My kids both love games. It's great, because Paul and I both love games. Jack has always been into them because he is fiercely and often annoyingly competitive and has always had a ridiculous attention span. Dani--not so much. But she is getting much better and now likes paying attention for more than 1 consecutive minute. She really enjoys games. Her favorites are Sneaky Snacky Squirrel, Candyland, and Monopoly (Bonopoly). She's not competitive at all and doesn't care if she loses. And therefore, she usually kicks everyone's butt. But there are two things she cares very deeply about in the board game world. And if these two things don't happen, all bets are off.
Candyland
Candyland's rules are about as basic as they come. Draw a card and advance to the color shown. But there are also treat cards. Those are pink and if you draw one, you immediately go to that space. This can be good, if you are near the beginning of the game, or really bad, if you are near the end and get a pink card that takes you backwards. Getting one of the pink cards is the only way your progress doesn't go forward in the game. On each of the pink cards there is a treat: Gingerbread man, popsicle, lollipop, cupcake, etc. Dani doesn't care if she wins. She just wants that bloody cupcake. It just so happens, the cupcake is the closest pink space to the beginning, which means if you are anywhere past that, you don't want the cupcake. Unless your name is Dani. If you are Dani, and you are one space from winning, you want that cupcake. If you are Dani, and someone else gets the cupcake card, you lose your ever-loving mind. It's awesome. And by awesome, I mean, horrifyingly awful.
Monopoly
We don't have standard Monopoly, we have a kid version. Instead of deeds to property, you win various parties (Ice skating party, Princess party, Beach party, etc.) If you land on one, you don't get the choice, you have to buy it. If you are Dani, you want the Pizza Party. If you are Dani and you have every other party on the board, you are not happy because you don't have the Pizza Party. If you are not Dani, and you HAVE the Pizza party, you wish you were Dani because she is going to make your life absolute hell until you give her the damn Pizza Party card.
Anyone want to come over for Game Night?
Tuesday, August 12, 2014
Dani's voice
Dani's voice has always been amazing. It's kind of like the voice of a little girl who swallowed a parrot. She's a little squawky and it sounds adorable. I don't want her voice to ever change but I realize it may not sound quite as charming coming out of the mouth of a 30 year old, so I'll allow it. But she is getting more and more articulate with each day and the her misspoken words that I so loved are now correct, and nowhere near as interesting. Let's take a little before and after look down Dani's linguistic memory lane...
Spaghetti = Sup-a-getti
Strawberry = doughboy
princess = princense
octopus = opp-a-pus
crocodile = crock-o-waddle
Sigh. My baby girl is growing up. At least we still have bah-zahn-ya-la (lasagna).
Spaghetti = Sup-a-getti
Strawberry = doughboy
princess = princense
octopus = opp-a-pus
crocodile = crock-o-waddle
Sigh. My baby girl is growing up. At least we still have bah-zahn-ya-la (lasagna).
Thursday, June 19, 2014
World Cup Fever
I don't really like soccer. I never watch it and I don't understand all the rules. But I LOVE the World Cup. Paul does as well and this past week, he has turned Jack onto it as well. As I mentioned, I was in Cincinnati this week and though I couldn't see the kids, I had some pretty great conversations with them. Jack loved telling me who won each of the matches and had even perfected his Spanish accent for the Spanish-speaking countries. Below are snippets of our conversation:
Jack: Chile is playing Spain.
Me: And who do you want to win?
Jack (to Paul): Who do we want to win?
Jack (to me): We want Chile to win because they're the underdogs.
Me: Oh. Do you know what an underdog is?
Jack: No.
Me: It's the team that no one thinks is going to win, the team that isn't supposed to win. And the other team is better and should win. And people usually like when the team that no one thinks is going to win actually wins.
Jack: Oh. (long pause) I have no idea what that means.
-----------
Me: Who is your favorite team?
Jack: Germany.
Me: Why?
Jack: Because you like them.
Me: Yes. But I like the United States too. I want them to win and I want Germany to win.
Jack: Yes. Germany plays Ghana and the United States plays Portugal and we want Germany and the United States to both win.
Me: Yes. But on June 26th, Germany plays the United States. Who do you want to win then?
Jack: Oh! (long pause) Well, I want them to tie because then they both win.
(This kid is a genius.)
Me: Yes. But then they both lose too.
Jack: Hmmm. When Germany plays the United States, we'll have to think about who we want to win, don't we??
Jack: Chile is playing Spain.
Me: And who do you want to win?
Jack (to Paul): Who do we want to win?
Jack (to me): We want Chile to win because they're the underdogs.
Me: Oh. Do you know what an underdog is?
Jack: No.
Me: It's the team that no one thinks is going to win, the team that isn't supposed to win. And the other team is better and should win. And people usually like when the team that no one thinks is going to win actually wins.
Jack: Oh. (long pause) I have no idea what that means.
-----------
Me: Who is your favorite team?
Jack: Germany.
Me: Why?
Jack: Because you like them.
Me: Yes. But I like the United States too. I want them to win and I want Germany to win.
Jack: Yes. Germany plays Ghana and the United States plays Portugal and we want Germany and the United States to both win.
Me: Yes. But on June 26th, Germany plays the United States. Who do you want to win then?
Jack: Oh! (long pause) Well, I want them to tie because then they both win.
(This kid is a genius.)
Me: Yes. But then they both lose too.
Jack: Hmmm. When Germany plays the United States, we'll have to think about who we want to win, don't we??
The Amazing Jack
Jack never ceases to amaze us with how mature he is. We joke all the time that we don't need to ever worry about finding a babysitter--Jack can just take care of it. We saw that several times this past week when I was out of town in Ohio. Paul had single dad duty for a week while I went to Cincinnati to help grade AP exams. I always hate leaving them because 1) they are adorable and I hate not seeing them each day and 2) it is a lot to leave to one parent. I am fortunate that Paul understands and is a great dad and can handle it!
We had celebrated Father's Day the Sunday before I left since I would be out of town on the actual day. But I told Jack to try and remember to wish Paul a happy Father's day on Sunday. On Sunday, Paul heard Dani start to stir but when she got quiet again, he fell back to sleep. When he woke up a little later, he noticed both kids were not in their rooms. When he got downstairs, Jack and Dani were playing on the iPad and Jack had gotten Dani some juice. When Jack saw Paul, he smiled a huge grin and said, "Happy Father's Day, Dad!" It was the perfect morning present he could have given Paul.
He one-upped himself a couple of days later. Paul again heard Dani but fell back asleep. He awoke to the clinking of utensils and Jack telling Dani to wash her hands. When he got downstairs, both kids were at the kitchen table eating the cereal Jack had prepared. The kid is ridiculous. And sweet.
We had celebrated Father's Day the Sunday before I left since I would be out of town on the actual day. But I told Jack to try and remember to wish Paul a happy Father's day on Sunday. On Sunday, Paul heard Dani start to stir but when she got quiet again, he fell back to sleep. When he woke up a little later, he noticed both kids were not in their rooms. When he got downstairs, Jack and Dani were playing on the iPad and Jack had gotten Dani some juice. When Jack saw Paul, he smiled a huge grin and said, "Happy Father's Day, Dad!" It was the perfect morning present he could have given Paul.
He one-upped himself a couple of days later. Paul again heard Dani but fell back asleep. He awoke to the clinking of utensils and Jack telling Dani to wash her hands. When he got downstairs, both kids were at the kitchen table eating the cereal Jack had prepared. The kid is ridiculous. And sweet.
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
More short cuts
I have been a terrible blogger because I am busy. Because I am busy, I tend to write quick updates on Facebook with little stories of the cute things the kids do and say. So it's almost like Facebook has done the work this blog was intended to do. So I've decided that the best way to catch up and perhaps get back to blogging on a more regular basis is to copy the FB posts up until now. Here goes:
01/12/13
04/24/13
Me: Jack, you're weird. How come you're so weird?
Jack: Because you're weird.
04/30/13
Jack and I sat down for a popcorn snack and a chat about school and his hesitancy to engage the other kids:
Me: So you went outside? What did you do?
Jack: I played ball and I made a goal.
Me: Did you play with other kids? (J.shakes his head.) Buddy, I want you to go talk with the other kids and ask them to play.
Jack: But I just want to play by myself. (Long pause). Just eat your popcorn and don't worry about it.
06/10/13
Paul bought some more fruit on his grocery run today.
Jack: Ooohhh! Thank you, Daddy for buying that. I love apples and bananas and pears! Thank you! You wanna know what I'm gonna have? (Long pause). Grapes.
06/13/13
I think Jack misses me. Today, we talked on the phone. After about 2 1/2 minutes of conversation, he informed me, "Okay, that's a lot of talking. Gotta go!"
06/20/13
Me: Don't you want to go on the potty?
Dani: No. I don't want to.
Me: Why? You're a big girl.
Dani: No, I'm not.
Me: Then what are you?
Dani: I'm Dani.
06/22/13
My children have come up with a new game called "Time Out," in which they give each other time outs for various fictitious reasons. This game comes complete with fake crying. It's pretty awesome. And it's showing me just how effective Time Outs are in the Soto household.
06/27/13
This morning:
Jack: Mom? I've got a BIG problem.
Me: What is it?
Jack: The kitty doesn't have any hands.
07/02/13
Stopped at Monkey Joe's in Indiana so the kids could burn some energy. Dani was having so much fun and was quite displeased when I pulled her away to change her diaper. She cried and declared, "This is NOT gonna be awesome!" For you and me both, kid. How 'bout that whole potty thing?
07/02/13
We usually don't let the kids watch TV while they eat, but we are getting the car ready for our trip. When I suggested a different seat to Jack so he could see better while he ate, he said, "Yes, I'll sit there so I can see your beautiful face." This kid is a keeper.
07/05/13
Jack is refusing to play Old Maid because he doesn't want to get "that stinky girl."
07/10/13
Jack (from the bathroom): Oh my goodness, what did I do?
Me: What did you do?
Jack: I just peed all over myself.
Moments later as I am helping him get dressed...
Me: Did you wash your hands or was that pee you just wiped on me?
Jack: Um....pee.
07/17/13
We were going to meet my Mom and Dad and the kids while they were out. Dani was excitedly yelling for us prior to our arrival. A car like ours pulled up and she screamed, "It's Mommy," just before a bearded man with an earring got out. She turned to my Mom and stated, "That's not Mommy, that's a sir!" Apparently all of this sir and ma'aming here in the South has gotten to her.
7/20/13
And now deep thoughts with Jack Soto:
"Mom, I have good news and bad news. The good news is I love Nonny's kitty so much. The bad news is you dropped a carrot."
If this is as bad as news gets according to Jack, I think we're going to be just fine.
07/21/13
Jack was eating just the bun of his burger. For the umpteenth time, I warned him he better eat the meat too. He told me, "You already told me. If you say it again, I'm not gonna eat it and you don't want THAT!"
Checkmate.
07/26/13
Yesterday, we told the kids we were going to the zoo in the morning, and that it was a zoo where you could go in the cages/areas with some of the animals. This clearly didn't fully register in Dani's two year old mind, since she woke up, excitedly declaring, "We goin' to da zoo! We gonna put Mommy in a cage!"
07/29/13
Jack went to the bathroom and then went to go wash his hands without flushing.
Me: Hey! You need to flush when you're done.
Jack: I don't want to. You do it.
Me: No, you can do it. You're a big boy.
Jack: Well, you're a big girl
08/12/13
Jack: Dani, you're my best girl.
Dani: Senk you.
Jack: I love you.
Dani: I wuv you.
And they didn't even know I was listening!
09/07/13
Jack the geography nerd is now comparing the sizes of the members of the family. According to Jack (who "is medium like Germany"), Paul is "big like China, Mommy's like India, and Dani's Rwanda."
At this rate he'll either have no friends or he'll befriend every foreign exchange student at school.
09/28/13
At breakfast the kids were briefly arguing.
Jack: Dani, don't talk bad to me. You're my best friend and I love you.
Dani: Gimme kiss!
11/11/13
Arguments in the Soto house:
Dani: You're a pretzel.
Jack: No, I'm not.
Dani: Yes, you're a pretzel.
Jack: Fine, then you're Zimbabwe.
11/14/13
I was upstairs and overheard Jack trying to teach Dani the names of the states.
Jack: Say "North Dakota."
Dani: I don't wanna.
Jack: But Dani, you have to. It's really important. Don't you want to grow? You have to learn!
11/19/13
Jack was hiding his toy car and giving us clues as to its whereabouts. He put it on top of Paul's head (I didn't say this was a challenging game.):
Jack: Okay, it's on something black.
Paul (with car on head): Mommy's coat?
Jack: Nope. Clue #2: It's on something handsome.
01/12/14
Me: When are you going to go on the potty?
Dani: Ummm...in 10 weeks.
01/17/14
On the way to school today, Jack wanted to practice doing math problems. About 5 minutes into it, Dani started screaming, "NO! NO!!Stop it! No more math! I don't wanna do math!!!" This child IS me.
01/17/14
My daughter has the cutest voice in the world. I never want it to change. I would, however, enjoy an improvement in her articulation of words. Today, after examining her belt, she attempted to say, "Mom, there's a little bit of a hole." What came out was, "Mom, you're a little bit of a ho."
01/18/14
Jack: Mom, you know there's another name for China. Do you know what it is?
Me: No, what?
Jack: Well, it's The People's Republic of China.
01/23/14
Jack: Mom, you're Colorado, just like me. Daddy's Wyoming.
Me: What? Why?
Jack: 'Cause Daddy's orange and we're green.
It took us quite a while to figure out that we were wearing those colors and that orange and green are the colors of Wyoming and Colorado on the map of the U.S. hanging in his room. My kid is weird. And I love it.
01/12/13
04/24/13
Me: Jack, you're weird. How come you're so weird?
Jack: Because you're weird.
04/30/13
Jack and I sat down for a popcorn snack and a chat about school and his hesitancy to engage the other kids:
Me: So you went outside? What did you do?
Jack: I played ball and I made a goal.
Me: Did you play with other kids? (J.shakes his head.) Buddy, I want you to go talk with the other kids and ask them to play.
Jack: But I just want to play by myself. (Long pause). Just eat your popcorn and don't worry about it.
06/10/13
Paul bought some more fruit on his grocery run today.
Jack: Ooohhh! Thank you, Daddy for buying that. I love apples and bananas and pears! Thank you! You wanna know what I'm gonna have? (Long pause). Grapes.
06/13/13
I think Jack misses me. Today, we talked on the phone. After about 2 1/2 minutes of conversation, he informed me, "Okay, that's a lot of talking. Gotta go!"
06/20/13
Me: Don't you want to go on the potty?
Dani: No. I don't want to.
Me: Why? You're a big girl.
Dani: No, I'm not.
Me: Then what are you?
Dani: I'm Dani.
06/22/13
My children have come up with a new game called "Time Out," in which they give each other time outs for various fictitious reasons. This game comes complete with fake crying. It's pretty awesome. And it's showing me just how effective Time Outs are in the Soto household.
06/27/13
This morning:
Jack: Mom? I've got a BIG problem.
Me: What is it?
Jack: The kitty doesn't have any hands.
07/02/13
Stopped at Monkey Joe's in Indiana so the kids could burn some energy. Dani was having so much fun and was quite displeased when I pulled her away to change her diaper. She cried and declared, "This is NOT gonna be awesome!" For you and me both, kid. How 'bout that whole potty thing?
07/02/13
We usually don't let the kids watch TV while they eat, but we are getting the car ready for our trip. When I suggested a different seat to Jack so he could see better while he ate, he said, "Yes, I'll sit there so I can see your beautiful face." This kid is a keeper.
07/05/13
Jack is refusing to play Old Maid because he doesn't want to get "that stinky girl."
07/10/13
Jack (from the bathroom): Oh my goodness, what did I do?
Me: What did you do?
Jack: I just peed all over myself.
Moments later as I am helping him get dressed...
Me: Did you wash your hands or was that pee you just wiped on me?
Jack: Um....pee.
07/17/13
We were going to meet my Mom and Dad and the kids while they were out. Dani was excitedly yelling for us prior to our arrival. A car like ours pulled up and she screamed, "It's Mommy," just before a bearded man with an earring got out. She turned to my Mom and stated, "That's not Mommy, that's a sir!" Apparently all of this sir and ma'aming here in the South has gotten to her.
7/20/13
And now deep thoughts with Jack Soto:
"Mom, I have good news and bad news. The good news is I love Nonny's kitty so much. The bad news is you dropped a carrot."
If this is as bad as news gets according to Jack, I think we're going to be just fine.
07/21/13
Jack was eating just the bun of his burger. For the umpteenth time, I warned him he better eat the meat too. He told me, "You already told me. If you say it again, I'm not gonna eat it and you don't want THAT!"
Checkmate.
07/26/13
Yesterday, we told the kids we were going to the zoo in the morning, and that it was a zoo where you could go in the cages/areas with some of the animals. This clearly didn't fully register in Dani's two year old mind, since she woke up, excitedly declaring, "We goin' to da zoo! We gonna put Mommy in a cage!"
07/29/13
Jack went to the bathroom and then went to go wash his hands without flushing.
Me: Hey! You need to flush when you're done.
Jack: I don't want to. You do it.
Me: No, you can do it. You're a big boy.
Jack: Well, you're a big girl
08/12/13
Jack: Dani, you're my best girl.
Dani: Senk you.
Jack: I love you.
Dani: I wuv you.
And they didn't even know I was listening!
09/07/13
Jack the geography nerd is now comparing the sizes of the members of the family. According to Jack (who "is medium like Germany"), Paul is "big like China, Mommy's like India, and Dani's Rwanda."
At this rate he'll either have no friends or he'll befriend every foreign exchange student at school.
09/28/13
At breakfast the kids were briefly arguing.
Jack: Dani, don't talk bad to me. You're my best friend and I love you.
Dani: Gimme kiss!
11/11/13
Arguments in the Soto house:
Dani: You're a pretzel.
Jack: No, I'm not.
Dani: Yes, you're a pretzel.
Jack: Fine, then you're Zimbabwe.
11/14/13
I was upstairs and overheard Jack trying to teach Dani the names of the states.
Jack: Say "North Dakota."
Dani: I don't wanna.
Jack: But Dani, you have to. It's really important. Don't you want to grow? You have to learn!
11/19/13
Jack was hiding his toy car and giving us clues as to its whereabouts. He put it on top of Paul's head (I didn't say this was a challenging game.):
Jack: Okay, it's on something black.
Paul (with car on head): Mommy's coat?
Jack: Nope. Clue #2: It's on something handsome.
01/12/14
Me: When are you going to go on the potty?
Dani: Ummm...in 10 weeks.
01/17/14
On the way to school today, Jack wanted to practice doing math problems. About 5 minutes into it, Dani started screaming, "NO! NO!!Stop it! No more math! I don't wanna do math!!!" This child IS me.
01/17/14
My daughter has the cutest voice in the world. I never want it to change. I would, however, enjoy an improvement in her articulation of words. Today, after examining her belt, she attempted to say, "Mom, there's a little bit of a hole." What came out was, "Mom, you're a little bit of a ho."
01/18/14
Jack: Mom, you know there's another name for China. Do you know what it is?
Me: No, what?
Jack: Well, it's The People's Republic of China.
01/23/14
Jack: Mom, you're Colorado, just like me. Daddy's Wyoming.
Me: What? Why?
Jack: 'Cause Daddy's orange and we're green.
It took us quite a while to figure out that we were wearing those colors and that orange and green are the colors of Wyoming and Colorado on the map of the U.S. hanging in his room. My kid is weird. And I love it.
Wednesday, August 21, 2013
Yikes!
I just realized that I have not posted since January! So much has happened and it is overwhelming. Last school year was the most taxing of my career. Between teaching 5 different classes, being a mom, and taking a Masters class myself, there was little time to breathe, let alone keep up with this blog. On the one hand, we are constantly busy with the kids, doing fun things and this keeps me from writing. On the other hand, they are only little once and all of this stuff I think I'll remember, is being replaced by other new memories and I worry that I'll forget to document some of their important milestones/events. Fortunately, Facebook has allowed me to document little things and I will transfer some posts over to here soon. For now, I'll just do a brief update:
Jack: Jack continued to love pre-school. Mostly, he loves learning and his teachers. He is still shy to engage in groups of kids is own age, but he loves spending time with adults and older kids. At times I worry because he tends to hang back and is quite timid. He sits back and lets the other kids take things (toys, opportunities, etc.) My heart breaks a little for him because I worry he will struggle with his confidence. I don't want him to choose to be on the outside. He is such a wonderful, loving, amazing, smart little boy and I want people to see that in him. Not for me, for him. I just don't want him to be one of those kids who is overlooked when he has so much to offer.
Jack loves to learn everything about everything and his memory is second to none. His attention span never ceases to amaze me and he focuses on things that he wants to master until he gets them. He loves all books (taking away books at bedtime is the worst punishment imaginable for him) and maps. He has spent significant time with various geography apps on the IPad and knows where every state is and all of their capitals. Now he has set his sights on the countries of the world. The two maps (one of the U.S. and one of the world) in his room are two of his favorite new things. He loves trying to read and is doing quite well. He also requests to do math at the dinner table. I call him my little nerd and his love of learning is one of the things I love most about him.
Another is his capacity for joy. He is so excited and happy about everything. It is just so fun seeing things through his eyes. He mostly loves his sister, though he has taken to pestering her and trying to push her buttons. Fortunately, she has learned how to push his back lately.
Jack has been very interested in sports lately. He loves baseball and can hit the ball quite well. He doesn't want to hit off the tee anymore, prefering the pitch. He has a baseball glove and he is working so hard to make it happen. He's been smacked in the face with the ball and though he warned me, "If you do that again, I'm gonna do it to you!" he keeps trying. He is very interested in golf and learned how to swim by himself this summer without the help of a vest. And he's a fish. He has no fear of the water at all. He jumps off the side and dives to pick things up off the bottom. He also does a lot of gymnastics on his own. It will be fun to see what he picks as his passions.
Dani: Dani's joy bursts out of her eyes and smile. To know her is to love her. People simply gravitate toward her and she makes friends easily. The biggest compliment people give her is on her big blue eyes. Though her eyes are indeed a beautiful color, it's their twinkle that gives them their true beauty. Her hair still rivals Albert Einstein's and we wonder when it will grow into something we can work with. At the same time, it is so her. Her voice is awesome. She actually has a pretty good vocabulary, but she wants to say more than she can and her head works faster than her mouth. Yet she never gets frustrated. She just talks and is so confident that she either assumes that you must understand or she doesn't care that you don't. Her voice is hysterical. She sounds like she is half parrot, half human. My favorite mispronunciations are slowly becoming actual words. Gone is "prin-cense" (princess) and "ah-pah-pus" (octopus). But at least I still have my favorite, "suh-bagetti." (spaghetti)
Dani learns so differently from Jack. She doesn't want to be taught anything. And yet, she learns it. She just makes things happen. I think she's going to make a lot of mistakes (she's daring, she's impulsive, she's curious), but I'm never worried about her. Dani is always going to land on her feet. Even if she gets scrapped knees in a few stumbles. She's strong-willed and knows exactly what she wants. At the same time, she's so loving (she loves snuggles) and sweet. We went to a music class and I was concerned that she wasn't going to pay attention and that I would be chasing her around. She was by far the best listener in the class, focusing on what the teacher was saying and participating in the activities.
Dani loves just being with you. She likes riding bikes and coloring. She also loves everything blingy. Whenever we go to a store, she has to touch EVERY, SINGLE piece of shiny jewelry, declaring, "Ooooo. It SO pretty!" She loves to wear baseball hats (like Mom). She also loves going to Santa's Village. Her favorite ride is the roller coaster (you can barely see her head above the bar) and she gets mad if it doesn't go faster. She loves animals.
Dani also LOVES her big brother. She wants to do everything that he does. The other day, Jack and Daddy snuck out to play golf and she burst into tears. Not because she didn't get to go, but because they didn't hug and kiss her goodbye. Sometimes, he is can be pretty mean to her and likes to tease her. I keep hoping she'll deck him, but she never does. She just idolizes him. I hope they always love each other the way they do now. I think they are the perfect match for each other. I hope Jack will teach her some restraint, and that she'll teach him to loosen up a bit. I hope they will lean on each other growing up and long after Mom and Dad aren't around.
Every day, I can't believe how lucky I am in this life and how lucky I am to get to be the mom to the two most amazing kids. I am so proud of them and my heart swells every time I think of them. They are the absolute lights of my life and if I never accomplish anything else, I'll feel fulfilled just because I got to be their mom and I'll know I've done something good for the world.
Jack: Jack continued to love pre-school. Mostly, he loves learning and his teachers. He is still shy to engage in groups of kids is own age, but he loves spending time with adults and older kids. At times I worry because he tends to hang back and is quite timid. He sits back and lets the other kids take things (toys, opportunities, etc.) My heart breaks a little for him because I worry he will struggle with his confidence. I don't want him to choose to be on the outside. He is such a wonderful, loving, amazing, smart little boy and I want people to see that in him. Not for me, for him. I just don't want him to be one of those kids who is overlooked when he has so much to offer.
Jack loves to learn everything about everything and his memory is second to none. His attention span never ceases to amaze me and he focuses on things that he wants to master until he gets them. He loves all books (taking away books at bedtime is the worst punishment imaginable for him) and maps. He has spent significant time with various geography apps on the IPad and knows where every state is and all of their capitals. Now he has set his sights on the countries of the world. The two maps (one of the U.S. and one of the world) in his room are two of his favorite new things. He loves trying to read and is doing quite well. He also requests to do math at the dinner table. I call him my little nerd and his love of learning is one of the things I love most about him.
Another is his capacity for joy. He is so excited and happy about everything. It is just so fun seeing things through his eyes. He mostly loves his sister, though he has taken to pestering her and trying to push her buttons. Fortunately, she has learned how to push his back lately.
Jack has been very interested in sports lately. He loves baseball and can hit the ball quite well. He doesn't want to hit off the tee anymore, prefering the pitch. He has a baseball glove and he is working so hard to make it happen. He's been smacked in the face with the ball and though he warned me, "If you do that again, I'm gonna do it to you!" he keeps trying. He is very interested in golf and learned how to swim by himself this summer without the help of a vest. And he's a fish. He has no fear of the water at all. He jumps off the side and dives to pick things up off the bottom. He also does a lot of gymnastics on his own. It will be fun to see what he picks as his passions.
Dani: Dani's joy bursts out of her eyes and smile. To know her is to love her. People simply gravitate toward her and she makes friends easily. The biggest compliment people give her is on her big blue eyes. Though her eyes are indeed a beautiful color, it's their twinkle that gives them their true beauty. Her hair still rivals Albert Einstein's and we wonder when it will grow into something we can work with. At the same time, it is so her. Her voice is awesome. She actually has a pretty good vocabulary, but she wants to say more than she can and her head works faster than her mouth. Yet she never gets frustrated. She just talks and is so confident that she either assumes that you must understand or she doesn't care that you don't. Her voice is hysterical. She sounds like she is half parrot, half human. My favorite mispronunciations are slowly becoming actual words. Gone is "prin-cense" (princess) and "ah-pah-pus" (octopus). But at least I still have my favorite, "suh-bagetti." (spaghetti)
Dani learns so differently from Jack. She doesn't want to be taught anything. And yet, she learns it. She just makes things happen. I think she's going to make a lot of mistakes (she's daring, she's impulsive, she's curious), but I'm never worried about her. Dani is always going to land on her feet. Even if she gets scrapped knees in a few stumbles. She's strong-willed and knows exactly what she wants. At the same time, she's so loving (she loves snuggles) and sweet. We went to a music class and I was concerned that she wasn't going to pay attention and that I would be chasing her around. She was by far the best listener in the class, focusing on what the teacher was saying and participating in the activities.
Dani loves just being with you. She likes riding bikes and coloring. She also loves everything blingy. Whenever we go to a store, she has to touch EVERY, SINGLE piece of shiny jewelry, declaring, "Ooooo. It SO pretty!" She loves to wear baseball hats (like Mom). She also loves going to Santa's Village. Her favorite ride is the roller coaster (you can barely see her head above the bar) and she gets mad if it doesn't go faster. She loves animals.
Dani also LOVES her big brother. She wants to do everything that he does. The other day, Jack and Daddy snuck out to play golf and she burst into tears. Not because she didn't get to go, but because they didn't hug and kiss her goodbye. Sometimes, he is can be pretty mean to her and likes to tease her. I keep hoping she'll deck him, but she never does. She just idolizes him. I hope they always love each other the way they do now. I think they are the perfect match for each other. I hope Jack will teach her some restraint, and that she'll teach him to loosen up a bit. I hope they will lean on each other growing up and long after Mom and Dad aren't around.
Every day, I can't believe how lucky I am in this life and how lucky I am to get to be the mom to the two most amazing kids. I am so proud of them and my heart swells every time I think of them. They are the absolute lights of my life and if I never accomplish anything else, I'll feel fulfilled just because I got to be their mom and I'll know I've done something good for the world.
Monday, January 28, 2013
Love
Today, Dani said, "I love you." It was unprovoked and she wasn't simply repeating what I had said. It's going to be a good week.
-----------------------
When Jack was younger and didn't know the word for something, he would say, "Buh duh", as in, "Jack, what is that?" "Buh duh." It appears that Dani has her own version. Today, in her numbers book she was able to tell me the words for all of the different fruits. Until she came to the kiwi and the pomegranate. Those she referred to as "a bu da ya ya ya."
----------------------
This weekend, Dani told her first story. She was all smiles when she came back from a trip to Meijer with her daddy and couldn't wait to tell me all about it.
Dani: Mommy! I go Target! (she doesn't know her stores yet)
Me: You did?
Dani: Yeah! I see toys. . . .I ride horsey. . . .I see fishies. . . .I have fun!
-----------------------
When Jack was younger and didn't know the word for something, he would say, "Buh duh", as in, "Jack, what is that?" "Buh duh." It appears that Dani has her own version. Today, in her numbers book she was able to tell me the words for all of the different fruits. Until she came to the kiwi and the pomegranate. Those she referred to as "a bu da ya ya ya."
----------------------
This weekend, Dani told her first story. She was all smiles when she came back from a trip to Meijer with her daddy and couldn't wait to tell me all about it.
Dani: Mommy! I go Target! (she doesn't know her stores yet)
Me: You did?
Dani: Yeah! I see toys. . . .I ride horsey. . . .I see fishies. . . .I have fun!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)