Star Wars

Léon, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

Much as the games and t-shirts are beautifully designed and awfully cute, I must admit that the concept of Lego Star Wars (etc) has often puzzled me. Who came up with the idea? Why? And how did they get the two big franchises together?

So since Léon got his latest t-shirt, again I find myself wondering...

Angry Birds Star Wars? What?

Amaia in her party dress

Amaia in her party dress, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

Amaia got it into her head today that she wanted to wear her party dress to nursery. Made of silver, metal disks, it is quite heavy and looks stunningly over-stated, especially when everyone else is in a sweatshirt and leggings. So I had to laugh when I went in to a sign that said 'Yellow group keep your shoes on, we are going out litter-picking' That must have been quite a sight!

Future mathematician?

Anna is five. So when she started lining her jewellery up on the floor yesterday before school I thought nothing of it. 'That's a pretty pattern', I remarked absent-mindedly in passing. 'No mummy!' she replied 'These are my Venn diagrams!'

You really never can predict what is going to come out of their mouths, can you?!

Rosie washing in her house

Rosie washing in her house, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

This new phone definitely has a better camera on it than the last one. Unable to fit the DSLR through the cage door, I stuck it in and snapped, only to realize I'd managed to get Rosie holding her tiny back foot in between her hands, licking between her toes. Cute!

What's in a name?

Rosie the Hamster, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

As I mentioned, we were in Rose street today. When Anna read the street name, she started on about the hamster again...
Oh look mummy, Rose street is a bit like the name Rosie. I pointed out that Rosie is the diminutive of Rose and that sometimes in families or informally you use a diminutive of your name, whereas in more formal situations you use the full form. As an example I explained that although we call Charlotte Lots or Lotsie at home, she would most likely be referred to as Charlotte by teachers or in her future place of work. I continued saying that if Lots was one day to apply for an important job like prime minister, she'd likely call herself Charlotte. I also mentioned that sometimes people use a more formal name when they get older too. Anna thought a moment then asked:Can we call Rosie Rose once she grows up? Of course, I replied, if you want. and then Anna added And we'll call her Rose too if she becomes prime minister! At first I laughed at the ludicrous idea of being governed by our pet hamster but looking at our current duo down south, I know who's getting my vote. ;-)

Garnethill park

Marcel and Charlotte pushing Léon, a photo by viralbus on Flickr.

We used to go to Garnethill park a lot when we lived in Rose street. Today we were in the area (Marcel had stayed home to babysit Rosie and study for his exams) but the rest of us were in Garnethill so we wandered round for a look. Léon who spent the most time there didn't remember ever having been, Anna who was three weeks old when we left Rose street for good, didn't remember it either and Amaia hasn't been, but Lots remembered it well despite the time lapse. It brought back memories of a hard time, a complicated time and in some ways an easier time. It is strange how time changes perception...

Vi skal købe et hamsterhjul

Rosie the Hamster, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

Now here's a wee cute story about how being bilingual can be confusing when you are three... Thomas comes out with the above phrase this morning - Vi skal købe et hamsterhjul. Amaia looks absolutely thrilled and starts by suggesting: What about a pretty little tree, maybe with baubles on it and some tinsel!? Danish for Christmas is jul, Danish for wheel is hjul (with a silent 'h') - not savvy enough yet to notice the gender difference, and possibly fooled by the 4 degrees outside, Amaia understood we were making Rosie a Hamster Xmas! Cute...

Five year old logic

Rosie the Hamster, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

On arrival back home with their new pet hamster, Léon explained to Anna that the nicest one had be an all-white one but that it had been reserved so they couldn't choose it. So they had chosen the next nicest one.

Anna thought for a moment and then said (completely seriously). 'That's probably just as well. If we'd got a cat one day and our hamster had been white, it might have mistaken it for a mouse and eaten it, but this one looks much more like a hamster so a cat wouldn't get mixed up!'

I can see an obvious flaw in that logic, so it is just as well we aren't planning on a cat any time soon.

Rosie the Hamster

Rosie the Hamster, a photo by PhylB on Flickr.

Marcel and Charlotte got through childhood without any major desire for a pet. Their lack of need for something to care for possibly had something to do with me having babies at the point when that usually kicks in. Léon, on the other hand, has asked for a different pet on a weekly basis for over a year. We've had requests for horses, owls, chickens, quail, dogs, cats, goldfish, mice, hamsters, guinea pigs and snakes. At Xmas we gave in and went for a fishy solution - but that didn't work out - the fish eggs we'd bought didn't hatch and he was devastated. We considered a goldfish instead but you can't touch a fish and this week I finally decided a hamster was possibly the way to go. If he loses interest, they don't live all that long, and if not, they aren't overly expensive and don't seem to like company so I'd only need one.

I found a farm breeding them on facebook, so made an appointment for this evening. Poor Anna was sent home from school sick so had to stay home with Marcel while Thomas and I took Amaia and Léon to choose one. They had cages with girls, who were climbing up the sides, obviously full of nonsense and boys who seemed more laid back. Léon opted for a little girl who is 60% white with a browny-ginger head and a gingery-grey bum. On our return Léon decided he wanted to call her Donut but proceeded to refer to her as him all the time so we suggested giving her a girlier name might help focus his mind. So Amaia came up with Rosie which seemed acceptable to Léon as an alternative. So now she's Rosie the Hamster.

I'd forgotten one of my oldest friends, Linda, is a hamster-daft loony so Rosie's holidays are all sorted too which is a weight off my mind because convincing my mother to babysit a rodent might have been harder than convincing the sun to shine during a Scottish summer.

Anyway, so far she's quite fun, she's moved all her food and bedding up into her climbing tubes, presumably in case we try to steal or something. Anna still isn't feeling well enough to have a proper look and Lots is treating her with disdain but Amaia is the most surprising. She's completely thrilled and hasn't left her side all evening!