7/29/2011

This moment

Filed under: — Aprille @ 11:26 am

this moment (with special thanks to Darah)} – A Friday ritual.   A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

7/27/2011

Lick logic

Filed under: — Aprille @ 1:52 pm

Miles was pretending to be a doggy and licked my arm.

A:  Yuck!  Miles, that’s gross.

He then licked his own hand.

A:  Honey, please don’t do that.  We even forgot to wash your hands before lunch, so they’re probably dirty.

M:  Did you wash your hands?

A:  Yes, I did.

M:  Even the backs?

A:  Yes.

M:  Even the fingers?

A:  Yes.

M:  Then I can lick them.

7/26/2011

See no evil

Filed under: — Aprille @ 3:48 pm

Despite having been warned multiple times against it, Miles kept messing around with the floor lamp.  He accidentally knocked it to the ground, blowing out one of the light bulbs (but, fortunately, not actually breaking the lamp).  I was sitting on the couch right next to the lamp when it happened.

M:  I don’t think you saw that.

7/22/2011

This moment

Filed under: — Aprille @ 2:23 pm

this moment (with special thanks to Darah)} – A Friday ritual.   A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

Miles on the trike

Thanks to Gary Clarke for the photo.

 

7/21/2011

March of the Miles

Filed under: — Aprille @ 1:46 pm

Miles and I were talking about birds that can’t fly.

M:  Hey, I’m kind of like a penguin.

A:  You are?

M:  Yeah, because I can swim but not fly.

7/17/2011

Kilometers, really

Filed under: — Aprille @ 3:36 pm

We were listening to a group of musicians playing Irish music at the Farmers Market yesterday.  One of the musicians introduced a song by telling us where the songwriter was from.

Musician:  He’s from a town about 50 miles from where my mother grew up.

Miles:  Why did she say my name?

7/15/2011

Ceja-vu

Filed under: — Aprille @ 3:43 pm

My parents are due to arrive shortly.

A:  How many minutes till Mubby and Skittergramps get here, Miles?  Do you think about 5?

M:  Maybe 5 minutes.  Or maybe eleven-teen minutes.  Or maybe three minutes.  Or maybe two minutes.  Or maybe eyebrow minutes.

A:  Eyebrow minutes?  That’s funny.

M:  “Eyebrow” is a number.  That’s how you say “two” in Spanish.

The greatest song parody writer of his generation

Filed under: — Aprille @ 3:36 pm

A 2-fer:

 

M:  It’s raining, it’s pouring, the old man is snoring.  Bumped his head and fell out of bed…and couldn’t get up in the k-pot.

A:  What’s a k-pot?

M:  It’s kind of like a pot, only it’s not, and you dress up and have fun.

 

M:  I have a new version of “Twinkle, Twinkle.”

A:  How’s it go?

M:  Twinkle, twinkle little shoes.  How I wonder what you muse.

I don’t think he knows what “muse” means, but I congratulated him heartily anyway.

This moment

Filed under: — Aprille @ 2:15 pm

this moment (with special thanks to Darah)} – A Friday ritual.   A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.

7/13/2011

Absolute zero turning radius

Filed under: — Aprille @ 1:39 pm

Denny has recently come into possession of Pop-Pop’s old lawn tractor.  It had been away for repairs, and today the repair people dropped it off.  Miles looked out at the driveway and saw it.

M:  I could absolutely ride that tractor because it’s little.

7/12/2011

Perchance to dream

Filed under: — Aprille @ 10:15 am

Yesterday evening, we went out to Coral Ridge Mall after Denny finished work to do a few errands.  It’s a 15-20 minute drive, and Miles was seeming a bit groggy.  I looked into the back seat to check on him, and he had his eyes closed and his head slumped over.

A:  Miles?  Are you asleep or just pretending to be asleep?

M:  (without moving a bit or opening his eyes) Asleep.

7/10/2011

Ever respectful

Filed under: — Aprille @ 9:44 pm

We were in the car. Miles enjoys watching runners, and he had just pointed out a “running guy” to me. I noticed a college-aged female running, so I pointed her out to Miles.

A: There’s a running girl.

M: No, a running woman.

 

P.S.  I also posted this on Google+, which is cooler than Facebook but also much less popular (for the time being).  I’m giving it a try and enjoying it pretty well.

And we’re back

Filed under: — Aprille @ 9:41 pm

Sorry for the technical troubles.  Thanks to Denny for the help in getting things back on track.

7/7/2011

Monthly Miles Memo #42

Filed under: — Aprille @ 7:09 pm

Happy 3.5 birthday, Mr. Miles!

What a month it has been.  I probably say that every month, but this time it’s extra true.  Over the last month, you’ve been to Puerto Rico and back, started preschool, and gone to Big Brother class.  I can hardly think of a more exciting month in your personal history (although, depending on how the timing works out, next month or the month after should prove to be pretty major too).

Our trip to Puerto Rico was just great.  You went swimming every single day, in swimming pools or ocean or both.  Just today you asked me, “Do you want to go to Puerto Rico?”  I said that I did, and you agreed that it would be fun.  When I asked you what your favorite part was, you said, “Beach.”  That was probably my favorite part too, though mostly I just enjoyed relaxing in our beautiful condo and spending time with you, Daddy, Mubby, and Skittergramps.  You were such a good boy the entire time, even on the long flights.

On our very first night there, as we drove from the airport to the condo, Mubby and Skittergramps kept you entertained by singing songs in the backseat.  Skittergramps taught you “If You’ve Got the Money, Honey, I’ve Got the Time,” and that was your refrain for the whole week.  You composed your own melody and sometimes substituted different words, but it was very funny for everyone.  I even caught it on video.  You also found a new favorite, Bimbo cookies.  They taste better than they sound.

Another major thing you learned in Puerto Rico was how to classify living things as either flora or fauna.  We saw a lot of both on the trip, around our condo and on our trip to El Yunque rainforest.  That was a tough day, physically.  We took the gentlest hike available, but it was still pretty tough for a little guy and a pregnant mommy.  But we did it, and when you got to the waterfall at the end of the hike, you had a great time splashing around.


Photo by Gary Clarke

The Monday after we got back was your first day at Willowwind School.  I’d been stressing out about it enormously, even having nightmares, but it was really not a very big deal at all.  The first two days were a little tough, but after that you caught right on.  I usually arrive a few minutes early to pick you up, so I get to witness some of Line Time.  That’s when you and your classmates sit in a circle and do different group activities.  Today you were having so much fun doing physical actions while the teacher told a story that you didn’t want to leave.  People kept telling me it would happen, and I’m so glad it did.

Photo by Gary Clarke

I must say, though, it warms up my heart every time I catch your eye through the window.  Your eyes get big, you break into a huge smile, and you sometimes yell “Mommy!”  You have such a wonderfully expressive little face, and more than one of the other parents has let out an “Awww” when they see you do it.

You got to see Beanie again last week.  Your daddy and I had an afternoon movie date and an appointment with our doula, and you had a lot of fun playing with your old pal Beanie.  As usual, you guys had fun with art supplies, and you made a really cool card for Mubby and Skittergramps.

Mubby and Skittergramps have been around more than usual lately, because Grammy hasn’t been doing very well.  She was in the ICU for pneumonia exacerbated by immobility related to a recent fall, and Skittergramps has been spending extra time with her.  We went to visit her too, and I know seeing you helped her feel better.  She’s back with Pop-Pop at their nursing home now, though, so it’s good they can be together.  We’ll have to make a trip up there to see them soon.

Your dad and I have both been impressed with your artistic skills lately.  You draw on your I-O all the time, and your drawings are becoming more sophisticated and complicated.  That’s such a great toy.  You’ve enjoyed it at all different stages of your development, and it’s so much fun to see the different things you imagine and draw.  Today it was kittycats and spiders.  Last weekend it was a guy on a tractor.  Sometimes it’s a self-portrait, and sometimes it’s our whole family.

Your Big Brother class was good, too.  Your favorite part was the cookie and juice, but you also learned the careful way to hold a baby, and you were able to see the kind of room I’ll be in after 2-John is born.


Oh yes, 2-John.  Darth Vader has recently changed identities.  You suggested that the baby be named John, and when we told you our family already has a John Crall, you changed it to 2-John.  Of course, you still insist that 2-John is a girl.  Mostly I think you’re just yanking our chain when you say it now, but I hope you deal with the XY truth when it comes out.

Big Brother

I can’t be sure, but this might be the last Monthly Miles Memo in which you’re an only child.  It’s hard to remember a time three and a half years ago when no kids lived at my house.  Your dad and I have been talking a lot lately about my medium-to-long-term plans with work and childcare, and I plan to be home with you and the baby for a decent chunk of time.  As I told him, being a mommy is the best thing I’ve ever done, and I have you to thank for that.  People tell me that having a second one makes things crazy, and the work increases geometrically rather than linearly.  That’s probably true, and I might be late on the next few Monthly Miles Memos.  Please forgive me and know that you’re just as important to us as always.  Things might be bumpy for a while, but just like preschool, I know you’ll catch on.  Having a brother was a great thing for me, and I know that you’re going to value having a brother too.

I love you, my sweet Scoop.  So far you’re turning out pretty awesome.  Keep up the good work.

Love,

Mommy

7/5/2011

Fruity delight

Filed under: — Aprille @ 4:35 pm

Miles had a bowl of blueberries.  I sat down to eat some bing cherries, and he got interested in them.  I pitted a few and put them on top of his blueberries.

A:  Now you can have a fruit salad.

M:  A fruit salad?  That’s silly!

7/1/2011

This moment

Filed under: — Aprille @ 8:43 am

{this moment (with special thanks to Darah)} – A Friday ritual.   A single photo – no words – capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.


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