Friday, September 30, 2011

Babies love to disco

We took the kids to another disco party.  Here are how little guys go wild. 

They start with some head-rubbing.

They climb freely on the furniture.

They get all sugared up on soda pop.  Although it looks like it, it is NOT beer. 
 This is his 'Jim Morrison' portrait.

They get their hair spray-painted green to match their shirts.

They play in the water even though it's cold outside.

And they eat fruit pops.  Because they hadn't had enough sugar.

Sunday, September 25, 2011

They don't have sugar maples here

Check out these killer prices for maple syrup.  The quart of Grade B on the right?  In hours: 2.2 NZ; 0.8 US. 


Luckily we are still eating big-brother-day syrup in our house!
 

Thursday, September 22, 2011

Going for a walk, holding hands

Bumblebees, always a hot topic of conversation.   Arram calls them bumbleberries.

Tuesday, September 20, 2011

They've got all the important stuff

Amiri's graduation card from Preschool 1 with a picture of all his classmates
Matching shirts
A baggie of fresh roasted peanuts
Special Bear
Cuddles and love

Monday, September 19, 2011

The problem with birdie air locks

We went to the zoo this weekend and enjoyed all the new habitats that they've been working on constructing for the last year or so.  They're largely big aviaries, incorporating all the native bush and netted-in over their tops.  The entrances are cleverly constructed to prevent the birds getting out: you have to go through two consecutive sets of doors, only one of which can be opened at a time.  The brothers loved taking the responsibility of opening the doors for us.

You may be able to anticipate the problem that developed.  Arram got a little ahead of the group, eager for door duty.  First he opened one aviary door, went through, and closed it behind him.  Then he trundled over to open the second door.  Attempting to go through, however, he got a little off-balance as two-year-olds do, and tumbled bottom-first into an inconveniently-placed mud puddle.  This was unacceptable.  He wailed.  The door eased toward the jamb but fetched up against his little bottom, and was thereby propped open.  Oh dear.  This meant that Mama, on the other side of the first door, was locked out and could not do the rescuing that was so desperately needed.  It was an earnest minute with all of Arram's zoo friends urging him to stand up and allow the door to shut.  Eventually he did and big cuddles followed.  He even got a cookie.  His bottom wasn't even very wet; it was a small puddle.
 

Saturday, September 17, 2011

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Amiri enjoys his hot chocolate

After a fun but chilly morning of playing outside, I took the boys to a cafe for a warm drink.  Amiri loved his; note the chocolate ring on his forehead from having pressed his face so deep into his mug.

Tuesday, September 13, 2011

Amiri saves Arram from certain doom

There were crocodiles, sharks, snakes, and hot lava down there about to get his feet.  It was imperative that he make it up into the safety of the boat.  Thank goodness there was a sturdy Cap'n ready to rescue the deckhand.

Monday, September 12, 2011

RWC: We were there

The Rugby World Cup has come to New Zealand!  They've been talking about it for years, and now they're talking about nothing else. 

On Friday it was the opening ceremony.  I left work at 1 pm to beat the crowds.  It was a good thing I did; two stops after mine, the train was standing-room-only and I saw hundreds, maybe even a thousand, of disappointed fans being turned away from boarding our train at the stations, as there was simply no more room aboard. 

The Viaduct and the Wharves (Prince's and Queen's) were Party Central (This is not my appelation; this is the official name.)  Fifty thousand people ended up packing themselves into a space designed for 12,000.  Luckily the organisers had thought ahead and had arranged for plenty of port-a-potties.  And, cleverly, they'd deployed a fleet of kayakers whose job was to patrol the perimeters of the wharves and fish out the inevitable partiers who toppled into the water.  Word was that the nimble little boats successfully rescued thirty-some people who'd been overly intoxicated or else overly squashed in the crush of people.

We took a little walk through the craziness outside our front door early in the day before it got too-too busy.  We ventured out again briefly later in the night to watch the fireworks from our sidewalk, but headed right straight back inside due to the non-family-friendly atmosphere.  I wouldn't take the kids outside at Mardi Gras, either.   Noise ordinances were lifted for the night and we were treated to all manner of hoopla until the wee hours.  We woke up to find our neighbourhood in shambles.  Nothing really broken or wrecked, just a really proper mess.  Barricades shifted all around.  Litter everywhere.  And vomit puddles.  Oh yeah.  That's how you know everyone's had a good time.

And of course, the All Blacks won their match against Tonga that evening.

The next night, we were treated to the quietest night in the Viaduct that we've ever seen in all our time in this apartment.  I guess everyone had already had their fun; no reason to return two nights in a row.
 

Saturday, September 10, 2011

The boys' first movie

We took the boys to their very first in-a-theatre movie.  We saw A Cat in Paris as part of the international film festival.  And this was no ordinary theatre... we were at the Civic Auditorium for the old-school experience of a movie being an event, and were treated to this view of the lobby as we walked in. 
 

We were right up front by the screen and the ornate curtain that dramatically opened as the film started.
 The boys loved it!

Thursday, September 08, 2011

On the theme of sleeping...

Arram had his lunch at his little table and then complained of being cold, so we wrapped him up in his baby blanket.  He became uncharacteristically quiet.  It turned out that he was REALLY ready for his nap.  He'd simply tilted over and gone to sleep.

Monday, September 05, 2011

We buy our diapers in bulk

I can't WAIT until Arram is out of nappies!  We could really use the closet shelf space for other purposes.

Sunday, September 04, 2011

Friday, September 02, 2011