Down Todmorden way...

Cake

Playdate Tuesday

George with his chum Archie

Ode to toast

I dig a pony

Peekaboo horsey!

Totem

Big chief Daddy build good totem

View from my bed

Exhausted today after doing what for me (right now) is rather a lot yesterday. I've spent most of the day in bed which has been a bit frustrating, but the two periods of sleep were so completely needed that I am just so grateful to have had the chance to take them. Jon was off today - a long weekend. So has been marvellous in looking after George and me.

Oldham

Trip to Oldham with Daddy, and whilst he was in a meeting we went to Rhode Island for coffee and George had his packed lunch whilst nebbing at people....(!)

We then toddled up to Tommyfield and got fruit and salad from the stall - and I found myself advising a couple of ladies about the fruit there. Not sure what it was about me that prompted them to ask which the sweetest fruit were (I recommend greengages, yellow plums, apricots, doughnut (flat) peaches and white fleshed nectarines at this time of year/from said stall!) - stall owner then treated me and George to some free sample slices of aforementioned fruits which were yum. 

I met with Wendy when we got home - Jon literally had to drop me off on Burnley road as we squeaked home just after the stroke of three - she was already in the Little Bean when I got there with a coffee and I got a nice little pot of tea. Bless her, she was so concerned about my being ill and trying to work out ways to help. I think we're going to go to the St Joseph's playgroup and MyPlayCafe when I feel a bit more up to it. 

Godfather daycare

Many thanks to Graham for looking after George while Daddy was at work and Mummy wasn't well - as you can see from the huge smile - he had a fabulous time.xxx

Photos from Shaz's wedding

Yes, have you noticed what is missing? - PHOTOS OF THE BRIDE AND GROOM! - HELLO! - In typical style Shaz has sent photos of us and none of her.....anyone else think George looks like Paolo Nutini in that hat?....Just me then.

Today was also the day I saw the doctor. My blood test results were negative for an antibiotic infection, though I do have inflammation somwhere in my body as my ESF (do I mean ESF?) showed it - this may explain my fever, though what said inflammation IS...I don't have a clue, it was suggested perhaps it was leftover from my tonsillitis. Additional to this, my iron level has dropped again and is now 9, this is since my last test 6 weeks ago when it was 10.8 and during which time I've been taking ferrous fumarate twice a day. Why is it dropping? We don't know, but I have been referred to a gastroenterologist in case I am bleeding internally. Unfortunately the first available appointment is towards the end of October, which is a rather long time to wait in limbo. Meantime I have invested in some spatone to take alongside the FF and think I'm going to request another blood test for a couple of weeks time. Surely by then the haemoglobin count MUST have risen.

Monday

Started my counselling again on Monday afternoon, spent most of the time talking about my feeling ill. Jon and George met me as I left the Centre and we had a little walk before we came home.  

Sunday

Here we are off to Church this morning....

I'm not sure i've ever blogged about going to Church. It's not a very fashionable thing I suspect, and I know that when I mention it in passing to friends they incline their heads slightly. I don't mind, it's a personal choice for everyone. I didn't go for many many many years, though I held my faith I did it from afar. Now it is like being part of a family again which for me is such a positive thing and I feel uplifted by it every Sunday and have only missed one mass through tonsillitis since we began to go in May. George also gets to meet a whole host of other lovely babies and toddlers and older kids who are absolutely fab - today after mass he played on the grass in the presbytery garden with Daddy while I helped in the kitchen and It melted my heart to watch them out of the window. I'm so glad to have found this place of great care just a street away, and I like the headspace it gives me for an hour each week. Mum always said that, It gave her time to think, to be still, to reflect and to think of others. I think of her while I am there a lot. Janette too. Especially when the sunshine streams through the stained glass windows. They are there with me I think. 

We had a short jaunt to the market after church. I hadn't been for days due to feeling ill and I just wanted to spend some time out of the house in the fresh air. It was nice to be nosy, looking through the bric a brac, and we got some more fruit - peaches, plums, pears and apricots. We also got a cheeky bag of hot mini donuts from the little van, I remember the first time I ever had these, earlier this year when the air was so cold that the hot bag was a comfort to hold. Not today, It was as it has been all summer, sticky and humid and oh so warm without being sunny or hot. The worst of all my pet weather hates. I can't wait for autumn, It's getting closer by the day and I'm starting to dream of golden leaves, woodsmoke, a nip in the air and pumpkins to hollow. I'm so looking forward to my favourite season with our little man, so much to show him.  

We ate tea early after George and I had a long nap, more of yesterday's delicious Morrocan amalgam with fruit for afters. It tasted even nicer today. I love the way the lemons have infused through the whole dish and the lamb is soft and burnished. I'll definitely make this again, it could work in so many different ways and I have already thought it might be a good way to use the leftover chicken when we roast the free ranger in the freezer.

It's the start of another week tomorrow, and on Tuesday I see the Doctor. I hope that something may be done to help the way I feel. I'm a little better these last few days, but in doses I feel as bad as ever and my energy levels are so low I am running on empty all the time. I wish I could take a tonic, like the potion in Asterix. By toutatis!

NINE MONTHS TODAY

...And much more important than all that cooking, this little monkey was 

NINE months old today...!

He is crawling, at top speed, can haul himself up using anything from the sofa to the washing machine to any stationery object - standing with confidence - often one handed or with minimal support and has let go and stood unaided a handful of times before landing back on his bum. He can clap his hands, can point, can press sound buttons on his books, can turn pages on his peek a boo books and point at the animals/people under the flaps. He loves being read to and especially likes Peter Rabbit and The Gruffalo. He can play with his train and his ball, he loves his plastic telephone and his electronic book, he likes his stacking rings, especially when you put them on your head and pretend to balance them there. He loves plastic bottles and whenever I have a bottle of spring water he gets incredibly excited and comes to take it off me, taking it for a tour of the room in one hand as he crawls around. He laughs and giggles all the time, he likes it when you sneeze, or play peek-a, he understands the word 'bounce' and immediately bobs up and down - particularly in his cot where he holds on to the side and boings up and down giggling and grinning like a loon. He likes to stick his lips out like Jagger and smack them at you, he is fascinated by faces and mouths and will if you pick him up immediately try and touch your face, that is if he isn't pulling your hair, or beard in Jon's case. He does a gurgle at the back of his throat like he is Jacques Cousteau, sometimes pointing into the air like ET Phone home, this can go on for hours. In between times he double babbles Da-da-da-da, Mamamama, babababa, Gaaaaa! and has a range of squeals and squeaks - some for excitement (ooh look Jasper has just jumped on to the bed) some for annoyance (let me down I want to play with train) sometimes he cries for no reason, he's a pain in the arse to change (nappies and clothes) and sometimes he won't go to sleep even when he is quite clearly banjaxed which is infuriating, but all in all, he's wonderful and his personality grows every day alongside his development. I can't believe it was nine months ago that he lay in my arms just hours old, thanks be to god for this small miracle - we love him so very very much.

Of pants and food

It's Saturday again and my temperature is still up - hovering around 37.6/8 today which is at least better than 38. Breakfast was this morning interrupted by the post man bringing a parcel of cloth nappies from Ebay. They're far from perfect and are no Itti Bitti's but are the best we can afford right now and mean that we are significantly reducing the amount of 'sposies we use and that can only be a good thing - both for landfill and our pocket.

Food has loomed large today as it does more than ever since George began weaning three months ago. Today we had a big salad for lunch with chunks of cauliflower, pepper, red onion, radish, cheddar, cucumber, tomato (I cut everything into sticks wherever possible for George to be able to grab them easily) and lots of crunchy iceberg. I made a dressing to go with it with mustard and the usual stuff, we also had hummous and French bread. Then slices of nectarine, apricot and plum for afters.

For tea I roasted courgette, aubergine, pepper, red onion, new potato, sweet potato and butternut squash with oil, garlic and my own stab at morrocan spices - cumin, mustard seed, mint, fennel, coriander, cinnamon and chunks of lemon. This I then set aside, soaked and then simmered some lentils (split peas, red and yellow lentils) and made a rough sort of dal with onions and more spice mix, added in the vegetables and vegetable stock and finally some apricots and a tin of chick peas with a little glug of cream and a final handful of chopped fresh mint from the garden - we had this with couscous of course, and a little slow roast lamb shoulder which had ticked along in the oven all day and some simple flatbread. Honest to goodness George LOVED it. Bless his heart.

I'm trying to include as many pulses as possible at the moment to help with my iron levels - under instruction from my best friend and lifelong veggie Shaz. I think she's have loved tonight's effort, hold the lamb, obviously.

After tea play