what a difference a year makes

Last year, on my birthday, I went with Dad to St. Helier Hospital in Rose Hill, just outside of London. The pic has the hospital in the background. I quite like the pic; however, Rose Hill is a hole.

Dad was at the hospital for a checkup of his kidneys or liver or some other body part that, ironically and as it happens uselessly, was functioning very well. In fact, better than average they said.

That was the last time Dad left the house under his own steam, steam I had to add a fair bit of my own steam to. It was an odd hospital visit. We encountered one of those empathy-free people who are rarely found working in hospitals. There was a largish queue ahead of us and Dad was in a lot of discomfort. The grumpy old cow was very dismissive and Dad, visibly exhausted, got somewhat wound up. "I'm dieing" he told her but she didn't seem to give a shit. But he was, and very soon after he did. Our cabbies, both from home and back home again, were absolute fucking diamonds.

Now I am not about to get all sentimental; well, not too sentimental. Sure it would be lovely to have a paternal grandad fo AJ. But Dad did not miss something he did not have and any sadness is not his but mine. He may have thought about blood-grandkids but he didn't let on. Yes, I get a bit (well, maybe more than a bit) sad if I think about it. But the way Dad went was the very best way it could have been given the cancer he had. And he had me and Darren with him (not at the time but we were both there in London with him when he died.)

Anyway...

This year, on my birthday, I am the other side of the planet in my new home with my new daughter, Alexandra Jo. She was 9 days old when I turned 39.

Two people have said, independent of each other, that AJ has my profile. And I have my Dad's profile. So...

Alex is coming along very nicely indeed. We gave her a bath in the bath for the first time today; it's been the sink so far. She took a shit in there. That was her follow up to pissing all over me. It has been a hot day, so I decided she should free-ball for a while (do girls free-ball? If not, what do they do?) I'd had a shower and was wrapped in a towel, I picked her up, walked into the kitchen and away she went. She pulled that little stunt twice. Nice one.

Now, as for stuff going in to AJ...Sheesh, she eats and eats and eats. She is wearing Sal out. She has a fantastic little pot-belly. After a feed she looks like a lizard that's swallowed an egg, if you see what I mean. All skinny arms and legs and a round belly. Very cute. After a mere two weeks
she is starting to get into a decent routine. Plenty of feeds, but the night shift has, at least these last two nights, been a feed at 10pm, then one at around 3am and then another at around 7am. I sleep through the night - Sal knows she can jab me in the ribs to wake me for help - and Sal is getting a decent amount of sleep. Just in time too - I go back to work on Monday.

I've had three weeks off work to help little 'un settle and Sal get into a routine. Well, that and makeoever the front garden. I've handled most of the cooking, a decent wedge of the burping-changing and have had a couple of solo trips with AJ to allow Sal some proper rest.

I've also managed to keep up what I consider is the minimum training required for the Six Foot Track and am entertaining the idea of competing again this year. My longest post-birth run was a 27km trail run at an acceptable pace, so I only need another couple of biggies to convince myself I'm not dreaming. We shall see.

The dogs do not really seem at all fazed by the arrival of Alex. They spend the bulk of their day in the garden or the sunroom. When they do come in or when we take Alex out to see them they do not got even remotely mad. They pop up a bit to see what the little thing is, then they mooch off as they have always done. there has been some foot and head sniffing and a little licking and that is all. Very relieved.

OK, this is a marathon post and I am going to draw it to a close here. Sweating my arse off here, or more specifically my back, which I burnt today as a finished the garden off. OK, bored now.