Thursday, January 28, 2010

Please Excuse Me.

I was sitting on the bamboo mat in front of the fire.  Jackson decided he would like to roll the mat up.  He rolled it up until he bumped into me, then said, "Do you mind?"  I ignored him, and he repeated, "Mommy, Do you mind!?"  I suggested he might want to substitute either the phrase "Excuse me, please" or "Move, please".  So he did and I moved. 
I hold Jason fully responsible.

The Grinch

So, we're now 6 weeks into "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" repeated nightly.  Good thing I like the story, too.  At the beginning of the adventure, I would sing "Da Who Dory" when the Who's sang.  Jackson complained, "I don't like Da Who!"  I asked what he'd prefer, and he settled on Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  So after teasing him with a  little Da Who, I'd finish with Twinkle Twinkle.

Two weeks into this routine, Jackson started filling in his favorite phrases.  First with "He got an awful idea!" now with more feeling, "The Grinch got a won-ful, AWE-FULL idea!"  He likes to interject with other phrases too "like coo of a dove" "his heart was two sizes too small" and he's so proud every time.  Last night, he went through the whole segment about the Who's feasting while I returned from a trip to the bathroom.  Jason tells me he sometimes quotes Grinch phrases to him during the day. And after watching the movie (classic Chuck Jones with Boris Karloff version, of course) he insists that the Who's sing only Da Who and nothing but Da Who.

I've tried to switch over to other books, which results in my reading extra books.  For now, we're sticking with the Grinch.
 

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

New Blog


Apparently I don't have enough going in my life (yeah, right), so I have launched a new blog (link is from today's post's title).  This one for crafts.  So far, its populated with elements from Jack's new room.  The latest is shown here.  It didn't stay on the wall long, Jackson has dubbed it "mine stackers" and had fun stacking and sorting them, then sleeping and drooling on them.  Maybe they can stay on the wall tomorrow.


Anyway, since I only have time for a limited number of projects, I'm seeking others to help populate the blog and share their talents.  If you want to play, leave a comment with your google account signed in.  If your profile is public, it will give me your username and I can send out an invite. 

http://makeitcrafts.blogspot.com/




Monday, January 11, 2010

Here Be Dragons

Jackson apparently had a nightmare last night.  He dreamed that dragons came out of my [pregnant] belly and grabbed him.  Jason slept with him most of the night.  He called me at 6am complaining of the cold and told me that 'Daddy found the dragon and the mouse' before he dropped back off to sleep.

When I got home today, he told me some stuff about dragons and about how they aren't real.  But at bedtime, he was distraught about the idea of sleeping in his new room.  He insisted the light stay on and I stay with him.   Fortunately he was exhausted and blinky and went to sleep easily.  I'm afraid tomorrow won't be so easy.

Saturday, January 2, 2010

Pileated Woodpecker



The morning after Christmas was misty. I was downstairs with Jackson, and noticed some larger than usual activity in the front trees. It was a pileated woodpecker! I was thrilled to see this spectacular bird just 50 feet from my front window. She stuck around for about 1/2 and hour, and worked over this tree plus a few others. From the damage done to the trees, I think she must be visiting us frequently.
The only other time I've seen her, or her kin around was shortly after we moved in. It was another misty morning, and Jason woke me up about 5 am to look through the haze in the backyard. That bird didn't stay long, and in the dark and fog, we didn't get a very good look. I've had my eye on the tree ever since hoping for another glimpse, but the tree seems to have been taking over by redbellied woodpeckers.
Pileated woodpeckers have an extensive Northern range, but they prefer old growth trees. Our forest is maybe 50 years old and was logged 20 years ago, so the trees are young and small.

Jack's New Room (making space for baby 2)



This is Jackson's new room--the room formerly known as Sheree's office. My belongings are now displaced, scattered, and piled about the house. We are working on other adjustments to make the space we have more functional.

For now, Jack is excited to be in his new room. He's bounced on the new bed, which is super fun. He and I share the same phobia of his falling out of it since its at least a foot taller than his old bed. We brought one of his stools up so he could climb up and down more easily.

Playing with "laser" in new robot room.



Oops, I left the camera within child's reach. He likes taking pictures of the floor. This one has blurry feet--bonus!