Merry Christmas!

This year Ishish, Dada, and I enjoyed a Christmas at home. While we weren't with our extended family in person, we did get to visit with them via our webcam! Ishish got in the mood a few weeks ago by singing Jingle Bells (yes, it's another video of the door, with some meowing for entertainment).



He helped me decorate cutout cookies. He was as careful as I could have hoped from a two year old! I told him he could try them after his nap. During his naptime I heard him say "I eat cookies!"



We went to our church's Christmas Eve service. Ishish is not used to sitting with us but behaved well... mostly. At one point the lights were dimmed while we prayed. A few seconds later Ishish asked, very loudly of course, "Where'd lights go? Where'd lights go?"

We also enjoyed our traditional Christmas brunch of waffles with lots of yummy toppings.



He really enjoyed getting presents. I told him that in the morning he would get to open presents. I didn't expect him to remember, but when I got him up the next day he said "open presents!". He wanted to play with his new toys right away before opening more.

Reading

Ishish gets to pick out one book to read before naptime and bedtime. Usually they're not surprising, but lately he's been on a string of wanting to read a "Mama book". One of his favorites is "101 Cat Care Essentials". We have also gone through three weather books. Those are up high so I pick ones out that are relatively short and have interesting pictures. I felt bad because the last one I picked was only in black and white and had almost no pictures. I guess I remembered it wrong! Fortunately he was just as interested in learning about bar graphs and global temperature patterns.

Fun With Cars

Ishish found a good use for the tree skirt!

Snow

Yesterday Ishish had his first memorable snow experience. Yes, it was just a dusting but we still managed to do some of the basics. His favorite part was making a tiny snowman (at the very bottom of the picture). All day long he kept looking out the window to see it.



He also had fun walking around with the snowballs we made for him.



Can you tell which tracks are his and which are Dada's?

O Tannenbaum

We decided it was time to put up the Christmas tree. Ishish was very excited and helped us as much as he could. Since then he has spent time driving his race cars along the branches, trying to blow out the lights like he does candles, and going from one light to the next saying "orange one, blue one, ...". He turns on the lights whenever he's home (hooray for LED lights!).

He also likes to look at Christmas lights. When we drive he regularly says "more Christmas lights" and when we pull into the garage "bye Christmas lights".

Trains and Slippers

This Thanksgiving Ishish received a train set as an early Christmas present. He "helped" Dada set it up by driving the train where Dada was trying to work. We couldn't find the best spot to put the tracks but eventually settled on the dining room table. He loves to play with it and has thrown a couple tantrums when it's time to stop playing!

I also bought him a pair of slippers. I was afraid he wouldn't like them, but he's so excited about them! He keeps telling me that they're penguin slippers and reminds me to put my slippers on too.

Singing

We know Ishish is up for the morning or from his nap when we hear loud singing from his room. This is some footage I got after one particular nap. Yes, they are videos of his door. Hopefully the volume will work!

Old MacDonald:

Baby Bumblebee:

Alphabet:

Happy Birthday:

I wish I'd had my camera this morning. I could have added his renditions of The Wheels on the Bus and Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.

Mama's Boy

Ishish is quite the Mama's boy. His most common phrase in this regard is "Mama turn".

He says that when he wants me to do things for him (even though he used to do them himself):
- putting him in his booster seat
- brushing his teeth
Or when he wants me to do them instead of Dada:
- setting him onto the changing table
- cleaning him during his bath
- holding his hand in the parking lot

Other phrases also for things he wants me to do instead of Dada are:
"Mama peel" (banana)
"Mama push" (shopping cart)
"Mama read book" (before naptime and bedtime)

Whenever it's time to go to the front room in our house to pick out a book he says "up", and I carry him in there. I have no idea why he wants this, but it's been that way pretty much forever.

A couple weeks ago he decided we should hug before naptime and bedtime. Now after we finish reading he says "nap hug", kneels in my lap, and hugs me for a long time. I'll squeeze him tight and say "big hug". Then he asks for "more big hug". I usually have to initiate the end of hug time.

When it's time to drop him off at preschool he stays by my side until I leave, even though his teachers have told me he's never upset when I go.

At gym class he insists on holding my hand during the warm up. When the teacher had the kids do an activity without parents he decided to sit in my lap instead of participating.

I guess it's good he wants me so much?

Halloween

Friday night we celebrated Halloween at our church. Thanks to the warm weather he got to wear his baseball outfit. Ishish was really scared of everything at first. The first person we went to for candy wanted to put it in his bucket, but Ishish stayed out of reach. So I took a piece of candy from the guy and showed Ishish how to drop it in his bucket. After a little while Ishish decided that was fun. He would grab the candy from the person real quick and drop it in his bucket. Eventually he got brave enough to let the people drop it in themselves. He played a game and got to pick out a kazoo as a prize (actually he grabbed four but I convinced him to put the other three back). On the way home he kept saying "church fun".

Saturday night we went trick 'r treating. It was much colder so he wore his penguin costume. After visiting the houses of the six neighbors we know I asked him if he wanted to go to more houses or go home. He thought about it and then said "more houses". So we hit about four more and called it a night.

I wasn't sure if he'd like the candy he got so I bought little packets of raisins and teddy grahams and snuck them into his bucket. In the end those and candy corn were all he cared to eat even though he tried some of the other candy.

More Fun Times

After seeing how much fun Ishish has playing dress-up at preschool, I finally got together a basket of clothes for him to play with. He was very happy to try everything on!

Ishish enjoys watching videos on the computer from time to time. While searching for the lyrics to "The Ants Go Marching" I came across an animated version of it. Whenever Ishish wants to watch it he asks "Watch rain boom boom?" The other videos he asks for are "pumpkin farm" (the videos from my blog post about visiting the pumpkin farm) and "choo choo train" (searching Google Videos for "choo choo train" gives plenty of options)!

The other day Ishish and I were walking upstairs. I asked him to turn the light on (because he gets mad if I try to do it instead of him). He informed me that I needed to say "please" and waited until I did before turning it on. I can tell he'll be teaching Dada and I some things in the future!

Food Funnies

Ishish can be funny about food. When we make pizza he exclaims "Pizza! Pizza!" Then he eats at most one bite. I think he's learned from his friends that pizza is something to be excited about, but he just doesn't care for it!

A couple weeks ago we decided he was old enough to join us in some frozen custard. Lately we'd only been eating it after he went to bed. He really enjoyed it... and fortunately more made it to his mouth than his lap!

Ishish got a sucker from the doctor this week (she called it a lollipop in case you're not sure what a sucker is). Here too he was excited about it but just kept holding it. After getting nowhere by explaining to him that he can lick it I pantomined licking it. He repeated my actions exactly (pretending to lick it). Made me laugh! On the way home he finally started to lick it. After we got home (and proudly showed it off to Dada) he left it on the floor. I told him that it had to stay in his hand or in his mouth. I added that if he didn't want it he could throw it away. Shortly thereafter I saw him walk to the garbage can and toss it in. I can't wait to discover what other foods he likes (and hates)!

Naptime

We had to wake Ishish up from his nap yesterday. Here's how we found him:

Go Bucky!

Can you tell what our favorite sports team is? Note that Ishish is wearing his Badgers outfit, waving his Badgers pom pom, standing next to his Badgers football, all with the Badgers game on the tv.

The day after going to the pumpkin farm Ishish thought we could go again. When I was leaving his room so he could nap, he said to me (with a very tearful voice) "Pumpkin farm?"

Here's another update on Ishish with the big boy bed. We kept finding him sleeping in it backwards, with his feet under the pillow. He'd never had a preferred orientation in his crib, but it occurred to me that maybe he wanted the pillow on the other end. So I flipped the sheets around and sure enough, he now sleeps with his head on the pillow. We also moved his stuffed animal friends, George and Esnug, up by his head so they're easier to access. We regularly find him snuggled up with one of them. Another funny thing is that now he doesn't leave his bed... ever! When he's done sleeping he just stays there until we come get him.

Pumpkin Farm

This afternoon I told Ishish that we were going to the pumpkin farm. Frequently on the drive to it I heard him say "Pumpkin farm! Pumpkin farm!" I guess he just assumes everything we're going to do will be fun!

We first stopped at the corn crib. Ishish takes a really long time to warm up to new things but with enough time he was really enjoying himself!



Then there was a lot of time spent riding/climbing/sliding/etc.



Next up was the corn train. I am so glad he was brave enough to ride it (he's the last one)!



Finally we took the hayride out to the pumpkin patch and found our prize pumpkin!

Bed Update and Favorite Things

Ishish's time in his bed has been going well overall! He goes right to sleep at night, wakes up at the usual time, and then plays in his room until we get him. Naptime has been a little more interesting. Usually he plays a little and we remind him to go back to bed after he starts making a lot of noise. Then he falls asleep. Yesterday when we went in there the light was on. It's too dark to play with the drapes closed, right? He happily played for hours until we gave up on him napping and got him out. We leave the door unlocked during naptimes so we can find out if he'll leave on his own - so far he hasn't (yay!).

Over the last couple weeks he has rediscovered the game of peekaboo. He loves it and plays all the time now! Often he plays the game by himself. First he'll turn away or squint his eyes, then he'll say "Where'd Ishish (yup, he still pronounces his name that way) go?", then he'll look back and say "Peekaboo!". I've been trying to get a video, and this is the best I've been able to do. I start the video a second early so you can enjoy watching Kiks walk by. I just noticed another thing in the video that's new for him. He now has his snack time water in a real cup!



His other new favorite is asking "What's that?" about everything, especially things he already knows. It's funniest when he does that while we're in the car. He hasn't figured out that I can't tell where he's pointing when I'm driving!

Goodbye Crib

Today we converted Ishish's crib into a toddler bed. We decided it was a good idea to do it while nothing new in his life was happening, particularly before we start potty training. He's on fall break the next five days, so it shouldn't matter as much if his sleep gets disrupted. He helped us make the change and was very excited about the new bedding!


It took him a while to climb into bed, as though he was waiting for us to put him in it. We explained how he can lay on the pillow and put his legs under the covers, just like he does in our beds. He declined, giving us his "Mama and Dada are weird" smile. Here he's making sure that his stuffed animals and toys are still with him.


It's been a half hour since his nap started, and I hear him having fun talking. That's normally how his naps go, so hopefully all will go well.

Museum Day

Ishish and I took advantage of Museum Day and went back to the science museum. I think he really liked it, based on the amount of jumping and running he was doing.

Yesterday

Here's some of what Ishish was up to yesterday:

He continued to go straight to the office when we get home from preschool to find Dada, even though I keep telling him that he's not there.

He's practicing putting clothes on. He especially likes wearing his shorts as a hat (also note the tan lines on his feet).


He used a real cup during snack time. Normally he only gets to do that after brushing his teeth, so he was very proud.


Now that he's got jumping off the curb mastered his next goal is to jump onto the curb. So far that's only led to lots of scrapes and bruises.

I've decided it's time to check out library books, because he's willing to sit through longer stories. We only brought home four books. I ended up being glad because when we got home he had me read them all to him right away! Here he's enjoying a book about cats (of course) by Eric Carle (of course).

Can You Guess...

what is on Ishish's backpack?

who his favorite author is?

Reading in a Boat

A month ago I told Ishish that his toy basket was a boat, and we play with it on occasion. Today he brought books into it one by one and told me he was reading in his boat. I love the way he holds each page up for me to see!

Last Two Days

We've had a lot of fun lately. Yesterday we went grocery shopping. While waiting in the checkout line, Ishish grabbed my hands and started waving his arms around and swaying his body. He said "dancing!" No, there was no music playing. Later that night he kept telling me "grocery shopping fun!"

This afternoon we went to the park. He figured out how to climb onto the train all by himself!

He also insisted on going on four different swings (baby swing, big boy swing, red swing, and tire swing) and down two types of slides (many, many times). He told me that the red swing was a car seat.

When we were getting ready for supper he told me that he wanted tofu and cheese. How could I deny a request like that? He put two of his blueberries next to each other and told me they were sunglasses.

Later he said to me "sing ABC", so I started singing the ABC song. I was shocked when he joined in! Sorry you hear a lot more of me than him on this video.

Bowling

I taught Ishish the proper way to bowl, but he prefers his own method.

Cleaning, Cars, Colors, and Catch

Yesterday Ishish wanted to help me clean. He was sad that I got to use the sweeper, so he got our other one out of the closet and helped.

Now that Ishish can communicate better he lets us know what's on his mind. This week he saw me get into a pickup truck. That was clearly the highlight of his week based on how he keeps saying "Mama pickup truck" to us.

He has also learned a second color! Not only does he point out everything that's blue, but now he points out all purple objects too.

Dada taught Ishish how to play catch. He holds his arms out and if the ball comes right to them will sometimes catch it!

Football Video

This post goes along with the last one. I tried to get some footage of Ishish enjoying the football game tonight. At first he's dancing and jumping to the commercial, and then he is following the players on the field. It's hard to make out, but at the end he is saying "camera".

Funny and Football

Ishish has developed a sense of humor. He tells us he thinks something is funny by saying "funny". Often they're of things that don't really seem funny to us. The latest time occurred when we were looking at a book of animals and making the animal sounds.

He also has gotten into football season. He learned how to distinguish a helmet from a hat. He does his own kickoffs (without a ball). When the players are running on the field he imitates them by racing around and then falling on the ground.

Fun Day

Yesterday was a big day for Ishish as he started his third year of preschool! Dada and I dropped him off together and went out to lunch to celebrate.

That night Ishish and I headed to gym class. He was so excited that he started saying "gym class", which comes out as "tear gas", as we pulled into the parking lot. After class he jumped most of the way back to the car! On the way home he kept saying "gym class fun". And trying to stall bedtime after we got home, he was sure to tell us "food now, fruit bar now, play now, backpack now". You can probably guess what his favorite word is!

Summer Vacation

Last week we took a vacation to visit family.

The trip started off well with Ishish enjoying many toys, books, and food on his travel tray and then taking a nap.

Ishish got up close to many animals at the State Fair. He was having fun until a sheep baa'd too closely and loudly to him. A few tears later, he was ready to explore again.

We discovered the most awesome wading pool. It has bubblers, fountains, and even a slide!

At night, Ishish was able to hang out with three cousins, two of whom he'd never met before!

We also visited the zoo. Ishish loved the elephants, grizzly bears, and especially his train ride!

Aside from that, he had a lot more time playing with his grandparents. He was sad to leave!

Successful Morning

Today Ishish and I had our last day with nothing to do before preschool starts again, so we headed to the park. As we were getting out of the car we heard kids singing. Ishish said, "Ishish sing too". Aside from playing, he also drank out of a bubbler for the first time.

Then we celebrated the end of summer by going out for coffee. It was the first time I'd taken him in a restaurant by myself without a stroller. I was nervous, but whenever he started straying away he would listen to me when I told him to come back. He loved his milk and ate most of a muffin. What a chomper!

We topped off the morning with a short trip to the grocery store. Once again I decided to be brave, so I skipped the cart. Ishish had fun putting all the items we were buying into the basket. He didn't pull things off the shelves (well, maybe a couple) or run off (too far). All in all, a successful morning!

Last Week

Here's what Ishish has been up to over the last week:

Enjoying new freedom around the house. The baby gates are no longer in operation. Now he and the cats love the ability to go upstairs whenever they want. He's learning (we hope) to not play with the cat food. We're also leaving the pantry unlocked and trusting him to not go in there and make a mess.

Reading the ads. He thinks they're big picture books. We'll look at them together during meals so he can point out all the people to me and I can name the unfamiliar objects:

Stacking his two sippy cups and telling me "hat on drink":

Eating his goldfish crackers by biting them into pieces. Either he thinks they're too big or just likes how the crumbs get all over the table.

Helping me make cookies by carrying ingredients out of the pantry and fridge. Then finding ways to keep busy while I finish:

Using his newest phrase "my turn" every chance he gets.

Crying hard for at least 20 minutes as he falls asleep... every single night.

Language

Ishish is developing more and more language skills, so I thought I would document all the things he tried to say so far today.

First thing in the morning Dada was greeted by one of our cat's loud yowling for food. Ishish, still in his crib and able to tell the cats apart by sound, was quick to say "Buhey Buhey cat".

While I put his sandals on, he pointed out that he had "two foots". When I corrected him with the word feet he changed to "two feets".

On our walk he was sure to point out all the blue trucks, blue being the only color he knows. He knows that we sometimes use the word "too" and sometimes "also". Now he puts them together such as "blue truck too also". Even though I keep using it, he also hasn't figured out the word "another" yet, so one more truck is always "more truck". And he always leaves out words that he deems irrelevant. So "man truck" means there's a man in the truck and "man hat" means the man is wearing a hat.

Later on our walk he played with water in a manhole cover. Afterward he asked me for a napkin, "buhon", to wipe his hands on. We then passed a normal sized woman walking and he said (very loudly and with a stutter he's just developed) "bibibigbig woman!".

We've been trying to teach him the concept of having three things. Today he finally caught on when he pointed out that we had three plates during lunch. He also told me "welcok" after I gave him more milk. Now that he knows we use the phrase "you're welcome" he's become confused about when to use it.

I look forward to finding out what he tells us next!

This Week

Ishish loves books. He's constantly bringing more over and wanting us to read them to him. This especially happens before naptime and bedtime. Then he'll put the books in his crib. Once the pile gets up to about ten I sneak them out and we start over.

When I picked Ishish up from preschool Tuesday his teacher said "I heard him say two words today." I wasn't sure what to make of that. Then she explained that it was the first time she's heard him talk because he's so quiet! I guess he's a chatterbox around family and silent around strangers. Just like Mama.

Ishish has started to use his imagination. Yesterday he broke his Ritz cracker in half and told me he had two rainbows.

We rarely watch tv during the day. Earlier this week I thought it would be nice to have a half hour to myself so I turned the tv on. Ishish said (in a distraught voice) "No. Off. Off. Mama play." So much for that idea.

Cans and Bus

This picture is just another example of Ishish's handiwork. I left the pantry door open, so he helped himself to the cat food.

Ishish and I have been taking a lot of walks lately. He loves the song "The Wheels on the Bus", but I don't really feel like doing it all the time. So I'll often hum it during our walks. He joins me, and when I stop he says "more bus" or "Mama sing".

Up Close

I was trying to take some pictures, so Ishish decided they had to be of himself.

Monday

A couple funny things have happened in the last day. I moved Ishish's potty upstairs so that he'd have a place to go when we're there. When he saw it, he quickly picked it up, said "stairs", raced to the stairs and started taking it back down. I decided it was ok to put it back in its rightful spot.
Our morning crisis occurred when his banana broke in half. He cried and cried and asked me to put it back. I explained that it was ok that it was in half, but that didn't seem to make him feel better.

George

The other day Dada put Curious George (George, as Ishish calls him) on Ishish's potty. Tonight Ishish ran over to the potty to look for George, but he wasn't there! I told him that George went back in his crib. Later I walked into the bathroom and discovered that Ishish had retrieved George and placed him on the toilet.

Supper

Dada got this picture showing what happens when you give rice to a 2 yr old (or at least this one):

Yesterday

Yesterday wasn't unusual in any way. I just happened to have my camera with me, so I thought I'd document what we did.

Checking out the neighborhood:


Where does he find room to sleep?


Visiting a different park:


Walking in circles, of course:


This video is long, but I wanted to show it all for Ishish's aunt and uncle who gave him this toy (you might have to manually advance it the first second):

Quack and Meow

Ishish really likes his animals!

Gardens

Ishish has been enjoying the warm days! That's good because he doesn't like storms. After thunder he says "All done?"

Happy Birthday!

Ishish turned the big 2.0 this weekend! We were happy we could celebrate with a few family members and friends. He thoroughly enjoyed his cake, cards, and presents!

Another Museum

Today we went to a historic museum. Ishish liked playing with the rolling pins, among other things. We're doing so much thanks to the grandfolks visiting!

Pointing to Bucky

Here's Ishish at a science museum. We had tons of fun!