Aug 012010
 

At Home with Daddy

Daddy: Paul, who should say the prayer tonight?

Paul: You! [pointing emphatically]

Daddy: You?

Paul: No, YOU! [still pointing]

Daddy: You?

Paul: No! [thinks a moment] Me! [still pointing at Daddy]

Daddy: Me?

Paul: YES!

While in the Car

Paul: Mooo! Moooo!

Mommy: Oh, is that  cow I hear in the car?!

Paul: Yeah! [a pause] Pig pig pig pig.

Mommy: Um, Paul, are you being a pig?

Paul: Yes!

Mommy: Paul, pigs say “oink,” not “pig pig pig.”

Paul: But baby pigs say “pig pig pig.”

 

This is a picture I did not take of Paul and Daddy looking out Paul’s bedroom window in the growing twilight at bedtime, Daddy saying, “And there’s one! And there’s one! Paul, do you see the fireflys?” and Paul saying, “Yes, Daddy! Look!” and cuddling a little closer to him, and I smile and tip-toe back downstairs to finish the dishes all the while thinking “Yes, this is why he quit his other job, this is why he comes home at night, and this is why Paul stayed awake to wait for him” and I hear shrieks of laughter from upstairs as I tidy the kitchen and I know life is as it should be.

I got inspiration for this from www.unphotographable.com, which is written by a photographer who has missed some great shots either because it was against the law to take a picture or he did not have his camera or taking a picture would not have been appropriate or he just did not take the picture.

Jul 182010
 

As was mentioned, we drove to Nauvoo this last week. The first day (Tuesday), he enjoyed learning about Joseph Smith at Carthage, even if the movie and then the tour was a little too long for him. Then, at the visitor’s Center, a full ten mintues got him through all the exhibits. Lots of exclamations of “Joseph Smith!” and “Jesus” when he saw something familiar. Then, Paul saw two and a half of the restored old houses (he had a fit during the blacksmith, which I thought he would have liked) and the second day he made it through a visit to the bakery. And that was it. I overestimated how “fun” it would be for a two year old.

We did play a little bit at the Pioneer Pastimes station, which has pioneer games. But it was sweltering, so we didn’t stay outside long, and in fact came home Wednesday afternoon. (They closed the outdoor exhibits due to excessive heat and Paul would not sit through the inside things.) Before it got too hot, we also went to the ox cart ride. Homer and his friend (forgot the other ox’s name) walking in a circle for about 4 minutes and Paul got to pet his back. He has said “I rode a Ox!” to anyone who will listen every day since then.

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The Ox Cart

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Paul with Homer the Ox

Paul also loved seeing the Temple.

I think our brief time in Nauvoo was just right for him.

Mommy and Daddy took pictures of the Nauvoo Temple  and so we encouraged Paul to as well since we gave him that cheap camera. He took a couple pictures and then said, “I did already” so I don’t think he understood why his amateur photographer father took an hour of pictures!

Here are Paul’s pictures. I’ve omitted the dozens of pictures of his fingers and of the wall, floor, grass, etc. I know these below still are silly and out of focus but I’m actually pretty impressed that I could tell what he was taking pictures of!

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Yes, he took this himself!

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I held the camera for him while he pushed the button.

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He did this all himself! He wanted a picture of the "other temple," i.e., the Catholic church building next to the Nauvoo temple.

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He did it all himself! He wanted a picture of Daddy taking pictures.

Jun 092010
 

The other night, I was in the other room while Paul and Daddy laughed and played. After a little while, Paul came in to find me.

“Mommy,” he said in a toddler whine. “Daddy stole my nose!!”

“Tell him to give it back,” I responded, trying to surpress a laugh.

From the other room, I could hear Paul repeating this request to Daddy. Daddy, being the joker that he is, said, “I can’t. I ate it.”

I went in a moment later to see Paul with his definitive sad face (lip protruding as far as it would go) and the saddest little look on his face. Apparently, this was pretty serious.

I let him steal my nose too, and all was well. Still, I’ll never forget that little toddler tattle-tale whine: “Daddy stole my nose!!”

 

Grandma Peggy and Papa Paul came to stay with me! I had so much fun with them that I still keep talking about them!

We spent a lot time in the car the first night. But that’s because we went to Chicago. We walked down the street to go to dinner together. Grandma Peggy gave me a puppy that we called Billy. I wore Billy on my back and Grandma held on to his leash so Billy wouldn’t get lost while we walked around. there were so many things to look at, I forgot to look at where I was going! But I  knew Grandma was right there with me.

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I was pretty tired after dinner. I got to sleep in a big soft cozy bed all by myself!

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Mommy says she wants me to put in this picture of Navy Pier. She says she took it when she and Grandma and Daddy went for a walk. I didn't see it because I stayed at the hotel and slept in that nice big bed! (Grandpa stayed with me.)

The next morning, I woke up and I was still in the nice big cozy bed! I hadn’t fallen out!

It was a special day because then we went to ride on a boat! I was very excited to see the boat. The walk to get to the boat seemed to take forever and I wanted to be carried. Mommy says it was four blocks. Is that a lot?


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We got on the boat and it was exciting!

Then I was ready to get off. Mommy laughed and said that it had only been five minutes and it was a 90 minute tour. That sounded like a very long time!

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I played with my sunglasses.

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I looked at the water.

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I sat on Mommy's and Daddy's and Grandma Peggy's and Papa Paul's laps.

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Mommy and Daddy and Grandma Peggy took pictures of buildings. Some person was talking about the buildings. I was bored, for the most part. But then we got off the boat and went and ate food! And then we went in a car again. We drove to a Museum called the Museum of Science and Industry.

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I had fun seeing a big tractor

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and I loved the cow. Cows say "Moo!"

I also saw a huge train and a huge airplane. I got to go in both of them. Mommy didn’t take pictures, though. Silly Mommy!

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I also saw a fun toy train set. I watched it for a long time.

Then we went home. That was the end of our day in Chicago. I slept well that night, even if I wasn’t in that huge bed anymore.

ETA (Dec 2011): Post has been post-dated to reflect date pictures were taken. Originally posted July 2010.

 

It has been a long time since our family went anywhere, so we took advantage of the no Sunday responsibilities weekend on Easter and drove to southern Illinois to the Cache River Wild Life Area — a state park. Mommy and Daddy took some pictures and Paul enjoyed going for walks and jumping in puddles. Mommy really wanted to see an Easter sunrise and she got her wish!

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About to Jump (taken April 3, 2010 by Mommy)

We also gave him a (very cheap) digital camera and he had fun taking some of his own pictures.

Nice job, Paul!

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(I would say maybe he needs practice focusing, but I promise, this camera is so cheap I don’t know if better focus is possible!!)

 

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If that picture (just a random snapshot) doesn’t capture the essence of this little boy, I don’t know what will.

Paul loves to say “Happy.” I know it’s going to be a good morning when I go in to get him and he says “Happy! Happy!” He also learned the sign for “awake” via Signing Time and he likes to say that too in the morning or just after a nap. As if his happy noises weren’t enough of a clue.

He also has taken to saying “Yes” whenever I ask a question. It’s always a very deliberate answer, and now the “s” is very distinct.

“Do you want to wear shorts today?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want raisins in your oatmeal?”

“Yes.”

“Do you want me to wash your hands?”

“Yes.”

I’m glad it’s the positive word instead of the negative word. I’m not looking forward to that day…

Daddy has begun traveling again, after working from home for almost two months. Monday Paul spent a lot of time looking for Daddy: in his office, in the bedroom, in the closets. By today, he’s figured out that Daddy went to work by taking an airplane. When he mentions Daddy, I say he’s at work, and Paul acts like an airplane. It’s so sad to see how much he misses Daddy! But we’re glad Daddy will be home Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays.

Paul likes airplanes. Probably not as much as he still loves trains, but airplanes we see outside everyday. We also pass the train station on our way to church every week, which always gets him happy as well.

Paul sits on the toilet about five times a day. It is a new fun game that I don’t mind encouraging. Sometimes he’s successful. Success always startles him.

Anyway, I have been horrible about pictures this month. My sister and her kids came this week and I didn’t even take a single picture. Here’s my official commitment to be better in August!

P.S. I am debating cutting off the curls in August….Stay tuned!

 

There was no memory card in my camera today and I found a few pictures on the internal memory. These must be from last October, because Paul is quite a newborn.

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I can’t believe how tiny he is in these pictures. I miss my little boy!

Dec 112008
 

I arrived in Utah after my bedtime on November 25. But I still had some smiles for Grandma Peggy and Papa Paul!

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The next day, I discovered a room full of toys! Grandma Peggy watched me play and play and play. I had so much fun. Daddy came that day too. I was very glad to see him.

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Mommy told me that the next day was Thanksgiving. We went to a restaurant. I looked carefully at the menu. I saw my cousins and aunts and uncles. We all ate a lot. I didn’t have any room left for pumpkin pie, not after all that turkey and the potatoes and sweet potatoes. I didn’t like the stuffing, but everything else was tasty.

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We took a family photo. But I ate too much and had a tummy ache. Besides, I wanted my nap. That’s why I have a funny look on my face.

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I also got to see some of my other cousins. Cousin Samuel didn’t really know how to walk yet, but he watched my good example and started to figure it out. Cousin Leah turned three years old. She is such a big girl! I was there for her birthday party. And my great-Grandma was there too. She is so nice!

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Grandma Peggy made sure I had plenty to eat all weekend.

And I met more cousins. I can’t wait until I’m a little older; then I’ll have lots of fun with these boys.

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Then we took more family pictures. At least I could cuddle with Daddy.

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And then I got to smile by the Christmas tree.

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Whew! That’s a lot of pictures to tell you about! I hope you had a happy thanksgiving too!

 

I didn’t wake up for my breakfast until 5 a.m. I didn’t know what time it was, of course, but Mommy seemed so happy when she came up. She kept saying, “I just slept for six hours straight!” with amazement. I ate eagerly and then decided to go back to sleep.

Before I knew it, Mommy was waking me up and putting my white shirt on me. Then Mommy immediately put me in my car seat. There wasn’t time to spit up on anyone at all! Daddy carried me out to the car and put me in the back. I sat in the car seat for more than an hour as Daddy drove us around. Mommy came and sat by me for a while and so did this other guy we picked up. I was sleepy so I didn’t feel like talking much. I just stared at the side of the car seat.

Finally, we got to church. I wasn’t sleepy anymore. Mommy took me out of my car seat and held me on her lap. There were so many people to look at. People kept coming by and telling me I am cute. Do such obvious things even need to be said? I just giggled and ate my tie.

I sat on Mommy’s lap as she sang songs. I was pretty happy to be awake. The whole meeting was about Jesus. As Daddy passed the sacrament, Mommy told me about how Jesus was resurrected. I was happy.

I went with Daddy to the Gospel Essentials Sunday school class and took a little nap. Most of the lesson was in Chinese anyway, so I didn’t feel too bad sleeping through it. I’m having a hard enough time with English these days!

When I woke up, I was in Relief Society with Mommy. A lady at the front of the room was talking, and I wanted to show everyone how I can talk too, so I started speaking up! Did you know I can make really loud noises with this voice of mine? Really loud noises! One lady sitting in front of me kept telling me I was cute, but Mommy was trying to shush me. She walked around the back of the room, but I was so excited about my noises that I wanted to see how loud I could get. Besides, I was tired of being held. I wanted to kick.

Finally, Mommy stopped shushing me. And then everyone else was moving around and talking, so no one could hear my noises. How disappointing!

Before I knew it, Mommy was putting me back in my car seat. At least Mommy sat by me again. So did one of the other guys we had picked up, Shawn. He kept making faces at me, trying to get me to smile, but I didn’t feel like humoring him. I decided to make loud noises again. I was getting tired, though, so I wasn’t very energetic.

I think I feel asleep because the next thing I remember, I was in my crib at home. I didn’t want to be all by myself, so I called for Mommy and Daddy.

Daddy played with me for a little while and tickled me. I love my Daddy! He rubbed something dark brown on my bottom lip, and Mommy was quite concerned. She kept saying, “Don’t give him chocolate!”

Grandma Peggy called to wish me a happy Easter. I was so amazed by the voice coming out of the telephone that I didn’t say anything to her.

Mommy and Daddy found me some toys and put me in my playpen. I ate my cloth book and hit myself in the head with my rattle while Mommy ironed a tablecloth and Daddy made pear sorbet.

After a little while, Daddy was putting me back in to my car seat. “Where to now?” I thought. We headed all the way back to Shawn’s house and then back to the church. I did not want to be in my car seat any longer, and I tried to tell Daddy, who kept driving. But Shawn and Mommy just told me I was cute. Shawn told me that it was his first Easter too.

After another long while, we were back at church. Mommy read to me from the Book of Mormon Stories book. I sat with Mommy and Daddy as we listened to pretty music. After listening to some talks in Chinese, we went and watched Shawn baptize William. Mommy told me that I’ll be baptized in 7 years, 6 months, and 15 days. I’m so excited!

After we watched the baptism, we drove home again. Shawn came with us, and so did a sister in the ward and her kids. I lay on my back in my playpen looking up, and there were so many smiling faces—two girl faces and a little boy face and Shawn’s face. I didn’t know who to smile at first! The two girls were very excited to smile at me and giggle and tickle me. I was happy to humor them. The oldest girl picked me up and carried me around the room.

The youngest kid, the boy, wasn’t quite sure how to hold me, but he sat down and he did just fine. Then he and Shawn played football in the living room with a stuffed bunny. I can’t wait until I’m a little older and I can run around like that!

I was so excited with all the people around that I didn’t realize how tired I was getting. When they all put me down in my playpen and sat at the table and started eating, I was very annoyed.

“I’m still here!” I tried to say. But, of course, all they heard was my noises. “Isn’t he cute?” they said to each other.

Finally, Mommy remembered me. She picked me up and took me upstairs. She changed my clothes and sang me a song and cuddled me. I was too tired to go to sleep calmly, but she helped me go to sleep anyway.

It was a good first Easter.