Caring for an Other

One day this past week after nap, Dexter had just gotten a diaper change and was eating a snack of cheddar-flavored goldfish when I noticed him go over to his bucket of little 2" tall plastic people and rummage through it until he came up with the "baby" as indicated by the bottle in its hand. He brought the "baby" over to the coffee table and pretend-fed him a goldfish, gently tapping the baby's mouth with the goldfish. Then, Dexter (with "baby" in hand) went over to his diapers, grabbed one, and brought it to the arm chair where he placed the "baby" down on its back, opened the diaper and gently placed the diaper under the baby's lower half. I was so impressed with this act of nurturing an other that my eyes filled with tears.

Ends vs. Means

Dexter knows he's not allowed to throw food on the floor for My Bologna to eat. He still occasionally tests this rule and is immediately removed from his high-chair. Over the last week or so, I've noticed that Dexter puts a little bit of food on the corner edge of his high-chair tray. It took me witnessing My Bologna grabbing the food from the corner of the tray before I realized that Dexter and My Bologna were in cahoots and that Dexter had discovered a way of feeding My Bologna without throwing food on the floor. Smart boy figuring out another means to the end but now we need to explain that it's the feeding of My Bologna that is not allowed, not just the food delivery method.

The Crying Dexter

We think we will blow this up to poster size to hang in the living room with pictures of the Crying Jiffy and the Crying Ben taken when they were about the same age. It really captures the essence of his misery.

Prince AND Pauper

First Sentence

Dexter said his first sentence this weekend..."I love Daddy". It was in response to me saying, "I love you, Dexter." By the end of the weekend, we got him to say, "I love Mama," as well. I figure Dexter hears me say, "I love Daddy," a lot more than he hears Ben say, "I love Mama." I think Ben thinks this may be the case too so it was very nice that he has since ramped up the Mama loving phrases in front of Dexter.

OVERTIRED

Leads to a dinnertime fit only to be soothed by "prison food" of bread and water. It's like this some evenings when he decides he'd rather have an afternoon party in his crib than a nap.

Preparing for the SATs?

During a diaper change this morning, Dexter pointed to his socks and said, "Ga". I said, "socks". He kept pointing and saying , "Ga," which was an indication that I didn't guess his attempted communication correctly. I said, "Well, I don't know what you mean, Dexter." He then pointed to the carpet and said, "Ga." I know that he knows the carpet is gray so I said, "Oh, you're saying your socks are gray?" That seemed to do the trick. Dexter smiled as if I had finally gotten the point he was trying to make. Then I said, "Well, Dexter, your socks aren't really gray, they are beige. Beige is to brown what gray is to black." He looked at me quizzically.

Zookeepers

Dexter and Ian went to the zoo yesterday (with Mommy, Elissa, and Jason). I think Dexter enjoyed watching and following Ian who is almost exactly one year older than Dexy. It was like he had a big brother. The two of them enjoyed looking at the fountain (Ian especially!), the rhinos, the african dogs, and the buffalo. Dexter pointed out every cart and tram as well as a jeep that was part of a display. It was a chilly day so we warmed ourselves up in the enclosed children's zoo where the boys saw lemurs, turtles, birds, and a huge frog. They enjoyed playing the part of zookeepers and spent a fair amount of time sweeping the floors in the zookeeper play area. They shared a snack of crunchy apples (thanks Elissa!) and after the zoo we had a lovely lunch at a local diner. Dexter, as usual, impressed everyone with his "I'll eat anything and everything" approach to meals. He even tried to pilfer fries and a pickle from Elissa's plate. I'm just waiting for the day when he gets picky about food - everyone warns me that it's coming.

LB Wiggles

I was able to work from home on Friday which meant I was able to attend Dexter's first day of reading group at the local library. There was a woman there with a little boy a couple months younger than Dexter who recognized Dexy from the grocery store. I said to Ben, "How does this lady know his name when nobody has introduced themselves?" Dexter took to her immediately, as did Mommy and Daddy. I think we've all made new friends. The "class" itself was fine - the "teacher" led the group in some songs, read three leaf-themed books, and walked the children through creating their own storyboards by putting colored felt animals on their individual felt boards as they appeared in the story. Then she pulled out a couple baskets of toys, put on a tape player of children's songs, and sat back. Compared to Wiggleworms, it was very low-budget. Compared to what we're paying for Wiggleworms, the local library's free reading group is totally worth the price of admission.

Dexter sucks!

Yesterday, Dexter finally mastered drinking from a straw!!! We have been introducing drinking from a straw for many months to no avail. Outside of the random gulp from a successful suck, Dexter would gnaw on the straw, try to stick it down his throat, or tip the whole cup wondering why he wasn't getting anything to drink. Ben and I would say "suck" and make silly sucking faces but nothing seemed to register with Dexter. To my delight, when the waiter brought us Dexter's water in a cup with a lid and straw yesterday, we handed it to him and he just started sucking. His face lit up when the cold water reached his mouth and he was hooked. Drank the whole cup through a straw. Finally Dexter made the connection between cause and effect.