Today was an easier day for Dennis since he wasn't confined to a stroller or airplane or carseat all day. We spent the morning here at Mom & Dad's place, letting Dennis walk around and play with his toys. After lunch we went a mile down the road and walked around Lake Padden and Dennis enjoyed seeing some north woods scenery. We put him in the stroller because he was sleepy when we got there, but he was so engrossed in the scenery that he didn't sleep. We strolled all the way around the lake, a nice 3 mile trail that was level enough for the stroller. Michael and Kristin and the kids met up with us at the halfway point and hiked back with us the way they had come. We turned the kids loose at the playground, and they had a great time. I got a little misty eyed watching Dennis walking around in his windbreaker, jeans, and tennis shoes, just running around like a big kid. He and Mirella enjoyed the swings and both tried to climb up the slide. Caedmon climbed all over the place and had a good time as well.
Dad (Pop) grilled out a fabulous supper of burgers, hot dogs, and sausages, and we ate together as much as a group including 3 toddlers can eat together. The babies played sweetly together and alongside each other. Caedmon was engrossed in his train number puzzle and didn't have anything to do with the little ones, but they enjoyed stealing each others' pacifiers and sippy cups and neither complained a bit. Before we ate, all 3 were sleeping in their 3 pods, and Michael referred to them as gestating Gremlins.
Tonight, just as Michael and family were leaving to handle bathtime and bedtime at their house, Dennis began very loudly saying "Nie Nie" which we figure is "night night", and he said it dozens of times. As soon as we accomplished hugs and kisses, they were out the door and Dennis actually went night night. No complaints, not even a whimper, so I suppose he was really ready to go to sleep.
Do you know how hard it is to clean up after a greasy dinner where 3 toddlers ate on a clear glass table? Fingerprints all over the table and underneath the table as well where they crawled under and peered up at us and made many handprints. Yuck.
Dennis enjoyed playing with the moss on the side of a tree that was within stroller range today, and he tried his best to touch some lichens on a fallen log. I think he was amazed by the sheer enormity of the trees here. His big eyes were open wide the whole time, taking everything in! Can't wait to see what he does tomorrow.
Saturday, June 7, 2008
Friday, June 6, 2008
oh Canada
Dennis left the U.S.A. today for the first time since he's been born. Technically, he was in Canada while in utero when we were touring Niagara Falls, but today he saw a little bit of British Columbia. A very little bit of British Columbia. Ok, to be honest, he saw IKEA. And some cows and farmland, and much of the town of Langley, some distant mountains, a big bridge, and the duty free store. We weren't in Canada very long, just went to get Gran some decor items for her place in Washington. I don't know what Dennis thought of Canada. He said "Canada" and he looked around a good bit, but he had a meltdown in IKEA and another meltdown at the duty free shop, and then he slept for the rest of his visit. Perfectly understandable when he had 4 bad poopy diapers on top of the kind of diaper rash that bleeds--I would melt down, too.
Dennis played with his cousins very sweetly today, taking toys over to them and offering them to them. He's very good at sharing. He wasn't so nice to his 'cousin' Willow (the cat). He was gleefully excited to see TWO cats at Caedmon's and Mirella's place. He kept saying "cat" and then went over to them. Inky, the intelligent one, knew to get out of his reach. Willow stayed put and took a few beating attacks, meowing pitifully but not running away and (thankfully) not attacking back. He was petting Willow, but petting for Dennis is mostly equivalent to vigorous slapping. We have large dogs at home. They can take it. Cats won't. Our cat does, but she's really a dog in a cat suit. Poor Willow. Dennis was really rough on him. And he had no clue that he was hurting the cat, he was just excited and wanted to pet him. This wouldn't have been so awful if he hadn't then gone over to Caedmon to pet his hair, but he was considerably more gentle by then, and I scooped him up before tears were shed. And Willow went to have some cave time in a room with no babies in it.
Dennis loved his cousins' toys and books and shoes. He played so much that he didn't want to stop to eat. He had a few bites of pancake for breakfast, which is a shame because the pancakes were incredible and if he weren't so ready to play, he would have really enjoyed savoring them. I would have liked to savor them a little more myself, actually, rather than rushing through breakfast so that I could keep a watch on Dennis. It worked, though. I don't think anyone made anyone else cry. Pretty good for 3 kids that young (2 & 1/2, 11 months, and 14 months).
Washington is beautiful! I can't wait to get out and see more of it. I know Dennis will like seeing the huge trees and pretty flowers and incredible ferns everywhere. And I can't describe how great it is that the high temp tomorrow will not top 55 degrees. It might rain some, but who cares? Tomorrow back home it will be 95 degrees and sunny and HOT!
I am also happy to report that we have luggage. They did not deliver it, as promised, and instead I had to make a trip to the Bellingham airport to get it, but we have it now, and Dennis is resting comfortably knowing he has a good diaper supply and clothes and pajamas that fit a little better (though I can't wait to see him in the ones from Caedmon when he grows into them).
Looking forward to more adventure tomorrow!
Dennis played with his cousins very sweetly today, taking toys over to them and offering them to them. He's very good at sharing. He wasn't so nice to his 'cousin' Willow (the cat). He was gleefully excited to see TWO cats at Caedmon's and Mirella's place. He kept saying "cat" and then went over to them. Inky, the intelligent one, knew to get out of his reach. Willow stayed put and took a few beating attacks, meowing pitifully but not running away and (thankfully) not attacking back. He was petting Willow, but petting for Dennis is mostly equivalent to vigorous slapping. We have large dogs at home. They can take it. Cats won't. Our cat does, but she's really a dog in a cat suit. Poor Willow. Dennis was really rough on him. And he had no clue that he was hurting the cat, he was just excited and wanted to pet him. This wouldn't have been so awful if he hadn't then gone over to Caedmon to pet his hair, but he was considerably more gentle by then, and I scooped him up before tears were shed. And Willow went to have some cave time in a room with no babies in it.
Dennis loved his cousins' toys and books and shoes. He played so much that he didn't want to stop to eat. He had a few bites of pancake for breakfast, which is a shame because the pancakes were incredible and if he weren't so ready to play, he would have really enjoyed savoring them. I would have liked to savor them a little more myself, actually, rather than rushing through breakfast so that I could keep a watch on Dennis. It worked, though. I don't think anyone made anyone else cry. Pretty good for 3 kids that young (2 & 1/2, 11 months, and 14 months).
Washington is beautiful! I can't wait to get out and see more of it. I know Dennis will like seeing the huge trees and pretty flowers and incredible ferns everywhere. And I can't describe how great it is that the high temp tomorrow will not top 55 degrees. It might rain some, but who cares? Tomorrow back home it will be 95 degrees and sunny and HOT!
I am also happy to report that we have luggage. They did not deliver it, as promised, and instead I had to make a trip to the Bellingham airport to get it, but we have it now, and Dennis is resting comfortably knowing he has a good diaper supply and clothes and pajamas that fit a little better (though I can't wait to see him in the ones from Caedmon when he grows into them).
Looking forward to more adventure tomorrow!
Thursday, June 5, 2008
flight day
We have arrived safely in Bellingham, WA. Dennis is here, Pop is here, I'm here. Our baggage is NOT here, however. And our flight was 2 hours late in landing. This means that we were on the plane for 2 and a half hours longer than we anticipated being on the plane. Words cannot describe the way I feel about Delta at the moment. (Delay Everyone's Luggage Through Atlanta) We were among the first people at the gate in Atlanta, where we had a 3 hour layover. Must have been the folks in Birmingham that messed things up. And we were delayed because of all those bad storm systems that were over the west today.
Dennis behaved beautifully. He was very sweet and made some new friends in the airport. He got tired of being in Atlanta, though, and we had to walk laps for the last 15 minutes before we boarded. The flight was FULL. And we had the pleasure of sitting in the exact last row with a stranger (who fortunately was pretty nice). On the long flight, he watched his dvd for 20 minutes, talked and flirted for another 15, then fell asleep across our laps and slept in various weirdly contorted positions for the next 4 hours. Then he woke up, because his little internal clock knew that we should have been landing at this time. Except we didn't. He watched more sesame videos and podcasts for awhile, and climbed up on my head and Pop's head and banged on the guy's head who was sitting in front of us. He threw Elmo and Frog to the floor repeatedly, ate some goldfish crackers, tossed some goldfish crackers, ate some raisins, drank some juice...typical toddler stuff. No major meltdown, and I'm so proud, because I would like to have a major meltdown myself.
We're looking forward to a nice vacation now, and I hope that leg of the return flight doesn't have us trapped in a plane for over 7 hours takeoff-to-landing.
Just checked Delta's website. Our baggage is at the airport. We should have it delivered to us within 12 hours. I have 4 diapers to get me through until then... And no extra clothes... And our jackets are in the luggage...
Dennis got to borrow a pod from his cousins to sleep in, and he's out now. I will be too, almost immediately!!!
Dennis behaved beautifully. He was very sweet and made some new friends in the airport. He got tired of being in Atlanta, though, and we had to walk laps for the last 15 minutes before we boarded. The flight was FULL. And we had the pleasure of sitting in the exact last row with a stranger (who fortunately was pretty nice). On the long flight, he watched his dvd for 20 minutes, talked and flirted for another 15, then fell asleep across our laps and slept in various weirdly contorted positions for the next 4 hours. Then he woke up, because his little internal clock knew that we should have been landing at this time. Except we didn't. He watched more sesame videos and podcasts for awhile, and climbed up on my head and Pop's head and banged on the guy's head who was sitting in front of us. He threw Elmo and Frog to the floor repeatedly, ate some goldfish crackers, tossed some goldfish crackers, ate some raisins, drank some juice...typical toddler stuff. No major meltdown, and I'm so proud, because I would like to have a major meltdown myself.
We're looking forward to a nice vacation now, and I hope that leg of the return flight doesn't have us trapped in a plane for over 7 hours takeoff-to-landing.
Just checked Delta's website. Our baggage is at the airport. We should have it delivered to us within 12 hours. I have 4 diapers to get me through until then... And no extra clothes... And our jackets are in the luggage...
Dennis got to borrow a pod from his cousins to sleep in, and he's out now. I will be too, almost immediately!!!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
ready to go
The bags are packed. Dennis is asleep. Tomorrow we fly all the way across the country! I packed a number of baby diversions in the carry-on luggage. I was still shopping for blue jeans and a rain coat at 10:00pm! Nothing like waiting til the last minute!
He was very very very sweet today, and I am encouraged because he wanted to sit in my lap a good bit. This is something he'll be forced to do tomorrow unless the good folks at Delta let me bring on the carseat (please, God).
Lots of hugs, lots of kisses, and lots of conversations today. And he's starting to be like his Daddy, needing "cave time". He wanted to be alone in his pod, not necessarily to sleep, but to lay back and enjoy talking to his frog in the nice cool air conditioned room. He took 3 naps today! He didn't sleep the whole time, but he seemed to enjoy just being sprawled out and relaxing.
He is already losing some of his baby look. Still adorably cute (as evidenced by every person we saw yesterday making a big spectacle of him), but starting to look like a little boy rather than an infant. Hard to watch them grow up, but fun at the same time.
Tomorrow we'll post from the West Coast!!!!
He was very very very sweet today, and I am encouraged because he wanted to sit in my lap a good bit. This is something he'll be forced to do tomorrow unless the good folks at Delta let me bring on the carseat (please, God).
Lots of hugs, lots of kisses, and lots of conversations today. And he's starting to be like his Daddy, needing "cave time". He wanted to be alone in his pod, not necessarily to sleep, but to lay back and enjoy talking to his frog in the nice cool air conditioned room. He took 3 naps today! He didn't sleep the whole time, but he seemed to enjoy just being sprawled out and relaxing.
He is already losing some of his baby look. Still adorably cute (as evidenced by every person we saw yesterday making a big spectacle of him), but starting to look like a little boy rather than an infant. Hard to watch them grow up, but fun at the same time.
Tomorrow we'll post from the West Coast!!!!
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
all smiles
I'm happy to report that my sweet little guy was back in residence today. That little whiny guy from yesterday wasn't around today, thank goodness. I'm glad those days are more the exception than the rule.
He was in such a great mood all day. I suppose we can attribute it to lots of rest, because he slept quite well and took nice long naps as well. We played with his farm this morning, and when I stepped out to go to the kitchen for his juice cup, I heard a crash. A cyclone hit the ole' farmstead while I was out, and cows, horses, geese, apples, and farmers (plus a couple of barns) were whisked to all corners of his room. Dennis really seems to be into catastrophe playing these days. Guess we'd better warn the pets.
He talked a good bit today, and he's starting to ask for specific things. When we were in the car headed to have lunch with David, he kept asking "Daddy?". And later when we left there without David in the car, he again insisted "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy?" until I had to roll down the car window and have David assure him that he was coming home as well. When he woke up from his nap, he said "Mommy. Daddy? Cheese." So I took him to see David and fed him some cheese crackers, and he couldn't have been happier.
He was very affectionate today, climbing in my lap and kissing me with a "mmmwwaaaaa" sound. So sweet. He's very hard to resist like this, and he knows it! He also invented a new game today, but I have serious concerns for his safety while he plays it. He found a pillowcase when he was rearranging the linen cubby, and I draped it over his head. He pulled it back off and I said "peek-a-boo", and then he was off and running. He covered his head with the pillowcase and took off, and I followed and said "peek-a-boo" whenever he peeked. He has not realized that it's not safe to walk with your eyes covered up, and he bonked his head on the table, a doorway, and the dryer. It didn't even slow him down, he just backed up and took off in another direction, still with his head covered. Though it's hilarious, I don't know how I feel about mobile peek-a-boo.
He was funny in his bath tonight too, talking and splashing nonstop. David took a bath with him (one of us always does) tonight, and he (Dennis) learned how to open and close the sliding shower doors. He thought this was great fun, and he stood up, slid open the door, looked at me, yelled "DAY" as loud as he could, gave me his most solemn and serious expression, then sat down and smiled at me. I'm sure this meant something extremely important, but I don't know what it could be.
He talked all day. We identified trees (not tree varieties, mind you, we just pointed to any tree and said "tree") and dogs because he likes to say "tree" and "dog". He also asks for juice now when he's thirsty. As far as we know, "jooooss" refers to any liquid in his sippy cup. He can repeat many words that we say now, and when I was singing the alphabet song to him, he would pronounce random letters that he heard. The one he picked out and kept repeating was "w", and that's a hard one to say ('dubbayew' is how he said it).
Tonight he watched me blow on a piece of chicken to cool it off before I put it in front of him, so he picked up all his food and blew on each piece before he ate it. He made a big production of the blowing, too. Very cute. He ate some English peas without balking, and I am mildly horrified that he rejected broccoli but ate those yucky peas. Ewwwwww. I suppose he has his Daddy's taste buds. My taste buds won't tolerate those things.
He was fun today. I love those days where he's full of smiles and laughter, when he is happy with himself and the world. I suppose there has to be a bad day every now and then just to make me appreciate all the good ones we have, and there are so many good ones!
He was in such a great mood all day. I suppose we can attribute it to lots of rest, because he slept quite well and took nice long naps as well. We played with his farm this morning, and when I stepped out to go to the kitchen for his juice cup, I heard a crash. A cyclone hit the ole' farmstead while I was out, and cows, horses, geese, apples, and farmers (plus a couple of barns) were whisked to all corners of his room. Dennis really seems to be into catastrophe playing these days. Guess we'd better warn the pets.
He talked a good bit today, and he's starting to ask for specific things. When we were in the car headed to have lunch with David, he kept asking "Daddy?". And later when we left there without David in the car, he again insisted "Daddy! Daddy! Daddy?" until I had to roll down the car window and have David assure him that he was coming home as well. When he woke up from his nap, he said "Mommy. Daddy? Cheese." So I took him to see David and fed him some cheese crackers, and he couldn't have been happier.
He was very affectionate today, climbing in my lap and kissing me with a "mmmwwaaaaa" sound. So sweet. He's very hard to resist like this, and he knows it! He also invented a new game today, but I have serious concerns for his safety while he plays it. He found a pillowcase when he was rearranging the linen cubby, and I draped it over his head. He pulled it back off and I said "peek-a-boo", and then he was off and running. He covered his head with the pillowcase and took off, and I followed and said "peek-a-boo" whenever he peeked. He has not realized that it's not safe to walk with your eyes covered up, and he bonked his head on the table, a doorway, and the dryer. It didn't even slow him down, he just backed up and took off in another direction, still with his head covered. Though it's hilarious, I don't know how I feel about mobile peek-a-boo.
He was funny in his bath tonight too, talking and splashing nonstop. David took a bath with him (one of us always does) tonight, and he (Dennis) learned how to open and close the sliding shower doors. He thought this was great fun, and he stood up, slid open the door, looked at me, yelled "DAY" as loud as he could, gave me his most solemn and serious expression, then sat down and smiled at me. I'm sure this meant something extremely important, but I don't know what it could be.
He talked all day. We identified trees (not tree varieties, mind you, we just pointed to any tree and said "tree") and dogs because he likes to say "tree" and "dog". He also asks for juice now when he's thirsty. As far as we know, "jooooss" refers to any liquid in his sippy cup. He can repeat many words that we say now, and when I was singing the alphabet song to him, he would pronounce random letters that he heard. The one he picked out and kept repeating was "w", and that's a hard one to say ('dubbayew' is how he said it).
Tonight he watched me blow on a piece of chicken to cool it off before I put it in front of him, so he picked up all his food and blew on each piece before he ate it. He made a big production of the blowing, too. Very cute. He ate some English peas without balking, and I am mildly horrified that he rejected broccoli but ate those yucky peas. Ewwwwww. I suppose he has his Daddy's taste buds. My taste buds won't tolerate those things.
He was fun today. I love those days where he's full of smiles and laughter, when he is happy with himself and the world. I suppose there has to be a bad day every now and then just to make me appreciate all the good ones we have, and there are so many good ones!
Monday, June 2, 2008
whino
All Dennis did today was whine. All day. Almost non-stop. Not much else to write about.
We think he's getting some new teeth, because there are other indications that point to this. Also, we are having an incredible diaper rash problem, or rather, HE is (our butts are fine). But since he's suffering, we're all suffering.
As always, there were moments of cuteness. He was asleep in his stroller when we went to lunch, and when he woke up, he was pleasantly surprised to find himself in a toy store. We didn't know he had woken up until the stroller started to veer toward a wooden toy workbench and a pair of little hands reached out to grab whatever was grabworthy. He wanted out of his stroller, naturally, so we let him run around. I got two balls down from a display and showed them to him, and he was so excited he didn't know which one to go to first. He walked toward the balls while waving his arms up and down rapidly, saying "ball". He picked one up, then put it down and picked the other one up, then tried to pick up both up at the same time (to no avail, they were too big). In the bookstore today (where we waited while David dealt with the AT&T people about our internet connect card), he had a great time with the Thomas the Train setup. The train cars were involved in a serious gravitational accident and a mysterious force flung several entire trains to the floor. Mommy had to pick them up. Several times. He took off running down the bookstore aisle while I was restoring things to pre-disaster arrangement, and he stopped at a display of wooden train track additions. He brought the box over and laid it on top of the wooden track on the train table. I was impressed that he knew that these were pieces of track just like the ones on the table.
I must report that his running-away skills are greatly improved. I actually had to jog quickly to catch him before he took off for parts unknown in Books-A-Million. And Saturday, he grabbed 2 tubes of candy and took off for the door leading out of Cracker Barrel. He's a fast little bugger. We've been explaining to him about shoplifting, and how we can't just grab things and leave, but he might be a tad young for that concept to sink in.
As always, there was some mischief. He threw several wooden puzzle pieces in the trash can at his grandma's house over the weekend. He played in a few toilets. He nearly snatched a USB jump drive right out of the computer earlier. He drooled profusely in Daddy's shoe, and when David put his foot in later, he was horrified. It's amazing to me how someone so small can get into so many things in so little time. I think I might have just explained the essence of toddlerhood with that one statement!
We think he's getting some new teeth, because there are other indications that point to this. Also, we are having an incredible diaper rash problem, or rather, HE is (our butts are fine). But since he's suffering, we're all suffering.
As always, there were moments of cuteness. He was asleep in his stroller when we went to lunch, and when he woke up, he was pleasantly surprised to find himself in a toy store. We didn't know he had woken up until the stroller started to veer toward a wooden toy workbench and a pair of little hands reached out to grab whatever was grabworthy. He wanted out of his stroller, naturally, so we let him run around. I got two balls down from a display and showed them to him, and he was so excited he didn't know which one to go to first. He walked toward the balls while waving his arms up and down rapidly, saying "ball". He picked one up, then put it down and picked the other one up, then tried to pick up both up at the same time (to no avail, they were too big). In the bookstore today (where we waited while David dealt with the AT&T people about our internet connect card), he had a great time with the Thomas the Train setup. The train cars were involved in a serious gravitational accident and a mysterious force flung several entire trains to the floor. Mommy had to pick them up. Several times. He took off running down the bookstore aisle while I was restoring things to pre-disaster arrangement, and he stopped at a display of wooden train track additions. He brought the box over and laid it on top of the wooden track on the train table. I was impressed that he knew that these were pieces of track just like the ones on the table.
I must report that his running-away skills are greatly improved. I actually had to jog quickly to catch him before he took off for parts unknown in Books-A-Million. And Saturday, he grabbed 2 tubes of candy and took off for the door leading out of Cracker Barrel. He's a fast little bugger. We've been explaining to him about shoplifting, and how we can't just grab things and leave, but he might be a tad young for that concept to sink in.
As always, there was some mischief. He threw several wooden puzzle pieces in the trash can at his grandma's house over the weekend. He played in a few toilets. He nearly snatched a USB jump drive right out of the computer earlier. He drooled profusely in Daddy's shoe, and when David put his foot in later, he was horrified. It's amazing to me how someone so small can get into so many things in so little time. I think I might have just explained the essence of toddlerhood with that one statement!
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Elmo loves Dennis
Dennis enjoyed spending time with his extended family today. He walked around the cemetery with his Aunt Karen and smiled and talked to his Great Granny and his Grandma and his Aunt Melissa. He enjoyed being the center of attention today and not having to share his Grandma with those girl cousins of his.
He charmed everyone at the hotel during continental breakfast, and he loved helping us get packed up to check out. His specialty is grabbing bags and unpacking them quickly while our backs are turned. I think he could have a good future as a baggage inspector.
He wasn't so happy on the drive home, though. He slept until we arrived in Birmingham, when we so rudely awakened him to make him go inside the AT&T store with us to inquire about high speed internet, which we can get via a mobile internet card at comparable rates to what cable or DSL would cost (neither of those is available out in our area of the woods). He was extremely bored with what little selection there was at AT&T, and I didn't turn him loose for fear he'd find an iPhone and break it (who in the world could afford for that to happen?)! After we were hooked up with our card and software, we were off to find a WiFi connection to find the drivers to make it work with Vista, ha ha ha, and some lovely people at Best Buy solved the problem, mostly. The software is installed. The card that we were sold, however, is not the one that fits with our computer, and the AT&T store, of course, closed early today, so we will be redoing this whole deal tomorrow, unfortunately. Dennis pretty much lost it in Best Buy. He was exhausted, he hadn't napped enough, there were no kid friendly areas, he got tired of playing with and dropping my cell phone... Granted, he did manage to take a nice picture of my left breast with my camera phone (clothed, of course!!!). When I heard the camera noise, I grabbed the phone away from him and saw the picture, which was already set up to go out in a message. I don't know who he was planning on sending it to, but those were some lucky button pushes he had accomplished thus far, and I'm glad I intervened before the people on my contact list were left scratching their heads over that particular photo. Poor Dennis. He was so bored, and we were in there for 5 forevers while they tried to wrangle Vista into cooperating. He cried and I nearly cried, and then finally it was over and we were out of there. We checked another AT&T dealer in the mall to see if they had the right card, but they were sold out. Dennis wasn't so upset about being in the mall, especially since he got to have a cookie and milk from the cookie place there. He slept hard on the way south, and then we were at his Grandma's house to visit the family.
He was the floor show. He played with the wooden kitchen, and he held his phone up to his ear and talked, and he giggled. He successfully grabbed the bottom of a bag of Fritos and dumped them across a wide area of floor. He walked dozens and dozens of laps around the open floor plan at his Grandma's. He exuded cuteness for all to enjoy until he nearly conked out from exhaustion. Tonight he went down in his crib with nary a whimper.
Cute things of note today: He has been trying on Daddy's shoes. It's so cute to watch him try to turn the shoe and his foot in the same direction while saying "shoe" over and over again. And we have managed to find him an Elmo, and he's constantly saying "Elmo" now. We were in a bookstore today for a minute (they have nice bathrooms, okay) and he passed by a display of jumbled up stuffed animals in the children's section, grabbed a red furry limb and exclaimed "Elmo!!". When he pulled it free, it sure enough was an Elmo. I was so proud. But then he grabbed a Cookie Monster and said "Elmo" (sacrilege!!). They do look alike except for fur color, especially in a small stuffed animal type representation. I just let it go. I'm happy to report that we found a soft cuddly Elmo for him that doesn't say or do anything! We call him the Elmo Be Quiet model. Highly recommended.
He charmed everyone at the hotel during continental breakfast, and he loved helping us get packed up to check out. His specialty is grabbing bags and unpacking them quickly while our backs are turned. I think he could have a good future as a baggage inspector.
He wasn't so happy on the drive home, though. He slept until we arrived in Birmingham, when we so rudely awakened him to make him go inside the AT&T store with us to inquire about high speed internet, which we can get via a mobile internet card at comparable rates to what cable or DSL would cost (neither of those is available out in our area of the woods). He was extremely bored with what little selection there was at AT&T, and I didn't turn him loose for fear he'd find an iPhone and break it (who in the world could afford for that to happen?)! After we were hooked up with our card and software, we were off to find a WiFi connection to find the drivers to make it work with Vista, ha ha ha, and some lovely people at Best Buy solved the problem, mostly. The software is installed. The card that we were sold, however, is not the one that fits with our computer, and the AT&T store, of course, closed early today, so we will be redoing this whole deal tomorrow, unfortunately. Dennis pretty much lost it in Best Buy. He was exhausted, he hadn't napped enough, there were no kid friendly areas, he got tired of playing with and dropping my cell phone... Granted, he did manage to take a nice picture of my left breast with my camera phone (clothed, of course!!!). When I heard the camera noise, I grabbed the phone away from him and saw the picture, which was already set up to go out in a message. I don't know who he was planning on sending it to, but those were some lucky button pushes he had accomplished thus far, and I'm glad I intervened before the people on my contact list were left scratching their heads over that particular photo. Poor Dennis. He was so bored, and we were in there for 5 forevers while they tried to wrangle Vista into cooperating. He cried and I nearly cried, and then finally it was over and we were out of there. We checked another AT&T dealer in the mall to see if they had the right card, but they were sold out. Dennis wasn't so upset about being in the mall, especially since he got to have a cookie and milk from the cookie place there. He slept hard on the way south, and then we were at his Grandma's house to visit the family.
He was the floor show. He played with the wooden kitchen, and he held his phone up to his ear and talked, and he giggled. He successfully grabbed the bottom of a bag of Fritos and dumped them across a wide area of floor. He walked dozens and dozens of laps around the open floor plan at his Grandma's. He exuded cuteness for all to enjoy until he nearly conked out from exhaustion. Tonight he went down in his crib with nary a whimper.
Cute things of note today: He has been trying on Daddy's shoes. It's so cute to watch him try to turn the shoe and his foot in the same direction while saying "shoe" over and over again. And we have managed to find him an Elmo, and he's constantly saying "Elmo" now. We were in a bookstore today for a minute (they have nice bathrooms, okay) and he passed by a display of jumbled up stuffed animals in the children's section, grabbed a red furry limb and exclaimed "Elmo!!". When he pulled it free, it sure enough was an Elmo. I was so proud. But then he grabbed a Cookie Monster and said "Elmo" (sacrilege!!). They do look alike except for fur color, especially in a small stuffed animal type representation. I just let it go. I'm happy to report that we found a soft cuddly Elmo for him that doesn't say or do anything! We call him the Elmo Be Quiet model. Highly recommended.
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