Luke loves gardening and Mimi but not always eating

Luke is doing his part to help with our current water restrictions. Given it’s so hot (I can hardly remember such a hot summer) and he’s so dirty by the end of the day Luke needs a bath every night. That allows me to bail the bath by hand and water the garden. On the odd morning when we can hand water Luke carries around his piece of hose and does his best to tend our plants. That’s when he’s not picking tomatoes (usually unripe) from the scraggly remains of the tomato plant or playing in the mud.

A couple of weekends ago G and I bought Luke a tricycle. By the time G had put it together (everything arrives in boxes these days with complicated instructions) Luke was simply curious about what had been keeping his Papa so busy. He likes to ride up and down the hallway and on the footpath outside the house. We’ve had a few unsuccessful trips to the park – he gets there quite happily but then refuses to get back on to go home. As we have to cross a couple of busy roads it’s quite awkward to have to carry him (not quite kicking and screaming) and the bike across the road. He needs more practice!

Just this morning I spotted a new tooth and one on the way. That’s his first for months and it arrived very quietly compared to the others.

We’ve had a trying weekend. On Sat morning Luke got his 12 month injections (late because it’s not high on the list of things to do together) and as much as he likes Dr Jane he gets very indignant when he’s jabbed but forgets it even happened within a minute or so. But that wasn’t the only trip top the doctors. As a very active and inquisitive child Luke is going to have a few falls and collect some bruises along the way. He had a really nasty fall against the bed and collected a big bump and bruise between his eyes. So off to the doctor again… He’s fine and we’re learning what it’s like to have an active little boy. It’s actually harder on G and me than Luke.

Some of his favourite time is post bath when runs around as a little ‘nudie dudie’ – so very cute. It’s a bit of a game though to catch him before he needs to relieve himself and if he’s in another room the quietness that descends is a sure sign that he’s gone on the floor. I went into his room the other day and caught him trying to mop it up with a nappy. So he must have an understanding of what nappies are for.

A request to all our of blog readers. Luke is fascinated not by toys but by keys, remotes, mobile phones etc. Anything black or silver seems to be the rule and of course no toy company produces anything vaguely similar. His favourite continues to be our keys but not the key ring but the large car key with the remote buttons. As the shoe repair guy pointed out these keys are worth about $200 each and Luke won’t give it back unless he’s traded for something better… So if anyone has one of those keys that no longer works please send it to Luke.