Julia is growing quickly

Julia our granddaughter is now more than three months old and the change in her is remarkable.

We have been lucky to be able to see her very often; I think two or three weeks is the longest interval we've had, and seeing her at intervals means we see a step change in her development every time.

Sometimes it's quite shocking, such as when she got control of her head and neck within the space of two weeks and, instead of flopping like a rag doll, she was able to turn her head in the direction she wanted.

We've seen her eyes go from 'blank, no-one's home' to bright, curious and questioning.

All these things I remember from my own children, but being with them every day, I didn't pick up the small changes that, collectively, make a large step so it all seemed less dramatic.

The other thing that I've noticed is how well Julia knows her mother. If you're holding her and she hears Lucy, she turns to try to see her. Before she could move her head, she would stiffen in excitement (or stop crying) when she heard Lucy's voice.

These past couple of weeks have been quite busy. On September 19, Sam and Lucy should have been coming across from Jersey to spend a couple of weeks holiday in England. The plan was to spend a week in Thorney, be here for Julia's christening on September 27, and then head to Ramsgate, where Lucy's parents have a second home and where a lot of their furniture has been stored for almost two years.

They were coming across in their new car (Lucy's car) a white Jeep, which they bought in August, but things didn't go to plan. Condor Ferries, which operates the link between the Channel Islands and the UK, had a problem with its new boat, so there were no sailings for a few days.

They were eventually able to get on a sailing on Monday evening and so landed in Poole during the early hours and got to Thorney about 5am. Lucy is also pregnant, of course, and they hadn't had the ideal journey - a long, bouncy crossing with people being seasick and then a long drive in the early hours.

It was good to see the two of them. Before they went to France (and then Jersey) I was used to spending an evening with them at least once a month in Walthamstow and I miss their company. I don't think Lucy had been back to Thorney since July 2014 when they came back from France.

It has been a pretty stressful time for them both this year (mainly good stress). Sam has bought into the Castle Quay practice in St Helier and is now a partner, he's also bought into the separate pharmacy business and so is now fully committed to spending his working life on Jersey. He and Lucy have bought a car and Lucy is pregnant with a baby due in March.

They have been staying in an annexe above the garage of one of Sam's partners, which has been quite OK (perhaps a bit miserable during the winter), but with the practice now sorted and Lucy having a baby, it was time to get their own place.

Jersey property is very expensive compared to the UK and they've seen a couple of places they liked, made offers and had them accepted, only to fall through. They have an offer accepted on another place and it should go through in about a week's time, so this is another anxious wait.

After staying with us, they spent a week in Ramsgate sorting out their furniture for removal and also packing some of the more delicate items to take with them in the car.

Tom and Lucy wanted to have some kind of naming ceremony for Julia, but hadn't, initially, considered a christening. There was some thought of a christening at Thorney, but then they got the idea that it would be nicer to have it in the cathedral.

Because Tom attended the cathedral school - King's School - this was possible and a date was set for the end of September, which matched Sam's holiday. After the ceremony, friends and relations would be invited back to our house for food and drink.

It was decided to cook beef bourguignon, served with a pie made from a Tudor recipe that Lucy and Emilia had found when they visited Hampton Court Palace. There would be Scotch eggs made with quails' eggs for starters, lemon drizzle cake and orange ice cream to finish, served with sweet, sparkling tea.

Parents and godparents with Julia after
the christening ceremony

Personally, I'd have got some pies and sausage rolls from Sainsbury's and made some ham sandwiches, but it would not have been as memorable. For a few days previously, Margaret and I were shopping for large quantities of meat, mushrooms (I've never bought so many mushrooms at once) and pastry. My contribution was to make a cake.

Actually, the day couldn't have gone much better. The weather was beautiful - we were having an Indian summer, the garden looked nice and we were able to have everyone seated on tables on the lawn in the sun.

The ceremony was much better than it would have been at Thorney. It was part of a regular morning communion service and was quite grand, but also very friendly and welcoming. Julia, bribed with a bottle of milk, was very well behaved.

Max was godfather and Emilia, Lucy's sister, was godmother. Nidia, Lucy's mum, was able to come across from Ecuador. We picked her up from Heathrow on the Saturday morning and she stayed with us over the weekend, then I ran Lucy, Nidia, Emilia and Julia back to London on Monday afternoon. Nidia will stay for a couple of weeks, which is fantastic.