On Fatherhood

Monday morning Benedict fed and changed before 06:00h. Luna was up during the night to feed Ben but no real disturbance and I slept through it all. As I have said before Benedict is a gentle, calm boy and in real terms is a dream child for our first effort......well so far.My friend, the Captain, told me he had two sons, one came out quiet and gentle and one came out fighting and kicking and both are the same now they are in their twenties!

We took Benedict to mass yesterday and some say he slept his way through it, I would say, of course, he was praying for his mother and father! Looks like his baptism will be on the first Sunday of August....I wonder if he will still be an angelic, peaceful little boy!!! But it was good that we were both able to get to mass and that Benedict behaved himself.

Boo, our assistant, came back yesterday from a few days leave so it is nice to have her back and she will help us keep the pandaemonium and mess down as well as feed us. I bought some more furniture yesterday to store all Benedict's bits and pieces and to give us some additional space in the kitchen. People have been so kind. He was given some very expensive French cotton nappies, you know designer nappies! Very comfortable indeed. I reckon Benedict will be one of the best dressed kids in Thailand.

I even managed to get out and look at the birds for a few hours late yesterday. I didn't blog this earlier but on Monday last week, on the eve of Benedict's birth day, I took a drive down to a reservoir about 30 kms from here and there espied 4 river lapwings which I thought were uncommon. This was confirmed when I reported them to Nick Upton, the main man, from Thai Birding. They are strikingly beautiful birds. They were still there yesterday. I have also added barred buttonquail,fairly ubiquitous as far as Thailand is concerned, and long-tailed shrike, to my list in recent weeks.

Now I better get showered and dressed, have breakfast and go to work! What a busy life!