Hey, playing guitar!

Hackney WickED

Arty open day in East London. Your favourite parts were sharing three ice-creams and dragging three pieces of wood over a large sandy area.

Birthday Party

You had a birthday party at Barnard Park with a bouncy castle and most of your and our friends. Your nanny and granddad came, as did your uncle Trevor and cousin Kasey. Great aunt Rosemary had been in hospital and we'd visited her the previous weekend. You were given money and lots of presents, including a dumper truck and recycling truck that you have played with ever since.

Nanny, Kasey and Rock on the bouncy castle

Rock and Kasey

You had two cakes! Mummy and daddy bought you a cream cake with lots of fruit and daddy's friend Hanka made another. You enjoyed them both.

Blowing out the candle on your birthday cake

A second cake from Hanka

The party went on till late but you went home with mummy about 8.

Joker

You're a funny boy. For a while, you've "teased Daddy" by purposefully changing words. "Miho", which you can say perfectly well, becomes "yoyo"; "Deyika", "gaga"; "Maka Paka" is "gaga gaga" and recently "peanut butter" has become "barnard butter". Your best practical joke came this week. You asked me to inflate my cheeks - as you do - so that you could "pop" them to a raspberry sound by slapping them. You said "again" twice and slapped the air out. On the third time, you got me to inflate my cheeks, made to pop them and then  feigned popping before poking me in the glasses to much hilarity. Today we have laughed about your imagining of alternative police vehicles. This consists of you putting the word "police" before various modes of transport: "police taxi", "police double decker" etc. You're a  little joker.

Bridges etc

For a long time, you have enjoyed little conversations that proceed along the lines of me asking you questions and offering response after response as a suggestion that you say "no" to until I ask the question again and you reply. First of all, this was "Who...?" and the response you'd give was "Baby Rock". We still do this: "Can daddy sit on the chair?", "No," "Can mummy sit on the chair?" with everyone you know (nainai, yeye, Alicia, Ayaka, Deyika, Faisel, Emiko, Julie etc) and more recently, it revolves - as I've said before - around taking a number 17 bus to London Bridge (you love bus rides). "Shall we go to Tower Bridge?" "Shall we go to Millennium Bridge?" ... "Where shall we go?" Rock: "London Bridge". "How shall we go there? Shall we go there by train?" "No" "Shall we go by helicopter/ambulance/truck/motorcycle etc?" "How shall we go there?" "bus". "What number bus? Shall we take the 205?" etc. "What colour is the bus? Is it dark blue?" You get the picture. You enjoy the conversations and so do I, son.

Joining Daddy on his latest interest

Ca-ter-pil-lar

Your first four-syllable word is caterpillar. Your development thrills me and your mum. In the last couple of days you've started using "another" (pronunciation will improve yet) and love talking about the bridges over the Thames you've been to. "Number 17 bus London Bridge" is a favourite little phrase of yours after successive weekend visits to the river.