. Tom called it a silly slide but loved it, as did Matt and I (we are both kids at heart). Our stomachs began to rumble so we headed back into town to a Co-Op we had seen. We had lunch: Katsu Curry for Matt and Tempura Udon Teishoku (set lunch with a bowl of udon soup and ebi tempura and rice (definitely a Slimming World green day). We then explored the shop - wow it was massive! I think you could buy pretty much anything there AND it had a 100 Yen shop in it. We found a baby carriage thing for Tom to sit in so we could look around without Tom causing annoyance / breakages etc. He's a bit put off at the moment as he has suddenly realised that although he isn't allowed to touch things I do - so he keeps telling me off!

Watching the white trains

We bought some food for dinner: ebi, noodles, edamame and gyoza and headed home. Tom went to bed for a nap then we went back to the station to watch the Shinkansen speeding through Aioi at full speed. Tom was a little scared but very curious.

Then home, dinner, shower, bath and bed.

Today's purchase: Shinkansen pyjamas - which include Dr Yellow.

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Location:Aioi

My Best Friend

My best friend!

First things first, today Tom pooed in the toilet - yahoooooo!

Another OK-ish night - Tom woke up crying at midnight, I failed to settle him so moved in again. It was 2.30 before he fell asleep again but he didn't disturb me and I managed a couple more hours.
Right then, today we arranged to go to Kobe to meet up with one of Matt's translator friends. So we set off on the local train - took 1hr 15mins (this time will be reduced to 25 mins once our rail passes start and we can use the Shinkansen - yahoo)

We met Richard in the Muji restaurant just above Bornelund - a soft play area (we didn't go in today as it is very expensive and we had other things to do today). However next to the restaurant was a kids shop with lots of sample toys for children to play with so after some shyness Tom got stuck in. We then went for lunch which wasn't great as Tom was more intent on going back to the shop to play and was a little stubborn eating things, although we got there in the end. We of course then had to go back to the shop for more playing before we said goodbye to Richard and set off to Harbourland in the Port area of Kobe.

Still a bit jet-lagged

Luckily we came across a free bus half way there which we scrambled on. Our main reason for going to Harbourland was to visit a certain little shop - Donguri Garden which has lots of Totoro and Jiji Kiki (Studio Ghibli) items. Some items were a good £100, but we found the odd thing we liked and came away not too poor! We then went for a sit overlooking the sea watching boats come and go. Next stop was supposed to be Daiei, a favourite department store, but it had gone so we went to its replacement - not as good, but we managed to do some shopping - mainly for dinner tonight: regular sushi, inari sushi (rice coverd in sweeten tofu) and maki sushi (Californian rolls) with some cold soba noodles which we swiftly took home on the train.

Now on the train Tom had to sit on me as it was full. He played, then he wriggled and fidgeted beyond belief. I asked him if he was tired "my not twyred" came back the reply - a minute later he was zonked out! He was so tired that he didn't wake up when we got off the train, walked down and up steps up onto another platform, sat in the waiting room and boarded another train! He only woke up an hour later when we arrived back in Aioi - very sweaty and a little disorientated!

After some time to come to, we went for a game of football at the local park - met another 3 year old boy called Tomoki who had also gone with his football. We tried to get them to play with each other but Tomoki seemed quite suspicious of us and refused (makes a change for it not to be Tom being the awkward one)

Then a quick walk to the convenience store for dinner drinks: milk for Tom and beer for us, then dinner, SHOWER (Tom's first without protest) and bath before bed for Tom, work for Matt and blogging for me. Going to try to stay up till 10 today - we will see...

Today's purchase: Dr Yellow plasters for Tom's poorly heel

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Location:Kobe

Himeji

It was a bit of an up and down sleep last night. I was out like a light almost immediately but was woken up by Tom crying at 11. We couldn't settle him so I moved my futon into his room and slept with him. It worked. Although he was awake for the next 2 hours he didn't disturb me - and then he slept through till morning. My deep sleep was over for the night though and I dozed for the remainder of the night. Matt didn't get to sleep until after the crying incident but then did well.

Anyway we all felt a little better in the morningWe decided, after seeing how empty our apartment was, that we would need to go shopping today, so we went into Himeji for the day. First stop was a 100 Yen shop for a football for Tom and then we headed to the castle gardens for a kick about - wow it is hot! We all had to put hats and suncream on. We then headed back to Himeji Station as Matt had found out that it was very likely that a certain Dr Yellow would be passing through and we thought a certain little boy would like to see him. Can you believe it - we got to the station to find out that their had been an incident earlier on in the day and there were delays of up to 80 minutes - that never happens in Japan!!!!!! We hung around for a little while but then decided it was a lost cause and went to find lunch in the department store (department stores are very different in Japan - generally the top floor is dedicated to restaurants and there will be quite a selection of them - each specialising in something different and each of them displaying their dishes by food models in their windows (very handy if you don't speak or read the lingo as you can go with the waitress outside and point to what you want). We ended up in a Katsu restaurant (specialising in Items that have been covered in panko crumbs and fried). Pork Katsu with egg for me and an ebi plate for Matt - all very delicious.

We then went back to the 100 yen shop to stock up on bits (some cushions to sit on the floor with as we have no chairs), a washing line, a mug so Matt can drink tea (funny - I didn't think of that when packing), a battery operated light for the bedrooms (for some reason there are no lights in the bedrooms) and so on. All these plus more came to under £20 - oh how we love 100 yen shops, ( oh if you are wondering 100 Yen is about 80 pence).

We then went on the hunt for nappies (difficult to find over here - I guess they don't use disposables here) and then home. Tom had a nap on our return (under protest but he was asleep within minutes) then we went for another wonder around before heading to our nearest restaurant for dinner:
Okonomiyaki. A tiny neighbourhood restaurant - these are the best restaurants in Japan but you have to be able to speak and read Japanese to use them - and they are also usually very cheap which is a bonus - you haven't experienced Japan properly until you use these - I always feel sorry for regular tourists who are missing out on this experience. The 3 of us shared 2 okinomiyakis - one with soba the other regular. Tom ate his without too much fuss and Matt caught up with the local gossip.

Then home, Tom went to bed, I hit a wall around 8.30 and followed suit.

Today's purchase: Doctor Yellow cup

Location:Himeji

The long flight

Ready for the off

Oh yes it was a very long flight - a necessary evil for trips to Japan. Tom was so well behaved though that I can't complain - just wish we could take a leaf out of his book and sleep some of the way!

So, the taxi arrived dead on time (6.15) we bundled everything in and made our way to the airport. At the airport everything went well - we got checked easily (Totoro was given a special priority tag) and we managed to exercise Tom by making him run round quite a bit. It obviously isn't a popular time to fly as Birmingham Airport was the quietest I have ever seen it!

However, having said that our flight to Charles de Gaulle was full. We did get a little nervous at one stage because we got quite badly delayed - someone didn't turn up for the flight so they had to go through the luggage hold to remove their luggage, delaying us by a good half hour - not good when you have a short connection in one of the worst airports! However we were lucky in that our flight to Osaka took off from the same terminal where we landed, meaning we got our flight with no problems.

We were very lucky in that the Osaka flight wasn't very full - we had 6 seats for the 3 of us which meant I could make a nest for Tom and he could lay out. Perfect - I wish all flights were like that! Tom actually fell asleep on take off (he has done that a number of times now) so once the seatbelt signs got turned off we lay him down and after 30mins of fighting it (or rather being distracted by things) he finally submitted and fell asleep - he was out cold for 2 hours.

A light snooze on the flight

Once awake he had his dinner, played a bit (almost broke his Daddy's iPad by dropping it on the floor on purpose which didn't go down well (false alarm - it is working fine now), read etc. when he started getting whiny again I lay him down again and within 40 mins he was asleep - and then stayed asleep until 40 mins before landing - not bad in fact some of the flight crew were impressed by just how much he did sleep - must say it made our flight easier, however neither Matt nor I managed to get any sleep.

We landed in Osaka on time, got through immigration and customs without getting stopped (first time ever for Matt) and then got what seemed like the longest ever train trip to our flat via Osaka (change trains), Himeji (change trains and Yoshinoya for Gyudon lunch and Aboshi (pick up keys). We found our little house without too much trouble. It certainly is little and has little furniture (a low down table, fridge freezer, tv and single bed), however we don't need much and it is certainly convenient for the train station.

We dumped our stuff, made up the futons, put Tom down for a nap and then lay down ourselves - it felt really good, but we didn't manage any sleep as we expected. Isn't jet lag just horrible!

After a couple of hours we gave up, had showers and baths and went for a look around our part of town. It is very sleepy but then it is Sunday. Had a look round the local convenience stores and ended up having dinner in a ramen restaurant although we didn't have ramen, opting for fried rice, gyoza and kara-age chicken instead - yummy!

We then headed home, put Tom to bed and then followed ourselves shortly after - about 7.30 (well it had been a long, long day,)

Today's Purchase: Dr Yellow Toothbrush

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Location:Birmingham to Aioi and everywhere in between

Rolling rolling rolling - Tom takes to his wheels

Not too much to say about this weekend. We had planned to visit Shelm and Bob at their caravan, but Tom's chicken pox hadn't cleared up and Bob wasn't feeling too well so we cancelled.

On the plus side it was good weather so we decided to go out both days. On Saturday we parked in Telford Town Park and walked (Tom cycled) down the Silkin Way to Coalport - a whole 4.5 miles! He didn't whine once and then when we got to the pub at the end he demanded that we play football with him - he certainly isn't ill any more!

We got 2 buses back to the car park and then home.

Sunday we went to Haughmond Hill to walk / cycle the Geotrail. this passed without incident - we all had a good time. Matt's of the thinking now that we get Tom a proper push bike when we get home as his legs are getting a little too long for the balance bike now...

Best Friend Leia

Very elegant!

So I quickly repacked our bags and bundled Tom into the car.  We met at Dunham Massey - a National Trust place.  We arrived at the same time, Leia had her scooter so I got Tom's bike out and away they went.  Although they were both a little shy to start with, they soon warmed up and away they went.  The estate was lovely and huge.  We went to the formal gardens where Leia and Tom had to park there vehicles and do a trail.  We started off following the trail, but concentration wasn't the best and anyway, playing 'Chase Leia' was far more interesting and off they went - running around finding places to hide.

Posing

We followed ambling behind them - Tom even ran across a bridge with no sides crossing a lake?!  I tell you there is something about Tom and older women - he will do anything for them.

Anyway it started to rain so we decided to get something to eat, then we hit the gardens again.  Tom was getting tired though as he kept crying over nothing.  He and Leia swapped vehicles for a while but Leia didn't like Tom's bike and we had more tears when Leia demanded her scooter back.  We decided to call it a day and go back to Karen's home.  I thought Tom would fall asleep in the car, but surprisingly he didn't and there was no way I was going to convince him to sleep once we got there - a different house full of different toys and things to discover - he found a new lease of life and off he went.

Lover's Walk?

We decided to stay overnight - Karen had to work for the day, so it made sense for me to stay with Tom and Leia, especially as they were getting on so well.  We had a bad night - Tom tossed and turned all night complaining that his winkle was hurting and he was too hot and so on.  Tom wasn't looking good at all in the morning, so I decided to go take them somewhere sparse of population.  I decided to take them to a park - we had it to ourselves.  I discovered the problem of looking after two children - whatever one wanted to do the other didn't - so negotiation was the order of the day.

They seem happy...

Leia would only play football on the pavement because it "doesn't work on grass" whilst Tom wanted to play on the grass.  Leia wanted to play on the swings etc even though they were wet with rain - whilst Tom didn't want to get 'wetty'.  Oh well, through negotiations and bribes I got there and they did have a good time.

After Leia repeatedly telling me she was hungry and all my snacks gone, I decided to take them home for lunch.  They then played in the garden in the sun (?!) and then inside - Leia tried to convince Tom to dress up - he wouldn't but he was happy to wear high heels!

Riding

Anyway Karen came home at 4 and we made our escape to try to beat the traffic - I got lost as usual leaving Manchester - I have never got to grips with the inner city roads there - did a couple of circuits of the University before finding my way out but once on the road I made good time.

High heels

Once home we had a quick dinner, then Matt put Tom to bed whilst I rushed to the shops to do the weekly shop and came home to make cakes - this week was a very big challenge - looking after Tom full time and getting my cake orders done.  Not something I want to be repeated very often - especially after having a very bad night's sleep a day spent looking after 2 children and long drive, not a recipe for a happy Nik!

In bed with Sophie

The rest of the week was spent looking after Tom

and making cakes and getting stressed!  My birthday happened amongst this - but it didn't really register.  Luckily, Sophie, one of Tom's friends also got Chicken Pox so we spent a long time with her and Sammie her Mum which was quite good - I discovered that it is much easier to look after a child you know than one you don't - also I had more patience once I had a good night's sleep.

The pox!

Insert joke about tomcat

Not his best side

Monday, we woke up, took one look at Tom and thought - humm, this isn't good.  Had a chat with ShropDoc as it was Bank Holiday (Tom makes a habit of getting ill either on  Sundays or Bank Holidays when there are no surgeries open anywhere!)

Guess what - it IS Chicken Pox, so we could have visited Karen anyway.

Matt was rather nervous as it is thought that he didn't have Chicken Pox as a child and it can be quite bad for adults to get - plus we are off to Japan in 2 weeks!  According to ShropDoc, it's too late to do anything about it as he was contagious 2 days before he got any spots and it is very very contagious.  Even so, we called Karen to see if she and Leia wanted to see us - they did so we left Matt at home and went off to see them.

Superbiker

An interesting weekend.  We were supposed to go to Manchester to spend the weekend with Karen and Leia, but Leia came down with Chicken Pox and as we are off to Japan in 2 week's time we thought it wasn't worth the risk and stayed put.  On Saturday we went to Attingham Park for our usual lap followed by lunch in a pub.  During his bath I noticed a couple of spots on his back and said to Matt - wouldn't it be ironic if they were chicken pox spots...

Sunday as for once it wasn't raining we decided to go to British Superbikes in Oulton Park.   

Trackside at Oulton Park

Being a Bank Holiday it was race day on the Monday, so Sunday was qualifying day.  We also got a race left over from a very rainy day earlier in the season.

Anyway we turned up in good time and found a good place to pitch our half tent near the track.  Tom got very excited, jumping up and down in the tent, playing football and showing off his riding skills on his bike (he even got a round of applause from a group of on lookers when he negotiated a hill)

Tommy Hill - our man

He wasn't 100% sure about the bikes as they went round, he said he was a little bit scared, but he didn't cry and he was genuinely interested.  One of the main riders in British Superbikes is 'Tommy Hill' we thought Tom might want to support him as they share names.  Tom quickly learnt Tommy's colours and shouted 'Come on Tommy' each time he came round.  He obviously did him some good as he came first in the qualifying and won the race.

Shane Byrne

Anyway, Tom did really well as it was a long day.  At one stage he said he was tired and went to sit in the car for a while, but he didn't sleep and seemed to find even more energy and raced around some more.  He was asleep within 5 minutes of leaving the track though.

Not being organised for the weekend we decided to grab dinner at the Clock Tower - in the end Tom didn't get to bed until 9pm - what a dirty stop out.

Oh - spots hadn't gone away and were looking a little worse...

Liverpool

Last week we decided to organise a trip to Liverpool, mainly because we fancied good nosh at Etsu (our favourite Japanese restaurant in the UK).  We thought that Tom might like to go there by train, so looked up London Midland and found that there was a 50% sale on train tickets for this weekend, so we booked them tout suite.  Later in the week I phoned up Etsu to book us in for a late lunch, to find out that they didn't open until 5pm, poo - our tickets had us back on the trains then!  

Oh well, I remembered that some friends of ours went to Liverpool with there then 3 year old and had a good time in a place set up specially for that age group, so I did some hunting around and found the place - Under Water Street, so we booked in for there.  Saturday morning we got up bright and early and got the first of 8 trains to Liverpool - we chopped and changed as many times as we could to give Tom as many rides as we could.  Just as well we did as if we had waited for the through train we would have been disappointed as it was cancelled.  This also meant that Tom got his first ride on a pendolino which he loved.  In fact he was really good for the whole trip - hardly fidgeting at all and every interested in everything he could see.

We got to Liverpool in good time and then got the underground to James Street from where we walked to Under Water Street.  When we got there it was empty which was good (Tom's still not great in crowds and noise, although he is getting better).  The concept of the place was good - lots of different areas with different themes and activities, but it was a little tired and old - lots of the equipment was broken / very worn.  However, Tom didn't notice this and toddled around exploring - he enjoyed the water area, painted a mini, loved putting play bricks in a wheelbarrow and wheeling them around, and then placing them in a pulley system to get them onto a work area - in fact he made the wheelbarrow his own and got very upset if anyone else wanted a go!

Painting a Mini

Unfortunately he didn't seem to want to relax and enjoy himself fully and was whining quite a bit, so I thought we should have lunch to see if it perked him up.  Lunch was a bit of a joke - took them about 20 minutes to realise they didn't have what I ordered, I then ordered something else - they didn't have that, then something else - they didn't have that - so I just asked them to make me something they did have!  Not great!  Anyway it finally arrived, it was poor, but we ate up (all of us were hungry).  We then went for another explore - he was the weatherman on TV, went up a climbing wall and made lots of bubbles, however, he still wasn't really enjoying himself, so we gave up and decided to go for a walk along the docks instead.

Liver Boy

Wow Liverpool has changed a lot recently.  The whole of Pier Head has been transformed, next to the ferry terminal are two new museums - The Beatles Story (open) and the Museum of Liverpool (which didn't look open, but on investigating since being back, we have discovered it is open).  Anyway we didn't stop at either as we were heading to the Albert Dock to the Maritime Museum - as we had promised Tom boats.  He had a fab time there - there are loads of scale models of various boats - Titanic etc  which he enjoyed seeing - apparently I made all of them (I have been busy).  Anyway, he really perked up and enjoyed himself.  

Walking on Stilts

Half way round we were fetched by some museum staff to try out some circus skills (not sure what that has to do with Maritime History but it was fun!)  People of all ages were catered for so I had two grinning boys - both on stilts - little plastic ones for Tom and big wooden ones for Matt.  Anyway a good time was had by all - Tom really got the hang of his stilts - I was really impressed with him - he kept falling over, but laughed and got back on to try again.  He also had a go at some long swirly things that he had to swing around - but he was too short and they kept dragging along the floor, meaning that he dropped them.

After expending all that energy we had tea and a bun and then continued round the museum - very very big.   Once we started flagging again we headed back to James Street for the underground to Lime Street.  We found ourselves another Pendolino to Stafford.  We had a picnic for dinner, wow, Tom was hungry he ate everything put in front of him without a murmur - he must have been hungry.  He even ate a tupperware of raspberries meant for all 3 of us and a whole banana!

Tom was a bit fidgety on the trains home - I think he was tired - it had been a very long and exciting day.  Unfortunately he ruined it a little bit on the way home as he did a poo in his pants in Wolverhampton - but apart from that he was good and went straight to bed on our return home.

Sunday it rained, rained, rained.  So we went swimming in the morning.  We have discovered a new swimming pool in Telford at the Abraham Darby Academy which has is depth adjustable.  They have it at 0.8m for parent and toddlers, meaning that Tom can stand if he wants - giving him extra confidence (and us sore knees!).  We had a mini break through: Tom swam about 3 meters by himself - arms and legs going - but he did it for the first time which was fab, we might just be getting there - we have resolved to go as much as we can to work on his new confidence.  

After that we went to Tom's club for lunch, then he had a much needed 2 hour nap.  AND then in the afternoon he did a POO in the POTTY - hurray!!!!!!!  He got showered with praise, hugs, cuddles etc Let's hope he does another one soon.

Wibble wibble little star

Today Tom sang his first song:

"Wibble wibble little star

How I wonder what you are

Up above the clouds so park

park, park, park, park, park, park, PARK"

We were on the way to meet with Mae at the park - I think it was on his mind.  Anyway it was really cute!

Oh and Tom had a fab time at the park - as you can see from the video.

We're going to the zoo, zoo, zoo

So Tom has seen most of his family in the last couple of weeks, so we decided to round it off with a half way meet with his Granma and Pop Pop in Bristol.  The weather was looking OK - ie cold but not raining so we decided to visit the zoo - it's been a long while since I've been there!

Roar!

We set off at 9.00, got there just before 11am, luckily Granma and Pop Pop got there before and called and talked us to the same parking space as them otherwise we could have gone round and round in circles trying to find them.  The sun was shining, but it wasn't warm - where has the warmth gone????

The zoo was much smaller than I remembered, which was good, just about the right size for little legs.  Tom behaved very well - his favourite place was the aquarium - note to selves: next rainy day we should go to the Sealife Centre, once again the boring grey fish were his favourite.  Other than that, I think the pygmy hippos closely followed by the gorillas were the best.  The lions were also good - the big male lion was 'playing' with a horse's head - Tom called it a meatball which was cute.  Anyway Tom took it all in his stride and managed to keep going without getting tired.

Cute

After a good lunch, we finished off the zoo and ended up in a Splash zone - fantastic area for toddlers a little stream going through waterfalls, waterwheels, a bridge, a fountain etc etc.  Tom LOVED it.  We rolled up his jeans, took his shoes and socks off and he potted about quite happily even though the water was freezing.  He really really enjoyed it, he kept holding up the end of his jeans as if they were about to fall down.  Really funny.  Once we dragged him away from there he had a play in the play ground.  We then went into the parrot area where lorikeets fly down to eat nectar that you can purchase.  I did it so Tom could watch, he watched with interest and then did it himself really well, then unfortunately a bird landed on his shoulder which he wasn't expecting and shocked him which led to crying.  What a shame as he had such a good day.  Oh well, another play in the splash area sorted him out.

Trousers up

At 5 o'clock the zoo was emptying and Tom was showing signs of tiredness so we made our way back to the cars, said our goodbyes and made our way back.  Tom was asleep in minutes and stayed asleep for a good 1.5 hours (a sign of a good active day).  Once he was awake we turned off the motorway and searched for a pub for dinner.  We found a cheap and cheerful one and ate up (Tom polished his plate off).  We then got on our way again.  It was just before 9pm when we got back, Tom really didn't know what to do with himself, he stayed awake, but was limp in his chair - must have been wondering what on earth we were doing.  Anyway a good day was had by all.

House

Oh forgot to say that two weeks ago we had the new Estate Agent round to photo the house - it was good timing as it was really sunny.  We then went away to London, came back on Monday, had our first viewers on Wednesday, got an offer 10 minutes after they left, did some negotiation and accepted an offer on Thursday.

I guess the trip to Ikea worked!  Thanks Rachel.

If you are curious to see what the house looks like, take a look at the link:  59 Eastwood Drive

The plan was to keep it really clean and tidy, but with the offer, standards have already slipped!  Anyway, it won't happen quickly as they can't move until September, but that suits us.

Meeting up with Uncle Martin

On Easter Sunday we planned to meet up with Martin, Ben and Mia.  They were over visiting from Australia for a couple of weeks and managed to squeeze us into their very busy schedule.  We did a half way meet up - in Cheltenham.  As the weather was predicted to be bad, we planned to meet up in a soft play area - so something to do with the kids and a chance for us to chat.  We checked their website - open everyday of the year it said.  WRONG!  We turned up and it was closed.  Oh hum.  So we had an early lunch and decided to risk going to a park as although it was cool and cloudy it wasn't actually raining.  This we did, and how lucky we were.  The park was just fab - a big play ground for toddlers, a big grassy area for playing football and a number of aviaries with weird and wonderful birds in (which Mia especially liked)  So, in short something for everyone.

Tom had his bike and was in a particularly dare devil mood and went racing all over the place.  We decided to explore some more which involved going through a subway under the road (Tom did this freewheeling which involved a steep gradient - we all had our hearts in our mouths as he sped away, but he was fine)  We found a big lake and did a circuit, then ice creams by the lake.  Matt, Martin, Ben, Mia and Tom then went rowing across the lake in Swallows and Amazons style for a while leaving me to look after all the bags and balls etc.  Then another circuit of the lake, half an hour playing football before saying our goodbyes.

Zonked out in the car, clutching his new Thomas jigsaw .

It doesn't sound like much but we had a really good time.  All the children were on good form, as were the adults, everyone was relaxed and time just flew.  We took a very tired and happy little boy home with us.  He was asleep in minutes.

Anyway, thanks Martin, Ben and Mia, a fab day and we look forward to visiting you in Australia sometime next year.

A Sunny Break in London

A lift on Grandpa

It was Grandpa's birthday at the end of March, so we decided to go and visit him and Grannie down in London to celebrate. We did our usual thing of picking Tom up after nursery on Wednesday morning and driving straight to London - roads relatively empty and Tom relatively tired meaning a pleasant trip down - especially as the weather was so good as well.

We got to Mortlake in good time, we even managed to visit Grannie in her shop (Tom on his tiger bike)  before it closed.  He didn't show any signs of shyness or nervousness and threw himself into being a doted on grandson in no time at all.  He even ate well - which was fab.  

Tom has grown quite a lot since we last visited (last July), we were pretty sure he wouldn't fit in their cot again, in preparation for this we converted his cot into a cot bed at the beginning of March to give Tom time to adjust to sleeping in a bed.  This he did with no problems (apart from falling out of it the first night  onto his bean bag we had strategically placed by the side of his bed to cover this eventuality).  We bought a little wedge of foam to put under the covers and stop him falling out and since then he's been fine.  He hasn't worked out yet that he can get out of bed, out of his bedroom and cause havoc if he so wishes, not sure how long it's going to take him to work that out - so far so good, but we are dreading to hear the pitter patter of little feet in our bedroom late at night / early in the morning.  Anyway, this was all done so he could sleep in the single bed at Grannie and Grandpa's.  This he did without any trouble at all, in fact he really liked his bed (duvet cover had diggers / buses / tractors etc on it which kept him entertained very well).  So that's another milestone met!

Mammoth transport

Thursday dawned a beautiful sunny and warm day so we decided to revisit Beale Park - once again he did really well and showed off his new found confidence by walking off to play in the sandpit by himself whilst we sat and had drinks (note to self, next time we go, we must take buckets and spades to play in the sand with).  We had a good look at the animals, a ride on the train, more animals and lunch.  The afternoon was spent in the Little Tykes village where Tom rode bikes / cars, conquered a castle and generally had a lovely time pottering about.  Gave us all a chance to sit down and enjoy ice creams - we had to shelter in the shade as it was getting ridiculously hot!  After a while it was clear that he was flagging so we called it a day and returned home.

Friday we split into girls and boys for the day.  Grandpa, Matt and Tom went riding trains including the  Docklands Light Railway which is unmanned - meaning that Driver Tom could be in charge - I hear he did a good job.  Pat and I went into London for some sightseeing - Borough Market (beautiful food - expensive prices), The Globe Theatre - very interesting and much more ornate than I was expecting, across the wobbly bridge to St Paul's and a new shopping centre next door with a roof top cafe overlooking the cathedral - all very nice but I'm not sure Pat and I were their target market - we brought the place down with our fleeces and jeans and order of coffee and juice - should have been in designer wear and ordered bubbles.  Pat and I then split up and I had 2 hours to amuse myself (not often I get that) before meeting up with Lindsey for dinner at Belgo's on Kingsway - my old stamping ground.  Had a lovely time, lots of gossip - mainly around Lindsey emigrating to Australia (another great excuse to go there next year) but before we knew it we were both yawning and so said our goodbyes and returned to our homes.

The train's coming!

Saturday, the weather had turned - poo!  Thick cloud and quite a bit colder than it has been.  Oh well, we all went to Windsor for the day, to look at castles, explore the train station, discover one of the best toy departments I have ever seen (in Daniels Department store) and take the train to Slough to go and watch the fast trains whizz through the station.  Slough wasn't a huge success, the trains were too fast and too noisy and too windy, but hey unless you try you never know!  We had lunch at Cafe Nero (paninis all round) and then took the train home.  Tom had a nap when he got back - very active days and going to bed late at night taking their toll on him!

Sunday we had sunshine again, but it was cold - boo hoo!  We had been invited to Jake's 4th birthday party in Aylesbury today, so decided to make a day of it and went to the Ashridge Estate in the morning.  Unfortunately we forgot to bring Tom's bike with us as this place would have been perfect for it, but we had a good enough time with the football and climbing on fallen trees, hiding in dens etc.  We had a fabulous lunch there - freshly bbq'd burgers for Matt and I and a huge hot dog for Tom and the best selection of cakes I've seen for a long while.  Before we knew it, it was time to head to Aylesbury and see the cousins.  We got there early so they could have some time with each other before the other guests arrived, once the other guests arrived it was the usual chaos of a party, not helped by the fact it was a gorgeous day and the hall they had it in was set in a sports field with a play ground, meaning that everyone did pretty much their own thing.  Oh well, I got to spend quite a bit of time with Amber which was good.  I've never been 'allowed' to hold her before as she has always demanded Mummy when I've been around, but today she was happy to be held with me which was nice.

Monday came all too quickly, and we went home via Upton House in Warwickshire where we had a picnic and a ramble around the grounds in the sun before coming home.

Anyway, big thanks to Grannie and Grandpa for looking after us all and playing with Tom so nicely - he had a fabulous time and keeps telling us how much he is missing you.

Magical Day Out

Flat out

Two Saturdays ago we had wonderful warm sunshine (most likely this year's Summer), so we donned our t-shirts, shorts and sandals and decided to visit Powys Castle for a family day out.  The sunshine shone on us, until we entered Wales and then thick mist rolled over the car and got thicker and thicker.  Well done us!  The whole country was bathed in sunshine and we managed to find the only bit which was cold and cloudy!

We continued on, ever hopeful that it might clear (it didn't) and parked up in an almost empty car park - we desperately looked for the sunshine but could only see a thin disc of light behind thick clouds.  Oh well - we were determined to have a good day anyway.  Matt had cold wet feet and I had cold legs, Tom of course was well prepared and appropriately dressed.

There is something about Powys Castle, whenever we have taken Tom there we have had a fab day out and today was no exception.  Tom was immediately in a good mood and decided that he was going to spend the day playing football.  (Something to do with him wearing his Ajax top maybe?).  And off he went kicking his football all along the terraces, down the steps (where Matt had to crawl though undergrowth to retrieve it after Tom pushed it through some bushes) and down to the grounds at the bottom of the house.

The grin

At that stage I went to the loo and told the weather to clear up and be sunny when I came out.  Lo and behold, I came out into sunshine AND it was warm too.  Hurray!!!!!!  We made our way to the fountain (Tom's favourite play place in the property), striped back down to T-shirts and had a wonderful time playing football, hide and seek, dipping hands and balls into the fountain, eating our picnic, having races and generally having a lovely time in the sun.

Standing on Mummy

Tom played and played and played, he was on such good form it was a pleasure to be with him.  He didn't tire at all - even after doing about 4 circuits of the grounds, he just kept going and going.  His football really came along as well - kicking it straight and at a run which he hasn't done before.  Eventually the heat got too much and we decided to go on an ice-cream hunt, so went back up to the property to see if we could find one, which we did.  Now, we spent our last holiday in Spain teaching Tom to like ice-creams and we got there.  Looks like he has forgotten as he showed no interest at all - having the odd lick of ours, but really not wanting one (oh well guess it saves our £s in the summer!)

By about 3pm Tom was beginning to flag (no surprise) so we headed home.  He was asleep in minutes and stayed asleep for a good hour.  A fabulous, magical day out - Powys Castle really is one of our most favourite places and certainly we have some of our most cherished memories from there.

Oh the video, Tom was having such a good time, I thought I would record it, but we didn't have the video camera, so I used my camera - not great resolution I'm afraid, also the battery ran out as I took it - so it's not as good as it could have been.

Ill boys

Eye on the ball

Well I have got behind haven't I?  My excuse - lots of birthday parties, both boys being ill and trying to restyle the house ready to be put back on the market.

Party season is now drawing to a close, last one is tomorrow, Tom is well again and Matt is on the mend (it takes him much longer to get over things than Tom).  The house is (I think) almost unrecognisable - the lounge and the downstairs bedroom have had a huge makeover, most of the pictures are in new frames, the whole place has had a spring clean, there have been numerous trips to the tip, and many many things have been given away.  There is definitely less clutter and after a 8 hour cleaning marathon on Monday, I am determined to keep it clean and clutter free, cleaning and clearing as I go rather than let it build up.  We will see how long the 'new Nik' lasts!

Anyway, as I said, both boys have been ill.  This started with Tom two weeks ago.  He was invited to a make your own pizza party at Pizza Hut.  When he woke up he wasn't himself (got into bed with us in the morning, snuggled down and didn't want to do books or lark around as he usually does).  He ate his breakfast but was a little subdued.  We took him to the party, he was OK to start with, then got grumpy and then started to cry and couldn't stop.  He had a fever so we made our excuses and left early.  Tom was asleep before we left the car park.  He then slept for about 3 hours (good for us as we got loads done with house)  He perked up a little in the afternoon, ate his dinner and then went to bed after a shot of Calpol.

Fangs

Sunday we could tell he wasn't well as his eyes didn't look good.  Once again he didn't play in the morning and just got into bed and snuggled up with us.  He ate breakfast, had a shot of Calpol and then we suggested a trip to Cosford which cheered him up.  Away we went and even though he wasn't well, he had a good time, especially in the 'fun n flight' area where his favourite airplane cargo dropping exhibit was working.  We then went to Codsall Station for a fish finger sandwich which he managed, and then he fell asleep on the drive home and slept for another 3 hours.  He then managed a roast dinner in the evening before going to bed.

Monday he looked much better, so we did our usual routine - playgroup and Asda.  I did get a nap out of him though which of course was great for me.

Tuesday he woke up with 'ill eyes' again.  I asked him if he wanted to go to nursery and he said yes, so I took him along and told them to give me a call if he went down hill.  He stayed the course, but slept for 2 hours on getting home.  Same happened on Wednesday.

Thursday he had turned a corner, woke up with clear eyes and was a looney in the morning - hurray.  We went to Jungleland as usual and he did really well, his confidence has really grown since the two party weekend and I found I was actually able to talk to some of the mums rather than spending all my time with a clingy boy - hurray (again)!

Friday we went to gymnastics as usual and then a quick trip to Ikea for meatballs and to spend even more money (sigh)! Then to piggies playbarn to meet up with Daisy and Simon for a good play.  Tom stayed the course so was obviously much better.

John Deere (after his tantrum!)

Matt in the meantime was rapidly going downhill.  He now had the ill eyes and really wasn't looking good at all.  We had planned to meet up with Jude in Oswestry on Saturday, so Tom and I went, leaving Matt behind.  We met up at Gillham's - home of Matt's favourite sausage rolls but where they also do lots of other lovely food (stilton, caramelised onion and mushroom panini - which was very VERY good) and cheese on toast for the boy (which he wouldn't eat).  Actually Tom didn't have a very good day at all - he was grumpy and disobedient for most of it which wasn't great.  On the way back we popped into Attingham Park for a run around.  They had some new toy John Deere tractor ride on toys which Tom took to immediately.  Unfortunately, other children were playing with them so I got a full on tantrum (fun, fun, fun!)  When one finally became free we discovered that his legs were too short and not powerful enough to ride it properly - not great because he stubbornly refused to accept that he couldn't ride it properly and instead dragged it around the courtyard.  Eventually he saw that I was speaking sense and opted for a smaller version which he played on for a while.  We then went to the playground and then went home to a puffy eyed Daddy.  Macaroni cheese was requested (comfort food) proving that Matt wasn't well - good for all of us though as we all LOVE macaroni cheese.

Sunday we had another grumpy day.  Matt was grumpy as he was still ill, and Tom was grumpy because he wasn't 100% either.  We took Tom's bike and he loved it to start with but suddenly he got tired and he cried and cried.  This made Matt even grumpier - not a good combination so we came home asap had lunch, Tom had a nap and Matt a lie down.  The afternoon was a little better - the boys made peace with each other and played quite nicely (phew!)

The rest of the week was pretty normal apart from Matt being ill (he's still not right now, although much better!)  Monday Tom went into nursery for a whole day so I could attack the house - as usual time flew and although I gave it my best shot I didn't get it finished - it is amazing how much dirt you can find when you are looking for it.  Tom came back full of energy and full of attitude (is this what happens when they are away for the whole day - not good for April onwards when he gets his funding).  In fact he was really hard to handle for the whole week - I got more tantrums and grumpiness  this week than I have ever got before - found him very hard work - including a full screaming, punching & kicking tantrum in Asda - I had to put him under my arm and leave, take him home and send him to his bedroom and deny him his favourite DVD and train clips for the rest of the day.  Oh hum, he was slightly better on Thursday and Friday - but he had mini tantrums both those days.

Well done Tom

Saturday - we had a very good day - best day of the week.  We took him for a haircut in the morning - he had to wait an hour for his turn and then trotted over to the chair, sat on the booster attachment suffered having his hair sprayed with water and sat still whilst Mick cut it.  I wouldn't say he enjoyed it, but he did really well, moved his head when needed and was polite.  Matt and I were really really proud (and it means that I am now surplus to requirements - a trip to the barbers will now be a boys' outing)  We then went into Wellington for lunch, did some shopping (only place where I can get a good selection of cake ribbons) and then some shopping for the house (big bargain - got some bedside tables reduced from £40 to £12.50).  Tom fell asleep in the car on the way home so we put him to bed, carried on with the house (will it ever end) then an afternoon playing with trains followed by lamb chops (another bargain from Wellington) and bed.