Days with the Walker Family

I have moved

2010-01-31T20:40:00.004Z

Hi Everyone

This blog has now moved to:

http://notesfromemily.blogspot.com/

I will be blogging under the new tittle of 'Notes from Emily', you will still be able to see all of my past posts from 'Days with the Walker family' on this new blog, but I will no longer be using our surname.

Please take a moment to update my details if you follow this blog etc as I will be deleting 'Days with the Walker family' in the next month.

Many thanks for all your comments and support, look forward to hearing from you at 'Notes from Emily'.

Love
Emily x

PS A new banner will be coming soon.

Rain and my To Do list

2010-01-29T20:52:00.001Z

Harry got to try out his new umbrella this afternoon.

This week has gone soo fast, I have started to think about what extra things, on top of the normal household duties and my massive ironing pile, I would like to achieve next week.

My To Do list looks like this:

Find a baby yoga class for Ollie and me, and hopefully starting it

Make a memory frame for Ollie (I will post pictures)

Visit the two local nurseries ready for Harry in September, they get booked up so fast

Practice my new Photoshop skills

Print off some of the gazillion photos I have on my USB stick

Look for an awesome birthday present for my friends gorgeous girl who will be turning 3

Catching up with a couple of friends that I have not seen in ages
Finalise our holiday booking (very excited as we are going on holiday with all my family)

I think that is enough for one week

Happy weekend x

Fresh Basil Anyone?

2010-01-28T20:44:00.002Z

This morning whilst I was making the boys porridge, Harry decided to take the basil plant to 'show' Ollie.

It was so sweet, Harry telling Ollie to smell the leaves. Despite the mess, I could not get cross, so I just took pictures instead.

Photoshop for Mummies

2010-01-27T21:07:00.002Z

Today my lovely friend Sarah and her little man, gorgeous George, came over to visit us.

While all our boys were napping Sarah gave me a lesson in the basics of Photoshop, she is a bit of a Photoshop genius. I am very slowly learning, but I can now do some clever things like this:

Thank you Sarah x

But I do completely love Charlie and Lola

2010-01-26T22:21:00.000Z

Harry’s latest obsession is Charlie and Lola, watching them, reading the books, drawing them....

In case you are not familiar with Charlie and Lola here is one of Harry’s favourite episodes, Lucky, Lucky Me! (Isn’t YouTube Great?)

At a toddler group this week, when talking to another mother, I mentioned Harry’s current love for Charlie and Lola and was totally shocked by her response. She was horrified that I would allow Harry to watch this programme because of its ‘terrible use of the English language’, and how she would ‘never allow her daughter to watch it!’ How funny is that? It is a children’s cartoon for goodness sake.

This evening before bath time we all sat on the sofa together, watched two episodes of Charlie and Lola and laughed out loud!

Mr Oliver

2010-01-19T20:52:00.000Z

Is it me or is Ollie getting more and more cute? I think it is because he is in the six to eight month stage, which is my favourite, I just love it!

I love his big smile and chubby cheeks

I love his chubby little ankles and wrists

I Love the way he splashes in the bath and giggles when he gets his face wet.

I love our cuddles together, when his big brother is napping.

Is it weird that I love him so much I could bite him? (Don’t worry I won’t, well maybe just a little nibble)

He is just yum!

Highlight of the weekend

2010-01-18T13:11:00.001Z

Date Night

On Saturday night Luke took me out for a date, it was a fantastic evening, dinner and then the cinema. This is something we said that we are going to try and do more of this year.

We saw Avatar in 3D and it was awesome, you must, must go and see it in 3D. This was not Luke's film of choice but I really wanted to see it so he went along to keep me happy, and now is really glad he did as he loved it too.

You have to wear these really geeky looking glasses, which is hilarious. It looks a bit like the entire cinema audience is at a 'Blues Brothers' convention.

(Geek Chic - taken on Luke's phone)

Cupcakes

2010-01-13T14:19:00.001Z

We are snowed in again!

So I have put off all those jobs I should do and used the time to try out my new hummingbird bakery book.

Harry approves!

Colours

2010-01-12T21:35:00.001Z

Yesterday afternoon I decided to try and teach Harry his colours. This is something I have been trying to do for a while but recently I had started to get a little concerned that all his friends knew all the colours but Harry still said the first colour that comes into his head or if in doubt yellow is his normal reply (I know we shouldn’t compare our children but it is hard not to sometimes). Anyway while Harry was napping I set out little groups of the same coloured things, got out some drawing pens in those colour and play-doh, thinking we would have a fun afternoon of learning and playing?

However, this was not to be as Harry was not at all interested in learning the colours; he just wanted to play with the strange array of toys out on the floor. It was all a little frustrating as I was saying ‘look this bus and this block are both RED’ and he was off making noises and waving a helicopter above his head. Then we moved on to the drawing ‘look a RED pen’ but Harry wanted all the pens to draw multi coloured trucks. In the end I got out his car garage and road mat and just let him play and I had a chat on the phone with my mum instead who reminded me of how precious these years are at home and that I should enjoy them. She also told me (in a way that only mum’s can) that I need to stop comparing him with other children, they all develop at different rates and they all get there in the end. It is better, she said, that he is happy and contented rather than knowing that Mummies flowers are yellow. Mum is of course right, so I decided to chill out about it a bit and just play with Harry as normal.

At breakfast this morning, as if by magic, Harry said ‘look mummy Ollie’s bowl, green’ and it was green, then I asked what colour his beaker was ‘its blue’ he said, and it was, so apparently something went in!

Brothers

2010-01-11T21:54:00.002Z

Harry hates waking up

He is sooo grumpy

The only thing that cheers him up is

Ollie!

(Dummy is being phased out, he is just having it at sleep times while we get them settled in the same room)

Follow your dreams...

2010-01-09T21:34:00.000Z

When clearing out some draws I came across this little poem Harry's Godmother put in a card for us on his Christening day. It got me thinking about his special day and how great it was, I am now really excited to start planning for Ollie's this summer.

(Harry's awesome Godparents)

Happy weekend x

My two little Snowmen

2010-01-07T18:36:00.003Z

Pear pancakes and blogging

2010-01-05T20:46:00.002Z

Today we were all feeling a bit blue now all the Christmas festivities have really come to an end. The tree came down last night along with all the decorations, so the house is feeling bare. Plus we were really missing Daddy as he went back to work. So in an effort to try and cheer ourselves up, Harry and I made Jamie Oliver style pear pancakes for lunch.

(This picture is from the Jamie Oliver website, I was not going to mess around photographing my delicious pancakes, plus after Harry helped they didn’t look exactly like this)

They were really gorgeous and as they have a pear grated inside them I managed to get some fruit into Harry without him even noticing. They are also cheap to make as most people have all the ingredients in the back of the cupboard, you can get the recipe here.

When the boys were napping I checked my email and discovered that one of my posts Moving Day was included in the:

The Best of British Mumosphere -- The First Blogging Carnival of 2010

You can read about the Carnival here, but in short it is The British Mummy Bloggers best of posts from the last month, my entry is called ''Can moving day be easy? Emily at Days With The Walker Family thinks it is.''
This has all cheered me right up - no need to break out the last of the Christmas choccies after all.

The Walker Family best days from 2009

2010-01-01T16:37:00.005Z

The end of another eventful year is here, so I have decided to write a blog about what I think are the best 5 days from 2009 for the Walker family.

1. The arrival of Oliver on a very hot day in June

Obvious, I know, but it was definitely the best day of the year. Harry’s birth was very traumatic, but the experience with Oliver was completely different and was actually a really wonderful experience. The short hand version of events was that I laboured at home for a couple of hours and managed fairly comfortably, then midway through Luke making a sandwich I said 'we have to go to hospital right now’ and luckily we did leave straight away as after 1 hour and 40 minutes Oliver was born completely naturally, it was amazing. Oliver was born straight into my arms and didn’t cry for a few minutes, he was absolutely gorgeous. As everything had gone really well the midwife allowed us to go home that afternoon. So we were back home having tea only 6 hours after we had left to go to hospital.

2. A day on the beach, September

In September we took the boys on holiday to Poole in Dorset and had a fantastic time, but one day stood out to me, probably because the weather was so great! We had an apartment in walking distance of the beach and when we woke up to beautiful sunshine we packed up all the beach things, baby paraphernalia and our lunch into the twin pram and went off for the day. We just played all day with Harry building sandcastles, making tunnels for his cars, paddling in the sea and best of all both boys slept in the pram for two hours at the same time so Luke and I had a chance to relax a little. As Ollie was only 8 weeks old we really welcomed the break and were able to lay next to each other in the sun eating ice-cream, bliss.

3. A day we spent at the farm, April

It was lambing season and we decided to take Harry to Brocketts farm to see the baby lambs, this was a couple of months before Ollie arrived and we were making the most of having just one child. Harry loved seeing all the baby lambs but his favourite animals were the horses. He particularly like the horses in the stables and insisted on us lifting him up so he could say ‘be bo horse'.

4. Picnic in Windsor Great Park, August

It was an impromptu visit to Windsor to really do some shopping but when we arrived we decided to ditch shopping and go and play in the park. We stopped to get supplies for a picnic and spent the rest of the day playing and laying about on our picnic blanket. I remember we had massive Ben and Jerry’s chocolate ice-creams in the afternoon.

5. This is a joint 5th place between:

A lovely hot day in August we spent in our back garden with Harry's Godmother, Emma-Louise. Emma had come over to visit us and play with the boys. We had so much fun just chilling out, playing in the garden, in and out of the paddling pool and drawing on a massive roll of paper on a picnic blanket. It was a great day.

And any of the wonderful days we have spent at my parents house especially bbq’s in their back garden in the summer. There have been so many great days spent with my family that I can’t chose one, although the family rounder’s day this year was a favourite.

Looking forward to many, many more great days in 2010.

Wishing everyone a very Happy New Year!!

Moving Day

2009-12-29T21:19:00.002Z

Yesterday we decided it was time to move Ollie out of our room and in with Harry. This was not a spur of the moment decision; I have been discussing it with Luke, weighing up the pros and cons, and grilling every mum that I know who has children sharing a room for the last six weeks. I am really nervous about the whole process as if it does all go wrong, Ollie would have to come back in with us again as we do not have a spare room, which would be fine for now but a problem longer term. I also knew there was a good chance Harry would not be too keen on the change as last week I foolishly asked him if he would like Ollie to sleep in his room, to which he responded with a very strong 'NO, Harry room!'.

We eventually decided it was going to happen and that I should take Harry out for the afternoon while Luke did all the hard work of moving the cot beds in to position. After tea we took both boys up stairs for their bath and to show Harry the new sleep arrangements, we stood there in the doorway waiting for a reaction, he just looked that the two cots and said 'Ollie sleep there' laughed and ran off to the bathroom. This was a huge relief and so stage 1 was over and went well. After bath time we read stories as usual, the boys had warm milk and then we put them both to bed, slightly staggered, Ollie first then Harry, and to our surprise everything seemed to go well. Downstairs we sat petrified, nervous and practically in silence as we intently listening to the baby monitor, we were waiting for the inevitable but there was nothing, just silence as they both fell soundly to sleep. I spent the whole evening clutching the monitor, worrying and feeling strangely sad that my baby was to be no longer sleeping next to me.

I am however pleased to say that all went well and they slept through until 7.15 this morning without any issues.

Tonight seems to be following the same pattern and all I can hear is silence, but I am still sat here with the monitor right next to me. I am sure there will be lots of ups and downs but hopefully we have started a smooth transition, fingers crossed.

Our Christmas Day

2009-12-27T21:07:00.001Z

This year we had Christmas day with all my family at my parent’s house and it was brilliant, their house was decorated beautifully and the food and wine just kept on coming.

We must have all been very good boys and girls as we have been very spoilt, the boys loved all their toys, Harry favourites have been the brio train set and road mat, Ollie got the cutest knitted dinosaur, I was very lucky and got a new lap top and Luke a tiny camcorder.

Even though Harry loved his presents, I think the best part of his day was eating huge amounts of chocolate cake!

(I have enabled the comments field below as a bit of a trial so please feel free to leave a comment on any of my postings)

The BIG 30!

2009-12-24T21:15:00.000Z

I had been dreading this birthday for some time for the fact that I would be saying goodbye to my twenties. But thanks to my wonderful husband, gorgeous boys (who were very well behaved when we went out for lunch) and my lovely friends (who surprised me with Champneys vouchers and a pretty pink cake tonight) it has been a fantastic day. Thank you xx

So all that is left to say is

‘Merry Christmas to all and to all Good night!’

(Luke read The night before Christmas to Harry tonight just like my Dad did every Christmas Eve to my brothers and me)

Today was my unofficial Birthday

2009-12-22T21:33:00.001Z

Today I celebrated my birthday with my family and it was great! My actual birthday is not untill Christmas Eve but that is a bit of a strange day to have a birthday as everyone is preparing for Christmas, so I get to have two birthdays each year. We spent most of the day playing in the snow, but did stop for tea, cake and presents. Thank you for a lovely day x

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow.

2009-12-18T22:42:00.002Z

Today it snowed!! Not a huge amount, just a little dusting, but it was enough for Harry to play in. He loved driving his trucks around the patio table leaving tiny tyre imprints.

Afterwards in the warm we decorated our gingerbread house, I think he ate as much icing as he put on the house. It was a real christmassy afternoon.

(Although we have been doing lots christmassy things and talking about christmas all week, when Harry got up from his lunchtime nap he came downstairs, looked over at the christmas tree and said 'hello, Happy Birthday tree?!!' He really makes me laugh!)

7 days to go!

Christmas Kisses

2009-12-15T21:16:00.004Z

10 Days to go!

So glad it's Friday

2009-12-11T20:43:00.001Z

This week has been the kind of week that would test even the most patient mummy. Harry has been somewhat testing to say the least with his current favourite words being 'I want it' and 'NO!'. So we have had more quiet time at home as the thought of toddler groups or visiting friends are not very appealing when you have to bring the little menace with you. However, to make the best of a bad situation I have been keeping him calm and entertained with some christmas craft activities, making cards, gift tags and decorations. Salt dough hearts to hang on the tree have been the best so far and it is so cheap to make you can make loads and loads of little shapes and will keep you busy all afternoon.

We found that 2 cups plain flour, 1 cup salt and 1 cup cold water resulted in the best mixture. Create your shapes then put them on baking paper in a very hot oven or microwave until they harden, if you use the oven place a sheet of silver foil over the top and this will help them harden but not bake too brown.

Given Harrys current 'frame of mind' I dont think I will be using my precious decorations on the tree, instead it will probably be just fairylights and lots and lots of salt dough shapes.

14 days to go!

The Little Leaf

2009-12-02T21:06:00.002Z

My vintage Esme earrings

Just want to let you know that I have decided to sell a few of the little things that I have been creating recently. I have been busy making earrings and other bits of jewellery mainly using vintage Japanese celluloid flowers.

You can visit my flickr site to see some of the things I have been making:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/thelittleleaf/

I am currently in the process of setting up a shop on Etsy but if you are interested in any of these iteams please email me thelittleleaf@yahoo.com.

Hope you like my creations x

Little Donkey

2009-12-01T21:05:00.003Z

(Harry is wearing a grey outfit and a crown with a donkey face drawn on it)

We had a lovely Christmassy afternoon at Harry's nursery nativity today were he played the important role of the donkey. It was all very chaotic with children dressed as farm animals running about throwing the hay from the manger at each other, a little sheep that danced around the stage for the entire nativity and a couple of crying cows but it was all very sweet. Especially when they sang twinkle, twinkle little star complete with all the actions, something Harry had been showing us for the last couple of weeks. After that it all become abit too much for Harry and he started to cry for his muzzy so I had to make a quick entrance on to the stage and he watched the rest from my lap at the back of the hall. It was the perfect start to December.

Plus our neighbour has put up their Christmas lights which look fantastic and include a big flashing sign that counts down the days till Christmas ... 24 days to go!

Happy Birthday

2009-11-26T21:13:00.000Z

Uncle Matt!!!

Had a great time seeing you on Saturday and we hope you are having a great Birthday.

Looking forward to seeing you in a couple of weeks.

xxx

The Truck

2009-11-25T20:57:00.001Z

Harry really loves his truck

And where ever Harry goes the truck goes with him.

He could have taken to one of his nice wooden toys or a little metal car, but no Harry loves his massive, orange, plastic, £3.99 truck from Sainsburys!

Balloons

2009-11-20T21:42:00.000Z

This afternoon I had to take the boys out to do some boring erands with me. After queing in the post office, supermarket and camera shop (where I had to decide which of my 900 photos I should print and which ones to have enlarged for the photo wall, which took a very long time) I decided that they should have a little treat for being so patient. Rather than buying Harry a sugary biscuit I bought them both balloons. Harry got to choose them and after much consideration he decided on a pepa pig one for himself and a Thomas one for Ollie. They both love them and it kept them entertained while I rushed about making dinner in the early evening. Even though Ollie is only five months old he really enjoyed the balloon and sat in his bouncy chair for ages watching it bob up and down.

Ollie's first food

2009-11-18T21:35:00.000Z

Today I decided to give Ollie his first real taste of food, well baby rice if you can call that food. It was a very different experience to when I gave Harry his first baby rice. With Harry I read all the books on weaning in preparation, brought many different bowls, spoons etc, sterilised everything in sight and even got my Mum to come over and assist with the whole process (in case you are interested this book is the one I found most useful). However, with Ollie I have been far more relaxed and just bought some baby rice a few days ago and decided at lunch time to go for it, so mixed some up in a little bowl and off we went. Ollie thought it was hilarious and laughed the whole time letting the rice fall out of his mouth as he did, I don’t think he actually ate any of the rice but we had lots of fun. Tonight I am making us a big roast dinner so will prepare some extra vegetables, steam them and freeze them into ice cube trays, so I should have a freezer full of little multicoloured ice cubes by tomorrow.

Harry having his first taste of food, check out his mowhawk!

If you go down to the woods today...

2009-11-17T20:51:00.001Z

Lets Roll....

2009-11-14T17:10:00.000Z

OVER!

Camp Walker

2009-11-10T20:56:00.000Z

It was a cold, wet and grey day, so after our usual Tuesday morning toddler group we came home for an afternoon indoors. We turned up the heating, got all cosy and I made Harry a little den (a massive quilt drapped over two chairs with his play matt and cushions inside), something I loved to to with my brothers as a child and Harry loved it to. We read books, did some drawing, played with cars and even ate 'cookie biscuits' (as Harry calls them) inside his den, it was great.

Harry also helped me bake Luke a tea cake. This is a recipe from my Mum and it is the easiest cake ever to make and sooo tasty.

Soak 150g raisins and 50g of sugar together with a lage cup of tea. Add 1 egg and 300g SR flour. Mix all ingredients together, place in a lined loaf tin and sprinkle with brown sugar and bake at 170 for about 40mins. Enjoy x

Start your Christmas shopping this Saturday, I will be...

2009-11-07T20:13:00.000Z

This morning, this made me smile....

2009-11-06T20:42:00.000Z

Harrys frog wellies and my ballett pumps drying on the hallway radiator after yesterdays duck pond incident. The poster above just summed it all up.

Happy Weekend

Remember, Remember the 5th of November

2009-11-05T22:21:00.005Z

Fireworks by Harry

A funny story from today

(only funny now hours after the event as I sit here warm and cosy with a cup of tea)

This afternoon we went to Wisley Gardens for a walk with some friends, Harry wore his new frog wellies ready to jump in all the puddles he could find. Everything was going well, the kids were running about together, all of them jumping and splashing in puddles when we went to feed the ducks. They all stood at the waters edge, which has a gentle slope down into the pond, throwing in bread. Harry being Harry kept on going a bit too close and splashing in the shallow water. 'Big puddle Mummy' he kept on saying and I kept on saying 'Harry get back' and 'Harry away from the edge', Harry, Harry, Harry!! eventually I pulled him away. Then while I was distracted by Ollie, Harry made a break for the 'big puddle' and yes you guessed it, Splash!!! Harry was in up to his armpits and I then had to step in to grab him out of the freezing cold duck pond. One very wet toddler and one very wet, embarassed Mummy! At first all I could do was laugh as Harry just stood there stunned, then I got really cross with him.Why is it always my child that does these things? On the drive home I called Luke to tell him what had happened, after checking we were ok he found it all very funny! This was not helping me, so I called my Mum and after a good moan she made me feel better. Harry would not be Harry with out these little adventures and really we do love him for it, he is such an active and spirited little boy. This will be one of those stories we will tell him about when he is older and we will all laugh!

We are in quarantine ....... Again!

2009-11-03T20:45:00.000Z

Now my poor little Ollie has chickenpox, he is being a brave boy and is still smiling but wants lots of cuddles, which fine with me

So to say Get better Ollie! I have written this post just about Oliver, my gorgeous baby boy.

Here are some of the reasons why I love you so much:

Because you are always happy

Your big blue eyes and bald head

The way you giggle when we play 'flying Ollie'

Your chubby thighs, I could bite them every time I change your nappy

Your scrummy baby smell

The way you smile at everyone

Because your are just awesome!

Get better soon x

Happy Halloween

2009-10-31T20:51:00.002Z

Spooky fun

Ollie tried to do scary but just looks so cute

Harry and I made some pretty scary lookings cakes

Nite Nite from me and my two little pumpkins

Autumn Artwork

2009-10-27T21:49:00.002Z

Isn't it funny how setting up for the craft activity takes longer then the actual craft it's self? Even if Harry prefers to rub paint everwhere including on himself and after 10 minutes gets down from the table to play with his cars, I had fun!

Happy Birthday Harry!

2009-10-26T19:52:00.007Z

Pictures from left to right: 1.The decorations 2.Ken, Mum, Suzy, Ollie, Jack, Matt, Steve, Dad, Mandy, Harry, Me 3.Luke and Harry in his pyjamas opening presents 4.Harry and his toy can of beans 5.Great Uncle Ken, Ollie, Great Auntie Mandy 6.Uncle Andy and Harry 7.Me, Ollie and Harrys Godmother Emma-Louise 8.The Dinner 9.Bloooww 10.Harry eating his 3rd piece of cake! 11.Lighting the Chinese lantern 12.The lantern in flight 13.Harry on Lukes shoulders 14.Asleep

Thank you to all our family and friends who helped make Harrys day so wonderful x

Harry's world

2009-10-21T21:08:00.000+01:00

Recently Harry has taken to relating everthing to his family and here we all are:

Daddy truck, Mummy car, Harry truck, Baby car

Daddy car, Mummy car, Harry car, Baby car

Daddy frog, Harry frog (we only have two plastic frogs)

We are in quarantine

2009-10-19T20:47:00.007+01:00

Poor Harry developed Chickenpox at the end of last week so we have had to stay in for a while. He has been a very brave boy and has only had one broken nights sleep, which I am very happy about. We are really hoping that Ollie does not get it as he is so young but keeping them apart is impossible especially as last week we started playing kiss chase and Ollie cant get away!
At first I was dreading being stuck home with a 2 year old and a 15week old but the slower pace has been really quite fun. There is no rush to get out of our pyjamas in the morning, we can take our time over breakfast and we have done other things we don't always get time to do together. We have been very industrious with our time by making things together like bread, cakes, leaf prints and rubbings, however given that he is poorly and Mummy cannot keep up the pace of wholesome entertainment all day (I am good, but not that good!) we have also had copious amounts of Peppa Pig watching and of course Cars for about the zillionth time. Whilst Peppa has been on I have had some time to prepare for Harry's birthday including making the decorations for his cake (I am going for a bug and bee theme). On Sunday Harry turns 2 so he should be feeling better by then but unfortunately he will still be all spotty for his photos, I will post them anyway.

Bedtime

2009-10-15T21:04:00.007+01:00

Last night after we had put Ollie to bed and bathed Harry, Luke read Harry his bedtime story while he had his milk. I went downstairs to finish making dinner where I had accidentally left the baby monitor in Harry's room on, so I could now hear the bedtime story telling too. It was the sweetest thing I have ever heard, Luke was reading Little bears trousers and was creating voices for all the characters, Rabbit was Australian, Bramlewell Brown very posh... My heart just melted as Harry giggled with his Daddy. I Love my boys x

Sunday evening

2009-10-11T20:59:00.000+01:00

Why does sunday evening have to come around so fast? At least it is abit easier if you have had a great weekend and we have had a really great weekend. Thank you Luke for making all our weekends so much fun, I will miss you when you go to work tomorrow.

We mananged to catch up with my eldest brother and Harrys Godfather, Matt.

Matt is currently living in Worcestershire where he is an animator on a childrens TV series The Boblins, check it out. Both boys had lots of fun with Matt as he is great with them (as are all my brothers). Today envoled endless games of making tea, cars and a trip to play at the swings, plus he lets Harry do things I don't, thats what uncles are for!

Sleeping beauty

2009-10-10T15:04:00.001+01:00

Today while Harry was having his usual nap, Luke went to have his haircut so I had sometime alone with the littlest one. We layed on our bed together, giggling as I gently tickled him, then I decided it would be nice for him to have a bath. So I placed Ollie safely in his cot under his mobile and went to get the bath ready, when I returned he had fallen fast asleep....

He just looks sooooo peaceful, he can have a bath another day.

Lots of fun

2009-10-07T21:21:00.002+01:00

....with the inside of a kitchen roll

Ollie thought I was hilarious but Harry was abit camera shy today - well either that or he did not think I was that funny?!

My Pregnancy thoughts - By Luke Walker

2009-10-06T22:10:00.001+01:00

Well, Emily has had her say, and my mother-in-law has given you her thoughts (Postings dated 1st and 2nd October), so thought I might proffer some thoughts of my own on the matter.

Where to start, where to start? At the beginning I guess. 1st time around we were living in Australia and it all came as a bit of a surprise, but an extremely happy and exciting surprise. I recall sitting in the lounge in front of the TV relaxing when Emily came skipping in to the room all excited somewhat like an excited little puppy, all bouncy and full of energy. I knew something big was afoot but at this stage I was unsure whether it was that she had found some awesome new trinket from the antique shops she had a passion for perusing, or whether there was a lovely new handbag that she had seen and was about to set about persuading me of the benefits it would bring to her life should she be bought said item, these were the sorts of things that until now would elicit this type of joy in Emily’s life. It was probably a good job that I was sitting down when she told me because I was completely hit for six when Em uttered those words that I now know would change my life for ever and forever for the good. Emily blurted out ‘I’m pregnant!’, I just laughed and we hugged, there was no way I could be anything but ecstatic about the news and the sheer enthusiasm and joy that it brought out in Emily. She is a very fun, happy and positive person all the time anyway, but it was like somebody had given her a whole bunch of sugary sweets or something, she was like hyper happy and I thought ‘well, if this is what I can expect, then having babies is going to be a joy!’.

Now, the question is, what did I actually get? Was it a joy or was it something else?

Truth is, it was definitely a joy, and any tough times during this amazing journey were soon forgotten with each new phase and each new discovery. The sickness that Emily experienced is one surprise I could have lived without, that was definitely a tough few months. Whoever coined the phrase ‘morning sickness’ was a liar, the sickness was all day every day for 14 weeks (16 weeks second time around). However, when it finally stopped I got my Emily back, glowing, happy and with a bigger spending habit than ever now that she was spending for 2!!

For my part it was clear I had a lot to learn in the 9 months ahead, and like a true bloke I started reading the ‘manuals’!, but nothing can ever really prepare you for all the 1st’s that are heading your way as a new parent. Watching the first scan pictures, feeling the baby kick for the first time, seeing an arm or leg pushing out Emily’s tummy, all these 1st’s are like nothing else imaginable, really jaw dropping stuff. Talking to the bump I am sure I looked like a total mad man, lounging around having one way conversations with my wife’s tummy, but hey, the ‘manuals’ says they can hear you and distinguish your voice, so I was doing it don’t you worry about that!.

I love Emily always, no question about that, but when she is with baby it is like the bond strengthens even further. I think it is a wonderful 9 months and what an end result you receive. Getting to meet your up until now silent friend and enjoy the baby smell that people have spoken to you about is just wonderful, and the innate connection you have with your baby is a beautiful thing. It is fair to say that I love being a Dad and I have to say that I love the journey of getting there. It was amazing the first time around and wonderfully different, yet equally fantastic, the second time around. If we are lucky enough to experience it all for a third time in the future or even more, I will totally look forward to the experience even though it will most likely mean that I will have to start robbing banks to fund our growing baby habit!.

October is here

2009-10-04T14:06:00.001+01:00

And Autumn has really begun

The tree outside the front of our house

Yesterday we took the boys on a long walk to see 'the nature'. Harry had to take his red bucket, which comes on any walk with us at the moment just in case he finds something interesting.

After all that walking and collecting interesting things both boys were very tired. Harry could not walk back to the car on his own so Daddy had the pleasure of carrying Harry on his shoulders complete with bucket banging in to his head every other step! and Ollie just could not stay awake any longer bless him.

At home the boys went to bed very nicely so we had a cosy night in with a full on roast beef dinner (cooked by my lovely Luke) and a glass of red to complete what was a lovely Autumn day.

My Pregnancy thoughts - written by my Mum

2009-10-02T20:46:00.003+01:00

After telling my Mum about the Designmom postings on pregnancy thoughts and my own posting (see previous) I suggested it would be nice if Mum could write her own and she was more than happy to.
Thanks Mum

Winter 1979 pregnant with Emily

I am a very happy Mum of four children, one daughter and three sons all of whom were very much wanted. During each pregnancy I could not believe the love I had for each of those unborn babies. I would cradle my bump in my arms and just long for the time I would meet them. Trying to imagine who they would look like the most. I loved being pregnant even through those months of feeling constantly sick, one of which the sickness lasted 9 months. With each of the boys, before they were born, I bought new blue rompers so strong was the feeling of a little boy growing within me. My first child was my beautiful daughter Emily, how I longed for a girl and sure enough my dreams came true. Nothing compares to the feeling of your baby kicking, trying to distinguish whether you could feel a little foot or a hand or even an elbow, gently singing or quietly talking those moments are truly special just you and your bump and feeling so safe.

My Pregnancy thoughts

2009-10-01T21:48:00.005+01:00

This posting was inspired by one of my favouite mummy blogs Designmom as the author Gabrielle has announced she is pregnant for the sixth time! Ganrielle has asked readers to write their throughts on pregnancy, so I thought I would write mine.

Summer 2007 pregnant with Harry

I love being pregnant, every bit of it, even the sickness, which I have suffered with terribly carrying both babies, it reminds me of the tiny bub I am growing. Although I will admit having your first one still in nappies while having sickness is very hard and there were a few mid nappy change throw ups, in fact I started changing Harry’s nappy in the bathroom to save on the running distance to the loo! But once that bit is over and you get that 'I don’t need to where make-up' glow everything changes, and it become the best feeling in the world.

I think one of the most memorable points of every woman’s pregnancy is the first time they feel the baby move. When I was pregnant for the first time I was living in Australia and in the evenings would call my mum with endless questions and give her little update on the bump. One thing I would ask her was what it will feel like when the baby starts to move, to which she said it feels like a tiny butterfly fluttering. Then one evening while watching TV snuggled up with Luke on the sofa it happened, it was amazing; I then sat really still for the next few hours just waiting of the baby to move again. As both pregnancies progressed Luke and I would sit together and be able to share the little kicks and movements together, bonding with the baby before we had even met them.

During my first pregnancy I would spend hours at my desk at work daydreaming about my baby and endlessly searching the internet for information; most popular baby names, birth stories, nursery equipment, clothes, you name it I looked at it. Then when I wasn't at work I would daydream looking at the tiny white baby grows I had lovingly placed ready on the lavender scented draw liners, in fact I spent most of my first pregnancy daydreaming. With my second pregnancy I felt guilty that I did not have the time to indulge myself with daydreams as I had a very busy toddler to look after. But I do remember one lunchtime during Harry’s afternoon nap laying on our bed with one of the tiny white baby grows resting on my enormous belly imagining what my baby might look like, would they have thick dark hair like Harry, would they look like me or Luke and most of all would they be a boy or a girl?

I am so lucky to have had two fantastic pregnancies and I defiantly hope for more in the future x

The sign of a good day ...

2009-09-30T20:42:00.000+01:00

... is a very messy house at the end of the day.

Today was a good day x

Family pic-nic and rounders day 2009

2009-09-28T21:14:00.003+01:00

On Sunday we had our annual family day which tends to mark the end of summer and this year the weather was sensational, it really felt like a perfect summer day. The day was held in a lovely little village just outside of Henley. We set up camp in the playing fields that overlook the village and a field full of cows, which endlessly entertained Harry. A wonderful pic-nic lunch was consumed with plenty of Pimms, thanks to Nanny Johnson for all the food, the quiche was especially good. Rounders followed lunch, a competitive affair but lots of fun and plenty of 'the sun got in my eyes' dropped catch excuses!

A fantasic day was had by all, everyone was thoroughly exhausted from the activities, but now we are all ready for Autunm to begin.

Toddlers Aghh!!

2009-09-25T21:26:00.003+01:00

Harry totally engrossed in watching his beloved Cars dvd (he is even cluching the dvd case) and of course wearing his wellies.

Last night while mindlessly browsing the internet I came across a blog called 'Lindsays Adventures' about a Mum, her toddler and new baby in New York, one posting stood out for me, being 'you just cant reason with a toddler'. The similarity between Lindsay's son and my Harry were amazing! It just shows you that toddlers are the same the world over.

Dear Oliver

2009-09-23T21:25:00.000+01:00

Happy 12 Week Birthday

We love you!

Well done for being so brave for your immunisations and check up today, you now weigh 14lbs 5oz

xxx

A Day with my Mum

2009-09-23T21:00:00.013+01:00

Dear Mum

Thank you for coming to spend the day with the boys and me, we have all had a lovely day. Really enjoyed our time chatting and cooking while the boys were napping, Harry ate every last bit of the pasta you made him and asked for more.

I really appreciate your patience in listening to me while I go on and on about my babies and ask you millions of questions as to what you would do, thanks for all your advice, it always helps me.

xxx

Harry and William (The tale of two Princes)

2009-09-22T22:23:00.007+01:00

Once upon a time there were two Princes who had a very busy afternoon of activities ahead of them.....

They started off the afternoon, as is the way in polite Princely society, with a chat over cakes in the garden.

{William and Harry}

Then it was on to the important task of collecting up all the fallen (and some not fallen!) leaves in the dumper truck, before some intrepid bug hunting, capture and inspection.

After completing these outdoor pursuits it was time to move indoors for a spot of craft time. The Princes spent time colouring and then decorating Elmers with coloured patches.

Finally, after a busy afternoon the Princes sat down for a banquet of spag bol and yoghurts.

Much mess was made whilst having all this fun, but the two Mummies are always there to tidy up after, thats why it's great being a Prince!

THE END

My gorgeous baby

2009-09-21T21:23:00.000+01:00

Carrying Ollie all snuggly in the baby bjorn is one of my favouite things at the moment. He is so cute, I love this photo!

Grandad Walker came to visit

2009-09-20T19:53:00.002+01:00

Today Lukes Dad, Norman came over from the States for a visit. He lives in Florida with his wife Sereena and comes back every few months on business and of course to see us. Harry always has a great time, playing football and chasing Grandad around the garden and today was no exception, they went crazy together.

Unfortunately Sereena could not accompany him on this trip as she had to stay behind to carrying on working on her second recipe book. She is a fantastic Indian cook and already has one recipe book out that is sold with a spice tin containing all the spices you need for the dishes, it's amazing food as I have been lucky enough to taste most of it myself over the years, you can see it all at Flavours and Spices.

Grandad also arrived with a big bag of goodies for us, lots of Ralph Lauren clothes for Luke and the boys, including the cutest little one-zee for Ollie. Plus some gorgeous bowls from Anthropologie, my favourite store - Thank you Grandad x

After a very action packed visit I think both Harry and Grandad will sleep well tonight.

Photo of the week

2009-09-19T19:32:00.003+01:00

This is Harry in his play house at the end of the garden, he was fascinated for ages by the tiny beetle running around the window pane. I was really pleased that I managed to capture the moment when he pointed at the beetle.

A day of wholesome fun

2009-09-18T20:28:00.001+01:00

Today we baked cakes in our pyjamas and got really messy. This is one of Harry's favourite activities and always makes Daddy very happy when he comes home to yummy cakes too.

{ Plum, Charlie and Harry}

{Charlie and Harry}

Then we meet some of our friends for a walk in the Surrey downs. The little ones took buckets with them to collect Autumn things like leaves, acorns and dried rabbit droppings!

It has been a great friday, bring on the weekend.

My morning view

2009-09-16T20:49:00.000+01:00

This little smiley face greets me every morning as I peer into the moses basket beside my bed. Thank you Oliver for always being so happy.

Today it rained alot!

2009-09-16T20:27:00.002+01:00

So Harry spent most of the day playing tea parties, with guests including Buzz, Teddy, Mr Penguin and of course Baby Ollie, and I got on with some projects.

Facing the ever present challenge of using the space in my little house effectively, I have created a play area under the stairs for Harry. The tree sticker is from Lula Sapphire

I also updated our family photo wall. I try to do this every month, printing my favourite pictures and adding them into the collection. I love it because it is forever growing and changing, charting the progress of my boys.

I am very pleased with the results of todays projects, almost forgot it was such a grey and wet day.

Look what arrived in the post

2009-09-15T21:57:00.000+01:00

These cute little handmade shoes were sent as a present for Ollie by my friend Celine.

Thank you very much, I love them x

Celine runs a sewing business called Applejuice, she makes everything from handbags and clothes to children's toys and bibs. I am sure you will see lots of her lovely creations on my blog as I am not the greatest sewer but have lots of ideas and Celine makes them a reality for me.

Holding Hands

2009-09-15T20:56:00.000+01:00

This afternoon, after a hectic day, Harry was relaxing on his quilt watching Cars on DVD for the 798th time when is asked that Ollie lay down next to him. It was so sweet watching them together. Harry is very protective of his little brother and lay there holding his hand, half watching the film and half watching over Ollie (his baby as he likes to call him), it made me so happy to be their Mummy.

My first Blog

2009-09-15T20:47:00.000+01:00

Welcome to my family blog!

We are (clockwise from top left) Emily, Luke, Harry (22mths) and baby Oliver (10 weeks)

I decided to start this blog for my own use as an on-line diary to record the goings on in the Walker family. I have very much enjoyed reading other family oriented blogs and therefore decided that it would be nice to share our family experiences with others who may be interested.

I hope you enjoy reading it x