Daddy's Little Helper

He can’t say ‘ta’ and still fits his 3-6 month shorts, but Austin is growing up.

I know this because he can no longer get into the monkey t-shirt we bought from FAO Schwarz. Also because he's started helping his old man with the housework.

He hands me things from the dishwasher so I can put them away. He picks clothes out of the laundry basket and passes them over to be pegged onto the line.

Yesterday morning he watched patiently while I folded the football kit. When it finally came time to put the shirts in the bag, the wee man handed me the number four top with outreached hands and an enormous grin.

If only he’d seen the way Number Four had gifted Chatswood their second goal on Saturday.

Austin’s enthusiasm for helping out won’t last forever, of course. And, to be honest, it isn’t actually that helpful. It is cute, however, and he'll have to learn about chores at some point.

Lord knows there’ll be plenty more to come over the next eighteen or so years.

And for now it’s free. Ultimately an understanding of pocket money will mean that his labour comes at a price. That is when it's not coming as a punishment.