Thursday, December 14, 2006
Wednesday, December 13, 2006
Countdown to Christmas December 12
Heavens. Have a nasty cold. So tired and sick that I lay down on the couch while the boys played. That, of course, could not be allowed. Xander came over and began loading me up with toys. Then he decided that he wanted a hug so he dumped all the toys on the floor and clambered up on top of me. Then Jason decided to get into the act -- 'Lets play hide and seek.' I said 'Fine, as long as I don't have to move.' 'No, you don't have to move.' Said the organizer, 'You just have to count and then look.' So I closed my eyes and counted to ten. I could feel Jason climbing over my feet and crawling under the blanket I had on. Without openning my eyes, I pointed out that that was probably NOT the best place to hide. 'Okay' He got down and went off to hide. I counted to ten and said 'Where, oh where are Xander and Jason?' Xander yelled 'Here me am!' and bounced out. Then I asked 'But where, oh where is Jason?' Xander went straight to his brother (Not a huge surprise since he had followed Jason to begin with!) and said 'Here he is!' The game went on for a good fifteen minutes with that same scenario repeating itself over and over. Finally, Mommy rebelled and decided to feed the children...
Other stories? Well, last night we were discussing nightmares on the way home. Jason was trying to comfort me as regards a very silly nightmare I had had the previous night (it involved tiny robots guarding a house with laser beams). Xander was listening and just as we were getting the boys out of the car, he announced: "I had a nightmare. It about Battle Droids. I couldn't run away and then they pooped on me!" I laughed and laughed because his little face was so serious...
Once in the house, the boys began to discuss Christmas and Christmas presents. 'What do you want, Xander?' 'I don't know' he said. Then, a few moments later, he decided 'Me want a million dollars!' It starts young.
Jason, of course, has discovered the funadamental unfairness of big business. He had his wish list all set -- all the different legos sets that he wanted were on it. Then we went to the Legos store and there were a whole new batch of Bionicles! He said, in exasperation, 'Well, how am I supposed to get the legos I want if they keep adding more?' I said 'Been there kid. I wanted to read all the books in the library (am still trying!) and was disgusted to find out that they kept buying more!' He just looked at me, not blinking, waiting for me to come back to the important point. I said 'You don't really need anymore legos. You have about a billion (that statement has come back to haunt me repeatedly, I might add! He keeps wanting to know PRECISELY how many legos he has. One of these days, we will have to count them.) and I am sure that you could build most anything they have here. He cocked his head and thought about it, for all of a minute, then said (ala his father), 'Well, I probably have most of the bits but they always add new SPECIAL pieces and I don't have those!' Sad thing is, he is right about that. Wish legos would just sell bundles of their 'special' bits!
Other stories? Well, last night we were discussing nightmares on the way home. Jason was trying to comfort me as regards a very silly nightmare I had had the previous night (it involved tiny robots guarding a house with laser beams). Xander was listening and just as we were getting the boys out of the car, he announced: "I had a nightmare. It about Battle Droids. I couldn't run away and then they pooped on me!" I laughed and laughed because his little face was so serious...
Once in the house, the boys began to discuss Christmas and Christmas presents. 'What do you want, Xander?' 'I don't know' he said. Then, a few moments later, he decided 'Me want a million dollars!' It starts young.
Jason, of course, has discovered the funadamental unfairness of big business. He had his wish list all set -- all the different legos sets that he wanted were on it. Then we went to the Legos store and there were a whole new batch of Bionicles! He said, in exasperation, 'Well, how am I supposed to get the legos I want if they keep adding more?' I said 'Been there kid. I wanted to read all the books in the library (am still trying!) and was disgusted to find out that they kept buying more!' He just looked at me, not blinking, waiting for me to come back to the important point. I said 'You don't really need anymore legos. You have about a billion (that statement has come back to haunt me repeatedly, I might add! He keeps wanting to know PRECISELY how many legos he has. One of these days, we will have to count them.) and I am sure that you could build most anything they have here. He cocked his head and thought about it, for all of a minute, then said (ala his father), 'Well, I probably have most of the bits but they always add new SPECIAL pieces and I don't have those!' Sad thing is, he is right about that. Wish legos would just sell bundles of their 'special' bits!
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Remembered stories
Thinking about stories from my children's past, I remember the one about the airplanes coming to dinner...
The story happened when Jason was just about two: We had gone to have lunch with daddy. On the way home, Jason was, to my knowledge, busily 'reading' one of his books in his car seat. All of a sudden a small two year old voice piped up 'Uh oh, mommy, the airplanes are coming to dinner.' Blindsided, I gaped. 'The airplanes?' 'Umm hmm.' He was quite satisfied with my reaction. Not that this was the first time. A few days prior he had told me that he had invited the Baseball Bugs over. And mind you, this is a Jason theme. He is still inviting folks -- if he likes you, he invites you -- for a playdate, for his birthday, for Christmas... He gets a lot of smiles, especially from the adults he invites. The kids, I think, take him as seriously as he intends it...
Course, kids have their own perspective. I remember taking Jason over to his friend, Rowan's house, and on our way home, I was treated to a discourse on bowel movements. After listening with increasing amazement, I asked 'How do you know all this?' He replied 'Oh, Rowan and I talked about it. He had diarreah last night.' Yikes!
The story happened when Jason was just about two: We had gone to have lunch with daddy. On the way home, Jason was, to my knowledge, busily 'reading' one of his books in his car seat. All of a sudden a small two year old voice piped up 'Uh oh, mommy, the airplanes are coming to dinner.' Blindsided, I gaped. 'The airplanes?' 'Umm hmm.' He was quite satisfied with my reaction. Not that this was the first time. A few days prior he had told me that he had invited the Baseball Bugs over. And mind you, this is a Jason theme. He is still inviting folks -- if he likes you, he invites you -- for a playdate, for his birthday, for Christmas... He gets a lot of smiles, especially from the adults he invites. The kids, I think, take him as seriously as he intends it...
Course, kids have their own perspective. I remember taking Jason over to his friend, Rowan's house, and on our way home, I was treated to a discourse on bowel movements. After listening with increasing amazement, I asked 'How do you know all this?' He replied 'Oh, Rowan and I talked about it. He had diarreah last night.' Yikes!
Tuesday, December 05, 2006
December 5
Jason had a lot of fun at his karate class. It was the same instructor as before -- and Tom was impressed by her calmness in the face of 3-5 year old distraction. 'She just kept them going, never let them get bored and didn't focus on what they were doing wrong. She just redirected them.' He is right. In this way, she is a good teacher for children in this age group. She has four children of her own (all older now) and seems to have developed a tolerance for noise and chaos.
Xander, on the other hand, was, as was expected, highly indignant about not being allowed to participate. When he threw an unholy fit about not being allowed to go into the dojo, I took him. "I WANT TO SIT ON THE BENCH AND WATCH!" he told me, once it was clear that he couldn't play with his bahbah. So we went in. Daddy hugged him. Xander watched. Then Daddy and Xander went for a walk. Then Mommy and Xander went for a walk. And Jason ran and talked and laughed. It was lovely to see. Then we fed them Taco Time ('I WANT A CHICKEN CRUNCHY TACO!' said my youngest. Then, upon seeing his brother eating a soft beef taco, he asked indignantly 'WHERE'S MY SOFT TACO?' I told him 'You said Crunchy Chicken.' 'NO' He looked at me then 'I HAVE BITE OF YOURS?' Hmmm...and so he did... and did...and did. :>
Xander, on the other hand, was, as was expected, highly indignant about not being allowed to participate. When he threw an unholy fit about not being allowed to go into the dojo, I took him. "I WANT TO SIT ON THE BENCH AND WATCH!" he told me, once it was clear that he couldn't play with his bahbah. So we went in. Daddy hugged him. Xander watched. Then Daddy and Xander went for a walk. Then Mommy and Xander went for a walk. And Jason ran and talked and laughed. It was lovely to see. Then we fed them Taco Time ('I WANT A CHICKEN CRUNCHY TACO!' said my youngest. Then, upon seeing his brother eating a soft beef taco, he asked indignantly 'WHERE'S MY SOFT TACO?' I told him 'You said Crunchy Chicken.' 'NO' He looked at me then 'I HAVE BITE OF YOURS?' Hmmm...and so he did... and did...and did. :>
Monday, December 04, 2006
December 4, 2006 - awed reply
Well, I have heard about blogging. I will not write on this one often, just wanted to register my presence and delight in the Dean grandchildren -- and their parents as well. Next step, Jenn, is pictures of the family and the raised bed which Tom built. Flyi'n Granny, AKA 'ama
Sunday, December 03, 2006
December 3, 2006
One should be careful what one says. This is becoming a refrain, isn't it? I was telling Jason last night that, since he is wearing big boy underwear at night, if he needs to pee, he should go straight to the bathroom. I had made the mistake of not yet having put Xander's nighttime diaper on. He was listening intently and the next thing I knew, there was this little fountain going... all over the living room floor! Yikes. Sigh.
In other news, I do have a Xander story from the night before last. We had gone to meet Tom for dinner at a favorite local Teriyaki restaurant. Afterwards, we loaded the boys into the Merc and I got set to go home. But when I tried to pull out of the parking space, not one but TWO cars sped up and zoomed around me. The second one scared me silly because I was, in fact, in motion when he whipt around behind me. I let fly, I admit, muttering darkly about idiots and stupid people. Jason asked why I was getting so upset? I responded that, not only had the driver's behavior been just plain bad manners, it had also been stupid and dangerous and that I didn't like the thought of someone running into us because people would have gotten hurt. So... brief silence as I merged onto the road then, from the back of the car, 'Mommy, do you understand me? You mustn't run into people. It is Stupid and Dangerous! Do you understand me?' I was torn between cracking up and growling. What is one to do with such a child? Jason, of course, just laughs and laughs. He finds his brother to be a walking riot.
In other news, I do have a Xander story from the night before last. We had gone to meet Tom for dinner at a favorite local Teriyaki restaurant. Afterwards, we loaded the boys into the Merc and I got set to go home. But when I tried to pull out of the parking space, not one but TWO cars sped up and zoomed around me. The second one scared me silly because I was, in fact, in motion when he whipt around behind me. I let fly, I admit, muttering darkly about idiots and stupid people. Jason asked why I was getting so upset? I responded that, not only had the driver's behavior been just plain bad manners, it had also been stupid and dangerous and that I didn't like the thought of someone running into us because people would have gotten hurt. So... brief silence as I merged onto the road then, from the back of the car, 'Mommy, do you understand me? You mustn't run into people. It is Stupid and Dangerous! Do you understand me?' I was torn between cracking up and growling. What is one to do with such a child? Jason, of course, just laughs and laughs. He finds his brother to be a walking riot.
Friday, December 01, 2006
December 4, 2006
Do you ever have days where you think you'd be better off crawling back into bed and starting over? Well, it has been one of those sorts of days for me. The boys slept fairly well -- I went in at Midnight and discovered both of them had crawled half off their beds so I reinserted them into beds and undercovers but then they slept until 5:20. I woke suddenly, out of a very deep sleep, at 4 am when Tom's alarm went off. Had the hardest time dragging myself up and out. Tom, also, had a bit of a hard start. But he got himself fed and out the door and just shortly after he left, the boys woke.
The morning started slowly because I was so tired. Finally, around 6:30, in desperation because I just couldn't stay awake, I told the boys that I would put on a video (I know, evil!) and then I was going to take a half hour nap. It wasn't 5 minutes, though, before Jason yelled that the DVD had frozen up. Sigh... so I dragged myself up and came out to look. The upshot of that was that I ended up moving the Entertainment center, dusting (Cough and choke!), removing the old DVD and Video players and installing the new one I had bought for Tom's use (with much helpful advice and commentary from my eldest son). With trepidition, we turned the system on. It works, though I suspect I may have hooked up the sound system strangely... But then the DVD hung again! I cleaned it and it worked. By this time, however, I had surrendered to the fact that I was not going to get any sleep. The boys were agitating to go to the gym (I know, sad, isn't it?) So I got them shod and clothed and off we went. They played happily while I worked out then I collected them (with a certain amount of bribery to get Xander out the door) and we went to the indoor playspace. The boys ran and jumped and rode tricycles for about an hour. Then, after a quick snack of animal crackers and apple juice, we ran to the grocery to collect Xander's meds. That took much longer than expected and it was nearing lunch time when we arrived home. So I fed them -- Quesadilla for Jason, Tortilla for Xander. Then books and naps. When Jason woke, we took all the coins out of his piggy bank and, after he had sorted all the coins into their requisite piles, he counted them back into the bank. I recorded the numbers and when he was done, using a combination of addition and multiplication, Jason figured out the value of his coins. He had a little coaching from Mom but I am very impressed with how he is doing. He then came out and played a few minutes of computer games before his little brother woke. The boys are now snacking on Raisin Bran and water. Soon we shall have to load back in the car to go into Fairwood where Jason's martial arts class is being held. Tom will meet us there at 4 and stay to watch Jason while I take Xander somewhere else... he will be very unhappy not to be 'doing' with his brother but he is not yet quite old enough...
The morning started slowly because I was so tired. Finally, around 6:30, in desperation because I just couldn't stay awake, I told the boys that I would put on a video (I know, evil!) and then I was going to take a half hour nap. It wasn't 5 minutes, though, before Jason yelled that the DVD had frozen up. Sigh... so I dragged myself up and came out to look. The upshot of that was that I ended up moving the Entertainment center, dusting (Cough and choke!), removing the old DVD and Video players and installing the new one I had bought for Tom's use (with much helpful advice and commentary from my eldest son). With trepidition, we turned the system on. It works, though I suspect I may have hooked up the sound system strangely... But then the DVD hung again! I cleaned it and it worked. By this time, however, I had surrendered to the fact that I was not going to get any sleep. The boys were agitating to go to the gym (I know, sad, isn't it?) So I got them shod and clothed and off we went. They played happily while I worked out then I collected them (with a certain amount of bribery to get Xander out the door) and we went to the indoor playspace. The boys ran and jumped and rode tricycles for about an hour. Then, after a quick snack of animal crackers and apple juice, we ran to the grocery to collect Xander's meds. That took much longer than expected and it was nearing lunch time when we arrived home. So I fed them -- Quesadilla for Jason, Tortilla for Xander. Then books and naps. When Jason woke, we took all the coins out of his piggy bank and, after he had sorted all the coins into their requisite piles, he counted them back into the bank. I recorded the numbers and when he was done, using a combination of addition and multiplication, Jason figured out the value of his coins. He had a little coaching from Mom but I am very impressed with how he is doing. He then came out and played a few minutes of computer games before his little brother woke. The boys are now snacking on Raisin Bran and water. Soon we shall have to load back in the car to go into Fairwood where Jason's martial arts class is being held. Tom will meet us there at 4 and stay to watch Jason while I take Xander somewhere else... he will be very unhappy not to be 'doing' with his brother but he is not yet quite old enough...
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