Tuesday, November 13, 2007

The Little Guy...

My "Little Guy" is 9 now, and he is not so little, standing head and shoulders above most others in his class at school.

He is very into his "look" - skater boy hair, mainly orange and brown clothes, bead necklaces and wrist bands, skull and crossbones sweat bands. When he goes out he is a picture of carefully planned scruffiness.

He is also amazingly clever, doing a lot of school work 2 years ahead of the rest of his class, but he somehow remains Cool and is not a geek in any way. He was playing the Yu-Gi-Oh card game at the age of 5, and as a result learned how to do 4 digit mental arithmetic at that age. These card games can be VERY educational!

His name, Ira, is a nod to the Jewish blood that is in my family. Jews have a reputation, right or wrong, when it comes to money, and my Little Guy is VERY careful with his cash. He gets regular pocket money and always spends less than he gets, always on the hunt for a good bargain. He recently found that in Tesco he could get 2 large bottles of lemonade and 2 large bars of chocolate for around £1 - he admitted that it was not quite as nice as the expensive stuff but hey, at that price, he thought he was getting a good deal. His piggy bank currently holds around £80.

Of course, being a younger brother, his main aim in life is to drive Big Brother insane. For example a few weeks ago we were having a big fried breakfast with eggs, bacon, sausage, etc. The Little Guy had a big slice of bacon that he kept pushing to one side as he ate, hinting that he might not have room for it. Big Brother was hooked, waiting eagerly for his chance to claim it. Eventually, Ira speared it with his fork, lifted it up and asked Big Brother if he wanted it. Eager nodding followed. Then, in one swift, perfectly timed move, Ira stuffed the bacon into his mouth and it was gone, accompanied by wails of anguish from Big Brother.

15 comments:

mr zig said...

hehehe too funny - (about the bacon) :)

Logzie said...

It sounds like your house is a very fun place to be!!

Ira sounds extremely intelligent, as do all your children, but doing that kind of math at that young age is really something!

Congratulations, your kids are a testimony to your and carpet fairy's awesome parenting! :0)

Ali said...

Oh man - I would have so much fun with your kids!
In my house it's usually me harassing my little brother...he's such a sucker :)

Terri said...

Sounds about right. Sibling rivalry at its finest! He sounds like an amazing boy.

Rock Chef said...

Zig - that was a classic moment!

Logzie - thanks, we try our best to be good parents and to have afun house!

Ali - your poor brother...

Terri - there is rivalry but all things considered they get on amazingly well.

Joe said...

Our kids sound amazingly similar. My son is into the whole skateboarding thing too, complete with the orange and brown outfits. He's in all advanced classes (who said skaters were low lifes?)

He had the hair too, until the 30th straight day of over 100 degree temperatures at which case he decided to buzz it. But not before he considered (very briefly) a mohawk...

Um Naief said...

i can only imagine how cute he looks. i love that lil sk8r boy look... i hope my son takes on to that style. i've been wanting to punk (don't know what it's called now) his hair out but know i'd get tons of disapproval looks from the in-laws... but just wait. when he gets a little older, i plan to do it! ;)

love his attitude!

so.. i thought that the thing w/ jews was taught.. the money thing. i guess not. that's funny. wise little guy.

Kiki said...

He sounds very analytical and astute. I love that!!! Also a keen observer of human behavior, he knew exactly what would happen when he starting winding his brother up...don't you love family time around the table??? Great story! Great parents+fun kids=sweet life!!

Rock Chef said...

Joe - Our summer was rubbish, so no problem with heat here. In our area skate boarding seems to be mainly done by clever kids, so you are right!

Um Naief - I would work on the hair gradually rather than suddenly shock everyone.

Kiki - Eating together at meal times is a big thing for us, a great time for family bonding, sharing news, teasing, etc.

Samantha_K said...

I have a 2 year old and a 4 year old, both boys. They play the "you want it?" game a lot. And they say the big ones are the mean ones...Not so. My little one is crafty, I say. Crafty.

Jahooni said...

Can I borrow some mula? America that means cash! Will he charge me interest?

Bacon, what bacon?

Jahooni said...

Um Naief,

hey sis... glad to see you here, Rock Chef... well he ROCKS! HA!

Rock Chef said...

Samantha K - thanks for stopping by! I love it when the little ones show that they are a match for the older ones, maybe because I never seemed to be able to get one over my older brother...

Jahooni - we say mula too. Yes he probably WOULD charge interest! And thanks!

cmacc said...

Hi there!
You've been tagged. Princess Diaries tagged me first, now you're it!

kenady said...

I love to hear your descriptions of your children. They sound like amazing kids! Great job!

My son (the younger) knows exactly what to do to get his sister's goat. It is almost as if the youngest child is born with this inate knowledge on how to bug the crap out of their older siblings.

Family time at the dinner table is super important to us as well. It is the best time to bring the entire family together and learn about one another's day.

Cheers, Rock Chef!