Archives: eve

Have proper bags under my eyes again this morning. Up to late doing a spot of decorating with Louise.
Well – Jude does not have a cough in his chest – although he sounds wheezy, it’s all ‘in the head’. Eve does not have a heart murmur, but there is no diagnosis as yet as to why she seems to go a little blue-lipped occasionally. The Dr commented that she had dark rings on her eyes – which is something we hadn’t really noticed. She wants to give her a blood test, but being new to the practice (apparently) she wants to check with the health visitor & a pediatrician 1st (I think that’s what Louise said). She took Louise seriously, which was good – Louise did not feel that she was facing skepticism over what we were saying, perhaps because the Health Visitor had assured the Dr that we were not wastrels? We’ve also been given direction if Eve seems to do the same again. All in all a positive step forward.
Everyone was in the park when I got home – which was a bit weird. I didn’t know where anyone was, but I suspected, & went looking. When we got back Jack pestered & pestered to have the stabalisers taken off his bike. I wonder what put it in his head? I was not willing to start with as the brake is in an awful position for him to be able to effectively use it. Andy – our good neighbour adjusted it for us (so now I know how to). Now all I need is a spanner that fits that bolt. Jack woke before I left for work again this morning. The 1st thing he asked was whether I would take the stabalisers off today…

Train home. Train strike day – so not the usual trains. But pleasantly surprised to have a table seat – woo! Typing in comfort.
Feeling relaxed, but then I have not been thrashing myself to get things done. Underlying guilt, but no underlying stress.
Still nothing on whether I can have a holiday at the end of the month – so that I can attend that comics convention – but at least I remembered to chase up about it today.
Voted yesterday. It’s a shame that the Tories aren’t withering away & dying, but then the that would be the only glimmer of joy in the cynical, but grimly determined view I have of all this. I feared Maggie Thatcher might die before these (or any) election as it might bring out sympathy vote – terrifying thought.
Eve seems to be losing the whinging streak she had a bit – which is quite a relief for such a loud lass, & we have avoided mentioning that we are not going to Elaine & Kyle’s tomorrow to Jack – so he might still think we are going. We cannot – due to the train strike.
Jude most certainly seem to be teething. He tries to stuff his fist into his mouth to chew it. 3 months seems a little early, but then Jack cut his 1st teeth at 4 months. It does seem to drive him to distraction sometimes & he has chomped on my finger with such vigor he’s managed to hurt me a couple if times. Oh – & he drools a lot – but then babies do that.

Not really feeling much of anything this morning. Minds a bit of a blank to be honest. Haven’t solved the ‘not enough sleep’ problem as didn’t even try to compensate for it. Jack slept well thru the night (until 4 anyway). This, considering all the children have the same cough as me (or do I have the same as them?). Louise has no cough – tender tum tho. While we’re on she subject of ailment… Louise has booked Eve in to see the Dr’s next Wednesday. As I was muttering last month (at least I think I was – I never read this too clearly) we do have some concerns on her general health – she seems to drink a great deal of fluids & is sometimes quite pallid. Her lips can sometimes go blue as well – which is a little alarming. When her lips do that, she is not usually showing any other indication of discomfort or anything… so… well, I dunno, but it’s best to bring these things up if we have concerns, however nebulous. Everyone Louise discusses it with says, “Oooh -she could be diabetic” which is not exactly comforting.
Been staring out of the window watching a couple of stations pass. I take it I have nothing more to say this morning.

Shagged this morning, but that really is nothing new. Cold a bit of a stuffed nose & cough, but again, that’s nothing really new. I have children, I travel on public transport – I’m likely to catch such things.
Scenes leaving school yesterday. I was picking up Jack & was a smidgeon late – in that he was out of the class as I came across the playground. He was happy to see me & ran forward to us (Eve was on my shoulders). He got his library book out to show me; a quite impressive edition of Wind in the Willows. The text is abridged & there are a lot of illustrations reminiscent of a 30’s/40’s illustrative style; very nice. Then he said that his leg was stiff. Then he wanted a pick up. Then I said no & then he started to cry & get mad at me. I had Eve on my shoulders; I was not going to pick him up. Battle of wills ensues; he crying & shouting at me & me resolutely refusing to pick him up. He stands on my feet, so that I can do the walking for him, but I need my hands free for that trick. We make progress though – a few yards. He gets more frustrated & upset. I’m accused of upsetting him because I, “You’re not doing what I tell you to do!”. Hmmm… I inch slowly out of the school & past the school gates. It all takes a long time. I have time. Eventually after a lot of hugging & querying he remembers that he is mad because I won’t carry him, so I concede to carry him as far as I can with one arm. We get as far as the level crossing down the road a bit, & he is OK to walk now, & cheers up a little.
We are both stubborn, but I don’t like being told what to do by adults – let alone my 4-year-old son. He does have the advantage of me loving him loads, though. He needs to learn the limits of possibility & not to act up that he has a gammy leg, when he patently doesn’t & I need to learn to concede a little easier.

Jaunty mood this morning. Checked my email when I got up & my brothers sent me some photos of his wedding in Antigua – look lovely & very sweet.
Eve has certainly discovered a little control over bladder & bowels. She gave numerous demonstrations after her bath yesterday – squeezing out a little wee & rushing to the loo to empty it; back & forth again & again with a tiny bit of wee. There was even a tiny bit of pooh at one point (such must have been the intensity of her endeavor). She was gleeful, but it all ended in tears as she had to get ready for bed & she also managed to spill a load of water onto the floor as she took it on her self to rinse out the potty at one point. Ah well, we should have been watching out for that accident.
Jack did something interesting this morning. As Louise was going to get her shower, he called to her. Loiuse went to see him & she asked him if he wanted to go downstairs, as I was there changing Jude’s nappy. He actually declined & said he would go back to sleep – & did, in fact, go back to sleep! Louise surmises that it was because she didn’t hassle him & say he was up too early – reverse psychology.

When I sit down to write I usually start off with the 1st thing in my head. This morning – as it’s there & nagging, I have a stiff back. Or is it neck? But it’s the right shoulder blade that hurts. Petty, self-interested & personal, but there you go – indicative of this whole shebang.
Jack had some Edam cheese on Sunday & announced to Louise that he really liked it. He also said that although he really likes it he’d rather it wasn’t used in his lunchtime sandwiches (he takes a packed lunch as Louise, & thus he, is vegetarian). It seems even at this age he is prone to peer pressure. Not wanting to have something anomalous for others to note in his lunch. Perhaps one day he will have the confidence to revel in ‘difference’.
Louise was a bit laid up yesterday & I was more in charge of keeping things ticking over. Jack probably spent too much time on the Internet playing games (hell, I probably spend too much time on the internet). We played a couple of games on the Lego site including the new ‘Junkbot’ game. I had to turn that one off to get him to admit it might be bedtime. Eve was in a funny mood. She is usually quite good at playing on her own, but is getting more attention seeking at the moment. We worry that it’s because when Louise’s mum comes all she can do is ‘molly coddle’ her. All attention is focused Eve’s way. She does not get the opportunity to play on her own – she does not get the opportunity to get a nap sometimes either, as if she does drift off she’s been known to be woken up if she just stirs as an excuse for being woken…

Train home

Anyway anyway – she now wants attention; too much attention sometimes & she was forever round my feet. That was the impression, but probably a little exaggerated. She was also antagonising Jack – trying to get him to respond to slaps & so on. Oh, she would not do well if it wasn’t for the fact that Jack is actually patient with her & knows I really disapprove of him doing anything ‘mean’ – even if she is being annoying; “If she’s doing that please tell me Jack”.
I’m an hour late traveling home today. One of those calls at ‘just to the hour’, which lasted an hour. Problem remains unsolved as well – but the guy has steps to take to get on with which might remedy the situation.
I called Louise to report this as I’m not able to pick up Jack (looking at the time – now – as I type this… a bit difficult from a speeding train some distance away). She says that Eve has been getting to know the potty today – which is a 1st – being keen to use it. We wondered when that might start to happen.
Back at the weekend. On Saturday we went to a housewarming party for someone who Louise knows through playgroup. They’ve moved into a very nice terrace that overlooks the town. Nice location (views from the attic room are lovely) & nice sized house (tall ceilings & spacious rooms). It’s sort of a long-term ambition to move to another house on that terrace… but that’s probably a good while hence. Anyway – apart from coveting it was a lovely social day. I thought that getting there in the afternoon might mean that we would be setting off home to have tea & get the kids to bed, but realised that was probably not the plan when I looked at my watch & it was already 6:30! The kids were enjoying themselves playing with their kids toys & roaming about & so on. We were in fact the last to leave in the end – quite late – with a sleeping Jude & Eve. Jack, of course was still wide-eyed, if not fully awake. I think he has my capacity to keep going in the face of sensibility. He recovers better the next day than I do from lack of sleep though. I turn into a gibbering wreck without the requisite, he seems to get along fine – although having said that toward the end of the day he was getting more emotional in is responses. That might last a couple of days if we cannot convince him into a normal sleep pattern.

I dithered about for an age in B&Q yesterday considering paint colour.
I eventually settled on woodwork colour, but dithered too much on the wall colour & got the one that we thought we might originally. It doesn’t really go with the woodwork colour though, but no matter – it can be used for the back room downstairs, as it needs doing this year as well. We have decided on a wall colour now – so I can go get that next week or something. Jack was very keen to start painting as soon as he saw me lugging it home. I was vague on the subject, but I did do a bit of painting last night – just to make a start & to see what it came out like. Nice.
Feel like I’m actually making progress now. The damp from February’s rain is still there. Looking at it very very closely yesterday it seems it could well be actually starting to dry out. Not a lot – but it seems to be… This is slower than it used to dry – whether this be because of the sealing in they have done has caught whatever was actually letting in water, or whether this is due to the volume of water that needs to dry out – I dunno.

Jude still has a cold. He was having problems breathing & feeding in the night because of his blocked nose. He was managing though – & he wasn’t getting distressed or upset. He has a health visitor coming to see him today. I imagine he’ll be weighed & all that. He certainly seems a growing lad. His eyes do not seem to be remaining blue. They have light brown round the iris at the moment. Still no clear idea what his hair color might be. It is growing (aside from the little bald patch as the back that babies get from lying down all the time & moving their head about a lot) but it’s still just a mousy brown. There are hints of lighter colour & red when through light… but nothing dominant. He’s murmuring & gurgling quite a bit nowadays – lovely sounds for parents. He loves watching his brother & sister. Louise was outside with him yesterday & he was happily watching his siblings & the world in general, when Louise had to pop inside for something (tissue for Eve’s nose?). He was crying as soon as she went into the house, but stopped again as soon as he was outside again.
On the whole I think the kids are feeling better. Last night Eve slept through the night in her own bed & Jack managed the same the night before.

Jude is not so well at the moment. He has a bit of a cough & is having to deal with a blocked nose & all that. He’s coping quite well really… He’s not especially happy, but he complains little. He’s not throwing up or anything more than usual. Speaking of which – Eve did yesterday evening. She tripped up over her ball, & the boy who passed it to her & probably caused it, “Didn’t say sorry”. She fell over again coming up the street home, so whether it was that fall of before (it’s difficult to say – not seeing the initial, but the latter being a nasty fall) but she managed to bump her head quite badly. The reason she was sick was because she was so upset. Poor lamb.
Jack started nagging me about the garden before I even got him home from school yesterday. I would say that he likes gardening. For want of anything else to do, & to quiet his pleadings, we ‘dead headed’ the daffodils – which are getting quite past their best by now. I suspect that it was enough to satiate him as I ended up finishing it off. He’d disappeared for a while, but now I realise he must have been taking in Louise a flower that Eve had plucked as her contribution to the activity. Hey – they’re puling flowers – I’ll pull …this!… one. “Eeya-ar daddy!”. Mauve primula by the kitchen sink in a little jar.
Plans that Louise & I do the attic went awry. Louise went to bed & I did a little bit of filling between the wall & skirting where I noted a gap the other day. I then proceeded to scan an old comic as I found the ‘printing’ proofs on Sunday when we were tidying & sorting – 1st stage to putting those on my web space as well.
Still not made my definitive decision on what colour paint to but – but I will buy some on the way home tonight.

Train home. The kids actually went off to sleep OK yesterday…well… ok perhaps that’s an exaggeration. Jack wanted to play downstairs with his Lego rather than consider coming upstairs to bed & screamed & shouted & accused me of trying to make him unhappy when I carried him up. I had made him cry & scream earlier in the evening as well. He wanted some crisps just before tea, & was refused. We endured a good ten minutes of howling & harrying on the subject. We did settle on the compromise of letting them (as Jack wants, Eve wants) have a bowl of rice crisp things in a bowl with tea.
Louise is still worried about Eve, so I think she is going to ask the health visitor’s advice, as she doesn’t feel confident with much else. Essentially Eve seems OK, she seems a little pale, & she does have a cough at the moment to compound things. She does not seem quite her usual self though. She is more often than not having a sleep through the day & seems listless. She does not sleep so well in general. It’s difficult to put your finger on precisely, but after being ill the other week, she seems to still be drained. The Health Visitor is due to see Jude, I think, but Louise is alerting her to the fact that she’d like to have a word about Eve.
Occurs to me I’m tired now… might sleep.