Pretend Elevator

The kids and I found ourselves in the back house today. Parker likes to play with the sliding door to the bathroom. He goes in the bathroom and then closes the door and says it's an elevator. Today he said, "I'm gonna go to the 9th floor and when I get there, there is going to be a lady there who looks like you, wearing the same clothes as you, sitting in a chair like you." He closed the door and then came out a few minutes later, announcing, "I'm here on the 9th floor now!" Then he got back in the bathroom, said he was going to go down to 1 and then home and slid the door closed. When he 'arrived' back on 1, he said, "Hi Mommy! I saw a lady that looks just like you on the 9th floor!"

I love shit like this. It reminds me that he isn't just a math freak. Something that is hard to do when he is multiplying numbers on the fridge all day long.

Daily Nonsense

Yesterday afternoon, I had thought we would just stick around the house since everyone was pretty snotty and coughing. But then Parker asked to go to the park. So after a lot of crying (about whatever) and getting dressed, we were off. After an hour or so there, it was time to leave. This particular park is right off a very busy, very fast moving street. (One time, we saw another friend's kid ride his tricycle down the walkway into the street. Scary!) So as we were walking down, I asked the kids to walk slowly. Elizabeth took this to mean run fast. Miranda took Elizabeth running to mean run with her. I stopped and told them to freeze and then come back to me so we could walk slowly down. After thinking about this for a few minutes, they returned. We all started walking slowly, but soon enough Elizabeth and then Miranda were running. I yelled. They stopped. Returned. Started again. We went through this a few times before they got it (or before they decided to just walk slowly). Just at that time, Parker, who had been getting water and walking slowly, started to run. He runs in these little circles. I started to tell him to slow down to just walk to stop running. While I was saying these things, he fell. Scraped his arm up pretty bad and scared the crap out of himself.

This little story, which took no more than 7 minutes total, is a good example of the struggle I continue to have with these kids. As I was telling them to slow down, I felt bad that I was "restricting" them or trying to control them unnecessarily (I mean, they probably weren't going to just run into the street as they have never done that before). But as my daily goal continues to be "to avoid the emergency room", I kept at it, feeling guilty the whole time. Then Parker gets hurt and instead of feeling bad for him and being sympathetic, I just got annoyed and my inner voice said, "I told you so." Like Parker gives a crap about my inner voice. Sure, I was right, but who really cares?

I have no idea what the "fix" is for this kind of thing. I could have held their hands as we walked down, but then other issues would have popped up like Elizabeth's nursemaid's elbow or who got to be in front and who in back (two have to hold one hand). Perhaps the fix was staying home, which is what I wanted to do to begin with.

Ah, sigh.

More BADM

Lori and I took the kids to the Bay Area Discovery Museum. Weather was great, crowds weren't bad, and kids did very well most of the time. There was a new exhibit up of things that made noise. Parker loved this room, but it was too noisy for me and I went outside with the girls where they dressed up like a bee and a skunk. I was also able to let them paint today, an activity I usually avoid, since it's hard to manage on my own. They didn't like painting as much as they liked cleaning it up with the spray bottles and squeegees. Who knew?

Little Savages

While Michael and I did some much overdue gardening, the kids did some painting. It was very civil at first. They painted on the paper as instructed, but soon enough it got out of control and we just decided to give in to it. They were painting eachother's hair, butts, bellies, feet...everything. They had such a grand time doing it too. Until it was time to take a shower to wash it all off. Miranda and Elizabeth were very upset. We couldn't get it all off around their eyes so they looked like tiny little teenagers with blue eye shadow.












After the shower and still grumpy.

Aunt Lori!

Aunt Lori is here and the kids could not be more happy.

Upside Down

Sometimes I think I gave birth to monkeys.

On accident?

The kids are learning the phrase, "On purpose" and "An Accident". As in, "Did you hit your sister in the face on purpose?" Or "Don't be too upset Elizabeth, it was an accident when Parker jumped on your legs."

So today, Miranda is reading In the Night Kitchen and she yells out "QUIET DOWN THERE!" Which for some reason, deeply offends Elizabeth who screams "NO NANA!" Miranda then says, "Biza said NO NANA," while starting to cry. So I tell Elizabeth, "Miranda is just reading the book and she can say Quiet down there and it makes her feel bad when you yell at her."

Then Elizabeth says, "I said No at her on accident."

Parker, who had been quiet this whole time smiled and said, "Not Ah"

Sorry Amy, Monica, Kathleen, Kay and Betsy

We just found out Lori is coming down for a weekend visit. I told the kids at breakfast. Miranda said, "I love Aunt Lori!" Parker said, "Is she coming on March 27th?" followed by "Lori is my favorite Aunt."

Then he ran upstairs and started looking out the window. I said, "what are you doing?" He said, "Looking out the window until Aunt Lori gets here."

Mocktogons

When I was putting Parker to bed tonight, we played the "which do you like better" game, and Parker was asking me what things I liked, which were generally based on things he could see. What do you like better, a lamp or a plant? A door or a shelf?

Eventually we got onto the subject of shapes, and he asked me whether I liked hexagons better or pentagons. I told him that I preferred hexagons, and he let me know that he liked pentagons. He then asked me whether I liked squares or triangles. I told him I liked triangles, and he said he liked squares. Then he told me, "Well, you have a 63, but I have a 54." Took me a minute.

Then he asked me what shape has 8 sides, and I informed him that it was called an Octogon. Being a good father, I pointed out that an Octopus has 8 arms. He asked me what shape has 7 sides, and I told him I didn't know.

He then asked me what shape has 12 sides, and I told him I didn't know. He informed me that he was pretty sure it was called a "Mocktogon" because the word Midnight starts with the letter M, and midnight is 12 o'clock, so a shape with 12 sides is called a Mocktogon.

Which one is Lysander and which one is Helena?

This morning the kids were playing on the floor on the dining room. Parker was all tucked in to some blankets and Elizabeth was reading him books. Miranda was playing off to the side on her own blankets.

At one point Parker said, Elizabeth, lie down with me!

Elizabeth said, NO!

Elizabeth then said, Miranda, can I lie down with you?

Miranda said NO!

Elizabeth notices everything.

Examples:

The other day when I was reading books to the kids, I noticed there were too many so I quietly and slyly took one off the stack and slipped in on the ground. Elizabeth said, "Mommy, what you doing with that book?"

Whenever I have something in my mouth, she asks, "Mommy, what's in your mouth?"

When we are walking somewhere and she hears other people talking she says, "Mommy, what do they say?"

When I left a message for Parker's teacher that he wouldn't be in school today, she said, "You talking to my teacher?" (I said Barbara instead of Mrs. Ulbrich, and Barbara is her teacher's name too.)

Neither Parker nor Miranda comment on any of this. Not sure if that means they don't notice or they notice and don't care or they notice and don't care to comment.

Money!

Parker's two latest number related infatuations are calendars and money. Today, while on a errand (he stayed home from school today due to a lot of coughing), he announced that 20 quarters plus 10 dimes was 6 dollars. He also told me all the combinations to get to 25 cents. Well...not all of them, but a lot.

He also asks to do things on future dates like, "Can we go the park on June 12th?" or "Let's watch a tv show on May 24th." I like it when he does this since it's really easy to say "Sure!". Let's just hope on June 12th or May 24th he doesn't remember, since I surely will not.

SNL Digital Shorts

Ever since the Tina Fey/Sarah Palin stuff on SNL, we have been recording the show and watching it later in the week. It still has the same problems it always has (skits are too long), but some of it is really funny. We love it when Justin Timberlake shows up as he is usually hilarious. We also love the digital shorts that they do every week. This week, I was watching it while Michael was doing work. I started laughing out loud and called him in to see it. We watched again and we were both cracking up. I think I almost peed in my pants. Now, I'm sure now that I said that, it won't seem as funny as we did, but I just watched again and still lost it at TURD BURGLAR.

Distracted.

Elizabeth, who never has any problem going to sleep at nap time (she is usually asleep within 4 minutes of her head hitting the pillow), was tossing and turning today. I left the room with her awake, which has never happened. About 20 minutes later, I hear some breathing at the door so I open it up and there is Elizabeth. She says, "I need to go poop!" So she goes to the toilet, poops and then goes back into the bed and falls asleep immediately.

Miranda pulls a Parker

I was reading the kids books at nap time. It was the three little bears, a current Miranda favorite. I got to the last page and said, "And they never saw Goldilocks again." Miranda yells, "LITTLE!". Huh?. Then I look back at the page and it says, "And they never saw little goldilocks again."

Bad Hair Day

Bouncing, Bouncing.

The other day after naps, the kids and I were playing ball in the house in our pj's. We decided to go outside. When I opened the garage to get something, I saw the bouncy balls my mom gave the kids for Christmas. I got them out and everyone had a grand time for about an hour bouncing up and down the street. People were stopping to look at them it was so god damn cute.

Help Please

So...Parker brought this home from school today. I asked him what it was or what the numbers meant or what the letters were and he said,

"well, you see, the E is equal to 0000, the F 0611, the 0 1022, the 7 4000, and the Z 1600"

I just said, "Oh."

I have no idea what the heck he is talking about, but my guess is that it isn't totally random numbers and letters. I'm hoping someone at either the Marcus or Martin homes can figure it out because I think you need a degree in math to get this one. (Oh, wait, I have one. Shit.)

Cards

Parker is going to a birthday party for a preschool friend today. So this morning, I told him it was time to make him a card to go with the present. I gave him a piece of paper and pen and he did it on his own. He put a 0005 on the front (because he was turning 5) and Happy Birthday in the middle (spelled on his own...even the two P's) and From Parker Long on the back. The only thing he needed help with was the name of the kid. EOIN pronounced OWEN. That Parker...he is so slow.

Susan Sits

Last night, Susan came over to watch the kids and Michael and I went to dinner and movie. I do these swaps a lot with Ebba and Susan. It saves money and the kids don't stress out since they "love Susan". A win win. Usually we go out after the girls are down leaving only Parker to deal with. But last night, Susan came over early and she had to deal with the whole pack while we had Sushi and saw I Love You, Man with my favorite actor Paul Rudd.

Since Miranda has been in a mood for the last few nights, we warned Susan and told her to do whatever was necessary. Susan, who also has a couple screamers/not sleepers was prepared for the challenge.

A few minutes after we left, she said, OK, let's go read books to the girls. They immediately ran upstairs and hopped on our bed which is not part of the bedtime routine. Unfortunately, they did it so quickly and confidently that she figured it was and went with the flow. They all read books to each other for a while and then Susan said it was time to go downstairs thinking it was time to get in bed and sing songs. The girls, however, knowing perfectly well the "routine", hopped in her lap on the green chair and were ready for books. Again, Susan went with the flow and read them even more books. Then into bed, some songs and good night. A bit later than normal, but much more stress free.

And not one peep from them until 6:30 the next morning.

Parker did well too and only corrected Susan on her reading of Frog and Toad a few times, stating, "Mommy does it like this."

We got home around 10 and Susan told us everything above. Next week...I take on the Nunes boys. Let's hope it goes as well as it did tonight.

A suggestion.

Last night at dinner, we were discussing how Miranda was doing some backsliding with sleeping. I asked her if she wanted to do another sticker chart and she could pick the reward. She seemed very interested in this possibility so I started suggesting some options. Another baby. Leotard. Giant Doggie. Then Parker said,

"I think you should get her some numbers so she can practice them."

Thanks for the suggestion Parker.

Being nice.

On the way to take Parker to school today, Elizabeth wanted me to buckle her baby doll (that she and Miranda take everywhere) in to the seat (Parker was in the back.) We were in a hurry so I dismissed it and got everyone buckled in and took off. After dropping him off, she asked again. We weren't in a hurry that time so I said OK and buckled in her baby. When I was done, she mumbled something. I said, "What?" She said, "That was nice of you mommy."

Occasional sweetness

Parker was in an exceptionally foul mood last night, and was a real pill leading up to bedtime. He finally settled down a bit when we read books, but it was still touch and go.

And then after books we were playing a new game, where I ask him to choose which he likes better between two things. As in, "Parker what do you like better, Fairyland or The Zoo? Ice cream or cake?" He enjoyed this quite a bit, and we went through about 20 or so sets of things, with him picking one or the other.

And then I asked him, "What do you like better, riding in Daddy's car or in Mommy's truck?"

And he replied, "I like walking on the sidewalk holding somebody's hand."

Once in a while, kids are so sweet you want to puke.

Jesus Christ

The amount of general crying and whining over here at Chez Long has seemed to have hit some sort of peak. At least I hope it is a peak. Today, I think the only time there wasn't someone crying/whining was during gymnastics class and a little bit at the park. They slept bad last night (Elizabeth woke up not being able to breathe which woke up Miranda which woke up Parker.) They all woke up grumpy today and it pretty much lasted the entire day. Even as I type, Miranda is in her room screaming her head off. Parker just ended an hour long scream fest (he's learned he can say "no" to my requests). Elizabeth spent much of the day crying about seemingly nothing, throwing herself on the ground as if she just stepped on a knife. (And when she did actually get hurt, an injury that involved blood, she only cried for a second.)

I know there are tired. I know they aren't doing it to drive me crazy. I know they must be very sad or angry. None of that helps me and I just want to shoot myself in the head.

Early morning crafts

The girls saw something parker did at preschool and wanted to do one too, so one morning we make plate faces. Elizabeth did everything herself and miranda only needed help squeezing the glue out.

Parker Makes a Movie

Parker remarked that Chicka Chicka boom boom is a book and a movie, but Chicka Chicka 123 is only a book. He said he wanted to watch the movie. I told him there wasn't one, but that we could make one. This is the result.

With the exception of the girls talking in the background, zeke walking into the frame, and parker forgetting to start, it's not bad. And yes, that is a spider as we had no bees lying around.

I particularly liked that he left the 99 on the tree since in the book they sort of forget about him (her?)

Oh, and I should note that Parker did everything you see. The numbers. The tree. The apples in the tree. The cutting out (most of) the numbers. The taping them on. And he isn't reading from a book. He has the whole thing memorized.

If you aren't a Parker or Number fan, it's a little boring.

What I hear this morning at breakfast.

Elizabeth (proud as can be): I fart!

Miranda (in annoying whiny voice): Myyyy baaabbbby falling down!

Parker (demanding): Mommy's CHEX! (aka Corn Chex)

So moated.

This morning we were getting in the car to go to the park. As the kids entered the back seat, Elizabeth hit her leg on something and started crying. I went around to see what had happened. Meanwhile, Parker was trying to get to his seat. Elizabeth was blocking his way. Parker said, Elizabeth MOVE! I said to Parker, "Do you see that Elizabeth got hurt?" Parker says, "No." I said, "Do you hear that she is crying because she got hurt?" Parker says, "No." I said again, "Do you hear that she is crying?"

Parker says, "No, I don't hear her when she is crying just like you can't hear me when I am crying."

Tidbits

Elizabeth told her baby doll she was awesome today.

Miranda had a grumpy moment in daycare when she gave everyone the silent treatment. She does this often at home. Something offends her deeply and she just shuts down. When Barbara (the director of the place) told me about it, I asked Miranda why she got "grumpy". She said because she wanted more crackers. She shuts down so much that she can't just ask for more crackers. It's funny and sad at the same time.

Although we've re-arranged several rooms trying to get more space for these kids, we are still a bit short. Michael has agreed that we can get Parker a loft bed (like a bunk bed, but nothing underneath) to make some more room in their bedroom. Parker could not be more happy.

I've decided to run a half marathon in May. I'm looking forward to the challenge, but not necessarily all the running. ;)

I got a new jacket (yes, I'm still pissed at Bret) this weekend. It's more dressy than I've had before, but I think it should do nicely for everyday wear too.

Parker's favorite book this week is Stop that Pickle. We got it around December, but misplaced it (on the bookshelf) for a while and then found it again. For some reason, it just cracks him up.

Parker had a playdate with a neighborhood kid the other day. Finn is the son of the woman I am running with occassionally. They are the same age and seem to have the same interests (numbers, tracks, etc), so that is nice. Us moms are already talking about how we can help eachother out over the summer with some informal co-op.

Elizabeth is starting to get a lot of freckles. In high school I always thought Michael's freckles were incredibly cute. I don't notice them anymore. I wonder how many Elizabeth will get.

So sweet.

Val took this pic at the party this weekend. So cute!

Clothes from Spain

My brother recently went to Spain and sent the kids some tops. The girls had to put theirs on immediately while Parker wanted nothing to do with his.

Party in Sacto

We all went to Sacramento yesterday to celebrate the birthdays of Andre and Elijah, the sons of my friend Val. We've missed many of their big days, so I was glad we were able to go. Everyone had a great time even though they all skips naps. Parker got a little sad when the 20+ kids that were there rushed the pinata when it broke open, as he got trampled a bit, but otherwise, it was pretty smooth sailing.

I didn't take many pics, but the girls were thrilled with their goodie bags and I was able to get one of Val and her Rachel's.

More Adding

So after Parker did his double digit adding, I thought he might understand it using the "carry the one" method on paper. So I showed it to him and he immediately got it. He was so incredibly happy it was ridiculous. He just kept giving me more numbers to write down for him to add. After a while I told him to make some up and add them up. Which he did.

When Michael got home, I told him about this. After reading books to the girls, I came out and Michael was doing 3 and 4 digit numbers with him. He got a little confused with where to put the 1 each time, but basically got it. The sheer joy on his face to be adding 1,234 and 5,678 was worth the total creepiness of him adding four digit numbers at age 4.

Points.

Parker just added 49 and 72. In his head. No paper. No calculator. He got it wrong the first time, but correct the second. Oh, and I didn't ask him to do it. Self- imposed addition. Then he wrote the answer on a piece of paper, called it points and handed it to me stating that I had "won" 121 points.

This kid continues to surprise me.

Time Change

How is it that the kids immediately adjusted to the time change in the morning, getting up at 6am (previously 5am) on the dot, have yet to adjust to the time change in the evening, staying awake 30-60 minutes past the new bedtime??????

It seems we never win with these time changes. Spring forward. Fall back. It all sucks.

Sticking around.

A few months ago, I started feeling a small pain in my side near my hip. It would hurt when I leaned or when I was lying on that side. I tried to trace it back to when it started and thought, at first, that I must have hit it on something. Like a roller coaster seat (we went to one in late December), or something else. But it never bruised. I tried to ignore it since I figured the doctor would say it was nothing, but it didn't go away and after three plus months, I decided to have him check it out. In between the time I made the appointment and went in, I found a small lump near my pelvic bone. Great. If it ain't one thing, it's another. God knows what the hell is wrong with me this time. Bad back? High thyroid levels? Kidney infection? I figured a call to my mother was in order to come help take care of the kids.

So I went in yesterday to get the bad news. The hip thing was nothing, as I imagined. A bruised bone from some bump. Takes a while to heal. Call him in a few months if the pain hasn't gone down.

So then I go to show him the lump. I find it right away since it's a big lump and he feels it. Then he says (as I'm expecting him to tell me I have cancer and three months to live), "Oh, that. Everyone has that. It's the cartilage where the pubic bones come together."

Duh.

I've never felt it before, I explain to him. He tells me that sometimes childbirth makes it widen or enlarge. I don't mention that I had c-sections while I smile, get dressed and leave quite happy that mom doesn't have to hop on a flight that night and Michael doesn't have to become a single dad.

To table or not to table?

A year or two ago when I was talking with my sister about how my latest obsession was about getting a train table, she told me that her kids preferred to just build tracks on the ground and we didn't need one. I ignored her thinking her kids were different since everyone loves a train table. After hemming and hawing a few more months, I got one, set it up and Parker loved it. Ah ha! I was right. Train tables are a necessity! Everyone who visited just loved them. But after a while, Parker stopped playing with the train table. At first, he stopped playing with trains, but when the bug hit him again, the table was too small and too confining for his imagination and engineering. He preferred to build them on the floor. But he always wanted to "save them" until tomorrow. On a train table this is fine. On the floor of your incredibly small dining room/living room, this is a problem. Without the luxury of a play room (enjoyed by those same different kids), I told him to clean up the tracks. After a while, I noticed Parker was not building tracks anymore. From time to time, I would sit down at the train table and say, "You wanna build a track with me?" "Nah," he would say and go off to do something else.

So, today, I put all the tracks, bridges, risers, trains, and other such nonsense in a big bin, moved the train table to the garage, and put the bin upstairs in our room where we had recently re-arranged to make more play space. Then I told Parker what I did. He was thrilled and immediately built a complex, double decker, loopy, track all over the floor.

Score: 3 points Rachel, 278 points Rachel's sister.

In the shop.

My Mac is at the Mac shop this week so blogging will be infrequent.

Not much new around here though so it's just as well.

Parker's reading is getting better quickly. He read my license plate (4pitfix) the other day and he is picking up familiar words (the, and, she, you) fast. We read a BOB book the other day that was apparently too advanced for him since he got frustrated and asked me to read it which I did. Sometimes he tries to guess what the words say by the picture and gets it wrong. So moded.

I asked Miranda again if she wanted to be potty trained like Elizabeth and Parker. She said, "No."

Michael is still recovering from the marathon.

I've got a doctor's appt today.

Blah. Blah. Blah.

The jacket.

Michael has a friend named Bret. He used to work with Michael (twice). About 6 years ago, after being laid off from PJA, Bret moved on to other things and we lost track of him. About a month ago, he popped up again and is now living just a few minutes from us. He came over the other day to catch up, meet the kids, and generally hang out. This was all good and it was nice to see Bret. He's a low key guy and the kids loved him.

But...before he disappeared 6 years ago he left a jacket at our house. We thought he would be back to get it since it was a nice REI type jacket, but he never did come back. After watching it sit on our hook in the hallway for a long while, I tried it on. It was a good fit. A little big, how I like clothes. So I start wearing it. All the time. I called it Bret's Jacket for years. "Have you seen Bret's Jacket?" "Did I leave Bret's jacket in the car?" "Should I wear Bret's Jacket?"

So when he showed up the other day, I immediately told him that I had taken over the jacket and there was no way in hell he was getting it back. I had squatters rights. Since it was really the only jacket I wear, I would have been bummed to lose it. We laughed a lot about the jacket and after a nice long visit, Bret left on Saturday without his jacket. Thank god.

But then yesterday, he popped back over to retrieve his sunglasses that he had left on Saturday. He saw the jacket on the chair, put it on and did not take it off. Even during dinner. Alas, the jacket was gone.

Of course, I realize that it was HIS jacket and I had just borrowed it for 6 years, but I'll miss that jacket and now I am forced to actually go shopping...one of my most hated tasks, to get another jacket. Damn it.

Action Packed Weekend

This weekend was action packed.

We went to a Twin Club event on Friday afternoon. It was at a big gym where they had bouncy houses, obstacle courses, soccer demos and much more set up. It was totally empty except for the twin people so it was great. Parker especially had a fabulous time.

Then Saturday, we went to a party in the morning for some twin friends turning 2. More bouncy houses. More smiles from Parker. I spent much of the party holding Susan's son Sebastian. For some reason, he wanted me to carry him around. Not sure why he thought I was "one of those moms", but I humored him and he loved it. Parker and Elizabeth had meltdowns when it was time to go, so it ended badly for all.

Saturday evening, Michael and I went to the city to attend Ruth's 40th party. They had reserved a private room at a fancy asian restaurant and 60 of her closest friends were there to celebrate with her. It was good food and great cake. We got home late, but Ebba, who was sitting for us (and who had to put Parker down) was fine with that. She said Parker talked to her more than he has ever talked to her before, which cracked her up.

I got to sleep in today while Michael opted for the mid morning nap while I took the kids to the park. I also got to see a movie while they were napping. Not a bad day to say the least.

This evening, the kids got to bed later (which was actually earlier due to the time change), but seemed ok with it. We'll see what time they wake up. And when I say "We'll", I mean Michael as I will be running and jumping around at boot camp tomorrow morning bright and early.

Sorry this was such a damn boring post. I'm fresh out of witty comments and catty observations.

Didn't get the memo.

I must have been out of the loop today, because it was apparently "national cry and throw tantrums for absolutely no reason" day. Everyone was fine until naps and then one by one as they woke they decided that screaming and crying and throwing themselves on the ground was good idea. I tried my best to be a nice, supportive, reasonable mom trying to listen to what the problem was, but when none of them actually wanted to tell me what was wrong and just wanted to bang their heads on the ground or cry into their pillows, I gave up.

I was able to get Parker out of his funk a bit later with a hug and some cupcakes for Ted (I should have known his birthday would be coming soon. He turned 10 today for about the 4th time.)



Then I put the swing up which helped too. Parker has finally learned how to pump himself and I was even able to get it on film.



The kids have actually been quite pleasant to be around in the morning (and when I say 'be around' I mean playing by themselves as I eat breakfast, pack lunches, take a shower, get dressed.). They spend a good deal of time reading books to their babies.

Being a kid?

I worked at Parker's preschool today, subbing for the actual teacher.

Parker did two interesting things that either show he is a spazzy little four year old who doesn't follow the rules or that he is quite creative. I'm not sure which.

1.) They had to glue popcorn on cut outs of a tree. The popcorn was referred to as blossoms. So they were to cover the tree with blossoms. Parker, who usually doesn't enjoy his projects, sat doing this one for a long time. After glueing on one blossom on a branch, he looked at it funny and placed one NOT on the branch. He said, "This blossom has already fallen off the tree!" Then he put a bunch on below the tree stating the obvious.

2.) During Spanish class (15 minutes where they talk only in spanish, which Parker apparently loves), they were clapping their hands and patting their laps along with the "tune" of the spanish song. Parker was not doing what the rest of the class was doing. He was doing the beats twice as fast. Keeping in perfect rhythm, but following the micro (I think that is what they call it) beat.

Fieldtrip

I drove on a field trip today for Parker's class to the Lawrence Hall of Science. Surprisingly, many of the kids had never been there. They didn't get to run around and check out the exhibits. They just had a workshop about animals. They had a bunny, dove, turtle, snake, hamster and frog that they could look at and touch. Despite these pictures, Parker was pretty much not interested in any of it. He wouldn't touch any of the animals as he was expected to do. He was just waiting until he got to go to the other rooms and when he found out we couldn't go, he was heartbroken. Poor kid. I was a lucky helper and got dove shit on my hand. Yay me.