Big or Little?

On November 17th, she was this:


But on November 18th, she was this:


Happy 3rd birthday, poppet. You make the sun rise in our hearts every day.

With Mme Amina at 'school'

Sportin' Dad's spiffy scarf


Shirley Temple says "Cheese" with Dad


Literally digging into some cake.

Cutie-patootie (part 3)

We actually have two cutie-patooties in the house - not including the kids of course. ;)

What are forts for?

Sleeping, of course. Seb & Sophie capped off their fun-filled day with a night in their fort. I'll let you know in the morning whose bad idea that was.




The fort - which all started with a cardboard box for a neighbour's new furnace and was rescued from the recycling just before a rain storm - has expanded to fill the entire upstairs playroom. Tomorrow it will be dismantled and return to its original incarnation - a rocket ship. Much more contained.

He is a MAD Scientist

The party was a smash! Literally, as I broke our (new) French press - smash on the party room floor - just as the first guest arrived. Besides from having one friend head to our house instead of the community centre, everyone came, made merry and departed in one piece. We caved at the last minute and did modest loot bags - filled with a swirl pencil (that writes in many colours), a glow in the dark bracelet, a bouncy ball, instructions for science experiments at home, the silly putty they had made as part of the Mad Science "performance", and two tiny candies.


Sebastian was thrilled with Mad Science and his role as special assistant and at having so many friends (from his new school and old school and neighbourhood) to play with. We, the parents, came home and announced that it was worth every penny, as we had many more insights into schoolyard dynamics and whom we might encourage Sebastian to play with in coming weeks. But it was very telling that family friends are the best!


Seb makes one of his birthday cakes.


Sophie helps out with the clean-up. She had a good party as well, heading out for a warm Saturday playdate with Gopika (whose two older siblings were guests).

I made a mistake though. On the invite, we stated "no presents but if you would like to give a small donation to Sebastian's microscope he would appreciate it. "Small" in my books means $5. But obviously these families don't know us yet (that was the point of the party afterall) and this request must have caused some angst (I mean, who wants to look cheap). We ended up with an embarrassing sum that will more than cover a microscope and some money set aside for a 1/2 birthday present, and then some. We are discussing what the "and then some should be". I think a microscope for the classroom would be an appropriate use of the extra money.

Any other ideas?

As many of you know, Sebastian shares his birthday with our neighbour Jack, a charming, funny, imaginative fellow if there ever was one. Jack loves loves loves cops and the TTC (public transit), so the ultimate party would be themed "TTC cops" but that was not to be. Instead, we joined him after school & sports class for a bowling party - Sebastian's first.

Here he is (in those ever so photogenic red flannel pjs) opening the last of his presents (before 1/2 of ToysRUs New Brunswick arrives on Monday!). This was a magic kit from Babush and Katy's family.

But the birthdays don't end there; oh no.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/entertainment/8345690.stm
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/8345190.stm

We will try to upload photos tomorrow night after the whirlwind has died down, but we may just head for the couch with a stiff drink instead. Be patient.

Saying hello to "6"

They bounce out of bed most mornings, but there was extra height to our Tigger today. An enthusiastic relative got the time zones wrong (we did switch this past weekend) but that didn't wake the munchkins. Nope, about 15 mins later, after we had settled back down, I hear a rustle and then a light going on, followed by a "Sophie" (in case I needed proof that when they share a bed, little sister doesn't get enough sleep).


His beloved glovitts.


Books that he will be reading to himself this time next year.


Sophie steals the show in her brother's new scarf

Sebastian continues to impress us with his math abilities, and will have lots of fun with a calculation game we discovered; he was transfixed by the picture book of Phillipe Petit's skywalking exploits in the Manhattan sky http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6ddpV1GvF7E - what have I unleashed? (I am told that we saw him perform in Central park as new immigrants, so Sebastian has lots of questions for Grandma and Grandad next week); and he took the time to leaf through Quentin Blake's Tell Me a Picture, http://www.amazon.com/Tell-Me-Picture-Quentin-Blake/dp/1845076877#reader_1845076877 commenting as he went.

The downside was that we were late for school and so he didn't hear his name being announced over the loudspeakers. I am sure I will get an earful when I pick him up... however, it's a good lesson for a parent about what is really important to a 6 year old.

But loads more presents to open, a microscope to select, a party to attend (Jack's) and a party to be had! Am off to bake a two double-layered cakes for tomorrow.

Saying goodbye to "5"

They are growing up right before our collective eyes. Sebastian will wake up as "6" in the morning and it shows. He accompanied his little sister to her music class (just a chance to bounce around with friends, really) and he was so much more capable at the rhythms and lyrics than the little ones. And he handed items out and gently guided the young ones through an activity. It was really sweet to watch and be awed by his evolving maturity.


And Sophie is maturing in leaps and bounds too.

A family that roasts marshmallows together...

Some snaps from the All Saints event at Christie Pits; sadly, none of the magnificent jack o' lanterns are in these shots.

Method acting 101

The haul

Last Saturday, Sophie was gob-smacked by the fact that one can wander the streets of Toronto dressed in strange clothes, seeing loads of giggling children and coming home with mounds of candy.




Whoa, check out the loot.






Have to pick through it the moment you get through the door (especially if you don't have any worrisome food allergies to contend with - even those Easter creme eggs don't count as "egg")





Despite sticking in one's teeth, I bet she's up for a repeat next year.