Height x length x width = ?

M – As many know, height x length x width = the area of a given object. When it comes to the lives of our children,  that area is already pretty big and continues to expand rapidly. I first thought to title this post “Rise up, rise up”, but while it suited Nectarine’s growing confidence in all things vertical, it did not take into account Mango’s expanded world. Thus, some examples:

• Height = Nectarine sitting easily by herself as compared to barely rolling over a month ago.
• Length = Nectarine’s growing amount of time between naps.
• Width = Nectarine’s increasingly speedy movement across any distance while the adult in charge is distracted for a moment.
• Height = Mango’s ability to get into things higher than we thought she could.
• Length = Mango’s reach into new worlds of exploration.
• Width = Mango’s development into a very independent ‘big girl’.Height = Nectarine sitting easily by herself as compared to barely rolling over a month ago.

While Nectarine is expanding her indoor horizons, Mango is expanding hers outside of the home.

Mango loves school now (she fought it for the first few days). Since she began, she was taught about the parts of a tree (including a picture she ‘coloured in’), learned about the capital of Canada (Ottawa), and more. Granted, I’m sure she forgot it all in minutes, but loved to learn it anyway. In her class of 24, she is one of 3 who do not have a nap. No nap means they go to the older children’s classroom (she got to try yoga there the other day). In her gymnastics class, she is also progressing from kicking some beanbag dolls off a bar she is hanging on, to where she now continues swinging her legs further, enough to flip over her body (under the bar she hangs from) – with support of course. Hard to describe without pictures, but I hope you get at least a vague idea of what I mean (they call it the ‘cat scratch’).

Nectarine now has her 2 front teeth (on the bottom) and is pushing for more. She begrudgingly forces some baby cereal down (as well as some pureed vegetables), but still prefers her home-made milk. She can basically sit without falling (95% of the time), drags and rolls herself to whatever it is she has her eyes on, no matter how far across the room it is (and she has pretty darn good eyesight, so it can be quite far away).

Hey! This floppy box has holes in it!

Somehow I doubt she can read the tag yet.

Loving the balance beam. At any height.

Got the rolling; working on the graceful part.

While we do this at home all the time, it seems more ‘professional’ when done in a class.

Rolling and exploring.

Once again, we have to move things to higher and safer places.

See my teeth?

Happy to show off her teeth – also happy to gnaw on your tender fingers.

So happy to see me, she is actually floating on air

She loves to meet me when I get home and tell me about her day (with prompting). What I find cute is that when I pick her up and carry her back home, she hangs on tightly and pats me on the back.

Happily enjoying a rare warm day this Autumn

Quality outing – on our lawn.

Quietly contemplative

We look to the future and remember the past, but always make sure to enjoy right now.