Just when you thought I'd given up blogging..

I'm not sure how the last two months have slipped away without a blog up-date. Time flies when you're racing around like a mad mama. What have we been up to? Highlights have included a ski trip to Wanaka, a visit to the farm in Makahu, playing rugby every weekend, and just spending time with the kids, and with their lovely grandparents, with friends and family. Skiing was a big adventure and this year the boys took to it like ducks to water. They are both skiing now, going up the chair lift, and the pommer lift. They loved the gear, and the freedom, racing off down the mountains weaving in and out of the skiers and generally giving their mother a heart attack. Big Brother is officially a faster skier than I am now, racing past me, seeking out the little jumps on the side of the piste, and flicking through his turns. He also discovered another passion - ice climbing - if he wasn't on his ski's he was up some snow covered ice face, kicking his boots into the hill like a pro, then sliding down at top speed. He didn't enjoy his last lesson much, as the instructor kept telling him to 'slow down, slow down'. It was just like skiing with Mum. As we drove out of Wanaka he looked out the window of the car at the beautiful southern alps, and said "I'm going to climb all those mountains one day". Little Brother was a star, his goal was to do the pommer independently, then the chairlift. He achieved it no sweat, and it was such a great buzz to be able to ski all together. Little Miss did not make it up the mountain this year, but had a wonderful time with her grandparents, charming them with her smiles, and games, and going on picnic lunches to one stunning lake side beach or another. With a few long car journeys we have some mammoth games of I- spy. We have a few variations on the game now - I-spy colours, and I-spy imaginary. Big Brother must have been listening at school after he won a few games with his new found knowledge - the first clue was something beginning with A. The second clue was we get something from it. Once we gave in the answer was AIR - we get oxygen from it. The other memorably long game was the clue something that was the colour red. After much guessing it turned out to be a thin ring of red gas that surrounds the sun. We didnt get that one either.

Philosophers aka toddlers.

Part time toddlers, part time philosphers, my children.
I was trying to break it to them gently.
'Well, life isnt actually fair, ' I explained one day, 'sometimes things work out the way you want, and sometimes it doesn't'
Thats just the way it is...
'Yeah, ' agreed Big Brother, 'here's one I learnt at school -
Life is....' pregnant pause,'..Life.'
'THats very true, dear,' was about all I could muster in reply.

Another day -
'How old are you, Mummy?'I was asked from the back seat
'I'm thirty-six' I replied truthfully thinking, (how did i get to be so old???)
'You must be nearly dead!;' Little brother exclaimed.
I was lost for words, but luckily,-
'No, thats not that old! ' Big Brother and his lovely cousin agreed ' you might be dead when you are one hundred.'
'My great granny lived to 104!' our lovely wee cousin explained.
'Well, 'I said, taking a big breath and just diving on in there, 'no-one knows how long we might live, people can die at any age, but the important thing is to enjoy everyday with the people we love.'
Silence.
Longer silence.
(Although there is a lot to look at in the way of diggers and wind turbines along seaview road).
Then the clanger.
'Why do we live, ' asked our lovely cousin who is obviously wise beyond her years, 'if we are just going to die?'
Silence. (Me, this time)
'That is such a great question' I replied (throwing it right back at you!) 'what do you think?
'Ooh, ooh, ' clambered Big Brother to keep up the existential pondering, 'I've got a really good question....(pause)...'who made God?'
Silence. Me, again.
'That is a good question?' Who do you think?'
'Well', said the wise cousin, 'I think a bit broke off from the sun, and then turned into the earth and that's where everything came from.'
Luckily, we arrived at our destination.

Rugby Fever

We are so thrilled to be able to report that after 9 weeks or so, Little Brother has made it off the sidelines and onto the rugby field for his first game! He's been going to practice and games every week all this time, but hasn't quite made it over the scary line onto the paddock !
It has been a self imposed bench-time, (or in the case of practice he has spent most weeks up the nearest tree). He was keen as at the start of the season, and loves the kit. His new boots (smallest size possible), green and yellow Eastbourne socks (that reach righ to the lower limits of his buttocks for extra warmth on windy days) and jersey were a huge hit from day one, but watching the other kids play, he immediately voted himself off the team, telling us that he's not fast enough to get rips. Maybe when Im older, he thought. Another day he mused 'Perhaps we could go to the Library and get a book on how to play rugby'. 'Good idea,' I replied, 'but to get better at something you actually just have to practice and practice it.'
It's taken a few weeks to convince him. He's been practicing getting into his boots, climbing trees and enjoying the oranges at half time. He's also had a lot of practice drinking his aftermatch lemonade.
Last Thursday we had a breakthrough when I told them we were off for the Team photo. 'Do I have to play rugby?' he asked, 'Not today, just sit on the chair and look like a rugby player.' He was right into that idea - and lined up, marched on and sat in the front middle of the team pulling a range of serious 'rugby' faces as the camera flashed. 'That was jool' (cool) he told me.
And then, this saturday, he held Dad's hand as he toddled off to join the team for warm up. Then the inspired team manager suggested he should perhaps carry the ball onto the field for kick off. He agreed, and to his and our surprise he played the whole game.
'Rugby is jool fun' he said afterwards, as we stripped off his first-time-ever muddy uniform and scrubbed his skinny muddy knees.

Four year olds

Little Brother is not so little any more. We just celebrated his 4th birthday in style, with 15 children invited to Knights, Dragons and Princesses Party. The boys spent months planning the decorations, and by the time the actual party came he had changed his mind - He wanted to be a saber tooth tiger, not a knight, no princesses were allowed to come (well, perhaps, he said, only bad princesses!) and no-one was allowed to dress up. He relented when he opened his first present of the day which happened to be a knights outfit complete with enormous sword.
It was his first real party, last few years we've had just had cake with a couple of kids called in the last minute - the rent a crowd type birthday - so he was quite overwhelmed with the presents - 'More Presents!' He kept exclaiming ' But I've got enough presents! I don't need any more!'
He is a man with his own mind these days, and its a wonderful thing to behold as he develops the language to share his complex and unique thought processes.
His latest fascination is the troll from 3 Billy Goats Gruff, who has been given a new twist in Julia Donaldsons latest book - a very popular birthday present. The troll really wants to catch a goat and make a nice goat stew. This has caught his imagination and is now his No.1 Goal in Life. He wants a gun and bullets and has also been suggesting a trip to the library to get a book on how to make bow and arrows. I told him about his uncles farm complete with goats to shoot, and
guns to shoot them with, so he is planning his next farm holiday with major excitement..
'if the stew smells yucky, I won't eat it.' He says. 'But sometimes food smells yucky but tastes yummy, ' He continued.
This morning we a had a long conversation about pig hunting, as he was wearing his belt, which is to hold his knife and his gun in. He is definitely growing up.

Fine line between fantasy and reality

I am completely fascinated with the way that children, as they grow and learn, absorb information from everyone and everything around them. Input floods in and they make their own individual often sensational connections and conclusions, building up their own picture of how this world works. I have been teaching myself not to just tell them the answers to stuff, but ask them my favourite question - How do you think it works? (Thanks to Play Centre, where I learned this cool albeit simple idea). However sometimes it gets...tricky.

Little brother decided he was a bit scared of eating blackberries, after an unfortunate tummy bug hit him right after eating a lot of them. (I'll spare you the details of what the car looked like). I tried to explain that it wasn't the berries that had made him sick, it was a tummy bug, and his tummy got rid of the bug by getting rid of everything in it, and that's why he was sick. After a few moments thought, he said 'Yeah, I think it was a slug. It went down here (gesturing nose) and into my tummy and made me sick.'
'Well, No - 'I tried to explain-' I don't think it was a slug, but a tiny bug so small you can't see it, you need a microscope to see it. Those sorts of tiny bugs can make you sick.'
But he wasn't convinced. A few minutes later he said -
'Mum, I think the slug went into my brain and made a nest'.
Oh, dear.

Big Brother we have noticed oftens blurs the line between fantasy and reality. He composed a beautiful and moving prayer the other morning at school - all about his Dad who had been caught in the Tsunami in Japan, and was in hospital in Japan. I expect in a prayer session where's there's a little bit of one-up-man-ship involved, it was really impressive.
'Is he ok? his teacher asked.
'NO, he's in hospital, in Japan!' he re-iterated.
His teacher gave him the benefit of the doubt and the class all prayed. Hopefully those prayers were helpful for someone actually in that tragic situation. And she then checked with me.
That night we had a chat about the importance of telling the actual truth (particularly when dealing with prayers and the all-knowing entity), and the difference between a story and a fact.
Oh dear.

Social Secretary

As the boys get older there is less demand for such motherly chores as bottom wiping and food mulching and more demand for me in a social secretary kind of way. I seem to spend a crazy amount of time planning and executing their social lives.
Take or example the other weekend where Little Brother had been invited to THREE birthday parties. I'm not being ungrateful, they love parties and you know, it's nice he gets invited to such things....but it did involve a fair amount of running around. Actually No.1 Dad did the running around, as I was uncharacteristically busy with my own socialising and a first aid course. So, off they went. By the second party Little Brother must have been feeling a bit weary half way through as he was found asleep on the stairs! He was popped into bed, then woken for the cake. When I asked him later, if he'd got a bit tired, he denied all knowledge of the event. 'I thought about having a sleep, but then I decided to just keep playing'.
Then they have both become big fans of the play date. Can I go to someones house? Can he come and play at our house? Its never ending, and while it's nice to know they are sociable and have friends, it will be a relief when they have their own phones, cars and organise themselves. Although I guess that will bring with it a whole new set of worries - I'll be relegated from social secretary to Facebook stalker.

Morning Wake Up Call

Mum! He's got a piece of lego stuck up his nose!
was the call I woke up to the other morning. It certainly got my attention as I leapt out of bed and rounded the corner to find the yeller - Big Brother - looking very excited and the lego inhaler - little Brother - looking very sheepish. And sneezy.
Obviously the lego was irritating his inner linings cause it kept making him sneeze - but not hard enough to dislodge the block.
What ? How? Why? - these questions left my mouth unfinished and unanswered...who knows why a 3 year old does these things? Certainly not the 3 year old, and they cannot be expected to understand the adult logic of why we do not stick lego up our noses.
Big Brother kindly tried to explain ' He had it sitting in his hand and he sniffed it up! By accident!'
Little Brother was remarkably calm, despite the sneezing and the drama, and tried to get it out by poking a finger up the nostril in question a few times. Which helpfully pushed the lego piece even further in.
So, with Dad holding Little Brother (down), I found my tweezers and managed to encourage the small circular brown snotty lego brick out of the small pink quivering nostril. Little Brother was very brave even with his Brother jumping about behind me yelling ' This is so GROSS! ' and ' I can't believe it! I can't watch! THis is SO gross!'
After all the drama was over we had a small discussion about how we never put toys or things (that aren't for food or medical purposes, I nearly added, then just left it at 'things') into the various holes in our bodies. Lesson learnt, I hope.