When Eli comes with to watch Grace swim, he likes to play with the instructors toys, and potter around holding onto the nice ledge that is just the perfect height. Being a pool that has lots of kicking taking place the edge (as you would expect) is wet, and today we decided to try out some protection.

Some other news: on Saturday Eli’s 6th tooth cut through. The gum has only opened up, so still a little while before it is showing nicely and being useful.

Grace has been waking around about 05h00 for the last week or so. On the one hand she is really good – she just turns on her light, reads some books, plays with some toys, draws and entertains herself. Eventually she does get bored and come through to us, but for the most part she doesn’t directly disturb us before 06h00 or so. The problem is that she turns on her light and can make a little bit of noise, which does disturb us and can wake Eli up. Unfortunately Eli often disturbs her sleep at around about 05h00 so we have a lovely vicious cycle of sleep deprivation going.

Grace has decided what time children should wake up though.

One day, in the far future, we’ll show her that video again…

She has also decided where we are going to live and where we should buy our next house.

Grace’s school has started a Friday tuck shop, where two children get to bring something to sell, and the other children buy the goods for R5. Grace and Hannah sold jellies and glow sticks

Eli’s copy cat laugh

Trampoline hair

In the one corner we have Grace – strong, defiant, stubbornly refusing. In the other corner, Mom and Dad – a team, unwavering, stubbornly persistent. The battlefield….supper…..lasagne….and no matter how delicious it is, Grace is refusing to even take a mouthful.

So after we have all finished our supper, and she hasn’t touched her lasagne and has hardly eaten any of her other food, the rest of us have been excused (to tidy the house and get ready for bath time), and she is stuck at the table, unable to move on until she has had two mouthfuls of lasagne (which Donné has worked hard to prepare, and Grace has rudely rejected without even trying).

Donné says to Grace, “You are making this much more difficult than it needs to be, just eat two mouthfuls and you can be on your way.” Grace replies, “Leave me alone to think about it.”

The rule: eat two mouthfuls or sit at the table until Eli has finished bathing.

Persistence won. She did eventually eat her two mouthfuls.

Eli is loving the cause and effect playing with the toy kettle. He was did this a number of times before I took the video, but what I really loved was how he pushed the button, got a bit distracted and then the finishing beep would just draw him in to push it again.

Happy 2nd birthday Diya! Hiding beneath that 2 is an awesome rainbow cake

Hmm, where to next?

Just chill bru