Say Cheese

I have some lovely shots from the weekend and so this is more about photo's than text today... But I must tell you, we've been trying to teach Ben to smile, and to do that we've told him to say "cheese" and so that is the reason for some of the manic looking smiles you're about to see :)... Here are the boys... As I'm the official family photographer, shots are always with daddy!

Daniel...

Okay, so those of you that are sensitive to over indulgent mothers who think that there children are beautiful and like to show them off at any given opportunity - invited or not - stop reading now! I want to dedicate just one entry entirely to Daniel, who is changing daily and who has already at seven weeks shrugged off his "newborness" and has become a lovely, chubby baby. He is still sleeping well and I'm delighted to say lights up when his brother is around (as long as he's not hungry, sleepy, windy or generally cranky)... So who lights up some of the time his brother is around :)... He is also BIG on eye contact... As long as someone is talking to him face to face he's a happy little chap. I am so enjoying him and like all my previous posts, am loving being a mother of two - somehow I feel my family is more complete now...

Mom left today, back to Dubai. I was very sorry to see her go, but knowing that we'll be there for Christmas is something to look forward to. It was wonderful having her over and having her here to get to know Daniel a little... The next time she sees him he'll be six months old!

Here are a few more photo's of the boy...

The August Bank Holiday

It's mom's last weekend here as she is flying back to Dubai on Thursday and finally we got to go out for a meal, albeit Saturday lunch... The weather was halfway decent, and there were people swimming in the sea - but there was no sun to be seen at all. We got a bit of an early start on Saturday and left home at 10:30 for the garden centre to buy the plants to finish off the garden (see pic below)... The women there was wonderful and spent about half an hour with us advising on the type of plants for our garden... When it came to choosing I felt like a winner of one of those shopping gameshows were you are allowed to run around throwing things into the trolley willy nilly... 3 of those, 5 of these and chuck those in too for good measure :). Finally though the garden is pulling together and we have a really nice space outside for the boys to play and for us to entertain - if summer ever comes this year!

The boys are doing well and both are now over the chicken pox, Ben has been sleeping in a "big boy bed" for four nights now and is doing very well with the transition. Daniel is wonderful, and is so smiley in the mornings which is his best time. We are really enjoying him... and he is so different to Ben, I feel he completes our family. I have yet to experience anything more special than when Ben interacts with him and Daniel beams his gummy wide smile at his brother...

Here are a few more pics of the boys....




Say "Cheese"


Enjoying the Sunshine

The Chickenpox

So another weekend has come and gone, and it was lovely. The Irish weather was up to its usual mixed bag and so we were caught once or twice in the rain. We went for a walk in the park on Saturday and Ben got to talk to the animals... He decided it was a day for shades and as you can see in the photo wore them the whole day - even to sleep!





After the walk in the park, it was time for the playground - or "outside" as Ben calls it, everything that is fun is "outside"... His vocab is growing daily, and while "please" and "thank you" are said when prompted, we have still to add "yes"! Everything is "no" even when he wants something.


Sunday saw a trip to Howth and the harbour and market there. The weather was fantastic in the morning and it was a great time out. We got to see a rather large and old seal, and Ben was fascinated with him...

Daniel too enjoyed the day out, or what he could see of it from the stroller :)... Unfortunately for him though, he contracted Ben's chicken pox - two weeks to the day, and while he's fine with no temperature, has quite a few spots... On the one hand I'm glad that he's getting it now as it'll be over and done with for the two boys, but on the other, he's only six weeks old and it's so young to be sick... I'm hoping that it's just a mild case.... Poor mom, here for three weeks and in quarrantine for two!

Will update again soon with more pics of Daniel - we haven't taken too many at the moment on account of the spots...

Three Weeks On

Hi, So we're three weeks into being a family of four - and we are all adjusting really well. Ben is very good to his brother which is wonderful, but is a little bit of a terror with me, which is to be expected I suppose. But even that is getting better, he's accepting of Daniel but doesn't like the time I spend with him. I make a big effort though to have one-on-one time with Ben when we get home from creche. Other news is that from next Monday Ben will be part time in creche and home with me in the afternoons, and I'm really looking forward to spending more time with him. Here are some up to date photo's taken this week of the two boys... Oh, the other big news is that Daniel is sleeping really well for us and last night slept from 10 until 4. The public health nurses told me that I don't have to wake him for feeds at night but not to leave him longer than seven hours... He is battling with a little bit of wind at the moment after his feeds, and hopefully that will settle soon... Otherwise a dreamy, sleepy baby :)


Hey Guys!


I love him, does he love me back ??


Me and my dad in my new house


Garden Time

Daniel's One Week Old

Well, Daniel is a week old today - I can't believe it's been a week already! And we are settling down nicely as a family. If I'm honest, I was quite worried about how I would be with the two boys on my own but I had to cross that bridge last Thursday when Bob got tied up at work and I had the two together in the afternoon. The day was made easy as Daniel slept in his car chair for most of it and I could give all my attention to Ben... We are really just loving having Daniel around, he is such a relaxed baby so far, a good eater and to this point a very good sleeper. I'd forgotten just how much newborns sleep! And even as second time parents, we still have a little healthy paranoia - on Saturday we called the hospital again because Daniel wasn't too keen on waking up - at all... After a rather confusing conversation with the nurse, (who asked me if he was still breathing!!!! Of course he's still breathing, if he wasn't I would be calling 999 not YOU...) she assured me that all was well and that newborns sleep most of the time they're not eating...

Ben is still taking the whole new addition in, and while he's not overly physical with the baby, he's really gentle with him actually, he is acting out a little - whether that is his age coming into play (being nearly two) or Daniel I'm not sure, but he definitely is a little more challenging. In a good way though, as both Bob and I can see him trying to establish his boundaries with us... And I'm learning too, I'm learning to choose my battles and I'm learning stuff can be replaced - cd players, digital camera's and every other electrical device in the house worth investigating... :)

Here are some more pics of the new boy and the family...

Baby Daniel's Arrived

So it's official now... and Ben is a big brother!... Daniel arrived at 9:23 Monday morning, rather quickly to everyones surprise, including my own. We only got to the hospital at just after 7 and both Robin and I though it would be at least lunch time before the little guy made an appearance - but he had other plans. The stay in hospital wasn't bad this time either, in fact it was really good. The nurses were fantastic AND I got my own room for the second night which was fabulous too.

Daniel is a very relaxed baby so far, and I'm loving being a mom to a small baby again. I am so much more relaxed this time too, and can enjoy this precious time instead of stressing over every little cry and peep...

Ben has also surprised me in that he is very interested in the baby, and doesn't seem too upset that Daniel is around. Everything has to be given to the baby, or thrown into the moses basket for the baby (whether Daniel is in it or not)... The only funny thing is that we've had the moses basket downstairs in the lounge for almost the past month and Ben hasn't shown any interest in it at all... Until yesterday when he had to climb into it and sleep in it and be rocked! :)...

We are having difficulty deciding whether the two boys look the same and who they take after - what do you think?

Daniel a few hours oldBen a few hours old

Take care everyone, and I'll post again soon x

Finally A Summer Day

Hi, just a quick update in that we had our first Summer Saturday yesterday. The weather was gorgeous! Hot and bright - which doesn't often happen in Ireland. Here are a few pics of the day...


Three little kids in the garden



Our first Braai of the "Season"


Me and my Dora Straw


Hard at work with Dad


Swimming in the Evening (it was about 8pm at this stage)


I'm a model, you know what I mean?

Sleeping after a hard day of fun...

Family shot with me ready to pop


Ben and Sean reading the paving brochure - don't ask me why, but it was the book of choice for the day

Ben looking very grown up


Us again...


Ben and Me in the garden

Ben's new bed


Peek-a-boo Mommee!

This is going to be a short post with lots of photo's ... As you can all see I'm ready to pop, and feel it believe me, only a week to go 'til D-Day... It's a bank holiday here this weekend which means we get Monday off... But as my husband loves to inform me I'm on permanent holiday now... :) Bob is going into work on Monday as he's trying to keep as many days leave for when the baby finally does arrive...

Ben has his "Big Boy" bed now and was delighted when we put it up. We aren't going to change him from the cot to the bed just yet, but I wanted it in his room for him to get used to before the baby came, he just looks like such a little boy now and not my baby anymore... The next time I post will definitely be to introduce the new addition... Take Care til then...

Only Two and a Half Weeks to Go

Hi Everyone,

So here we are with only two and a half weeks to go until baby boy two arrives!! Time is just flying by and my next post will probably be an introduction for our new arrival.

A lot has been happening in the last month and because of it, I'm ashamed to say that I'm not very ready for the baby to arrive yet, don't even have my bags packed!! Which I am planning to get done today sometime I hope. We have had a deck built in the garden in time for the summer, and we are in the process of landscaping the rest of the garden. It has made a huge difference to us and Ben loves playing outside on it. We have also had the whole house painted and it is wonderful to have some subtle colour in the house now... I am really happy with the transformation :) And to top it off we bought a new car - a Renault Grand Scenic... and so now I really feel a bit like a soccer mom... It's lovely to drive and the space is amazing. It's a seven seater - specially for when the family come to visit ;)

Ben is doing really well - I finally took him for his MMR on Monday and I flinched more than him when he got the injections. He didn't cry at all and was fabulous throughout. He is talking a lot more now and has quite a large vocabulary (Bob and I are trying to count it now and we would say in excess of 50/60 words)... The most popular at this stage being juice and cheese - two of the five food groups in case you didn't know. "Daddy" is also a big hit, with "Mommy" only being used when he wants something - I suppose I have to get used to that :)

He also has some concept now that there is a baby on the way, and will point to my tummy or his and say baby. The lucky little thing also gets a few kisses every now and then when he's in the mood :)... While I can't say that I'm not a little sad that his world is going to change completely soon, I am looking very forward to seeing how he adjusts to the new arrival. I am learning that Ben adapts particularly well in almost any situation - and I look forward to telling you all that he had no problem adjusting to his brothers arrival :)

Here are a few recent pictures to catch you up. We went to the botanical garden a few weekends ago and the kids were in their element chasing the squirrels. Hence the pic of Ben and Sammy looking up in the tree and the squirrel ran up...

Hope you are all well, and I'll post again soon

At Long Last

I cannot believe that I have left this update so long! But what a busy year 2007 has been so far... As most of you know, we travelled to SA again to visit the family and had a lovely time. Ben travels amazingly well, and adjusts to almost any situation. That is not to say that there is a lot of hard work behind the scenes to keep him happy... I have realised that for the next few years at least Bob and I will not really have holidays per say... No lounging around the pool and sleeping til 10 - oh on, we will be on duty from 06:30 in whatever time zone we've adjusted to until the kids fall into bed at night. And this duty will be made doubly difficult as we will not have the comfort and familiarity of home to help the process :)

We went down also for Lisa's wedding which I must say was beautiful. It was a lovely day and very enjoyable - Lisa made a beautiful bride, Jason a dashing groom and a beautiful reception afterwards topped off the day.

Once back in Dublin things started falling apart a little... Bob headed off to Hawaii the day after we got back for a week - and in that week I had to have emergency dental surgery, the boiler in the house broke and cost a fortune to get fixed, and Ben got really sick - tonsilitius and an ear and throat infection. So the first week I was due back at work saw me actually at work for a day and a half. Ben hasn't really been well since and was back at the doc's yesterday with spiking temperature and thrush... I'm hoping that this course of medication will see him get over the last of it and back to his bubbly self. Although, at this point I don't know if we've lost bubbly ben to the terrible twos for a while! My little guy enjoys getting his own way these days and protested VERY loudly and dramatically when things don't go his way - I'm told that this is normal, but you have to second guess yourself a bit when the performance is Oscar worthy!

To top it all, I find myself seven months pregnant now... I don't know where the time has gone, honestly! I am stuggling a little with the concept that in a few weeks I'll be a mother of two... I've been very well in this pregnancy, but things are getting a little harder now that I'm getting bigger. We are trying, somewhat in vain I think, to get ben to understand that his brother is on the way - but sure, in eight weeks reality will hit... Us all - not just Ben :)...

I must say though that I'm really starting to look forward to the summer - the weather here is glorious at the moment and the days are getting longer, and it's difficult to let anything get you down... We go for walks inthe evening now and Ben is loving playing outside and it's wonderful to see him run and play and learn... We're most proud of his recent ability which is an Houdini-like talent of opening doors - which has led us to learn our most recent lesson - turning our house into Fort Knox and adopting a jailer like disposition :)...

I'm sorry for the long winded essay - but we had a lot to catch up on... I will keep the blog updated more frequently now, which will mean less in the way of paragraphs.... Hope you are all well... Here are a few pics from the easter weekend and our egg hunt...