Entertaining Olly

Today we have been doing some baby sitting for some friends of ours. Olly is nearly 2, and this was the second time we have looked after him, and the first time during the day, and in our home. It's been a while since we have had a toddler in the house, and it's not really very child friendly, with plenty of clutter, and breakables at child height. We also had the responsibility of providing lunch, with the worry that he might not eat what we do. I needn't have worried, as it turns out he loves roast dinners. It's not very often you see toddlers picking out the broccoli & carrots to eat before the Yorkshires & roast potatoes. I was amazed by how much he ate, and how well he behaved at the table. For me, I feel that sitting at the table and eating as a family is very important. Sadly, not many families eat this way.
The other thing I have been reminded of today, was that children don't need expensive toys to play with. Olly came to our house with a bag of Mega Blocks, an electronic car dashboard toy & a toy trumpet. Apart from a few minutes spent with the bricks, the rest of the time in the house was spent in the kitchen with the washing machine. When the washing machine was on, he stood in front of it, getting excited every time it started to spin. This is very funny and very cute to watch. When the washing machine was empty, he spent about an hour putting many things, including tea towels, fridge magnets & bottles in and out of it. It's been a long time since I've seen a child so easily pleased by something so simple.

What a difference a year makes

Have been looking back at our wedding photos and seeing how much has changed for our guests. 

Since we got married, one friend who had a pretty large bump, has since had a beautiful baby girl, and is due to give birth to a boy in a few weeks. Another of our guests was pregnant at the wedding and has since had her baby girl. Two other friends fell pregnant shortly after the wedding and had baby boys earlier this year, one a first baby and the other a second. Another couple are expecting their first baby in December. Then there's the three couples who have got married since our wedding, and one of those couples had their first baby on Monday this week.

Maybe there was something in the water at our wedding. I didn't drink any!