Dillon's First Birthday

I am two months behind with showing pictures of Dillon's 1st Birthday. He turned one in 11th February. He turned 14 months today. I just couldn't believe on his Birthday how fast the year had gone. He is still very much a baby but the tiny baby has gone.

On his Birthday Mummy and Daddy took him to a farm. He loved looking at the animals and was most fascinated by hamsters playing on a wheel.

Daddy fed the chickens and turkeys and Dillon watched them rush over to the food.

We then went to a restaurant for lunch where he couldn't take his eyes off the waitrsss. He followed her wherever she went.

We had lots of balloons at home which he loved. Amazingly they are still up two months later. He loves playing with them. He was amazed by the candles on his Birthday cake.

Two weeks later we had his proper Birthday party with both sets of Grandparents, Aunties, Uncles and two cousins. We went for a walk by a river. It was so beautiful and Dillon loved watching the birds and the boats. We then had Birthday cake at our house.

Cuddles with Mummy after a busy Birthday.

He got Baptised the following day. I will show pictures of this on my next update here.

Dillon's first Christmas

I hope you all had a happy Christmas. This was a very special Christmas for us with it being Dillon's first Christmas. We spent it with my family in Scotland. It was extra special as my sister, her husband and our lovely niece Sophie joined us. Sophie is 5 months old and it was so lovely to see Dillon and her together.

We dressed Dillon up smartly for Christmas Day, He wore navy trousers, white shirt, Christmas tie and a red waistcoat with a Christmas tree motif. He looked so cute in it.

He really loved being with Sophie. It was so special to see them interacting together. She beamed at him him whenever he was close to her.

It was lovely to see them holding hands.

The bean on Sophie's face says it all. She loves her only cousin.

Dillon made big progress on Christmas Day by standing for the first time. He used the settee to balance and has been doing that every day since then. He looks so proud of himself as he stands there.

One day at my sister's house we placed Dillon in a cardboard box. Luckily he is very small for his age and fitted ti in very easily. He looked so cute as he sat there beaming. He is the best Christmas present ever. Nothing in a box could be as special as he is.

The adventures of Dillon

We are now back from a two week stay with my family in Scotland. Dillon really enjoyed his holiday and got lots of attention from everyone. He certainly entertained Granny with his rolling on the floor, eating food and being so alert. He met his little cousin Sophie who is so adorable. She was just 6 weeks when we were there and was so small. I found it hard to believe Dillon was once that size.

We enjoyed lots of walks and we noticed that Dillon was more alert and wanted to look at nature as we walked along. He doesn't seem frightened of animals at all. He watches our cat a lot and will touch him. On one walk on holiday we stroked a horse with Granny.

This was me with my sister Jane and Dillon on a walk.

We took him to Crathes Castle and someone kindly took our photo for us.

Granny took this picture of Gareth and I with Dillon. It is rare that we get a family shot.

He is now 7 months old and this has brought some big changes. He moved to his own bedroom this week and in to his pushchair. He has taken to both very well. He continues to sleep 12 hours overnight without any waking. He is very active in the day time. He rolls around the floor and soon rolls fom one of the room to the other. He is doing very well with weaning and is enjoying a wide range of foods. We are now adding a lot more chicken, red meat and fish to his meals. I am now starting to mash a little of the food and add it to a smooth puree. Before this week I made very smooth purees. Slowly we will increase the amount of mashed food to smooth puree. He weights 15lb 1oz which is very small for 7 months but he is staying on the same percentile line so the health visitor and us are happy. Every day with him is a joy. He provides so much entertainment.

Dillon and our cat Woody

Dillon is now 6 months old. It's amazing how fast his first half year has gone. It has been lovely to see him change each month and learn new things. He started to solids 3 weeks ago and is enjoying it. I have lots of fun making purees for him which he has loved so far. I have been proud to serve him home grown potatoes and peas. One favourite is blueberry and banana puree. I make up a batch and freeze servings in an ice cube tray. It saves me making new purees every day.

One thing we have really noticed recently is that Dillon watches Woody, out cat, so much. He seems to love moving items and when Woody runs across the room Dillon follows him and coos in delight. It's very cute. They both sit together and now Dillon will reach out to touch Woody's fur.

This was Dillon and Woody sitting on Gareth's knee.

 

Dillon's tummy time

It is amazing how fast a baby develops. One minute they are are tiny and just sleep or scream. Then they begin to smile and interact with people. Then they become much more energetic and can do all sorts of things. Recently Dillon has loved tummy time. When he was younger I would try him lying on his tummy and he would scream. Now he loves it. He is good at controlling his head and loves to lie on his tummy and watch what is going on around him. He is fascinated by Woody, our cat, running around.

He is now able to roll over onto his back. He then can kick his legs and he especially loves grabbing his feet and putting them in his mouth. Sometimes he will fall asleep on the blanket after a session like this. It is just so lovely to watch him and see him happy.

 

Will Dillon be Child of the Year?

Our local newspaper in Southampton, The Daily Echo, runs a yearly competition to find Child of the Year. As new parents we were keen to enter Dillon to this. He was entered into the birth to 9 months category. I think the categories go up to age 5. Two weeks ago we were the first entrants of the day. Dillon happily posed for the photographer in the middle of the shopping centre. I was so proud watching him. It is lovely to see him smile for strangers and when wanted! I went back to view the photos this week and decide which picture would appear in the newspaper. Readers can then vote for their favourite child in July. I chose this one

I loved his smile in this. His eyes are twinkling as he smiles.

I was able to buy prints so bought two small ones. This was the other one I opted for.

The last time he had a professional photographer take his photo was at one week old. It's amazing to see the changes since then and now he is a happy smiling little baby boy.

Dillon's latest developments

Today Dillon is 18 weeks old! Time is going too fast. He is changing all the time. Big changes in recent weeks have been:

 The ability to pick up toys and then try to fit them in his mouth.

This is him holding "Little ted".

We now get more and more smiles

He moved to his crib last night. I had been told that the moses basket may only last about 8 weeks but he got 18 out if it so that was great. In the last week I lay him down for a nap in the crib during the day to prepare him for the move. He slept all night in it last night so he obviously likes it. I hope this continues and then the move to the cot will be as easy.

10 things

After reading a blog with a post titled "10 things" I decided to list 10 thuings that make me happy just now.

Most of all I am so happy to have a healthy baby boy who fills each day with joy
I am so happy to be married to Gareth who is the best Daddy and Husband in the world
I was happy to spend weeks with my family who helped me with Dillon so much
I am happy to meet with Mummies and their lovely babies at local clubs.
I am happy to see my roses in full bloom in the garden
I am happy that I am an Auntie to Rosie and soon will be an Auntie to my sister's baby
I am happy that we are in mid summer and have lovely light evenings
It makes me happy to still find time for baking even as a busy Mummy
I am happy that Dillon sleeps all night and allows Mummy and Daddy to sleep, giving them energy for the next busy day
I am happy to spend all my time with Dillon despite much crying and screaming. He is so adorable and I love him so much.

Visitors

Dillon is now 9 weeks old. He is an adorable little boy. I love him more than words can say. He is a great feeder and loves Mummy's milk. I am so proud that breastfeeding has been a success and both Dillon and I enjoy it. I believe I am giving him the best start in life and also I am getting a lot of benefits from this too. He is small for his age but is putting weight on at a steady rate. His weight yesterday was 10lb 11oz. He is just starting to wear size 0-3 months clothes. The newborn size lasted him well. I am sad to fold away the tiny vests and babygros but at the same time he has some lovely boyish outfits in the next size that he will look beautiful in.

He is getting into a good routine. Overnight now he can sleep for over 10 hours! We can place him in his moses basket at say 8.30pm and he will sleep right through until 7am. It is so nice for Daddy and I to get a proper night's sleep. He loves to stay awake during the day which I don't mind. I am grateful he likes to sleep at night. I think he doesn't want to miss anything that goes on during the day.

We really get out and about these days. I have had him at the big stores. Last week we met a New Mums group in the John Lewis cafe. It was so nice for me to chat to other new mums and share our experiences with our babies. Over time as Dillon grows up I hope he will become friends with babies we have met already. In the cafe I gave Dillon his first ever feed in public. I was so happy I did it. I was a little nervous but a few other Mums did it too so I felt comfortable. One great thing about breastfeeding is that milk is always ready wherever you go. There is no sterilising of bottles and remembering formula powder and water.  We have been to garden centres, Hobbycraft and Sainsburys. Wherever I go he is admired and told he is really cute. Many staff in these shops have had a cuddle with him. Tomorrow we are off to my work to show him off to my friends in work. It will be nice for me to catch up with some people there. It's been 3 months since I was in work.

My sister Jane and her husband Ewan visited us last week. We all had a great time with Dillon. Dillon wasn't short of cuddles and kisses. Auntie Jane and Uncle Ewan really loved him and  were so good with him. Their baby is due in July so it was good practice before baby arrives.
I baked some cupcakes while they were with us. Jane brought me little baby boy cake decorations and cute baby paper cases which we used  for the cupcakes.

This was proud Auntie Jane with Dillon

and proud Uncle Ewan

Dillon getting his nappy changed by Auntie Jane

and sitting sucking his hand dressed smartly in his blue dungarees

Every week we notice a difference in Dillon. It is so nice to see him changing. One special change has been smiling. He doesn't smile often but if we speak slowly and look straight into his eyes while he is calm and happy he may smile. It is adorable to see.

My first Mother's Day

Yesterday was my first Mother's Day. Dillon kindly gave me Kirstie's Homemade home book and a very cute card where he thanked me for looking after him since his birth and that he loved having me as his Mummy. My sister in law gave me chocolates and mother in law gave me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. I really did feel special.

We visited Longstock water gardens in Hampshire in the afternoon. It is owned by John Lewis and Waitrose have a farm on the estate. Every second Sunday a charity can run the gardens and take the proceeds. Yesterday the Rotary club were in charge. I was keen to support them as they gave me a place 5 years ago on a cultural trip to India. I am grateful for that opportunity and feel I must support their good work where I can. The gardens were beautiful. We happily walked around with Dillon in his pram enjoying the views.

Dillon with Mummy after his bedtime feed on Mother's Day.

We placed him in his Moses basket at 9pm and there wasn't a sound from him until 5.05am! This is the longest he has ever slept. He is a little star. Thank you Dillon and Daddy for making Mother's Day so special.