Category: week in review

With Puff having turned 4, it was time to take him in for his immunisations. He was incredibly brave – Dad was more worried about it than he was.

As a reward, he and Dad went for Gelato. He was pretty excited (and then managed to get some extra time sleeping in the subsequent days).

Puff and Huff went from there to a water park – it didn’t take Puff much time to be enjoying the water. Huff even had a go for a little while, with some help form Uncle Jordan.

Puff relived a little of his obsession with Tiny Wings by writing all the character names on the door of his (still to be fixed) cubby house.

Huff had a great time farewelling Bandit: here she is after giving him a few treats.

We said goodbye to the grandragon for this visit.

Puff returned to the kitchen with his new apron (birthday present) and cooking gear. He helped Mum make some polenta muffins, following a recipe from one of Dad’s workmates.

On Saturday, Mum, Dad, Huff and Puff headed to St Mary’s for their spring festival. Huff wasn’t sure about it at first.

But after a little while, she brightened up.

It was a big day – we ended up visiting some family members, and Huff and Puff were dancing around watching their TV. Huff was making carpet “angels” for a little while, but Dad wasn’t fast enough with the camera to capture it. He did manage to get this action shot.

It’s impressive to watch someone who hasn’t yet figured out how to stand up nonetheless dance around from a kneeling position.

It’s official. Puff is 4 now. Is it time to start reducing the number of these posts that feature him?

 

Lots of outings with the Grandragon this week. Here are Huff and Puff in their hire-car. Later that night, Puff was keen to explain to Dad that they didn’t need to take the stroller, ’cause they had their own fire engine.

Grandragon made this unusual headgear for Huff.

Huff is more and more confident on her feet, cruising around from one obstacle to the next.

On Puff’s birthday, he came in dressed as Kwazii the cat from Octonauts. He’s spent a bit of time these last few days wearing the eyepatch (sometimes with a sun hat to be sun safe Kwazii).

We had a small party for Puff’s fourth birthday, with an orange 4 cake that was mango flavoured.

We had Grandragon take this family photo. 

Huff was having a great time playing with pegs today.

It’s hard work coming to terms with the idea that Puff is getting older – he’s four now, and it seems like only yesterday that Mum and Dad were driving to the hospital, picking out names.

This is the last week before Puff turns 4! Dad is having some trouble coming to terms with how fast he’s growing up. It was a bit of a struggle to get Puff to come along to Kids’ church this Sunday – he wanted to stay with Dad in church – but we persevered, and he had a good time, showing off some more craft, and speaking fondly of the lesson.

He’s getting more and more confident about climbing and exploring new playgrounds.

Meanwhile his sister is getting into eating sushi (well, the non-fish kind).

Puff woke up Mum and Dad on Saturday morning to ask if it was still winter. He had a little recipe booklet, and had decided that cooking an Apple and Butterscotch Sponge Pudding was the order of the day. 

Huff wasn’t quite so helpful, but she was happy to lick the bowl at the end of the mixing.

Having Grandragon and Bandit around has meant a lot of extra time in the backyard for the kids. Huff has even figured out how to climb up the (2) steps in the backyard, which is very impressive.

Saturday was some father-son time for Dad and Puff; a trip to a cafe, shopping for apples, and even getting haircuts together.

Grandragon gave Huff and Puff some training chopsticks – they had a great time eating their sausage-and-vegetables together.

Dad’s trying to enjoy as much of this last week of Puff being three.

It’s been another big week. Grandragon gave him an “Angry Birds” hoodie, which he absolutely loves. He’s been wearing it as much as he possible can all week. 

Mum brought Huff and Puff in for a visit with Dad while he was at work, but they were both asleep for it!

Grandragon has been staying with us for most of the week. Here she is with Huff and Puff out to get a promised babycino.

Saturday, Mum wanted a sleep in, so Dad and Puff headed out on a public transport adventure. Given the choice of heading to the city or going to Eveleigh Markets, Puff chose the markets in a heartbeat and was very excited to see that the Blini bar was open for business.

Puff and Dad went on further adventures: train, ferry and bus, and ended up with some Zumbo macaroons.

After that trip, it was time to head to P’s birthday party, where he reinforced his obsession with Angry Birds by asking to have his face painted. He had a great time overall, while his sister had a good time bouncing on the trampoline.

Oh, and sitting in a grown-up chair by herself, and eating popcorn.

Sunday was another milestone – his first time at Sunday school. Dad had a bit of trouble letting go.

Sunday afternoon after church was lunch at a cafe, then a visit to see Grandma and Doc. Puff had another Just So story read to him.

Huff was listening to Aunty S read her a story.

This week Huff had her first Slurpee. Well, part of one.

She’s ever more confident moving around, but still no walking. She loves having Bandit around – she’s often trying to pat him.

This week, after his bible story, Puff asked “Why did Jesus have to die?” and Dad had to explain it.

Not long to go now, and we’ll have a 4 year old in our midst!

Good news – Mum is better again! Dad is still a bit sick, but we managed to stagger the illness so that the kids had someone at least moderately healthy to look after them.

Wednesday Mum was so sick that she was fast asleep at breakfast time, so Dad took the kids out so that she could rest in a quiet house. It was a beautiful day, so Dad took the kids out to Mt Annan botanic gardens.

The stroller was a necessity to give Puff something to hold onto, and Huff a place to sit.

Puff, ever more fascinated with the world of Tiny Wings took the opportunity for a rest at this bench to lay some pretend eggs, and encouraged Dad and Huff to do the same.

After a picnic lunch watching the ducks in the pond (something that Puff in particular found hilarious) we headed to the playground for some time on the swings. Dad was trying to encourage Puff to try the non-baby swing, and – apart from a minor slip-up with some of the pushing, it went well.

The Grandragon started her visit this Thursday, and on the weekend everyone headed down to Cronulla for lunch (and some gelato).

After that, we went down to the beach so that Puff (and Dad, as it turned out) could play on the sand. We found a lot of shells, and even dug some sand a little: next step is to make some sandcastles.

Sunday was lunch at a friend’s house – Huff and Puff had a great time on the trampoline.

Puff is doing great work looking after his little sister. When it was time to snack on some grapes this week, Puff ran to get his couch and her couch so that they could sit on couches together and snack together.

Huff has come a long way in her mobility this week: she can push her walker around while “walking” on her knees, and she’s a lot more interested in pulling herself up and sitting. Her she is doing some drawing at the easel.

We’re expecting that it won’t be long before she starts to walk, but in the meantime enjoying her smile, and gritting teeth at the squealing.

Dad is a bit tired at time of writing: Mum is sick, and Dad has been doing a little more looking after the kids than usual. Today was a trip to a park, watching both of them and keeping them in the same place was a bit of a challenge.

Saturday was a big day. Puff helped out with breakfast in the morning (Dad was standing close by, but he’s getting competent at this particular drill).

 From there, we went down to Moss Vale markets – there were lots of things to look at. The live poultry was a particular favourite – even Huff was enthusiastically quacking.

From there, we headed further down the road – we were in Robertson, and so Dad and Puff stopped for a quick photo with the Big Potato while Huff slept in the car.

After that, we went down to the Illawarra Fly for a look – we saw a roadside tourist sign that said “treetop walk” and decided to have a look. Huff liked it.

 Mum wasn’t quite so sure (and even Dad had a moment’s hesitation with the heights), but managed to avoid the spiral staircase of the main tower by staying with the stroller.

Puff and Dad made it all the way to the top.

 There were a few photo-boards around the place. This was one favourite (Puff had huge amounts of energy, and kept running along all the way back to the kiosk).

 Sunday was the annual church soccer match. There was one match that was adults vs teenagers, and another match for the little kids. With some gentle encouragement, and suitable handicapping for his experience level, Puff kicked the deciding penalty goal. Here he is with the “salt pan cup”. 

 During the week, Mum brought the kids into the city to have a lunchbreak with Dad. 

 After playing at Darling Park (including a courageous couple of attempts on the two-storey high slippery dip), they made their way to Zumbo’s cafe at the Star. He was very excited. 

Huff is getting more and more confident with her little car. There are times when she’s happy to ride on it, and other times when she prefers to scream her displeasure. This is one of the happy times.

Everyone has been resting up a bit this week, trying to get well again, but there have still been a few high points.

One of Huff’s favourite things is to clap when other people around er are clapping or cheering. Here’s a recent capture.

The kids were arguing about who should go in what part of the trolley. This time, Puff managed to get the favoured seat.

Monday night we had dinner out after a late afternoon appointment – here is Puff getting some cuddles with Mum on the way back to the car.

The iPhone continues to play a big part in Puff’s imaginative life – at the moment he’s referring to everyone by the names of characters from the game Tiny Wings (he’s Flami, Mum is Peli, Dad is Peck, and Huff is Owell). They were playing together quite cheerfully in Mum and Dad’s bed one morning this week – at least for long enough to snap a quick photo.

Dad and Puff managed a quick trip to the local library, where we borrowed 8 books – a new record. He read a few of the to Aunty Chan.

Huff is getting better at moving around: she will sometimes pull herself up onto different things, and will stay up for a while. Next step (probably) will be walking, but she’s still taking her time.

Huff was equally interested in a visiting puppy this weekend.

Last Wednesday Mum, Huff and Puff came in to visit Dad at work. Puff was pretty quiet, sitting happily in Dad’s chair for a little while, and even sharing his custard puffs with Dad.

As part of the farewell trip for our friends, Mum took Puff and Huff into Hyde park. Puff had a great time exploring one of the fountains.

The high point for Puff, though, was standing under the MasterChef logo in the city.

Lots of other sickness-related activities too, but after some additional resting up we’re hoping that this week will be a healthier one.

Dad spent almost the rest of this week on holidays, though it was a stay-at-home kind of holiday. Lots of different scenes from around Sydney.

We went to an Apple store this week, in search of a phone cover for Mum. Puff was happily staying with us until he spied a child-height table with child-height seats, an iPad at each seat. He ran straight over to them and started playing with the iPads, then thought for a moment and ran back and said “Mum, can I go and play with the iPads?”.

We had some friends (and their kids) over for lunch, so there was some time playing in the backyard, with the bubble machine.

Sunday saw us pick a park for a family picnic after church.

Saturday afternoon was a visit to a friend’s wedding: the kids were fairly well behaved at the wedding, if not a little tired. That night, it was Dad’s turn to put the kids to bed – unusually, it took about an hour and a half before both were sleeping.

Dad found out during a trip to the physio that Huff is now strong enough to try and stand up: it’s just a battle of wills to get her to try it. As you can see from this photo, she can pull herself up when seated in the stroller – in fact, at one point over the weekend she was trying to climb out of the stroller in frustration – another first.

We’d only taken one stroller seat out with us, and Huff thought it would be fun to sit with her brother – it worked surprisingly well.

On Dad’s second day of holidays, sitting at breakfast, Puff broke out the bingo cards, and started calling out numbers – he’s become more fair in his selection, but was still ahead 6 games to one, and seemed genuinely surprised when – after he’d called all the numbers – it was a tie.

We had a trip to an indoor play centre where Huff worked hard at crawling up and down some ramps, but her favourite thing by far was the bouncing castle – they both played on it together.

 

During story time tonight, Huff chose a story for the first time. Dad picked one, and read it twice and then Huff was gesturing at the books – I asked her if she wanted me to read “where is the green sheep?” and she nodded her head, and sat quietly while it was read to her.

 

Dad has had a couple of days off, which has led to a lot more interaction with the kids than usual. It’s made for some long days, and sleeping in the car.

 

He managed to crash the tail-end of a morning tea, where Huff was working away at some low-tech telephony.

A birthday party for a visiting friend had us make a trip to Symbio wildlife park. Puff fed his first kangaroo (and, less successfully, had a goat steal not one but two bags of food through the fence)

The high point for the kids was to see some animals up close, and get to touch them. The underbelly of an alligator is the soft part, Puff found out.

Huff only made it as far as the scales on the top.

A little more soft-toy like were the possums. Huff loved the brush tail possum.

And the ring tail possum grabs your finger with its tail when it gets the chance.

Puff was sitting on Dad’s lap, so it was a bit trickier to get the action photos, but his reaction was unmistakeable.

With some extra time, we’ve managed to grab the DSLR camera, which has made for a few extra close-up photos.

A trip to the Blue Mountains saw us get a rare family photo together (with the three sisters).

It turns out that we have a lot of warm clothes, but they’re all pretty masculine.

We also took a trip on the Scenic Skyway: Puff was uncomfortable on the outbound trip, but seemed to have overcome his anxieties for the return journey, even asking if we could go again. One day.

He also found his first pinball game – it was on free-play, and had a chair set up next to it, so Dad thought it might be fun.

We’ve had quite a few extra trips to cafes this week: Huff’s babycino technique has significantly improved.

One downside: the family has been sick for most of the week: lots of colds, more waking in the middle of the night than usual: – we’re hoping for some more unbroken sleep and a chance to get well again. See you next week!

A journey into uncharted territory for Dad this week, putting both kids to bed by himself two nights this week. It’s a slightly larger challenge to read a book to two kids while keeping one of them from turning the pages or otherwise damaging anything. It went smoothly, and both kids went to sleep very quickly.

We’ve had some trouble getting Huff used to cleaning her teeth: we’ve tried lots of different things – the latest has been letting Huff copy her big brother. Puff has taken this a step further, and he now brushes his toy monkey’s teeth while Huff gets her teeth brushed.

A trip to Chinatown for a mid-week lunch with Dad saw us walk past the brightly painted alley – there was time to take a couple of staged photos with Puff: this was the best of them. Impressively, he can (pretty well) navigate from here to the shop where we buy the custard puffs.

Here we were at lunch: Dad was watching the kids while Mum wandered the food court. They were very well behaved.

Huff has a gorgeous grin.

Puff and Huff had a few chances this week to help mum in the kitchen. Here they are helping clean the various beaters and stirrers from a cake.

Huff, sharing Mum’s kebab, decided that it wasn’t enough to eat the meat out of the kebab, she had to hold the whole thing!

Puff and Huff spent time with a bunch of friends this week: – here he is H and J: they were trying to see who could get into the leg irons.

There was a lot of walking on this day – Puff took the opportunity to rest for a bit by the harbour.

A few other events:

• a trip to a cafe in Engadine where Dad, Puff and Huff sat and watched the babycinos being made in front of us
• birthday party for a friend where Puff played outside in “plain feet” until it was dark, bouncing on the trampoline and taking the occasional goal attempt in soccer
• lunch at a dumpling shop in Hurstville
• caught up with some visiting friends – more on this next week.