The magic of stories

Bedtime stories are a big deal in our house.

Stick Man, Not Now Bernard and Giraffes Can't Dance are just some of the favourites on loop each evening. They take pride of place at the end of our 2 year old's bed. 

Some of her books are gifts, recommendations from friends and their children (Goodnight Moon).

Some are stories I loved as a child and have tracked down on eBay late at night (There's a Hippopotamus On Our Roof Eating Cake).

Then there are some new discoveries that caught our eye in a local bookshop.

Stanley's Cafe by William Bee I found when pottering on a lazy Sunday morning in Wimbledon Village. This particular morning I put myself in charge of the book selection, refusing to be sucked in to buying another book with a certain pink pig on the front.

It was the beautiful illustrations that first caught my eye.

The book tells the simple tale of Stanley the Hamster and his day to day life working in a cafe.

Setting up the cafe for the day, cooking breakfast, baking a birthday cake, washing up and home to bed. Stanley's routine was quickly picked up by our 2 year old. It wasn't long before she knew the character Myrtle (regular customer) likes 'a nice cup of tea' (much like mummy).

When our little girl wakes up in the morning she will often be heard (on the baby monitor) reading Stanley to her toys in a kind of gibberish language but with the intonation of an adult narrator.

A few weeks ago I discovered Stanley's Colours. It's a smaller in size board book introducing little ones to colours through modes of transport. Our little girl would listen intently and I could see the penny drop as she gradually started to pick up and repeat the names of the colours in front of her.

The end of the day always feels the toughestThe exhaustion of having two children under 3 kicks in, the caffeine has worn off and my bed is calling. But storytime and watching our toddler devour the words and stories in front of her is magic.

Before you know it that 'just one story' has turned into five and a happy little girl full of imagination has nodded off to sleep.

Baby one-to-one time

I had been feeling like a guilty mum.

When we had our eldest daughter (now aged two) there was a lot of baby/mummy one-to-one time.  I joined my NCT friends in weekly baby sensory classes and we had frequent coffee dates while the babies rolled around amongst the brand new, brightly coloured Lamaze fireflies. Alice, like the rest of the population, had a brand new Sophie la giraffe - who looked fresh as a daisy and still had her squeak (alas, no longer).

Our second daughter Lara (now aged four months) is very much coming along for the ride, fitting in with our 2 year old's schedule. Of course she doesn't care, she loves the sound of her sister's voice, beaming when she sees her each morning.

Let's face it, there's a lot less one-to-one time with baby number two (aside from feeding). I have the two of them together for most of the week, so new baby classes and endless coffee sessions are a no-go.

One of the things I enjoyed the most with Alice when she was small was baby massage. Along with a few NCT friends, I attended a baby massage course and Alice really responded to it. It was a great bonding experience. I was determined to find the time to do the same with Lara and, a few weeks ago, managed it.

I called on our baby massage teacher from 2 years ago. Jo from Home Spa London was able to come to our house and do an hour's refresher session. Her sessions are very relaxed and very much geared around baby's needs/mood. There's no rushing and plenty of time to stop/feed/change.

As I hoped, Lara has really taken to baby massage. We manage a little bit of mainly leg and tummy massage after nappy changes. The smiles and giggles say it all.

Jo from Home Spa London provides baby massage to addresses in London and Surrey-  www.homespalondon.com

Meeting baby Oscar

On a recent trip back to Guernsey (my childhood home) I had the pleasure of meeting and photographing Oscar. Barely two weeks old and snuggled in his parents arms, he seems to have settled in perfectly to his beautiful surroundings,  a lovingly restored cottage complete with exposed Guernsey granite and an open fireplace. 

It's a wonderful time of year to be welcoming a baby. Our daughter had just turned 12 weeks a year ago and as that big milestone was reached, the evenings became brighter, the sun became a more frequent visitor and suddenly those very long nights of continuous feeding became more bearable! Oscar is set to get a great introduction to Guernsey this Summer with beach trips, coastal walks and the fresh sea air to look forward to.