Mama & The Monkey

Sunday, February 27, 2011

So High & Mighty

It's one thing to sit in the new high chair and act cool...

... and quite another to sit still enough to eat!

Photos by me

Thursday, February 24, 2011

The Week is Done

We have had a tough old week.

We choked on a stray pea.

We didn't sleep much.

We fell off the bed.

We cried... a lot.

Poor Monkey.

Bring on a weekend full of sunshine and bunnies and Daddy at home!

Image from here

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Once upon a time a prince, a lion and a giraffe called Sophie all vied for the attention of a little monkey. After tasting all of them, the little monkey decided that Sophie was by far the most delicious and proceeded to lick off all her spots... poor Sophie

Monday, February 14, 2011

The Nappy Chat

When I found out I was pregnant I made a very vocal declaration that I was NEVER going to discuss poo with anyone… not even my husband. I couldn’t stand the way new parents seemed to think their children’s bowel motions were a topic worthy of continual mention, often in the most inappropriate of circumstances. To be told about the toxic contents of a nappy while attempting to eat a satay stick is a challenge to say the least!

Something happens when you become a parent… you somehow forget the usual rules of polite social engagement. The big net in your brain that normally catches inappropriate thoughts before they have a chance to escape via your mouth, suddenly develops large, gaping holes. Yesterday I found myself telling a complete stranger that my baby suffers from such bad constipation that we have him on a perpetual diet of prune and banana.... with stunning results! At what point did I think that was OK... or even vaguely interesting? As I looked at the woman’s horrified expression, it occurred to me that a little censorship wouldn’t go astray.

I’m rather distressed by my new found need to share downstairs details. My husband walks through the door in the evening and I’m a veritable stream of minutiae, describing my day one nappy at a time. Does the poor man really need to know that the Monkey had a nappy full of chocolate sultanas or that today’s consistency was a little like soft serve ice-cream? No, no and NO! Zip it. Save it. Lock it away along with the alarmingly vivid descriptions of projectile vomits that I’m just dying to share with anyone who will listen.

So I made a promise to myself that I have broken on countless occasions… I’m even writing about it, which just goes to show how obsessed I’ve become. While I would like to think that this is the end, that I shall never again subject yet another friend to the horror story of my brush with Meconium (it was hilarious… I had it in my hair, on my face… zippity, zip, zip!), I know that I will continue to inflict my crappy stories on those poor, unsuspecting souls who have the misfortune of making my acquaintance. Perhaps some gaffer tape is in order?

The best I can offer is to try and limit my diatribes to those who have walked a mile in my shoes... because if I've learned anything, it's that another parent sure does love a good nappy chat.

Photo by me

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Making Signs

For ages I have been looking for a name sign for the Monkey's room but couldn't find one that had any character or reflected his quirky nature. The other day while out walking, I spied a skip bin full of old floor boards... perfect ... I basically had to climb inside the bin to find a board small enough, but I refused to be defeated. One scraped shin and a torn t-shirt later I managed to get my hands on a lovely specimen, complete with nails in the back ready for hanging! Once home, the whole process took no more than 15 minutes... here's how:

1. Take one old floor board (roughly 50cm long) and scrub clean.

2. Select tools - I chose white paint and a pointed brush for a simple look.

3. Get to work.

TIP: I bent the old nails over to form hooks that I then tied ribbon to for hanging - you could easily hammer in some nails to the back of the board if need be.

Photos by me