Milestones

William is nearly 3. In 5 days' time, we'll be celebrating. The last couple of months have seen him make the transition away from nappies to toilet independence. Apart from a minor diarrhoea episode a few weeks ago, the nappies are now sitting quietly in a box next to the sofa untouched. This has eased the task of laundry considerably. I think he enjoys this new ability, especially when it involves watching the cistern refill itself and trying to figure out where the water goes. As is customary in our family, he has also developed an unabashed sense of toilet humour.

I visited London this week, as part of my Foundation year, to visit the General Dental Council and to see a major dental trade exhibition yesterday. As this trip involved an overnight stay, I had originally planned to bring William and Sylwia, our au pair, with me, however booking the hotel room became so complicated and expensive, I took the decision to go alone. I prepared William for my absence over a few days, and the family pitched in to help out and provide some inducements and distractions: William was going to have dinner in the 'downstairs kitchen' on Thursday AND Friday with grandma and grandad, and grandma was going to sleep upstairs in our bed so he would not be alone. William has been used to me putting him to bed, although once or twice recently, grandma has been able to do this without fuss, so I felt relatively confident that things were going to be ok. The only potential drawback was Raj's absence, as I had originally envisaged that he would be there for William's first night without mummy, however, this did not seem to matter in the end. I think, as is probably often the case, I was more worried than William was.

My trip, in the end, was fantastic, I enjoyed it all, learned a lot, saw a lot at the exhibition and had a smooth and stress-free journey. The brief time away gave me a little bit of independence - I think this was what I appreciated above all else. The complete contrast of London to our present situation and the objectives of my journey gave me everything I needed to distract myself and reach a significant milestone in myself.