Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Packy's Second Halloween
We're three days away from Halloween. In the chapters of my life between childhood and motherhood, I had no need for a frivolous holiday like Halloween. The most I got out of it was the joy of seeing my friends' kids in their costumes when they came to my house to trick-or-treat in my neighborhood. Other than that, I didn't do much to celebrate. The idea of getting all skanked up in a revealing costume and risking claustrophobia and DUIs by going to 6th Street in Austin never once appealed to me. I was the Scrooge of Halloween.
But with little Paxton's arrival, a whole new breath of life has entered my Halloween attitude. As with most things, I tend to go a bit overboard. Last year, I searched online for weeks, seeking costume inspiration for him. He ended up with not one, but three costumes--a spider, a pumpkin and a dragon. Thankfully, there was no shortage of events for him to attend, donning a different costume at each. At the Fall Festival Sarah's church hosted in Denton, he sweated in his pumpkin garb. At the library Halloween storytime, he crawled about in his bulky spider wear. And on Halloween night, we carried him around to trick-or-treat in the giant dragon costume, nearly passing out from the unseasonably hot weather.
I tried to reel it in a bit this year. I limited my shopping to two costumes, telling myself that he could wear one if it was warm (the turtle), and another if it was cool (the giraffe). The problem is that we tried both of the costumes on last week and the turtle costume is just way too small for him. Strangely enough, it's just a vest with a hood. You'd think it would fit, but if I zip it up all the way, his chin disappears into the costume. While it's appropriate for a turtle costume, it simply doesn't look comfortable. He is not a fan of it.
Luckily, he looks cutest in the costume that fits him best. As a fat little giraffe, he's so adorable that I can barely stand up straight. I simply want to roll on the ground, giggling with glee. He seems rather pleased with himself, as well. He happily galloped all around the yard in his costume, pausing only to pull the hood away from covering his face. If this cooler weather continues, he might actually enjoy the trick-or-treating experience this year. And since he still has no idea what candy is, I think I'm ripe to reap the rewards, as well!
As usual, there is no shortage of fun options for celebrating Halloween with a kiddo. There are storytimes at the libraries that focus on books about the holiday. There is trick-or-treating at the library, where the kids dress up and go from station-to-station, collecting fun little toys. One of the families in our Music Together class has a big Halloween party, where the kids get to go "trunk-or-treating", going from car-to-car to pick up goodies. Our local "town square" hosts three-hours of trick-or-treating where the kids can go to the local stores to get goodies. The Great Pumpkin even makes an appearance! The Baptist Church has fun activities for the kids in the evening. And the main street in my neighborhood is the hub of Halloween in our town. Chris and I made the mistake of driving down it to get home one Halloween night before Paxton was born. The number of people clogging the street was breathtaking. I'm not sure we're courageous enough to brave that yet. It's so dark and there are no sidewalks. I'd worry about getting so frazzled from the crowds and risks that I'd ruin everyone's Halloween evening.
I've been checking out Halloween-themed books from the library for a month, trying to get Paxton familiar with the holiday. He now knows the term "trick-or-treat" and he can spot a pumpkin from a mile away. As for the rest of it, I think he's just going to have to wing it as we go. I can't wait to see how he feels about groups of other children, all in costume, swarming the town! It's a magical night to be a kid, and I'm so happy to experience it through my son. He makes everything more fun.
But with little Paxton's arrival, a whole new breath of life has entered my Halloween attitude. As with most things, I tend to go a bit overboard. Last year, I searched online for weeks, seeking costume inspiration for him. He ended up with not one, but three costumes--a spider, a pumpkin and a dragon. Thankfully, there was no shortage of events for him to attend, donning a different costume at each. At the Fall Festival Sarah's church hosted in Denton, he sweated in his pumpkin garb. At the library Halloween storytime, he crawled about in his bulky spider wear. And on Halloween night, we carried him around to trick-or-treat in the giant dragon costume, nearly passing out from the unseasonably hot weather.
I tried to reel it in a bit this year. I limited my shopping to two costumes, telling myself that he could wear one if it was warm (the turtle), and another if it was cool (the giraffe). The problem is that we tried both of the costumes on last week and the turtle costume is just way too small for him. Strangely enough, it's just a vest with a hood. You'd think it would fit, but if I zip it up all the way, his chin disappears into the costume. While it's appropriate for a turtle costume, it simply doesn't look comfortable. He is not a fan of it.
Luckily, he looks cutest in the costume that fits him best. As a fat little giraffe, he's so adorable that I can barely stand up straight. I simply want to roll on the ground, giggling with glee. He seems rather pleased with himself, as well. He happily galloped all around the yard in his costume, pausing only to pull the hood away from covering his face. If this cooler weather continues, he might actually enjoy the trick-or-treating experience this year. And since he still has no idea what candy is, I think I'm ripe to reap the rewards, as well!
As usual, there is no shortage of fun options for celebrating Halloween with a kiddo. There are storytimes at the libraries that focus on books about the holiday. There is trick-or-treating at the library, where the kids dress up and go from station-to-station, collecting fun little toys. One of the families in our Music Together class has a big Halloween party, where the kids get to go "trunk-or-treating", going from car-to-car to pick up goodies. Our local "town square" hosts three-hours of trick-or-treating where the kids can go to the local stores to get goodies. The Great Pumpkin even makes an appearance! The Baptist Church has fun activities for the kids in the evening. And the main street in my neighborhood is the hub of Halloween in our town. Chris and I made the mistake of driving down it to get home one Halloween night before Paxton was born. The number of people clogging the street was breathtaking. I'm not sure we're courageous enough to brave that yet. It's so dark and there are no sidewalks. I'd worry about getting so frazzled from the crowds and risks that I'd ruin everyone's Halloween evening.
I've been checking out Halloween-themed books from the library for a month, trying to get Paxton familiar with the holiday. He now knows the term "trick-or-treat" and he can spot a pumpkin from a mile away. As for the rest of it, I think he's just going to have to wing it as we go. I can't wait to see how he feels about groups of other children, all in costume, swarming the town! It's a magical night to be a kid, and I'm so happy to experience it through my son. He makes everything more fun.
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Dallas or Bust
Our year of toddler travels continues. This weekend, we went to Dallas to visit with our family and friends. I rented a house for the weekend in Arlington, so we could have a central place to entertain everyone while still keeping Paxton on some sort of schedule. That was my hope, anyway. I found the house on Craigslist. The cost per day plus the fee for the pets was what we'd pay for a nice hotel. The benefit, however, was that Paxton had a quiet room where he could nap. Having a place to nap and actually napping are two very different things, as Paxton was quick to demonstrate. But we'll get to that later.
The house was fine, but curious. The owner told us that she lived there, but traveled often. However, she had no clothes in the house, no towels, expired groceries and a lack of furniture. There were three bedrooms with beds in each. There were lawn chairs for side tables. There was one couch with three reclining chairs in it. There were no dishes, silverware, cups or anything else to ease our stay. My mother-in-law told me that there were towels in the hall closet, but when I finally went to get one on Sunday morning, I saw a big sign in the closet that said, "Please do not use personal towels in this closet". Isabel apparently overlooked that sign. I don't blame her, though, since there were no other towels anywhere in the house. So strange.
We arrived on Friday evening after four hours of a drive where Paxton, again, refused to nap. Chris has taken over all road trip driving duties so that I can entertain our son. I do my best to keep him happy, but I'm not above mentally checking out when I really need to. I can only hear the whining "MMMMMMmmmmooooommmy" so many times before I go to my happy place to preserve my remaining mental well-being. By the time we got to Arlington, I was spent. We settled into the house with Chris' parents and then pushed our luck by loading Paxton up in the car one more time for a drive to search for a restaurant and then pick up some necessities for our stay. He was not happy.
We survived the night, and Paxton was fine sleeping on his now familiar airbed. I'm so glad we have introduced this sleeping arrangement to him on previous trips to Pennsylvania and Port Aransas. He seems to feel fairly comfortable on it and doesn't fight it when it's time to go to sleep. I usually sleep in the room with him when we're on the road, and he doesn't get distracted by my presence. If he wakes up crying in the middle of the night, I nurse him and then he lets me put him right back to bed. It's nice how adaptable kids are!
Chris' brother, Craig, came over on Saturday morning. The kids call him "Uncle Dog" and Paxton picked it up right away. "Uncadog", is how it's pronounced in Paxtonese. Paxton feels instantly comfortable with his Muskogee and Dallas family, no matter how long it's been since he saw them last. He adores Bob and Isabel, and the feeling is mutual. I just love to see how much love he has been blessed with in his life!
Our friend, Marissa, stopped by with her sister before Paxton's nap. It was great to see them. Now that our Dallas visits are more rare, I really find myself missing our friends and family in that area. We only get to see them once or twice a year, when in the past, I saw them three times as often. Having a toddler, we're definitely more centered at home. We need to lure our Dallas peeps down this way more often!
Paxton avoided napping, but did so in a way that I found kind of entertaining. After laying him down in his room, I returned to visit with our guests. While we sat, talking, we heard the door to his room creak open and closed again and again. If we made eye contact with him, he just stepped back inside and closed the door. It was funny. I tried going to the room to lay with him, hoping to be a positive influence. He couldn't have been less inspired. While I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep, he got my shoes and leaned them up against my face. Then he found my flashlight and tried to wake me up by saying "Mommy, Cam-mer-ah, cam-mer-ah! C'mere! Cam-mer-ah!". He's never seen a flashlight before, but I'm not sure why he just assumed it was a camera. Perhaps it was the strap. Anyway, it was a losing endeavor. I finally gave up.
Maybe I shouldn't have. By the time my Aunt Carol and Uncle Toby arrived to visit a little after 6, Paxton was in rare form. That is to say, he was a nightmare. I was at the store picking up some more necessities, but when I got back, Paxton and Chris were nowhere to be found. I was told that Paxton had a meltdown and Chris took him outside to cool off. I went to greet Toby and told him that Paxton really was a nice little guy, and he told me that that wasn't the impression he got. Toby, already being no huge fan of toddlers, had made his mind up about my sleep-deprived terror. I ran off to find Paxton and lure him back inside to show just how sweet and smart he really is. Bad idea. All he wants to do these days is play outside. By bringing him in, I was only stoking his hellfires. He was worse than ever. Yikes.
Luckily, my friend Amy arrived with her girls. It astonishes me how kids can sniff out another kid a mile away. Amy's youngest daughter is 6, and Paxton took to her immediately. They played catch, tried out Paxton's cool new train toy from Carol and Toby and chased each other around a bit. By this time, the party was in full swing, but I got to enjoy very little of it. While everyone was talking and visiting like good adults, I was stuck trying to feed my overtired son and keep him from melting down. Not the ideal situation for good visiting. I settled in with Amy's daughters and just enjoyed catching up with them and hearing about life from a young person's perspective. I love those girls. I've known the two older daughters since one was four-years-old and the other was still in her mom's belly. Being able to know them as they've grown-up is such a blessing. We had a lot of fun.
Every single get-together that I've been to with my in-laws has resulted in playing "Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board". I find this fascinating. My mother-in-law, Isabel, always initiates it. And it's always a big hit. I've resisted participating since the one occasion when they weren't able to lift me. I don't need that kind of humiliation. Since I've lost some weight this year, Isabel thought it was a good idea to shout out the size pants I now wear to anyone within earshot. I tried not to melt into the floor in embarrassment.
Paxton went right to sleep without any struggle. There was no question how exhausted he was. When the party wrapped up, I followed his lead. You wouldn't know that either of us had gotten any sleep at all the next morning when Paxton had yet another epic meltdown at the restaurant where we met for brunch. I got "The Look" from a neighboring diner and rushed him outside where I tried not to cry. We somehow made it through breakfast, but had to cancel our plans to stop and visit Carol and Toby on the way out of town. It's a good thing we did, as Paxton was asleep almost before we pulled out of the restaurant's parking lot. He slept for two hours, which would have gotten us halfway home if not for the hour of traffic we had to sit in in Waco.
All in all, it was a good trip. I'm always happy to see family and friends and I'm always happy to get back home. This might be the end of our travels for the year, but who knows. We're a family who is often up for an adventure. As long as our fellow adventurers can handle a little shrieking from time to time.
The house was fine, but curious. The owner told us that she lived there, but traveled often. However, she had no clothes in the house, no towels, expired groceries and a lack of furniture. There were three bedrooms with beds in each. There were lawn chairs for side tables. There was one couch with three reclining chairs in it. There were no dishes, silverware, cups or anything else to ease our stay. My mother-in-law told me that there were towels in the hall closet, but when I finally went to get one on Sunday morning, I saw a big sign in the closet that said, "Please do not use personal towels in this closet". Isabel apparently overlooked that sign. I don't blame her, though, since there were no other towels anywhere in the house. So strange.
We arrived on Friday evening after four hours of a drive where Paxton, again, refused to nap. Chris has taken over all road trip driving duties so that I can entertain our son. I do my best to keep him happy, but I'm not above mentally checking out when I really need to. I can only hear the whining "MMMMMMmmmmooooommmy" so many times before I go to my happy place to preserve my remaining mental well-being. By the time we got to Arlington, I was spent. We settled into the house with Chris' parents and then pushed our luck by loading Paxton up in the car one more time for a drive to search for a restaurant and then pick up some necessities for our stay. He was not happy.
We survived the night, and Paxton was fine sleeping on his now familiar airbed. I'm so glad we have introduced this sleeping arrangement to him on previous trips to Pennsylvania and Port Aransas. He seems to feel fairly comfortable on it and doesn't fight it when it's time to go to sleep. I usually sleep in the room with him when we're on the road, and he doesn't get distracted by my presence. If he wakes up crying in the middle of the night, I nurse him and then he lets me put him right back to bed. It's nice how adaptable kids are!
Chris' brother, Craig, came over on Saturday morning. The kids call him "Uncle Dog" and Paxton picked it up right away. "Uncadog", is how it's pronounced in Paxtonese. Paxton feels instantly comfortable with his Muskogee and Dallas family, no matter how long it's been since he saw them last. He adores Bob and Isabel, and the feeling is mutual. I just love to see how much love he has been blessed with in his life!
Our friend, Marissa, stopped by with her sister before Paxton's nap. It was great to see them. Now that our Dallas visits are more rare, I really find myself missing our friends and family in that area. We only get to see them once or twice a year, when in the past, I saw them three times as often. Having a toddler, we're definitely more centered at home. We need to lure our Dallas peeps down this way more often!
Paxton avoided napping, but did so in a way that I found kind of entertaining. After laying him down in his room, I returned to visit with our guests. While we sat, talking, we heard the door to his room creak open and closed again and again. If we made eye contact with him, he just stepped back inside and closed the door. It was funny. I tried going to the room to lay with him, hoping to be a positive influence. He couldn't have been less inspired. While I closed my eyes and pretended to sleep, he got my shoes and leaned them up against my face. Then he found my flashlight and tried to wake me up by saying "Mommy, Cam-mer-ah, cam-mer-ah! C'mere! Cam-mer-ah!". He's never seen a flashlight before, but I'm not sure why he just assumed it was a camera. Perhaps it was the strap. Anyway, it was a losing endeavor. I finally gave up.
Maybe I shouldn't have. By the time my Aunt Carol and Uncle Toby arrived to visit a little after 6, Paxton was in rare form. That is to say, he was a nightmare. I was at the store picking up some more necessities, but when I got back, Paxton and Chris were nowhere to be found. I was told that Paxton had a meltdown and Chris took him outside to cool off. I went to greet Toby and told him that Paxton really was a nice little guy, and he told me that that wasn't the impression he got. Toby, already being no huge fan of toddlers, had made his mind up about my sleep-deprived terror. I ran off to find Paxton and lure him back inside to show just how sweet and smart he really is. Bad idea. All he wants to do these days is play outside. By bringing him in, I was only stoking his hellfires. He was worse than ever. Yikes.
Luckily, my friend Amy arrived with her girls. It astonishes me how kids can sniff out another kid a mile away. Amy's youngest daughter is 6, and Paxton took to her immediately. They played catch, tried out Paxton's cool new train toy from Carol and Toby and chased each other around a bit. By this time, the party was in full swing, but I got to enjoy very little of it. While everyone was talking and visiting like good adults, I was stuck trying to feed my overtired son and keep him from melting down. Not the ideal situation for good visiting. I settled in with Amy's daughters and just enjoyed catching up with them and hearing about life from a young person's perspective. I love those girls. I've known the two older daughters since one was four-years-old and the other was still in her mom's belly. Being able to know them as they've grown-up is such a blessing. We had a lot of fun.
Every single get-together that I've been to with my in-laws has resulted in playing "Light as a Feather, Stiff as a Board". I find this fascinating. My mother-in-law, Isabel, always initiates it. And it's always a big hit. I've resisted participating since the one occasion when they weren't able to lift me. I don't need that kind of humiliation. Since I've lost some weight this year, Isabel thought it was a good idea to shout out the size pants I now wear to anyone within earshot. I tried not to melt into the floor in embarrassment.
Paxton went right to sleep without any struggle. There was no question how exhausted he was. When the party wrapped up, I followed his lead. You wouldn't know that either of us had gotten any sleep at all the next morning when Paxton had yet another epic meltdown at the restaurant where we met for brunch. I got "The Look" from a neighboring diner and rushed him outside where I tried not to cry. We somehow made it through breakfast, but had to cancel our plans to stop and visit Carol and Toby on the way out of town. It's a good thing we did, as Paxton was asleep almost before we pulled out of the restaurant's parking lot. He slept for two hours, which would have gotten us halfway home if not for the hour of traffic we had to sit in in Waco.
All in all, it was a good trip. I'm always happy to see family and friends and I'm always happy to get back home. This might be the end of our travels for the year, but who knows. We're a family who is often up for an adventure. As long as our fellow adventurers can handle a little shrieking from time to time.
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
"Hiding" in music class.
Doing his lovely scarf dance.
Testing out the rocking chair for durability and the car for taste.
Chillin' in his jim-jams, drinking some milk, watching some Sesame Street.
He was too quiet. I should have known. He pulled every video tape out of the cupboard and then each one out of its sleeve.So a Baby Walks into a Bar...
Paxton is entering the phase of exploring his inner comic. He has been excelling at his use of words for months, but now he's mixing it up a bit for humor. The other day, as we were lying in bed, he stood up and tapped the headboard. "That's a headboard," I said. He tapped it again and repeated "headboard". Then he squatted down, lifted my bangs and tapped my forehead. "Forehead board," he said. I laughed at his observation and agreed.
Later, bored in the car, he was sipping his milk and practicing some of his sign language. He held the milk in his mouth and did the sign for "bubbles". Then he held his milk gingerly in one hand and did the sign for "bubbles" again. "Milk bubbles," he said. True, true.
He has often pointed out car anomalies. If a car has a bike rack on the back of it, he calls it a "car bike". If it's pulling a trailer, it's a "trailer car". Now he likes to stack one Hot Wheel atop another and create a new word for his metal monster. "SUV bus". "Pickup truck car". "Ice cream copter". I can't tell if he's trying to be amusing, or if he's really wondering if these are possible words I've neglected to teach him. There are, after all, so many out there.
He still shows extreme interest in sign language. When I don't know the sign for a particular word, he feels confident making one up. He's decided that the sign for "fish" is probably better suited for the word "flag". I still haven't looked up the correct sign for flag, but I tend to agree with him. And when we took him to the aquarium in Corpus Christi, he insisted that the sign for dolphin had to be putting your hands close to your body and then shooting them out in front of you. He did it over and over, as he said "dolphin". When we saw the trainers use that same sign to get the dolphins to swim across the pool, Chris and I looked at each other in awe. Sometimes we think the kid may be a little touched. He has skills that knock us off our feet daily. Turns out the sign for dolphin is completely different. I've since learned it and taught it to him, and he's willingly replaced his misinformation with the correct info.
We've been attending Music Together classes for nearly a year now. With the class, we get a cd of the songs we sing each week. Paxton has his clear favorites and doesn't hesitate to demand that I play them again and again when we're out running errands. "Shoo-Fly, Don't Bother Me" is the current number one hit in our car. Today, Paxton decided to try his hand at writing his own lyrics. He sang happily, "Shoo-car!". Then he replaced "fly" with whatever else he saw around him. "Shoo-lady!". "Shoo-shoe!". "Shoo-leg!". He was quite self-congratulatory at his own cleverness.
I suppose the "shoo-fly" alternatives were inevitable, as he has been filling in the blanks of the "Hello" song for weeks now. The song goes like this--"Hello, to Paxton, so glad to see you...". That's it. We sing it to every kid in the room, and then to the mommies as a group, the daddies, the grandmas and so on. Paxton started singing it at home a few weeks ago. I hear his wobbly crooning over the monitor. "Hell-ooooooooo to Mommy". Now he sings it to whoever or whatever crosses his path. Every one of the pets has been blessed with their own version. So have the trees outside our house, our cars, Paxton's Hot Wheels, his stuffed animals, and anything else he lays his eyes on. It's more cute than it sounds, just because I get to hear my little boy make his first efforts at singing. I'll either be recounting this story to Oprah someday when he becomes a world-renowned crooner, or I'll be commiserating with his wife that he's always been a little off-key despite his love of song.
Wherever his future talents lie, I know that this little person is going to do great things in this life. He has the will and the intelligence to go far. I can only hope that we instill in him a heart to help people, because with his persistance, big changes are going to be made in this world! Resistance is futile! Paxton's on the case!
Later, bored in the car, he was sipping his milk and practicing some of his sign language. He held the milk in his mouth and did the sign for "bubbles". Then he held his milk gingerly in one hand and did the sign for "bubbles" again. "Milk bubbles," he said. True, true.
He has often pointed out car anomalies. If a car has a bike rack on the back of it, he calls it a "car bike". If it's pulling a trailer, it's a "trailer car". Now he likes to stack one Hot Wheel atop another and create a new word for his metal monster. "SUV bus". "Pickup truck car". "Ice cream copter". I can't tell if he's trying to be amusing, or if he's really wondering if these are possible words I've neglected to teach him. There are, after all, so many out there.
He still shows extreme interest in sign language. When I don't know the sign for a particular word, he feels confident making one up. He's decided that the sign for "fish" is probably better suited for the word "flag". I still haven't looked up the correct sign for flag, but I tend to agree with him. And when we took him to the aquarium in Corpus Christi, he insisted that the sign for dolphin had to be putting your hands close to your body and then shooting them out in front of you. He did it over and over, as he said "dolphin". When we saw the trainers use that same sign to get the dolphins to swim across the pool, Chris and I looked at each other in awe. Sometimes we think the kid may be a little touched. He has skills that knock us off our feet daily. Turns out the sign for dolphin is completely different. I've since learned it and taught it to him, and he's willingly replaced his misinformation with the correct info.
We've been attending Music Together classes for nearly a year now. With the class, we get a cd of the songs we sing each week. Paxton has his clear favorites and doesn't hesitate to demand that I play them again and again when we're out running errands. "Shoo-Fly, Don't Bother Me" is the current number one hit in our car. Today, Paxton decided to try his hand at writing his own lyrics. He sang happily, "Shoo-car!". Then he replaced "fly" with whatever else he saw around him. "Shoo-lady!". "Shoo-shoe!". "Shoo-leg!". He was quite self-congratulatory at his own cleverness.
I suppose the "shoo-fly" alternatives were inevitable, as he has been filling in the blanks of the "Hello" song for weeks now. The song goes like this--"Hello, to Paxton, so glad to see you...". That's it. We sing it to every kid in the room, and then to the mommies as a group, the daddies, the grandmas and so on. Paxton started singing it at home a few weeks ago. I hear his wobbly crooning over the monitor. "Hell-ooooooooo to Mommy". Now he sings it to whoever or whatever crosses his path. Every one of the pets has been blessed with their own version. So have the trees outside our house, our cars, Paxton's Hot Wheels, his stuffed animals, and anything else he lays his eyes on. It's more cute than it sounds, just because I get to hear my little boy make his first efforts at singing. I'll either be recounting this story to Oprah someday when he becomes a world-renowned crooner, or I'll be commiserating with his wife that he's always been a little off-key despite his love of song.
Wherever his future talents lie, I know that this little person is going to do great things in this life. He has the will and the intelligence to go far. I can only hope that we instill in him a heart to help people, because with his persistance, big changes are going to be made in this world! Resistance is futile! Paxton's on the case!
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