Nick's Twenty-Ninth Month

Nick loves money, but then again, who doesn't? And it's indeed all about 'how much?' OK, so he really doesn't understand what it is yet, or how it covers the diaper and Cheerios budget, but he will sit for an hour with the piggy bank and put coins in, and dump them out, over and over. He knows the names of the coins, too.

Brandi decided one evening she was tired of playing kid's games, and would teach Nick to play SlapJack! It turned out to be more like SmearJack, or ThrowJack, or ScatterJack. I guess this concept is still a little tricky for a two-year-old. Honestly, she said I wasn't doing it right either - I don't know how to flip them right. She was just upset that we were smokin' her at her own game.

Finally, some TV that doesn't melt the brain. Uncle Fayling made Nick a video from NASA clips, with shuttle launches and landings, rockets and space video. He loves it, and thank goodness - something we can watch together. With his love for airplanes, we were flipping the TV between SportsCenter and Jack's Big Music Show one morning, and came across the classic flick, "Airplane '79 - The Concorde". He was glued to that lousy 'B' movie for two hours, and got upset when commercials came on. It's hard to remember a time when Eddie Albert could anchor a feature film.

All kids have made-up words. Some of my favorites, from Nick's ever-moving lips to my tired ears: 'meno, meno, meno' which is him saying, 'mine, mine, mine.' And 'goolicious' which is his word for 'delicious'. And he says, 'thaaaaaaank-YOU!' when he takes something from you - the humor is in the inflection. He also says, 'there you go!' an awful lot. He's very good about using 'please' and 'thank you' and 'I'm sorry'.

His grandpa bought him a tricycle, which cost more than the ten-speed bike I purchased new in 1983. He's actually figured out how to pedal before understanding how to steer, so there have been a few minor collisions.

He was high above the ground in a jungle gym at the playground, where there were pictures of all sorts of things stuck on the wall. There was a young lady there with other children who appeared to be a teacher. After Nick astutely observed the apple, the worm, and the book, she pointed to the can of beans in the picture. So, of course, he didn't just say 'can', he said, 'beans'. "Did he just read that?" she asked. Sure looked that way.

He's into the big tubby now, having outgrown the laundry room utility sink. He loves playing in the tub, and hates having tub time end. And like always, he's a ham for the camera, even in the tub. Although, not as much as he loves taking pictures of himself. I included one of his many self portraits this month. Thank goodness the days of expensive film are long ago.

Click here for 29th month pictures.

- Jason

Nick's Twenty-Eighth Month

Brandi has raised Nick on a relatively strict routine, and we are reaping the benefits. His little internal clock is up at the same time each day, and down each night, right on schedule. I realized we have a lot of routines we've set over the past 2 1/2 years, and he'd be the kid that could raise himself if we disappeared. He says good night to the animals in his room, counts to 20 before we tuck him in, always puts shoes on to go outside the door and remove them coming in, gets dressed in the same order every time. No more rocking him to sleep for an hour - it's five minutes of rocking, and he says, "Cribby, please." I still can't get over how the kid eats everything. We sit down to dinner together each night, and he fills up on whatever mama is cooking! Favorite foods this month: cheese pancakes (this is cheese melted in a tortilla), ice cream (obviously from the video), and jelly beans. The picture here is Nick having dinner with us at the Bob Evans. He's used to being out in public, and no trouble at all. This was our last stop of the day after playing with the train set at the local bookstore.

We made a lot of progress in the athletic department. His Aunt Miranda got him a small hoops rim for Christmas, which we finally brought out. And his grandmother sent him a set of golf clubs (like, real ones, for people of height 22" to 40", with the Pinehurst bag tag). I came home one afternoon, and his grandpa had mowed a fairway and green into my back yard: butter container for the cup, and red handkerchief on a broomstick for the flag. And he loves kicking balls like soccer. But birdwatching?! His word this week is birdwatching, and a 'mee-taw' bird, apparently from a cartoon. All the action that matters is overhead nowadays: birdwatching, airplanes, helicopters.

Nick's comprehension amazes me more each day. When we bring home one of the small cardboard (Boynton) books, he's either reading it, or has it memorized in about 2 days. Brandi is auditory, and I am very much visual. We can't tell just yet which one is Nick's strength. He's now counting to 20, and understanding it, and knows the alphabet on site. He can pick out about half the states on a US map. Most impressive, though, is how he understands abstract concepts. He blurted out, "This chicken is delicious," at a meal this week. He knows when we pull out of the driveway which way is the playground, and as soon as the wheels cut west instead, he protests. He understands wrenches work with bolts, and loves to sweep the sidewalk.

Play time is all about slides: the 'big green fish' slide at the local playground, sliding off the beach ball (that's what he calls it when he rolls off) in the living room, and treating mama like a slide when she curls up and he slides off of her shoulders. Brandi has found a good gym during the week that has a nice setup for Nick to play while she works out. He mixes with the other kids easily, probably from all the time spent with his cousins. He still loves older women - he chases the four-year-old blondes at the playgroup.

He is master of the 'one word request.' He uses full sentences often, but he frequently seems in a hurry, comes barrelling up to you, out of breath, and blurts out his immediate needs in just a single word. For example, "Dinner", "Playground", or "Car Ride."
The lines he uses most often: "I'm ok" (even when he's in tears about something), "I fixed it," and "Knocked it down."

Wanna know what we're watching this month on kid TV? Here's the Moco Jumbie!

Click here for 28th month pictures. You'll notice the pictures are now compiled in a photo album site, so the images can be downloaded.

- Jason

Nick's Twenty-Seventh Month

Nick really grasps concepts now, more than just associating names with objects. When he's cold, he pretends to shiver and says, "Brrrr, it's cold!" He got pinned in between the couch and the table, and he yelped, "I'm stuck!" We practiced alot with his books: hot and cold, up and down, spiny and smooth. He requests car rides, the playground or playing outside. We've started that age-old practice of spelling things around him now, but I don't expect that to last long either. (If he knows what Dora the Explorer is spelling, in 3 different languages, what makes us things we're being so slick that he won't catch on?) My favorite this month: he knows cars, and he knows trucks. He can identify a Fiat, a Ford and Porsche on site (you thought I was talking about generic idenfication of cars... that's too easy! Hear that, if any of my clients at Ford are reading this?) He still gets slipped up sometimes with first-and-third-person relationships. He'll get upset, then stop crying and ask, "What's wrong?" He's his own phsycologist.

We spend Friday nights circling the grocery store as Nick pushes one of the carts for little kids up and down the aisles. He never reaches for anything on the shelves, just loves to push. Never unsupervised, though, as he'd mow the little old ladies down, focused intently on their coupons and not watching out for a high-speed toddler with a steel battleram, as he tries to pick up speed on the straightaways.

He got to tubby in Aunt Megan's whirlpool tub. Brandi convinced him the bubbles were fun, and to look closely at the jets as she turned them on... and then it rifled a vicious projectile of water square into his face and thrust him back about 3 feet into a hosed and pathetic heap. Funny, yes. But a face full of water, at what feels like a PSI comparable to a space shuttle launch when you're only two, is a tough way to learn how a whirlpool tub works.

When he and mama returned from Atlanta from their stay, I was so happy to see them. (And the 150 people aboard Northwest Flight 472 were happy Nick was home as well.) I reached for my son and told him how happy I was he was home. He responded affectionately with simple terms: "Pizza!" At least he's easy to please. He eats a ball park frank like a man, bun and all. (No onions and relish yet, although I haven't offered it to him, either. And sometimes the parts get consumed separately.) Still loves spicy food. But he can't get enough popcicles. Note to other parents: sugar-free popcicles are helpful for good poos.

He followed his mama into the bathroom last week (gotta remember to lock the door) and sat down on the little potty next to her, on his own. So naturally, we encouraged this activity. Then he reached for a magazine, and we got a cute picture. When you see the picture, I want you to know he only reads the articles! ;) (And the magazine wasn't mine, I swear!) Mama shook her head at him, and questioned whether this material was appropriate. Then he pointed to the girl in the picture and said, "Mommy!" Of course, that was the perfect response for the situation. Once again, that's my boy - always got the right answer handy when he needs it.

Click here for 27th month pictures.

- Jason

Nick's Twenty-Sixth Month

Most of Nick's big words this month are directly related to the growth of his big head: waffles, popcicles, hot dogs, and noodles.He's speaking in full sentences now, so it's clear when he wants to go for a car ride, or visit Aunt Megan. He walks up to his cousin Seth and hugs him. He still has no use for the younger Thatcher, who just steals his snacks and toys. He sorta treats Thatcher the same way he reacts to the dogs - he waves his finger at him and says, 'No, no.' This is a short-lived scenario, though - strong Thatcher will be able to bench-press small Nick in a few months.

The TV shows are sinking in now, so no more Law and Order. He watches one show where they introduce animals to kids, and he know some animals on sight that I have never head of: jaguar, kinkajou, lemur, tapiers, armadillos, dolphins, kangaroos. And he can make the sounds for all of them.

He experienced his first tornado, and his first Georgia snowfall. He and mama went to Georgia to get out of the cold, and they got a foot of snow. Here in Michigan, we had the coldest January on record, and the second-most snowfall on record... all in a single month. We made a snowman for the back porch, and each day, Nick would say, 'Bye, bye, snowman,' as he melted.

Grandpa Mantel is teaching him to play chess. He knows all the pieces by name, and is just getting the hang of the movements. When he wants them, he says, 'Where are my pieces?' I've been told if a kid can play chess at 2, he's a genius. No, he's not really that close to genius status, but as long as he loves to learn, we'll keep feeding him new stuff. This week, Brandi started working on the 50 US States.

One night about 3:00 AM, Brandi thought she heard the door open from the kitchen to the garage, but figured it was nothing and rolled over. Luckily curiosity got the best of her, and she investigated. Nick had crawled out of the crib (only the second time he's done that), walked to the garage, opened the door, turned on the light, and was riding his Cozy Coupe around the garage. He was one button away from opening the garage door, and wandering off. So the next night we rigged a rope tied from his door to the closet to contain him in his room. We have the childproof door handle covers to stop him from opening doors - you need to pinch them to grip - but he figured those out in about five minutes. He hangs on the with his weight, and turns the handles. I was prepared to barricade him his room as a teenager, but not this soon.

All the books from his infancy he is reading to us now. He read me a book over the phone the other night, and he now sits in my lap and reads to me instead of me reading to him. All the little bits I would insert to the stories for color, he now does on his own. When he sees the elephant wearing red socks, he yells 'Boo!' (because we don't like the Red Sox, get it?) When he sees the smooth dinosaur, I always rubbed his bald head - now he rubs his own head for the word 'smooth', and he yawns when the dinosaurs stay up late. He's in-between memorizing and reading. Most of the books he has memorized from two years of reading to him, but he's picking out those words in other contexts as well.

Click here for 26th month pictures.

- Jason

Nick's Twenty-Fifth Month

I'm still running behind on Nick's Two-Year post. I've been traveling again, this time to New Orleans for a conference. My first time to the city that really makes Vegas look innocent. My first night walking about, all I wanted was an ice cream cone, but I could find only daiquiri carts, call girls, and ear-piercing music (that was not Jazz, by my definition.)

Nick had a scare this month. He loves airplanes and visits to the airport. But while I was holding him in the driveway in Atlanta, a life-flight helicopter buzzed low overhead, and he froze in fright, gripping me tight and shaking. He was weary for a couple of days of anything that flew. He went from screaming 'airplane!' in glee to questioning 'airplane?' as if to suggest he's not so certain he's happy to see them anymore.

Of course with the pass of time comes expanded verbal skills. He looked at my brother-in-law Fayling and told him, "I want to go to the slide." He can sing Twinkle Little Star, almost completely. He uses 'please' and 'thank you', although not always in the right order. He surprised GrandMoose with, 'God Bless You' when she sneezed. And then Brandi's dad slipped with the word 'crap', which Nick repeated countless times for practice. Something about the linguistics of that word are fun. So when he came home to Michigan, I rushed to pull out the puppet 'Comfort Crab' and convince him he was saying, 'crab'. I think the cover worked. And he's now counting to 20 with no trouble, and clearly understands what he's counting, not just saying the numbers. Unique to Nick, he doesn't like to think there's just one of any great thing in this world. He says everything with an 'a' in the front: Brandi is 'a mama', Moose's dog is 'a Rosie (the great dane), or 'a baseball'. (Poor Rosie runs like lighting when he comes screaming 'a Rosie, a Rosie' and he tries to climb on her like a horse.)

His favorite place in the world is the "Jumpy place" in Atlanta, an indoor playground. He'll run with his cousins until his face is 'crab red', and sweating, and refuse to take a break. He's just naturally a hot-blooded kid, with hands always warm. He had a fever for a few days and it was hard to tell - when he wakes from a nap, he's always sweaty (with all the little hairs on his head sticking every-which-way.) When waking up, he always starts rambling right away about, 'a parasail' or 'a pumpkin' or whatever comes to mind.

Nick spent his birthday in Atlanta (Brandi and Nick stayed behind a few weeks for the warm weather). Megan and Jason threw him a great party, with gifts and all the extras. Video is here. As a new parent, you wonder how your child will learn some valuable lessons: for instance, how do you teach them something is hot, without burning them intentionally? With Nick, give him a birthday cake with a candle on it, and stand back while he frys his forehead. Between the fat lip at McD's and burn marks, you also wonder, as a parent, how long this stroke of luck can run before Children's Services comes knocking on your door?

Nick stacks everything, and can entertain himself for hours. He stacks blocks, pots and pans, bottles, books, you name it. We have observed that he continues to use both hands interchangeably, and that the other kids his age are starting to favor one hand. He will switch stacking or writing from left to right randomly. So of course, his Grandpa Mantel bought him ANOTHER left-handed baseball mitt. The kid is going to have enough equipment to outfit an entire team soon.

I came home to Michigan alone for a couple weeks, to shovel snow (about a foot) and paint more trim and doors in the house. But it wasn't all gloom for me. Alice, the master chef next door, baked me homemade apple cobbler... and I lived on it for three days. I needed the energy. For those of you in lands far away, we've shoveled about 4-feet of snow so far this year in SE Michigan.

- Jason