15/52

"A portrait of Queenie Valentine, once a week, every week in 2013."

Our last night in the flat, she was brimming with excitement.

The week was manic, we packed up our life in a week. My sisters were wonderful, playing with Queenie, taking her out for a few hours. One afternoon she enjoyed skating up and down the flat with Scarlett on Liams longboard, collaping in fits of giggles everytime they veered off and crashed into empty boxes. It was such a blessing for her to be occupied. When it was just her and I at home, she'd follow me around unpacking everything I'd just put into boxes! On Saturday, when we moved, she played with her mate, Vinnie on the carpet, while all around them the men carried car loads of our things into the house, and I tried to seek out a teapot. After everyone left, we sat in the quiet house, in the very quiet road and sighed. Queenie picked up her kitty and explored the rooms, chattering away to herself, unaware this was now her home.

Joining in with Jodi's 52 project. 

14/52

"A portrait of Queenie Valentine, once a week, every week in 2013."

Smiling in bed with her sweet little suitcase. She was so happy during the time we stayed with Liam's family.

On Tuesday morning we drove up to Woking and stayed for the week, while Liam was away training. We had such a wonderful time catching up with family and friends. Queenie met lots of new faces and would have bouts of incredible shyness, holding me tight and tucking her face into my body, and other times she surprised me how confident she was with strangers. The family felt it was the first time she really recognised them. Kate pulled out some boxes of Liam old toys including an exquisite old circus train with sweet faded animals. She sat for hours -on her own, or with her grandparents or auntie- playing so happily with duplo and the train set. I've never seen her as excited as when she saw Liam again at the end of the week. I love seeing their relationship, she really loves him and misses his company during the week. 

Joining in with Jodi's 52 project. 

13/52

Apologies for the delays, we've been unwell, went away, then moved house and have no internet yet.

"A portrait of Queenie Valentine, once a week, every week in 2013."

We catch her rifling through my Mama's saucepan cupboard. She's into everything now.

What a whirlwind week. We'd just about recovered from earaches, to find Queenie's began teething again. A new one broke through on Friday. She slept a bit better this week and we were both happier for it. Liam was only away for two nights this week because of the bank holiday. We welcomed beautiful sunshine on Thursday and dashed up the allotment to weed. While I dug up our patch, Liam wandered through the empty plots introducing Queenie to the chickens, before joining me and sitting on the large piece of carpet, laid out to suppress persistant weeds (any organic suggestions on removing couch grass would be more than welcome). Queenie watched me, tucking into some apricot cake and playing in the soil. She shuddered with disgust as she licked stones and collected abandoned snail shells, popping them into her mouth each time we turned away. We spent Easter weekend with my family eating and eating. Instead of indulging her sweet tooth with chocolate she enjoyed her Papa's hot cross buns, warm from the oven. I loved sitting all together and looking down the table to see her, so sociable and at ease playing with everyone.

Joining in with Jodi's 52 project. 

Still here

Sorry all, we are still here. Just very busy.
We have two more nights of living in the Garden Flat. I have mixed feelings. It's exciting to be moving into a bigger space, but I'm sad to be leaving such a beautiful little flat. The place where we made wonderful memories. This is the home where Queenie was conceived and then brought home as a soft, small bundle, fragile in our clumsy arms. We became a family, my heart grew big and proud. Those first few weeks, we lay in bed together and battled through the start of breastfeeding, the proudest thing I've ever accomplished, encouraging me to train as a breastfeeding peer supporter last autumn. We've hosted parties in our lovely kitchen, welcomed friends and family around for food, films and games. We grew modest plants on the windowsill, herbs and flowers. I fell in love with painting, and Liam played his banjo, and borrowed a guitar for a while. I love hearing him play while I cooked dinner. Too much time was spent watching murder mysteries, snuggled up together on our lumpy green sofa. We have had so much fun here. It hurts to think that Queenie wont remember this home, the place her life began.

We decided to move because felt we were growing out of this home, Queenie needs her own space, and we're tired of all the noise coming up from our neighbours upstairs. After months of house visits, we think we may have found somewhere. It's not perfect, but there's something about it I quite took to. It's a house, with a garden, a little more space and most importantly, a bath. It's grown up though, and I'm a bit spooked. Life is speeding up very quickly and I can't process it.
I'm hoping things will be a little clearer when I'm not knee-deep in cardboard boxes and when Liam is home from all this bleedin' training. I miss him so much.

I will be catching up with the 52 posts as soon as I can. Just thought I'd pop in to let you all know I've not deserted this little space.