still learning

i'm 11 months old now, which is very nearly grown up. i've learned some new stuff this month although there are still a few things in life i haven't quite mastered.

i've realised that actually mom's cooking IS better than the stuff that comes out of jars. while mom appreciates the vote of confidence it does also make life a little difficult when we're going out somewhere and i refuse to eat anything.

i've learned that sharing can be fun, except when dad nips your finger with his teeth. when the rice cake gets really soggy and yucky you don't have to eat it yourself, you can give it to mom or dad to enjoy instead.

i've discovered that if i really wriggle i can escape from the straps in my stroller and stand up on the seat. this is likely to induce a heart attack in parents though, so don't do it when they think you're sleeping.

i've suffered through two colds in less than a month which has left me somewhat sleep deprived due to my coughing, and with snot all over my face, hair, clothes, bed....i don't LIKE having my nose wiped, OK.

i've been liberated by my toddle truck except it doesn't always go in a straight line, and when i hit something it just stops. where's the reverse gear on that thing anyway?

i'm very frustrated by the need to stay still when having my diaper changed. why can't mom and dad just get on with it? surely three seconds is long enough.
except for the diaper changing above, i've realised that the bathroom is absolutely the best room in the house. i'm not too sure about lying down in the bath these days, but if i splash enough with the cloth most of the water leaves the bath tub anyway. it saves dad having to wash his clothes, too. mom and dad got a lock for the toilet, so i can't play with that anymore, but they DO keep forgetting to put the loo roll out of my reach.

no more yoghurt :(

mom took me to see the dr today, as despite all my eating i don't seem to be getting all that much bigger. it may be, of course, that i did all my growing early on and am just having a rest. on the other hand, it does appear to be the case that i'm not digesting stuff like yoghurt properly, so maybe i'm not digesting my milk either.

the dr ordered some tests to check that stuff out, but she seemed more worried about the size of my head. i tried to tell her it was just my supersized brain, but she asked mom lots of questions about my walking and talking and stuff. i've been referred to a paediatrician which hopefully sounds more painful than it is. i hope they don't want to chop part of my head off. by then i should have my test results back, and it would be really good if i was allowed to eat yoghurt again. it's yummy.

anniversary

today is mom and dad's wedding anniversary. unfortunately mom wasn't feeling too good so they cancelled their dinner for two and we all went out for ice cream instead. i was really looking forward to trying ice cream again, but when we got there, the shop was closed.

these outings haven't gone so well recently. last week mom and dad ended up catching a bus and eating McDonalds when they were supposed to be going out for an adventure on their own. a flat tire on the car made it rather more adventurous (and somewhat later) than they'd anticipated.

today mom and dad ended up sitting on the beach watching the sun set and having a nice cup of tea. wendy did a fine job of putting me to bed, although she didn't have an explanation for why mom and dad were married for 12 years before i came along.

Sundays are special

you just never know what's going to happen on a sunday. take today for example. first thing in the morning we went to church, after which we went to my first 1st birthday party. it was the reunion of mom's first prenatal group, and us babes shared an icecream cake. i managed to beg a little bit from dad, but it was awfully chilly. it was fun seeing all the other little kids, and sharing stories of our adventures. i showed Oliver how to play the piano, and Rosie the dog gave me a big soppy kiss.

afterwards, it was a nice sunny afternoon so dad, mom and i went over to English Bay for a walk along the seawall. we stopped for me to have a snack, and while i was drinking a tram stopped and lots of people got out. wow - now i'm at my first wedding. i couldn't see any Scotsmen in evidence so i think it's fairly safe to assume that i was the only person present with a bare bottom.


the other amazing thing that happened today was i got a new cousin. a scotsman no less. he's Ruaridh Fraser Divers, and was born in Livingston, Scotland. isn't he cute? he's very little at the moment, but when he's bigger we're going to be in a band together.

suddenly it went quiet ...

... mom and dad can normally tell when something's up, as I go all quiet. In this case it was easy to see why

i am proud to say my first ever taste of chocolate was the result of a perfectly executed covert operation. dad never knew i was there until i'd had a really good chunk. and it was england's finest galaxy .. i've seen the look on mom and dad's face when they eat it .. i knew it was the best foodstuff in the universe.

of course silence is not the only sign of trouble. once dad had rescued himself the remains of the chocolate, he placed me as far away from it as he could - my playroom. dookch da dum ga dookch werrrh haa hee haa hoo doockh duch THUMP waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh waaaa waah waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah
oops i did it again .. i fell over.

just one more story

erin came over to play with me tonight while mom and dad went out in the evening. it nearly didn't happen as mom discovered i'd let the front tire down on the car, but they went out on the bus anyway.

erin and i chased the ball around for a while, and then it was time to do some reading. we were going to read all my books right through at least three times each, but i got rather tired and fell asleep.

fortunately mom had told erin i need my bottle, my sleeping bag, my soother, hey hey and gerhard in order to go to bed, along with strict instructions about which end of the toothbrush i like to chew after my bottle.

i decided tonight wasn't the night to spend an hour throwing gerhard overboard and yelling for him to be returned. i'll do that with dad tomorrow :)

another world

on saturday we went to Surrey for Maddy's first birthday party. Surrey is about an hour away from home, going south down the highway towards america. we drove past Burns Bog which bizarrely was indeed burning. i mean how did they know? the very day i decide to see Burns Bog for myself, it's burning. that's just weird. that's what i meant when i said Surrey was like another world. that and the fact there was a real, live ferret at this party, (makes a good alternative to a cat or dog as a pet apparently - IN SURREY)and a parakeet, and a kitten, and a puppy, and a snake, and even a bunny rabbit. there was nearly a dead guinea pig too, but after i swiped at it the first time it's owner moved it out of range.

hmm, what else was weird? well, i left with more presents than i arrived with, and they served popcorn and chips and chocolate cake. mom wouldn't let me have any though and gave me a rice cake instead.

nobody asked to see my passport so i guess we were still in canada, but all in all it was a pretty big adventure. they DO have big houses out there though. i'd have space for lots more toys if we lived in surrey. Maddy even had a slide inside. that was pretty cool.

space travel

now that i've got this earthly mobility sorted - i can get where i want when i want, i've started thinking bigger. wouldn't it be great for example to be able to fly. i could take photos from space.

on the other hand maybe i should just look at Vanmap. If you tick orthophotos 2004 you can see photos of all the houses - even mine. isn't that cool! you can even see our car out back.

he's giving me the B.D.I.

i had to log in for dad, cos he's not technical enough to become a full member of my blog, but the following is his report ... over to you big guy :)

Thank you son, what a sterling chap of the queen's order you truly are. (wow he speaks weird canadian .. jas)

It struck me the other day that one can measure a child's advancement using various incredible techniques, but I think I have discovered an innovation of my own. The BDI is Bathroom Development Indicator, and is a measurement of a child's reactions to his father (or mother) taking a shower:
.. 0-1 month .. child lies on his change mat naked, unware of the existence of a bath, but vaguely soothed by the sound of running water in the vicinity
.. 1-2 month .. eyes are focussing on the mysterious curtain, and a recognition that this is the source of the sounds
.. 2-3 month .. the sound of running water is not just soothing, but enjoyable. A mild chuckle can be heard, and a broad smile observed
.. 3-4 month .. the child is so familiar with the activity of parental shower, that he can play with a simple toy, while the shower takes place. The level of familiarity and comfort is further demonstrated by urination upon the floor
.. 4-6 month .. rolling over is now fun, so sitting in a bouncy chair is preferred over the mat. Child will still happily play with toys, and then sit for a while once they have been successfully thrown out of reach.
.. 6-7 month .. diapers now a necessity to protect the chair, so in order to inform the parent of some diaper action while enjoying the shower, some grunting is in order from the child, and then the gift can be delivered in style. Just what we want when all clean and ready for work!
.. 7-8 month .. similar, but for some reason it is now hilarious to poo while parent is showering. Fits of chuckling as the gift is prepared.
.. 8-9 month .. crawling. Important to provide many toys and keep chemicals and other bathroom items out of place. The chair is no longer a container for more than 2 minutes.
.. 9-10 month .. child now pulls himself up to the side of the bath, and delivers rubber ducks and stacking cups down the side of the curtain .. terribly cute.
.. 10 month .. the stage that we have all been waiting for (especially Joel). Shower time is recognised and anticipated, and can be heard from any room in the apartment. Child crawls as fast as possible to the location of the shower, hauls himself up to standing, and proudly pulls back the shower curtain with a huge grin across his face. The subsequent soaking simply adds to the delight.

At this stage we can only guess at the future Bathroom Development Indication, but we are fully expecting full participation in the showering process .. probably neglecting to disrobe before taking the plunge.

To any parents who are unsure of their baby's age. Simply take a shower, apply the results against the scale above. Once you have a result (n), be aware that your childs first birthday will be in (12-n) months .. you need to know this.

Thank you my son for allowing me to publish the results of my study on your highly esteemed blog. Keep writing for the masses. Dad

more traveling

mom's got another trip in mind and i haven't even told you guys about the last one yet. dad's encouraging me to learn how to walk by october so that mom doesn't have to carry me and all my stuff around the airport on her own when we go and visit my grannies.

in july we went to the Sunshine Coast which was fun. even though it was hot, mom and dad carried me up a big hill. i tried to tell them my legs were getting bashed up on the frame of the backpack, but they kept telling me not to complain - i wasn't the one carrying half a ton up a mountain. i think they were exagerrating a bit. don't you need oxygen and stuff when you go up mountains, or at the very least skis?
after lunch we all went swimming in Katherine Lake which was SO much fun. i think mom and dad would rather have been at Daniel Point or Tuwanek for a bit of peace and quiet though. there were rather a lot of kids enjoying the warm water and the sandy beach at the lake.
then in early august after BC day we went on a cruise around the San Juan islands in America. we spent almost as long shopping for a Dyson vacuum as we did messing about on boats, but it is pretty cool. i've never seen anything like it

circuit training

i live in such a great apartment. if mom leaves me in the sitting room i can crawl from there around the breakfast bar, underneath my highchair and into my bedroom. if the lights are off and the curtains still drawn it's a bit dark, so a quick reverse and i'm back in the kitchen with a straight run through to the bathroom. if mom's left the door open i generally have time to throw a couple of yellow ducks into the bath before she comes to investigate. reversing out of there, i can then continue the breakfast bar circuit and either dive left behind the piano into the study (lots of cables under the desk to play with - and a good place to hide if i'm quiet. it's hard to be quiet though because cables are TOO exciting) or go right past the dining room table and into my playroom. of course, if the front door is open i might need to divert that way too.

the playroom is full of all my stuff. generally everything is exactly where i left it, except for today. the girls came over: Christina, Emma, Katrina & Hailey with their moms. we all had lunch together which was a bit of a messy old business and then we got to play. Hailey's walking now which gave her a bit of an advantage, but Christina and i threw our weight around. no one messes with us!

i'm not sure how much longer we're going to be able to get together as some of the other moms are going back to work soon. we've had fun though. it's hard to imagine we were all tiny babies once.