Settling in

We've lived in London over 6 years now and lived in this flat over 10 months but we're still settling in. We're getting there though. Now we've all got permanent residence we've purchased a few new things and have settled in a bit more.

Recent 'settling in' purchases have included wardrobes for our bedroom, Theo was instrumental in building these from flat pack.

Jackie's wardrobe

Simon's wardrobe (includes Jackie's suits and necklaces)

We've also purchased a slow cooker, something I've been saying we'll buy when we've got permanent residency. So far I've cooked goat stew, pulled pork and a soup. All have been yum, the pork was my favourite although it was very rich.

Last week we got a hat stand, which I'm very excited about. Another flat packed piece of furniture which Theo helped put together.

Our hat and coat stand

 Jackie has also got more storage containers which means we can more easily keep the house tidy.

We're so settled in that I even had time to bake some hot cross buns yesterday. Theo helped, mainly with eating them.

Look good! They tasted good too although I've got a few changes I'll make for the Good Friday batch. 

Theo enjoying the spoils of his labour

Theo had his afternoon sleep in his big bed, he slept well but was  a bit confused and upset when he woke up

Snaggletooth

We noticed that Theo had what appeared to be a new tooth growing behind one of his other teeth. It didn't seem to be bothering him but as it continued to grow out Jackie asked one of the ladies at baby clinic. She had no idea and suggested a visit to the GP. The GP said go to the dentist. So eventually Jackie took Theo for his first dentist appointment.

The dentist was very good with Theo and was able to get a look and confirm that Theo had a talon cusp. Not a second tooth but a deformed tooth. This is very rare in baby teeth (although not so rare that we could make any money out of it!). Apparently people can live with this without complication and if it does cause any problems it can be worked on. 

It is likely that having had a talon cusp on a baby tooth will mean Theo will have one on his adult teeth but we'll have to wait and see. 

So Theo isn't perfect. It hasn't really bothered him. 

Theo has been really happy the past few weeks. He's giving out lots of hugs and kisses and waves out to mum/dad when we go to work. He helps put the dishes and groceries away. He loves reading books. He gives out smiles and waves to strangers when we're out. His walking is really coming along very well. His ability to feed himself is getting better and he's eating really well. He's not really talking, but he does understand us we often know what he wants. He can crawl down stairs now. He's at a great age and we're really enjoying it. 

Here's a few photos and videos

Waving goodbye to mum as she goes off to work

Keeping my fluids up at my new table

Helping out around the house

A bit of DIY

After all that work I've earned a babycino

Peekaboo

Another babycino

Just whipped up a few waffles for mothers day

Crashed out

Dressed up for mothers day lunch

Family day out

Yesterday I took the day off work, we planned to take a train somewhere for a pub lunch. Our intentions had initially been quite adventurous, we'd hoped to take a train out of London to find a nice pub in a country town somewhere. We thought we'd give Godalming in Surrey a go.

However when we got to the train station and saw how much the tickets were going to be we quickly reassessed and settled on Teddington. A suburb within Greater London, but far enough out that we would feel like we'd been on a trip.

Teddington is a nice suburb which sits along the River Thames, we love that river.

We headed straight for the Anglers pub which is on the river. We recieved a very friendly welcome and got a nice table. Theo got his own menu. Pork belly for me, chicken breast for Jackie and fish and chips for Theo. While we waited for our meals I took Theo for a walk in the garden and a play in the playground they had. He was a bit unsure about the slide but got used to it.

Back to the table our drinks had been delivered (ale, wine and milk), we all enjoyed our drinks.

Meals turned up, all were good. Theo's favourite bit was the chips although he did have some of the peas and fish as well. Theo had gone for a meal deal which included pudding so we got that while he carried on eating his chips. His juice in his fresh fruit salad proved ideal for dunking his remaining chips. His also ate a few of the grapes.

Theo likes mandarins and oranges, perhaps he thought lemons would be nice too. After one bite he wasn't deterred and carried on to eat quite a bit of his lemon wedge. Was great entertainment for us and other diners

Mmmm chips

Big glass of milk to wash it all down

After lunch we went for a walk to find somewhere for coffee and cake. As we walked along the high street we walked past an old man struggling to get on to a bus with his walker. Just after we'd gone past him we heard a thud, the old man had fallen backwards out of the bus, with his head hitting the pavement very hard. Jackie was the first person on the scene making sure he was alright. The old guy was big so a few of us hoisted him up while Jackie grappled his walker.The old guy was convinced he was ok and was determined to get on the bus so we got him to a seat and let him go on his way.

We carried on our way. Theo was getting a few funny looks, so we checked him out. He was slumped forward in his pram, fast asleep. That gave Jackie a chance to do a little shopping picking up some more depression glass from a charity shop.

From there we were very pleased to see our first gold letterbox. Following the Olympics last year for every gold medal winner the UK Post Office painted a letter box gold in the home town of the winner. Mo Farah was our favourite Olympian so we were very pleased to see his gold letterbox. Also, the Fara charity shop which is next to the letter box took the opportunity to cash in as well.

Jackie doing the Mobot

Mo Fara, very clever

We found our coffee and cake, both were good.

We headed home, letting Theo walk some of the way. He had a little tumble which turned out to be worse than his other falls. A lot of tears and a pretty bad blood nose ensued.

This photo captures the moment pretty well

 He eventually came right and it didn't spoil a great family day out.

Cold Water Swimming Champs

In the UK they have these things called "Lidos", a lido is essentially a public swimming pool. Tooting has a massive one, it's the biggest outdoor swimming pool in the UK and has quite a history.

The Tooting Bec Lido is home to the South London Cold Water Swimming Championships which were on January 26.

It was a beautifully sunny day so after going for a jog I headed down to see what it's all about.

There was a £2 entry fee which was just the right amount. It was busy, although there wasn't much space so it didn't take too many people to make it busy, a few hundred at least. Many were competitors but plenty of supporters and nosy locals as well.

When I arrived there was a break between races so I scoped out the place before making a bee line for the hog roast tent. I love a hog roast in a bun!

Hog roast, yum

Not long after lunch  the relay races began. The pool is so big they just do widths. Many of the teams wore fancy dress, this wasn't serious racing for most, just a fun day out. Although with the water temp at 2 degrees, and snow still sitting on the side of the pool I'm not quite sure how much fun it would have been.

The races were generally quite low key, the swimmers get a hot cup of something and a hot bath after their race.

I'm not sure if the videos on this page will display in other countries, it's some footage from ITV news

A nice day for a swim

The sun bouncing off the 2 degrees water almost makes you want to jump in!

Birthday, flying solo

For the second year in a row I had to have my birthday without my family. Last year I was away at a work conference.

This year Jackie and Theo were NZ.

It's pretty sad being on your own on your birthday but I had a pretty good day.

I had already received a couple of birthday cards and a parcel, which I didn't open until the 25th. I had an added surprise when I spoke to Jackie, she had hidden a bunch of presents in the flat. She told me where to find them so I was able to open them while on the phone. There were two really nice cards, one from Jackie and one from Theo. It really made for a great start to the day.

I decided to have a day in the city, a nice coffee and brunch, walk around and then go to a movie.

I went to foxcroft and ginger for coffee and brunch. I came prepared with the paper to read. The coffee was very good, pan au chocolat was ok. I had a corn and potato fritter, it was more like a frittata than a fritter but still quite nice. I also had a fresh mint tea. I was there for a couple of hours just reading the paper and watching people come and go. Being in central London, Soho to be precise, it can be interesting viewing.

I then ambled through Leicester Square to the movie theatre. Going to the movies is a bit of a treat for me, I like going to the movies but never get the chance to go. I wanted to see the Hobbit but it wasn't on so I saw Skyfall instead, I'm a sucker for Bond films. I had a big hot chocolate and really enjoyed the film.

After the film I headed back to Tooting. A friend was having me over for dinner but I had some time to kill, but not enough time to bother going home. So I went and had a pint  at a new cafe/bar call Gravney and Meadow  in Tooting and read some more paper.

After that pint I went to another bar, Tooting Tram and Social, which is just a few steps down the road for a pint and more paper reading. The tram and social is based in an old tram shed, it's pretty cool.

Then one more pint and paper, this time at The Antelope, just a few more steps down the road.

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Then it was time to go and have a delicious dinner, complete with dessert.

So all in all I had a really good day, but next year I'm going to make sure that whatever happens I am with my family for my birthday.

Snow

The week after Jackie and Theo left for NZ we had our first proper bout of snow. There were lots of warnings about disruption to travel and school closures etc.

There is always some uncertainty as to whether the snow will actually arrive but the forecasters were very certain this time. So much so that some train companies were running an "adverse weather timetable" before the snow even started.

On Thursday morning, when it was all supposed to hit  I woke up to brilliant sunshine. By the time I'd got off the train for work though it had clouded over and before long light snow was falling. By the time I got to the office the snow was really coming down and it snowed most of the day.

The snow starts coming down on my way to work

Some people spent most of the day trying to get me to suggest we should all go home. We did leave a bit early because it is always a bit dangerous getting home in the snow.

Pendle St, just around the corner from home

In front of our flat

On the Sunday I went for a jog in the snow which was good fun, a bit slippery in parts but more like running in sand because the snow was still powdery. I went for another run on Monday night, the clouds had cleared and it was quite a full moon which reflected off the snow, making it very bright despite the sun being well and truly set.

The bowling green at the end of our road

The river out the front of work

It snowed some more on Friday and we've had some snow on and off over the past week. It hasn't got much about 0 degrees so the snow stayed around for a while.

Over a week after the main snow fall this igloo made in Tooting Common  looking as solid as ever

Christmas 2012

We love Christmas, we really get in to the festive spirit with the music, movies, food, markets and general happiness and excitement which seems so infectious at this time of year.

This year was a relatively quiet Christmas for us. We did do the usual winter things though including a trip to Winter Wonderland, lots of festive drinks and meals at cosy pubs, visiting various Christmas markets, lots of baking and cooking, and of course plenty of eating.

Theo enjoyed it all although he got in to the holiday spirit by sleeping in pretty much every day of the holiday, including till 9am on one day and 7.30 on Christmas day. We enjoyed the sleep ins but sometimes were left waiting for him to get up so we could start the day.

On Christmas day we had our cousin Carla over and had a traditional turkey meal with all the trimmings for lunch with trifle for pudding. We ate way too much, enjoyed each others company and just had an all round great day.

Apart from Christmas day we went for a decent walk every day so the damage done from all the eating and drinking was hopefully limited.

It was great to have ten days as completely uninterrupted family time and was pretty tough to go back to work.

Here's a few pics from the festive period...

There are some really nice front doors around our neighbourhood, made all the better with some impressive wreaths

Once again, our tree was the best decorated tree around

Theo checking out the Christmas display while mum is doing some Christmas shopping at Bentall's in Kingston

Merry Christmas Mum!

Pretty happy with my turkey although think maybe next year we might try something different

Not my best turkey meal but it did the trick. 

This trifle served as breakfast, afternoon tea and pudding for 3 days. 

We hope you had a relaxing and enjoyable festive period where ever in the world you are.