The last week has flown by, with Heidi seeming ever cheerful. She is getting more alert and fun now and is really thinking about trying to roll. No idea what she needs to do yet, but wih encouragement she starts to shift her hips a bit to the left or right, but her upper body tends to get in the way.

Last Monday saw us head over to mum and dads on the Bank Holiday to open many of her christening presents. It was a lovely range of gifts, all different and no duplications. Heidi quietly watched whilst we opened them, and chuckled randomly when we “oohed” and “awwwed.”

Most of the gifts have been put in their rightful place with some in the new cabinet in the dining room. All of our furniture has been replaced in there over the last couple of weeks, and so it all looks good.

We had an “opening” evening last night, using the dining room table and chairs and sideboard for when Paul, Dawn and Emily came ‘round for some grub. A very nice evening was had with a lot of wine. Rachel had been busy with her famous flans and a new “signature” dish of raspberry torte. All rather good.

Today we visited grandma and granddads for a cup of tea , and Heidi lay on the floor thinking about this rolling over thing. She was most amusing but got grumpy at around 1700h as she usually does, as she must get a bit tired.

A soak in the bath saw her come back down all talced and happy. Emily popped by and entertained her whilst we looked for a week away in Cornwall in the next few weeks. Heidi’s first holiday could be looming. That means wheeling out Fred’s travel cot and other bits and bobs.

Soon she is fast asleep, and chewing her fist as she now does…….

Today was a big day for little Heidi in that she was christened at Chagford Church. It was always going to be a bit of a difficult day for us, as 15 months we gathered here to bury her big brother Frederick James. Prebendary Anthony Geering took the service once again and we had a few minutes of thinking back to May 2007.

We tried to keep it as simple an event as possible. The weather was a little overcast but there was not of the forecasted rain, and even the sun came out for quite a while.

Heidi wore a little white flowery dress and silver christening bracelet which my brother had given the day before. She wore her little white shoes, with socks that amazingly stayed on for the whole day.

Claire Brown, Emma Lethbridge and Emily Rowe were Godparents.

We gathered around the font at 1500h and Antony Geering called us all to huddle around. He went through the service and it came to the point where holy water was poured ver Heidi’s little bald head. Apparently the water had been warmed before hand and over it sploshed, running into her eyes. We all anticipated a wail, but she just blinked and looked bemused as more water came down on her. She loves her bath times so must have been a bit confused at why so many faces were present at her normal one to one bathing sessions with mummy.

A photo session followed and we wandered across to the Globe Inn for a drink and snack.

I said a few words and later Duncan proposed a toast to Heidi before cut the cake. The cake was made by Rachel over the last couple of weeks and looked good. I applied brandy a few times during the early days and I think I got the balance just right.

Heidi spent a while being handed around like a parcel but seemed content with the whole thing.

When we got home she had a quick bath, which I did afterwards and fell asleep at 2000h. I tucked into the remaining quiche which was good, and fell asleep too.

The last few days have seen Heidi in a very chuckly mood, and keeps both fists in her mouth as much as she can. Big smiles and some gripes, but she seems to be content.
Her new trick is to raise her feet vertical whilst she is horizontal, waving them gently from side to side. This has only started happening in the last two days, and I guess is a practice run and trying to roll a bit more. It will probably take a bit to perfect it, but is gives her some entertainment, and keeps her happy.

Today saw us head to the Chagford Show, which had been threatened with cancellation because of of the possible bad weather. Luckily, they went ahead and today was a warm and sunny (with some cloud and a light shower) and a bit humid.

£5.00 each and we crossed the stepped bridge and headed over to see the livestock. Lots of cows and sheep, plus horses which caught Heidi’s eye.

Next was some miniature donkeys and some alpacas, and she peered at these beasts with suspicion. They peered back at her.

Once in the main field, it was as previous years and we saw lots of people who were pleased that Heidi was wide wake. The field is a bit rough in places so the chances of a nap were limited for her. However, all the colours and noise, plus the music and crowds kept her amused. Once in the food tent it got a bit crowded and warm so she nodded off for ten minutes.

I managed to get my ostrich burgers and some of my favourite cheese – Godminster. Lots of tastings and we soon headed back to the car for some lunch. We met with Paul, Dawn and Emily and they had their lunch too and we headed back to the ring.

Unfortunately the queue for the beer tent was much longer than normal – as the bar was actually much shorter than normal. We wandered around the various stall with Heidi being carried by now as she wanted to see what all the fuss was about from eye level.

We had a chat with the Children’s Hospice South West whom we met at the Cornwall Show which was nice. They got to see Heidi awake this time and of course significantly larger.

We headed back toward the end of the day and Heidi by now was exhausted. She made it home without any noise except for the last part where she got a bit grumpy. She was placated by a warm bath and was soon fast asleep without any encouragement.

The good thing about growing up is of course seeing her develop. It is easy not to notice all of these things, although we have made a point of watching and observing her more. Her smiles have become a regular event, and she is very alert to her surroundings.

She will look around at all sorts of things now, and concentrates on the television. She has been transfixed by the Olympics, although I have not yet worked out watch the actually sees. Her head spins around more too, especially if there is a noise that startles her.

Friday night saw a rare happening in that I headed into town for a works jolly; Sarah is off on a three month career break to Australia and Emma, who works with me in Enforcement, is off to Environmental Health. They are on the floor below so it was a combined event. We started in the Half Moon and had some great grub plus a few beers, and then headed down the road to The Ship Inn. A simple night out, but attended by colleagues and we all had a really good night. I have not really been out on a works jolly since Fred was ill, but re-started my tradition of having my camera with me. I have a whole archive of poor behaviour by local government staff, although was that evening ably assisted by a number of other cameras. No incident went undetected, which was good - until the following day.

FaceBook has emerged since my early days of being the office paparazzo, so within hours the images are available all around the world....

The weather has not been that good really, so her forays into the outside world have been curtailed a bit though. Today however saw her head to Torquay to do some shopping, although we did not get what we wanted. I got the camera I had been looking for, after mine got broken a few weeks ago.

Once back, she was a bit windy, and stank the living room out a bit. Emily popped in and kept her entertained with babbling to each other. It got to a point where Heidi was babbling and chuckling so much, I thought hiccoughs were going to start again.

My brother Duncan popped by too, to see what all the noise was about.

Heidi is off to Chagford tomorrow, for a rest. I’m back to work, but have Thursday off as it is the Chagford Show. Weather permitting we will be there, with picnic as will Emily’s folks too. Last year Rachel exhibited her woodcarvings and signs, though chose not to this year. R wants to see the show and so does H too. I will make myself comfortable in the beer tent I think for half an hour. I reckon it must be papoose time, given the unevenness of the ground….

Little Heidi and Rachel returned today after a day or two on the moor. Rachel has been doing some decorating for her mum and dad, with the little one watching not only R painting the walls, but also a bit of the Olympics as it progresses.

Grubby weather means not a lot of action for her, but she does still head up into The Square to see her public when able.

I have had my leisurely two days alone; pottering and doing things I have not found time for. Whilst quiet in the house with no one else about, it does rejuvenate my batteries. The Archers on the laptop, whilst in the bath is perfect bliss.

Today was busy at work as a colleague was sick, so I was lumbered with accompanying another colleague on a High Hedge complaint, requiring a spot of enforcement. I know nothing of this legislation, other than what I know, so followed on an rather enjoyed the lengthy discussions about the height of the conifers.

Once back I was out again, this time (now with even less time on my hands for the day, to deal with a problem at a quarry on our patch. Mineral Permissions are a bit of a mystery to me, as they are very complex. Today saw us wander around a sea of mud looking into a very deep bowl of quarry, with absolutely nothing happening around us.

Once home I find H and R back, with the little one having her bath. The water is getting warmer now plus a little deeper. Despite water and suds washing over her eyes, she blinks happily, peering through a fuggy haze at me and smiles. A towel soon wipes away the rogue water, and she continues to grin.

Emily comes around too to give a hand looking after Heidi. Rach and I are moving furniture about and so Emily keeps H happy with cuddles and a winding session. Em has just come back from a short stay in Paris so we catch up with her antics over there. By then, H has given up listening and sleeps well.

Heidi’s vocabulary has been increasing in volume rather than words. It is a loud rasping and babble at the moment, with lots of trying to work the breathing with the noise. Sometimes she does not get it quite right and she runs out of puff, like she has just been winded. Her little peepers bulge a bit, but she is working on that.

The weather has been quite grubby lately and she has been doing her Round Robin Tours with grace. Back from the moors she apent a day in her PJ’s (all day!!) and relaxed with Rachel. It is nice to pop in when I am passing in the day just to see her having a cuddle or a sleep, before I head out again.

This week she sat and watched the opening of the Olympic games with Rachel, and was quite happy to watch all the colour and noise on the Friday. She seems to like keeping an eye on the box. Her fish tank is doing well, though there has been an outbreak of white spot which has now been treated. Gerry is the one that has it, and Henry (the loach) has taken it up himself to start bullying him.

In view of the above, I bought a nursery/isolation tank today which floats in the tank to give Gerry a rest. The down side is that he is trying to get out all the time to see his friends. I will give him a day or so and see what happens. Rachel is not impressed with Henry’s loutish behaviour and I have heard her threaten him with a “watery grave” if he persists in this anti-social behaviour.

Yesterday saw us head over in to Newton Abbot where Rachel had her hair cut, back to spikey again. Heidi and I wandered around the market for a bit and I bumped into Naomi and her two children Noah and Martha. We used to work together a few years ago and she had followed Fred’s blog, and now keeps an eye on this one.

I am hoping that my article for the August/September edition of Wetherspoon News is out soon. I have done the text and the photographs and await a copy of the article before it goes to print. It’s getting late so I wonder whether I get a peek at the copy before it goes to print, if not hopefully no unexpected alterations in the body of the text.

Heidi has been a good girl over the last couple of days and has been touring Dartmoor, as she does most weeks.

Today saw her a little grumbly as it was so hot and humid up on the moor that she really could not settle.

I came home this evening to find that Rachel and Heidi had returned and that she had settled quite happily. A little grumbliness led to an rather ghastly smell in the living room. Rachel investigated, and found that a long awaited poo had arrived, much to Heidi’s comfort and delight.

I had difficulty in staying in Heidi’s room whilst she was changed. But the smile on her chops was worth it. Whatever came out was swiftly moved to the bin outside thankfully.

She has got into listening to stories from both of us now, and really babbles as we talk. Whatever she hears makes her chuckle, so we keep on and on.

Soon she has fallen asleep, arms up and chewing on that imaginary dummy. The photo on today’s ‘blog is by no way original as there are a few like this one taken occasionally, but is her favourite way of sleeping, and comparing to the previous identical poses, shows her getting a little older and chunkier each week.

She now weighs 1 stone for instance……

Heidi has been very chirpy and alert over the last few days, and has been perfecting her beaming smile.

Yesterday saw the three of us head up to Chagford to go the annual Cancer Research street market. Unfortunately the rain lurked on the horizon so it was eventually held in the Jubillee Hall, opposite the church. The sun did come out though, and it ended up a rather warm and humid morning.

The difficulty in heading up to The Square is that almost everyone wants to stop and have a chat, and coo at Heidi. She loves this attention, and it is nice really. Many knew Fred, and so it is nice to know so many people interested in her progress.

We visited Freddie, and all was trimmed and neat although no headstone yet. We had hoped it was to be erected on Thursday, but the weather was not so good up there, so hopefully next week.

I managed to by a shirt for £3.00 which was new and means another old shirt can be recycled in the CLIC charity shop. It was a bit of a scrum in there at the time so I did not forage too much.

I was very tempted at four brown glazed escargot plates, the ones what hold about 8 snails. Complete with picks, it would have been a useful addition to our new dining furniture. Sadly most people shudder at snails and garlic, and so Rachel put her foot down with a firm hand. No more junk….

I moved on, wondering whether to sneak back and buy the box – still new and unused – for the £1.00 asking price and perhaps hide them away somewhere ‘til it was safe to bring them out. I chose not to.

We went back for some lunch – a fine roast beef with Gran and Grampy plus Sally. After that feats we headed back for the second bout – the Cancer Research Jumble Sale. The Hall had been re-vamped and when we arrived it was a sea of clothes flying in the air as it really was a “jumble”.

The escargot plates waved at me – still only a £1.00 bargain but it was too hot in there so we headed back to home afterwards.

Emily popped by at just the right time; Rachel ahd her hands full and I was just heading out the door to get some things.

Today we visited Wayne and Claire and went to Boots in Torquay to get some photos printed with a voucher. As usual the store did not yield anything which is a pattern forming. I guess by dropping “The Chemist” from “Boots The Chemist” is a big clue as to what they are about now.

Once back we note that a shoe and sock have disappeared from her foot. I track our way back and find them on the bedroom floor, lying forlornly where they fell.

As I type I hear her wailing, ready to head in to the bath. Mildred the Cow (or “Milton” as I call it) has had her ears and legs chewed and sucked. She too must be due a bath or at least a rinse….