Today Judah decided that we would be playing a game of Hide and Seek, or as the Americans call it, Hide and Go Seek. Imagine the situation; we live in a tiny 2 bedroom apartment for which there is only a hand full of suitable hiding places, and since we had played hide and seek here a couple of times already, I was already pretty familiar with all of the hideout spots - or so I thought. There's the wardrobes, the pantry, and a couple of other tighter cupboards. Then there's more conspicuous places like under the rug! So you get the idea - when we play, I'm merely amusing them with my wondering around calling out "Where's Judah?" or "Where are you Nathan?" You can pretty much know for certain that their hiding places will be both obvious and unoriginal. The other thing is that when they hide, they are usually not all that focused on staying hidden, and will typically, make some noise or move around so that you can hear them.
Well, today it was different. Today our little game of hide and seek went to a whole new level. I took Nathan in to the bathroom with me (that's our counting room) while Judah went to hide. I counted out loud "One, two, three....eight, nine, ten. Ready or not, here we come!" We wondered around the apartment checking all of the usual places. Nathan looking with me saying "Where's Dudah gone?" "I don't know." I would reply. After checking all of the usual places and not having heard any movements, I started to get slightly concerned. "Judah? Judah where are you?" No reply. Could he have left the apartment? He had never done so before, and was generally the sort who would be too scared to venture off on his own. I decided that I would just need to look more thoroughly. I looked briefly under his bed, a place that we had never hidden before. No. Not there. I got Clayton involved in the search. By now, Nathan is well practised in asking and answering the question, "Dudah? Where's Dudah? - I dunno." We decided that we had better check outside in the corridor. No. "Clayton. Check the garbage disposal room. He could be in there." No not there either. Now, although not panicked, my concern is growing. He could have ventured off down the lift, and if he did that, and got out at the car park, he'd be stranded there without a key card. I ran down the corridor and checked the car park. I called out, "Judah? JUDAH? Judah are you there?" First floor, "Judah?" Still no sign.
It felt like it had been maybe 15 minutes since we had begun to play, but in reality it had probably only been 5 or 10. Desperate situations call for desperate measures. "Judah? Are you here? I've got ice-cream!" That didn't do it. A short time later he emerged. He had been so determined to stay hidden that he had accidentally wet his pants, and needed to make his way to the toilet. Where had he been? Hiding under his bed, behind a suitcase! I had looked there, but obviously not thoroughly.
We all had a good laugh and big sigh of relief. We congratulated him on his hiding skills, and thought it prudent to just remind him that he should never leave the apartment on his own. That was it for our little game today. Oh, and yes; it was not long before I was reminded of my earlier inducement for ice-cream.
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Friday, April 27, 2007
Recent pics of the boys
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| Latest shots of the boys |
Click on the above image to view the most recent pictures of the boys taken in our play area and during our 3rd trip to Disneyland. There are some fun shots of the two brothers having a smashing time - particularly Judah getting wet. This was my second solo parent visit with them to Disneyland. Remarkably, we spent the whole day there - hassle free, while daddy was back home busy working on assignments and studying for mid-terms.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Nathan has spoken...
Tonight Nathan blew us away. We had decided to get take-out from In-n-Out Burger. The burgers were fine, but the fries were possibly the worst that we have ever tasted. Imagine McDonalds fries, then let them go cold. Leave them out for a day or so, re-fry them and then put them in the oven. You get the idea. Anyway Clayton and I were commenting on how bad they were and had decided that we were not going to eat them. Judah eventually agreed that they were not very nice and gave up on them. All of a sudden, Nathan butts in and says to me, "I like them muma." After I had got over my initial shock at his perfectly formed and pronounced sentence, I decided that I had better respond and interact with him. Here is my 19 month-old not only speaking to me in a complete sentence, but he is also asserting his opinion and demonstrating that he understands and follows conversation that is not moderated and simplified for his understanding. For a while now, he has been using a handful of useful well worn 2-3 word phrases like, "Wha' daddy doin'?", "No, I don' wan' dat!", "Sorry mummy" and "I wan' milk" or "I wan' dat." But never quite as sophisticated as we heard tonight. I think we have another talker!
Thursday, April 12, 2007
Kidspace and our adopted caterpillar 'Mary'
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| Kidspace |
(kid friendly version)
Yesterday, we went to the most wonderful place. It is called the Kidspace Children's Museum. We had lots of fun climbing up massive 2-3 story high structures, exploring through caves and human size ant holes, and splashing and stomping around in a creek. We played water games, tried to pedal around on a tricycle track, and we even adopted a caterpillar. Judah was really happy to have his very own caterpillar. Judah has named her Mary.
So far we've watched Mary eat some of the sugary mixture at the bottom of her little enclosure, and we've noticed that she likes to sleep a lot. She seems to have started building her cocoon, so we'll have to get on to making her a larger shoe box home to transfer her into, so that once she becomes a butterfly she will have some space to move. The museum has a butterfly release ceremony day, but I think that we might just let her go free as soon as she is ready.
To keep up with Mary's progress click on the image/link on the upper right.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Monday, April 9, 2007
Koinonia & Wombat Stew
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| Koinonia & Wombat Stew |
Judah is always so happy here at this place. Everyday he asks, "Can we go to the Koinonia park?" It's a place for meeting new Fuller families, letting the kids run around and burn some energy, and a place where their imaginations are set free. It's a place where new physical limits are challenged, and where the grass is always greener (although that could have something to do with the fact that it is synthetic!) Koinonia Playground is Judah and Nathan's happy place.
Sunday, April 8, 2007
Boys playing in their new croc tops
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| Croc boys |
I've never actually put them in matching clothes before, but I couldn't resist getting them both one of these cute little crocodile t'shirts - particularly when they were 2 for the price of 1 at $3 each. If you click on the image above, you'll see some shots of them playing with this toy that I recently got for them. No I don't work for Fisher Price, but mums, if you're looking for a toy that is going to grow with your little one and you like toys that encourage brain development and all that, this one's a winner at around $10. I've put a link on the side of this page to it.
Our little speckled frogs...
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| Everyday fun |
These pictures are of Judah and Nathan playing with our speckled frogs that we had just finished making and singing a song to. The other pictures are of them playing with our new friends from Zambia who live across the corridoor.
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