BUT BEAR HAD FUN!

Alice has always loved cuddlies - Bear is one of her current favourites. (He's been out of commission since the last tummy bug - with unmentionable on the back of his head, luckily he survived the restoration process of the washing machine!)

Today Bear had to be wherever Alice was - having breakfast, playing in the playroom, gallivanting in the garden and even enjoying the swing!!

(What I didn't manage to capture was Bear listening to the stories, rocking on Mr Croc and watching the television!)

HAIRY GONK?

. . . no, just Alice - she always has to sit in her car seat when she sees it, regardless of whether or not it's actually in the car!

ROTTEN DAY

Day 7, my tummy bug got worse again yesterday afternoon - for the first time I was up multiple times through the night and I've felt rough all day.

Alice wasn't 100% last Sunday, but she's been fine since until today - so many dirty nappies that she now cries as soon as she sees a nappy sack or a clean nappy. Despite the soothing creams her bottom is red raw and obviously sore, poor button.

To make things even worse we should have been having a social weekend - GFW and his family are home, it's M's 8th birthday party today and GFN was threatening to visit. Tomorrow we were due to go out and about with C - looking at playhouses and pebbles (for the new water feature). So now not only do I feel ill but I'm also sad to missing seeing our special friends. Surely a week's enough to get over a tummy bug, I hope tomorrow brings some relief.

GROWING UP - COTS

Alice has a cotbed. She loves her bed (cot) and so far has shown no inclination to climb out. It's plenty big enough for her (something has to be!) I can't see any reason to change it into a bed yet but I'd love to know of the experience of others - when did you move your child into a bed and why? Please vote in the polls and if you want to add further insight PLEASE leave a comment, thanks!

2 MONTHS - AND ANOTHER GROWTH SPURT!

ALICE - CHANGES IN A YEAR

TYPICAL MEALTIME

Alice, eating well, self-feeding, food everywhere, dogs looking on hopefully!

A NEW SWING

Alice loves her swing, she'll stay in it for 45 minutes or more, sometimes more than an hour. She's never happier than when she's swinging - the higher and faster the better - you know when it's wild enough as she starts to squeal!!

The baby seat that came with our park is now a little too small for Alice, she gets stuck as you lift her out as space is tight. I've been looking for a new seat for her - as she's not mature enough to cope with the flexible seat that is the next stage up. So a larger, but still baby/toddler seat was needed. I finally found one in France - we tried it at the gite and then I found one in a supermarket and bought it - only to discover that it was significantly cheaper than anticipated. It's now installed and Alice tried it this afternoon - an obvious success, great! A great side-effect from the new seat is that there are now 2 baby seats hanging from our park - so Alice and her small friends can both enjoy the swings at the same time.

DOG LOVE

. . . a little over a year ago, 11th July 07, the day Alice came home, she was screaming, terrified, rigid with fear when she first saw the dogs. Luckily her fear didn't last long - within 5 minutes she was screeching to try and entice them close enough for her to touch them!

(When I remember those early days at home and Alice's huge courage at so many new (and completely different) situations I continued to be amazed at her strength and saddened that I could do so little to reassure her.)

Now, when I watch her with the dogs it brings me such pleasure to see her active love and delight to be with them and the contrast in the time since she's been home. Such pleasure that we both enjoy our dogs and our home.

MORE PLAYTIME

Simple pleasures - spending time playing with Alice!

(How'd she get so grown-up again?)

THE BALL IS ROLLING . . .

After several messages I managed to get through to SS this morning. I had a useful conversation with the team leader and afterwards I wrote a letter. After I'd sealed the letter I asked Alice if she wanted a little sister, she said no and then tried to crumple the letter!!

I'm still not feeling too great and forgot to take it to the post when we went out - but with a Bank Holiday on Monday there won't be a delay.

I've asked for the same SW, but she's off sick for a couple more weeks - hopefully she'll say yes. This Homestudy will cost 50% more than Alice's - but it's still much cheaper than some of the charges in England and it includes all the paperwork - homestudy, reviews, PPR etc!

I hope that this adoption will be SN from Thailand, but I've yet to ring Thailand and confirm that they'll consider my application (they were matching this week so 2 days were out and I haven't been up early enough!!)

How am I feeling? Excited, hopeful, nervous, patient(?). I've always wanted more than one child. I'm quite happy with just Alice for now but I want to have another child, I want to love every change, I want that babyhood time again (and relish it even more next time!), I want Alice to have a sibling but I want her to be a little older so that she'll understand what's going on and to be more independent. I'm anticipating that this process will take at least 2 years, so probably Little Sis isn't born or even conceived yet.

Maybe Little Sis won't be so young, maybe she won't be Thai, but whoever she is I want her to know that she's already dreamed about, loved and wanted.

Fingers crossed.

LATEST PLAYTIME FAVOURITES

The stacking buckets are one of Alice's fav toys since we've returned from France. She loves to stack them and the moment the final bucket is in place you'd better watch out for the right hook that knocks them down!

She also loves to talk into them and listen to her distorted voice. They're also great for carrying things and for pouring things between different buckets.

She's also (finally) showing interest in puzzles - only the single piece type. Yesterday we were playing with animal puzzles (a lovely John Crane one that the pieces are really chunky, the animals are painted on both sides and in the holes), we (T and I) were trying to show her how to wiggle the piece into place, but everytime we said 'Wiggle!' she would wiggle!! Alice would wiggle herself, not the puzzle piece. Baby steps in puzzle development but a lovely memory!

QUIET MOMENTS

It went quiet . . . peaceful? No . . . worried . . . too quiet . . . where's Alice?

I went to investigate - I found the favourite green bucket on the door-step . . . I went outside . . . peered around the corner of the playroom . . . dashed back into the kitchen to grab my camera . . . and then back to snap the action! (bad blogger - missed the action shot earlier today as Alice sat on the island in the kitchen eating her apple!)


Across the garden I could see Alice and Fusspot out for a walk together, investigating the garden with the pushchair and in the pushchair - her Fifi mobile!!

UPDATE

Since we've been home Alice has shown another side to her appetite - eating between meals, luckily she's chosen apples. 1

The apples live on the island in the middle of the kitchen - she can reach them easily. She taken to helping herself during the middle of the morning or any time in the afternoon. She starts eating but then part-way through the apple she takes bites of it but doesn't chew then when she has a full mouth she spits all the the bits out. She also likes to let the dogs have licks of the apple too. As you can see she gets through quite a bit of it.

We've both still got upset tummies, so apples aren't the best choice. We're gradually getting better but meanwhile the house is quite jolly - lots of smiles and giggles.

HOLIDAY CHANGES

16 nights away. 2 nights on the ferry, 1,000 miles travelled (or so it seemed!), 14 nights in the gite, party of 8 and then 7, lots of cheese, ham, croissants, crepes, gallettes, 0r@ng1n@ and scoops and scoops of ice cream.

The results? Loads of pounds lighter and a few heavier all at once . . . and heaps of progress from Alice - she's much more communicative, her body language has improved, her vocabulary increased and she's become a copy-cat - of words and actions!! Incredible changes, so quickly, she's changed (and grown again) in such a short space of time! And she's finally learnt to love (and ask for) ice cream!!

CRYPTIC

I spoke to a good friend today, she had good news, her news made me cry happy tears.

I can't share the details or even hint at them, yet. But I want her to know that I'm so pleased for her - and you would be too if I could share the details!!

Cryptic enough?!

HOME . . . AND RUNNING?!

Good hols (more of that later), reasonable journeys, some photos, lots to catch up on!

It's always lovely to come home, I love my home always but more than ever when I've been away for a while. For the last few days of the hols I was craving home and missing the dogs so much.

The final day in France was long - earlyish start - up and going before 8am, left the gite by 10.30, shopping, lunch, shopping, long drive on mostly 'A' roads, supper near the port, checked in by 9pm, ferry late arriving, one of the first cars on the ferry (so easy to navigate etc), parked 1 car from the bow doors, late night, old ferry, lots of vibrations, roughish crossing, very early start, 5th car off ferry, no queue for passport control (which took others well over 60 minutes), quiet roads, home by 8.30am, spent the rest of the day running for the bathroom and changing bad nappies . . . after all that we both have a tummy bug!!

AU REVOIR!

The magnificent T is house and dog sitting.

We're off to France for a holiday! We're staying here with the G's.

I'm not expecting internet access so it's likely that I'll blog again sometime after I return in mid August.

GET YOUR PRIORITIES STRAIGHT, WITH A MAYO JAR AND 2 GLASSES OF WINE!

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 glasses of wine theory...

A professor stood before his philosophy class with some items on his desk in front of him. When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it with golf balls. He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls. He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.

The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else. He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous 'YES.'

The professor then produced two glasses of wine from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.

'Now,' said the professor, as the laughter subsided, 'I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the
important things; your family, your children, your health, your friends, and your favourite passions; things that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house, and your car. The sand is everything else; the small stuff. If you put the sand into the jar first', he continued, 'there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the good things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get medical checkups. Take your partner out to dinner. Play another 18 holes. Do one more run down the ski slope. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first; the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.'

One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the wine represented. The professor smiled. 'I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of glasses of wine with a friend.'

Share this with a friend... I just did.

WHAT A DAY!

Did you cap your energy bills? I spent the first 90 minutes of the day (after the bedtime cuddles and milk) trying to contact the energy comparison companies by phone. By phone? Yup - desktop computer failed this morning. After 50 minutes of constant redialling I was on hold for a further 15 minutes before talking to a receptionist who took my number and promised that someone would ring me back!! [Updated - they rang at 2pm and got me a capped electricity rate 8% above this year's rate for 17 months, I think it was a good rate, it's since been withdrawn and a higher rate offered.]

So the desktop wasn't working, I tried the laptop, but the signal strength was very low and it wasn't coping. My reliance on technology was over emphasised several times today. T he desktop still isn't working, I can't email my technology solver as my desktop's ca-put! (However, obviously, the laptop's feeling better!)

The Magnificent T arrived early to 'Alice-sit' so that I could go for a pre-holiday pedicure (a girl's got to have pretty feet for a holiday!) But the car wouldn't start, the dashboard was dim and the control panel showed an 'Emission System Error' - I rang the dealership and they said that it would have to be towed in, ugh! (By this time I'm seriously worried that we won't be going away this week after all.) The RAC turned out in less than 20 minutes - hurray! The lovely mechanic was very patient and thorough - diagnosed a flat battery, then the search was on to find the reason for the flat battery, but none could be found. I rang the dealership again and they will look at the car tomorrow. I left the engine running for about 45 minutes after the RAC left. After I turned off the engine, the Magnificent T noticed that the headlights were still on - maybe the source of the flat battery? Meanwhile I'd rebooked the pedicure for tomorrow lunchtime, that's not going to happen again - as I won't have any transport or childcare, no pretty toes!

I managed to make it to my osteopathy appointment and then to collect Daisy's medications from the vet - only to find that they hadn't logged my telephone requests, so I had to wait while they prepared them etc. Daisy has degenerative arthritis (diagnosed by this vet's surgery), she's on the maximum meds and she's not going to get better. I was informed that they wouldn't repeat the prescription again without seeing her - despite the fact that the stress of the journey and appointment would be extremely detrimental to her. I think that I'll be looking for a new practice when we return from holiday, after 18 years I've had enough.

On top of all of that Alice wasn't feeling herself today - she was clingy and tearful, without medical symptoms, but nevertheless I think she's sickening for something.

Quite a day - some good, some worrying, some bad and some momentous.

MONUMENTAL DAY

Today I completed 4 and a half years of paperwork.

The final piece of adoption paperwork is finished and submitted.

What a huge journey - I could never have believed how long and how much it would take to complete, I could never have believed how much stress it would create, but most of all I could never have expected just how much joy and happiness it would bring.

Alice is mine, I am hers, forever.

SHE'S SO MUCH FUN!

IT'S HOT 'ROUND HERE!

A lazy morning - Alice woke earlier than I was ready for (not surprising given the very warm weather), so we lazed in bed while Alice watched Maisy and Mummy tried to doze!

Then we went to the supermarket.


After Alice's lunchtime nap we got dressed for our neighbour's party - it was a lovely gathering but the weather was so hot that I didn't feel very social. We made it in time for pudding and Alice munched strawberries very happily, but she didn't want her supper when we got home, we were both hot and dusty by then so I decided that Alice could have a splash in the paddling pool instead of a bath. She had a lovely time, so did I - it was a great relief to soak my feet!!

SATURDAY - AFTER THE VISITORS HAD GONE HOME . . .

. . . it went quiet, that ominous quiet . . . I went to investigate . . . I found Alice in the garden - wearing just a T-shirt, nappy and pink sparkly wellies on the wrong feet!! She knows she isn't allowed in the garden barefoot, so she'd put her wellies on (she loves those pink sparkly wellies - despite the fact that she has new red ones that actually fit!!) but ignored the fact that she needs permission to go outside!

Once I joined her outside she headed straight to the water table, she had a bit of a splash and then (when asked) put every toy away (after she'd filled her wellies - see the video!)

SPECIAL VISITORS

We've had a lovely few days - a couple of visits from GFW, AJ and BabyL and M, C and L came to stay - they even managed to be here at the same time so special people in our lives got to meet each other!

It's lovely to get our girls together - L and Alice shared their lives in China and we try to maintain this connection. There was a noticeable change in this visit - the girls were more inclined to interact and copy without encouragement from the grown-ups, they copied actions, behaviour and speech, it was very special to see them develop their friendship without us!! As usual it was lovely to see them and I don't think that L wanted to go, we hope that they come back again very soon.