{Four} Belated Birthday Post

It is hard to believe that my small boy has turned four or that four years can feel like both the blink of an eye and an eternity at the same time.  As is traditional he picked a cake out of one of my Woman's Weekly cake books.  They love this part of the birthday and spend days looking at the cookbooks and thinking about options.

His early childhood teacher Bianca said that she loves Blue because he never fails to teach her something new each day.  I had discussed care options with her at one point and she said I was not allowed to move him and that was that.  Pre-school is his favourite and he loves catching the school bus home on pre-school days.  He NEVER naps during the day even though they all still try.

Blue loves being outside, he is gentle with animals but has started wiping his mouth after you give him a kiss because kisses are 'yucky' but he still happily lets me kiss him and snuggle him so that is ok.

He is starting to read some high frequency words by himself but would prefer to be read to than have to try to decode text himself.  He loves books and 'reads' in bed every night after we have read to him.  He always has a pile of books on his bedside table just like his big sister.

Favourite shows are Thomas and Friends and The Octonauts and his favourite colour is Blue.  He is dinousaur and insect mad and can cite strange facts on random topics at any given point in time.

He is happy to talk to anyone and everyone and is often complimented on his good manners when he answers 'how are you'? with 'well thank you'.  People often say he has an accent but he is just very well spoken.  He still has trouble with his 'r' sounding like a 'w' but this is getting better too and I predict by the end of the year it will be a thing of the past.

{Book Week}

I don't doubt that given the choice Possum would have preferred something a little more 'princess' and a little less elephant but I had purchased these costumes for a ballet concert only to have the teacher move away before the ballet concert could take place.  

I decided to use them for book week in a 'waste not want not' kind of way and I think it worked well.  To turn Possum into Elmer I basted some fabric off-cuts to her suit.  I didn't do anything to Blue's costume as he was happy to be the Tawny Scrawny Lion as it was.

I love the idea of book week and this did take the stress out of the costume making for our first year.

They were both excited to be able to wear there costumes to school all day.

Taronga Western Plains Zoo - Part 2

Never mind the fact that these photos are from LAST school holidays and I am obviously so far behind in everything that I despair of EVER catching up; here are the rest of the zoo photos as promised in Part 1 some time ago...

My children are part monkey, they HAVE to climb on everything!  Thankfully the zoo caters for children such as mine and there are plenty of things for them to scramble on.

I love the zebras.  They are one of my favourite animals.  I love the distinctive stripes and the fact they are like fingerprints; all different.  I also think I like their similarity to horses.

We sat and watched the zebras standing in the warm sun for awhile before moving.  There was a baby foal that was very new but the mum was smart enough to have the foal in the middle of the big yard as far away from people as she could get.

More climbing...

This was a highlight.  The Galapagos Tortoises were under the heat lamps in the shed with the exception of this fellow.  He not only braved the chill but came over for a gentle pat.  The children loved it and it was very awe inspiring. 

Such wonderful animals with their wizened eyes.

There you go.  Given we visited way back in July this post has been a long time coming.  I have a lot of other things to catch up on too but I don't want to rush these things..!

Roar

We are going to the zoo in the holidays and the children* are excited!  

It is a shame I can make a giraffe look short and stumpy; adjectives not usually used when talking about that animal.  Perhaps I should have bought a hippo costume...

*Possum is an elephant but she is at school so that photo will have to wait.

Craft

Or 'cwaft' as some in the house might say!

He thinks, plans and designs in his head and then sits down to build a 3D model.  The 'camera' he built by himself, the 'frog' he got me to help wi the sticky tape but the rest is his own handy work.  I love that he feeds the frog by popping the end of the tube off and putting drawn food inside; simple, but clever.

The camera has interchangeable lenses too, a toilet roll as a prime lens and a paper towel roll as a zoom lens!

I know it is just stuff stuck together but I find it amazing that a 3 year old can take a three dimensional idea from conception to construction in this way.

This set of shelves for Blue's room has been in progress for so long that I am starting to fear he will outgrow it before we get in done.  A shame we don't get our craft done as quickly as Blue does!

The Month That Was...

I have spent the past month on practicum as part of my uni course.  It was busy and so tiring!  The past month has been full of good things but I didn't get around to blogging them with everything else that was happening.  There are a couple of things worth a special mention...

 

 

On October 20th Possum lost her first tooth.  She was so excited about this but I felt a little sad that we are at this stage already, she seems so small to have that toothy grin!

 

Then, to make matters worse yesterday she lost the one next to it.  The tooth fairy visited both times with a $2 coin and she is now waiting for the next lot to go so she can cash in.

 

Possum and Blue also played with their step cousin (who is so very cute!) when she came to watch Possum ride in the pony club Gymkhana, I am yet to blog the photos of that event; there are heaps!!

Now that my prac is over (and it was awesome) I am back into the swing of uni again for the summer semester.  The fun never stops around here!

{Three}

Happy third birthday to our little boy, Blue.

How has that time crept up on me already?  Part of me is excited with each new milestone, and part of me is horrified that it is slipping away so quickly; these precious moments.

We have had so much fun watching you grow.  

You have delighted us with your easy smile and easy nature.

A Women's Weekly inspired cake which was very well received on the day!

We have loved you as a two year old, I think three will be even better!

You add 'super' to everything.  Super good.  Super silly.  Super yucky.
If you want me to throw you a ball you say 'catch it to me'.
You adore Thomas and Friends, and the Octonauts.
You love swimming, and the creek; anything water related!
You say 'now we've gots to do...' when you get excited about things.
You toilet trained yourself a couple of months ago.
You love carrot, but not capsicum, mushroom or spinach.

Kisses to you sweet heart. 

xx

Never...

I asked them to sit next to each other, look at the camera and smile...

...it was NEVER going to happen!

Blue

He can be so much fun, or so much hard work depending on his mood.  He spends all day telling me kisses are yucky, but he seeks me out for his bedtime smooch each evening.

He is toilet training has toilet trained himself and is working things out.  He does not nap of a day unless we are driving.  We spend two full days together while Possum is at pre-school, it is such a good time for us.  My babies are growing up.

He loves dinosaurs, bugs and trains.  He talks so well in full sentences.  He has started playing with language in a way I find frustrating but gosh he is clever with it.  He will add a sound to the beginning of each word in a sentence and he never mucks it up once he starts .  He has such a good ear.

Easter Road Trip

We drove South to be able to attend a family party.  A 60th wedding anniversary.  60!
It was about 900km away which is a big drive with the kids, especially when you have to turn around and do it again to come home too.  They are little troopers!

Someone showed Possum how to use an iPad.  Now she keeps asking to play games on the Mr's phone because she knows how.  Blue was more interested in the party food, with a host of older relatives to encourage him he ate a lot of cupcakes.  It was a great afternoon.

On the drive down Blue looked out of the window and said 'look at the far away meadow' which I thought was a bit funny.  We have paddocks at home so I guess the telly is to blame for the meadow reference.

We spent one night in a motel on the way down, the kids slept while we put them in bed, but there was only one bed so we put one at each end and tucked them in.  Blue woke up a couple of hours later and whispered 'there is something in my bed' but was happy when I told him it was Possum.

Banjo the dog came with us.  I don't have his puppy card yet so couldn't put him in a kennel.  He is such a great traveler!  I put a little carpet square in the back under Blue's seat and Banjo jumped in and slept while ever the car was moving and got out to run with the kids at each park we pulled up in.

And as far as parks went, we pulled up in plenty!

Smile

At least one of us managed to smile...

Rootin' Tootin'

Rooton' Tootin' Cowboy and Rootin' Tootin' Cowgirl in action.  I suspect the kids picked that up from Toy Story, wherever it came from, it is pretty cute.

Nan gave these promotional hats to the kids around this time last year, they fit better now so I have pulled them out to wear around the farm.  So cute!

Happy Snap

Walking in town the other day I spotted this door and thought 'photo op'; the light was good,  I had my camera in my bag; I asked the kids to stand still for two minutes.  They wore play clothes and didn't exactly smile, but I kind of like this photo anyway, and everyday moments are just as important as capturing that perfect photo, or so I tell myself !

They are a cute pair, and I love the look Blue is giving me in this shot. 

Cheeky boy!

{twenty two} Blue

Due for another haircut is my blue eyed baby.

Lucky for me Blogtober gives me an excuse to post these photos I took a couple of days ago.

This boy is a joy.

My Creative Space - When paint attacks

We have been taking advantage of the warmer days to get outside and have some fun. 

Both children LOVE painting. 

I think it is good fun myself, until I turn my back for 30 seconds to hang a finished painting up to dry...

More creative spaces here.

{Two}

Somehow another 12 months has flown by and now my baby is two years old.

He is such an easy going happy boy.

We are so lucky to be blessed by his slow smile, bright blue eyes and blonde curls.

You are now talking a lot, although not as much as your sister!  You are so clear in your words and you think about things and your pronunciation is often spot on as a result.  You said 'Ta' for a week, but then moved into 'Thanks' instead.  You love your sister more than anyone and I love watching you play together, it is a blessing to watch you both have fun and learn.

You often have a dirty face and you LOVE being outside.  You enjoy the animals and mud might just be your favourite thing.  You also love reading and always pick a different book to be read each night before bedtime.

You love Playgroup and have just started music lessons at the Conservatorium of Music which you are also enjoying a lot.  I get to sit in on the music lessons as a joint activity with you and I love being a part of your learning and play in this way.  Sunday School is another fun activity you enjoy.

Happy Birthday to my baby, who is turning into a sweet little boy.  We love you so very much and are grateful for the joy and love you bring to our family. Kisses xx

Snow

Snow is now on Possum's favourite list of things.  We pulled up and let the children have a bit of a play as we were driving through.  Snow balls got tossed and feet stomped as much snow as possible during the stop.

We did suit up and head up another day for more fun.  The big falls of the past week had mostly melted with the warmer weather but there was enough snow on the ground for the children to have some fun with.

I bought them the blue suits from Aussie Disposals for $20 each.  These will get a heap of use at home too this coming Winter.

They had so much fun and there was a lot of excitement.  They are all already thinking about the next snow visit to Mt. Selwyn.  Maybe by then Blue will be old enough to help build a snowman rather than just trying to sit on it...