One year update

I realize that it's been about a year since I wrote anything. Not much has changed. Then, a lot has changed. We moved across the country, so no more tide pool pics. :(
I recently had another miscarriage.
I am doing weekly acupuncture sessions to work on that issue. I really like it so far.

Other than that we have just been settling in to our new home and adjusting to the weather here. The summers are much hotter and the winters much colder than we were used to.

I am glad spring is just about here.

I was looking back at what I wrote 1 year ago and I am glad to have all those detailed memories about what B was doing in those times. So I am going to try again to start writing, about what we are up to and things he does and says, some nice times we share that we can remember down the road.

Tide Pools

This afternoon, B and I went and checked out one of our favorite beaches. We needed some more sand for his sand box and it was nice, though a bit chilly, to get out of the house. We were surprised that the tide was out further than it had been the other times we had visited and there were plenty of tide pools to explore. We saw tons of hermit crabs and some anemones.



After exploring the tide pools for a few minutes and showing B all the hermit crabs, I went back up to the beach and collected just a few shells. B joined me and noticed that there were quite a few broken pieces of the type of shell that the hermit crabs live in. So he started collecting those.



Then we went back to the tide pools to look around some more and I took a few pictures with my phone. Meanwhile, a few feet away, B was busy collecting more hermit crab shells in his little cup- only these still had the crabs! When I went over and noticed what he was doing, I explained to him that we couldn't take the crabs home with us because their home was the ocean; they needed it and they wouldn't be happy at our home because we don't have the ocean.



He argued only a tiny bit and then immediately seemed to grasp what I was saying. I was a little surprised at how quickly he agreed and began helping me gently return them to the water. It was a proud moment.

All in all, a good day.

Sand Castle Day

B and I spent the afternoon playing at the beach today...and for the first time ever, after we had run around in some waves for a while and eaten lunch, he laid down on the beach towel and fell asleep!! Since this event was completely unexpected (but very welcome), I had no book or anything to do while he napped (for around an hour or more). So...I built a sand castle. Today was a magnificent day for sand dollars and shells, and I decorated accordingly.

"Rock A Baby"

Since B was born, I have always sung either "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star" or the "ABCs" to calm him down and help him fall asleep.

I don't know very many lullabies at all (obviously). Last summer I traveled back to where I grew up and it was my first time alone with B in a long time. GH normally helps extensively with B's night time routine and sings him several songs in Spanish.

So one night while on the trip, I started singing "Rock a Bye Baby"out of desperation. I don't really like the part about the bough breaking, etc, so I would generally just sing the same lines over and over. As repetitive as it was, at least it calmed him down and saved my sanity during the trip.

But last fall I was ready to add a new verse to our song. One night I just started singing about the fall colors, making the lines up as I went.

Recently, I have added a spring verse to our "Rock a Baby" (that is what B calls it- "Mommy, sing 'Rock a Baby!'") and I thought I would share my verses for anyone who might also want to sing this traditional lullabye without singing the part about the bough breaking.

Here is our version:

Rock a bye baby, on a treetop
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock.

When the leaves change, the fall colors come.
Red, orange and yellow are the leaves.

Rock a bye baby, on a treetop
When the wind blows, the cradle will rock.

When the buds break, the spring blossoms come.
Pink, white and purple are the blooms.



Happy Spring!

Anemones in a Tide Pool

Spring Time 2010

One in the bluebonnets...





And several from our spring beach vacation...

Dancing versus Dishes

GH is doing the breakfast dishes.

I am playing a CD on the computer and I started happily dancing away. I said, "Come on, B! Dance!"
To which he replied, "No! I am playing ball."
So I said, "Well, I can dance and you can play ball, ok?"

And he said, "Go wash dishes with Papi!".

Hmmmm....maybe he doesn't like my cool moves?

:-)

And one more beach pic from last week...

No picnik effects. This one is au naturale.

"That's okay. I forgive you."

We spent another afternoon at the aquarium today. B immensely enjoys the kids' play area which has various activities. One of his favorite things to do there is to "shoot" the air guns that are under water, so they make bubbles and currents in the water. The aquarium stocks the play area with various plastic toys- sea stars, fish, anemones, and a few boats.

B was playing with one of the boats in the area with the air guns, watching how the boat was affected when he "shot" it. When it was time to go, I asked him to return the boat to the area where he had found it.

He promptly turned around and threw it into that pool, splashing the back of a little boy's head who was playing there. I was embarrassed, even more so because the boy's father and grandmother were standing right there too, so I said "Look, you splashed that little boy! That isn't nice. Say you're sorry." B was taken aback and didn't say anything, just put his head down.

Then the other little boy, who was probably around 3, maybe 4, said "That's okay. I forgive you."

Wow. How sweet was that? I was so impressed. I am grateful that other people are raising their children to be so respectful and mannerly.

I hope it was a good lesson to B, even though I know he didn't mean to splash another child; maybe he will be more careful in the future.

It is so refreshing to have an experience like this in a public place in today's society where it seems like rudeness is the rule.

And one more "for the birds"...

More photos...

I just don't have much to say right now, mostly the usual going on around here. Doing a lot of waiting for different things, but trying to enjoy life on the way. So here are a few photos, as they say, "a picture's worth a thousand words," right?

















I used Picnik for the effects again...I just love playing with that site.

A few more pics...

Otters playing. 2/19/10



Otter with ice. 1/16/10



Sunset over the bay. 1/16/10



Waves. 2/19/10



I used Picnik for the effects.

Just a few pics

Fish at the aquarium.



Playing in the sand a few days ago.



B's feet - aren't they darling?

Slow Down, Mommy! Slow Down!

This week, my 27, almost 28 month old has begun correcting my driving. He (fairly randomly although sometimes perhaps accurately) has been shouting out "Slow Down, Mommy! Slow Down!" as we make our way through our day.
He certainly comes by his backseat driving naturally and as amusing as is it now it may not continue to be so as time goes by...

Today, driving home from the aquarium, in between his commentary regarding my driving skills, with his little brown stuffed horse in hand, he told me "Get bigger, ride a horse." Meaning, when he gets bigger he wants to ride a horse. I told him I thought that was a great idea and he said "Yeah!" in this tone of voice like "Duh!". It was too sweet. I can't wait to see him up on a horse.

On another subject, he went through a period the last 2 months or so where he would only watch a certain show during dinner and finally the last two days he let us watch a different show...hallelujah!

Once again, I am just sharing little tidbits from the week. I feel sure there is more I'm forgetting- I guess if I think of something I will post again!

Moral Obligation Questions

I have been reading the Alexander McCall Smith series about Isabel Dalhousie, who is the editor of a philosophy journal. So her character is constantly pondering questions about morality and what our obligation to others are or should be.

This got me thinking about a hypothetical situation.

What if there were two people, A and B, who were mere acquaintances but who both had something in common, say, collecting rare stamps. These two people were connected by their own choice on a social network.

Then suddenly A loses his rare stamp to a fire, robbery, whatever. A is extraordinarily upset about this circumstance, because this stamp had been an exceptional and difficult acquisition in his collection. Not only is he upset, he makes quite clear his feelings about his situation and specifically what happened to him and which stamp was lost.

B never recognizes the loss of A's stamp. Then a week or so later, B goes on to announce that he has acquired the exact stamp lost by A.

A congratulates B on his good fortune.

However, B still refuses to acknowledge the loss of A, in spite of his own gain. In fact, B goes on posting many stories about the stamp and how it has increased in value, and is even rarer than once believed. At the same time, A has continued to post his feelings about his lost stamp, because it is still weighing heavily on him. Many other of their philatelist friends sent words of regret and solace to A.

So one would assume that the second collector sees at least one of A's posts as they are repeatedly posted.

What is A, who lost his stamp, supposed to do? Should that person "hide" B from his news feed to avoid seeing the stories about the lost stamp? Defriend B completely? Address the person directly regarding the matter?

Meanwhile, what should B do? Are we obligated to have empathy with someone who has lost something treasured, even as we have gained the same? Of course not.

But if B does see A's posts and remains silent, what does that do to B's soul? Is it darker and less than it should be?

Why do people do such things? Should we not strive to be more empathetic to one another?

Stealing Kisses and Making a Fast Exit

A few brief stories from this past week:

At the aquarium this afternoon, I was sitting about 20 feet away and B went up to a little girl about a year younger than him and planted several kisses on her! I thought it was just too cute. Of course when I realized what was going on I walked over and said "Have you found a new friend?" Her parents did not seem that pleased about it. Oh well.

Interestingly, for the past few days, he has been suddenly fascinated with "EXIT" signs, like the lit-up emergency exits inside stores. Every time he sees one he points it out and yells "Exit" and then he usually talks about the color of the letters. I am most bewildered about the origin of this sudden interest. We don't remember pointing one out to him. But they are apparently his new favorite thing.
In other news, he has a "doodle-pro" magnetic drawing tablet that we've been keeping in the car and the other day as GH was driving, I sat in the back with him and I was making letters with him. I showed him that "W" upside down looks like "M" and "Z" sideways looks like "N". He thought that was hilarious. Sometimes he draws a letter and tells us what it is - it doesn't always look correct, but I love that he tries. He did a "C" this afternoon that was pretty good!

Last night, GH asked B to pick up some of his toys, and he immediately responded "Papi, stop messing [with] [B]'s life!" We burst out laughing and made him repeat it because we couldn't believe what we'd just heard. Sure enough, the second time was more of the same! We were especially amused because neither of us say this kind of thing, so we have no idea where he came up with that.

I need to go get him in bed. I just wanted to catch up a little with the latest happenings before I forget it all!

Dinosaurs at the Aquarium

So, GH was desperate for some "alone time" this afternoon so he could get some work done at home...and B really needed some quality time outside our home. He just has so - much - energy!!! It is amazing really.

Anyway, we headed once again to the Aquarium. Our yearly membership runs out at the end of this month and we aren't planning to renew, so we are trying to pack in the visits.

We enjoyed a walk along the shoreline before we headed inside. The weather was just so lovely it was impossible to resist. Then we had to move our car because we were at a 2 hour meter- which also meant we had to find change - which in turn meant we had to find cash, something that rarely makes an appearance in my wallet.

This meant a lot of walking back and forth and back again. Advantage- used a lot of B's excess energy. Disadvantage- required a lot of energy that I was rapidly running out of.

Eventually, we made it to our original goal, with only one tear-shedding incident- that was me, when B mercilessly yanked my hair in both hands as he was "helping" feed the meter. Yeah.

Anyway, we made it, and I was mercifully not bald (I double-checked in the bathroom).

I asked what he wanted to see first and he immediately said "otters," so we headed that direction, with a slight detour at one of the large tanks that has several sharks, rays, tuna, etc. Very cool.

When we got over to the otter area, it was the end of their feeding/play time, so we watched for a few minutes. As we walked back downstairs, B said "Dinosaur!". Huh? I turned around and spotted this whale skeleton.




So I explained that although it resembled a dinosaur skeleton, it was actually a whale skeleton, all the while going over in my mind how he had even drawn that conclusion. He has never been to a museum with a dinosaur skeleton that I remember, certainly not in any recent months. The only dinosaurs he's ever seen that I am aware of have been either on "Curious George" - who does often go to museums with dinosaur skeletons - cartoon dinosaur skeletons, and on "Dinosaur Train," another PBS cartoon, but it does have a paleontologist at the end, and perhaps shows skeleton photos sometimes?

In conclusion, my mind was pretty much blown away by this little incident. It was without a doubt the highlight of the past 2 days for me.

Adjectives and prepositions

B has been using adjectives much more the past couple of weeks. He says things like "Big red fire truck!" and "Little trashy truck" "Big yellow bullzaturner".

He's also started saying "and" sometimes, like when we are reading he will say "the cat -and- the dog -and- the chicken" It is just really cute to me the way he pauses before and after the "and's".

He has also started saying things like "under the table." I think this is his favorite preposition so far. He also likes "behind" alot. He said last night at dinner for example, "Quiche behind my mangi." Mangi = macaroni and cheese.

This afternoon he said "[B] has 2 cats sleeping in pappasan." Which was true, he was sitting in the pappasan with the two cats.

I just wanted to record these before I forget.

Go, Dog, Go! Sleep, Dog, Sleep?

Everyone knows there are two types of people- the night owls and the early birds.

I come from a long line of night owls, and apparently B has inherited these genes as well. He gets plenty of sleep, don't get me wrong, 9-11 hours per night, 1-2 hour naps most days (especially on days following the 9 hour nights).

It's just that he's not at all interested in going to bed at a "reasonable hour" for someone his age. On average he is asleep around 8:30-9ish, but many times he has been up til 10:30, 11, 11:30...
This schedule has advantages and disadvantages, of course. Less alone time for DH and me on B's late nights, but we all get to "sleep in" a little on the mornings after.

For Christmas, B's Godfather gave him the Dr Seuss book, "Go, Dog, Go!" - one of my childhood favorites as well. I still clearly remembered reading about the "big dog party" at the end; it just fascinated me somehow as a child, imagining all these dogs on top of a tree. B absolutely loves it and we read it usually at least once per day.

There is a certain page in the book which talks about how "Night is not a time for play. Night is a time for sleep." This is great in and of itself-now B has taken to quoting that particular passage, so he is hopefully absorbing that message to some extent. The associated illustration depicts a long line of dogs all sleeping in a row in their big bed, except one lone dog whose eyes are wide open.

When I ask B who that wakeful dog is, he responds with his name. It cracks me up every time.

It is so true.

Hickory Dickory Dock

Shortly after B was born, my Mom brought us a toy that had survived my childhood so that he might enjoy it too. I polished it up, but ever since it has been sitting up high on a dresser in B's room.

As I've blogged about previously, we have had a bedtime routine for about a year now with B, and it usually involves reading at least 2 books. Lately one we've been reading fairly frequently is a book of nursery rhymes, including "Hickory Dickory Dock."

One evening during our bedtime routine as we read his nursery rhymes, I remembered the little toy my Mom had brought and took it down for B to look at. It is a Fisher Price "radio" that plays the tune of "Hickory Dickory Dock." And he loved it!

Because he is a boy, of course he loves all kinds of the same things my husband played with growing up. I was overjoyed that there was finally a toy from my childhood that he was interested in and wanted to play with.

This is the first thing I felt that he really liked of mine. I am so glad that it still works and that my Mom thought to bring it to us so that we can share it with him.