Emily slept until 7.30, only waking once in the night. She came into bed with us but was in lot of pain and crying, so I decided to get up. I gave her some Calpol but she was still very upset. She did not want to walk on her own but cried when I picked her up. As she said 'no' to every suggestion we felt very frustrated and fed up.
With Pam and Graham we took her to South Park in Macclesfield, as we thought she would like to feed the ducks, but she got increasingly upset and was crying loudly and uncontrollably. The ducks did not want bread anyway due to a surfeit of cheap white loaf already floating on the surface. The playground was closed but she would not have been able to use it in any case, with only one arm, so we went home. She was giving in to sleep on the way back and I took her straight to bed. She slept two and half hours, me too for the final hour. Gail and Dave arrived while she slumbered and they all went to the Legh Arms for lunch while I stayed with Emily. Once awake, she perked up after some late lunch and a dose of medicine kicked in, then played quite happily in the garden for the rest of afternoon, though her left arm was hanging limply at her side.
Sunday, 15 August 2010
14 August 2010
At last, and with me becoming very worried after 6 days, Emily produced a poo. The medication prescribed to her is either ineffective or extremely slow in taking effect. Emily and I went up to the canal with Kate in the morning. We fed the many ducks first.JPG)
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then walked along for a while, despite a heavy rain shower passing over. Emily walked from one bridge to the next and most of the way back: a good 800 yards I reckon. We saw quite a few barges and there was plenty of wildlife and many farm animals to point out. It is a really pleasant rural spot with good views across the Cheshire Plain.
After lunch the happy moment came when we were to meet Nick from Macclesfield station. I did not tell Emily that he would be there, merely that we were going to watch trains, so it was a lovely surprise for her. She seemed very emotional, though not quite tearful, as she went to his arms. She had fun showing Nick all her new toys and books and exploring the garden together.
It was all going well until he gave Emily a swing around on the grass. She began crying hysterically and seemed to be in pain. After a while, we got her upstairs and lay her down on the bed and she dropped off, worn out with crying. She slept for ages then woke and again complained of pain in her arm, but then went back to sleep on me for another hour or more. As there was no improvement we decided to take her to casualty. We saw a triage nurse quickly and were then shown into a kids waiting room, which at least had toys, books and DVDs. She had some painkiller but we had to wait two hours, which really dragged. There was another family there who were very pleasant. We watched a lot of DVDs as Emily could not play due to the pain in her wrist. Finally, we saw a doctor and he was very offhand, seeming almost uninterested and with no bedside manner at all. He sent us to Xray, where we hung around some time longer. Emily was very patient, under the circumstances. Nick and I had to wear lead aprons and Emily managed to cope with the two x-ray plates fairly well. We went back to the doctor and he showed the x-ray results to all of us. Emily was really interested to see a picture of her bones. There was apparently no break; it was just a soft tissue injury so there was no treatment he could give other than painkiller. While waiting for Graham to pick us up at 11pm, we saw some fireworks in a nearby park, and Emily saw some stars too. Back at home she had toast then we went off to bed at midnight, all emotionally worn out.
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then walked along for a while, despite a heavy rain shower passing over. Emily walked from one bridge to the next and most of the way back: a good 800 yards I reckon. We saw quite a few barges and there was plenty of wildlife and many farm animals to point out. It is a really pleasant rural spot with good views across the Cheshire Plain.
After lunch the happy moment came when we were to meet Nick from Macclesfield station. I did not tell Emily that he would be there, merely that we were going to watch trains, so it was a lovely surprise for her. She seemed very emotional, though not quite tearful, as she went to his arms. She had fun showing Nick all her new toys and books and exploring the garden together.
It was all going well until he gave Emily a swing around on the grass. She began crying hysterically and seemed to be in pain. After a while, we got her upstairs and lay her down on the bed and she dropped off, worn out with crying. She slept for ages then woke and again complained of pain in her arm, but then went back to sleep on me for another hour or more. As there was no improvement we decided to take her to casualty. We saw a triage nurse quickly and were then shown into a kids waiting room, which at least had toys, books and DVDs. She had some painkiller but we had to wait two hours, which really dragged. There was another family there who were very pleasant. We watched a lot of DVDs as Emily could not play due to the pain in her wrist. Finally, we saw a doctor and he was very offhand, seeming almost uninterested and with no bedside manner at all. He sent us to Xray, where we hung around some time longer. Emily was very patient, under the circumstances. Nick and I had to wear lead aprons and Emily managed to cope with the two x-ray plates fairly well. We went back to the doctor and he showed the x-ray results to all of us. Emily was really interested to see a picture of her bones. There was apparently no break; it was just a soft tissue injury so there was no treatment he could give other than painkiller. While waiting for Graham to pick us up at 11pm, we saw some fireworks in a nearby park, and Emily saw some stars too. Back at home she had toast then we went off to bed at midnight, all emotionally worn out.
Friday, 13 August 2010
13 August 2010
It was wet on and off all day. We scratched our plan to go to Tatton Park and Pam and I took Emily to John Lewis. Pam kindly stayed with her in the toy department for half an hour while I had a quick shuftie round womenswear. Then we went to the childrens' clothing department and she chose a pack of 'big girls' pants', as I have told her many times that once we are settled back at home she will be upgrading to the potty. She got a bit fed up, partly because she thought that I ought to buy her some plastic vegetables and partly because her mood was affected yet again by her toilet habits. We calmed her down and got her home on the promise that Pam had something special for her there, and indeed she did: a Peppa Pig play set with a train, duck pond and see-saw, complete with several figurines. Does that count as bribery?!
After lunch it rained again and that made our minds up that Emily should play at Fun4All, an indoor softplay place in Macclesfield. Unfortunately she realised as we arrived that she had left Goki at home and cried, but once we were through the door he was forgotten as soon as she saw all the play equipment. Pam had bravely agreeed to stay there with her while I went into town to sort one or two things out. I walked for quarter of an hour in drizzle and scurried across several busy roads. After my chores I bought Private Eye and relaxed with coffee and cake for a while before setting off back to the play venue. By now the weather had deteriorated and the rain had come back with a vengeance. I arrived drenched to find that Emily was having a fantastic time and she soon had me clambering around on foam steps, through nets and down slides. A small trip resulted in floods of tears and I realised just how tired she was after no nap and two hours of fun, so we headed for home.
After lunch it rained again and that made our minds up that Emily should play at Fun4All, an indoor softplay place in Macclesfield. Unfortunately she realised as we arrived that she had left Goki at home and cried, but once we were through the door he was forgotten as soon as she saw all the play equipment. Pam had bravely agreeed to stay there with her while I went into town to sort one or two things out. I walked for quarter of an hour in drizzle and scurried across several busy roads. After my chores I bought Private Eye and relaxed with coffee and cake for a while before setting off back to the play venue. By now the weather had deteriorated and the rain had come back with a vengeance. I arrived drenched to find that Emily was having a fantastic time and she soon had me clambering around on foam steps, through nets and down slides. A small trip resulted in floods of tears and I realised just how tired she was after no nap and two hours of fun, so we headed for home.
Thursday, 12 August 2010
12 August 2010
Hurray! Finally, Nick is on his way to Blighty, after more than 4 weeks of separation. We won't see him until Saturday though, as he has a couple of days down south first to see Matt, Ali and Alistair.
It was a changeable day right from the start. After coffee we all drove to Little Morton Hall, over on the other side of Congleton. This is a gorgeous little black and white stately home dating back to the 15th century, set in attractive Cheshire countryside and surrounded by a full moat. This was being replenished by a morning of showers, and it began raining as we arrived.
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Emily was somewhat tetchy for a while, which I put down to the lack of a poo, and I had to carry her a fair bit at first. We left Mum, Pam and Graham to listen in on the guided tour, while Kate and I took Emily up to the Long Gallery, with its very higgledy-piggledy floor. Emily loosened up then and began running back and forth along the length of the narrow room.
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We poked around in the other rooms briefly then took her into the shop, coming out a fair few quid lighter.
In the orchard, which charmingly had about 30 ducks grazing on the grass, a small marquee had been set up for childrens' activities. Emily enjoyed making a bumble bee on a stick. She loves being allowed to use felt-tip pens, which I don't allow in the apartment, and sticky tape is always popular.
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We wandered briefly in the knot garden and around by the moat, then went into the restaurant. I ordered a ploughman's, and though it was pricey I didn't expect the two massive wedges of local cheeses, each of which was at least six ounces. I left more than half and took it home in a doggy bag. By then it was time for Mum to head back to Pandy, so we left the Hall, just as the sun made an appearance.
Driving back to Macclesfield, the heavens darkened and a sudden downpour hit us. This heralded a full afternoon of torrential rain and thunder storms. I spent quite a while pottering in Sainsbury's while Emily slept out in the car, then we went home. She seemed keen to hear the thunder and had plenty of opportunity as we peered out at the weather from the bedroom, though I think she was a little scared too. We saw several flashes, but she kept missing the forks that flickered periodically.
After Emily ate a huge tea, Graham and I set out for a run. We knew there would be a lot of puddles and mud after so much rain had fallen but at least it stayed dry for us, and in fact the skies cleared and we had a lovely, though cool, evening with nice cloud formations in the distance. We ran to the old railway track up Brookledge Hill, and I found it very tough to even jog gently up that incline, but after a few minutes on the level trail I settled into a pace and managed to stay up with Graham. We dropped down off the railway on a quiet country road that afforded great views west and had some pretty red brick cottages, then turned back for the final mile on the main road. We were gone 50 minutes and at a pace out of my comfort zone, so we must surely have done 5 miles. Emily was in the bath and extremely genki. It was hard to settle her in bed and once more she requested me to stay and lie down by her for a short sleep. Sadly, the sky was not clear enough to go out and view the peak of the Perseids shower, but I was very weary anyway so perhaps it was for the best.
It was a changeable day right from the start. After coffee we all drove to Little Morton Hall, over on the other side of Congleton. This is a gorgeous little black and white stately home dating back to the 15th century, set in attractive Cheshire countryside and surrounded by a full moat. This was being replenished by a morning of showers, and it began raining as we arrived.
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Emily was somewhat tetchy for a while, which I put down to the lack of a poo, and I had to carry her a fair bit at first. We left Mum, Pam and Graham to listen in on the guided tour, while Kate and I took Emily up to the Long Gallery, with its very higgledy-piggledy floor. Emily loosened up then and began running back and forth along the length of the narrow room.
.JPG)
We poked around in the other rooms briefly then took her into the shop, coming out a fair few quid lighter.
In the orchard, which charmingly had about 30 ducks grazing on the grass, a small marquee had been set up for childrens' activities. Emily enjoyed making a bumble bee on a stick. She loves being allowed to use felt-tip pens, which I don't allow in the apartment, and sticky tape is always popular.
.JPG)
We wandered briefly in the knot garden and around by the moat, then went into the restaurant. I ordered a ploughman's, and though it was pricey I didn't expect the two massive wedges of local cheeses, each of which was at least six ounces. I left more than half and took it home in a doggy bag. By then it was time for Mum to head back to Pandy, so we left the Hall, just as the sun made an appearance.
Driving back to Macclesfield, the heavens darkened and a sudden downpour hit us. This heralded a full afternoon of torrential rain and thunder storms. I spent quite a while pottering in Sainsbury's while Emily slept out in the car, then we went home. She seemed keen to hear the thunder and had plenty of opportunity as we peered out at the weather from the bedroom, though I think she was a little scared too. We saw several flashes, but she kept missing the forks that flickered periodically.
After Emily ate a huge tea, Graham and I set out for a run. We knew there would be a lot of puddles and mud after so much rain had fallen but at least it stayed dry for us, and in fact the skies cleared and we had a lovely, though cool, evening with nice cloud formations in the distance. We ran to the old railway track up Brookledge Hill, and I found it very tough to even jog gently up that incline, but after a few minutes on the level trail I settled into a pace and managed to stay up with Graham. We dropped down off the railway on a quiet country road that afforded great views west and had some pretty red brick cottages, then turned back for the final mile on the main road. We were gone 50 minutes and at a pace out of my comfort zone, so we must surely have done 5 miles. Emily was in the bath and extremely genki. It was hard to settle her in bed and once more she requested me to stay and lie down by her for a short sleep. Sadly, the sky was not clear enough to go out and view the peak of the Perseids shower, but I was very weary anyway so perhaps it was for the best.
Wednesday, 11 August 2010
11 August 2010
Time to move on from Pandy to Adlington. Mum took us in her car, and drove the first leg as far as Strensham services, where we paused for coffee. We continued up the M5/M6 as far as Stafford services, where we broke the journey for lunch. It was warm and sunny as we got out of the car, but by the time we had bought a picnic and gone out to the pleasant little landscaped lake to eat it, heavy clouds had moved in and it felt pretty chilly. Emily got to play in the small playground there and I was convinced that after food and activity she would sleep the final hour to Pam and Graham's, but she made it all the way awake.
We played in the garden and Pam produced a new Peppa Pig play tent. Emily also liked their exercise ball, and picking some of the wild strawberries that seemed to be invading Graham's garden.
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Finally I managed to stop her from pestering Florence and she soon dropped off in her Ready bed. She was really happy to have a cat who responds to her advances at last (unlike grumpy Rosie).
We played in the garden and Pam produced a new Peppa Pig play tent. Emily also liked their exercise ball, and picking some of the wild strawberries that seemed to be invading Graham's garden.
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Finally I managed to stop her from pestering Florence and she soon dropped off in her Ready bed. She was really happy to have a cat who responds to her advances at last (unlike grumpy Rosie).
Tuesday, 10 August 2010
10 August 2010
Emily and I went to Ali's place in Bredon. I could see straight away that Amelia is beginning to look very like her Mummy. New baby Charlotte, 7 weeks, was more like Adrian, I thought. She is very sweet, and it was lovely to hold her. I have had plenty of opportunity to cuddle small babies recently, and it never ceases to amaze me how light they are. Emily is so hefty these days.
The two girls played quite well together, though naturally it was a little hard at times for Amelia to share her favourite toys, but that is no different to Emily when she entertains at home.
From a cold start it warmed up to become quite a nice day, so after lunch we walked down the road to the village shop for cakes. Amelia still naps every day so was tired and rode on a buggy board. That meant that Emily refused to walk too, and I had to carry her a fair bit. Predictably, she fell asleep on the drive home later. She ends up napping most days now as we are often in the car in the afternoon. I hope I can break her back out of the habit when we return home.
Late in the evening I went out onto the lawn with Mum and Fi before bed for half an hour to look for meteors. I saw 6 or 7, and also Jupiter, as bright as a small moon to the south east.
Monday, 9 August 2010
9 August 2010
Emily had a repeat visit to the doctors, for a second opinion on her poo situation. This time a different physician said that she has a lazy bowel and the usual advice was given about fibre (that box can certainly be ticked already) and plenty of drinks (exactly how I am to get any more down her when she often purses her lips shut is the small problem with that suggestion). She also prescribed some sachets to try for a month in the hope of establishing a more regular pattern.
On the way home we called in to see Gordon and Melba at Penbidwal Farmhouse. They have done wonders with that place since they took it on almost uninhabitable about 10 years ago. Emily warmed to them quickly and was happy playing with her trains on their rug while we chatted. Melba said they had discovered an old motte and bailey on their land, and also showed me a medieval tally stick, whatever that might be, that was found there.
After lunch Mum, Fi and I took the kids to Hereford. Emily and Fern had a great time at the excellent playground near the swimming pool, then we walked through the attractive riverside park and through to the cathedral.
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Some buildings around the cathedral were being rebuilt and there were plenty of diggers and dumpers for the girls to watch at work, though Emily was rather nervous when I took her closer to one. Down one of the old cobbled streets opposite, we dived into an alley and came out in a secluded courtyard where we had cake and coffee at a wholefood cafe. I mused that the city would be a nice place to live (not just because of the cake!).
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Fi took Charlie off into town for a short shopping spree while I escorted the girls back to the car with Mum. We went via the old bridge to avoid the playground, as Mum needed to get back to Abergavenny to pick Dad up and a diversion to play again would cause delay.
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I turned back to Hereford centre and shopped for a while before meeting Gill, my old college friend. We decided to go to Gilbies wine bar, which hadn't changed a jot since our class reunion 15 years ago. The food was OK but definitely provincial quality. We spent a pleasant couple of hours talking about old times and what lies ahead.
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I took the train home to Abergavenny, and the Black Mountains looked brooding and magnificent in late evening light with heavy cloud overhead. Fi picked me up and took me home. When I arrived Emily had been to bed but just got out again to find the plastic grapes she has been obsessed by for the last week. I took her back to bed and she was such a chatterbox for half an hour. She said 'Mummy please don't go downstairs, lie down next to me and have a little nap'.
On the way home we called in to see Gordon and Melba at Penbidwal Farmhouse. They have done wonders with that place since they took it on almost uninhabitable about 10 years ago. Emily warmed to them quickly and was happy playing with her trains on their rug while we chatted. Melba said they had discovered an old motte and bailey on their land, and also showed me a medieval tally stick, whatever that might be, that was found there.
After lunch Mum, Fi and I took the kids to Hereford. Emily and Fern had a great time at the excellent playground near the swimming pool, then we walked through the attractive riverside park and through to the cathedral.
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Some buildings around the cathedral were being rebuilt and there were plenty of diggers and dumpers for the girls to watch at work, though Emily was rather nervous when I took her closer to one. Down one of the old cobbled streets opposite, we dived into an alley and came out in a secluded courtyard where we had cake and coffee at a wholefood cafe. I mused that the city would be a nice place to live (not just because of the cake!).
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Fi took Charlie off into town for a short shopping spree while I escorted the girls back to the car with Mum. We went via the old bridge to avoid the playground, as Mum needed to get back to Abergavenny to pick Dad up and a diversion to play again would cause delay.
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I turned back to Hereford centre and shopped for a while before meeting Gill, my old college friend. We decided to go to Gilbies wine bar, which hadn't changed a jot since our class reunion 15 years ago. The food was OK but definitely provincial quality. We spent a pleasant couple of hours talking about old times and what lies ahead.
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I took the train home to Abergavenny, and the Black Mountains looked brooding and magnificent in late evening light with heavy cloud overhead. Fi picked me up and took me home. When I arrived Emily had been to bed but just got out again to find the plastic grapes she has been obsessed by for the last week. I took her back to bed and she was such a chatterbox for half an hour. She said 'Mummy please don't go downstairs, lie down next to me and have a little nap'.
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