365 days of Gabriel and Charlotte - the sweetest brother

i was greeted by this when i got to daycare to pick up the kids this afternoon. the educator says Gabriel was playing with his friends in the big kids yard and he came to sit with Charlotte when he noticed her in the baby yard. Charlotte's second week at daycare didn't go so well but her face lit up when she saw her big brother and she was quite contented with his company. i stood there and watched for 5 minutes before Gabriel noticed me.

 

i remember about two years ago, a little girl was a bit upset in the baby room and her brother (who must have been about 4 at the time) stood next to her consoling her and giving her lots of cuddles. i thought to myself at the time that i hope if we were lucky enough to give Gabriel a sibling, he would love and care for his sibling like this boy. at the time, i didn't think it was possible given how clingy and possessive Gabriel was of me.fast forward two years later, my wish came true. Gabriel continues to surprise us and show us everyday, how much he loves Charlotte. a couple of days ago, i asked him if he liked it more when it was just him, daddy and mummy or him, daddy, mummy and Charlotte. he says he liked it more when we have Charlotte too. i hope he would continue to be a protective and caring big brother like he is now to her.

Charlotte's first hair cut

as we arrived at the shops for lunch last Sunday, we drove past our hairdresser and noticed he's not as busy as he normally is. so Jim and i had a quick 10 seconds discussion and decided to take Charlotte to the hairdresser for a light trim to tidy the sides as they are longer than the rest.

unlike Gabriel's first hair cut which we planned, timed and booked weeks in advance, we arrived at the salon without our DLSR and had to use the camera on the phone (as you can see in the dodgy photos below). i suppose a child's first hair cut is not a novelty anymore when she's your second child? 

Charlotte was not very cooperative during the hair cut. turning her head every time the hairdresser tried to cut it and clingy onto me for dear life wondering what this stranger is doing grabbing her hair.

the end result? well, we are not 100% pleased with it. a hairdresser never gives you a light trim when you ask for one. the sides are slightly shorter than what i have hoped for and her fridge is a tad too short to pin. poor Charlotte now looks more like a boy than a girl and is looking very much like her brother at 9 months. we should have left her hair alone. here's hoping they'll grow fast and she'll look pretty again when she turns one in a few months time.

365 days of Gabriel and Charlotte - day 2 of daycare

Charlotte's second day at daycare went ok i think. she had a longer stay today, she had lunch, two naps and i picked her up at 3pm. whilst she did cry a lot more today and the educator did warn me the second day is generally harder than the first, i can tell she's settling in because when we got home, she was not as clingy to me as compared to yesterday. and she was quite happy too as you can tell from these photos. i hope she remembers attending daycare is fun when she goes back next Thursday.

365 days of Gabriel and Charlotte - Charlotte starts daycare

Charlotte started daycare today and it went better than expected. going by how she went at the creche on Tuesday,  i was expecting to hear her screaming on the other end of the phone when i rang to check on her 45 minutes after i left. to my surprise,  there was no crying of any sort on the other end of the phone and the educator assured me that she stopped crying after 30 minutes and was taking a nap when i rang. the educator said she fell asleep fairly quickly.

 

as it is her first day, i decided to pick her up after lunch. she was pretty upset when she saw me and when we got home, she wouldn't let me put her down or be out of her sight. she was so tired, she did another two 1.5 hour naps when we got home. 

 

first day of daycare is hard for both her and me. i feel so bad that she has to start daycare before she turns one but i also know the younger she starts, the easier it is for her to settle in. Gabriel started attending daycare when he was 13 months and it took him awhile to settle in. comparing how they went on their first day at daycare, i think i've made the right decision to start Charlotte young. 

365 days of Gabriel and Charlotte - uh oh

Gabriel had kinder gym this morning so i decided to take Charlotte to the crèche as part of her "training" for starting daycare this Thursday. the first time she was there, she stayed the whole hour. when I went and got her, she was asleep in one of the carer's arms. this time, she only managed 15 minutes before the carer brought her back to me. oh dear, i can't imagine how she'll go when she starts daycare this Thursday. i might just be the first parent in Appleseed history to be called to pick up my child earlier than the usual pick up time.

365 days of Gabriel and Charlotte - Monday park day

Mondays are pretty hectic when you have two kids. most of my Mondays start off quite well and i always feel quite proud of myself and accomplished when it's 4pm and both kids have behaved relatively well. in between naps and meal time, we managed to go to the shops in the morning and the park in the afternoon.  lately, I've been taking the kids to parks that are suitable for both kids. Gabriel had such a great time in the giant swing. he loves it when i push him really hard when it's just him in the swing and he likes it just as much with just gentle pushes when Charlotte is in the swing too.