Friends old and new

These are our lovely NCT friends, whom we met at ante natal classes. At the time we were heavily pregnant first time mothers with nervous husbands. Now look at us! Having that little group of friends, in the same part of London, all going through similar trials & joys of a little baby has been great. Me & Zoe miss them all and are jealous the babies are all going swimming together now without us (hello ladies & babies!!!).

As far as I know there is no similar organisation here in the US, nor are there facilities comparable to Sure Start centres. In Boston Isis Maternity is a company that has centres in and around the city that sell baby equipment and run classes and groups for expectant and new mothers. It seemed like the ideal place to meet some new Bostonian friends and babies of a similar age to Zoe, much like our NCT group.

On Tuesday we had our first "Next Steps" mom & baby class. At first I was a bit concerned as the course materials (!) were 38 pages long (!!), and included song lyrics for nursery rhymes I had never heard of. I was kind of hoping the sessions would pan out like an NCT meet up, which tends to involve a lot of coffee and moaning about in-laws. However, they seemed from the materials to focus on developmental milestones and doing perplexing activities with the babies like tripod sitting (?) and parallel play (??).

In fact, after some parachute play (which was actually AWESOME & Zoe just loved it) and some singing (or in my case miming), there was an introductory discussion about how our lives had changed after having our babies, what we enjoyed & found hard, and our experiences in general.

One thing that I found interesting/alarming was the US attitude to maternity leave and returning to work. Apparently it varies from state to state but, in short, if you get 3 months off you are extremely lucky (and don't imagine for a second you'll get paid for it either). In fact, many women go back to work after just 6 weeks. That's right, 6 weeks.

Now after 6 weeks I still had trouble getting up & down the stairs, let alone felt able to leave my tiny baby in daycare and go back to the office*. And you can throw in the fact that most mothers here breastfeed (nursing), which means they spend much of their free time whilst not caring for their baby, or indeed working, milking themselves so that their baby has enough to eat whilst they are out at work all day. I still find it hard to put it into words how I feel about that, suffice to say that the word BARBARISM springs to mind. The only alternative I guess is to quit your job, if you can afford to do so.

Anyway, I discovered the things that worry and charm new mums are universal and mainly centre around sleep (or lack thereof) and your baby's ability to hold their head up. Although now I understand why each meeting has to have a structure and a topic, because these girls cannot afford to waste time sitting around gossiping all day; they have to get back to work, breastpumps in hand like the superwomen they are!

In the UK we are lucky we have a bit more time to spend with our little treasures. I am lucky I have had the time to spend entire afternoons hanging out in cafes across north west London doing not a great deal other than making new friends and drinking an eyepopping amount of coffee. Hopefully now I will be doing a bit of that here in Boston too (albeit to a background of pumping).

*Although I suspect my boss would think this an excellent plan. ONLY JOKING THEO.

The family supermarket

It was pouring with rain today, again. Enough with the rain already! We had to take a taxi to the Prudential Center, and even then the taxi aquaplaned across Storrow Drive and the shopping mall was leaking in several places.

Whilst we were there I visited Shaw's supermarket, which I must say has now overtaken Whole Foods as my favourite supermarket. As well as having a tank full of unfortunate lobsters in the fish section, it also has a "foods of the world" department where exotic fare from around the globe is on offer. Check out the British & Irish section. Tempting, non?



Because, when you're away from home, OF COURSE all you want to eat is tinned treacle pudding, picallili and Ambrosia creamed rice?! I have never eaten any of these things in my entire life! Although I am very pleased to have found somewhere I can get Barry's Tea and so surprise Eamon with a taste of Ireland. And also pick up the odd lobster....

Everyone should have crabs

Poor Eamon had work to do this weekend, so he took his newest trainee into the office with him to help him with the proof reading. She received a mixed appraisal; whilst her attention to detail needs some work, her general demeanour and team work were highly praised.



Apart from Eamon & Zoe's important corporate activities, it has been a fairly quiet weekend, notable only for our discovery of a tremendous restaurant called the Barking Crab. This is a seafood shack in the Seaport District, just across the water from the Financial District. It has PLASTIC BUCKETS FULL OF SHELLFISH! JUGS OF BEER! THE KILLERS ON THE SOUNDSYSTEM! I imagine that at some baby-free point it will be an ideal place to get extremely drunk. It was the first time I have ever ordered a whole lobster in a restaurant; somehow it seems a very decadent thing to do (and there is a frisson when the bill comes and you discover that today's market rate for lobster is the GDP of a small central American republic).

Come back Michael Fish, all is forgiven

Don't let any New Englander give you a hard time about the British weather; the climate here in Boston is ridiculous. Since we have arrived we have experienced snow, torrential rain, baking sunshine and gale force winds. Yesterday I was strolling along Boylston Street in a t-shirt; this morning it was snowing and this afternoon the sun has come out! How do you get dressed for weather this schizophrenic? And more to the point, how do you dress a tiny baby with no ability to regulate her body temperature?

To compound the problem I have no idea how to work the air conditioning unit. Although the British weather is frequently shit, at least we have gas central heating for when it's cold and windows that open when it's hot. And don't even get me started on the 1950's style twintub washing machine.....

You cannot be serious

This Christmas I dressed a 6 week old Zoe as a reindeer. I got some stick for it, but it was only one day and she did look pretty cute. Some new mums just like to theme their babies. For example, today at baby yoga I saw a 10 week old dressed in striped legwarmers, tracksuit top, pretend hi-tops and a tiny sweatband around her teeny head. RESPECT.

Is motherhood a form of oppression?

Is motherhood a form of oppression? - Times Online

I thought this article was very interesting. Whilst I don't agree with everything that Badinter says, much of it makes sense to me. I might return to the Theory of Mothering Including Returing to Work and Breastfeeding debate another time, particularly in light of what I have seen of the maternity arrangements here in the US. But right now I need to get my a** in gear and get the day started!

Sunny Weekend

This weekend it has been kicking the ass of 75 degrees farenheit here in Boston. That's a good bit over 20 degrees in normal. That's quite a difference from the diluvian weather of last weekend. To honour the occasion we ditched the bulky footmuff from the buggy, Zoe donned her snappy new sunhat, and we hit the Esplanade.




The fat Americans of British imaginings do not really exist here in Boston. None of their food appears to contain any fat or real sugar, and when they aren't watching sport they are jogging, cycling or engaging in some form of physical activity (see the bonkers yoga bunnies below; sore was the temptation to sneak up on the one on the left and tip her off the pontoon). Those bloody runners in particular are always clogging the pavements of Charles Street, curse them, and on Saturday the banks of the Charles were heaving with them.




We managed to escape from the runners and get a bite to eat at a lovely little Italian cafe on Charles Street, opposite De Luca's market (apparently Martin Scorsese was once seen there squeezing Leonardo di Caprio's avocados).





You'll see in the picture above a t-shirt that Eamon bought in Old Navy last weekend. I guess he just liked the look of it and thought it made him look cool, but it actually turns out it's the University of Michigan logo. We found out because people kept coming up to him all day saying "Go Blue!" (not "F*** you!", as originally thought), assuming he was a Wolverine. Given how seriously Bostonians take their sport, and their quasi-religious devotion to their local teams, it's surprising he didn't get thrown into the Charles River for his treasonous dress-sense.

Today it has been just as sunny but slightly cooler. We went to the North End via Quincy Market and lunch at "Sam's Cafe", a truly horrendous homage to the sitcom Cheers located next to the Food Hall. We then followed the Freedom Trail back through the North End, stopping off at various landmarks entirely meaningless to European-educated folk, such as Paul Revere's House and the Old North Church. The North End is a very cool neighbourhood, full of Italian eateries and Irish pubs, so we'll have to go back and explore a bit more (perhaps less history next time & more eating at somewhere that doesn't have signed photos of Ted Danson on the wall).

The North End is also home to the TD Garden, the home of the legendary Boston Celtics and the slightly less legendary Boston Bruins.



Outside the ground were several t-shirt peddlers, although this time Eamon decided not to buy one, for fear of not knowing who he might be insulting by wearing one. Boston really is a town where they wear their hearts on their sleeves.

O! The misery!

Zoe had her 3rd lot of immunisations yesterday. Much woe ensued.

Despite being told by the doc 2 weeks ago he could do them in accordance with the UK schedule, he decided not to give her the Meningitis C shot after all, so now the hunt is on for a paediatrician that can so Zoe doesn't miss this booster and have to start over again when we get home (thanks Helen & Bill for your help). The same doctor also told us we could start to wean her already, which I am kind of surprised about. My NCT friends suspect collusion between the US babyfood manufacturers and the paediatricians. I think I'll wait, not least because I don't think I could cope with cleaning and sterilising even more feeding equipment.

After the hospital Zoe and I went to Starbucks and I had a soy cappuccino and she had a Calpol chaser. We checked out the Charles River Plaza sports club, and had a stroll by the river. However, when we got home all hell broke loose! The Calpol had worn off and the poor wee girl was in floods of tears, screaming and crying, and she was very hot and sweaty. And then, in the middle of it all, she learnt to sit up! (with some help from Daddy, of course).

Anyway, we had a pretty crappy/wakeful night, and today are staying close to home as Zoe is still cranky. Let's hope she's better again soon as this weekend is going to be beautiful and there's a lot of Boston still to explore....

Happy St Patrick's Day!

Makes you smell of peat fires, fags and whiskey. Mmm.

A Day in the Life*

A "howling Nor'easter" meant a weekend of torrential rain that has seen New England flooded, without power and evacuated in many places. On Sunday we had planned to go to the St Patrick's Day Parade in South Boston, but it was almost impossible to leave the building. So we called a taxi and went to the mall instead (we still got soaking wet). Happily the sun is shining again and the sky is blue; we are promised a beautiful weekend.

Today was a fairly typical day for me & Zoe, now that mum has gone back to London. My "mom and baby" group has been postponed for 2 weeks due to lack of interest (! - who told them we were coming?) so we were footloose and fancy free. First we walked down by the side of the Charles River - there were squads of runners to get in the way of - and then through the Public Garden towards Macy's. In the Public Garden we saw a fairly bonkers looking old gent in a powered wheelchair brandishing a fishing rod & line that seemed to be stuck in a tree. It turned out he was using the rod to fly a kite. How cool is that? I wish I had taken a picture.

Whilst we were shopping in the kids' section of Macy's (birthday presents for cousin Ruby & some bits for Zoe) Zoe did a massive and extremely smelly poo, so we had to make a swift exit. Later at home, when I was showing Zoe our purchases, the sight of her new green sleep suit and strawberry-themed tracksuit sent her into hysterical tears. And yes, I had changed her nappy! They're not that bad are they??!!

Then it was tummy time! Also known as torture time! Zoe wasn't sure if she was more upset by the silly clothes or the fact that the pesky psychadelic monkey was making fun of her bobble-headed attempts at head control!

Later on there was a proper treat in store, parked on the way home from the supermarket. We hung around waiting for Fat Guy, but he didn't appear before we had to leave for fear of being mistaken for sat nav thieves/hobo bums.

Of course, I couldn't go a day without a date with Dr Chris, Chiropractor to the Stars, and after an eyewatering session with Dr Rick, I went home to an evening of baby wee, ginger ale and supper (but not all at the same time).

Night night.

* a fairly pedestrian entry so if you're not my mum, dad or sister feel free not to bother with this post.

Beautiful Beacon Hill

We are lucky to be staying close to the amenities & charm of the Beacon Hill area of Boston. Beacon Hill is the place where in the 19th century the posh Bostonians built their redbrick houses, leaving the waterfront area behind. It is a grid of brick-pavemented streets*, gas lamps, rickety doorways, wrought iron balconies and extremely limited parking. It is proud to be a friendly community that is almost cut off from the rest of Boston, and a place where everyone knows your name (the bar that inspired Cheers is on Beacon Street by the Public Gardens).

Charles Street is the main street of Beacon Hill and it is lined with twee boutiques that call themselves things like "framery" and "clothier". The oldest US Post Office is on Charles Street. It has got away with only two branches of Starbucks and NO Dunkin' Donuts (in Boston that is quite astonishing)!

Some famous people live in Beacon Hill, including John Kerry, who lives in Louisburg Square (top picture), and the supermodel Gisele. It is also where Matt Damon lived in the film The Depaahted (that's the non-rhotic way of saying it). Gisele is married to an extremely famous and beloved american footballer called Tom Brady (NOT to be confused with Tom Daley the diminutive diver), and this morning I think I stood next to him in the queue at Starbucks! I thought it might be him because everyone was staring at him and he was carrying a baby boy in a Baby Bjorn, and I knew they had had a baby at the end of last year. And obviously I then came home & Googled him. A certain NCT friend of ours will be very excited to hear this. But I am still quite a way from from being Gisele's NBF.

As well as getting "adjusted" by Dr Rick (cohort and helpmeet of Dr Chris) today, I had my hair cut at Adela's by the magnificently camp Francisco and his boyfriend Gilson. I knew it was my kind of place when I walked in at 4 pm, they immediately offered me beer and comiserated with me about my dramatic post-pregnancy hairloss. And do you know that they made me look so fabulously young that I was asked for ID when I tried to buy a bottle of wine on the way home!? That's a pretty bloody marvellous hairdo.

* Not buggy friendly - our stylish Chicco will be knackered by the end of April. Now I know why all the moms 'round here drive ugly buggies that look like reinforced wheelchairs.

Crooked lady

Apols for the hiatus in posts over the last few days, which for me have been spent at the quaint offices of Dr Chris the Chiropractor on Charles Street. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that constantly carrying a 6.5 kilo baby around is not doing my back & neck any good (doh!). Apparently I am in phase 2 of degeneration, my neck hangs forward like a giraffe, I am totally crooked & have subluxations the length of my spine. Happily, after 3 sessions with Dr Chris snapping, crackling & popping my back I am much better, but will continue to visit his cheerful premises during my time here so that I don't look like this in my later years.

Talk talk talk, chat chat chat

Zoe has found her voice and so the last few days have been filled with yelps, squeals, chirrups, goos and gurgles. She particularly enjoys having a chat with her minions (i.e. her parents/Granny) when she's lying on the changing mat and shouting orders at the animals that dangle from her babygym.

That's it then: no peace for us until she leaves home in 18 years time.

Haahvad

Today's excitement was a trip across the Charles on the Red Line to Harvard. Apparently the bronze dude below, John Harvard, was not the founder, nor did he look like the statue. We are rubbing his left foot for luck - but unluckily Eamon seems to have chopped our feet off in this shot.



We had lunch at a Tex-Mex/Cajun place, where the portions were HUGE! Check out the 1/2 gallon of Coke Eamon's packing in this picture below*. No wonder his teeth are so rotten! The food was delicious; I never knew eggplant (trans. aubergine), crab meat, cheese and almond sponge cake went together so well. All the food has been great so far so I comfortably predict that I will be at least a stone heavier by the end of this stay!

* Although it actually looks like he's trying to contact someone by CB radio

Stuffed

Just been for dinner at Stephanie's on Newbury. Feel like I've eaten a whole horse. Our waiter Phillip didn't have a bloody clue what I was saying. Note to self: must concentrate on diction (at risk of sounding like Celia Johnson).

Out & About

Granny is visiting this week. The clientele of the local Whole Foods market are wondering where all the prunes & pink grapefruits have gone.

Thursday was a whirlwind of paediatrician visits and supermarket shopping. It was also snowing with a biting wind, so a day better spent indoors! Friday it was beautiful and bright so we walked from Cambridge Street to Boston Common and then took the T to the Museum of Fine Art near Fenway.

The MFA has some great colonial era portraits by John Copley, after whom a square and T stop in Boston have been named. There was also an interactive baby installation, pictured below, which Tate Modern has been desperate to get hold of.



On our way home we visited Boston's memorial to my father, which was very nice of them. Bostonians love him so much they also named a supermarket for him too.

And after all that we were completely EXHAUSTED!

Busy & Important

Today I visited Eamon at his office in the Financial District. It has a food court in the foyer and is super-posh*.




His colleagues think he's bonkers to wear a suit & tie each day, but I think he looks extremely handsome. I feel proud to iron his shirts (badly).



* I got a right ticking off for taking this picture

Babe in the 'Hood

Just so you have a flavour of what's exercising Bostonians today, top stories this evening on Boston's WBZ news:

• woman "tosses coffee" at parking attendant* in Brookline
• bride & groom arrested on wedding day after bride runs over groom's ex

I feel I'm pretty safe walking the streets of Boston.

* Come on, we've all felt like doing something similar

The joy of Skype

Today was my family's second attempt to "Skype" me & Zoe*. Whilst slightly more successful than the previous attempt, it was still marred by sound issues resulting in a far more low-tech but more reliable method of communication. This was probably no bad thing as Zoe was screaming like a good 'un in the background. Still, at least they got to see her chubby face, which is the main thing.

*For all you IP fans out there yes, to use the Mark as a verb is wrong,wrong, wrong!

Don't send me to the chair!

Happy enough sat on the sofa after breakfast; less happy in her swinging chair later on. In fact, you might say positively BALEFUL*. This chair is on a par with the rack for baby comfort and entertainment.

* (c) C Purnell

Teething problems?

I have to say I've got to hand it to Zoe; she has coped with the move to Boston unbelievably well. We really struck lucky with Zoe -she's a sunny and laid back baby that has slept through the night since she was 6 weeks. She barely batted an eyelid when we packed her up and flew her across the Atlantic. Having only slept in a Moses basket she's taken to the new cot without a murmur. She's even managed to cope with the time difference and is now only about an hour off Boston time (and we've only been here 4 days).







What I hadn't bargained for was her dramatic reaction to the formula we were recommended to try in the US (SMA not being available). The poor thing has been in torments! She hasn't had any more of the stuff since yesterday but I've only just managed to get her off to sleep after a particularly ferocious screaming session this evening*. Poor neighbours, but most of all poor Zoe!


We are off to see the paediatrician on Thursday & it can't come soon enough. What can I feed her if she cannot stomach the formula here? What can I do to help her when she has gutache so bad she's screaming like a banshee?


I have a feeling that the arrival of the Devlin family will spell paydirt for Boston's various medical professionals and a rise in the firm's medical insurance permiums (more later about Eamon's teeth - I have to put up with constantly hearing about them & now so can you). Perhaps if I spend all day riding the lift I can make friends with some of the doctors in the building & get a discount? Or will they look askance at me and whisper behind their hands "that's the British lady from the 10th floor with the REALLY noisy baby"?



* I won't lie to you, I drugged her with Calpol.

Welcome to Boston!

Last Friday our little family moved from London to Boston USA*. This blog is a way of staying in touch with family & friends and to keep them all up to date on how our baby Zoe is doing. She is only 3 and a half months old & won't remember any of this adventure, so hopefully one day she will read this blog & learn about the time we spent together exploring a new city and getting to know each other before I go back to work.

* Not Boston, Lincs, as someone thought