Mummy

Mummy will be forty tomorrow. This morning Rosie played Round And Round The Garden with her and tickled her "right on the chicken-neck"...

Skills

Rosie: "Daddy! How did you do THAT?!"
Daddy: "I have lots of skills."
Rosie: "No you haven't! You've got one!"

WAAH!

Today Holly and Rosie and Daddy were in St George's Medical School returning a book. At the shop, we saw a skeleton in the window and started talking about it. Suddenly it lunged forwards at us! Somebody had bumped into it, and made us leap out of our skins!

Not racist

Holly is not one to make assumptions about somebody's cultural heritage from something as immaterial as their name: "Spongebob Squarepants is a CHEESE!"

First day in Reception

Today was our first day at Furzedown Primary School. Mummy took Rosie into Mrs Mujeeb and Mrs Tweedley's class, and Daddy took Holly into Miss Gooch and Mrs Shackleton's class. We were both a teeny bit subdued at first, but quickly started playing with the activities and didn't make any sort of fuss when Mummy and Daddy had to go.

Disaster Play

Holly has taken to imagining dramatic scenarios in her play: "Have you noticed? Best friend... My Mummy and Daddy both died and my house blowed down, and now I live in a cave with my dog and my monkey."

Distracting Fruit

Today, Holly and Rosie and Daddy went to Box Hill for an explore. We saw a green dragonfly very close on a branch and Daddy tried to explain where it was without pointing at it and scaring it away.

Immediately afterwards Rosie said "Look over there", and described where a blackberry was.

Daddy: "You mean that blackberry?"
Rosie: "Yes. I did not point at it because I did not want to distract* it from growing."

*Well, no-one says "distract" at the moment. We say "extract" actually, but we wouldn't want to confuse the story...

What hands are for

Holly: "How am I going to carry all these things?"
Mummy, indicating Holly's hands: "And what do you think these are for?"
Holly: "Fiddling!"

Fred

Rosie and Daddy have been singing "OK, Fred. Now you're Yagga-yagga" by Dennis Brown. Later Rosie was heard explaining it to Holly.

"You see, it's about a man called Fred, who recently became a yagga-yagga."

Gravity

While we have been on holiday we have become fascinated by gravity.

Holly: "You know, it's not just gravity that makes things go down..."
Daddy: "What else does?"
Holly: "Arms."

Fickle Critic

In the car today Holly described something as, "FAN-DABBY-LEMON -SQUEEZY!!!"

Daddy: "Wow. I think that that ought to be saved for something that is really really extra super special."
Holly: ".... It's poops."

Graduation

We 'graduated' from Nursery today. Holly's communication book reads thus:

"Holly walked nicely down the road with me talking about cats and skipping. She knew all about the ceremony and sat patiently for a while waiting her turn. She peeped out into the playground and saw all the people and the red carpet, and ran away to hide in the toilets shouting "Never! Never!"

I Spy

We were playing I Spy in the car.

Holly, holding up a cuddly flamingo: "Daddy... what is the letter that begins this animal?"
Daddy: "That's a flamingo, so it starts with 'ff' F."
Holly: "Thanks. I Spy with my little eye, something beginning with F."
Daddy: "Erm... Is it flamingo...?"
Holly: "HOORAY!!!"

Rosie's Day Off

Holly has been receiving an awful lot of special attention at school recently... and Rosie has been an absolute star about it. This has included helping Daddy to drop her off at the big school with their favourite teacher, and handing Mrs French Holly's snack, when Rosie, at nursery, does not get one.

So today Rosie and Daddy had a day off and went to London Zoo. It was the bestest day ever, and Rosie was

very

excited to see bugs and lizards.

This is Rosie with some African Giant Land Snails:

The First Mummy

Holly: "Daddy... Where did the first Mummy come from?"
Daddy: "Well... Mummies start off as babies like everyone else."
Holly: "I know, but where did the first Mummy come from?"

Sheesh. How can a parent compete with sophisticated enquiry like this?

I can't even say "Physics."

Specimen

Mummy had to take (another) pot of wee to the GP for Holly today. When she came home Holly asked, "Did the doctor say 'thank you' for my wee...?"

House numbers

We were driving to Sam and Flora's house after school today. Daddy was quietly trying to remember what house number they were...

Rosie: "Do you know what door number is Sam and Flora's house?"
Daddy (relieved): "No. What is it..?"
Rosie: "Four and a half."