2010-12-28: Sizes of planets

Dad was very surprised this morning at breakfast when Nigel asked if Pluto is much bigger than Uranus. After a moment of stunned silence, Dad explained that, in fact, Uranus is much bigger than Pluto, which is very tiny. Nigel next asked if Earth was much smaller than Pluto. After telling Nigel that Earth was larger than Pluto, Dad thought it was time to visit the planetarium to see the scale-sized globes of each planet and demonstrate the relative sizes of each in better detail than in the "I Am The Sun" book that Nigel has been reading, which has likely served as the impetus for these questions.

Nigel knows that Mars is red and is where martians live (heh). He knows that Saturn has many rings, and that Jupiter is the very largest of all the planets. We have not talked yet about the solar system, or that there are other systems out there. Mom and Dad both point out planets when they are visible in the night sky, and recently saw the reddish-colored Mars in the sky while out for an evening walk with Nigel.

2010-12-16: Black steam engine dream

Dad asked Nigel again if he had had any dreams. Nigel talked about a black steam engine, going into a black tunnel under stairs.

2010-12-12: Quizzing Dad

Nigel quizzed Dad on animal sounds this morning.

"Dad, what sound does a sheep make?"
"Baa"
"Good. What sound does a dolphin make?"
...

2010-12-08: Morning dreams and teaching words to Dad

Nigel woke up in a good mood this morning. He was playing in his crib when Dad went in to get him. Dad asked if Nigel had any dreams, and Nigel once again mentioned a black butterfly, saying he had given it to Dad. This is the only answer he has ever given to being asked if he has had any dreams, and has mentioned it several times now.

Later in the morning, Dad was driving Nigel to pre-school. Dad hadn't been talking much, as he was just getting over being sick with a stomach bug, and was still feeling very weak. As they were getting close to the school, and were waiting at a stop light, they had the following conversation:

"Dad, say, 'Tree'."
"Tree."
"Good job. Say, 'House'."
"House"
"Say 'shop'."
"Shop"
etc...

This continued through several words, seemingly things that Nigel could see from his car seat, including: "Brown", "White", "Green" (probably inspired by the light turning green at that time), and "Red" (probably also from the stop light). It was a fun game, and interesting for Dad to have Nigel teaching words to him, for a change. :)

2010-11-25: The Ring and the King

The family was at Grammy's house for Thanksgiving. Nigel spent a good deal of time reading a pop-up book, The Nutcracker, that Grammy had. He called it "The Ring and the King", and would always start out by saying, "The Ring and the King, by Nigel Phineas, illustrated by (some random name-sounding syllables)."

Nigel singing "In a Cottage"

Here is Nigel giving us a performance of In the Cottage. He starts out a bit shy but has all the actions by the end. He really loves action songs right now and this is one of his favorites!!

Changes

As Nigel is approaching his 2nd birthday I have taken some time to look back over the past year. It is crazy how quickly he changes! And just when you think you have it figured out it all changes again. Last night marked yet another event in his life. He finally decided to sleep in his twin bed! As with all things Nigel we have been working toward this goal for several months. When he does finally achieve something I always feel a bit of regret at losing a bit more of the baby as the boy emerges. It was a bit odd to be sitting downstairs and not hearing him crash against the railings as he attempted to get comfortable. When we went to bed his feet were hanging out - it looked like he had fallen asleep praying. The other funny bit was that he has played on this bed for months - he knows how to get in and out - yet this morning he woke up and yelled for Dad to get him out. Exactly the same as a crib. I wonder how long that will last before he decides to get out and wander!

Vegetarian recipes

I have looked at a number of vegetarian recipe sites, books, magazines, etc., but am frankly most impressed with this: http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/courses/dinner-recipes/vegetarian-dinner-recipes. Simple, quick, fairly-diverse vegetarian food, that I could actually see myself making. It doesn't sound that hard, I know, but I have yet to find a resource I like nearly as much as this one.

2010-10-26: Lars and Anne's wedding reception

The family went to the wedding reception of Lars Larsen and Anne Bodily. While waiting in line, Mom and Dad were asking Nigel to practice saying "Anne, you look very pretty." When arriving at the happy couple, Nigel became shy and said nothing. Of course, he recited the statement as soon as they left the line and walked off by themselves.

Nigel remembered that statement for some time to come, occasionally mentioning something about Anne's pretty dress even months later.

2010-10-26: Butterfly dream

Nigel seems to have many fun dreams. Recently, he has talked about riding a kangaroo and about having a butterfly in his crib multiple times each. This morning, he said he gave a black butterfly to Dad.

2010-09: Big toot

Dad has been referring to passing gas as "tooting". One morning, Nigel woke up and asked Dad to come and get him out of his crib, as he typically does. While Dad was on his way in, Nigel must have passed gas quite loudly, for he said, quite excitedly, "Dad, big toot!

2010-09-01: Note to a (Theoretical) Teacher

Dear Teacher,

We wanted to send over some information about Nigel and about our parenting style, in hopes it will be useful to you.

Nigel is a bright and bubbly child, though he is often shy in new surroundings and with new people. Verbal communication has always been an anchor for him. Nigel talks a great deal when he is comfortable in his surroundings and with people he is accustomed to.

Talking with him is one of the best ways to encourage him to perform a task or try new things. Nigel responds well to clear directions most of the time, when not distracted by exciting or interesting diversions. He enjoys helping, and performs tasks like cleaning up reliably, if given clear direction. His attention span for following directions is quite short, however, so frequent instruction is typically necessary.

Talking seems to also be one of the most effective way to calm him when he is upset. Telling him clearly when it is time to stop crying or to calm down often produces good results, getting him to refocus away from the situation or what upset him and onto the person giving the instruction. If successful, his response will be, "Okay."

We are beginning to use time-outs as a measure of discipline, not yet as any sort of punishment, but as a short time to sit and talk very briefly about what to do and what not to do. Taking him out of the situation and talking clearly (and very concisely!) about it has been somewhat effective thus far.

Nigel typically responds very well to a clear and immediate "No" when first doing something inappropriate. If not stated immediately upon his engaging in the inappropriate activity, or if a clear and serious tone is not used, his response to being told "No" is not nearly as good. Note that a threatening tone should not be necessary, simply not a joking or silly tone - plain or serious, depending on the severity of the situation.

Like many, if not all, children, Nigel enjoys personal attention from adults. He loves reading stories, though he is accustomed to cuddling with a parent during storytimes at home. Nigel likes books, but often has a short attention span for new material. His attention span grows dramatically through exposure. Nigel also loves songs and singing. He rarely sings when not alone with Mom or Dad, but often does so when with either parent. He loves listening to music or listening to singing, anytime. He also enjoys performing actions with songs, but is reluctant to do so in new situations. Nigel also loves animals, including cuddling and playing with stuffed animals, dressing up as animals, and playing with other animal toys.

Nigel is beginning to understand sharing and taking turns. He is familiar with those words, and has had some, but not a lot, of practice at them.

Nigel learns well by way of talking. He picks up new words very quickly, and seems to acquire new concepts well if strongly connected with words. Talking about a concept, and emphasizing one (or possibly two) new words along with the idea, seems to be a very effective teaching strategy for Nigel right now.

Christian and Kelly Mansfield

2010-09-01: Note to a (Theoretical) Teacher

Dear Teacher,

We wanted to send over some information about Nigel and about our parenting style, in hopes it will be useful to you.

Nigel is a bright and bubbly child, though he is often shy in new surroundings and with new people. Verbal communication has always been an anchor for him. Nigel talks a great deal when he is comfortable in his surroundings and with people he is accustomed to.

Talking with him is one of the best ways to encourage him to perform a task or try new things. Nigel responds well to clear directions most of the time, when not distracted by exciting or interesting diversions. He enjoys helping, and performs tasks like cleaning up reliably, if given clear direction. His attention span for following directions is quite short, however, so frequent instruction is typically necessary.

Talking seems to also be one of the most effective way to calm him when he is upset. Telling him clearly when it is time to stop crying or to calm down often produces good results, getting him to refocus away from the situation or what upset him and onto the person giving the instruction. If successful, his response will be, "Okay."

We are beginning to use time-outs as a measure of discipline, not yet as any sort of punishment, but as a short time to sit and talk very briefly about what to do and what not to do. Taking him out of the situation and talking clearly (and very concisely!) about it has been somewhat effective thus far.

Nigel typically responds very well to a clear and immediate "No" when first doing something inappropriate. If not stated immediately upon his engaging in the inappropriate activity, or if a clear and serious tone is not used, his response to being told "No" is not nearly as good. Note that a threatening tone should not be necessary, simply not a joking or silly tone - plain or serious, depending on the severity of the situation.

Like many, if not all, children, Nigel enjoys personal attention from adults. He loves reading stories, though he is accustomed to cuddling with a parent during storytimes at home. Nigel likes books, but often has a short attention span for new material. His attention span grows dramatically through exposure. Nigel also loves songs and singing. He rarely sings when not alone with Mom or Dad, but often does so when with either parent. He loves listening to music or listening to singing, anytime. He also enjoys performing actions with songs, but is reluctant to do so in new situations. Nigel also loves animals, including cuddling and playing with stuffed animals, dressing up as animals, and playing with other animal toys.

Nigel is beginning to understand sharing and taking turns. He is familiar with those words, and has had some, but not a lot, of practice at them.

Nigel learns well by way of talking. He picks up new words very quickly, and seems to acquire new concepts well if strongly connected with words. Talking about a concept, and emphasizing one (or possibly two) new words along with the idea, seems to be a very effective teaching strategy for Nigel right now.

Christian and Kelly Mansfield

2010-09: Making hot chocolate

Nigel and Dad enjoy playing with the Swedish Chef kitchen toy together. Nigel particularly likes making something to eat, and his favorite thing to make is "hot chocolate". He will ask again and again, "Dad, can we make some more hot chocolate?"

Making hot chocolate is a detailed process. They start with the tea kettle, filling it with water at the sink. Nigel makes a "glug, glug" sound for the water pouring. Next, the tea kettle goes on the stove to be heated. Dad reminds Nigel to turn the stove on (which he does with a "click, click" sound effect), and they get out one or both mugs, depending on how many they can find. While they wait for the tea kettle to whistle, Dad asks Nigel if they should put mix into the mugs. Once the mix has been poured, Nigel likes for Dad to make the whistling sound for the tea kettle, even though he is quite capable of making a very good whistling sound, himself. Now, when the kettle whistles, Nigel takes it from the stove, and pours its contents into the mugs. Nigel likes the next step: stirring the hot chocolate, then always drains his mug in a single gulp. As soon as it is gone, he typically asks, "Dad, can we make some more hot chocolate?"

2010-08: Hiccing up

Mom, Dad and Nigel were on a walk together, and Nigel had the hiccups. He said, "I'm hiccing up!"

2010-07-23: Pioneer Day in Bountiful

The Pioneer Day celebration in Bountiful was held on the 23rd this year. It was hot and tiring, but fun still. Nigel had fun on the swings, rode a train, ate cotton candy and threw up. The perfect carnival day.

First carnival ride, at Bountiful Park: [image here]

Mom handed Nigel his ticket, and all by himself, he took and presented it to the attendant and was placed on the ride. He had a great time, and was the youngest child riding.

Dad arrived in the evening, after work, and the whole family went to see the Bountiful Pioneer Day Parade. Grammy, Aunt Brooks, Cyruss and Trinidee were there, but Cyruss wasn't feeling well, so he didn't come to the parade. The parade had tractors, floats, horses and ponies, lots of kids marching and dancing, bands playing music, clowns (including one on a little go-kart), and big trucks. Nigel particularly like the go-kart and the dancing.

2010-07-23: Pioneer Day in Bountiful

The Pioneer Day celebration in Bountiful was held on the 23rd this year. It was hot and tiring, but fun still. Nigel had fun on the swings, rode a train, ate cotton candy and threw up. The perfect carnival day.

Dad arrived in the evening, after work, and the whole family went to see the Bountiful Pioneer Day Parade. Grammy, Aunt Brooks, Cyruss and Trinidee were there, but Cyruss wasn't feeling well, so he didn't come to the parade. The parade had tractors, floats, horses and ponies, lots of kids marching and dancing, bands playing music, clowns (including one on a little go-kart), and big trucks. Nigel particularly like the go-kart and the dancing.

For his first carnival ride, Mom handed Nigel his ticket, and all by himself, he took it to the presented it to the attendant and was placed on the ride. He had a great time, and was the youngest child riding.

2010-07-23: Peacock dream

Another dream last night. This time he says he was riding a peacock, and that there was a kangaroo in his bed. Nigel seems to be very interested in these animals, particularly kangaroos.

2010-07-22: Talking after a day at Danna's house

While Mom is either at work or sleeping after a night shift at work, Nigel spends Thursdays at a babysitter's house. Her name is Danna, and she has a five-year-old boy, named Austin, and a three-year-old girl, named Ashley. Nigel thoroughly enjoys their house, and is always talking about it being "fun" afterward. He typically says things like, "have fun Austin," and, "I like it," while riding home in the car with Dad.

Danna has said many complimentary things about Nigel. She has mentioned repeatedly how well behaved he is, and how expansive his vocabulary is. Today, Danna mentioned that Nigel was speaking five- to six-word sentences during the day, and how remarkable she thought that was.

2010-07-19: Fashion Place shopping mall

Dad and Nigel went to the shopping mall tonight after dinner, while waiting for Grammy to come and spend the evening. On the way in, Nigel noticed the moon, and they both watched the moon go "behind" the shopping mall.

On entering the mall's main drag, they encountered a platform with several motorized vehicle toys. Nigel played in, on and around the school bus and train, but had little interest in the other vehicles (ice cream truck, etc.). Dad took his new phone to a kiosk to have a protective film applied, then they walked back to see the train again while waiting for the phone to be finished.

After several more minutes of playing, they walked to the center of the mall, where Nigel proceeded to run back and forth between and into several footstools and chairs put there for shoppers to rest on. There were almost no people in the area, so he had plenty of room to play. He ran around for a few minutes, then took off yelling, "Oh, oh, oh!" Dad ran after and grabbed him, then Nigel said, "clock tower," referring to a large clock on a tower outside a clock and watch shop. Nigel was very excited about the clock tower. This is something he has really taken to since first being introduced to the thing by Trinidee, who had shown the City and County building's clock tower to him.

On the way out of the mall, Dad grabbed a breadstick sample, stuck on a toothpick, for Nigel. Nigel licked and played with the bread until well after they arrived back at home, and was sad to finally see it go, but was willing to give it up to be able to climb on the furniture again.

2010-07-11: Riding a kangaroo dream

Nigel seems to have dreamed about riding a kangaroo last night. It is a bit difficult to be sure that is what he means, but when asked if he had any dreams last night, he seems to be making that claim.

2010-07-07: Conversation with Nigel

Text message from Mom to Dad:
Just had a real conversation with Nigel.
"Mom, what doing?"
"Making rice. What are you doing?"
"Drinking apple juice. HELP! Foot stuck!"

His foot had just gotten stuck in a chair.

2010-06-19: Sandals, not slippers

Nigel had a moment of disappointment today. Dad mistakenly said they should go put on slippers to go to the store. Nigel promptly found Mom's slippers and began shuffling toward the door wearing them. He was disappointed to have to take them off and put his sandals on instead. (Sandals is what Dad had intended to say, rather than slippers.)

2010-06-17: "Danna house fun", "... a lot"

Dad picked Nigel up from Danna's house (the babysitter), where Nigel was having a great time running around in the backyard with Danna's children, Austin and Ashley, and would have been happy to stay indefinitely. From touching the house to running to see a cat that had wandered into the yard, Nigel was having a great time.

On the drive home, Nigel started talking about things he liked. He said, "Danna house fun, I like it." He then starting saying "a lot" in connection with a number of different things, presumably meaning that he liked it a lot. Those things included:
"Mommy a lot, Pupagus a lot, Grammy a lot, Grandpa..., Grandma..., Elephant..., Fountain... (Nigel and Dad had just driven past a fountain), Tiger..., Blanket...

2010-06-14: Counting and letter 'X'

Today, playing with Rokenbok, Dad was explaining to Nigel to press the 'A' button on the controller to make the toy raise up, and the 'B' button to make the toy lower. Nigel was looking at the controller and he pointed at the 'X' button and said, "X."

Later, playing Guess Who, Nigel spontaneously began counting as he lowered the playing pieces. He consistently said, as he played, "1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10." he has liked six for quite some time now, and has not yet taken an interest in four or five.

2010-06-12: Baa Baa Black Sheep

Dad and Nigel read lots of nursery rhymes before bed and naps from the "Treasury for One Year Olds" book. Nigel really likes Baa, Baa, Black Sheep right now and is beginning to memorize it. Dad was reading along, and Nigel joined in to say, "Yes, sir, yes, sir," very enthusiastically! Nigel's 's' sounds come out like 'sh' sounds, so it sounds like he is saying, "Yes, sure, yes, sure." Dad and Nigel also like to nod their heads while saying the "Yes sir" parts.

2010-06-05: Bummer, where go, and the end of tepots

To celebrate Cyruss' birthday, the family went to Costco for pizza with Grammy, Aunt Brooks, Cyruss and Trinidee. While eating, someone (Grammy?) said, "Bummer," and Nigel cracked up! Everyone took turns saying it the rest of the meal, and it never failed to get Nigel laughing, which got everyone else laughing, in turn.

Nigel started playing a game in his car seat with the toy camera he got from the recent "Day out with Thomas the Train" event. He would stuff the camera down between his leg and the side of the seat, then ask, "Where go?" Mom or Dad were supposed to be very surprised, and ask where the camera could be. They were surprised, but more by the game than by where the camera was. :) Nigel would keep the camera hidden for some time, then pull it out and say, "There it is!," with Mom or Dad. A great game, indeed.

A bittersweet occurrence happened this day, with Nigel, for the first time, using the word "pizza", rather than "tepot" or "tepots". It was nice to see his language progress to be able to say "pizza", but sad to see the end of "tepots", which was very cute.

2010-06-02: Nigel activities update

Dad and Nigel saw a potato bug (pill bug) recently. Dad picked it up and showed it to Nigel, who was very curious.

Nigel has been helping Mom and Dad clean out the garage, sweeping and raking dirt and leaves all over the place. He has also helped Mom plant flowers in the gardens in front of the house.

When he wakes up in the morning, Nigel usually plays in his crib, and always talks to Mom and Dad when he is ready to get up.

Nigel likes flying his stuffed animals around, and provides sound effects for them while doing so.

Nigel enjoys music and dancing with Mom and Dad, swimming, playing with friends and family, playgrounds, and riding in the bike trailer while Dad and Grandpa and/or Mom go for bike rides. Dad and Grandpa ride almost every weekend, usually on the Jordan River Parkway, which is a very nice ride. Nigel sometimes sleeps in the trailer, but that is getting to be less common now. He stays awake for the whole ride quite often at this point.

Mom and Dad have created a game about Diet Coke. "Dad thinks Diet Coke is yucky." "Mom thinks Diet Coke is yummy." Nigel likes applying the descriptions of Diet Coke to Mom and Dad, sometimes intentionally switching around who likes it and who doesn't. Also, Nigel thinks it is yummy.

Mom and Dad like to say, "Ready, go," when announcing the start of activities. Dad uses it for going potty, in hopes it will pay dividends when potty training Nigel. Mom uses it for all kinds of activities. Nigel likes to say it, too, and uses it in a variety of situations.

Nigel likes jumping with Mom (holding hands) and in the Johnny Jump-up toy.

One of Nigel's favorite things is singing songs. Among his favorites are Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes; Tony Chestnut; The Itsy-Bitsy Spider; and The Alphabet Song.

Nigel knows many colors, but his favorite has always been pink! He almost always selects pink anytime he is given the choice. He always requests his food to be served with pink dishes, chooses pink clothes (though Mom usually steers him to the boys' clothing sections), and is tickled pink (pun intended) about anything pink (stickers, cars, toys, chairs...).

Nigel prefers to have macaroni and cheese for lunch, and pizza for dinner. Those are his two favorite foods.

For snacks, Mom often gives Nigel Frosted Mini-Wheats. They call them "wheats", and Nigel gets to request one, two or three wheats. While he doesn't always get the three wheats he may request, interestingly, sometimes he gets more excited about the idea of one or two wheats than three. The number is exciting in and of itself, not just as a quantity.

One day, a house down on the corner of the street was running an outdoor vacuum. Mom and Nigel were on a walk and stopped to listen. For weeks to come, Nigel mentioned the vacuuming noise everytime he passed that corner, and would often ask where the vacuum was. He did not like the noise while it was going, but was interested in the idea of it. In fact, he continued to bring it up even months later, though it only happened the one time.

2010-05-24: Three word sentences and general Nigel update

Nigel has been expanding his sentence structure steadily, now joining three words together in a statement, which has made for several full sentences. "Go see it?" is one example.

List of things Nigel is doing:
Counting
ABCs
Songs
Jumping
Running
Colors
Looking at his scrapes

Nigel's favorite stories:
Coke/pepper/delicious stories
Singing songs with actions (Tony Chestnut; head, shoulders, knees and toes)

Funny words Nigel says:
Teapots (for pizza or for actual teapots :) )
Pocurs (pronounced like pokers, and meaning computer)
Oh goodness! (hilarious!)

2010-05-13: New shoes and two words together

Nigel has been talking about the "new shoes" Dad got a couple of days ago. Today was the first time Nigel said "toothpaste", instead of just "paste", and "my turn", instead of just "turn".

2010-04-21: Garbage man

Nigel hadn't been feeling well for a couple of days, and had not been sleeping very late in the mornings. Upon his waking this morning, Dad was able to encourage him back to sleep for another hour in his arms.

Afterward, while waiting for some toast to cook for breakfast, the garbage truck came by. Dad took Nigel outside to watch the garbage truck empty cans on the other side of the street. Nigel liked this very much, and requested that the truck come back after it went around the corner. They waited for the truck to empty the cans in the rest of the neighborhood, and got a quick glimpse of it as it went through the street behind the house.

While waiting, anxious to see the garbage truck again, Nigel kept saying, "Man, garbage... man?" Finally, the truck came back around to do our side of the street, and Dad and Nigel happily watched it empty all of the cans visible from the house.

Update 2010-05-10: Ever since that day, Nigel has been very interested in garbage trucks and garbage men. He mentions garbage trucks and the garbage man frequently.

2010-04-12: Finishing Jack and Jill

Dad and Nigel were looking through flash cards, and one of them had the Jack and Jill rhyme pictured on it. Dad started reading it, but stopped just before the word "water", and waited to see if Nigel would finish the rhyme. He did, and loved this new game, requesting it over and over. Nigel also provided the word "paper" at the very end, and even said "head" at its appropriate time the last time through the rhyme.

Nigel was climbing in and out of a laundry basket, saying "in" and "out" (the "out" may have been prompted). He ducked down to hide inside the basket and said, "wheredego," (where'd he go) then "thereheis" (there he is).

2010-04-10: Joining words

Nigel has started joining words together, like "apple juice", or "Dad water" (referring to Dad's water). He is also connecting different books together: he and Dad were looking at the pictures in a farm book Nigel has, and when he saw a star, he asked to hear a star song ("star more sing"), so Dad sang Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star. He also asked to hear a song about mice ("mice more sing"), so Dad sang Three Blind Mice to him.

2010-04-04: Easter at the aquarium

Easter Sunday. Mom, Dad and Nigel went to breakfast at the Belgian Waffle & Omelet Inn, with the Black family, Grandma and Richard. Dad sang songs at the table with the kids (and Grandma and Aunt MaryAnne joined in, of course) while everyone waited for their food. After eating, everyone went to the Living Planet aquarium and played there for a while. KariAnn wanted to touch one of the rays, but was scared to do so. She spent a long time working up the courage to go through with it, and finally, Richard put his hand underneath one of the rays and it flapped halfway up out of the water, right onto KariAnn. That wasn't the way she wanted to touch one of them, but she did get to do it, albeit in a way that was very scary to her.

In the afternoon, Mom, Dad and Nigel went up to Bountiful to have an Easter lunch with Grammy, Aunt Blaire and Brandon. After lunch, the grown-ups played Masterpiece, and Nigel ran around playing with toys and with some of the Masterpiece money.

2010-04-02: Daybreak visit

The family packed up the bikes and bike trailer for the first time this year, and headed out to Daybreak for a ride.  Mom wanted to see the siding on the houses, Dad wanted to ride around the lake, and Nigel just wanted to play at the playground.

Everyone got to do what they wanted: Nigel played in the sand for half an hour; Mom and Dad struggled against the wind, while Nigel ate animal crackers in the trailer; and Mom got pictures of their favorite exterior designs.  Nigel wanted very much to roll down his window ("Open my roof, Dad") and take pictures with the camera, just like Mom was doing.

2010-03-28: License plate numbers

Nigel was running back and forth between the cars in the driveway, pointing at their license plates. Dad started saying the numbers as Nigel pointed at them, and Nigel thought that was hilarious. He laughed so loudly each time that neighbors across the street heard him and started laughing, too.

2010-03-19: Saying words, counting and looking at tents

There are not many words Nigel will not try to say, and most get a good rendition. He says the names of almost all his Aunts and Uncles, Grammy, and other family members. Mom and Dad can no longer keep track of all the objects Nigel recognizes, there are now so many.

Mom counts with Nigel's toes before putting on his socks in the morning. Nigel enjoys practicing counting with Mom or Dad while going up or down the stairs. He likes to take the stairs on his feet, rather than crawling, and only needs a finger or two to hold. After practicing at home, with six stairs on the upper set and seven on the lower, Nigel was walking up the stairs at Kirkham's Outdoor Products with Dad, and immediately after Dad said "seven", Nigel said "eight", then "nine" and "ten", unprompted. Mom and Dad were very surprised! Dad had no idea Nigel even knew those numbers, let alone where they came in order.

The family was looking at getting a new tent for camping during the summer, and Nigel had a great time climbing in and out of the tents and shelters, and running around. He found stickers on the water jugs, put his hands up against the mesh windows, and practiced rolling inside tents. Dad was getting anxious to go camping. Mom and Dad have been planning the first trip of the year, either to Goblin Valley or to Moab and Arches National Park.

2010-03-13: Nigel vocabulary update

Recent additions to Nigel's vocabulary:
Blanket
Shark
Truck
Goose
Pigeon
Two
Six
Bus
Beep beep
Noodle
Sizzle (or a good try at it)
Crayon
Color

Less recent additions:
Wheel
Car
Whale
Cheese
Milk (signed or spoken)
Up
Down
Apple
Banana
Bear
Bird
Side (as in outside, inside or other side, when breastfeeding)
Cracker (of course)
Hat
Train
Choo-choo
and others...

2010-03-11: Danna, Austin and Ashley

Mom worked today, so Dad got up with Nigel this morning. Nigel actually slept later than Dad did today - Dad may have woken Nigel up, rather than the other way around. Nigel went to Danna's house while Dad went to work. Nigel is always sad when Dad or Mom leave him with someone else, but he has gotten more and more accustomed to being at Danna's house over the past several months. Nigel plays with with Danna's children, Ashley and Austin. Austin and Nigel are good friends, and they all have a lot of fun together. Dad came to pick up Nigel after work, and Nigel ran over and gave Dad a big hug, but then turned around and went back to playing with the other kids. They giggled and played for a few minutes while Dad talked with Danna, then it was time to go. Dad had to pull Nigel out of Ashley's car (Nigel particularly enjoys playing in cars) to leave, but he wasn't upset, just having fun where he was.

Dad and Nigel stopped on the way home to pick up a pizza for dinner (mushrooms, olives and pineapple--Dad and Nigel are eating vegetarian). Nigel was very hungry, and at first ate every part of the pizza. Then, as he got more full, he got more picky, and started eating only the saucy under-crust. He ate one entire slice, then three more slices of just crust! Dad was happy to take care of the toppings that Nigel didn't eat.

Nigel and Dad played the rest of the night. There was plenty of roly-poly time on the couch, and Nigel practiced his rolling (he says roll while rolling, and enjoys being helped along, laughing as he goes). Blocks, balls, and cars were all played with. Dad showed Nigel about 'yellow' (which Nigel said) and 'green' (which Nigel did not say). Nigel said "ready, go" numerous times while playing with a wind-up car.

"Ready, go" is what they always say when practicing peeing in the potty. Right now, it is Dad peeing in the potty, and Nigel helping by saying, "Ready, go," along with Dad, but this morning, Dad took off Nigel's diaper and held him up over the potty, and Nigel did get a drop out! An excellent start to peeing in the potty!

Mom came home just as bedtime was beginning. The bedtime routine involves reading a couple of stories every night, and Nigel really enjoys story-time.

2010-03-07: Muffins and the Drum Bus

Mom came home from work in the morning and went to sleep soon afterward. Dad and Nigel played in the toy room with Rokenbok toys, then went to church together. At church, there was a magician for the older kids, but the pre-schoolers played in their classroom through most of the service. Nigel has been reading "If You Give a Moose a Muffin" a lot lately ("muhhin"), and finally got to eat a muffin during snack time at church. He recognized it immediately. At the end of the service, the pre-schoolers went outside to the Drum Bus, where there was a drum for each child, and an instructor led everyone in drumming games. Nigel seemed to have as much fun driving the bus and saying "beep, beep" as he did drumming, which took a little bit of time for him to get used to, but he certainly did some great drumming once he got the idea. Nigel loves to point out wheels on vehicles (steering or otherwise), and said "wheel" for Grandpa while he was over helping Dad.

2010-03-06: Shark and bike

Nigel woke up very happy at 6:30, playing in his crib for several minutes by himself. He started calling out "shark," and Dad went in to bring the shark to him, and to get him up. They looked at sandals for Nigel, then took the train downtown to Discovery Gateway, a children's museum. Nigel played with many different things, but liked the vehicles the best. Train home, then Dad went for a ride on Brandon's (Blaire) bullet bike. Nigel said "bike," pointing at Dad's bicycle in the garage. The night before (2010-03-05), Nigel learned to say "clock".