My poor boy was running a fever this morning. After some uncharacteristic vomiting, he took a nap at 10:30. When I took his temp through the morning, it continued to climb towards 102. When it hit 101.7, I gave him the bad news that he would need to take the cherry medicine (acetaminophen). When he responded pretty badly, I researched ibuprofen's effect on fever reduction. Turns out that some researchers concluded it to be even better at reducing fever in children. I had some good news for him. He could have the grape medicine.
After about an hour, he felt so much better that he could help me with the garden, where we had discovered that a squirrel had helped itself to the seeds inside the bigger pumpkin. Alex was intrigued by the idea that pumpkin seeds were edible. Then there was a connection to marshmallows (from a discussion of our upcoming Christmas Eve brunch). I told Alex that after we were done, we could go to the store and get pumpkin seeds and marshmallows. I really wasn't concerned about his diet today. He needed to eat something. It might as well be those two.
The pumpkin seeds bombed, but the marshmallows were a hit.
I commented that he seemed to really be feeling better and that I was grateful that I'd found out that the grape medicine could help him. Alex had another theory:
"I think it was the marshmallows that did it. Yeah, definitely the marshmallows made me feel better."
Thursday, December 22, 2011
Thursday, December 8, 2011
Our Christmas Adventure - Part II
Since we were all done with Hunter by about 12:30, I decided to see if I could fit as much of our typical Christmas Adventure in on that day as I could. We wound up doing it all!
We left Hunter at around 1:30 and walked to Fifth, taking a downtown bus. We got off at 56th and walked back to 57th to see Tiffany's windows. Since I had to pick Alex up to see them, I didn't get any photos of his enjoyment of them, but he did enjoy them a lot. They have a carousel theme this year and their windows show carousel animals getting free and roaming Central Park. Here's a link to photos that are of a much better quality than my camera (or skill) can take.
http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/the-holiday-windows-at-tiffany-company-2011
From there, we walked down Fifth to Saint Patrick's Cathedral. Alex fondly remembered our visit to Saint Bart's last year, so once we were in front of St. Pat's, he agreed to go in. He was thrilled to be around so much majesty. Because Dan still identifies as a Catholic, I took Alex to some saints' shrines and lit candles there with him, telling him to keep Daddy and his family in mind while we did. I also took him to see the large creche there and I realized that he didn't understand what it was because he'd never heard the Nativity Story. (Hicksite Quakers don't place a lot of emphasis on literal interpretation of the Bible, viewing the stories as illustrative moral lessons instead of history. The Hicksite view of the nativity is that the story contained in Luke is a mixture of fact and fiction and that it did not take place in December anyway.) I told him that I would explain the scene in front of him with Daddy.
This is Alex at the main altar of the Cathedral.
Our next stop was Rockefeller Center. At night, during this time of year, this area is too crowded to take a child into, but during the day, it has a lighter crowd. Here's Alex at the Angel Promenade
And at the tree:
At Rockefeller Center, there's a new store - the answer to every Lego junkie's dreams. A Lego Store at which shoppers can fill up a cup with Lego pieces from a whole wall of buckets of pieces. Alex was in his glory!!! That's the wall behind him in this photo. I helped him fill his cup with a bunch of unusual pieces, such as axels, hinges, wheels, etc. He's been able to build so many things from it. Not bad for $7.99 I think.
At this point, given that we'd been mobile since about 8 AM, Alex was tired and, at the same time, was excited to play with his new Legos. I suggested that we get some hot cocoa and treats which would give him lots of time to play with his Legos right now. I asked him where we should get this hot cocoa and he immediately said "F.A.O. Schwarz!!!!". We took a bus back up to 58th, but the Schwarz cafe was a little crowded and I knew he was anxious to play with his Legos. So, I suggested another "cool" place: Bloomingdale's! (I was flubbing. I didn't think he would think it was all that cool and it doesn't even have a toy department. But it does have Santa and it's right across the street from Dan's office. I was aiming for a Santa visit with Daddy in attendance.)
We walked up 58th to Lexington Avenue. If I'd been hoping to make Dan's part in it a surprise, this sharp little guy caught on quickly. He immediately recognized Dan's office building. Oh well. He surprised me again when we walked into Bloomingdale's. He announced that it was a really cool place indeed. We went to the 6th floor to get some hot cocoa and fancy cupcakes at Cafe B. Alex didn't ever care if we left. He had his hot chocolate and his new Legos and he was in little boy heaven.
I had to ask him several times if he wanted to go see Santa in person. Since he'd received the personalized videos Santa had sent (from Portable North Pole), he figured he didn't need to see Santa again. "I talk to Santa all the time now.". I urged him that it was very different in person.
Once he SAW Santa - he was excited again. Once Dan arrived there, I snuck over to a register to buy a small pack of Matchbox cars so that Santa could hand them to Alex in his visit. (They'll do it only if there's no crowd where other kids will see it.) This is Alex receiving the cars. NOW he's all about Santa again.
On the walk south from Bloomingdales to Saint Bart's, he told me that he and Santa were now best friends.
We took Park Avenue south and took in lots of the lights.
I didn't get photos of our visit to Saint Bart's. It was very dim inside and Alex distracted me with his deep conversation. We lit a candle there too and stayed a little inside a side chapel that had a (Byzantine like) mosaic of Mary and baby Jesus. In another chapel, we came across someone fervently praying and in crisis, so we ducked out quietly. Alex - who doesn't usually like dark places - wanted to sit down and talk. He told me that Jesus loves everyone. He also said that it's sad to be alone and that he doesn't want to come between me and Dan. (????) I tried to get him to talk more on it, but he wanted to talk more about the sadness of loneliness and how he feels sorry for anyone who is alone. It touched me.
From Saint Bart's, we walked through the Met Life building to Grand Central and then back out to 42nd so we could get to Bryant Park. It's one of our traditions to ride the carousel there next to the rink and in sight of the large tree in the park.
And for our last stop before dinner; but not the least for Alex - a visit to the train display at the New York Transit Museum store in Grand Central. Again, my crappy camera doesn't do it justice (and my video of it was taken sideways), but it's amazing.
By the time we wrapped up here, I was absolutely famished and so was Alex, so we stopped at a Mexican restuarant in the Dining Concourse of Grand Central. We caught at 8:10 train home.
Alex went RIGHT to sleep - needless to say.
We left Hunter at around 1:30 and walked to Fifth, taking a downtown bus. We got off at 56th and walked back to 57th to see Tiffany's windows. Since I had to pick Alex up to see them, I didn't get any photos of his enjoyment of them, but he did enjoy them a lot. They have a carousel theme this year and their windows show carousel animals getting free and roaming Central Park. Here's a link to photos that are of a much better quality than my camera (or skill) can take.
http://www.marketmanila.com/archives/the-holiday-windows-at-tiffany-company-2011
From there, we walked down Fifth to Saint Patrick's Cathedral. Alex fondly remembered our visit to Saint Bart's last year, so once we were in front of St. Pat's, he agreed to go in. He was thrilled to be around so much majesty. Because Dan still identifies as a Catholic, I took Alex to some saints' shrines and lit candles there with him, telling him to keep Daddy and his family in mind while we did. I also took him to see the large creche there and I realized that he didn't understand what it was because he'd never heard the Nativity Story. (Hicksite Quakers don't place a lot of emphasis on literal interpretation of the Bible, viewing the stories as illustrative moral lessons instead of history. The Hicksite view of the nativity is that the story contained in Luke is a mixture of fact and fiction and that it did not take place in December anyway.) I told him that I would explain the scene in front of him with Daddy.
This is Alex at the main altar of the Cathedral.
Our next stop was Rockefeller Center. At night, during this time of year, this area is too crowded to take a child into, but during the day, it has a lighter crowd. Here's Alex at the Angel Promenade
And at the tree:
At Rockefeller Center, there's a new store - the answer to every Lego junkie's dreams. A Lego Store at which shoppers can fill up a cup with Lego pieces from a whole wall of buckets of pieces. Alex was in his glory!!! That's the wall behind him in this photo. I helped him fill his cup with a bunch of unusual pieces, such as axels, hinges, wheels, etc. He's been able to build so many things from it. Not bad for $7.99 I think.
At this point, given that we'd been mobile since about 8 AM, Alex was tired and, at the same time, was excited to play with his new Legos. I suggested that we get some hot cocoa and treats which would give him lots of time to play with his Legos right now. I asked him where we should get this hot cocoa and he immediately said "F.A.O. Schwarz!!!!". We took a bus back up to 58th, but the Schwarz cafe was a little crowded and I knew he was anxious to play with his Legos. So, I suggested another "cool" place: Bloomingdale's! (I was flubbing. I didn't think he would think it was all that cool and it doesn't even have a toy department. But it does have Santa and it's right across the street from Dan's office. I was aiming for a Santa visit with Daddy in attendance.)
We walked up 58th to Lexington Avenue. If I'd been hoping to make Dan's part in it a surprise, this sharp little guy caught on quickly. He immediately recognized Dan's office building. Oh well. He surprised me again when we walked into Bloomingdale's. He announced that it was a really cool place indeed. We went to the 6th floor to get some hot cocoa and fancy cupcakes at Cafe B. Alex didn't ever care if we left. He had his hot chocolate and his new Legos and he was in little boy heaven.
I had to ask him several times if he wanted to go see Santa in person. Since he'd received the personalized videos Santa had sent (from Portable North Pole), he figured he didn't need to see Santa again. "I talk to Santa all the time now.". I urged him that it was very different in person.
Once he SAW Santa - he was excited again. Once Dan arrived there, I snuck over to a register to buy a small pack of Matchbox cars so that Santa could hand them to Alex in his visit. (They'll do it only if there's no crowd where other kids will see it.) This is Alex receiving the cars. NOW he's all about Santa again.
On the walk south from Bloomingdales to Saint Bart's, he told me that he and Santa were now best friends.
We took Park Avenue south and took in lots of the lights.
I didn't get photos of our visit to Saint Bart's. It was very dim inside and Alex distracted me with his deep conversation. We lit a candle there too and stayed a little inside a side chapel that had a (Byzantine like) mosaic of Mary and baby Jesus. In another chapel, we came across someone fervently praying and in crisis, so we ducked out quietly. Alex - who doesn't usually like dark places - wanted to sit down and talk. He told me that Jesus loves everyone. He also said that it's sad to be alone and that he doesn't want to come between me and Dan. (????) I tried to get him to talk more on it, but he wanted to talk more about the sadness of loneliness and how he feels sorry for anyone who is alone. It touched me.
From Saint Bart's, we walked through the Met Life building to Grand Central and then back out to 42nd so we could get to Bryant Park. It's one of our traditions to ride the carousel there next to the rink and in sight of the large tree in the park.
And for our last stop before dinner; but not the least for Alex - a visit to the train display at the New York Transit Museum store in Grand Central. Again, my crappy camera doesn't do it justice (and my video of it was taken sideways), but it's amazing.
By the time we wrapped up here, I was absolutely famished and so was Alex, so we stopped at a Mexican restuarant in the Dining Concourse of Grand Central. We caught at 8:10 train home.
Alex went RIGHT to sleep - needless to say.
A Day of Christmas Surprises, Part I
As further incentive for potty training, I had promised Alex that we would be visiting Hunter College's Children's Learning Center again. (The idea being that he would love it there and want to make sure he was potty-trained so that he could go there on a regular basis.) I made my appointment to meet the director of the center at 11 AM, but we rode the train in with Daddy. This left us arriving at Hunter about 90 minutes or so before our appointment. I had planned for this, hoping to use this time to get some preparation of my own out of the way. I'd spent the night before printing out things like my unofficial transcript from Westchester Community - so that I could qualify for advanced classes at Hunter and my immunization/titre records, so that I could hand those in and be cleared for registration. I considered it to be a good day if I got one of the four tasks I'd planned accomplished.
First, Alex agreed to come with me to the Welcome Center where I learned about transferring in as a second degree student, getting an ID card, getting prerequisites approved for advanced classes and registering for said classes. Then, he agreed to come with me to the health center to hand in my immunization evidence. But we arrived before they were open, so we went back to the cafeteria to have a mid-morning snack. After which, we went to the Economics Department to find out who I was to speak to for approval of my prerequisites. At this point, Alex was telling everyone he ran into that he was a secret agent and that he couldn't tell anyone his name. (He was dressed all in black.) This is what he said to the Administrative Assistant, Paulette too.
Now, mind you, all of this back-and-forth business involved traveling between the North and West buildings through the glass skywalk. We did this multiple times before our appointment time came up. Alex didn't complain once. In fact, he said "Hello" to everyone he passed, telling me "I'm making so many new friends here!!"
Once we got the info from the Economics Department, we still had some time before our appointment would come, so we went to the bookstore to get Alex a Hunter sweatshirt. Now, he felt like a real college student. He was no longer Alex Delgado, Secret Agent. He was now, Alex Delgado, Hunter College BMOC, flirting with all of the girls.
At the Children's Learning Center, we met Miss Rita, the Director of the Center and Miss Evelyn, one of the teachers there. They told me a big ol' secret...Alex has pretty much met their definition of "potty trained" already. If the teacher is told that he needs reminders to go, then they're OK with that. They also both assured me that after a few weeks of being around other children who go on their own that he won't need reminders. They were far more concerned with the fact that he'd never spent many hours separated from me and encouraged me to make sure that my class time isn't really long. Ssssshhhh! Don't tell Alex. I've got Santa on my side, encouraging Alex to tell us when he has to go.
Speaking of Santa...he comes in later in this story. We still had stuff to do at Hunter. Wrapping it up at the Children's Learning Center was easy once Miss Evelyn explained to Alex that she had to close up the classroom. At that point, we went back to the Economics Department to speak to the advisor there. (Prof. Sevak). She was with a student at the time we arrived, so we had to wait a while in the hallway. Alex was still patient! Sure, I had to remind him to not block the pathway, but he was amazingly good!! Surely, I had to bring Santa in on this day of surprises.
Professor Sevak approved me for the class I wanted and suggested to me how I could go about saving both time and money getting to the MA program. She also suggested that I speak to the Department's Graduate Advisor about it. I was quite hungry at this point and I was sure my little guy was too. We headed back downstairs to the cafeteria for lunch where Alex had pizza. By that time, I was wondering about him. I asked him if it was OK if we made one more stop. He said it was.
So, we went back to the North building to go to the Health Center so that I could hand in my immunization records, but not until we'd stopped at Office Services where they made a copy of my lab report for me. Handing in the paperwork took longer than expected and yet, Alex still had patience! This kid is just amazing sometimes, I'll tell you. Santa must hear of this.
In the meantime of all of this going on - from 9:20 to just short of 1:30 - Alex used the public potty twice, both times urging me that he had to go once we were in the stall. OK, those count towards prizes at this time.
This was a big day of surprises. I'd gone in with the expectation of getting only one of my four tasks done. Instead, I got three done. I'd gone in with the expectation of having to tell Alex when to go potty. Instead, after I had to go to the bathroom, he piped in with his own requests. I'd gone in with the expectation that Alex couldn't possibly have the patience to come along with me from one department to another. Instead, he was just proud to do so - once I got him his new Hunter College sweatshirt.
Oh yes, Santa will have to hear of this.
First, Alex agreed to come with me to the Welcome Center where I learned about transferring in as a second degree student, getting an ID card, getting prerequisites approved for advanced classes and registering for said classes. Then, he agreed to come with me to the health center to hand in my immunization evidence. But we arrived before they were open, so we went back to the cafeteria to have a mid-morning snack. After which, we went to the Economics Department to find out who I was to speak to for approval of my prerequisites. At this point, Alex was telling everyone he ran into that he was a secret agent and that he couldn't tell anyone his name. (He was dressed all in black.) This is what he said to the Administrative Assistant, Paulette too.
Now, mind you, all of this back-and-forth business involved traveling between the North and West buildings through the glass skywalk. We did this multiple times before our appointment time came up. Alex didn't complain once. In fact, he said "Hello" to everyone he passed, telling me "I'm making so many new friends here!!"
Once we got the info from the Economics Department, we still had some time before our appointment would come, so we went to the bookstore to get Alex a Hunter sweatshirt. Now, he felt like a real college student. He was no longer Alex Delgado, Secret Agent. He was now, Alex Delgado, Hunter College BMOC, flirting with all of the girls.
At the Children's Learning Center, we met Miss Rita, the Director of the Center and Miss Evelyn, one of the teachers there. They told me a big ol' secret...Alex has pretty much met their definition of "potty trained" already. If the teacher is told that he needs reminders to go, then they're OK with that. They also both assured me that after a few weeks of being around other children who go on their own that he won't need reminders. They were far more concerned with the fact that he'd never spent many hours separated from me and encouraged me to make sure that my class time isn't really long. Ssssshhhh! Don't tell Alex. I've got Santa on my side, encouraging Alex to tell us when he has to go.
Speaking of Santa...he comes in later in this story. We still had stuff to do at Hunter. Wrapping it up at the Children's Learning Center was easy once Miss Evelyn explained to Alex that she had to close up the classroom. At that point, we went back to the Economics Department to speak to the advisor there. (Prof. Sevak). She was with a student at the time we arrived, so we had to wait a while in the hallway. Alex was still patient! Sure, I had to remind him to not block the pathway, but he was amazingly good!! Surely, I had to bring Santa in on this day of surprises.
Professor Sevak approved me for the class I wanted and suggested to me how I could go about saving both time and money getting to the MA program. She also suggested that I speak to the Department's Graduate Advisor about it. I was quite hungry at this point and I was sure my little guy was too. We headed back downstairs to the cafeteria for lunch where Alex had pizza. By that time, I was wondering about him. I asked him if it was OK if we made one more stop. He said it was.
So, we went back to the North building to go to the Health Center so that I could hand in my immunization records, but not until we'd stopped at Office Services where they made a copy of my lab report for me. Handing in the paperwork took longer than expected and yet, Alex still had patience! This kid is just amazing sometimes, I'll tell you. Santa must hear of this.
In the meantime of all of this going on - from 9:20 to just short of 1:30 - Alex used the public potty twice, both times urging me that he had to go once we were in the stall. OK, those count towards prizes at this time.
This was a big day of surprises. I'd gone in with the expectation of getting only one of my four tasks done. Instead, I got three done. I'd gone in with the expectation of having to tell Alex when to go potty. Instead, after I had to go to the bathroom, he piped in with his own requests. I'd gone in with the expectation that Alex couldn't possibly have the patience to come along with me from one department to another. Instead, he was just proud to do so - once I got him his new Hunter College sweatshirt.
Oh yes, Santa will have to hear of this.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
A Special Message for Alex
Alex received a video in the email today. It was from a very special person indeed.
Alex was both amused and astounded by it. He seemed dumbstruck at the fact that Santa knew where he lived. He was positively riveted to find out what list he wound up on. Then, he was cheering for being on the "green list" and continued to talk about it for a while afterwards.
At other times, he seemed to take it all in stride, as if he knew...
Aw, whatever. I'm just grateful that I get to live this magic time again.
Alex was both amused and astounded by it. He seemed dumbstruck at the fact that Santa knew where he lived. He was positively riveted to find out what list he wound up on. Then, he was cheering for being on the "green list" and continued to talk about it for a while afterwards.
At other times, he seemed to take it all in stride, as if he knew...
Aw, whatever. I'm just grateful that I get to live this magic time again.
Astrophysics = Cool
Today, Alex asked me how "they" set up the whole world. Who made the clouds? Who made the sky? How did the world get built? How? How? How??
I decided to go with the scientific explanation as I understand it and hoped it stuck.
"No one is actually certain how it was all made," I said "But most physicists today believe that it happened spontaneously - that means "all at once and in an instant". A bunch of particles in space grew together and the whole of it grew so tight and compacted and dense that it blew up."
"What blew up?" he asked - surprising me with his willingness to listen to more.
"The universe blew up into existence," I said, "And that included the earth and the things in the earth that would wind up making the sky and the clouds."
"And this is what physi- physhi..."
"Physicists" I offered.
"Physicists!" he declared "That's what most physicists believe happened?"
"Yes, I think so."
He didn't even pause a beat.
"That's so cool." he declared.
Wow! I never expected the Big Bang theory to be an easy one to cover.
I decided to go with the scientific explanation as I understand it and hoped it stuck.
"No one is actually certain how it was all made," I said "But most physicists today believe that it happened spontaneously - that means "all at once and in an instant". A bunch of particles in space grew together and the whole of it grew so tight and compacted and dense that it blew up."
"What blew up?" he asked - surprising me with his willingness to listen to more.
"The universe blew up into existence," I said, "And that included the earth and the things in the earth that would wind up making the sky and the clouds."
"And this is what physi- physhi..."
"Physicists" I offered.
"Physicists!" he declared "That's what most physicists believe happened?"
"Yes, I think so."
He didn't even pause a beat.
"That's so cool." he declared.
Wow! I never expected the Big Bang theory to be an easy one to cover.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
'Tis the Season Y'all
Since we couldn't get our tree yesterday, we had to bring Daddy along to get it today. Good thing too. I would have had to get a smaller tree had I had to bring it home myself. Daddy carried the 6+ foot tree we wound up getting. He said it wasn't too bad if he kept changing positions. Oh dear.
Alex was really excited for this. This is the first tree he can remember getting. When we selected it, he declared it to be the biggest tree we ever had! (Our artificial tree, not used since his first Christmas, is actually bigger.) He didn't want any mini-tree this year. He's a big boy now!
When we got it home and tried to get it into the tiny stand we had, I remembered why I'd bought my first artificial tree some 24 years ago and never looked back. There was no getting this trunk into this tiny stand. We erected the tree in a planter loaded with soil, soaked the soil and then Daddy took Alex to White Plains for some shopping. He would include a new tree stand when he returned.
Even then, it took some doing.
Alex wanted to decorate it so badly. He was quite upset when we explained that it would have to wait until tomorrow.
This is so exciting. He actually gets it now. He really gets it.
Alex was really excited for this. This is the first tree he can remember getting. When we selected it, he declared it to be the biggest tree we ever had! (Our artificial tree, not used since his first Christmas, is actually bigger.) He didn't want any mini-tree this year. He's a big boy now!
 |
| Alex at Mangone's among the mini trees |
Even then, it took some doing.
Alex wanted to decorate it so badly. He was quite upset when we explained that it would have to wait until tomorrow.
This is so exciting. He actually gets it now. He really gets it.
Friday, November 25, 2011
A Do Over Day
Today was a rough day for potty training and every thing else. I decided to take a break from it all and go get our tree. Ooops! Mangone's tree guy hadn't yet unloaded all of the inventory. In fact, he hadn't set out most of it. We had to come back the next day.
We had hot chocolate when we got back.
Do over!!
We had hot chocolate when we got back.
Do over!!
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Happy Turkey Day
So, a recap: Alex was soooo excited to have a holiday and have guests over for dinner. Beginning at around 7:30, he kept asking every hour or two when Aunt Ellen was going to arrive. Then I told him that Robert would be coming too. That was about all he could take. He was so excited that he even helped me clean. He even stayed behind to help Daddy clean while I went to the store for some last minute things.
Ellen had ordered a pre-made dinner from Shop Rite. All that I had to prepare was the Butternut Squash soup, the oyster and bacon stuffing and, of course, the Yorkshire Pudding. Ellen and Jason love that Yorkshire Pudding. But since I had a real English person coming for this dinner, I decided to look up why my puddings are so bland. I found out that it's because I make them with olive oil instead of roast beef drippings. I couldn't get the roast beef, but I did have bacon drippings. They worked.
Robert was with us for Thanksgiving dinner last year too. That year, he brought Alex a 4 train from the Transit Museum Store. This year he showed up with a Long Island Railroad set. It was exactly what Alex had been asking for for weeks! (I can only guess how Robert knew that.) To top off the gift, Jason gave him a monthly ticket for the LIRR. He was in his glory now! He's been talking about the Long Island Railroad ever since - and how we have to ride it now.
Alex's level of excitement lasted long enough for him to eat most of his dinner. He likes turkey anyway, but I never expected to see him eat so much of it and more. He still had room for desert too, which consisted of a bite or two of every cookie placed out.
When it was time for the guests to leave, Ellen offered to take Robert back to Manhattan. Alex was still too into his new trains to give everyone a hug goodbye. He just called out "Bye!" and went back to playing. He was long excited into bedtime too. He didn't get to sleep until after 9. At least I got two photos of him while in bed.
Thanksgivings are definitely getting better. Now, if I can just remember to take photos at the next one.
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
A Countdown - Of Sorts
Many out there are complaining about how early commercial establishments are starting their Christmas season. I say "Bring it on!!" PBS was no exception, despite being partially supported by public funding. Not sure how that works.
But anyway...
Yes, PBS and the holiday season. It's the day before Thanksgiving and it already had Christmas programming on. In order to encourage Alex to sit on the potty, I put on a Curious George Christmas special. George didn't know what Christmas was and the Man in the Yellow Hat was excitedly decorating their apartment, telling George that preparing for Christmas is almost as exciting as Christmas itself. Eventually, George caught the Christmas Bug in a big way.
In order to help George pace himself, the Man in the Yellow Hat drew up a countdown in the shape of a Christmas tree. It had been 12 days before Christmas when they started. Each morning, George would excitedly hop out of bed and dash to the countdown - only to see that it wasn't yet Christmas that day.
It gave me an idea. Alex needs some stronger "encouragement" to make steps in potty. We got him to agree to getting potty trained by Daddy's birthday, but he kept saying he would potty train ON Daddy's birthday. Soooo, I did up a countdown.
Just like George's, I drew it in the shape of a Christmas tree. It just happens to be 12 days before Daddy's birthday. At the top of the tree, I drew a star and wrote the number 1 in it. That was the day to aim for. Until then, we will X off a new day.
Alex was really excited about it. We put it up on his easel and he wanted to start crossing off days right away. It took some explaining about why he couldn't, but he eventually got the idea that he had to be potty trained by the time we got to the star.
Now if he'll just understand that this is a countdown to Daddy's birthday and not Christmas. I plan on getting him an Advent Calendar anyway. Maybe it will prove to be doubly exciting for him.
But anyway...
Yes, PBS and the holiday season. It's the day before Thanksgiving and it already had Christmas programming on. In order to encourage Alex to sit on the potty, I put on a Curious George Christmas special. George didn't know what Christmas was and the Man in the Yellow Hat was excitedly decorating their apartment, telling George that preparing for Christmas is almost as exciting as Christmas itself. Eventually, George caught the Christmas Bug in a big way.
In order to help George pace himself, the Man in the Yellow Hat drew up a countdown in the shape of a Christmas tree. It had been 12 days before Christmas when they started. Each morning, George would excitedly hop out of bed and dash to the countdown - only to see that it wasn't yet Christmas that day.
It gave me an idea. Alex needs some stronger "encouragement" to make steps in potty. We got him to agree to getting potty trained by Daddy's birthday, but he kept saying he would potty train ON Daddy's birthday. Soooo, I did up a countdown.
Just like George's, I drew it in the shape of a Christmas tree. It just happens to be 12 days before Daddy's birthday. At the top of the tree, I drew a star and wrote the number 1 in it. That was the day to aim for. Until then, we will X off a new day.
Alex was really excited about it. We put it up on his easel and he wanted to start crossing off days right away. It took some explaining about why he couldn't, but he eventually got the idea that he had to be potty trained by the time we got to the star.
Now if he'll just understand that this is a countdown to Daddy's birthday and not Christmas. I plan on getting him an Advent Calendar anyway. Maybe it will prove to be doubly exciting for him.
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
A Treasure Hunt Among Islamic Art
Today was such a busy day! Normally, we have music class on Tuesday afternoons, but today we also had plans with Robert Ferrugia, mommy's friend from London. He's in the US this week and plans to visit his girlfriend Allyson in DC later. Today would be the only feasible day to meet him outside of his visit here on Thursday for dinner. But I knew we also had to make sure we got to music class for the free trial drum lesson that Cameron was offering today. Alex wouldn't want to miss that!
So, this morning, we took Metro North into Manhattan with Daddy. We left him at Grand Central because we walked to Robert's hotel on Lexington Avenue. Robert came down from his room at 9:30 and we set off for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They were holding a 10:30 "Clue Time" (we don't call it Storytime) for kids at the Nolen Library. Built from the stories, they give out a Treasure Hunt list, asking for kids to find the things on the list in the given gallery. Today's was of Indian gods.
Meanwhile, Robert visited the galleries on the Second Floor, knowing that Alex wouldn't be interested in things like photographs and portraits. We met up again an hour later, when "Clue Time" had ended and they'd given us our list of treasures to find. I also picked up a set of cards about the Islamic Art exhibit, so Alex now had two treasure hunts to complete!
While we waited for Robert to meet us, we toured the Met store on the Ground Floor. Alex saw toy knights and horses in armor. He LOVED them! We played with them for a good 15 minutes. When the saleswoman saw him dancing, she asked him if he had to go to the bathroom. He said "No" (we'd tried twice already), but I convinced him to try again. That way, he could go home with a knight and horse! We tried it again but Alex couldn't go. I wanted him to have a knight and horse so badly. I promised him that he could soon see real knights and horse armor.
When Robert met us again at 11:30, we headed straight for the Arms & Armor gallery. Alex was LOVING it!! He was pulling Robert here, there and everywhere. He dashed from one gallery to the next, from European to Asian armor to guns and then back again. He couldn't make up his mind which gallery he liked better. He knew that he loved the Equestrian Gallery, though.
We got him out of there only with the promise of even more cool stuff. Since Alex had been so interested in the Egyptian set of Playmobil (that he'd seen in the catalogue), I told him that we could see a real Sphinx and a real temple. With some effort, we located the Egyptian Art gallery and visited the Temple of Dendur, which includes a real Sphinx statue.
By now, Mommy and Robert were pretty hungry. We stopped for some lunch at the American Gallery cafe where Alex really surprised me by eating a pumpkin yogurt parfait with granola and cranberries. He was really digging those cranberries!!
After lunch, it was time for Alex's treasure hunts to begin. We located the Indian Art gallery to conduct the first one we'd received from the librarians. Alex located every single one!!
Alex wound up doing SO well with the concentrated Treasure Hunt (all in one gallery), I decided to make it interesting. I added the cards I'd found for the Islamic Art hunt. This one was spread across several different galleries. Don't you know that he found all but one of them? (And the one he didn't find may have been switched out from display.)
At the end of his Islamic Art Treasure Hunt, it was time for us to go. We had to catch a 2:37 train to Harrison in order to make it to music class. We tried one more time to use the bathroom so that Alex could get his knight and horse. No dice, but Alex was oddly OK about it. He was more upset about leaving the museum. (Since I bought a membership today, I will absolutely have to make sure he has a Treasure Hunt for every visit. He loved them!)
We walked into Central Park briefly so that Robert could get a photo of the Alice in Wonderland statue. We then exited to get on a Fifth Avenue bus, which we rode down to 46th Street. By cutting through the Helmsley Walk, we were able to get to our track in plenty of time. We said goodbye to Robert and said we'd see him on Thursday.
What a cool day at the museum!
But the day isn't over yet...
So, this morning, we took Metro North into Manhattan with Daddy. We left him at Grand Central because we walked to Robert's hotel on Lexington Avenue. Robert came down from his room at 9:30 and we set off for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. They were holding a 10:30 "Clue Time" (we don't call it Storytime) for kids at the Nolen Library. Built from the stories, they give out a Treasure Hunt list, asking for kids to find the things on the list in the given gallery. Today's was of Indian gods.
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| Alex listens to a story about a mixed up chameleon. |
While we waited for Robert to meet us, we toured the Met store on the Ground Floor. Alex saw toy knights and horses in armor. He LOVED them! We played with them for a good 15 minutes. When the saleswoman saw him dancing, she asked him if he had to go to the bathroom. He said "No" (we'd tried twice already), but I convinced him to try again. That way, he could go home with a knight and horse! We tried it again but Alex couldn't go. I wanted him to have a knight and horse so badly. I promised him that he could soon see real knights and horse armor.
When Robert met us again at 11:30, we headed straight for the Arms & Armor gallery. Alex was LOVING it!! He was pulling Robert here, there and everywhere. He dashed from one gallery to the next, from European to Asian armor to guns and then back again. He couldn't make up his mind which gallery he liked better. He knew that he loved the Equestrian Gallery, though.
We got him out of there only with the promise of even more cool stuff. Since Alex had been so interested in the Egyptian set of Playmobil (that he'd seen in the catalogue), I told him that we could see a real Sphinx and a real temple. With some effort, we located the Egyptian Art gallery and visited the Temple of Dendur, which includes a real Sphinx statue.
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| Exiting the Temple of Dendur |
After lunch, it was time for Alex's treasure hunts to begin. We located the Indian Art gallery to conduct the first one we'd received from the librarians. Alex located every single one!!
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| Alex locates a statue of child saint Sambanchar, who holds a bowl. At the library, we heard a story of a boy and a bowl. |
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| At a statue of Ganesha, the Indian elephant head god. The mixed up chameleon in the story wound up with an elephant head. |
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| Robert and Alex match a card to a mosaic niche. |
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| Alex shows Robert that the lamp in the glass is the one on the card. (The glass lamp was from the 13th century.) |
We walked into Central Park briefly so that Robert could get a photo of the Alice in Wonderland statue. We then exited to get on a Fifth Avenue bus, which we rode down to 46th Street. By cutting through the Helmsley Walk, we were able to get to our track in plenty of time. We said goodbye to Robert and said we'd see him on Thursday.
What a cool day at the museum!
But the day isn't over yet...
Sunday, November 20, 2011
"Next stop, DUMBO!"
Once the Friends had contacted me to tell me that my notebook had been found, I knew I would have to go to Meeting the very next Sunday to make sure I got it (lest it get misplaced again). I told Alex that we'd be going to First Day School again this Sunday, which made him happy. I was hoping that it would be a nice day so that we could visit Jane's Carousel in DUMBO - which you can see from the East River Ferry. That morning, I checked the weather; a balmy 63 degrees with some sun and no rain. How awesome. Not only could we go to Jane's Carousel, but we could go to a playground too.I'd woken up late which meant I'd have to get breakfast in Manhattan. We made it to 14th Street in enough time to get to Dunkin' Donuts, have breakfast and walk to the Meeting House and down to the nursery where Mylitta gave me my notebook. It was a busy Meeting, loaded with messages - about which I hope to write in my other journal. It was a good Meeting for me, since I was not really prepared to attend again so soon. That many messages makes the hour go by so fast.
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| On the steps of the Fifteenth Street Meeting House |
Once on the ferry, Alex said he wanted to go upstairs. When we got there, he sat directly behind the pilot's room, slightly to the right. "I like to pretend I'm the pilot", he said. "I like to steer the ferry.". When a crew member called out "Next stop, DUMBO!" Alex repeated it and made the guy laugh.
"Next stop, DUMBO!"
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| "I like to steer the ship, like the pilot does." |
It was a quick and easy walk down Water Street to the turn off to the carousel. While we walked, Alex was driven crazy with suspense! "Tell me!", he begged, "Tell me the surprise!" I gave him hints until we were able to see the carousel from Water Street. He cheered. I paid for our tickets and hoisted him up to a moving horse. It was so cool to go around and around, seeing the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges alternatively.
Once the ride was over, Alex overheard me ask one of the operators about finding a playground. She directed me to the Main Street playground, a nautical themed one. He was just in his glory.
Soon enough, I was feeling pretty hungry. I knew we had to go get some lunch. Over much objection from Alex, we left the playground to find a place near the ferry landing. Only as we crossed Water Street did he admit that he was hungry too. And he was! He ate half a bowl of penne and nearly three-quarters of the bread brought for the table.
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| At Pete's Downtown on Old Fulton Street |
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| The view from the window of Pete's Downtown |
While we waited for the ferry to 34th Street, we watched the boats on the river. Alex got excited each time he saw a tugboat in action. Prior to that, as we walked from the playground, he commented that this used to be a beach - because you could see the beach past the rocks that have been erected near the shore. I think we may have found a suitable replacement for the Seaport.
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| East River beach on Brooklyn's western shore |
The trip back to 34th Street went on as the sun was going down. By the time we reached 34th Street, it was nealry dark. We arrived at Grand Central just in time for the 5:37 train home.
I'd end this fairy tale with a claim that Alex went right to sleep, but that's not what happened. He was so overtired that he stayed up with me to watch "Tales of Despereaux" and didn't fall asleep until it was nearly 11.
He said his favorite part of the day was playing with the magnets in First Day School. Those magnets beat out a carousel ride, a ferry ride and a new playground??? We'll have to tell Santa about those.
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
Potty Training - Take Four
After addressing some of my own bad behavior lately, I realized that I was taking out my frustrations on Alex. My major frustration being a sense of feeling "stuck". I realized that I'd waited long enough and that Alex was never going to show independent interest in becoming potty trained again. We had to be proactive in setting goals and holding onto incentives.
So, today, we sat down and wrote a letter to Santa. Alex wants some pretty Big Boy toys this year. I told him that Santa would not bring him Big Boy toys if he didn't get out of Pull-Ups by Christmas. We had to pledge to Santa that he would be out of Pull-Ups and that he would get Big Boy toys like a remote control car and a marble run in exchange.
In the meantime, I formulated a plan to get him moving on this. We'd take it one skill set at a time this time, focusing on nothing but potty training steps. The letter to Santa went up on the refrigerator to remind us both.
First step - using the potty first thing in the morning.
So, today, we sat down and wrote a letter to Santa. Alex wants some pretty Big Boy toys this year. I told him that Santa would not bring him Big Boy toys if he didn't get out of Pull-Ups by Christmas. We had to pledge to Santa that he would be out of Pull-Ups and that he would get Big Boy toys like a remote control car and a marble run in exchange.
In the meantime, I formulated a plan to get him moving on this. We'd take it one skill set at a time this time, focusing on nothing but potty training steps. The letter to Santa went up on the refrigerator to remind us both.
First step - using the potty first thing in the morning.
Monday, October 31, 2011
Saturday, October 22, 2011
Alex Attends a Birthday Party - for the First Time!
Last Sunday at First Day School, Alex had made a friend named Harry. Harry's dad, Cal, told me that Harry would be turning 3 next week and that he'd be having a big birthday party. Alex and I were invited. This was great suff. It would be Alex's first ever birthday party as a guest.
We'd stopped at at a bookstore in Rye yesterday where we purchased the books "If You Give a Dog a Doughnut" and "Dinosaur vs. Bedtime" (and Alex wanted a copy of it too.) We were all set to go to Harry's birthday party in Chelsea. We stopped at a Hale & Hearty for some brunch and took a crosstown bus on 23rd Street to get to 8th Avenue. We arrived at Harry's just after noon.
Alex took to Harry's toys immediately. Yeah, "Hi Harry. Happy Birthday and all, now show me your toys." That seemed to be the universal thought to all of the three year olds present.
Harry's parents (Cal and Victoria) had a great folk singer there and part of the goodie bag was a CD of his songs. There were some great kids' songs played and I even got to turn the pages of a book being sung!
Oh, and Alex loved the cake too.
The Hoffmans live in a brownstone and the interior is very much like the brownstone in which my family lived in Brooklyn. At one point, Harry played a game with his parents - running in and out of the doors to the hallway to which they both exited. It reminded me of when I once loved to play the same game of exiting one room into the hallway and entering another. It made me smile.
The party ended at 2 and I knew I'd have a hard time getting Alex away from the toys. So, I bribed him out of there by telling him about a park that was built on a railway. (The High Line). There was an entrance right on 23rd Street, so we could easily get to it.
It ends at 30th Street, but all the way on the west side. We stopped at a hot dog stand to get some refreshments. (I'd totally forgotten to eat at the party. Grrrrr.)
This left us to get a crosstown bus on 34th and then walk back to Grand Central. All the way home, though, Alex talked about what a great time he had at the party - playing with the toys. Oh well.
He was most interested in Harry's subway trains. He has the A & E trains, because he lives near Eighth Avenue. Alex wanted A and E trains, but I told him that he had to wait. Then he said he just wanted to "see" the trains. Yeah-ah-ah. Sucker Mommy went into the Transit Museum store in Grand Central to "see" the A and E trains and walked out with two brand new Metro North trains. We'll work on that bit.
It was still a great deay. Happy Birthday Harry!!
We'd stopped at at a bookstore in Rye yesterday where we purchased the books "If You Give a Dog a Doughnut" and "Dinosaur vs. Bedtime" (and Alex wanted a copy of it too.) We were all set to go to Harry's birthday party in Chelsea. We stopped at a Hale & Hearty for some brunch and took a crosstown bus on 23rd Street to get to 8th Avenue. We arrived at Harry's just after noon.
Alex took to Harry's toys immediately. Yeah, "Hi Harry. Happy Birthday and all, now show me your toys." That seemed to be the universal thought to all of the three year olds present.
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| Alex and Harry at the Train Table |
Oh, and Alex loved the cake too.
The Hoffmans live in a brownstone and the interior is very much like the brownstone in which my family lived in Brooklyn. At one point, Harry played a game with his parents - running in and out of the doors to the hallway to which they both exited. It reminded me of when I once loved to play the same game of exiting one room into the hallway and entering another. It made me smile.
The party ended at 2 and I knew I'd have a hard time getting Alex away from the toys. So, I bribed him out of there by telling him about a park that was built on a railway. (The High Line). There was an entrance right on 23rd Street, so we could easily get to it.
It ends at 30th Street, but all the way on the west side. We stopped at a hot dog stand to get some refreshments. (I'd totally forgotten to eat at the party. Grrrrr.)
This left us to get a crosstown bus on 34th and then walk back to Grand Central. All the way home, though, Alex talked about what a great time he had at the party - playing with the toys. Oh well.
He was most interested in Harry's subway trains. He has the A & E trains, because he lives near Eighth Avenue. Alex wanted A and E trains, but I told him that he had to wait. Then he said he just wanted to "see" the trains. Yeah-ah-ah. Sucker Mommy went into the Transit Museum store in Grand Central to "see" the A and E trains and walked out with two brand new Metro North trains. We'll work on that bit.
It was still a great deay. Happy Birthday Harry!!
Tuesday, October 18, 2011
The Nags of Sesame Street
Alex asked me where we would be going today. I told him that today was music class, but not until the afternoon. In the meantime, I had a lot of housework to do. This didn't make him too happy, but after having initially bemoaned the fact, he seemed to accept it.
I sat at the computer, working on some stuff. He sat in his rocking chair near the fireplace, immediately to my right. Rocking back and forth he sang "Nobody gets to play. Nobody gets to play today." to the tune of "Somebody Come and Play" from Sesame Street.
He said he was "Just singing."
I sat at the computer, working on some stuff. He sat in his rocking chair near the fireplace, immediately to my right. Rocking back and forth he sang "Nobody gets to play. Nobody gets to play today." to the tune of "Somebody Come and Play" from Sesame Street.
He said he was "Just singing."
Tuesday, October 18th
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Friends' Meeting and Meeting Friends
Anyway, I gave the clock a look and I gave it some thought. It was quite early. There was plenty of time to make an 11 AM meeting. I didn't really want to wait another 4 weeks before I went to Meeting again. I asked Alex if he would like to go to First Day School again. He said "YEAH! They have great toys there!" That settled it. I got us dressed and ready and we went out the door.
We arrived at 14th Street by 10:30-ish. Alex preferred to take the L train (because it goes to Brooklyn). We got off at 1st Avenue and had plenty of time for breakfast. We stopped at Subway where I had a magic sandwich. I say it was "magic" because it was only about 370 calories, but it filled me up for a really long time. Must remember that protein/fiber balance again, but that's for another journal.
We arrived at the Meeting House just before 11 AM where Mylitta and several children were waiting outside a locked door (waiting for the guy with the key to open it). Alex was all set though. He told me I could go to Meeting now. He was off to school. Oh, OK.
At Meeting, I had some thoughts about a quote from Harriet Tubman and how she advised slaves risking escape that they could trust Quakers every time. It made me think about the importance of keeping one's word and being known as an honest person at all times. Again, this is stuff for another journal. There's more Alex story to tell here.
After Meeting concluded, I made my way to the Nursery room only to see an amazing sight when I walked in. There was a man reading a story to a table full of youngin's which included MY rapt son. Since when does he enjoy Storytime with anyone else? (He told me later that he was there because it was SNACK n' Story. And the teacher has a lot of mini goldfish.) The man reading the story, upon seeing me, said that it couldn't be noon already. He asked the kids if they wanted to hear one more story. Many said "Yes" including my son!
Well, this was pretty awesome.
After he concluded the story, I said my thank yous and introduced myself to the teachers. Mylitta suggested that Alex thank Cal, who had read the story. We went up to Cal who was then helping a boy pick up some toys he'd dumped. Alex thanked him for reading the story and I mentioned that he must have some magic Story Skillz since Alex NEVER sits for Storytime with any other adults.
This led to brief conversation in which I'd learned that Cal isn't a Friend. He identifies as Jewish, but he sends his son, Harry (the boy he was helping) to this playgroup because he likes the Friends' principles. He then mentioned that the following Saturday was Harry's birthday and that Alex was welcome to come.
Wow! Alex's first peer birthday party. How cool! We exchanged information and I thanked Cal for his generosity. I assured him we'd see him the following weekend.
Alex, of course, was not yet done with the day.
Sunday, October 16th
The Second Part of First Day School
Oh no, Alex was certainly not done for the day. He knew he was in Manhattan. This was reason alone to explore.
"Let's go somewhere" he said. He had a place in mind. He didn't mention it until later, of course. So we walked around, looking for a library or Barnes & Noble, with me hoping to browse that month's edition of Time Out NY Kids. I told Alex what I was doing.
"No library!" he announced, "Let's go somewhere...like the Seaport!"
Oh, so that was the plan all along. I get it. Oh heck. Why not? I steered us back towards 14th Street to get on the IRT lines going south. "We have to ride to Fulton Street", Alex informed me. Why, yes. Yes, we do.
In short order, we were at the Seaport, but we would learn that it was closed for the season. (To reopen for Christmas). The historic ships were closed too. I was disappointed. For Alex, this meant an excuse to go to the mall, which meant a toy car for him - or so he thought. Tried as he may, I would not be moved. No new toy car. He got a new toy space shuttle instead. So there.
We stopped at the dining area where there were some coin operated rides. He wasn't interested in riding any of them, just playing on them. I thought that, perhaps, he'd rather play in a real playground. I suggested the Imagination Playground on Burling Slip. Boy! Was he glad to get there!
Even then, Alex still wasn't done with the day. Neither was I. It was too late to visit the Police Museum, so I suggested that we take a boat ride. The East River Ferry was running. We walked to Pier 11 where I purchased a one way ticket for $4.00. We waited a while for the ferry to dock and then we boarded. Shortly after we found seats on the outside, the ferry was off. It makes several stops in Brooklyn, including one at Fulton Ferry Landing, near which I spotted a new indoor carousel. I made a mental note of the special trip we'll have to take in the future. For the time being, we enjoyed the boat ride while Alex asked me tons of questions about the bridges and about Brooklyn.
The ferry docked at 34th Street. We had to walk from the river to Lexington Avenue in order to eventually get to Grand Central. When we arrived at 42nd and Lexington, we saw that a street fair was going on. We decided to stop for dinner at one of the many food booths. Alex decided that crepes with Nutella and fruit were a good dinner. I couldn't fully disagree. The area behind 425 Lexington is now gated, so we sat on a mission stoop to eat.
Not surprisingly, he was all ready for bedtime by the time we got home.
"Let's go somewhere" he said. He had a place in mind. He didn't mention it until later, of course. So we walked around, looking for a library or Barnes & Noble, with me hoping to browse that month's edition of Time Out NY Kids. I told Alex what I was doing.
"No library!" he announced, "Let's go somewhere...like the Seaport!"
Oh, so that was the plan all along. I get it. Oh heck. Why not? I steered us back towards 14th Street to get on the IRT lines going south. "We have to ride to Fulton Street", Alex informed me. Why, yes. Yes, we do.
In short order, we were at the Seaport, but we would learn that it was closed for the season. (To reopen for Christmas). The historic ships were closed too. I was disappointed. For Alex, this meant an excuse to go to the mall, which meant a toy car for him - or so he thought. Tried as he may, I would not be moved. No new toy car. He got a new toy space shuttle instead. So there.
We stopped at the dining area where there were some coin operated rides. He wasn't interested in riding any of them, just playing on them. I thought that, perhaps, he'd rather play in a real playground. I suggested the Imagination Playground on Burling Slip. Boy! Was he glad to get there!
Even then, Alex still wasn't done with the day. Neither was I. It was too late to visit the Police Museum, so I suggested that we take a boat ride. The East River Ferry was running. We walked to Pier 11 where I purchased a one way ticket for $4.00. We waited a while for the ferry to dock and then we boarded. Shortly after we found seats on the outside, the ferry was off. It makes several stops in Brooklyn, including one at Fulton Ferry Landing, near which I spotted a new indoor carousel. I made a mental note of the special trip we'll have to take in the future. For the time being, we enjoyed the boat ride while Alex asked me tons of questions about the bridges and about Brooklyn.
The ferry docked at 34th Street. We had to walk from the river to Lexington Avenue in order to eventually get to Grand Central. When we arrived at 42nd and Lexington, we saw that a street fair was going on. We decided to stop for dinner at one of the many food booths. Alex decided that crepes with Nutella and fruit were a good dinner. I couldn't fully disagree. The area behind 425 Lexington is now gated, so we sat on a mission stoop to eat.
Not surprisingly, he was all ready for bedtime by the time we got home.
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