Science Show @ the Library

Play time at the library while the big boys attend the Science Show upstairs.

ETA - Apparently Shmoo demonstrated some good problem solving skills and Loo assisted with one of the experiments, and showed great enthusiasm as well as his ADHD-ness. 

Mersey Bluff, Devonport

Climbing,

  Rolling and spinning.

 

 Investigating rock pools... discovering blobby Waratah anemones and pretty little sea stars.

 

Collecting shells... finding a spiky sea urchin shell and dead sea stars (the latter of which Loo ceremoniously buried beneath a cairn).

Magic Lemon-Scented Smurf-Dough

(Okay, so it's just blue playdough with glitter and lemon essential oil mixed in)

Listening To... Ordinary Day by Great Big Sea

Loo and I are loving this song at the moment. Toe-tapping, jig-dancing fun with great lyrics.

Grieving

We all miss our Princess Fatty Puss very much. The boys have donated a toy kitty to Stinky so that she has something to snuggle up to.

'Mommy, Mama, and Me' and 'Daddy, Papa, and Me' by Leslea Newman

Mommy, Mama, and Me and Daddy, Papa, and Me - by Leslea Newman 

We love these board books. Now that we live in a fairly conservative part of the country, all the other families we know are traditional mum, dad and kids... Those are the families typically portrayed in the media as well.

Of course, the boys know that families come in all different shapes and sizes but it's nice to have simple children's books that show different types of families doing normal, everyday things.

 

Farewell, Dear Kitty

This morning she had her final trip to the vets. We had planned on doing it next Monday but she was deteriorating too quickly - vomitting, wheezing, gasping and lethargic - and we couldn't bear the thought of her suffering. We were all there when she was sedated at 9.20 am and said goodbye to her before the vet took her into the back room to euthanase her at 9.31 am.

We drove home listening to the playlist we'd created for her as I cuddled her on my lap. At home, the boys all had a cuddle and we lay her out on the floor so that we could all (including her kitty companion) say our final goodbyes. Then we wrapped her up in a white baby blanket with the goodbye notes that the boys had made, and, as Bright Eyes, the final song on her playlist played in the background, The OH took her out into the wild wind, rain and hail to bury her.

To help us in our grief, we then drew pictures of her as we wished for her to be... loved, happy, warm in the sunlight and chasing butterflies... because she was more than just a cat, more than just a pet. She was part of our family. And we loved her.