Powder Play

Two snow storms this week left a nice snow cover over South Hadley. So here's what we did:

• After breakfast, Grafton and Dad suited up in their worker snow gear and headed out to the garage, grabbing our snow shovels.
• We spent about half an hour clearing the snow from the driveway (2nd time this week).
• Headed back inside for a snack.
• Suited up for 20-something degree weather and packed the cross country skis in the car.
• Drove to the Ledges Golf Course, 5 minutes away.
• Took Neva's skis out of the car.
• Decided it was too windy and cold at this spot and drove to the nearby Orchards Golf course instead.
• Put on our ski boots, realized Neva's skis were still at the Ledges course.
• Neva drove back to retrieve her skis, while the boys got suited up and hit the trails.
• Grafton and Dad made it about 1/10th of a mile before Mom showed up.
• Grafton and Dad skied together for about 45 min, then Mom took over watching Grafton.
• Back at the car, headed home.
• Back at home, unpacked the skis, ate lunch, suited up and packed the car for afternoon sledding.
• Drove to nearby hill.
• Got out of the car, started to unbuckle Grafton, realized we forgot his winter coat.
• Drove home, got his coat, drove back to the sledding hill.
• Met up with Landon and his family.
• Grafton and Landon sledded for over an hour, catching air off jumps, wiping out, and diving out of the way of other sledders as they re-ascended the hill (Mom and Dad got a few runs in themselves).
• Grafton throws major tantrum at the bottom of the hill on what would be his final run (due to absolute exhaustion, no doubt). 
• Back at home, had snack, then watched out our photos and videos from the day.

Further Practical Considerations Regarding Holiday Gift Delivery

As a follow up to Mom's recent post, I'll add that Grafton really is giving a lot of thought to the practicality of Santa Claus and his gift delivery duties.

A few days ago, he asked me if Santa Claus came to my house when I was a boy. I said he did, and Grafton followed up with, "Did you have a chimney in your house when you were a boy?". I had to say no, and of course he was curious how Santa could have delivered the gifts. I explained Santa had many tricks for getting his gifts inside houses, including knowing how to open doors!

This morning, Grafton and I were sitting by the fireplace, and he was asking about how Santa can climb up and down a chimney, asking about ladders and such. I explained that he must keep his hands and feet pushed against the inner sides of the chimney as he descends and ascends. Grafton was concerned that he would wear out his boots shuffling along the bricks. I quickly explained that Santa replaces his boot every year.

I think Grafton is on the cusp of an epiphany about the realities of the man from the North Pole...

The Holiday Inquisition

Rudolph-Fact or Fiction?

On the way home from school on Monday Grafton asked, "Mom- is Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer really one of Santa's reindeer or just a nice story?"

Mom responds, "Well, Grafton- I haven't met Santa's reindeer so I'm not sure it Rudolph is a real reindeer." And continued, " Even though I don't know for sure if he's a real reindeer, I love the story about Rudolph and I like to believe that he's real."

Grafton quickly responds, "We won't get to talk to Santa again this year, right Mom?"

Mom replys, "That's right, Grafton."

Grafton suggests, "Next year when I see Santa, I'm going to ask him about Rudolph!"

Santa

Grafton reminded his parents that they should not light the fireplace on Christmas Eve.  Santa might get burned when he comes down the chimney.

Snowman 

Grafton told us this morning that when it snows we can build a snowman.  And that this year we have a top hat to put on the snowman.  We have all the right supplies this year!

Basement Runner

When Dad is working out on the elliptical trainer, Grafton comes running down and joins in by running laps around the staircase in the basement. Not just 2 or 3 times. More like 90. Seriously. He has run laps for 15 minutes straight, at about 10 seconds per lap. Without stopping once. I couldn't believe it the first time I saw him do this. He kept telling me we weren't going to stop until the "race was over."

When Dad is not working out, Grafton will have me time him with a stopwatch. He can hold 6-7 seconds per lap for 10 or so laps.

If Dad can get him to exert this level of effort on a hiking trail, we could start working out together on a regular basis.

Diminishing Parental Need

Grafton showed us this morning that he can button up his own dress shirt.

Super-G turns four

http://www.flickr.com/photos/drewneev/sets/72157632081779821/

Twitter over Blogger?

With the amount of time I have to blog these days, I should probably just start a twitter account for Grafton, because this is about all I have time to jot down:

Grafton is now:

• Willing to pee standing up, toilet height permitting (thanks to his buddy Kayden)
• Checking himself in at daycare on the computer using the mouse
• Able to tie a simple overhand knot
• Learning how to ice skate (2 lessons under his belt); he can shuffle around and get up by himself after falling down.

Bare Mountain

Dad was on daycare pickup duty today, as Mom was away on a work trip. So as usual, when Mom's away the boys will play. This time, Grafton and Dad decided to spend their evening together hiking up Bare Mountain. When I told him the mountain's name, he said "it has that name because there are a lot of bears on this mountain!"  I explained that fortunately this wasn't the case, and that its name was due to its (mostly) bald summit.

It's a fairly rocky trail with lots of big rocks to climb up and over, but Grafton did really well. He got a little tired near the end, and started resisting the idea of making it to the top. But he responded well to my encouragement that the summit was getting close. And he made it to the top on his own. We held hands over the tricky spots.

He really enjoyed the view at the top! I remember him telling me (in one form or another), "Dad, you said it would be good!" Meaning that he agreed. We saw the quarry down below, as well as the parking lot where our car was waiting for us. I think he was impressed by the vertical distance between us and the parking lot. He asked what the buildings in the distance were (UMass), and I pointed out where Ivorie, Grahm, and Sawyer's house was, on a distant hillside. And we looked across to Mt. Norwottuck, whose peak was nearly level with our own.

Unfortunately, the bugs were pretty bad at the summit, so we stayed for only a few minutes, and started heading down.

As we began our descent, I asked if he wanted to climb Mt. Norwottuck on our next hike. He said he would and then commented, "and then when we get to the top, we can look over to this mountain and see it from over there." I thought that was a very insightful comment from my little hiker-in-training.

On the descent, we talked a bit about rocks and lava and what the earth is made of, and he seemed genuinely interested. I wish I had recorded him saying the word "geology." It was very cute.

Grafton was getting tired though, and on the way down he started getting a little silly and less careful with his footing. After a few missteps and slips, I took his hand and explained how important it is to be careful when you're out hiking, trying to make him understand that it's hard to get help out here if you get hurt! It seemed to work, and he focused the whole way down. And I held his hand the whole way. Well right up until the bottom, where I thought he would be fine. And then he fell again. A little more dirt on the knees, but no damage done, and we walked hand-in-hand back to the car.

We stopped at the Village Commons on the way home for a bathroom break and, more importantly, to catch the last evening concert of the summer. And there we ran into his friend Landon and his family! After some craziness with his friend, and a carrot & Clif Bar snack, we headed home for dinner and bed time.

Two Wheelin' Time

When these come off...

and two helpful hands take their place...

and then let go...

here's what happens...

(And, here's what's next.)

Oh, and here are some photos.

Way to Grafton! Keep on ridin' and keep the rubber side down!

Capsized!

As it seems to happen every year in the Pioneer Valley, the heat and humidity rolls in right around July 4th. Today was the 6th, and so, as expected, the weather was hot and more than a little muggy. A perfect day for an evening swim! Mom was away on a work trip so it was just "the boys".

Now it's been only a week since Grafton got the hang of being in the water on his own. That is to say, he's finally happy to float around without having to hang on to one of his parents. Last weekend, he simply lost his fear of the water when he realized he could move himself around the pool (Dad missed it, but Mom was there). He now uses a kicking motion that can't quite be called "swimming", and it looks an awful lot like walking, since he still refuses to make use of his arms. But he's getting there!

This evening Grafton willingly slipped into his life vest without complaint. He had outright refused to wear this contraption up until just two days ago. He was clearly eager to get back in the water, which I was very happy to see. We had fun with our normal routine of aquatic games: Tummy "water skiing", "8 foot vertical catapult & catch", Marco-Polo (and Grafton's version, Lolly-Lolo), and Max Liquidator water warfare. Next, we took out the triangular raft so we could do some white water rafting. With Grafton on top, holding on to the two handholds, I pushed him around as fast I could and emulated white water rapids by bouncing him up and down. He loved it. But this sport is not for the faint of heart! Those class 5 rapids can be a doozy. And before either of us could see it coming, the raft flipped over, tossed Grafton head over heels, submerging him fully underneath the water. For the first time. Uh oh. He surfaced after a few seconds with the help of his life vest and his Dad's rescuing arms. I was sure the water streaming down his face was masking the tears that must already be flowing. His eyes were wide open and staring back at me in shock, and I immediately worried he was choking on water. His mouth was closed, but I was hoping he would cough up some water and everything would then be fine. Instead, he wiped his face, opened his mouth and yelled out, "That was COOL! Let's do it again!"


Phew. I thought I had just killed his enthusiasm for the water once and for all. But clearly, he loves it. I'm confident we'll have Grafton swimming for real, sans flotation devices, by the end of the summer.

Cycling Buddies

Grafton put on his cycling gloves all by himself today, which is no mean feat, since even his parents have always had trouble getting each of his fingers through the holes when helping him.

You should see this little guy on his bike now--he pedals faster than Dad now. He really flies and gets up all the little hills without stopping. (When he's tired, he struggles, but rarely stops). He's still on training wheels though. We're not pushing him too hard to take them off, but we keep mentioning it. He recently agreed to taking off the training wheels from one of his two bikes; we'll see how this goes when I actually do it.

Myself, I've been getting in some early morning rides before work recently. A couple of times I've slipped out before Grafton was up, but today, Grafton was up. He helped me get ready but teared up with the saddest pout I've ever seen when I was heading out. He really didn't want me to go. But then he didn't try to make me stay either, which he could have easily done. I think he really understands that I love to ride my bike and didn't want to sabotage my opportunity. I thought that was quite mature of him. But it sure was hard to leave such a sad little boy behind. I made it up to him tonight by joining him on ride around the neighborhood. We do the loop outside of our house rather often now. And now that he can get his cycling gear on all by himself, it should be easier than ever to get a quick ride in together.

Ulterior Motives

Grafton has figured out that there are real advantages to concealing one's true intentions. Particularly when these intentions belie a plan that has, in the past, been the frequent target of parental veto.

While we were making dinner, Grafton slyly mentions to his parents that he is heading upstairs to "check the carpets." His parents exchange a quick grin and raised eyebrow to one another. "Okay, Grafton! Let us know how that goes." As he heads upstairs, Mom deciphers this odd declaration to mean that he is in fact going upstairs to put on his favorite pajamas. She shares this realization with Dad, who nods with understanding. As Grafton reaches his room, Dad calls out, "How are things going up there?" "Fine, Dad!" Toilet flushes. Dad asks again, "Are you coming back down soon? Do you need any help up there?" Grafton quickly responds, "No, Daddy! I don't need any help. Don't come up here." The door to Grafton's bedroom is now closed, and sounds are muffled. Another exchange between Dad and Grafton, who answers that is everything is fine. After a while we hear his footsteps as he slowly descends the stairs. Upon entering the kitchen, he shows up with a probing smile, and tilted head, trying to look cute enough to diffuse the certain reprimand of having put on his pajamas before dinner time. It works. Mom gives in and asks with excitement, "Did you put those on all by yourself!?" Confidently, Grafton responds that he did. Mom and Dad smile at each other, the whole act being too adorable to ruin with another "lesson" in what constitutes appropriate dinner attire. Of course, in our acceptance of his actions, we have now set ourselves up to deal with continued acts of willful deceit for many years to come.

You've got to hand it to the little guy--he's really beginning to figure out how to get what he wants.

---

Update: I now realize that back on Mar 2, I started writing a blog entry, which I never finished. I'll simply share it here, unfinished, as it highlights how Grafton dealt with being told "no" only two months ago:

When I tell Grafton that there's something he not allowed or is unable to do because he's a child, he usually responds, "Daddy, when you were a lilly [little] boy, your Mommy and Daddy said that you can't do [X] because you...[repeating whatever reason I had given him]?" He seems to want to make sure that everything he's going through as a small person is similar to what his Daddy and Mommy had to go through too. And if that's the case, then it's alright with him.

Reception

Grafton got a few new toy pickup trucks from his Grandpa and Baba yesterday. This morning, he was playing with them before breakfast, and he started wiggling one of the trucks' chrome antenna. Since it looked fragile we told him not to yank on it. Out of nowhere, he started explaining to us that this was for listening to music! I asked him what would happen if it broke off, and he said "then you can't listen to music or news." Now I vaguely remembered explaining to him what an antenna does, but it was a long time ago. To further test his understanding, I asked him where the antenna was on his Mom's car. Now this was a little tricky, since her car has one of those modern, low-profile antennas on the back center of the roof. And that's exactly what Grafton told us! I guess he really knows a thing or two about antennas.

Quickies

I pointed out a radio tower on top of Mt. Tom to Grafton, while we were on a walk. He then explained to me, Dad, you can go up there to the radio tower and listen to the radio!"

Grafton now enjoys "reading" books to himself now. Not that he can read yet. And he's always liked paging through his books when we were not around to read them ourselves. But now, he pretends he's reading the books to someone else. It's rather cute. He sits with his book quietly, turning the pages, and paraphrases the story on each page in whisper voice.

Mom asked Grafton what they should get Dad for his birthday. All on his own Grafton came up with the idea of strapping a snow shovel onto his Dad's front bicycle wheel. He explained Dad could then ride around and around, plowing the snow out of the way as he rides. This was a particularly insightful idea, considering that we don't even snow on the ground this winter.

Grafton can identify pizza delivery trucks by the illuminated signs they place up on the roof. (No doubt, he's picked up on our frequent comments of "there goes another Family Pizza delivery in our neighborhood", which we see 2-3 times on any given weekend night.)

Grafton was singing a song to the melody of "Farmer in the Dell", but making up his own (nonsense) words. I asked him, is that "Farmer in the Dell?" He replied, "No, it's the same tune, but different words." While this a entirely reasonable response, I was surprised that he already has separate concepts for the melody and the lyrics of a song.

In January we visited NYC, arriving at Grand Central Station. When we entered the crowded, bustling station, he quickly commented, "I see a lot of legs!" When we exited onto 42nd St, he asked, "Where are the taxi cars?" (While we riding on the train, I had told him about how everyone takes taxis to get the around the city.)

Dental Report

Grafton had his first dentist visit recently. He did great! A model patient, agreeable and patient with the dental technician. And his teeth were in very good shape. (Good brushing, Grafton!)

Unfortunately, we confirmed that he has a non-trivial underbite. We've always been aware of it, but never worried about it too much. Now we're worrying a little more. We'll be heading to an orthodontist soon to figure out whether we need to take corrective actions. If we do, it's not going to be fun for any of us, least of all Grafton. But we'll just wait to find out the facts first.

Turning a Corner Behaviorally?

Grafton's behavior over the last few months has, at times, been, well...trying. And trust us when we say that Grafton's teachers would agree with us on this one. Perhaps it's that Grafton has just been trying to assert his independence, but the little guy simply would not listen to instructions. You could ask him, then tell him, them order him, and then blow up in anger in front of him, and he would simply go on doing whatever he wanted. It was not fun for any of us. Or his teachers, who were even forced to implement some Grafton-specific positive-feedback tactics to improve his behavior at school (with limited success).

But we believe our son may finally be turning a corner. With increasing frequency, Grafton now will listen to us, after even just one request. And if he's done something wrong, made a mess, or otherwise upset us in some way, he now shows a modicum of remorse when we scold him. In the past, if you had to raise your voice with him, he would just get more impertinent and mock your anger with a silly grin. But recently, you can tell he actually feels bad, and has even become teary-eyed and pouty in response to a scolding. And once in a while, he'll even explain to us why his actions were wrong and what the consequences might have been.

So perhaps life will get a little easier around here for us all, with a lot less yelling and arguing.

Please don't get the impression that he's turned into a perfect angel--he's still very much a free spirit and has a strong sense of what he wants to do (or not do). And we love that about him. Sometimes. :-)

D**n it!

Well, I suppose it's not the worst word to yell out, for your first bad word.