Illustration

Dot writes: this isn’t especially good considered as a photo, but it illustrates the sort of thing Hugh is up to. He can get down from this position by himself. Usually.

Not shown: Ken hovering just out of shot, ready to catch him…

Perilous pursuits

Dot writes: in addition to his small but growing collection of words (‘milk’, ‘daddy/teddy’, ‘woof-woof’, ‘ball’, ‘bye-bye’, ‘hi’), Hugh is cultivating a fine crop of bumps, bruises and scrapes. He has discovered the joy of climbing things slightly before an efficient technique in getting down from them, or any sense of danger. And he also [...]

Inappropriate

Ken writes:

We picked up this great rubber toy for Hugh at the Te Papa museum in Wellington. It can be pulled and stretched and contorted into all sorts of shapes and still bounces back. Its bulging eyes can be squeezed and stay tackily stuck in the squeezed shape for a moment before springing back. It’s [...]

Reasons to march

Ken writes:
I didn’t have time on Saturday to compose a proper justification for going on the protest march, but I feel one is necessary, because such things are liable to be assigned to just one set of (usually simple and selfish) motives and I think our motives were more complicated.
The premise from which a proper [...]

New word

Dot writes: Hugh now also says ‘ba!’ for ‘ball’, especially when throwing one. We noticed at the weekend. He may also say ‘Daddy’. But not ‘Mummy’. ‘Mama’ is still his all-purpose ‘I want’ noise.
I think this verbal thing may be about to take off.

Today, we march

Ken writes:
I’m dragging us out to the workers’ protest march in Dublin today. Dot is coming along but with reservations. We both have them. We’re convinced that if the country really is in such dire financial straits as they say, then a pension contribution/levy is a sensible means to reduce the Government’s outgoings (I [...]

Sprog report

Dot writes: communicating with Hugh is a bit like communicating with Lassie, if Lassie wanted to say things like ‘I urgently need the lid of the black saucepan, which is currently out of my reach on the counter-top’ or ‘let me give you some of this partially masticated toast’. The message is very explicit, but [...]

cheery news chez nous

Ken writes:
It’s been feeling like we’re just starting to get the hang of being parents. We’ve pretty much ushered Hugh through babyhood into toddler-hood unscathed (he still has two of everything he should have two of, five of everything he should have five of, four of everything he should have four of, and one of [...]

Transformation

Dot writes: follow these instructions for a home-grown miracle.
Take one awkward infant. Somehow get him stuck in a routine of only napping once but still waking up each morning painfully early about ten hours after he went to bed. Watch him grow steadily more fractious, disobliging and fretful. Get completely sick of him one Sunday [...]

Grumble

Dot writes: imagine the following pathetic scene: a young mother (well, a mother who hasn’t been one for that long), back from work at a dark 6pm with her toddler just collected from the childminder, pushing said toddler round and round the building where she lives because ALL THE CODES FOR THE DOORS HAVE BEEN [...]