Sunday 29 May 2011

Josh at My Kiddy Gym

Josh at My Kiddy Gym with Mr Reggie and Miss May

Thursday 26 May 2011

A world without strangers

By lunchtime today, I had spoken to Brooke, Millie and Sara, I saw Jamie out of the window passing on his way to work, then I saw Mark before going into Starbucks to have a coffee with Jo. Where we bumped into Phippsy, and loads of ex pat tai tais waiting for the Shanghai Tang sale. On the way out of Times Square I bumped into Jac and Camille Elizabeth the First. Then I went to Slices to get pizza for me and Nora for lunch, and bumped into Nath. This afternoon we're going to the park with Annie and Tayla, and later this evening I am going over to the Cultural Centre on the dark side to go to the dress rehearsal of Galaxy: International Ballet Gala 2011. It's a packed day! I guess it's kind of weird to see so many people you know everywhere you go. I'm sure some would find it claustrophobic, but not me. I love it.

Granary and Grandpa arrive a week today, very exciting! Also Vergenia gets back tonight, typhoon Songda permitting. Nora the Explorer has been a wonder, but I am looking forward to having V home.

PS - the next day I bumped into Jacqui on the way to work, and the day after that we saw Claudia in the lift going to see the same play as us at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre.

Sure you want to visit, Granary & Pa?!

Friday 20 May 2011

Being a SAHM

God I hate that acronym....for those of you not versed in the kiddy world, let me just spell out the things I hate most about it (all perpetrated by adults)


  • Other adults (eg the teachers at My Kiddy Gym) calling me Mummy. I don't mind "Josh's Mummy", "Felix's Mummy" "Sarah" or even "Mooree" but I am not their Mummy. 
  • The tendency to miss out the definite article. "Give Baby a bottle before putting Baby to bed."
  • Naming everything twice, therefore encouraging Baby to jump and land on his feet feet, instead of on his bum bum
  • Adding -y to words. I think there is an important distinction to be drawn here between abbreviations (e.g. brekky) which are ok and complete words (e.g. doggy, horsey) which are not. 


OK, maybe I'm approaching Von Trier territory here so I'll stop....but now that I've got that off my chest I feel much better.

ANYWAY, the point of my post is that the acronym SAHM (stay at home mom, it has to be mom, not mummy) makes my teeth itch. But that is exactly what I have been this week, with the odd 7 hour working day squeezed in too. I am at home with the boys, but working while they have naps, when that happens, and in the evenings after they've gone to bed. I usually only work part time, and I get to see the boys every day, but being with them ALL day makes such a huge difference. Here are some of the things I have noticed.


  • Josh can be utterly fascinated by a process. I was doing up the elastic bits on his shorts yesterday while he was wearing them, and he was focused so intently on what I was doing, it was very sweet. 
  • They can now help to dress and undress themselves. They can pull tshirts off over their heads, and if I hold out their shorts, they can lift one leg then the other to put them on
  • There is one book that they absolutely will not read. WIth any other book, they will sit on my lap, relatively quietly, while I read to them, but not this one. It's this Richard Scarry book, FYI.
  • They are hilarious!
  • They love me, which is nice. They are totally adorable, obviously, and one of their favourite things at the moment is to walk right across the room to me, climb up onto my lap, put their arms around my neck for a micro-hug for 1 second, max, before toddling off to explore another bit of the room.
  • Their tantrum-throwing technique is very advanced for the tender age of 1 year and 3 weeks...
  • They are getting mighty good at shape sorting! they also love to ride in the awesome push along trolley that was their b'day present from Holly Polly. Actually they love to sit in it too, just playing with stuff. 
So that's all for now. It's TWO WEEKS until Granary and Grandpa arrive, and about three until Uncle Hairy and Aunty, um.....we need to figure out a name for Phil!!

Thursday 19 May 2011

A few pics to keep you up to date

Felix at the racecourse

Ross and Felix at the racecourse


Felix enjoying a babycinno

 Josh in his new hat

Flowers!

Proper Bo!

Goh goh is displaying impeccable comic timing. He is awesome at hiding behind the sofa, waiting for just long enough to make you think he's forgotten about it, then popping his head around the corner and giggling. Speaking of sofas, both the boys can now climb up on the sofas. Josh can get down backwards ok, Felix is not quite there yet. Generally Felix tries to climb over the arm of the sofa head first.

Filo pastry is absolutely dedicated to speaking at the moment  - I reckon the first word will be "ball", as he spends a loooot of time saying "bo", as in Bo Selecta. There's a chance that this is actually supposed to be "blue" or even "bamboozled" but I think a noun is likely to be the first offering.

While Vergenia is away Nora is helping me out part time, which is such a relief. I am still working, about 3 hours a day, but I am not going to the office. It makes such a huge difference in what I learn about the boys   - like thy said in the 80's, it's quality time that counts. This morning we have been tickling each other, and Felix has been wearing a necklace made of plastic rings which he put on himself. They've both also been wearing the hats that Jo got them in Oz - I was a bit worried because they haven't been great at keeping hats on in the past, but I think the time is right now! Sadly although the hats are ozzie, they don't have any corks hanging off them.

Tuesday 3 May 2011

Argy bargy

So, Vergenia and her friends went to Sai Kung country park for a BBQ, because it was one of her friends' birthday. They got a BBQ pit, set out their food, including a cake that I had given VJ that was left over from the boys' party, and their radio, and bday presents for this friend. They went off to take a group photo, so asked the indonesian helper of the chinese family at the next BBQ pit to watch their stuff. When they came back, the Chinese family and their two indo helpers had taken all their stuff. They had already split the cake up. taken the other food, the radio, the presents, and a bag of swimmers and clothes that one of them had brought. Obv they were a bit p'd off. So they went and asked for their stuff back. The Chinese boss said that his helper had not understood them because she doesn't speak English (but they had communicated with sign language anyway) and then proceeded to get up in their grills, as they say, and shout, F*** YOU, F*** YOU repeatedly. So VJ, being the only one to speak a bit of Canto, spoke to the dude, asked him to stop abusing them and threatening them, and said never mind about the food, please give us our belongings back, adn please stop using those words, it's offensive. He continued to swear at them, and wouldn't give their stuff back, so VJ's friend called the police. They arrived, and were as effectual as you would expect....they didn't speajk English which made things tricky....they acted as go betweens. The guy refused to apologise, and eventually the police said to VJ "how about if we say sorry on his behalf?" At that stage VJ and her friends gave up, and left. Sad huh?!