Johannes was born a couple of days ago.
Karolina is laughing because it was her father’s name.
Max is happy because he predicted it would be a boy. But he’s hasn’t spoken or asked about Johannes two days later. It’s his 6th sibling, after all, and on 17 months after Elliot and 11.5 years apart in age. He doesn’t seem to give the matter much thought.
He spoke to Mareike and Mark once, the day of the birth, but mostly just Mareike. I hope he realizes how lucky he is someday.
Elliot in Diana Donovan’s garden
Elliot with Donovan the Colorado Senator
Karoilna in Diana’s garden
Elliot loves the giant balls at the Cordillera Athletic Center
Friday the 13th PLUS A FULL MOON! We signed an offer to sell 1562 Red Draw in Cordillera. Bittersweet. Max is with Gaga in Aspen for the weekend.
Yesterday, 14 September — Elliot’s first kissing sound (he’s been trying to do this for a LONG TIME)
Today, 15 September 2019 — kissing sound + blowing it with his hand. Where did he learn this? We have no idea. It must be pre-school. He does not watch much TV besides Shaun the Sheep, Totoro, Pink Panther, and Elmo so it’s not likely he learned it there.
Two other things he did this weekend which we don’t know where he learned:
Note to self. When I become nostalgic for Elliot at ages 13 months (when he started walking) and his pre-verbal days like now, also remember how difficult it was to watch him. I must follow him around, wherever he wants to go, and hover in order to protect him from falling.
During his first month or two of walking, he did not know he could fall. So he would do things like step down a ledge and fall, hurting himself. I could not turn my head for a moment.
Now that he’s been walking almost 4 months, he now l knows not to step down large ledges, but he still falls all the time. Yesterday, he fell into the rock bed at the Cordilllera house while trying to get rocks to throw in the stream (he loves doing this hour after hour). I can turn my head for a moment, but then he steps in a big mud puddle up to his knees.
Following him around, guarding him, protecting him is rewarding in that I get to see what interests him and what doesn’t: he LOVES to be outside and exploring things in nature: rocks, sticks, the red berries at Cordilllera, ponds, streams, the little mouse that Chinle injured before I scolded her. In Littleton, it’s the rocks thrown into the TrailMark pond, the toys in the backyard like bubbles (he LOVES bubbles), balls to throw to chinle, rocks to drop into the grill over the basement window, and last but not least: watering the lavender plants with his little watering can.
But to not forget how much work it is. It is more tiring than FoxyProxy, Nasdaq, S&P Global, and working out at the gym. It is more tiring than anything I’ve done; even Max was not this tiring.
Karolina and I talked about that. She agrees that we could plop Max in a corner with some toys, and he’d sit there and play alone for quite some time. Elliot won’t do that. He would get up and wander around, curious, exploring, getting into things — bumping his head and falling.
Yesterday, Elliot — age 16 months — went into my office, picked up his indoor swing, and brought it into the living room. He dropped it, pointed to the door frame, and said “Uh! uh!”
So I setup the swing and swung him for 5-10 minutes. He loved it!
I love that he is able to communicate with us, even though he’s not even 2 years old yet.
Karolina told me that when they were in Maine, she and Elliot would watch a video like Shaun the Sheep in the upstairs bed together. Max would come up the stairs and Elliot, anticipating Max disturbing and bothering him, would take both hands in the air and pinch his thumbs & forefingers together… like a crab or lobster. He would do this to Max as Max approached the bed, threatening Max with his claws then pinching Max when he lay down.
Also he went to the doctor yesterday and is 29 lbs, 15.2 ounces… which is 98% percentile for weight.
I’ve been showing Elliot for a year how he can play with animal crackers. I make sounds when the animals play together. Last week, Elliot finally did this on his own with 2 crackers. Karolina told me about it. He was making growling sounds and holding them in his hands.
The red lobster claw — Elliot loves putting this on his hand then chasing me and Max around the house. We cower in fear, and Elliot laughs his head off.
Elliot’s wears this then loves chases me and Max through the house.
New shoes!
Today we saw lots of little blonde hairs on Max’s legs. Karolina and I were upset and told Max not to grow up!
After 16 months of my growling and pretending to eat Elliot’s finger whenever he puts it into the mouth of something, Elliot is making these sounds on his own. It started a few weeks ago when he was in Maine. Now he does it all the time. He puts his finger into the mouth of a toy or stuffy or even me, and says
“Rah rah rah rah rah rah !!!”
Tonight, in my closet, I was changing into pajamas from a wet bathing suit (we had so much fun at Normandy Pool, and Max was tortured by an 8-year old named Olivia!)
I was naked. Elliot came to me, and I thought he was going to put his finger into my belly button — which then causes me to emit a fake laugh, and he loves it. Well, no, he touched my penis and said, “Rah rah rah rah rah rah !!!” then laughed and giggled his head off.
When Karolina, Max, and Elliot came back from Main on Wednesday night, I was at work. We had not seen each other in 12 days. I walked in the garage door and Elliot was so happy to see me. He was sitting in his high chair, turned towards me, beaming with smiles. I will never forget that vision; my heart melted.
Karolina and Max were also happy to see me, of course. Karolina was unpacking the car, and I was not sure what kind of mood she was in after an 8-9 hour drive from Omaha.
Max later said, “I’m glad we’re together again” and hugged me. He also said he’s glad to be home, but he said he’s glad to be with me again after I was appreciative of his stories about D&D and monsters. I guess Karolina did not pay much attention to those 🙂
These are quotes from Karolina to me on WhatsApp.
“We are staying in a hotel right at the Niagara Falls. My plan for tomorrow is to drive as far as I possibly can. I just want to get home.”
You don’t understand- I am so tired and here it’s soo humid and hot!! I almost collapsed while caring Elliot. God what a tourist trap this place is !!! Don’t need to do this again! But little Elliot got on the boat a rain poncho for babies . He and Max loved it !!!!
I am really happy that we came here though- although I complain. It’s something I can check off the list now:) Max had a really good time!! He loved it , he loved it because he got really wet on the boat, I feel like that’s what we basically came for ! Elliot was the whole time pointing to the falls and saying :” see! See! See!” The wax museum was about the history of the Niagara Falls, which was nice but the figures were absolutely awful. – poorly made. And I am really, really happy that we had dinner at the rain forest cafe. I paid $80 for a questionable dinner , with a huge cake , but both of them really loved it! Max was so happy to be there !
Max got a Vulcano cake dessert meant for a family of four to share!!! They sang him a song!!
So, yes I am exhausted, my leg is hurting and I just want to drive 22 hours to get home. I have been driving too long and too much.
“Also, tell Quinn that max probably wants to see him every possibility he can get !!!”
“He already plans a trip for us and Quinn to go to Utah and visit the D&D world”
Karolina writes from Maine:
Elliot and Max are always playing in my bed before going to sleep and it’s the best thing I have seen in a long time. Elliot is always waiting and giggling till Max comes up the stairs.
Elliot licking the bowl of blueberry pie; Max building a pee-pee in the sand on the beach.
From Karolina:
I got this chair for Elliot’s future room – it’s really old and it has a hole in the middle so you can use it as a potty – it was $24
One night in Maine, I was reading:
I’d been telling him about the book in the previous days, and he was very interested in this man who’d abandoned society to live alone. Max was playin,g but saw me reading. He stopped and said, “I hope one day I can read like you.”
“What do you mean”, I asked.
“That I don’t have to … ” He didn’t know how to explain.
“Sound out the words?”
“Yes, that I can read without sounding out the words.”
He wants to be able to read to himself, not aloud all the time. It takes him minutes to read a page, if he can read all the words by himself. It must be agonizing. It must make him not want to read.
To encourage him, I told him that I don’t always understand everything I read, and that I must oftentimes read sentences to myself more than once.
I just feel so bad for him. He really wants to read. He sees the enjoyment it can bring.
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