Gus loves to sing, but for as long as he has enjoyed singing, he preferred to do it alone– VERY STRONGLY preferred, i.e he pitched a complete fit if I even hummed along to Old Macdonald– until last week. He suddenly started singing with me at nap and bed times. For the last six months or so, we have sung the same three songs before bed– Happy Birthday, I’ve Been Working on the Railroad, and Twinkle, Twinkle. Gus is very routine oriented. If you do something before bedtime (or any other time of day), be sure you intend to do it everytime, otherwise there is bound to be trouble later. So we sing these songs before sleeptimes. Last week, I asked Gus if he wanted to sing with me– to my suprise, he did. It’s still just so cute (to me) that he does. He still says “don’t like it when mama sings” when we are in the car and I hum or sing along with any of his music, but somehow at sleeptimes, it’s okay with Gus. Here we are before naptime today for your listening pleasure. I just want to remember his sweet little voice.
We have had a beautiful, warm Spring this year. We are so happy the incessant winter rain has bowed out for the sun again. After being cooped up inside all winter, Gus is loving being outside. He spends a lot of time digging in his sandbox and running like a banshee down the sidewalk. Thankfully, he seems to have gotten over his reluctance to wear shorts (He used to plead, “Wanna close the pants!” when we tried to put him in shorts).
Our neighborhood has emerged from what we have come to recognize as the usual Pacific Northwest hibernation. All of the neighbors are out in their yards. The kids all seem strangely bigger. The trees and flowers have been a crazy kaleidoscope of colors. Impromptu barbeques abound.
The two boys (aged 8 and 5) from across the street have taken a liking to Gus and often sprint over to our house when they see us outside. They are constantly vying for his attention, showing him all of their cool big boy tricks (shooting hockey pucks into buckets, hitting wiffle balls off the roof, and climbing trees). At first Gus seemed cautious around them, but more and more he has warmed up to them and mimics their wild antics.
Heidi and I have been busy expanding our vegetable growing operation. We planted our last year’s beds early in the season, but in the last three weeks, we made three 4×8 foot beds, cleared away a huge tangly mess of ivy and St. John’s vines in our parking strip, shovelled in 5 cubic yards of dirt and 4 cubic yards of mulch, and are planning on finally putting in our tomato and bean starts tomorrow. All this work has taken its toll. We have been hobbling around our house, complaining of sore necks and calloused hands like a couple of senior citizens. So sad.
In the past, playdates were more for meeting my needs for socialization as a mama, than Gus’s need for play. Most of the time they spent together in independent playing seemingly oblivious to their “friends”– though I know that research shows they are really learning a lot from each other during this parellel play. Looking back, I really enjoyed the quietness of this playtime– the mamas and papas chatting over coffee as the kids played in their corners. Now that there is more interaction between the kids, there is also more conflict (sharing, pushing) and therefore more intervention from the parents. They play games they make up together (chase, hide in the box) and organized games (red light/green light, musical chairs).
Interestingly, Gus is also starting to show a preference for certain friends– and his choices surprise me! I would think he would like kids with personalities like his own (more serious, quiet, and into trains), and he does, but he seems to also really like kids that are a bit more boisterous and wild. Gus has just matured a lot in the last six months– really coming into his own. Even though I am sometimes sad that he’s not my little baby who needed me so much it blurred the boundaries between us, I am so proud to see his developing independence and confidence. So proud to watch this person become.
I took a very fun doll making class last week on a whim– the project was small (great to use those scraps of fabulous fabric) and fast (so I can finish during nap times). Gus is calling him “Dolly Gus” and/or “Mr. Guy.” It’s not yet clear whether or not he’ll be a leading role in Gus’s play or just a minor background character, but either way I can see myself whipping up so more of these.
Gus has been saying some hilarious things lately. He’s been noticing the stoplights for a while now, and he knows that red means stop and green means go, so today in the car he noticed me turn right on a red– and he said “wanna stop at the red light.” I found myself trying to explain that it’s okay for me to go on a red light when turning right– not a simple concept for a two-year-old. He’s also been starting to identify a few letters (he knows “M”and “Q”) and, in an effort to entertain him while I finished my dinner, I sent Gus to the fridge to get some letters. He got the “Y” but he wasn’t sure what it was, so I told him and then we were talking about the “Y” and I said in jest “why is it a Y?” and he answered– without missing a beat– “why not?” Joe and I laughed about that so now Gus thinks saying “why not?” is a very good joke.
One of Joe and Gus’s favorite games for a while now has been “tackle!” Joe pretends to be afraid that Gus will tackle him and says “No, no, Gus is going to tackle me!” and then of course, Gus flings himself on Joe to much giggling and tickling. It’s a simple game, but I love the sound of their laughter.
Heidi and I have been a bit (overly) nervous about Gus having a peanut allergy. My dad and sister have a severe allergy to them and quite frankly raising Gus thus far, while it has been the most amazing fulfilling experience of our lives, has not been easy. There was the whole complicated pregnancy, the ICU stay, the nightly colicky screams, and his slow weight gain. I guess we weren’t thrilled about adding one more thing to the list, so we have had a peanut-free house. For over two years. At least to the best of our ability. There has been the occasional peanut that slips through our fire wall. A couple months ago we fed Gus some chow mein and he ended up with red noodle-shaped streaks across his face. We realized that there were peanuts in the dish and have been nervous to try it out again, fearing the worse. How could we live forever without peanut butter?!
Heidi unexpectedly and suddenly picked Friday as the day to put the issue to rest and deemed it “Peanut Friday”. She and Gus rode the tram up to the hospital to pick me up from work yesterday, Heidi with a spoon full of peanut butter in the diaper bag. We sat down at a picnic table (just outside the ER– yes, we are crazy) and with one nervous look at each other, fed Gus the good stuff. We watched him expectantly. And then laughed at how silly all of this was. Nothing happened. Except that Gus had a hard time mushing it up in his mouth and made a face. But… no allergies! Hallaluyah.
I’m going out to buy a big ol’ jar of peanut butter to celebrate.
We’re anticipating a Shellfish Wednesday in our near future.
I’ve been finding more time to craft lately– well more like making time. There just isn’t enough time in the day– to explore all the inspiration I’ve got stored up, to give enough kisses to show Gus how very much I love him, and yes, to keep a tidy home– but I am working on shifting my perspective and relaxing my expectations to enjoy more of the joy in my life. I am so lucky to have joy.
Lately I’ve been making art smocks. Gus enjoys painting with a brush and easel now! It’s a messy project, so an art smock out of an old men’s dress shirt is just the thing to make clean up a little easier. I made one with a stenciled dachshund puppy for Gus, another with an “A” for our friend Abi, and most recently a banjo for Gordon– Gordon LOVES banjos.
Gus met a little girl yesterday who wanted to play with the same puzzle he was playing with and he said with a sigh, “It’s hard to make friends– it’s hard to share.”
I had our big camera out to snap a shot of some food I made (as I often like to do) when Gus asked to take a picture. I wasn’t about to let a two year old hold the expensive item himself, so we compromised that I would hold it and he could push the button. He aimed the camera and took two photos. One of his very favorite Thomas train whom he calls “Thomas Eyes Closed” (because he’s loved the train so much that it’s black eyes have rubbed off and now it looks like he is sleeping). This is the very same train that Grandpa Joe had to screw together after it was loved so much he took a bath with Gus and it broke it pieces. I love the perspective. And then Jasper looks pissed at the photographer.
I got my hands dirty this weekend– very dirty– as we dug up dried out roots and turned over the soil in our garden beds. We found a bunch of carrots that we had failed to harvest before winter came– oddly, they are actually still tasty and crisp. Joe and Michael attacked the backyard– removing the rusted shed, the broken back fence, and a tree that was just too big and bent over. We started planning for our second year of vegetable gardening trying to learn from last year’s mistakes– we don’t like radishes! I’m looking forward to warmer and drier days spent in the garden with Gus running around. In the meantime, we’ll continue to suit up in our rain gear and dig, dig, dig.
This morning, I was lost in iTunes listening to music (I have felt so out of touch recently) and Gus was keeping himself occupied on the floor near me. Suddenly, he exclaimed “Ta Da!”. I looked down and he had finished a nine-piece puzzle all by himself. This wasn’t one of those puzzles where wooden pieces with pictures fit into their corresponding slots. This was an actual (two-sided) puzzle that he fit together by himself. I was speechless. He then broke it up and did the opposite side of the puzzle. My son is a genius.
