I'm back!

I've just read my last post.

Oops. Well, at least I know my own faults.

So after all this time you'd think I'd have loads to say, wouldn't you?

Oh dear.

OK, start from where you left off, that would probably be the best idea.

The whole fingernail cutting is conquered, yay! It's now almost ritualistic, I have to have my weekly fix or I start to twitch.......
Seriously, I still have my moments, you know, when you close the teeth of the clippers and you could swear you felt resistance, you wait for the wail, that look of deepest hurt and betrayal in their eyes like you just gave away their upsy daisy doll, but for the most part I would say we've cracked it.

And now, the inevitable has happened. I've just sat down, raring to go (I'm actually getting into a nice rhythm and could go on for some time), but baby's awake.

Did I hear somebody say phew?!?!?

We were out and about today, and at one point I had an (unusually) interesting thought. Not having the computer with me, I did something it feels like I haven't done for years - I found a pen and a bit of paper, and I wrote it down.

The fish......

It has just occurred to me that the fish at the top of the page are a bit like the ideas in my head, floating around randomly in a wide empty space.

Just thought I'd share that.

Diagnosis

I have decided I suffer from a little known condition called Confidence Deficit Disorder. Five months of little more than baby talk has left me, quite frankly, scared of adult company and conversation. I dart round the local supermarket hoping not to bump into anyone I know, and if I do, I stutter and mumble like the village idiot. Even family are beginning to notice, and I'm sure one or two of them think I'm on some kind of drug. Any attempts at normal conversation leave me feeling frazzled, my brain melts and I have to sit down with a cup of tea.

Any hints and tips would be greatly appreciated. Just don't expect a sane reply.

So many topics, so little time.....

Have you ever looked at the clock and wondered where the day has gone??

Today has been one of those days. The alarm went off at 6.30am because daddy had an early start, and despite my best efforts to stay in bed a little longer I was wide awake, so at 7 I admitted defeat and got up. Liv followed on about 15 minutes later, so my idea of a lazy cup of tea, cereal and the breakfast news was also scuppered. Daddy went off before 8, leaving mum and daughter alone for the day.

I had so many plans.......

Firstly, I had decided to take Liv along to the local mums and toddlers group for the first time since moving here. Actually I've been putting it off - I'm not great at new people things, and I keep coming up with excuses not to go. This, however, is not exactly a healthy example to set junior, so I steel myself to take the bull by the proverbials and go. Plenty of time thought I, since the group didn't start till 10, I can get Liv down for her morning nap (without which I wouldn't even consider taking her out the door - she's like a different child, honestly), get myself ready (I am, at this point, still in grotty jammies, hair like Medusa and yesterday's mascara) and call the number in the local paper to ask if there's a minimum age for attendance, and do we just turn up.  Meanwhile Liv is showing no signs of needing a nap at all, and since to put her down before she's ready is asking for trouble, I decide to leave her to kick about on her mat while I make a start on the mountain of washing that seems to be breeding in the laundry basket.
I had stripped the bed when I got up, so that went on first so that it would dry and be back on the bed in a matter of hours, or at least that was the theory. Then I started on the pile of dishes left from last night, getting interrupted by a now fretful and sleepy Liv. I took her upstairs to the nursery and deposited her in her cot, where she chewed on her rabbit's arm and drifted peacefully off to sleep.

This was 8.40am. Still plenty of time.

Hah.

Next phase - trying to fit in as much as possible while baby is sleeping. Shower done and personal presentation taken care of, I took out one load of washing and replaced it with the next one, hung the first lot out, and finished the dishes, completely forgetting about the time. 9.40. Shit. Figuring I'd left it a bit late to phone now, and since Liv was still asleep and showed no signs of surfacing for a while, I abandoned the toddler group idea till next week. Hopefully.

So, change of plan. I decided to attack the whole baby food arena. Raiding the fridge and cupboards, I gathered an array of suitable dishes to make, blitz and freeze ready for the next week. Halfway through organising pots and boiling kettles, baby woke, so I left the kitchen like a bombsite and brought her downstairs. And so it has been like this for most of the day, starting one task, being diverted by another, interspersed with Liv's (frequent) demands. So here I am, at 3.30pm, sitting down for what feels like the first time today. Baby is asleep (again), I've just managed a late lunch and a cup of tea, the washing machine is working on load number four (told you it was breeding), the freezer drawer if full of little tubs (and the sink is full of new dishes) from the baby food bonanza, the bedding is on the sofa waiting to be put back on the bed,  and any minute now daddy will be home.

If he asks if we've managed to go for a walk today, I might just cry.

Finally...

I did it! I cut Olivia's nails!

Not before she managed to leave two horrible track marks down her cheek though....

Sigh.

Sharp as a tack

Why can't I cut my baby's fingernails???

The first time daddy tried, he snipped the corner of the very last nail. Her face contorted into the most frightening mask of hurt and betrayal, then she let forth a wail the likes of which I'd never heard before. I had even less success on my first attempt. The whole traumatic experience has left us both unwilling to repeat it, so now we both put up with scratch marks on our faces (she's now grabbing everything within reach) and actively avoiding the issue. Shamefully, we've even had family members offering to do it for us. We have, of course, politely refused, saying that it's on our list of things to do later today.

Just one more cup of tea, then I'll do it. Promise.