Sian's 1st day

Monday, 26th January 2009. Sian started at Kenyngton Manor School. She had a good day from all accounts! Her teacher told me she'd been good as well so I was happy!

I heard all about snack time (apple, orange adn water) and school dinners (jacket potato and beans with a yummy pie and custard) and she drip fed me information through the evening. She did t (tuh) and T (tee) and adding up and painted a flower and stuck wrapping paper on a ladybird

Enjoy the photos :o)


Signing "school"

Waiting for her teacher

All smart in her uniform (didn't last!!)

PE Kit

Have I got everything now?


With the begining of school though, Sian has to leave her sign language classes. So we made a video for Dom before we left for the school run. She understands a LOT of signs, and also the grammar. I'm hoping that she gets to use this skill in teh future as she really does have another language at her finger tips (they use makaton in her class as some of the children have speech difficulties)

They're getting so BIG!

My daughters that is. Next week Sian starts school and Beth starts nursery.

Where were living previously we had the Hounslow Sure Start facilities on our doorstep for free and the schools weren't ones I was happy with. So, I made the decision to home school the girls. Since we moved we have two good schools within walking distance of our house. One of which has a long waiting list- which Sian is on, but will now be taken off. The other is not in our borough but IS our 2nd closest school (still walking distance, just about another 5mins)

So, Thurs 22nd Jan was spent in a search for uniform for Sian. The only thing I need to get her from the school is her jumper. Which my friend is very kindly buying for her birthday/christmas present. We got... 2x skirts, 1x pinafore dress, 3x polo shirts, 2x tracksuit(ish!) bottoms, 6x tights, 1x plimsolls, 1x school shoes. In addition I've been given 4x polo shirts and 1x yellow t-shirt. She's all kitted out hopefully right till she needs/wants a summer dress. But she has the choice and doesn't have to have one! I'll share photos in another post (Clive took pics tonight and somehow adjusted the setting so they're useless!)

Neither girl can wait for next week LOL. Sian starts Monday and Beth starts Thursday. Boo's going to cost me a whopping... £1.87/day! I know exactly what i'll do with my two mornings with out the girls. Get the house sorted out!!

A Frederick Post.

My little man's found his thumb!

My favourite Nursing photo. I took it with my phone and then edited it on there as well.

car seat pic at 10wks 4days (last one was at 3days)

In his big boy cot. My little man slept in his cot all night long for the first time Jan 17th :o(

Just love the shocked expression!

Isn't he a cutie pie? (ok, I'm biased!)

Lovely soft dungarees!

He's not meant to fit this pushchair yet! Makes walking to the bakers easier if I want a basket though!

Trip to the park

First time on a swing.

So, the little so n so decided that to roll over tummy to back at 5weeks wasn't enough. At just over 10wks he slept all night in his own room (mama didn't sleep too well!). And in all the gurgling and babbling he said "mum" not just a fluke but 3x one night and then a couple times the next morning. He doesn't seem to need to nurse as much as the girlies did. And he's found his thumb! What else. He's trying really hard to roll back to tummy now- and getting frustrated when it doesn't work! And I have no clue how much he weighs (well over 11lbs by the feel of him!) but I just had to buy him 6-9mos footed sleepers as his toes are all scrunched up in the 3-6's. As long as there are no feet he's fine! I'm 3/3 on kids with no waist/butt!!

Random Pics!

All my babies on Christmas Day at GrannyJan's

Sian and Beth with their stockings

Christmas Eve PJ photo

Justin @ CBeebies Live! (Christmas present from GrannyJan)

Beth @ CBeebies Live!

Sian @ CBeebies Live!

Rick waiting to get up to the auditorium.

Trying out the multimac carseat. Man I wish we had enough to get one of these. Unfortunately at over £1000 for this part and a good £200 for the infant seat it's not happening any time soon. They're safe enough in what they've got but even now, 6mos later, Sian would prefer a harness!

Sian's Christmas

Sian decorating the tree

Christmas Eve PJs... can you tell it was just about bed time?!

Lola from "Charlie and Lola" in her stocking.

All Sian asked Santa for was a Cinderlla Disney Princess Doll.

Christmas Peppa Pig outfit

Sian asked for Peppa Pig PJs but I had trouble finding them (She ended up getting them as a present) so this was Mama's compromise.

Don't let my oldest daughter loose with a bunch of cherries! We ended up in A&E as she swallowed a cherry stone. By the time we got there it had gone down and she jsut had a very sore scratched throat- I think I probably did more damage whacking the poor kid on the back!

Sian's favourite present? Junior Monopoly from her Uncle Stevie.

Beth's Christmas

Started with helping to decorate the tree- our first!

Christmas Eve PJs... Still a big "In the Night Garden" fan, although Dora the Explorer and Peppa Pig are following close behind.

One of her Stocking presents

Makka Pakka... All Beth wanted from Santa was her Makka Pakka bath toy.

Christmas day outfit

It's the Pinky Ponk! (2nd best present apparently!)


We were at GrannyJan and Grandad's for Christmas dinner as Daddy was working. Beth very cheekily got up towards the end of her main and pinched Sian's sprout from her plate! She (like 98% of our family!) didn't like it. She did like the Christmas pudding and cream this year though!

Frederick's 1st Christmas

So, my baby boy got to experience his first Christmas at the tender age of 7 weeks. Here it is in a few pictures. Daddy got to see it this way too. He had to work on Christmas day.


Christmas Eve always kicks off the celebration with a nice new pair of PJs. Normally we'd leave a mince pie for Santa but this year things were a little tight.

Opening his stocking present.

Modeling his Christmas outfit and a hat/mitt set. He stopped screaming once I'd taken the hat and mitts off!

Opening a present from GrannyJan and Grandad

Poor baby was shattered and didn't get the rest of his presents when we got back from the grandparents- his sisters opened them the next morning before the rest of us got up!

Mostly he got clothes- little so-n-so has outgrown 0-3mos in length if not weight! He has a good inch of bare flesh at his wrists and ankles. It would be fine in the summer but it's freeeeezin' this winter. A few cuddly toys, a book and some gift cards (best presents were the gift cards!!)

Sian's FIVE!!!

I can't beleive she's a big five year old! She's come a looooooooooong way from that 3lb 13oz shrimpy thing huh? I weighed and measured her on jan 31 and she's finally broke the 40lb mark! She's 105cms to go with it... average weight and slightly below averagwe heihgt- i told her she was short and tubby lol. mean mama!

Pics are in the wrong chronological order but enjoy. Birthdays around christmas suck. I invited several of her friends and deliberatly chose to meet close to them. Only two had the decency to reply in any way (and one had to call off due to illness) Is it so hard to reply to a text or facebook message?!


Cutting the cake

First cut

blow!

Hippo Birdie!

Spongebob Cake!

Happy New Year!

It's 2009. I have some... goals. I won't call them resolutions.

• Eat properly
• Don't beat myself up when I have an off day
• Take some "ME time" (even if it's playing one round of brain training on my DS!)
• Try a new form of excersize (Belly Dancing, I've wanted to try it for ages)

For the Kidlets...

• Monday is Sign Class and Rainbows
• Tuesday is our day to go out and about (Either free or low cost)
• Wednesday is Baby Clinic/Toy Library
• Thursdays is Home Ed group (when we can afford it and have somewhere to go!)
• Friday is Library day

The nice thing about Home Ed is that we can tailor things to the childrens interests. Sian wants to cook so at least 2x week she'll help me cook a meal or we'll make cakes/cookies. When she wants to sit with a work book we'll do that. At the moment she's sounding out words and sight spelling so I'm encouraging her to do more of it.

Hamleys

My friend from the UAE came to London for a flying visit so we hooked up and took the kids to Hamleys. I hope she comes to London in the summer but her family is all further North. We always have such a good time together. Even when the family is jet lagged!!


Beth with a giant dinosaur. Sian had a ride on him later!

Sian and Beth in the "Hello Kitty" Section

Beth with a very tired little freind behind her

Sian with an even more tired little girl (they'd been off the plane from the UAE maybe two hours!)

The Christmas decorations down Carnaby.

Back to where I started

Actually, I'm almost 2lbs LESS than where I started just over a year ago. So, in the six weeks since giving birth I've lost at least a stone of the weight I gained. Possibly more as I'm fully dressed and have already eaten. Now I've found my scales I'm getting back on track with the weight loss. There's enough of me that it really won't affect my nursing relationship with Frederick!

Speaking of the boy, he's exactly six weeks today. I'm going to go off and weigh him out of curiosity. Then I'll weigh him monthly for the next year.

Oh My Gosh.

Rick was 5wks old yesterday. And he rolled for the first time. First after a nappy change- so he had the slope of the sofa to help- back to front. He's only ever gone back to side on the sofa till now. Then last night after his midnight feed I put him on his tummy, went out the room to sort out the nappy wash and came back to find him on his back. And I missed it!! On the one hand I want him to do it again so I can *see* on the other.. he's a baby and I want him to stop growing up so darned fast!!

The boy doesn't like his pushchair when he's awake. I don't think babies under 3mos should be sitting in pushchairs... he's trying to change my ideas! He fights the pouch sling if he's awake and I can't find my thicker ring sling to use. He's still too skinny for the mei tei (my personal favourite!)
Maybe in the new year he'll have me forced to put the seat on the pushchair... he already sits up on your knee looking round really well. His head control is excellent (and has been for a long time) and he can push his rear in the air aiming for a crawling motion.

I think it maybe time to start thinking about a new one......... however I always nurse my babies for a year at least first.

Sian got a hair cut

Please excuse the orange face.. I think it was tomato soup for tea! Anyway. Sian asked me to cut her hair short. So this is the result. It looks MUCH better when it's brushed!! I might get her an alice band as she wanted some hair bands and then decided to get it cut.

I have to give my big girl a big shout out. She has been THE best big sister. And the best big girl a Mama could ask for. She's had some moments (she's not quite five, she's entitled!) but for the most part? Sian has been THE most helpful member of my family. Not just with Rick, but with her little sister and just in general round the house. If I can't reach something or I need soemthing done quickly she'll do it.

Methinks Father Christmas may have to find a little special something for her this year. I know she'd like some Peppa Pig PJs and a T-shirt. And they're bringing out a Peppa Pig Wii game... Something will be forthcoming.

Fred. Rick. George!

What's this and where am i?!
r
Tummy Time

My sisters and Me

Zzzz

In the Night Garden... anyone seen Rick?

Clive likes Fred. I like Rick. So then Beth pipes up with George (giving him his full name LOL). People insist on adding "ee" to the end of kids names (even i do it) and I DON'T like Freddie. I don't mind Ricky. He looks more like a Frederick or a Rick to me.

He's a month old on Friday. I can't beleive it. I really can't beleive it! And how much has he changed in that month. I'll weigh him Weds (4wks) just for curiositys sake. I won't be suprised to find he's not gained much. All my kids are slow gainers.

Mr Man is trying to do things a bit too fast though. He likes to sit up on your knee and watch the world go round. He already rolls to his side.. won't be long before he can roll to his belly (eek!) and he likes to be on his tummy and lift his head to look round at the wrold from a different perspective. I get a good block of sleep from him from around 8-midnight. then he's a 2hour nurser till about 8/9am after that all bets are off depending on what we're doing.