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Sunday 27 June 2010

Day 66: Contemplation and Louis Theroux



Oscar kept himself busy on the baby gym today. For about an hour he stared up at the central hanging thing. It's a mirror.

Day 65: Didn't get a new iPhone 4


They are sold out everywhere.

Day 64: Goosezeebo




The sun sure was shining today and the geese didn't have much shade. After a bit of thinking I came up with a fairly simple solution. Give them the gazeebo. A goose Zeebo, if you will.

I've told that joke to practically everyone I know now, so I need to meet more people. Or get a new joke.

Oscar had his first taste of strawberry picking today. Well his first taste of sleeping in the pram while Mummy went strawberry picking anyway. I love the taste of strawberries, but they give me mouth ulcers :(.

I hope Oscar doesn't inherit that part of me.

Wednesday 23 June 2010

Day 62: Day tripper



Good job Mum got the feeding practice in yesterday. Tasha was feeling very unwell last night so I ended up doing all the night feeds, sterilising, nappies, cats, chickens, dressing etc. after staying up for the midnight feed... oh and driving 20 miles to get medicine at 3am.
By 10 o'clock the next morning I was dead on my feet but Oscar was full of beans (how do single parents manage?) so Mum and Dad (I suspect mostly Mum) offered to take Oscar for a few hours so I could get back to bed.

Sleeping in the daytime felt very indulgent. And very good. Thanks Mum (and Dad!)

Tasha has to take antibiotics, which are supposed to be fine for breastfeeding mothers. There are "no side effects, but they may give baby loose stools". That sounded like a side effect to me. And it felt like it for Oscar, who indeed had loose stools and threw up a lot more than usual. We have decided to put him mainly on formula for the next six days.

Oscar has really started holding on to things now. He likes Mummy's hair!

Day 63: Geeses and Sneezes




Tasha is on her feet (mostly) so back to sharing the night feeds :)

Another day, another addition to our menagerie. Refugee geese, come to graze and stretch. Some people have suggested that our barn reparation is in fact an attempt to hide the manufacture of a huge boat.

Oscar is making all sorts of new noises now which is great. I'm sure all parents of 8 week old babies suffer from delusions, ("did you hear that? He said Celery!") but..having said that I have noticed that when Oscar sneezes he nearly always says something that sounds a lot like "oh!"

Good job I'm not one of those delusional parents eh?

Tuesday 22 June 2010

Day 61: Vision of the future



Tasha took a well earned nap this afternoon so I got to talk Oscar for a walk. He did a lot of smiling before the rocking motion sent him off to sleep.

Later my nephews Jack and Toby popped in with Mum and Dad to see the pigs (and Oscar!) Looking at them I suddenly realised that we didn't have a baby, we had a boy in the making.

Mum took over feeding duties while I showed them the pigs which were great fun, and very excited by apples. Jack almost ate them on the way to the pigs. "Are these for the pigs? I think I could very nearly eat these, I like apples". "I like grapes" added Toby.

Tonight we will try the experiment of cutting the dream feed. Let's see how long he lasts...

Sunday 20 June 2010

Day 60: Smiles all day long on father's day


This morning I discovered that at 60 days Oscar can already get himself to the shops, buy me a star wars Vader "I am your father" T shirt *and* write a card for me in fairly legible script. Amazing, though I don't think as a signature it would stand up in court. Tasha reminded me that she didn't get anything on Mother's day even though she was pregnant. Apparently "He wasn't born yet so you weren't a mother" is an excuse used by men the world over.

Today was my cousin David's Chari-tea party, raising funds for the Quicken Trust (who are helping a village in Kabubu). Oscar decided that after a morning of super fast short feeds, he would need an extended drawn out lengthy long feed just as we got there. So Tasha sat inside feeding and I sat with her asking Oscar to hurry up as the cakes and scones were gradually eaten out in the sunshine...

There was literally no parking it was so popular. 100's of people descended on their cottage and rose garden.

By the time we got into the queue the tea had run out, but luckily master chef Yann had hidden two scones for us, and they were marvellous.

Oscar has stopped say "ohh-ghee, ohh-ghee", which was his "I'm getting really upset now" sound. He still blows raspberries about 10 minutes before waking up for a feed, which is a handy reminder to get the bottle heater on.

Day 59: Seaside and prejudice





Today we met up with our god daughters and their Mum Trish for a visit to the seaside. In true British style we braved the wind and rain to walk along the promenade and twist our ankles on the stony beach. Oscar got to try out his Mamas and Papas rain cover, which meant he could watch me slowly getting wet through the 'splash proof' coat Mummy had picked out for me in our rush to the car. (We were 45mins late meeting them despite a concerted effort.)

The brass band was playing in the bandstand (ideal place for them) and we had fun using a digital camera too hyper zoom in on distant objects on the horizon. ("Is that an oil rig?")

After popping in to the seaside cafe that time forgot for a quick Oscar feed and change, we walked back in to town for some proper food. I don't subscribe to the idea that just because you have children you have to restrict yourselves to McDonalds or Harvester so we went looking for something a bit nicer. Our first choice was bursting full, with people waiting, so we walked a bit further and found an little Italian restaurant (Called, imaginatively, 'Little Italy').

An attentive waitress welcomed Trish in ahead of the group...

"Yes, yes we have tables, how many?...". Then the waitress spotted us coming behind with the pram and Oscar. I watched one of the staff look disapprovingly at the pram and actually shake her head. We walked past three empty tables to the back and began talking about who would sit where etc. Then the head shaker waitress appeared and said something to our waitress. Then our waitress said "sorry, we are fully booked". And ushered us all out again.

I was flabbergasted. And it takes a lot to flabber my gast I can tell you.

We had a 4 year old and an 8 year old with us (both very charming and well behaved), and I'm not one to make a scene in front of children so I left it at that.

As we walked out, a couple came in off the street and sat at one of the three empty booths we had walked past on our way in. There were no reserved signs on any tables. This was at 5.15pm.

Outside Trish told me that she and her husband had experienced this many times when her girls were in the pram. Apparently it's an epidemic! I can understand not wanting a screaming baby in the restaurant but Oscar was asleep! There's no way we would have sat there if he was making a noise. Perhaps they figure a baby takes up space but doesn't order?

I think it's a short sighted policy. I'm the kind of person to enthusiastically recommend a restaurant I like (Try Seeracha's in Seaside Road for the most excellent Thai). Guess whether I'll be recommending 'Little Italy' in Eastbourne?

Friday 18 June 2010

Day 57: Pigs!





Today we had fun with pigs.
Our neighbour has been asking for months if we had space in our field and old sheds to look after two pigs who have outgrown their garden. It was to be a shelter for sausages deal.
I had initially refused, telling him that we were sadly hypocrites, who eat bacon but couldn't keep the pigs knowing they were destined for slaughter.
Luckily for Boris and her brother(!) in the last month or so they have endeared themselves to their owners and have become family pets. With that in mind it seemed safe to get to know them after all, so they joined our menagerie today. They loved running amok in the field and I was reminded of the old Sussex sport of 'catch the greasy pig'. It's a game. Where you have to catch a pig, that's greasy.

>edit< Bertie, not Boris...Sorry! What's the other one?

Day 58: The baby torture room



Today was the dreaded "Jabs" appointment at the doctors.
There's really no way around this. As parent you know it's for the best, but you know it's going to hurt your baby. Twice.

We got to sit within earshot of the suddenly ominous corridor leading to the jab room as a steady stream of tearful babies and anxious parents shuffled by.

We had a 10 o'clock appointment. Not much chance of making that. These days getting out of the house by 12 is an achievement. I was up until 2 once again with the cycle of nappies, wee, new clothes etc. Then disturbed from 5 ish as Oscar was doing his snuffling noises. I think introducing him to the pigs was a bad idea. Perhaps he's confused about what he is or which ones are his parents?

Once we got in there it went as well as could be expected. Quick chat, this is what we're going to do, blah blah, jab >scream!<...other arm...jab >scream!< >cry< >tears<... >sobs<...>snufffles<... Then we had to wait in the waiting room in case he had some terrible reaction.

Interestingly they only told us of the possibility of a terrible reaction *after* we agreed to the jabbing.

Luckily he was fine and off we went to Tesco to return the ice cream we bought yesterday that was already open when we looked closely at it. Along with the fish that was also open when we went to use it. Who is going into Tescos and opening packets of fish and ice cream?

Next we thought it might be nice to visit the local market to teach Oscar about how fat women like to smoke in front of their children and wear huge hoop ear rings and tight leggings instead of getting a job. He wasn't that interested to be honest. Back home the pigs have settled in nicely. Bertie is her name, not Boris >duh< I still forget the other one though! Watch this space.

I got a sneaky 90 mins sleep in late afternoon which should get me through the evening with any luck.

Day 56: Five Hours Sleep...


Tonight Oscar slept from 2am until 7am! He would have been in bed half an hour earlier but we had one of those 'fill the nappy, wash and change, pick him up, fill the nappy, get some wee on the baby grow, wash and change, pick him up, exorcist style vomit spray, wash and change everything' nights.
All of a sudden nothing seems to fit! He's 5615g now which is 12lbs 6oz in real money.

Saturday 12 June 2010

Day 48: Blast from the past


Years ago I spent a lot of time writing and recording with the very talented Carolynne Good, who you may have seen on Fame Academy, or touring with Tony Christie. She's currently a lead in the fab rock 'n' roll show, "Dreamboats and Petticoats", and was touring close enough for a visit!

Sunday 6 June 2010

Day 46: First time at the theatre


Today was the local showing of the Postman Pat live show. When I heard that they wanted to use some of my songs from the TV series, I offered to write some more for the show. I ended up scoring it like an episode and producing the entire soundtrack. This was great as I got to record the TV voice actors who are all fine people!

Just before we took our seats Oscar's comedy timing surfaced as he loudly decided it was time to eat. Luckily the manager was sympathetic and let us have a box. This was great as not only did we have a good view, but also room for the pram and changing stuff. Oscar is now the only boy to have had his nappy changed during a live performance of 'Special Delivery Service'!

This photo was taken with too small a stereo base (cameras not quite far enough apart), so there doesn't appear to be much depth to the image. Really we should have been standing in the middle of the road for better 3D effect, but you try asking a new mum to pop her pram in the middle of the road just for a photo and see how far you get!

With Oscar eager to feed again and everyone waiting I didn't think it was the time to start teaching Dad about inter axial separation so just went with the best we could get!

Day 45: Serious about toys.


Oscar enjoys time out of the nappy. He is also developing his comic timing. It must take a lot of effort to hold it in until the moment you pick him up.

Day 43: Serious about hats.

Saturday 5 June 2010

Day 33: 100 Pairs



I have just received 100 pairs of red/green paper glasses from China. If you would like a pair, let me know!

Day 36: Grabber




I had to make a little modification to my smallest 3D rig, so a late night trip to Dad's workshop was in order as I needed it for the AIR shoot.
Oscar is now grabbing things! Toys, bags, hair, eyes, cheeks!
Lots of gurgling sounds as he starts to wonder if talking to us would get him what he wants any quicker.
Solo (our Ginger cat) helped me out with the 1am feed by bringing in a vole which he chased around the room, with accompanying squeaks and squeals. Oscar feed serenely as Solo carried with the business of knocking things over, with the rodent running amok scattering little vole poos everywhere. Great, thanks.

Wednesday 2 June 2010

Day 38: Off to work!



Leaving Mum and Boy behind for the first time since those horrible trips back from the hospital without them. Off to the majestic AIR studios in London to record the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and singer Paul Carrack.
Walking silently through the orchestra with my little 3D setup was exhilirating. There's nothing quite like being in the middle of a 70 piece ensemble in full flow. However good our recording systems are these days with 5:1 surround and subs, it's still not like being there.
My favourite was the celest player, who had so little to do he read macworld between bars. Where he did add those little sparkles it sounded fantastic.
An exhausting experience, running 5 cameras in 3 rigs, two 3D setups and one 2D for closeups for later 2D>3D conversion.