Chris pointed out to me recently that I was sometimes having unrealistic expectations of Eleanor. I’m sure I’ve mentioned before how I’ve forgotten a lot of what it was like to have a two-year-old and, even when I remember how Rosemary used to behave, that doesn’t really guarantee that Eleanor …
We’re a bit shell-shocked here at the moment. Eleanor has been, generally, a pretty happy, polite and remarkably compliant child. We’ve had problems, of course – sleep problems, tantrums and breastfeeding issues – but nothing major or unusual. Of course, there’s nothing particularly unusual happening now, but it’s still come …
I had a beautiful afternoon with Eleanor today. It took me back to Tuesdays with Rosemary when she was at nursery school; when life wasn’t such a rush and a juggle. Eleanor started nursery school a couple of weeks ago, and we had been trying out my mum picking her …
One of the most commonest phrases you’ll hear me and Chris uttering to Rosemary (not quite as common as ‘Just sit still for a few minutes!’) is ‘Remember you’re a role model to Eleanor.’ Eleanor copies pretty much everything Rosemary does, whether it’s good or bad, whether it’s funny or …
Eleanor is starting nursery school tomorrow. She’s starting a couple of months earlier than Rosemary did, because the nursery school has changed the age when they start taking children (from 2 years 3 months, to 2 years). She is very excited about it and is talking about doing ‘painting and …
I always think of Rosemary as having a very wide taste when it comes to food, however, it’s becoming apparent that this isn’t really the case. She has a number of meals that she really, really likes, a number that she’ll eat and then she has the increasingly frustrating refusal …
Eleanor has hit the 18-month frustration stage. Otherwise known as the ear-splitting scream stage. Or the head-banging, kicking, defiant, stubborn, really, really hard work stage. I had forgotten about this stage. I had forgotten about this stage. I think perhaps it’s a bit like labour and you wipe it …
(I can’t believe I had to go back to the month Eleanor was born to find a breastfeeding picture. I suppose people don’t just go around taking snaps of me with my boobs out, but still, I spent enough of my time doing it, you’d think there could be more …
I’ve been waiting to write this post for ages and, to be honest, it’s probably a teensy bit premature. You see, instead of writing a post about all the problems we have with getting children and babies to go to sleep and getting them to stay asleep, I wanted to …
So as a parent of a… well, of a child… there are certain tricks or strategies that are required to get the child to do what you want them to do, or not to do what you don’t want them to do – or just to keep you reasonably sane. …
