Friday 28 August 2009

I'm just showing off

One of the many perks of being a parent is being able to take Harry out and about. I know it’s wrong, but I can’t help, frankly, showing him off.

And, sadly enough, I love it when strangers wander up to you in the street and ask about Harry and do the whole baby-noise thing. As you can tell, I’m quite proud of my son. Fortunately, Harry loves it and always charms strangers by smiling at them happily, even when he’s been a little terror behind closed doors.

It also means that I like to be in charge of the pushchair, which occasionally causes friction with Melissa, who also likes to show off. We’ve even had to come to an arrangement – Melissa pushes during the week, I take control at the weekends.

Of course, going out is not always straightforward, particularly if Harry decides he doesn’t want to go in his pushchair, and it always involves taking bags of spare clothes, food, and so on, which can make it seem a little bit like a military operation.

Generally, though, I love it and, with the sun out, we headed off to Chester last Saturday to stroll around the city and do a bit of shopping. The races were on, which meant navigating the buggy through the crowded streets was occasionally tricky but this in no way detracted from an enjoyable day, helped by the fact that Harry was fascinated by the sights and sounds of Chester.

On a practical note, I must praise the cafĂ© located on Browns of Chester’s top floor. Not only is there plenty of room for pushchairs and all the associated paraphernalia, there are also plenty of highchairs and an excellent baby changing room.

It’s something of a relief to find such baby-friendly facilities. I know some cafes don’t want babies or pushchairs and that’s fair enough – I’ve complained often enough in the past about screaming kids ruining a quiet bite to eat. But it can be difficult to find somewhere to grab some lunch and feed and change Harry. Believe me, however boring this sounds, these things are important when you have a little one – especially when you want to show off.

Monday 24 August 2009

Harry goes mobile

Big news this week, Harry’s gone mobile.

He’s not crawling properly yet, but he’s discovered that, by sticking his backside in the air and pushing up with his arms, he’s able to shuffle around quite effectively.
Admittedly he tends to go backwards and sideways rather than forwards, but it’s movement nonetheless.

Last weekend, Melissa and I were eating our breakfast while Harry was on the playmat by our feet. By the time I’d finished my porridge, he’d managed to get himself all the way to the other side of the room and was about to start eating the television stand when I picked him up.

Of course, this changes everything. I’m no longer able to plonk Harry on his play mat and read the paper or watch the cricket; instead I have to watch his every move and jump up every five minutes to stop him chewing bits of furniture.

Not that I mind. Watching him move is fascinating, but the real problems start when he gets in his walker.

His walker is a slightly odd contraption with a seat and wheels that allows him to dash around the kitchen at surprising speed.

When we first bought this a couple of months ago, Harry would sit in it for a few minutes before his head would drop and we’d have to pick him up. Now he’s mastered the steering, he’s quite happy to spend a lot longer in it – and find the energy to cause mayhem. One of his favourite tricks is grabbing the basket in the dishwasher as you try to empty it. Occasionally this can cause quite a mess – much to Harry’s amusement.

His other favourite trick is to dash across the kitchen heading for Melissa’s precious piano. This prompts the sort of sprint from Melissa not seen since her days at Ysgol Dinas Bran – and can be quite entertaining to watch.

Harry, meanwhile, is seemingly oblivious to the chaos his new mobile status creates. As for me, I think I’ll be getting a few more grey hairs in the next couple of months.

Tuesday 18 August 2009

And another picture


Harry posing for the camera - the picture was taken by the brilliant Rick Matthews (NWN's picture editor), who also has the patience of a saint. Cheers Rick.
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Pictures of Harry... about time too


Harry is a quick learner... he no longer needs us when he's thirsty. By the way, that's juice, not beer, in his bottle.
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Teeth - nothing but trouble

Teeth. As my nan is fond of saying, they’re are a pain when you get them, and they’re a pain when they fall out; she should know, she’s lived with them for 93 years.

Harry is now also discovering what a nuisance teeth can be – and that’s making life interesting in the Wright household at the moment.

For a start, anything within grabbing distance of Harry is immediately put into his mouth so that he can gnaw on it. His latest trick is putting his feet into his mouth and chewing on them. It looks incredibly uncomfortable but seems to ease his teething troubles, albeit temporarily.

Other favourites include the fingers of unsuspecting visitors, and I’ve had to stifle the odd smile as shocked friends discreetly try to remove their hands from Harry’s mouth without upsetting him. This is no easy task – he’s got a strong grip and can be very determined where his teeth are concerned.

Because Harry spends so much time gnawing at things, dribble has also become much more of problem. Bibs are essential, otherwise his clothes can literally be soaking wet within minutes.

All of this does mean that Harry can be a bit of a handful from time to time, but I can understand why he gets grumpy. Apparently, he’s got 27 teeth to look forward to – and I found it painful enough when my four wisdom teeth broke through.

Anyway, my technique when he’s upset is to try and distract him by jumping, clapping, shouting and generally acting the fool. Occasionally this works, although sometimes it just makes him cry more. To be fair, I’d probably cry too if I saw my dad jumping round the room and clapping like a lunatic. Having an embarrassing dad is all you need when your teeth are hurting…

Despite all the pain, no teeth have broken through yet. Hopefully they will soon – then we can start looking forward to the next set.

Thursday 6 August 2009

The best start in life?

I like to think that Melissa and I are doing our best to give Harry a decent start in life. For example, now he’s eating solids, we try and make sure the food he eats is homemade and, whenever possible, that it’s out of our garden.

But there’s no doubt that sacrifices have to be made when you have a little one. Your social life, for instance, suffers, as does sleep of course.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m not after sympathy. Both Melissa and I wanted a baby and we are quite happy to changes our lives to suit Harry’s needs.

One area that still causes me problems, though, is music. Now Melissa is quite happy to listen to (and sing) nursery rhymes with Harry all day – in the house and in the car. I’ll do it but, after a while, I need a break and go back to my own music, even though Melissa tells me off for being cruel to our son.

I’m a bit worried about the impact this is going to have on Harry in later life. The other day, for instance, I was in the car with Harry and had my ipod plugged in. It was a fairly random selection of music, ranging from contemporary (Elbow, Ryan Adams and so on), to 80s rock and pop (Def Leppard, Aha), and the downright bizarre (Buggles and The Wurzels).

I’m just not sure this is setting the right tone for Harry. I read somewhere that classical music is the best thing to play to young children but, frankly, my taste in music is just too cheesy. The good thing is, Harry doesn’t seem to mind – yet. At one point, I’m sure he tried gurgling along to ‘Video killed the radio star’.

If it’s any consolation, Harry got revenge of sorts when I went for a run last weekend. I plugged in the ipod and chose a random selection of music from my computer. You can imagine my surprise and disappointment when, half way through the run, Humpty Dumpty started playing.

Anyway, I’ve resolved to do something about it and chose my music more carefully in future. It’s all very well feeding Harry the right food, but if he grows up singing ‘I’ve got a brand new combine harvester’, I’ll know my attempt at good parenting has failed.

Monday 3 August 2009

Sleeping: Part 10

It’s funny how quickly you get into a habit when you’ve got a little one. Since Harry’s been sleeping in his own room, he’s tended to wake up just before I get up for work – about 5 to 5.30am as a rule.

Anyway, we’ve got into a habit of putting him in our bed for an hour or so because he settles back to sleep quickly and we’re able to get a few more minutes’ rest before we have to get up.

I know this probably goes against most good parenting guides, but what the heck, it seems to work and Harry’s happy with the arrangement.

However, I was a little bit shocked when, last Thursday, I woke around midnight to find Harry asleep on the pillow next to me. Against my better judgement, I nudged Melissa and asked if something was wrong. Was he ill, is that why she’d brought him in so early?

I got a mumbled reply about thinking it was morning, before Melissa nodded off again. I drifted off to sleep eventually before being woken a couple of hours later by Melissa carrying Harry back to his own bed. As she got back in, she said it was too early for him to be in with us. Being half asleep, I didn’t take too much notice until, an hour later – about half four I think – I was disturbed by Melissa bringing Harry back into our room.

The next day, a slightly bleary-eyed Melissa put this hokey-cokey performance down to tiredness. Goodness knows what Harry made of it all, but he got his revenge the following night.

As usual, he joined us in our bed just before six, and I quickly went back to sleep hoping to get a bit of a lie-in. It was a Saturday morning, after all. Half an hour later, I opened my eyes to find Harry’s nose practically touching mine while he slapped my face with gusto. He was also wearing a huge grin. I’m sure he knew what he was doing.