Wading Pool Fun

One fine Saturday morning, not long ago, Craig once again had a really good time at his soccer lesson. Unfortunately, only one photo was taken just before the lesson while Craig waited for his coach to show up. A few action shots from the actual lesson might make for more entertaining viewing next time.

One difference to Saturdays gone by was an afternoon trip up into the mountains of Neihu to visit Craig and Graham's cousins and Taiwanese Grandma.

Uncle Guapo had set up a beaut little wading pool but the water was cold and the previously hot sun had disappeared behind afternoon rain clouds.

Despite the air temperature still being about 30 degrees Celsius, no one wanted to get wet above the knees.

Cousin Soit Jade didn't stay in the water long. She was soon watching the action from the safety of the living room.

But the other kids stayed in the refreshingingly cool water.

Uncle Guapo kept finding toys for the kids that had stayed in the pool to play with. He was very good at keeping them entertained.

Craig especially liked the garden hose that was supposed to be filling up the pool.

Craig's Dad thought Uncle Guapo was an absolute hero when he allowed himself to be sprayed with the very cold water by Craig.

Just to make sure everyone stayed cool on such a hot day, ice cream was served. Craig loved it. Graham didn't bother with the ice cream. He doesn't like cold food much but he was having a great time in the water.

Eating ice cream was just about the only reason in the world good enough to get Craig to put the hose down.

Yu-chi was in and out of the pool while gentle rain fell.

Graham seemed to have more fun than everyone else.


But the water was too cold for him stay in forever. The photos don't show it very well but the house has swathes of greenery out the front and off into the distance.

Craig could have played with the hose all afternoon.

Another good thing about going to Grandma's house is all the interesting stuff there is to play with.

Craig didn't know where to begin.

After dinner, Graham first hung out with Mum. Don't you just love the casual stance.

Graham also had a quick chat with Aunty Jessie. They get on very well together.

And, the adults had a chance to chat.

Plus, there was mango for dessert. Ain't life sweet?

Playmates

One of the good things about living where they are in Taipei is that Craig and Graham are surrounded by family. There are relatives with children not much older than the boys living directly upstairs and downstairs. On rare occasions, some of the kids will come around to play. The big fella smiling at the camera is You-ding. He's about one month older than Craig and the two of them are in same class at kindergarten.

Playing with other kids is very good for Craig. They had been pretty noisy so it was good, from an adult point of view, that four of them sat down to play relatively quietly.

Graham got away from all the noise and headed for the back room to "read" one of his books.

The kids did so much running around that everyone needed a drink.

Giving sugar-filled soft drinks to  other peoples' children not long before bedtime should probably be a guilty secret. But, not this time.

Graham has been spending some of his afternoons at the local swimming pool at Yucheng Park. The weather has been very hot for a few weeks in a row. In the picture below you can see the curly blue slide that Craig loves.


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Graham seems to be happier when there's only him and Craig at home and things are much quieter.

He recently decided to put on a Taiwanese aboriginal headdress that was bought for Craig last year. There was no real reason for it. He just took a fancy to it, there and then.

Expensive Waffles, Afternoon Naps and Yakult

Craig and Graham have a pretty quiet life during the week. The weekends are usually more fun. Not long ago they had a chance to eat one of Craig's favourite foods as an afternoon snack.

The photos were taken before the rather expensive waffle came. Craig didn't allow a photo to be taken. He ate the waffle much too quickly.

Weekday afternoons at home can be very relaxing. Graham sleeping like this while his Dad reads is not uncommon.

Graham likes playing with his cousins Soit-Jade and Yu-chi.

The girls are much better at drawing than Graham but he's got time to catch up.

He received plenty of encouragement from Uncle Guapo and Mum.

Craig has been enjoying his Saturday morning soccer lessons. He normally does quite well in the one-on-one exercises but can get a bit lost in the bigger games. Still, having fun is the main thing and he's doing plenty of that.

One evening, Craig was unhappy with his crayons because all the blue ones were getting so short that even his little fingers couldn't keep hold of them. So, a trip was made to buy new ones.

Both boys love Yakult. It was a very warm night and Dad wanted to make sure Mum could have a short rest before they returned home. Craig finished his so quickly that he had to spend a few minutes inspecting his new crayons while Graham kept drinking but he didn't seem to mind.

The Boy Artist

Craig is a real lover of waffles. He especially likes waffles that come with ice-cream. Sometimes, when he's with Dad, Craig will get to eat almost all of the waffle by himself.

Recently, Craig has been practising his artistic skills.

His Mum decided to hang big sheets of art paper on the walls and let him use crayons.

The only problem with the arrangement was that Graham felt left out! So he had to be included in the (ahem) drawing.

Graham seemed to like drawing but wasn't too impressed with Dad taking photos of the artwork in progress.

The labelling of the figure with green skin and blue eyes might look strange to some people but it is, in fact, Craig's representation of his mother.

Craig and Graham both worked very hard for a while.


They didn't quite get it finished before bedtime but that just meant they could have more fun the next day.

Two Boys Playing

Graham continues to live the good life with Dad at home during the week. He's started drawing.

Or perhaps scribbling would be a better word.

Craig's favourite thing to do on a hot summer day is go for a ride on the MRT. He especially likes the Wenhu Line because he can sit right up the front of the train and watch the world go by.

Sometimes the rest of the family come along for the ride.

When he's at home, Craig spends some of his time building with Lego and blocks. He knows Graham will knock down whatever gets built but he doesn't mind.

There was a recent trip to the park where Craig bumped into one of his kindergarten classmates. She tried to lead him away by the hand but Craig wouldn't go. She settled for running around hand in hand.

On one very warm evening the boys went for a walk. They went to the rooftop playground on one of the Mitsukoshi department stores.

Craig is almost too big for the jungle gym there but he still spent some time climbing and sliding.

The two of them had fun throwing little plastic balls at a target.

Graham's throwing was not surprisingly good but he seemed to have a really good time.


Sometimes, Graham's days at home with Dad are not very exciting but, at the very least, Dad knows what makes the boy happy. Yoghurt is a favourite when it comes time for an afternoon snack.