Thomas at 3-3½ years old
December 2009
As usual we spent Christmas in Leicester, UK, this year with baby brother in tow for the first time. Both boys did very well for the most part considering all the to-ing and fro-ing, and looked adorable in their Christmas outfits. By this time Thomas was starting to get used to Henry, Grandad Roger's bouncy black labrador, but he still preferred to play in the safety of the conservatory, where Mum helped him build his new Geo-Trax Central Station train set.
Christmas lunch at the pub was most enjoyable as always, not least because cousin Alfie was there to keep Thomas entertained, and James slept through most of it! Thomas enjoyed the sorbet between courses, and best of all pulling the Christmas crackers. By the end of the day he was exhausted, and fell asleep over a ham sandwich on Grandad's sofa.
We joined Auntie Lisa and family on Boxing Day, where an enormous buffet spread kept us well nourished, and an outing to a nearby playground with Alfie helped us to work off some of the food! We also visited the playground near Grandad's the following day, which used to look so big to us when we first brought Thomas there as a toddler, but now seems far less intimidating.
In mid-December the Kramer-Grimshaw family joined us for a cozy afternoon of Christmas "hygge"; Fred and Thomas enjoyed gingerbread stegosaurus cookies, and Gitte was an impressive "horse" carrying Fred, Thomas and little Abby on her back!
November-December 2009
Thomas was pleased to help Daddy bring home the Christmas tree in the new toy wagon; later on he had a great time helping Mummy decorate it.
December the 1st was Cindy & Jonathan's wedding anniversary, and we decided to venture going out to our old favourite restaurant l'Olivier for dinner. We booked an early table and our old friends Christiano and Ria were ready for us, having reserved a space so we could bring the pram in and even brought presents for the kids! Both boys behaved quite well and it was lovely to catch up and enjoy the wonderful food and hospitality.
To prepare for the event, Thomas stayed home from preschool and joined James and mum for a relaxed outing to the local shopping mall, where we checked out the dancing Christmas polar bears (from a safe distance) and Thomas drove a pint-sized shopping cart. Having bought some flowers for Daddy, we then headed over to a local playground to work off some steam before heading home for lunch and a nap, thereby ensuring enough energy for a latish evening. Success!
Various attempts at getting Christmassy shots of both boys for this year's Christmas card and calendar...
Thomas had a dentist appointment for the first time since he was 1½ years old; the dentist was very friendly and knew how to approach an intimidated 3-year old. His teeth were pronounced excellent and he was able to choose a little present from a basket; naturally he came away with a bouncy ball!
October-November 2009
Preschool was unexpectedly closed one Tuesday, so Thomas joined Mum and James on an outing into town. We joined one of Mum's friends for lunch at the department store Illum, where Thomas got reacquainted with the rocking horse that he probably can't remember sitting on when he was James' size. We discovered that most of the kiddie clothing departments have play areas built in, so Thomas got to test some of them out while Mum shopped. Afterwards we went to a playground where even James joined Thomas on some of the equipment - Mum had her hands full so no pictures unfortunately. We rounded out the afternoon with a ride home on a double-decker bus, then shopped for dinner on the way from the bus stop. Thomas was so tired after the busy day that he put himself to bed a few minutes after getting home, and had to be woken up for supper.
Though Hallowe'en isn't generally celebrated in Denmark, we managed to find some pumpkins and joined some friends for a carving party. Since he had tried it recently in Canada Thomas knew what to expect, and wanted to get in and carve with the knife himself!
On Hallowe'en itself, after a fresh haircut with Dad, Thomas joined Marvin and Carl for yet another pumpkin carving.
Although he no longer sleeps during the day on normal preschool days, he still gets pretty tired and will often take the opportunity for a midafternoon snooze after busy weekend outings.
Thomas is now about 93 cm tall (just over 3 feet) and 16 kg (35.3 lb). He's a very supportive and gentle big brother, often running off to get a toy or cloth for James (whether it's needed or not!) Nevertheless he has normal streaks of 3-year old rambunctiousness, relishing opportunities to throw himself off the sofa (preferably onto his dad).
Mid-October 2009
Thomas hadn't seen his old mothergroup friend Johnny in a long time, but the two played very well together during a recent visit. The trail of toys left behind was also quite impressive!
One of the artworks Thomas created in daycare impressed his mum so much, she framed it and hung it on the wall! She also finally got around to hanging the matching embroideries created by our friend Justyna to celebrate each of the boys' births.
Just because the days have gotten colder doesn't mean we stay inside; Thomas still enjoys a good playground outing, especially after a filling Sunday brunch.
October 2009
We were greeted upon our return from Canada with rainy autumn weather, so Thomas took advantage one rainy Sunday to paint the toy model train given to him by Catherine. He had a little support from Dad but did all the painting himself, and Mum helped with the stickers.
Thomas was greeted with open arms by all his friends at the day care. This place emphasises physical exercise, even while learning days of the week or setting the table they will hop on one foot or dance to a rhythm. Small wonder music sets him off even home in his own room! See a typical Thomas-dance.
Updated 10.02.10