Feeling better-ish

It seems like ages since my last post! I was pretty ill at the start of last week, and Emma was ill by the end of it. She has had a temperature and was really sleepy. She was teething on top of it all too, so it has been a pretty sorry state of affairs these last few days. She is getting better, but she is not 100% just yet.

She is pulling herself on any bit of furniture within reach now. She likes to try and climb the stairs too, and is getting worryingly good at it! The new thing for this week seems to be throwing things. She likes to stand up against the sofa, and throw everything that is on it onto the floor. It is quite cute, but she has started doing it at meal times too which is not so funny! (Well, it is... but we are trying not to encourage her!)

Here is a happy little picture for you. :-)

The perils of impending toddlerhood

Poor Emma... She really wants to walk. Trouble is, she can't actually stand up on her own yet.

This week though, for the first time, she managed to pull herself up to stand by the sofa. I had lined up a bunch of cuddly toys along with some things she is not normally allowed but is intrigued by (remote controls, mobile phone, etc). The look of determination she gets on her face is fantastic - she looks, sizes up the problem, scrabbles up onto her knees, sticks her tongue out, and heaves herself up.

Her crawling is still comando style, but so quick now. All this new mobility is leading to a few accidents though.
She has a bruise on her cheek from crawling at top speed into a closing door...
She has a bruise on her chin from where the poor unsuspecting gas man opened a door while she was camped out behind it...
And today she added a bruise over her eye where she fell over face down on the foot of her wooden high chair.

My poor baby. It breaks my heart a little bit every time she hurts herself. I hope she learns quickly!

So, no photos for today - I didn't really want to show off her bruisy face. Sure she will be better in no time though.

Little minx

The older Emma gets, the more of a naughty little minx she becomes!

Here she is taking off her bib at lunch...


















And again at dinner...



















And here she is in the kitchen proving to me that it is time to child proof the kitchen cupboards. Either that, or she was still hungry! :-) Or just maybe she was saying "You look tired mummy - why not have a sit down with a cup of tea and a choccy biscuit?"

Samosa

We have been so busy for the last week or so. Last Monday, we went to Guildford to meet a lovely lady who wanted to borrow a sling from me. On Tuesday we had sling meet (which was great! Thinking of starting a blog just for that!) On Wednesday we went house hunting, and on Friday we had a visit from another poster on the TBW forums which was really lovely. On Saturday, Emma went to her first ever birthday party which was just lovely! She was a bit younger than the rest of the kids there, but managed to sit down for almost an entire round of pass the parcel, and really enjoyed being amongst so many other children. It surprises me how sociable she is for an only child. As well as all that, I have been doing quite a bit of webdesign work which is keeping me quiet in the evenings. :)

So, the lack of posts is partly because we have not had any spare time, and partly because I am suffering a bit from writers block. We have a quiet week this week though, so I am sure I will get my groove back soon...

Right now, Emma is tucking into her first ever veggie samosa. While I don't want to encourage my baby girl to live on a diet of deep fried take away snacks, I thought it would be nice to introduce some stronger flavours. (She already really likes ginger and garlic). Later on, she will have her first ever hot cross bun. Hope she loves them as much as I do!

Iris in the sunshine

I took this photo today, and rather liked it so thought I would share!

She has grown so much

I was tidying Emma's room the other day, and I came across her first ever pair of trousers. I can't imagine her being that tiny any more!! Here she is playing next to them. It is her first birthday in just a few weeks time. It is amazing how this year has flown by!

I'd rather eat my own feet

Emma has developped a habit of playing with her feet in the highchair rather than eating her dinner. It is really cute, but it would be nice if she would concentrate on her food a bit more!

I can't turn my back for a minute!

Emma is really mobile these days. Her favourite place to be is where ever she shouldn't be. Her favourite things to play with are things that don't belong to her (remote controls, mobile phones, shoes, cameras, mugs, makeup... anything that is not a toy really!)


This is a photo from yesterday. I had just popped upstairs to put the laundry in the airing cupboard. When I came back, this is what I found... She really loves to play with books, but scrabble is a whole different board game. (no pun intended!)



















And today, she almost pulled herself up on the sofa herself. (I gave her a helping hand in the end!) I know I know - most kids of 11 months old have been able to do that for ages, but heck - she only started crawling a couple of weeks ago!! I think she is just taking her time, and likes to still be a baby. :-) Anyway, I think this is the end of life as we know it. Once she can get up to the sofa, where are we supposed to throw stuff that she shouldn't have?!!?? :-)

Wish List

OK - this post is more for me than for you lot out there!

Since I stopped working, money is obviously a little tighter than it used to be. Most of my money goes on baby slings these days. So, I thought it would be fun to write down which ones I want to save towards, and then have a look again later in the year to see how fickle I actually am! (Actually, this idea is shamelessly borrowed from another poster on the TBW forum!) I am planning to do a bit of ebay selling to help me fund this lot!


(Some people don't understand why I have so many wraps. However, I use them all and each has its own use. If I don't use one for a while, I sell it on - they have great resale value! I use one every time I leave the house, and several times a day in the house. So, they are really like a piece of clothing for me. Enough justification I think!!)





Here goes...


Didymos Millefiore with silk (seide) (size 5 or 6) - Well, it is a wrap blended with 30% silk. What more do I need to say - it is so me! I think it is limited edition too, so I had better get a move on with this one. http://didymos.de/html/seidenblumen.htm


Didymos Jim (size 6) - Really elegant colour, goes with everything, and very sturdy. The name does a lot for me too.
http://www.bigmamaslings.co.uk/zen-cart/didymos-wraparound-baby-sling-size-6-p-131.html

Girasol Moccha Berry (any size!) - Very pretty colours. Girasols are lovely and wide, so great for back and rebozo carries.
http://slingjax.co.uk/catalog.php?item=262&catid=22&ret=catalog.php%3Fcategory%3D22

KatiWrap Girasol Black and White (4.6m) - I actually want to cut this up and sew it into a mei tai! It might seem like an expensive way of buying fabric, but wraps make such good mei tai straps. I love the idea of making a black and white one that will go with anything.
http://www.katinpuoti.com/kantoliinat/html/katiwrap.html

And some of the more difficult to find ones...


Indio Malve, Silver or Almond Flower (size 6) - Just so pretty!
http://www.birdiesroom.com/Products/Indio-Malve-(WB)__SL-DI-LEMAL.aspx
http://www.birdiesroom.com/Products/Indio-Silver-(LB)__SL-DI-LESILV.aspx
http://www.birdiesroom.com/Products/Indio-Almond-Flower-(C)__SL-DI-LEALMON.aspx





Nino Anthrazite or Malve (size 5 or 6) - Made with wool, really soft and warm!
http://www.birdiesroom.com/Products/Nino-Anthrazit-(WB)__SL-DI-LENIAN0.aspx

http://www.birdiesroom.com/Products/Nino-Malve-(WB)__SL-DI-LENIMAL.aspx


hmmmm - is this bordering on obsessive? :-)





Well, if it is then here are a few older pictures of Emma showing why we like them so much!

New Years Resolutions

I have quite a few resolutions for 2008, so here goes!

1: Be realistic in my goals and expectations. (haha - I don't seem to be starting as I mean to go on!)

2: Make more time for myself. Things like taking time for a long soak in the bath or something in the evenings.

3: Try to look forwards more often than backwards.

4: Don't worry so much about things I can't change.

5: Make Emma laugh like a lunatic at least once a day. :-)

6: Try not to take it out on those closest to me when I am feeling down.

7: Finish my business homepage and portfolio. (I am in the process of starting up a small work from home web design business). I will redesign the Dinner Time for Emma blog while I am at it!

8: Get a hair cut at least twice during the year. (Sounds like a strange resolution, but I didn't have a hair cut for the whole of 2007, which for an ex-goth who was all about the hairdo is pretty weird!!)

9: Give up diet coke! I drink far too much of the stuff, and I don't want Emma to grow up thinking that soft drinks are for every day.

10: Take some driving lessons. I passed my test when I was 18, but have hardly driven since. I want to take some refresher lessons to build up my confidence.

11: Be the best wife and mother that I possibly can be.