Man Of Mischief

It's hard not to put some of the differences between Jasmine and Beau down to gender. And whether Beau is rougher because he's a boy is anyone's guess. But hey, I'm up for some gratuitous gender stereotyping!


Beau has become a real Man Of Mischief recently. Even his teacher at childcare commented to me the other day, "He' so curious! He wants to touch everything, put his hands into everything! He will be a scientist one day." I couldn't help but be reminded of all the stories I've heard about his dad as a toddler touching everything in every store he entered.


One of his favourite pastimes while I'm cooking dinner these days (other than crying around my ankles to be picked up) is to open the bottom drawer of our pantry and take all the bottles in and out with as much glass clanking and noise as possible. It's not really an ideal activity, but it's the only thing that keeps him quiet for 5 minutes at that time of day. Fortunately none have spilt yet, especially since there are some with contents that would be a doozy to clean up (like sesame oil or fish sauce, euggh!). 


We never had to put child locks on any of our cupboards or drawers with Jasmine. She just figured out which ones were ok to play in, and which ones were out of bounds. Beau, on the other hand, will have a crack at opening anything. He especially loves the fridge and freezer, and says " 'ot! 'ot" (hot) whenever he touches anything inside. We've had to 'lock' it shut with an ikea plate wedged behind the handles, and for a day or two after we implemented the new high tech locking system he would stand there grunting like crazy trying to get it open and then throw himself on the floor, crying in frustration when he couldn't.


He has also discovered the highly entertaining pastime of irritating his big sister. Which, I guess, as her younger brother is his birthright. It's made me so grateful I had a little sister! He loves to give her a whack on the head to get a reaction. Which, of course, he does every time. 


The other morning Beau finished his man-sized bowl of porridge and refused milk and toast, which is very unlike him. He kept saying 'Booze' and shaking his head. I couldn't figure out what he wanted. 'Booze, booze". Finally he reached around and patted his bottom and I realised that he was trying to tell me he had done a poo!


Trouble is, he's also starting to get very cross when I try to change his nappy, and will often give me a whack or try to pull my hair when I carry him to the change table. Usually I'd just put him down on the floor, but it kind of defeats the purpose when that's exactly what he wants! Plus when he does it he usually has a big stinker in his pants which would just squish everywhere. 


Here are a few photos of my favourite little Man Of Mischief.