A good day

Seven and a bit months is a great age. She can sit up and interact and is interested in things going on around her, but isn't on the move so I'm not constantly chasing her around (although side note: I'd love for her to start crawling . She can be incredibly clingy if i put her down and figure if she was crawling she could just move to where she wants to be).

Today we went to Archbishop's Park in Waterloo and met up with Allie and Poppy. Ada had been in a really good mood all morning (side note two: we don't set alarms anymore because Ada normally wakes us up around six-thirty with her chatter, and wants us to get her out at around seven. This is usually great until she sleeps into seven forty five and Dave has thirty minutes to get ready for work which means I have thirty minutes to feed her, shower and express) and was in a jolly mood when we got there. We headed for the sandpit as the swings were busy. Ada has always like the sand (or rather putting it in her mouth) but this time she loved it (and my feet).

The week in review

Monday
 We went to see out health visitor to get Ada weighed (she's seven point eight kilos). I really love our health visitor, Faith. She was the person who came to our home in the first week that I saw her, and has just been a really lovely person to talk to about any concerns I have with Ada, without passing judgement. Afterwards we went to the playground at Clapham Common and played on the swings and the sandpit. She also ate (and loved) pasta for the first time. She is her father's daughter

Tuesday
 We met Allie and Poppy for a lovely lunch, where the girls were on their best behaviour at the restaurant. Then we went to Southwark Park and played on the swings. 

(photo credit - Allie Keys)

Wednesday

 We stayed closer to home to make sure we were home for a delivery that we missed the previous day, but once it arrived we went for a little walk to Clapham Common again (most of these walks involve me getting a much needed coffee to see me through the rest of the day). We didn't make it to the playground, but had fun playing with the grass and watching the crow, watching us eat our food

Thursday
 We made a trip to Camden to surprise Dad for lunch. We ate lunch in his office with his work friends and then went for a walk around Regent's Park and managed to squeeze a little swing in the playground. On the trip home however I completely got my tube lines wrong (I've been living here for eight years!) and had to walk down a (spiral) staircase of around fifty stairs. Silly mum!

Friday
 Friday is swimming day. We started the new term last week. We moved up from Floaties to Splashers and it's been a bit of a rough time for her. I'm hoping she just has to get into the swing of things after such a long break over summer. She pretty much cried the whole lesson. But then we took a long walk home and she fell asleep in the buggy and woke up much happier

A letter to Ada

My sweet love, you are seven months old today. Just writing that blows my mind. Seven months in the grand scheme of things is a mere drop in a vast ocean. But for me it has been everything. I wasn't able to be with you for most of the day. I was studying. I am conflicted about this, even though I shouldn't be. Even though I'm only gone for seven hours, and I know you're having an amazing time with your dad, I still feel guilty, like I should be there with you. But I want to show you that, when you're older, you can be a career women, a student, a mum all at the same time. I am striving now to be a better person for you. I fail, and will fail, but I'll never stop trying.

A case of the giggles