Freeze Dancing Sick People

GODFATHER CALEB:

We were over at Papa & Nana's house to celebrate New Years. The family was in the living room having fun with a little Freeze Dance. I was over at the stereo with Papa's iPod and was starting and stopping the music so everyone could freeze.

You came over wanting to be in charge of the iPod. I told you, "I'm using the iPod because I'm sick. Only sick people can use it."

You said, "Did you know, Caleb? Did you know I have a stomachache?" Then you looked at me with a clever twinkle in your eye. "So I could do the iPod."

You made us all laugh.

Duckbugs

DADDY: Mommy's van has bugs. SARAH: No, that was a duck. DADDY: They must be duckbugs. SARAH: Your duckbugs are stinky. They smell like poopoo.

This One Time @ Guffaw's House

Mommy: We were driving Saturday night and you were saying that I needed to take you to sleep at one of your grandparents' house. (The weeks before you had been spending Friday night at one of there houses so Daddy and I could help early on Saturday mornings with the premarital class at ROCKharbor.) You then said that one time you stayed the whole night in the penguin bed (the guest bed at Gmomo & Guffaw's home that has a penguin comforter). I asked if there have been some nights when you haven't stayed in bed. You said that you usually get out of bed and try to get "rock-a-byed." Then you said, "One time," laughing, "I brushed my teeth and then ate a lot of food. I went to bed without brushing my teeth and then got out of bed and told Gmomo. She told me to tell Guffaw in the office. So I went in and told him I needed to brush my teeth again and he made a funny face and we brushed my teeth again."

Wedgies

While quickly walking to your room to get food for a pretend picnic, you said, "Hi, I love you. Sorry, I always get wedgies."

Oct. 5

Pretending - Jesus

Mommy:

Me: "Sarah, what are you doing in there?" as you take a very long time to bring some food toys out of your bedroom.

You answer, "I'm pretending to be Jesus."

"What?" I walked back to see you putting all the food in a basket, I guess like the feeding of the 5,000. It must have multiplied and that's why it took so long. :-)

Tissues

Mommy:

While you were picking your nose I said, "Sarah use a tissue, please." You replied, "But they're hard boogers because they got old."

Hearing Problems

Mommy:

In the car driving home tonight you thought you were hearing the Disneyland fireworks. You asked if I could hear the booming. I said, "No." You explained that I couldn't hear it because my ears have freckles all over them and they can't hear as well as "normal" ears.

Shopping Fun

Mommy:  You love going shopping at grocery stores that have car carts.  They have a pretend car attached to the front of the shopping cart.

- We were shopping at Pavillions and you pointed out the car window and shouted, "I see breast pads!" Sure enough, you were pointing at the type of breast pads we have at home."

- We were shopping at Wal-mart, a store without car carts. I was trying to go quickly so I would keep moving if you stopped to touch stuff. While walking through the feminine hygiene aisle you picked up the Always panty liners and yelled to me as I kept walking, "Look, it's what you put in your underwear! They have them here." :-) Ah, yes, there were a couple people that heard and all I could do was laugh.

Why Didn't I Think of That?

Mommy: We were driving through the parking lot of the Fountain Valley Hospital and I was trying to see if I could figure out which building Grandma Melba and Papa Jack would be in for Papa Jack's radiation.  You were asking me about what I was doing and why we were driving around.  I explained what we were doing and that I just didn't know which of the buildings to go to and you said, "Where is their car?" Genius! They park in the handicap parking spaces and so that greatly increases our chance of finding their car and then knowing which building they are in.  We found their car very quickly and it was parked near the building I suspected they were in.  

Pretend

DADDY: You were on Daddy/Daughter Date Night with me and Poema. We were at Cherry on Top. You had saved a seat for Annie from MAGIC TREEHOUSE to sit across from you while you enjoyed your frozen yogurt. At one point, you switched seats with Annie because "My seat is kind of dirty and Annie is pretend." Love you.

G-Momo Outsmarted

Today at Fu Wing Low Sarah wanted to eat sugar out of the packet. I told her that sugar would eat her teeth, so she shouldn't put it in her mouth since she couldn't brush her teeth at Fu Wing Low.  Later she asked if she could put some sugar into the tea she had poured into her teacup. I told her that was okay. She put about half a packet of sugar into her tea, added an ice cube and stirred it up.  Then she drank it, tapped on her front teeth, and said "See, still there."

G-Momo
Oct. 8, 2011
 

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Sarah Speaks Spanish

Steve - I went to church when Nate and Jenn were talking about China.  There were tables with cookies and cake and other desserts in the lobby and you ran out to hug me.  Your mom was in the lobby and you asked if you could have another cookie and she said you could have one more.  Then she went in.  You stayed out and ate your cookie and talked to me.  Then you asked if you could have some cheesecake.  I said that your mommy would get mad at me if I let you.  Then you reached up and touched the cheesecake.  I said "uhh, well now you have to take it."  So then you figured out that if you touched something you could have it so you went back into church with a big plate of dessert. 

     A little later you asked me to go out to the playground to push you on the swing.  While we were out there you said "I can speak Spanish."  I said "oh really?"  You said "uno, dos, tres.  El Parque."  I said "wow, good job.  We are at el parque.  Do you know more?"  You said "yeah, I know Spanish."  So I said "what are you on?"  You replied "el swingy."  I said "ohh, and what are you holding on with?"  You replied "el army."

Doctor Sarah

Steve (June 29) - I was at Gmomo and Guffaws and started to feel sick, so I went into your playroom and laid down. Gmomo went into the other room and got 2 pepto bismols and told you "Uncle Steve's tummy hurts, want to give these to him?"  So you came in and said "here, these are for your tummy."  I said "oh, thank you. Should I eat them?"  You said "no, they're for your tummy."  I said "ohhh, so what do I do?"  So you lifted up my shirt and put one in my belly button. Then you said "I think my tummy hurts a little too. I'll take this one." So Gmomo came in and you and I are laying there with pepto bismol in our belly buttons laughing. Hahaha

Squirrels

MOMMY:
A few weeks ago you were walking up to G-momo and Guffaws's apartment. You were in front of me and you ran back to me and said that a squirrel was talking to you.  You have been using your imagination a lot lately and so I figured it was pretend.  As I walked up to the stairs to get to their apartment, I, too, was confronted by a squirrel perched on a tree branch making noises in such a way directed at me that it seemed like it was talking.  I walked away thinking, "What a weird, funny squirrel."

Today, at the park, you ran up to a squirrel that was perched on a palm tree base.  You stared at the squirrel excitedly. The squirrel just stayed there. You returned to me, less excited and said, "Mom, the squirrel didn't talk to me."

Thoughtfulness

Sarah got two gummy worms at Sprouts from the courtesy clerk. Sarah said one was for her and one was for Gracie when we see her at the airport. As we walked out to the car I heard her say, "I just ate a little bit of of Gracie's worm but I'll still give it to her."

High

Sarah asked, "Mom, are you high? . . ." My instant thought was, where the heck did you hear that from? She continued, "Or are you low?" Child, what are you talking about? :-)

Black Heart

Mommy:

As we were getting in the car after a playdate, we were discussing sharing our toys and how that shows others love.  You had been telling people they couldn't play with your instruments because they were yours. You then said that when Olivia's heart goes up to heaven, it's going to have lots of black in it because she takes her toys away from her. Jesus is going to need to clean it up.

New Car

MOMMY:

While we were driving in our Toyota Sienna you observed the white convertible next to us put it's top down. You then asked, "One day when we crash this into another car, can we get a pink convertible?"

Crackling

MOMMY: You were on the toilet and said, "Mommy? Do you hear that crackling sound from my butt?"
"Yes," I said.

You replied, "That means poop is going to come out."

Big Butt

Sarah: "Mommy, is your butt big?  Sometimes when I open the frigerator and bend down to get something out my little butt turns into a big butt."

Poopoo Is Funny

MOMMY: We were driving in the van. Daddy and I made a joke and started laughing. You laughed with us even though you didn't understand. You said, "That's funny. And poopoo is funny too." Then you laughed.

Where's His Feet?

Mommy:
I was putting you to bed.  You said you wanted to be close to someone but I had to take care of Poema and go to sleep also.  In the past we had talked about how God is always with you although I hadn't mentioned it this time.  You started to say, "God is real. He's not pretend. He's not with me. I can't see his feet. He's not standing here," as you pointed to the ground next to your bed. 

September 7, 2011

G-Momo:  A little while after I put you to bed I went in to check on you. You were wide awake, on top of the blankets because it was a hot evening.  You asked me to tell you a story, and I told you that you had already had your stories and prayer, but you could tell a story to your stuffed pig.  You said you had already told a story to the pig, and you had also told one to your (imaginary) friend who was under the covers because she is naked.

 

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Sept. 7, 2011

G-Momo:  Tonight when I put you to bed, you asked if I could sneak you 4 apples.  You explained that you needed to be taller to go in the balls, and the only way to get taller is to eat.  When I told Mommy she told me you are an inch too short to go into the ball pit at Ikea.  You are a determined little girl.

 

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Building Your Vocabulary

Mommy:
During rest time we let you listen to classical music or an audio book.  Daddy got many of the Magic Tree House books by Mary Pope Osborn in audio form on the IPod.  For the last week you keep asking to listen to #7 with a Saber-tooth in it from the ice age.  Occasionally you will ask me about words and what they mean.  I started to realize they were words you were hearing in the stories (Cro-Magnon-Man was the big giveaway clue for me).  Today, I asked you if you wanted to listen to a new story and you said, "No, I don't know all the words yet."   

The Wedding Aisle

Mommy:
While Daddy was taking a shower, we were discussing when you would take your shower.  You said you would go in with Daddy.  I was trying to explain that you can't shower with Daddy because he is a boy and you won't be able to shower with a boy until you get married because you aren't supposed to see boys' private parts. 

You said when you were married then you would take a shower with daddy.  I mentioned that when you were married, you wouldn't want to shower with Daddy anymore and that you should just trust me about that. 

For some reason you asked if Daddy would be around when you got married.  I said that I hope so because he wants to be able to walk you down the aisle to give you to your husband and then Daddy will want to dance with you.  To this you responded, "I think I'll get married at Pavillions."  I tried to figure out how that was connected with our conversation and realized you were trying to think of a place with "aisles."  Just for a giggle to see if my thought was correct I asked you which aisle you wanted to get married in. You thoughtfully responded with a tilt of your head and a gentle nod, "I think the milk aisle, maybe."

Special Diet

Mommy: I've been trying to stick to a special diet (Candida diet) to help get rid of Poema's thrush. You offer me food like string cheese which I can't eat on the diet. I've had to explain why I can't accept your food offering. You have been going through a growth spurt lately and can't seem to get enough food in you. I was cooking dinner and you really wanted to eat something right then. You were asking if you could eat things and I kept telling you that dinner was almost ready. The next thing I knew you walked into the kitchen with your mouth full of almonds and said,"I'm on a special diet."

Car Emblems

DADDY: A while ago on a whim, I decided to introduce you to the different car emblem/logos. We'd walk car to car through the parking lot and find the logos, then try to remember which car it was. You're a pretty smart kid. Side benefit...I know my car logos now too.

The ones you're really good at (in the order you learned them):

Toyota
Honda
Ford
Lexus
Nissan
Hyundai
Ferrari (believe it or not, you love these)
BMW
Mercedes
Mazda
Suburu
Chevy
Jeep
Acura
 Infiniti

The ones you're still learning:

Buick
 GMC
 Mitsubishi
Volkswagon
Audi
Minicooper
Porsche
Dodge
 Hummer
Chrysler
Kia
Landrover
Jaguar
Rolls Royce (we don't see too many of these)

Geography

DADDY: You are really good with your sense of direction around town. You can tell us which direction we need to drive to get to certain places. You can correct us if we're taking "the wrong way," even if our new way will still get us there.

And you remember your parks. You've got a different special name for all of them.

Blue Park
Bumblebee Park
Airplane Park
ABC Park
Turtle Park
Bubbleduck Park
etc. etc.

Daddy/Daughter Date Nights

DADDY: I'm not bragging here, but you love Daddy/Daughter Date Nights. So do I. We'll go get some food, oftentimes at a restaurant, get dessert, then go do some fun activity. It might not even be our typical Tuesday night date night, but if I mention going to get dinner, you immediately want it to be Daddy/Daughter Date Night. I cherish you.

Types of restaurants:

• Taco Bell (you really like tacos)
• Del Taco
• Taste of India
• Denny's
• Fresco's
• Burger King
• Subway

Dessert:

• Golden Spoon
• Cherry on Top
• Dippin Dots
• Denny's for banana splits

Activities:

• The Park, especially the Train Park
• PetSmart to look at the animals
• Prehistoric Pets to look at the animals
• Murdy Park to watch the Creative Anachronism swordfighters and fencers
• Adventures where we walk from our house to something in the city
• Movie nights where we make a fort in the living room
• Photo shoot w/ Sarah
• Sit and watch Karate classes
• Sit and watch volleyball practices
• Walk through stores and explain things, discovering
• Buy glow-in-the-dark sticks and swordfight outside Target
• Sit and watch a car accident get cleaned up. Firemen, Ambulance, Police Officers, Tow Truck.
• Bowling
• Watching a building get wrecking-balled and bull-dozed
• Pretty much, anything that's fun and new for you to watch, that we can talk about, and that expands your world for you. We have a blast.

But the main reason we do them, I want you to know that you are special and cherished and worth it. Any guy you end up with in the future had better know that.

Strong-willed Kickback

DADDY: Mommy and I have been reading books so we can be better parents for you. The one I'm reading right now is called SETTING LIMITS WITH YOUR STRONG-WILLED CHILD. It's pretty simple and amazing. The concepts just require specificity and consistency.

Setting Limits with Your Strong-Willed Child : Eliminating Conflict by Establishing Clear, Firm, and Respectful Boundaries by Robert J. MacKenzie Ed.D. http://amzn.com/0761521364

It's working. We're reading and acting because we love you and your little heart.

Vocabulary

DADDY: Before bedtime the other night, we were reading JAMES AND THE GIANT PEACH. We came across a couple words you didn't know, so I thought, "What the heck? Why not teach them to you?"

Ramshackle was the first word.

James lives in a ramshackle house on top of the hill. So I explained the word and had you go find a ramshackle book from our shelf. You brought back the old story book my mommy used to read to me when I was a little boy.

Spectacles was the other word.

We talked about Guffaw and how he wears glasses >>> spectacles. You said next time you saw him you'd try to say something about his spectacles.

Getting Free Stuff

Mommy:Short story: Sarah got a free CD from the songwriter, Dave Kinnoin, at Bella Terra.  Long Story: At Bella Terra today, I was sitting on a chair under an awning at the back of the amphitheater to keep Poema out of the sun.  I was still on the grass where you were playing while I talked to some mommy friends. You saw people had papers with autographs from the musician. The next thing I knew you were waiting to get one. I could tell you were talking with him and as you slowly turned to walk away he was asking the people around him where your mother was. He asked alittle louder so I waved my hand and smiled, assuming he just wanted to make sure you were with an adult.
He was all packed up to leave and I noticed you had made your way over to talk to him again. He walked towards where I was now standing and said, "She's yours? Well . . . you're, you're going to have your hands full with this one." I asked him what you had been saying to him, trying to figure out what would make him react that way. He didn't give a clear answer and was just sort of shaking his head. He opened his bag and handed me a CD saying, "I don't usually give this CD to kids under 8-years-old but I think she can handle it." Then, he walked away as we thanked him.
I asked you what you were talking about with him and you said you couldn't remember . . .we will never know.  
The CD title is "Dunce Cap Kelly."  I don't know if we should use that as a clue to why he gave you the CD.  :-)

Spelling

Mommy:Tonight you informed me that my name ends with an "a" but the last sound of my name is "uh" (Lisa --- lee-ss-uh). You said my name needs to be spelled with a 'u" at the end, not an "a."  Oh, English phonics . . .  so silly.

Sarah's PJ's

Last night after Uncle Steve put you to bed you came out and said "I don't have PJ's on."  Mommy had told you that your clothes were soft enough to sleep in, but you know I have a drawer with spare clothes and PJ's.  As you were going through the drawer, there was a pair of PJ's that said "Daddy's Little Girl" on them.  You discarded them, saying "I'm Daddy's big girl.  These must be too small."     G-Momo

 

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One more thing...

"Do the 7 dwarfs give Snow White zerberts?"
 

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Stalling at Bedtime

        This evening at bedtime, after Guffaw read you "Grandpa Dropped His Glasses" and Uncle Steve helped you brush your teeth and say your prayer, you asked me for a 4 minute snuggle, "or maybe 5 minutes or maybe 9 minutes."  You told me about your office where you were working.  There are lots of books and a stairway to heaven.  If you go up the stairs you see Jesus holding a heart, not a pretend heart, a real heart from someone's chest.  Then Jesus and the heart go camping with Great Grandma Lavina, and you played hide and seek.  Great Grandma Lavina is very special to Jesus and to you, and you give her lots of kisses and hugs.

        Then you told me about your pretend family. When your mommy is busy, you have pretend mommy. I asked you if you had a 3 year and a baby, what would you do?  You said you would just play with the 3 year old.  You said you have a daughter, Growly, and you just play with her.  I knew you were stalling, but you were so entertaining it was hard to tear myself away.      G-Momo, August 24, 2011

 

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Precipice

DADDY: The other day we were at the park. You climbed up and stood near one of the openings and said, "I am standing on a precipice." A PRECIPICE!!! You learned that word from MAGIC TREEHOUSE #1 when Jack is on a cliff by the dinosaurs.

Mary Poppins

One of your favorite things to do at G-Momo's apartment is is go to the shelf of Disney movies and pick one for viewing.  That night you picked Mary Poppins, and, as usual, your question to me was "Are there scary parts?'  I explained that at the beginning of the movie the daddy was kind of mean, but Mary Poppins taught him to play with his kids.  That sounded okay to you, so we commenced watching.  When we got to the part where everyone got angry at Michael at the bank and the children ran away, you asked me what was coming next.  I told you that the daddy was going to be fired, and you responded "I'll go into my room and play cars for that part, and when it's over you can call me back in."  It occurred to me at that point that you didn't know what "fired" meant, so I asked you if you knew.  You said "no" and I explained that it meant that the daddy was going to lose his job.  You said, "Oh, okay, I can watch that." You danced along with "Step in Time" and after the movie was over I asked you what your favorite part was.  You said it was the part when the daddy lost his job and said "Super-cali--you know that long word".  Later when you told people about the movie you explained that "The daddy gets fired, but that just means he loses his job."   G-Momo

 

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Such a Dave Ramsey Child!

One "G-Momo and Sarah" morning, I picked you up from your home and we were riding in the car to my apartment to play with your cars.  You were explaining to me that we can't be going to Froggy's Jump House too often because that gets expensive.  We arrived at our destination, where Guffaw had left his bathroom fan running to circulate the air in his bathroom, and for some reason the dining room light was left on as well.  You're first words as we walked through the door were "Who is wasting electricity?"  You were outraged.  Mommy & Daddy are teaching you well.    G-Momo

 

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Directions (and Guffaw), part 2

Guffaw:
 
Ever since the night Poema was born and you complained I took the wrong route to G-Momo and Guffaw's house, you have been a little bit of a back seat driver.  Today, as we were driving to the mall you reminded me that if I went straight we would go to G-Momo and Guffaw's house, so it was okay to turn on Beach to go to the mall.  For fun, I put my navigational system on and told you my car talks to me and tells me which way to turn.  We chatted about the directions it gave me as we drove to the mall, with you sometimes asking me if I had heard that my car said to turn right or left.

As we were leaving the mall today I was supposed to take you to Nana & Papa's house.  You were spending the night there, since you were getting to go to Disneyland with them the next morning.  I again put my navigational system on and, to my surprise, the navigational system's voice told me to take a different route than I would normally take to get to Nana and Papa's house.  We were running a little late, so I decided to follow the navigational system's suggested route.  When you heard the car give me directions, you asked if we could have the car stop telling us how to go, and just talk, so I turned the navigational system off. 
 
We got involved in our talk about how God sees us everywhere and I was distracted and drove past the street Nana and Papa live on.  I realized it and turned at the next street that goes into their housing tract.  Sure enough, you recognized this was an unfamiliar street and asked:
 
"Is this Nana and Papa's street?"  
 
I sheepishly admitted it was not.  I told you I had turned on a different street and we were going back toward Nana and Papa's house.  You were much more tolerant of me taking a different route than you had been the night your sister was born.  You said:
 
"Oh, we're going on an adventure."
 
 

Candid Sarah: The Mall and Hiding from Parents - Think about that!

Guffaw:
 
It was Mommy & Daddy's date night tonight so you and your sister were being watched by G-Momo and Guffaw.  When I arrived we asked where you wanted to go tonight.  Usually we go to a park. Tonight you surprised us by saying you wanted Guffaw to take you to the playground at the mall.  Your mommy asked if you were wanting Guffaw to take you to the mall because Guffaw has money for the train ride at the mall.  You candidly said yes.
 
As we were driving to the Mall you said that your Daddy says that you should not bite your fingernails, especially when they have polish on them.  You also said your Mommy tells you not to bite your nails.  You then said: 

"Sometimes I hide from Mommy and Daddy and then I bite my nails."
 
After awhile, I asked you if you thought it was good for you to bite your nails when you were hiding from Mommy and Daddy.  You replied: 
 
"I'll have to think about that.  Sometimes I need to think about things."
 
Suppressing a laugh, I then asked if anyone else could see you when you were hiding from your Mommy and Daddy.  You said God could see you.  I then followed up by asking: Do you think God is sad if he sees you biting your nails when you are hiding from Mommy and Daddy? 
 
You paused for a moment and then said:
 
"Sometimes God isn't looking at us." 
 
This led to a nice chat where I explained that God is always with us and always sees us.  You then chimed in:
 
"Even when we are in the dark?"
 
I said yes, God sees you everywhere.  This led to a fun discussion of hard-to-see places where God still sees us.  I then told you that God wants you to obey your parents, so he will be sad if he sees you disobeying them by hiding and biting your nails. 
 
By the way, you got your train ride from Guffaw.

Flying Carpets

DADDY: We were at a ROCK Harbor BBQ, and some of your kid friends were looking at blimps and airplanes with advertising banners flying behind them. You said, "There's a flying carpet airplane!" Your language acquisition is so fun and clever. And you're totally right, it looks like a flying carpet.

The Fair

Mommy:  You just turned three.  We went to the fair.  You rode carnival rides.  The first ride you chose was a dragon roller coaster that went in a bumpy circle.  You rode it by yourself.  You were the first and maybe only person that raised both hands in the air during the ride.  Daddy and I had not talked about raising your hands, you just did it.
You also went on one of those super slides that is a tall bumpy slide.  You got the burlap bag and carried it all the way to the top by yourself and then you waited behind the pink slide and slid down.  I was so impressed.

I love your brave independence.

That's Old!

Mommy:  It was my birthday recently and you were discussing how old I was going to be.  I said that I was turning 30, to which you replied, "That's too old."  Thanks, honey.  :~)

3rd Birthday Blessing

Sarah,

You enjoy learning so much and exploring the world God has made. We love how you connect with your faith community at church. "Your people." :) You are three years old, a good friend, a big sister now, our daughter, and a daughter of God in heaven.

Your God the Almighty, who blesses you from the heavens above, will guide your way as you let him lead your heart. Your father and mother are proud of the girl you have become and are thrilled for the woman you are becoming. Sarah, you are our daughter, and we love you. With you we are well-pleased.

Sharing and Stuff

Mommy: Tonight we asked you to go through your toys with us and get rid of toys you don't play with anymore. You were going to put them in a box and we would take them to a place so the toys could be passed on to other kids to make them smile. I was sort of surprised at how well you handled the process. I was expecting some crying but you really seemed to understand (well, at first you said, "That's the box for all the toys I want to take to college," which is from Toy Story 3, one of your favorite movies).

Halfway through getting rid of things, I went into the other room to feed Poema. Later you ran in and told me that you got rid of 51 toys (some were very small). Then, I heard you talking to Uncle Caleb on the phone and you were telling him about getting rid of some of your toys to make other kids smile. You brought up that earlier today at church you did not do that, you did not want to share and make other kids smile when you were playing with the baby stroller. I was so impressed that you connected the two experiences. I was also impressed with Daddy and how he had helped you learn more about your heart through both of those experiences.

Stuffed Animals

Mommy: You have a lot of stuffed animals and I was trying to see if there were any you willing to get rid of. I asked, "Are there any stuffed animals you'd like to sell?" You replied, "No, I want to take them to college." I quickly realized you were connecting to Toy Story 3.

Greedy

Mommy: We took Poema to the doctor's office and after we were finished the doctor offered you a sticker. She noticed as you followed her out the door to get one that you already had four on your chest from the receptionist. I stayed in the room getting Poema dressed. I heard the doctor say, "You can have two, one for you and one for your sister." I then heard the doctor reiterating that you could only have two. Then I heard the nurse say that you needed to save some for the other kids. You came in and showed me two stickers but as we walked out you reached down in the box and grabbed a handful of stickers. I made you put them all back, even the two you were given permission to take from the doctor.

Before bed we talked about times when I love you. Some examples being, "I love you when you're happy. I love you when you're sad. I love you when you're tired and cranky." Then I asked you what happy things had happened and what sad things happened that day. You brought up the stickers and I explained what being greedy meant. I said you were being greedy with the stickers and you wanted more and more. God wants us to share. Then you asked, "Do you still love me when I'm greedy?" The answer is yes although I feel sad when you are greedy.

Chapter Books

DADDY: For the past month or two, we've been reading THE ASTONISHING JOURNEY OF EDWARD TULANE by Kate DiCamillo before rest times and bed times. You've loved parts and not-so-loved other "sad" parts, but overall, you seem to really enjoy the time reading books with daddy. And I love these times.

 

In Edward Tulane, we talked about

 

(1) how he had to open his heart before someone would come for him and how Jesus comes for us when we open our hearts

(2) how the doll mender said Edward was "exceedingly well made, a work of art" and how that's what your sister's name Poema means, that God sees you as a work of art no matter how much dirt you have on you becuase Jesus can make everything brand new

 

This is not the 1st long book you've read or I've read to you. We've read 6 or 7 other chapter books and you love it.

 

I'll never forget the way your eyes were clinging open when I was reading BECAUSE OF WINN-DIXIE to you. You were so tired, but you seemed to be totally rivetted, either to the story or to my voice. Either way, it's fun. When I got to the last words of the book, you sighed pleasantly and fell straight to sleep.

 

Awesome.

Magic Treehouse

DADDY: I love being home for the summer. It's so great to get to spend much more time with you and your sister.

 

One of your favorite activities right now is reading the audiobooks of MAGIC TREEHOUSE. You love hearing the adventures of Jack & Annie. It's fun to hear you retell their adventures and put yourself in the story.

 

You started out by getting a free CD from McDonalds, #26 about Gorillas. Now you love #1, DINOSAURS AFTER DARK, which you must've read 25 times now.

 

And the best is watching you search through your stack of "library" books to find the corresponding MAGIC TREEHOUSE paperback. Then you take the book and follow along, all on your own, serlf-guided. You love stories.

Cleaning Up Our Messes

DADDY: to be added...The story of your scrubbing the markers off the wall and how that connected to your heart and the Big God Story.

An honest game player

Guffaw:  You love playing games. 
 
You and I play the "ABC" game, where I say a letter and you say a word that starts with that letter.  (My personal favorites are that you almost always say "Guffaw" when we get to "G" and you give me a "love"  (a big hug) when you get to "L."  We have been playing that game since you were one year old, most often while walking to Mile Square Park.  That is partly why I think you call it the "ABC Park."
 
Other games you also enjoy are:
-- the "opposites game" where I say a word and you say its opposite,
-- the "rhyming game" where we pick a word and then take turns coming up with words that rhyme with that word.
 
Tonight (6/28/11), you wanted to snuggle with me while I was babysitting you and Poema.  I was happy to oblige you.  However, after a while, since it was your bed time, I wanted to try to encourage you to fall asleep. I, therefore, made up a new game: the "eyes closed game."  I told you we should each close our eyes and the last one to open them would be the winner.  You said okay and enthusiastically joined in.  I saw that, to help your chances, you put your fingers on your eyelids to hold them shut.  I then closed my eyes. 
 
I sort of expected you would open yours occasionally, see me with my eyes closed and then close yours again.  After all, since my eyes were closed, I would not know you had peeked.  That was, of course, okay with me, since I was not really competing with you.  I just was trying to make it easier for you to wind down and go to sleep.
 
However, after a couple of minutes you said, in your sweet, honest, voice: "Guffaw, I lost the game." 
 
 

Parking Cars

Mommy: You and I have something in common, we love playing with cars.  When I was a young girl I would take belts and make roads for my Hot Wheels cars to drive through.  I loved my cars so much they are one of the only toys I saved for when I had kids (I'm so glad I did).  

I was tempted to buy you a rug with roads on it but decided to see what you came up with to use.  You love parking cars. Your creativity has chosen the lids of storage boxes to be parking lots.  You line your cars up based on the shape, color, and type of car.  We don't always understand how you are "playing" and though you ask us to play with you, you don't usually let us touch the cars because we aren't doing it right or we are playing a different way.

I love learning your personality.  

Light Switch

DADDY: At Nana &Papa's house, you've always been frustrated and slightly saddened that you aren't tall enough to flip the light switch on and off. Up and down. Then a couple months ago, I taught you to use a block as a tool to flip the switch. Because you were tall enough for that. Well, today you awakened from rest time and ran out to the living room overjoyed. "I can reach the light switch without a block now!" you said. "Come here, I'll show you." And you did.

Directions

You Go Straight to Your House, Guffaw!
 
Guffaw:  The night your little sister was born G-Momo and I came to visit you and your parents.  The plan was that your Mommy, Daddy, and G-Momo were going to go to the hospital together when it was time for Poema to arrive and I was going to take care of you.  You were given the choice of where you wanted to stay that night and you decided you wanted to spend the night at G-Momo and Guffaw's house and have breakfast with Guffaw. 
 
I had put a car seat into my car, on the "big sister side" behind the driver, for just such an occasion.  Usually when we picked you up we did so in G-Momo's van, since it always had your car seat in it.  This was, therefore, going to be the first time I drove you from your house to G-Momo and Guffaw's house.
 
When your Mommy decided it was time to go to the hospital, everybody said their goodbyes and you and I started our drive to G-Momo and Guffaw's house.  We turned right on McFadden from your apartment.  I then turned left on Beach Blvd. and then you, from your car seat began protesting:
 
"Guffaw, you go straight to your house.  You don't turn to go to G-Momo's." 
 
Apparently, when your parents or G-Momo go to G-Momo and Guffaw's house from yours they go west on McFadden until it deadends at Bolsa Chica and then they turn towards G-Momo and Guffaw's house.  I, on the other hand, prefer to turn onto Beach and then Heil, which deadends at the street that runs by G-Momo and Guffaw's house.  
 
I told you that Guffaw drives a different way to G-Momo and Guffaw's house.  However, despite my reassurances we would get there, you were still not convinced.  You repeatedly told me that:
 
"You go straight to your house.   You don't turn to go to G-Momo's."
 
When I turned onto Heil, my route of choice, you recognized that as the street that runs by the housing tract where Nana and Papa live.  You then said:
 
"This is not the right way to your house.  You go straight to G-Momo's. You are going by Nana and Papa's house."
 
As we pulled into the "echo place" (the parking garage at G-Momo and Guffaw's house) I told you "See, Guffaw got us home."   I also told you that in the morning we would probably get to drive to the hospital and see your new sister, Poema.  The fact I got us to G-Momo and Guffaw's house apparently did not give you confidence in my sense of directions, because you then said:
 
"You will need to take us the right way to the hospital, because you didn't take us to your house the right way.  You go straight to your house.  You don't turn to go to G-Momo's.  You went by Nana and Papa's house."
 
 
 
 
 
 

No, Not Like That!

DADDY: I confess...I've figured out a way to manipulate you. Not in a bad way. There are just certain times when you aren't listening and aren't doing what you need to do. So here's what I've figured out:

But before I say my evil plan, I need to lay down the ground rules.

(1) "Fathers, don't provoke your children to wrath," the Bible teaches. So there's a fine line I need to learn to walk.
(2) "God has not given us a spirit of fear," the Bible teaches. Or the paraphrase that helps guide me...If God doesn't give you a spirit of fear, then neither do I. I shouldn't operate by making you afraid of things you shouldn't be afraid of.
(3) I keep in mind your personality, your individual set of wants, likes, dislikes, and quirks.

So with those as a foundation, here we go.

Let's say your dolly clothes are on the floor, the empty green bin awaiting its toys. I pick up dolly's changing pad and say, "Okay, dolly's changing pad goes in here." I put the pad in the BLUE bin.

All of a sudden, you care. You are a very organized person when you want to be. Everything has its place, and if I put it in the wrong spot, you say, "No, not like that!"

So you come over and take the changing pad out of the blue bin and tell me it goes in the green bin. I grab the next toy and ask you, "Which bin?" You take it and put it in its proper bin. And so on.

Very quickly, the toys are in the places YOU want them to be. You're the teacher. You've taught me.

Or so you think. ;)

So Friendly

DADDY: On the night when your little sister Poema came home from the hospital, I took you out for Daddy/Daughter date night. You really needed some Daddy time after Mommy and Daddy were away from you for a day and a half in the hospital. Gmomo, Guffaw, Papa, and Nana were all watching you and you were sleeping at their houses, but that wasn't enough...you were missing us.

So we drove through at Taco Bell and took our food to Denny's to eat. The good people there let us eat our take-out tacos at one of their booths. Then we ate your first banana split, which you loved (and got a tad bit hyper from).

During our meal, you turned around to talk to a cute older woman who didn't speak much English.

"Hello. My name is Sarah. What's your name?"
Nothing.
"Hello. My name is Sarah. What's your name?"
"So friendly," the woman said.
"I had a baby today. Her name is Poema Rachel."
Quirky smile from the lady.
Then you turned back around and ate some more taco.

But the conversation was so cute. It was the outpouring of your excited heart to a lady you'd never met. And...the lady didn't know what to do with a 2-year-old who was starting a conversation with her. Someday, people will learn they can have conversations with little kids. :)

A Deal

DADDY:

Lately, you've been using the phrase "Hey, I know a deal" whenever you're negotiating with us. "Is that a deal?" "I know a deal." It's just pretty doggon cute watching you try to come up with compromises that make sense and get what you want. And oftentimes, your ideas are good enough that we'll go with it and you follow through on your end of the bargain. You're a woman of your word. Usually.

Knuckles

Mommy: I'm quite pregnant and I have been even more clumsy than usual. I had just parked the car in the Target parking lot. I was trying to take my wedding ring off so I could put hand cream on and my ring flew out of my hand and landed down in the seat belt cover between the seat and a plastic screwed on cover. You could instantly tell something had happened and I explained where my ring went.

I could see the diamonds glimmering up at me but they were out of reach in that small space with any sort of tool or object I could find in the car. After some of my attempts, you were in your car seat and made a fist saying, "See these are called knuckles," while pointing to your knuckles, "mine are smaller than yours and so my knuckles can fit in there. You get me out and I'll try. Is that a deal?"

I did let you try but you quickly figured out that even with your small knuckles, it wasn't possible for you to reach the ring.

The ring was extracted when we got back to the apartment and daddy got tools to get it out. Thank goodness!!!

Some Community of Faith Experiences

Mommy: We went to a prayer meeting for the new church campus starting up. You were adorable.

- I said people were waiting to pray before we could eat. You bowed your head and started praying for food.

- When the prayer meeting started they did a short intro prayer and you got down on your knees and rested on your elbows with your head down. No one else was doing this and I don't know where you have seen it before.

- During the music time spun around in the open space and danced. You also brought Miss Sarah (your college-aged buddy) out to dance with you.

- There was a girl on stage singing to lead the music time. You were looking at her and said something about when you get growed-up you are going to be on the stage.

- As we left I was talking to you about what disruptive meant (we left early because it was just me and you and you were making lots of noise and trying to talk to Miss Sarah so it was distracting). I was telling you about how we try to be quiet when someone is speaking. You proceeded to tell me about your class at church and how you only need to be quiet during the storytime and Miss Traci doesn't speak into a "black thing" (microphone), she just uses her mouth and then Gizmo comes out of his red box.

Plethora of Pinatas

DADDY: You were at a birthday party for our landlords' daughter Athena, 2 years old.

They started hitting the pinatas, and I tried to coach you on the skills of candy/toy scavenging.

Then when the thing exploded and the frenzy began, you were so slow in the cutest way possible. You'd pick up a squirt gun and carefully examine it, investigating how it works. While kids around you stormed for toys.

And when you found the slide whistle, you casually figured it out. All said, you got like 5 toys and candies. But you were joyful.

Elephant

Mommy: You got out of the shower and I wrapped you in a gray towel. I stood you up on the stool so I could do your hair while it was still wet. You looked at yourself, chuckled, and said, "I look like an elephant because elephants are naked." I think it might have had something to do with the gray connection also. :~)

Naked Chicken

Mommy:
While getting ready to take a shower, I took out your pigtails. This left your hair sticking up as though you still had untamed pigtails. You could see your reflection in the mirror above the sink and exclaimed, "I look like a naked chicken!" You proceeded to make noises in your throat that sounded somewhat similar to a chicken.

God Loves Us

Mommy:
We were driving to swimming lessons and halfway there I realized I hadn't turned any music on. I glanced back to see if you were just looking out the window because you were really quiet. You had your Bible open and I said, "Oh, are you learning about God?" I smiled and thought that was sweet and I hadn't even realized you had your Bible with you. Then a minute later you said, "Remember, God loves us and we are supposed to love our neighbors." You led a mini devotional on the way to swimming lessons. :~) I love that you are storing God's word in your heart.

Sarah the Bargainer

Mommy:
You have become quite the bargainer in your ripe old age of 2 and 7 months. In one way in particular you bargain is with your music in the car. You want your music played almost always in the car. I try to get a turn with my radio time sometimes. We've used the compromise that when a commercial comes on then we will switch to your music.

On a recent trip in the car you really wanted to listen to your own music. You're attempt was to say, "Change it to a commercial so it can be my turn."

Another way you bargain is with time. We will give you the opportunity to tell us how long before you want to do something like leave the park, go to sleep, or how long it will take you to do something like clean up your toys or eat your lunch. At first we would say, "How about 5 minutes?" and you would respond with a smaller amount of minutes. You are improving on choosing times that are more - your bargaining skills are improving. :~)

Good Doctor

DADDY: The other day we were driving to our date night pizza dinner, and I asked about your day.

You said you went to the doctors and that, "He was a good doctor."

"Why was he a good doctor?" I asked.

"He didn't make me take my pants off," you answered.

This confused me for a second and not-quite-worried me, but I decided to question further.

"Have other doctors had you take your pants off?" I asked.

"The other doctor today did not make me take my pants off."

"Why did they take your pants off?"

"The doctor did not make me hurt," you said, rubbing your upper thighs, scrunching your chin into a coy smile.

Then it hit me...s-h-o-t-s. Almost every time you've been to the doctor it's been for shots. They have you pull your pants down and stab needles into your thighs. But not this time. This doctor was a good doctor because he didn't give you shots. Am I hearing you correctly?

You're funny.