David Weekly, #28

This has been a busy week, though it feels like most of the activity has been today. I took David to get a haircut, and a haircut for myself. He looks like a little boy now, and much less baby-ish. I made sure to get it cut short, rather than the token haircut he got last time, but it's not buzzed by any stretch. At one point after the haircut, he looked at me and I saw his cousin Jared in him, and at another point I saw more strongly the resemblance to his sister as well.

Fridays are my day off, so he and I spent the day together. I'm taking a couple of classes at the local community college, and I have to read a lot of material, which I try to do while David's not around, because he always wants my attention. Today was no exception. He saw that I was reading a book, and then gets out several of his books to have me read them to him, which I did, of course. :-) There's one book that has a spider in it, and it talks about its 8 legs, so I asked David if he wanted me to count in French, and he said he'd do it instead: so my boy can count in French, and in English, to 10! Next up: Spanish. (He counted only 8 legs, but at the barbershop he was counting in French to 10 when I held him as he got his hair cut. It was a great way to distract him). Another thing about the barbershop: he says hello to just about everyone. And tells them about his shoes (super car! shoes. He loves those shoes), and today he was running around saying how fast he can go. People are always amazed by the way he talks to them. And he's getting more and more intelligible.

And speaking of being understood: I'm watching his language development again. I'm noticing lately his manners, being polite, the "extra words" we use to smooth things over are coming more naturally as part of his speech. Please, thanks! He says "Thanks!" very happily almost any time I hand him something. He's also my parrot, since he so often imitates what I'm saying. Other people think that it's funny when he does that. I think it's great. He's learning so much! I also like that he can say that he's fine when someone asks how he is, or he asks people "How are you?" And it surprises them...

Something funny about his going to "school" is that any time it's cloudy, or it rains, he says, "My friends at school can't go out to play!" It doesn't matter that it's Sunday, or morning, noon, or night. He's also synthesized something else: that's he's both big and small at the same time. He is able to come up with a complex thought all by himself, which I find to be amazing.

David went to the dentist this week. He has 20 teeth, and they are perfect. They have the right amount of spacing; they come together well when he closes his mouth; and they aren't stained. The boy is not shy, as the dentist noted. She thought he was great! He opened his mouth when asked, but wasn't a big fan of the spinny toothbrush. He brushes his teeth better at home.

We went to the zoo again, and we had a lot of fun. I absolutely love how he says Hi to people, and they don't know how to react. He talks to them like he knows them, and watching their reactions is wonderful. He really has an effect on people.

As it seems that I'm working backwards from Friday to earlier in the week, it's worth noting that David had his cousins stayed the night on Saturday night. Funny thing is that they got here so late that he had literally fallen asleep on the couch, watching TV, sitting upright. I put him to bed just as they got here. Later on in the evening, he woke up briefly and saw them, and said Hi, like it wasn't unusual for them to be there. At about 1 AM, he woke up from coughing...asthma attack. I tried to give him a nebulizer, but he fought me and struggled and hated it! I'm not sure what causes this reaction, as it only happens once in a while. Usually he just accepts it, and feels better after we're done, but not this night. It was a very rough night. The 20 minute treatment took over an hour, and he didn't get all the medicine, but he got enough to peacefully rest...The next day, when the three kids were awake at the same time, he had major problems with Jared, who was doing nothing more than talking my ear off, telling me all about the SpiderMan coloring book he was coloring, and just laying on the floor. David did not like this, as he was doing everything he could think of to disturb poor Jared. Coughing on him, rolling on the floor then on the coloring book, stepping on the book, throwing things at Jared...Jared did very well to merely protest, and complain; and naturally, David was in time out every 5 minutes or so until he figured out to leave Jared alone. Avery helped, too, by playing with David, to give him something to do.

Bath time has improved since his mommy thought to send a couple of the bath toys he played with up there down here. He doesn't scream and cry anymore! Yay!

And finally, David was able to articulate why he doesn't like me singing: it's because I'm not the original singer! He thinks that only the original person singing the song should sing it. How do I get around that? I'm sure I'll figure it out. He does like it when I sing songs without any music in the background, though. It comforts him when he's feeling scared, or unhappy.

I hope that you can resolve perplexing, odd little problems (like your son not liking it when you sing) with a simple explanation.

Rusty

About me

I'm noticing that this blog really isn't about me, it's about the boy. I think I should change the name of this blog really. Not sure who reads it anyway. Besides, I changed the colors. Needed to be brighter. :-)

Dentist

Went to the dentist with David today. He was great! 20 teeth. All well spaced, and the bite is good. He opened his mouth well for the doc, but didn't like getting his teeth cleaned by the tech and the spinny thing. It was a great experience. He's not shy at all.

Why he doesn't like it when I sing

So David was able to articulate why he doesn't like me singing: it's because I'm not the original singer! He thinks that only the original person singing the song should sing it. How do I get around that? I'm sure I'll figure it out.

Meanwhile, David is subversive. The way he was handling his jealousy and desire for attention from Jared was subtle, yet effective. Not so overt. Coughing on him, stepping on him, or the book, doing all kinds of things to interrupt or disturb him...I remember Avery doing things like that to Jared when he was little. I wonder what that means. hmmm

And another piece of news: David took a bath willingly today, and absolutely no crying. I'm amazed!

Did I mention that David considers things?

Today, all by himself, he makes the statement that he's both big and small, at the same time. I don't expect complex thoughts from a 3 year old, but there it was. He's a great kid. :-)

I hate asthma

David's been coughing again...he woke up at 1 AM from coughing...so I had to give him a nebulizer. He fought me and resisted, screaming, hitting...it was awful. Poor Avery was watching this whole thing transpire, since she couldn't go to sleep. At midnight I taught her how to play solitaire, since I couldn't stay awake much longer, and I wanted to give her something non-TV to do...but she's never really dealt with a full deck of cards, so I taught her her suits, and the number of cards, and what's the highest and lowest in the deck. We went through a game of Klondike, I think is the name of this particular game...there's tons of versions. Anyway. She's learning. It was magic just having her and going through the rules of the game: red and black alternate, going down, except for aces which go up and the same suit, and on and on. No interruptions from the boys who were asleep...Jared in my bed, and David in his.

David fell asleep upright on the couch last night before they even got here at about 8:30. He was tired! Jared and Avery ate McDonald's that their dad bought...and I put David in his bed. He didn't even know they were here. When he woke up later, he didn't even act surprised that they were here. I got a kick out of that. Avery was so helpful with David through the nebulizer thing, turning on the nebulizer for me while David fought with me to get the thing off...he said the smoke was from a fire, and he didn't want his medicine. That was so hard. I cried when it was all over...poor Avery went to sleep at 2:30 finally. Slept until about 11. what a night. I slept on the couch. Avery and Jared in my bed. David slept on the floor next to me, or on the couch on me, which didn't work out too well. I couldn't believe how quickly morning came...

Falling asleep

David just fell asleep tonight, sitting upright, on the couch. He's never done that before. He was eating cereal (Lucky Charms), which he loves loves loves. But with the Bucs game on, he just sat, and fell asleep. He keeps coming up with something new. Tonight he's been chasing the cat off and on, and I keep telling him to stop...but he doesn't. He just does it again at some later point. The same thing Colleen did, but like her, I hope he grows out of it, like she did.