Gemma sends a hearty bonjour from Paris. We figure the last time she was here she a) was about a millimetre tall, and b) was status: unknown to her parents. This time (while I've been conferencing), she's been bouncing around the 6th arrondissement, moving north to the big department stores, baby bjorned around le Marais and successfully sleeping through two bistro dinners. The considerably more baby-friendly Parisiens have been a nice change from the UK, with lots of hellos, questions, smiles and accommodation for additional space at restaurants, buses etc. While having a coffee this afternoon some reasonable, if unsolicited, advice and commiseration came in the unlikely form of a 50 year old French ponytailed cowboy, who shared his sympathies of having a baby complete the sleeping-through-the-night stage only to start teething, where the wake-ups are less predictable. So true, so true, although Gemma isn’t really teething yet.
Later tonight Christine, Simon and Alex arrive from London so double the baby fun is in store for fellow diners. Shopping has so far been limited to a pair of shoes and a toothbrush (mine), socks and a skirt (Kathy) and zip-all for Gemma. She's happy enough with the sights.

Gemma started off the day with a gradual wake up at around 8:30 - a little stir here, a stretch there. Rub the eyes. Then a big yawn followed by a bigger smile to make sure the 'rents were ready to sacrifice all in the name cuteness and the appearance of mutual adoration. Soon afterwards it was feeding time and all bets were off.
Later in the morning Kathy and Gemma went to a local mother's group session, where they met a few local mums and gabbed about various tricks of the trade. This was followed by a trip to the health clinic for the biweekly check-up, where Gemma burst through the 10 pound barrier, bouncing in at 10 lb, 2 oz (4.61k). The clinic workers went on to suggest that weight may be put on faster if Kathy fattened up, by eating less vegetables and gorging out on fish and chips. Anyone looking for stereotypes need search no farther.
Meanwhile, on the way home I stopped off in a store and picked up a little gift for Gemma, sharing this task as it happens with David Seaman (the Arsenal and England keeper), who was shopping with partner and child. No details on what he bought, but he was pushing the stroller and still has his ridiculous ponytail, proving he's a footballer for these sensitive times.
Finally today, there was some good news in the dept. of parental mobility & maternal freedom, as Gemma took a bottle, thanks to a winning combination of the ever-calming Romeo and the introduction of a Nuk bottle.

Rolling, rolling, rolling, keep that body rolling. The latest party trick from Gemma is an increasing ability to roll. Last night she did a semi-turn and slept on her side for 3-4 hours. It didn't look that comfortable, with her head arched back like she was at a Cirque du Soleil tryout, but she slept soundly enough. This afternoon she was plopped onto her tummy and she made the solo journey onto her back. I guess a little diligence about where we put her around the house is now in order.

In unrelated news, Gemma had a few more shots this morning, resulting in some rather loud sonic exercises. But a few minutes later she had a good feed and then drifted off to a long nap so all was forgiven.

Gemma's latest sleeping development - getting drowsy at eight or so and sleeping (interrupted with the odd rapidly gulped meal) until eight the next morning - is not necessarily a foolproof routine at this point. Thursday night had Gemma marking the 11 PM hour, making for less sleep Friday. Regrettably, Arndt and I had to resort to walking her to the local pub to provide the requisite motion ("sharking" her - gotta keep on moving) to get her quiet and sleepy. Andy and Malu came around later on with a lovely outfit that will likely see her through the toasty indoors of Montreal in December, and she then slept through most of the evening (which ended with downloading dubious songs and Averna).
Yesterday Gemma had her cot / crib built and she's now officially moved on from the bassinette to more expansive plains. The wind-up Winnie the Pooh (who apparently turns 75 today) mobile is a hit, and she spent her first night in the crib with little complaint. Although it must be said that between nine in the morning and about 8:30 in the evening she only managed to sleep about 45 minutes in total, despite Baby Bjorning her for a walk over to Lucy's. She finally fell asleep soon after we arrived at Christine & Simon's house, where we had a deferred delicious Canadian thanksgiving dinner, followed by a seamless transition to the crib when we got home.

So much elapsed time, so many updates. On the weighty matters, Gemma punished the scales at 9 lb, 13 oz on the October 8 visit to the health clinic. Appreciative coos from the health workers abounded, and Mother and daughter bounced out to grab a late lunch.
Sunday morning, besides seeing in a birthday from the family's increasingly elder scribe, marked the trip home from our first family vacation. We kicked things off with a trip to Aix-en-Provence for a weekend. The Baby Bjorn saw a lot of use as we strolled around town, looking at fountains and wondering how something so little can cause such an explosion in luggage. On Monday we moved into a 15th century house in Gassin, albeit one with a rooftop terrace and all mod cons inside. Gemma had her first stroll along a beach, squawked her way through some meals in nearby St. Tropez and kept her party-all-night approach to getting the most out of life. The big bonus from a future travel perspective was her seemingly unfazed approach to air travel.
The weeks before the trip saw a lot visitors coming through the house. Dave Page was here from Toronto, en route back from Manchester. He overlapped with Eero, who in turn was extending the family trip that saw Emma and Pooh here for a week. As guests go, you want the kind that bring nice gifts, cook a meal or two, take Gemma for a walk and don't complain when they erroneously get a measly towel to share amongst them. Well, maybe we could have benefited with a small hint on the bath linen deficiency.
Also in the great guest department, the Stenstom/Koivestos were immediately preceded with Les Boys, Jason and David. As noted, they'll massage a smile out of any host with gifts and booze, soothing Gemma, general tidying up, picking up food, soothing Gemma, making coffees and making sure every late meal was rounded off with a bag of chips and a final beer. And soothing Gemma.

Gemma has become increasingly vocal recently, and were not just talking about screams. She's emitting longer coos and ahhs and genuinely seems to want to talk. It may be fanciful imagination, but she sometimes can be heard to say "greg". Or maybe it's "geg" as she hasn't conquered her R's yet. We haven't introduced her to the formality of "Dad" yet.
Finally, we're hoping that this week's newest and most welcome trend continues, which is an apparent desire to sleep through the evening. ish. We still get her up and/or she awakes to whip a feeding in, but she's now going back to sleep pretty soon afterwards, and if coupled with the move from bassinette to Big Bed, usually means being out until eight in the morning. Funny to have our evenings back to linger over a meal, read a book...or take a nap.