Day 36 - Friday 31st August

Although we reported a problem with the air conditioning twice last evening, it still was not working. I found it too hot and didn't get much sleep. The buffet breakfast at the hotel was also a disappointment - not much choice and poor service.

We checked out at 9:30 and went to the nearby Bunratty Folk Park. This is a village within the grounds of Bunratty Castle that showcases 19th century life in Ireland. We looked through most of the site and Suzy spent some time in the specialty shops.

At about 11am, we set off to drive to the Cliffs of Moher which is a spectacular coastline between Limerick and Galway. The cliffs are about 8km long and rise vertically out of the sea.

When he reached the Cliff of Moher, it was immediately obvious that it was a top tourist site because of the way the site was laid out.

The car park was in a field across the road from the site and was large enough to cater for hundreds of cars and dozens of tourist coaches. There were three boom gates with attendants to collect the entry fees for the car park.

When you walk back across the road, you notice a series of shops tastefully built into the hillside. Further on, you get to the visitor information centre which is also built into the hillside. The visitor centre is a two-storey building with information, exhibits and cafes.

There are two paths leading from the visitor centre. The one heading south takes you for a walk along the top of the cliffs. The path heading north climbs up the hill to give you views back to the cliffs. The best views are from O'Briens Lookout which is a castle-like structure at the top of the hill.

After admiring the view and climbing to the top of O'Brien's Lookout, we had lunch in a cafe in the visitors centre.

When we returned to our car, it made a beeping noise when I turned on the ignition. I eventually realised that the petrol gauge was on empty. I asked one of the attendants at the car park entrance where the nearest petrol station was. She said we should go to Doolin, the next town north which was about 10km away.

Naturally we were worried that we wouldn't have enough fuel to get to Doolin and so it was a big relief when we pulled into the petrol station. To my surprise it only took 43 litres (in a tank with a capacity of 50 litres). So we must have still had plenty of petrol after all rather being completely empty as the gauge indicated.

While I was filling up the car, Suzy went to a woollen shop next door to the petrol station.

To get to Galway, we decided to take the scenic route along the coast. This area, called The Burran, is a rugged rocky area with little vegetation. We even saw a group of mountain climbers practising their skills on one of the rock faces.

The TomTom successfully led us through the Galway traffic to the Radisson Blu hotel where we'd booked to stay for the next two nights. It's in a pleasant location next to the lake and close to the centre of town. The hotel is quite large and has a multi-storey carpark underneath.

After settling into the hotel, we went for a walk through the town. It's a popular tourist spot. The main shopping street has lots of character and has been turned into a plaza. I'd started to wish that I'd brought my gloves and beanie because it was cold and windy.

Suzy had found an Italian restaurant (The Venice) on Trip Advisor that had good reviews. Although the restaurant was on a side street, it was easy to find because there was a man wearing a sandwich board in the plaza advertising the restaurant and pointing to its location. The restaurant was quite OK but not brilliant.

Day 35 - Thursday 30th August

Once again we had a buffet breakfast at the hotel and checked out at 9:30am. The weather had improved considerably overnight.

Our first task was to find an ATM in Killarney to get some more Euros. The TomTom found the centre of town OK.

When we tried to find a parking spot, we went down a narrow street that got narrower and narrower with every turn. On the last stretch, there was only centimetres clearance on either side of our car between the buildings on one side and parked cars on the other. I noticed that most of the parked cars had folded their external mirrors flat against the side of the car.

The town was still quiet because most of the shops don't open until 10am. We asked the tourist information office where we could find an ATM.

The plan for today was to drive around the Dingle Peninsula which is another peninsula north of the Ring of Kerry where we went yesterday. We drove to Dingle (clockwise this time).

Along the way we stopped several times to admire the coastline from the cliffs and from a beach. At Dingle, we turned off on another loop road called Slea Head Drive that goes around the end of the peninsula.

We stopped at Dunberg Fort which consists of ruins of a fort on the coastline dating back over 900 years. We started by going to the visitors centre that showed a film documentary and we then walked over the road and down the hill to the ruins.

Further on, we stopped at another site where they are restoring beehive stone huts that were used by local inhabitants more than 3000 years ago.

Despite what we'd been told, tourist coaches were travelling on these narrow window cliff-side roads. It was amazing seeing them navigating the tight curves without plunging over the edge.

For lunch, we stopped at the waterfront at Dingle. There we found a nice sunny cafe that sold great fish and chips etc. Afterwards we went for a walk along the waterfront and through the shops on the main street. It was a popular tourist location.

After leaving Dingle we headed north up the mountainside through the Connor Pass. At the top of the pass, there were great views in both directions. We then headed towards Tralee and then north towards Limerick.

The best scenery on the peninsula was on the southern side. It is certainly a picturesque coastline. Well worth the visit - particularly on a nice sunny day.

Before Limmerick, we turned off the motorway at Bunratty Castle. We stopped near the castle so I could take photos while Suzy picked up the tickets we'd booked for the medieval banquet tonight at the castle.

We'd booked accommodation for the night at Bunratty Castle Hotel which was only about a block away from the castle. We reached the hotel by 6pm.

Our banquet was due to start at 8:30pm. There was a queue of people waiting at the entrance.  They ushered us up a spiral stone staircase into a large room in the castle where they served us honey wine (mead) and then took us downstairs to the banquet room.

Dinner consisted of three courses - soup, pork, chicken plus as much wine as you wanted.

Before the dinner, we met a New Zealand family. During the dinner, we were seated beside two quiet American ladies from Texas. On the other side was an Irish couple from nearby Kerry.

The staff were dressed in medieval clothes. They acted as waiters and entertainers. There was music and singing before, during and after dinner. It was a fun night that ended at about 11pm.

Day 34 - Wednesday 29th August

The plan for today was to drive around the Ring of Kerry which is a peninsula near Killarney that has a reputation for spectacular coastal scenery. It is a very popular tourist location. There is a coast road that loops around the peninsula.

When we arrived at the hotel yesterday, we got advice from reception about our trip. She told us that the roads are narrow and we should allow six hours to do the journey because there is so much to see. She gave us several tips:

• Travel anti-clockwise around the loop road because this is the direction that the tourist buses travel. If you go the other way, you spend the whole day dodging big buses coming the other way on narrow roads.
• Leave before 10am because this is when most of the tourist buses leave. Therefore we should aim to have breakfast at 8am when the restaurant opens.
• There is an extra loop road at the end of peninsula where the roads are so narrow that the buses cannot go there. It is called the Skellig Ring and it has the best scenery.
• At the end of the Skellig Ring, Valentia Island has more great scenery.

We had a buffet breakfast in the restaurant hotel at 8am sharp. It was still raining. Rain and passing showers continued all day with some blue skies at times.

When we set out at 9am, the first step was to buy some petrol.

On the peninsula, the first place we stopped was Kerry Bog Village which a recreation of a typical village in medieval times. Next we stopped at Rossbeigh Beach which could possibly be quite pleasant on a day without rain and howling winds.

When we turned off onto the Skellig Ring, we saw that the roads were indeed narrow but the scenery made it worthwhile. At Portmagee, we decided to drive across the bridge to Valentia Island.

The loop around the island provided more great scenery. At times, we got adventurous and drove down some narrow muddy tracks which were tricky when we encountered cars coming the other way.

The receptionist had mentioned a pub at Portmagee that served great fish meals. We found a small pub that fitted the bill and we enjoyed fresh fish and chips with a local beer. Apart from us, there were only three locals enjoying a quiet beer plus a few blow-in tourists from time to time.

Back on the road, we discovered Skellig Chocolate factory outlet in the middle of nowhere. They have fabulous chocolate. Afterwards we stopped at Sneem for coffee. We travelled back via Molls Gap and stopped at Ladies View where we had a panoramic view of the lakes. We could even see our hotel in the far distance.

Overall, the Ring of Kerry was a great experience. It has a rugged dramatic rocky coastline with great views. There are a few sandy beaches along the way at the bottom of cliffs.

We didn't need the TomTom to find our way around (except when we got lost on Valentia Island).

We were back at the hotel by 5pm and went for a walk out to the ruins next to the lake. The goose ran up to us but we didn't have any food to give it. We went to the hotel cafe bar for pre-dinner drinks and dinner.

Day 33 - Tuesday 28th August

When we opened the curtains this morning, we saw blue sky with some clouds. We had breakfast in hotel restaurant and checked out at 10am. Today we planned to visit three castles.

We put our bags in car in car park and set off to walk to Rock of Cashel (St Patrick's Rock). We arrived in time for a guided tour at 10:30 that lasted for about an hour.

Although the site has been occupies for 2500 years, the cathedral was built here 900 years ago. One of the key features is St Patrick's cross that dates back over 800 years.

The structure is built on a rocky hill near the town - hence the name. It is a cold, windy spot which is why one of the occupants built another castle in the town which has since been converted into a hotel.

The site is being restored. Part of the process is to cover key parts of the building (such as the chapel) with a temporary waterproof roof for four years to allow the stonework to dry out.

Next we drove to Cahir to see the Castle of Cahir. Fortunately most of the trip was on the M8 motorway. Along the way we passed through a small town called Hollywood.

The castle is a good strategic position on a river. It's a pretty setting with an old stone bridge and water pouring over weirs into the river under the bridge.

This castle was not crowded - there were no tourist buses. You had to be careful going through the site because of the ramparts without handrails, low doorways and narrow staircase.

For lunch we went to the Riverside Cafe across the road from the castle before heading off towards Bunratty.

At one stage Suzy wanted to do a detour to a town called Tipperary which is about 20km from Cahir - just so we could say we'd been there. Although in this case it wasn't a long way to Tipperary, we decided that we'd run out of time to get there.

Blarney Castle seems to be privately run and so costs more than other sites we've visited. On the other hand, it was better presented than most. As usual, the castle is high on a hill and you approach it through nice gardens and a bridge across a creek. It was very busy with plenty of tourist buses.

The castle's main claim to fame is the Blarney Stone. To kiss the Blarney Stone, you need to climb a narrow staircase to the top of the tower. Suzy did it but I got claustrophobia and chickened out.

At the stone, an attendant holds you as you bend backwards to kiss the stone. There are also metal rails to hold onto. A photographer takes your photo and so we have photographic evidence that she did it.

Next we drove to Killarney where we had booked to stay at the Lake Hotel. The journey was on a series of highways and country roads rather than motorways. As we approached the town, the showers returned.

In Killarney, the TomTom lead us down a very narrow laneway for about 1km that was not much wider than the width of one car. However, it was a two-way road. The satnav probably thought it was a good shortcut.

The hotel has a beautiful setting next to the lake. It is a large, high-class, luxurious hotel with lounge areas, a library, restaurant, bar, etc.

It is even its own stone ruin next to the lake. There is birdlife on the lake and a large goose that patrols the grass area near the hotel looking for food hand-outs from the guests.

We were allocated a large luxurious room with view of the lake. The room had cable internet but it was very slow and unreliable. There was WiFi in the public areas.

We had an excellent dinner in the restaurant. Later we sat in one of the lounge areas listening to the live music that starts at 9:30.

Day 32 - Monday 27th August

 I did not sleep well last night because there was a lot of noise all night. Initially I thought someone was moving furniture in the next room. Then I thought it was thunder. Finally I concluded it was just very strong wind (and perhaps thunder).

When we arrived last night, the B&B owner told us we would enjoy the view when we opened the curtains in the morning. It was certainly a pleasant view of the stream and the steep wooded hill on the other side but we saw it through heavy rain being blown almost horizontal by strong winds.

Downstairs, we enjoyed a simple breakfast in the conservatory. The house looks as though it was purpose built as a B&B and recently built.

Today's first stop was to be nearby Glendalough Monastery. The original plan was to walk there from the B&B. This was to be a 15 minute walk starting by using stepping stones to cross the stream. However, when we got back from breakfast, the stream had risen to cover the stepping stones. We would have been washed away.

Instead we checked out of the B&B at 10am and drove to the monastery site.

First we went into the visitors centre to have a look at the exhibition and see a 15-minute film about the history of the monastery.

Originally we thought it would be too wet to visit the ruins but after the documentary, the rain was starting to ease and so we ventured out. The centrepiece of the ruins is the round tower (a common feature in religious places of the time). We also saw the remains of a cathedral and gravestones.

The stream that runs through the site was flowing quickly and its height was increasing. So it looked as though it would soon be flowing over the  numerous pedestrian bridges that span the creek.

Back in the visitor centre, I asked the people at the counter if the creek ever floods. They told me it does and one of them showed me a mark on the wall in the theatre were the water had risen to some years ago - ruining most of the centre. He said the hotel next to the visitor centre floods regularly and they can't get insurance.

At about 11am, we set off and drove through nearby Laragh and stopped at the Blarney woollen mills factory outlet where Suzy spent almost an hour. She bought a jumper for John.

The next destination was to be Kilkenny. Not too far up the road, we stopped for a photo opportunity of the creek rushing down the hillside towards the monastery area.

The journey took us along numerous narrow country roads. It was slow progress made harder by regular puddles that covered the road. Eventually we got onto a motorway that took us to Kilkenny.

The main street of Kilkenny was very attractive with its painted shops. However it was slow going because the street was very narrow and was busy with cars and pedestrians.

We found a parking spot about 10 minutes walk from the town centre and walked back to Kilkenny Castle. By that time, the rain had stopped.

Before visiting the castle, we had lunch at a restaurant across the road and Suzy spent time in the shops next door.

The castle is in the centre of the town and is set on large grounds with a vast park area behind the castle. We did a self-guided tour of castle with the assistance of a brochure and signs. There were also helpful attendants along the way giving more information about the areas we visited. They have done an excellent job in restoring the castle.

After looking through the castle, we went to the rose garden which gives a good view of the castle and the river.

The next task was to drive to Cashel where we had booked accommodation for the night. Once again, the journey was a mixture of narrow roads and motorways. As we approached Cashel, the heavy rain returned.

Baileys Hotel is in the main street of Cashel. It is a four-storey structure that looked as though it might have been a rich family's mansion when it was build about 250 years ago.

Our room was on the first floor at the front of the building overlooking the street. Things seemed to be going well with getting our bags up to the first floor because there was a lift but then, strangely, we had to go down half a flight of stairs and then up another half a flight of stairs to get to our room.

The room itself was very nicely decorated and spacious with dark timber panelling and tasteful furniture and a king sized bed - in fact, it looked bigger than king size. From our room, we could see the top of the Rock of Cashel monument that we'd be visiting in the morning.

Thankfully the room had cable internet and so the connection speed was quite good. They told us that the WiFi was only available in the lounge area downstairs. However we found we had quite good WiFi reception in our room - probably because we were just above the lounge area.

However, there was no air conditioning in our room - some rooms had air conditioning but not ours.

Unsurprisingly, there is no parking the hotel building or in the street and so they offer parking in a car park 50m down the street. At reception they gave me a keypad code to get into the car park. We've been caught before in Europe with car parks that are more like 500m down the road rather than 50m and keypads that just don't work when you get there but in this case my fears were unfounded because it all worked as described.

Luckily, we remembered that we had to go online to pay the eFlow toll for the motorway last night near Dublin airport.

After settling in, we walk up the main street to see the town - it's very small. Suzy bought some things in a supermarket but managed to pick the wrong queue and had to wait forever to get served.

For dinner, we went to the Cellar Bar which in the lower level at the hotel below reception. It gets good reviews in Trip Advisor and we could see why. We got chatting to the couple in the table next to us because we recognised their Australian accents. They are from Wollongong.

Day 31 - Sunday 26th August

Before breakfast, I went for a walk and explored a nearby suburb, Hampstead Garden Suburb. This is where Nicky and John had been thinking of buying a house a few months ago. It's a very nice neighbourhood. The rain had cleared away leaving a pleasant sunny morning.

When I got back, Amelia, Suzy and John were awake but there was no sign yet of Nicky and Alexis. They came downstairs mid-morning. Apparently Alexis slept much better last night.

For lunch, we all went to the Barracuda Cafe which is in the main street of East Finchley. It's a pleasant cafe on a street corner with some tables inside and others outside next to the footpath. It is a sunny spot on a tree-lined street.

To get to Dublin for our eight-day holiday in Ireland, we'd booked to fly with CityJet which is owned by Air France. I've never heard of CityJet before and I don't think I've every flown with Air France before.

I decided to join the Air France loyalty program, Flying Blue, which is part of an airline grouping called SkyTeam. They say this is a third airline grouping after One World and Star Alliance.

The flights we booked use London City Airport which is located in the Docklands area of London near the Thames and close to Canary Wharf where John's office is. This is the same area where Nicky used to work before Amelia was born.

We'd booked a car and driver to take us to the airport. Suzy decided to use a local company called Greater London Hire (GLH) for 2:30pm.

Usually these cars arrive early and so when it hadn't arrived at 2:35pm, she rang to check on him. It turned out that he was waiting at the other end of the street - confused by the fact that Nicky and John's house has a name but not a street number.

Although Google Maps claims that it's a half-hour trip to London City Airport, the driver seemed to use a long route through the suburbs before getting onto a motorway. Along the way, we saw the new Olympic stadium near the motorway.

London City Airport is smaller than the other airports in London - Heathrow, Gatwick, Luton and Stanstead. It's rather like a regional airport in Australia - but more modern and sophisticated.

It wasn't crowded like other airports. There were only short queues and it took no time to get through security. We were surprised to find there was no passport checking process. We had time to fill in so we had a drink at the bar.

When we reached the gate, some people with carry-on bags were being told they had to put their carry-on bags in the cargo hold. Luckily I seemed to escape this and we sat there wondering why and expecting someone to come and take my bag away. The reason became obvious when we got on board - the height of the overhead lockers at the front of the plane is too shallow whereas for our seats, the height was OK for our bags. Weird.

The plane was a small four-engine jet that probably carried less than 100 passengers. There was no air bridge access - you walked out onto the runway and up a set of stairs. The plane seemed to be full but the time between boarding and take-off was very short.

I was in the window seat on the right side of the aircraft. The pilot announcement had suggested we look out the window shortly after take-off to get a view of the Olympic stadium. Sure enough we flew right over it about 200m below.

The flight time to Dublin was just over an hour. In the terminal, there were two queues for customs: one for EU countries and another for non-EU. Our non-EU queue was very slow - partly because there was only one officer on duty and partly because he seemed to be quizzing some people extensively. When we got to the counter, we got through without the interrogation.

We'd booked a hire car online with the cheapest option we could find - a local company called Dan Dooley Car Rentals. The man at the counter was very helpful. We'd been allocated an automatic Nissan Micra.

When we reached the car in the car park, it had small scratches but it was difficult to distinguish the scratches from the dirt. Also the hub caps looked as though they were about to fall off. When I moved the car so we could get the bags into it, Suzy said the car made a grinding noise.

So we decided to go back to the counter to report the problems. However, there was no longer anybody at the counter. We waited 20 minutes for him to return - he'd gone to McDonald's to get some dinner. While we were waiting I tried ringing several phone numbers for the company and got no answers.

He convinced us the car would be OK and marked the defects on the paperwork. He gave us phone numbers to ring if we had any problems.

When we returned to the car, I did more checking. I found that the headlights didn't work and only one parking light at the front was functional.

I rang the man at the desk and he said he would come to the car park. He arrived ten minutes later and confirmed that the headlights did not work.

He then upgraded us to another car, a Nissan Tiida. This bigger car was much better and our bags even fitted in the boot.

By this time, we were on first name terms with Thomas, the Dan Dooley employee. It had taken over an hour to sort out our car rental (including reading and re-reading the instruction manual about getting the headlights to work) and we eventually left the airport at about 8:30pm.

It was still light and the weather was fine. Initially we travelled on motorways. Near the airport, we went through a toll for which we had no etag. Thomas had told us we needed to contact the tollway operator by 8 o'clock the following night to pay the toll to avoid receiving a fine.

Our TomTom diverted us onto a series of narrow regional roads. Suzy rang the B&B to say we'd be late. It was slow going and we definitely needed headlights. We reached the B&B at 9:30. By that time it had starting to rain.

The B&B is in a remote location near Glendalough. It seemed to have five or six guest rooms. Ours was a modern, spacious room. However the WiFi reception was poor. We managed to get a connection on our  iPhones and  iPad but not for the laptop.

As we went to bed after a long day, the rain was getting heavier and the wind was getting stronger.

Day 30 - Saturday 25th August

Apparently Alexis slept well initially last night but then was very unsettled for 2 or 3 hours. Several times Suzy heard Alexis crying and went upstairs to help.

The forecast rain had arrived overnight. Amelia, Suzy and John all slept in until after 8:30am. Nicky and Alexis came downstairs at about 10am.

I rang Dell about the problem I've been having since yesterday morning in connecting to the internet. It turned out to be a problem with the McAfee anti-virus software. Apparently a recent McAfee update caused problems for computers all over the world. The Dell technician did a remote connection to my laptop and fixed the problem.

My Ultrabook was back in action again and I was very pleased. I was now able to update my blog and my photo site. A parcel arrived from BT in the post but it turned out not to be the new modem. Yes, they have mail and parcel deliveries on Saturdays in the UK.

John took Amelia to the soft-play area at the David Lloyd sport centre at North Finchley for a couple of hours (to reduce the activity and noise level and to give Amelia some entertainment). He brought her back for lunch and a sleep.

Football news was all bad news because the Wallabies were beaten by New Zealand and Collingwood lost in the AFL.

A mid-wife from the hospital arrived after lunch for a regular visit to see Nicky and Amelia. She weighed her and gave her a blood test.

For a while there was a relaxing quiet period while both girls slept.

During the afternoon, rain and thunderstorms passed through. In a break in the weather, I went for a long walk around Muswell Hill and Highgate. The others went for a short walk with the kids. We all needed some exercise after being stuck in the house for most of the day because of the weather.

Alexis had a bath in the new baby bath that Nicky had bought. The first bath took lots of helpers and onlookers.

Later John and I gave Amelia a bath and shampoo.

After dinner, Alexis was unsettled. We all took turns to try to settle her down. Nicky took the opportunity to get some sleep. Later John took Alexis for a walk in her pram for about 40 minutes.

Day 29 - Friday 24th August

Yesterday John set up a bed for himself on the middle level of the town house so he could get some sleep and still be on call to help out with Alexis if Nicky needed him. He managed to get a full night's sleep because Alexis had a much better night. So Nicky also managed to get some sleep (but obviously not a full night's sleep).

John was worried about the slow speed of the WiFi internet connection and so he rang BT. In the end they agreed to send him a new modem overnight.

I was also having trouble connecting to the internet on my laptop. I rely on my laptop for various tasks such as updating my blog, uploading photos to my photo site, and  synching my iPhone and iPad. So it was very frustrating. All the iPhones, iPads and MacBooks in the house were able to get a connection.

Late morning, Suzy and I took Amelia to the playground at the park (Cherry Tree Wood) to give Nicky, John and Alexis a little peace and quiet.

Amelia then had a sleep before John took her to Clowns Nursery.

After lunch, I went for a walk to Barclays Bank at North Finchley to get Euros for our trip to Ireland. Halfway there, it started to sprinkle but not enough to get me wet. The forecast was for rain later this afternoon and I was hoping to fit in my walk before the rain.

At the end of the afternoon, I took my laptop to a local computer store to try to get an internet connection but I had the same problem as at John's place. So the problem with connecting to the internet must be with my laptop.

Nicky and John took Alexis for a walk in the pram before John had to go to Clowns to pick up Amelia.

I tried lots of things to get my laptop to work but without success and decided to call Dell in the morning.

Day 28 - Thursday 23rd August

Amelia woke at about 7:30am and we went through the normal routine of breakfast, games, TV, etc.  There was no sign of Nicky, John or Alexis.

Suzy and I were about to take Amelia to the zoo mid-morning (after Peppa Pig) when the doorbell rang. It was a midwife coming to see mother and baby for the first regular visit. Nicky, John and Alexis came downstairs to see her.

It turns out they had been up all night with Alexis because she didn't sleep well and needed frequent feeds. Nicky looked very tired. They were hoping to get some sleep during the day.

John ordered a taxi for us to go to the zoo. The zoo is in Regent's Park and we've driven past it several times in the last couple of weeks on the way to the hospital. When we arrived at the zoo, there was a long queue for tickets.

We'd been to London Zoo last year with Amelia. She didn't seem very interested last year but this time she really enjoyed it - running from one exhibit to another.

Nicky said that the last time she took Amelia to the zoo they didn't get to see the giraffes and so we went there first. In this African area of the zoo we saw other animals such as warthogs and zebras.

We spent more time at the zoo than last year and saw parts that we'd missed last year. For example, we all enjoyed the aquarium and Australian animals.

For lunch we went to the cafe and found a table under the trees. Suzy went inside to buy some food while I organised the chairs and highchair at a table. I looked around to find that Amelia had vanished. Several nervous minutes passed before I eventually spotted her in the distance near the merry-go-rounds.

We caught a taxi home and found Nicky and John with Alexis in the pram ready to go for a walk. John put Amelia down for a nap. Soon afterwards, I decided I needed a nap too after our trip to the zoo.

For dinner, John organised a very nice Italian takeaway from a restaurant at the nearby East Finchley shops.

Day 27 - Wednesday 22nd August

Amelia was booked in to go to the creche this morning at the David Lloyd sporting centre where Nicky and John go to the gym. I pushed her there in the stroller (a 30 minute walk) and got her there in time at 9:30am.

The staff got me to fill in a form giving my phone number and location. I was about to leave and go back home when they told me that I couldn't leave the building.

Apparently when they asked for my location they meant I had to tell them where I would be in the centre. The idea is that you leave the child while you go to the gym or play tennis at the centre. I went downstairs to the cafe and had a coffee.

Suzy was planning to come back with me to pick her up but I rang her to tell her there was no point. So she took the opportunity to do a lot of cleaning at home in anticipation of Alexis coming home from the hospital today.

At 11:30am, I went back upstairs to pick up Amelia. When I walked into the room, she ran across the room - dodging countless toys - and gave me a big hug. I then pushed her home in her stroller.

John, Nicky and Alexis drove into the driveway at about 12:30pm. She was sound asleep in the car capsule and stayed asleep until about 2pm - sleeping like a baby.

Every now and then she would half open her eyes when there was any noise - such as from her big sister or from Daddy assembling her new pram. I haven't heard her cry yet.

When she started to stir, Grandma picked Alexis up from her capsule and held her for the first time. There were a few little whimpers but she seemed very contented. While Nicky was breast feeding her, Grandma went upstairs to wake Amelia and bought her downstairs.

The new pram is quite an elaborate apparatus - it looks like a small car. It has a horizontal carrier for the baby and a sloping seat for a toddler. It took quite an effort for Nicky and John to assemble it.

John drove Amelia to Clowns Nursery at Golders Green. He then had to take the car to a BMW dealership to get the car electronics fixed.

After John returned home, we started installing new towel rails in the bathroom. Later John picked up Amelia from Clowns and she was as active as usual. Through all of this commotion, Alexis just slept soundly.

We had a barbecue for dinner before Amelia went to bed. It will be interesting to see how well Alexis goes on her first night at home.

Day 26 - Tuesday 21st August

Amelia woke up before 7:30am which is earlier than usual. She wanted to come into our bed to play games with my iPad (such as Wheels on the Bus and a new puzzle game I downloaded yesterday).

After breakfast, Suzy rang Gymboree to ask if Amelia could go there this morning to make up for the class she missed yesterday afternoon.  They put her on a waiting list and said it should be OK.

Yesterday I'd put Gymboree at the O2 centre at Hampstead into our TomTom as a favourite to make it easy to find our way there. I'd prefer to use our TomTom rather than the BMW satnav because it's what I'm used to. It got us there successfully with time to spare.

But then again, I missed one turn-off and Amelia pointed out that we should have turned off back there. She then began to cry because she thought that we weren't taking her to Gymboree after all. Silly Grandpa turned at the next street and did a U-turn that got us back in the correct direction. Problem solved.

It was the first time that either of us had participated in Gymboree class. The venue is on the top level of O2 shopping centre and resembles a play area with soft gym mats and low play structures because they cater for young kids. Apparently there are dozens of Gymboree locations all over the UK.

A young man arrived at 10:30am to run the class. The mothers assist in the class - such as sitting next to their child or holding them when they are climbing.

Suzy performed the mother's role whereas I generally kept my distance - I wouldn't have been comfortable for example sitting under a large parachute with a dozen young mothers.

Before we left the O2 Centre, we bought some groceries at Sainsbury's including some snacks to keep Amelia entertained on the way home. When we got home, Alan the cleaner was there. He said that John had just caught a taxi to go to the hospital to visit Nicky. (He had some work activities to undertake at home this morning.)

Amelia had been very active all morning and didn't get to sleep until about 2:30pm. Suzy took the opportunity of peace and quiet to catch a bus to a baby shop at nearby Muswell Hill to buy some gifts.

Suzy woke her at about 3:30pm so we could go to the hospital to visit Nicky and Amelia. It took a while to get everything ready for our journey - new dress, drinks, snacks, stroller, satnav, etc.

I was backing out of the driveway when Amelia told us that the door wasn't closed. I looked around and checked that all the car doors were closed. Then we realised that the front door of the town house was still open. Thank heavens that Amelia was on the ball.

We parked near Regent's Park as Nicky normally does. Challenge number one was that the parking payment machine wasn't working properly but eventually I got it to accept coins.

Challenge number two was that we could find the hospital. A quick call to John pointed us in the right direction.

When we reached Nicky's room just before 5pm, Alexis was asleep. Luckily she woke at about 5:45pm and so I was able to get photos of her with everyone before the parking meter expired.

During the day, Nicky had received visits from a variety of hospital staff including a physio for Nicky and a hearing specialist for Alexis.

After leaving the hospital, we went to the playground at Regent's Park. At this hour, the park was busier than when we were there a few days ago. Also there were cyclists everywhere.

John drove us home and then went on to the hardware store to buy things he needed. Suzy  had organised Amelia's dinner by the time John got home. John gave Amelia her bath and put her to bed.

Suzy had organised a delicious lamb roast for dinner in the new Crock-Pot.

Day 25 - Monday 20th August

Normally we put our iPhones on silent during the night so we don't get disturbed. Last night we did the opposite - we made sure the iPhones were audible so we could get any messages that John might send us from the hospital. This meant that we woke up and jumped for the phone every time an email message came into our inbox from anyone.

Eventually the message we had been hoping for arrived just before 2am. It was an SMS message from John:

"Baby Alexis Cubbin was born at 12:22 on Monday 20th. 3.2kg. Both mum and bub are doing well."

After Amelia woke up, we told her that the baby had arrived and that she now had a little sister. I don't think she really understood.

John got home at about 9:30am. Apparently he slept at the hospital in a bed in the same room as Nicky and the baby. He was full of praise for the way Nicky handled the labour process.

At about 11:30am, we all set off to drive to the hospital to visit Nicky and Alexis. She is an absolutely gorgeous baby.

I took the opportunity to take lots of photos. Amelia was quite active and so it was hard to get her to pose for photos.

While we were there, a nurse came to take Alexis away for her first bath.

Their security system is very strict. The mother and baby each wear a bracelet. If the baby is moved to a different floor or a certain distance away from the mother, the lifts shut down and alarms sound. In other words, there is no way that anyone could take the baby away from their mother.

Nicky and John had organised a present for Amelia from the baby (a baby doll). Amelia enjoyed opening the present and then playing with the doll.

John decided to stay at the hospital and so Suzy and I used John's car to drive Amelia home for her lunch and a sleep.

It was the first time that I'd driven John's car. John gave me a quick lesson on how to use the BMW's inbuilt satellite navigation system.

The London traffic and the narrow streets were a little nerve-racking but we got home safely. On the journey, Suzy entertained Amelia in the back seat to avoid her falling asleep.

It was after 2pm before she got to bed. Because it had been such a big morning, we let her sleep for a couple of hours. By that time it was too late to get her to her 4pm Gymboree class.

Instead we took her for a walk in her stroller to the playground at Highgate Wood which is more than 1km away.

At about 6pm, John rang to say he had just arrived home and so Suzy and I caught the bus back to East Finchley with Amelia. John said everything is going well at the hospital.

After Amelia went to bed, John ordered some takeaway pizza online which I collected from the local Domino Pizza shop.

Suzy found a photo of Amelia as a baby. Amelia has changed a lot since she was born. This photo was very similar to baby Alexis.