He walks!
Today when Brendon came home from work he gave Owen a good walking workout using his walker toy and the vegetable rack. Little did we know it would pay off a little later. Just before bath time Brendon asked me to look for Owens new toothbrush upstairs. I got to the step gate just in time for both of us to witness Owens first real steps on his own. He went from our bed to the door all on his own. It was so silent during those seconds you could hear a pin drop! Well done my little man. I am such a proud mama!
Friday, 12 December 2008
Friday, 5 December 2008
Sinterklaas
In the days leading up to December 5 (starting when Saint Nicholas has arrived in the Netherlands by steamboat), young children put their shoes in front of the chimneys and sing special 'Sinterklaas-songs'. Often the shoe is filled with a carrot or some hay for the horse of St. Nicholas. On the next morning they will find a small present in their shoe, ranging from a bag of chocolate coins to a bag of marbles or some other small toy. On the evening of December 5th, Sinterklaas brings presents to every child that has been good in the past year (in practice to all children). This is often done by placing a sack with presents outside the house or living room, after which a neighbour or parent bangs the door or window, pretending to be Sinterklaas' assistant. Another option is to hire or ask someone to dress up as Sinterklaas and deliver the presents personally. This character is the equivalent of Santa Claus in the rest of the world.
So as Owen is still very young we did not go this whole route and instead took his shoes (one real one and one coloured in one by mom) to two supermarkets where on specific days before the 5th Sinterklas showed up and put goodies in the shoe. I think mom found the experience and goodies much more entertaining and yummy than Owen.
In the days leading up to December 5 (starting when Saint Nicholas has arrived in the Netherlands by steamboat), young children put their shoes in front of the chimneys and sing special 'Sinterklaas-songs'. Often the shoe is filled with a carrot or some hay for the horse of St. Nicholas. On the next morning they will find a small present in their shoe, ranging from a bag of chocolate coins to a bag of marbles or some other small toy. On the evening of December 5th, Sinterklaas brings presents to every child that has been good in the past year (in practice to all children). This is often done by placing a sack with presents outside the house or living room, after which a neighbour or parent bangs the door or window, pretending to be Sinterklaas' assistant. Another option is to hire or ask someone to dress up as Sinterklaas and deliver the presents personally. This character is the equivalent of Santa Claus in the rest of the world.
So as Owen is still very young we did not go this whole route and instead took his shoes (one real one and one coloured in one by mom) to two supermarkets where on specific days before the 5th Sinterklas showed up and put goodies in the shoe. I think mom found the experience and goodies much more entertaining and yummy than Owen.
Sunday, 23 November 2008
A snowy day
Today was a really beautiful day. Douglas, Brendon, Owen & I took a drive to the Liesbos to take some photos. Once Owen was bundled up and snug in his pram we all went walking in the woods. In the evening Brendon was distracted on the way to taking the rubbish out and ended up building a snowman in the back garden. He was give 2 cherry tomatoes, a carrot and a stick of celery to complete his masterpiece.
Today was a really beautiful day. Douglas, Brendon, Owen & I took a drive to the Liesbos to take some photos. Once Owen was bundled up and snug in his pram we all went walking in the woods. In the evening Brendon was distracted on the way to taking the rubbish out and ended up building a snowman in the back garden. He was give 2 cherry tomatoes, a carrot and a stick of celery to complete his masterpiece.
Saturday, 22 November 2008
The birthday celebration
We were all up early. There was lots to do. The decorations were up. It was go, go, go. Due to diminished braincell capacity last night, again on my part, the quiches had to be done this morning. The kitchen was buzzing. Lynese and I were slaving away whipping up the lunch delights. Now, I think Lynese has been hanging around personalities like one of her daughters (for protection no names are mentioned) and myself too long. There was half an hour to go and there she was still cutting perfect flowers out of the horseradishes. The finishing touches were perfect but it was down to the wire. The table was set - quiche, salad, veg & dip, chicken drumsticks, sausage rolls and sandwiches + one quality cake! Food for an army when in fact there were only 12 attending. The first guests arrived. Rayne & Natasha - true South Africans. Owen is often looked after Rayne when I need to escape from the madness. He loves her. Not long and Owen was sporting Raynes colourful necklace. Then the neighbours Bjorn and Peggy arrived with gifts for the bathroom. Ding dong, next Marina with Duplo blocks. Renee arrived gift in hand but had to excuse her family as she had some sort of infection that she did not want to pass onto Owen as he was still recovering from Bronchitis from the week before. What a blessed little boy. After the yummy lunch, scrumptious cake and "gezellig" chit chat we were all exhausted and decided a sleep for all was on the cards! What a great day.
We were all up early. There was lots to do. The decorations were up. It was go, go, go. Due to diminished braincell capacity last night, again on my part, the quiches had to be done this morning. The kitchen was buzzing. Lynese and I were slaving away whipping up the lunch delights. Now, I think Lynese has been hanging around personalities like one of her daughters (for protection no names are mentioned) and myself too long. There was half an hour to go and there she was still cutting perfect flowers out of the horseradishes. The finishing touches were perfect but it was down to the wire. The table was set - quiche, salad, veg & dip, chicken drumsticks, sausage rolls and sandwiches + one quality cake! Food for an army when in fact there were only 12 attending. The first guests arrived. Rayne & Natasha - true South Africans. Owen is often looked after Rayne when I need to escape from the madness. He loves her. Not long and Owen was sporting Raynes colourful necklace. Then the neighbours Bjorn and Peggy arrived with gifts for the bathroom. Ding dong, next Marina with Duplo blocks. Renee arrived gift in hand but had to excuse her family as she had some sort of infection that she did not want to pass onto Owen as he was still recovering from Bronchitis from the week before. What a blessed little boy. After the yummy lunch, scrumptious cake and "gezellig" chit chat we were all exhausted and decided a sleep for all was on the cards! What a great day.
Friday, 21 November 2008
The preparation before Owens birthday party
Food preparations for the birthday part got underway the Wednesday before the party. Everyone had their instructions. Douglas and Brendon (and their happy helper Owen) were in charge of balloon and decoration coordination. Lynese was the cooking mentor and chef-assistant. I was the chef. It was a comedy in the kitchen - on my part. Take one ex-professional accountant minus a good few braincells from producing off-spring. Add cumulative months of interrupted sleep. Mix together and vola = a long evening! Firstly I had no measuring cups, no cake rack, an electric beater with only one whisk (the other one was AWOL) and no clue how difficult it was to make a cake without these utensils. Lynese had imported most of the ingredients and also the cake tin. Prior to the "Olds" arriving I had done the analytical preparation of the cake. I phoned the company in South Africa who made the cake which I saw advertised on the Internet. She gave me, the "prospective client", measurements and how many pieces the cake could be divided into. I then counted how many smarties were used for each line of the cake, all the while presuming South African and EU smarties are in fact the same size. I then drew a template from these measurements and carefully cut it out. I was very pleased with my achievements. Back to the kitchen. It had been planned that there would be a couple of practicing rounds of cake-making until the technique had reached perfection. So after about an hour and a half of preparing and baking the cake came out the oven. First time and it was a success. I must say part of the credit had to go to the recipe. It was idiot proof. The rest of the credit to Lynese for directing the event.
Thursday night was the next planned event. I was starting to feel like "Master Chef" from the BBC. This time I was a lot more prepared. Brendon had sourced stainless steel measuring cups and a cake rack, which let me tell you is like hens teeth in Breda. I still had the handicap of the one-whisk electric beater, but hey it worked first time round. I took this as being my "good luck charm". So again - ingredients measured out, ready, steady, cook. An hour later and the cake came out perfect. By this time I had had enough of chocolate cake mixture and the works so after tasting the chefs & spectators agreed that this would be the final cake. Lynese and I went about the preparation for icing. First we divided all the smarties by colour into different containers. This was a highly technical part of the event. The icing had to be coloured precisely to the chosen hue. After hours of concentration and colour coordinating the smarties the project was complete. The cake was put in a large container and stored away from prying little hands safe for Saturdays consumption!
Food preparations for the birthday part got underway the Wednesday before the party. Everyone had their instructions. Douglas and Brendon (and their happy helper Owen) were in charge of balloon and decoration coordination. Lynese was the cooking mentor and chef-assistant. I was the chef. It was a comedy in the kitchen - on my part. Take one ex-professional accountant minus a good few braincells from producing off-spring. Add cumulative months of interrupted sleep. Mix together and vola = a long evening! Firstly I had no measuring cups, no cake rack, an electric beater with only one whisk (the other one was AWOL) and no clue how difficult it was to make a cake without these utensils. Lynese had imported most of the ingredients and also the cake tin. Prior to the "Olds" arriving I had done the analytical preparation of the cake. I phoned the company in South Africa who made the cake which I saw advertised on the Internet. She gave me, the "prospective client", measurements and how many pieces the cake could be divided into. I then counted how many smarties were used for each line of the cake, all the while presuming South African and EU smarties are in fact the same size. I then drew a template from these measurements and carefully cut it out. I was very pleased with my achievements. Back to the kitchen. It had been planned that there would be a couple of practicing rounds of cake-making until the technique had reached perfection. So after about an hour and a half of preparing and baking the cake came out the oven. First time and it was a success. I must say part of the credit had to go to the recipe. It was idiot proof. The rest of the credit to Lynese for directing the event.
Thursday night was the next planned event. I was starting to feel like "Master Chef" from the BBC. This time I was a lot more prepared. Brendon had sourced stainless steel measuring cups and a cake rack, which let me tell you is like hens teeth in Breda. I still had the handicap of the one-whisk electric beater, but hey it worked first time round. I took this as being my "good luck charm". So again - ingredients measured out, ready, steady, cook. An hour later and the cake came out perfect. By this time I had had enough of chocolate cake mixture and the works so after tasting the chefs & spectators agreed that this would be the final cake. Lynese and I went about the preparation for icing. First we divided all the smarties by colour into different containers. This was a highly technical part of the event. The icing had to be coloured precisely to the chosen hue. After hours of concentration and colour coordinating the smarties the project was complete. The cake was put in a large container and stored away from prying little hands safe for Saturdays consumption!
Wednesday, 19 November 2008
Owen turns 1
It is tradition in Holland that when a child turns one year old they get a cake that they can do what they wish with. Some put their faces in it, some stick their fingers in it. In true Owen style he just ate it. We all had a great day. In the morning we opened presents and at lunch time we went to the bi-monthly IWC children's get together at Joepie Speelpaleis for play time. He was showered with gifts and sung happy birthday by the little girls. Owen knew it was a special day. After his bath he went to bed a tired but happy little boy.
It is tradition in Holland that when a child turns one year old they get a cake that they can do what they wish with. Some put their faces in it, some stick their fingers in it. In true Owen style he just ate it. We all had a great day. In the morning we opened presents and at lunch time we went to the bi-monthly IWC children's get together at Joepie Speelpaleis for play time. He was showered with gifts and sung happy birthday by the little girls. Owen knew it was a special day. After his bath he went to bed a tired but happy little boy.
Monday, 17 November 2008
Splish Splash
I have added some video clips to show you what Owen is up to. He loves the water and being up to all sorts of mischief.
Today he had his first taste of peanut butter and after the initial face pulling he wolfed down his sandwich.
Douglas and Lynese arrive today for the week to help celebrate Owen's 1st birthday. I look forward to all the festivities.
I have added some video clips to show you what Owen is up to. He loves the water and being up to all sorts of mischief.
Today he had his first taste of peanut butter and after the initial face pulling he wolfed down his sandwich.
Douglas and Lynese arrive today for the week to help celebrate Owen's 1st birthday. I look forward to all the festivities.
Sunday, 16 November 2008
Time goes by
As you can see my entries are not as frequent as they used to be. It has to do with Owen's mobility as I am constantly following him around as he gets up to all sorts now. Since we have been back from the UK (29th October) he has been off the bottle. This is partly due to the fact that his parents left his nappy bag, containing all his big bottles & teats, at the security check at a London airport in their rush to make it to the gate in 5 minutes. Once on-board they would not let us off to go and get it. Luckily I had a dummy in my jacket pocket and we had 2 nappies in our big suitcase. Also lucky there was no poohing on the plane. Owen drank water from a 500ml plastic bottle and thought this was novel so constantly held it to his mouth and then lowering it again.
The gastouder arrangement did not work so I am back to having him all day in the week. This works fine for now as my exams are over for this year but we will have to come up with another idea for next year. He has had bronchitis this last week so has been on antibiotics, ventolin and a steroid. He is on the mend and getting up to his usual mischief. I am sure he will be in top form for his birthday bash this coming weekend.
Owen is a creature of speed. Nothing in his way stops him. He is still crawling, only now at lightening speed and can stand for a few seconds on his own. He cruises between furniture easily and loves standing under the kitchen table. He is also very keen to take the stairs when we have to go to his bedroom and manages very well on his own (with mom right behind him of course). Eating has become a bit of a struggle of late. He likes to have his own way and has started throwing food on the floor and spitting it out. Last night he went to bed with only a few spoons of dinner. He did not wake in the night for food and had his milk at the usual time this morning.
His favourite activities still include vacuuming, helping unpack the dishwasher, standing at the backdoor looking outside, posting items into his toys, playing in his ball-bak. In the morning weput the teletubbies on for him to watch. About 10 minutes of that and he is on the search for some other sort of entertainment. Yes, by the end of the day we are all exhausted but happy & entertained. I am now preparing for his party on the 22nd November. I find the pressure to succeed at this greater than writing a 3rd level exam! I hope the perfectionist gene is not dominant in Owen's character, but on the other hand Brendon & I are have them so Owen doesn't stand a chance!
As you can see my entries are not as frequent as they used to be. It has to do with Owen's mobility as I am constantly following him around as he gets up to all sorts now. Since we have been back from the UK (29th October) he has been off the bottle. This is partly due to the fact that his parents left his nappy bag, containing all his big bottles & teats, at the security check at a London airport in their rush to make it to the gate in 5 minutes. Once on-board they would not let us off to go and get it. Luckily I had a dummy in my jacket pocket and we had 2 nappies in our big suitcase. Also lucky there was no poohing on the plane. Owen drank water from a 500ml plastic bottle and thought this was novel so constantly held it to his mouth and then lowering it again.
The gastouder arrangement did not work so I am back to having him all day in the week. This works fine for now as my exams are over for this year but we will have to come up with another idea for next year. He has had bronchitis this last week so has been on antibiotics, ventolin and a steroid. He is on the mend and getting up to his usual mischief. I am sure he will be in top form for his birthday bash this coming weekend.
Owen is a creature of speed. Nothing in his way stops him. He is still crawling, only now at lightening speed and can stand for a few seconds on his own. He cruises between furniture easily and loves standing under the kitchen table. He is also very keen to take the stairs when we have to go to his bedroom and manages very well on his own (with mom right behind him of course). Eating has become a bit of a struggle of late. He likes to have his own way and has started throwing food on the floor and spitting it out. Last night he went to bed with only a few spoons of dinner. He did not wake in the night for food and had his milk at the usual time this morning.
His favourite activities still include vacuuming, helping unpack the dishwasher, standing at the backdoor looking outside, posting items into his toys, playing in his ball-bak. In the morning weput the teletubbies on for him to watch. About 10 minutes of that and he is on the search for some other sort of entertainment. Yes, by the end of the day we are all exhausted but happy & entertained. I am now preparing for his party on the 22nd November. I find the pressure to succeed at this greater than writing a 3rd level exam! I hope the perfectionist gene is not dominant in Owen's character, but on the other hand Brendon & I are have them so Owen doesn't stand a chance!
Monday, 27 October 2008
Hard headed or "hard headed"
It has been known that "hard headed" personalities are predominant on my side of the family. I can trace it back to my grandmother on my mothers side. She was a focused, feisty lady who knew exactly what she wanted in life. My mother exhibits these identical qualities but has mellowed in the last few years. Brendon is still taming my traits! It does not stop there. Owen is starting to display these qualities too. I choose to call him "determined". Not only is he a determined soul he is also like a bull in a china shop. Go, go, go, bang, wail, reverse, go, go, go, cabaam. He seems to have a hard head, literally, and just goes on playing or doing whatever he was concentrating on. When he has found himself in tricky situations 90% of the time he manages to get out but those 10% times we have had to extricate him from various pieces of furniture or tight spaces.
It has been known that "hard headed" personalities are predominant on my side of the family. I can trace it back to my grandmother on my mothers side. She was a focused, feisty lady who knew exactly what she wanted in life. My mother exhibits these identical qualities but has mellowed in the last few years. Brendon is still taming my traits! It does not stop there. Owen is starting to display these qualities too. I choose to call him "determined". Not only is he a determined soul he is also like a bull in a china shop. Go, go, go, bang, wail, reverse, go, go, go, cabaam. He seems to have a hard head, literally, and just goes on playing or doing whatever he was concentrating on. When he has found himself in tricky situations 90% of the time he manages to get out but those 10% times we have had to extricate him from various pieces of furniture or tight spaces.
Saturday, 25 October 2008
The UK experience
Once out the airport Lynese, Douglas, Owen & I jumped on the bus to long-term parking for our trip to Downham Market. Owen had on-board entertainment in the form of a +/- 3 or 4 year old Asian boy who sang "The wheels on the bus go round and round.......... all day long". The song felt like it went on all day long! Once at the car it was dark and packing it with all our bags & camp cot proved to be an engineering feat. We were all buckled in, it had started raining and Owen had just had his milk when he began to grunt and concentrate and produce a poo nappy. We had just gotten onto the motorway and had to exit at the first services sign. Owen was changed on the back seat at lightening speed and reseated for the 1.5 hour journey. Once home he was tucked up in his cot for a good nights sleep. Because he had such a short sleep that afternoon I thought 7am he would arise. Not Owen, at 4.30am UK time he had the whole house up catering to his every need.
Owen loves Granny & Grandpa's house. Nice soft carpets, double glass doors to look out of, a dishwasher to try to play with, so many rooms to explore, new and exciting toys. He has been on walks with Grandpa, church today where everyone oohhhed and ahhhed at him after Grandpa did a show and tell about him. I am enjoying our time here and am glad that Owen can spend this quality time with Douglas and Lynese.
Owen is so much more confident in his mobility now. He stands well, does squats in front of furniture that would tire Jane Fonda out, moves side-ways while holding onto furniture and is a one handed bandit when he turns to investigate what is going on behind him. He is fascinated by any wheels no matter the size and turns the items over to give them a spin. His position in space is excellent although on numerous occassions I have had to extricate him from under a table or chair. He is very strong and moves furniture easily if he needs to get to something or past something.
Food is still high on his agenda and he gladly accepts extras from all our plates. He still only has 5 visible teeth but makes good use of them when eating and sometimes on me too!
Once out the airport Lynese, Douglas, Owen & I jumped on the bus to long-term parking for our trip to Downham Market. Owen had on-board entertainment in the form of a +/- 3 or 4 year old Asian boy who sang "The wheels on the bus go round and round.......... all day long". The song felt like it went on all day long! Once at the car it was dark and packing it with all our bags & camp cot proved to be an engineering feat. We were all buckled in, it had started raining and Owen had just had his milk when he began to grunt and concentrate and produce a poo nappy. We had just gotten onto the motorway and had to exit at the first services sign. Owen was changed on the back seat at lightening speed and reseated for the 1.5 hour journey. Once home he was tucked up in his cot for a good nights sleep. Because he had such a short sleep that afternoon I thought 7am he would arise. Not Owen, at 4.30am UK time he had the whole house up catering to his every need.
Owen loves Granny & Grandpa's house. Nice soft carpets, double glass doors to look out of, a dishwasher to try to play with, so many rooms to explore, new and exciting toys. He has been on walks with Grandpa, church today where everyone oohhhed and ahhhed at him after Grandpa did a show and tell about him. I am enjoying our time here and am glad that Owen can spend this quality time with Douglas and Lynese.
Owen is so much more confident in his mobility now. He stands well, does squats in front of furniture that would tire Jane Fonda out, moves side-ways while holding onto furniture and is a one handed bandit when he turns to investigate what is going on behind him. He is fascinated by any wheels no matter the size and turns the items over to give them a spin. His position in space is excellent although on numerous occassions I have had to extricate him from under a table or chair. He is very strong and moves furniture easily if he needs to get to something or past something.
Food is still high on his agenda and he gladly accepts extras from all our plates. He still only has 5 visible teeth but makes good use of them when eating and sometimes on me too!
Friday, 24 October 2008
A week of granny time
We were all very blessed to be able to have granny Lynese fly out from the UK for a week to take care of Owen and be the chef whilst I spent many hours upstairs studying for my tax exam. Owen continued to go to the gastouder for his 2 hours while Lynese was here and progress is being made there - finally. Granny spent her time teaching Owen to post the balls into his new toy, take him to feed the ducks ,which he loves, and go on plenty of walks to pass the hours. Brendon went on a short trip to the UK and Lynese and I shared the POD (parent on duty)duties. The days ran very smoothly. Soon Thursday arrived and it was time for me to write the exam and then all of us to head off to the UK. Owen & I are there for a weeks break while Brendon is on business. Brendon, Lynese and Owen met me in the Hague and then we sped off to Schiphol airport to fly to London Stansted. Owen only managed to have a 30 minute sleep in the afternoon in the car and found all the activity at the airport too much fun to consider having another nap. He was having such a good time in the departure lounge he felt the need to chat and yell on the top of his lungs so that everyone stared in our direction. On the plane he was as good as gold and made friends with a little girl in the seat in front of us. He dined on pre-heated pasta on dad's lap with a little help from mom & granny on either side. All in all an uneventful flight even though I was convinced we had lost a wheel on take off!
We were all very blessed to be able to have granny Lynese fly out from the UK for a week to take care of Owen and be the chef whilst I spent many hours upstairs studying for my tax exam. Owen continued to go to the gastouder for his 2 hours while Lynese was here and progress is being made there - finally. Granny spent her time teaching Owen to post the balls into his new toy, take him to feed the ducks ,which he loves, and go on plenty of walks to pass the hours. Brendon went on a short trip to the UK and Lynese and I shared the POD (parent on duty)duties. The days ran very smoothly. Soon Thursday arrived and it was time for me to write the exam and then all of us to head off to the UK. Owen & I are there for a weeks break while Brendon is on business. Brendon, Lynese and Owen met me in the Hague and then we sped off to Schiphol airport to fly to London Stansted. Owen only managed to have a 30 minute sleep in the afternoon in the car and found all the activity at the airport too much fun to consider having another nap. He was having such a good time in the departure lounge he felt the need to chat and yell on the top of his lungs so that everyone stared in our direction. On the plane he was as good as gold and made friends with a little girl in the seat in front of us. He dined on pre-heated pasta on dad's lap with a little help from mom & granny on either side. All in all an uneventful flight even though I was convinced we had lost a wheel on take off!
Sunday, 12 October 2008
Owen has the zesde ziekte a.k.a rosela
This week Owen had a temp of 38.8 degrees Celcius and was generally unwell. When we bathed him last night we noticed red spots on his tummy and back and thought it might be the start of chicken pox. Today the spots were also on his legs, arms and face. After a call to the emergency doctor and an intensive internet search we recon this is what he has. Roseola is a common disease of babies or young children, in which several days of very high fever are followed by a rash. In a few days time the rash should disappear. Hallelujah, another pathology milestone passed.
This week Owen had a temp of 38.8 degrees Celcius and was generally unwell. When we bathed him last night we noticed red spots on his tummy and back and thought it might be the start of chicken pox. Today the spots were also on his legs, arms and face. After a call to the emergency doctor and an intensive internet search we recon this is what he has. Roseola is a common disease of babies or young children, in which several days of very high fever are followed by a rash. In a few days time the rash should disappear. Hallelujah, another pathology milestone passed.
Thursday, 9 October 2008
Another trip, another week
As you can see I have been busy getting Owen's blog up to date. I decided to take the hours that Owen is sleeping today off and put my thoughts down on paper, so to say. Most of my thoughts for the blog are conjured up during the wee hours of the morning when I am either up doing a dummy run or up wondering why I am not doing a dummy run. Then it takes some time to get back to sleep so I spend those valuable minutes thinking about my precious cherub.
It is getting close to my exams now. Brendon has been on 3 business trips in 3 weeks and is due home tonight. Brendon, Owen and I are all a little frayed around the edges at this point. I miss Brendon, Owen misses Brendon and Brendon misses Owen & I. Except for my exam preparation it has not been a good week in general. We are all suffering from poor health and colds. In fact Owen and I are off to the doctor in an hour as he has a cough that could rival any medium -sized dogs bark. I just hope that he does not get another course of antibiotics as he has already had 2 courses this year for his BCG.
The "gastouder" is still not going well. He cannot manage being there for more than
2 hours. Next week Monday and Tuesday are the deciding days. If he still cannot manage I am going to have to call it a day with that arrangement. It disappoints me as I was beginning to enjoy "Wendy time" but seeing Owen stressed and teary-eyed most times I go to fetch him really breaks my heart. One of the days Owen was crying and I was crying and the gastouder was patting us both on the back saying that it will be alright. The very next day things picked up but sadly they regressed after a week.
We continue to go for our walks, spend time with the other moms doing activities and enjoying our weekends as a family. Thankfully Owen won't remember the days when I zipped his neck in his coat twice. Or when I really want him to sleep in the night and I am close to losing my fruit. Or when he bangs his head on the table on my watch.
Life with Owen is so precious. I think of how empty my life would be without him. Filled with just a day job and some social event. He fills my days with smiles, slobbery kisses and love. I love the way his toes curl up when he is drinking his bottle of milk. Or when he is smiling at me while I am doing something and I turn and see him. Or when he laughs hysterically when I sing him "little Peter rabbit". And when I play peek-a-boe and we are on either side of the couch. I am very glad that I have taken this year off to watch his every move. I would not change it for anything in the world. It has been a priceless year.
As you can see I have been busy getting Owen's blog up to date. I decided to take the hours that Owen is sleeping today off and put my thoughts down on paper, so to say. Most of my thoughts for the blog are conjured up during the wee hours of the morning when I am either up doing a dummy run or up wondering why I am not doing a dummy run. Then it takes some time to get back to sleep so I spend those valuable minutes thinking about my precious cherub.
It is getting close to my exams now. Brendon has been on 3 business trips in 3 weeks and is due home tonight. Brendon, Owen and I are all a little frayed around the edges at this point. I miss Brendon, Owen misses Brendon and Brendon misses Owen & I. Except for my exam preparation it has not been a good week in general. We are all suffering from poor health and colds. In fact Owen and I are off to the doctor in an hour as he has a cough that could rival any medium -sized dogs bark. I just hope that he does not get another course of antibiotics as he has already had 2 courses this year for his BCG.
The "gastouder" is still not going well. He cannot manage being there for more than
2 hours. Next week Monday and Tuesday are the deciding days. If he still cannot manage I am going to have to call it a day with that arrangement. It disappoints me as I was beginning to enjoy "Wendy time" but seeing Owen stressed and teary-eyed most times I go to fetch him really breaks my heart. One of the days Owen was crying and I was crying and the gastouder was patting us both on the back saying that it will be alright. The very next day things picked up but sadly they regressed after a week.
We continue to go for our walks, spend time with the other moms doing activities and enjoying our weekends as a family. Thankfully Owen won't remember the days when I zipped his neck in his coat twice. Or when I really want him to sleep in the night and I am close to losing my fruit. Or when he bangs his head on the table on my watch.
Life with Owen is so precious. I think of how empty my life would be without him. Filled with just a day job and some social event. He fills my days with smiles, slobbery kisses and love. I love the way his toes curl up when he is drinking his bottle of milk. Or when he is smiling at me while I am doing something and I turn and see him. Or when he laughs hysterically when I sing him "little Peter rabbit". And when I play peek-a-boe and we are on either side of the couch. I am very glad that I have taken this year off to watch his every move. I would not change it for anything in the world. It has been a priceless year.
Friday, 3 October 2008
Oh so sleepy
Like clockwork, Brendon goes on a trip, Owen has some sort of ailment. Last weekend I worked like a top cuisine chef in the kitchen, only mine was a lot messier. Owen has shared with me that I could be the next "Jamie Oliver" compared to the canned pet food here a.k.a. baby food. I look good thanks to Annabel Karmels wonderful children's recipe books! But the recipe I made - fish dish - did not meet the results that I was quite hoping for and I was definitely hoping not to see Owens dinner again that Tuesday night. Routine as usual - dinner, bath, milk and bed. Ah, I put my feet up for a little Tuesday night entertainment... and then it started. Groan, groan, murmur, murmur from Owens bed about 1 hour after he went down. "Very odd I thought, I wonder what is up". So I took him out the bed, checked his nappy, gave him his dummy, stroked his cheek and lay him back in the bed. 10 minutes later there were vivid noises coming out of his room along with a technicoloured yawn. It was not a pleasant sight. Now another "before I was a parent" story - I was a very squeamish person before I had Owen. Puke, poo and blood I could not do. If someone puked I would puke. Get the picture. Well child-birth has a very apt way of getting you to grips with that very quickly. Before you leave the hospital you have already dealt with 2 of the 3. Back to Tuesday. So there Owen was lying in his cot with puke in his hair and everywhere else and I was leaning over his cot with my penlight torch. What to do. I only had 1 set of hands and I needed 2. So I grabbed hold of Owen, who was very pale now, and rang the neighbour to come and help. Peggy was over in minutes. So I asked her to hold Owen while I stripped his bed. He was having none of that and started wailing for me. So then I was holding Owen and Peggy was stripping the bed. What a brave neighbour and she doesn't have children! So after Owen was changed, I was changed and the bed was changed and Peggy was still at our house Owen decided it was not over yet. Lucky he was not in the bed this time. Shame, his little body was retching while I was holding him. I felt very sorry for him. Again Owen changed and I changed. We called the emergency doctor who told us to do a few things (e.g take temp, give water) and then I put him to bed again. Peggy left. It was not over. Again a technicoloured yawn. Again Peggy was back on the scene. This time it was the last of the PJ's for Owen and I and the sheets for the bed. I was not looking forward to the night. One of the things the emergency doctor said was to watch that he doesn't puke in his sleep. Well that did it for me and there I was hauling the mattress down the stairs and setting up camp on the floor in Owen's room. Not long after I had fallen asleep Owen began to cry. I put him back to bed and an hour later again crying. So I put Owen in the bed with me. In the morning we woke up and he was lying on the mattress and I was on the floor. The sacrifices for ensuring a little ones health and safety. All is well now.
Like clockwork, Brendon goes on a trip, Owen has some sort of ailment. Last weekend I worked like a top cuisine chef in the kitchen, only mine was a lot messier. Owen has shared with me that I could be the next "Jamie Oliver" compared to the canned pet food here a.k.a. baby food. I look good thanks to Annabel Karmels wonderful children's recipe books! But the recipe I made - fish dish - did not meet the results that I was quite hoping for and I was definitely hoping not to see Owens dinner again that Tuesday night. Routine as usual - dinner, bath, milk and bed. Ah, I put my feet up for a little Tuesday night entertainment... and then it started. Groan, groan, murmur, murmur from Owens bed about 1 hour after he went down. "Very odd I thought, I wonder what is up". So I took him out the bed, checked his nappy, gave him his dummy, stroked his cheek and lay him back in the bed. 10 minutes later there were vivid noises coming out of his room along with a technicoloured yawn. It was not a pleasant sight. Now another "before I was a parent" story - I was a very squeamish person before I had Owen. Puke, poo and blood I could not do. If someone puked I would puke. Get the picture. Well child-birth has a very apt way of getting you to grips with that very quickly. Before you leave the hospital you have already dealt with 2 of the 3. Back to Tuesday. So there Owen was lying in his cot with puke in his hair and everywhere else and I was leaning over his cot with my penlight torch. What to do. I only had 1 set of hands and I needed 2. So I grabbed hold of Owen, who was very pale now, and rang the neighbour to come and help. Peggy was over in minutes. So I asked her to hold Owen while I stripped his bed. He was having none of that and started wailing for me. So then I was holding Owen and Peggy was stripping the bed. What a brave neighbour and she doesn't have children! So after Owen was changed, I was changed and the bed was changed and Peggy was still at our house Owen decided it was not over yet. Lucky he was not in the bed this time. Shame, his little body was retching while I was holding him. I felt very sorry for him. Again Owen changed and I changed. We called the emergency doctor who told us to do a few things (e.g take temp, give water) and then I put him to bed again. Peggy left. It was not over. Again a technicoloured yawn. Again Peggy was back on the scene. This time it was the last of the PJ's for Owen and I and the sheets for the bed. I was not looking forward to the night. One of the things the emergency doctor said was to watch that he doesn't puke in his sleep. Well that did it for me and there I was hauling the mattress down the stairs and setting up camp on the floor in Owen's room. Not long after I had fallen asleep Owen began to cry. I put him back to bed and an hour later again crying. So I put Owen in the bed with me. In the morning we woke up and he was lying on the mattress and I was on the floor. The sacrifices for ensuring a little ones health and safety. All is well now.
Sunday, 21 September 2008
3 more teeth
Owen has sprouted 3 new teeth. The 2 big front ones and 1 on the bottom. After our party on the Saturday night Brendon, who was parent on duty, was awake every hour to give Owen his dummy. So it was no surprise on Monday when I spotted them. Along came the runny nose and cough, which I though was a cold each time he was teething. The week was quite hectic with the dummy runs (and I was very happy to see my Friday night accommodation at the end of the week) but towards the end of the week he was sleeping very well and only waking once or twice in the night.
He has now managed to pull himself up onto his feet. There is lots of wobbling going on and then a "Oh, no, how do I get down now" look before landing with a thud on his bum. He seems to enjoy cycling more now too and even tries to ring the bell every now and again.
Eating is still one of his favourite activities. The amounts have increased steadily but lucky the weight is not being gained as quickly. He picks up his bread squares between his index finger and thumb and stuffs it in his mouth. I have to be careful as to how much is put in front of him otherwise he ends up looking like a chipmunk.
On Friday Owen and I went to the clinic so he could get measured and weighted. 11.145kgs & 78cm in length. He has only put on 275 grams since last month which means the crawling and physical activities are now burning more calories.
He is so cute now. He crawls up to me and sits in front of me and then puts his arms up to be picked up.
Owen has sprouted 3 new teeth. The 2 big front ones and 1 on the bottom. After our party on the Saturday night Brendon, who was parent on duty, was awake every hour to give Owen his dummy. So it was no surprise on Monday when I spotted them. Along came the runny nose and cough, which I though was a cold each time he was teething. The week was quite hectic with the dummy runs (and I was very happy to see my Friday night accommodation at the end of the week) but towards the end of the week he was sleeping very well and only waking once or twice in the night.
He has now managed to pull himself up onto his feet. There is lots of wobbling going on and then a "Oh, no, how do I get down now" look before landing with a thud on his bum. He seems to enjoy cycling more now too and even tries to ring the bell every now and again.
Eating is still one of his favourite activities. The amounts have increased steadily but lucky the weight is not being gained as quickly. He picks up his bread squares between his index finger and thumb and stuffs it in his mouth. I have to be careful as to how much is put in front of him otherwise he ends up looking like a chipmunk.
On Friday Owen and I went to the clinic so he could get measured and weighted. 11.145kgs & 78cm in length. He has only put on 275 grams since last month which means the crawling and physical activities are now burning more calories.
He is so cute now. He crawls up to me and sits in front of me and then puts his arms up to be picked up.
Monday, 15 September 2008
Water, water everywhere
The day started off well but not long into the morning, when Brendon was due to do Owen's top & tail, I heard Brendon say "Oh, no my boy this is not good." I was upstairs in the loft getting a couple of hours of studying done. The tone & pitch of Brendon's voice let me know that 1. He wanted to let me know something had happened & 2. Please don't shout at me! I had gathered that Owen had pulled the bucket of water over while Brendon was not looking. I went downstairs to see the 2 guilty parties. The only victims of the incident was the New Zealand wool carpet and Owens tail that was saturated. Owen thought this was very funny & Brendon hurriedly packed everything up so the laminate would not get wet and warp. This carpet has a story of it's own. When I purchased it back in 1997 in Durban it cost the equivalent of my Opel's car instalment. Needless to say it was looked after very well. In it's lifetime it has had a whole plate of mash potatoes and gravy land on it and now that Owen has had it in his room it has had oops up of baby curry and ratatouille that stains yellow. So the carpet was due to go for a clean anyway. Now the cost to clean this carpet each time is a small fortune. Actually it costs half of what the original car instalment was and it is cheaper to go to Ikea and buy a new one every time we need it cleaned. But no I am not getting rid of it so it has been relocated down to the lounge where it is covered nicely by a duvet for Owen to play on!
The day started off well but not long into the morning, when Brendon was due to do Owen's top & tail, I heard Brendon say "Oh, no my boy this is not good." I was upstairs in the loft getting a couple of hours of studying done. The tone & pitch of Brendon's voice let me know that 1. He wanted to let me know something had happened & 2. Please don't shout at me! I had gathered that Owen had pulled the bucket of water over while Brendon was not looking. I went downstairs to see the 2 guilty parties. The only victims of the incident was the New Zealand wool carpet and Owens tail that was saturated. Owen thought this was very funny & Brendon hurriedly packed everything up so the laminate would not get wet and warp. This carpet has a story of it's own. When I purchased it back in 1997 in Durban it cost the equivalent of my Opel's car instalment. Needless to say it was looked after very well. In it's lifetime it has had a whole plate of mash potatoes and gravy land on it and now that Owen has had it in his room it has had oops up of baby curry and ratatouille that stains yellow. So the carpet was due to go for a clean anyway. Now the cost to clean this carpet each time is a small fortune. Actually it costs half of what the original car instalment was and it is cheaper to go to Ikea and buy a new one every time we need it cleaned. But no I am not getting rid of it so it has been relocated down to the lounge where it is covered nicely by a duvet for Owen to play on!
Sunday, 14 September 2008
Saturday, 13 September 2008
Off the breast
From the end of August Owen started being bottlefed instead of breastfeed. Even though he only has 2 teeth at the moment he has been using them to chew on my boob! Dutch magazine articles say this is not the reason to stop breastfeeding but I beg to differ. Fear each time it was feed time was not the way I wanted to spend the last few months of breastfeeding. The last breast was an emotional time for me but I must say that Owen has taken the change very well. In fact I think he enjoys it more as he does not have to make such an effort to get the milk out the boob compared to sucking it out the bottle. This also makes such a difference on a Friday night when it is my night off in the loft bedroom, a.k.a the recharge centre, and Brendon is able to give him the bottle at 3 or 4 am. This is also the first morning that I was the first one up at 6am. Brendon & and Owen were still zzzzzzz'ing in their beds.
Swimming is still a delight and Owen loves it. I do not take him to the gym creche at the moment because he is still having issues with the gastouder arrangement. I don't want him to be overwhelmed by anxiety. First priority is to have him settled with the gastouder and then introduce the other activities. I go to gym in the evening when he is asleep and Brendon is home.
Owen is very active now and it will not be long before he is up and about. He is able to pull himself onto his knees and then one foot but no further. He has no idea about distance or height so often there is a wail when he can't reach something or he can't get off something. Changing his nappy is not an amusing event especially if he has a poo one. He insists on rolling over and trying to sit up. His pants are now put back on when he is in the standing position. Thank goodness he has stopped trying to launch himself into the toybox at the end of his change table.
He has become such a bookworm. For a while now we have been reading (in Dutch and English) to him and showing him books with flaps and pictures that he has learn't to open himself. I often find him at the bookshelf unpacking the books and looking at the pictures. When he is at the gastouder he apparently does the same thing.
Tonight is Brendon & my first social event alone & 50 minutes away from home. It is Brendon's annual work event. Rayne will be over to take care of Owen and I trust he will not give her grey hair. I am looking forward to being Wendy and not just "Owen's mom" for the evening. I am sure Brendon will feel the same. But am also definately sure that we will be very happy to see him again when we get home.
From the end of August Owen started being bottlefed instead of breastfeed. Even though he only has 2 teeth at the moment he has been using them to chew on my boob! Dutch magazine articles say this is not the reason to stop breastfeeding but I beg to differ. Fear each time it was feed time was not the way I wanted to spend the last few months of breastfeeding. The last breast was an emotional time for me but I must say that Owen has taken the change very well. In fact I think he enjoys it more as he does not have to make such an effort to get the milk out the boob compared to sucking it out the bottle. This also makes such a difference on a Friday night when it is my night off in the loft bedroom, a.k.a the recharge centre, and Brendon is able to give him the bottle at 3 or 4 am. This is also the first morning that I was the first one up at 6am. Brendon & and Owen were still zzzzzzz'ing in their beds.
Swimming is still a delight and Owen loves it. I do not take him to the gym creche at the moment because he is still having issues with the gastouder arrangement. I don't want him to be overwhelmed by anxiety. First priority is to have him settled with the gastouder and then introduce the other activities. I go to gym in the evening when he is asleep and Brendon is home.
Owen is very active now and it will not be long before he is up and about. He is able to pull himself onto his knees and then one foot but no further. He has no idea about distance or height so often there is a wail when he can't reach something or he can't get off something. Changing his nappy is not an amusing event especially if he has a poo one. He insists on rolling over and trying to sit up. His pants are now put back on when he is in the standing position. Thank goodness he has stopped trying to launch himself into the toybox at the end of his change table.
He has become such a bookworm. For a while now we have been reading (in Dutch and English) to him and showing him books with flaps and pictures that he has learn't to open himself. I often find him at the bookshelf unpacking the books and looking at the pictures. When he is at the gastouder he apparently does the same thing.
Tonight is Brendon & my first social event alone & 50 minutes away from home. It is Brendon's annual work event. Rayne will be over to take care of Owen and I trust he will not give her grey hair. I am looking forward to being Wendy and not just "Owen's mom" for the evening. I am sure Brendon will feel the same. But am also definately sure that we will be very happy to see him again when we get home.
Friday, 5 September 2008
The next milestone is in view
This past week has been really great. Owen is over his cold and back to his normal form and more. We have been doing our usual activities - walking, shopping & swimming. Today was the first swimming lesson with the instructor. We went in the warm jaccuzi pool and Owen had such a good time. Songs were sung and we all swam in a line like ducks. Lots of splashing and plastic toys. Owen floated on his back with my support and in general was a little star. Next week I will learn the technique of putting him under the water. I watched it this week and even a 4 month old was doing it, so I know that he will be able to handle that.
On Wednesday Owen & I went to the gym (again to swim) and afterwards bumped into one of the moms from the international womans club. Her children were also swimming. We had lunch together when everyone was finished their activities. Owen was doing his usual crawling everywhere and anywhere so at one point I just lifted him up onto his feet and he was holding my hands in his. Next thing he lifted up his feet and left, right, left he took three steps. I could not believe it. I was amazed. So amazed that Brigette asked me if these were his first steps. He pulls himself up on everything now but just can't get down. If he has socks on and is on the laminate floor pulling himself up on something his feet slide out while he is still holding on e.g. the stair gate. Then I hear a wail and find him hanging on waiting to be pulled off.
Thursdays with the gastouder are still proving to be a struggle. Owen is definately in the separation anxiety phase. He is only managing 3 to 3.5 hours and then I have to go and fetch him. This week he was wailing when I left him and walked out the door. Then I peered through the window a minute later and suddenly he was busy playing. I was forgotten in an instant. Apparently it is around his next sleep time that he becomes distressed and looks around for me. So now he will go on a Wednesday for 3 hours and a Thursday for 3 hours just until he gets used to the whole "without mom" experience.
This past week has been really great. Owen is over his cold and back to his normal form and more. We have been doing our usual activities - walking, shopping & swimming. Today was the first swimming lesson with the instructor. We went in the warm jaccuzi pool and Owen had such a good time. Songs were sung and we all swam in a line like ducks. Lots of splashing and plastic toys. Owen floated on his back with my support and in general was a little star. Next week I will learn the technique of putting him under the water. I watched it this week and even a 4 month old was doing it, so I know that he will be able to handle that.
On Wednesday Owen & I went to the gym (again to swim) and afterwards bumped into one of the moms from the international womans club. Her children were also swimming. We had lunch together when everyone was finished their activities. Owen was doing his usual crawling everywhere and anywhere so at one point I just lifted him up onto his feet and he was holding my hands in his. Next thing he lifted up his feet and left, right, left he took three steps. I could not believe it. I was amazed. So amazed that Brigette asked me if these were his first steps. He pulls himself up on everything now but just can't get down. If he has socks on and is on the laminate floor pulling himself up on something his feet slide out while he is still holding on e.g. the stair gate. Then I hear a wail and find him hanging on waiting to be pulled off.
Thursdays with the gastouder are still proving to be a struggle. Owen is definately in the separation anxiety phase. He is only managing 3 to 3.5 hours and then I have to go and fetch him. This week he was wailing when I left him and walked out the door. Then I peered through the window a minute later and suddenly he was busy playing. I was forgotten in an instant. Apparently it is around his next sleep time that he becomes distressed and looks around for me. So now he will go on a Wednesday for 3 hours and a Thursday for 3 hours just until he gets used to the whole "without mom" experience.
Our home, an extension of "Toys R Us"
Before I became a parent and I used to visit people already parents, I would come home and say to Brendon "If we ever have children there is no way any of their stuff will be scattered from one end of the lounge to the other. That is what their bedroom is for!" I was clueless. This is how it began. In the beginning Owen's room was created. Very neat, everything having its own place. Needless to say that room was never slept in for 5 months. Owen first set up camp in mom & dad's room for the first months of his life. Because it was convenient we also set up a camp cot in the lounge with a few toys in it. As time went by and he became more active and enjoyed morning time in the bed with mom & dad I noticed a couple of toys creep in and take their place on the bedside tables. When he was too big for the baby bath he progressed to the bathroom, bath toys in tow en mass. Laundry time (which takes place between 5.30am and 6.30am every morning, yes, including Sundays) became a concoction of plastic coat hangers and whatever was in his hand when he was picked up and taken up stairs to the loft. Then came time to move on to sitting in his feeding chair, again, a stash of toys in strategic places. Lets not forget to mention the lounge which came accessorised with a duvet to prevent bumps on the head, the ball-bak complete with 100 balls... and the list goes on. So to conclude: every room in the house besides our dressing room and the downstairs toilet is delightfully arrayed with Owens presence.
So Sunday Operation: "Toy control" took place. Date: 31 August 2008. Time: 07h00. Place: The lounge. Attendees: Mom & Owen. I decided that the first item that needed to be tamed was the camp cot (which had become a dumping ground for all his toys) All the toys out. I don't ever remember buying all the stuff. But that's how it begins, doesn't it. So now we had an empty camp cot and so I began the task of disassembling it. Time: 07h20 - by this time I was pushing the odd bead of sweat & scratching my head. Who invented this contraption. It must have been a man. Firstly, woman would never make something so complicated and secondly, no woman would have the enduring interest of assembling and disassembling this item. I suddenly had a flashback to when Douglas and Brendon first set this up. I remember chuckling to myself and thinking they looked like "Dumber & Dumber". Mmm. Maybe it did take some grey matter after all. Anyway, it was half disassembled and I thought that is it I am done!5 minutes later I refused to be beaten and had a bash at it again. This time I wriggled every movable part there was to wriggle and "vole" magic, it collapsed into a neat little rectangular shape on the floor. Owen was still engrossed in the activity even though he has the attention span of a gnat. Next was to get it in the bag. Heave hoe, in it went, along with the pipes and some other item. I was very pleased that I got the wheels in the right way round too but alas the zip wouldn't shut properly. Oh well, I had done my best and left it on the step for Brendon to put upstairs in the loft. Final conclustion: There are some things that just don't go back in the way they came out!
Before I became a parent and I used to visit people already parents, I would come home and say to Brendon "If we ever have children there is no way any of their stuff will be scattered from one end of the lounge to the other. That is what their bedroom is for!" I was clueless. This is how it began. In the beginning Owen's room was created. Very neat, everything having its own place. Needless to say that room was never slept in for 5 months. Owen first set up camp in mom & dad's room for the first months of his life. Because it was convenient we also set up a camp cot in the lounge with a few toys in it. As time went by and he became more active and enjoyed morning time in the bed with mom & dad I noticed a couple of toys creep in and take their place on the bedside tables. When he was too big for the baby bath he progressed to the bathroom, bath toys in tow en mass. Laundry time (which takes place between 5.30am and 6.30am every morning, yes, including Sundays) became a concoction of plastic coat hangers and whatever was in his hand when he was picked up and taken up stairs to the loft. Then came time to move on to sitting in his feeding chair, again, a stash of toys in strategic places. Lets not forget to mention the lounge which came accessorised with a duvet to prevent bumps on the head, the ball-bak complete with 100 balls... and the list goes on. So to conclude: every room in the house besides our dressing room and the downstairs toilet is delightfully arrayed with Owens presence.
So Sunday Operation: "Toy control" took place. Date: 31 August 2008. Time: 07h00. Place: The lounge. Attendees: Mom & Owen. I decided that the first item that needed to be tamed was the camp cot (which had become a dumping ground for all his toys) All the toys out. I don't ever remember buying all the stuff. But that's how it begins, doesn't it. So now we had an empty camp cot and so I began the task of disassembling it. Time: 07h20 - by this time I was pushing the odd bead of sweat & scratching my head. Who invented this contraption. It must have been a man. Firstly, woman would never make something so complicated and secondly, no woman would have the enduring interest of assembling and disassembling this item. I suddenly had a flashback to when Douglas and Brendon first set this up. I remember chuckling to myself and thinking they looked like "Dumber & Dumber". Mmm. Maybe it did take some grey matter after all. Anyway, it was half disassembled and I thought that is it I am done!5 minutes later I refused to be beaten and had a bash at it again. This time I wriggled every movable part there was to wriggle and "vole" magic, it collapsed into a neat little rectangular shape on the floor. Owen was still engrossed in the activity even though he has the attention span of a gnat. Next was to get it in the bag. Heave hoe, in it went, along with the pipes and some other item. I was very pleased that I got the wheels in the right way round too but alas the zip wouldn't shut properly. Oh well, I had done my best and left it on the step for Brendon to put upstairs in the loft. Final conclustion: There are some things that just don't go back in the way they came out!
Friday, 22 August 2008
Another tooth!
Today I spotted another tooth on Owen's bottom jaw next to the first tooth. I must say this last week has been a bit up and down. Owen has had a cold & cough again which seems to coincide with the tooth coming through. And not by coincidence either that Brendon happened to be out of the country on business. Owen has not been able to sleep properly in the night as he has had a blocked nose so we have to give him a couple of squirts of nose spray. This must definitely wake the neighbours as he screams on the top of his lungs for a few minutes before settling again.
Thursday with the day mom (gastouder) went well during his wake time but he did not want to go to sleep. Annette called me to say she thinks it is the new environment and it was probably best to fetch him. By the time I picked him up he had been awake for 4 hours. I put him in the car seat and no sooner had I driven out of her street he was asleep. He did manage to stay at Annette's for 3.5 out of the 6 hours. Lets see how this coming Thursday goes.
Owen has developed an obsession - the vacuum cleaner. He probably got this from when Brendon used to put him in the pouch in front of him and do all the vacuuming on weekends. Owen cruises around now at a rate of knots. On all fours, on his belly with just his arms or on his belly with arms & legs. Sometimes I hear thud, thud and there he is under the coffee table trying to sit up. He has learnt to carry on crawling to the other side to sit up properly without bumping his head.
He now has learnt the word NO. He loves me saying no to him. When he is up to no good and I say no he turns and smiles. Then before I have even said it again he turns and smiles again................mmmmm. Owen is having a tough time sleeping now and I sometimes find him hanging on the bars of his cot on his knees wailing that he can't get down. No sooner have I disentangled him when he is back up there again repeating the same problem. Hopefully it is just a phase.
We all attended a birthday party on Saturday. Sam, Catherines son, turned 5 so we went to Joepie Speelpaleis and then onto hers for lunch. Owen got to join in pass the parcel at the end of the game (as you can figure that once he got hold of the parcel it would have either been shredded or there would have been tears from not wanting to let it go). Brendon ate the present which were smarties. Owen did get to have a first taste of butter cake filling. His eyes lit up!
There are a lot of noises coming from him now in the form of babababa, wawawawa. I have been trying to brainwash him into saying "mama". Hopefully this will be his first word. Then all the hard work would have paid off.
On a final note - alas the weather is getting cooler and the sunrise later each morning. Autumn is imminent. What activities to plan for Owen in Winter? He loves the outdoors but I suppose donned with hat, coat, gloves and scarf we will have to put on our happy faces and wait for warmer weather again next year!
Today I spotted another tooth on Owen's bottom jaw next to the first tooth. I must say this last week has been a bit up and down. Owen has had a cold & cough again which seems to coincide with the tooth coming through. And not by coincidence either that Brendon happened to be out of the country on business. Owen has not been able to sleep properly in the night as he has had a blocked nose so we have to give him a couple of squirts of nose spray. This must definitely wake the neighbours as he screams on the top of his lungs for a few minutes before settling again.
Thursday with the day mom (gastouder) went well during his wake time but he did not want to go to sleep. Annette called me to say she thinks it is the new environment and it was probably best to fetch him. By the time I picked him up he had been awake for 4 hours. I put him in the car seat and no sooner had I driven out of her street he was asleep. He did manage to stay at Annette's for 3.5 out of the 6 hours. Lets see how this coming Thursday goes.
Owen has developed an obsession - the vacuum cleaner. He probably got this from when Brendon used to put him in the pouch in front of him and do all the vacuuming on weekends. Owen cruises around now at a rate of knots. On all fours, on his belly with just his arms or on his belly with arms & legs. Sometimes I hear thud, thud and there he is under the coffee table trying to sit up. He has learnt to carry on crawling to the other side to sit up properly without bumping his head.
He now has learnt the word NO. He loves me saying no to him. When he is up to no good and I say no he turns and smiles. Then before I have even said it again he turns and smiles again................mmmmm. Owen is having a tough time sleeping now and I sometimes find him hanging on the bars of his cot on his knees wailing that he can't get down. No sooner have I disentangled him when he is back up there again repeating the same problem. Hopefully it is just a phase.
We all attended a birthday party on Saturday. Sam, Catherines son, turned 5 so we went to Joepie Speelpaleis and then onto hers for lunch. Owen got to join in pass the parcel at the end of the game (as you can figure that once he got hold of the parcel it would have either been shredded or there would have been tears from not wanting to let it go). Brendon ate the present which were smarties. Owen did get to have a first taste of butter cake filling. His eyes lit up!
There are a lot of noises coming from him now in the form of babababa, wawawawa. I have been trying to brainwash him into saying "mama". Hopefully this will be his first word. Then all the hard work would have paid off.
On a final note - alas the weather is getting cooler and the sunrise later each morning. Autumn is imminent. What activities to plan for Owen in Winter? He loves the outdoors but I suppose donned with hat, coat, gloves and scarf we will have to put on our happy faces and wait for warmer weather again next year!
Saturday, 16 August 2008
9 Months Old
I cannot believe how quick these past 9 months have gone. Brendon & I are enjoying this age as Owen interacts a lot now and is developing his own personality. Today we went to the clinic for his 9 month check up. He now weighs 10.870kg's and is 77cm in length. The nurse was happy that he passed all the tests she gave him. On the weekend Brendon did some transplanting of plants in the back garden and Owen watched. He loved the jet nozzle hose pipe that Brendon sprayed near him. We continue to feed the ducks and cycle on the weekends. The gym creche is still an issue. I am convinced he is in co-hoots with the gym management to get me to have a longer gym contract to lose the extra kilos.
This coming Thursday Owen will go to a "gastouder" (guest parent directly translated) for 6 hours. This will be a weekly event so that I can study and Owen can start to interact with other little people. He had a trial run with Annette (the gastouder) and when I went to fetch him she said that he did not even miss me! Annette takes care of Owen along with a maximum of 3 other children (at different ages but still below 4 years old) in her home. The idea is that it is home away from home. The Dutch are so organised. Everything the children need are there. The only things I have to bring are nappies and food. He gets his own bed, feeding chair and there are loads of toys. Annette also likes the outdoors so Owen will appreciate the walks they will go on.
I cannot believe how quick these past 9 months have gone. Brendon & I are enjoying this age as Owen interacts a lot now and is developing his own personality. Today we went to the clinic for his 9 month check up. He now weighs 10.870kg's and is 77cm in length. The nurse was happy that he passed all the tests she gave him. On the weekend Brendon did some transplanting of plants in the back garden and Owen watched. He loved the jet nozzle hose pipe that Brendon sprayed near him. We continue to feed the ducks and cycle on the weekends. The gym creche is still an issue. I am convinced he is in co-hoots with the gym management to get me to have a longer gym contract to lose the extra kilos.
This coming Thursday Owen will go to a "gastouder" (guest parent directly translated) for 6 hours. This will be a weekly event so that I can study and Owen can start to interact with other little people. He had a trial run with Annette (the gastouder) and when I went to fetch him she said that he did not even miss me! Annette takes care of Owen along with a maximum of 3 other children (at different ages but still below 4 years old) in her home. The idea is that it is home away from home. The Dutch are so organised. Everything the children need are there. The only things I have to bring are nappies and food. He gets his own bed, feeding chair and there are loads of toys. Annette also likes the outdoors so Owen will appreciate the walks they will go on.
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