Golden Pig Tales

Maybe the reason why Ezra has been hitting me is because Kalab taught him slap jack! OK, probably not. Tonight Ezra was very well behaved. Maybe it was the push-ups…

Ezra hit -v- for the second night in a row, so he only got one book this night. Last night he got no books read to him because he hit -v-. Both hits were hits that happened near sleep time when Ezra was tired, but not wanting to go to bed, and he wanted to do one last thing, but we would let him do one more things, so he slapped -v-’s leg.

Ezra’s new favorite game is Slap Jack, which I taught him a few days ago. He is pretty good at the game and does win. And what is good about the game is we have to count the cards aloud at the end of the game to see who wins.

The next game to try to teach Ezra is Go Fish.

On our way to unload a truck full yard debris (which Ezra helped load) we saw some kids a couple years older than Ezra playing soccer on a field. -v- asked him if he wanted to play soccer.

Ezra said, ,,I’m a Football guy!”

And this is the truth. Despite neither -v- or I being football fans, Ezra likes playing football and likes football. When I pick him up from preschool, he has the football in his grasp. He throws it around; runs for it; then dives on it. At home, he has own version of football he plays. When he is with his friends, he sometimes likes to think of himself as a football coach. We really don’t know how he came to like football so much, but he is a football guy.

As we rode to preschool a week ago to deliver his binky to the babies at playschool, we were listening to Queen’s “We will Rock You” and “We Are the Champions”…Ezra said “Champions don’t use binkies!” and so we sang those words along to the song. I’m feeling like singing those words again because we are the champions! It’s been a week without the binky and Ezra is sleeping tight in bed with his triumphantly returned car transporter.  No time for binkies because we are the champions, my friend!

Ezra’s fussy fits are here and there between during most days and weeks, and most the time the fussy fits of Ezra are now staged. It is like he has these acts and sounds that he creates until a certain set of sounds or acts will get attention. It is like he is an actor attempting to see what acts will get him the role of fussy-kid-who-deserves-another-Fruit-roll-up-Twist. Usually, when he gets into a fussy fit he will himself forget what it was he was fussing about after he calms down. It’s weird because some times I can see him looking at me and adjusting his sound to my reaction then I smile and he doesn’t like that because he feels I am mocking him, and I am not mocking, but rather amused by the fact my son is beginning to learn how to manipulate me.

It is a LEGO transport that he and -v- had created, so I understand why he is being insistent that -v- helps him fix the broken LEGO Transport. And Ezra lets me help him at other times, so I don’t feel left out. What I do feel is confused because his answer to my question of why he won’t let me help him fix the broken transport. ,,Because you wouldn’t let me finish the box of raisins,” he says.

Which is true because one time about a month ago I wound’t let him finish an entire box of raisins because it was a big box and enough raisins to give any one an upset stomach. And now he won’t let me help him. I ask him why again and again he says: ”Because you wouldn’t let me finish the box of raisins.”

Tonight was yet another night of Ezra sleeping with no binky. WOO HOO!!!

Just like diapers, Ezra has declared that binkies are for babies. Ezra declared binkies are for babies yesterday while leaving preschool. He was putting a Matchbox sized car in the lost and found box and saw a binky inside. Ezra said to the teacher, ,,What’s the binky doing on the preschool side. Binkies are for babies. There’s no babies in preschool.” Ezra, the teacher and I smiled.

Later, as Ezra was recounting his day at preschool to -v-, Ezra mentioned finding a binky in the lost and found box at preschool. Then I reminded him that he said, ,,Binkies are for babies.” And then I reminded him he still had a binky, but he wasn’t a baby.

What happened was sort of unexpected. He wanted to give his binky to a baby and  have no binky. And he didn’t want to wait. -v- and me did wait for it was night time and we waited for him to be sure because this was his last binky. And he was sure binkies, like diapers, were for babies. We asked him again if he was sure he wanted to deliver his only binky to the babies at his old playcare where there are only babies. (It should be noted that -v- had recently delivered to Ezra’s old playcare place a bunch of unused unpacked disposable diapers because Ezra wanted them out of the house because as he has said, ,,Diapers are for babies.”) So after Ezra was sure binkies are for babies, and after he said, ”I won’t fuss about it,” we created a plan to drive over to his old playcare and deliver the binky with a note from Ezra to the babies through the mail slot. -v- wrote the note. Ezra signed the note, and we drove to the playcare building, and Ezra delivered his binky to babies through the mail slot.

Then we went to a place called Swirl for frozen yogurt and fruit. There was no talk of binkies. We returned home late with no binky and a tired Ezra.

Ezra remained awake unable to sooth himself with binky to bed. He wanted to be held. He wanted to be calm. He wanted his binky. But he was not as mad as the last time he was convinced he needed to quit the binky. The last time we bought him a car transporter with a bunch of Matchbox cars inside to trade for his binky. That night he was screaming and shouting and crying and shouting, ”I WANT MY BINKY!” And he got it, and -v- and I got the car transporter full of matchbox cars. Last night, he whined a bit and rolled around in bed wanting mom near, but he didn’t scream and he didn’t cry through the night and he went to bed without his binky, which is a beginning to ending his addiction because binkies are for babies.

We had another fun weekend! Today’s highlights included two trips to the bouncy house at the neighborhood social event. Its fun hanging out with ezra and not having to worry about the naps.

Yes, Ezra still has the binky at night when he sleeps.

When home, Ezra wants to sit on the big potty to poop and pee using his potty’s seat that nicely fits over the big potty’s seat to sit comfortable, which is great and cute to see him sitting high-up on the potty throne.

Erzra’s had a runny nose for the past days. He sniffs. He wipes. We are teaching him to blow his nose, but still he has snot and boogers. Today while driving home from pre-school he said to me. ,,Boogers and guns are boring.” He’s right. Boogers and guns are boring.

Ezra told me as we rode home from pre-school that he doesn’t like the rain. It should have been an omen to the mood he eventually became when he got home. He began as pretty happy and chatty, and we talked about his day. We started to play LEGOs and talked some more. He started to fuss for mom, but stopped as we played with more LEGOs. Then his tower that was not structurally sound fell down and as the tower hit the ground Ezra began to get really fuss. He wanted to know why his tower fell down, where mom was, why it was raining, why he had to eat dinner, why could get his tower to stay up. He fussed as I cooked dinner. He fussed as we ate dinner. He fussed after dinner. He fussed before bed. Then he stopped fussing once mom got home.

Auntie kate and I took Ezra to the amusement park this weekend. Ezra had fun - it was kind of like the trip to the fair, only we went on some rides. Ezra was great and tried a lot of different rides, and even did a few of them by himself. Auntie kate and I even convinced him to try the kiddie coaster with us. It didn’t go over as well as the cars and/or motorcycles that go around and around in circles. He didn’t cry, but once the ride was over, he told me that he really wanted to get off. As we were heading out of the coaster area, he said “I didn’t like that ride. I don’t like the roller coaster.” Aferwards, he went on a few other rides (the cars, the train, and the motorcycles) and after each one of those he would tell me that he liked that ride, but that he didn’t like the roller coaster. At least he knows what he likes!

Today was the first day I drove Ezra to pre-school all by myself like the big boy parent I am. Aside from less traffic, it seems easier to take Ezra to pre-school because he quickly gets involved with his friends or trying to help the teacher.

We listened to Bobby Brown during the drive. Ezra even said he liked  my car as much as mom’s car now that he can see over the front passanger seat.

During the past when I was with -v- to drop off Ezra, Ezra didn’t hug me. He hugged only -v-. He hugged me goodbye today. Then began to talk with the teacher.