Eating

Behind the Moon

I was going to change Grant’s diaper, but couldn’t find the wipes. So I said, “Where are the wipes?” Jackson answered, “Maybe we need a mousekatool (from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse) to help us change Grant’s diaper. Everybody say, ‘Oh Toodles’ (Toodles flying sound effect here). Let’s see, can a screwdriver help us? No, that would hurt him. How about wipes?”

Grant picked up a piece of food and put it in his mouth all by himself! He’s growing so fast. I remember being really excited about Jackson’s milestones and looking forward to the next one. With Grant I just want him to stay little.

It’s been starting to feel like spring here. Saturday, we went to a nearby park. Jackson spent most of the time on the swings, which usually scare him. Brian was teaching Jackson to pump his legs on the swing and Jackson said, “I’m kicking a big soccer ball in the sky.” Brian asked, “Where is it?” Jackson said while pointing, “It’s right behind the moon!” (You could see the moon despite it being daylight).

Jackson loves stoplights or golights as he calls them. He always points them out way before we get there and tells us whether we need to stop or go depending on the color. He’s also been trying to guess when it will change. On the way to the park we were stopped at a red light that turned green. While we were going through it Jackson said, “I closed my eyes and it turned green!” I think he really thought he changed the color of the light.

A month or so ago Brian applied for a research grant to work on a story about a homeless man we know from Florida. We found out this week that he got it! We’re not sure how much yet, but it’s still exciting. So Brian will be heading to Florida sometime this summer to do some more interviews and get all the info he’ll need to write it.

Grant loves to close doors. I’ll leave him in the living room for one minute and the next thing I know he’s in the bathroom closing the door. He’ll crawl into the closet in the playroom and try to close the folding door there. I have also caught him pushing the gate that goes in their bedroom doorway.

Army Crawl

Just a note to help clarify what Jackson is saying during the one on one interview. First he talks about going outside to get wood for the fire. The game he is talking about it just like "Operation" but it's a car not a person. Enjoy!

March Madness

Lake Superior

This is a picture of what's called an ore dock. Trains go on the top and drop coal into shoots (the things jutting out on the side); then a big boat gets them from the shoots and takes them somewhere else.

Frozen Lake Superior

Thank you for time out, Mommy

Jackson usually screams or says, “I can’t go in time out” whenever we threaten it. But one time this week, he said, “Okay” and went right in. Then he said, “Thank you for time out, Mommy.” He repeated that several times in the three minutes. Lucky for us he went back to disliking time out the next time.

We were playing Candy Land with Jackson and one of the cards got left out. Grant got a hold of it and crinkled it up. Jackson picked it up and said, “Ride like the wind, Bullseye,” quoting from Toy Story 2, and pretended the 2-inch card was a horse and rode it around the house. It was a funny sight to see.

We thought we would send an update on what the kids are doing daily:

Currently Jackson’s favorite T.V. show is Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. In it they use tools, brought by Toodles, to fix problems. So a couple times a day Jackson will make up a problem, or turn an everyday occurrence into a problem (if he can’t open the door for example) and will say, “Everybody say, ‘Oh, Toodles!’” He then pretends to pick a tool and fix the problem.
Jackson’s favorite book is From Whales to Snails. It’s about Mickey and the gang exploring the ocean. He still loves to watch Cars but even more he loves to listen to the soundtrack.
He loves to play on the computer, especially Starfall where he works on learning his letter sounds. He also sees letters in everyday objects. His pizza looked like a “T” or his seatbelt strap was an “I”.
He still loves to play with his cars, monster trucks, story books, and now loves to ride his tricycle (but he won’t use the pedals).
He loves to go to story time at the library and play at the Children’s Museum.

Grant is army crawling everywhere. He loves to chase a little plastic jack-o-lantern we got from Grandma Merritt. Every time he is close enough, he tries to grab it, but ends up tapping it farther away. He has traveled through many rooms chasing the pumpkin.
He tries to pull himself up on everything and has bumps on his head to prove it. He loves playing with a little maraca we have, books, cars, and whatever Jackson is playing with.
He still loves to be in his Jumperoo.
He’s been babbling a lot lately and loves when we babble back. This week he also started to hit together these little wooden monkeys that we have.

Grant Swinging

Grant was a little scared at first!

Photo Shoot

Monday we were still in Ohio. Brian went to work with Bret so Marisa and I took the kids to an indoor playground. Jackson had a great time going down slides and running around. Grant tried a swing for the first time. At first he was a little hesitant, but in the end he loved it.

We went out to dinner Tuesday night and Jackson and Kelsey got balloons. Jackson’s broke in the car. Kelsey said, “I can fix it with Duct tape.” Jackson replied, “No, the balloon popped.” Kelsey would repeat her statement and then Jackson would ask me if it could be fixed. They went around and around like this for quite a while. Later, Bret asked Jackson how he popped it; Jackson said, “It was really hard.”

A couple times Jackson would curl up on a stair at the Fitzgerald’s house and say he was in his “thoughtful spot.” I don’t remember watching Winnie the Pooh recently.

Wednesday morning we piled back in the car and headed home. It took us pretty much all day but we made it without any problems. We were welcomed by 18 inches of snow, but luckily we have a very nice neighbor who snow-blowed our driveway for us before we got home.

On our way home from playing basketball yesterday Jackson turned to Grant and said, “Grant, you are my best friend.” It was so cute and definitely not provoked in any way.

We were blessed to acquire a new camera this week. We took some fun pictures of the boys.

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