First words?! "A Voo!"

First words! First words! First words!!! . . . 
OK, OK. . . Maybe not quite the first "words" as such, but super exciting nonetheless as the baby attempts to communicate using his little baby noises!

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​​Parenting: Ron's routine (1 month old)
​Milestone: First words?  "A voo!"
​​Books: The Little Prince

​Thursday 25th October

I realised today that for a while now there has been a predictable pattern to our day. Ronnie has developed a routine of sorts, consisting of the same regular steps to meet his needs!
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Ron wakes up at 10.00am ish and has a nappy change, a bit of a bouncy face time play and a feed, then falls back to sleep for a little while. He wakes up again at lunch time and we cycle through the same steps, only this time he is awake for longer and seems to want more entertainment. We give him a bath at this time, or go for a walk or do an extended tummy time game. He then falls asleep and wakes up again at 5.00pm for a repeat in the essential steps and then he settles down for our dinner. Even if he doesn't sleep at this time, he is usually nice and calm whilst we eat and watch an episode of "Neighbours". He has another sleep until about 9.00pm when I sponge wash him, settle him back down (this has been a bit of a "witching hour" lately, he gets overtired and fussy!) and then we prepare and go to bed at 11.00pm. He usually wakes up twice at night for a feed - once at about 3.00am and once at about 6.00am. He is a lovely baby and holds such a regular predictable routine!
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​​Parenting: Ron's routine (1 month old)

Ron's Routine:
10.00am - up, nappy, play, feed, sleep.
1.00pm - up, nappy, extended play, feed, sleep.
5.00pm - up, nappy, feed, calm evening time watching "Neighbours", sleep.
9.00pm - up, sponge wash, nappy, witching hour cry, lots of cwtches.
11.00pm - nappy, feed, sleep for the night.
3.00am - nappy, feed, sleep.
​6.00am - nappy, feed, sleep.
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James takes the nappy duty at 3.00am, 6.00am and 10.00am, giving me a chance to sleep a couple of extra minutes, before I feed the baby. This has been such a huge help - makes me feel a little guilty waking him up, seeing as I am awake for the feed anyway, but he says he doesn't mind it. . . I hope that is true!
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​Milestone: First words?  "A voo!"

As I was changing Ron this afternoon, I noticed him making the same baby noise that he was always making when we met face-to-face on his changing table. It was a very distinct phrase reserved just for this moment!

​My boy was saying "A Voo"

I realised that I heard "A Voo" before and so it must mean something. I was so excited, it was his first conscious attempt at communication! I said "A Voo" back and got an excited "A Goo" in return. . . Sometimes it comes out as "A Boo" or "A Goo" but most commonly it is "A Voo". . . I was so happy!!!
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I said before that I think "Hello" may well be Ron's first word, as it's what he hears most often, but James thinks that "A Voo" perhaps means Ron is enjoying "The View"? I am not sure if he can even see the view yet, so that is a little far fetched. Whatever it is, he is only saying it when he is looking directly at us, in a very excited and happy tone of voice, so it is a definite word preserved just for us!
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​A voo, Ron, a voo!!
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As it is now the end of October, the days are becoming much shorter and colder than before (and, unlike before, I am feeling the cold too!). For a few weeks now James had been chopping the wood, bringing in the peat, sweeping away the ash and lighting the fire on in the evenings, to take the chill off the cold stone walls. However, today it felt particularly cold, and it was only midday!

This is why James decided to play around with the knobs of the old radiator and get it to work! ​For the last two years I thought it was broken, a relic from the past that was destined to be ripped off the wall when we were decorating next, but after a few twists of various knobs it turned out that it was actually working - and working well! This made a huge difference to the temperature inside our house, and it was a lot easier and a lot less time consuming than bringing in the wood and peat.
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Thinking about it. . . Before we would just dress up snugly, with many layers of jumpers - and throw a couple of sheep skins on our laps, for good measure too! We would drink a lot of tea and not think about the temperature until the night, when the fire would go on. . . But now we have a reason to keep the house heated and warm all the time - now we have a baby!
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The radiator made a big difference! Ron didn't even need his beloved blanket to come out from the bedroom and enjoy the living room! Suddenly, it was a lovely and warm house and we were very happy. Yes, it may end up costing us a little bit more, but we figured that it was going to be money well spent!
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​Books: The Little Prince

This evening I ordered one of my favourite books, one that I want Ron to have, read and enjoy. It is a wonderful little book written by a French author Antoine de Saint-Exupéry called "The Little Prince". It is a lovely story that I grew up with, full of meaningful ideas and metaphors that I often remember and like quoting. I found a copy of the little book on Amazon for just £2, it was a real bargain and I couldn't resist buying it!
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In the evening, I was feeling a little overwhelmed by the constant needs of the baby again. This is when I realised that I need to learn to look after myself as I go along, in between various chores and demands of my Ronnie. This show is not about me anymore, Ronnie has stolen the centre stage and is now the main star of the event! I probably will never have a day all to myself anymore, but I can always steal a minute here and there, make sure I eat well and drink lots of tea! Tea always makes everything better!
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