We’re off on another transatlantic adventure. Someone was getting a little bit excited…
Category Archives: Video
Out in the Garden (Video)
Check out this video of young Nyan Thomas as he wanders around the backyard, also known as the garden, a couple weeks back. He checks out the birds, looks at the airplanes (he tends to call them all helicopters, for some reason), examines the ants (or ‘spider’ in Nyan-speak), nibbles on a cookie, enjoys the sunshine… well, here, just watch:
But wait, it gets better, in a post-modern sort of sense. Later that day, we were showing that video to Nyan, who was watching it on the camera screen. As he watched, Daddy shot a video of Nyan watching himself on a video. Weird, right? Or something. In any case, here it is:
A Boy and his Tractor (Pictures and Video)
Some time ago, Uncle Scott sent Nyan Thomas a beautiful old metal toy tractor. It’s probably an antique; certainly it was around when Daddy was a boy. It’s been sitting inside a display cabinet in our living room for a while. The other day, Nyan noticed it, demanded it, got it – and has been playing with it pretty much non-stop ever since. Here’s a slideshow of photos, followed by a few videos of the boy with his tractor, and playing with a few toy trucks as well. Yes, our boy is definitely a boy.
Hat (Pictures and Videos)
Our hero was in a silly mood this weekend. He found a handful of Daddy’s old baseball caps, and as you can see, proceeded to try them on. Often while wearing his sunglasses. (Click on any photo to make it big and start a slideshow).
And here’s a fun video. The backstory is that Daddy had plopped the Iowa hat onto the boy’s head as he was cleaning up the living room, thinking the boy would toss it aside. But no. He turned it sideways, then grabbed his sunglasses, and strutted into the kitchen to show off his look to Mommy.
After-School Playtime
Just a couple videos from a few weeks ago, in the continuing series of What Nyan Does After School. Here we have him riding his horse, digging through his toy box, looking out the window… all in a day’s work for our hero.
Silly, Silly Boy
We like to keep things pretty positive ’round these parts. This blog is meant, mostly, as a celebration of our little man, and all the charming things he does. That’s why you haven’t read anything here, so far at least, about how he’s now, at 21 months old, tip-toeing his way into the so-called Terrible Twos. Yes, Nyan has been testing boundaries, practicing saying ‘No,’ and figuring out the best way to throw tantrums. The tantrums especially were rather shocking when they first started a couple weeks back, and there has been a small handful of big ones. But for the most part, they’re pretty minor – some crying, some throwing of stuff, and the like – and I think we’re doing okay at responding to them. Or rather, at not responding to them, which I think is pretty much the key.
All this is a long way of saying that things ain’t perfect; our boy can be a handful, and not in a good way. But still, 95 percent of the time, he’s a complete joy. Okay, 90 percent of the time. Whatever; most of the time he’s sweet, charming, funny, inquisitive, loving… and goofy. Like in these two videos. The first one is, dare I say it, an instant classic. It was last Sunday, as we got ready to head to swimming lessons. He decided he would just basically run around the house, making noise, babbling and dancing and, well, being himself. Check it out:
Not bad, eh? (And no, we have no idea what he’s saying, or what language he thinks he’s speaking.)
Here’s a quick one the next morning, doing pretty much the same thing.
Ah, our boy. Yes, he’ll throw the occasional tantrum – you’re unlikely to see video of that, for which you should thank us – but overall? Yeah, the kid’s alright. We think we’ll keep him.
Out for a Stroll (pics and video)
Last Friday evening was beautiful and sunny here in London (yes, we’ve been quite blessed of late with a whole lot of sunshine of late!), and on our return home from school, the young man decided he would rather take a stroll around the neighborhood than going immediately inside. Daddy was happy to oblige, and we’ve got the pictures and video to prove it. Read the rest of this entry »
Down on the Farm (Pictures and Videos)
Last Sunday, the sun came out and the temperature jumped up to about 60 degrees, and nearly everyone on this little island emerged from their homes, blinking in the brightness like baby moles, and headed outside for the afternoon. We were no different. Our initial plans for a trip to the London zoo got derailed due to practicalities like naptime and whatnot, so instead we decided Nyan would get in touch with his Iowan roots and headed half an hour north of London, to a place called Lea Valley Park Farms.
It’s tucked into a lovely little valley, and it’s apparently a working farm of some sort, but they have quite a spread that’s open to visitors, with trails, a cafe or two, several areas of games and activities, and animals. Lots of animals. We saw pigs, sheep, goats, donkeys, llamas, rabbits, turkeys, tortoises, chickens, cows, meerkats, guinea pigs, ponies, even an entire sled’s worth of Siberian huskies. Our boy was enthralled by some of the animals, a little freaked out by others (goats, of course, stink to high heaven, and Nyan was not impressed). Here’s a bunch of photos of the lad – expertly shot by Mommy, who was manning the camera (click on any picture to make it bigger and start a nice slideshow):
And some videos. A short one and a longer one of Nyan on the trail – inspecting rocks, falling down, and struttin’ his stuff:
And finally, the creme de la creme: Nyan Thomas riding a tractor. With a little help from Daddy:
Saturday in the Back Yard
It’s finally springtime here in London, we feel it safe to say, which means more light, more sun, more warmth. Hopefully. (About bloody time, too.) And that all means more time spent outdoors for our young man. This is good all around: fresh air, exercise, new experiences, and a tired young man who will sleep all night.
One Saturday afternoon about a month ago, it was – shockingly – chilly and grey, and definitely not yet springtime. But Nyan Thomas and Daddy were feeling a little cabin feverish. So we wrapped up tight and headed to the back yard for a bit of tromping around in the grass. We didn’t stay out long, just long enough to get some fresh air, listen to the birds, wander around a bit, and take the photo above and this video.
PHOTO TOO
A Young Man Walks Into a Daddy (Videos)
Daddy’s a big fan of these two videos, and it’s not hard to see why. First up, our hero wanders around the house in a state of half-undress, pre-bath. And eventually runs right into Daddy and collapses in Daddy’s lap:
The next day, Nyan took a stroll on a cool, sunny spring day, and at the end… ran up to Daddy for a big ol’ hug:
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