quote of the day

(Said to random mom on the way out of our class this morning.)
"Good-bye. I love you!"

first report card

"Elian is a quiet student. He follows directions well. He enjoys parallel play in the toddler and block areas. He follows directions well and will pick up one toy and come to do a puzzle at puzzle time."

quote of the day

(While remembering our Art-a-Whirl experience.)

Elian: What's Art mean?

Mama: Um, it could be a painting...or maybe a drawing...

Papa: Or, maybe a sculpture...

Mama: Or, it coud even be the way you dance in your own way...

Elian: Or, maybe my Doodle Pro...

and now, a word from our sponsor

bad boys, bad boys, whatchya gonna do?

Today we went to an open house at our police precinct. Here are some of the highlights:




(Boy, those fireman are going to be pissed when they find somebody changed all their hose settings.)

Other highlights included: petting a police horse, seeing a dog from the K9 unit open a car door with his nose (note to self: must teach Norman that trick) and meeting Mcgruff the crime dog (Michael, they could've used you).

quote of the day (yesterday)

(To the cashier at Starbucks)
"I got a new Chuck-it!"

happy birthday puppers!

Today the best puppy in the world turned eight years old. And to celebrate, we all had a cupcake. Now you see it, now you don't.



And from the makers of "How to eat a donut", the much anticipated, "How to eat a cupcake." (In case I ever had a doubt the boy was my kid, this pretty much erases it.)



Elian bought Norman a Chuckit Junior for his birthday. Now he can chuck the ball for Norman alongside Papa in the morning. We tried it out and it quickly evolved into a game of Chuckit basketball. I'd include a clip but this entry is already a bit clip-heavy. Maybe another day.

And since tomorrow is Papa's birthday, much like he decided it would be a great idea to buy Uncle Mike a blue ball for his birthday, Elian decided it would even be a better idea to buy Papa a ball for his birthday. I mean, really, who doesn't need a ball? So he picked out a beautiful purple ball for Papa and we brought it home to wrap it (ie: stuff it in a birthday bag). I stressed to him that this was a SURPRISE for Papa and mum's the word...his birthday's not until tomorrow, blah, blah, blah. We hid it in the closet with the idea that Elian would present it to Ed tomorrow when he woke up. When I returned from work today, Elian insisted that he try Papa's ball out or "play with it a little bit," as he called it. I let him put a few bounces in before we went for our walk, then we put it back into the closet for hiding. Later, when Ed came home from work, Elian could barely contain himself. Ed wasn't in the door two seconds when Elian blurted out, "Papa, I have a SECRET... I have a present for you... come see it...IT'S A BALL!!!!!"

Guess who's now sleeping with the purple ball? I'll give you a hint, it's not Ed.

hoops

Apparently the Little Tikes hoop isn't challenging enough.

fast forward 15 years

This hits frighteningly close to home.

he was born a poor black child

Some nights when I put little e to bed, I feel I am living that scene from the Jerk. You know, the one where Steve Martin is about to leave and he picks up random objects as he goes, "All I need is this ashtray...and this paddle game. The ashtray and the paddle game and that's all I need...And this remote control."

Before he goes into his crib, there's always some sort of negotiation about what he can and can not bring into his crib. (Right now he has two soccer balls in his crib with him (he gave up his bunny and his hippotamus to make room for those) plus a few stuffed animals for good measure. If it were up to him, he'd have the entire contents of his toy box in there with him. I don't really care if he plays with the toys before falling asleep, it's more a matter of safety and space logistics -- or a soccer ball rolling into his head the moment he falls asleep.

quote of the day

"Look Mama, I drooled an exclamation point."

now that it's nice out, think we'll ever go inside again?

i gotta hand it to the kid, he doesn't give up.

newsflash!

I'm grossly underpaid at one of my jobs.

quote of the day

This happened yesterday on a walk, but since I already had a QOTD yesterday, let's pretend it happened today.

Background: Lately whenever Ed and Elian are sharing a special father/son moment, Ed says, "Just two handsome dudes (INSERT ACTIVITY HERE)" For example: just two handsome dudes brushing their teeth...just two handsome dudes playing chugga chugga choo choo, you get the idea.

So yesterday, Elian and I were taking Norman on a Lemon Ding-dong (deserving of its own blog entry), when Elian said:
Just one handsome dude and one handsome Mama walking puppy.

quote of the day

Background: Lately Elian's been requesting to drink his beverage "like a big boy with crazy straw." Sadly, whilst draining the pasta I made tonight, I dumped the scalding hot water in the sink where said crazy straw rested. The whimsical loop the straw made was no longer and what was left was a not-so-crazy straw -- more like a straw with a bad case of scoliosis. Then, as usual, Elian sat down to dinner and asked for the straw. After Ed explained to Elian that he hadn't seen the crazy straw, I chimed in to say I hadn't seen it either. To which he replied:

"Maybe Lempi stealed it."


P.S. Lempi just turned 93 a few weeks ago.

best. things. ever. volume 5

• How you say "for" instead of "to" like "I want to give it for Mama." And even in very subtle instances like together (forgether).
• How your enthusiasm for finding Tiny Little Balls has not died -- nor does it seem it ever will.
• Your freakishly accurate memory.
• Your freakishly heightened sense of perception (your ability to spot a ladybug, Tiny Little Ball or flea while being pushed in stroller -- "I SEE SOMETHING!! I SEE SOMETHING!! DON'T ROLL ME!!!")
• How happy, to the point of giddy, you get when I let you make cookies with me.
• How you say "windshield wipers" ("whimper wipers").
• The fact that you still call the stairs "dotes" even when you know the proper word, because Papa and I like it.
• How when I say something you really like the sound of, you say, "What Mama say?" just so you can hear it again.
• Hearing at 6:30 in the morning for the past couple weeks "THE SUN WAKED UP PAPA...THE SUN WAKED UP MAMA... I sleeped like a big boy!"
• How you lick my face like a puppy dog.

d money

For the past week, we've been taking care of my brother's dog, Duncan -- or D Money (the rap name we've given him along with his partner in crime, P Diddy, aka: Puppy Dog).

Ed and I, and especially Elian, really enjoy Duncan's visits and we love him as if he were our own. And since Norman grew up with Duncan, he's the only dog Norman will really tolerate. Duncan is without a doubt, the most mellow dog on the planet. If he could talk, I imagine he'd start every sentence with "Dude." I also imagine that he does bong hits when we're not looking. Duncan is a cuddler which is the complete opposite of Norman. Norman is more like a cat. He likes to be pet on his terms only. Not like Duncan who will curl up on the bed with you, inching closer and closer to you any chance he can get -- if he's not already lying on your head.

Elian is not used to having a real dog around the house. He's used to having his cat-dog Norman who he can't pet. So when Duncan's here, he is all about the cuddles. "I want to cuddle with Duncan... I want to give Duncan a hug... I love Duncan...." And Duncan just sits there and takes it as Elian wraps his arms around his enormous neck and rests his head on his back. Sometimes I feel bad that our little boy doesn't have a dog he can hug (or pet). I also feel bad that Norman has to hear Elian proclaim his love for Duncan at least four times a day. But Norman's neurosis is what makes him so darn lovable.

Some other of Duncan's endearing qualities have to do with his love (or obsession) with food. Around 3:30 you can expect to hear him impatiently pushing his food dish around waiting to be fed. And then there's the way he digs up rocks at the river and pulls them out with his mouth as if he's going to eat them whole.

Here is a picture I took of the two furry friends looking into the kitchen (it looked much better in real life). I imagine this is what they were thinking.

Norman: "For the love of god, woman, when is my next walk?!?"

Duncan: "Dude, where's my food? I've got a serious case of the munchies."

abcs

I wish I'd learn to shut my big fat pie hole when I take these little clips. I also wish I'd learn how to post to YouTube so the audio would sync with the video.

diagnosis: tapeworm

Ever since the Miracle Waffle Incident, the boy's appetite has been insatiable. This morning he ate 1 1/2 waffles and about 15 minutes afterwards, he wanted more waffles. Then came the snack requests after snack requests. After an ugly moment of crying and block throwing, I suggested some milk. He slammed it down and asked for more. Then he said, "I'm better, Mama. I'm nice now."

I write this now as he devours the egg I just made him -- the one he requested the minute he woke up from his nap. I was a bit skeptical, but now seeing him eat it like it was his first meal of the day, I'm glad I did.

The good news about this virus he had: We may have successfully (and painlessly) phased out the Nuk. He had no appetite for the Nuk while he was sick, so now we're riding the Nuk-free wave and we'll see where it goes.

The bad news about this virus (aside from the 8 miles of landfill we produced with poopy diapers): There has been a Calliou relapse.