Let me sing, let me dance.... la la la la la

Can you overdose on calcium?

Dear Eleanor's Adventures readers,
Its Lindsay here. I would like to interupt the normal posts for a bit of a ... well, vent.

Below are some pictures of Eleanor eating dinner tonight. I would like to remind all of you who have had toddlers and forewarn all of you will have toddlers - that feeding a toddler ...well, how can I put it politely - it sucks!

There are some rarer than hens teeth, toddlers who are a dream to feed. Cousin Nicholas is one of those. (Yes Alison, I do believe we have our babies mixed up).

Eleanor, suffice to say, is not one of those. I think Eleanor is the run of the mill toddler when it comes to eating (or maybe she is in a league of her own - could go either way some days). In the past, toast, cheese, corned beef, kiwi fruit and banana are all that shall pass Eleanor's lips. Other food is to be treated with caution - it could be posionous - goddamn it, it could be vegetables. Those vegetables (excluding corn) are to be avoided at all costs!

Well, like a dutiful mother, I persist in offering Eleanor a variety of foods. Tonight it was beef and vegetable rissoles, a fried egg, turkish bread and dips. The fried egg ended up on the floor, with the sound effect of "yerch" and a look of "what the hell were you thinking giving me that!!!". The dips and bread... well, we had some of the bread sans dip. The bowl then exited stage left. Then the rissoles. The tops and bottoms got a bit burnt so I cut those off and offered Eleanor the yummy middle bits. I gnawed reluctantly on a burnt bit to encourage her to have a go - and what did she want to eat? Right, you guessed it, the salty bit of charcoal Mum had in her mouth. And that was all she ate of the rissoles. Yep.

And then, to show the truely random nature of the toddler, Eleanor, who has never been that keen on yoghurt (of any kind) promptly polished of half of a LARGE tub of Jalna yoghurt. Go figure.

So, as mother of a toddler, you roll with the punches... even as the spoon covered in yoghurt hits the floor - gotta love it!!!

Aunty Kristin's garden

Well, I have found heaven! This afternoon Mum and I visited Aunty Kristin. After oooing and ahhing at all the "pretty" things in Aunty Kristin's house (the blush pink roses being a personal favourite), we then adjourned to the garden for tea and banana cake. There was grass as far as the eye could see, and golden mulberry leaves floating in the air. I was in heaven. There were all types of birds ("boids") flying here and there, scrabbling on the tin garage roof. There were pathways leading to mysterious places (although I never quite got to explore those fully... next time). There were drifts of pretty flowers... and when I got a bit tired of walking around or sitting on the grass, Aunty Kristin would read me a book. Hmmm, life is tough....

Things I have learnt....

I know. I am one. How much could I have learnt in this short time? Here is a sample...

• a child could live on cheese alone
• dogs rock
• pointing gets attention
• so does biting - but sometimes not the right kind of attention
• cats rock - I think they are dogs in disguise
• phones are cool, mobile phones are even cooler, and blackberries are ... well ... out of bounds apparently
• balloons pop when you bite them
• people smile at you when you smile at them... even when you are doing something bad
• "no" is the funniest word in the English language, and has no real meaning
• Grandpas must be kept on side - Grandmas and Aunts will adore me regardless (hopefully)
• I have the loudest bellow in the world (although my mother could be exaggerating)
• walking in socks can sometimes be hazardous, particularly on polished floor boards
• trying to walk in my sleeping bag, even more hazardous

See, its quite a bit, isn't it?

Saving Private Rabbit...

Mum wasn't quick enough to save my Rabbit... someone threw him in the bath. Who would do such a thing?

Mum is worried...

I can't see why?

Diversions

The world is full of these things Mum calls diversions. Some of them, I notice, are intentionally placed in my path by Mum or Dad. These diversions are, on the whole, usually not that interesting - say a book, a toy, food... The real enjoyment comes from those diversions I stumble across quite by accident. Take, for example, this roll of brightly coloured paper. I would hazard a guess that it serves some useful but rather tedious purpose in the hands of less creative people. In MY hands, however, it becomes a crinkling river of sparkles, or a magic invisible sheet behind which no one can see me.

And when I am done, I leave them with far more than they started with...

There is always time to read a good book...

Love my new hat - thanks Jacqui, Michael and Spencer!

Okay, now do you believe me....

I NEED A HAIRCUT!!!!!

You can ring my belllllllllll, ring my bell!!

How time flies...

 

Sitting nicely for the camera.... NOT!

 

My flashdance routine...

Smile for the judges... (or a Grandpa, take your pick)


Bit of clapping for rhythm...



This is my speed feet manuevure - see the blurrrrrr....



And now a bit of stompin'

Wasn't me!