Massive Saturday!

Occasionally I forget that Eli is just 4 years old. I decide that he won't get tired and that we can pack a million exciting things into a single day and he'll manage beautifully. And so it was yesterday, when we agreed to go to Alora's 5th Birthday party, followed by a daytime visit to the Mt Gravatt Show with Grandma and Grandad, followed by a short stop at home before hitting the show again at night to see the motor cross bikes, the monster truck and the fireworks.

Eli and I started our Massive Saturday with Alora's birthday party. There were almost 30 kids there and the theme was 'Princess and Prince', so Eli dutifully, but not too enthusiastically, wore a knight in shining armour costume that Grandma had picked up for him. Aunty Anne and Uncle Tyden had some great games organised, so with some encouragement and creative input from me (I just couldn't help myself), Eli made a great crown (it seemed like a very fast transition from Knight to King!).



The other game was a running race (separate ones for boys and girls) to retrieve swords, with fewer swords available than there were runners. I was a little bit worried about Eli in this event, because he does not like to lose and many of the boys were older and bigger than him. I needn't have worried though, because he was fast! In every race he came in second (and with a sword), so he was happy. He was also happy to hear that a few of the other parents had commented to me that he was very fast - there's nothing like a bit of positive reinforcement!

The only downside to the sword races and the insanely large number of swords on offer (which meant that every kid went home with one), was the fact that a large number of sword fights broke out after the races were finished. This concerned me a little bit, as I know how wildly Eli (and others like him) swing swords. This concern does not explain why I then asked Eli if he could procure a sword for me - which he dutifully did - and what followed was, in retrospect, entirely predictable. Once the kids noticed that I had a sword they attacked me and I occasionally would fall to the ground which just encouraged them even more. Eventually, I lay on the ground, being prodded and poked from all angles, and invariably a princess or two would also jump on me. Fortunately, we all got through these battles without any serious injuries, although someone did make my shin bleed...

At this stage of the day we weren't even half done and Eli (and I) were already pretty tired. Grandma and Grandad thought that Eli would fall asleep in the car on the way back home; I didn't, and I was right. We got home, refueled with some food and drink and then headed off to the Mt Gravatt Show. I knew this would be a hit with Eli, because we talked about it a lot and he remembers last year's show very fondly. In fact, what he most often talks about in reference to the Mt Gravatt Show is the fact that we missed out on seeing the motorbikes last year...hence the evenings activities which we'll get to soon.

As soon as we arrived at the Show we headed to the rides and Eli and I smashed around on the dodgem cars. Eli was also keen on the clowns (where everyone wins a prize), so he did that a few times too. I'm not sure if he was tired or overwhelmed, but he wasn't too excited about staying in this area, so we then headed off to pat some farm animals. Eli was fascinated with the depth of the wool on the sheep and we enjoyed saying hello to all of the sheep, goats, ducks and chickens. Eli decided that he'd like to hold a chicken, so he carefully scooped one up.




Grandad generously offered to buy Eli a showbag, so after some discussion and negotiating (by me), Eli selected one that he'd like, which featured Martians and had a bag and a beenie. He was so excited that we just sat down for a while and looked through all of the goodies in the bag and he promptly whacked on the beenie and the bag and asked 'Can we go home now?' We could and we did, but that's not where this story ends.




After an early dinner and with an eye on the Show program, Eli and I headed back out to enjoy the nighttime entertainment. We settled in on the hill, all geared up to watch the motorbikes, the monster truck and then the fireworks. Eli was pretty excited! The motorbikes were up first and they were pretty awesome, getting lots of air and pulling all sorts of incredible stunts. Eli was awestruck, he just kept saying 'Wow!'



Next up was the Monster Truck, called Scruffy (it was painted to look like a dog). It was incredibly noisy and Eli just couldn't quite get his head around the idea that it was going to smash the four cars that were lined up. Significantly less wow's from him this time, but I think he was just too shocked and amazed to offer up any noises...




And then the fireworks started! Eli has never seen fireworks up close like this before, and he loved it. The soundtrack helped to hide the loud bangs, so he wasn't the least bit frightened or concerned. About half way through he asked 'Are these real fireworks?' and I said yes and pointed out the trailer in the middle of the field that was firing the fireworks up into the sky. He was amazed.



At the end of the night I asked Eli what he liked best, whether it was the motorbikes, or the monster truck or the fireworks. He said 'I loved all of them'. Mission accomplished.

"The best campfire in the world"

After joyously receiving a huge bundle of gluten-free marshmallows from Grandma Susan when she visited us in June, Eli has been chomping at the bit to toast some on a fire. He also recently saw marshmallow toasting on a Shaun the Sheep episode too, so he's been suggesting this activity for a while now. In fact, Eli has been so keen that he's developed his own ideas on how this should happen. His plan has simply been that we should invite Ethan (his best friend from daycare) and a few other friends around and have a campfire in our backyard to toast some marshmallows. As appealing as that idea sounds, it is not only illegal, but the idea of me trying to prevent third degree burns across a diverse bunch of hyperactive four year old pyromaniacs isn't my idea of a fun afternoon....so, I've been trying to think of alternative approach. After a bit of research I eventually decided that a visit to JC Slaughter Falls - a picnic area near Mt Coot-tha that has wood-fired barbeques - might be just the ticket. When Eli heard this news he thought it was a great idea, so off we went for a bbq lunch with a marshmallow dessert.

The first highlight of the day for Eli was the fire (like a moth to a flame). This is the first time that Eli has been around a fire - let alone helped start and feed one - and he loved it! I'm sure that his enthusiasm rubbed off on me, because it wasn't long before we had a raging fire going and Eli proudly declared "This is the best campfire in the world!". Although comments like this go some way towards supporting my decision of not letting him near any fires until now, I must say that Eli did a really good job around the fire and he was cleverly cautious in that he'd ask me to throw the various bits of plant material that he'd scavenged onto the fire!



After a quick bbq sausage for lunch (Eli didn't eat much because he was much more interested in dessert), we grabbed some sticks, skewered our marshmallows and toasted them over the hot coals...



And here's a series of photos of Eli inspecting and taste-testing the end product...



I think he liked it.

Out for a walk.

It's been a bit of a dark and cold winter in Brisbane, so when the sun broke through the other day Eli and I thought that it might be nice if we let Zoomy and Swifty have a bit of a walk in the backyard.

Even though they've both slowed down as the weather has cooled, Zoomy, true to form, was pretty keen to get out and about and explore as soon as he was released onto the grass. He was certainly aware of our presence but didn't seem too bothered and he even looked at the camera for a few photos...



Throughout their stroll Eli and I took turns 'watching out for kookaburras' - to avoid a less than favourable end to the adventure.

After about 10 minutes, Swifty finally relaxed enough to poke his head out, look around and join Zoomy for a stroll.