Elsie Mary: January 2007

Is there anything sweeter in the whole wide world than this little girl?

So big!

As you can see she's really getting the hang of it.

My tummy button is the funniest thing in the whole world. I was not aware of this until this very evening. After Elsie had had her tea today, she lifted up my jumper and kept prodding my tummy button and laughing sooo much, it was hilarious!

This is Elsie at the weekend using her Parisian fork!

There she is! This was having lunch at the Boston Tea Party.

Where's Elsie?! (Auntie Katie's great photography skills! Or was it Uncle Jez?)

Elsie and Auntie Katie.

We move on now to some piccies of when Auntie Katie and Uncle Jezmond were here. Unfortunately Elsie had eczema round her mouth that weekend - but of course still looks gorgeous.

Hey, guess what?! Elsie walked to the shop and back this morning to buy some milk – yay! Not all by herself (not just yet), and holding onto my hand all the way, but still – how exciting is that! The shop is just at the end of our road – Elsie and I left Rob spinning some tunes on his decks to go and get milk for tea and coffee this morning. Half an hour later we returned triumphant! She was quite nervous for a while, but then got right into her stride and was very excited by the whole experience, singing and shouting all the way!

She is having a nap now after her exertions.

This is Elsie, Zelia and I at the Bath Xmas markets.

And Elsie with Lorna and Zelia.

Morning nap time again in another lovely relaxing day for Elsie and I. I think she's getting another cold as there's lots of snot production going on today, oh noo.

Elsie and Lorna at the Bath Christmas market.

And this was Elsie this morning walking from the kitchen through into the bathroom - doesn't she look grown up?!

I took this picture this morning - Elsie is wearing a beautiful orange jumper which arrived this morning from Monica in Italy.

Well, we are having a very nice realxing day today - I have another couple of days off work to spend with Elsie cause I've been away.

Today's favourite thing so far has been opening and closing doors - which seems to be her new favourite activity!

This was taken a week or so ago - Elsie with Mumble, who she loves very much!

And this is Elsie and I at the Bath Christmas market in December - it was sooo cold and there were sooo many people there.

Having said that, I have had the most marvellous time. But it has been the longest time I've spent apart from her yet, and I have been pining quite badly all day.

Come on Rob, drive like the wind (not really)...

...Hooray! Hooray! Elsie is now in bed. It was sooo gorgeous to see her. She is even more beautiful than she was when I left, her walking is even better, she can balance much more successfully, her hair is a little longer I think, and most excitingly of all... she can sing a song! She can sing the 'row, row, row' of row, row, row the boat - it is fantastic! I sand it to her lots on the phone while I was away (Rob said that after I'd been singing that to her down the phone, she kept going over the phone and picking it up again afterwards!), and I think they sing it at nursery too. But how clever is that?!

Anyway... it is great to be home in the bosom of my family once again.

This is a few weeks ago, when we met some of our buddies out at the mall.

She should be back in the next ten minutes - I don't know if I can wait without exploding. I feel very emotional.

Oh my goodness, I have been away in Paris for three days and I haven't seen Elsie since 7am on Friday morning. She isn't home at the moment and I can hardly bear it.

Tuesday 16 January
Looking at books and playing with musical toys this morning.
Painting sponge painting later on.

Elsie played nicely, sang songs and did paintings.

Monday 15 January
We have the playdough out this morning. Elsie enjoyed this activity and made patterns with the cutters. (They like to mix up those first and third person narratives at nursery!)

This was going for a walk up at Lorna's on a very chilly day.

Friday 12 January
I played in the garden centre and had fun posting the letters. I also painted a duck as we sang the song 'Five Little Ducks'.

Shall we have some updates from nursery?

Thursday 11 Jan
I am exploring the bathtime treasure basket, and having a story about the little fish.
I went into the toddlers for lunchtime today. I had fun with the pasta.

Oh my god, I love her so much! Sometimes it just hits me like a train.

I love putting her to bed. She has her bottle, and then she likes to put the lid back on it when she’s finished. Then we have a cuddle while she gets up her burps, and she plays with my hair or puts her head on my shoulder and rubs or pats my back. Then she has her dummy, and she gives it to me and laughs, and then takes it off me again. Then she goes down and I zip her into her sleeping bag – sometimes she gives me her dummy again at this point, and laughs, and takes it off me again. Then I give her Mumble and she gives him a cuddle, and quite often pats him on the back too (in case her needs to burp!) Then I put on her Winnie the Pooh musical mobile, we say night night and I leave. It just might be the best bit of every day.

These are some pictures from before Christmas now – this is Elsie with Lorna at her mum and dad’s house.

And playing her xylophone at breakfast!

We are having a lovely quiet weekend, just chilling at home and doing exciting things like lots of washing and sewing!

We have been continuing with the walking practice, which is a lot of fun, although Elsie stops after about four steps every time, gets flustered and just launches herself at whoever she is walking towards. I think it’s just a matter of confidence really.

Here she is:

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We also sang lots of the songs in the book from granny this afternoon, which she absolutely loves! We had The wheels on the bus, If you’re happy and you know it, and Row row row the boat has her in raptures!

She has also learnt to blow her nose today – very clever, and also very useful!

This is Elsie yetserday morning with Lizzy.

...and wooah there she goes! Not a great picture, I know, but at least we have recorded the occasion!

Oh, and pictures of the night of the walking! This is Elsie just about to set off...

This was the other night, just after arriving home from nursery, when again she kept her hat on for ages, yay!

She then stayed asleep for ages when we
got back - still in the rucksack and still holding onto the cup of joy!

This was last weekend when we were at Sarah's. We went for a walk on Sunday and Elsie fell asleep in rucksack, holding onto the cup of joy. She also kept her hat on - which was very exciting!

I like this one cause she is gazing up lovingly at her dad!

As you can see she takes this horse riding business very seriously!

Elsie has gone for a nap – well, she had been up for a whole two hours after a mere fourteen and a half hours sleep last night – exhausting!!

Oh and newsflash newsflash!! Elsie took four steps all by herself the other night! Hoorah!

We have sooo many photos to put up – this is an amusing one of Elsie getting lairy on her horse.

The three of us with Uncle Jim, Auntie Gail and Cousin Arthur.

Elsie and Cousin Arthur sitting down for their lunch at Xmas.

Life continues to be extremely exhausting here. I feel like we are well and truly back on the hamster wheel after the Christmas break. Elsie herself is a delight beyond measure – but it just takes so much stuff to keep her going. And even more stuff to keep her plus the rest of the household going!

I think I’m just extra tired cause we had quite an exciting weekend, which is obviously good (all three of us stayed at Sarah’s house down in Somerset, where she had a big raucous dinner party and games) – but then we are so tired cause we never got to catch up on sleep. It’s like this constant trade off between having a life that’s just work with a little bit of Elsie on either side, and sleep, or a life that is varied, exciting and worth having – but full of constant knackeredness.

Anyway… she is soo close to walking now! (Auntie Katie will be happy and relieved to hear!) She took one step on Saturday by herself, and I reckon she could do it if she just a little bit braver. So I will keep you posted on that.

Here is Elsie playing with her crayons at Christmas – she did enjoy drawing a little bit, but then discovered it was much more fun to take crayons out of the box and then put them back in again – yay!

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She loved mountineering up the stairs at gran and granddad's - she was so brave and intrepid!

And exploring in the Christmas tree foliage!

More Xmas piccies - here is Elsie looking soo cute (she'd just been reading about Russell Brand, if you take a look at the paper!)

Elsie has started giving proper cuddles in the last couple of days - last night when I was putting her to bed she cuddled me and rubbed my shoulder, and this evening it was more of a Joey and Chandler manly patting! Both are extremely cute and gorgeous.

Another one of Elsie and granddad Caig - check out that adoring gaze from granddad (I think this is how we all look at her most of the time!)

Hello everyone! Is everyone still on their Xmas holidays? There haven't been any comments for ages! Is anybody out there? What, not even granny?!!

Rob picked up some of our stuff from his granny's this evening, and so we got some of the piccies from gran and granddad's house over the Xmas jollies. This is Elsie and her granddad doing some drawing - I'm not sure who is concentrating more!