Another birthday

Thanks to everyone who wished me a happy birthday for yesterday, it was lovely to hear from you all. Marc and I took ourselves to a "Gold Class" screening of Toy Story 3, which was a nice way to enjoy the evening. (Though I have to say, the movie was fine but didn't really grab either of us. With everything going on in the world right now, it's hard to get emotionally engaged by the challenges facing a few toys. Possibly because our cupboards are overflowing with similar pieces of plastic...).

I feel like we're due for an update, so... Owen has just finished his first semester at school, and has been loving it. His enthusiasms include:
- footy (he's a rabid Geelong supporter, despite having watched only about 3 hours of footy in his life, and the extreme lack of enthusiasm seeping from his parents);
- chess (he's beaten me several times, but he's incredibly aggressive and erratic, which makes him kind of fun to play -- occasional flashes of brilliance, followed by suicidal loss of pieces);
- books (he heads off to read solo now, which I LOVE!).

Georgie is getting quite grown up, and talks non-stop. She spends a lot of time trying out sentence formations and various emotions (now I'm sad... now I'm mad.... now I'm hysterically happy). No, she's not insane, she's just 3. She's very charming and universally beloved, and now has real hair!

Marc is still working on those video games. Serena is still working half-time, and has completed 4 months working for the Victorian government, helping to draft legislation (road-related, generally). We're all doing well! Stay in touch.

"Maisie's gone all little!"

Georgie came out of her room yesterday, very upset and teary because (I eventually learned) her favourite big teddy bear had gone small. I asked what she meant and she said "Maisie's legs don't come down to my knees anymore". They're actually several inches short of her knees, which is a pretty good indicator of how much Georgie has grown. She's tall and skinny, not a plump toddler these days. Owen is also huge. They're now sharing a room, which makes Georgie feel very grown up. If only we could convince her that diapers are not really a sign of maturity....

Owen continues to love school, and seems to be more or less complying with all the new rules and procedures. His compliance during the school day may explain the increase in lawlessness at home (conservation of bad behaviour). Well, I guess we'd prefer that to the alternative.

First day of school

Owen started school today. We had a few tears, but for the most part he was pretty happy to put on his new uniform and see his friends again. He's fortunate that he already knows quite a few of the kids there. His backpack seems to be designed for someone at least 6 feet tall, he can barely stand upright....

Not a hairdo...

Five year old Owen was being rather cool, and saying to Georgie "Hey dude, where are you going?". Georgie's indignant response: "But I'm not a hairdo!".

It cracked Owen up. Nice to see him get a real sense of humour. And nice to see Georgie aspiring to be more than a pretty face (or hairdo, as the case may be).

The green eyed monster...

...emerged in Georgie today. When I dropped her off at childcare, she was very disappointed to discover that her special friend, Bobby, was not there. A few minutes later, her eyes narrowed as she noticed one of the other girls in her toddler class. "That's Sunday," she said. "She loves Bobby. _I_ love Bobby". I responded that it was great that Bobby was so well loved. "No, I WANT him", she shot back, giving Sunday a withering look. Goodness, it was like a scene from Days of our Lives, played out right there in the 2 year old room.

I have to say, Georgie's a pretty determined young person -- I don't like Sunday's chances.

"He not busy, cos he not a mummy"

This was Georgie's response when I asked her whether her favorite stuffed animal was busy. I guess I am a busy mummy, as was evident when I recently had 4 weeks of swine flu related illness and had to drop most things. And it must be showing -- the other day I asked Owen how old I was, and he said "80". And today he called me an old lady. Sigh. (We're working on his manners).

We're all doing well, kids are getting huge, and generally have far too much energy. The pictures below show them doing their favourite chicken dance on one of our out-of-town excursions (which Marc describes as our "see the State before it burns" campaign).

Owen starts his orientation for school next week -- incredible to think he's at that stage. (His teacher gave him a positive and perceptive report, though we were amused by her comment that "Owen can get quite upset when he doesn't get what he wants". Oh yes indeed). But he's apparently a loving, helpful and inclusive member of his preschool class, and we're very proud of him.

Bugs, bugs and more bugs

It's winter here, and we're trying to keep one step ahead of disease. So far... several high fevers, one emergency room trip, one vomit-soaked car, one bout of "slap cheek syndrome", one stomach bug, and (most embarrassingly), a brush with head lice. All lovely.

Despite all that, we're doing pretty well. Owen is now half way through kindergarten (which is technically pre-school, but he's doing longer hours there than he will be next year at school). He's come a long way this year and seems to be reading now -- the greatest benefit of this is that he can sometimes be persuaded to read Georgie a story. Ah, peace and quiet -- for a full minute and a half.

Georgie enjoys her childcare, now has an impressive amount of hair (a nice change after what seemed like years of baldness), and is mainly pretty happy and easy-going despite unavoidable bouts of Terrible Two.

Serena has just notched up a full year in the workplace (still employed!), and Marc is getting close to ship time on the latest game (for the Nintendo Wii).