Bubbles...

...one of Mats' favorite words* and activities, we started with the traditional bubble wand. Following the initial frustration of not understanding how to hold the wand a few inches from his mouth and blowing to create bubbles, Mats discovered that if he smeared the bubble solution on his lips, he could blow a bubble with his mouth. Eeeuw! So we bought him a hand-held battery-powered bubble maker, and it's been raining bubbles in Noe Valley ever since.

*on the subject of words, at Mats' 18 month check-up, I errantly reported that Mats could say about 10 words in Dutch and 10 in English. Requiring a detailed developmental report for Tante Evelien, the speech development expert, Oma started writing down every word Mats said. At last count he was well over 100 between all three languages (that would be Dutch, English, and Mats). Shame on me for underestimating him. I'm sure that will be the only time that ever happens!