Mummy fail #577

Last Tuesday I had a meeting in London.  Mark had some work to catch up on and so to give him a bit of undisturbed office time (which it transpired also translated to a game of golf but we’ll leave that for another day) Alby headed to the city with me.

As I met with work colleagues, had a grumble and worked out our plans for the next year, Alby bashed his way around the Natural History Museum with my best friend Kate.

A cultured day out in London doesn’t quite qualify as a Mummy Fail so you may interpret the story so far as me softening you up to my fail.  A fail which started on the train to London with Alby’s breakfast – a packet of crisps, and ended with his pub dinner – a plate of chips.

To soften the Mama Fail slightly, the breakfast crisps were organic baby-friendly baked crisps which cost a ridiculous amount to soften my ego, but they were still crisps.  And the evening dinner may have come with a fish finger sandwich and a vegetable garnish but let’s be honest, Alby pretty much just ate the chips. 

To extend the Fail slightly, Kate admitted Alby had also stolen a handful of chips from her boyfriends plate at lunchtime.  So all in all a healthy diet for the little man.

A mild obsession

We are currently chicken-sitting for neighbours of ours who have headed off to France for the summer holidays. 

In addition to the three chickens, the family have three small children and with it a garden filled with toys.  As I got to grips with the water dispenser, feeders and cleaning the coop, Alby commandeered the toy motorbike, wendy house and scooter before finally setting eyes on the Little Tikes Crazy Coupe car.

Now Alby has been in these cars before.  His first tantrum occurred when I tried to get him out of one at a local soft play centre.  At a play date with friends of ours Alby showed off his amazing social skills by sitting in the car for fifteen minutes and refusing to get out. He did the same at another play date but thankfully that friend had two cars so Alby and his buddy Arthur were able to both sit in each for twenty minutes at a time without anybody getting too upset.

Mark and I have discussed buying Alby one of these cars on many occasions.  So much so that at any given time I am likely to be found following the sales of at least three of them on ebay and have another saved to my Amazon wish list.  We’ve been reluctant though as they are a big bit of kit, even the second hand ones aren’t cheap and with baby toys you can never be too sure what will actually be used versus what will sit in a corner gathering dust.

A quick text to France and we are now not only caring for the three chickens but one red and yellow Crazy Coupe.

To say Alby is obsessed with the car really doesn’t do it justice.  He wakes every morning, runs to the back door and shouts out “car, car, car, car, car, car, car”.  Once outside he opens the door, gets inside, giggles, kicks his legs about, pushes the car backwards, giggles some more and then runs into the house shouting “push, push, push, push, push, push, push, push.” And then I have the pleasure of pushing him around the garden, still in my pyjamas.  At least three times a day the ritual is repeated.  If, whilst in the garden pushing him about you stop to, I don’t know catch your breath or throw one of Percy’s toys to the side, he hangs out of the window and starts tapping his magic finger on the roof whilst saying “mama, mama, mama, mama, mama” until I get my act into gear and get moving again.  

His birthday isn’t for another couple of months and Family Beebe are on a bit of a saving spell at the moment but I think we’re going to have to find some way to get hold of a Crazy Coupe before our friends come back from holiday or Alby will be out every morning demanding his car and no doubt being quite upset that it’s no longer there.