Dream Shard Blog: The Scintillating Adventures of Our Household

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Sun
4
Sep '11

Wesley’s Ways

Wes drinks more milk than just about anyone I know, with the possible exception of his baby sister. I usually give him 2%, although he’ll take it in all forms–skim, whole, chocolate, strawberry… He’s a big fan of the chocolate weight-loss shakes.

Milk mustache.

Wes goes back for his second year of preschool this week. I met with his teacher and speech therapist to review our goals for him this year. His teacher surprised me by saying that last year Wes would only count up to four with her. He’s been holding out! Because he counts all the time, and I know he can count to ten, and even sometimes gets up into the teens, although it’s less discernible (because I’m pretty sure he’s making it up as he goes). The only problem I had noticed with him counting to ten is that he frequently skips over three. “One, two, four…”

Wes is very smart, as far as I can tell. I think, because of the Down syndrome, his intelligence is manifest a little more mutely. He knows his numbers, shapes, letters, and colors, and he can say and sign a lot of words. Recently he has started using possessives: “Wesley’s shirt.” “Mommy’s shoes.” Snd his favorites: “Amma, Ampa’s house” and “Tawa’s house” (translation: he wants to go to Grandma and Grandpa’s house, or his Aunt Tara’s house. He gets quite mad when I try to take him back to our own house).

His teacher also pointed out that Wes plays really well by himself, and that one of her goals for him is to initiate and engage in more social play for a sustained period of time. Wes is content to stand on the sidelines and watch kids play. If they involve him, he’s usually happy to join them. But he doesn’t really initiate that himself.

They’re also going to work on initiating and engaging in conversations. He’s doing really well at saying “hi” and “bye” to people. But conversations? Well, that will be a good goal to work on. Talking with Wesley is usually one-sided. Everything you say to him goes in. But what comes back to you in return is very limited. I don’t think it comes as naturally to him as to other kids his age.

I’m excited for him to get back into school. He loves playing with other kids, and I know he will love being back in school.

We are very lucky parents.

Thu
4
Aug '11

Wes and the Honeydew

Today as I was tidying up the kitchen Wes observed me moving a honeydew melon to the counter. He pointed to it and said, “ball.” I explained that it wasn’t a ball, but fruit.

He wanted to hold it, so I handed it to him but warned, “Don’t throw it.”

The next thing I knew the melon was tossed to the floor. I picked it up and told him again that it was fruit. We don’t throw fruit, we eat it.

So then instead of throwing it Wes started doing this:

Fri
22
Jul '11

Messy and Wet and Teething Times Two

The other day I gave up trying to feed Carissa her morning rice cereal and let her do it herself. Unlike Wes, Carissa has no qualms about getting her hands messy.

Since she got her top teeth (grand total of four teeth now), she likes to bite things between her chompers. Like this toothbrush holder.

Speaking of teething, I just discovered tonight that Wes is getting a new tooth! Considering he didn’t get his first tooth until he was 19 months old, I guess I shouldn’t be too shocked that they’re still coming in when he’s about a month shy of turning four. He’s getting his lower left canine (the one next to the front row of four teeth). I’d often wondered why he had a gap on either side of that front row of teeth, but after a while I kind of forgot that he had teeth missing. He still chews on his fingers, a lot, and maybe this helps explain that.

Last week we let Wes play in this mini-water park where water shoots up from the plaza. He didn’t want to go when it was time.

And Carissa looked on.

'

The End of Swim School

Wes finished up two weeks of swim lessons today. It will take many years, I think, before the kid learns to swim for real. But he had fun!

Every time his turn with the teacher was over he’d stand on the pool steps, face his “audience” (the parents) and clap and cheer for himself, saying “Yeah!”. The other parents called themselves his fan section and clapped and cheered with him.

Here’s his GQ shot.

At the end of each class the kids can go down the water slide and jump off the “high” dive. The first couple of days he wasn’t scared and jumped right off. But after that he got more timid and had to be pushed/dragged in. But he always liked it once he was in the pool.

Here he is standing in line.

And preparing to jump.

Here he is jumping in, before he lost his nerve.

Today after class I took him (and Carissa, who was asleep) to the drugstore downtown for an ice cream cone. I’m not sure he’s ever had his very own ice cream cone before. After he threw it on the counter face down I showed him how to lick it, and then to crunch the cone, and after that he was fine and ate nearly the whole thing, occasionally pausing to say, “Num! Good!”

Wed
13
Jul '11

Swim School

This week and next Wes is in “swim school,” which is what we call his swim lessons. Before his first day I really wasn’t sure if he would like being in the pool or not. The last time he was in a pool (in California, in April) he didn’t seem comfortable.

Well, I shouldn’t have worried. Wes LOVES swim school. I take him to a house not too far from our own that has a swimming pool in their backyard. The owner’s adult kids offer the lessons. Wes shares his 45-minute lesson with another child. When the teacher is taking the other kid across the pool, Wes sits on the steps and waits his turn.

Supposed to wait his turn, anyway. The time he spends sitting on the steps is time I spend reminding him to stop throwing things into the pool, to stay on the steps, to stop splashing the other kids, etc. It’s a little tiresome sometimes.

Today, actually, while he was “sitting” on the steps he decided to jump into the water by himself. Of course there was no one to catch him because his teacher was on the other end of the pool with the other kid. Now, if I had thought and not just reacted, I could have snagged another swim teacher (whose back was to Wesley) and asked her to pull my son from the bottom of the pool. But since moms don’t think, they just react, I walked into the pool myself and pulled him back to the side.

Here he is considering throwing something in. He loves those rings. His teacher lets him throw the ring in, and then they go fetch it together.

On his first lesson on Monday, the teacher dipped Wesley’s face under just up to the nose. But by the second day Wes went all the way under. He takes it well.

Here he is on the boogie board, practicing kicking (“splash your feet!”).

Wesley’s least favorite activity is floating on his back. I think the teacher spends most of that time getting whapped in the face by Wesley’s hands as he flails around wildly.

But Wesley’s favorite thing is when his teacher throws him in the air and catches him. Like so.

And, of course, Carissa is here too. I keep her in her carseat for as long as I can, but usually by the end she wants out.

At the end of class the kids get to do fun things, like go down the water slide or jump off the high dive (it’s not so high; you can see it in the picture behind Carissa).

Today the other kid in class started half-way up the water slide (her dad set her up there) and slid down, but she wasn’t happy about it. The teacher caught her in his arm (his other arm was holding Wes). But she was crying, and that got Wes crying. But both kids got over it and Wes went down the slide a little, too.

Then they went to the side of the pool. The girl jumped in first, the teacher catching her. When I asked Wes if he wanted to jump in, he said, “No.” But I nudged him to the edge anyway and he jumped in just fine.

Then the girl went to the high dive. She was sacred to jump off, but the teacher said he would hold her hand (from the water below, where he was waiting to catch her). She jumped in, and then it was Wesley’s turn.

I asked Wes if he wanted to jump off the high dive, and of course he said, “No.” But we went over anyway, and without hesitation he jumped off–BIG jump–before his teacher even had time to grab onto Wesley’s hand to help him jump.

Both kids did it one more time apiece. After his second time, Wes emerged from the water saying, “Yeah!” and gave a high-five to a bystander on the edge of the pool.

Swim School is good.

Sun
26
Jun '11

Dinner Disaster

My Christmas wish list has a new entry on top: “Personal chef.” Right under it is still “Once-a-week maid service” and “Personal masseuse” and “Shopping time without children whining.”

But tonight “Personal chef” is number one.

I sometimes use this space to vent about my self-perceived lack of cooking skills. But, as John always reminds me, it’s not that I lack talent; I lack practice. Talents can be developed.

So I guess tonight I was practicing again.

I should point out that my two least favorite parts about cooking are 1) the huge amount of time and prep work it takes, and 2) after all that amount of time and prep work (and blood and sweat and tears), finding that my family doesn’t actually enjoy what I spent 20% of my day working on. Which, it seems, happens often.

But tonight I really thought I would hit a home run. Last week we went grocery shopping together (rare) and John picked out two fine pieces of ribeye steak. I looked up a cooking method for the steak online provided on FoodNetwork.com by Alton Brown, a super swanky star chef.

I made rolls from a Lion House mix, which I’d never done before. I was super excited to sort of make from scratch rolls that might actually taste really good.

And then I made sweet potato chips by slicing a sweet potato thin, brushing the slices with oil, sprinkling with salt, and baking for 15 minutes at 400 degrees.

I thought with steak John picked out himself and a recipe from a TV star chef to cook it with, and rolls with the brand name “Lion House” on them, I couldn’t go wrong. I knew the sweet potato chips were a wild card, but I knew I, at least, would like them.

After three-and-a-half hours of cooking, it was a total flop. Everything. Nobody, except for me, liked anything.

A Groupon came out recently with a discount on cooking classes in Salt Lake City. It’s far away, and still costs a bit, but I paid for two of them. Talents can be developed. This is my mantra. I might start chanting it for encouragement the next time I attempt dinner.

And now on to some things that actually make me happy…

Carissa greeting me after a night’s sleep.

Carissa showing how tall she is under the table.

And Wesley’s latest love:

This is his Uncle Jon pitching:

And his dad helping him out: