New math

Mars is in to maths in a big way. He seems to have a natural flair for it, but it also helps that his parents are both good at maths and his Grandpa is a mathematician who has been tutoring him from an early age.

Lately his favourite trick is to wait until I'm really really tired and then ask me "what's a hundred times a hundred?" Without thinking I invariably answer "a thousand" and then he crows about how he managed to trick me.

Today on the way home from church I overheard this conversation.

"Venus, what's a hundred times a hundred?"

She replied "Two. What's plus equals?"

He thought for a moment and hesitantly offered "Three?"

She giggled and said "No, four!"

I guess Mars doesn't know everything, not yet.

Contending with Barbie

Mars is turning six in a couple of weeks, so the preparations have begun.

He decided he wanted to have a Space Party, so after he and Venus go to bed I trace and cut out cardboard stars and glue glitter on them. My plan is to hang them from the ceiling but we'll have to see how that works out.

So there's been a lot of talk around birthdays and parties and Venus, who just had a birthday party two months ago, has decided that now is the right time to start making a list of the things she'd like for her birthday. It doesn't seem to matter that she just had her birthday, she's making her list available to anyone who will listen.

So far it includes a Barbie scooter and a Barbie sunhat. And while I love Barbie as much as your average girl who grew up in the '80s, she has no idea who Barbie is or why she wants Barbie merchandise. She doesn't own any Barbie dolls yet so I was curious about the sudden fascination with the impossibly proportioned blonde.

"I understand that you want a scooter and a new sunhat, but why do they have to have Barbie on them?"

"Because I want a Barbie scooter and a Barbie sunhat."

"Okay. Venus, who is Barbie?"

"I don't know, but I want a Barbie scooter and a Barbie sunhat."

And that was all I could get out of her. I did try to explain that she just had her birthday, but maybe there could be a scooter around Christmas time.

And all she said was "A Barbie scooter?"

Anyone for cheese?

This is Venus.

She is gorgeous, bossy, hilarious and three years old. We were getting ready to go to bed tonight and I noticed she was eating something - something she'd obviously found for herself, as dinner time had come and gone.

I asked her "What are you eating?" adding as a joke "Did you find some cheese on the floor or something?"

And, with a big grin on her face because she felt so clever, she immediately replied "I found some cheese in my nose!"

Oh dear.