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Journal Key:

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

11/21/13 (Thursday)

The way our lives run right now, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday are like a sprint. Cara has two days of dance, we have dinner with the Loefflers, and Steve has two days of class. Thursdays, in consequence, feel like a weekend to me: we're all home and there are no events and nothing on the schedule.

When I picked Owen up yesterday, he had a red hat. It got full of leaves somehow later, but he was wearing it as we left YBR. He pulled it down over his eyes when I was zipping his jacket, and I made the mistake of laughing. He had to pull it over his eyes for all of his teachers. He wanted to walk to the car with it over his eyes. We had a fairly long discussion over whether having a hat over one's eyes affects one's vision.

Tonight he was hatless. For some reason, he stuck his arms into the wrong sleeves and I zipped the jacket up behind him. He had a front-hood. Front-hoods are great for putting over your face. I'm not sure why they don't market hoods with eye-holes, for the front-hood crowd.

A few days ago, Steve took all of the latches off of our cabinets. It feels really luxurious to be able to just open a cabinet door whenever you want!

11/24/13 (Sunday)

I can sum up the weekend as follows: Owen spent Saturday screaming and Sunday peeing all over himself. There were some good parts. On Saturday, after Owen screamed for 45 minutes about getting dressed, we all went to the library. "Ok, guys," said Owen as we walked in, "let's split up to look for clues! Daddy and I will go this way, and you guys have to go that way!" We sort of did. Our reason to go to the library was that Owen had had me read him Strega Nona the night before and had remembered a different Strega Nona book; we'd gone to get it. I got to lie on the floor of the children's section, on some cushions, and read him two Strega Nonas and several other books.

After lunch Owen screamed for less than 45 minutes (he made up for it with enthusiasm) and then we got in the car and went to meet Grandmama at the Monmouth Museum. He and Grandmama and Cara got to stay and play while Steve and I went to watch a Dr. Who special with Grandpapa. We all had dinner, and then the kids had a sleepover. In the morning, they both took showers. Of course, Owen peed on himself so much today (after staying dry all week) that he needed a bath anyway.

This evening, Cara put on a show in her room after dinner. She had set up her Monster High dolls as a band, complete with paper instruments, and two other dolls were dancers. We sat down, and she stood to one side and read from a piece of construction paper where she had written introductions of the band members. Next, she turned on her Nook and put on a song. She made one of the dolls perform a very complex dance, which apparently she had choreographed. We had popcorn, which helped keep Owen in check. He did decide he needed to also make a doll dance, but fortunately there was an extra.

After the show, when Aunt Claire and Daddy had gone downstairs, Owen announced that he had to do a show, too. He picked up the construction paper, said a few things including the word Dracula, then got the Nook to wake up and play the next song. He started to make his doll dance.

One really cool thing did happen this weekend: Owen seems to really have started to recognize letters. I fully believe that he can read the number one; he may or may not also know seven. He and Steve got through the Barnyard Alphabet game on the Nook, on which you have to pop the bubbles in order of the letters on them. It was neat to hear Steve helping: for example, "the letter B has two bumps." Owen doesn't know the whole alphabet or anything, but I do think something inside his little head is ready for this next step.

11/25/13 (Monday)

Tonight was the last time it'll be just me and Owen on a Monday! It was not my favorite Monday. He'd wet himself twice at school. On the way to the car, he fell down and had to be carried. Because my hands were completely full, this meant we had to crouch in a parking spot for a few minutes while I reorganized. At home, he fell on the front walk (because he'd been running). Inside, he wet himself again. However, he did not freak out when I took his wet pants off of him, even though he "wanted to do it!"

We did get to have eggs, and we did have a good time driving down to get Cara. He did claim that he would be sad if he didn't get to go pick her up next week. I suspect that that will prove to be untrue.

11/26/13 (Tuesday)

While we were on our way from dance to Barnes and Noble, Owen had a dragon in the car. His dragon really liked the songs that were playing. They were the dragon's favorites.

We went to Bed, Bath, and Beyond to pick up Hanukkah candles, which (as I sort of remembered but didn't want to believe from last year) they did not have. Owen is pretty sure that they did have some in the basement. I'll have to go back another day to get them.

At Barnes and Noble, we had a disagreement: we were going to get a snack, and Owen wanted to pick the table. He wanted to pick a table in the lower section, while I went up and bought the snack. I prefer to at least be able to see him. He refused to come up with me. Our compromise: he stood on the stairs. When he got bored, he joined me.

With our snack, we went back down the stairs. Owen found a table. On the bench, he found a little piece of rubber which I identified as trash. I let him run up the stairs and take it to the garbage, which he was able to go directly to. He's growing up!

I got away with only reading one superhero book!

Back in the car, a Billy Idol song came on.

Owen: My dragon doesn't like this song.

Me: Neither do I! (pressing skip)

Owen: Hey, I liked that one!

I had to go back. Rats.

Owen wasn't really into eating dinner. I'm sure it was partially spoiled by our snack. He announced that he was tired of eating. His tummy hurt. He was tired. I suggested that he go to bed. I'm not really sure what I was thinking. I guess I expected him to run upstairs, get bored, and come back. He went and took off his shoes, went upstairs and went to the bathroom, stripped, and--with Steve's help--got into his pajamas. Then he came back and sort of ate a little more.

11/27/13 (Wednesday)

Happy Hanukkah! Happy Thanksgiving! Owen got to wear a Pilgrim hat and go and sing to the babies at the baby school, and then the kids all had a feast together. Miss Sandi made leek soup, which Owen enjoyed. He also was very excited about having gotten two "chocolate cookies" from his Latin teacher. They were gelt. In the car, Cara was nice enough to open one for him.

When we got home, we lit the candles. Steve went to take his final exam. Cara and I convinced Owen not to blow out the Hanukkah candles. I showed him the board books we have for Hanukkah, and he sat on the couch looking at them and singing "I had a little dreidel." After some near-squabbling, Cara sang with him.

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