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JDaniel4s Mom

growing & learning with him

Hungry Ants Come Marching In!

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We have a little ant problem in the kitchen. We have sprayed and put out traps. The ants seem to disappear only to reappear a few weeks later. As I started sweeping them up after breakfast this morning, this song came into my head. I have changed some words to fit our situation. Please feel free to sing along.

The Ants Come Marching In

The ants go marching one by one. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching one by one. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching one by one, the little one stops to pick up a crumb,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching two by two. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching two by two. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching two by two, the little one stops to gnaw on a fruit chew,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch. Boom, Boom, Boom!

The ants go marching three by three. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching three by three. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching three by three, the little one stops for a scrap of turkey,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching four by four. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching four by four. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching four by four, the little one finds a Cheerio and looks for more,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching five by five. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching five by five. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching five by five, the little one looks for a morsel to survive,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching six by six. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching six by six. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching six by six, the little one eats a strand of  a celery stick,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching seven by seven. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching seven by seven. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching seven by seven, the little one searches for food not swept up by eleven,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching eight by eight. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching eight by eight. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching eight by eight, the little one snacks on tidbits that fell off a plate,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching nine by nine. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching nine by nine. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching nine by nine, the little one thinks small food scraps are fine,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

The ants go marching ten by ten. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching ten by ten. Hurrah, hurrah!

The ants go marching ten by ten, they don’t realize JDaniel’s Mom set a trap of them,

And they all march under the table to see if JDaniel left them any lunch, Boom! Boom! Boom!

Here’s hoping we stay ant free!

I am linking this to Serenity Now’s Weekend Bloggy Reading!

  

Trick or Treating Pictures

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We went trick or treating with our next-door neighbors. JDaniel wore a Dalmatian costume his Aunt Kate sent him for Halloween. Nathan, the little boy next door, was a police officer. As you can see JDaniel was always a few steps behind Nathan in their search for and seizure of candy.

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He had a great time!
 
 
 

Mandate for Change- Pacies Will They Go or Stay

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JDaniel has a major problem with his pacie collection. There are four pacies in the collection that lives in his crib. These particular pacies have been in the crib for over a year. They have aided in JDaniel’s restful naps and uneventful nighttime sleep. They have traveled up and down the East Coast and have even visited Mississippi. They no longer work I was informed via the baby monitor in his room at 12:00 a.m. Sunday morning. Really what he said was, “These are not working anymore!” He repeated these words or words similar to them every hour on the hour until just before it was time to get up and go to church.

They are not working due to the fact that a certain two and half year old has pierced holes in them with his sharp teeth. The pleasure they once gave him disappeared literally overnight. I knew two of them were faulty. JDaniel has told me that they were now “Icky”. Yes, those were his exact words. They had been “icky” for almost a week. The other two must have been on their last legs or should I say final sucks since pacies don’t have legs.

JDaniel and I sat down and talked about what to do about the pacie problem on Sunday night. I mentioned that we had talked about giving them to the donation box at church for Christmas. “Maybe we need to give them to church early,” I said. That idea was vetoed. “How about buying new ones?” JDaniel suggested. “Well, what if we see if we can sleep without them?” I suggested. “We can see,” JDaniel answered.

He went to bed Sunday night with the pacies in his bed. “Please take them out,” he told me. I took them out. “Please put them back in,” he asked as I was closing his bedroom door. He curled them into the fist of his right hand. JDaniel slept all night without a peep. There may still be rough nights ahead of us. We seem to be moving on without them. I have my fingers crossed. It was time for a change.

 
 

Halloween Day Fun (Celebrated on Saturday)

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The development we live in decided to celebrate Halloween on Saturday instead of Sunday. I decided that we would do all kinds of Halloween things on Saturday.

We roasted pumpkin seeds and most of them survived. Some were burnt and set off the smoke detector. JDaniel created a Halloween picture of he and his friends dressed in costumes.
 

We made cookies to hand out when we visited neighbors during trick or treating. This is a tradition we started when JDaniel was a baby. I thought it would be nice to have him give something as well as get something for Halloween.
 
 
This post was written as an entry for a contest to win a Canon Rebel T2i camera. Hop on over to SITS for great blogging tips and more awesome Halloween crafts
 

Mom Wants Extra Sleep! Learning to Make a Bed! The Cat in the Hat!

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This morning when I went into get JDaniel out of his crib I found him laying down with his blanket over his head. Yes, he was laying there clasping a blanket over his face and head.

I was frantic and shouted, “JDaniel get that blanket off your head!” What are you doing?”

“Oh! I am camouflaged, “he said calmly taking the blanket off his head.

“You can’t be camouflaged. Your blanket is green and the sheet is white,” I told him.

“Then I am in a cocoon,” he replied.

“You could have trouble breathing with a blanket over your face. It doesn’t matter what you were pretending to be,” I answered.

“No, look I can breathe,” he responded holding the blanket over his mouth.

Why did he have a blanket on over his face? There are three reasons for this my trying to sneak more sleep, JDaniel’s learning to make a bed, and the Cat in the Hat.

Trying to Sneak More Sleep

One morning I was exhausted and I snuck back into after getting JDaniel’s breakfast. I was sure that if I pulled the covers over my head he wouldn’t find me. Apparently large lump in the bed was very noticeable to him. He came charging in laughing and soon pulling at the covers.

“What are you doing Mom?” he asked.

“I am a caterpillar in a cocoon. If you give me a few minutes, I will burst out of the covers as a butterfly, “I said sleepily.

He waited patiently beside the bed for me to hatch out of the cocoon. I was hoping he would run back and finish breakfast or get tired of waiting for me to hatch or check out what my husband was up to. No, he waited. He wanted to see me fly out of bed and he wanted to jump in bed and pretend he was now it a cocoon. He has been pretending to change from a caterpillar to a butterfly ever since.

Learning to Make a Bed

I am trying to teach JDaniel how to do simple household chores. While helping me make my bed one morning he noticed that a flat sheet, pillows, and blanket were on the bed. He asked me about why they were there and why he didn’t have them in his bed. His crib contains only a fitted sheet. JDaniel has enough trouble finding his pacies as it is at night. I decided to not add pillows, blankets or toys that would impede his finding them. He was insistent that he needed them right away. I convinced him that starting with a blanket would be a good first step. If he liked it and it wasn’t a problem, we could add a pillow. He has used the blanket for a few weeks and loves to have it draped over him at night.

The Cat in the Hat

The need for extra sleep and learning to make a bed has been covered. What is left? Oh! The Cat in the Hat hasn’t been explained. Last night before bedtime we watched the Cat in the Hat on T.V. There were two stories in the episode. One featured a silk worn who built a cocoon. The second story was about a gecko and how he could hide well using his camouflage. I guess JDaniel must have been thinking about the show when he woke up this morning and decided to surprise me.

He decided to let the blanket hang on the side of his bed at nap time and not have it draped over him. Maybe he was afraid of scaring me again.

Exploring Nivens Farm

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Yesterday I posted pictures we took at a pumpkin stand in downtown Simpsonville, South Carolina where we purchased a large pumpkin for our front porch. Today I have more pumpkin related pictures to share. These pictures are from a field trip JDaniel and his playgroup went on to Nivens Farm. We got a small pumpkin and bag of apples as part of the farm visit package.  I am going to share so of the wonderful things we did and saw while exploring Nevins Farm.
We started with a hayride around the farm. JDaniel clung to me as the tractor took off and only relaxed half around the farm. When I asked him his favorite part of the trip later that day he said this was his favorite part.

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Then someone headed off to look for a pumpkin. JDaniel was supposed to select one of the small pumpkins that were already picked as part of our farm visit package. After being guided back to them, he spent fifteen minutes trying to select a pumpkin. I was so ready to select one for him.

 

Stay at Home Mom

After selecting one of the small pumpkins, he jumped on inner tubes.

There was a wood teepee set up. JDaniel waited patiently for his turn to explore the inside of the teepee.

 

It is hard to see him in the tube. If you squint carefully, you may see his shadow.  JDaniel crawled through the tubes many times. He also loved standing at one end of the tube and calling to me on the other end. The echoing effect really interested him.

 

Harvesting Words- Mom, Tell Me about It

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There are times when even I the official JDaniel translator does not understand what he is trying to tell me. Sometimes due to the context of the conversation and sometimes due to where we are when we have the conversation I can figure out what he has just said. When I do not recognize the word he is trying to say, I ask him to tell me about it. Sometimes I ask him the following questions: What does it look like? What is near what you want or see? What color is it? Have we seen it before? Narrowing down the object of discussion usually helps him discern the word he is trying to say.

Lately, JDaniel has been pointing out objects we see when we are out in the car as a fire truck. After getting me to tell him that it is a fire truck, he says, “Tell me about it.” The first time he did this I wanted to break out laughing. I caught myself before the chuckle could escape from my lips. I am so glad I did. JDaniel was being serious. He was giving me an opportunity to share with him what I knew fire trucks. I do not know a lot. Most of what I know about them has come from watching videos on fire trucks with him and he already knows those facts.

I look forward to him asking for me to tell him about things again. This is a great opportunity to talk about shapes, colors, sounds along with introducing new vocabulary words to him.

What are you doing Mom?

This question comes up a lot of car rides or when I am doing the most mundane things. The answer to the question when I am driving the car is to say, “JDaniel, I am driving the car.” I have thought about it and am not sure that is what is asking. He seems content with my answer but, I do wonder if he is looking for more details just as he is when he says,” Tell me about it.” I have started putting what I am doing in sequence with details. “Well, I am driving the car on the highway, because it is the fastest way to the library. When we get there, we can look for books” I say to him.

Does he need all these details?
Yes, he must or he won’t be asking for them.

Do I think taking the time to give him the details helps his brain development?
Yes, I think it is helping him build brain connections that he will use as a foundation to build knowledge on later.

Does he just like to talk like his mom sometimes?
Yes, he most certainly does.

What questions are your children asking?

 
 

Decisions about Halloween and Pumpkins

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There are so many decisions families make about Halloween.

Here are a few we have talked about at my house:

Will we trick or treat?

Some families don’t trick or treat. They have legitimate reasons and have decided not to participate. My husband and I both trick or treated when we were little and decided that it would be all right for JDaniel to dress up and visit houses in our neighborhood.

Will you put out a pumpkin?

Yes. We both had pumpkins on our porches when we were little and don’t see this as a problem for us.

Will the pumpkin have a face carved into it?

Yes. We decided that we could have a happy face carved into a pumpkin. I am totally aware of the history of carved pumpkins. A parent wrote me a three-page letter on the horrors of Halloween when I first started teaching twenty years ago. He detailed as much of the ancient history and meaning of Halloween objects he felt I needed to know followed by a declaration that his child wasn’t to participate in any Halloween related activities in the classroom. I think he had a right to share his thoughts about Halloween with me. His feelings on the subject were respected and I let his daughter abstain from activities that would have been objectionable to him.

Will we decorate the outside of the house with skeletons and ghosts?

No. JDaniel recently noticed some Halloween decorations at a friend’s house and was scared of them. They weren’t going to be a part of our Halloween décor anyway. We certainly wouldn’t be doing them even if we had planned to do them with JDaniel’s fear of them.

Will we read Halloween related books?

Yes. I am reviewing one this week in Read. Explore.Learn. I am not pointing out witches or ghosts out and discussing them. If he asks about what they are, I will tell him what they are called. At two he probably won’t want an in-depth discussion anyway.

 

 
 

Please Don’t Call Me Pumpkin In Public!

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I have so many cute nicknames for JDaniel. Some stick around for a long time like “Cutie Patootie” and “Lion” as in Daniel in the lion’s den. Some are temporary and fit an activity we are doing like “Super Rake Boy” and “The King of Clean Up”. He seems to love them all. JDaniel loves terms of endearment. I think he sees them as a form of praise or acknowledgement of love.
Of course he is two and half and hasn’t really reached a point where I really embarrass him. It is almost as if we live in our own little world even while we are out and about. I can joke and tease him and he thinks it is fun. I can push him on the swings and he giggles joyfully when I call him a “Rocketing Toddler in Space”. He roars even louder when he jumps up from behind bushes and I call him “My Ferocious One”. JDaniel runs faster into my arms when I call for “Sweet JDaniel” to come.

I really don’t look forward to the “Ah! Mom, please don’t call me that in front of my friends or anyone.” The cries of “Do you do this to embarrass me?” or “Shh! don’t ever say that again!” will soon fill my ears. There will be a time when he will just stand there and shake his head.
I don’t look forward to that. I really love having these little nicknames I can use and he enjoys. Maybe he will still let me use them at home.
When did your children ask you to stop with nicknames?
Are you still allowed to use them in the house?

Are there nicknames that have stuck and are part of your children’s public persona?

 

Chicken and Cow Get Hurt Fighting Fires

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JDaniel has misplaced the fireman that goes with his fire truck. There were three firemen that came with the truck and they can’t seem to be found anywhere. One day JDaniel decided to use some of the farm animals to drive the fire truck and fight the fires that are popping up continually in the hallway outside his room. For several days they did a wonderful job. They returned from each fire unscathed and safe.
A few weeks ago there seemed to be accidents happening right and left. The chicken fell off the ladder while trying to reach a burst of flames on the top of the hall table. The pig fell off the truck and broke a hoof. The cow had some kind of accident the filled him with pain. I’m really not sure what happened to him.

Each time the animals have an accident JDaniel requests I come out to the hallway with his ambulance and load the injured animal into it. The animal is then taken into JDaniel’s bedroom by ambulance with sirens blaring to the hospital. It really isn’t a hospital. It is more of an end table that has a shelf of the bottom. The bottom shelf is where all the doctors wait for incoming patients.

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Most of the time Dr. Frog is the duty doctor and he inspects the patients with the x-ray scanner in his mouth. Dr. Frog is a very gifted linguist. He can speak to each farm animal in their native tongue. Most to the time he quickly determines that they really just need bed rest back on the farm. JDaniel many times tries to override Dr. Frog’s decision. He feels they need to stay in the hospital overnight. Thank goodness the farm animals have great health insurance. They are in and out of the hospital all the time.
Now if I could only find the firemen!

 

 

 

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