Archives: jack

Eve had a good day yesterday; much more her usual self. She even allowed herself a sleep during the day. She’s still apt to being a bit cheeky at the moment though. It’s her age, I guess; doing that bit of boundary testing.

I fine, cold crisp bright morning. Will they come to do the roof today? I doubt it – due for more miserable rain tomorrow. Gah!

Jack coughed himself to sleep last night, but he seemed to have a better night of it in general. Hopefully he’s getting better. I am feeling marginally better. Not over it yet, but better. I didn’t manage to get any attic work done last night (not managed any for a few nights!) as I just about got to sort some files out, & check some mail before I thought better of trying to remain awake.
Gosh! I found some time to sleep – what a novelty!

Train home.

Jack has quite a cough at the moment. It made him cough so hard he threw up the other night (Saturday?). Louise was upstairs at the time & guided him to the bathroom before he was actually ill – so that saved a lot of bother.
He’s basically OK during the day – it sits badly on him while he tries to sleep though. I got to sleep with him last night & he coughed loudly at me at what seemed like half hourly intervals. Suffering a bit today because of it. Probably have the same cough as he, as I have sinuses blocked. Leaning forward/looking down is uncomfortable for my face.
Shut yer whining!
Eve did a pooh in the bath (shared with Jack) on Sunday morning. Heh – that’ll embarrass her later in life! You wonder when she’s going to ‘get more control’ over this important part of life. I was not upstairs, but as the bath was bubble laden it would not have been immediately noticeable. Louise was upstairs & heard Jack saying, “urg – what’s that? …Eve’s done a pooh in the bath!!!!”. I had to nip upstairs to sort that one out. Yuk!
Jack’s been really well behaved of recent. He has not been reacting too badly to Eve, who has been more manic, shouty & attention seeking of recent (delayed reaction to Jude?). He has managed to shrug off some pretty annoying provocation from her. Of course there are the moments when he provokes her… but that’s a flipside. He is, on the whole, not retaliating against the weaker party – which is very good. Having said that – yesterday, for one reason or another was quite fraught. I think we’re all suffering something of this cough thing. Eve was in excruciatingly loud mode. Very fragile & apt to complain at everything. She did fall asleep at @16:15/30 & things all calmed down nicely & became a lot more manageable. She woke just as we were finishing tea. Jack asked to go to bed then, so it was into the night-time routine (about an hour or so earlier than usual). Eve joined in & actually fell off asleep @ an hour & a half later. Quite surprised at that. I think if it were Jack in the same circumstances (when he was younger) he would have run us ragged late into the night (as it was I did that on my own). She was in desperate need to catch up on sleep. She woke just as I was leaving this morning, & I got a big smile. She seemed in a lot better frame of mind. Whether that is how the day progressed, I guess I’ll find out…

Ah – another Saturday travelling to…. Work!
Bah
It all went smoothly this morning, although it came as something of a shock when I realised I needed to be setting off to work. What a bugger! Hugs, kisses, scarper.
I found the bit of paper that had William’s address on it; Jack’s friend whose moved to Spain, but no – the address says Majorca! I went to Majorca when I was a young kid (7/8??) on holiday with my parents. There are some old photos they have somewhere. It was the only holiday we had abroad as a family. My parents were always working in the pub, & it’s hard to leave such a thing, as they don’t run themselves.
Anyway – Jack has now the option of writing to William, but I’m not sure I should mention it as a prompt to him, because he does get glum when he realises that William isn’t about. On the plus side William is supposedly coming back to the UK for Easter – so they should get to meet up then!
I had a good night sleep last night, but still woke up feeling grotty. I guess I have to conclude that it’s not just lack of sleep, but my sinuses are blocked & I sneeze & cough… lordy I have a cold! tsk.
Eve & Jack have the same. Jack had a nasty cough in the night, but in the day it doesn’t seem too bad. Eve is suffering a little with this, but is generally crankier through her teething. Heh – she also slept quite well. I heard her yelp as she woke up, so scampered upstairs. She was running down the hall at the time, & I was worried she was upset (she often wakes grumpy & upset) but she had a huge smile when she saw me appear at the top of the stairs & gave me a big hug. Ah, the sort of things patents love.
Hey ho – here be Manchester once more. Pack up – go to work – bah.

Hmm
I actually don’t feel completely shagged & useless. This does not mean that I actually have 2 brain cells to rub together; it just means that the paracetamol I had half an hour ago or so is starting to have an effect.
MMMmmm no headache….
Eve is teething at the moment. This means that she is acting barmy as her gums are driving her barmy. Her ‘loud-o-meter’ seems to have stuck on ‘intense’ & she has a constant frantic edge to her. She is also rather fragile.
Jack was saying the other day as I picked him up from school that he was missing William. William is the lad who was his main friend at school, & who has gone to Spain. It’s difficult to know what to say really. I empathise as we moved around a bit when I was young, but I still don’t know what to say. I will have to try find the address for them in Spain that his mum gave me. I know where I put it, but household clutter may have swamped it. I suggested that he write to him – but I really do have to ensure that we can before reminding him of that. Jack also said that no one would play with him at school when he was going to bed last night. I don’t know about the hurly-burly of the day to day at school – but Jack seems a popular lad. Other kids say hello to him when we are out. Not just ones from his ‘year’, but older kids. So maybe that’s just Jack missing William again. I don’t know. Again I worry for him & I don’t know if I justifiably worry.
Hmmm – I think there’s a ‘parent’s evening’ next week…

Jeeez- another month! I mean – a month!– what happened there?
<sigh> – I only used to get caught out by weeks passing.
Will years be next?
No fair – no time to enjoy things.
Train home – brain is a blur from it being busy at work yet again. Nothing notable to explain such other than lingering tidying up of previous problems.
No time to complain at being underpaid the hours I work & all that crap – hey ho.
That’s all ‘work’ – leave as much of it at work as I can.
Jude was smiling over the weekend. Yet to catch such a photographic image of such an elusive thing. Heh – we did catch one of Jack’s early smiles on film. Smiling at you rather than the ceiling. There is communication stuff starting to set in his brain.
Wonderful things – baby smiles.

Jack was called up in front of assembly at school on Friday. This was because he was “the best behaved boy” in his class/year. He got a little sticker & a lot of pride. He was chufty about it. He has been especially lovely recently. Had the occasional flare up, but nothing as protracted & as involved as he used to do with us at home. He is no angel, but Louise thinks that he has made the decision to be good at school. His reading is starting to work better for him as well – he understands & recognises things better. He is also able to write more words on his own. He filled as few lines in a notebook with “yes no yes no yes no yes no” the other day. It’s all less frustrating for him.
I wonder sometimes if we expect too much. I suspect we are probably quite quietly demanding parents, but I have no yardstick to compare.
Heh – we got Jack another coat the other day as the one recently bought did not really seem good enough for the frightful weather we have been experiencing (Old Lincolnshire saying that Louise reminded us ‘tother day: ‘February Fill Dyke’). I got it on the way home Wednesday, I think, & it was put away as I got home so as not to be noted by Jack or Louise’s mum. Louise got it out in the morning as they were about to go & Jack is under the impression that ‘a lorry came in the night’ to deliver it (as if we ordered it off t’net). We had tried to order one previously from t’net t’other day, like, but they were low on stock – so we cancelled the order when fannying about started. Louise thought it easier to flatter Jack’s assumption – so, he thinks the coat is more ‘special’ due to this phantom delivery & maybe he likes it all the more (?).
Eve has been cheekier of recent. She’s always been an opinionated little thing, but is trying to get her way more. She picks up Jack’s bad habits & runs like billio with them bath water gurgling & spitting, taking things from the fridge. She is probably the loudest member of the household, & when she is upset has really started to be piercing. High-pitched over-scream. OW! She has been getting up too early & still has not properly resolved the ‘sleeping during the day’ thing. Sometimes she just does not – gets over tired – over emotional & loud. She is also winding Jack up occasionally, which he does not respond well to (& she should know that by now). Still – that’s all part of being brother/sister. Perhaps there’s a bit of attention seeking now that Jude is here.

Catching breath as I ended up having to run a bit for the train this morning. All my own fault – prating about at home. It’s not like Jack or Eve were up. That’s 2 morning that neither of them were awake as I left.
Eve has been in the habit of waking too early of recent – so hopefully that habit is starting to break. Jude was up with Louise. It was the computer what done it (made me late). Silly me. It doesn’t help that I’m sat at a chair with a heater under it.
It was a lovely bright crisp afternoon yesterday. It’s a shame it was not consistently so, or they may have had a chance to look at our roof (sigh).

So – I did no work in the attic over the weekend. Bad Paul – bad.

We did rearrange the kid’s room though as we are thinking that Jude might go in there as well in the travel cot. It remains to be seen that we will do this, but it’s nice to have the option, & the room seems better for it. Jude sleeps very well with us, but he will he cope on his own? He didn’t really go for the Moses Basket that much.
Louise said that he was smiling yesterday morning. He certainly seems to have moved up a notch in perception terms. Instead of focusing on a light over your shoulder, or the transition between a light & dark area he is looking more at you. Into your eyes (& the drifting off & you realise that he is not any more). He is starting to coo & gurgle a little as well. Jack & Eve love him to bits. Louise says that Eve announced that she “..Like baby Jude”. They would spend a lot more time giving him kisses if he was not out of reach.

Website is still down; has been all weekend. Weird. I know exactly why, but am not saying, as I’m not sure I’m allowed. Suffice to say the cause was not our fault.

Did my work in the attic when I got home. The house was empty when I arrived, so I was able to slink off up there without anyone knowing where I was. I left the newspaper on the table as an indication to Louise I was in fact home & not prating about in Manchester buying stuff like what I’m not supposed to. Took my coat & bag up with me so I could perform the pretence of coming home, so that the kids would not think I had been up there. When I say kids, I mean ‘Jack’ as he is the one apt to want to ‘help’ in the attic. Got my bit of work done, & togged up again for the ‘just got home’ pantomime & sneaked downstairs. The kids didn’t see me, but Louise was just opening the door for Jimmy & Jill who had just arrived (They do the roof fixing). Timing or what? So – I got to look like I was arriving with them & took them up to the attic so that they could survey what was going on. Jimmy had to get onto the roof in the rain (it was pouring down again). Not something that I like the thought of too much (from a personal safety point of view). I left them to it – took the ever-inquisitive Jack & following Eve downstairs & out of the way. They followed later & said that, well; it’s going to have to take some thorough investigation, as they cannot see what’s causing it. They have, after all, fixed it up at least twice now, including redoing the lead flashing, putting silicone sealant on the stonework & all sorts of tricks. Weird. If it stops raining they’ll be able to take things up & look proper & trace back. There was some condensation last time they did this, so I guess that might have obscured the diagnosis.

Hmmm – it was a fine week last week (weather was good for roof mending – but no-one came).
Louise was quite content with last week. Jack was off school for half term & she was a little worried that he might play up a bit. He did not. He’s been very good in fact. He slept through the night last night. He woke at about 6:05 this morning, but I was near to hand & went to him (breakfast bowl in hand) & he lay down again & drifted off to sleep. I sneezed, which roused him slightly, so I said I needed to blow my nose & I’d be back. I went back to him & his eyes opened slightly to check I was there & he drifted off to sleep while I sat next to him eating my cereal very (slurp) very quietly.
Louise had shower, Jude stirred, filled his nappy, so I took him downstairs whereupon he contributed more to nappidom. I started changing him but Louise took over as it was one of those poohs that escapes the nappy up the back, so he his clothes changing as well, & I needed to be off to catch my morning train.
A quick weekend as I was working on Saturday. Louise has been entertaining in my absence. On Saturday it was her mum & Auntie Alice, who Louise reports as being in fine confident mood – which is heartening. On Friday while I was at work it was her sister & hubby. They bought along a few pressies for the kids: some of their granddaughter’s baby toys (play arch, rattles, soft toys). Yes, there is a significant gap between Louise & her elder sister & they started a family a long time before we did.
Jack has spent a lot of time with Hamish these last couple of days.
On Saturday he went with them to Hebden Bridge to participate in a ‘Green Weekend’ event that was being hosted there. They did some workshop things & Jack came home with some energy saving light bulbs & a shadow puppet he’d made.

gnnn
Went to sleep with a ‘tired’ headache & woke up with it as well. I’m losing this game of endurance at the moment. I am going to have to give up & go to bed after I’ve got the kids asleep without going downstairs & pissing about on the computer at …um… some point. Tonight would not be a bad option.
Egads! – I think – for the fun of it I will sleep on the train.

Train home

Nice sleep on the train this morning.
Train home & the weather is beautiful. Crisp air, blue skies. The only occlusion is the fact I have to go to work tomorrow.
I stayed on the train home yesterday. The family got on the train as well; a planned trip to New Pudsey (Owlcoats shopping centre) to get Jack a new coat. We could have gone elsewhere – but hey, why not? Problem is I hit my wakefulness trough at about 3:00 to 3:30 at the moment – so I had the kids excited at joining me on the train just at the time my brain was trying to give up on me. Other than that – it all went rather well. We got a coat, but did not get to shop around. Got back home & picked Hamish up from Jessie’s house as Hamish was staying with us overnight. All quite exciting for Jack – but he settled down to sleep eventually. All awake as I left this morning. I’m scant on detail, as I really, really should be getting more sleep at the moment.
Neil (brother) called last night as well to invite me to his stag party. They’re doing paintball & all sorts. I confirmed my status as on old fart by declining due to the travel involved. Was good to hear from him though. I waffled at him a bit & enjoyed the chat. Louise & I were upstairs when he called & Jack answered the phone. Don’t know how long he was chatting, but Hamish came upstairs to tell us that Jack was on the phone.