a new look

Mae's new haircut, in an easier-to-manage funky style. Something new for Elliot too - he tried solids for the first time tonight. He munched on mushy banana (on the recommendation of his paediatrician). It went down extremely well.

i like chinese

No - this entry has nothing to do with Monthy Python, but about Aiden learning Chinese in school.

He can now count from 1-10 in Mandarin, and he's already been singing/reciting Chinese rhymes songs on his own at home.

His favourite rhymes are:
Liang zhi lao hu (2 Tigers)
Huo che kuai fei (Hurry along, train)
Chui Pao Pao (Blowing bubbles)

I love that his playschool has Chinese teachers from China, who (despite being bilingual) only speak to the kids in Mandarin. A pleasant consequence: chatting to them about Aiden has forced me to brush up on my extremely rusty Chinese!

does that nursery rhyme have a loophole?

Aiden has left us bewlidered, speechless and amused more than once during our reading/sing-a-long sessions. Here are a couple of our favourite moments:

1. Old Mother Hubbard
You know the story: She goes to the cupboard to get her dog a bone, but the cupboard's bare, so the dog has none.

At the end of the rhyme, Aiden offers: "Try another cupboard."
Clearly, Ol' Mother H didn't think of that, did she?

2. How much is that doggie?
Part of the story goes that the boy wants to sell lemonade to buy the doggie in the window. But the first day he sets up his lemonade stall, it rains and "no one came out for a drink."

At this point, Aiden looks up from the book and questions: "Open umbrella?"