Tuesday, June 25, 2013

Bad Dreams

I've been weaning Ember off Dora and Barbie movies and getting out more interesting ones like Labyrinth and The Neverending Story (gotta love those synthesiser soundtracks).  Last night she was trying to roll a tennis ball around her hands like Jareth in Labyrinth (played by Michael Moschen) saying "If you turn it this way, and look into it, it will show you your dreams."  Classic.  She found an old-looking book in my office the other day, and started "reading" it, telling me that she had to save Fantasia from the Nothing.

The downside is that some of the creatures have been invading her dreams - she dreamed that the Gmork was at her Preschool, for example.  Yesterday morning when I got up for work, a plaintive little voice called:

Em: Mummy!  I need a cuddle.
Me: Ok (supplying cuddles)
Em: Can I tell you about my dream? It was a bad dream.
Me: What happened in your dream?
Em: There was a witch, and she wanted me to be her darling, but I didn't want to be her darling because I just wanted to be your darling. 
Me: And what happened?
Em: I punched her and she died.

I'd like to note that we do not advocate violence as a problem-solving technique in our house!

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

Give me your digits...

In the car on the way home tonight, Ember said:

Em: Is Christmas a long time?
Me: Yes, it's still quite a long time until Christmas.
Em: It's after your birthday?
Me: Yes.
Em: What's your number?
Me: The third.
Em: Third?  But what's your size?
Me: My size? I'm not sure what you mean.
Em: What's your number for your size?
Me: I don't know what you mean Ember, my size for what?
Em: FOR YOUR NUMBER!
Me: I don't know what you mean Ember.
Em: (frustrated noise) I just want to know your number.  How long you are.
Me: Well, I'm 169cms tall, I weigh 68kgs and I wear size 12. 
Em: Oh.
Me: Is that what you want to know?
Em: No, I want to know your number of what you'll be on your birthday.
Me: Oh, you mean you want to know how old I'm turning?
Em: Yes!
Me: 34.
Em: How old are you now?
Me: 33.
Em: Wow, that's really old!
Me: Thanks...

Sunday, June 9, 2013

Fish slippers

We went for a walk this evening, and suddenly out of the blue, Ember said:

Em: Mummy, I like fish fingers again.
Me: Do you?
Em: Yep, I like them for my dinner.
Me: Where did you have fish fingers?
Em: At my home!
Me: You haven't eaten fish fingers since you were about two... Have you had them somewhere else recently?
Em: No, I just remember them from when I was three and I like them again now.
Me: Ok, we'll try to get some for you then.  Do you think they're really made out of fish fingers?
Em: No! Fishes doesn't have fingers!
Me: Oh, don't they?
Em: No! Fishes just has slippers!

Of course... silly me!

Monday, June 3, 2013

Mandarins and butterflies

I accepted Ember's challenge yesterday to get all the peel off her mandarin in one piece (it was an 'easy peel' so it wasn't too much of a challenge! That's a 'satsuma' to my UK friends...)  Having succeeded in my challenge, I handed it to Ember.

Em:  Look, it looks like a butterfly!  Fly, fly!  (closing it up) Now it looks like a raccoon!

I was slightly confused at this point, until she continued, in storytelling voice with accompanying actions...

Em: Once there was a little caterpillar who ate up all the leafs and got big and went into a raccoon and then one day out came a beautiful butterfly...

Sunday, June 2, 2013

The value of money

We've been trying to teach Ember about money, and have set her up with a money box (although at present it's just an empty vege stock tin!).  She's enjoying collecting money, but doesn't really have any idea yet of how much various coins etc are worth, or how this translates into buying something from a shop.  The concept of foreign money is particularly...uh, foreign...

Today whilst building, she came across a UK 10pence piece in amongst the blocks.

Em: Look Mummy I found a dollar! I'll put it in my money box.
Me: Well, that one isn't New Zealand money, so don't put it in your money box.
Em: Why not?
Me: You can't spend it.  It's not for spending in New Zealand.
Em: Oh.  Shall we give it to someone from that land?
Me: It's only 10 pence, so they probably won't be all that worried about having it.
Em: I'll give it to Daddy, he'll know what to do with it

She runs off to the kitchen to consult Simon

Em: I gave it to Daddy and told him to get it out of Raglan.  To fly it to the new village. Where it lives.