It's not that the trip home has been long - last year was long too (there was a wedding to organize). It's not that there was a large sporting event happening either. But there was something tiny accompany Andrea and I for our trip to the UK and Germany. And that something tiny gets a lot of attention. And toys. And clothes. And somehow it needs to get back to China!
That little tiny person's had a fun time; enjoying bike rides in hertfordshire, tractor rides in brandeburg, pub lunches and sandpits in manchester, BBQs in at least 4 different boroughs of London, and food. Lots of food. In fact her first real food. Not having teeth has not been a barrier. All sorts of things have gone down her throat, and thankfully not the plastic bags, metal spoons or any other object that she is always trying to put in her mouth. It's been mostly fruits and vegetables and mostly mashed, though not always. She's taken a liking to chicken.
She's taken a liking to dogs and walks in the park; she's been to a zoo and a parade, Shakespeare's house, the River Thames, blackberry picking and all sorts. She's met babies and toddlers, uncles and cousins, aunts and grandparents, and plenty of strangers too. She's also--as ever--continued to grow. She managed to push herself up from her stomach to a sitting position a couple of times (though not yet since). She's pulled herself up from a sitting position to standing occasionally too. And she's begun to "cruise" (as it is apparently called), holding onto things to keep her balance so she can stand-up and then grabbing for something else to hold on to and walk towards. She's got herself on all four limbs and swivelled, she's also pushed herself backwards unintentionally, but she's not crawled properly yet. She's probably (...hopefully...) still a bit away from actually walking, but we're not sure. She loves it when holding onto someone else.
Having Hannah with us of course totally changes trips home. Our time with friends is different; several of whom also have kids, though Hannah's not yet old enough to play with them some of the are old enough to play with her! Our time with family is different of course and our choices are different. What transport will we take now we have a baby (and what transport do we take with us for Hannah); where will we go that Hannah can enjoy (or be able to fall asleep in a quiet corner) rather than just where we want to go, particularly involving indoor places.
It's quite interesting seeing how different people interact with her, and I suppose it's been interesting for others to see me or Andrea with Hannah too. But life goes on, and we manage and we enjoy time with her, or time without. Although she can play on her own now, she also recognizes when someone leaves her and increasingly wants the reassurance of having someone around her--and of course she is also increasingly able to get into mischief. So someone needs to be with her. And we're very fortunate our families have the time to be with her when Andrea and I need to do something else (some work, or an anniversary dinner for example). Our families have been great. It's the first grandchild for both sides so maybe future grandchildren will get less attention! We're not complaining of course!
Apart from everything being about Hannah and our families in terms of how we spend our time, I've been to see some football (it is a slightly strange atmosphere when 90% of the spectators do not support either team), some athletics and the triathlon (Paralympics to come too)! I've also watched a few bits and pieces on the television or on someone's ipone (my sister's birthday party coincided with Super Saturday) and even managed to go running with my dad twice (not as frequent as when I'm in Beijing, but hey, I am on holiday! I've now got a few more days in Germany before a few last days in London and then returning to Beijing for what is expected to be an incredibly busy last few months of the year.
No comments:
Post a Comment