Day 15: Making a Splash

Today was a Good Parenting Day. I don't feel like they happen terribly often right now, so I'm trying to celebrate them when they do. And I can't up with anything of significance for pilgrimage, so this will have to do!

Today was the first day of Pirate Jim's swimming lessons. He's been having them since he was 5 months old, but we've been having a hiatus since about April this year.

The pool where we used to go, very nearby, had a change of management at the start of the year, and all their good, experienced swimming teachers left. It took 5 weeks (that's half the term) before they had a permanent instructor for his class, and although I'm sure she was fully qualified, and probably really good with older kids, she wasn't very experienced, and didn't know how to handle a grumpy 2 year old.

She and PJ never clicked, and he hated going to lessons. I was determined to see the term through, but he howled every time the lesson started, refused to do as he was asked and often I had to physically force him to sit on the side of the pool for the 30 minute duration of the class.

The instructor just didn't know how to deal with his behaviour. The other kids in the class were a little older, and advanced more quickly, than PJ, and as the term wore on, she didn't seem to be able to tailor any of the drills to PJ's lower standard.

He hated it, I hated it, and I don't think the instructor much liked it either. It was terribly demoralising when he would leap up as soon as the class was over and dash for the toddler pool, where he would happily splash about for as long as I'd let him. He just hated the classes.

So we took a break over the winter terms.

I did some research and talked to other parents, and decided to enrol PJ this term at a pool about 15 minutes drive away.

This afternoon was his his first class.

I was pretty apprehensive, I have to admit. I went along fully prepared to bribe him into the water with anything (up to and including a pony), and even took my own bathers in case it took me getting into the water as well to make him stick it out.

I had been talking it up all week, and PJ was actually quite keen. We talked about all the other kids having lessons as we walked into the pool, and he was thrilled to see there was shallow toddler pool there. We got changed and he asked if he could go into the small pool.

"Yes", I said, "but only if you come out straight away when your class begins." He agreed, and when the whistle blew at 5:00 to signal the class change-over, I asked to come out. He did. First hurdle!

There were two other little girls in the class, and a very young-looking instructor. I've nothing against young at all, but after last time, I was worried that it would equate to "unable to handle toddlers".

But I needn't have worried. Another two instructors appeared, so there was one for each child. Within a few minutes PJ's instructor had him happily being towed around, although he was keeping a weather-eye on me sitting on the sidelines. But in less than 10 minutes, he had PJ totally focused on the exercises, and when they took the kids out of my line-of-sight, PJ didn't even notice.

After 20 minutes, I could see PJ leaping, unaided, from the side of the pool.

I was so proud of PJ today. He was clearly a little nervous about the new big people he had to deal with, but he was calm and (eventually) focused. And he obviously enjoyed it! After all, that's the main goal.

H came tearing up to me when the 30 minutes were up, and wanted to go back into the toddler pool. I explained that no, we had to go home to Papa and the Princess, and then he couldn't wait to get dressed and home to tell them all about it.

And now I think he's actually gone to sleep after only 10 minutes.

Good Parenting Day, I tell you.

Remind me of this when next I'm on the look-out for gypsies, will you?

edited to add: The Word for Friday is synchronise

Nice one, Nana

Today, 3:45pm, home. Nana (my mum) and Pirate Jim are talking on the telephone.

PJ: I'm getting my hair cut today Nana.

Nana: Really? Are you going to get a spike?

PJ (giggling): Nooooo, Nana, I'm not getting a spike!

4:00pm, local hair salon. PJ is sitting in the hairdresser's chair.

Hairdresser: What are we doing today, PJ?

PJ: You're cutting my hair.

Me: Short back and sides, please. A little off the top.

4:07pm, local hair salon.

PJ(entirely without prompting): Can I have a spike please?

Hairdresser: Sure thing!!

4:10pm, home.

Dis one's for the lay-dees....

Yeah, thanks for that, Nana.

Avast, me hearties!*

Thankyou everyone for the lovely birthday wishes for Pirate Jim! I'm terribly behind in blogging, but we had a small celebration for him the weekend before his birthday. I've been putting off the whole kids party catastrophe, but I think next year we will go there. This year, my parents (aka Nana and Grandpa) came to visit, along with some other special guests, for a bbq lunch.

Fireman PJ was on duty just in case the bbq got out of control. (That boy loves climbing ladders and being up high. It makes my heart stop and I am dreading the day he figures out how to get on the roof of the house. Or up a tree....)



After the bbq lunch, there was unwrapping of gifts. This one is from Nana and Grandpa. What can it be, PJ?


A Pirate Ship!!


Grandpa takes his grandparenting duties very seriously, and this includes major construction. This now lives in our backyard. I think we have to buy this house now, and live here for ever and ever, because I am not looking forward the day we need to move.

And do you think PJ might have liked it? He's the Captain!

And of course there were Pirate Crew on hand....Ahoy me hearties!!


And a pirate cake....
Made from this book. And because what I lack in parenting skills I try to make up for in baking, I over-achieved and made another cake for PJ's birthday-day at childcare.

It's a bit wobbly, as it's out of my own head, but the kids loved it.

Now I believe I have some First Mate duties to attend to! Arrggghhh!

*Ive been swotting up on Pirate lingo. Can ye land-lubbing scurvy bilge-rats tell?

Three years old today

Today my gorgeous, outgoing, independant boy turns three.

Where did that time go?

He can count to 17.

He can recognise his name when it's written down.

He can put on his own boots and knows his left foot from his right.

He can put on and zip up his jacket.

He can jump with both feet together.

He can balance and walk along the brick garden edge at childcare.

He can name all the ingredients for a cake and help me to bake it.

He can climb the ladder to the big slide at the park all by himself.

He can sing songs from memory, and make up his own.

He can keep a beat and dance to music.

He can help set the table for dinner, and clear it too.

He can make us laugh until we cry.

He can use scissors and draw faces with all the bits in the right place.

He can do so many things that make me wonder, every day, about he he got to be so grown up and clever.

But most of all he teaches me something every day, and he can make my heart feel like its going to burst from pride and love.

Happy third birthday Pirate Jim!





(inspired by one of my favourite knit-blogger mamas, annypurls)

All the leaves are brown and the sky is grey

We are finally waving goodbye to summer in these parts, and although this year has been lovely and mild (only a handful of days over 35oC), I'm not going to miss it. I was feeling the heat as the bump grew, and its nice to snuggle under the doona again. The trees on our (soon-to-be-former) street are starting to turn colour and we've even had a little rain.

My lack of blogging can't be written off by disaster or tragedy - it has been simply due to lack of time and anything interesting to blog about.

But there has been knitting. A commission for my colleague G (who either admires my handknits or uses it as a way to shut me up about knitting!) as a gift for his partner's birthday next month.

G wanted some socks. After much discussion, and cruising of Ravelry, he decided on embossed leaves (sorry, Rav link) from 25 Favorite Socks, using The Knittery's cashmere-merino sock yarn in Merlot.

This yarn was just a dream to knit with, and they came up beautifully. It was very hard to give them up. Sorry about the dodgy photo though; little fingers smeared the camera lens and the light has been tricky this week. It doesn't do them justice (even if I do say so myself).

Egads, its worse than I thought. Trust me, they're pretty!

Yarn: Knittery merino-cashmere in Merlot (link above)

Sticks: 2.75mm knitpicks dpns

Mods: Several. Remedial sock knitter here, don't forget. I didn't follow the first two lines of the pattern; I just used my usual cable cast on and then did 20 rows of twisted rib. I also had to make them a bit longer to fir the recipient's foot, so did an extra half pattern rep (rows 9-16), then did a usual flat unpatterned toe shaping and grafted toe (instead of the slight patterning as stated). Oh, and an eye-of-partridge heel too. Just to make myself feel clever!

I really can't take credit for these socks coming out so well; the pattern is really straight forward and I enjoyed knitting them. But I must thank Bells and RoseRed for holding my hand when I got all angsty and needy over the changes.

In other news:

The bump is growing. All is well.

We may have finally found a house to move into to. Its not yet 100% certain, so please keep up the sacrifices to the goddess.

PJ and Beloved are both recovered from the chocolate-induced comas of Easter. Am I a bad mum if I steal the easter eggs out of PJ's basket while he's searching for more eggs, to hide them again and keep the fun going?

December Roundup

They say absence makes the heart grow fonder, and I am hoping They are right, because I haven't done much else to endear myself to you, dear reader. I have been a very bad blogger indeed. I can only promise I will try to make it up to you.

This month has been a topsy-turvy (whose December hasn't?) and I present to you a wrap-up of a few Moments of Significance.

1. Catering a friend's 50th birthday weekend gathering.

I somewhat rashly promised to do this back in, oh about August, and it all came back to bite early in the month. The party went for 3 days, and there were between 15 and 25 people to keep happily fed. Bbq one night, finger food for several hours, buffet dinner the next night.

Luckily it was held at the Birthday Girl's newly renovated country lodgings in Jamberoo, with a shiny new whiz-bang kitchen, and ample capable and willing sous-chefs on hand (capable meaning capable of taking orders!).

It all went swimmingly: no disasters, too much food (phew!), everyone happy, especially the Birthday Girl. And lucky me, she presented me with a little something: Secrets of the Red Lantern, one of my recent wish-list cookbooks.

2. Doing the Wiggle Groove.

The Wiggles came to Canberra, and of course we took PJ along. He got into it a little more than last time, and even took me down to the mosh pit at the front of the stage for a while. No dancing, just absorbing the atmosphere.

But it's still a very serious business, this Wiggles thing.

Note to ACT govt and operators of AIS arena as a venue: SORT OUT THE FARKING PARKING. What a shambles - and they socked us $5 for the privilege of sitting in traffic for more than 30mins coming in and going out. Total Shambles doesn't even come close.

3. Holidays at Nana and Grandpa's.

We arrived back home last night after 2 weeks staying with my parents at Corowa on the Murray River in southern NSW, for Christmas and the aftermath.

Highlights include:

• Catching up on lots of sleep, as PJ sleeps in Nana and Grandpa's room. (Mind you, he sleeps through almost every night for them!)
  
• Seeking relief from the summer heat by going for a swim
  

• My Dad's World-Famous paella, cooked, like most of his creations, on his Weber:

• Keeping PJ up til 9pm on Christmas Eve to walk around the corner to see the christmas lights. The animated Reindeer head that spoke to him by name freaked him out a little, but otherwise he got right into it.


• The usual present excitement - PJ totally got the idea of gifts this year and we couldn't put anything under the tree until he went to bed on Christmas Eve because anything wrapped clearly needed to be unwrapped Right. Now. and was obviously for him. PJ very democratically played with all his gifts in turn, but I think the winner was this digger, made by his Grandpa:

• I scored very well indeed on the gift front: an Ipod (once I figure out how to use the mongrel apple thing); not one, but THREE cookbooks (Delicious. 5 nights a week, My China by Kylie Kwong and Margret Fulton's updated tome); socks from my MIL; a gorgeous brooch from my parents. Lucky, lucky me.


• A very decadent Christmas lunch, as prepared by the whole family

• A lunch cruise on Lake Mulwala which captivated PJ

• Eating fresh blackberries and icecream

4. Deadline Knitting

My brother, 6pm on Christmas eve: "Hey Georgie, you know how I'm going to Detroit in 2 weeks - don't suppose you fancy knitting me a beanie do you?"

Me: "Why not. Would you prefer this yarn, or this one?"

10am Boxing day: one beanie and one happy brother, thanks to Taph's TTWC. No photo, but hey, its a beanie.

5. Planning Failures

You would think that after my catering triumphs (see 1), I could organise knitting projects for 2 weeks. But no. Sadly, there was little other knitting aside from the emergency beanie, despite ample opportunity. I took 4 projects - one, I'm not happy with and will probably frog; the second, Beloved's Jet jumper, stalled because I didn't bring any more balls other than the one I was already halfway through; both the third AND the fourth, I didn't bring the patterns for.

Idiot.

6. Coming Attractions

I opened with an apology for my lack of blogging these last weeks. I hope you can forgive me when you see that I've been a little busy - and tired - growing this little critter:

Sorry about the crappy scan. Due July 3rd. Unlike my pregnancy with PJ, I have been nauseous and dizzy, and tired like Ive never felt. But now hopefully things will be on a more even keel and I will be back to my knitting, blogging, commenting self.

If I missed catching up with you before, I hope you and your loved ones had a very happy and enjoyable Christmas (or celebration of choice), and my best wishes for a gute rutsche (good slip) into the New Year.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

and Christmas around here means Spritzgeback! German christmas biscuits. Last year Bertie's parents were with about now, and my MIL taught me how to make them. So last weekend at our place it was all hands on deck.

I wont reproduce the recipe here, because, as you will see, there is some specialist equipment involved, and I'd never heard of this particular use before so Im not how widespread it is. (of course I can add it if you roolly want).

Spritzgeback are basically a shortbready biscuit - butter, sugar, flour, vanilla, eggs, touch of milk. The dough is made the day before it's baked, and stands overnight somewhere cool (yes, clearly a northern hemisphere recipe).

Then you give it a good mix and start cranking out the biscuits.

Pirate Jim was very keen to help this year. Note the concentration manifesting in the poked out tongue.

As you can see, the traditional method is to use a hand-turned mincer, with a special form on the front, to squish the dough out into the right shape. We've tried rolling out the leftovers and using a biscuit cutter, but sadly it doesnt work.

You can see it a bit better here:

That long flat bit to the side is a series of different shaped holes that that give you different shaped biscuits as the dough gets forced through.

You get a long snake of formed dough, that is then cut into short lengths before baking.

After about 15 minutes in a moderate oven, they come out all nice and lightly browned.

And becasue there are very few things in thie world that arent improved by the addition of chocolate, you can then paint one end. Very traditional, Im assured.

And then, the pay-off: enjoying them with a cup of tea!

Unfortunately, despite making two batches already, I'm going to have to go back in and make another couple. It seems Santa has been sampling the goodies at our place already.

p.s. if you're up for some more European Christmas baking, Kuka's been making some yummy treats over her way too.

That my boy Part II

It's been a slow blogging week Chez Kitchentable - Beloved has been away, pushing back the frontiers of science, and Pirate Jim's Nana has been keeping PJ and I company. Not a lot of screen time available when I'm keeping those two in line.

Regular readers know my Mum as the Master Finisher; she was a sample knitter for Patons in her youf and does beautiful work, as well as having a seemingly bottomless supply of patience. So there's always lots of knitting going on when she visits -often because she has big pile of my finishing to do!

PJ clearly decided if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.

PJ: (with my 4mm Addi circ) Nana, I knitting too.

PJ: Nana, I want wolle (wool)

At the ripe old age of 2 years, 2 months and 3 weeks, PJ has his first knitting lesson.

Thank heavens for Nanas!

That's my boy!

This afternoon, Chez Kitchentable......

Pirate Jim: Mama, I take basket, I go shopping (holding small plastic shopping basket)

Mama: OK, darling, what will you buy?

PJ: Eggs, we need eggs.

(a few minutes later....)

PJ: Look Mama, I go to shop. I kaufen (buy).

In case you missed it....

One skein of 4-ply and one skein of 10-ply Waratah Fibres yarns, acquired at yesterday's visit to Helen's home (as blogged here by Happy Spider) and yet to be RRSSS'd.

Boy's got taste.