Bad Boys......Whachya' gonna do?

It never ceases to amaze me how different Ryan is from Cyd at the same age....or maybe I should say, it's amazing what an easy baby and toddler Cyd was. Ryan was an easy baby, a very easy baby, but now as he's growing into toddlerhood all his "boy" genes, hormones or whatever are coming into full swing. The kid crawls a mile a minute, gets into everything, screams with delight, doesn't understand the meaning of "no" and is only interested in playing with things he's not supposed to have. My respect for mothers of little boys is growing by the minute....Aich, that's you, by the way.
Equally amazing to me is his attraction for all things "boyish", like things on wheels for instance. He loves pretty much anything on wheels that makes noise....thus the vacuum cleaner is a big winner. I remember seeing a documentary where they were conducting a study about how gender definition is established and they were saying that people treat male and female babies differently--that people's expectations of them build the foundations of babies becoming "little men" and "little women". That may be so, but before I even started to think about buying Ryan any "boyish" toys, he's surprised me be gravitating towards those things all on his own.
I suppose each kid is different, I remember one of my brothers who used to love barbies, he' d steal mine so he could have some quality time with it since he was discouraged from playing with it in public. Kids also go through phases where they experiment with things as well, next year I'm sure that Ryan could very easily develop a strong attachment to Cyd's doll house and Cyd could turn into a tomboy. But for now, I've got one very girly little four-year old and a nine-month old who is the embodiment of all things male. (Complete with reaching for his "ahem" every time it's accessible.)

Caffeine High

I got my first lack-of-caffeine induced headache the other day, so I guess that means that I am now officially addicted to coffee. Thankfully that doesn't freak me out nearly as much as it used to. I remember when I was little my dad's love affair with his morning coffee used to cause me no small concern--especially when he told me he "had to have his coffee, or else he'd go into withdrawals". For me, that put coffee right up there with heroin and cocaine. I had a little first-aid kit put together and of course I included a couple packets of instant coffee just in case my dad started writhing on the ground in agony due to not having had his daily dose of caffeine. It sounds ridiculous, but I really thought that would happen, until someone took the time to explain that the worst that would happen was a slight headache and being a little dopey first thing in the morning. --So not a big deal.

To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one, not even to an animal. Wrap it carefully around with hobbies and little luxuries.....lock it up safe in the casket or coffin of your selfishness. But in that casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change. It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.... The only place outside heaven where you can be perfectly safe from all the dangers of love is hell!
--C.S. Lewis

Cydney and the Crocodile.

Cyd with Jaws....I told her to make a scary face--this is what I got.

Ryan, making friends with a Killer Whale skull.

Downtown Perth--Note Cyd's vicelike grip on Ryan's shirt to make sure he doesn't fall into the water?

Our little wounded soldier. Cyd was so brave, we're very proud of her and thankfully, her thumb is healing nicely.