Quick one!

A quick one - I have been meaning to say that David is doing interesting things. For the past couple of weeks he has been working on pronouncing his 'L's - with a big slightly exaggerated tongue movement. Effective too - especially noticeable on the Rafaella, Linda and other important L words. He can now roll his tongue, and click it too! Interesting what he focusses on. The tongue clicking started when we we in the car listening to the Shrek title song "Allstar" (AKA the "Hey Now" song) and I did it in time to the music. David wanted to do it too.

He can't click his fingers yet, but he came home from Daycare just before his birthday to show me how he could hop!
He is getting much more interested in dressing himself "all by myself" and now is putting shoes on, as well as just taking them off. I am letting him choose what to wear (with the obvious consequences that sometimes it is the Batman PJs, or the Lightning PJs all day. But he then is really happy about what he wears, so there are lots of compensations. The Daycare touches are wonderful. On Friday, in the park for Finn's birthday David took his shoes and socks off. I found them up on the climbing castle. He had neatly tucked his socks inside the shoes, just like they are told to at Daycare. Then he and Katie and Celestine got naked and ran around a lot. Which is of course another story!

Katie is back and they were so happy to see each other - David had been calling out to her all the way to the park, even though she couldn't possibly hear him. Definitely partners in crime. Katie wanted David's water bottle (as usual) and David wanted to share (as usual). He also is really noticeably playing much more with other children, not just beside them. It is especially noticeable when you see Liam, who is six months younger, and reminds me of what David was like at that age.

Well, we will see what this week brings. Lots and lots of chaos on world markets - definitely will be different for his generation growing up, rather than the current Gen X, Y who have never really known hardship. I just hope the important things continue though - peace, clean air, clean water, clean food, good health. When I hear about the food & milk contamination in China, the dreadful hardship in Zimbabwe, Somalia and Sudan I do realise just how lucky we are!!

Birthday season!!

Well, David turned three! He is asleep, so I am doing a quick update.

We had the family outing, the day before his birthday, the birthday (just us), the cake at daycare (lots of fun) and the small birthday party for his friends (fun, on a very hot day). We have also been to a couple of other birthday parties. We have not only survived, we have thrived!

The outing was to the movies to see Wall.E. We went on the Friday, Dad took time off work, and it was GOOD, on all levels. As it was the day before school holidays started there were only four other people in the cinema, and it didn't matter if David talked. and he did, just a bit. The movie was great, and David loved it. We also spent some time in the amusement arcade next door to the cinema - loud, lots of flashing lights, "the claw" games that we just can't win and (importantly from David's point of view) shooting games. He was very excited to sit in a booth and point guns at a big screen - guns with holsters. It is amazing just how much fun he can have without the game working - just on the demo screen. As a digression, it is a bit like the photo booth near daycare. He loves going into the booth and sitting on the seat and listening to the voice tell him how he could use the machine.

The day was also noteworthy for me, as David howed me that he is now tall enough (with stretching) to open the front security screen door - also to lock and unlock it.

On his birthday, he got Batman pyjamas from Nanna Jan - dress up PJs with a detachable cape. He loves them, and wore them off and on for the whole week. They are size five, and too big, but wonderful. Once I worked out that it is better to roll up the tops, rather than the legs, we reduced the trip hazard, and we were in business. He loved wearing them to daycare, out on his bike, to bed, around the house, everywhere! Uncle Stephen got him dinosaurs! They can fight, so they are very good! We got him sunglasses, some new clothes, and ratatoille themed presents - toys, a tin case and a soft rat. Emile shoots a grape out his mouth, so he is a favourite.

David can, very proudly, hold up three fingers to show how old he is. On Monday I took a cake to Daycare, and at afternoon tea ( I came over for it) he sat up with all the other kids and they sang Happy Birthday, he blew out his "3" candle and then everyone had cake. The cake was decorated with a Spiderman picture, which looked really fantastic. He knew all about it, and had been telling everyone that he had a Spiderman cake for his birthday. He was (of course) dressed as Batman. It was followed by bubbles, as I organised a box of little bubble blowing kits, with one for everyone. He was very happy with it all, especially that Rafaella, his friend was there, sitting next to him. Just as well, because in the morning he had sand thrown in his eyes in the sandpit. His eyes were red, but he seemed OK and was fine the next day.

Thursday we had a quiet morning - it was the first hot day (34C) and we got all the dust off everything outside, scrubbed down the tiles with soapy water, got the paddler pool out, gave the bubbles kit and toys and paddler pool a trial run and got cakes ready. DAvid wasn't going to havea sleep, but then had a late sleep. Then we met Dad and Grant at the local restaurant for dinner. David then didn't go to sleep - I had made the birthday cake (late), and was making up goodie bags when I heara little voice from the stairs saying "What are you doing?" Of course he saw the chocolate frog bag from his peeping through the stairs. I think he was asleep by 11.00 or so.

Another very hot day for his party (36C), but it was OK in the house, and outside, and got slightly cooler later in the day. The ceiling fan was fantastic - lovely all day. We had a few from Mothers Group over, and Liam. It was small but relaxing and just right. I was so glad that we didn't have it in the park because it would have been too hot. Overnight the rain arrived, and it is 10C cooler and wet today.

In total, we had three cakes for his birthday - all carrot, his favourite. On Saturday it was a Woody & Buzz cake, on Monday at Daycare a Spiderman cake (and bubbles) and at the birthday party on Friday, a Lightning McQueen cake. So now we have left over cake - including the banana bread from Friday.

We are still waiting for his new bed, which is on order. Hopefully in the next week or so!