Superdad Will Lodge looks forward to first Fathers’ Day with the baby

They grow up so fast don’t they?

I am fortunate to work from home much of the time but when I had a day out for a family funeral followed by an early start in the office I couldn’t believe how much I missed all of the children.

From what they did at school to being told about the latest Minecraft update – it felt like I had been away for a week rather than 36 hours.

Baby in particular seemed to have developed so much in such a short space of time.

We’ve sort of had first steps, or should that be totters, and we’re yet to see those repeated.

We have also had first words - though somewhat disappointingly it was not the Mama or Dada we had been hoping for but rather “bear bear”, particularly surprising given her dislike for stuffed animals when she was younger. We are yet to see this repeated too.

But the biggest change during my absence is baby’s ability to not just understand but follow instructions.

Of course she is not completing Jamie Oliver recipes yet but nonetheless this of course makes her the number one baby in our eyes.

The basic commands she can follow include hug, kiss, and even get which provides no end of entertainment for us.

(As an aside getting cuddles and kisses on demand is extremely enjoyable.) I was delighted to discover this on my return, and fortunately feel I’ve not missed out too much on this occasion.

However it will make any future time apart even harder to undergo.

Speaking of recipes, Baby has been put on some special food instructions.

An ongoing plague of spots on her face has shown no signs of disappearing. While to begin with there were a multitude of possibilities going through our minds (and Google) - including that catch-all of teething which seems to be limitless in its symptomatic options – eventually we had to give up and make a visit to the doctor.

You don’t want to be that over-worried parent, but nor do you want to let something more serious slip under our radar.

The most likely candidate is a food allergy, probably acidic fruit, so Mila is now skipping the fruit pots and devouring bananas.

It also transpires, following a family birthday, that Baby has inherited my wife’s love of birthday cake.

While some food gets nibbled at and generally eaten, or dropped on the floor, cake is almost inhaled by her. Never has her hand-eye co-ordination been so good.

On the subject of occasions, tomorrow is Father’s Day and sadly our boys will be elsewhere and I shall miss them terribly.

But at least I will have Mila to share the day with me, and who knows maybe she will cook me breakfast in bed.

I’d better get cracking teaching her those Jamie Oliver recipes, and how I like my eggs.