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Dear Baby O,

As I sit here, I find it hard to believe that two years have passed since you were born. I remember that day like it was yesterday. I have never been more nervous, scared, anxious or excited in my entire life. September 26th 2006 changed my life forever. And as we quietly mark your birthday today, I want you to know that you have taught me so many things over the last two years, but I have also experienced a love I never knew was possible. Reading the letter I wrote to you when you were a month old brought back so many memories, so I thought your birthday was a good enough reason to write you another one.

Every morning, at around 6.20 am, I am woken up by my personal alarm clock. You come running into our room on your way to your bath, climb on our bed, crawl over to me, and give me a big hug, saying “Hi Daddy!”. And it melts my heart every single time. For the last few days, I’ve been ill with a flu bug, and I’ve been living for that very moment every morning. Then we all get ready, and your favourite TV show comes on around 6.30am, Teletubbies !! Quite why you like that show, I will have no idea. At 6.55am, the Tweenies come on and sing one song, by that time, I’m usually dressed, and your mum is downstairs having breakfast, so the two of us sing together, sometimes clapping, sometimes dancing. Then we all go off to work, and you to the nursery.

And you love music !! In the car, the only person you want to listen to is Carrie Underwood (I blame your mother for that!). “I want beautiful!” That’s what you say as soon as you realize we’re headed to the car. If I swap the CD for any other person, you realize immediately, and throw a little tantrum, “I WANT BEAUTIFUL!”. Beautiful, Wonderful, Perfect All American girl……..the lyrics of your favourite song in the whole world, Carrie Underwood’s “All American Girl”.

In fact, all your favourite TV shows are music related, Carrie and David’s Popshop, and Space Pirates (or as you call it “Captain DJ”). Thank goodness for BBC IPlayer, and Sky Plus, otherwise, no one else in this house would be able to watch any TV !!

You are also a very intelligent girl, and the last two weeks, you’ve been showing off that you now know all your colours and your shapes. You LOVE reading, you actually prefer books to toys, I really hope that it stays that way. And we are almost having real conversations now, I can’t believe how well developed your speech is. You are the youngest in your nursery class, but your speech is the most developed. Every Friday, your teachers tell me all the new things you have learnt, and I’m always beaming with pride.

Can I admit something to you? I think you’re smarter than me. I’m definately older and wiser, but you my little girl, are very, very smart. I’m not ashamed, not in the slightest. You have tried to outsmart me so many times, it’s scary. Every night, when I put you to bed, you try a new trick every single day, to try and stay awake just a little longer. You’re slowing learning how to manipulate me and your mum. Your tantrums over the last few weeks have been frequent and loud, it’s as if you know I can’t bear to see you cry.

For your birthday present, we’ve got you two of your favourite books from school, (The Very Funny Fish and Ten Dinosaurs) and a little tricycle. When we get home in the evening, we’re going to have a little cake (diary free as you are allergic to milk), and then you can ride your little trike for a bit. We’ll let you stay up for an extra hour or so.

I hope you have a wonderful day.

Happy Birthday, my little princess.

With all my love,
Your dad

MESS TEST: Smear peanut butter on the sofa and curtains. Now rub your hands in the wet flower bed and rub on the walls. Cover the stains with crayons. Place a fish stick behind the couch and leave it there all summer.

TOY TEST: Obtain a 55-gallon box of LEGOs. (If LEGOs are not available, you may substitute roofing tacks or broken bottles.) Have a friend spread them all over the house. Put on a blindfold. Try to walk to the bathroom or kitchen. Do not scream (this could wake a child at night).

SUPERMARKET TEST: Borrow one or two small animals (goats are best) and take them with you as you shop at Asda or Tesco. Always keep them in sight and pay for anything they eat or damage.

DRESSING TEST: Obtain one large, unhappy, live octopus. Stuff it into a small net bag making sure that all arms stay inside.

FEEDING TEST: Obtain a large plastic milk jug. Fill it halfway with water. Suspend from the ceiling with a stout cord. Get the jug swinging. Try to insert spoonfuls of soggy cereal (such as Fruit Loops or Cheerios) into the mouth of the jug while pretending to be an airplane. Now dump the contents of the jug on the floor.

NIGHT TEST: Prepare by obtaining a small cloth bag and fill it with 8 to 12 pounds of sand. Soak it thoroughly in water. At 8 PM begin to waltz and hum with the bag until 9 PM. Lay down your bag and set your alarm for 10:00 PM. Get up, pick up your bag, and sing every song you have ever heard. Make up about a dozen more and sing them until 4:00 AM. Set alarm for 5:00 AM. Get up and make breakfast. Keep this up for 5 years. Look cheerful.

PHYSICAL TEST (WOMEN): Obtain a large beanbag chair and attach it to the front of your clothes. Leave it there for 9 months. Now remove 10% of the beans.

PHYSICAL TEST (MEN): Go to the nearest pharmacy. Set your wallet on the counter. Ask the clerk to help himself. Now proceed to the nearest supermarket. Go to the head office and arrange for your paycheck to be directly deposited to the store. Purchase a newspaper. Go home and read it quietly for the last time.

FINAL ASSIGNMENT: Find a couple who already has a small child. Lecture them on how they can improve their child’s discipline, patience, tolerance, toilet training, and table manners. Suggest many things they can improve as well. Emphasize to them that they should never allow their children to run riot. Enjoy this experience. It will be the last time you’ll have all the answers.

My little girl has become a chatterbox. Anything you say, she will repeat. For a while now, she has been saying the names of every single child in her class, including their surnames.

Some weeks ago, while looking in the mirror, she pointed to herself and called her name. Her full name. It was the first time that I heard her mention her surname. And she butchered it.

You see, she had learnt her name from her teachers in school. And they obviously couldn’t pronounce our surname properly. When I mentioned this to my wife, she did say that they asked her to teach them how to pronounce it just a few days before. She did her best, but left them still trying and not succeeding.

But what can we do? She spends over 9 hours a day at the nursery, so that is where she has learnt most of her speech, and we have tried to teach her the correct name, but she seems to prefer her pronounciation.

All of a sudden, I feel useless. I’ve seen African kids who can’t pronounce their own names, in fact, I know a few (I might be related to some). And I’ve seen a few who speak with Birtish accents, but when it comes to their own names, they get the pronounciation spot on. I was hoping our little girl would be in the seond category, but it’s looking very unlikely.

So, is it a bad thing? I don’t know. But I guess this is what happens when you decide to raise kids in a foreign country. And I’m sure this is the first of many similar situations I’ll have to face over the next few years.

“Apple” – Any round fruit including apples, oranges, satsumas

“Nana” – Banana, was the first word she learnt to say, not mummy or daddy, nope, “nana” !!

“How are you?” and “Hello” – She says this all the time !!

“Bye Bye” – Can mean bye bye or “go away”, depending on who she wants to walk away, you or her

“Eat” – She’s hungry !

“Nice” – She says this if she’s enjoying her food

“Biit” – A combination of “biscuit” and “eat”. Used to be her favourite food, but that title now belongs to “Apple” see above

“More” – She wants more !! Usually with regards to food.

“Phone” – Your phone’s ringing, pick it up !!

“Again” – She wants you to sing a song again, or she’s saying it to the TV hoping to hear something again.

“Wash your hands” – She picked this up from day care, and now, she’s come up with a song for it !!

“Flower” – Flower, tree, or even drawings of flowers on the curtains

“Water” – Water, juice, anything in liquid form

“Sorry” – She says this to herself !! When she falls over or drops something usually.

“Shoe” – Any shoes beware. Baby O has been known to try on any shoes she finds, size is not a detterent !!

“Sleep” and “Tired” – She wants to go to bed !!

“Bath” – She can see you’re getting her ready for a bath. Prepare for the constant battle of trying to stop her drinking the bath water.

“Beebies” – CeeBeebies is her favourite TV station, and she says this when she wants you to turn on the TV.

She can also make animal noises !! If you say the name of any of the following animals :

Horse (Neigh)
Cow (Moooooooo)
Sheep (Baaaaaa)
Snake (SSSSSSSS)
Dog or Puppy (Woof Woof!)
Cat (Miaow)
Moneky (OOOhh AAAAAAhhh)
Bird (Tweet Tweet)
Duck or Geese (Quack Quack)

Her speech is coming along nicely, and anything you say, she will repeat, be warned !!

Haven’t done a post in a while, it’s been crazy over in Boso land. Where do I begin? My poor little Baby O has been through so much in the last few weeks, but hopefully, the worst is behind us.

Christmas Day: was spent at my Aunt’s house. All was going well, and then Doctor Who came on the telly. All of a sudden, Baby O developed a terrible rash, and was itching all over. One thing led to another, and she was in an ambulance on the way to hospital, and I was driving in a car behind her. At the hospital, she was fine….was playing and singing without a care in the world, in the midst of a lot of sick children.

Last Thursday: Back at work after the Christmas break, and it was so far so good. I went down to the restaurant for lunch, when the managing teacher of the day care came to meet me, and asked me to go to my daughter’s classroom ASAP. I got there, and her lips were swollen, happened during her lunch. She was struggling, and lost consciousness for a while, fortunately, the first aid guy gave her some oxygen, and she came too. And so, less than 2 weeks later, we were in an ambulance again, on the way to the hospital. (In the ambulance, she removed her oxygen mask, and put it on my face……..it was a moment that was so sweet, it almost made me cry).

So after all this, we went to our family doctor (GP). We have been asking for a referral to see an allergy specialist or dermatologist for months. Two ambulance rides finally convinced them that this was not such a bad idea. The doctor said, no problem, the secretary will type up the letter tomorrow morning.

So I call on Friday morning. The receptionist laughed at me. At first, she said that the doctor was taking a consultation, and that would take some time. I told her that I had private medical insurance, so I was going to a private doctor, all I needed was their letter. It takes 2-3 working days to type a letter, she said. I could not believe my ears. 2-3 days? To type a letter which the template was probably sitting somewhere on the PC? Yes, she said. She explained to me that the secretary was on holiday, and that she was typing letters as part of her own job, and had a bit of a backlog. I shouted down the phone “My daughter almost died yesterday, and you’re telling me I have to wait for the weekend and then a few more days for you to type a letter?” she apologized, but mentioned that there was nothing she could do for me.

Fortunately, on Monday, the real secretary came back from her holidays, and apologized for the delay, our referral letter was ready. We booked an appointment with the doctor for Wednesday.

The difference between the NHS and private healthcare is like night and day. Everyone was kind, nice, helpful and polite. They spoke to us like human beings. I could go on and on.

We’ve finally pinned down what is wrong with Baby O. I could talk about it here, but I think I’ll save it for another post, this one is long enough already. But it all makes sense now. And since then, things have improved immensely.

She’s back in day care on Monday, and I’m back at work (I also had a nasty ear infection last week).

It’s been a rocky start to 2008, but I hope it’s all behind us now !!

I woke up this morning with a knot in my stomach. I’ve been dreading today since that letter dropped on the doormat a few weeks ago. Well, the day had finally come, when I would have to betray the trust of someone I loved.

I managed to start the day as normally as possible. We spoke to each other, although I couldn’t make a word of what she was saying, my mind was somewhere else. And then I looked up. 10 o’clock. Time to go.

We went downstairs together, and got in the car. It was a short journey, and we were there is almost no time. I went into the waiting room, and was told to wait for our name to be called. All the while, she had no idea what was about to happen, and was darting about the room.

There were several of us, all there for the same reason. Some of us were there for the first time, the look of guilt on our faces gave us away. Some were veterans, hardened by experience. We all sat together waiting, trying to make decent conversation, and looking up every time the board lit up.

It didn’t help that they were running late. 1 hour after my scheduled appointment. I finally saw our name on the board.

I got up, picked up my darling daughter, who had no idea what was going on, she was enjoying playing with the other babies. It was a long walk, but we finally got into the nurses room.

After a short talk, I held her down, and the nurse dug the injection into my little girl’s leg. She had a look of horror, fortunately, it was the nurse she was looking at, not me, I couldn’t take it. And soon it was over. She held on to me for comfort, and started to cry. If only she knew, that all along, I was part of the plan……….

While we completed the paperwork, my little girl was back to her cheerful self. In less than a minute, her wonderful smile was back. She got on the floor, and continued trying to walk, stumbling, and eventually, giving up, and crawling away as fast as I could chase her. My little girl was back !!

Ladies and Gentlemen, I took my little girl for her immunization today for the first time. My wife has done all the previous ones, but I had to do it today. She was pretty good about it though, cried for less than a minute. I think it affected me a lot more than her…….

By the way, her birthday party went really well. She actually had four parties, my mum had a little party at her place, and my dad had one at the family home, both at the same time while we were entertaining guests here. And then she had one in school the next day.

SO much love to spread around !!!!!!

Baby O’s first birthday !!!

I can’t believe it. It was a year ago that my wonderful princess was born. Time flies, eh?

So much has happened since then. She’s had stomach bugs, eczema, banged her head, bitten a girl at day care, gone on holiday, the list goes on and on.

But one thing doesn’t change. Her smile always melts my heart.

is ill.

Another stomach virus. 3 days to her birthday.

Wow, it seems like it’s been forever since my last post. And since then, life has been moving fast, really fast, like living every minute at 100 miles an hour. So many things have happened, most of them good, and I’m sure I’ll blog about them as things start to get finalized.

Anyway, Baby O can now say her name !! It’s really sweet to hear, and she loves saying it, over and over again. Melts my heart every time.

I took my speed awareness course about 2 weeks ago, and I have to say it was nothing like I expected. In fact, I would like to say, it has made me a safer driver. I was the youngest person there, and it was mostly middle aged, middle class people, who just wanted to get in and out of there as quickly as possible. Anyway, let’s hope I don’t get caught by any speed cameras again anytime soon………………..

I’ve also taken my ‘Life in the UK’ test. This is the test you take before you can apply for indefinite leave to remain in the UK, or British Citizenship. So let me share some interesting facts I’ve learnt from studying for the test:

1. One third of all adults in the UK have used hard drugs (heroin, cocaine) at least once in their lives. Even worse, HALF of all young adults (under 19) have used drugs.
2. Employment law in this country is pretty tight. The only way you can be dismissed immediately from your job is for ‘gross misconduct’. For poor performance, or consistent lateness, you must first be issued with a warning, before you are given notice to leave your job. Very unlike Nigeria, where some people are rumoured to fire people for very trivial reasons. I will mention no names (Mike Adenuga).
3. There is actually a situation where you are allowed to discriminate. If you are hiring someone to work in your home, you are allowed to refuse to give the job to someone based on race, sex, etc.
4. Guy Fawkes night is actually the celebration of an assassination attempt. Guy Fawkes was trying to kill the King, and the entire parliament at the state opening of parliament. Only the English would have a sense of humour to celebrate such an event.

Anyway, I’ll try and blog a bit more often, take care people !!

That should be bite news actually.

Baby O BIT another girl in day care this morning, on the knee. My little princess is teething, and I guess the soft knee was too difficult to resist. It was pretty serious, and left a large, purple mark on the other baby.

I had to fill out an accident report, and so did the other girl’s dad. Baby O is particularly fond of this other girl though, she regularly climbs on top of her !!

Anyway, let’s hope this doesn’t repeat itself. Who knew that 4 teeth (yeah, we’re up to 4 now) could cause so much trouble !!