It seems like Halloween is something I always get behind on writing about, but for once I wanted to properly post it (a few months late).
Aiden’s first costume was a bear at a couple of weeks old, then a dragon, and last year he alternated between R2D2 and the dragon, which still fit. This past Halloween, I spent a crazy amount of time trying to find a cute costume for Aiden (why are boys costumes so restrictive?!). I wasn’t pleased with local selection and put together a bunch of costumes for Aiden to pick from to buy online – I was personally leaning towards train engineer. However, on the possibility that a local store may have said costume, I took him there… and he fixated on being a doctor.
Given a huge wall with dozens of options, all Aiden wanted to be was the doctor. I thought maybe it was simply that he saw it at eye level and he’d forget. Nope. A week later, I picked it up. It turned out to be really cute and unique, I’m so glad he was Dr. Aiden!! The costume still sits in our dress-up bin (not that Aiden cares much for dress-up yet).
Babby bough Damien a cute little lion costume and it was just perfect too! I love my little lion!!
This sketch by Louis CK rang true on so many levels. One of the sketches is about how his daughter would play Hide & Seek by simply crouching near a wall. Like a good Dad, he would pretend not to know where she was while ‘finding’ her. We have had a similar experience with Aiden, who likes to yell out “Here I am” as soon as we come to find him. He’s so enthusiastic about it though, so it’s hard not to just love him for it.
Kids don’t always seem to get that their games are lame.
One such game that Aiden recently made up involves his submarine in the bath. During one bath, he asked me “What’s coming out of the water?” and I presented not to know it was his submarine. I guessed some other thing that goes in the water. He thought it was hilarious. Unfortunately, he insisted we repeat the experiment over and over again. For many days. So, I have to pretend that I have no idea what is coming out of the water, over and over again, always suggesting some sort of boat or aquatic life. I am not allowed to deviate from these ‘rules’ or he will correct me. I act surprised each time: “Submarine!” I need to exclaim.
What kinds of games have your kids come up with that you think are stupid?
Earlier in the summer, we paid a visit to the playgrounds of Dorothy Lynas Elementary in North Vancouver, up towards Mt. Seymour. One of the more impressive school playgrounds, there are several separate play areas for kids to explore in amidst several natural elements in the landscaping. The playground offers ample area to run around, some paths to explore, some trees to navigate and build fantasy worlds around as well as several play structures.
One of the newer areas is a more abstract climbing play area that was far too old for Aiden and a little baffling as to how it ‘works’, so it’d be interesting to see what kids make of it. The standard playground featured a great ‘circuit’ design that must be popular with kids (I love playgrounds that let children play tag without having to get off the structures). The slides are not very big, which was the only downside for my slide-loving toddler.
A short walk from where we live is an unused elementary school, Ridgeway Annex. Once Ridgway school was upgraded, Ridgeway Annex was closed and may be redeveloped in the future. Until then, it features 2 playgrounds:
Though the playgrounds are not the newest, they retained a lot of charm for my nearly 3-year-old. He loved the little junior area with the mini yellow slide to climb up and the twisty slide to go down. The climbing structure was a little big for him, though he was able to use it to still enjoy the slide.
Bridgman Park is a beautiful area to take a walk along Lynn Creek. You can take a 5.5km loop around the river or follow the trail right up to Lynn Canyon. The area is very popular for dog walkers. We went one day to explore the playground.
The playground is not very large and is nestled in the trees, so it’s quite shady. The playground is a little on the older side, but it’s serviceable. Aiden spent a few minutes playing there, going down the slide and climbing the different areas, but he soon grew bored of it and the total lack of other kids. That’s usually not an issue for him at the park, so I’m going to say this one was too tame for him (small slide, no really interesting play structures).
I think this is a great area to take your kids for a walk, especially as there is an on-site washroom, but it is not a great location just for the playground.
Bridgman Park is located on Keith Road before it turns into Mountain Highway.
