George and Henry

A Red Cape

2011-04-28T13:13:00.000-07:00

When I was growing up my mother had sewn a red cape for my brother to play in. I think he pretended to be a superhero. I used it too to be a hero or a princess. It was one of those play items which lended itself to all sorts of make believe. So it's not surprising that a year ago I found myself sewing a red cape for my sons with neither them nor I knowing what it was for or if it was for anything at all.
I needn't have worried. Said red cape has been Superman, an accessory for school's Red Nose Day (charity fundraising day) and now a king's robe. I'm tempted to rank this as invaluable as legos and play doh.

Creativity

2011-04-03T14:00:00.000-07:00

Henry's mother's day card to me. Believe it or not, it's a picture of his Daddy! Eyes, nose, hair, arms, legs and feet. What do you think?
He's not just an artist, Henry's also a chef. Here are his star cookies.
One of George's talents is as a builder - he built this house out of Duplo. Inside the shovel-door, there's a man watching TV.

2011-02-19T12:55:00.000-08:00

It really is a nice idea, to let little children sit with small furries on their laps for short periods of time. Our boys were appropriately excited. Perhaps a bit surprising since they live with two cats, but the cats are young-child-phobic so the boys haven't really pet or stroked many animals!
Neither husband nor I admitted to the kids that those little pigs bit both of us, drawing blood from me... Their requests for a guinea pig as a pet was swiftly and decisively vetoed.

Gung Hay Fat Choy

2011-02-07T12:15:00.001-08:00

The boys were treated to Chinese New Year Celebration in Birmingham city centre. Crowds, check, rides, check, food, check, drumming, check, dancing, check, Chinese dragon, check and fireworks, check! They said they want to go again.
Happy Year of the Rabbit!

2011-01-16T05:23:00.000-08:00

George turned 5! He had waffles for breakfast, then opened his presents. Quick lunch then out bowling with family friends (they have two boys just about G&H's ages). It was his first time bowling - he enjoyed it, even more than bowling on the Wii. He got to blow out candles and have Ben 10 cupcakes. Then he had his passport photo taken for a renewal passport, and dinner out at his favorite family-style restaurant. He was a tired boy at bedtime, but happy.

2011-01-01T13:29:00.000-08:00

Christmas was a bit flat for the boys, because their parents were too ill to properly build up the season. However, they enjoyed opening a few presents, having Christmas dinner, and then travelling down South to visit their grandparents and cousins for Christmas #2. Henry helped make mince pies, there was Christmas dinner #2, and then they came back home to trial their Santa presents - 2 new bicycles with stabilisers. (Not sure what this may say about them but George excels at braking and Henry enjoys going down slopes FAST. He doesn't have the hang of braking yet.) Here's hoping for 2011!

2010-12-18T07:06:00.000-08:00

This is the best I could do, since the boys are now up visiting their cousins. George brought home Flu and was back to normal 2 days later. Not befor giving it to his little brother and parents. The little brother took 5 days, but the parents are still struggling 2 weeks on. Daddy has pneumonia and Mummy is trying to get rid of her chest infection on her own, since the antibiotics made her worse.
Anyway, managed to purchase a tree to help give the boys some Christmas spirit. Little soldiers that they are, they decorated it themselves, doing the best they could. Here's their creation and, to be fair, it's not half bad. Thanks boys for the Tree. Hope you can come back soon to see it again....

Turkey

2010-11-28T14:05:00.000-08:00

George's oak leaf turkey.

Seasonal

2010-10-30T13:01:00.001-07:00

Lots of pumpkins recently. The boys were able to choose pumpkins to scoop out and have carved (e.g. not Mummy, somebody else did the carving :) ). Nice breezy Autumn day.

Henry had a lovely time on his birthday. We celebrated on the following Saturday. He had a small birthday party at a local Ball pit and then came home for presents and a picnic tea of pizza. He had a lovely day but was shattered by the end. He really enjoyed his presents, funnily enough the noisy guitar and the bright Alien from each set of grandparents! Happy 3rd birthday, Henry.

Past few days

2010-10-19T14:15:00.000-07:00

Here's a snapshot of life with G and H. We took a trip to a nearby House. Henry poses on a *very* large log. The House's gardens were lovely on this Autumn day.

George had to come home from school early one day after falling during playtime. He landed on a wooden mushroom. Both lips were cut and his gum tissue bled. I was not impressed with the white shirt of his uniform, but h2o2 and Vanish seemed to have done the trick.

I like this picture of Henry sleeping like the cat. I think he gets this from my side of the family.

Autumn!

2010-10-10T13:02:00.001-07:00

George started Reception, Henry moved up to pre-school, Henry harvested his pumpkin grown from seed, and we flew kites on a breezy Sunday afternoon.

2010-09-12T13:45:00.000-07:00

Henry enjoyed a leisurely boat trip along the Severn River near Worcester this afternoon. He was a star!

After dinner, however, we found him drawing on the carpet with crayons. I suppose there's a bit of balance somewhere in there.

G's first day at school

2010-09-06T12:10:00.001-07:00

Here is what his school uniform looks like. Yes, that's a button down shirt and elastic-banded pre-tied tie under his jumper/sweater.
He has enjoyed his first, suffered no medical incidents, and looks forward to more.
Henry now gets to go to nursery on his own and enjoy some mummy or daddy time. :)

2010-09-06T12:09:00.000-07:00

This is what happened when I asked George to go upstairs and find something to wear.

Soaring

2010-09-03T01:32:00.000-07:00

The boys had the opportunity to fly their cousins' kites over the last weekend. A windy moor seems to be a good place. Henry spent quite a while with the dolphin kite, his other cousin's kite was a butterfly, and George spent a bit of time with the dragon kite. Good fun, but there is some technique to it which they haven't yet mastered. In due time. George's best bit was seeing them flying high in the sky. Henry kept being pulled down the hill; he was just barely big enough to hold on!

Summer Play

2010-08-20T14:34:00.000-07:00

Some of the ways the boys spend summer. First up is shots from a local government funded Play Day event, where free children's activities were on offer to encourage play. This event had painting, circus toys, drumming, arts n crafts, boat rescue display and outdoor games. Without my encouragement, the boys picked up on the nerf golf. No critique on their form yet, please.
On our latest camping trip at the beach, the boys honed their sand castle making skills. With a gently sloping beach, they had time to dig the moats and build the castle and then watch how they stood up to the power of the ocean's waves. The outcome was expected, even with futile attempts to shovel out the water, but the anticipation was still good every time.

2010-07-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

The boys and I spent several hours at a local historical museum, looking at old buildings, going on a train ride, having a picnic lunch. We were also offered a chance to help excavate the site where the ruins of a tile house had been. We spent 2+ hours digging through clay, where George found many tile pieces and Henry busied himself with the worm bounty (I found a brick). Fun for all ages. George shows off one of his tile finds and one of Henry's special toys - Sam, the frog.

Water Shooters

2010-07-10T12:41:00.001-07:00

It's been a hot dry summer for the past few weeks. I consulted with DH about water pistols and after initial hesitation about 'guns' and George's incessant talk about guns, we decided to let them enjoy the fun of water 'shooters' (as long as we each got one too!) I can't help but wonder if I were a younger parent, would I have hesitated at all about some fun like this?
The result is lots of fun for all of us. At £2 each, these have a range of 6ft+ and are easy enough for the littlest one to use.

Update

2010-07-04T12:51:00.000-07:00

Sorry for lack of posts. The time has been dominated with a dietary trial for George, trying to reduce the severity of his eczema. Eliminating foods has helped, but there's some confusion now in the process of adding items back in. He's still off dairy and all fruit except apples/pears/blueberries/bananas.
Henry is toilet trained in the daytime, and goes most nights without mishap. He seems to be quite a clever chap, at least with his numbers.
George starts school in September. He's been attending settling in sessions weekly and has a half day in a week. We've been shopping for his uniform; as expected, he's excited and I'm in disbelief!
The carrots we planted in March are yielding their crop. They're special stubby carrots which made them ideal for growing in a planter box. Recommended if you're short of land.

Anglesey

2010-06-20T14:13:00.000-07:00

The boys were treated to a week long camping holiday in Wales. Based in Anglesey but we travelled to the mainland on a few days. They both loved it and want to go camping again. Not surprising since they got to sleep in a tent and see beaches, castles, mountains, trains and all the other miscellaneous activities.

Flight Path

2010-05-22T14:43:00.000-07:00

A recent Wednesday outing was a long drive and then long walk across 3 football pitches to reach the end of the airport. Here you can sit under the flight path of arriving airplanes/aeroplanes. A bit noisy but also a bit of a thrill. That's Henry sticking his fingers in his ears.

Woodsy Walk

2010-05-09T13:13:00.000-07:00

Went for a woodsy walk with the boys this AM. George took on the role of intrepid explorer and led us on all sorts of tiny paths. Henry took up an offer by the RSPB to help build a bug box. 4 nails, 4 pieces of wood, stuffed with pieces of bamboo for mini beasts to live in. They supplied the hardware and Henry supplied the labor, with a little assistance!

Boys' Day

2010-05-07T12:50:00.000-07:00

It was Boys' Day again and the boys and I had the whole day off together! So we took a steam train ride to a small village for a picnic lunch. We also fed the ducks, walked to the nearby church, and met some locals (who gave us a packet of sweets). Quite a nice day to celebrate boyhood.

2010-05-03T13:29:00.000-07:00

Farmers need to be creative these days. This one figured it out 20years ago and geared his farm to children and their parents. So woodland walk along the river, animal petting, an adventure play area and the requisite tea room. Worked well for us!
George hesitates to smile for the camera. He did offer his pirate face however. He is becoming suprisingly agile on play equipment!
Henry is a stubborn two-year old but seems to show interest in animals of all types. The big ones can scare him a bit but he's happy to stroke them if they're are small enough, and tries to pick all the bugs he sees, including spiders, bees and ants!

Friends

2010-05-01T12:29:00.000-07:00

A picture of G & H with their friend James at a park one morning. You can't tell from the picture but James is younger than either G or H!

Here the boys are a little glum because they've each lost their bedtime story by not being good getting ready for bed. So they sat looking at their chosen book and 'reading' them themselves.

2010-04-22T07:35:00.000-07:00

Overall, the boys are in a good place at the moment. They chat to each other, over each other, at each other. Same with playing. Henry is having a bit of the terrible-twos (stubborness, not wanting any help but not quite capable of much without some help). George is trying to deal with having a playmate but also someone who steals his stuff and interrupts his play.
I got a rare opportunity to take a picture with both of them smiling and looking at the camera at a local nature center.

2010-04-04T10:21:00.000-07:00

I'm having a devil of time getting my photos uploaded. I think it's my browser being affected by my email account. So I'll have to settle with just posting some photos without my dialogue. These are of the boys on their 2 week trip to the US.
Both boys were fascinated with drinking fountains! And they enjoyed a carousel ride in SF and a trip to Fairyland in Oakland.

River walk

2010-03-11T23:35:00.000-08:00

River walk in Devon with the grandparents and the boys. The boys liked throwing stones in the river and walking along the fallen trees the best. It was a nice outing.

Still a ham...

2010-03-02T13:19:00.001-08:00

2010-02-14T13:55:00.000-08:00

So this was over a week ago but the sun was shining, it wasn't too windy, and the temperature was 8C! The boys had forgotten what it's like to play outside so I had to force them but after playing for over an hour, I had to force them home again. Sunshine and play are a good thing.

Feng shui

2010-01-24T14:18:00.000-08:00

I don't think this is good feng shui (or is it Chi?) for promoting high quality sleep! But Henry likes lots of books, his cd player with multiple cds, his disco light going and many stuffed toys. And sometimes that's not enough and he'll start singing (which we hear over the monitor). It pretty much carries on his persona from the day (a multi-media type kid). To make me feel better, I return after a half hour or so, or whenever he's finally asleep, to turn off the disco, remove the cd player and most of his books. How different he is from his brother, who loves his sleep!

Birthday season

2010-01-17T13:01:00.000-08:00

This was George's fourth birthday cake at his party. Set at a church hall, with 20 other children and their parents. There was a games lady who did an excellent job playing with the children - except George, who enjoyed playing with a friend or two in the kitchen instead. He says he had a good time though, and we believe him!

George had his actual birthday on Friday. Low key family affair with his request - an ice cream cake.

Difficult to get good pictures of Henry these days - probably because he's always on the move. This pose is after shoveling biscuits in his face at George's party.

Growth Spurt

2010-01-12T05:59:00.001-08:00

Just a record of what not-quite 4year old, about 33lb, George will eat when he's going through a growth spurt. Last night was 1/4 salmon steak, 2 helpings of potato wedges, 1 and a half pear, 2 crackers and some cheese. Then this morning, he polished off 1 and a quarter packets of oatmeal and a bowl of malties(wheat chex) with cheerios. Snacked on a christmas chocolate/marshmallow pudding and tea cake plus juice mid morning, and then set in for three 4-inch pancakes, a clementine and half an apple for 'lunch' at 11:30am. My parents would call it the bottomless pit.

2010-01-10T03:28:00.000-08:00

I kicked DS1 outside yesterday due to pent up energy. This is what I got....Fortunately he's not a great shot yet.
DS2 not happy to go out. Might be due to his refusing to wear a scarf, hat, gloves or big coat. Might have to brave the wailing soon as he's not liking being inside so much either.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-25T13:14:00.000-08:00

Overall quite good. Fighting was handleable. Tried big Christmas 'dinner' at lunchtime - but neither youngster wanted to eat. In fact they both went to bed within 5min of sitting down! George was a little under the weather with an ear ache and took a couple of uncharacteristic naps. The rest of the time they really enjoyed playing with all their new toys, and with some of mummy's and daddy's too. They are lucky boys.

Decorating the House...

2009-12-20T12:41:00.000-08:00

... helped put us all in the mood. :)

Festivities

2009-12-13T14:08:00.000-08:00

The boys are getting into the Christmas spirit, well at least what a typical toddler/preschooler thinks Christmas is all about.

2009-12-06T12:58:00.000-08:00

Hilltop in Worcestershire. Definitely muddy, but not too cold or windy.

Family Portrait

2009-11-29T13:32:00.001-08:00

George's perspective...
Daddy (longer legs), Henry, Mummy, George

Silly glasses

2009-11-23T01:49:00.000-08:00

Funny how even broken toys can be interesting to young ones. These glasses have been missing one 'lens' for 8 months or so, but both boys still think they're fun to wear.

Camera back in action

2009-11-17T13:33:00.000-08:00

A recent day at a bird reserve. The boys preferred stuffing grass down each others' clothes.

Halloween

2009-11-01T01:08:00.001-07:00

It starts! George and Henry's first trick or treat outing, with their older cousins. George excited about his Batman costume. Henry refusing to dress up. Both apprehensive about going up to the houses but by the end they were running to the next one. Personally, I feel uneasy about the 2year old getting choccies without dressing up, but at least he said 'Tick eh eeet'.
Now how to ration out the goodies...

Happy 2nd Bday

2009-10-29T05:19:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Henry! What a boy you've become.... Here's your 'bobbie' cake - the cake being merely the vehicle for delivering out-of-season berries. He dove into the festivities without really understanding why - good for him!

Pictureless

2009-10-25T15:11:00.000-07:00

My camera is broken! So during the weeks it takes to have it mended, I will have to suffice with written updates.
The boys are definitely brothers now - both holding their own during the 'MINE!' tug-o-wars they have over, well, anything. But they also comfort each other with their favorite stuffed toy, and enjoy singing songs together. And DH adds that neither one stops talking! They're lucky to have each other.

Another day, another park

2009-10-14T15:14:00.001-07:00

Canalside Walk

2009-10-05T13:30:00.000-07:00

Childhood

2009-09-05T12:54:00.000-07:00

It's inevitable that at the end of the day, their precious items have a 'bath' in the frontloading washing machine. George's Sharkie and blue blankey (aka 'manny'), Henry's chicken and wabbit. Minutes before bedtime I can hear George in the utility room watching manny go round and round. "Oh! Manny, manny, manny... awwwwwww. There's chicken... Ooooh! Manny! manny!....Awwwww. There's rabbit. Ooooh! Manny! Manny! Mann... awwwww...."

Here are a few shots from a day at Plantasia, Warwickshire.

Henry is talking a lot and making his wishes quite well known. George oscillates between being the caring and jealous older brother. Both of them love berries and running around outside.

2009-08-09T14:44:00.000-07:00

Ahhh - to be young - at not so young - again!

Henry's classic frown

2009-07-25T15:10:00.001-07:00

Growing Up

2009-07-19T13:14:00.000-07:00

George has been learning(?) about fiscal responsibility. He helps me fold the laundry and hang nappies to dry, and in return he gets enough pence to buy 'chewies' (gummy bears) at the corner shop. (It's only happened twice, and he hasn't really seemed to get the idea that real money is different from pretend money, but we persevere.)
So George and his brother and I were walking to the corner shop to get chewies, and he was reminded to keep the money safe several times so as not to lose it. The boys were playing with stones and sticks, as they do, and stopped to drop things into the street drains. They like the plops. Plop... plop... plop... - plink! And the coin was gone, and tears in its place. So we walked the long two blocks back home, empty handed.
What do you do?
Fortunately, it was laundry day again (yup, lots of laundry in this household!) and I found some socks that needed sorting. So he earned some more money, carefully put it in his pocket (rather than clutching it), and got his chewies. The real test will be what happens next time...?
In other news, Henry has now been graduated to counting discipline and the naughty step. He is 21 months old, and knows he shouldn't pour his milk onto his plate so, there it is. Hope he figures it out soon. He is also mad on anything with buttons, and loves to push them on the CD player to "Nance!" :)

2009-07-03T12:57:00.000-07:00

Back from a week's camping trip in Anglesey, much thanks to the weather! Beach, castles, hills, tractor rides, animal petting, play areas and bird watching. Oh yeah, and lots of picnics. Me thinks we all had a good time.

Inspector George

2009-06-07T13:32:00.000-07:00

Lots of creepy crawlie mini-beasts in the woods!

2009-05-31T00:40:00.000-07:00

In the last 3 days, we've been fighting a Brummy accent in DS1. I've realized he's doomed as he headed for either a Brummy accent or an American one, neither of which is looked upon favorably in these parts. What is one to do?

WSM

2009-05-24T12:44:00.000-07:00

Weston-Super-Mare gave us plenty of sunshine and a strong breeze. It wasn't quite what I had thought it would be, but it was great fun nonetheless.

Local park

2009-05-24T12:43:00.000-07:00

Air Museum

2009-05-18T00:55:00.000-07:00

The eldest boy (Daddy) enjoyed the visit to the Air Museum, and the other 2 seemed to find things to entertain themselves too. This was taken in the War Planes hangar.

2009-05-10T09:23:00.000-07:00

Air Show

2009-05-04T13:24:00.000-07:00

George and his Daddy attended an airshow in Oxford. Little brother and mummy stayed home. Weather cooperated and they appear to have had a good time. At least, there are plans for more shows in the future! This is George in front of a P51...

Beach scene part 2

2009-04-28T07:50:00.000-07:00

George's mixed media piece of work, under mummy's instruction. N.B. I think it looks better on film than in real life! Also, those are magnets on the perimeter holding it onto the 'fridge.

New Brighton

2009-04-23T07:58:00.000-07:00

We drove 2+ hours one way to make the most of the fine weather. Unfortunately, clouds forecast for 2pm and they came in at 12:30, so only 30mins of sunshine. This was taken during the sun. All in all, a good trial run for another trip to a beach. Boys said they enjoyed it!

Our first Easter Egg hunt

2009-04-13T14:30:00.000-07:00

A dry Easter Sunday in our garden. George knew what to do because they'd done one at nursery. Apparently they teach how to share. Henry seemed more interested in his basket, but luckily George kept him supplied with the other eggs he'd found. Chocolate in the plastic egg is a good incentive. Happy Easter!

Just pictures

2009-04-07T07:15:00.000-07:00

What color are these?

2009-03-27T15:50:00.001-07:00

I'm guessing Henry's eyes are in transition... although they've been like this for at least a year now.... Any other guesses?

On the other hand, George has been busy with arts and crafts with the Nor-wester blowing through. Blast off! (Pieces prepared by mummy and assembled then painted by George)

2009-03-15T14:21:00.000-07:00

Proof that Henry was once able to stand in the trunk/boot of the car.

Imagination

2009-03-07T13:17:00.000-08:00

Things oughtta be fun for the next couple of years. Their imaginations are working full-time. Henry on his horse/car/trike whatever and George showing his best monster roar.

Beach

2009-02-23T14:59:00.000-08:00

Sure it's February, sure it's England, but that doesn't stop making the most of dry weather and low tide to play in the sand at the beach. As Henry gets older, they are both able to broadly enjoy the same activity.
George made sand castles and ran from the waves, while Henry delights in throwing shovel fulls of sand into the air, and onto his head.

First shoes

2009-02-16T13:57:00.000-08:00

Not comparing them, but George's first shoe was a 4G and Henry's first shoe is a 4 1/2 J. But then George was 13m and Henry is 15m.

Car ride

2009-02-14T10:25:00.000-08:00

Two very different sons in their car seats.

Snow - more

2009-02-08T02:14:00.000-08:00

Lots of snow this year. Usually only a couple of days, but it's been a few cm each day for the past week. This was the best snowman we could muster...
My inkling is that the news reports making it across the Pond are a bit sensational... life is mostly as per usual, with pockets of disruption. Here we had nursery shut a few hours early so staff could make it home, otherwise normal routines.

Log

2009-01-29T14:14:00.000-08:00

Henry is just past 15 months now. He doesn't say anything intelligible, but he babbles a lot and chats on the telephone. He uses a few signs in makaton-type sign language to get what he wants. He's starting to walk a bit more, but we're not ready to invest in shoes for him yet. He also knows how to use the remote control to turn the TV on, and likes to watch and play videos on youtube. Is there a pattern?

Airport

2009-01-25T14:03:00.000-08:00

Interesting walk this Sunday to a Country Park located at the end of Birmingham International Airport. Not as much joy for me, and the youngest was more surprised, but the two eldest boys were quite excited. Loud, penetrating rumbling as the discount airliners passed directly overhead.

2009-01-23T15:24:00.000-08:00

They all like to dance at this age, don't they? Henry has figured out that squeezing the different limbs will play different sounds and songs. The cold weather means there's more time for dancing!

And, sad to say, this is the best picture I have of George's birthday party at the Steam Railway Station. The 3rd gen. train cake was worth it(no pics of that either!), and I think the kids were happy. George was happy too, after getting over some of his shyness.

Welcome

2009-01-17T21:58:00.000-08:00

Welcome!
This is the new combined site for George and Henry. Many updates are about both of them now so I think this will be more efficient - especially for the host!