The Family that Plays Together, Stays Together

Darn. I just tried to post a long blog update and it was lost in the process. Any number of curse words come to mind, but I used most of them this morning when I was stuck behind a line of slow cars on my way to story time at the library, running 15 minutes late. I don't like to repeat myself, so I'll spare you.

I'm having a short temper kind of day today. I usually feel that way when I'm trying to squeeze too much into too little time. This morning, I had to rush out of the house to do two jobs and make it back in time to dress Paxton and rush out again for the aforementioned story time in San Marcos. Chris is off work today, so he's been equal parts helpful and the unlucky sucker who is caught in my crossfires. While I did my jobs this morning, he played with Paxton and made him breakfast. That was a great help, but I rushed into the house with five minutes to go before we had to leave. Chris is a turtle to my hare. In the story, the turtle wins the race. The turtle is the good guy and the hare is the egocentric villian who is a little too big for his britches. That sounds about right. But his slow-moving ways still make me pull my hair out when we're running late.

Paxton was due for his nap by the time we got to the library. He was playing shy and leaning his body against mine while he investigated the dozens of kids scattered around. While Miss Ashley read stories to everyone, Paxton pulled at my shirt demanding "Nin-Nin!". For those not in the loop, that's his invented term for nursing. He's said it for as long as he could make sounds. And it's always been in a bossy and demanding way. Now, not only does he command me to produce the Nin, but he points to him mouth repeatedly, his version of the sign for "eat". While I can ignore the tugs at my shirt, it's impossible to turn away from my little guy telling me in no uncertain terms that he's hungry.

This is a new 'trick' of his. He points at his mouth with great emotion when he's hungry. The other day, he ran to the pantry, slapped it, and pointed to his mouth. If we're in a restaurant and the food is taking too long to arrive, he looks at the waiter walking past and points to his mouth. He's even been known to walk up to a stranger and point to his mouth. No mistaking what that means. I'm trying to teach him the sign for "cracker", but it's a little complicated. He already knows the sign for "cheese", but he's burned out on it, so does not ask for it as much as he used to. He knows the sign for "milk", but only as it applies to nursing. I'm also trying to teach him the sign for "water", so he can let us know when he's thirsty. He's a little sponge when it comes to sign language, so we're learning about five new signs every two weeks. It's as fun for me as it is for him.

We're taking him to the Kite Festival in Zilker Park on Sunday. This is a favorite event for both Chris and me. We're excited to share the magic of a sky filled with kites with our little guy. I have no doubt that he'll be in heaven. Even when he spots a bird far away in the sky, he is quick to point it out with an eager "oooooh". Hundreds of kites circling above should blow his mind.

I sure hope this posts. I wrote nothing in this second attempt that was intended for the first. Oh, well. It's all about the boy, so that's good enough for me.