Happy 3rd Birthday Jake
Charlie’s best buddy Jake turns 3 tomorrow and we went to his birthday party this afternoon. Here are the 2 amigos in action:
The Birthday Boy!
Charlie, Jake, Ella, Will & Aidan
Ella & Kyle eating their watermelon
Charlie & Ella
Jake with his mum Danielle
Charlie
Cameron (Jake’s big brother) & Kyle
Craig (Jake’s Dad) with Jake & Charlie
K
Cousins Together
Alan’s niece Nicky and her fiancee Owen are in Melbourne this week and they spent the afternoon with us today. Here are some pictures of Nicky with the kids:
Nicky with Poppy
Nicky with Poppy & Ella
….And Ruby
Helping Ella with her Reading (she didn’t want anyone except Nicky to help!!)
Sharing a Laugh with Charlie
K
Football
Charlie started football (or soccer on this side of the world) lessons this morning. He came home delighted to have his own ball and proudly showing us his soccer throw!! Here he is in action:
K
Back to Ballet
Ella has changed ballet school this term to find class times that fit around kinder. She’s now going to Glittery Tapping Wonderland (www.glitterytappingwonderland.com) and, as the name suggests, its every little girls dream. Here she is with her friend Gemma all set to go to their first class this afternoon.
When they came home there was a lot of excitement over their teachers name ‘Miss Petal Pie’!!!
K
Swimming Without Mum
Swim school started again this week and with Charlie turning 3 he’s moved into a class without me! He swims with the instructor and 3 other kids. I had no idea how he’d go as he swings from being really clingy to being really independent and thankfully he was the latter. Happy as a boy could be! Ella swims at the same time as do other friends Cameron & Jake, Kyle and Gemma & Joshua so there were plenty of hands to help chase Ruby & Poppy who were happy to crawl about poolside.
K
Charlie has Started Kindergarten
Charlie started 3 yr old kindergarten at Civic Kinder in Middle Park yesterday. He was very excited and comfortable staying there having spent so much time there with Ella last year. She has continued into the 4 yr old class.
K
Des Res
We’ve been thinking a lot lately about where we’re at and why we’ve been renting a property for so long and the simple answer is largely affordability. We moved into a bayside suburb within walking distance of childcare, beach, parks, cafes, shops, swimming pool, kinder etc. Sounds ideal, well yes, but unfortunately the convenience has a price tag attached and that price tag is HUGE! The house 2 doors down from us came on the market on Friday and while the size of it with 4 bedrooms, plenty living space and the added bonus of a pool sounds great, the price tag of 2.9-3.1 million dollars (roughly 1.6-1.7 million pounds) is not!!
click on pic for details
Kirstin
Toddler Taming
I’m not sure if Charlie has had a challenging week simply because he’s 3 and pushing his boundaries or is aware of having less attention since Grandma & Grandad left last weekend but whatever the reason he is testing my patience to the absolute limit. I may have a selective memory but I don’t remember Ella behaving in this way or at least not as extreme. Everything peaked on Thursday, here’s a rundown of some of his activities:
- intentionally breaking Ella’s toy hospital
- taking Poppy for a ride on his train tracks (naturally she toppled backwards and bumped her head)
- stuffing an entire roll of toilet paper down the toilet
- drawing all over himself and the stair gate
- stuffing his t-shirt, shorts and undies down the toilet
- picking his balance bike up and throwing it over a wall into a garden
- above followed by a complete tantrum when I refused to go and get it for him
All I can say is I was so glad when Alan came home from work that night!!! The joys of parenting I guess……
K
Afternoon at the Tennis
Auntie Mhairi & I took the kids to the Australian Open Tennis this afternoon. We purchased ground passes which gives access to Margaret Court Arena and all other side courts. We spent a lot of time in Garden Square watching on the big screen and keeping an eye on the kids who kept going in opposite directions. Ella & Charlie could be bribed to sit still for a while with ice cream but Ruby & Poppy had other ideas. Alan joined us later in the afternoon and he took Ella & Charlie to watch some of the juniors matches. We headed home before the Federer v Hewitt match because little people were getting too tired (as was I having been out of the house since 9 am) and watched it on TV instead.
Testing their skills as ball kids
Ella testing her speed and agility (she tried at least 15 times)
Poppy & Ruby
Charlie with his Aussie tattoos ahead of tomorrow’s Australia Day celebrations
K
Charlie & Jake Re-united
After what seemed like 5 long weeks (from our end) Charlie and his best buddy Jake were re-united this morning at the beach park. Jake had been on holidays back to the US over the Christmas/New Year holidays and Charlie never tired of asking why he wasn’t at Treehouse and wasn’t at the park to play. They had fun this morning and Ella was delighted to see Cameron (Jake’s older brother) too. For me it was great to catch up with Danielle and finally meet her mum who has flown back with them to spend a few weeks in Melbourne. Here’s to another playdate soon….
K
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