Difficult

It's been over a week since my last post and I had every intention of spending my evening updating you with the recent events in our lives. It's been a busy, fun, and demanding week and a half.

Today was difficult though and I don't have the energy to catalog our comings and goings. Instead, here's a little story.

The diaper wars have begun anew. The combination of a raging diaper rash and a toddler on the verge of two sparked a mighty battle this afternoon. E refused to lie down to have his diaper changed and my attempts to force the issue were overturned (he's unfathomably strong and I'm trying to protect the 10 stitches that I got in exchange for a mole on my side).

I took toys away. It didn't phase the little boy.

I sat him on the floor and instructed him to stay there, looking at the wall until he was ready to get his diaper changed.

He sat.

and sat. and sat. and sat.

He cheerily called out "hi" repeatedly. He tried to eat his socks.

I removed his socks.

5 more minutes pass.

He sticks one of his big toes in his mouth and tells me "eat tootsie".

It was very difficult not to laugh.

Happy Father's Day!

They are two of a kind, the big one and the little one. Everyone comments on their physical likeness; E resembles his father more every day.

My handsome boys are father and son in more than just appearance. We've been so fortunate to have a lifestyle, so far, that provides the Mav and his small son with lots of quality time together. For over a year, the Mav has had first shift, wake up to 8 am, while I work. He handles week day breakfasts. Breakfast foods are the only ones E eats with gusto and I imagine this has something to do with his Dad.

Though I take over from 8 to 5 (minus school and nap), the Mav works primarily from home and so has observed and influenced his son's life in rare and wonderful ways.

The Mav knows what the kid likes (and more abundantly, doesn't like). He knows "the rules". He knows E's favorite books and toys. He knows how the boy is behaving. He knows, better than me sometimes, what the boy is saying. He knows his son.

We are on the verge of a serious lifestyle change. Soon, the Mav will be starting a new job. (No, we don't know where yet) This job will most likely require him to be in an office at least 40 hours a week, probably more. While he has opted away from a course that would regularly require 80+ hours per week of his time, there will still be significant changes to his, to our, lifestyles.

My wish and hope is that the father and son, despite this change, will only grow closer as time passes.

Also, I wish that father-son bonding would involve more vacuuming and, say, mopping. That would be truly wonderful.

It was a dark and stormy night

Ah, life in the midwest. Where else can a rain storm take out 10% of the trees in a neighborhood and no one thinks that's odd? The picture above was taken from our front door. This is minor compared to what happened a block north of us and a block south of us.

A little while later I got a text message that a tornado was headed toward campus and then the sirens went off. We didn't see much action in that flare up but more storms are coming tonight.

Little E's party was called off for tonight. He handled it rather well, on promises that the party will be back tomorrow. He managed to keep his spirits up; runing laps around the house and tormenting playing with his best buddy.

Pictures

When I turned last year's blog entries into a book I decided that I wanted to include at least one picture with every future entry. I had a lapse with the last post and so here is my attempt to make amends.

Now, to go and see why the little dear is not yet asleep ...

relay races

"Mommy doodit" E demands and looks at me expectantly. (That's "do it")

"Daddy doodit" E exclaims and his chin starts to quiver. He's moments from crying, or yelling or becoming immobile.

The Mav jogs 20 feet ahead, turns to face little E, drops into a crouched position and extends his arms outward.

E runs, with his wobbly little toddler gait, straight into his Daddy's arms. He's grinning widely and giggling a bit. The Mav scoops him up and swings him in the air and then sets him back on the ground.

"Daddy doodit" pleads the little tyrant and the cycles repeats.

This is E's preferred method for traveling by foot.

He has decided that he likes to be carried around most of the times these days; I think it's to conserve his energy for the destination (e.g., the park) rather than expend it on the trip. I guess mere walking has becomes mundane after all these many (10) months. Running though, is new and fun. As is telling us what he wants us to do.

Now, out for a walk in our quiet neighborhood or on the busy campus in front of aloof students and brilliant professors we run, we stoop, we swing and cheer.

As we catch our breath, we take comfort in the fact that one day we'll be the ones embarrassing him.

Pawpee, muhic

E awoke bright and early yesterday morning and I rather blearily went to his room to fetch him. I said "good morning" or something along those lines. E said "pawpee, muhic".

Huh? I squinted my barely awake eyes at him and tried to translate. "Puppy"? What is "muhic"?

E repeated the combo a few times before it dawned on me.

Party. Music.

Last night was the first Summer Fest of the year. The city closed off a couple of streets downtown and brought in a couple of bands.

E had a great time. He did a little dancing. A little snacking on crackers and honey. A little flirting with a little girl.

As I put him down for his nap yesterday, he told me "nap. pawpee". As in first nap, then party right Mom? I convinced him that we don't get to go to a party every day and now his new mantra is "pawpee, do weeks".

Actually, he only has to wait until Friday. The summer pawpee season has begun!

 

Zoom

E had a major case of the "twos" today. I have the teeth marks in my arm to prove it. He demanded "pee-ah" (pizza) for lunch (I gave in) and again for dinner (I did not give in). He ran half way down the block despite the Mav and I telling-him-very-emphatically to STOP. And he looked back at us and laughed.

We got dinner last night at a casual sandwich place and got him a tube of yogurt thingy. He tried to squeeze it and I told him that would make a mess. And so he chanted "mess, mess, sticky mess" repeatedly (in E-speak that's "meh, meh, diddy meh")

We were told E was LOUD at school today. In almost a year of morning daycare/preschool this is only the second time we've been told of E being anything less than angelic. Normally the teachers role their eyes at me when I ask them if he's been good because they think he's always calm and sweet. Apparently, he ran around shrieking and yelling today and the teachers actually had to tell him to quiet down. We call this his battle cry when he does it at home but I guess this was the first time he brought it out at school.

 

irresistible

"My up" he says, extending his arms toward me.

"Pay race car" he asks, grabbing my finger.

"Wok, do mimutes", he commands, snuggling close. (translation: rock with me for 2 minutes)

"Mur babel" he requests, climbing up into my lap. (more bagel)

Could you say no?

 

22 months old

 

 

 

 

 

 

E at 22 months:
- has learned the word "need". As in, "nee doosh" (need juice).
- likes to dine al fresco. (He heads to the back door saying "eee owsigh" (eat outside).
- is not even close to being potty trained.
- is a very, very picky eater.
- will help pick up his toys (somewhat) and thinks it's fun.
- drinks milk like it's going out of style. Often prefers milk to food these days.
- put a rock up his nose (but his daddy got it out right away).
- enjoys biting, pinching and hitting.
- can put together phrases like "more milk please".
- would eat waffles everyday for breakfast if he could.
- is starting to push limits.
- is an amazing combination of unusually sweet and cooperative and reasonable yet is still somehow quite stubborn and opinionated.
- is still awake at 9 pm, after talking happily in his crib for more than an hour.