a new skill

In hoping to find an activity that we could sit quietly and do (thus reducing the number of times I have to say or yell "Dennis, NO!" during the day), I bought a 24 piece Elmo puzzle today (ages 3 and up). Dennis was intrigued and did a very good job putting the pieces together. He patiently turned them around and around and fit them together. I helped him learn about matching colors and how the straight pieces all went in a line, but he really liked putting it together. Though I had hoped he'd want to do it again, he put all the pieces back into the box and that was that. Maybe tomorrow...

chicken worm

A couple of nights ago at supper, we were eating KFC's new grilled chicken (super delicious, by the way, be sure to try it if you haven't). Dennis loves chicken and was happily eating it. He picked up a strand of chicken (he'd shredded his piece) and said "Look, Mommy, it's a worm". Since it did actually have the shape of a worm, I agreed that it certainly looked like one. Let me reiterate here that there was NO worm--just chicken. A little later in the meal he had stopped eating and I asked him if he wanted more of his chicken. He said "no thank you" so I said "there might be a worm in it". He laughed and gobbled it right up and said "mmmmmm". Boys are so disgusting!

want to hold it

All day long: "I want to hold hat, I want to hold Froggy, I want to hold Thomas, I want to hold Percy, I want to hold sippy cup". He kept asking and asking and asking! When he wanted his hat, sunglasses, and Froggy, we were in the car taking Dave back home from his weekend here working at the lake. He also dropped his pacifier and I refused to pull over and retrieve it for him. I was listening to songs on my iPod and he put in his opinions. We apparently don't like the same kinds of music, because whenever I'd tune to a new song, he'd scream "NO NO NO THANK YOU!" until I turned it off. Right now he's climbing all in my lap and drooling on my arm and grabbing the computer. I think he must be reading Dennis the Menace and Calvin and Hobbes comics when I'm not looking.

strange sensation

This morning just after I'd gotten dressed, Dennis came into the bedroom with me. He was wandering around trying to find danger when suddenly I felt the strangest sensation across my butt, accompanied by Dennis saying "there you go, Mommy". I quickly turned around to see him holding a black sharpie and surmised that he drew a line across my butt. Luckily the shorts are navy and the mark isn't very apparent!

peach jam

Nothing much to report today: tonight we took Dennis to the Peach Jam Jubilee that was going on downtown. He had a very good time, especially when the people at the Remax booth gave him a temporary hot air balloon tattoo on his hand and a helium balloon to tie to the stroller. He greeted people and generally had a wonderful time. His favorite thing might have been meeting the police officer and seeing the brand new fire truck up close, with ladder fully extended WAY into the air. He asked to go see the truck again and again and he touched it reverently whenever we passed by. He and David had Pizza Night at home while I went to pick up Michael from the airport and Dave from his house.

baby pool capers

He did a classic Dennis the Menace move today. I don't know if an actual comic strip featured this situation, but it certainly seems true to character. I filled up the plastic hard sided baby pool for the first time today and Dennis and I enjoyed playing together in it for quite a while this morning. This was the first day we ever used it. After we splashed and danced and played with the boats, and after all of his attempts to get Honey to come into the pool with us failed ("come swim Honey you have fun"; "get in swimming pool, Honey, come on, Honey"), it was time to go in and dry off. We had to take lunch to David at work, so I got us all dried off and changed and ready to go. It had started to rain, so we put on our rain coats and gathered all of our things, and we headed to the car. As soon as I opened the door, Dennis went and jumped into the baby pool in his dry clothes, dry shoes, and raincoat. He wallowed around in the pool in the rain, got out, got all his toys, and went back and jumped in the pool again. I was half furious, half tickled at him, but I tried to tell him seriously that we only got in the pool when Mommy or Daddy went in too and that we only went swimming when we had on SWIMSUITS. Then I dried him off, changed his diaper, put on more dry clothes, found a windsuit jacket that might serve as rainwear... And we set off again. This time I carried him to the car. I was frazzled when I started the car and accidentally backed into the baby pool. Now it has 3 holes in it, and while duct tape might suffice for our short usage periods, I feel terrible about ruining it on its first day of use. David and I hid it so that he won't see it out there in the morning and ask to go swimming again. It was inexpensive, and we can easily replace it (maybe with one of those neat ones that has a slide in it), but I still feel kind of bad about it. I have to laugh at the whole of it though. It was just one of those days.

A day at the library

I treated myself and Dennis to something wonderful today: a new library card! Due to severe budget constraints, there have been no new books coming in to the house in quite a while with the exception of the new Clive Cussler that we got for David for Father's Day. I have been re-reading all my books and secretly desiring new stuff to read. Why it didn't occur to me before now to go to the local library and get a card, I have no idea. But we went this morning and Dennis discovered, to his great delight, a Thomas the Train wooden railroad table setup, where he happily entertained himself until I dragged him and his stinky diaper away kicking and screaming. He did another of those lay-down-in-the-floor-and-yell-no-thank-you fits, but I scooped him up and took him out. I only grabbed 3 books for myself on my way out, as I'll know next time to steer him past the train table first and get my own books and then let him play while I choose some for him. I checked out 4 books and a Thomas DVD for him. He's very excited.

bossy little guy

I had another nice day with Dennis. We played around here and when I needed a break, he went to play in his room for a while (thank you, baby gate). I heard happy sounds for a while and toys crashing about, and then it was quiet. When I looked in on him, he had put himself to bed for his nap. He stayed there over 2 hours! This evening when we were getting supper ready, Dennis called both of us to sit on the couch with him, patting the cushions beside him and saying "sit right here, Daddy sit right here, Mommy". We did so and then he asked "want some chocolate milk? you stay there and I be right back". He went to the refrigerator, opened it, and called out "stay there--want some apple juice?" and then brought us the gallon sized jug of apple juice.

Tonight he took the kind of bath where we were leaning over the tub rather than being in there with him. He delighted in the fact that he could stretch out full length and lie in the water. He wallowed all around, kicking and laughing and playing with all his bath toys. I enjoyed his presence today very much, especially when we went to the playground after supper. He wanted me to play with him on every structure. He'd say "come on Mommy go up steps, go down slide with Dennis". He also accompanied me on my evening walk at the track near the playground and slept in the stroller through the last mile. He woke up and chatted with me in the car all the way home, though, and he's such good company!

last shopping day

Dennis and I had a nice morning at home even though David wasn't here. Around lunchtime, we loaded up the car and went to Gran and Pop's house. We then loaded up in their van and headed to Birmingham for a day of shopping. All four of us got new tennis shoes, mine and Dennis' as a gift from Gran and Pop. Then we went shopping for stuff for Uncle Denny's home construction project that will commence this upcoming weekend. Allison picked me up at Mazer's and she and I went hiking for her first time on the Blue Trail at Oak Mountain, and she did great! She assures me she'll hike it again. After supper, we met back up with Gran and Pop and Dennis at Cracker Barrel. Gran told me that he got very excited when he saw the Cracker Barrel sign and started saying "go to Cracker Barrel". He loves to eat there. When Allison and I got inside, Dennis was kicked back in his high chair with his feet up on the table like he owned the place. He had been just about ready to melt down when I arrived, so he delayed his meltdown until well after my meal was finished. He wanted to play with the trucks and tractors, he told me, so I put him down and watched him run through the restaurant to where they are in the store. He played for several minutes and then said "Mommy change my diaper", so I told him it was time to go to the car. He laid down in the floor and said (loudly) "NOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!". He went limp like a noodle and screeched while I scooped up him and his cup and his Froggy. He was okay by the time we got outside, and calmed down in the car. He was exhausted! But he talked to us the whole way home, answering mostly correctly when we asked him what color James, Thomas, Elmo, Ernie, Cookie Monster, Percy, Abby, Edward, Henry, Bill & Ben, Rusty, Oscar, Bert, Grover, and Big Bird are. He knows his trains and Sesame Street characters! He was THRILLED to see his Daddy when we got home and ran to get a big hug. He went to bed immediately and was almost asleep before we left the room. I think I'll let home to home tomorrow rather than making him go to the home stores again. He was unusually good yesterday and good today as well, but it's time for him to have some quality time with his toys. Flooring and appliances just don't hold his interest, especially when we don't let him open all the ovens, push all the buttons, and turn all the dials.

Happy Father's Day, Daddy!

If only everyone could have heard Dennis say "Happy Father's Day, Daddy!". It was incredibly sweet and so cute. He also said it to Bob and Pop, and I was so proud. Dennis and I gave David some special Father's Day things. He got a new Clive Cussler book and a new pair of pajama/lounge pants, and then we gave him a day and night off. I think he was most thrilled about the last thing. This afternoon, Dennis and I left David down at the lake house by himself, where he'll be spending the night in luxury, with high speed internet and satellite television and no diapers to change. He'll sleep in late in the morning with no toddler calling for him to open the baby gate and get chocolate milk. He'll have some much needed alone time where he isn't required to talk or be disturbed in his sleep by his exercise-obsessed spouse riding her recumbent bike into the wee hours. He's off work tomorrow, so he should have a rather fabulous mini-vacation. He deserves it!

I am so thrilled with the time I spent with Dennis today. He was so sweet and fun, no big fussy fits or little tantrums or anything. He was pleasant during all the shopping we did in Prattville with Gran and Pop and Uncle Denny, and he enjoyed his first milkshake (chocolate, of course) at Steak n' Shake (the picture shows him sporting his souvenir hat from supper). This is the easiest time I have had taking him out places all day--he was so content in his stroller and so chatty with me in the car. I just enjoyed him so much. It was one of those days when you can't believe how wonderful it is to be a parent. I hope I still feel that way if he decides to wake up with the sun in the morning (though I kept him up rather late so am hoping he sleeps in a bit). He talked in complete sentences all day, like he's suddenly aged 3 months. He said "look, Mommy, this is Cookie Monster" and "look, there is Elmo" and "Mommy and Dennis go in the bookstore" and "No, Mommy, that's my shirt (when I pulled on his shirt in retaliation for him pulling on mine)" and "I had a good time shopping" and "we go home now" and "I go to bed". There were tons more, and I am so impressed with this sudden leap in his grammatical ability. He's been well able to get his point across with fewer words, but it's nice to hear him constructing little sentences and using them and engaging me in little conversations. The funniest thing was when he was quizzing me on Sesame Street characters. "Who is this, Mommy?" And when I named the correct character: "that's right, Mommy, great job, I proud of you" or "that's right, Mommy, that IS Cookie Monster, very good". Gosh we had a great day!

anti-nap

Dennis very much enjoyed a visit from Uncle Kim, Aunt Robin, and Amy today. He called Amy "Kristin" a few times, but eventually got it right. I think it's because he had been asking me all morning to go see Kristin, Michael, Caedmon, and Mirella. He wasn't shy around them at all, and I'm so pleased because he hasn't seen them very often. He chatted happily with them and gave them hugs and even shared his new "firefighter hat" with Aunt Robin. The hat is a plastic one he got from the Dollar Tree this morning when we went in to shop for Father's Day cards. I didn't put him in a cart, and I didn't bring in the stroller, and he went WILD while I was looking at the cards. Fortunately, the toy aisle is on the facing side of the card aisle, so I let him loose to play in the toys. He didn't run off and did very well, and he looked so cute in the helmet that I bought it for him. He is so proud of it!

Tonight we're at the lake. Everyone was here today, and we are so happy that Uncle Denny was able to come. We managed to get the wheelchair (and him in it) in and out of the house without too much drama or danger. Allison and Jon came down to visit this evening and they and Dennis and I (and David, when he got here) swam for quite a while in the lake. Dennis was wearing his life jacket and enjoyed splashing around and wallowing on his back while he floated. I had hold of him the whole time and it wore me out keeping him above water! He had refused to nap all day, even though I'd tried to put him down 3 times, and he finally cried himself to sleep after the swim. We had to wake him up for supper and tonight he's sleeping in a regular full size bed. We have pushed chairs up to the edge and lined the edges with pillows (two sides are against walls). He was very excited about sleeping in the big bed. I hope he does well!

just too hot

We went to the playground this morning, going early enough, I hoped, that it wouldn' t be hot and miserable out. I was wrong. It was awful at the playground! Dennis climbed up a couple of things and then spent time under the picnic area roof with me. He got my water bottle away from me and opened it to grab some ice from it. We only stayed 15 minutes, maybe less, before he headed to the gate and said "ready to go carseat, Mommy". I was ready as well.

Dennis and I grocery shopped some this morning and then he and his Daddy went and bought the rest of the things we needed this afternoon while I went to the gym. When they got home, I asked him if he had gone shopping with his Daddy and he said "We had a good time." I'm starting to love all his little remarks!

booger man

Today Dennis was whining and shaking his finger and came over to me saying "Mommy help finger". I looked down and saw the trouble. There was a booger stuck on his finger (he said "finger hurts!"), but he successfully wiped it on my arm and then was happy again. Yuck. At least he didn't eat it.

Also I should report that we were moving a mattress into the house and Dennis walked in front of his Daddy, pushing with all his might right along with David. He was so cute and so proud of himself, saying "Dennis is big help" and "say thank you Dennis" to us after we were through. He is getting to be more of a help with things around here, helping us bring in things from the car and helping to clean his room. I'm glad he's still of an age where he likes to help.

nap commentary

Dennis got up from his afternoon nap and he wasn't quite ready to be up. After he hugged my legs and cried and rubbed his eyes for a few minutes, I picked him up and took him back to his bed. There was much protesting, but as soon as I closed his bedroom door, he went back to sleep. He got up an hour later, walked into the den, smiled at me and said "I had a nice nap, Mommy!". He had a nice visit with Granny and Uncle Denny as well, and he and Daddy had a Men's Night In while Mommy got to go on an evening hike. Now she's ready for her 'nice nap'!

tick therapy

We pulled a tick from Dennis' arm on the 7th. We put some antibiotic ointment on it then and noticed nothing for several days. Then it started to turn red and by the weekend had a pus pocket on the red bump that had risen where the bite happened. We went to the pediatrician about it today and though he wasn't overly concerned about a tick borne disease arising from it, he did tell us what to watch out for. He also prescribed oral antibiotics and antibiotic ointment and gave us a prescription ointment for diaper rash. Dennis hated the visit but did like the office very much. The exam room had a cuckoo clock on the wall, and the bird that sounded the hour was a chicken. The doctor wound the clock around so that Dennis could see it in action several times. He loved it. It helps that we'd watched Pinocchio this morning, and Geppetto's shop featured many clocks that were very similar. Neat coincidence. I sure hope the tick bite doesn't cause any further trouble than the little bump.

Don't take the pacifier

Dennis was in a whiny, pitiful, fussy mood this morning, and since he was already that way, I thought it might be time to take away the pacifier. We made it until the afternoon nap, and then his Daddy and I caved and let him have it. I'm determined to get that thing out of his mouth this week, but then I think about him putting his fingers in there and getting all kinds of germs, and I'm undecided. He was pretty unhappy about it, of course, and said "I want to go to Wal-Mart." I asked him why and he said "to get a pacifier." That's a smart little dude we have. I'm going to have to get him to WANT to give up the pacifier. Surely I'll think of something.

early riser

Just as we feared, Dennis was up before the roosters this morning. I've been so exhausted this week because he's recently bumped his wake-up time back to 6:00 a.m., not a time when I'm at my best. This morning we heard him broadcasting loud and clear right at 5:00. Naturally he woke Chloe up, and they were often shushed and scolded but never really returned to sleep. There are four very sleepy adults this afternoon!

We had a nice morning despite scary thunderstorm-and-wind-gust weather. We drove out to Dave's brother's horse farm and the kids played around in the barn, communing with the horses that were in there. Dennis wasn't comfortable petting any of them, but he did talk to them. He also talked to the tractors and the mule that was outside. His favorite thing may have been the John Deere Gator that he and Chloe pretended to drive (funny how she's always the driver when they are in a vehicle together). After they got out, he kept saying that he wanted to "ride the alligator". We're headed home now, having enjoyed several great meals and some very good company. I hope we'll see them again before the 4th of July, but we certainly have plans together for that day.

not alone in his bed

Dennis had a sort of stroller buddy today at the track. He was delighted to see Uncle Denny there, and they visited with one another, wheelchair to stroller, as Gran and I pushed them around the track at Goosepond Park. We all had a nice workout together.

We are spending tonight at the Gallmans' house, and Dennis and Chloe had their usual fun playing together with her toys. The sharing was sometimes sweet, sometimes reluctant, and occasionally nonexistent and/or violent, but they mostly got along well. At bedtime, they perhaps got along a little too well. We put them both down in her room, him in the crib (since he is such a darned early riser lately we wanted him confined!) and her in her toddler bed. We listened to them screech and giggle for nearly an hour. We had to go in and rescue Froggy and restore his pacifier, and we had to go in and act all stern and tell them to go to sleep in our best parent voices. We took turns policing them and then we heard Ellen shout "Oh my word!" shockingly loud and came running. As it turns out, Chloe had climbed into the crib with Dennis. They were both holding onto the rails and bouncing up and down, laughing maniacally as only toddlers can. We were relieved when they finally went to sleep, but then the 'adults' of the bunch stayed up too late playing Apples to Apples and Nintendo Wii games. One day we will remember that just because a toddler stays up a little later in no way guarantees that same toddler will wake up a little later in the morning. We sure did have a fun day, though!

nuts about pecans

Dennis discovered a new taste treat today. He loves pecans. His Gran was shelling them at her table and he was eating them up and then bringing her more to shell for him. This was going great until he got a little greedy and upended the basket of pecans onto the floor. They were everywhere, and he walked on them, crawled on them, slid on them, etc., like he was playing on giant ball bearings that let him glide across the hardwood on rollers. He wasn't too happy with us when we made him pick them back up and put them in the basket.

He also spent time taking rides on Uncle Denny's wheelchair, on Gran's back, on Mommy's back... Mommy was happy to drop him off with Daddy while she went to the gym!

oh the agony

Today was one of our more difficult parenting days. It wasn't until we'd endured a long day of whining and irritability and major crying that we thought about his new molars coming in. I dosed him with ibuprofen and hope that'll let him sleep well tonight (I just heard him laugh once in his sleep). Poor little guy didn't want to eat all day (very unusual), and he cried constantly. Not his little sad cry, but loud screaming "I hate the world" cries, and this is something he just never does. It got on my nerves and broke my heart all at the same time.

He didn't want to nap at all and got furious with us when we tried to put him down. The first time, he destroyed his room. We could hear him emptying toy bins and hurling things all around. He dismantled his train table and spread train tracks and parts everywhere. He wreaked complete havoc in the room his Daddy had just cleaned the night before. He was so proud of his room last night, saying "such a nice room" to us when we went in to put him to bed, but he destroyed it today. Poor long-suffering David had Dennis 'help' him clean it again tonight before bed.

There were moments of happy Dennis today, cute phrases, constant begging for apple juice (which he thoughtfully took out of the refrigerator and handed to me, saying "here Mommy, now I go find sippy cup"). There were hugs and songs, and I rocked him and hummed Rock-A-Bye Baby to him (the lyrics kind of unnerve me) for a while after putting his pajamas on. I thought we'd calmed him down enough to go to bed but he marched over and turned on the den light and said "sit couch, want to watch Bob Build" (Dennis speak for Bob the Builder). It was bedtime and he was furious that I insisted he go and climb in his bed. He fell asleep twice during the very short bedtime prayer. Surely tomorrow will be a better day. This was David's day off, and I wish things had been a little happier just for his sake. But I'm also glad I didn't have to deal with all of it alone.

hello kitty

This morning it occurred to me that I hadn't seen the cat in a while. I asked David if he'd seen her, and he said he hadn't. It stayed in my mind all morning, and by lunchtime, I thought I'd put some food out for her and see if it brought her up to the front door. Just about then, I remembered going out to the storage building to look for something on Saturday. She often will follow me inside, though I didn't remember seeing her do so then. It couldn't hurt to check, and by the time I'd walked out there, I became convinced that she'd been stuck in there since Saturday. I opened the door expecting to be greeted by the foul odor of dead animal, and I just felt sick about it. After all, that was Saturday and today was Wednesday. Instead, I opened the door and she sat there calmly and meowed hello. She was just fine--I have no idea how. She was happy to see her full food bowl and water bowl and availed herself of them immediately.

Other than the cat thing working out just fine, the rest of the day was stressful and irritating. Dennis is having some trouble with his teeth and he's been whiny all day as well as getting into untold mischief all over the house, all the time. I'd just about reached my wits end when I was cooking supper and he tossed the ceramic butter dish off the table. It landed in a chair and didn't break but got butter everywhere. I had to count to 10 to get hold of myself. He could tell how mad I was, so he came over and bear hugged my legs and told me "good morning, Precious." It helped!

build bob

Gigi bought a Bob the Builder video for Dennis yesterday and today we watched it. Dennis loved it, of course, and wanted to watch it several times ("want to watch Build Bob"). He was calm and sweet today, not too angry about the baby gate though he did spend 15 minutes in bed with us this morning after we heard him calling us. He went back to bed and to sleep easily. David took his crib out of his room last night, and it used to rest right against the foot of his toddler bed. He might have felt a little strange this morning waking up and not seeing the crib there.

He helped me grocery shop today. But I managed to sneak a bottle of Hershey's syrup into the cart that he didn't see (I bougth the Lite syrup, so I can have a little as well!). Imagine his delight when he put his sippy cup to his lips tonight at supper and tasted it. We rarely have chocolate milk at home and it's his very favorite beverage (though he was anxious to try the cranberry juice he picked out at the store). Tonight he put down his cup and smiled so big and exclaimed in pure delight "Choc-key Milk!!!". He clapped his hands. Totally worth the two dollars.

roll call

Dennis can now escape from most doors. The doorknob cover ceased to provide protection recently, and he's been waking up and letting himself out of his room to come and find us. This might not be so bad if he didn't do it at 6:00 a.m. So last night we put a baby gate up in his doorway and he was FURIOUS when he opened his door to find it this morning. He began yelling at us at the top of his lungs at 6:30 or so, and we refused to respond. He yelled "Mommy, Daddy, ready to get OUT!" again and again. Sometimes we heard "Mommy, need some help!" or "Come on Daddy". We sort of laughed at his predicament and the escalation of anger in his voice. What really sent us over the edge was when he yelled out at last "MOMMY MITCHELL! DADDY MITCHELL! COME ON!!!! I WANT OUT!!!". I presume this is a direct response to me using his full name on the two or three occasions that I've done it when exasperated with him. We had to stop laughing before we went to let him out!

Tonight on the way home, he dropped Froggy from his car seat onto the floorboard. He said "I drop Froggy" and then "Froggy, come here". Then, "Froggy where are you?". And then (loudly) "FROGGY MITCHELL!!". Too funny.

picture is from tonight's boat ride with Gran and Pop and Gigi (and us, of course)

facial anatomy lesson

As we were getting Dennis ready for his bath tonight, he pointed to my face and identified my mouth, nose, eyes, and eyebrows. He named each of these parts correctly. Then he pointed to the middle of my forehead and said "bonk", as if this was the correct anatomical name for 'forehead'. I never knew I had one of those. Do I say I have a headache? Or a bonk-ache?

We were sad to see the Gallmans go today--we had such a great time this weekend just hanging out together. As they pulled away, Dennis said "I had fun!". Then he dictated "ready to go to carseat, ready to go eat". We enjoyed a little family dinner at Taco Bell and came right home when he began to say "ready to go to bed, Mommy" and "so sleepy, ready to go bed". I hope he sleeps much later in the morning than he did this morning! Dave and Ellen and I stayed up until 4:30 watching movies and were very dismayed that the kids got up at 6:45! The doorknob cover is no longer a deterrent for Dennis. When I got up, he had left his bedroom and was working on the front door. We're going to have to install something else QUICK! Tonight there's a baby gate in front of his bedroom door--maybe this will slow him down somewhat in his rush to get up and our and come find us in the morning!

the much anticipated Chloe visit

Dennis was ecstatic to see Chloe and Dave and Ellen arrive this afternoon. He and Chloe played together, but I must report that Dennis was very very fragile today. He cried more today over the smallest things than I've seen him cry since infancy. He didn't want to share his toys--I suppose he thought he was through with sharing after Caedmon and Mirella left last weekend! There were lots of unhappy screeches and much crying today--very unusual here. They did both enjoy a wagon ride along our street, where they got to see and pet the ponies that live at the other end of the road. They got to see (and hold) red trumpet flowers and white daisy-like weed flowers (I'm not a botanist), see and smell honeysuckle, and hear lots of roosters crowing. It was a sensory wagon ride experience for sure.

They also loved playing at the playground tonight while I got my walking and running miles in at the track at the same park. We all got a workout! And we can't express our total gratitude to Dave, who taught David the joys and intricacies of brake repair. Now I have a very nice Blazer to drive for a while until the Tracker gets new A/C (David is a super husband and dad to sacrifice his comfy air conditioned car so that Dennis and I can enjoy it on errands).

thank you for shopping

I began the arduous task of cleaning our closet today. We don't have much closet space in this house, and the big walk-in closet in the master bedroom has to serve as storage for clothing for David and me, hiking gear, scuba gear, luggage, bedding, purses, shoes, party/holiday supplies... I attempted an excavation today so that I can get the scuba gear in there, and Dennis wandered in to see what I was doing. He discovered some Mardi Gras doubloons (big metal coins) and must have thought he'd discovered big money. He counted the coins and then said "want to go shopping Mommy" and then " get shopping cart". I followed him to the living room, where he had procured a Wal-Mart receipt. He pushed his shopping cart up to the couch, counted out his coins (out loud), grabbed the receipt, and said "Thank you for shopping at Wal-Mart". When we actually did have to go to Wal-Mart, he wasn't all that excited about the process until I picked up a new Elmo DVD. He hugged it all the way through the store.

no thank you

I wouldn't say he's disobedient. But he has grown to where he has definite opinions about what he does and does not want to do. He has learned to say no. But he does it so politely that it just takes my breath away, even though he's refusing to do what I ask! For example: "Dennis, I need to change your diaper". He replies "no thank you". "Dennis, it's bed time" to which he says "no thank you". He's adamant, but very very polite. It kind of takes the sting out of him not doing what he needs to do. He's even cute when he's disobeying. What a kid!

His Gigi noticed him hovering around in the kitchen in a squat pose, performing a Michael Jackson-esque crotch grab maneuver, and she asked him if he needed to go potty. He never really replied but headed in the direction of the bathroom. I am delighted to report that he has now successfully gone to the potty in a big toilet! I'm so proud. But when I asked him if he needed to potty after supper, he told me (you guessed it) "no thank you".

mommy trouble

I don't know what happened here today. I know that I was super depressed, and I was exhausted, and Dennis was having possibly his most active day ever. I absolutely could not deal with him, and I felt bad that I was having such a hard time. I tried to put him down for a nap a few times to no avail. He was clingy and needy and loud. David was so worried about me that he actually took off work early, but by the time he got home, Dennis had napped and I had had my break and things were much better. I even made it to the gym and we stopped by Gran's and Pop's house to visit with them and Gigi and Uncle Denny. We went to the lake to take some of Uncle Denny's stuff to his place and went back over to Gran's and Pop's to visit until it was way past Dennis' bedtime and he was acting WILD. I am going to bed early. Dennis went down easily, thank goodness, and I expect I will as well.

chasing the rainbow

I spend two days away from him and I forget what it's like to be in his presence nonstop. I was not prepared. I felt sleep-deprived and he seemed to be super energetic. So today wasn't easy. He wasn't bad, just so upbeat and happy and loud and so RIGHT THERE IN MY FACE wanting me to play and say things and give kisses and watch this, do this, hold this, get him apple juice and chocolate milk and goldfish crackers and cranberry juice... I was exhausted before the day ever started and the feeling increased. I crashed when he napped and things were better after that. We played and read books together, and he kept me company while I cooked dinner. The bad moments came when I cut his hair, which really needed it. He cried and moved and tried to hold his hair to his head so I couldn't pick up strands of it to snip. We both survived it and his hair looks neat and so cute.

Much of our town got seriously rained on this afternoon, and we were out driving around when it started. We were trying to get a trailerfull of stuff into a garage (successfully, it turned out) before the stuff got drenched. We stopped by Gran's place after, to pick up Dennis, since David had to leave him there to take the van to move the stuff (I was blissfully unaware of most of this since I was at the gym while David handled the moving). Dennis was ecstatic to be watching Shrek with Uncle Denny, and he was busy shouting out a play-by-play of what was happening in the movie along with what was to come. Pop came in from work and told us there was a huge rainbow out, so we decided to take Dennis to see it. He was thrilled and kept pointing it out. Rainbows always make me feel better. I nearly always see one after a time of crisis or sadness or stress, and I just feel so relieved to remember God's promises to us. You see, my car air conditioner (which was the absolute best feature of my car--coldest air ever!) stopped working on Sunday. We had hoped it was a simple fix, but it isn't, and we won't be able to fix it for a long time. It seems like such a trivial thing, to cry over a broken air conditioner, but the other car has to have brakes, and Dennis doesn't do well in heat, and I fear much diaper rash... I had to cry over it for awhile before getting a grip. But things are okay today. We'll fix the brakes on the Blazer and drive Dennis around in it, in air conditioned comfort. David has offered to drive the Tracker this summer to work and back. We'll fix it when we can. And we'll all be just fine.

Mommy's home!

Dennis was certainly glad to see me tonight, though I don't know if he was as happy to see me as he was to see his Pop and Gran. He watched us pull up in the car and yelled exuberant greetings through the screen door at Gran's house. Very cute. And we all got big hugs from him as we came in the door. I sure did miss him while I was gone. David and I took him out to Whataburger (buy one get one free on Monday nights!) and he happily consumed a beef patty and imbibed some of David's Coca-cola when we weren't watching so closely. He was so exhausted when we got home, but he still dragged both of us to the couch and said "want to watch Goofy, want to watch Mickey Mouse". We can't remember the last time we watched anything with Mickey in it, and I didn't know he even knows who Goofy is. But we located our DVD of The Three Musketeers and he drowsily watched it with us until its conclusion (Mickey, Donald, and Goofy are the Musketeers). Then he immediately put himself to bed, barely staying awake long enough for prayers and kisses, though he did tell me "Mommy, kiss my eyes" (weird, I thought) and I complied. It's good to be home.