MILLIE'S TWO

And she's developing a more independent will! She knows now how to get our attention - verbally, and occasionally with a tantrum.

We went for a walk the other day, but it was only half our longer route. She wanted to cross the road and walk by the creek, but we didn't have time. I told her we were going home but she stood fast on the footpath ready to cross the road. I had to ask her again, then go and hold her hand to resume our journey!

Another day I told her not to touch the powerpoint, but a little later after my back was turned she moved behind a nearby curtain touching it again!

The other day I kissed her grandma (wy wife Jan) and she asked 'Kiss for Millie?'

Last week she hit someone at Playgroup for the first time, and had to be disciplined. And she's beginning to act like 'Grandpa's special little girl.' A couple of days ago I sat in a chair near her mum who was reading Millie a story. Millie climbed down from her mother's lap, came over to me, and asked for some of my fruit juice - as if she has an equal right to it as I have! She does the same when I cut up a banana to put on my muesli: Millie now wants a few slices for herself! That's what little granddaughters have a right to eh?

A favorite conversation: 'Millie, what colour are grandma's eyes/Bella's eyes... etc.? To which she replies in a full sentence: 'Bella's got brown eyes...' etc. She's now up to five and six-word sentences.

For her birthday she was given a quite large kitchen setup (with pots that make a sizzling noise when put on to the hotplate!) and (plastic) crockery set from Toys'RUs... no doubt she'll play with this for years to come.

I'm traveling interstate for a series of conferences this month, and she looks mystified when I say good-bye to her and we tell her I'm going away on a plane.

BELLA. Many mornings I go downstairs to pick up Bella, to bring her up to her Grandma, and even when she's drowsy she'll manage a smile.We think both our little ones are teething - dribbling, fist in mouth, a little cranky, etc.

Bella can now turn herself over when we lie her on the floor: we have to be constantly vigilant. She can now lift her head when we put her into a rocker. I was walking with Bella recently and a friend asked to cradle her, and Bella smiled as usual. Then the neighbour pretended to drop her - let her go and caught her an inch down. It's a long time since I've seen someone do that to a baby, and I wonder about it... but Bella took it in good heart. She's a verysecure little person.

Two nights ago she had her first 'solid food' - farex mixed with formula. The little one didn't know what to do with it in her mouth, but some of it went down.

I was in Adelaide this past weekend and missed both of these beautiful little ones, but today I was 'on duty' with them and their mother while Jan visited the prison. A beautiful day...

Shalom! Rowland.

BELLA SMILES ALL THE TIME!

Bella is the happiest baby we’ve experienced: except for when she’s tired, uncomfortable, or hungry she smiles all the time (why aren’t they all like that?)

Shalom! Rowland

SHE'S TALKING SENTENCES!

Our near-two-year-old has developed some amazing language skills (that's what should happen I guess from having four teachers as her carers!). Not only has she copied some of our exclamations ('Hear it!' when the grey butcher-bird sings or 'Exciting!' when the Wiggles DVD is about to play or of course 'Peekaboo!') but she can put a subject-verb-object sentence together.

Like: 'Grandpa going to sleep?' 'Mummy eat grapes?' 'Grandpa pick up teddy?' And her mimicking of our commands to the border collie Lockie: 'Lockie, stop it!'

How about this: 'Millie adorable!' 'Mummy adorable?' 'Grandma adorable?' 'Keys adorable?' Which led to an animal/vegetable/mineral lesson...

Richard Rohr in his brilliant book 'Everything Belongs!' talks about 'kinesthetic knowing.' Both our little girls are very secure because they are regularly hugged, and kissed, and taken for walks...

Millie is a natural humorist. She bumped her nose on a door and cried a little. Later, she crawled back to the offending spot, and touched it with her nose!

And she loves dancing - especially to the Dorothy the Dinosaur song (from the Wiggles). Isn't it amazing how little people don't have to be taught to make graceful bodily dancing movements?

Two nights ago she was off her food. Although she'd been nauseous earlier in the day she didn't 'act sick', so we encouraged her to eat, and she bravely tried... and ate half her meal... But later she vomited it all up. We felt really bad...

But the highlight of our life at the moment is when Millie looks up at us and smiles to us - for no reason at all! Magical!

And Bella? She's the most contented, smiling baby we've known. Uncomplicated.

They're both a joy to us, but tire us old folks out sometimes. Which is why a four-day break last week was most enjoyable.

Shalom!

Rowland.

KISSING IT BETTER

Little people live in a high-risk world. One common problem is drawers and doors and little fingers.

We have the doors and drawers in the kitchen tied up so she can't open them (inconvenience for the rest of us) but we're teaching her to be careful. Every day there are new lessons about the log-fire (even though it is a closed heater - and with a protective cage-thing around it).

This morning she was in our bathroom, and she got her fingers caught in the cupboard door. Fortunately the door was light-weight, and it didn't hurt too much. But grandma and grandpa (me) and her mum had to kiss her fingers better before she settled!

She has many many words now, and can recognize quite a few letters of the alphabet (she's now 22 months).

The other day she came up to the lounge-chair where he mum was sitting and said 'Scuse me!' and clambered up next to her. (That's her mum's favorite expression when a little person invades her space!).

Sometimes when we tell her 'You're beautiful!' she points to her chest and says 'Gorgeous!'

And when we move from one place to another she has to say 'Bye bye' to lots of people/things - ducks, trees, the plane overhead, whatever comes into her mind...

And little sister Bella is growing into a beautiful happy baby - lots of smiles when she's happy, sleeps all night most nights, and very strong and wriggly when she's hungry!

They tire us out (we're going away for a week soon - can't wait) but we love them both dearly!

Shalom!

Rowland Croucher...

BTW, feel free to drop me an email anytime!

SOME MAGICAL MOMENTS

Tonight Millie and Bella brought their parents up to our flat for dinner, and afterwards Millie and I went for a little walk outside to find the moon.

It was a full-moon - beautiful! The waning crescent moon is a 'baby moon' and tonight's was a 'daddy moon' and as it sailed upon cloudy seas, we were both entranced.

Millie's teething, and it's not easy for her. She can now tell us where it hurts - her jaw and her head - and when she was given a little baby-prescription pain-killer she was sparky again within ten minutes.

They're both sleeping up with us tonight, as last night was awful for Millie and her parents.

Shalom!

Rowland.

Jesus' teaching about Children

Richard Rohr, in his brilliant book Everything Belongs: The Gift of Contemplative Prayer writes: 'Jesus uses the image of a child to teach "beginner's mind." A child is one without ego identity to prove, project, or protect. Little children are not protecting identity yet. They know kinesthetically and respond to what is, not what should be or might be. That's why they cry and squeal with pleasure so much... When they see a little animal, they don't have to filter it through their heads and check to see if they like it. Nor do they ask if it is dangerous... If only we could receive reality so immediately and so spontaneously, without our adult judgments and calculations. Whoever does not welcome the kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.'

That's our Millie! This morning she watched The Wiggles and Bananas in Pyjamas and danced with delight. Interesting that she doesn't have to be taught to move her body/arms/legs - she does it spontaneously and gracefully...

And her words... She can say the name of her little friend - Victoria - perfectly! She repeats the last few syllables of everything we say to her. And she's so cute when she says 'Bye Bye' to anything/anyone (rabbit, bear, grandma) when she leaves a place. A flock of yellow-tailed black cockatoos flew overhead when we were walking yesterday, and when they'd gone she said 'Bye Bye Cockatoos!'

Small things are 'baby' things. Look at the little plane Millie! To which she responds 'Baby plane.' I think I've written about her 'baby moon!'

She's learning about 'time out' - when she hits the baby or our house guest's little dog. She sits with her mother in the darkened hallway, and is rebuked. She understands. But she asks for 'Daddy', 'Lockie' - or even 'Bella', the baby, to rescue her!

At present she's away with her mum at the church's playgroup: she loves it!

Shalom!

Rowland.

LOTS OF WORDS!

Millie has lots of words. I've now been back home from a 3 1/2 week trip to the U.S. and we've settled back into our little routines. (At first she was very serious in my arms - not used to my going away like that).

We went for our walk this morning - a beautiful autumn morning - and she said 'Bye Bye bunny' to one of her cuddly toys. She greets the dogs: 'Hello Tear. Hello Lockie!'

She now has a habit of repeating the last few syllables of everything we say. 'No moon!' (but the other day we could see the moon in daylight, and I said 'It's a small moon', to which she replied 'Baby moon!') 'Two birds!' 'No cat today...'

We greeted a neighbor, and when we'd finished talking I said we're going to watch Bananas in Pyjamas on TV, and Millie told her the characters - 'Nunu' (sp?) 'Morgan' 'Rat'...

This morning her grandma gave her a little basket to store some doggy-shapes in. She took them out, looked at the wicker basket, and said 'oval'! Someone's taught her the difference between 'round' and 'oval'. Did I say before that she can count to ten?

Bella's very much part of our lives now, and Millie's not so aggressive with her little sister. We try to give them each the same attention, so Millie knows she's loved too, even though there's this little occasionally squawking invader in her life who demands our attention.

But she's a contented little one, with lots of smiles if she's not tired or hungry. We are truly blessed having such gorgeous babies in our home.

Shalom!

Millie's and Bella's Granddad!

WE'RE MISSING EACH OTHER!

I'm writing this from a public library in Chicago.

When I'm away I try to contact my wife Jan (Amelia's grandma - one of them, that is, the one I've been married to for 45 years) and get an update on the Little One!

She can't understand why I'm not around. I hear she was 'stroppy' for a couple of days after I left, and last night Jan tells me she was awake at 3 pm crying. We don't know if there's a connection with my absence, but there might well be. How's a little 20 months-er supposed to understand that her grandpa's gone missing?

I pray for her, and the rest of the family, every day.

And I can't wait to have her run into my arms again! This business of travel has lost its lustre, I'm afraid.

'Lord, may Millie's and Bella's guardian angels continue to do a very good job, please! Amen!'

Shalom!

Rowland

GOING ON A LONG JOURNEY...

Today I leave for the U.S. to attend some conferences (and lead workshops at one of them). It will be the longest Millie and I will have been apart, and we will miss each other.

Right now she's having her weetbix for breakfast: which today she asked for. There are some beautiful little routines associated with breakfast. Jan sings 'Thank you for the world so sweet' and Millie sings 'Hum hum!' 'Thank you for the food we eat' and she sings 'Yum yum!' 'Thank you for the birds that sing!' 'Alingaling!' 'Thank you God for everything!' 'Amen'. And she looks coyly/shyly sideways at me!

She has something in each hand to play with while she eats. and she knows she can't have her precious grapes (just a few) until she's had her cereal.

Another routine happens when she's sad or frightened or hurt. She wants her 'Mummyoh' and three dummies for comfort - one for her mouth, and one in each hand! She needed them the other day when her head got stuck in the banisters above the steps from our place.

I'll take her in a few minutes for our little walk, and again as we turn for home she'll mention the main characters from her precious 'Bananas in Pyjamas', beginning with Morgan! She watches that TV show on the ABC each morning, and a couple of others - the ration is 30-40 minutes of TV a day.

She's so beautiful! I'll miss her. I just prayed that the Lord would tell her guardian angel to do a good job while I'm away!

Shalom!

Rowland.

AMELIA'S GETTING MORE ASSERTIVE

Amelia is 19 months, and can say three syllable words ('Toria' for her friend Victoria, at playgroup).

She is also testing the limits of grandparental authority. We have a fireplace (surrounded by a child-proof guard), but kindling-sticks are in a large black bin. She can reach into this bin and get some sticks out of it - dangerous if she pokes one into her eye, or hits baby Bella with it. So her grandma asked her to put it back. She went to the bin, and stood there, testing grandma's authority. This stage of a child's psychological development is cute isn't it!!!

Bella is beautiful, in her own way. She's feeding well, sleeping well most nights, and has just begun to smile at us. Jan has more to do with her than I do, so far, but I try to talk to her and touch her whenever there's an opportunity (and she's awake).

This all has to be done sensitively, as Amelia still resents this little invasion into her privileged world!

Grandpa's Hands

Bella is now almost four weeks old, and I'm sure she smiled at me today as we sat on our back verandah. She's a good baby, healthy, and one of the joys of the past week was to cradle her to sleep, and then I had to write in a book I was reading with my left hand, 'cos I didn't want to wake her up.

Big sister Millie is now 19 months, and saying a lot of two-syllable words. When we walk together (most days) she talks a lot now. We still look for the moon, acknowledge the sound of planes and birds, say the colors of roses in our neighbor's gardens, and laugh at the dog as he chases a soccer ball. When a dog barks she points in that direction and says authoritatively 'Stop!'

And one of her favorite requests - 'Up please!' when she wants to be picked up!

(Have I told you she's gorgeous?)
Here's something posted on to a newsgroup today:

Grandpa's Hands


Grandpa, some ninety plus years, sat feebly on the patio bench. He didn't move, just sat with his head down staring at his hands.

When I sat down beside him he didn't acknowledge my presence and the longer I sat the more I wondered if he was OK. not wanting to disturb him but wanting to check on him at the same time, I asked him if he was OK.

He raised his head and looked at me and smiled. "Yes, I'm fine, thank you for asking," he said in a clear strong voice."I didn't mean to disturb you, grandpa, but you were just sitting here staring at your hands and I wanted to make sure you were OK" I explained to him.

"Have you ever looked at your hands?" he asked.I mean really looked at your hands?"I slowly opened my hands and stared down at them. I turned them over, palms up and then palms down. No, I guess I had never really looked at my hands as I tried to figure out the point he was making.

Grandpa smiled and related this story: "Stop and think for a moment about the hands you have, how they have served you well throughout your years. These hands, though wrinkled, shriveled and weak have been the tools I have used all my life to reach out and grab and embrace life. "

"They braced and caught my fall when as a toddler and I crashed upon the floor. They put food in my mouth and clothes on my back. As a child my mother taught me to fold them in prayer. They tied my shoes and pulled on my boots."

"They dried the tears of my children and caressed the love of my life. They held my rifle and wiped my tears when I went off to war.They have been dirty, scraped and raw, swollen and bent. "

"They were uneasy and clumsy when I tried to hold my newborn son."

"Decorated with my wedding band they showed the world that I was married and loved someone special. They wrote the letters home and trembled and shook when I buried my parents and spouse and walked my daughter down the aisle."

"Yet, they were strong and sure when I dug my buddy out of a foxhole and lifted a plow off of my best friends foot."

"They have held children, consoled neighbors, and shook in fists of anger when I didn't understand."

"They have covered my face, combed my hair, and washed and cleansed the rest of my body. They have been sticky and wet, bent and broken, dried and raw. And to this day when not much of anything else of me works real well these hands hold me up, lay me down, and again continue to fold in prayer."

"These hands are the mark of where I've been and the ruggedness of my life. But more importantly it will be these hands that God will reach out and take when he leads me home. And with my hands He will lift me to His side and there I will use these hands to touch the face of Christ."

I will never look at my hands the same again.But I remember God reached out and took my grandpa's hands and led him home.When my hands are hurt or sore or when I stroke the face of my children and wife I think of grandpa. I know he has been stroked and caressed and held by the hands of God. I, too, want to touch the face of God and feel his hands upon my face.

(Reproduced with the permission of the author - Melinda Clements)

IT'S TOUGH HAVING A LITTLE INTRUDER!

On Friday, while my wife (Rev. Jan Croucher) was conducting a funeral, I spent an hour and twenty minutes with our 18-month-old granddaughter.

Part of it was both of us lying next to each other on a lawn under a tree, talking about birds, and planes, and the sky and the clouds, and lots of other things...Special!

I had too little time to do that with our eldest two children...

Yesterday (Saturday) Amanda and John brought their new arrival (Bella) home. There were pink balloons in the trees and around the front of our place, and a large welcome sign on the front door.

But Millie found it hard: she had what is called (these days) a 'hissy' on and off yesterday.

Today she's settled a bit - I had another wonderful hour with her this afternoon. We'll have to give her at least the usual one-to-one time until she gets used to the idea that her mum is going to share her with another little one.

And Bella has been so good! She's asleep now in a cot in our bedroom.

Thanks for your prayers: we now have two special little people in our lives!

AMELIA LOVES SLEEP-TIME!

Tonight I am alone with the little one. We went for a little walk around our court (in Australia that's a cul-de-sac street - nice and quiet). We talked together about the black cat, and the roses, and the moon, and some birds...

Back home I sang her lullaby (Oh lula lula lula lula bye-bye), gave her a bottle of formula, kissed her, put her down, and without a murmur she snuggled into her bedding and was soon asleep.

None of our babies loved sleeping like this little one.

Her little sister is progressing well. Bella has blisters on her lips from feeding (common with new-borns). Amanda and John are getting excellent care at the maternity hospital.

Tomorrow we'll go again and visit...

Thanks to everyone who put comments here or sent emails of good wishes!

AMELIA HAS A LITTLE SISTER!

Amelia's little baby sister, 'Bella Jayne' was born by caesarian section this afternoon (Monday 14th, 2.30 pm. PS Who'd go to the flower-shop on St Valentine's day????).

Amelia took us to the hospital later to view mother (Amanda), father (John) and the baby (who ignored us and slept for the 3/4 hour we were there).

Bella Jayne is 7 lbs 15 oz, very healthy, and very beautiful. We wondered if she'd compete in the beauty stakes with her big sister and we think she will! The main difference: she doesn't have as much hair as her 18-month-older sister.

Amanda and John are very happy, we're all relieved that everything went OK, and now we have Millie to ourselves for the week mum and dad are in hospital. (Yes, these days dads can sleep in the same room - John has a fold-up bed).

So join with us in prayers of gratitude - and pray that Millie won't miss her 'Mummy-oh' and 'Daddy-oh' too much.

I've rescheduled a lot of counselling from this week, so that I can spend quality-time with the little one. Tomorrow we plan to go shopping together.

God bless you all!

Rowland Croucher

AMELIA AWAITS A NEW ARRIVAL

Amelia will be 18 months old on the 8th February (just four days time); and six days after that - on Valentine's Day - her mum is due to have another little one.

Interesting question: Does Millie know? We've talked to her about the baby in mummy's tummy, and she's been a bit 'clingy' to her mum lately.

I took her with me - together with her uncle / our son Paul and Paul's youngest son Will (Millie loves cousin Will) - to the Vet for Will's kitten to get a booster something-or-other.

I sat with Millie in the car and we talked, and for the first time I can recall she looked serious after about 20 minutes and said 'Mummy'?

She's very clever (have I told you that :-)? She can now pick words she knows in our sentences. When she hears me coming up the passageway she runs and hides or plays with something, all excitedly.

Last night her dad washed her hair for the first time in six days: we hope the wound on her forehead has healed (the plaster is still there).

She's very beautiful!

BACK FROM HOLIDAYS

We had a lovely holiday by the beach, near Eden in S. NSW. Millie enjoyed herself - and particularly loved the beach. Whenever someone would say 'beach' her little face would contort into delighted earnestness: 'Beach!' 'Beach!' she would repeat, looking at each of us.

It was lovely to see her relate so naturally to other small children. Little ones know they're safe with other little ones, eh?

She came out with lots of new words - 'truck', 'boat' etc.

And she has developed some cute new tricks... Like: when her Dad comes back from surfing, and invites her to run into his arms, she swerves past him and runs into mine, with a very cheeky look on her face.

She and I went for a walk every day. She loved those walks. I would talk with her, teach her new words, listen with her to the sounds (especially the birds)... Sometimes she would wander next to me, but soon she would say 'Up!' 'Please' (which sounds more like 'peas!') I think this is because she loves our talking together and being close... At other times when we're in a group walking she loves to toddle along with us...

One day she got frustrated with her little doll-in-a-stroller, 'cos the wheels got stuck in the sandy soil. So she fixed that by tossing the baby out, and wheeling the stroller without the doll!

Well, we're back home. She loves playing with a soft green bouncing ball, but in running after it sometimes falls over. Two nights ago she hit her head on a table-corner and it left quite a serious, bleeding wound. Fortunately her other grandfather is a family doctor, and he came buy to tend to the wound (which he said should really have a stitch in it). We now cannot wash Millie's hair for six days!

She's now more 'clingy' with her mum. 'Mummyoh!' she now calls out when she wakes. She might know that soon she will have a little brother/sister (on about 14th February)...

So yes, at 17 1/2 months, little Millie is as gorgeous as ever!

ACCIDENTS AND ILLNESSES

It's been busy since the last entry, but Millie is as beautiful as ever - especially when she dances to 'Bananas in Pyjamas'.

One afternoon a little while back she fell out in the street when playing with her Dad, and would not put her weight on her legs. We imagined the worst, but when she woke up in the morning she was running again. Any ideas about that?

She's had two infections in the last couple of weeks - upper respiratory tract infection (for which the good doctor prescribed antibiotics), and a bug which only lasted 24 hours (high temperature and vomiting) which we think she picked up in a friend's swimming pool. She's over that now, and happy as ever.

She's always asking us to turn the ceiling fans on, with a rotating motion with her hand (so cute!), and still regularly wants to 'shweeesh' the dog and feed him.

A couple of days ago Jan and she were getting something from the pantry cupboard and she got very excited, and Jan discerned that she'd seen a 'baked beans' tin, and insisted 'bake bean'.

Please continue to pray for this little one. She had a wonderful time at our family Christmas party last night.

Rowland Croucher

HERE'S ONE VERSION OF MILLIE'S LULLABY SONG

Oh, my baby, ma curly headed baby
We'll sit below the sky and sing a song to the moo,oo,oo,oo,oon

Oh, my baby, my little darkie baby,
Your daddy's in the cotton fields,
A-working for the coo,oo,oo,oon

Oh, lulla,lulla,lulla,lulla bye bye
Does you want the moon to play with
Or the stars to run away with
They'll come if you don't cry
Oh,lulla, lulla, lulla, lulla, bye bye
In your mammy's arms be creeping,
And soon you'll be a-sleeping
Lulla, lulla, lulla, lulla bye.

AMELIA HAS LOTS OF WORDS

Amelia now knows lots of words - fan (and her wrist goes round and round), hands, nose, mouth, ears, head, feet, bananas ('nanas'), and of course 'Mummy' (her very favorite person), 'Daddy', 'Pa' (moi), 'Ma' (Jan), Lindy (she pronounces it 'Diddy' which Lindy loves!) and lots more...

She also knows lots of instructions: 'Put it back'; 'Take this to Mummy', 'Don't touch!'

She identifies lots of people from our family in photographs...

She's now a week and a half from being 16 months and loves a couple of special TV programs, particularly Bananas in Pyjamas, and Play School. We've bought her a cheap little CD player, and she wiggles to The Wiggles (she's so cute!). Her favorite song: 'Teddy Bear Teddy Bear, touch your nose' (etc.) and she does all the actions.

One of our special little treats together is feeding the two dogs. We do a 'Shweesh shweesh' sound together and they come below the back balcony. Milly drops dog biscuits down to them.

Her little 'sibling' is due on St Valentine's Day, February 2005, and one of her little games is to ask to see her mum's belly button: she then wants to see other people's, and displays her own!

She's healthy, happy and well - and very obedient. We thank God for her all the time!

Shalom!

Rowland Croucher

AMELIA'S FIRST 'HISSY'

Sorry it's been a while... I've been traveling (New Zealand, Sydney, Canberra, rural Victoria) since I was last here...

Now... What's a 'hissy' you ask? Probably the most common English synonym is 'tantrum'.

She's now had about three of these: when she was a bit tired, or her new teeth were hurting, or she had in mind some game to play which a Big Person interrupted!

She's 15 months old, and according to child development psychologists she's now aware that other Big People are not simply an extension of herself. They are 'other'. And they use their authority (always gentle and loving but firm) in her life, and sometimes she doesn't like that. All very good (and not, as some think, a manifestation of 'original sin'.)

She's very cute about her squeals (which are her way of getting attention, or telling us she wants something - like her dummy etc.). Those squeals go through an adult's head so we sometimes 'Shhhhh!' her. Now occasionally when she squeals, she'll put her finger to her lips and go 'Shhhhh!' herself. She's very cute!

She also knows lots of words - upwards of 30.

She now has a sandpit on one of our balconies (which we have to cover at night to keep the possums out). She loves that.

I also bought her a new knitted fluffy toy at the Baptist Bargain Store - a multi-coloured butcher, with strings of woolly sausages around his neck. She loves her five fluffy toys; the others are four bears.

Milly now is into 'filing' lots of things. All the bears have to be carried one by one and are sat down next to each other; then she takes them all one by one and 'files' them somewhere else. We have to help her with the big bear: he's too heavy and cumbersome for her, and she gets frustrated!

When she's put down to sleep my wife Jan (Milly's grandmother) sings the Paul Robeson song she sang to our children:

Oh my babby, my curly-headed babby

Oh lula lula lula lula bye-bye
Do you want the moon to play with?
Or the stars to run away with?
They'll come if you don't cry...

Oh lula lula lula lula bye-bye
In your mammy's arms a-sleeping
And soon they'll be a'creeping' lula
Lula lula lula lula bye...

And she knows it's time to sleep: no arguments. She settles down (and these days gives us a little wave with two hands as we leave the room!)

Milly has a little brother/sister on the way: we call her/him 'Billie'. Next February. Everything's going well: please pray for all four (now) members of this little family!

Until next time,

Shalom!

Rowland.