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Journal Key:

Green = Steve | George = navy | Janet = Purple | Evelyn = Black

10/10/13 (Thursday)

Poor Owen: it was slightly wet this morning, so when we got to Yellow Brick Road, he almost couldn't get there. A very thin layer of water had collected on the sidewalk, which he refused to walk over because he was sure that it would splash everywhere. I had to demonstrate by safely walking across it twice and then very reassuringly beckoning to him before he would finally take the plunge. We made it inside.

Yesterday was exciting because, as Miss Vina had to very carefully prompt Owen to remember, there had been fire mens! Fire mens were there! (It is fire prevention week.) And Sparky!

Who is Sparky? I asked. I had a pretty good idea, but I wanted to see what he would say. Again, Miss Vina came along with the leading question: "Was he a dog?" Yes, he was. But I still haven't determined whether Sparky was a real dog or a guy in a dog suit.

The kids are always really good when we have to leave them for something, because honestly we have to do that all the time, so they're used to it. Owen happily waves goodbye to me every morning when I'm dropping him off at daycare. But now that I'm taking this class on Monday and Wednesday nights, it does seem to have made him a bit more Daddy-clingy. I can't say I'm not enjoying having the extra attention--though it is sad to have to say goodbye to him and Cara on class days, knowing that I won't see them again until the next day.

10/12/13 (Saturday)

Today we drove to south Jersey to visit the family at Griffin's house! There was much excitement. I got to hold Xavier! Cara got to maneuver herself between him and whatever he was staring at, so that he was looking at her. Owen got to sort of look at him.

Besides that, my favorite part was playing outside. The kids, plus a little girl from down the street, all ran around the yard. We played chase and I generally got manhandled and tackled and attacked. Owen decided he could shrink people, using a plastic golf bag that he'd been rolling around. We all eventually returned to our normal size.

When it was time to go, we drove to Middletown and the four of us had dinner with Grandmama and Grandpapa before the kids stayed for a sleepover and Steve and I went home. When we left, they were getting ready to paint pumpkins. This was very good, because originally Cara had decided that she really, really wanted to carve them.

10/13/13 (Sunday)

Owen has had a difficult weekend. Well, the people in charge of Owen have had a difficult weekend. Owen has been difficult this weekend. I think it's because he's getting a slight cold. His nose is a bit runny, and occasionally he sneezes explosively and then becomes distressed because snot has gotten on him. However, he also doesn't listen and gets very upset when he feels that he has not gotten his way. So, he's not pitiful-sick, he's annoying-sick.

The kids were home for lunch, and when Owen decided he was done eating Steve read him some books and put him down. We've had a couple of failed naps lately, so we weren't confident. However, he went to sleep and we got a couple of peaceful hours.

After dinner, I let the kids have a treat: Count Chocula and Frute Brute cereals. They both really, really enjoyed them. Cara showed me that she'd used up all of the milk in her bowl by the end. A few minutes later, I looked at Owen and saw nothing but bowl: he was holding it to his face, drinking. I hadn't realized that that was what she had done!

When Owen went upstairs for his bath, he was flying. I went and chased him back and forth a few times and wrassled him in the hallway to try to work some energy out. It was very, very, very funny. Somehow, Steve has gotten him through the bath, the tooth-brushing, and the bedtime stories.

10/14/13 (Monday)

Because of Columbus Day, Steve didn't have class tonight. He dropped off Cara, I picked up Owen, and the three of us had a very nice dinner. While we were cooking, Owen wanted a movie on. He wanted the Rescue Bots where Bumblebee (the old-school Transformer) appears. We watched this yesterday. Owen asked for it again, and Steve put it on. Steve and I were chatting in the kitchen, occasionally interrupted by exclamations from the living room.

"Daddy, I think it's BUMBLEBEE!!!!"

"Daddy, this is the one with Bumblebee!"

"This is the one where they can't talk!"

"Hey, Bumblebee is in this one!"

It was pretty amazing.

Owen didn't eat much of his dinner. It was spaghetti night, and Steve had cut up his pasta. This was very confusing. Owen kept trying to twirl it. He also tried to get us to twirl it. We eventually convincd him that he could eat it, untwirled. Eventually Owen announced that he was done, declined to eat any more, and left. Thirty seconds later he returned: "Daddy, can I have a treat because I ate a good dinner?"

Negotiations followed. He ate some more. Finally, I made separate piles on his plate. It was spaghetti night, and each pile had some pasta and some meatballs. "No," protested Owen, "I can't eat two piles!" Explanation was futile. He ate both piles of meatballs, had a little pasta, and left. He wanted a banana. He ate a little more than half of that. I did give him a little piece of chocolate.

When I'd given him a bath, gotten him into his pajamas, and brushed his teeth, he decided that he was really, really hungry. Fortunately, he's still distractable.

10/15/13 (Tuesday)

This morning Owen and I got to YBR and Sophia said something to us, gesturing to a big flat piece of clay or something that she was holding. Then we walked into the next room and little Moira (I think it was Moira) said “Hello, Owen!” Owen ignored them all and stomped into the kitchen. “Why does everyone love me?!” he asked rhetorically, in a very exasperated tone. I suggested that this was a good problem to have.

Owen and I went to Barnes and Noble again today while Cara was in dance. Once again, I managed to get him to let me read some Halloween books before we went to the superhero section. I was reminded, today, that the last time we'd done this he'd become very excited about a book about a baby ogre whose mommy goes out for the evening and leaves him, very upset, with a sitter. When Owen found this book, last week, he exclaimed, "I've been looking for this book everywhere!" It's a lovely book, but I don't see how he could possibly have been looking for it.

I was reminded of that, though, today, when he found it again and exclaimed, "I have not been looking for this book everywhere!"

10/16/13 (Wednesday)

This morning Owen woke up a little before seven. Cara was brushing her teeth. Everyone was dressed. Steve was downstairs. Owen told me that it was time to use the potty, read a book, and go back to sleep. So, around five after seven, when Cara was ready to go, I was in the middle of Bread and Jam for Frances. At that point, we did make an effort and get him to concede that it was time to get up.

I had an appointment in Highland Park this afternoon, so I parked by the grocery store and afterwards walked down the street to get Owen. The kids were clustered around the gate when I got there. Owen and another boy had turned a little basket upside down and were putting leaves and mulch on top of it. The side of Owen's hoodie was brown with dirt. It had clearly been a good day.

Walking down the street with Owen is always an adventure. I told him he was going to get to see the neon superheroes, which really sped things up initially. All of his normal pauses were made in abbreviated forms. Then we stood outside the comic book store and gazed for a while.

After that, he ran on ahead. This seemed good, until he discovered a bench and sat down. I sat with him. He got me to get the peppers he hadn't finished out of his lunch box. He borrowed my sunglasses. We sat and sat and watched people sitting in traffic on Route 27. It was nice to watch people walk by and smile; it's always fun to have him out in public, really. A girl who might have been middle school age paused, watching him. "Is he aware that the glasses are upside down?" she asked. Well, he sort of is. After that, he tried them on right-side up. He didn't like it.

When he ran out of peppers, I got him off of the bench. Then we only had to pause briefly at all of the other benches. There are a lot of benches. He also ran around and around trees and flower pots. It took a while to get to the car; it's a good thing I was early!

After playdate (which involved Cara, Casey, and Owen shrieking with glee downstairs while Em and I got some grown-up time),I gave the kids cheese sticks, circumvented the TV, and got them upstairs. I went down to move some laundry, and when I came upstairs I was delighted to see, on the bath mat I'd gotten out, two sneakers, two filthy socks, and two piles of dirt.

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