belgianwaffle

Princess

Talking on the phone


Posted in: Princess, Travel, Work

Am most relieved that the Princess consented to talk to me last night. They had a paddling pool in the creche (“nager, NAGER Maman, dans le creche”). Am optimistic that, once given her present, she will welcome my return. Trust that even minus present my loving husband will welcome me with open arms.

By the by, has anyone seen Locotes since Liverpool won the cup?

Comments
Locotes

on 27 May 2005 at 13:14

Locotes is alive and well, though relatively dishevelled and still in a wonderful dreamy haze where nice things really do happen to deserving people.He is waiting for all that to stop very soon, and for the real world to resume kicking him in the gut.

Locotes

on 27 May 2005 at 13:14

Oh, and maybe a present for the hubby wouldn’t go amiss….just to be safe you know.

Bobble

on 27 May 2005 at 14:06

How could she not? x

belgianwaffle

on 29 May 2005 at 13:46

Pog, you are always right. Locotes, glad you haven’t died of happiness. Yeah, I got him a pressie, better safe than sorry. Thanks Bobble.

Scholl sandals – why?


Posted in: Family, Princess, Travel, Work

I went to buy new slippers at the weekend. I know, my life is full of thrills. I decided that thought I would buy Scholl sandals rather than slippers so that if I had to go out to put out the bins I wouldn’t look quite so weird. Why has nobody ever told me how profoundly uncomfortable these yokes are? And also that they are very noisy. And quite expensive. I am bitter.

In other news, Princess continues a bit unwell and her saintly grandmother is staying for an extra couple of days to tend to her. Doctor today pronounced himself satisfied that she is on the mend, though baffled as to what might have been wrong. Am informed by my husband that Princess wailed convulsively for the entire appointment despite sustaining no injury whatsoever except, one assumes, to her dignity.

Royal grandparents have flooded the house with newsprint and I am fully up to speed with Jools Oliver’s new book which the Guardian described as like a “common or garden baby blog”. Have realised to my horror that I am the owner of a common or garden baby blog and I thought that there was so much more to me.

The Princess is speaking far more English following her grandparents’ visit as evidenced by the following exchange.

Princess (shouting from the bathroom where she is sitting on her pot): Je fais caca, Papa, tu veux faire caca?

Her father: Non merci.

Princess: Mummy, you want to go poo?

Me: Thanks, I’m ok.

And finally, I am off on a work trip tomorrow, so blogging for the remainder of the week may be somewhat limited as I labour in a distant land.

Comments

poggle Those scholls will feel comfortable if you persevered, waffley – they’re kind of like acupressure and take a bit of getting used to. Your feet will thank you for it eventually. But, sadly, the loud clacking is par for the course.
Princess has a bit of a poo fixation at the moment, doesn’t she? I foresee a lucrative future as a stand-up comedienne …..

beachhutman >on 24 May 2005 at 17:24 Ah, so she’s twigged her mama is Monolingual…..

belgianwaffle on 25 May 2005 at 11:12 >Oh, Jojo, if only you knew, you would laugh cruelly.
Pog, thank you for both these pieces of information. Will persevere with deeply uncomfy Scholls.
BHM, well, only temporarily, I suspect. JoJo Birmingham? Calais? Bognor? Bradford???

Even sexier than Bradford…

Recovering


Posted in: Family, Princess

We’re all much better. Well, Mr. Waffle is but you will, I know, be upset to hear that my paper cut injury is causing lingering difficulties and poor old Princess despite an excellent day yesterday was sick again this afternoon.

Mr. Waffle’s parents arrived yesterday. We did some preparatory work on the way home from the creche last night.
Me: Who’s coming to visit us this evening?
Princess: Grandma et Grandad.
Me: Is that nice?
Princess: Yes.
Me: What are you going to say to them?
Princess: Present for me?
Granparents duly arrived and were greeted with great delight. They did, of
course, bring a present. And they have more stashed away to give out during the weekend should their popularity show any signs of flagging. So, today, instead of going to the creche, the Princess bonded with her grandparents. I think they were a little concerned that she might be upset at the prospect of being left at home but they needn’t have worried. She happily kissed us good bye and rushed back to the grandparents. As we went out the door she was spinning in circles with an empty box on her head while hurling magnetic letters round the room.  Alas, although she had an
excellent morning, our poor mite was again sick in the afternoon and her poor grandparents were covered in vomit and spent some time devoming the bathroom. What is wrong with our angel? Worrying no?
Comments
belgianwaffleon 21 May 2005 at 11:42

Thanks Bob, grandparents are already doing the child minding thing and she seems fine again…

poggleon 23 May 2005 at 11:38

Poor Princess.
Her ‘present for me?’ reminds me of my niece when she was little. She was asked if would like a slice of pizza. ‘Yes’, she said. ‘Magic word?’, says Mum. Frowns. Thinks hard. Light dawns. ‘Now??’

belgianwaffleon 25 May 2005 at 11:12

SUPERB Pog.

Stalked by illness


Posted in: Family, Mr. Waffle, Princess

Me

Pregnancy related maladies
Return of rash leading to scabrous arms and legs (thankfully the weather is not such as to encourage baring of same)
Sore toe (no sniggering – last night while rushing to the aid of my howling infant, I stubbed my toe and today I am limping pitifully)
Industrial accident (painful paper cut on top of middle finger making typing
excrutiating)
Mr. Waffle
Sore neck (leading to a certain stiffness in bearing)
Headache
Princess
Has for three nights in a row thrown up in the middle of the night. She has no other symptoms. No temperature. Nothing. Last night when I picked her out of her cot she said she was sick and we rushed to the bathroom where she dutifully threw up. Though obviously worried that she was ill, I was pleased that I had explained to her that if she felt sick it was a good idea to go to the bathroom; particularly since our supply of clean bedding was nearly exhausted.   In my triumph, about the controlled vomitting incident I had forgotten that my daughter is like her father – very cautious.  So for the next hour my loving husband and I took it in turns to sit with her on the bathroom floor. Every time we tried to persuade her back to her bed or ours she said piteously “dans la salle de bain”. Anyway eventually she went back to bed and slept for the rest of the night and this morning she seemed fine, though a bit tired and crabby. Alas, this evening, she was not fine when I picked her up from the creche.  The new person said she had spent most of the day lying on the floor with Hop Hop crying. She had her nap and ate her lunch and didn’t have a temperature and when questioned said she was not sick but sad. I am a bit annoyed that they didn’t call us. I mean, she’s only 2 she may not be fully au fait with the difference between existential angst and feeling nauseous and tired.  Anyhow I brought her down to the car and strapped her in and she said “Sick Mummy” so I rapidly unstrapped her and she threw up all over the pavement. Poor mite. She was anxious that I should clean up the pavement but I held back. When we got home she was sick again and she’s now gone to bed where I hope she will recover before her paternal grandparents arrive tomorrow. I must say, it makes me feel very sad to think of my baby girl lying on the floor crying while I was quiet at work and could easily have taken a half day and brought her home. This working mother thing can be trying.
Comments
beachhutman

on 19 May 2005 at 08:49

Yeah, hope it comes out well.
That could have been put in a more felicitous way I guess.

Minkleberry

on 19 May 2005 at 09:09

awww poor little girl. But what control. I still don’t quite make it to the toilet everytime I’m sick!

poggle

on 19 May 2005 at 10:42

Oh dear.
Poor mite does seem to have a v delicate stomach …..

kat

(Homepage)

on 19 May 2005 at 22:02

My goodness…sending you get well vibes asap!

belgianwaffle

on 20 May 2005 at 18:16

Aw thank you all for good health wishes. So far they only seem to be really working for my loving husband but he is very grateful..

dmts

on 20 May 2005 at 18:26

Oh it is pitiful – ‘not sick but sad’. Poor princess – may she be up and telling you all to fuck off before too long

belgianwaffle

on 21 May 2005 at 11:42

Thanks HJB. How did the furry animal grilling go?

dmts

on 21 May 2005 at 15:35

they grilled neither small fluffy animals or children. The fluffies were there to be pretty and the grilled stuff was sausages.

belgianwaffle

on 25 May 2005 at 11:10

Disappointing H.

Speaking in Tongues


Posted in: Princess

Our girl is like a little sponge at the moment.  She repeats everything. I ask her father for something in Irish so that she won’t understand and she says it back to us.

When we were in the park yesterday some harrassed Italian parent said “Chiara, vieni quando ti chiamo” and our girl said “Chiara, vieni quando ti chiamo”.

While we were off living it up in Paris over the weekend, the Princess spent
time with our Polish babysitter; this morning she spent our trip to the creche
singing Frère Jacques in Polish (well, so her father who knows everything
assured me).  As Mr. Waffle pointed out, there is only one problem with all this accomplishment, no matter what language she is speaking, she always sounds like a little francophone, you should hear her”r” people.And on a completely separate note, she saw her father in a bicycle helmet for the first time this evening, clapped her little hands together and said delightedly “regarde Maman, Papa se déguise en clown”. Her Papa was less delighted.

And finally, please inspect hilarious post on the challenges of living with a toddler.


Comments
NorahSplogon 18 May 2005 at 10:12

Fab link Waffly.
And I can teach Princess ‘One Man Went To Mow’ in Swahili if she fancies it?

poggleon 18 May 2005 at 10:24

Brilliant – Operation No Pants. So, it’s true – they DO have a secret language!

belgianwaffleon 18 May 2005 at 20:10

Bobble, excellent suggestion. Yes, they all have nicer templates but the company isn’t as pleasant.
Norah, yes please. My aim is to become completely unbearable before she turns 3.
Pog, yes, it was good, wasn’t it?

beachhutmanon 19 May 2005 at 08:50

Hey, my girl’s middle name is Chiara!

beachhutmanon 19 May 2005 at 08:51

No Bobble, we’d miss you terribly.

belgianwaffleon 20 May 2005 at 18:17

And what a pretty name it is too BHM.

Cautious Gene


Posted in: Mr. Waffle, Princess

This morning the Princess, little L and I went to the playground together.  This was my first time venturing out alone with 2 two-year olds and I was a little tense.  We were only going as far as the park at the end of the road but the potential for disaster was clearly there. Little L dutifully held my hand and I suggested to the Princess that she might like to do likewise.

No!� Mummy carry you! But why, sweetheart? Look L is walking.
Il y a des voitures, maman!
Well yes darling, but they’re all parked.

She was not to be fooled, she would not get down until we reached the safety of the park.  Let me tell you waddling along with a 2 year old in one arm while holding another’s hand while simultaneously 4 months pregnant with twins is no joke.

I tackled Mr. Waffle on this matter this evening.

Him:� Um, that might be my fault.
Me: Why?
Him: Well the other day I was walking with her and when we got to the road I explained that she had to be carried across the road because otherwise it was too dangerous.
Me: Derisive snort.
Him (defensively): Well, it’s better than the opposite.

Which I suppose it is. Her extreme caution also means that she is not subject to the myriad bruises which other toddlers suffer from. Though, of course, she did manage to break her front tooth.

Comments

jackdalton

on 17 May 2005 at 09:21

You’re undone. That’s imprinted behaviour and the circuitry is now laid down for all future learning. Better luck with the Twins…. 😐

poggle

on 17 May 2005 at 10:26

Hubby will be sorry when she’s 18 and still demanding that he carries her across the road. You wait.

belgianwaffle

on 17 May 2005 at 21:31

HJB, well my experience of people who live in Switzerland is that they’re all very fit from near constant mountain climbing – not true?
JD, yes, I know.
Pog, the one thought that sustains me.