Unexpected

One of the best surprises of new motherhood is how much time there is for reading. Reading books! I'd heard that once you've got a little one, you get so busy that it's hard to find time to even go to the toilet, and that reading is constricted to the odd short magazine article at best. But I hadn't factored in the many, many hours spent just holding or lying with the baby while he feeds. This time is so good, I'm finding, for any kind of mental activity - not just watching tv - and I make the most of it with daydreaming, scheming, drafting letters in my head and reading. I've just poked my nose into Moby-Dick, and I'm relishing every page.

(Luckily we've already given Timmy a perfectly serviceable name, or else I'd be arguing strongly for 'Ishmael'.)