Tag Archives: birthday

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Kids Club

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Tuesday, 26 August 2014; One Year, One Hundred and Forty Eight Days Old.

Our nights out for dinner have changed.

Instead of looking for fancy restraunts with a certain sort of atmosphere, good food and cosy little nooks to relax in and chat, we now look for food outlets that are within 10km radius and provide kids club facilities.

We went out for dinner tonight for Hubby’s birthday that’s tomorrow, and we found ourselves at the local sports club.

We promptly tracked down the kids club and claimed a table right by the window, before ordering overpriced and undercooked meals that took far to long to arrive.

However, none of that mattered. As Hubby and I sat beside an empty high chair, we peered in through the window and watched our little girl play.

Ayla tried her best at making friends but the other children in the club were older, glued to the TV screen and the computer games so Ayla turned her attention to drawing on the blackboard walls with chalk.

As Ayla toddled about the kids club Hubby and I had plenty of time to chat, but instead we watched in awe at the gorgeous, smart little human we created and we decided that sports clubs with kids clubs might just be our kinda thing after all.

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Kids party

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Saturday 24 May 2014: one Year and Fifty Three Days Old.
Ayla went to her first kids party today, and I’m sure it was only the first of countless kids birthdays that will become part of the weekend landscape for Hubby and I.

Our friends have a now three year old daughter and a now one year old son with birthdays just a fortnight apart, and today Ayla joined them to celebrate, play with friends, eat ice cream cake and play party games!

There was also a petting zoo at the party that kept most of the kids busy, although Ayla seemed a little tentative when she went in with her Daddy.

It might have just been all the excitement in the air that made Ayla think twice about touching the bunnies and bantams on Hubby lap, but she certainly loved watching the other kids squeal with delight as they cuddled little furry bundles of joy.

Ayla watched on intently as the bigger kids played pass the parcel, and looked like she wanted to jump in and blow out the candles when the cake came out.

Ayla also joined in a game of musical statues, squealing in disappointment whenever the music stopped!

After a fun couple of hours it eventually became time to go so we bundled a tired little baby Ayla out of the house with a lolly-box under one arm and a balloon tied to the other.

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This present thing

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Sunday, 6 April 2014: One Year and Five Days Old.

Ayla’s definitely got the hang of this present thing!

It’s not surprising though, considering Ayla’s been showered with gifts every day for the past week!

As soon as we bring a present out and tell Ayla it’s hers, her little face lights up in a huge smile and she comes crawling over to it like a bat outta hell!

Ayla immediately commences banging on the present like a drum, all the while showing her cheekiest, toothiest grin, in a move that makes us think she’s trying to guess what’s inside!

But in all manners of politeness Ayla knows to open the card first, and once Hubby or I have split the envelope Ayla grabs hold of the card and pulls it free before opening it like a book.

Ayla then hands the card back so that Hubby or I can read it out while she goes back to banging on the present.

When the time comes to tear open her gift Ayla still needs a little help, but once the paper-peeling begins Ayla starts craning her neck to see what’s inside!

What surprises me the most is Ayla’s reaction to her gifts…

If it’s a soft toy, she cuddles it. An interactive toy, and she tries to work out where the buttons are. A book and Ayla tries to read it, and if it’s an ornament, keepsake or artwork Ayla strokes it gently and sits back calmly as if she knows it precious.

I guess Ayla’s aptness at present opening is a clear demonstration of how lucky she is, not so much because of ALL the gifts, but because she has so many people in her life who want to spoil her rotten!

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Birthday party!

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Saturday,5 April 2014; One Year and Four Days Old.

Tonight was Ayla’s first birthday party!

Hubby and I have been planning it for over a month, and after postponing a week due to Ayla’s sickness we were so excited that the day had finally arrived!

The party itself had all the usual trimmings; party pies, sausage rolls and fairy bread, balloons, lolly bags and birthday cake, but the best bit of all was the guests!

Instead of bringing presents (which some still did anyway) we asked our friends to come dressed up as their childhood hero’s.

The result was a patio filled with characters from our youth including He-Man and She-Ra, Optimus Prime, Barbie, Batman, Robin, Mini-Mouse, Cru Jones, Scarecrow, The Flash, Superman and the Pink Power Ranger.

As for Hubby and I, well we dressed up as a Ghostbuster and Rainbow Brite (respectively).

Another highlight was playing pass-the-parcel with the kids.

Not many of our friends have kids (yet! Lol) so the game involved two little boys under one, two big girls (2 years and 3 years) and Ayla.

It was super cute watching the bigger girls trying to “work the system”, and the little kids were just as happy with the novelty toys they found when they opened their layer.

As the evening wore on and our friends started to say their goodbyes, it was time for one happy little Ayla to go to bed.

Ayla had had a ball at her party, although at times I could see her trying to work out who all these bright, colourful, crazy looking people were!

We have some fantastic photos of the occasion for Ayla to keep forever, which will ensure a few tiny pieces of the 80’s will live on!

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Can’t believe it

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Wednesday, 2 April 2014: One Year and One Day Old.

I can’t believe we have a one year old!

I think I was too busy yesterday to realise the significance of it all but today it hit me like a tonne of bricks.

A one year old.

Judging by how quickly the past twelve months have gone I can only imagine the next year will fly by even faster, then the one after will shoot past… and I can almost see the years tick over as Ayla gets older!

Our little family has so much to look forward to over the next twelve months; walking, talking, sleeping through the night (please, oh please!), learning to paint and draw, and making friends.

It amazes me just how many “firsts” Ayla still has to go through, and how the greatness of each milestone she achieves will so quickly be overshadowed by another.

I love watching my baby girl grow and develop, but at the same time I revel in her newness and dread the day it will be gone.

But for now, every new day seems like a new chapter in the best book I’ve ever read; I can’t put it down, I can’t wait to find out what happens next and I never want to finish it.

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Mini maestro

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Here’s the video of Ayla playing the miniature grand piano Hubby and I gave her for her first birthday!

She loves it! Maybe we have a prodigy in the making?

Or maybe Hubby and I will just have a strange ringing sound in our ears for for ever more!

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First birthday

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Tuesday, 1 April 2014: One Year Old.

I think Ayla’s had a pretty good first birthday!

We got up late and had a big breaky, then headed to a kids play gym for a catch up with some of Ayla’s little friends.

Ayla had a ball in the “big kids” section, and she even had her first ride in a coin operated machine!

After a big nap at home it was off to day care for a few hours in the afternoon where the day care mums made a big fuss.

One of the best parts of the day was when Daddy came home from work and we all relaxed in the pool and shared stories of our day.

Just before dinner it was time for presents and my gosh were there lots!

From a trike to a peg-puzzle, from an artwork for her wall to some gorgeous clothes and more, Ayla was rolling in gifts.

Hubby and I gave Ayla a miniature grand piano and the look on her face when she worked out how to play it was absolutely priceless!

Ayla banged away on the piano keys like a mini maestro for ages, and a no matter how many times we tried to distract her within seconds she was back to play some more.

Ayla’s first birthday ended, of course, with a birthday cake complete with a “1” candle, a happy birthday song and lots of kisses.

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This time last year

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Monday, 31 March 2014: Fifty Two Weeks Old.

It’s hard to believe that this time last year I was in hospital, pacing up and down my room in the birthing ward trying to control my contractions.

Tonight, I sit with my daughter in her room while she feeds like a champ and drifts off into dreamland for the last time in her infancy.

Tomorrow Ayla will be one year old.

So much has happened in the past year that its hard to remember life before Ayla.

But at the same time it’s been the fastest twelve months of my life.

There is absolutely no way I could go back and explain to “in labour” me what to expect when 4.03am comes around and I get to hold my Baby Ayla for the first time.

There’s also no words to explain the days, weeks and months that follow because it is simply, and beautifully, a live-it-yourself experience.

I am so happy and proud that Ayla is turning one, partly because its a celebration of her life to date and partly because its only the first of so many wonderful, enriching, challenging, beautiful, enlightening and precious years to come.

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Six months old

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Tuesday, 1 October 2013: Six Months Old.

Ayla is SIX MONTHS OLD today!

It’s hard to believe that half a year ago Ayla came into the world and made us the bright, tight knit and focused little family we are today.

Six months has gone so fast! But it’s strange because at the same time I can hardly remember what life was like before Ayla.

Ayla’s taught me so much about the world, life, relationships, and myself and I’m undoubtedly a better, stronger and wiser person than I was six months ago.

I’ve heard people describe motherhood as being “the best job in the world”, and while its still early days yet I do know that the past six months have been the most special time of my life.

I’ve watched Ayla, the human being who Hubby and I created, grow from being a tiny, burry eyed, wrinkly little newborn with a squawky cry into a happy, friendly little girl with oodles of personality and individuality.

I love you Ayla Rose xx

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Hubby’s birthday

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Tuesday 27 August 2013: One Hundred and Forty Eight Days Old.

It was Hubby’s birthday today and the three of us had a wonderful day.

Ayla gave her Daddy some fishing lures so we set off in the car with the boat and The Dog to try them out.

It was a beautiful day to be out in the water and Ayla loved it. She watched intently as Hubby and I flicked lure after lure into the sea, and when she saw The Dog panting to keep cool she thought she’d give it a go too!

We didn’t catch any fish but we were grateful for the chance to try, and when we got home we had a long, cool dip in the pool.

Ayla’s been swimming in the pool a few times now, but today was the first time she actually seemed to enjoy it!

It was because she’s finally worked out how to splash, and she kept at it for ages until both she and Hubby had big droplets of water running down their faces (video to be posted soon!)

We ended the day with a birthday cake, of course, one that I made a decorated myself, and Ayla helped her Daddy blow out the candles.

Ayla and I are so lucky to have such a special man in our lives… Happy Birthday Daddy!!! xxxx

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