Sunday: reason

"Am I being reasonable?"

I feel like this is the latest I find myself asking myself a lot.  Usually the answer is yes.

It's a bit easier with Isaac because he can articulate his thought process a bit better.  Even if he doesn't do exactly as I ask I can understand what he thinks and sometimes I change and sometimes he needs to change.

It's harder with Joshua because, well, he's two.  I asked him to put his dirty laundry in the basket today.  He got the basket to his room, but then gave up and decided to "sleep."  It was just about nap time anyway, so he had the choice of going to sleep right away or doing his laundry.  He didn't choose laundry and went to the bathroom instead, which I mentioned should be done before his nap.  I did his laundry.  He was very sad to find out upon returning to his bedroom that I meant it and that it was too late for laundry.  After trying, and succeeding, in controlling how many socks he was wearing to bed he finally started to calm down.

Hmm.  We seem to be having the biggest problems around nap time.  Maybe something needs to change.  We'll see how tomorrow goes.

Saturday: winter

One of my favorite things about cold weather is the ability to put food in the garage to keep it cool when there is no room in the fridge.  It's awesome.

I took the boys to a dance party at the library today.  When we got home, they wanted to change into pajamas to be like Ben.

Friday: meh

As with all days, there were many good parts to the day.  However, there seemed to be more bad parts today than normal.  (Including me almost putting Joshua's crib side back on when I said it was nap time and he wouldn't stay in bed.)

He had this pose in the grocery store.  When I got my phone out he wasn't smiling.  Just propping his head up on his hands.  He looked tired.

We also had some heated discussions about music.  Mainly that Joshua wanted it louder and I said no.  We did find that the headphone bags work ok as backpacks for the phone playing the music.

Isaac and Joshua painted their wood letters from Wednesday.  They did an excellent job keeping the mess contained.

Wednesday: Grandpa's machines

Friday we ended up going to Ben's work to see his desk and all his circuits.  We also looked at the other interesting things in his workplace, including the machines.

Joshua was rather distraught when we left.  He loved the machines.  (He still asks Ben about his desk and if he used the circuits that are on it.)  I suggested that maybe we could see Grandpa's machines sometime.  Joshua remembered, and we set up a time with Dad.

We went the the machine shop.  First Dad showed them all the machines.  Then Dad cut some wood and the boys used the drill press to drill circles in the shape of their initial.  Oh, Dad also used the sander to smooth the wood.  I saw lots of smiles while the "smoother" was being used.

Isaac was still curious about the metal cutting machine, so we went back and Dad made a few cuts.

Dad mentioned that his grandpa was a carpenter and that he remembers sitting on a step, watching him cut his pieces with a table saw.  It was fun to see him demonstrate it to his grandkids now.

Isaac: 61 months

Isaac turned 61 months...a week ago.

on the future: we've put Isaac name in the lottery for some schools; we'll find out near the end of the month or early next month if we're in.  Isaac would choose his school based on the playground if he were given a choice.  Yesterday I told him that he was growing up so fast and it made me a bit sad.  He asked why, and I said he would move out someday.  That almost made him burst into tears, so now he is living next door to us and will send pictures, texts, emails, and videos daily, along with seeing us.

on being a puppy: oh, he his still embracing his puppyness.  Joshua has joined in, and now Ben and I often have two puppies crawling around, barking, with their tongues hanging out.

on family: Isaac and Joshua are still getting along very well.  Isaac helps Joshua often, but they play together a lot too.  There are periodic sadnesses between them, but they tend to be resolved fairly quickly.  I am still the favorite parent, but he also has several special things that he does with Ben.

on having fun: He still really likes his screen time, but Legos, circuits, running, and going places are all high on his list.  He can usually turn anything into a game.

For the most part, it's still the same as the past few months.  Isaac is a wonderful boy to have around.

Sunday: something I'd never do

Today I did something I was sure I'd never do.

I sorted Legos by color.

I know, it seems weird.  But growing up all the Legos just went in a box.  Ben's collection just has everything in a box.  Why spend the time sorting the Legos when you're really looking for a specific shape, not a color.  Why spend time sorting Legos at all when it is rather fun to hunt for a piece you need only to find something that will work even better?

But it turns out that I have a son who is enjoying putting Legos together using the instructions.  (That makes sense to me.  I enjoy that too.)  However, this son is still having a hard time searching through a large amount of Legos to find what he needs.  To facilitate fewer "Mom, I can't find this piece" calls, I decided it was time to sort them by color, as the book recommends.

I feel I've started down a slippery slope.

Saturday: shows

Joshua gave me a few music shows today.

During the last one, Isaac decided to be the dancer.  "I'm the person you watch" is how he put it.  It might be one of those videos that only parents care about, I'll warn you.