The Family Patch

My Little Gardener

This week, Little Man and I have been mostly found in the garden. Last week Little Man had chicken pox and was home all week we me. We started trying to go out in the garden a bit but it wasn't nearly as gloriously bright and sunny as it has been this week. So whilst he has been back at nursery 2 days this week, we have still taken every opportunity to get outside.

This has included tromping around in the morning dew wearing nothing but his pjs, a coat and some boots!

He honestly loves to be out in the garden, as I mentioned on the blog last year too. And he regularly asks to go outside these days, even fetching my shoes for me when he wants to go out and I'm taking a little bit too long to get myself sorted!

We've blown bubbles, counted pegs, dug in the soil and simply sat and enjoyed the sunshine and each other's company. And it has been lovely. But the thing Little Man loves the absolute most is to water the flowers.

We have an outdoor tap but it is behind our shed and I have not wanted to show Little Man how to get to it in case he gets stuck (or more likely in case he gets up to mischief!!) So we have been filling up our small watering can in the kitchen sink. Our garden isn't very large but it has still involved lots of walking backwards and forwards. So today we hooked up the hose and let him loose...

He was fascinated by it, especially how we could change the speed and spray pattern of the water. I'm pretty sure our path (and my feet) got just as much water as the plants did to begin with. But he got the hang of it very quickly and is now a pro.

He's off to visit Grandma and Grandad on Sunday and their garden is far bigger than ours. I have a feeling he will be spending a lot of time watering their flowers!

Piles of Books for World Book Day 2014

So this is the current state of Little Man's bedroom floor - several big piles of books dotted across the room creating a "hilly" landscape we have to traverse in order to get to his bed each night.

I have tried keeping his books in boxes, in cupboards and even on a bookcase, but we always seem to end up with these same piles of books on the floor. And no wonder - this boy loves his books and we have to read at least 3 (usually more) before bedtime each night. And as we let Little Man choose the books he wants each time, we've just ended up with a crazy system whereby he can see pretty much every book (even if just a tiny corner peeking out from under the rest) and decide which he wants next.

I've been seeing so many posts today for World Book Day. Children going to school dressed as characters from their favourite books, and I can't help but wonder which book or character Little Man would choose if we were to attempt the same. He has so many "favourites" right now that I'm not sure where to begin. Here are the current most popular titles from an ever increasing bunch of "favourites"...

There are some real crackers in there and even though we have read them so many times that we all know them by heart (including Little Man who now recognises certain words - like zebra!! - just because he sees them so often) I never tired of reading these books to him.

I've even thought about starting a new series on the blog about what we're reading because although Little Man has some of the more popular books in his favourites (such as Dr Seuss and Julia Donaldson books as well as Charlie and Lola) there are also some books I had never heard of before randomly coming across them in a charity shop or bookstore. And these are the books that I'd love to share with you all.

But for now we're celebrating World Book Day by relishing in the fact that it doesn't matter that books are strewn across the floor and there is no system to our book-madness. I will read as many books as Little Man likes because it is a love that I wish to treasure and encourage in him.

The other day I promised to read him "as many books as he wanted before bedtime" because we had to change his routine slightly and it really upset him to begin with. And that night we read at least 8 books (I lost count after 8!) and the whole time Little Man sat in bed curled up next to me, telling me all the words he knew, and just loving the attention. Those moments are moments to truly treasure and I plan to do just that.

What books does your little one love to read? Do you read before bedtime or is it an "as and when" kind of thing in your house? (It's both in our house!) Or are your children old enough to read by themselves now? I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Potty Training - A Relaxed Approach

Ever since I started working for an Early Years' Consultant I have come across a vast amount of information and a wide range of ideas through keeping up with social media feeds and industry press. And sometimes it can all feel a little overwhelming - which style will suit you best and how will you adapt what you see, hear and read into your reality of life as a parent?

One thing I have come to appreciate more than ever before is that there really is no "right" or "wrong" answer and most of us are just blundering our way through parenting, hoping to do the very best we can for ourselves and our children but knowing we will invariably get some things "wrong". Finding what works for you and your own family is key to not only surviving but thriving.

Some things I have found myself doing differently to how I thought I would prior to having a child of my own, others I have stuck with completely. Many of those things I already had strong ideas and preferences about came from experiences working in childcare and thinking "I like the way that parent does this, I hope I can achieve something similar when I'm a parent". But some things I just had no experience of whatsoever.

Potty training is one of those things! I've worked with under 2s and pre-school aged children, but never with this 2-3 year age when potty training usually begins. I have no experience and therefore had no pre-conceived ideas about how it might work or how I might make it as stress-free as possible. And so this is one of those areas where I would avidly read any messages that popped up on the various social media feeds I follow.

The one thing I really took from this is that I wanted to take as relaxed an approach as possible and that all children potty train in their own time. No matter what techniques people used, the one thing most seemed to agree on was that there was no rushing children to potty train, you could try for months without success and then as soon as they were ready they would "get it" within a week or two. Sounds good, right?

Except because both TJ and I work full-time, Little Man goes to nursery 3 full days a week. I also work another 2 days from home, fitting work in around Little Man as best I can. This means that there is very little chance for us to let him run around and just take it at his own pace. Were I at home with him every day I would simply leave his potty where he could find it as and when he wanted to, following his cues and just going along with his leads.

Little Man started holding on to his wee months ago, and so we decided that as he seemed to be showing more control and interest in the potty we would try potty training over Christmas. We had 2 whole weeks off with him and thought it was the perfect opportunity to have a "relaxed approach" to the whole thing. But what actually happened was we spent such a large amount of that time travelling and visiting family that there was very little time to just take it slowly... Little Man was put in nappies for journeys and visits to avoid stress (for him and for us) and so there was no consistency to it at all.

And so when he returned to nursery he was in pull-ups and had no interest in trying the potty. We continued letting him run around without a nappy on or "big boy pants" at home and he was doing okay. He really enjoys his Pirate Pete's Potty book and will happily sit on his potty whilst watching tv or reading a book. But he would then wait until his nappy or pants were put back on before doing his wee. He actually got quite upset when he did a wee in the potty at times, whereas others he would happily ask us to "flush" it down the "toilet". It was all a bit confusing...

Then the other day he had 9 accidents at nursery (which is entirely unheard of normally) and got very, very upset about it all. And I felt awful. Though I had set out to have a "relaxed approach" it just hadn't worked out as I had hoped. Little Man was obviously getting upset by it all and it was time to say "stop". The last thing I want is to stress him out about it.

I didn't want to take a complete step back, so instead of returning to cloth nappies we have gone back to disposable pull-ups. We had been using cloth training pants but they just aren't absorbent enough to deal with Little Man's mega wees! This way he can still pull his "big boy pants" down and sit on the potty, but he has the security of knowing if he wees himself it will be okay. It has taken a few days of reassuring him that these "special" big boy pants will do that but he seems much happier again now.

In retrospect we tried too early. He has the physical control but is not quite ready to take that big step. He is, after all, only 2 years and 4 months and whilst some children potty train this early, many don't. And I feel bad that we rushed him, but equally I know as a parent that the "relaxed approach" should not only benefit our children but also ourselves. We are all on a huge learning curve and if we can't cut ourselves some slack then who will? Certainly not the media who makes us all think that we should be competing in this parenting journey!! 

I misjudged the situation... but we got through it and we're just going to take it as it comes. If it takes until next Christmas to get to grips with the potty then so be it! Of course I would rather it didn't, but I am not going to stress Little Man and myself over it. Too much of life is spent comparing ourselves and our achievements with those of others, I don't want to start Little Man's life in that way. 

Now begins our new and improved "relaxed approach". I am sure we will make many more mistakes along the way, but hopefully we can continue to work through it together and keep listening to each other and honouring the feelings we all have.

So tell me, how did potty training work out for you and your family? Did you struggle with it or was it relaxed and straight-forward? I'd love to hear from you as I know everyone's experience is different!

Road Safety: How do you keep your kids safe?

Bit of a serious post from me today, but I would love your thoughts on this.

We live on a very busy road and I have always been very aware of the need to teach Little Man road safety from the word go. He still doesn't quite get it, but every time we cross any road I try to involve him in the "stop, look, listen" routine.

But what worries me the most is that I am trying to teach him to use a pedestrian crossing if at all possible and yet these do not seem all that safe these days either.

You see, we live right next to a zebra crossing. Every day I tell Little Man to hold my hand and stop at the crossing and wait until the cars stop... and then we stand and watch several cars drive straight past us. And I'm not talking about cars which were practically on the crossing when we got there, I'm talking about those which had plenty of time to stop. I've even been in the middle of the road, crossing because the side nearest to me has stopped, and had cars zoom through the other side.

They did this when I was heavily pregnant, when I had a pram with a baby in, and now when I have a toddler by my side. It is honestly terrifying how little awareness there seems to be of the fact that this is a crossing and someone is waiting to cross. And I don't know which is worse, the cars that zoom by with their drivers seemingly oblivious to what is happening or those whose drivers look at me and shrug their shoulders as if to say, "well, what could I do?"

Um... you could stop!

And yet, I am used to this. I am super careful on this zebra crossing as I know what it is like. I am cross that this is the case, but it is what it is. What I was not prepared for, however, was the fact the same thing could happen at a pelican crossing - you know, the ones with traffic lights and a green man for pedestrians?

Last week I was in town and I saw the lights at the crossing starting to change to amber and then red. I knew I wanted to cross and so I sped up my pace to make sure I got to the crossing before the green man showed up. I got there just as the green man flashed on and the beeping started. The cars nearest to me had stopped and so I began crossing, all good so far... and then not one, but two cars zoomed through the other side right in front of me and a third car, whilst stopping to let me cross, had the audacity to honk her horn at me. And when I looked at the driver she shook her head at me as if I was in the wrong.

For a horrid moment I honestly thought I must have misread the situation, but one quick look at the traffic lights confirmed that there was a green man and these drivers had just gone straight through a red light whilst a pedestrian was on the road. How's that for terrifying?

It seems I'm not alone in this experience either. When I shared my story on Facebook I was greeted by several similar stories of drivers being so unaware of the road that they sped through red lights or turned when it was not safe etc. And it seems that it isn't only us pedestrians who have things to fear, other drivers seem to be struggling with the actions of other road users too.

But as I am trying to teach my son road safety, it is the safety of him as a pedestrian that most concerns me. That isn't to say I don't worry about his safety when we are in the car, because I do, but there will come a day when he wants to go out on his own and that's when I worry about having taught him enough road safety to remain safe. (Thankfully, this is a few years off yet, but the seeds of that knowledge begin now).

And I thoroughly accept that pedestrians can be just as dangerous too... I have seen so many people walk out in front of cars when they just couldn't be bothered to wait for the lights to change or walk those extra few yards to use a crossing. Why do we seem to have such a disrespect for how dangerous our roads can be?

For now, the only thing I can think of is to teach Little Man to always use a crossing if one is available and even if the cars seem to have stopped, to keep looking and listening both ways as he crosses the road... teach him to expect the unexpected. But is that enough?

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. How have you taught road safety to your kids? And have you come across these kinds of problems?

Handmade Christmas Wrapping Paper - The Toddler Way

I'm really excited about Christmas this year. And our preparations have already begun...

Yesterday Little Man and I set about creating our very own Christmas Wrapping Paper. I bought some brown paper, unrolled it bit by bit, and he drew enthusiastically across the paper with a variety of coloured pens. 

I was a bit concerned that he wouldn't really take to this activity - a lot of the time when I give him pens and paper he just wants me to write numbers and his name for him over and over again rather than scribbling and drawing himself. Hence the early start. I thought if we began now, we'd have plenty of days to get it out and work on the next piece of the roll of paper. But surprisingly Little Man enjoyed it so much that he got through the entire roll in one afternoon and evening. 

And they weren't just little squiggles here and there either... he went at it like it was the best activity ever (even getting cross with me when it took too long to roll up the piece he'd just finished to get a new blank piece to work on!) Some bits were less "busy" than others, but some bits look like a whirlwind has passed through...

I am so happy that he enjoyed it, as I had visions of having to scrap this idea and actually go out and buy wrapping paper instead. It gives me hope that he'll enjoy the activities I have planned for hism throughout December.

 

You see, I've created a sweet little Advent Calendar for Little Man, one with an activity each day, and I cannot wait until the weekend to share it with him. There are 24 envelopes hung on some ribbon with tiny pegs and each one has a number on it. As Little Man loves numbers, I hope this will entertain him. And each day we will open an envelope and find out what activity we can do, hanging the card inside up on the ribbon to show which have been opened and how many days we still have left to go. (I'll try and remember to share some photos once it is up).

Activities include things like 'make Christmas cards', 'write a letter to Santa' (I'll help with that one!), 'Go on a winter walk', and 'make mince pies'. I've had to be careful to ensure that I planned each day according to what is achievable: family activities happen at the weekend, messy activities happen on days I am home with Little Man, and we have short and sweet activities for the days he goes to nursery and they need to be done either over breakfast or just before bed. I think I have planned it all okay, but only time will tell.

However, seeing Little Man's excitement yesterday made me realise that it really doesn't matter if the plan works or not, so long as he is enjoying himself!

Do you have any activities planned for your little ones over the Christmas period?

 

The Positives of being a One Child Family - Our Experience So Far

 

My friend and colleague, who writes over at Spewing Mummy, has just written a blog post about only children. The reason behind her post being that a fair number of women who suffer from severe Pregnancy Sickness and/or Hyperemesis Gravidarum find themselves having to seriously consider whether they are able to face another pregnancy to provide a sibling for their child.

You may remember that TJ and I made that very same decision ourselves this year. Even though we knew pretty much from the moment my sickness first kicked in that we couldn't go through it all again, we still took a long time to feel okay with that decision. And when we did, I decided to collate a load of information, blogs and Twitter accounts of those who had made the same decision. You can find all of that on my "Just The One" page. 

Reading Spewing Mummy's post reminded me that a lot has happened to our little family since I wrote all of this and it was about time I provided an update. As Spewing Mummy's post aimed to dispel some of the myths around being an only child, I thought I would complement this by sharing some of the very many ways in which having an only child has been a truly positive move for us...

I'm not sure what the common thoughts are around parenting an only child, so what I am going to do is put the thoughts and fears that I personally had about this in bold and my actual experience so far below each one to show how inaccurate they really were!

You will ALWAYS yearn for that second (and third) child you always dreamed of having... 

This was perhaps my biggest fear of all. When I first decided I couldn't go through another pregnancy I grieved so much for all the things I would miss: finding out I was pregnant; seeing baby for the first time at our scan; feeling baby kick inside; choosing a name; giving birth; breastfeeding... and then of course all the really big stuff like raising another child and having chance to share my love with yet another person. And I really feared that this would always linger, no matter how much time went by. I worried I would get into my 40s and regret not having had another child. And until a few months ago it was a very real concern.

But over the past few months many, many things have occured which have changed my heart bit by bit until I found that actually I was not only okay with having an only child but I honestly didn't want to break up the beautiful little family unit we have by adding another child into the mix. I have no doubt that the addition of a new child into the family would be both a wonderful blessing and an awful lot of adjustment and for the first time ever I felt that what we have now is perfect and I didn't want to change that.

Nobody was more surprised by this than I was - I mean my aunt once told me she thought I'd have 6 kids, so strong was my maternal instinct and overwhelming broodiness. But more and more I am finding a real pleasure in having a beautiful little boy who steals my entire heart and has it all to himself. Do I think I will never yearn to hold a newborn in my arms once more? No, I don't... I think there will be moments when I think "man, it would have been nice to do that all again". But more importantly I feel that they will only be very fleeting moments and in actual fact I shall be glad we stuck at one.

You are selfish to think of yourself first. You should be able to put up with a few more months/years of difficulty healthwise for a lifetime of joy from a larger family.

I'll be the first to admit that I am not very good at accepting my limits. When my body plays up and tries to make me slow down I generally speed up and add more balls to my juggling act just to prove to myself that my body will not win, that I can achieve anything I want to despite the obstacles in my way. But as I grow older this is getting harder and harder.

In my teens, I could keep going because a) I had youth on my side and b) I didn't have huge amounts of pressure upon me (I didn't have to work  or feed myself etc). In my twenties it all got a little harder, and when I went through a really rough patch with my health it no longer affected just me but also my husband. And now, as I am about to reach 30, it seems harder than ever. Gone are the days when I can sleep for 12 hours solid to recover from whatever ails me. Now I have two jobs, a toddler, and a husband to think about. I need to work so we can afford to live. And I need to have enough energy left at the end of the day to be there for the two people who mean the most to me: TJ and Little Man. That's not going to happen if I push too hard, and is most likely going to get harder the older I get!

Accepting my limits means I give my family a better me. I still push too hard an awful lot of the time, but now I only do what is absolutely necessary for us to survive (i.e. I have to work, what I don't have to do is survive another 9 months of sheer hell and the many, many months of recovery afterwards in order to provide a sibling for Little Man!) The truly selfish thing to do would have been to expect those in my life to support me through another pregnancy because for me it is FAR more than 9 months (which is long enough), it's all the hormonal changes that mess up my body for far too long afterwards. 

Choosing to invest the time and energy I have into the one child I have (and my husband, of course) is the most selfless thing I think I have ever done. I put aside my own selfish desire to raise another child in order to give the best of myself to the family I already have. Had our lives been different, this decision would probably have been different too. But it isn't - the decision we made was the right one for us and I am proud that we were able to step back from our emotions long enough to make the best choice for us.

No matter what the benefits are to having an Only Child, are they really worth more than the 'little sacrifices' needed to have another child?

This was another thing I struggled with: how could I value the addition of another child to our family against benefits for me. How could I feel good about thinking we'd be better off financially and have more time to do the things we wanted to do when that meant giving up on the idea of another child?

But whilst this was a big one for me, what I came to realise was that it was perhaps the easiest one to overcome. 

By only having one child I am able to work 32 hours a week (12 out of the house and 20 from home).  The reality is I need to work as near to full-time hours as possible because we cannot afford to live on any less. That is just with one child. Were we to have another, the additional costs of childcare to enable me to work would go through the roof. But we also wouldn't be able to afford for one of us to stay at home. Having an only child may seem like it just gives you a bit of extra cash, but actually for us it means the difference between having money in the bank at the end of the month to put away for emergencies (and the odd treat) and not. If we added another child into the family, we just wouldn't make ends meet. And that would be awful. So in this case, financial security really does mean more to us than having a second child.

But more than this, the work I do means an awful lot to me. I am incredibly lucky to have two jobs which I feel really passionate about. The first is as a PA to a company that provides training to childcare professionals. The place I work is set in the woods, and is a beacon of best practise in the Early Years. Having worked in childcare and now having a child of my own I feel hugely privileged to work with people who inspire those who care for our children on a daily basis. This is especially important with all the changes the government keeps proposing! I wouldn't want to be anywhere else right now...

Except maybe in my second job which works beautifully around my first. As the Volunteer Co-ordinator for Pregnancy Sickness Support, I am in daily contact with women who are both suffering from severe sickness or who have previously suffered and desperately want to make a difference to the lives of others. I match Volunteer Peer-Supporters with women who request one-to-one support through some of the most traumatic days of their lives. Last week I got to go to the Royal College of Midwives Annual Conference and talk to midwives about how they can help support these women too. Yesterday I talked to the Development Officer and a Trustee about the way forward for our network. Today I spoke to a new volunteer. Honestly, being able to devote 20 hours every week to support a charity that means so much to me (and who I have gladly given so much of my time freely as a volunteer since I found them last year) is like a dream come true. And yet, had I not known for certain that we were "done" with babymaking I couldn't possibly have signed up for a 3 year contract, because I'd have had uncertainty over our future.

By choosing to stick at one child, I have freed myself up to do more, give more, be more for so many others. I have limited energy due to chronic health issues and  so had we had more children I'd have just never had the time or energy to devote so passionately to these things. Supporting women who are suffering in one job and supporting those who are caring for our children in another means the world to me and it is so worth giving up that dream of a second child. At first I saw it as a "trade-off" but now I see it as a true gift.

I feel I have to stop now, before I wander too far into the realm of overly emotive blog posts!! But I want you to know that absolutely everything I have written above is true, from the fears I initially held (in bold) to the amazing outcome that actually occurred. I honestly couldn't be happier or more confident that we made the right choice for us as a family. Parenting an Only Child isn't for everyone, but for those of you who may be faced with that decision and unsure about it I do hope that this post offers a bit of hope that maybe it is a choice that you too could make and be happy with.

 

 

A Woodland Themed Kids' Bedroom (complete with Blackout Blind)

During my pregnancy with Oscar I began, like most parents-to-be, to think about what I wanted Little Man's room to look like. Not that it took me very long to decide on a theme. I have long loved trees and woodlands  so it seemed like a no-brainer that I would want to share this love with my son. But what I really struggled with was coming up with design ideas that we could pull off in a rented house where we are limited to colour schemes etc.

As it turns out, Little Man ended up co-sleeping with us until he was about 18 months old and so it is only really in the past 6 months that I truly began to pull all my ideas together and it was my goal to get it completed ready for his second birthday. Which I did! And so now I would like to share it with you all, because I am so pleased with the results.

 

Ta da!

As you can see, the colour scheme is a neutral white for the walls and a grey/brown colour on the carpet. So we have plumped for colour by adding handmade bunting and creating 26 watercolour paintings of things you find in a woodland to correspond to each letter of the alphabet.

The idea for this woodland alphabet came to me when I was pregnant and my mum very kindly painted and framed all the pictures and made a "name sign" for Little Man too. We hung them in a higgledy-piggledy line around the room to add a splash of colour and interest to the walls and it is a great way for us to introduce Little Man to the nature he may find when we go out and about.

The crocheted hearts were made by a friend for our wedding (which had an autumn leaves themes!) and so it seemed fitting we would hang them along the top of the walls, like autumn leaves hanging down and creating a feeling of a "canopy" above us. 

Both of these colourful additions to the room were handmade, but if you are not so crafty yourself (or don't have crafty friends and family like I do to help you out) then you could always check out etsy.com for some fantastic finds (just search for "woodland nursery" and you'll be amazed at the results!)

Of course, it wouldn't be a bedroom without the comforts needed for a good night's sleep, would it? And this came in the guise of a suitable bed, funky bedding and a fantastic black out blind to keep out that pesky light!

This is his bed. As he is such a large child and as we barely used the cot, we opted for a low-level wooden bed (no metal beds in a woodland themed room, thank you very much!) instead of a toddler sized one he would outgrow in the blink of an eye and then began our search for the bedding... this was a nightmare!

When you search for "woodland bedding" so often you find pink and frilly patterns which I'm not sure I would even choose if I had a daughter, but most certainly didn't want for my son's room. So I trawled the internet, turned to Twitter and Pinterest, and eventually found this funky design, which Grandma and Grandad bought for Little Man's birthday present. Phew!

With that all sorted our final thought was the blind. With the summer light waking Little Man early in the mornings and keeping him awake in the evenings, we opted for a blackout blind and found this gorgeous night sky patterned one on the Blinds Supermarket website. The pattern is called "Bonnie Blue" and the website made finding the right measurements for a perfect fit so simple. I was really worried about ordering a blind online and fitting it ourselves when it arrived, but it was so straight-forward and easy that I needn't have worried one bit. It fits perfectly - look...

The pattern fits in well with the woodland theme, especially when you add some woodland creatures or a couple of pinecones nearby. You can find some really sweet and super simple crochet and knitting patterns for woodland creatures on Ravelry, and I shall be adding some of these to Little Man's room as soon as I can!

I think the night sky pattern ties the window in beautifully to the room, as all woodland creatures need to sleep at night time under the starry sky. And I am sure it will stand the test of time and fit in no matter what theme Little Man chooses for his room as he grows.

And the best thing about the blackout blind is that it really works! Naptimes in the middle of the day are a doddle by lowering it halfway, to create a darker but not quite dark room to distinguish between naptime and night-time. I love it.

With all the major parts of the room sorted, I am now beginning to cast my mind over the little details that will add those little touches and make the room so personal. I need to root out the "fairy door" we bought last year, and I am thinking of setting up a "nature table" or little wigwam somewhere in the room for some real fun during the daytimes (kids bedrooms aren't just for sleeping in, I have to remind myself of that). And this is where I turn my attention back to Pinterest, and in particular my "Woodland Nursery" board which I started when Little Man was so very small and which is only just starting to grow again as my mind explodes with ideas.

Why not have a look and see if you can find inspiration there or suggest some of your own.

 

Disclaimer: Blinds Supermarket were kind enough to provide the blackout blind for Little Man's room. All views regarding this are honest and no financial incentive was given. All other items were created or bought by ourselves and included in this post in the interest of sharing our Woodland Themed Bedroom. 

The Great Big Photo Dump!

There have been so many things that I have wanted to blog about and record over the past few months. Things like Little Man's first hair cut and his growing love of the outdoors. But a combination of no time and an inability to find the cable to upload photos from my camera or phone has meant these things have gone unrecorded.

So, as I have finally found a bit of free time and a working cable, I am now going to do one big photo dump of all the things I've wanted to share over the summer. 

Enjoy!

Little Man is getting more and more adventurous in his play outdoors and is happy to try new things now!

But he still downright refuses to smile when we go on the train at our local National Trust venue. Contrary to how this looks, he loves this train and would go on it all day long if he could!!

Here he is on another train, one he has only just discovered but quickly fallen in love with! When he is at nursery he carries "his" Thomas around all day long, so this was a real treat (especially as there was a screen playing a scene from the TV programme whilst the ride was going).

During the hottest days this summer, Little Man has spent a vast amount of time wearing nothing but a nappy and chilling out in the shade (this was taken in between dips in the paddling pool)

An added advantage of only wearing a nappy is that you can have fun with all the messy things without having to wait to be stripped down. This makes craft activities so much more spontaneous!

We went to "Open Farm Sunday" but only stayed for about 20 minutes as Little Man seemed to be going down with something... he was shivering and unsettled and we felt it best to go home.

We've had plenty of trips out over the summer though... some with Grandma and Grandad (seriously, this boy no longer smiles on cue!)

...and some just with mummy and a football!

We've chased bubbles...

...and climbed through "windows" rather than using the door!

And the whole time my Little Man has been the Coolest of Cool Dudes!

It's all a bit much for him sometimes though...

So we've also had "quiet days" just exploring the garden (which is now far more overgrown than this thanks to the hot summer days and mama being far too occupied with Little Man to keep on top of it!)

Someone also had his very first haircut (and daddy's hair has changed colour almost every week this summer!)

And he discovered daddy's hair gel, leading to one very cool hairstyle!

He likes singing into the microphone (well, he likes singing full stop!)

And he just loves drinking the milk from his cereal bowl (what are we teaching him?!)

Just look at that face!!

I love this baby boy of mine, who is growing up so fast. His little personality shines through stronger day by day and it is such a joy to discover the things that make him tick. Here's to many more summers exploring together!

Baking with a Toddler for the Very First Time!

Little Man and I did something very special this week - we baked cakes together!

I haven't baked in far too long and I suddenly realised that Little Man will be 2 in just over a fortnight and he has yet to experience the wonder of baking. That had to change.

We got off to a poor start as I realised my baking powder was out of date (and having only plain wheat-free flour to work with this was a really bad oversight on my part). So we trundled off to the corner shop and thankfully found some there.

We both put on our aprons, I carried a chair through from the dining room whilst Little Man emptied my cupboards...

And eventually we were all set to start baking!

While the oven heated up and I softened the butter in the microwave (because I forgot to take it out to come to room temperature), Little Man chose to pull all the paper cakes out of the muffin tin. Because apparently that is what you do when you are almost 2 and baking for the first time...

You also try to eat the batter before your mummy has even added the eggs and have to be consoled with a mini chocolate bar to distract you from the cocoa in the batter for just a little while longer.

Because if you don't get some chocolate soon, you will go on strike!

Thankfully disaster was averted by mummy offering to let you have a sneaky little taste!

After a little stir, you help mummy add batter to the new paper cases she has hastily placed in the muffin tins, saying "yummy yummy" with every little spoonful you add, because that is what mummy did and you think it's funny!

And then you decide that it is time to dive straight back in and eat some more batter before she puts it all into the paper cases because you have no idea where those are going...

Eventually, the cakes go in the oven and you go off to play (but not before you try to explore the eggs that mummy has left unattended, because they look like fun!).

Mummy chases you around to wipe you hands, and then asks you if you want to sit on the potty, which you do but only until mummy goes off to check the cakes and then you promptly run across the room leaving a trail of poo pellets (just like a rabbit, according to mummy) meaning that she has to come and clean up and the cakes end up getting a little burnt around the edges!

And that, dear readers, is where there are no more photos of the finished cakes.

They were sunken in the middle (I think I got my measurements of baking powder wrong due to trying to stop Little Man eating the mixture and not paying enough attention), burnt around the edges, and then squished flat by a bottle of oil falling out of the cupboard just as I was icing them.

All in all the end product of our first attempt at baking was tasty, if not so perfect to look at. But the fun that we had was far greater than anything I could have hoped for and I plan on baking with Little Man far more regularly from now on.

Do you bake with your children? What funny little mishaps have happened to you whilst baking?

"Darling" - the funny names our kids give us!

Little Man has recently taken to calling me "darling".

Not mama. Never mummy. Just Darling.

And it tickles me so much that out of all the words he could have chosen, this is the one he chose for me. I mean, I have no idea if he truly realises just what a sweet word he has chosen for his mama. What has most likely happened is that he has heard me call him "darling" on so many occasions that he simply associates this word with me. And whilst it makes my heart burst with emotion every time his beautiful voice calls out to me in this way, the biggest thing it does is make me chuckle...

Like when he stands at the gate to his bedroom, shouting "darling, darling, darling" down the stairs because he really does not want to go to bed right now even though it is dark and far too late for little boys to still be awake. He shouts "darling" whenever he wants his mama and it usually works!

But it is not just when he wants something that he uses this term of endearment to call me. When we pick him up from nursery he runs across the room shouting "darling" with a grin on his face and a kiss ready to bestow on me. Daddy is called "dada", but mama  doesn't have a name, she is "darling".

He even says it when we're out and about and he just wants my attention. I cannot actually remember the last time he even muttered anything close to "mama" or "mummy" let alone call me one of these names. Yet he used to call me both of those names quite clearly.

I guess he is making his own connections. Just a few weeks ago whenever we went to get him up in the morning he'd smile at us and say "baby boy" because that was what we called him when we saw him. "Morning, baby boy" we'd say to him and he'd reply with "baby boy" as he launched himself at us for a cuddle.

That has since stopped and he's moved on to "darling". I wonder how many other words he might say if we used them often enough? I don't mind "sweetheart" but I'd be a bit annoyed if he started shouting, "oi" to get my attention! (I hasten to add that we do not use "oi" in our house, but my point is that he is obviously copying our language so well these days that we really need to watch what we say and how we say it).

At the end of the day, though, I am truly loving being my baby boy's "darling". He'll be 2 in less than 3 weeks. Before I know it he will be too grown up to want to hold my hand or kiss me in public, so thoughts of calling me "darling" will be long gone. I plan on treasuring these moments whilst they happen and creating such sweet memories to remind me of this beautiful stage of our lives.

Has your child ever used a funny or sweet name for you? (My mum was once called "Woofa" for years by a girl she looked after... and that's girl's own daughter is now being taught the name "Woofa" just for good measure!)