spinners

Every year at this time one of the trees in our yard rains down what we call "helicopters". It's a maple tree and the seeds have sails on them. They come spinning down by the thousands, particularly on a windy day such as today. We watched them fall for hours and Andy loved it.

Meanwhile, it's hot enough that Andy and Uncle Davey got into a hose fight and soaked each other and everything within a twelve-block radius. So they sat in the sun and dried off for a while, but inevitably a little boy ends up naked in the backyard in the summer. (At least mine does.)

So the wet clothing came off and I wasn't able to convince him to get dressed. In fact, it became such a fight that I gave up and simply hoped the elderly neighbors weren't too offended. Meanwhile, Andy began racing around in the buff, chasing these helicopters as they flew down from the maple tree.

He stopped for a moment to talk to me, then reached behind him, produced a helicopter and excitedly said, "Hey! Whaddya know? Look what was in my butt!"

cheese

Me: Andy, do you want some cheese?

Andy, sighing irritably: No....(sigh). I don't want any cheese. I'm not a mouse.

hose job

Our little trip to Niagara Falls over 3 days has wreaked havoc in our household. Though he probably doesn't realize it, subconsciously Andy is upset that we left him. And his behavior has indicated as much over the past few days.

We returned from our trip Sunday evening. Monday morning Andy woke up in tears, saying he was hot and had a stomach ache. I immediately went into The-Preschooler's-Going-To-Vomit Mode. Though he had no fever, he seemed listless and whiny. But he asked for Cheerios for breakfast, which should have clued me in.

Shawn went off to work and I called Andy and myself in sick to our respective school and work places. Andy lay on the couch saying he didn't feel well enough to go to school.

After about 20 minutes he got up off the couch and retrieved his new train. I began to get suspicious. I asked, "Andy, how's your tum?"

He replied, "It's doing great!" Then, upon seeing my raised eyebrow, he quickly corrected himself. "I think it still really hurts though."

I was quiet for a moment.

Then I mumbled, "Maybe we should go to Dairy Queen later...."

His head shot up off the couch like a rocket.

"Maybe we should go to Dairy Queen now!!"

Five minutes later we were in the car on our way to school.

all-time backfire

Andy is potty trained. (Hallelujah!)

But that didn't happen overnight. It took a lot of work and I washed a lot of clothing in the process. There were some really gross moments, and they have served to make every flush of the potty that much sweeter.

One technique I employed when I was truly desperate was to let Andy pick the tree of his choice in our backyard and pee on it. He was so thrilled at the prospect that it pretty much ended all outside accidents. The problem, of course, is that now that it's all over, he still loves to pee on the trees. He's a boy. They like to pee on things.

So I just maintain a light-hearted attitude and let it go. As long as he's not peeing on trees at the park, we're okay. I figure it gives the neighbors a kick (or a shock).

But tonight it really backfired. I was cleaning up the kitchen and Andy went out on the porch to play. Suddenly I looked out the door and there was his bare butt, pants around his ankles, peeing right off the porch. He was laughing as it arced through the air and landed a story below, in my wheelbarrow.