Newbridge House

Yesterday we decided to be optimistic and make the most of the grey day – at least it wasn’t raining… We met the Kents and their two girls at Newbridge and toured the farmyard. It is such a wonderful place to go, and I’m glad to report that Ben was a lot more interested in the animals around him this time – was fascinated with the goats … And our optimism was rewarded with the sun coming out which made the day even better. Here are a few shots of the day… and I couldn’t resist the pretty one of Sammy in her pink coat…

Heading towards those Lazy Summer Days

Just a quick note to say... It is beautiful here at the moment - honestly, Dublin when the sun is shining is the best place to be. We've been out and about today, because it would have been criminal to stay inside. A walk at the Malahide Estuary this morning, washing the car when we got back and discovering grass this afternoon in the back garden. All in all, a very productive day for young Ben.

While he isn't crawling yet, Ben definitely manages to roll all over the place. This morning found him, inevitably, infront of the CD rack - why?? is it such a magnet for children... Soon we will have to start baby proofing the house. In fact, it might be a job for this weekend.


Ben is starting to experiment with sounds now too... He gasps with delight when he sees his favourite toys, or himself in a mirror. His expressions are getting more complex too - you can see him "connecting the dots"

I have been doing some research into baby sign language - and have decided that it's something I would like to do. Research shows that babies as young as nine months old are able to sign - I will let you know how we progress... I'm having such trouble trying to teach him how to drink from a sippy cup, that sign language seems very ambitious...

May Bank Holiday

We had such a busy long weekend, that it's just flown by... Boat shows in Malahide, Home shows in Swords and a lot of optimistic South Africans braaing, hoping that the weather would be good - unfortunately the weather didn't play ball at all and it's been rainy and cold for most of the last four days...

Ben is doing very well, but is still waking a lot through the night now... While he is easily settled, and we rarely spend more than 10/15 minutes getting him back to sleep it is still distrupting and worrying for us... we don't know what is waking him and we aren't sure of the best way to "train" him to settle himself... Do we let him cry it out, do we use the pick up/put down method???? What???...

We have also noticed a love of mirrors in our little boy - anywhere he can catch a reflection of himself, and as seen here - even the oven door will suffice ...