Baby

It is summer now and so John sleeps in thin little white onesies every night. There is a picture of the Gerber baby on the inside label and John says "baby" two or three times in a cute little voice when sees it.

The John Dance

John is a happy little boy and sometimes he is so full of joy that he does a little dance, in which he hops up and down and moves forward with one arm in the air. He especially liked it when I danced along.

What John Learned in His "Learning Tower"

We stayed with my cousin Rich and his family a couple of weeks ago. Rich and Lisa have a daughter who is about John's age, named Sophia.

We noticed that Sophia had a little Learning Tower stationed in front of an island in the kitchen. She could stand on it while she ate or watched her mother make dinner. Kristi got online and the reviewers said that it was expensive, but worth it, because it kept little children out of trouble and left parents free to take care of chores around the house. Plus, it was adjustable, so that it would continue to be useful as the child grew.

Kristi bought it immediately.

It arrived shortly after we returned home and, at Kristi's request, I put it together that very night. John has seemed to enjoy it.

Tonight, I became a little concerned, because John climbed out of it for the first time and scrambled onto the kitchen table, picking up the lid of the teapot and the pepper shaker and taking a good like around. (I had already lowered it one rung soon after we got it, because I noticed that John was able to climb out.)

So I lowered it another rung.

"John, it is going to be more difficult to climb out of it now, because I made it lower."

He climbed back in and then right back onto the table. So I lowered it another rung, the lowest one.

"John, it is going to be more difficult to climb out this time, because I lowered it to the lowest rung." I didn't want him to be too disappointed when he realized that he couldn't get out anymore.

So he climbed back in and, this time, got up onto a cross bar and tried to lift himself out, but couldn't. Then he tried again, pulled himself up, and scrambled back onto the table.

How long was this thing supposed to last us?

(My wife correctly pointed out that this is an opportunity to tell John that he is not allowed to climb on the table.)

These Are Some of My Favorite Things

Busses in Hungary and cars in Cuba and a few toy trains

Hiya

A week or so ago, while we were on vacation, John started waving and saying "hiya." One of the first times I noticed it was when we stepped out of the little house we were staying in and encountered several sheep and goats and a donkey.

"Hiya," John said as he waved at them.

At other times, we weren't quite sure whom or what he was waving and saying "hiya" to. A house? A tree? A squirrel?

Some times John even says "hiya" and waves to a person.

Chopsticks and Cheerios

We were eating some Asian dumplings the other night and we always give John a chopstick, too. He put the tip of his chopstick into the center of a Cheerio and ate them one by one.

Potato Chips

Mama's out of town for a couple of days and it's just us boys.

We were eating lunch and I decided to get out some potato chips that Kristi bought. We don't usually eat them, but this was a treat, since we're on vacation for a week or so. Cape Cod Sea Salt and Vinegar.

John was eating or mostly tossing overboard some pureed carrots while I ate my sandwich and I decided to let him try a potato chip. He ate it and pointed to the bag, so I gave him some more. This went on for a while and I think I saw him puckering his mouth from time to time because of the vinegar.

After he was done, he came over and sat on my lap and fed me a potato chip or two and held my bottle of O'Douls to my lips to give me a drink.

Shopping

Baby blanket with a dog on it (actually, a blanket that is a dog)

Watering Can

John has a child-sized watering can that he received as a gift from his aunt Cynthia.

This morning John let me know that he wanted to do some watering. So we took the hose and filled up the can together and then he walked over to a row of herbs and started watering. Then he watered the potato plants and then the dirt where some potato plants used to be.

We filled the can up again and he poured the whole can out in one shot, I think on a bushy oregano plant.

By the way, the string beans that we planted in John's garden (and elsewhere) are just about ready to eat.

Just Say No

"John, do you want to go outside?"

"No."

"Do you want to stay inside?"

"No."

"So do you want to go outside?

"No."

"Do you want to stay inside?"

"No."

After this brief conversation, John got down from his chair and walked to the door.

Cheerios on Bee Bee's Nose

As of the last couple of days, when John needs his blanket, he cries out longingly for "Bee Bee." That's how we came to know his blanket's name. Until then, we were calling it "Blanky."

The other day, John was eating breakfast on his booster seat while holding his blanket. With Kristi standing next to him, he put a Cheerio on Bee Bee's nose and then ate it. Kristi called me over and I watched him do it again.

I think John likes to perform for us sometimes. There are also times when he speaks emphatically and rhythmically and dramatically, as if he were giving a little speech, even though he is not saying any words.

Where he gets all of this from, we do not know.

Dawkter

After observing John lately, I can safely say that "dawkter" means "tractor."

"Ouch" means "out"--as in, I want you unstrap me and get me out of this booster seat.

"Bee Bee" is "Blanky"--his favorite blanket.

There yet remain a few mysteries. For example, what does "dutch" mean? Or "gob, gob, gob"?

Perhaps if we watch John carefully and listen to what he says, we will soon find out