Jessica’s just had a couple of hectic days – new places and new people for quite a few hours each day – and I’m pretty impressed with how well she coped with it. It got a little bit too much for her at times but I don’t blame her for complaining about that.
On the Thursday (31st May) I took her over to Horley to see Cara and Daisy again. This time Jessica was awake for most of the journey and our visit (generally she doesn’t nap as much day time as I think she needs to…). She was really happy on the platform at Redhill station, so the day started off well: gurgling and emitting little happy shrieks every so often, pausing to listen to the tannoy and then carrying on chatting.
The weather was fantastic, warm and sunny in spite of showers having been forecast, so we sat out in the garden again, under a big parasoll. Jessica was a bit cranky for a while and me picking her up, sitting her on my lap and trying to entertain her didn’t help straight away. She was a bit more interested in looking at little Daisy feeding and then she really enjoyed watching the wind rustling the pampas grass and shrubs in the corner of the garden: the latter actually kept her giggling contentedly for quite a while…!
Cara and I decided to take a photo of the two babies next to each other and thought lying them on one of the sofas in the living room might be the safest way. Daisy didn’t seem to notice much of what we were doing – but then she’s only 4 weeks old. Jessica on the other hand was enjoying the attention: smiling and chatting away. (Maybe she recognised the camera in my hand.) Cara and I managed to snap a few piccies the two girls next to each other, but then Daisy got a bit upset and started crying – right next to Jessica’s ear… Jessica’s bottom lip started to quiver and a second later she was crying too, probably out of confusion. Cara and me dived in straight away to ‘rescue’ our little babies.
Time went quite quickly and when it was time to start thinking about going home, Cara suggested giving us a lift – since her husband Richard was home, she could leave Daisy with him and Jessica could borrow Dasy’s car seat. It took a little while, however, to work out how to fit the pram into the car (part in the boot and part in the passenger seat next to Jessica in the back) and Jessica was starting to get cranky. I’d hoped to be home by the time I needed to feed her next, as it takes a little while – and seemingly even longer when we’re not at home… Once in the car though, Jessica seemed soothed by being on the move and it didn’t take long to get home plus we didn’t have to fight the stairs at Horley station – a big bonus!
Yesterday (Friday 1st June) I’d planned to meet my friend Claire at work to then stroll into Reigate for a coffee – a chance for me to ‘show Jessica off’ to my colleagues… I walked there with the pram, as the weather again turned out to be lots of sun instead of predicted showers. Jessica was asleep when I wheeled her into the department and a while after being admired by some of my colleagues she started to stir. I thought I sensed a bit of trepidation in the air – perhaps in anticipation of a screaming baby – but when Jessica had finished stretching and opened her eyes, she first just looked at the new faces around her – and then started to smile. I can’t be completely sure, but I think she just might have won a few hearts right there and then. I was a very proud Mummy at that point, as you probably can imagine…
In spite of full days in unfamiliar surroundings, Jessica settled and slept well both nights – this morning she didn’t wake up for a feed until 6am, so she must have needed the rest…!
And to finish, a couple of photos of Jessica with her Mum and Dad:
Gabriella