Sparky's five

Sparky turned 5 on Friday. In time honoured tradition (well from last year) - I give you a happy birthday post with youtube. Here is the song Sparky wants every night - I have to admit I make up my own words (which usually involve both boys' names and lots of love yous).Sparky, you are so inquisitive, kind, affectionate, talkative, intelligent and friendly - I love you greatly.

No ideas what to post, so here is a photo

Totally out of inspiration. So look at my boys - Sparky (almost 5) behind Scout (almost 2 3/4).

Party Planning

I have to admit that the thought of planning kid's parties really doesn't thrill me. So far for Sparky and Scout I haven't really planned a proper one at home. For Sparky last year we went with what in our house is called the Scottish Place (because of Sparky's ability to spell - can you guess which fast food chain?).

But this year I feel it is about time I made an effort. Sparky's 5th birthday is in about 2 months. I'm thinking a cooking party - making mini pizzas and cookies. Any ideas or suggestions on where to get supplies will be welcome!

Our Big but Thrifty day out

Sparky and I had our regular holiday movie day yesterday. After the horrors of the Easter Show cost last week, I went looking for bargains....double pass from ebay: c $16. snacks and water from home during movie: $?? not that much. lunch at a food court (Sparky's choice) c$10. train travel c$7. I figure at $17 each we did well.

We saw Monsters vs Aliens. It was PG which we usually avoid, but there were no G movies (in school holidays!) It was a little scary for 4, but he still enjoyed it. It was quite funny too, so something for the parents there. Though, as usual, the funniest lines had been used in the trailer.

Note to self : don't take son for his haircut on your fun day out. Yes, it was convenient. No, it wasn't worth it.

Sparky's first post

I am too tired tonight to post, but Sparky reckons he can fill in for me. Here goes!

I love my teachers because they teach me such nice things. Like English. They have some games too. Well, before group time we go and do those games. A___ and C____ are my teachers. Sincerely, Sparky.

I need at least one more February post so here are some kid stories...

Sparky has been showing some theological thinking recently.

When we explained that he would get to see the people he loved in heaven forever, he excitedly exclaimed he would see K____ (a girl from preschool last year) again.

He was putting on some check shorts yesterday, and said they must be church shorts. He is under the impression checks are for church, because the collared shirts he wears for church tend to have checks (the lack of imagination of boys' fashion manufacturers). He then nodded and said "yes, of course it's for the cross". I put a striped tee on him as well, and he said "ah! half a cross !" I didn't have the heart to discourage this interest in symbolism.

Scout has been saying I love you a lot, which is gorgeous. He also enjoys saying "that's mine" - or, if he doesn't want the item, it's "that's Sparky's!". Ah the human paradox -loving and selfish all in the same person!

the clown of God

most of my old children's books have been stored at my in-laws for years and today I sorted through them, looking for some that Sparky might be ready for in the next year or so to take home.

One that I took home and read to Sparky tonight is the Clown of God by Tomie dePaola. I almost couldn't finish reading it, as my voice got choked up with tears (of joy) towards the end. It was a book that was very dear to me as a child. The story follows a juggling clown who in the end just before death, juggles for a statue of the Christ child, and in this finds meaning. The clown dies in the story, but the sadness of the death is transformed into joy in the story. Sparky said in wonder that it was sad and then good. It sparked off a discussion on death that got quite involved (Next time I won't read this story JUST before going to bed). I think at 4 Sparky was just old enough for this story - it might be even better for 5-6 year olds, and can be appreciated by 35 year olds too. The illustrations re very beautiful too.

Now I am looking forward to rereading the rest of the books I brought home. I am trying not to get too disappointed if his favourites are different from mine!

A simpler approach to ethics

On Australia Day I discussed 2 ethical issues with Sparky. Now, granted, in explaining the issues to Sparky, my own biases came through strongly, both because I was trying to explain simply, and because I was instilling values.

But I was struck by how simple these issues appeared to him.

He couldn't understand why anyone would buy cage eggs. It was easy for him: unhappy chickens = a bad thing. Then when I explained that they were cheaper and people cared more about that than the chickens, he wanted to know why the supermarket sold them. I explained that they sold them because people bought them. He suggested that as more people realised chickens were sad and bought the free range eggs, maybe the supermarket would stop selling them. I said I hoped so.

The other issue was the date of Australia Day. He wanted to know why some thought it should be a different day (reading news over my shoulder). I explained about the indigenous point of view. His reaction? Well, why not just make it a different day then? Indeed.

On that last point, I am taken by suggestions we should make it the day we become a republic --- now roll on the republic!

photo from image after

so we bolted....

Sparky and I went and saw the movie Bolt. We both liked it more than the last movie we saw (Beverly Hills Chihuahua).

Pros:
It is a G movie (but see cons below)
Not too long.
It has some good things to say, such as:
loyalty is important
even ordinary people can be heroes
the ordinary pleasures in life are important too - of home, family, friends, enjoyment of creation
It has humour that involves adults, while still being clean. The hamster is hilarious.

Cons:
It does have a few scary scenes - most of these take place as part of a TV show, and so no "real" (in the world of the movie) people or animals get seriously hurt.
There is reasonably frequent popping back and forth between the make believe of tv and the real world. This is confusing for little ones - Sparky is a 4 year old who is pretty good at this distinction, but he struggled with this, and so there was lots of questions on his part as we watched the movie - hopefully not annoying to the other patrons.

Sparky and I have decided to go to a movie every school holidays so if anyone ever wants to join in just say the word.

O come

I just introduced Sparky to this carol and he loves it.





Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.

1,2, 3, 4 - my eldest son has grown some more!

This is a Happy Birthday post for my eldest, Sparky, who turns 4 on 2.10.08 - tomorrow!

For his viewing pleasure, a video from youtube. You might remember the original song from an ipod nano commercial.

hope

Hello! Yes I still exist. I have been busy preparing to speak at Revive08 - the conference I mentioned earlier. Oh, and my husband went away last week, which always makes things more hectic! I spoke on Saturday at Revive - I was asked to speak on transformation and I ended up speaking about hope as key to transformation. It went well - thanks to God, and lots of prayer and support from people. My prayer is that my words will make a difference.

My favourite bit of praise? Sparky (who is turning 4 in about 9 days time) came up to me a couple of days later and said "Mummy, I am so proud of you". I'm not sure he really understood what I had been doing, but he had heard my parents and his Dad talking to me about it. Quite a bit recently, he has been making encouraging comments of this kind. So what I liked most about it is that he is starting to see that he can make a difference to others through his words to them.

A great chair... for more people than you might think...

We bought Sparky a Junior chair from Ikea about a month or so ago. Previously, we had been using a travel highchair as a booster at the table, and due to having straw seated chairs (very van Gogh like) it didn't sit right and was rather unstable. Our dining table is slightly taller than normal - it is an old work table from one of the islands in the harbour, complete with chisel marks etc. So, he will need boosting at the table for a while. I wanted to share that this new chair from Ikea has been fantastic - he loves sitting on a proper chair, and it is so easy to clean too.

The only worrying thing is that I have found it good to sit on, and have now realised that I really need a booster chair....(see the title of my blog for a hint why).

The complexity of children

One of the engrossing activities we parents like to indulge in is defining and categorising our kids. And yet my experience so far, particularly after no 2, is that while this is an enjoyable and even necessary activity, as it helps us to understand and appreciate them, they do defy our neat descriptions of them. At 19 months and almost 4, my two boys are already individuals of sometimes alarming complexity.

Sparky has recently learnt to read by himself. This kind of feat, typical of him, has confirmed my description of him as very verbal. (and by the way, shows that we have to be careful of applying general statements about gender, such as that boys arent as verbally gifted, to specific children). And yet, I was recently reminded that I can't ignore the other abilities and interests he might have. Sure, he will be probably be a bookish kid. But that doesn't mean I won't have to be dragged along to Saturday morning sport (you can see how excited I am about the prospect of that...). He doesn't seem particularly sporty to me as yet, but even if he has no huge talent in that area, he might still really enjoy it. What reminded me is that he suddenly came out with a mathematical statement he had worked out (5 + 5 = 10, he worked it out from hands and feet he tells me, and wasn't told by anyone). I had been so focussed on his reading I hadn't been talking to him about numbers or really doing anything about his numeracy recently.

Well, on to Scout (hehehe yes, finally owl is renamed, and all your suggestions helped guide my thinking ). Scout is what is often called a typical boy - though I am a little wary of saying this about him, as if his brother isn't therefore as masculine. Anyway, Scout is adventurous and rebellious. A typical stunt of his is when he learnt how to climb on to the dining table and spent the first day doing that continually, looking at me knowing he was about to get in trouble, and clapping himself. He is the kind of kid who does something daring, hurts himself, and just has to try again immediately to see if it will still hurt this time. He loves cars and trains. Yet to just define him that way limits him. He is also far more interested in nurturing play than his brother at the same age. He loves cuddly toys and dolls, and is already pretending they are babies and looking after them. If he sees a baby in the supermarket he spends the rest of the time looking for them.

It is good to recognise their distinct personalities and to therefore being looking to cater to their special interests and needs. But in doing so, I am trying not to at the same time close off doors they might want to explore. God makes them more wonderful than we can imagine or describe

Olympic games revealing

picture by Ricardo Stuckert/PR from http://www.agenciabrasil.gov.br under creative commons licence

I got up early this morning to watch the Opening ceremony replay with Sparky, who is very excited about his first Olympics (last time he was in the womb). I had a wonderful time sharing this with him - I got a bit teary! He and his 18 month old brother watched a lot more than I thought they would - I guess spectacle is a genre that goes across age.

Sparky thought the 2008 drummers were a camera trick and was amazed when I explained in this case it wasn't so.

The ceremony was beautiful, lavish, stylish and dignified. I have to confess I still think Sydney's were better. This is probably because my taste is Australian! I liked the combination of cheekiness and transcendence in Sydney. It is a very Australian mix - we don't take things too seriously - and yet, deep down - at times, we do want to. It seemed to me that in fact Sydney while less dignified reached for the heavens more (the whole Eternity thing for instance). Is this the difference between a country whose government is based on a materialist doctrine and one that while secular still has some more overt Christian influence? The ceremony did however have a great message of care for the environment, as well as the usual messages of peace among the peoples of the earth.

The ceremony also celebrated the major inventions first invented by the Chinese. I knew some of this before, and it doesn't surprise me, as working for a chinese australian church, I am well aware of how smart Chinese people are! - I think the only reason they didn't conquer the world is that at a crucial point they became, politically, internally rather than externally focussed.

Peter and Jane

As promised, a post on this learner reader system.

I learnt to read using Peter and Jane. It is a system of 36 books, 3 per level, which aim to introduce children to the most common words of the English language. Strikingly, 100 words account for 1/2 the words used, and 300 for 3/4. Each level adds new words.

It is a method currently out of favour, as it in the main uses whole word recognition (though a 1/3 of the books use phonics) as opposed to the more fashionable phonics - see here for a discussion of this - though it seems now a combination of phonics and whole language is popular. Whole language seems to be more effective for children from high literacy households or with natural verbal gifting.

Sparky, who has learnt to read almost by himself, seems to favour whole word recognition and get frustrated with phonics, so I decided to use the readers I used, though also doing some phonics. I enjoyed these readers as I liked being able to go up levels, and I thought this would motivate Sparky as well.

The thing is, though, that the readers were written in the 1960s, and although revised in the 70s, still have a very old fashioned air to them. So, for instance, Peter plays ball and Jane stands by and watches. I have found myself having to explain to Sparky that when these books were written people had some funny ideas about what boys and girls could do but now we know differently. I guess he is learning to read critically already!

The picture is of some Peter and Jane illustrations, taken from http://www.theweeweb.co.uk/ a website all about Ladybird books - the publisher of this series.

So, how did you learn to read?

Is it just me?

Does anyone else do this? I have a little book I write favourite recipes in - one side adult, the other kid oriented. I write down my own little changes and tips when I copy recipes. I take this when I go away so that I can cook my own recipes. I lent it to my mother when I had my youngest so that she could cook food for my eldest from the recipes he was was used to eating. I lost it for a while (which was quite distressing!) but recently found it when I did a big clean up. But here's the morbid thing - I make sure my husband knows where it is in case I get run over by a bus. I reason that it's hard enough to lose your mum, without losing all your favourite reassuringly familiar food as well.

In other news (using the word in the broadest sense), Sparky just got his winter shoes, and at 3.5 years, he is now wearing (gasp!) size 11. By my reckoning, he will have the same size as me by around age 7. Which will be handy - stilettos go down a treat with the other boys in the playground LOL.

Boys' dreams

Sparky announced to me today, with a complete lack of originality for a boy, that when he grows up he wants to be a fireman. This follows on from his longheld desire to be a superhero. (I was a girly girl who wanted to be a ballerina and the like). It is easy to dismiss these dreams as just boyish bravado. Yet I a while ago I asked Sparky why he liked superheroes - expecting to hear that they are able to do anything, or are very strong. He told me he likes them because they help people. It struck me that this is something they have in common with superheroes. Is this something we downplay in our stereotyping of boys? That in their desire to be these kind of heroes, boys show an altruism very early on? We often these days see the desire to help as feminine. Sure, the heroism is active and public, and perhaps in that we see a masculine side to the altruism. But nevertheless, there are boys all over wanting to help and save people. What a pity that we tell them to be sensible instead. I don't know whether he will continue to want to be a fireman - the majority don't - but I hope he keeps that desire to help.

(and yes he does like Fireman Sam, and we have this toy!)

a big day

Just sharing the big triumph at our house today. Sparky has been toilet trained for over a year now but today had a first - he did the whole thing by himself without help either physical or verbal! You don't realise how many steps that is until you have to teach it - pull down pants, but don't pull them right off, get on seat - managing to get all relevant parts in, do it - all, not getting up half way through, wipe yourself, without removing copious amounts of paper from the roll, then put paper in toilet - not on floor, then flush - once, not several times , pull up pants - managing to get nothing folded over or stuck on the way, turn tap on, the cold one not the hot one, wet hands, then apply soap - not the entire container - rub and rinse hands, turn off tap and dry hands on a towel, not anything else that takes your fancy.
YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and a goal for the year is on its way!
(and yes I did poke my head unobtrusively around the door to see how it was going, and so could see that he was doing all the right things.)

Latest Sayings

Sparky: I love you even when you are naughty Mummy
Owl: tee (tree), bic (biccie), key, pixer (picture)