Our last weekend

This weekend was our last weekend in Dubai. It was also our last weekend with daddy for a while. As a special treat we stayed in a lovely resort called the Dar al Masyaf. It was great! We had a villa with two bathrooms and three balconies overlooking the waterways. I had great fun exploring. I think mummy and daddy were most impressed with the butler that we had! A butler! Mummy thought it was really funny. We had a swimming pool which we shared with some of the other villas but there were lots of other swimming pools in the resort as well as the beach.

The resort had lots of waterways and the best (and most fun!) way to get around was by Abra. That's a small boat with no sides (so a bit scary!). We used the Abras a lot to get round. We sometimes caught a buggy as well. I really like cars at the moment (car was my first proper word!) and I got to sit on the back of the buggy with daddy and that was lots of fun!

In the evening after I had gone to bed mummy and daddy had something called private dining where people came and laid out the table on the balcony and brought nice food and wine. Mummy said it was better than going to a restaurant. Its been hard for mummy and daddy to go out without me as we don't have any babysitters here. I'm not very good in restaurants and I tend to scream and shout a lot. I think it stresses mummy and daddy out especially if they think I'm spoiling other people's nights out.

The next morning we went to the pool and I got to spend a lot of time climbing in and out. I really love the water. A few months ago I hated it so mummy is really pleased with my progress. We really didn't want to leave our villa, it was so lovely and peaceful but we had a bit more packing to do so we caught a taxi back to our apartment. Daddy says he might book us a week there next year! That would be really good.

This time next week we will be staying at nana and grandads!

Bye for now

Amelie xx

Bye bye Dubai

So, we're going home in less than one week now. Its hard to believe that we have been here almost one year! When we arrived I had only just started crawling! Now I can walk, run and climb! Mummy says she won't miss Dubai much but I think she will. She will miss the winter sun, her nice friends and tiled floors (she says its much easier to clean up after me!). There are lots of  things she won't miss (the summer heat, being woken up at 4.45 most mornings - and not by me! - the sand and being called ma'am all the time!) I will really miss the pool and my friends (especially Cora because our mummies met right after we arrived here). Over the last few months we have met some lovely new people (Rachel and Ella, Nita and Lila and Dhani and lots of others) and mummy and I wish we had met them all right at the start! I guess it wouldn't have been so lonely for us. Oh well!

This is me with Cora:

I won't miss the summer heat either. Its been really hot here since May and every time we go out with my pram mummy covers me up with a white sheet thing so I can't see a blimming thing. I won't miss people poking me and stroking my face. Mummy won't either. She gets very annoyed when strangers touch me. Its very normal here but not very nice.

I'm really looking forward to going home and catching up with all my family and my NCT buddies. They will all be so big now. Toddlers I think we're called. I won't have most of my toys for a while as they need to go back to the UK on a big boat. It will take around 4 weeks. In the meantime though, I have other toys at my nana and grandads.

Most of all I will miss my daddy who isn't coming home for a while. He'll be visiting lots but he can't come home properly yet. That makes me a bit sad. Mummy too. I expect lots and lots of cuddles and kisses (presents as well?!!) when he does visit.

So, I guess its bye-bye Dubai and hello St Albans (via London). I don't really remember St Albans but mummy says its really nice with lots of trees, a big park and lots and lots of ducks. Mummy keeps saying "and pubs" but I don't know what they are. Perhaps they're like soft play areas for grown ups!

See you all soon

Amelie xx

Dubai Aquarium

This weekend was our penultimate weekend in Dubai (I think that means second to last) so mummy and daddy took me to the Aquarium which is in the Dubai Mall (the largest shopping mall in the world). I really like the aquarium and I've been a couple of times. This time though, will be my last time ever (mummy really likes saying this!). First we walked through the glass tunnel. Its really cool as you can see the fish swim over your head. There were some divers in the water and they waved at me. I thought that was really funny!

After the tunnel we went to the underwater zoo part of the aquarium. I looked at all the fish and animals like water rats but I loved the penguins best of all. They were so funny and could swim really fast. A man who worked there said they could swim 40kph which is pretty fast.

When we were finished we went for dinner. I didn't eat much but that's normal at the moment. Mummy gets very cross when I don't eat and she says I need to fatten up but I'm just not very hungry.

After dinner we went outside to look at the Burj Khalifa (the tallest building in the world). Although it was around 6.30 it was still really really hot and humid and it wasn't very nice so we didn't stay for long. Mummy said it would be the last time we visited the Dubai Mall (we've been there a lot) and she seemed very pleased to say it. I wonder why?!!

Growing up

Lately I've been doing some really grown up things like drinking from a cup and trying on daddy's shoes. Here are some photos that mummy has taken recently. I do look grown up don't I?!

My weekend

I had a lovely weekend. On Thursday night we went for dinner at the Hilton hotel. We sat at the beach bar and while we were waiting for our food to arrive mummy took me for a paddle in the sea. It was really warm! Warmer than my bath and the current was really strong so the waves were quite high. I didn't really like it. We looked at the camels that take tourists for rides along the beach and then we had dinner. I was really good and the staff liked to come and say hello to me. I didn't really like that as I am still shy.

On Friday Daddy booked us into the Westin hotel which is not far from where we live. It was lovely. First we had brunch and then we went to the pool. I love the pool and I especially love pools where you can walk in. I like to walk - or run in - over and over again and I love sitting down in the water. I think I tired mummy and daddy out! After that we went to our room which had a lovely big balcony and I went to sleep.

The next day we went back to the pool and I just repeated what I had done the day before! I fell in the water a couple of times and went under but mummy was there to pick me up straight away. I didn't mind going under though.

Oh, and before I forget, I can march and run on the spot now. Mummy and daddy think its very funny!

Mummy is starting to think about enrolling me for some classes when we go home. I really hope I can do Monkey Music again as I loved it. I still love listening to the CD.

See you all soon.

Lots of love

Amelie xx

Copy me!

Mummy has noticed that I copy her and daddy a lot more now. I love to watch what they do and then have a go myself! One of my favourite things to do is to get a tea towel from the drawer and start dusting with it. Mummy says that she's trained me early! I also like to apply cream to myself (and mummy!) after a bath and I love throwing away my own rubbish. I'd been watching mummy do it and decided that I could do it just as well myself. So I did!

I can point to my head, nose, mouth, feet and hands now and can recognise quite a few animals from pictures. I can't say what they are yet but when mummy says "where's the duck?" I can point to it! I can also follow a lot of instructions and love to help mummy around the house. My, how I have grown :)

See you all soon.

Lots of love

Amelie xx

This is where we live

As we are leaving Dubai in a few weeks time I thought I would tell you about where we live whilst I still remember!

We live in a place called Jumeriah Beach Residence (JBR). There are 36 tower blocks in JBR and we live in one called Murjan 6 on the 6th floor. Our apartment is very big! We have three bedrooms and a maids room. Lots of people in Dubai employ maids. The maids room is very small with no air conditioning and only a shower above the toilet. Mummy and daddy use this room as a storage room. We can just about see the sea from our windows and balcony but soon we won't be able to as a hotel is building an extension and it will block the view! We can also see the Palm.

We have a balcony, its not very big but mummy and daddy have put a paddling pool and a sandpit out there for the days when its too hot to go outside (a lot of the time at the moment!). There are five swimming pools nearby and mummy takes me swimming.

We live very close to a place called The Walk which has lots of restaurants and hotels. It gets very busy at the weekends, especially in the winter when its not so hot (but still very hot if you are from England!). People like to drive down The Walk in their fancy cars and it can get very noisy with lots of traffic jams. Sometimes this keeps mummy and daddy awake but not me so much. I can sleep through anything!

There are a few grassy areas and a playground but its a bit rubbish as it only has two rocking horses and an aluminium slide that gets really hot in the sun. We don't go there very much.

Well, that's where we live!

Amelie xx

Summer holiday pics

Mummy promised to upload some pics so here they are! We had such a lovely time and I can't wait for the next one. Holidays are so much fun!

This is me with my cousin Poppy:

I can do it myself!

Since we've been back in Dubai I've decided that I want to be more grown up. I'm using a fork now (mummy tried to teach me to use a spoon as most babies master that first but I decided that a fork was much more grown up). Mummy and daddy are very pleased as they could only give me finger food before - I wouldn't let them feed me. No way!

I'm also using a cup now. I'm not so good with the cup and often I just throw water all over myself (or the floor!) or I gulp it down too quickly and then cough a lot. I think that's really funny and I laugh when it happens! Mummy lets me practise with a cup at meal times and I am getting better.

See, I'm good aren't I?!

Lots of love

Amelie xxx

I want it and I want it right now!

Mummy says that over the past few weeks I have become a "right little madam". I think by this she means that I  have started to throw tantrums! I scream a lot when mummy says I can't have something and also when she tells me that I have been naughty. When we stayed at nanny and grandads nanny taught me the sign for naughty (its when you pretend the hit the back of your hand) and now I do it all the time! Its a bit embarrassing for mummy and daddy as I don't pretend to hit my hand, I actually do hit it! Mummy and daddy are worried that people might get the wrong impression. Heehee!

I have grown a lot in the past few weeks and I can now reach most tables, drawers and the kitchen counter. Its great fun as I can pretty much get what I want. Well, it was until mummy and daddy put everything out of my reach. The spoilsports! I can also open most bottles and zips are a doddle!

Its really hot here in Dubai but not as humid. Mummy is thinking up things for us to do during the day. I'd be happy in my paddling pool all day but mummy doesn't think I can spend all day in there.

Here's a picture of me doing one of my favourite things, lifting  my dress up and walking round with it over my head!

See you all soon

Love Amelie xx