The Boy

                                   'Boy'

 
It has a funny sort of ring to it that word!

I was looking at my Small Boy today and marvelling at the wonder of him. One average seven year old boy, one bundle of mischief wrapped in a covering of innocence.

Everyday I am confronted with new challenges with regards to my boy. But his charm and cheeky nature shine through and make the challenges....memorable, bearable. Mostly!

Sticks......they seem to be all over the house

Today was just an average sort of day in the life of one Small Boy, another everyday adventure waiting to uncurl. 

The morning started with the usual session of 'aggravation of sisters', that happens most mornings and can last anything from one little teeny incident to the entire day. During this period the house is filled with the sound of screeching and complaining.....'Muuuum'.....grrrrr!

Lunch presented the usual.....'Muuuum, Fenton has tipped half the bottle of ketchup on his plate!' Hmmmm......

An after lunch walk along the canal was an enjoyable experience. The Boy is totally in his comfort zone when in the big wide world surrounded by nature. He shares a love of wildlife with the rest of us and a fascination of fishing like his father. He always insists on creeping up on unsuspecting fishermen and insisting on finding out the state of the catch for the day. 
The ducks sat happily on the bank sunning themselves in the afternoon sunshine, but only for a short while. We watched sympathetically as the poor birds jumped in fear of their lives, plunging into the chilled water below and shaking their tails in a state of discontent at the sudden awakening.
The boy cannot help himself!

Stopping off at the local shop on the way home. The Boy very happily trundled off by himself to buy bread and sugar whilst we waited in the car. He isn't phased by the need for independence, and is more than capable of locating the goods and going through the motions of paying for the items as needed. I wonder in hindsight whether he lay down on the shop floor and looked under the shelving units. He's always on lookout for money and frequently finds quite a bit. (Much to my embarrassment).

Racking up at a friends house on the way home for a brief visit, The Boy, fiddles and searches out all the gadgety things. 'Can I have a look in your camper van?, can I take this truck home, where's the loo'.....we set off for home with a number of large batteries for his electric scooter.........the list goes on!

Mess!

Old fuse board, partially dismantled and abandoned.....

Attempts at making a Go-Cart

Upon arriving home, The Boy happily tinkered with his new/second hand scooter, changing the batteries and forming a pile of those that were flat. I stood back and looked at my front garden; which increasingly seems to be resembling a 'scrap yard'. Items outgrown and further bits of treasure/junk discarded randomly.
'Stig of the dump' sprung to mind. He'd like that story, would he relate more to Stig or Barney?

A leisurely walk this evening brought out further excitement in the the life of the Boy. A family stroll down to the lake, (which is just five minutes from our house). A month or so back, the excitement centred around the mating of the toads. Concern was expressed for the females who often had up to ten males squashing them at one time. Of course the Boy rescued several back then from suffocation and doom. Tonight the excitement was more focused towards the large number of tadpoles swimming around and then.......a dead fish. 'Noooooo, Noooooo.......Yes', the fish (identified as a perch) was hooked out and wrapped up in his coat ready for the journey home. I expressed my disgust and offence being vegetarian at the nasty nature of this act. 'You must understand that I do not eat meat and it is important for me to learn about these things. Besides, I want to dissect it and then watch it decompose so that I can add the bones to my collection!' Ewwww yuck!!!

Arrrr (sigh.......)