So It Goes: Always adored

But you cannot deny the sheer thrill of welcoming a new grandchild into your life.

And yes, despite not quite being ready for grandparent status (aka, some might say my mental age is still adolescent), here he is, grand child number four.  I shake my head at the wonder of this burgeoning family.

So far, all of the grand children have resembled my children at birth, starting life with a full head of lustrous dark hair, groping fingers and weighing in at around nine pound, give or take a few ounces.

This one is remarkably long (when does long become tall?) with his 58cm exceeding the baby 100 per centile weight-for-age growth chart (the highest recorded on the chart is 54cm).  We like to say he is ‘off the charts’ and we say this with some pride, just as we would if he was short or cutely dimpled or had a crinkle in his knee cap.  Don’t we look for those points of difference to make them an individual even from day one?

And there I was, commenting on his forehead resembling that of his father – they way it puckers up when he concentrates.  And was that a cheeky little look I detected when we talked to him about his big sister,  and there was that look again when he grabbed a finger?  Yes, I can see him now, pulling his lips in and raising his eyebrows with merriment.

Oh yes, we are projecting so much into this new little boy.  He has already inherited the best in all of us and we want to rejoice in his blessings.

A baby is better than any television show.  We find ourselves mesmerised by this little bundle, and can sit and watch him for longer than it took to take in a series of Game of Thrones.  We gaze lovingly at him and I, for one, wonder what he will be like.

Will he be quiet?  Will he be kind?  Will he be good at kicking a football?  Will he be good at singing, at art, at life?  Here he is with all the toes and the fingers and all the bits in all the right places.

Here he is, already filled with love and hope and fantasy. He is already as individual as we are. He has already started his life’s journey.  We just want it to be the best it can possibly be.