I'm famous!

Well, sort of. When mummy and daddy got married they asked all their friends and family to donate money to Bliss rather than buy presents. Everyone was very generous and they raised a lot of money. Bliss is a charity that helps premature babies like me. They are really great and do lots of amazing work. When donations reached £1000 Bliss asked mummy to write something about me for their website and here it is!

http://www.bliss.org.uk/news_item.asp?itemid=2344&itemTitle=Sunshine+fund+raises+%A31%2C000&section=22&sectionTitle=News+and+media

I don't really remember much about my birth but I know that mummy and daddy were really grateful for all the leaflets and booklets that Bliss produced. This year mummy and daddy aren't sending Christmas cards and will be donating some money to Bliss. Why don't you do the same (I am cheeky sometimes...!).

The picture on this blog was taken when I was very little (I was only 3 days old!). As you can see I've grown a bit since then!

Lots of love

Amelie xx

New tricks

Hello everyone, I hope you are all looking forward to Christmas! I can't wait to go to Australia.

I have a new trick - and mummy isn't sure whether she likes it! I love taking things off shelves and boxes and scattering them all over the floor. Its such fun. Apparently its called making a mess and I love it!

I am also being much more adventurous with my standing and am now trying to reach down onto the floor to pick things up. I'm still a bit nervous though.

Yesterday I walked for a tiny bit with my walker. It was very exciting and makes me want to walk on my own. I also waved for the first time when I spoke to my granny and grandad and also when I spoke to my uncle Rakesh. Everyone was very exicited about that! I haven't done it since though. Time to learn a new trick...

See you later

Amelie xx

Mummy's birthday

Today was mummy's birthday and first thing this morning I went out with daddy to by some croissants and coffee for her. When we got back we sang 'Happy Birthday'. Well daddy sang it and I listened. In a few weeks they will be singing it to me - in Australia!

Because it was mummy's birthday we all went out for lunch in one of the hotels where we live. I sat in a highchair without a tray (like a Tripp Trapp) and I managed to shuffle myself along the floor in it! Daddy didn't much like that.

I have started spitting out all my food, much to the annoyance of mummy and daddy who think I'm not eating very much. Everytime I spit some food out mummy says 'No' in a very stern voice but I keep on doing it! They're hoping its just a silly phase. I haven't started grabbing the spoon yet but mummy thinks I might want to feed myself. I'm really good at eating rice cakes, biscuits and cucumber my myself so I think I must be almost ready. How exiciting. I can create even more mess! Heehee!

I hope everyone in England isn't too annoyed with all the snow. I was born during the last heavy snowfall last year and I remember how hard it was for mummy and daddy to come and visit me some days.

See you all soon.

Lots of love

Amelie xx

Christmas is coming!

Today mummy and daddy took me to the beach with some tinsel. They wanted to take some photographs of me wearing it so that they can send it to our family and friends back home. It didn't turn out quite the way they had hoped....I cried and mummy couldn't get many shots of me smiling. I really don't like sand and the tinsel was a bit scratchy around my neck.

Today is National Day. This is the day when all of the UAE united and its a public holiday which means that daddy gets the day off. There are lots of things going on and balloons and everywhere. I don't like balloons very much and they make me cry (lots of things make me cry at the moment!).

I am really trying to speak at the moment and mummy says that my babbles are sounding more like words. I am pronouncing my vowels a lot more - I don't know what vowels are - but mummy seems pleased. I can also pull myself to standing and then sit back down which is a relief as I like standing but could never work out how to sit back down again!

See you all soon

Lots of love

Amelie xx

A new toy

I really like exploring at the moment and love crawling under tables and chairs so mummy and daddy decided to buy me a tunnel to crawl through. I love it! At first mummy and daddy weren't really sure if I would crawl through it but I didn't need any persuasion! Its such fun! I like turning round in it too - when I do the tunnel moves around. Cool!

We went to Ikea at the weekend - mummy says that you can never escape it, no matter where you are in the world - and I got some new toys. I got a big soft crocodile that I like to crawl over. I'm a lot more adventurous now. Mummy also took me to a soft play area but I wasnt really sure about that as there were other children there and I was a bit nervous. Mummy says she will take me a couple of times a week so that I can get used to it. There are lots of toys there as well as a really big sand pit with a slide and a ball pit. I'm sure I will like it soon.

Today we are going to meet some other mums as mummy would like to meet some new people and I would like to make some new friends.

Bye Bye

Amelie xx

Getting settled

I'm finally starting to get less clingy which mummy and daddy are very relieved about and sometimes mummy can actually walk to the kitchen without me following her! It helps that the kitchen overlooks the living room so I know she's never far away.

I'm starting to get quite adventurous now and really like crawling under things (like tables and chairs). Mummy and daddy are going to try and buy me some things that I can climb into. Its my first birthday soon and mummy says she will buy me some presents. Apparently when its your birthday people buy you things. Cool. Its mummy's birthday soon as well and we might all go out for a nice meal in the evening. We haven't done that since I was very small so its quite exciting and also a bit nerve wracking because I might get really tired and cry a bit.

I am starting to try and wave now. Mummy and daddy wave at me all the time and I've started to lift my hand up and wiggle my fingers. I think I will be waving really soon. That will mean that even more people will stop and say hello to me. Mummy gets stopped all the time! Emiratis like babies a lot!

I am also trying to stand all the time as well. I can pull myself up using the sofa and stand on my own whilst holding on. Mummy is always there to catch me though! I also love climbing over mummy. Sometimes I kick her my accident. Ooops!

See you all soon.

Lots of Love
Amelie xx

Not sure I like this sand stuff

Today mummy and daddy took me to the beach. Its very close to our apartment so we are very lucky. Daddy sat me down on the sand but I didn't like it much and I cried. I am a bit nervous of new textures and I also cried when mummy put me on the grass a few days ago. I think I will get used to it all. Mummy thinks I am a bit overwhelmed by everything at the moment. We are going back to the beach tomorrow to see if I like the sand any better.

I am waking very early in the morning at the moment and not really sleeping during the day. This makes me quite grumpy. Mummy has decided to be strict and see if she can get me to sleep during the day. I sometimes sleep in my pram but as soon as mummy puts me in my cot during the day I cry. Oh dear.

Anyway, best go.

Lots of Love

Amelie xx

Fish!

Yesterday mummy and daddy took me to the Dubai Mall. Not for shopping silly but to see all the fish in the walk through aquarium and the underwater zoo. The aquarium was really good. You walk through a glass tunnel and the fish can swim above your head. We saw lots of Shark and fish that mummy and daddy didn't know the name of. It was really strange seeing the underneath of fish. Mummy and daddy really liked it and daddy took lots of pictures (mummy has PROMISED that she will upload them over the next few days). I liked seeing the fish but to be honest I was more interested in mummy's necklace. It was a good job infants didn't have to pay to visit! The Dubai Mall was very big, apparently its the biggest mall in the world (Dubai is full of the biggest/talllest/first..), mummy and daddy didn't spend much time looking at the shops. They are always moaning about how expensive things are here. Silly mummy bought the wrong bottled water today and paid a lot of money for it. She was very cross when she saw the receipt.

I am still very clingy and cry quite a lot. Mummy and daddy are hoping its just a phase. I am really wearing them out at the moment (hee, hee!). I have decided that I don't like one of my favourite toys at the moment and I've become quite scared of it. When mummy showed it to me today I cried.

Today we saw camel on the beach that we can see out of our window. You don't see many of them in St Albans!

See you soon

Lots of love

Amelie xx

Our new house!

Well, its not really a house because its doesn't have any stairs. Mummy says its an apartment and its really big! Bigger than our house in St Albans. We can see the beach from the window and also the Palm which mummy and daddy laugh about. Apparently it's a man made island made to look like a palm tree....We have three bedrooms, a maids room (mummy says we're not having maid and daddy says we already have one...mummy), four bathrooms and a balcony. We're on the sixth floor so not too high up. Its a bit noisy and daddy chose an apartment right over a loud speaker which means that mummy and daddy are woken every morning at 5.15 by the call to prayer. Oops!

My new trick is to try and stand on my own. I have managed to do it a few times and I'm quite good at doing it in my cot. Mummy doesn't mind when I stand in there because its soft if I fall. She doesn't like it when I try to do it by the sofa as the tiles wold hurt my head if I fell.

I'm still clingy but now that I have all my toys I'm starting to feel more secure and comfy in the new house. I was very clingy on Friday and I would sit on mummy's feet or hold onto her ankles so she couldn't move. I know, a bit mean, but I was worried that she would leave me here and I didn't really know where I was.

My room is almost sorted out now and once its finished mummy has promised to put some pictures on here. Her computer is still packed away and she needs it to be able to download the millions of photos she's taken. Later on today we are going to speak to nanny and grandad which I'm very exicted about. Daddy is working today, the weekend here is Friday and Saturday. Its Eid this week though so daddy only has to work today and then has a whole week off!

Bye Bye

Amelie xx

Jet lag, whatever that is

Apparently I have had quite bad jet lag. Not sure what that is but I overhead mummy and daddy talking about it. I must admit I have been very clingy and scream everytime mummy moves out of my sight. Now that I am crawling I can follow her and scream at the same time! Mummy really doesn't like that. I'm sleeping through the night but I don't really like sleeping during the day and when we first arrived I didn't eat very much. I definitely have my appetite back now though! I love food! Apparently my body clock is a bit messed up due to jet lag and being in a strange place - I really miss all my things and my nan and grandad (we stayed with them for nearly four weeks before we came out here) but I know that all my toys and most importantly my lovely cot will be arriving tomorrow and I can't wait. My own bed. Yippee!

I think mummy will feel better when we have our stuff. She's been a bit homesick recently and keeps moaning about how she missed the last episode of Spooks! Not sure what that is but she's very upset about that!

See you all soon

Amelie xx

On the move

I started crawling properly about two weeks ago and my new trick is to try and stand on my own. Yesterday mummy found me sitting on my knees rummaging through a bin! She wasn't very pleased! I've also used a table to try and stand up and almost fell and banged my head but mummy caught me. Thank goodneess. I really like crawling under tables and I LOVE cables and wires. I don't really understand why mummy says "No Amelie" everytime I put one in my mouth but I guess there is a good reason! Mummy really wants to be able to share all the new photographs and video footage she's taken and she hopes to be able to do this after tomorrow when her computer arrives. So watch this space! Mummy is a bit worried that I will fall and bang my head on the tiled floor ( I miss carpets, tiles are quite slippery when I am crawling) so she is going to buy lots of rugs to make sure I don't do this. I think mummy is really looking forward to having my jumparoo again as she will be able to keep me safe when she needs to do stuff. This morning she put me in my high chair outside the shower but I didn't like it and screamed whilst mummy tried to have a shower! She was very stressed. Oh dear.

Lots of love Amelie xx

My first flight

I few in a plane for the first time last week and was actually OK! I think mummy was quite apprehensive about the flight because I'm a real fidget and don't really like to keep still for too long. But I was an absolute angel and slept for 2 hours on daddy. That was really nice because I hadn't seen him for a while and it meant that mummy could watch a film (Despicable Me), it must have been good because she laughed a lot. The air hostesses kept coming to say hello to me and I liked to look at the lady sitting across the aisle from me as she had a shiny iphone like mummy's! We have a 14 hour flight in December when we fly to Australia for my first birthday and Christmas. I think mummy is definitely not looking forward to that!

See you all soon

Amelie xx