So what's new in the life of the Jones clan? A few things.
Hayzey no longer crawls - she walks everywhere. She 'talks' a lot, but has also discovered the magic of sitting down with a book or two and flicking through the pages. There is some musical appreciation developing also - Miss Hayz knows the actions to Rock a Bye Your Bear (for those who don't know this is a massive Wiggles tune!!) and seems to appreciate The Screaming Jets a little also :-) She has also developed the very impressive skill of turning around on the spot without falling over. Last but not least - if she has a dirty nappy she will grab a clean one and take it to whoever is closest to get changed.
LGR is growing up far too quickly for my liking. Every now and then he comes out with the most impressively well mannered statements. Last night he was eating some pasta I cooked and declared to all and sundry "Hmmm ... This is perfect" He must have meant it because he ate two serves. LGR is also developing a sense of humour and loves sitting around with us telling jokes. He also enjoys good natured teasing/practical jokes. Last night we pretended to lock Mummy outside while it was raining and this was quite funny.
LGR has also developed a cute habit of changing his mind. He'll agree to something and then about 10s later start off with "Well actually - I've changed my mind". And he likes to propose toasts before meals. A few nights back he set off on a speech which lasted close to 2 minutes and was full of thanks to everyone he knows for just about everything that he could think of ....
Mrs G and I are back in the swing of work after the relative hiatus of the Christmas/New Year period. I'm still short guys at work and am feeling the strain; but as is the nature of being put under the pump I'm also learning plenty.
There's only 4 weeks left until our much spoken about trip - and do you think there isn't some excitement about it?? Even LGR is getting wound up in it. I suspect this is equal parts anticipation about going to Wiggles World and Australia Zoo and equal part curiousity about what a holiday actually is.
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I watched a movie a few nights back called Supersize Me - which I'm sure some of you have heard about (see also a bunch of everyman reviews and this excellent Wikipedia reference which is far more comprehensive than what I'm about to write).
In a nutshell it's a 95 minute documentary on obesity with the main emphasis being the commercialisation, marketing and acceptance of 'junk food'. To make a point the narrator of the documentary goes on a 30 day McDonalds binge where the only food or drinks he consumes is bought from McDonalds. He had to eat everything from the menu at least once and if he was asked to upsize (or supersize) then he had to accept.
The results were particularly shocking. His liver started acting like he'd been a lifelong alcoholic, his weight skyrocketed, his cholesterol went through the roof and every doctor who was monitoring him advised him to stop after about 20 days. He didn't, and managed to survive, but it was very frightening to see how quickly his body was changing.
The two things that most intrigued me (there was a lot that captured my thoughts - including the fact that his 'experiment' was deliberately flawed to ensure an outcome that was consistent with his message) were:
1 - His body started to adapt to the less than healthy lifestyle in the last week (as indicated by blood tests - although his weight continued to increase) which makes me wonder if part of the apparent impact wasn't just his body over-reacting in a bid to maintain homeostasis
2 - The crap that the USA government approves (via funding) for schools to provide (free) to students. It was justified (and I use the term loosely) by saying providing a variety allowed the students to make smart choices - but all the food shown in the film was greasy, deep fried or fat laden. Not much chance to make a good choice there ....
It really made me stop and think - particularly about the food habits I may or may not be teaching LGR and Hayzey. My diet is not too bad on the whole - but I'm sure everyone out there has seen me tuck in on more than one occasion. There's always fruit and veg in the house and we eat plenty of chicken but at the same time there's so much room for improvement.
And this film showed graphically what can happen if we don't improve - both individually and as a community.
Go and see it. I dare you.