Fridays are my Cubling days. They day I'm off to enjoy quality one-to-one time with Cubling.
Fridays are also the days I'm shattered in the evenings. Work is easy in comparison, even on stressful days.
I still really enjoy Fridays, don't get me wrong, but here are some highlights of the day:

Breakfast: Cubling loves breakfast. However, she has a habit of coaxing mummy to do things before opening her mouth. She doesn't quite get that not opening her mouth is her loss, so we play the daDADAAA game. The rules are this: one spoonful of breakfast, Cubling shouts da DA DAAA, pointing at some indiscriminate item on the table. Now mummy has to guess what she wants, and she'll only open her mouth once she has this item. Towards the end of breakfast time, she demands the bowl and a spoon, pretending to feed herself while I shove the food with a second spoon into her mouth. Needless to say that she doesn't manage to actually feed herself, but distributes the porridge on high chair, clothes, hair, table, floor, mummies clothes.

She won't let mummy eat breakie instead screams to be let out of the highchair. I comply. She runs straight to the front door, gets her jacket and points at the door, announcing "sey" (that's Denglish for "key") and "doo" ("shoe"), followed by pointing at the buggy. Yes, my baby can communicate very well that she doesn't like to be indoors. Maybe she wants to go to the childminder? I choose to believe she just wants out. Is mummy allowed to finish breakfast? No way jose.

I had a great outing planned which involved taking the train to the city.
First obstacles are the 537 steps up to the train station. Of course lots of people pass us, none of them offer to help. I can manage so no worries. The train journey takes 10 minutes, but will Cubling sit in her buggy? After 5 minutes I relent for the sake of my fellow passengers. Before I enter the City Halls Venue for the Mini Music Makers session she's signed up for, I let her run on the Ramshorn Theatre's graveyard. Nothing sinister in that, it's a lovely city centre graveyard next to a former church, a green sanctuary in the middle of the hustle. The idea is to give her a chance to get rid of some of her running energy. Half an hour later we enter the City Halls. They have a nice and spacious foyer, Cubling runs without a break, exploring absolutely everything. I observe the other toddlers who are all walking calmly, half the distance covered, or sit happily in buggies. Cubling gets a name tag. She takes it off. I put it on again, she takes it off etc, until I have the fabulous idea and stick it on her back. Point to mummy. She proceeds to take other toddlers' name tags off.
Finally we can go in and sit down on a dodgy chair. Cubling is supposed to sit on my lap for songs and nursery rhymes, later supposed to walk holding my hand in a circle of mummies and toddlers (no daddies there). Followed by quiet time holding a teddy and listening to classical music. This is what Cubling actually does: wriggles incessantly to free herself from mummy's lap, runs to tutor, runs to basket with toys, points to ball on piano shouting "daDADAAA". Runs over to other toddlers. Runs to door. Tries to climb chairs, radiators, piano stools. Tries to switch hifi on and off.
Mini Music Maker Tutor gives us a smile with her goodbye that seems to say "while I feel very sorry for your plight, please please please don't come back".
I'm drenched in sweat.
Cubling repeats train display but conks out just before we get home. Phew, we can have lunch in peace.

Lunch and dinner, repeat breakfast scenario.

Afternoon: we go to the park. I let her run wherever she wants, let her climb up slides, steps and climbing frames and wonder whether she's really only just 15 months. She can climb things I can't even climb. What will she climb when she's three? A tree maybe? She says "hello" to absolutely everyone, including dogs, rabbits, birds, ceramic fairies and garden gnomes. She runs up to cars, points to the keyhole and announces "sey". We come home, daddy boils the kettle, she says "tea", then "sss" for "heiss" (hot). She goes over to the neighbour, splashes with their dog's drinking water and spots bananas in the neighbour's kitchen, announces "nana" and goes for them. She'd eat the skin if only I let her. All the while she vocalises babbles, protowords and real words (with daily favourites, today it was mummy) incessantly. A constant moving of legs and working of vocal chords.

One breakthrough: She does an all body nod for "yes" now. I can actually ask her what she wants and she'll tell me if I'm right or not. Wow. And she's not negative - she'll nod to almost any suggestion (minus nappy change). She can do no, but only does it as a joke, not to contradict. Her behaviour is neither negative nor aggressive, just very intense. I'm not quite sure how I'm going to survive a two hour plane journey on my own with her strapped to my lap if she can't even tolerate five minutes.