his view

...from his bed. This fish is on a bouncy string, and he lets fly! The stars above him were made by jax, and wiggle with delight when the fish jumps. the days are starting to get shorter now - all of a sudden. I used to have to sheild the bright sun from his eyes at bedtime (seven o'clock), but now it's already dark by then.

our date

I went on a date with little man. we set out with a picnic, and found a grassy knoll. I spread out the blanket & we both kicked around for a while. Did I mention that I am in love?

while the sun shines

making hay.

at last -

it has been such a wet summer that only now the landscape becomes a quilt, sprawled over the countryside with its patchs.

beano

most tuesdays we have been going to help out at Nick's big garden near foxhole, in dartington and take home fresh organic veggies in exchange.

Little man used to oblige by sleeping or gurgling at the chickens (all 300 of them roaming free). But these days, as you see in this pic, he is pretty unimpressed at the garden. So my weeding and planting days may be numbered... until I can think of a more interesting job for him than holding the beans.

"happy half birthday...

...to you! "

On his 6 month b'day he got half a card.

Mistaking the card for cake, he ate it!

He is now eating happily. I am too disorganised to manage meal times, or for him to be in the same place (in his little freecycled wooden highchair) but he is swallowing, swilling, spilling, spitting and enjoying lots of tastes.

avacado and banana are top faves, followed by this evening's intro of babyrice. I liked it too. mmmm... stodgy mash. I snuck some carrots in too, which he had rejected for lunch.

all in the neck

giggles. there is nothing quite like this sound. he is not a big giggler, but maybe that is because I just found out that it's his NECK, not underarms or belly or toes, that produces this bottle-able sound.

He's also started blowing bubbles. Keep a look out for a gripping video of this.

3 now..

He points to his 2 lower teeth all the time, and he's just told me that his top left tooth is poking through too. how busy he is. he loves banana and pear. vegetables? not so good.

not-mum & not-dad

little man loved the

visit this week from his newest not-mum and not-dad (cassja and alan) from amsterdam. So named because little man was a little confused at first who these lovely people were cuddling, playing, exploring with him and being just like his mum and dad, with a slight difference. I squeezed him out of their suitcase just as they were leaving...

We explored the coasts and footpaths of totnes & devon, and did a little memory-delving into our time together at high school, university, prison - all the usual places.

dad & dom

- everyone who meets little man says he looks just like his dad. maybe I'm too close to see it? AA doesn't have a round, podgy, double chinned, slurpy, giggly face. or blue eyes. or no hair. and he can walk. and talk. so I just don't see it.

Bub is also sporting the much coveted little cardy made by dom. he gets lots of compliments, and i think a few mums from playgroup have tried to stuff it in their bags when I wasn't looking. Very soft and warm and perfect.

little butterfly mate

janu's butterflies have flown on to esme's hat.

getting the feel of things

this sunday, as part of 'organic fortnight' we went along to an open day at our local farm (our veggie box supplier) - little man gets a taste of farm life.

I suppose farm life for most farmers doesn't actually involve sitting bare-bummed on pumpkins, but at least he was getting his toes in the mud.

and learning the words to row row row your pumpkin.

who said british men can't dance?

I never expected to walk into totnes town square and see middle aged men waving white handkerchiefs, adorned with bells, flowers and plastic beads, cavorting with other men dressed as deer, sheep and large mysterious creatures - all to the sounds of fiddles, accordians and good cheer. and singing lustily about ripping garters from their ladies.

luckily, here is a video to prove it. I will sign little man up for it when he is a little bigger.

tile by tile

we're getting there! AA lays down cork tiles over the cooold floor below. me and baby giving expert advice from the sides, of course.

all grown up

has he grown suddenly?

new colours

look what's happening - rainbow colours instead of plain white milk. this ice cube tray is destined for the freezer, to pop out little fresh lines of goodness when he's ready. so far he likes banana, but the faces he pulls when we try anything else !

carrot - no. zucchini - no. apple - no. potato - no. sweet potato - no.

so I'll try again. (chocolate?)

all clean

We have a good system with baths - usually I bathe little man, then AA swoops in to dry him, change him and get him ready for bed. Then bundle comes back to mama who supplies the magic sleeping potion, and with luck, 10 minutes or 2 hours later - he's asleep. for at least 10 minutes. then it all starts again.. and again..

TWO teeth

I told a lie. It's not one, but two!

the fat/happy club

just some more membership photos.

start point

glorious. deep foghorn sounding as we began a walk toward start point. then fog lifted, and the sea turned turquoise. purple heather. sparkling yellow gorse. blue baby eyes. pink baby cheeks (under his seersucker hat). all is well.

helping

what did I say earlier about getting lost? now we know

why.

something I ate?

ahhh, devon. a cream tea, a castle and a stinky little boy fart. sis has become adept at handing him over when she smells & feels the sure signs of action down below.

tell us

meanwhile, we are trying to figure out what to do about our kitchen floor. which colours? tell us.

members only

there is a fan club that I can't join. it is my sis and her little neph. I asked if I could join but they just kept on whispering secret passwords and hand-shakes. I could overhear something that sounded like a story being told about elephants and horses, but it was members only.

"YES I am...

fat and happy".

Today I noticed all-over dimpled-ness of his most delightfully chunky thighs.

jasmine's needles

Fair Jasmine sent this hat across the seas, to a lucky warm round head. He pulled this over his eyes on a wild, windy mid-summers (!) day. Lucky little man.

dart & mouths

On a rare sunny day, my sis and I tramped along the river dart from Greenway, Agatha Christie's old haunt on the river (she set 'Dead Man's Folly' here, and there was a murder in the boathouse!) all the way to Dartmouth, with little man sleeping all the way. We wondered along the way whether our parents had intended us to have caught, so completely, the walking bug. Two weeks into my sis's stay, we had gone for long walks almost every day - as if it was only possible way to spend our time. I wonder if little man will catch this habit. So far, as long as there is milk, little man is happy.