Boogie Shoes

Imagination Articulation

Language acquisition is so much fun, and listening to Silas is a window into the process.

The other day, when he told me he was going to "broom" with the broom, I realized we shovel with shovels, rake with rakes, vacuum with vacuums, but -- inexplicably -- we do not broom with brooms.

At the zoo last week, Silas got a chance to touch an otter pelt and a porcupine quill. The otter pelt was soft, and the zoo volunteer explained why the porcupine quill was sharp. Much later, when we saw a live river otter in its pen, Silas asked me, "Do otters not have porcs?" It took me a moment to figure out what he was talking about.

A.A. Milne's Pooh books and poetry have given Silas some British syntax and expression. For example, "I suppose," is a favorite introductory phrase when an air of detachment is in order.

Last week Silas wanted to see the garbage truck come to pick up the trash before we got in the car to go to school. We waited for about ten minutes with no luck before it was time to go. As we were getting into the car he told me, Pooh-like, "I thought for a moment I would watch the garbage truck, and then I said," (even more casually), "'Oh well, I'll not watch it today.'"

Similarly, during a recent wrestling session on the floor, Silas asked me to lift him up "high high in the air" on the bottoms of my feet. When I paused for a moment to decide whether I was prepared to do this for the sixth time in a row, he asked, "Have you the strength?" I told him I had.

(Another favorite Dad question Silas asks me occasionally is, "Can I use you like a stool?" You have to love the honesty of a three-year-old.)

And then there are Batman, Spiderman, and Hulk. Silas has learned from several different places that these characters are important in some way, but the details remain murky. Some weeks ago, he asked me what Spiderman did, and I said he helps people. Then, a few weeks later, he asked me who Spiderman helps. I said anyone who needs help, like someone who needs to change the tires on their car, or someone who needs to fix dinner, etc. That was a satisfactory explanation.

However, when he asked me recently where Batman lives, and I told him I thought Batman lived in a cave, that was no good. He promptly informed me that Batman had moved out of his cave because it was too dark, and moved into an apartment with Spiderman. The other night, he told Rachel and I at dinner that Hulk, Batman and Spiderman were cooking dinner together at their apartment (I think Hulk's place is next door). He wanted to talk to Batman on the phone, but couldn't because the Caped Crusader had gone out to get the wine. Add to this the fact that -- as Silas later informed Rachel -- Batman and Spiderman's apartment is in South America, and you start to wonder whether Stan Lee has been telling us the whole truth about these men and their costumed alter-egos.

Finally, two things Silas has recently told me we should NOT do to Margaret:

1. We should not put Margaret in the trash for the garbage men to take to the dump.

2. We should not put Margaret in the diaper bag and give her to the mail lady.

Margaret is lucky to have such a conscientious guardian.

Baby Blue

Margaret's eyes are turning brown -- I think they will end up the same color as Rachel's. It is a beautiful process -- I managed to get one picture in which you can sort of see the transition:

Margaret was more interested in eating the camera:

Peas

Silas enjoyed feeding Margaret some "smushed peas" the other night. At first, Margaret was not sure how it was going to play out.

But it turned out to be a happy sibling moment.

Until Silas decided he really liked smushed peas.

Mobile

Here she comes!

Concentration

Margaret goes about the business of being a baby. These days, that means making sure she gets invited to every meal. A charming smile often leads to a handout at the dinner table...

... but when it comes to developing a plan for locomotion, the Snoo puts on her game face.

Halloween

Halloween was a major league event this year. In the weeks leading up to the day, Silas declared his intention to be a dragon -- which was the costume he wore to the Halloween party at his preschool. This is a picture he asked me to take of him (a rare occurrence) at our playgroup, modeling his costume before going downstairs to the preschool party room:

At the party, Silas quickly found the food and a seat on the couch. At this point, he had been sitting by himself for several minutes happily polishing off a cookie and eating the icing off of his cupcake before the rest of us realized it was a photo opportunity:

Meanwhile, schoolmate Bat sized up Nice Scary Wolf:

And Aidan gave us his best Pirate Face:

Simon and Sabrina ask, "What are twins if not fun?"

That was the Thursday before Halloween. On the day of, Silas helps me carve our pumpkin ...

... and then decides he will not dress up as a dragon. Rather, he will be a Scuba Diver:

Not being a Scoover Diver yourself, you may not realize that the knit hat is a Scuba Diver Cap and the red cape is a Tank. Few people realize that wearing a Cap, Tank, and green thermal underwear make you a certified Scuba Diver.

Confident in his choice of garb, Silas is eager to hit the doors:

And he returned with the loot. There must be something instinctive about spreading out your Halloween haul for appraisal once you return home. Here, Sophie the Cat helps Silas find the best bits:

The only sad note to the record is that Margaret had no Halloween fun. (Although there seems to be quite a lot of candy unaccounted for.)

Squeeker

Margaret testing out the vocal chords:

Inside

Everyone here has a cold, and the weather is rainy with highs in the upper 40s. Yesterday was an inside day. Donning sweaters over their pajamas, Silas and Margaret spent some time sailing the high seas.



Could they be related?

Rhode Islanders Visit

As you may have noticed, today is a day to catch up with the blog. Long overdue are some pictures from Noni and Nono's recent visit to Baltimore. Some highlights:

1. Nono taking Silas and Dad to Camden Yards to watch the Red Sox clobber the Orioles. It was Silas's first game, and he loved it. (Although the experience was enhanced by two slices of pizza and a pair of binoculars.) After six innings, Silas decided it was time for us to go on a mission to "find the duck." We did manage to have an up-close encounter with the Orioles' mascot -- unfortunately I did not bring my camera on that particular adventure.

2. Enjoying some beautiful fall weather in the neighborhood. Here, Silas shows Noni how to work the stroller:

3. Soy beans!

4. Reading some books (supplemented by a couple of trips to Daedalus):

5. And last but in no way least, Dad's glorious new peg board in a cleaned-out basement:

Dinner Parties

Silas' friend Sava came back into town this week after being gone for four months or so. It was quite a reunion: a solid afternoon of high-energy, high-volume, high-hilarity play. Here they are enjoying dinner outside:

And we had fun at another party a couple of weeks ago -- Pop-Pop's birthday dinner in Bel Air. Silas was excited to drive up to meet Grandma and Pop-Pop for a dinner party, and Margaret was excited to be "one of the gang" at the dinner table (for a few minutes anyway):

Silas and Pop-Pop discuss the merits of their new books:

And Margaret decides to find the whole situation overwhelming:

Garden Work

Silas and his friend Mila help prepare the garden for winter.

High Fashion

Margaret models her fancy sun bonnet -- also worn by Rachel (as a baby).





Silas, aka Dragon, plays with his little family at the dining room table. Dragon is in the midst of "talking" the father, who has a deep voice.

New tricks

Margaret moves across the floor like a glacier. One minute she is sitting on one side of the carpet, and although you never see her actually move, three minutes later she is sitting on the opposite side of the room. She's also getting interested in standing -- in the pictures below I picked her up so that she could grab the side of her toy, which she thought was a pretty neat trick.

lil' m

Margaret is sitting up with confidence and intention, eating some solid food, making some NFL-caliber diving grabs for our dinner plates and eyeballs, and generally beginning to contemplate ways she might be able to navigate this whole time and space thing without relying on someone else's steam. We are enjoying her transition from infancy to babyhood.

First day of school

Monday, October 5th. Silas was more than excited, and had plenty of fun. But he still called in Sleepy Cub and Corduroy for back up. You never know when you might need a friend.

The Ballad of S.O.E. Ruffy

Silas set himself up with the guitar and a "microphone" (aka the guitar stand) yesterday and spent a good bit of time composing and singing some songs. They started out as an amalgamation of verses from different songs and poems he knows ("there was a farmer had a train, and on that train was a school bus...") and evolved into more original compositions -- primarily revolving around the exploits of train cars. Below is the end of his last song, about a train car named "S.O.E. Ruffy":

A Dynamic Duo

Silas and Margaret are beginning to play with each other ... here they share a ride on the HMS Exer-saucer ...

... and Silas helps her out with a bottle.

When Margaret is sleeping, Silas can take on more serious tasks, such as constructing a bus with seats for 30 people.

Silas has also been keen for Margaret to practice her sitting up skills -- which are improving daily. We captured this recent moment on camera together...

and Silas took a "good movie" to document the occasion.

Baby Jack!

Here are some snapshots of our brandnewest baby cousin, taken in his second 24 hours. Congratulations Auntie Sarah and Uncle Ryan!

Hard at work:

It's official:


Fuss:

What are you people doing out there?

Where's Margaret?

She's coming to get you.

A well-travelled sleeper, Margaret has been camping,

and beaching.


But she's not one to miss a meal,

or a laugh.