Being helpful

I like to help Mummy round the house. I often help with the laundry, putting things in the machine or hanging things up, although Mummy says I put clean things in the machine, and hang up dirty things, but I still think I am helpful.

But one of my favourite jobs is hoovering, or vacuuming as Daddy calls it, but I can say 'hoover' and not 'vacuum'.

This is me doing it all by myself. Aren't I clever!

Balloons!

Today I went to the Light Party (an alternative to Halloween) and we had lots of fun doing drawing and playing games and singing, but my favourite bit was the balloons.

I played with a purple one but it burst when I fell on it. I wasn't scared at all, because it only made a loud noise and I wasn't hurt, but I had to find some more, so I got these two and then ran round the room with them. It was fun but Mummy didn't let me bring them home.

I can rock the 70s (part 2)

This is one of my favourite toys right now. It is 'horsie', but I have decided to call him Neigh Neigh now I've learnt what noise horses make. I decided on that name myself. He was Mummy's when she was little, so he is from the 70s (see what I did with the title?).

Here I am on him in my jim-jam-jamas and in my posh new dress.

I can rock the 70s

For those who don't get what 'rock' means in this context, Mummy says it is a fashionista's term meaning 'to wear something with panache'.

So here I am, rocking an original 1970s dress that was Mummy's! Grandma says Mummy never wore it, but I do, and it is fab. I like retro fashion.

My pose is because Mummy told me to put down my prop (a blue colander, a nice colour clash I thought) and just smile.

I can sign a rainbow

At signing class this term we have been doing colours and the rainbow song. I have been asking Mummy what colour things are a lot lately (by pointing and going 'ugh!' which is my usual way of asking things) and she has been telling me and showing me the signs.

I have been practising in secret and today decided to show Mummy and daddy, so this morning I was very excited to see Daddy has put Mummy's tea in a yellow mug. I pointed and went 'ugh!' and Mummy said 'yes, a yellow cup' and I signed yellow. She was so excited!

Then later I got Mummy to sing the rainbow song, and I signed blue. I already sign pink - I started that a week ago as I wear a lot of pink.

Then this evening Daddy asked me which cup I was going to put on the tower next and I signed red to him.

I haven't mastered all of them yet but I'm sure I will soon.

Some pictures

I haven't posted any pictures for a while, so I thought I'd post a few shots from recent months.




This is me in my den. Mummy made it for me out of the laundry airers and a blanket and it is my favourite thing. I love to go in it. I refuse to let Daddy in and got very upset when he got in there without me knowing, although I will kiss him through the walls if he is outside. But Mummy is allowed in. Obviously.

I'm sorry my nappy is on show through my tights. It's a bad angle.











When I went to Grandma's recently, she got out a wooden chair made for Uncle Mark when he was a baby. I loved it! It's perfect for sitting on and is like a throne. I loved getting on it myself and reading a book, as you can see.












This is me with Nanny, having fun. Nanny knitted me a load of cardigans for the winter. I am wearing one in my throne picture. They are very cosy.

Even more teeth

I now have 11 teeth. for some reason I am missing on of my bottom middle ones, but I have all my top ones, four molars, and there are some eye teeth threatening to come through now too.

Mummy says she hopes the teething is over by the time I'm two, but I quite like it beecause I get extra cuddles and to go in bed with Mummy and Daddy.

Even Mummy says I'm walking now

After a few weeks of practising, I now am confident enough to walk rather than crawl, so even Mummy says I'm walking!

I sometimes do crawl a bit, especially when I'm tired, but usually I toddle round the house. It's great fun and means I can get into all kinds of places I couldn't really reach before, so I have found all sorts of new toys to play with in drawers.

I like that I can walk on my own because now even if Mummy doesn't want to go somewhere, I can go on my own! Although Mummy usually comes and fetches me back, like in Waitrose. Humph.

Teeth and yet more teeth

I haven't done a teeth update for a while but though I better had as I now have ten!

I have seven front ones. There are supposed to be eight but one of them at the bottom hasn't come through yet. And I have three molars so far, two top ones and one bottom one. They are very painful when they come through but obviously I do my best to be stoic.

Mummy and Daddy say they think it is as painful for them as it is for me, but I think they are lucky to have me in bed with them when it gets too painful for me - I am very warm and cuddly.

I am a swimming genius. Official.

At my swimming lesson today, my teacher Anne said I am a swimming genius. OK, she didn't actually use those words, but I'm pretty sure that's what she meant.

I've been going to lessons for nearly a year now, and I'm getting really good - I always kick and I also use my arms, and can swim underwater too.

Today, Anne said that I kick my legs alternately which is something children don't usually do until they are two or two-and-a-half, and I am still only 14 months! Mummy was very proud.

Apparently it means I will be a good swimmer, not that I will win an Olympic medal for it, but you never know!

These feet were made for walking

I have been promising to write about my walking, and after today I just had to!

I've been taking steps for a while now but Mummy says she won't say I am properly walking till it is, and I quote, my 'preferred method of transportation'. Ashton's Mummy says that is quite harsh. I agree.

Anyway, I do like trying to walk and in the last week or so have been taking up to 21 steps on my own around the house, but I can be quite wobbly and I prefer not to do it outside the house.

Or should I say preferred (ooh look I can do tenses!).

Today I had a go at a bit of walking in my signing class, and it went OK, so after a massive 90-minute nap this afternoon I felt refreshed enough to have a go outside in town.

It went really well. I help Mummy's hand, and walked round Falaise Square, and then decided to walk to Waitrose, and I walked all round Waitrose*, and then nearly all the way home, too! Mummy said I walked for nearly two hours!

It was tiring, but lots of fun. I saw loads of things I never notice in the pram, and although it did take a very long time to get home (and in the end Mummy carried me) I was glad I did it.

It was especially nice to hear people walking past saying how cute I looked. Mummy says this is because I am as small as a nine-month-old so I look like a doll or a genius. In fact my trousers today say 3-6 months on the label, so you can tell how petite I am. But perfectly formed, of course.

At least now I have got some good use of my lovely shoes, because they cost £22 - Mummy says this is a lot of money for something I will only wear for six weeks before I outgrow them. I say look at the use I've had out of those trousers!




*Mummy didn't let me buy the things I chose in Waitrose, but if she had, then I would have bought:
a punnet of blackberries
one tomato
a beetroot
some pre-prepared root vegetables
some new potatoes in herbs in a bag
bathroom cleaner
some bread reduced in price

When I am old enough I will buy the things I want to buy, not what Mummy says we need.

New house!

After a long time, lots of praying, and a lot of God's intervention, we have a new home. It is pretty much everything Mummy and Daddy wanted which is brilliant.

It is a flat walk to town (Mummy's wishlist) and has a downstairs toilet (that was on Daddy's), three bedrooms, a big kitchen/diner, a big living room, parking (Daddy again), and a huge 100ft garden.

I am very happy here, as I have loads of space to play and the kitchen is so big I even have my own cupboard full of things I use to help Mummy cook.

It was fun while we got unpacked, because there were no stairgates, so Mummy tried to block my way with boxes and furniture. As you can see from these pictures, that didn't work! I enjoyed escaping upstairs when she was busy, ha ha.



Sneaking through:





I'm going to make it:




Victory!:



And here are some of me in the garden. I know it looks like Escape From Colditz, but honestly, we have bought a mower now and it's not such a jungle. the garden will need a lot of work but it is great right now as it is all grass for me to crawl about on, and test out my walking (see another post).



I also have my own room now, so I (mostly) sleep in there and I love playing in there with my toys and books.

Wa'izda?

Woohoo! At long last I am back online! It has been ages since I posted on here and partly it is because we moved house and Sky couldn't get us connected to the internet for a month, which is mad.

Anyway, I'm back, and I'm going to post various updates, not in date order, starting with this one.

Wa'izda is my new 'thing'. Mummy is very proud because she says it is my first proper sentence. It means 'what is that?' and I tend to ask it while pointing at things. Mummy isn't finding it annoying. Yet.