What should I give my new Grandson for his first Christmas?

There are so many choices it's confusing, but I want to give my new ( first) grandchild a gift that will last.

I've looked at a few ideas and gathered them here in a page about Gifts for Baby's First Christmas. It's by no means a complete list, and I would like more suggestions please.

This looks like being  one item that's on the list.

If you, like me, really treasure the Winnie the Pooh books by A A Milne, do make sure you buy the original versions with illustrations by E H Shepherd, and NOT the Disney versions. Is that being snobbish- I hope so!

Living close to grandchildren or far away?

I live 300 miles from my grandchild. I saw him the day after he was born, and again at 4 weeks old. That was two weeks ago, and it's 3 more weeks until I can next see him.

 Talking to friends who are surrounded by their grandchildren I feel jealous- they can see them anytime. Then I talked to two more friends who each had one grandchild- in Australia. They Skype a lot, but they feel the distance. Maybe it's not so bad for me. 4 hours door to door thank to Virgin Trains is not too bad.

 I've joined Gransnet, the Grans' version of Mumsnet. Gransnet is full of useful tips and discussions. It's nowhere near as big as Mumsnet, but it's well worth taking a look.

I'm also on Twitter . You find me @DotingGran. I'm looking for people to follow, so please follow me and I'll follow you ( There's a song in there somewhere- Peter Gabriel I think?)

Recommended knitting for doting grandmothers.

If you want a great book of knitting patterns for babies and toddlers up to 2, I think you can't beat The Ultimate book of baby knits from top designer Debbie Bliss

So far I've knitted two jackets and two pairs of booties using patterns from this book, and there are lots more for me to do in the months ahead. This makes the book really great value, and I really recommend that you use Debbie Bliss yarns for these patterns. So far, all my knits have been made using Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, which is a beautiful fine yarn, a little thicker than 4 ply.Many of the patterns use this yarn, but there are also some using Debbie Bliss DK and Aran weights.

Here's the little jacket I knitted

Jacket knitted in Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino.

I used Ecru edged in Duck Egg Blue.

I've written a review of the Debbie Bliss Ultimate Book of Baby knits which you can read here.

You can buy it from Amazon- just click on the picture below.

It's a boy!

Baby Felix was born at 2.15 am on Sunday 1 September. I was lucky enough to be able to visit him and his parents as he came home from hospital on Monday, and spent a lovely day on Tuesday with them.

It was tough to say goodbye on Wednesday, and it will be some weeks before we can see them again. I'll be using Skype for the first time!

Now I'm a real, bona fide Grandmother......................at last! Amazing!

One day to go?

The baby is due tomorrow. Looks like it might not arrive over the Bank Holiday weekend now, which must be good news. In my experience, staffing at hospitals over holiday weekends tends to be rather thin. Not blaming them- everyone has families, and they want breaks too.

Waiting for the phone call....................

It's a nervous time- we're all waiting for the phone call..........

It's the first time I've really experienced the wait for the phone call about a new baby. When you're the one expecting it's all very different.

4 days to go until the due date.......

The Doting Grandmother writes on Zujava!

What is Zujava I hear you ask? Take a look here and you'll find out!

Click on the link  Create a free account on Zujava and try it out. It's easy to use and there is lots of helpful advice available.

Zujava is a platform where writers can write about things they like and enjoy, and they can, potentially make money as well. My first three articles on Zujava are all ( not surprisingly)baby related.
Here they are;

The perfect jacket, hat and booties for a newborn baby

Organic baby clothes for newborn babies

Becoming a first time grandparent -helpful books

Here's a picture of the booties I knitted.

Cute? Yes! Easy to knit? Yes! Click the link above to find out more.

Do modern babies (and their mums) like hand knitted clothes?

I've been assured that hand knitted baby clothes are very, very desirable these days. That's good news for those doting grandmothers who have run out of projects for themselves, their spouses, their distant relatives and their friends. Now there is a new person to knit for, new patterns to peruse, new yarn to buy. Those of you who love to knit ( and there are many of us out there ) will appreciate the joy of starting new projects, adding to your stash, seeking out patterns, and reading posts on Ravelry. What's Ravelry? It's free site for knitters and crocheters, where tips are shared, patterns are posted, yarns are discussed and yarnies get together. Take a look here, log in and join Ravelry. Take a look at the knitting page to the right for my first project.

Where were you when you heard that the Royal Baby had been born?

We were on a London Bus when the driver shouted out "it's a boy, 8 lb 6 oz!" 5 minutes later, we walked into our son and daughter in laws' home and told them the news- the BBC didn't have it yet- odd! London bus drivers must have had a fast link to the Royal website!

We had been visiting our family in London, and were rather late getting home from a visit to Kew Gardens in South West London ( where we visited Kew Palace- summer home to another George, King George III), so we were still on a bus at 8.20 pm, on Monday 22 July 2013. What a very hot day it was in London!

We now know that the baby will be called George Alexander Louis, Prince of Cambridge. We have no idea what our new grandchild will be called. The parents-to-be are keeping their chosen names a secret until he or she is born. Quite right too!

I've been updating my baby pages such as The Royal Baby, and there has also been quite a lot of interest in my article about the Duchess of Cambridge.

The newspapers seem to be full of tips on "how to be a Grandparent" following the royal birth- I'm reading everything with interest!

That car seat that Prince William clipped in so rapidly ( well done!) Was apparently a Britax Baby safe- a very reasonably priced car seat.


You can buy it from amazon.co. uk .

Where's that Royal Baby?

We're waiting Kate!
Here hoping the hot weather isn't getting the Duchess down. At the risk of stating the obvious in a Pippa Middleton kind of way "babies come when they're ready"

The world's press is camped out at the hospital, flags are ready to fly...

Doting Grandmother to be checking in

My first grandchild is due at the end of August. I'm jumping the gun rather starting this blog now, but I'm already writing about baby stuff on my other pages, so I thought I'd start to get organised.

Babies are going to be hot news this summer. That's a little trivial I know, but with a Royal Baby on the way in July, we'll be getting more than our fair share of baby news this year.

HRH Prince Charles, Prince of Wales, is the same age as me. His birthday (14 November ) is the same as my late father's, and we are both expecting our first grandchild this summer- we have a lot in common. I don't suppose that HRH's first reaction to being told the news was the same as mine "Wow, that's great....I must start knitting". More likely it was "mmm jolly good, a new heir to the throne. That means Harry is out of the running..."

If you think you might find this blog interesting, amusing, informative even, why not bookmark it and return at some later date when I've spruced it all up?