My grandmother always had cake in the house, either fruit cake, Victoria sponge or gingerbread. It is one of the main things I remember as a child.
As I now have her handwritten recipe book, I’ve been enjoying making some of these memorable treats – the gingerbread especially. The recipe is over on my other blog!
To Elliot,
My favourite photo is one of you and your Daddy when you were only a few hours old – I can’t remember how many, the morphine made my head a little fuzzy that day 😦
The photo perfectly captures how our lives suddenly changed the day you were born and I don’t think anything, or anyone, could have prepared us for the surge of affection we felt for you. Particularly after such a troublesome labour, we were just so amazed and relieved you were here.
I remember being transferred from the operating table to a bed, still in theatre, and someone asking me which side I wanted to lie on (I was numb from the chest down) and then someone brought you to me and put you in the crook of my arm on the bed. It was THE proudest moment of my life so far, being wheeled through to the observation ward where your daddy was waiting, with all the other mums looking to see us arrive. I was so so tired and so so happy.
We were given toast and tea and a nice nurse came and dressed you. My parents came to meet you at 3 when visitors were allowed and your other grandparents at 5. I think this photo was taken then, so you would have been 6 or 7 hours old.
I love this photo – I love the proud, tired, happy smile on your daddy, and the way you are nestled into him. The start of a wonderful relationship!
Lots of love,
Mummy xxxx
To Elliot,
So, you now have 4 teeth!
It’s amazing watching you grow though I’m sure I’m not the only mother fighting time on this one – half of me wants you to always be reaching the next stage, wondering what it will be like when you crawl, walk, talk, skip and run, whilst the other part of me just wants to stop time right now so I can just sit and look at you, to have enough time to study your face all over and file that image in the cabinet in my brain marked “Elliot” before you grow and change, so that in years to come I can recall this very moment and all I think and feel and wish for you right now.
You start nursery soon as I am going to return to the world of work. We must all move on from our wonderful year of getting to know each other and what it’s like to be a little family. I am excited, and nervous, about what the next stage has in store for us! Roll on tooth #5!!
Lots of love and cuddles,
Mummy xxx
I’ve just posted the recipe for this cake on my other blog which is where I am noting down various bits of my family history.
The recipe comes from a handwritten recipe book belonging to my grandmother – this recipe was written in by my great-grandmother, Carolina Cecilia Margaret Selwood (nee Hartigan) who we all knew as Nannan – apparently my uncle as a child couldn’t say Grandmum so said Nannan instead and the name stuck through the generations! I was lucky enough to know two of my great-grandmothers and have memories of visiting my Nannan and squeezing oranges for her. If they were blood oranges we were always allowed to have the juice ourselves!
Anyway, check out the Apple cake recipe over on my other site (there’s a link on the right of this page) – it’s really yummy! Perfect for autumn day munching squirrelled up on a sofa somewhere.
Letters to Elliot (& Alexander too!) 