Cup Final Day (T)

Eddie loves belly buttons and cheerios. He also loves his lego blocks (pictured) and that strange orange jelly fish toy.

Today was cup final day, and Eddie is pictured symbolically holding 3 yellow blocks, for west ham, and 2 red ones, for liverpool. That was the score a few moments from the end.

He didn't anticipate, however, Stephen Gerrard's 91st minute equalizer, and Liverpool's subsequent victory on penalties. The 3-3 draw followed by a successful shootout mirrored their champion's league win last year.

Another anniversary: It was FA cup final day last year when Sam and Becca got married, so happy first year of marriage. No pics of them, but a couple of photos of police and flowers, taken at the big elephant event in St James' park (see Sam and Becca's blog for details).

As you can tell, we weren't really close enough to the big elephant, thus the cops & flowers.

Finally, it really does feel like summer these days, and here's the little boy dressed for the season..

Bowling, birthdays, grandparents... (T)

Clearly the blogging heart of our family has faltered, so taking the opportunity to distinguish May from a quiet April, here is a record of Edmund's first birthday and the events & celebrations surrounding it...

Man of La Mancha (T)

...but as Don Quixote saw them, he said to his squire:

"Either I am deceived, or this will be the most famous adventure ever seen, because those black shapes you see there must be, and no doubt are, enchanters who have captured some princess in that carriage, and I needs must do everything in my power to right this wrong"



"This will be worse than the windmills", said Sancho,

"Look, Senor, those are friars of St. Benedict, and the carriage must belong to some travelers. Look carefully, I tell you, look carefully at what you do....."

From Edith Grossman's "definitive" Don Quixote, with thanks to Laurence and commendations to Ed.






Today's pictures are from our Easter trip to Warwick Castle.

Music with Margareta

Every Wednesday morning for the past 5 weeks we've been going to 'Music with Margareta' - half an hour of singing, playing instruments (shakers, eggs, drums...), listening to, and interacting with, music. Eddie's got a good sense of rhythm. He loved to watch Margareta play her many instruments. He also got along well with Lisa, who's holding him in the top picture - she works for the Coram Fields centre, where these wonderful activities take place!


Here, in mid-song, Margareta humorously asked Eddie if he wanted to move any closer...as he'd happily ensconced his head in the curve of her guitar! Another activity involved everyone holding a piece of blue silk, raising it up and down, and back and forth... Eddie would get very excited and sometimes crawl and hide underneath. We'd sing songs about ducks whilst making the toy duck bob up and down on the silk... eventually the duck would get wrapped up and go to sleep.

Spring days in central London

Fantastic outdoor stained glass windows, with REAL sun shining through them! It's Spring!


Even though Eddie's a boy he appreciates a good ribbon shop when we come across one.

This one, V.V.Rouleux, is on Marylebone High st, 5 mins from us, and is so fancy that we were asked not to take photos...luckily I had already shot this one.

The swing shots were taken in Paddington Gardens, 2 mins from us, even closer to us than Regents Park. I usually bump into a mum or dad I know when we go to the playground there. Even seen the odd glamorous ('Desperate Housewives') type there too.





As you can see from the first swing shot, Eddie sometimes seems more interested in the shadows, or the mechanics of the swing than the experience itself. I love the slide one, where he seems to be thinking...what am I supposed to do here?



To carry on a theme from other blogs we know and love... blossoms! We have blossoms here in London too... here's Eddie looking slighty bored by them. Eddie is currently reading the book 'Peace Child' (sometimes with his mouth).



Home again, going up the lift with mummy...

a final cuddle goodnight from dad before bed
(eddie has been 11 months old for 3 days now)