What Syon Did Next

Since my last post, I have clocked a few more firsts.

I am now turning over on to my stomach and trying to crawl. I can’t really get anywhere much yet but everyone says I’m doing things before my time and it won’t be long before I can walk. At the moment though, I find it frustrating not to be able to go places, and occasionally my attempts end in tears. I also intend to learn to get on the big chair in front of the computer by myself as soon as possible, so Mommy can stop taking credit for helping me with my blog more than she actually does (don’t get me wrong, I love Mommy to bits, but she does exaggerate)!

I also have plenty to say. To the casual observer, my conversations with Mommy or Daddy might sound like this:
Me: Oi ei ooh ga ga
Them: Is it time for your nappy change, Sweetheart?
Me: Oooh henga ham ei oi eh eh
Them: Milk, you want milk, Baby?
Me: Aah goo ga humma Mom
Them: Poor Babes, isn’t Panda playing with you?
But it’s just a cover for those deep meaningful discussions of ours' that could attract the wrong kind of attention (you know the kind I mean, the ‘Oxbridge Scouting Committee for Prodigal Babies’ and that sort of thing).
In reality, our conversations go like this:
Me: So, you say that Stonehenge was a centre for healing but I still feel the temple theory has more credibility.
Them: Recent research would suggest, however, that the ailing travelled to Stonehenge from all over Europe including the ‘Amesbury Archer’ from Switzerland.
Me: Ah, but haven’t the very ill always congregated at places of worship in the hope of a miracle cure?
etc...

People are always telling Mommy and Daddy that I will be speaking in no time. I never bother to correct them; I am already speaking, just not in their tongue. They get all excited when I say ‘Mom’, like the lady in the shop the other day, because I’m not five months yet, but I’ve been saying that for simply aaages. Obviously, I will have to learn Big People Speak fairly quickly so complete strangers stop prattling on at me in some made-up language they think I’ll understand!

Strange things are also happening to my hair. Most of my abundant dark pelt of newborn hair is now gone and just as I was getting used to the super-shiny Bruce Willis look, Mommy’s noticed a few new sprigs coming through. Daddy’s keeping his fingers crossed that my new hair does not turn ginger!

Right-O! I am hungry again and must go. What’s your bet my next development update is all about the wonders of baby rice?!!

Syonix in Gaul

In the little village of Villepot in faraway Gaul, Syonix and his tribe rented a hut (a very large hut with a pool, more often called a villa) for a week’s holiday. With him were Obelix, Cacofonix, Vitalstatistix…..

Well, no, actually, it was Daddy, Mommy, Grandad, Grandma, Uncle David, Aunty Louise and Cousin Eleanor who went to France with me. Our luggage did not contain a single winged helmet, harp, obelisk, or vial of invincibility potion but Daddy could have easily passed for Getafix the Druid with all the mistletoe-spotting he did on holiday!

It was a week of many firsts for me- my first holiday, first trip abroad, first ferry ride and first swim (the last two, fortunately, not related)! Our first day there was nice and warm so I got into my very first pair of swimming trunks (blue, rather than the red Mommy liked, to avoid the inevitable comparisons with David Hasselhoff), and jumped into the invitingly turquoise (Mommy says descriptions are a must in travelogues) pool in a floating thingie, with Daddy. I didn’t stay long; the water turned out to be absolutely freezing and I retired to the warmth of Mommy’s arms at the poolside very quickly. Mommy had earlier, very wisely, decided against going in, after the toe she dipped into the water turned blue! I shall throw my rubber duckies in before me the next time I try swimming; if they stay their usual pokerfaced selves, I’ll know it’s OK to go in!

We also spent a lovely day nosing about the market in Chateaubriant and returned to the villa weighed down with Gallic delicacies, which I got to taste too, in a roundabout way! The one mystery remained the contents of Doner’s dad’s market stall (‘Doner Kebap’ said the sign on the shack) which drew great numbers from amongst the market-goers. Mommy was very tickled when I asked her about this, but all I got by way of explanation was something about the same dish having slightly different names around the world!

All in all, a week full of new experiences for me; I have yet another and a very special first coming up at the end of September when I meet my Dida for the first time!

Mamma Mia!

Last Saturday was Mommy’s 21st birthday (that’s what Daddy advised me to write). We had weekend-long celebrations planned and what a weekend it was!

It started on Friday when I went to see the local doctor about my TB vaccination scab which wasn’t looking so good. The doctor said it had got infected and put me on antibiotics. That evening Mommy went out with some mummies (not the bandaged kind) from our street; this gave me and Daddy the opportunity to wrap her birthday gifts. I got Mommy a book of nursery rhymes with lots of pretty pictures; this was a really clever gift because I get to enjoy it too when Mommy reads it out! Daddy's obviously nowhere near as clever as he got Mommy her favourite historical novels and rom com DVD’s which aren’t his thing at all. On Saturday night, Daddy cooked us a delicious meal (it was for Mommy really, I had to settle for the liquid option, followed by a nasty shot of antibiotics). Then, on Sunday evening, we all went out for dinner, and that's when things got really exciting…

Just as Mommy and Daddy were tucking into Dessert, I felt a wee bit poorly and puked...and puked again. Mommy and Daddy took me home but I kept throwing up and became very drowsy and lethargic. They were quite worried, especially as I was on medication, so Mommy called the helpline and they sent a tall, friendly man dressed in green. I thought he might be the Jolly Green Giant, but he didn’t bring us any canned peas or sweet corn, so, maybe not (Daddy told me later he was a paratrooper - or something beginning with ‘para’ anyway)!

The big green man conducted some tests on me that showed I was okay; but as I was still unusually sleepy and ‘lagbage’ (Daddy’s favourite Bengali word), he was a bit concerned and thought the excitement of a ride in an ambulance with an oxygen mask on would wake me up. This might have worked but the ambulance set off without Daddy who had to chase after me and Mommy in his car, they then forgot to take us home and dropped us off at a place called A&E instead (dunno what they were up to - I guess it's not easy being green)!

I'm still not sure what A&E stands for, but it has to do with waiting, as we all waited a very long time. Fortunately, one of the other people waiting turned out to be a Paediatrician who said I'd fallen ill because of the medicine the local doctor had given me. I am pleased to say that now that I have stopped taking it, I am back to my usual self again… HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOMMY!
Note:This picture was taken seconds before I started throwing up, so if I don't look my usual dashing self, you know why!