Just a Few Things I Love About Isaac

*His curly hair. Pictures do not do this curly head justice. It's adorable.

*He sleeps with both arms thrown over his head. Sometimes one little hand rests on his eyes. Makes me melt.

*Isaac has begun sharing his most prized possessions with others. (Usually something we really want like a dripping Nuk or mushy puff that has already been in his mouth) When you say "Thank you!" he giggles, looks away shyly, and looks so darn proud of himself!

*His sense of humor. If I am turned away from Isaac and he wants to make me laugh, he either shrieks extremely loudly (if you've met him, you know exactly what I mean) or does a fakey giggle. When I look at him, his eyes twinkle and he does it again. And again. And again. And again.

*When he hears people clapping on TV, he claps too. =)

*His deep curiosity of all things adult. If you give him something that is plush, painted in primary colors, or sold in any store with the words "R Us" in it... he can take it or leave it. He does have some favorite toys that are, in fact, meant to be toys. HOWEVER. If you give him something with screws and springs and levers, he's in heaven.

*Isaac loves being outside. When we come home at the end of the day, I always let Cody out. If I have Isaac in my arms, he throws a huge fit if I close the door when I'm done. We HAVE TO go outside and throw the ball for Cody, play in the grass, or just sit on the deck and pick at the screws in the wood.

*When Isaac hears something he likes and he wants it to keep going, he says "Uh." If you do the thing again, he'll say "uh." This can go on indefinitely. If he really likes what you're doing, he'll say "Uh. Uh. Uh! UH UH UH UH UH UH!"

Learning

If you don't already know this, I'm an early childhood special education teacher. I work with a wide variety of kids, all of whom need extra support of some kind to be successful at school, in the community, etc.

Last Friday, one of my students looked at me and said something that made me very proud of him. This one little phrase demonstrated many of the skills he has developed over the past year. Here are just a few:

1. Using language to comment on his environment

2. Using a descriptor word

3. Demonstrating an understanding of an early mathematical concept (big vs. little)

4. Identification of body parts

What did he say? Well, he pointed at me and said "Big nose!" Other people have commented on my nose before, but I can't say I've ever been this happy about it... =)

How to ride a bike

Looking forward to the day I can teach Isaac how to ride a bike... hopefully it goes better than this.

- Jonathan

Three Words

I can't blog-nore Mother's Day. (Hey, I just made that up! Get it? Like ignore, but ignore on a blog. Gosh I'm such a dork.)

And I don't want to ignore it. Quite the opposite, actually. I want to talk about how it's my first mother's day, about Isaac's other mommy, about my mom, my husband's mom, my mommy friends, those who are anxiously waiting to become a mom... etc, etc. I don't know where to start!

After sitting here and staring at the screen for much too long, I've decided to say three words about each.

My first mother's day: Blissful and bittersweet.

Isaac's birth mom, Lexie: Wishing her peace.

My mom: There for me.

My husband's mom: Raised wonderful man.

My friends that are mommies: Supported by you.

Those who are still waiting for their baby: Waiting sucks a@#

(especially on Mother's Day)

Nursery Rhymes

My mother-in-law recently gave me a copy of "The Real Mother Goose." She warned me that the book contains the original versions of the nursery rhymes and some are not exactly what a child should hear before bed. Or ever.

Here are a few of my favorites.

Goosey Goosey Gander

Goosey, goosey, gander,

Whither dost though wander?

Upstairs and downstairs

And in my lady's chamber.

There I met an old man

Who wouldn't say his prayers;

I took him by the left leg,

And threw him down the stairs.

WHAT?! Threw him down the stairs? Seems a little harsh, don't you think? My favorite part is how they specify which leg this poor man was grabbed by. I can picture the author hunched over his desk in the candlelight, scribbling out the word "right" with his quill pen and muttering, "Left. Yes, yes. It was definitely the left."

And then there's this one. The one they liked so much, they published it on the back cover of the book.

Ladybird

Ladybird, ladybird, fly away home!

Your house is on fire, your children all gone,

All but one, and her name is Ann,

And she crept under the pudding pan.

Sweet dreams kids! Dream of homes and nests destroyed by fire and lonely starving children wandering the streets. Oh, and don't forget about Ann who is trapped beneath a pudding pan and probably about to die from smoke inhalation. Night night!

This book will probably get "lost" before Isaac is old enough to read and/or question why some of the rhymes end differently each time...!

Catch Up

Since I was MIA for about five months, you missed out on some cute Isaac pictures. Here are some of the fun things we've done since late October.

Isaac as Charlie Brown for Halloween.

At Grandma and Grandpa's house for Thanksgiving

Helping Daddy and Mommy beat Grandma and Grandpa at euchre

The finalization of Isaac's adoption! We joked that this better be the last time he winds up in court.

Meeting Santa for the first time!

Hanging out with his buddy Drew at our friend's cabin

Jonathan's got his hands full =)

First swim!!

Baptism

Lounging in the hotel bed during our trip to California

Family pic in Sausalito, CA

Another California picture! (You can tell by the green grass...)

We visited the U of MN campus and took Isaac to the site of our first date, Annie's Parlor. We were trying to take a self portrait with Annie's sign in the background... but all we got was the "s" and the bottom of the "e." Oh well.

At Como Zoo. It's hard to read, but Isaac is conveniently posing by a mural that says "My first trip to the rainforest."

It was impossible for me to get Isaac AND the animals in the picture, so you'll have to trust me when I say that he was in awe of some very tall giraffes.

At the dog park. Yes, we still try to pay attention to Cody every now and then.

Meeting our new little friend, Owen!!

And, just for fun, putting a baby in a diaper box.