Family: I Remember The First Time

My youngest has just started putting words together this week. She’s 1-and-a-half, and ‘I do it’ is the current favourite – uttered at least 800 times a day, mainly when I’m in a rush to leave the house (and ‘it’ is putting all her clothes on, backwards).

We had ‘Happy bu-day to you’ today, which prompted a round of cheering, cooing and clapping so rapturous you’d think she’d just aced GCSE English. But the one that got us right in the feels a few nights ago was ‘Nanate Dadee’, said with an angelic smile and a cute head-tilt just before bedtime. Unfortunately, 30 seconds after that she bit her elder brother – on the back of all places – so the effect was short-lived. Still, it was nice while it lasted.

While they napped today I dug out their baby books to jot down this milestone, and realised quite how long it’s been since I wrote in them. My daughter’s book was particularly lacking (my second-child guilt is no secret) and so I spent an hour reminiscing and scribbling in anything I could remember. Here are some of the memories that did – and didn’t – make the cut, and how child #1 and child #2 compare…

First shoes

Child #1: A little blue pair of Clarks cruisers in a 3F at a cost of £26. My son wasn’t even walking properly, but the excitement was just too much and he’d barely started pulling himself up on the furniture before I was ringing them through the checkout.

Child #2: Tiny pink Clarks dolly shoes in a 3.5G at a cost of £0 because my friend passed them on when her own little girl outgrew them. I felt bad for a second, then remembered my daughter was only going to trash them at the park, so the £26 was money well saved. The fact they were half a size too big was by-the-by. Room to grown and all that…

First love

Child #1: A McDonald’s Happy Meal dog called Woof Woof, who was pretty much attached to my little boy for the first 3 years of his life and who hasn’t been seen for several months now. I *may* have spent a ridiculous amount of money attempting to replace him with one from America earlier this week. Shhh.

Child #2: A bunny, called Bun Bun, which inevitably sounds like Bum Bum – much to the 3-year-old’s delight.

First food

Child #1: The most expensive organic baby rice on the shelf, mixed with freshly-expressed breast milk. I kid you not. And he was 4-and-a half months old, despite my Health Visitor’s advice, because I was such an eager beaver (why?!) and so many people had told me he wasn’t sleeping through the night because he was hungry. Alas, it made absolutely no difference and he still didn’t sleep through for another 4 months. He did like the baby rice, though.

Child #2: A bit of toast with marmite, shoved into her mouth by her older brother when she was about 6 months old. When she wolfed it down and wanted more I realised perhaps it was time to wean her.

First outing

Child #1: A trip to Milton Keynes shopping center at 10 days old. My husband – sensing I was turning into a hermit and he only had a few days’ worth of paternity leave left – practically dragged me out of the house. I was miserable, sore and clueless, and worried about where I’d be able to breastfeed, do nappy changes and just generally exist now that I had a small person to look after. The trip did me the world of good and was absolutely necessary, but boy did my husband get it in the ear.

Child #2: A toddler party at 4 days old. I was DESPERATE to leave the house and the thought of letting the older one run around a village hall on a Haribo trip was just what the doctor ordered. My daughter slept through the whole thing, despite being poked in the eyes by numerous sticky toddlers.

First words

Child #1: I’ve written ‘mama/dada/nana’ in the baby book, and as I filled out each milestone approximately 20 seconds after it occurred the first time around, I’m pretty sure it’s accurate.

Child #2: Peppa. Which says it all, really.

First holiday

Child #1: We went to Tuscany when he was 9 months old and it was absolutely amazing. The place was beautiful, he was still breastfeeding (instant placation) and he wasn’t yet walking, so we were still able to sit back and relax without him getting into too much trouble. Plus, he couldn’t talk, so he couldn’t argue when we spent whole days sightseeing in places like Sienna and San Gimignano.

Child #2: We’ve been on a UK break to Center Parcs with the grandparents, but we’re off on our first overseas holiday as a foursome – a week in Sicily – later this month. The bad news is, they can both walk, and talk, and argue – often at the same time. Wish us luck?

This post is an entry for BritMums’ #PetitsFilousFirsts Linky Challenge, sponsored by Petits Filous, who supplied us with vouchers to try My First Petit Filous. This new, low-sugar fromage frais is designed as a first food for weaning babies onwards, and available in ASDA and Morrisons for £1.59 for a pack of 6. My daughter – who has eaten a yoghurt every evening without fail since she was 6 months old (she has overnight asthma medication in it) and is therefore quite the connoisseur – certainly had no complaints. As for my 3-year-old son, he *may* have eaten two in a row…