Update and a name and shame

First for the name and shame. Shame on you:

BABYPARK

Surely the crappiest chain of baby stores in the entire world. And no, don't bother trying to view the website because it is Sunday. The website is closed on a Sunday.

Last summer we tried to purchase a Micralite buggy from them, only to be given the runaround by their customer services staff on multiple occasions. The Micralite sales office told us that they had made a deal with Babypark and that Babypark would be stocking the travel system within the month. On every occasion that we rang customer services they gave us a different answer on when, or if, the Micralite would be stocked in their stores. In the end we gave up and bought a Quinny Speedi SX.

We did go to their Gouda store on a couple of occasions to look at their selection and the staff walked around looking baffled and their pancake restaurant had no-one serving in it.

We are clearly very stupid people (although not as stupid as them) because we called them today to inquire whether they stock any of the Graco buggies. On the first occasion, the woman who answered the phone hung up on me. On the second occasion, Phil was told that he should call back on Thursday when someone would be in who would know if any Graco buggies were in store. Erm... why don't you... ya know... walk over to the pram, travel system and buggy section and... use your eyes... no? Too complex?? OK, then.

Aaah... isn't the Internet a wonderful thing? I feel so much better now!

OK... now for the update. We went along to Prénatal today and spent a pleasant couple of hours buying Michael a buggy and a car seat in the next size up. He has almost outgrown his current car seat because he has such broad shoulders (as I remember quite vividly as the reason for my episiotomy). However, we are going to keep him in it for as long as possible because a rear-facing car seat is so much safer for his immature neck muscles. When he finally outgrows it, he can move into his new Maxi Cosi Tobi.

We need a buggy for when we fly home to visit family. A buggy can be used in the airport and stored in the cabin on the plane. It is also necessary for when I use public transport and don't want to use the baby carrier. Our Quinny is great but at almost 12 kilos it is too heavy to lug around on a bus. We bought a Graco Mirage Plus. We had great fun pulling it to pieces in the store and giving it a thorough test drive.

It has an adult beverage holder. My choice of beverage might say more about me than the buggy or the appearance of myself or my baby. What kind of Mummy am I if there is iced tea in the holder? Beer? Red Bull? I'll have to give this some serious thought ;o)

Prénatal really is a great store. We went to their big store outside Amsterdam and they have recently revamped the first floor. They now have a large baby changing area, breastfeeding chair with screen, and unisex toilets so Phil doesn't have to face walking into the ladies' toilets in order to change Michael's nappy. They are as good as Babypark is bad.

Now for an update on Michael. Since he cut his second tooth he has been a very sunny baby indeed. He is doing some backwards shuffling when we put him on the floor now. You couldn't call it crawling yet but he is certainly moving in the right direction (albeit bum first). He's had some trouble adjusting to the size of his cot. He has a lot more space than he is used to and has been waking himself up at the end of each sleep cycle. He has been rolling over onto his stomach too, and last night he managed to wedge his arm through the cot bars at the shoulder. I had to go and rescue him because I could tell by his cry that something unusual had gone wrong. I've positioned him with some care tonight in the hope that he will roll over in the same direction as in previous nights and have the space not to squash a limb. Phew... that was a long sentence. My old grammar school English teacher would not be impressed.

Michael hosted a webcast this evening and had the pleasure of hearing my mum and dad chatter to him (my sister has done something to their webcam configuration so he couldn't see them). My parents remarked that he looks like a little boy now and not a baby. I guess he does. I'm dressing him in little boy clothes now rather than sleepsuits. His hair is still very red and I'm expect that at six months old, that isn't going to change any time soon.

To end this epic entry on a slightly gushing note - we are constantly amazed and enthralled by what a fascinating character Michael is. We can't imagine our lives without him and are incredibly proud to be his parents.