My Son Is Now A Man!
I can’t believe it. I felt old when my daughter turned fifteen back in January, but Greg’s turned eighteen a few weeks back (I know this post is running a little later than planned!) and now I feel really old.
Greg’s isn’t one for fanfare and requested that we spent his birthday at home, playing pool on his mini pool table and eating tuna sandwiches. Who did he want there? Just us and his grandparents. Simple pleasures keep him happy.
Greg’s Opening His Presents…
There was nothing special he wanted for his birthday and it was difficult to know what to get him, but he was more than happy with more TicTacs to add to his collection (he has an obsession with the tiny sweets!). We also gave him a full-on encyclopaedia of Marvel Super Heroes; another thing he enjoys.
A Look Back…
Greg’s was a smiley baby, who would laugh like a chipmonk at anything. Before he was old enough to even know what having a photograph taken was, he would beam at anything held like a camera. You can imagine the fun we used to have with that! We could pick up a coffee coaster, hold it like a camera and he would laugh.
Greg’s At Ten Months(ish)…
Greg’s With My Sister…
I love this photo. Greg’s must have been about eighteen months old when it was taken.
We Used To Cycle Everywhere…
I have no idea what the white swirl of smoke is or why I wasn’t looking too happy.
Before Catherine came along I preferred cycling everywhere (not that we went very far) and Greg’s loved it. I could even strap a fold up pushchair to the frame of the bike for when we went to town.
If I Remember Correctly…
For this picture I popped glasses on him and the bucket on his head. He was always game for a laugh and was happy to let me amuse myself.
Greg’s Has Always Had A Thing For Balls… (Don’t all men?)
His hand eye coordination has always been surprisingly good and he has been holding his own on a pool table against adults for a few years now. He loves football too, but his aversion to people always meant that he ran away from the ball rather than towards.
Those Glasses Again!…
Greg’s Being A Big Brother…
His sister was the size of a baby hippo at two months, so he was doing well to support her this much!
Greg’s First Time On An Arcade Ride…
And he really didn’t like it. I remember being all excited that he was going on the ride, as we didn’t have them out here back then (we were holidaying in England at the time). I thought he would love it…I couldn’t have been more wrong!…Sorry, Greg’s!
Wherever Greg’s Was…
Pooh Bear was never far away. He loved anything Winnie The Pooh and Christopher Robin.
Greg’s Playing Big Brother…
He’d probably be tempted to let his sister roll into the sea these days!
Greg’s First Day At Proper School…
Children don’t go to ‘proper’ school in Greece until they are six years old. Once they start school though the learning is full on, and back then they were expected to be reading to a reasonable standard within six months of school starting. Greg’s used to come home with far too much homework and be expected to learn verbs and put them into sentences.
On the plus side it taught me how to read in Greek (didn’t improve much after that though!) as it’s the only way I could help him.
Greg’s Looking Like He’s Studying!…
A Moment That Will Stay With Him…
My husband is South African, so occasionally we pop over there to see his family. It really is a beautiful country and for me one of the highlights of going there is getting to see the wildlife.
I’m no lover of zoo’s. Animals should never be confined like they are in Zoo’s. In South Africa, they have huge sanctuary’s and parks which protect the animals and still allow them to wander free.
This cheetah was at the Daniell Cheetah Sanctuary, which is a park dedicated to breeding and releasing cheetahs back into the wild, as sadly their numbers are declining. I think I am right in saying that the cheetahs they breed have all been rescued or come in injured. If the animal can be rehabilitated enough to be released back into the wild then they are, if they can’t, they keep them to use for breeding. The young are then allowed to grow up as wild cheetahs and are let free once they are old enough.
When this photo was taken there was only the four of us and a handler in a special confinement area. This cheetah was one that could never be released as she was too tame, she ‘starred’ in the film Racing Strips and with strict instructions we were allowed to spend some one on one time with her. It was amazing and a little bit scary too!
We were also lucky enough to be there when they had a couple of lion cubs, that had been born in captivity, and were being reared to be released. In that case, they are removed from human contact from the age of four months, so as to keep them wary of humans. The lion cubs were just coming up to that age and were unbelievably big, but we were lucky enough to get to pet and observe them up close.
Greg’s The Fisherman…
Just as well we weren’t relying on him for dinner!
The First Time Greg’s Cooked Pancakes Last Year…
He really was as chuffed as he looked!
Greg’s On His Eighteenth Birthday…
Trying his first (and probably last) beer. It was really strange as Greg’s has never tried sneaking a sip of beer, when his Dad isn’t looking (unlike his sister) or having a glass of wine with dinner at special occasions. But one thing he was looking forward to on his eighteenth birthday was being able to have his first beer.
He hated it! He had about three sips and gave it to his Dad. Much rather that then loving it!
Greg’s Holding His Cake…
I gave Greg’s the choice of any cake he wanted for his eighteenth birthday and what did he request? A plain coconut cake, just as he has every birthday since I first made him one. Funny thing is if I make one at any other time, he rarely eats it!
Yep, my boy is now officially a man…And that makes me proud (and old).
Where I Link Up…
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