Happy Birthday to ME!

I’m three!  My birthday was on Tuesday, and it was really cool.  I didn’t have a party or anything, but Daddy brought home awesome balloons and I got some really cool presents.

Also, Ms. Mallory (a friend of Mommy and Daddy from college who’s now working in Huntsville as a NASA Co-op) joined us for dinner and cupcakes.  I took a picture of her so everyone can see:

That’s her with the arm.

OH… and since Mommy and Daddy just noticed that they have incriminating photos of me at every birthday, allow me to introduce: THE ICING CHRONICLES – Birthday 1, 2, and 3.

Notice a trend?    I make messes.  It’s just how I roll.

In honor of my birthday, I thought I should list which wishes came true and which will have to wait until next year -

Fulfilled Wishes:

• Getting Balloons!
• Receiving Truck and Car Toys
• Eating lots of Cup Cakes
• Being THREE!

Wishes not yet fulfilled:

• Getting to go to bed whenever I want
• No more time outs
• A puppy
• Getting to play with playdough every day

Maybe next year…

Happy Birthday to Me!

That’s right… I’m now the Big Two.  I don’t know why people keep calling it the “Terrible Twos”.  I’m having a great time.  Mommy and Daddy are finally learning to understand Danglish (Daniel English… I figure people would get confused if I shorten it Danish).  I mean seriously… I understand that they’re getting old, but is it really so hard to understand that Neos means Sandals, Beeboo means Paper, and Kahkoo means motorcycle, bicycle, circle, ring, finger, and sock?

I had a really fun party, too.  Lots of friends and family!  And I got some great presents… everything from some cool new books to a big car and motorcycle toy that are big enough to ride on.  Mr. Jim even got me some safety gear!  Plus he got me a blank license plate.  He said we can write “Daniel” on it if it’s going on the car, but if we decide to put it on the bike, we have to write “Snake”.  I, of course, prefer snake.  Unfortunately, having no riding gloves, I’m forced to wear Daddy’s motorcycle gloves.

The whole party was fun, though.  We hung out, played in the house a bit, and finally moved outside where I could enjoy my new riding toys.  I wonder what I’ll get next year?!  I think I heard Daddy mention a dirt bike and Mommy mention a giant inflatable bubble.

Learning to Talk

So I figure there are two major parts to learning to talk.  The first, of course, is being able to understand what others are saying.  I’m really good at this.  Here are a few things that I understand:

“Put that back”
“Sit Down”/”Stand Up”
“Give *name of person* a hug”
“Put that in the trash”
“Take that out of your mouth”
“Don’t eat the kitty”

The second part is learning to make the sounds yourself.  Now, it’s not that I’ve been incapable of copying the sounds that Mommy and Daddy make.  After all, I picked up several words long ago.  It’s just that, quite frankly, talking just didn’t seem that terribly critical.  With the proper mix of grunts, expressions, and hand motions, I can communicate quite effectively.  However, I have noticed lately that Mommy and Daddy (and now the grandparents, too!) have been making a point to have me try to say what I want.  Apparently they feel it’s time that I make the switch.  And to add insult to insult, they are even refusing to give me what I want if I’m whining.  I guess they don’t understand that I whine when I want something, not when I don’t want it.  Perhaps they are ones who need to work on their ability to communicate.

Anyway, I have been practicing.  I’m getting really good at repeating words back to them.  I’ve been able to use words like “Momma”, “Dada”, “Zeus”, “Kitty”, “No”, and others for a long time.  Now, though, I’m repeating back new words like “Door”, “Window”, “Cricket”, and others.  With a little more practice, I should be able to talk all on my own!  I’m a practical guy.  I suppose I can learn to use words if it really does help someone communicate.   In the meantime, though, I’ll continue to grunt.  And blog.

Things are heating up

Hi everyone!  I took a little break from blogging.  The weather has gotten so nice!  I think Mommy and Daddy are starting to get in the Summer mood, too.  We went to Walmart and got me some new stuff.  They got me some new sandals (my old ones were getting a little small), a cool ball to play with that looks like a globe, a new pool (because last year’s is too small), and some new clothes.  I’m REALLY excited about the pool.  Last year, I got to play in my little pool a lot.  I don’t like to stay in the pool, of course, but it’s fun to walk around it and push the sides down so the water can pour out.

Mommy and Daddy also said that I need to be sure to mention my new ability to say belly button.  Now, as it has an unnecessarily high number of syllables, I tend to shorten it to “Bay buh”.  This, of course, gets the point across, and I always make sure to point at mine or Mommy’s or Daddy’s in case there is any confusion.

You know what’s really fun?  Driveways.  I love to pick up the little rocks and chunks of asphalt.  Mommy and Daddy won’t let me into the house with them, though, so I try to leave myself a pile by the door (though the pile does seem to disappear sometimes).  Luckily, Daddy has been showing me how to use pockets, so I think I have a way around this.

Did I mention that I have a new booster seat?  The coolest thing is that I can now buckle myself in.  Mommy and Daddy just hand me the straps and I click the 3 straps together all by myself.  Sometimes it takes a while because I get one twisted or upside-down, but I can do it if given enough time.

Mommy and Daddy took some pictures the other day, so I’ll bet they’ll be asking me to post those once they upload them.

Sickly, but Still Cute

So it’s been a few days since Mommy and Daddy helped me blog. Things have been really busy!

I’m a little sick. My fever is starting to go back down now, but I’m still too sick to go to daycare. Mommy has to stay home with me today, because she doesn’t have any classes. If I’m still sick tomorrow, Daddy will probably stay home with me. Last night, I kept waking up so Mommy brought me to bed with her and Daddy for a little while. I fell asleep in her arms, so she put me between them until I woke up again. I loved it!! I’d open my eyes, see them looking at me, give them a great big grin, and then drift back off to sleep.

Yesterday, Uncle Chris, Miss Stacy, and Mr. Jonathan all came over for dinner. It was really fun. I got lots of attention, even though Jonathan kept playing with the jumbo Legos that Mommy and Daddy got for me. I was a little cranky because I was getting sicker, but Mommy and Daddy say I was very well behaved. Daddy grilled chicken and Mommy made pasta and salad. I didn’t really feel like eating much, though. I liked seeing everyone, but being sick is stinky.

I mentioned that I had figured out how to open a door, right? Well, I’ve been getting lots of practice. We hung out with Mr. Thomas and Mrs. Summer for a while the other day, and I went in and out of their office again and again. It’s hard to get my hands all the way around the doorknob and twist it, but I can do it. Unfortunately, Mommy and Daddy put “child-safe” locks on the all the doorknobs that lead to sweet, sweet freedom. Until I find out how to work them (or my blowtorch arrives), I’ll have to wait for Mommy or Daddy if I want to go outside. Luckily, it’s been warm enough that I get to go out pretty often.

Nightmares and zippers and things like Chemistry

Lately, I’ve been waking up and immediately crying really hard. In the past, Mommy and Daddy would hear me talking to Mr. Floppy (my bunny) or other bedroom accessories. After I played for a bit and relaxed, I’d then inform them of my readiness to get up with a sincere and escalating call. These days, though, I’ve been instantly going from asleep to completely awake and really upset. Mommy and Daddy think I might be having nightmares. All I know is I don’t like it.

I’ve been trying to figure out how zippers work. I first learned while attempting to escape my cotton prison during nap time. PJs are for babies. This, of course, led to Mommy and Daddy coming to my crib to find me partially or completely disrobed, including diaper. And yes, it was sometimes inconvenient. And yes, it was sometimes messy. But it was also glorious. Anyway, as I had only explored the “taking off” side of zippers, I’ve decided to start learning to zip things up. Last night, Mommy and Daddy were trying to get me dressed for bed when the realized that I wasn’t leaning over to be difficult but was actually reaching for the zipper so I could zip up my PJs. With Mommy holding the pieces just right, I was able to zip the outfit almost up past my leg. I still have some practicing to do, but that’s what nap time is for.

Mommy picked me up early from daycare yesterday and today. I like spending so much time with her! I wish it were Spring Break every week. She’s also been doing a lot of cleaning. While it’s nice to have so much room to run, she’s taking away all my toys. Now, I don’t mean the regular toys that were bought for me. I mean the extra toys, like school papers and books. How am I supposed to knock everything off the coffee table if it’s clear?! I have a hard enough time finding outlets for my need to inflict mayhem. Things are really getting out hand. I’m going to have to do something to level the playing field. It may finally be time to execute plan Alpha Male. Everything is in place, though I did have a surprisingly hard time finding peppermint-flavored staplers. Now, if I can just find a way to open the lid on the motor oil…

 

Great weekend!

I had an awesome weekend!  Saturday morning, Mommy, Daddy, and I went to see Nana and Papa!!

On Saturday, I got to play a lot of cool games.  One of Mommy’s and Daddy’s friends has DDR (Dance, Dance, Revolution).  At first, I just watched, but it looked like so much fun.  It’s easy!  Basically, when the music starts, you just stomp on the pad.  Uncle Chris stomps on a lot of different pads as the music plays, but I like to just stand on one arrow and stomp really fast.  Daddy tried to give me my own pad by putting my changing pad on the floor, but it just wasn’t the same.  With a little convincing, I got Uncle Chris to let me share his pad.  We did much better that way.

 Another cool toy I got to play with was Daddy’s Rubix Cube.  He messes with it when we’re in town, but he hasn’t completed it yet.  I’m trying to decide how much more time to give him.  The basic algorithm is quite simple, and it pains me to see him struggling with it so.  I tried to give him hints by hitting certain edges on the floor or chewing strategic corners, but I don’t think he picked up on it.  I figure I’ll give him a couple more tries to finish it.  I wouldn’t want to hurt his feelings.

 

I also got to go to church and hang out in the nursery for a while.  Everyone there is really nice, and I got to see some more of the family.  Overall, it was a really cool weekend.  I’m also glad for Mommy because next week is Spring Break.  She loves spending time with me, but she knows how much I love being at daycare and how much I learn there.  She and Daddy talked about it, and they decided I can still go to daycare some, even though Mommy’s not in school.  She deserves a break!  She’s been working really hard at practicum, school, and at home.  Mommy says she might steal me away from daycare for a day, and that would be fun, too!

Oh yeah!  And I learned something new this weekend!  The kitchen pantry at Nana’s and Papa’s has a loose door knob, and I can open it!  On most doors, it’s too tight for me to turn the knob.  I know what to do, but I just can’t get my hands around it and turn it far enough.  That one door knob, though, is just light enough for me to open!  And now, Mommy and Daddy can tell me how to throw stuff away, too.  At home or at Nana’s and Papa’s, they can hand me something and say “Throw this away, please.”  At home, I can flip up the lid, throw away whatever I’m holding, and shut the lid.  At Nana’s and Papa’s, I’ll open the pantry, throw it away, and close the door.  They say I’m really smart, because I only throw away what they ask me to, and I know how to open and close stuff.  I keep trying to tell them that I’ve always been this smart, but I finally have time for silly things like garbage disposal.

 New food I like: Black-eyed peas.  Suspiciously nutritive, yet delicious.

New Blog, New Stuff, New Talents! News about News -

Mommy and Daddy got me a new blog!  See, I’ve been using a site called phusbox, but they think I’m ready to graduate.  Hopefully this new blog will be so cool that they’ll help me update all the time!

Yesterday I got to go to daycare twice!  Mommy and Daddy had a seminar on my “sensory needs”.  Basically, my teacher told my Mommy and Daddy that I have to touch stuff because I just can’t help it.  They also learned some cool games to play with me and some food-type stuff that I can play in, like corn startch and water.  It looks wonderfully messy.  I can’t wait to see how much I can get in Daddy’s hair.

It’s warming up a little here, which means I get to go outside more.  I love being outside, especially when it’s warm and windy.  The playground at daycare is awesome, and there’s lots of stuff to climb.  It’s going to be really warm today, but it’s supposed to get cold and rainy this weekend.  Mommy says she wants to exercise more, so she’s been taking me on lots of walks.  I really love it, but she always makes funny noises when we go up hills.  I think she might be allergic.

I’m learning something new!  Usually, Mommy and Daddy take off my jacket for me and hang it up.  Well, two days ago, I decided to try to hang my jacket up myself.  I still can’t reach the rack, though, so Mommy had to pick me up to help me.  Apparently I’m quite smart for knowing what to do with my jacket.  As far as I can tell, I’m even smarter than Daddy!  He leaves his coat everywhere!!  Yesterday, Daddy started teaching me how to take my own jacket off.  I can’t get the zipper yet or the first sleeve, but Daddy taught me how to hold the second sleeve so I could finish taking it off.  Then, I take it to the coat rack and wait to be lifted for proper storage… proper storage of the jacket, that is.

I also got two new things: a baby toilet (ugh) and a pillow for my bed (accpetable).  I like playing with pillows.  I stack them up and sit on top, or I lay them all out and lie on them.  It’s most fun when Mommy and Daddy cover me with pillows and play with me, but it’s fun alone, too.  Since I like them so much, Mommy and Daddy are letting me use the big boy pillow from the guest bed.  I like to keep them guessing, though.  Even though I really like it, I make sure they never actually catch me lying on it.  As for the toilet, I don’t like it at all!  I mean, the squishy ring is cool, and the whole toilet works as a step stool to get me in and out of the bathtub, but I HATE sitting on it.  The first time Mommy and Daddy tried, I calmly expressed my dislike for the device, using a mere 130 decibels and 2-3/4 cups of baby tears.  They, of course, were quite startled by my reaction.  I know they don’t expect me to use it yet and that they just wanted me to get used to seeing it, but I’m never gonna sit on that thing!  Besides, the whole idea is just weird.  I prefer my diaper, where I can be sure of exactly where everything is.  I think I’ve heard them whispering that they’ll try sitting me on it when I get closer to being old enough to actually potty train.

Which brings up an entirely new issue: why buy a potty and then train it?  Seriously, if you’re paying moeny for a toilet, shouldn’t it come pretrained?  Besides, It seems pretty well-behaved to me.  All it does it sit there all day.  Although… it did make me cry.  I wonder what the recommended method of positive reinforcement is for a toilet.  I’ll bet it has something to do with Scrubbing Bubbles and lavendar.

11 Months Old!

Today I turn 11 Months.  I’m really excited about next month because I get a cake with soccer stuff on it.  I like soccer a lot.  Sometimes, Daddy rolls me the ball, and then says “roll it to daddy!” which means chew vigorously.  And trust me-I do!

I’m still working on that walking stuff.  I don’t like not having something to hang on to.  I take steps occasionally, but crawling is much faster and safer.  Plus Mommy and Daddy keep chasing me around on the floor, and there’s no way I can get away if I’m trying to walk.  It’s a lot of fun!  If they catch me, they tickle me, so I really have to stay on my toes (knees?)  Sometimes they get tired though, so I have to roll over and wait for them to catch up.  I guess they’re old. Mommy and Daddy have new friends.  They’re named Mr. Thomas and Ms. Summer, and they go to church with us and live just down the road.  They’re really nice, and Ms. Summer is pregnant!  She’s having a son, and they named him Daniel, too.  Luckily for all of you, you can just remember that I’m the cute Daniel.I’ve started trying to use cups and forks and spoons.  Forks and spoons are easy once the food is on them, but I can’t really get food up there… especially if it’s slimy.  Cups, on the other hand, are awesome!  Mommy got me some real milk!  No formula for me!  And I get the whole milk!  Not just 2% of it.  I don’t really know what the means, but I get an extra 98%, so I’m happy.  I found it makes blowing raspberries even better.  Get a mouth full of milk, and let ‘er rip.  Fountains of milk!  It was all over me, mommy… I think I saw some dripping off the light fixture.  Well, I guess I’m off to bed.  I’m told I can have a little homemade ice cream on my birthday, so I know exactly what I’ll be dreaming about.

One Step for a Small Man

As many of you know, I triumphed early this week.  I am now one step closer to walking, literally.  To top it off, my first step was an attempt to escape Mommy.  That will teach her to try to take stuff out of my mouth.  Victory is mine.

The past couple days, I’ve been a bit under the weather.  My nose is so runny, I have a green moustache.  It makes it difficult to breathe and eat.  Nevertheless, I refuse to let Mommy or Daddy wipe my nose and I maintain that it is a gross violation of my personal space.  And by gross, I mean gross!  Mommy says I’m teething again and that’s why I’m drooling so much right now.  Mommy keeps making me wear a bib
to keep my clothes clean.

Every night around 9:30, Mommy or Daddy wakes me up and feeds me so I won’t get hungry and want a midnight snack.  A week or so ago, they tried skipping it.  Boy, was I angry around 11PM when I woke up with a rumbly belly!  I explained to them, in no uncertain terms, that it was a bad idea, and I demanded immediate sustenance.  They haven’t tried skipping it again since then.  I think I got my point across.  I’ll have them trained yet.

This weekend, Mommy, Daddy, and I are going to visit Grandmama and Grandpa.  Aunt Sarah and Uncle Todd are supposed to be there too.  My goal for the weekend: to not let my feet or bottom touch the floor.  I think with the assistance of Aunt Sarah and Grandmama, I’ll succeed.  Wish me luck!