Last Friday we went to the Australia Day celebrations at Parramatta park. Highlights include:

Master one-and-a-half sitting on the ground in front of a stage filled with twirling acrobats doing incredible feats of wonder- and being fascinated by a little hole in the dirt.

Master four's two week long enthusiasm about seeing hot air balloons being momentarily dampened when all 21 of them roared their burners at the same time. It was like being in the middle of a flock of dragons.

Watching the little model aeroplanes zoom around the park, and hear a little girl's voice behind me asking if there were people in them.

Counterpoint: on the way home, having a car drive by screaming "F**k Australia, Lebs rule". What an endearing and articulate group of fine young men. Last one out of Sydney turns into a pillar of salt.

When I step out of the shower, my four-year-old sometimes hears the water stop, and runs and gets me a towel.

That's cute enough, but his little brother tries to copy everything he does. Some time ago I stepped out of the shower to find my little toddler handing me one of my wife's bras.

You first know something is up when little Matty (1 1/2) toddles into view looking at you with That Glint in his eye, and holding a large soup ladle.

Not taking his eye off you, he taps the wall with the ladle, once.

"No," you say, shaking your head.

Two taps, harder.

"No. That's not a toy."

Another two hard taps, accompanied by a smug grin.

You get up to take the offending weapon from him. At this point he erupts into a gleeful cackle and bolts for it, having achieved his objective of initiating a chase.

Suckered again.

Chip off the old (choc) block

When my oldest son Ben was about 1 1/2, he had his first chocolate chip cookie. We were on a long car trip, and it seemed to keep him quiet, but when I turned around I found he had somehow eaten the entire cookie and not a single chocolate chip, all of which sat in a little pyramid on his chest. How did he do that?

It is not uncommon for me to be woken up at 6am by the sound of rattling cot bars and a little voice calling out "Toast! Toooooooast!"

Launched!

Welcome to Cute, Comic, Crazy. You know when your kids do something cute or funny and you think "hey, I should write that down?" Well, I intend to.

To start us off: the below exchange occured between a nine-year old boy and his Mum, somewhere in my extended family. Names withheld to prevent painful death:


Mother: Get in the bath NOW.

Boy: No.

Mother: You get in there or I'll shave you bald!

Boy: But I don't have any hair down there.


His Dad was rolling on the floor for a good ten minutes.