belgianwaffle

Youngest Child

Random


Posted in: Reading etc., Youngest Child

Firsts:

Michael walked across the room today. Daniel cannot do this and he is bitter.

The Princess remembered where she had left her doggy. She also reminded us that my brother is coming to visit next week; we have a lot on our minds, some things leak out.

I answered an internet questionnaire thingy for Peggy. I don’t normally do these things because I’m too lazy, but there you go. I sit here with my little fingers frozen to the keyboard to oblige (did I mention that we have no hot water and no heating tonight?)

1. Attrapez le livre le plus proche, allez à la page 18 et écrivez la 4ème ligne. corpses: most lie within what has become popularly known as

2. Sans vérifier, quelle heure est-il ? 23.49

3. Vérifiez :23.51

4. Que portez-vous ?

Electric blue Christmas present fleece over work clothes – not a great look.

5. Avant de répondre à ce questionnaire, que regardiez-vous ?

Flickr – trying to work out the mysteries of photo posting. I may be making progress.

6. Quel bruit entendez-vous à part celui de l’ordinateur ?

Nothing – all is silence though I expect to hear a little cry shortly.

7. Quand êtes-vous sortie la dernière fois, qu’avez-vous fait ?

I went out to the night shop to buy milk for the boys. They have consumed in excess of 3 litres since yesterday. Sigh

8. Avez-vous rêvé cette nuit ?

No. I slept from 11.00 to 6.00 and only got out of bed at 8.15. Fabulous.

9. Quand avez-vous ri la dernière fois ?Not since my loving spouse went to bed at 10.00 telling me not to stay playing with the computer all night. Can it really be nearly midnight?10. Qu’y a-t-il sur les murs de la pièce où vous êtes ?

A picture of men with currachs. A picture of yachts in Cork harbour framed by John Gilbert of Patrick Street, Cork: Print Seller, Frame Maker, Leather and Fancy Goods; Optician to the Eye Hospital and to the Faculty. A man of positively Victorian talents. A port of Cork calendar. A couple of Giles Norman prints of, um, boats. I am somewhat surprised by the nautical theme here. And a picture of her highness taken just before she finished at the creche. I remember Heather writing once about those houses which have acres of family pictures everywhere you look and I cringed in recognition but what can I say, I have three children and everyone conspires to photo them and charge me for it. And then, of course, there are my own sins of photography. There is also a list of school holidays, creche holidays and work holidays. Behind me are two of Bobble‘s beautiful photos which Mr. Waffle got me as an inspired present and a stained glass picture we got as a wedding present. I would go on, but I think we’re all getting tired of this exercise.

11. Si vous deveniez multimillionnaire dans la nuit, quelle est la première chose que vous achèteriez ?

A house in Dublin sufficient for our needs. Three story over basement in the centre with a large garden. Oh rats, only a multimillionaire? I was hoping for billionaire status.

12. Quel est le dernier film que vous ayez vu ?

Angela’s Ashes. Why?

13. Avez-vous vu quelque chose d’étrange aujourd’hui ?

No.

14. Que pensez-vous de ce questionnaire ?

It’s long – Peggy, why did you make me do it? I should be in bed.

15. Dites-nous quelque chose de vous que ne savons pas encore.

You know everything about me. No, wait, let me think. Actually, yes, you do.

16. Quel serait le prénom de votre enfant si c’était une fille ?

Well, Cecelia, if Mr. Waffle didn’t hate it so much that he would have to spit every time he said it.

17. Quel serait le prénom de votre enfant si c’était un garçon ?

Well, I’m thinking maybe Michael, maybe Daniel. Is everyone else on the internet too young to have children?

19. Que voudriez-vous que Dieu vous dise lorsque vous franchirez les portes du paradis ?
Wishy washiness rewarded, or, perhaps, more traditionally, blessed are the peacemakers.
20. Si vous pouviez changer quelque chose dans le monde en dehors de la culpabilité et la politique, que changeriez-vous ?
I’m not sure I understand culpabilite but if it means, no world peace type choices then, as a former Miss World candidate, I’m baffled. Did I tell you that a friend of mine’s uncle married a former Miss World. It’s been a curse to her; she has very beautiful cousins.
21. Aimez-vous danser ?
Yes, I’m just not very good at it.
22. Georges Bush ?
Do I like him or his policies? I think he is probably a pleasant dinner companion and, if he were a friend of your parents, you’d probably think that he and Laura were lovely people. I bet they’d look at all the photos of your children too. As for policies, well, I don’t even think that George likes those much any more.
23. Quelle est la dernière chose que vous ayez regardée à la télévision ?
Holby City. Oh dear.
24. Quelles sont les 4 personnes qui doivent prendre le relais sur leur blog ?
Nobody will have to suffer. Thank you and good night.

What happened to you?


Posted in: Siblings, Youngest Child

My sister is here for the weekend. She’s visiting from India. It’s the first time I’ve seen her since April. So, you know how it is, I wanted to make a good impression. This must be why the gods saw fit to bless me with conjunctivitis in both eyes. They were hideously bloodshot but, on the plus side that wasn’t very visible because my eyes were mostly obscured by under eye puffiness. The icing on the cake came when Michael decided to head butt me in the eye, thereby giving my right eye puffiness a range of exciting colours. We had a number of Christmas parties this weekend where the first inevitable question was what happened to you? Even the beggars outside the church asked me what happened to me. Alas.

In other sister news, she brought an avalanche of presents, cooked us dinner, minded our children and was generally wonderful. Ah, the joys of outsourcing our childcare to India. She’s finally growing to love India despite her best efforts and, to my utter amazement, she’s thinking of buying a flat near Chandigarh.

She also brought a number of brochures to explain what she does to our mother when she goes on to Cork. These were a source of immense amusement. My sister works for a well-known company that makes a well-know confectionary item which I am sure you have all tasted; let’s pretend it’s called Yummy. She is in charge of a project to bring a particular computer system to the Indian branches of Yummy.  This is how the project logo is described in the newsletter:

“The logo has the colors of the Indian flag (orange, white and green). These are arranged like 3 rivers meeting the Yummy globe. Sangam is a Sanskrit word and signifies the confulence of three most sacred river in India – The holy Ganges, the Ymuna and the mythical Saraswati. This is represented in the logo. Sangam not only signifies the meeting of holy rivers, it also signifies the meeting of millions of people, of ideas and of ancient wisdom.

Sangam also marks the confulence of Yummy India with the rest of the Yummy world, binding the two organisations together with the same culture, processes, policies or in one single religion viz the Yummy way. By virtue of this great objective, this project assumes the same paramount importance for the Yummy world as Sangam for Hindus and hence the title.”

If you ask me, that’s hoping for a lot from sweeties.

And finally, I forgot to mention, my third blogging anniversary passed earlier in the month. Who’d have thought I had the staying power? This must make me a blogging grandmother.

Sleeping Arrangements


Posted in: Middle Child, Mr. Waffle, Princess, Twins, Youngest Child

9.20 Michael stops crying. Most upsetting. Thought we had cracked it when the night before last they only cried for ten minutes but obviously, they’re made of sterner stuff than I had realised. Very traumatised. Mr. Waffle less so “they don’t remember it”. “Well, if that’s so, why do they start to cry when they see their little sleeping bags laid out on the bed. The heartless one started to laugh “clever little boys”.
10.00 Bed
10.30 Mr. Waffle in to tend to screaming child.
11.40 Princess up and crying (yes, still sick, no have not been outside the house since Sunday)
11.45 I take over from Mr. Waffle, he puts herself back to bed.
12.00 – 5.30 Mr. Waffle on Princess duty (up several times) and me on baby duty;D (up constantly as far as I can recall).
5.30 Mr. Waffle on baby duty.
5.50 Princess comes in to our bed.
6.20 Mr. Waffle puts Princess back to her own bed.
6.30 Baby wakes up -am back on baby duty until 7.30 when they fall asleep.
7.30 Mr. Waffle gets up.
8.00 Boys and I get up.

Comments
Minks, all appears to be um improving. Why am I tempting fate this way?
Sarcastic Journalist on 05 March 2006 at 04:35 That’s something like my life, just with one less child. And uh, less of my husband helping.
belgianwaffle
on 06 March 2006 at 22:28 SJ, not really, because your older child is at home with you ALL DAY. Hideous thought, I think I might die, if this happened to me.

Sleeping


Posted in: Middle Child, Twins, Youngest Child

The no sleep regime continues unabated. Daniel is like a briar. I suppose Michael has never really slept at night, so heÂ’’s used to it, but Daniel is finding the regular waking every bit as trying as his parents.

Today, I decided to go out and buy various things. Just to get out in the car where, I hoped, my cranky Daniel would sleep. I have just moved them to a double buggy which is wonderful etc. but despite being, you would think, an old hand at buggy folding and unfolding, I have found it just a tad challenging. This morning, I had the two boys sitting in their car seats in the hall and I tried to fold the buggy to get it into the car. No joy. Then discovered that the sling had become enmeshed with it and began trying to wrestle it out. Michael gurgled mirthfully at the sight of his mother becoming flushed and unhappy. Daniel began to howl. That boy can howl. I dislodged the sling and discovered that because the seats were still reclining when I tried to fold the wretched thing, that it was stuck half open, half closed. I wrestled some more. Daniel howled some more. The people who work in an office on the ground floor tried to ignore us. I gave a muffled howl of frustration. Daniel didn’Â’t bother muffling his howls. I stamped my foot. Still, the wretched thing wouldnÂ’’t yield. I put screaming Daniel in the garage where he screamed some more; Michael was enjoying the show so much that I let him stay put. I eventually managed to reopen the buggy but I fear that its canopy is fatally injured.

Did young Daniel fall asleep in the car? No he did not. As I type he sits gurgling in my lap looking as though butter wouldnÂ’t melt in his mouth.

Meanwhile, saintly Michael sleeps.

Comments
Lilo
on 24 February 2006 at 19:58 Having read this and your other sleep post I must say how impressed I am about how sane you’re sounding. We introduced the baby girl into the little boy’s room earlier this week, despite complaining of headaches when she cries and a bed-wetting incident which resulted in the little boy coming in to sleep with us, things seem to be going fairly smoothly. I’m only getting up 3 times a night now instead of every 2 hours – sorry this must sound like a luxury to you, but I’m sure things will smooth themselves out soon

kristin
on 25 February 2006 at 21:18
why is it that the stroller only malfunctions during moments of stress, like trying to board a plane or pack the munchkins into the car? the stroller gods are evil, methinks.
belgianwaffle
on 27 February 2006 at 13:02
FT, um, probably…
Lilo, I dunno, I am slightly despairing.
Kristin, the stroller gods are evil and cruel.
Minkleberry
on 27 February 2006 at 16:11
I hate it when people offer useless advice when you’re quite literally at the end of your tether- however, the end of my tether was what prompted me to read http://www.babywhisperer.com/ No crying out necessary xxx
belgianwaffle
on 02 March 2006 at 22:01
Minks, thanks for the sweeties and the advice…in fact, I don’t want to tempt fate here, but tonight they went straight to sleep at 7.30 and here I am (most foolishly) still up at 11.00 and not a peep out of them.

A Reading from the Book of Job


Posted in: Middle Child, Princess, Twins, Youngest Child

“Does not man have hard service on earth? Are not his days like those of a hired man? Like a slave longing for the evening shadows, or a hired man waiting eagerly for his wages, so I have been allotted months of futility, and nights of misery have been assigned to me. When I lie down I think, ‘How long before I get
up? The night drags on, and I toss till dawn.’

Job had twins, who knew? Yes, I know I am very lucky. Really. But last night I was at my wits’ end. Poor old
Daniel has a cold and he howled. And he woke Michael and when he got back to sleep, Michael woke him. And I didn’t sleep at all. And nor did my poor husband. And today I am like a zombie and I have two cross babies on my hands and one sick one. And school ends at 3.00.

And in other religious news, my daughter is fascinated by the story of Samson and Delilah. For this, I hold Tom Jones entirely responsible. Our poor daughter is subjected to a barrage of schlocky songs sung by her loving parents. If she bumps herself she sings “I didn’t mean to hurt you, I’m sorry that I made you cry, I
didn’t mean to hurt you, I’m just a jealous guy..”. When dancing she accompanies herself with “I’m in the mood for dancing, romancing…”. When wearing her boots “These boots are made for
walking…are you ready boots?” You get the picture here. When she wails, I try to jolly her out of it by singing “Aie, aie, aie Delilah”. They love it in the supermarket. Anyhow, the other day, she asked me “What’s Delilah, Mummy?”. “Not what darling, who?” And I told her the story, leaving out about Samson being blinded (she is only 2 and 3/4) but including how he brought down a building with his bare hands and crushed his enemies. God, she loves it and I am exhausted from recounting it. I shudder to think what will happen when she finds out about the plagues visited on the Eygptians.

Comments

Bobble
on 13 February 2006 at 14:48
There is something about being Irish and religion, a TV programme, can’t quite remember it at present…

Anyway, showing such an interest can only make you feel less guilty about sending princess to Sunday School and the free hours you will gain from it.

Friar Tuck
on 14 February 2006 at 03:59
Good thing the story of Susanna isn’t read on Sundays!

geepeemum
on 14 February 2006 at 10:07
We were reading Samson and Delilah to our 2 the other day, albeit a slightly sanitised version, and I said to my other half – “So is Samson the prototype suicide bomber and should we really be reading this to our children?” Not sure what messages it sends really!
Kate_Sith
on 15 February 2006 at 09:48
Murrain! Frogs! er… the Darkness! The plagues ROCK.
belgianwaffle
on 15 February 2006 at 12:54
Gosh, you lot are a bundle of joy. Bobble, you should know, catholics don’t do Sunday school. That’s protestants, they actually know their bible.

Outing


Posted in: Middle Child, Twins, Youngest Child

Two of the women who attended the celebrations had been to a speed dating event earlier in the week. What was it like? “There was a slightly older man who asked me whether I liked dogs. I said yes and he said ‘that’s good as I come as a package with a three legged labrador'”.

Given that it was one of my very rare nights out, I got rather dressed up* and the Princess was fascinated by this vision of her mother. “I like your lips Mummy and your dress and your boots”. It was very gratifying. Though I wouldn’t have bothered with the boots, if I’d known that there would be a forced march from the restaurant back to where our cars were parked.

This was the longest stretch of time I have been away from the twins since they were born. You will, I know, be fascinated to hear that my breasts visibly grew over dinner and that when I came home I expressed 500mls of milk (over a pint for imperial readers).

*Quote from another mother of three (supplied by my friend D) is very appropriate here, when asked whether she ever got out this woman said “yes, occasionally…to the clothesline”

Comments
Friar Tuck
on 12 February 2006 at 03:09
Hmmm, a three-legged labrador. Oh well, as long as he wasn’t three-legged I suppose.
Glad you could get out somewhere other than the clothesline.

dmts
on 12 February 2006 at 11:20
And in the other jungle at least I have bloglines to tell me of your updating, Are you allowed to have clothes lines in Belgium? There are very few in Switzerland….but then mothers get to go out to do the shopping here

Berry
on 12 February 2006 at 13:27
Oohh, a night out. Good for you. Sounds like you had great time.
And like Heidi said- a pint? Impressive.
Minkleberry
on 12 February 2006 at 20:12
A pint! jeepers, that’d fetch a few pence on ebay

kristin
on 13 February 2006 at 02:09
oh, waffley, glad you got out. i’ve missed you, i’lve been at disneyland with my little one and had no internet. i was crawling the walls, i tell you.

belgianwaffle
on 15 February 2006 at 12:53
A FEW PENCE Minks, surely more than that? The rest of you are very kind!