Visit to Namibia.

Full of courage after the successful flights to Milan and back, we get ready for your first intercontinental flight: destination Namibia! It is Friday 25th March when we board the Virgin flight to Johannesburg where we will stay over for two days. On the plane you get a flight cot, also called a bassinet, strapped to the bulkhead separating the different sections of the plane. The system works really well and after a reasonable night's sleep you set foot in Africa for the first time!

With Iiris,Theo and Demi

Our first stopover on this African safari is with Heino's Aunt Iris, Uncle Theo and their daughter Demi. As always they are very welcoming and make it a very relaxing couple of days. Theo introduce us to the wonders of Gripe Water (very good for stomach cramps) and you also experience your first braai(BBQ). The final step in preparing us for the Namibian trip is for your mom to have her hair cut short, as it has become impossible for you to resist giving it a good pull!

Monday morning sees us on Johannesburg airport again, this time the desitination is Windhoek, capital city of Namibia. It is here that Heino's brother Henrico and sister Letitia lives. It is great fun to introduce you to your African family, and especially your cousins Sonja and Jacobus are very pleased to see you for the first time. Jacobus even spent a whole half an hour cooing and playing with you in your basket!

With Jacobus, Sonja, Letitia, Pieter, Henrico

Three days later it is time to take on the next leg of the journey: 710km's in a southerly direction to the small village of Karasburg. It is a town full of history for your dad as it is here that he was born, as was your grandfather, where both of them went to school and it is here that this Oupa Joepie of yours still lives today!

Despite a very hot day you are very good in your car seat and after 10 hours and numerous cool-down stops we enter the dusty town of Karasburg!

As you can imagine entertainment in a small African village is not in large supply, which makes it for a very restful break. We visit the doctor to use his scale, and we notice that you've made very good progress and now pull the needle down to 4.7kg! We also visit the grave of your Ouma Sonja who you so sadly will not be able to meet in person. It is a very emotional experience, however we can imagine how she is smiling down on her cute little granddaughter who has come so far to visit her!



Something we've been looking forward to all year is to visit our family farm, Haruchas. We stay with Louis and Anina Potgieter, the neighbouring farmers who rent our farm from Oupa Joepie, and their hospitality literally knows no bounds! It is great to go around the farm and to look at all the nice scenery, especially as it has been a great rainyear! We also visit the old farmhouse in which your dad lived for the first four years of his life. Unfortunately, as no one has lived there for many years, it is severely derelict, but it still is our ambition one day to fully restore it!

On the way back to Karasburg we stop over at oom Dolf and Tannie Kinna de Wet, lifelong friends of the Von Wiellighs, and largely responsible for your dad's love of tennis. Again the braai fire is lit, old times remembered and a new member of the Namibian family welcomed into the fold!

With Oupa Joepi

The final part of our journey is a three hour drive to the South African town of Keimoes. It is here that Heino went to secondary school, and here that his childhood friend Eric Swenson lives as a grape farmer. We stay in his mom, Tannie Etta's house, and she is extremely good with you, even giving your parents a few hours off for a rest! This used to be a second home for Heino whilst being at school far from his parents, and it is easy to see why he had such a good time here! Naturally more meat meets the braai and more friends are met, as well as you meeting little Evert, Eric and his wife Christine's son of just over a year old.

With Eric and Evert

Back in Karasburg the time just flies by, and before we know it, it is time to start making the long trek back to London. Your Oupa Joepie is very sad to see you leave, and it is easy to see that he got very attached to you in a short space of time! In Windhoek we spend the last two days looking at some flats and houses. The market here is still massively undervalued compared to Europe, and it is our desire to make an investment here for your future one day.
After another short stopover in Joburg, we are back in London, but with the amazing Namibian landscape still in our hearts! It's been a very good time for us all, but especially for you as the scale tells us that you now weigh 5.57kg, up from 4.5kg when we left. Undoubtedly the combination of good Namibian food, lots of sun and fresh air did us all good, ensuring that we will do it all again next year!

Under a quiver tree

Third month.

After celebrating your second month in the air on the way to Milan, the end of your third month sees you in the beautiful land of Namibia!

The biggest change of the last month is that we've started to give you some formula milk, not much, only about 200ml per day to supplement the breastmilk. This is of course because your average weight gain per week has been a bit small, and generally it has to be said that you don't strike us as a big eater!
The first few nights with the formula milk has been quite tough as you slept very little! We suspect that your little tummy and digestive system is struggling with this strange milk that it is not used to!

And then there are those smiles! They start to be more often and it is a constant competition between your mom and dad to see who can generate the most smiles! You seem to be very much a morning person as this is the time of day that you smile the most. They are heart-meltingly-cute and all the crying, dirty nappies and sleepless nights are instantly forgiven when those little gums are bared!

Another sign of your rapid development is that you start to use your hands much more, especially to grab some hanging objects. You also seem more interested in toys now, and especially Jack, the hanging parrot in your moses basket, is a firm favourite!

Apart from the stubborn cradle cap that does not want to go away despite our best efforts, every thing is going well with your growth and it is an indescribable joy to see how you are developing into a beautiful little person!

Nonna Mariapia in London and baby massage!

Iolanda, you were born in a very special year as it is also the year in which Italy is celebrating its 150th year as a unified, Italian nation! Yes, all the way back in 1861 Vittorio Emanuele II has been proclaimed King of Italy and to celebrate it an extra Bank Holiday has been declared. Your nonna Mariapia decided to make good use of this extra time off by coming to visit you!                                                

But it is not only a social visit as she also wants to check on your general health. We've been worried for a while that you are not gaining enough weight every week. To date your best weight gain in a single week has been 180 grammes, which is quite a bit below what the average should be.

So, as we have a baby scale your mom and grandmom weigh you every time before and after your feeds, and it is calculated that you get on average about 100ml of milk, a bit less than what you should be getting.

               

With all the weighing and analyzing out of the way, it is time for a bit of fun! This comes in the form of a sort of dolls game where you are getting dressed up in all the pretty dresses you got as presents, the ones that are not so handy for going out, but great for photo shoots! Fortunately Heino is not there to witness how his daughter is being primed for a career as a fashion model!

But the fun doesn't stop there! Our NCT group organised a lesson in baby massaging which is to take place at Rachel's house. Christine, our Antenatal Teacher from the NCT is going to present the course in Rachel's big open plan Kitchen/dining/living area, complete with a mat for every baby. Before you know it you and the five other babies are totally undressed and Christine starts to show how to message the legs!

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Of course you are totally unimpressed by this whole messaging business! Almost immediately you start to cry and your mom has to pick you up to soothe you. This doesn't stop Christine though and the messaging session goes on undisturbed, except for every baby, one by one, starting to cry at full voice! The only baby that lasted until the head message is Joe, who for some strange reason decided that he rather likes getting a all-over-body rub!

After the message and with all of you fully dressed again, it is time for lunch: a homemade shepherd's pie baked by Rachel herself! It turns into a fun filled afternoon full of laughter. At the end there is the obligatory photo session with all six of you sprawled out in a row on the floor. It is an extremely cute scene and although you are the smallest in size, you are by far the most active with simply no stopping you kicking around!



Visiting your Great-Grandmother in Milan.

Alessandra's grandmother, therefore your great-grandmother Delia, turned 90 years old last year, a great achievement for somebody who lived through the terrible Second World War!
Due to her advanced age, we want to make sure that you meet her as soon as possible. Now that we have your passport, the time is here and the plan is for Heino to fly with you and your mom, stay for the weekend and fly back on the Sunday to be back at work on Monday. It is a busy week that lies ahead for you with lots of meetings planned with various parts of the family and friends.

From the airport we go straight to Bisnonna Delia's house and you are just a model of good behaviour with lots of smiles and kicks in your pram. Needless to say your great-grandmother immediately falls in love with you! Surprisingly, she is also very good with you and can't get enough of singing and chatting to you! It is clear to see that the mothering instincts is still very strong, even after ninety years of living!

Later in the afternoon, Alessandra's uncle and aunt, Zia Stefania and Zio Augusto come over to say hello as well. This is only a small flavour of what is to come as tomorrow's schedule includes a trip to the town of Cremona to meet the family there.

Zia Stefania and Zio Augusto

On Saturday we arrive in Cremona at  Zio Vitto and Zia Vittoria's house just in time for lunch. This now is your Nonno Gianfranco's cousin and they have always remained very close over the years. Joining us for lunch is also Zio Vitto's son, Giuseppe and his wife Claudia. Everybody is very happy to meet you and detailed discussions take place as to which parent you resemble the closest! Equally good is lunch itself! Consisting of very typical local products such as ham, cheese, salami and wine, it is not long before we simply cannot eat anymore.

Obviously you will not allow food to take any attention away from you! Frequent bursts of crying force us to take you on little tours of Zio Vitto's house but luckily there are loads of interesting things to see such as antique furniture, ornaments and lovely old paintings. Very different from our house in London that is STILL awaiting something on it's bare, white walls!

 

After the sumptuous lunch it is time for a short stroll to Zia Annadina (Zio Vitto's sister) and Zio Tino's house. It is clear that this day is getting a bit long for you and that you are very tired. Luckily there is time for a quick toast of delicious Prosecco wine in your honour, followed by Heino getting a viewing of Zio Tino's extensive weapons collection. It is very impressive and the sight of an authentic American Winchester rifle straight out of a Western movie is enough to transport Heino back to his youth playing Cowboys and Crooks on the farm! It is with regret that we have to leave, however it is really time to get you to bed.

With Zia Annadina and Zio Tino

For Sunday lunch we visit Zio Augusto and Zia Stefania's house where you meet your cousins Francesco and Giovanni. Their Nonna Benita is also there and she is equally enthusiastic about you. About a thousand photographs later it is time for your dad to get the bus back to the airport and his flight to London. This is the first time that he will be away from you for so long, and it is with a heavy heart that he gives you a final kiss.

With Zia Lalla and Zio Carlo

The rest of the week is spent mainly with your Bisnonna Delia, but also a flurry of visits to amongst other Zia Lalla and Zio Carlo, Paola and Raffaella Bonetti, Antonio Foderaro and finally Italia, a lady of 98 years who used to be best friends with your great-grandmother Lilli (mother of Nonno Gianfranco).



With Paola Bonetti



In piazza Duomo

 
On a sunny winter's morning you get your first tour of Milan. A long walk from your Bisnonna Delia's house to the Duomo brings you in contact with the first of what will be many amazing Italian monuments!



Second month.

There can't be that many people that can say they've celebrated their second month on earth in the sky on a plane! On the 4th March, exactly two months after your birth, we are all on an Alitalia flight from London to Milan.

The big change of your second month is that, from your sixth week, you've slept in your own little room. You still wake up every 3 hours, but now you settle back to sleep quite quickly which is a massive improvement from the one hour plus you used to take to get back to dreamland!

You still have your weekly baths, but something that is still unchanged are the shrill screams that accompany your trips to the changing table!

First suntan!

You had your check-up with the GP and everything was fine, as well as getting your first jab of vaccination. Of course this jab caused a terrible scream from you, but afterward you were fine and back to sleep in your pram. 

During your second month you also got your first passport, as well as reaching the weight of 4.2kg, roughly 1kg heavier than your birth weight. From about seven weeks you started to give us some small smiles, something which caused us immense happiness! Generally you are starting to play a lot more with your hands, making new sounds and those little legs of yours kick ferociously in your basket. We can see you becoming a good runner already!

There have been a few changes in your facial features as well, most of all your eyes that are growing bigger by the day. Worryingly (especially for your dad who will carry the blame!), you are losing your hair! Despite numerous assurances that this is normal, we've gotten into the habit of almost counting all the hairs on your little head!

You also get around a fair bit! You and your mom continue to meet up with the other moms and babies in our NCT group as well as the group of Italian moms and babies and you even got onto the tube all the way to Chalk Farm to visit Alessandra's former colleagues at the Chassay and Last Architectural firm. To top it all of a visit was taken to Mile End where you met Alessandra's current colleagues at the Queen Mary University of London.

NCT group

Italian mums

It has been a good and happy month for all three of us. To us, you are growing more and more beautiful every day!

Your first flight.

After all the hard work to get your passport sorted, we waste no time to plan your visit to your 90 year old great grand mother Delia in Milan. We get time booked off and flights booked for the weekend of 4 March and for now the plan is for Heino to stay for a long weekend and you and your Mom to stay for a short week till Thursday 9th March. At the  end of this week your Nonno Gianfranco will travel back with your mom as traveling with a young baby and luggage is definitely a two-person job!

Also, this short trip will be a very important test run for the much longer journey to Namibia!

 

The flight is with Alitalia from Heathrow Airport and we get a very early tube to Heathrow to do all the check in procedures with plenty of spare time. Everything goes smoothly and once past the security checks it is time for a breakfast and a feed for you before your flight. Luckily we can keep the pram/buggy up until we enter the plane and before we know it we are in our seats with all the hostesses cooing and oohing over you!

The flight is surprisingly easy. There is a very short cry at the beginning of take off, but after this it is back to sleep with no further problems. We've heard scary stories of how babies have ear pain due to different pressures, but thankfully there is no sign of this.
All in all we are very pleased with how the flight went and as we go through the arrivals doors your Nonno Gianfranco is there waiting for us and your first visit to Italy can begin!

Italian visitors

Alessandra and her friend Fabio have been trying for months to try and get her good friend, Emanuele, to visit them in London. Finally, after many false alarms and hopes, Emanuele finally managed to get himself onto a plane from Rome for a visit to London over the weekend of 12-13 February. We suspect that the fact that Marzia and Federico, more friends of Alessandra, also visited London on that weekend had a lot to do with persuading Emanuelle to take the big leap!

Since Marzia and Federico visited us already, they will be sleeping at Fabio and Kate's house whilst Zio Emanuele will be braving your nightly cries by staying with us!

Friday after they've arrived, is spent playing with you in your little chair. That night, feeling adventurous, we go to a local pub for a (very quick) drink. 

Saturday afternoon Marzia and Fede go to watch Italy playing rugby against England with Kate and Fabio. Alessandra and Ema spent the morning shopping in Clapham for that nights dinner to which everybody, including Agnese, is invited.

Your Zio Emanuele is a very good cook and he spends all afternoon working his magic on a very typical Italian meal:    Pasta al fume (tomato sauce,cream a bacon), polpettone (a big long meat ball) with salad and a fantastic tiramisu.

It turns out to be a very pleasant evening, apart from little Iolanda absolutely refusing to go to sleep until after midnight! It is for us quite a big shock as we've not struggled this much to get you to bed since your birth and a firm decision is made to start working on a stricter routine from next week!

Ema Ale and Iolanda

On Sunday the end of a very good weekend is celebrated with a Sunday Roast at the Avalon Pub in Clapham South. You are very good and fast asleep for most of it in your pram. This weekend you were immersed in the Italian language. Hopefully you found your mom's lifelong friends worth learning Italian for!