Report from the front line

Just very briefly, we are 5 weeks in and it's a bit of a mixed bag. The boy sleeps well at night, but is still waking us twice, as is only to be expected at this stage. However, he is steadfastly refusing to have lunchtime naps for Caroline, which is making her very tired. He tends to be colicky as well, which may contribute. On the plus side, he is v cute and fat (over 13lb already!) and the other kids love him. The health visitor came round to see him and asked C whether she had talked to the other children about how they feel about having a baby brother. She confessed she hadn't really, but didn't need to, especially in Amy's case. When she was telling me this in the evening I asked Jim how he felt about it. He just shrugged and gave me a broad grin. They are all becoming quite interactive with Sam, wanting to help bath and dress him etc.

Trips with all of them to the Grafton Centre for coffee at Nero were quite a feature of the Easter holidays. C and I managed a pub trip or two as well, of which we were inordinately proud.

 

There has been an awful lot of this...

 

But lots of cuteness too...

Trip to Barrington to see Sam's tree, as donated by Aunite Prue...

 

 

Now there are four

An update from our first weekend with four children...

It has been a busy couple of days with the kids here. Had just Jim for Saturday and we went over to 51a to do a little gardening before the tenants move in. He did a competent job of pruning some things before getting bored and amusing himself with the washing line. The girls arrived the next morning and everyone seems fine - I took them to see "The Croods" (latest kids' animation) after roast beef for lunch and an Easter egg hunt. They were very grateful for the eggs and have eaten their weight in choc. Unfortunately we then had an awful night with an extremely uncooperative Sam, who seemed to regress to his awake state between 2 and 6. We're not sure why, but as I write C is at the doctor with mastitis and Sam is with her because of an angry nappy rash the like of which neither of us have seen before. We think it might be fungal. Either of those things might be an explanation for his wakefulness. The modern obsession with breast feeding has such a lot to answer for - things would be so much simpler if he was on formula, if only because we'd know exactly how much he was getting. Anyway, C was so ragged today that I left her at home while I took all 4 kids to Anglesey Abbey for the egg hunt with Hannah and James. It was a success, and we even managed to procure a table in the absolutely packed cafe. I fed Sam formula and he didn't immediately disappear in a puff of smoke.

First bath:

Anglesey Abbey adventure:

Mama' helper:

 

 

Sam

This is Sam. He was born on the 14th March at 8.05 pm and weighed 9lb 8oz. Despite him being massive, Caroline is in good physical shape. I got the call at work at about 3.30, we were in the hospital by 5 and out he popped just after 8. C did really well - we were in the hotel-like midwife led birthing unit at the Rosie, which is brand new and lovely, but you can only have gas and air. She stayed overnight while I went home and got some kip.

 

He came home the next day and the last couple of weeks have been pretty full-on. The first few days were terrible, as he decided he would sleep during the day and wake at night. He has improved much since, with occasional blips. We are tired, but he lovely.

 

Wild life

Saturday: went to Shepreth wildlife park, after some complaining from Amy. Jim had been the previous summer with G but he still enjoyed it. We saw the tigers being fed and ditto the hilarious otters, and it was a god distracting day out for the kids despite a slightly amateur feel.

Sunday: much negotiation in the morning, with the children demanding to go to Moon's toy shop in Newmarket and us wanting to go on a walk. We ended up getting them to do all sorts of chores to earn money, which they the took to Toy R Us to waste on Ultimate Fighting Trashies. Jim and Minnie tidied, cleaned out the pig and helped me with the last bit of Ikea flat pack, and Amy prepared the Sunday lunch. After TrU we had our Sunday lunch and then went off up to St Ives to do a circular walk via Houghton, the Hemingfords and the meadows - about 7 miles and no complaints from the children or C at 9 months pregnant. We left late and got back around 6, with the light rapidly going. Children unaccountably excited about walking in the falling dusk and told each other ghost stories all the way home.

Normal start to the week for Jim but the girls went back a day early, on Tuesday, as C tired and a bit stressed. Impatient for jr to arrive now.

Jim has a wobbly tooth. His first.

 

 

Stumpery

Got Jim on the saturday morning this weekend as he had been to his school disco the night before and I didn't much fancy getting him sweaty and excited at 8pm. I think he had a nice time apart from the fact that Rachel Whitaker wasn't there...

Simon and JoJo came with Natalie and the still-tiny Abigail to remind us what it is like to have a baby, and to bring a whole bunch of useful stuff as well. They seem to be quite settled now with the little one at four months. We took them to the park on Arbury Road, which turns out to be quite fun despite the questionable location and graffiti.

Caroline at 8 1/2 months...

Sunday was sunny but with a light yet bitter wind straight from the Urals. Jim and Minnie declined to take their coats to Ickworth, which was a mistake, but once they had run around doing the quiz trail in the stumpery gardens all was ok. We went for a fairly short walk down to the walled garden (which has come on somewhat since the last time I was there - which I suspect was with Gabrielle when Jim was a tiny boy) and the lake, where we had an extremely cold picnic. Back up at the house we found it was too posh for a cafe so we got al fresco refreshments at the kiosk behind the porters' lodge. Caroline was appalled by our noisy and scruffy children's behaviour compared with the quiet, groomed and Bodenised pair in front of us, whose tall and amiably vacant father undoubtedly ran a department at Addenbrooke's and whisked them to their Sunday recreation in leather-upholstered style. I thought ours were fine, but slightly lively perhaps. Wasn't so keen when they started to play with the bins, and then the two little ones displayed their complete lack of social awareness by going and parking themselves with another family because their table was in the sun and none of the others were. I suppose it seemed obvious to them...

A footnote - when Jim was getting ready go home to Exning on Tuesday morning (it was half term) he was being rather silly in a harmless way, but suddenly stopped. He announced that as he was going to go back to mummy's he would have to take his crazy brain out, and them solemnly proceed to explain that the words "butt" and "willy" we're banned there. This was obviously of some concern to him as those words are such an endless source of amusement to our lot...

Ficken Wen

Saturday - pyjama morning, while I went to 51a to cut up carpets. Afternoon was a cold cold walk along the river with chimney cake from a stall by the river, sold to us by an incomprehensible Bulgarian woman. Jim and I liked them, the girls didn't. Then to the Green Dragon, which was full of derelicts watching Ireland in the rugby. Golden Compass film night in the evening.

Sunday - Wicken Fen in the morning while waiting for the pork. Kitkats in the tower hide and reed tickling sticks. Kids loved it, and it was a lot better than I remembered. Will be great in the summer. Best roast dinner of pork & crackling - a hit. Ikea flat packs in the afternoon/evening <sigh>...