I’ve been meaning to buy a pack of disposable nappies for about a week now and well just haven’t gotten round to it. The amazing part is that I still have two left and I bought them more than 6 weeks ago and those two could last a couple of days.  Having a potty trained child is awesome, it comes highly recommended. Yes we still have some accidents, and yes I now get to worry about my bladder and hers, and yes I have to remind her to tell me if she needs to go to the toilet and take her when I think she may need to go, but it is definitely worth it.   

The exciting part is that we no longer have to go to the back door, we take her out in panties more regularly and this whole week her nappies have been dry post her nap and in the morning…yay!  Ah the little things in life that make me happy these days 🙂

Our little model

Today, 5 years ago, we arrived back in Cape Town. Donné, myself and Motie cat in a car for 15 hours or so, and all Motie ate was a few pieces of hot cross bun. It was certainly a ballsy, throw caution to the wind move. We resigned from our jobs, packed our things and moved back with few immediate chances of actually being able to earn any money once back in Cape Town. Three months later we bought our first house, just to make sure we really were pushing our risk taking to the max. Miraculously we were blessed to actually receive a mortgage, even though we had little to prove we could actually afford it (ah, the pre national credit act days…).

When one looks at it in retrospect I can imagine the grey hairs growing on our parents heads.

We made a leap, a leap from where we were to where we wanted to be, and it has worked out amazingly well. I am really glad we did it. I believe this year is going to be another year of leaping forward and I am looking forward to it.

My first Cape Town desk (which I worked at for 3 months)

Being 20 months old can be tough on the body….not that Grace is a hooligan – if anything she is quite placid – but she does seem to injure herself in spells. The past week or so went something like this…

She first bumped her cheek in the bathroom (either on her pram, or the corner of the bath) and had a small bruise on her cheek. While Donné was making her tutu she decided that diving into the tulle was loads of fun…at least until she dived cheek first into the floor (same cheek). So that bruise grew a bit. On Friday she walked out the door with a book in her hands and decided to forget that there were stairs to negotiate. Fortunately nothing serious, just a scratch on her nose. That same night she managed to gouge a hole in her face just below her eye while sleeping (too much face rubbing, and uncut nails…needless to say her nails were cut the next day). On Sunday she fell on some paving in our back garden and gave herself the biggest scrape on her knee that she has had to date. And finally today she managed to bump her lip on her scooter. Hopefully we are all done for now.

There was one other first yesterday – first time to draw on the wall with a crayon. Hopefully also the last…

Nose scratch, eye scratch and lip bump (the cheek bruise is fading)

Knee scratch

Everyday I feel so blessed that I got to marry my best friend who I get to journey through life with. I love that we got to bring a child into this world and experience the highs and lows of parenthood together.  I love that growing this family from two to three has grown the love in it. I love my family. 

Yummy raspberries 

Everyday I catch myself watching Grace and thinking she’s a little person now and no longer a baby.  Today during a quiet moment Duncan and I found her lying on our bed, propped up by a pillow reading her book, then while she was eating her supper she picked up her cup one handed and drank from it. The most big person thing she did today was use the public toilet while we were out having coffee.

Grace reading her book on our bed

I met one of my suppliers sales reps today who, after seeing Grace, said that he and his wife are expecting their first child in six weeks time. They fell pregnant after 7 years of trying, and on the 5th in-vitro attempt. We know quite a few friends and family who have either struggled, or are currently struggling to fall pregnant. Every time I meet someone, or think of a friend who has had to face this challenge I am extremely grateful for the blessing God gave us that we fell pregnant quickly. Our prayers are with the friends who we know are going through this struggle – may your prayers be answered soon.

The aftermath of some puzzle building

Today is the celebration of my Gran’s birthday. She passed away on 10 July 2008. Gran was such an amazing person, filled with God’s love. Her character left a mark on every member of her family. She was wise and gently, humble and kind. Any time I see “Days of our Lives” it always make me think of her. Her prayers have always been over our lives. I have been blessed to have a Gran like her. Love you Gran.

Grace and I have been going to swimming lessons once a week for 4 weeks now. She has been a bit sensitive to new environments and people over the last while, so adjusting to a new group of people in a new place has been slow going. 1st week involved crying for about 80% of the time. 2nd week went a lot better. 3rd week regressed and there was more unhappiness and lots of asking to see the dog which walked past at one point. And today, things went really well. She does not want the instructor to hold her yet (but not many people have that privilege at the moment), but we’re making progress – lots of good kicking and getting into the flow of it. I am really happy she is enjoying it, and I am looking forward to more lessons with her.

Now that the tutu is completed, here are some more pictures from the Tutu Diaries.

So I’ve been wanting to get a tutu for Grace for a long time and when Annie (my sister-in-law) said she was going to make some, I decided to google “pattern for tutu” and see what I could see.  Now just a little background the last time I used my sewing machine was before Grace was born and Duncan was convinced at the time that using the sewing machine was going to lead to premature labour.  Lets just say I am creative in other ways, but sewing is not my strong point, so I was delighted when I discovered that I could make a tutu by just tying knots, no sewing machine necessary YAY!  

Tutu video ed.avi
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After a trip to the library Rabbit’s Nap (a story in the book Tales from Acorn Wood) has returned to our home. Will the desperate signing of rabbit (a bouncing pointed index finger) and nap (hand to the ear) subside now that it has returned? Now that the book is back the intensity has definitely increased, hopefully it will soon decrease.

We will wait and see….