Quietly does it

I had a very quiet day today. I still had time to laugh and joke and point at the odd hat, but mainly I sat (or more precisely, held in mum's arms) quietly and contemplated life.

Someone at church noticed my rosy cheeks and asked mum if I had a red bum. That's a bit personal isn't it? Well, it turns out I do have a bit of a red bum and all those things point to new teeth coming through, which may explain my early morning wake up.

We went for a walk in the park today and met grandma and grandad and uncle Michael. There were lots of flowers in bloom and I had a good look at them, but didn't get too close, because there were quite a few bees too!

da dog

Dad was back into the garden today, and I set up shop at the front window - knocking on it and yelling out 'da'.

I can say 'mum' and 'dad' but usually out of context - so when mum heard me saying 'da' and pointing at dad, she was quite excited. She called out to him, and he came over and we all celebrated. He says he felt quite proud.

Later on we went over to Andy and Wendy's place for tea. They've got a dog called Max. Max usually goes outside when I come over - but tonight she came back in after tea and was lying on the floor just under the couch I was sitting on. She's pretty placid (unlike grandma's dog who I'm sure is out to get me) and I was able to crawl over and pat her. I giggled with every little pat, and had to be reminded to 'be gentle'. Max rolled over onto her back and wanted a tummy rub, so I did my best canine massage. I was smart enough not to pull her big floppy ears, because that may have ended our happy playtime. At one stage Max ran out of the loungeroom into another room, and I waddled off after her. We had a great time.

I stayed up way past my bedtime, and when we finally said goodnight and bundled into the car, I was asleep before we had even backed out of the driveway!

I stayed asleep until 3, when I woke up with a huge cry. Dad tried to settle me down, but this was a job for mum. I settled about half an hour later, and they gave me some gum soothing gel, just in case it was a new tooth that caused my stress.

The Fonz

My copycat skills are developing, and dad says it's great to see me trying out all the things he does. He also says he'll need to be careful what he does around me, in case I try and copy the bad habits!

Mum has taught me to wave my hands like stars to 'twinkle twinkle little star'. When she sings the tune, I do the moves. Everyone loves it.

Dad saw this, and decided I should learn to do 'something cool'. So he looked me in the eye and said said with his best Henry Winkler voice, 'heeeeey' - while doing the thumbs up. He reckons I will be the coolest kid on the block if I can do a Fonzie. I haven't quite mastered it - I get my thumb in the air, but keep my index finger pointed - so it looks like I'm pointing a 'finger gun'. And I can't quite say 'heeeeey' like the Fonz just yet...Maybe a leather jacket would help?

Helping dad

Dad had to do a bit of watering this morning, and seeing he didn't want to put me in the sling he grabbed my rocking chair out of the cupboard (mum had packed it away with a few of my 'baby' things), strapped me in, and plonked me on the front verandah while he carted bucket load after bucket load of water.

I loved it.

There's lots to look at outside.

I managed to stretch my legs out and touch the ground, and if I leaned forward enough I could almost stand up, despite being strapped in the chair. Mum says I look a bit like a turtle - with the chair as my shell! Dad laughed when he saw me pull this move, and realised why mum packed the chair away in the first place.

A sort of walk

I'm doing a lot more standing on my own and today made a step under my own power.

I was sort of tricked into it - I was walking along, holding dad's hand and all of a sudden he let go and I kept going. I must have travelled about 50cm before realising what was going on, and slowly lowered myself onto the floor (because I'm still pretty careful when it comes to most things)

Mum and dad reckon it's only a matter of time before I'm toddling around on my own.

Kiss me

I figured out kisses!

For months grown ups have been planting kisses on me and I haven't really been into them, but now I am. And I've even figured out how to kiss back. My first kiss was reserved for....My teddy bear!

It made mum and dad laugh...

My best times for kisses are in the morning, just when I've woken up. I'll lean in and kiss mum or dad, and then I'll kiss them again, and maybe even again...

The only thing I haven't figured out yet is how to do the 'kiss sound' big people do when they kiss, I puff out my lips and say 'maaah'...

Tumble

We were playing with the firetruck...We may have taken a corner a little bit too fast. And I may have let go of the handle bars just as we turned. And I may have gone one way when the firetruck went a different way. And I may have tumbled onto the floor. And I may have cried.

Dad reckons he could see the whole thing happen in slow motion. I settled down quickly, but gave the firetruck a wide berth for a few minutes.

Once I'd gathered my composure I climbed aboard and dad and I headed off down the hallway - a little bit slower than before - and this time with his hand on my shoulder - especially for those tight turns from the hallway into the dining room.

Tofu is not food

I'm not much of a meat eater but I don't think I would make a very good vegetarian because their number one dish is daft.

Tofu.

It was mixed in with our Pad Thai, and even though it looks interesting, it's not. I gave it a good try too. I chewed and chewed and chewed. Probably hoping it would start to taste like something. It didn't.

So my second course (custard) came a little bit earlier than expected.

There happened to be two pieces of tofu left on my high chair, and halfway through my dessert I grabbed one of those pieces and popped it in my mouth. I chewed and chewed and chewed. Nothing. I opened my mouth, reached in, grabbed the offending stuff and threw it down my shirt.

Custard > Tofu

Waiting in line

Dad and I found ourselves with a little bit of time to kill while mum was having a haircut. We decided to go to the fabric shop to get some material to decorate hats mum and dad were wearing to a trivia night.

I spent the time pointing at lots of rolls of fabric. We had lots of time because we ended up in the checkout line for 25 minuites! That's a long time. Especially when you're being held. Yeah, we didn't take the pram - it gets in the road, especially in shops and their small aisles...

So dad's arms got quite sore, but he was prett yimpressed with my composure during the wait. we chatted to each other - and I did a few high pitched squeals - just for fun.

We finally got to the counter, and dad plonked me down - I think his arms needed a rest...He says it's ok to sit on counters at shops unless they are food shops. Parents who put their kids on counters at food shops should be sent to the naughty chair.

Bye grandma and grandad

We got up very early this morning to go to the airport to see off grandma and grandad. They are going to New Guinea for a few months and so we thought we'd see them off.

I've never been to an airport before, there was a lot to look at, and lots of people. Probably too many peoplem because I got a little bit shy and did not want to leave dad's arms under any circumstances. Even hugs with grandad and grandma didn't last very long, I kept asking for dad. I'm a pretty social little fella, but sometimes you just gotta have your dad.

Oh yeah, it may have had something to do that I was still wearing my PJs! Yep, here I was on my first visit to the Brisbane International Airport, and I'm wearing sleepwear. It's because we hit traffic and had to make a mad dash from the car to the depature lounge, and I was the only one who couldn't dress himself.

Grandad had a hat on, and I thought that was very good. We bonded over his headwear.

Just as they were about to go through Customs I decided to give grandma a cuddle and everyone sighed with relief...

After they flew off we flew to the shops...And I scored some new shoes. New Chuck Taylors! They're too big for me now, but they were on a 'buy two' sale and mum got some so it made sense for me to chuck a pair of Chucks in the cupboard for later on...

Scary sleep

I had a pretty normal day - hanging out with dad in the morning, mum in the afternoon...But it was late in the night where I woke up with a start, quite distressed.

I was doing little squeals. Well, they weren't that little, especailly for those sleeping right next to me...So we all woke up, and mum set about trying to settle me down.

I eventually calmed down, but it wasn't very nice.

Mum and dad wonder if I had a bad dream. What do kids like me dream about?

Dad wonders if my bad dream had something to do with a teddy losing his hat. That would be a very bad dream indeed.

Me and my custard

Mum and I went shopping today and while she was busy choosing milk I busied myself grabbing a bottle that caught my eye. A bottle of custard. A one litre bottle of custard.

I leaned out as far as I could but couldn't quite manage to lift it into the trolley no matter how hard I tried. But I tried so hard that it impressed mum and she helped me get it into the trolley. So I got my custard!

At tea time I got a bowl and a spoon and dad let me feed myself. It took a long time, and sometimes I didn't quite manage to get much on the spoon, but I managed to get a lot in my tummy. And all over my jumper. The inside of my jumper too. Anyone can drip food all over the outside of their clothes, but it takes a certain skill to get it all over the inside!

On hats

Hats are the coolest things in the world. I even love the word, 'hat'.

I don't really like putting them on my own head, but I love putting them on other people's heads. It's a game I love playing, but one other people get sick of pretty quickly!

Grandma has a hat rack at her house and every time we've been there recently I point at the hat rack excitedly. Yesterday I annouced what it was, 'hat'.

It's pretty much my only real word, apart from 'teddy' which I let slip and grandma's place today. We were looking at some dominoes with teddy bears on them, and I said 'tedeeeeee'. Everyone was quite impressed.

First word

"hat"

Zonked out

I was a bit tired today. Probably all those crazy nights we had during the week. I got a bit whingy on the way home from church, and was rubbing my eyes a lot, so we had to cancelour family lunch and I went to bed.

I slept for almost three hours. I haven't done that for ages.

And then tonight, I went to bed early and slept right through, and was the last one to wake up! I haven't done that for ages.

No one was complaining.

Dad noticed the other day that I usually have great big sleeps after swimming. That's when I am most active. So he decided we should run up and down the hallway - practicing my walking (I'm crusing a lot now - along the walls, cupboards and furniture) - and tiring me out at the same time.

Like the old days

Last night we had a reminder of those sleepless nights of last year...

I was a bit restless while asleep, but woke up soon after dad went to bed, and then decided it was time to play. Nobody wanted to play at midnight. Then, either I hit my head on the bedhead (I'm sporting a little bruise on my head) or I just got an attack of the sads, because my laughs and giggles turned to cries and high pictched squeals.

They lasted a long time.

Dad walked me around the house just like old times, and I soon settled down, but still found it really hard to go to sleep. Dad didn't, his head hit the pillow and was soon snoring loudly. He got into trouble for that! Just like old times!

I finally fell asleep around two o'clock and was up just after 6. funnily enough mum and dad were not ready to play at 6!

Boxed

Mum has packed away all my 'baby' stuff.

The steriliser, pump, bottles, tiny food containers and clothes - lots and lots of clothes - are all up in top of my wardrobe.

I guess that means I'm not a little baby anymore.

Mum and dad marvelled at how small my wondersuits were...It's hard to imagine that I was ever THAT small...

Shops and cheers

Dad and I hit the shops after dropping mum off at work this morning. We were sent to buy a training toilet thing. A little ladder and seat that sits on top of the toilet. It's for me. I haven't tried it out yet...But mum reckons we should be tackling toilet training soon, and so wants all the right equipment.

We also grabbed some new size 2 t-shirts for me - they were on sale, and the way I'm growing I'll be in them soon enough...

And then we made it home in time to watch some of the Olympics. We cheered on the Aussies in the pool, and celebrated gold!!

Get a haircut

I got my hair cut today. It had been getting long, so mum bit the bullet and took me along to a hairdresser to get the job done properly*

We chose the establishment, not by reputation, but by the equipment they had; a baby chair and a DVD player with the Wiggles. Surely that would be better than sitting on mum's knee, and flicking through gossip magazines at her hairdresser.

Mum and dad gave strict instructions about what we wanted. "Not too short" they said...Which is what we got at the back - but the fringe was another story. You see, I got a bit a bit whingey and squirmy at the 3/4 mark - just before the fringe was about to be trimmed. So the hairdresser went for speed over quality, and we ended up with a sort of short bowlish cut...

Anyway, we can't complain too much, it was free, and I got a lollypop.

*The two attempts my parents had both ended up looking the opposite of good - the time dad cut it it was the opposite of straight, and the time mum tried she stabbed me with the scissors! Funny, I've never been allowed to mention that until now...

Ta

I'm learning to be more polite thanks to a two letter word. Everytime mum or dad hands me a toy or a spoonful of food they'll say 'ta'. It's obvously started to sink in, because today (or should that be 'ta-day') I started saying it too. Although, when I say it, it's more like 'da'. I like my 'd' words.

No one could explain why we say 'ta', apart from the fact all babies say it instead of thank-you. Did you know Norweigians say 'takk' (pronounced 'tuck') instead of thanks, which means if I was Norweigiean I might say 'duck'!

Anyway, tonight, after a full day of ta this and ta that, mum handed me my bottle of milk and said 'ta'. But I was a little bit too excited when I saw the milk, so I held out my hands, but kept my mouth shut. "Ta". Outstretched hands. "Ta". Outstrecthed hands with a little whine. "Ta". Tears. "Say Ta". Outstretched arms and a big whinge. Mum looked at dad, what would they do, wait till I said Ta or until I'd wailed loud enough for everyone in the street to yell out Ta for me? She handed me the bottle and assured dad that it was only early in my thanking career, and that they hadn't failed by handing me a bottle before I expressed gratitude...

Toothbrush

Have I told you how wonderful my toothbrush is? It is my favourite thing, apart from my brand new Ark.

Almost every time we walk past the bathroom I'll point at the cup the toothbrushes live in and say 'dut'. If the person holding me isn't quick enough to divert my attention I'll whinge, and the only thing that quenches my thirt for teeth brushing is the toothbrush.

Mum says there's a lot worse things to be into. I think she secretly hopes my next favourite thing will be a dish cloth, then I can clean up after myself when I make a mess.

I spent a bit of time at grandma's place today. I like playing in the loungeroom, but only if grandma is in the kitchen. I like the fact she's close by, but not in the same room. I'll crawl over and visit her from time to time, but just knowing she's there is enough for me. She told mum today she has to plan to do jobs in the kitchen when I come over. Dad hopes that means baking.

Better late than never

I got my birthday present from mum and dad today. In case you're a bit confused with dates, don't be. They were late. Very late. Almost three months late.

To their credit they had bought the present before my birthday. Before my actual birthday. Two months before I was born. You see, it was packed in a box, and there's still quite a few boxes in need of unpacking around here, but when mum opened a box with my name on it and saw the present, she called me and dad in and we had an impromptu birthday party.

It's a Noah's Ark playset with two zebras, two lions, two elephants and Noah. Dunno where Mrs Noah is, maybe you have to buy her seperately.

I had a good play with it tonight.

Mum said it's a special feeling to see me playing with the toy they bought well before I arrived on the scene.

A day with the boys

Mum went to a women's seminar today. An all-day seminar. That meant dad and I had to amuse ourselves at home.

We played, I slept for two hours, and we ate an interesting assortment of food.

When dad gets peckish between meals, he heads for the chocky bikkies, and so when I started feeling peckish he gave me one*. And then another. and when I asked for a third (in my best red-faced-whingy-sky-is-falling-if-I-don't-get-another-biscuit cry) he obliged. Chocolate biscuits are great!

We did a bit of walking practice this afternoon in the breaks during the footy.

*Dad feels it is important to point out the chocolate biscuits I ate were the little TV snack ones. Tiny. It's not like I had 3 Tim Tams. That would be a bit naughty.

Puzzled

Mum had to go out today for a bit so she dropped me at grandma and grandad's work for a bit. The plan was for me to play in the waiting room corner with some toys put out especially for me.

I got the corner part right, it just happened to be the wrong corner! I chose the corner next to grandam's desk where there are lots of interesting files to look through. Fortunately, one of grandad's clients didn't turn up for their appointment so he decided to do a bit of work on me! He borrowed some supplies from the paediatric occupational therapist who works next door and I spent the next half an hour putting pegs in a peg board. Grandad was very impressed with my fine motor skills!

When mum came to pick me up she said we should get some puzzles for me, because it seems I am a genius.

Happy Birthday Mummy B

It's my great grandma's birthday today. She is 33,883 days older than me. That's a lot of days.

She reads the blog everyday, and even though we've only met twice, she knows me as well as anybody. Happy Birthday Mummy B!

Dad and I messed about at home this morning - doing our usual thing - sorting out my footy tips using cards with the jerseys printed on them. He got a new idea for me to tip the English soccer which starts next week. Neither of us know anything about soccer. That should make it all the more interesting.

We cleaned my teeth four times today. I really like my toothbrush. Really.




Notice my fancy green texta embellishments...

I'll have what she's having

Mum and I were having brekky, I had a bottle of milk and she had toast. When we both finished mum started feeding me some of my mushy weetbix-apple sauce combo.

I shook my head and pointed to mum's plate (on which there were two bits of crust) and said 'Dut!'.

Mum handed me one piece of crust. I pointed back at the plate, "DUT!". So mum handed me the other bit of crust.

I leaned backinto my chair, two pieces of crust in my hands, feeling very pleased with myself.

Later on whem dad was at the table with us, they were discussing sneaky ways of getting me to eat. Putting some of my food on their plate, and so when I think I'm eating special 'grown up' food from their plate, I'm actually eating what they intended me to eat all along. Fancy that.

Half and half

Mum was asked to work this morning, so she packed up her bags early and dad and I hung out for a bonus father-son morning.

We started with a bit of raking. Raking while wearing the baby carrier is not easy - especially if the baby is strapped on at the front. We soon gave up raking. We were going to do a bit of watering, but there's a big barking dog next door who really hates it when we walk up the side of the house...Doesn't bother me too much, but the dog gives dad the heebie-jeebies...We soon gave up watering.

So we went inside and cranked up the stereo!



Just before we went to pick mum up, dad remembered we need a new microwave oven, so we did a quick research trip to the electrical shops - after getting in and out of the car three times, I eventually fell asleep. Only for a minute though - we were soon at work, I was handed to mum, we got back in the car and headed off to playgroup, and then a meeting at church, and then to more shops...

We finally made it home. And I was tired.

Hide and seek

I like hide and seek.

I've got the concept sorted, it's the execution that needs a bit of work.

Just because I can't see the person doesn't mean they can't see me. so sometimes only my face will be hidden! And I find it a little hard to keep perfectly silent. My excited laughs usually give me away. And sometimes the places I go to hide aren't quite big enough to fit in, or aren't very 'hideable'! But hey, I'm only little, and it's a new game for me, but I still love it.

When mum came to pick me up this afternoon from grandma's place, I saw her through the window, and 'hid'. But I think my excited laughs gave me away...

Come on over

Mum came to Tiny Treasures today, and stayed the whole time. not becasue I was needy, but becasue she was on the roster. I think I played it pretty cool, mum being there and all.

We had Andy and Wendy over for lunch, and I was in my visitor charming mode. Mum and dad love visitor charming mode. I think they're trying to bottle it to bring out when it's just us three at home!

Mum said that we're getting to the stage now where it's getting easier for us to have people around to our place, rather than going out. It's only just got that way - but with all my toys here, and the fact I like to go wandering and won't still very still, they can relax a bit more knowing it's our house I'm stumbling around in, and not someone elses.

Like a grown up

Today I was practicing to be a grown up.

First I tried to put some deodorant on. Mum and I were in the bathroom, and I watched her very closely as she rolled it on, and when she put the bottle down, I picked it up, lifted up my arm and tried to copy what she did. It didn't work. The lid was on. And so were my clothes. But mum was impressed with my efforts, and it made both her and dad marvel at how quickly I learn.

Then I tried to dress myself. I found a shirt on the floor and decided I should be wearing it. I couldn't quite get it on, and after a couple of failed attempts of getting it over my head - I decided to play peek-a-boo with it instead.

Then I tried to help prepare tea by peeling an onion! Somehow I managed to get into the pantry when mum was cooking tea, and I made a beeline for the basket where the onions live. I peeled a bit, but didn't try to take a bite - just as well!

Shadow play

The light in my bedroom (the room I only seem to visit when I need a nappy change, thanks to the fact I've migrated into the Big Bed next door for sleeping) has a light that hangs quite low from the ceiling. It casts big shadows if you're standing in the right place - and that's exactly where dad happneed to be standing when he was changing my nappy tonight.

He decided to do some shadow animals on the wall and I liked them.

I looked at him, then the wall, and figured out pretty quickly what he was doing to make the shadows, and I joined in too, waving my arms and opening my hands just like dad. Unfortunately, because I was lying on the change table my shadows were cast a bit too low to see, but at least I got the theory right, right?