Louka's bike

A few weeks ago I bought Louka a second-hand bike, with a back-pedal brake and training wheels. She was very keen to have it. I left it at my parents' place because I thought it might be easier for her to practise there, as our street doesn't have footpaths. But I found the limited opportunities for practice were getting nowhere, and because she didn't find it immediately easy she was reluctant to try. So I took the bike home.

Here we ride on the street, which isn't too bad as it's so short and narrow and full of parked cars that traffic moves very slowly. I kept urging Louka to give the bike a try and now, after half-a-dozen goes she's suddenly finding it fun.

Here she is at a park.

Vision

Since we've decided Louka should go to school next year, it's good to get her eyes and ears tested. (She did have the ears tested at birth and at eight months, but that's a bit out of date.)

Today we took her to the NIB eye care centre for her eye test. She was able to read the letters on the chart, but then it was changed to little images of horses, ducks, cakes etc. She got them all right bar two, but she was tricked when the optician told her to look at the non-existent flower and pretended she could see it.

Her eyesight is apparently normal, so that's good.

Nana's big birthday bash

This trip to Perth was to celebrate Graham's mum's 70th birthday. Louka enjoyed the flight, with children's entertainment on the screen, and didn't sleep at all.


We stayed nine nights, and didn't have dinner "at home" (ie at Graham's mum's place) once.
Louka got a lot of playing in with her cousins, as well as one day with Alice, the daughter of some old friends of Graham's, and really seemed to enjoy it. On advice from Deb and Josie, we've decided not to hold her back from school for another year.
with Kofi:

with Shakey:


with Alice


On the way home there was no children's entertainment, only Mr Men toys and her sketchbook and markers. She fell asleep five minutes before we hit the tarmac, and slept (in my arms) during the long wait for luggage and half the wait for a taxi.