Final weekends

As we enter the last few weeks before Bummper arrives, we are making the most of the time we have as a family of three and our fairly settled and contented life. The last two weekends have seen us having great fun doing simple things.

Last Saturday we all went to the big Tesco in Stockport for breakfast and then some shopping while Oliver read his Thomas magazine in the trolley. Then it was on to Borders where we read books with the little man on the sofa in the kids area. It was cheap entertainment, except for the fact I ended up getting sucked into buying him "just a couple more books".

Today we took Oliver into town while we bought a homecoming outfit for the new baby. We decided to buy one for a boy and one for a girl (as you can take the wrong one back or give it as a gift), but only ended up getting the one for the girl. There was nothing that caught our eye in either Mothercare or Marks and Spencer. Blimey, we must be getting fussy in our old age!

Oliver enjoyed a ride on the merry-go-round and we all dined in the sandwich bar in the middle of the Mersey Centre (Stockport's shopping parade). Later I cycled to Pokusevski's, a local "Polish" deli which I took him to a few weeks ago. This time Hayley came too (by car though, given her current condition!) and we all enjoyed some cake and some toasted rye bread. Oliver also entertained other diners in the courtyard at the back where we ate. Fortunately they seemed receptive.

OK, by this point we had enjoyed a mini "eating out" spree, but it wasn't all that extravagant or expensive considering we don't do it very often.

The only tricky moment at Pokusevski's was when Oliver thought it would be funny to head out of the courtyard into the shop from where he could then reach the road. I was after him in a moment, but bumped into Hayley, and Bumper, as I set off to pursue him. No serious injury though, I am glad to say. We're still having a little trouble getting Oliver to understand that when we say stop, we mean STOP!!! He still sees it as a joke. We need to get him to register that word as a red light. Somehow!

To be fair he is normally very co-operative. I really do feel lucky to have such a good little chap for a son. I've started to use the word "serious" with him now to highlight when what we are doing is not a game and I really need his co-operation. Thankfully it seems to be having some benefit. Otherwise there would be days when his exuberance could mean I might never get him to clean his teeth or change his nappy or come and put his shoes on or.... you get the picture.

So as we enter the final few weeks I must confess my excitement at Bumper's arrival is tinged with a slight sense of sadness at the passing of our family of three to become a family of four. It's not that I don't think I will love Bumper, like a friend of mine once told me he had feared he wouldn't love his second child as he awaited her arrival. I'm sure I will love him/her instantly just as I did with Oliver. It's just that I sense the loss of a precious time with Oliver as he is no longer our only child but one of two siblings needing our love and attention.

And of course there's an element that this is simply the calm before the storm. Perhaps that is the larger part of my mild melancholy. We all have a part of us that likes our comfort zone. And all three of us are certainly going to be leaving it soon.