Thursday: pictures

Here are some pictures from yesterday.

We're trying to get rid of our pavement (sugar) ants and read on-line that cornmeal is one way to do that.  So Isaac enjoys shaking cornmeal on the ants' homes.  I'm not sure that he tends to shake enough to make a difference, but sometime when it isn't going to rain we'll make bigger piles.  He enjoys doing it and I don't have to worry about harmful affects (to medium to large animals) so it's a win-win.

Joshua was playing with the shopping cart.

Today we had popcorn for our snack...our snack shelf is surprisingly empty, but it's good to get rid of stuff sometimes.  The boys thought it was hilarious to watch Flurry eat popcorn.

Tuesday: squirt bottles

Today I would like to thank Roger Drackett for inventing the squirt bottle.

The boys love them!  I was able to get a bunch of work done while the played outside with their assorted squirters.  I was thinking it was a bit too cold for squirters, but they managed not to get too wet.

Monday: exam day

Today was the final exam in my class.

I got the question that I get every semester and never know how to answer: "Will the exam take the whole two hours?"   Well, I did it in about 30 minutes and skipped a few steps, so I expect that the people that know what they're doing could finish it in an hour.  If you don't know what you're doing it will take longer.  Some students always take the maximum amount of time.  So I don't know the answer to your question; it depends on how prepared you are.

Then, as I was grading and falling asleep, I tried to decide which was better from a sleepy point of view: exams that were very good and could be graded quickly or exams that weren't so good and required some thought with the grading to help keep me awake.  (Obviously, from the rational point of view good exams are better.)  I decided on a short nap instead.

Sunday: Bible Study

Bible study was at our house today.  It was rather nice - due to some odd housing arrangements for one of the couples they brought lunch so we only had to have a clean house.  We had had someone over for dinner on Friday so it was already mostly clean.

Joshua and one of the other little girls are in the same class at daycare.  Joshua kept saying her name whenever he saw her and it was super cute.  I was impressed that 1) he recognized her in a different setting and 2) that he remembered her name.  I know they work on names a lot at daycare, so it must be working.

Saturday: 52 months

Isaac turned 52 months old today.

The end of this past month has been marked by an increase in questions, sometimes about scenarios that wouldn't happen.  For example,

• "If sack-of-potatoes [Joshua] wanted to be held by you and by Dad and I needed help with something what would happen?"  
• "If you and Dad went to Florida and Joshua and I were still at home what would happen?"
• "Will Flurry die sometime?"  "Will we get a new cat?"  "What will we do with her body?"  

Puppy Dog still likes to run, often with assorted rockets attached to himself, but does not like to be chased by Joshua.  For that matter, he doesn't like to be touched by Joshua unless Isaac initiates it.  He will forcefully say, "NO THANK YOU JOSHUA!"  And while I think he could be nicer about it at least the words are polite.

Isaac has also been remembering things from long ago and bringing them back up.

"How are we going to get the heart magnet out [from under the cabinet]?"  This magnet was lost about 1.5 years ago and we are not getting it back.  (This, of course, prompted a ton of questions about why not.)  Hmm...there's been several other instances but I can't remember them exactly.

We're trying to get him to memorize Ben's phone number.  He really wants there to be a nine in it, but there isn't.  He can get the first four to five numbers by himself.  After one or two rounds he gets "quiet-nervous" which basically means he won't answer your questions anymore.  We're also working on him knowing his full name.  He knows it, but you have to ask the question in just the right way to get the correct response.  ("What is your full name?"  "What is your last name" doesn't work.)

  

When he grows up he's going to be an adult puppy dog.  Currently there is a non-zero chance that if he were to get lost and someone where to ask his name he would reply with "Puppy dog."  But he does understand that there are places where it's ok to be a puppy dog and places where he has to be Isaac, so that is nice.

Friday: 21 months

Joshua turned 21 months yesterday!

I had a hard time getting him to lay down on his quilt.  He really just wanted to do the self timer on the camera.

Sleep: we have transitioned from getting up once a night to getting up zero times per night.  (Yay!)  It really didn't take that long...it's nice to have monitors so that I can talk to him and that he also understands.  I'd tell him to go back to sleep and he would do it.

Eating: this seems a little bit better, but still not great.

Comprehension:  Joshua is in the weird stage where he can understand most of what you say to him, but can't talk much.  Today I gave him two pretzels and told him to give one to Isaac and he did it without any problem.  He will also go to time-out by himself when told.  He also definitely understands, "Do you want to be put down?"  as the answer is almost always no with a snuggle.

Talking: He has a bunch of new words this month and is starting to say words more clearly and even to say new words pretty well when asked.  He's latched onto "owl" really well, and Isaac is fun to hear too.  He knows when Isaac is supposed to be around and says his name if he's not.  Oh, and "Buzz".  He gets to look at Buzz Lightyear on the wipes box when getting his diaper changed.

(I think the picture above is my favorite.)

Playing: Joshua really likes to play in Isaac's room...it has all the cool toys.  (But he also understands when it is time to leave Isaac's room, which is rather nice.)  He is getting good at doing puzzles...he has the translating part down and if the pieces is rotated +/- 45 degrees he can get it in the hole.  If it's rotated more than that he can't quite do it yet.  He still loves dancing and running and will often start some toy with music, run or dance, and then run back to the toy to start a song again once it finishes.  Joshua has started to pat the floor next to him when he wants you to sit there and play or read with him.

(Do you see Isaac above?)

Hmm...what else?  Drop off at daycare has gotten a little bit better.  He still loves his loveies.  He is always interested in what Isaac is doing.  He still tells us when he has pooped by pushing his belly button but doesn't want to sit on the toilet.  He is always excited to go see Ben in the morning.  And at night.

Wednesday/Thursday: activity

Activity summer is just around the corner.  I told Isaac it would start in May, but with how swamped I'm feeling right now it might be mid-May.  However, we did do one little activity to get us started.

We made pea and toothpick sculptures.  You soak the peas for a while, stick toothpicks in them, and then let them dry.  It was probably a bit advanced for Isaac, but he was able to make several 2D things.

And then he wanted to put a toothpick in water.  He choose a sippy cup so the water wouldn't get out.  He wanted it up high.  So now I have a toothpick in a sippy cup by my sink.  (He did tell me that if we get thirsty we can take off the top, take out the toothpick, put the cap back on, and then drink.)

Also, good news!  Today I'm loved more than the Ipad.