Oohhh MD!! i LOVED northern exposure too!!! and I must get firefly. all my BTVS fan friends rave on about it, but i was unsure as i didnt really like serenity...probably cause i didnt see the series though...hhmm food for thought. deadwood is really great (IMO). it is pretty brutal though, and the language can be pretty confronting. there is a website for the show, so check it out to get a feel. that said everyone we have recommended it to has loved it!
the parents as teachers idea is awesome! especially at this age, where they are not quite toddlers but are very much interested in the world around them. wish we had something like that here. that said i am going to buy a book called 'gymbaroo' that i saw the other day. it has fantastic ideas to do at home with bubs. (well looked fairly straightfoward anyhow!).
for the metal bowls i recommend going to an indian spice store (there are a few in the woden/philip area. they have small 'dhal' bowls made of stainless steel. we have a whole bunch of them and Leila just loves it as they make lots of noise when banged together and are just right for her size. (oh and they are dirt cheap, which is always a winner in my house!).

Arte: you are a girl after my own heart LOL!! i wish you lived down the road so we could do a DVD swap!!
oh and i just saw Big Love for the first time last night! i know, i know, waaay behind in the times, but it is just hilarious! i am a convert (well not to polygimy but YKIM!! LOL!).
oohh snow! what does little W think of the snow?! here i am planning a trip to sovereign hills snow spectacular (basically huge snow machines brought in) just so leila can get an idea of what snow is like LOL!
we had friends in Fiji that were originally from Dunedin! what a small world! they were pretty shocked at the change in weather from Dunedin to Suva tho!!

Cally: i hear you sista! leila is up with the birds...or before them. we also consider anything after 5.30 a sleep in. that said she is in bed mighty early at 6.30-7.00. we have tried to put her down later but it makes no difference to her wake up time

AFM: well we had a really good weekend ended however with our dog stella trying to take a bite out of a kid at the park. this is the first time she has even ever shown aggression let alone a bite! we are reeling in shock and have no idea what to do. luckily the little boy wasnt hurt (just really scared and rightly so!). i know that sometime last week i came across two boys harrassing stella at the gate at home and one of them stomped on her leg as she was sleeping thinking it was funny, so now i am paranoid that she will have an aversion to school age boys! will be ringing a dog behaviouralist tomorrow. need to own an oil rich country no doubt to pay for it! feeling really bummed, as i never would have imagined that i would have an 'aggressive' dog.

anyway best be off leila is cracking it and DH is thinking that sweeping the floor in the kitchen is 'entertaining' her!