Nap time is OVER!

There is nothing cuter than watching a toddler pass out in his plate of lasagna. You have to envy his ability to fall asleep mid-chew. It's like driving a car that has ran out of gas. No matter what, that car has to stop.

On the flip side, there is nothing more frustrating than trying to get a toddler to nap when he has determined he no longer needs a nap. (Hey Jack, photos don't lie!) There has been a curious phenomena of late in which Jack just blatantly refuses to go down for a nap. Instead he just collapses around 5:00pm. This is no help to anybody. Now today after a long time I was able to get him down by leaving him in his crib while I stayed right outside his door listening and checking to make sure he didn't try to jump out. After half an hour to 45 minutes he finally sputtered out. It makes me nervous though. I'm scared that he's going to make his way out of there. However, he absolutely will not go to sleep if I'm in there. That definitely does not work.  I don't see what the big deal is. I'd love to take a nap! In fact, sometimes when I'm reading to him I come pretty close to putting myself to sleep. If only it worked on him. He won't even lay down with me in bed to read lately because he knows where it's going.
Well, we're in an E.C.F.E (Early childhood family education) class. Maybe they'll have some insight.

Mad-a-gas-car!

As I write this, Jack is glued to the television watching the DreamWorks' movie "Madagascar" for, oh, maybe the TWENTIETH TIME since we checked it out at the library! In fact, we have renewed it twice now. Before "Madagascar", Jack couldn't have paid less attention to the television. Now we seem to have a regular couch potato on our hands. Not only does he love Madagascar, but also seems to love all TV, including commercial spots.

This rapt attention span to TV has also made us acutely aware of the exceptional amount of casual swearing on television, prompting us to put on "The Sound of Music" last night after all we found on was reality shows depicting raunchy children who shouted 4-letter words at parents who cowered in fear from their 8-year olds. We thought a nun who whips the seven Von Trapp children into shape by teaching them to sing was more of the kind of reality we wanted to promote. And actually, based on the dad that Jack hangs out with all day, it kind of is his reality--excepting the nun part.

But I digress.

I have to admit, besides the concern that he is becoming a little TV spud (and who isn't during long cold Minnesota winters?!) there is a guilty pleasure in being able to write this entire blog entry without interruption. And, it is darn cute to hear him pronounce, as clear as a bell, the 4-syllable word "Mad-a-gas-car!" See, he is learning things! How many other 23 month olds know about the island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa?

OK, he might have googled that.

Outlaw

Oh, no! He swallowed my toe!

I was recently reminded of a favorite children's song "I'm Being Swallowed by a Boa Constrictor", promptly Googled it, and came up with this classic Johnny Cash version on You Tube.

Side note: Jack will never know life without Google (or something even more amazing).

"Back in my day, we had to use the encyclopedia! Or we asked our dad!"

(Insert eye roll here from Jack in the year 2023.)

Enjoy the clip!

Jack fell down and broke his crown...

...and Blue Cross Blue Shield went after his mom and dad for everything they've got.

Really.

Well, we have started out our 2010 deductible year with a bang! In the past two weeks we have found ourselves twice in urgent care and once in the emergency room with Jack. The order goes: possible magnet ingestion (see previous post), bloody diarrhea (yes, we said bloody diarrhea in a blog), and falling off rocking chair and banging head which resulted in 3 stitches on scalp.

Call to Obama: parents of toddlers everywhere need health reform and they need it quick! The job of a toddler includes tasting tiny objects, drinking dirty bathwater with your cousins, and testing out gravity. Back in the day, toddlers could try such tricks out and we could pay the doctor in chickens. Ok, admittedly the technology is better now, but must we choose either an arm or a leg as payment!? If nothing else, health care in America needs to reform for the children. Children must be free to test out life to the fullest and not still be paying for it when they are looking at colleges.

Well anyway, Jack is happy. They paid him off in stickers.

The Curious Case of The Missing Fishing Pole Magnet

"Holmes."
"Yes Watson?"
"I have a new case for us."
"Go on."
"It involves a most curious toy fishing pole. You see it's part of a Puzzle. This little fishing pole picks up puzzle pieces..."
"Would you please get on with it Watson. I'm a busy man."
"Yes Well, there's this little round magnet attached to the fishing pole line. The line is still there but the little magnet, it's missing. It belongs to this lad Jack."
"Was there anything else attached to the magnet?"
"Yes it was enclosed in a piece of wood. Except for the magnet part sticking out.
"How big was the object?"
"Roughly the size of a pencil eraser."
"Got it. He swallowed it."
"No. His parents took him to the emergency room and he was x-rayed."
"And?"
"And nothing."
"Surely it's in the house somewhere."
"An exhaustive search ensued with absoloutely no results."
"Who manufactures these puzzles?"
"They go by the name of Melissa and Doug."
"What have they had to say about it?"
"I actually haven't talked them."
"And you call yourself a sleuth. Watson, get me either Melissa or Doug on the phone right now."
"Right."
"And do not tell Scotland Yard."
"Of course not."
"We shall examine Jack's house again as well in case his Parents may have missed something. It seems we have ourselves a case Watson."

To be continued.......

Eye of the Tiger

Jack getting down on New Year's eve, proving that he is the ultimate Rock Band rock star.