Dean at One Year Two Months
Sunday, July 20th, 2011
Dean is growing by leaps and bounds. He just looks like a really big kid and even towers over some of his much older friends. He eats a lot (almost adult sized meals) which fuels his boundless energy. This kid can go. He loves to wander throughout the house, exploring a little bit but basically just to move. I have never seen a kid so intent on walking around. When we go the gym, he does that there, too. Meanders for the entire hour. Our son will carry a toy (sometimes in his mouth) but he has to keep going.
Dean had a new house to pace when we went to San Diego. My mom was smart to put up the gates. We let him go and have the run of the upstairs. Grandma's dog, Ember, was a little bewildered by this chubby boy but allowed Dean to maul her somewhat. We took him to the park to get rid of some of his energy. He freaked at the slide and wasn't very interested in playing in the sand. My sister, Jimmy, and Sasha ended up pushing him in the swing for over an hour. He was very upset when we made any move to lift him out. His enjoyment of motion makes me worried that we have another speed demon in the making.
Dean wasn't as well-behaved on the plane flights. I think his ear was hurting him and there were definite shrieks. Fortunately, I had packed plenty of snacks (and Sasha and I were separated from the boys on the flight over due to barely making the flight- longest check-in I've ever been in including holidays).
I took Dean to Tot Town for the first time. I thought he would go nuts in a huge gymnasium filled with toys (so much space to run around in!) but he was unsure of the surroundings. Mainly he wanted climb the slide to the bouncy house (he climbs the slide at the kids center at LA Fitness, too, but refuses to go back down so the caregiver has to rescue him constantly) although he refused to go in it. I finally got him interested in the car- yes, he is all boy! Loves things that go VROOOOMMM!!! I am going to head for the hills when he turns sixteen.
Dean loves to look at picture books. We have shelves of them in the playroom and his bedroom. He will take all them off and peruse them for very long periods of time. I have had to tape up innumerous pages- even the cardboard ones! When Dean wants to be read to, he'll throw a book at me and squeak (his way of communication is very effective). I am happy to oblige except he usually only wants one book read: Pajama Time by Sandra Boynton. I had it memorized after the first hundred times. I don't know why he is attracted to that particular book- maybe the black cover? But, I'll be a good Mama and continue if he demands so. I've got a soft spot for that sweet blue-eyed boy of mine.
Sasha at Four Years and One Month
Tuesday, July 8th, 2011
Sasha is an absolute goofball sometimes. We both love being silly so there is much giggling and wacky faces/ voices. A character named "Tickle Hand" (and his brother, Frank) has evolved. Tickle Hand loves to- as you can guess- tickle so Sasha has to either smoosh him to death so he'll stop or put him in jail. Cycle this 3-4 times and we have occupied ourselves for over twenty minutes. Yes, it is slightly macabre play acting. Pretending has become so involved. All of her Barbies have specific names, story lines, and personalities; it's a regular soap opera. Anytime Sasha is at home, she is begging, pleading, whining to play Barbie. I am usually 5- 6 characters whereas my daughter is only one. She is, sadly, obsessed with blonde ones. I hate to think she already has conventional western ideas of beauty at age four. She watches no commercials, I try to buy her darker skinned/ haired dolls, and we have had tons of conversations about differences, etc. but to no avail. Am I fighting a losing battle?
The entire family went to San Diego to see my mom and sister and to escape the dreadful heat (which, of course, followed us west). Sasha had a fabulous time. We took her to the beach twice and my waterbaby fell in love with running up and down the shoreline and splashing among the waves. Grandma kept a careful eye on Sasha and picked her up whenever a too large wave threatened to knock her down. My mom also tried to teach Sasha how to boogie board but that didn't work so well. The beach is my daughter's idea of heaven not just for the above reasons but also because there is sand to dig in, sandcastles (or molds) to be made, shells to collect, sandcrabs to peer at, and HOT DOG/ SNACK STANDS. What else is there in life? She could have spent all day there; it was a hassle to drag her away.
We felt Sasha was old enough to go to the California State Fair this year which is only fifteen minutes from my Mom's house. We decided to take a bus over there; it was Sasha's first time on one and she was pretty excited about that. We got there a bit too early and so spent some time look at the 4H stalls before the rides opened. The animals were surprisingly cool to watch like the llamas, the ginormous rabbits, and even the turkeys. We bought a whole slew of tickets for the rides but Sasha liked it when I accompanied her (don't blame her as it is much more fun to share an experience) so we gobbled through the tickets pretty quickly. My stomach isn't as young as it used to be so a few of the rollercoasters made my insides protest. My little speed demon daughter had no such qualms. Excessive jouncing and g-force only makes my daughter laugh hysterically. We did all the classics, though, including the ferris wheel, an elephant ride (Dumbo pooped for 10 minutes while we were on top much to Sasha's fascination), and the fun house. Her absolute favorite thing was this bungee jumping/ trampoline contraption. Basically, it allowes the victim to jump 20 feet in the air. When we found out she met the weight requirement, Sasha conned Grandma into buying the special ticket for this. Eleven year olds were freaking out on this while my daughter was pissed when it ended. Fortunately, Grandma came equipped with a dripping ice cream cone (the temp was scorching by this time) as a succor. This was after Sasha feasted on cotton candy, bland macaroni and cheese, and juice. A junkfood extravaganza. We left the park by 2ish as we were starting to get suburnt and someone(s) needed a nap.
Sasha had her last week of her first camp. Her teachers were not nearly as good as they were last year and their craft projects were terrible. She had a decent enough time and made fast friends with a boy. The both delighted in making paper planes and flying them. I think they spent most of the time doing that. Sasha brought home over a dozen planes in the course of six weeks.
After Sasha was finished with camp, she and I escaped the grueling Phoenix heat and spent the night with her buddy up in Sedona. Her first non-related quasi-sleepover! Sasha and her pal had a blast playing together and gorging themselves on homemade brownies (with confetti topping!!!). We tromped around in the river for a full morning. Sasha was excited to see minnows and tadpoles. Fifteen minutes in, she had managed to shuck her dress and was wading/ swimming in her panties. Due to a poor choice in shoes, I slipped and got thoroughly soaked- I think you have to be under twelve to not mind wet, soggy underwear. Despite the mishap, it was very enjoyable. There were many rocks to climb over or use as stepping stones across the pools. The water was pretty shallow and we avoided strong currents. Afterwards, we watched helicopters and cessnas up at the airpark and played at a park. The weather, though warm, wasn't brutal. A very nice respite.
Next week, Sasha starts gymnastics camp. And, in three weeks we have a tripped planned to Legoland. This has been such a fun summer. Sasha is old enough to do so many wonderful activities and she's so excited about all of them. Now, if only the hundred degree days would let up. Thank goodness for the pool. We spend most afternoons paddling about after Sasha's nap. We've even started using the grill which our daughter adores. Hot dogs, corn on the cob, and veggie burgers. Yum! There's nothing like chlorinated hugs and ketchup kisses from my little girl to make summer evening memorable.
