Dingoden Family Outback Yapper: 07/2006

Holly gives Logan a birthday card.

Logan is a naughty race car and runs away from Daddy the mechanic who wants to capture the wheel (taped on Logan's chest).

Linda gives Logan a homemade card.

You put your race car in, you put your race car out, you put your race car in, and you shake it all about...

Everyone is on a race car scavenger hunt. They need to find a race car and four wheels that were hidden near the trees and on the ground.

Everyone looks hard.

Everyone gets a prize (what else, but a matchbox race car?!)

Logan with his friends Portia (red hat), Alana, Linda and Holly (in front)

Mommy and Delenn

Mommy Daddy Delenn and Logan

take 2

Our good friends -- Amanda, Rachel, Holly and Tom

Baby Amanda and Rachel

Another cute shot!

Le runs from Alana in "Truck, Truck, Race Car" (as opposed to Duck, Duck, Goose).

Everyone waits to see if Daddy can get the lighter working to light the candle on Logan's cake.

Logan with his cake.

Logan opens a birthday present later in the day.

Logan helps make his birthday cake.

"Can I lick the bowl yet?" Logan kept asking.

Logan helps spread the frosting on what will become a rocket.

Logan poses with his cake (12 hours later around 6:30pm).

Logan's rocket cake.

Only in Alice

This evening, we decided to take the kids to feed the Wallabies after
dinner. As we turned onto a road that crosses the Todd River, a woman
was walking in the opposite lane. She seemed fine, until we got a
little closer, then she started to run/stagger toward our lane. She was
bending over - and the weird thing was, her shirt was such that her
breasts were hanging down exposed. It is such a normal thing to see
people staggering around (drunk)... we commented to each other how odd
it is that we consider this normal these days.

(People are hit by cars with appalling regularity here in Alice for
reasons like the one above. People are known to fall asleep in the
road... or wherever.)

Logan asleep on the potty

Logan and Delenn

:)

Logan lines up his cars and gets ready to drive them to the appropriate parking lot. Each car has a letter taped to the top.

Logan drives his F car to the F parking lot.

Almost all the cars are parked.

He then sorts the cars by color.

Delenn in a field of clover at the local park.

Contemplating life.

The profile shot.

Is that a bird?

My big toothy grin.

Yay! We're done with this photo shoot!

Daddy and Logan read books during Quiet Time.

Logan enjoyed an afternoon out bowling.

Logan sends the bowling ball down the ramp.

Delenn wants to join the bowling action too.

Delenn walks around checking out the scene.

Logan loved the arcade games as much as bowling (so did Daddy?)!

Notice anything in common?

"Where's the..."

bear? (Ha! You thought we were going to say beef!). Delenn has
discovered the sign for 'where.' This afternoon we played
hide-and-go-seek with Logan at the dirt hills park for about a half
hour. When it was Delenn and Mommy's turn to hunt for Logan, Delenn had
a lot of fun 'finding' Logan. She'd wave her finger (the sign for
'where') and then point to Logan -- who had rather obvious hiding spots!
We all had a lot of fun!

This evening, Delenn spent about 20 minutes heaving her bear onto the
floor (nursing, throwing, finding, nursing, throwing, finding -- you get
it!). Mommy and Delenn would sign 'where' and she'd point to the bear.
She giggled really hard when Mommy managed to sneak the bear out of view
before we bent down to 'look' for it. The game would have gone on lots
longer if Mommy hadn't called an end to it. Delenn was getting more and
more riled up and was grabbing both fingers indicating she was ready to
walk around some more. As it was bedtime, the festivities had to come
to an end. Mommy ceremoniously put bear to bed. Then she asked if
Delenn was 'all done' and after another minute or two put Delenn to bed
too. Delenn cried for about 20 seconds, but then quieted down. She
seems to have drifted off to sleep.

Logan's play is really quite imaginative now. He wants to play rockets
(or monsters or police cars or jet planes or whatever) for up to a half
hour -- creating little scenarios about what's happening. (He's playing
with Daddy as we speak and I just overheard Logan say to Daddy, "We have
to hide. Then we have to go find the naughty people with our jet
airplane..." Then Logan hid the airplane under the bedcovers and said,
"okay, now the jet airplane is getting fixed." Now he's telling Daddy
that his plane has missiles and Daddy has to fire his missiles up into
the air at the fan. -- You get the idea!)

Logan's also very good about trying to console Delenn when she's crying.
Today when Mommy was finishing up her shower, Delenn was ready to get
moving (and made that clear by crying copiously). Logan brought her a
pile of toys -- about as big as she was! She quieted down, Mommy got to
dry her hair, and then we were off to the next activity (riding bikes it
so happened to deliver some cookies that Logan helped make (and sample)
to some friends who live nearby).

Logan enjoys the Alaska stickers that Grandma and Grandpa sent him.

Delenn is doing pretty well walking while holding on to just one hand.

This way of walking is much easier on our backs!

Good job walking. If only you would learn to sleep as well as you've been learning to walk! (She's teething again -- working on getting some more top teeth.)

Saturday we went to the Camel Cup Races. All the camels are brought to the starting line.

The camels have to kneel down.

Wouldn't want to get in this fellows' way!

Ready, get set...

GO!

Camel racing at its finest.

Mommy, Delenn and Logan try to decide whether to jump the fence and go.

A cold day for camel racing. (Yes, we realize now that the two-hat look isn't Delenn's finest!)

The famous Alice Springs Viking Ship.

Belly dancers

The best part of the Camel Cup for Logan!

Walking, Story Telling, Cuddling, Sharing

A couple of days ago (on the 12th), Daddy noticed that Delenn could
stand on her own for up to 10 seconds before losing her balance (and
needing his hand again). Meanwhile, Mommy's been having Delenn stand at
the train table (or the equivalent) without holding on to her and
without letting Delenn hold on to her hand (though being there in case
she lets go or falls).

Yesterday, Mom and Dad both encouraged Delenn to walk by holding just
one hand. She did really well, though was definitely looking for that
other hand to grasp. Today, though, Delenn seemed fairly confident
walking with just one hand. We also introduced a walker toy to her --
and she understood that she needed to hold on for balance. Mommy still
didn't trust her not to let go, but hopefully Delenn will be able to use
the walker on her own soon (with Mommy or Daddy there in case she
forgets what she's doing).

Logan's stories are becoming more elaborate. He makes up his own
stories while he plays. For example, he might explain that someone
needs to be rescued because they were in a car accident. Then he'll
bring all of his fire trucks, ambulances and police cars to the scene
and take the person to the hospital to be checked out. He also includes
Delenn in many of his games. "Delenn, you be this race car," he'll say
and will hand her a small car to hold.

Delenn has become attached to a small fuzzy 'night night bear.' Mommy
hands it to her when she nurses and the bear has become a source of
amusement. The bear will also try to nurse, nuzzles her face and so
forth (a ploy to keep Delenn a bit more awake so she'll have to go to
sleep on her own). This evening, Delenn kept dropping the bear down on
the floor, popping off, sitting up and giggling as Mommy reached down
and fetched it for her. Then she'd settle back down to nurse again. She
did this about a half dozen times, giggling the entire time.

Logan is a bit jealous of Delenn's bear and often asks to hold it or
play with it. Since the answer is always 'No,' he has taken to cuddling
his blue puppy again. He has always had the puppy, but was only mildly
attached. In fact, as an infant and toddler, Logan was never overly
attached to anything except for his ambulance.

And on that note, we really have to watch Logan to make sure he doesn't
snatch from Delenn. If she's particularly interested in something, you
can bet that Logan just HAS to have it to play with. We spend a lot of
time saying, "don't be like Swiper (on Dora the Explorer), no swiping."
Delenn makes it known, though, that she wants the toy back.

Delenn Signs Ball (unprompted)!

Today Delenn is nine months old. Mommy had stayed up late last night,
so consequently Delenn was up before 6am! But it wasn't so bad. As
Mommy lay in bed she gave Delenn kisses. Delenn kissed her back (with
the perfect kissing noises). What a cute way to start the day!

This morning was a really busy one here. Logan had several of his
friends over -- and Mommy did a whole bunch of activities with them
(while the other Moms ran a few errands). It was a fish themed morning,
so we colored in and decorated some fish/starfish to hang on the large
water scene Logan and Mommy had painted the day before. We played the
letter hokey pokey (put your 'F' in, put your 'F' out). We made 'snail'
cookies and counted 'Cheerio' bubbles (Mommy had made a page with
various fish and starfish with bubbles on the page. They placed
Cheerios on the bubbles, counted how many there were and then ate them.)
By far the biggest hit was hunting for starfish Mommy had hidden around
the front area and the letters game. Mommy and Logan had drawn lots of
letters (A, L, P (for the kids' names) and F for 'fish') in chalk out on
the driveway. When Mommy called out a letter everyone had to race to
stand on the letter she called. We played "Fish, fish, fish... starfish"
(ie. duck, duck, goose). With all that, snacks and playing with Logan's
abundant toys (building a car and bug highway, building with Legos,
playing with the animals, etc.) -- lots of fun was had by all (including
Mommy!)!

This afternoon while Logan was still napping (a rare occurrence now, I
might add) Delenn was outside with Mommy. As usual she had a ball in
her hand as she walked about. Mommy sat her down for a moment to rest
her back. Delenn lost a hold of her ball and it rolled just out of
reach. She squealed for a moment and then clearly signed 'BALL.'
(Imagine holding a basketball in your hands and move your hands slightly
in and out.) She also said 'b, b' as she signed it. Mommy retrieved the
ball and Delenn had a big grin on her face. And for that matter, so did
proud Mommy!

Everyone concentrates hard to put the Cheerios onto the bubbles. Once they count them -- they can eat them, of course!

Linda (left front), Alana (yellow), Portia (back pink) and Logan

Alana and Linda transform the pirate ship into Noah's ark.

Delenn and Portia cook a meal together.

Where are the starfish?

Linda finds one of the hidden starfish.

Come on, it's over here!

Portia finds a yellow starfish.

After all that running, it's time for a snack.

Everyone works hard to build a car and bug highway

Hard at work

Logan and Linda work together.

Recent Bang Up Events!

Saturday, July 1, 2006
We all got bundled up and drove out to the JDFPG (Joint Defence Facility
Pine Gap) Base July 4 Independence day celebration (just outside the
base fence as even family members aren't allowed inside). At the event
we had several firsts. Delenn got to hobnob, 'walk' around, and mingle
with others, albeit she was still primarily too shy to allow others to
hold her. Logan got his first taste of funnel cake and he got to take
his first camel ride. For the camel ride Dad sat on a separate rear
seat from Logan's front seat. The cameleer told Dad to hold on himself
as it is the kids that do better than the adults at holding on when the
camel stands up or gets down. Dad was still nervous in letting Logan
hold on completely by himself, and while the camel did have a bumpy time
getting up, Logan was magnificent in keeping himself on without a hint
of worry. Other activities at the celebration was the magic show, more
food, games with prizes, etc... None of this mattered to Logan of
course as all he wanted to do was to ride and re-ride the
merry-go-round. Over and over and over and over again. Except for
food, nothing would stop him from getting off it (except of course to
get back in line so that he could get back on it).
Directly after the JDFPG celebration we headed home as it was actually
July 1, which is Territory Day in the Northern Territory of Australia.
It is the one and only day of the year that we are legally allowed to
launch fireworks, from 6 PM to 10 PM (they were bought the previous day,
the only day you are allowed to buy fireworks). Dad and Logan had
bought about $60 worth of fireworks and we were raring to go to launch
them off. Out Mom, Delenn, Logan, and Dad went up the hill behind the
house. Up there we could see fireworks being fired off from neighbors
around the town, so there was never a dull moment in between Daddy
launching our own fireworks. We all had a blast, but no one got hurt,
and then Mom and Delenn went back home to go to sleep while Dad and
Logan went off to see the big fireworks show in the center of town
(Anzac Oval). At the big fireworks show Dad and Logan got up right
next to the boundary line to watch them being launched and could easily
see the fire trails they left behind. Logan loved this as it made him
feel as if they were little rockets blasting off. With only about 15
minutes of showtime, it was just perfect for a worn out little boy and
we were satisfied with the day's events.

Friday and Saturday, July 7 and 8, 2006
It was time for the annual Alice Springs Show Days! This is very
similar to a County Fair in the U.S., along with show animals,
exhibitions, and carnival rides. Upon entry, Logan saw that they were
offering actual helicopter rides ($25/person). From that moment on and
through both days he wouldn't give up wanting to ride it. However,
there were too many other things to do and so luckily we evaded that
one. After all, he's got to have *something* to do that's new when he
gets older! Instead, our first ride was to get on the Dodgem Cars (in
Australia they're Dodgem cars, but it's the same thing as Bumper Cars in
the States). Logan was putting up with the bumping quite well
throughout as Daddy drove us around (letting Logan hold on to the
wheel). Towards the very last second before the ride ended we got a
surprise attack and were bashed head on. Logan's head whammed into the
steering wheel and he immediately started crying his little head off.
Dad checked him out and saw an immediate and large blue bump start
blowing up just below and to the side of his left eye. The music from
the ride was so loud that no one, not even Mom, realized what had
happened. Dad picked Logan up and carried out of the area to check him
out further, with an expectation for a lot more crying. Instead, with
a still hefty protruding blue ball forming into a small second 'head',
Logan pointed over at another ride and excitedly wanted to move along to
that, completely forgetting about the event that just transpired (the
next day the massive bump started to recede and instead left him with a
nice black eye).

There were so many rides and games that Logan enjoyed that it would
difficult to include everything. Highlights include going up and down
large slides completely by himself, to include one slide called the
'Titanic' that was at least one story high! The attendant didn't think
there was any chance Logan would go down the thing once he climbed to
the top (just climbing it was a feat) based on his experience with other
kids Logan's age. Mom and Dad felt the same way (just looking at the
slide scared us). It seemed to us to be a good practice slide for an emergency evacuation from an airplane! Lo and behold, Logan surprised us and went down it
three times! On a side note, that same attendant proceeded to tell us that he also enjoys going to visit the U.S. every two to three years where he gets to compete in machine-gun competitions. He said his fellow lame Australians made it illegal to shoot machine guns here. Yeesh! Another super slide, requiring a long series of steps and burlap bags, was a winner
for Logan too. He went down that six times. Throughout the event Logan
also wanted to get a gun, primarily because so many kids there were
dressed up as cowboys and had all sorts of guns. One gun he saw at a
stall he just 'had' to have and it was a massive over-the-top looking
machine gun. We told him that we don't do that in our house and at the
very end of the first day got Logan a 'bubble gun' as we called it, in
the shape of a frog (yes, that spits out a lot of bubbles) He was
mighty happy to get his gun.

Logan did play some games, such as throwing a bean bag at a monster's
teeth and knocking them out... and he won some race cars and a Nemo
Clown Fish. We also got him a 'show bag' which are a popular item here
in which a bag contains lots of goodies and surprises related to a
certain theme. In our case, we bought a 'Cars' the Movie Show Bag which
included a 'Cars' backpack and other essentials :-)

As for Delenn, she got her first taste at a Dagwood Dog. A Dagwood Dog
is just like a corn dog, except instead of a hot dog, it is a plain
sausage (Aussies call them snags) and it is dipped halfway in ketchup.
Hah, gotcha! None of us ate a Dagwood Dog. After all these years,
we're still afraid to get one! Nope, Delenn mostly enjoyed getting to
see all the animals on display. The cats, birds, cows, horses... but
not the chickens. For some reason she saw them and definitely got
scared and began to cry.

On Saturday only Logan and Dad went back to Show Days for more fun. We
spent another 4 hours there and didn't do anything the same as the day
before (except amazingly enough Logan wanted to go on the Dodgem Cars
again, even with the black eye)! We went on the ferris wheel for a
while as well as a super fast spinning ride that made Daddy sick. Logan
even said it was a bit too fast for him, but he still wanted to go on
everything and anything, from the haunted house ride to the mirror maze
and beyond... nothing phased this kid!

Sunday, July 9, 2006
Going out for Mom and Dad's soccer game, Dad took Delenn and Logan over
to the adjacent playground to play while Mom played the first half of
the game. As long as Mom is not visible or within hearing range, Delenn
lets Dad handle her, but she's still primarily a Momma's Girl. Delenn
loves to kick the soccer ball and yes, she still has Mom and Dad help
her walk everywhere as she refuses to crawl, but we've gotten down to
the point where we can hold just one of her hands and she can walk
fairly well. Once or twice we've gotten away with everyone laying down
on the ground to show Delenn that it's okay to do so and that you don't
always have to be standing. She seemed to allow for this, for about 20
minutes, but then UP she wants again. Anyway, back at the playground,
Delenn reached down to pick up a rock and try to stuff it in her mouth,
so Dad quickly stopped her as usual. Then Dad looked up, and saw Logan
stuffing a stick and feather in his mouth! That boy sometimes defies
logic! It seems Logan has partially reverted and does this partially
because Delenn does, even though Dad has repeatedly chided him for it.

Tuesday, July 11, 2006
Mom took Logan and Delenn to the Community Health Clinic. It was time
for Delenn's hearing test and a wellness visit. Logan will be turning
three, so we also did a developmental milestone check over for him.
First off was Logan--the nurse asked a series of questions, all of which
Logan passed with flying colors. He had to answer "What's your name?"
"Are you a boy or a girl?" and also had to do things like hop on one
foot and draw a circle. She asked if he ate well (he does) and if we
felt all was going well (we do). He was weighed and measured -- and is
in the 20-25 percentile for both height and weight. He weighs 28.5 lbs
now and is 93 cm.

Then it was Delenn's turn. The nurse said it was pretty unusual for
kids not to crawl -- and said that Delenn needs plenty of time on the
floor (she always has had a lot of floor time). But, there's no
'teaching' a child how to crawl. She wasn't particularly concerned
especially seeing how Delenn was a busy body, 'walking' all around the
room checking everything out. Delenn also is on target for her age --
eating finger foods, using a pincher grasp, looking for lost/dropped
toys, and so forth. Another nurse came in and they did the hearing
test. One nurse sat in front and waved a rattle to get Delenn's
attention. The other (behind and out of view) would then shake a
rattle. Delenn turned to look for the source of the sound. She did the
same thing on the other side and then repeated the process saying 'num
num num' in a low voice. Delenn's hearing tested just fine. Since this
is a test that can be done anywhere between 7 and 9 months, most Moms
bring their babies in at 7 months. The nurses kept commenting on how
smart and observant older babies are since Delenn looked around quickly
and easily for the source of the noise. Delenn is in the 50th percentile
for height, but is now in the 25th percentile for weight (she had been
in the 50th percentile for weight a few months ago). Again, the nurse
wasn't concerned since Delenn looks fine and is obviously an active
baby. She weighs 17.2 lbs. On an interesting note, Logan at (both 8 and)
9 months was 20 pounds. In fact, looking at his baby book he was heavier
at 6 months than she is now! Delenn is 72 cm (where Logan was 73 cm at
this age).

Often lately Logan wants to play with his race cars and has his police
cars chase them down to get thrown into jail. Or he wants to shoot his
'gun' at pretend Indians, thieves, monsters, ghosts... you name it. If
it moves, SHOOT IT!

Peekaboo!

Come on up, Delenn!

A large piece of cardboard turned the slide set into a HAUNTED HOUSE!

Mommy, stop taking pictures -- don't you realize what Logan is doing?!

Remember this in your old age... five teeth is all you need
to enjoy a big ole ear of corn!

Daddy and Logan get ready to drive their bumper car.

Go cars!

Just a few moments after this picture, Logan and Daddy got hit from behind. Logan hit his cheek on the steering wheel. But although it was a huge bump (and later bruise), Logan was anxious to go to the next ride!

Logan gets ready...

down he goes!

Serious biker in action.

Mommy and Delenn enjoy Show Days too!

Delenn creates her own fun -- picking up garbage.

Logan enjoyed the train ride immensely. He did this four times!

Logan braves the Titanic Slide.

Daddy's back gets a workout too.

Delenn gets a bit ahead of herself.

Can you find Logan? He's wearing a red and white striped beanie.

Up, up, up we go on the Ferris Wheel.

A really nice week!

This has been a great week. After a number of nights with Delenn waking
up EVERY HOUR(!!!) she has finally settled back into her normal routine
(waking at midnight and 3am to feed). Mommy has changed her going to
sleep routine a bit just to ensure that Delenn 'knows' how to go to
sleep on her own. So now before both morning and afternoon naps -- and
before bed, if Delenn can still hold her eyes open -- Mommy takes her
into the room, reads a number of books (4 or 5), nurses her and sings
her night-night songs, but then she puts a dim light back on and reads
one more book and lays Delenn down wide awake. There are no protests
from Delenn on this new routine. She'll often gurgle to herself for a
while and then eventually goes to sleep.

As for Logan, he hasn't been napping much at all, but we still read
several books and have Quiet Time in his room after lunch. Usually
around 3pm we head outside to go to the park or ride our bikes, etc.
Logan really loves going to meet Daddy at the bus stop (at 4:30) -- and
is quite a powerhouse on his tricycle!

Delenn now seems to really understand the signing and is trying to
include various signs during the day. For example, today at the
playground Mommy was pushing Logan on the swing for a while. Finally,
it was Delenn's turn for Mommy time (ie. holding onto both fingers and
walking all around the park). Mommy asked Delenn, who was sitting
playing with a ball, "Ready to walk?" Much to Mommy's amazement, Delenn
signed "ready." [Mommy signs that word a lot because there's a song
that goes "Ready to go, it's a beautiful day, it's a beautiful day to
play." So now any time we're going to go somewhere we sign 'ready' to
'go.' And, in the car before we drive off, we sign the entire little
song.] Anyway, she signs 'all done' very clearly at meals -- and seems
to be trying to include 'eat' and/or 'more' at times. She'll
enthusiastically wave her hands at times -- trying to communicate,
though it's not always clear to Mommy what that is.

Yesterday, Logan had a number of friends over for a play. We all had a
terrific time and they all made some beautiful egg carton caterpillars.
Logan also made a (Styrofoam) bug with pipe cleaner legs and antenna.
The bug was finished (or so Mommy thought), but a little while later,
there was a 'tail' on the bug. Logan proudly brought it over to show
Mommy and said, "My bug has a gun!" Mommy laughed hard--there's just no
getting around this thing he has for guns/cannons.

Today we went on a hike with Linda and Le (we went back and did the same
hike Kim had showed us last week). Logan impressed Mommy immensely by
running practically the whole way. He must be tired tonight because we
did that, went to the playground where he ran around and played soccer,
etc. and then rode his tricycle for a while. (With no naps.)

Going back to Delenn's walking for a moment... Delenn does not crawl at
all, but she is improving steadily at walking around (always holding
onto an adult). She easily leans down and grabs a toy, then stands
upright again, grabs Mommy or Daddy's hand and heads off again. She
often walks around carrying a 2 foot (plastic) hockey stick, a ball, DVD
case or a matchbox car. She'll stop every few feet, switch the object
to the other hand and then continue on her way. At times she has
something in both hands. If we're outside, Delenn carries the hockey
stick around and tries to hit balls with it! It's SO cute! Anytime she
is awake, she WANTS to be walking. Not much gets done around the house
unless she is sleeping because between her desire to walk and Logan's
desire for quality play time with Mom, there's no time to tackle things
like putting away the laundry or doing any meaningful cleaning.

A silly moment!

Logan made it to the top and expresses his coolness factor for having done so

It's steeper to up this road than it looks!

Strollin' up the hill on the ol' dirt road

Mommy and Delenn in their purple pjs.

On 'Territory Day,' July 1st, the public is allowed to buy fireworks and set them off (not permitted any other day of the year). We bought some and went to the top of the hill behind our place to set them off. We enjoyed our own, but also had a wonderful view of other fireworks being set off around town.