over heard

I'm trying not to take this personally, "Some people just vacuum on holidays. Some people do it on weekends or holidays. But maybe not even weekends, some people just do it on holidays. It's more comfortable to do it on holidays because they are resting and stuff and they don't have school. "

Trick or treat

Happy Halloween!

Aviva was a dragon, and Noah was a ladybug. When she was asked, she'd start to sing her song, "there's a girl I know named Aviva, A--V--I--V--A..." Noah wore some antenna and felt wings that Abuelita made, black clothes and shoes, and a stuffed and decorated red/black tshirt thing that was decorated with black dots, that Josh made. He wore it all day, and his class had a parade down the street. Pictures will be attached.

For a boy who is generous and loves to give things, Halloween is the perfect holiday. We did a little trick-or-treating before dinner around 5:00, and when we came back at 6:00 he insisted on emptying his treat bag into the bowl we used to give treats. And he told people they should take two pieces. Some of the kids who came received back what they were giving at home. That was okay with him. We ate some dinner and then Noah and Josh went out again.

The other day, Noah received a treat from his therapist for doing a good job that day. He chose a lollipop from the therapist's bag, and it was a big, big decision which lollipop he wanted. It took several minutes. He finally chose, we scooted home, and he saw the boy who lives downstairs, Declan. He gave him the lollipop and was very excited to give it, and did it without even a moment to contemplate. He really likes to give things. That is a nice quality, which we should find activities that support and encourage.

Noah's friend and his numbers

There's a girl at school who always says hello to Noah. Actually, she says "Hi, sweetie!" and she gives him hugs. The other morning she was squeezing him and whispering in his ear. I asked him later who she is, and Noah said, "Yes, we're good friends together. She likes me a lot." But he didn't know her name. I asked her one day and she told me her name is Bella. I told Noah that her name is Bella and he said okay.

Noah also was telling me how to make the number 5: Neck, big belly, frog jump up, give him a hat.. That makes a 5. Here's how you make 8: Make an S but keep going up to the top. When I was young, how did I learn? I told Noah that we didn't have such cool directions, and they would just tell the kids, "follow me!" but there weren't fun rules like that. The letters have directions too - for a K, it's down for a line, kick the tree, small line up.

Bike fun with Abuelita and Greg

Abuelita is here

If you want to know the difference

between a ladybug and a dinosaur, here is how you can tell. A ladybug has 6 legs and also some spots. And you draw them differently.

Noah also said he wants to practice eating ice cream and practice eating cookies also. Is there anything he can do that needs practicing so we can get ice cream?

We were walking home from school the other day and Noah found some things that were being given away. There was a purple headband with feathers, and a striped necktie and then he found a nickel on the street, and wanted to put it somewhere. He decided it would go on the petals of a little flower, and then someone would find it later and be happy.

Fwd: Picture for blog

Aviva today

Wah!

Aviva is upset about everything. It's possible she's sick or getting sick, but the fact still remains that she is three years old. She's very three. Last night she had a fit because she wanted to pee with Daddy. He went to her and she cried because she wanted to pee with Mama. So Mama went to her she was angry and so sad because she wanted Daddy. This went on for a long time, and then she cried for another reason. That reason wasn't what she wanted so the opposite of the reason was. And it's not just crying, but it's flopping on the ground and going limp and screaming and crying.Then suddenly she gets distracted with something and she stops crying. She's playing by herself and talking and it's all good. And then something happens to bring on a new fit.

Very decorative

Noah likes the word "decorative," and he uses it correctly, more or less. He said he likes to look at the decorative clothes that his classmates wear to school. And he wanted the yellow cup with decorative designs, instead of the plain glass one. I'll add other ones; they happen throughout the day.

tomorrow and a murder plot

Aviva wants to know if now is tomorrow and if not is today tomorrow and if not when is tomorrow? 

Noah has told me about his plans to get away with murder when he is an adult. He will find a boy who does not belong to anyone and kill him with a necklace (by strangling him) and put him in the car, on the ground so no one can see, and make sure he brings the necklace so the police can not get fingerprints. When he told me it did not seem so gruesome but reprinting it, I am a little scared. 

Just so you know

Aviva's birthday is in January. She's going to be 4 years old. She's going to have a birthday party and invite the girl from down the street, and there's going to be cake! A chocolate cake, and she's going to be 4 years old. In January. She's going to have another birthday in January and she'll be this many fingers. Now she's this many fingers but soon she'll be this many.

Everyone knows this - the casheir at the grocery store, the library attendant, anyone we come in contact with, and many many strangers on the street. Aviva tells this to everyone, to make sure everyone knows.

Also, when she eats food, you could open her stomach and see all the food inside. This whole bagel is mushed up inside. And if you opened her, you could see. But that would hurt and she would cry. But then Mama would hold her and it would be okay.

And at her friend's house last week, there was a dog she saw that was a big little dog and it wanted to eat her. But sometimes it didn't want to eat her and sometimes it did. And it was sitting on the couch by itself and it was nobody's dog. And she doesn't want the dog to eat anyone, because then she would be sad. She doesn't want the dog to eat her, or anyone in our family. And not any of our friends, too, and not our friend Evan. And if the dog did eat her, she would cry because it hurts. But she'd be okay. 

first day of kindergarten

Noah wanted to make and distribute this video so children would know what to expect for their first day of kindergarten and not be scared. 

https://youtu.be/LJIgDdB9sHk

https://youtu.be/356tyoqIJ4w

https://youtu.be/sE4HgMZjxe8

https://youtu.be/qSliMWTnnxI

for EVER

We have some fresh green figs and Noah likes them so much. He especially likes the inside, which is hard to get to without eating the peel, but he tries it. He thinks it tastes like jam.

Aviva called me over to give me something. She said "This was in my nose but I took it out." I said "thank you."

Noah's been talking to strangers wherever we are, and he often just starts talking, without any greeting or "hi." "Tag! You're it!" and "Look how red my fingers and mouth are after I eat cherries!"  and "I'm really good at my bike but Aviva isn't. She's still too little." It's always when I'm right next to him or closeby; I'm not exactly worried. But it is an unusual peculiar habit.

Aviva likes to swing her arms and she likes to show how she can do it: standing still, both arms forward, both arms back.

When Aviva asks about an amount, she shows the amount with her hands. She knows I love her this much (arms outstretched) and when she shows me how much watermelon she wants in her bowl, her hands are about a foot apart. If I ask her something, she replies by showing me the distance with her hands. The bath was fun (foot-and-a-half) much. 

When the kids are in the car, they have been pointing out to each other who is in the sun and who is in the shade. It's become a mean thing to tease about. One of them might say, "I'm in the shade and you're in the sun - for-EVER" and that will make the other one really upset. She might say it when we're home or somewhere inside also. Josh told them that if they say that, they'll get a time out. 

a few random pictures from D.C.

 Josh plus Aviva, going out in the rain

Bubbe + kids, in Washington

Anya and Mika with Noah in the bath

Tree pose

Yesterday and last week

Aviva has been noticing how people swing their arms while they walk. She likes to practice doing it and showing me. Mostly she swings one arm fast and the other one not at all. She was practicing while sitting in the carseat the other day.

We went to a pool and Noah loved it. Aviva did not but if she was in our arms it was okay. Noah did something he called "floating like a dream." I'll attach a video. 

Aviva has a song that her Papa made up for her. It goes like this:

There's a girl I know named Aviva

A-V-I-V-A

THere's a girl I know named Aviva

A-V-I-V-A

SHe comes to her Nana's house

She comes to her Papa's house

She loves to come and play

There's a girl I know named Aviva

A-V-I-V-A!

She likes it so much and sings it a lot. Noah likes to sing it too. They are both adamant about how Nana goes before Papa. THat's the way it goes. The other day we were talking with some adults about something, and one person asked her name. She started singing the song and that was her way of answering so she really wanted the person to wait and hear it all.

Aviva was reminding me about something we did a long time ago (I think I buckled her into her car seat from the outside, through the window.) I started to do that again and she said I did that already, "yesterday yesterday yesterday". A lot of yesterdays ago.

Yesterday (just one yesterday this time) Aviva was describing people in our family and she said "Papa's my granddaughter" and "cousins is my cousins." In a different conversation she was telling me about what a classmate had for lunch and she said "He have'd a cookie." So she's sort of understanding past tense of verbs...

I will add pictures and videos shortly. 

how to eat an apple

Aviva has a most unusual of eating apples and corn

Travels

We have returned from a trip - we went to Washington D.C. and Maryland to visit different friends and family.

Traveling was hard. Tired children fuss about everything and nothing. Aviva had a full-out tantrum on the plane as were were landing, because we wouldn't let her lie on the floor on the aisle of the airplane. She really really wanted to lie on the floor, right there, and we just weren't listening to what she said.

Another habit that Aviva has developed (or developed and then dropped later) is licking her hands. She licks her hands and then rubs them together and tells you about it. She did this in the midst of all our travel, in airports and taxis and metros. Made us cringe but not worth addressing right then. 

We first met up with Josh's brother Daniel, his two new babies and their mom, Sherra.  Dizzy and Ozzie are 2 months old. (I will still attach pictures)

The next day we went to the National Zoo and met up with my aunt, uncle, and cousin et al. Nina, Judah, Aharon, Kristy, and 2 year old Desi drove up from North Carolina and we got to play at the zoo for the day. Desi liked pushing Noah in Desi's stroller (picture) We had lunch at a little place where we mostly ordered from the kids' menu and it was nice to talk and eat together. We then met up with Josh's extended family, who flew and drove in from all over the place. Daniel arranged for us to rent out an 8 bedroom house for the week in D.C., and more family visited for shorter periods of time. 

We were: Josh's sister Joanna, her two kids Anya and Mika, and partner Steve. Daniel and Sherra and Dizzy and Ozzie. Josh's grandma Kappy, Dan's mother Evy, August and her boyfriend Tanner. Sometimes Sue and Stan, and their daughter Melissa, with her husband and two little ones, Sierra and Jessa. 

When we arrived at the house and were looking around, inspecting the rooms, Noah pointed out that there were a few "tevies" which was his way of saying "T.V's" -- it pleases me that it's a foreign-enough object that he gets the name wrong. There were remote controls for the tevies, and he thought they were all telephones we can play with.

The house had a big bathtub with jets like a jacuzzi and the kids took a few bubbly baths together. And Mika are 8 and 5, and they were the perfect playmates for Noah and Aviva. They played a lot together and so nicely together and it was really a treat to see. It made us all very happy.

Throughout the week, we had little adventures, on Metros, at museums, at the house. I will attach pictures. 

Now we are home and in our regular schedule again. When eating food they like, both kids have been saying, "it's yummy in my eye." That's their take on "yummy in my tummy," which is from some book or song they hear a lot. Other funny language notes: Aviva doesn't get tenses yet or verb forms -- I hear a lot of "where is they?" and "I felled from the bed," and "look at I!" 

I think to myself, "Look at us! We travelled across the country and spent good time with lots of family members and friends.

After D.C. we visited with Josh's friend Cynthia and her family, and it culminated with a rain dance. Pictures to follow.

riddles

Noah loves to solve riddles.We incorporate them into his bedtime stories. 

Usually I have to give him huge clues to allow him to solve them, but these he solved without any clues:

What kind of cup can't hold water?

Why are teddy bears never hungry?

They come out at night without being called, and are lost in the day without being stolen. What are they?

A monkey, a squirrel, and a bird are racing to the top of a coconut tree. Who will get the banana first, the monkey, the squirrel, or the bird?

Why did the man put honey under his pillow?

Noah's perfect day

As described

1) Dinner

2) Water balloons

3) Free play (short)

4) Breakfast 

5) New playground

6) Water front yard

7) Dinner

As intended

1) Breakfast

2) Water balloons

3) Free play (short)

4) Lunch

5) New playground

6) Water back yard

7) Dinner

Crib

sorting out the world

N: What's a week?

Y: 7 days

N: What's the other one that's like a week?

Y: A month

N: No, the other one, that's like a week

Y: A year

N: And how many is that?

Y: 365

Eighty-eight

Does anyone know about your 88? Evidently, it is a tool in our body that lets us breathe. We will add more detail when we learn more from Noah's teacher. 

what you see at the zoo

Efanents and highneenas, that's what. 

Noah's lullaby for Aviva

Download Attachment

Available until Jul 23, 2017

Noah wants to know

Is a song in our heart 

really

all 

we

need?

Yesterday

Aviva likes zoo animals, especially the efemus and the hipamus, which are sometimes the efenent and hopinus.

This is a bowl of the ice cream she made me

She baked it in the oven and sold it at the ice cream store

Fudge tree

Noah showed me where there's a little tree that's been planted, outside his classroom. It's a fudge tree, he said. Fudge is the garden teacher's favorite kind of apple. Fuji? I asked him. Yeah that's what I said. Fudge. 

Kid's getting big

Noah just turned 5. Tonight he wanted to play hide-and-seek even though it was bed time. He said he asked SOOOO long ago, when he was 4 even, and I said no. He was telling me the rules, and he said that when the person who's IT is done counting, they say, "Red or not! Here I come."

Noah used to have a hair in his armpit, but he itched it away. There were a bunch of hairs that were connected to the bone. WHy the hairs are there is to help connect the arm to the rest of the body

He was saying the other day that there is something about the library at the school that is very unusual. "Very, very unusual!" Don't remember what it was, but I liked how he said that. He also asks if I'm sure (about a variety of different topics), and if I'm one hundred two million percent sure. 

A topic that comes up repeatedly is about human history. He wants to know who was the first person who ever lived, and did he have a name, and what was it, and are you sure. Three hundred fourteen percent sure.

As we were crossing a street the other day, I put my hand up to wave to a car that stopped. I was kind of saying, "Hey! We're here! Thanks for stopping!" This is just what I always do. But the other day, Noah did it also. 

Yesterday we were talking about un-hugging and un-kissing. Sometimes we play where he doesn't want me to give him a kiss, so I put my hand on his cheek and take the kiss back. When Aviva doesn't want me to clean her hands, she wants me to put the dirt back, so I pretend to do that. But I think she might think I'm really doing it. In any case, Noah and I were talking about undoing things. If you break something, you can remake it,  but you can't un-think something. And you can't un-say something, but Noah pointed out that you CAN use the word "actually." 

Noah drew this

Notice the toes. 

Can you guess which one was done by Noah?

Singing together

It's 9:15 at night. Both kids are in bed, her in the closet and him on the floor of his room. They're both talking to themselves and singing little bits of songs. He starts singing "A B C D..." and she hears and continues "E F G..."  

Life as of late

When Noah grows up, he wants to be a special kind of scientist. What some scientists do is put together skeleton bones, like chickens, to see what they looked like and put them back together. There are certain sounds that an animal makes, and when he's a scientist he can learn about what it means. Like, when a chicken says "BOK BOK!!" what does that mean? He would find out what it REALLY means. Other scientists do other scientist things. There are regular scientists and animal scientists and he mostly wants to be an animal scientist.

Noah also wants to have an airplane job where he can work at the airport where planes land and take off, and he'll check things on the ground. 

On another note, when we were leaving school last week, he passed his friend Addison and gave her a hug. Later, I asked him who it was, and he said he thought it was Addison but then when she hugged him back, he was sure.

We passed a jogger without a shirt on. He asked if he was a hunter. He may be, because that's what hunters do. They don't wear shirts. People don't hunt in Berkeley anymore. If they want some cheese, they go to Berkeley Bowl. But if someone wanted a lion mane, they'd have to hunt for it. Without a shirt. 

He asked me also to "un-inside this out" the other day, and he's also used the word "underheard." I like both of these and they they should be used by everyone.

We should pee right away when we feel like we have to pee, so that our bladder doesn't get distended.

We were playing on the couch and he said I was in big trouble, and he's the police and he's going to take me to jail. My crime was that I spilled everything in the world, on purpose. My punishment was to go to jail but also he has to spray something in my mouth, nose, and ears that smells really bad, even worse than a skunk. So I'm stuck in jail for all my life and also when I"m dead. But I'm allowed to bring food with me into jail, and I have this nice cake, so I can bring the cake. And there's secretly a toy hiding in the cake, and the jail people didn't know that, so when I brought the cake into jail, I was also bringing a contraband toy (contraband being my word, and not his).

There's something Noah has been asking about at random times about who was the first person ever alive. What was his name? I've talked with him about evolution and Darwinism and early humans, but that's not the answer he wants, and he doesn't really understand that. I'm not sure how else to answer.... I am open to ideas.

We visited Willow and Lew's farm 

This is Hee Haw, the donkey

This is a big pitchfork thing

We were looking at a book about people and diversity and the different ways that people can look. Aviva pointed to an African American man with a big nose and big lips and said that was me. She pointed to another person with a tiny chin and long hook nose, and said that was Daddy. 

Then she said that there's Mama and Daddy and Weeba and Wawa and that Veeba sits on Daddy's side and Wawa is on the other side. Realized she's talking about the carseats in the car. She often names all of us and then shows two fingers for Mama and Daddy, and two fingers pointing together is two, and three fingers like this, and she's three years old because her birthday is in January. Then she points the fingers together and sings "like a diamond in the sky, twinkle twinkle..." etc. 

Take this last paragraph and multiply it by 3 (per day) and that is what Aviva is doing.

After I took a shower she asked me if it was a big shower. Big like this? (With arms out wide) or tiny like this (hands scrunched to show how tiny). She likes to demonstrate size that way, including how much I love her or how good was the yogurt. 

When she gets up in the morning or up from a nap, she is very very silly and goofy. She hides behind her hands and says "where's weeba?" and after I find her she says "I tricked you!" So her silliness is hiding and playing hide and seek (all in her crib, mind you) and sticking our her tongue. She's kind of hyper and goofy.

She likes to say that she is Josh Abrams. She likes us to ask who she is, and then she says Josh Abrams and she laughs and asks us to do it again. She's not Josh. Just Josh Abrams.

spiders in a faraway land

Noah asked me if people can get caught in spiderwebs. I said that we're so much bigger that we can move a spiderweb away pretty easily. He insisted, though, that somewhere there are spiders that can capture us. It might be in a faraway land or another town, like China, but somewhere there really are spiders like that. They're really big (he showed me with his hands the size of a tarantula) and they have really really REALLY strong webs. 

Excuse me! Here - take this.

Yesterday at the JCC, some of the older children were sitting out front and handing out flyers for a rummage sale they're having this weekend. This is an activity that is perfect for Noah - he loves giving people things. I did not suggest it, rather he volunteered himself and gave out many of the flyers. He likes talking to strangers, and often starts to hold their hands or snuggle a little -- he feels very warmly toward people/passersby/people outside the JCC.

Also, yesterday Noah and I were walking together, and he started running. He stopped and explained, "There are two different kinds of running. There's running like this: (run run run) and also like this (gallopy dance). One is when you're in a rush and going really fast, and the other one is kind of like a jig." He likes to do little dances and he calls them jigs. "So there's running and there's jigging."

I asked if he meant "jogging" and he said, "Oh yeah! That's what I meant."

Birthday cake for Noah

Noah's birthday is coming up on May 5th and evidently he wants frosting rather than cake for his party. He says he wants to get as much frosting as possible so he requested this: frosting, vanilla cake, frosting, cookies, frosting, strawberries, frosting, gummy bears, frosting, chocolate cake and frosting on top. 

Yum

More find me

BIG trouble!

Now the kids want to get into BIG trouble. They want to make Josh get (pretend) mad. Really mad. Aviva wants to get into her pajamas, or get out of her pajamas, or sit on the toilet, or actually pee, or wash her hands - she doesn't want to do these things, and then when Josh tells her not to, she'll do it right away. And while she's doing whatever it is, she's smiling and telling me that Daddy is going to be so mad. She loves this game. They both do.

These are my birthday fingers

Aviva knows that her birthday is in January and she likes to tell people. Anytime she's asked how old she is, she says she's three and her birthday is in January. 

But how many fingers? Five. How old is she? Five. This is how old she is, and her birthday is in January. Granted it is difficult to show three fingers. but she's not getting the correspondence with her fingers and how old she is.

When there's two of something, she shows her two index fingers next to each other to show "two." And she can show "one." Three is tricky, so we've started working on it. 

I showed her how my thumb can hold down my pinky, and what's left is three fingers. That takes a lot of coordination and concentration, and she could sometimes do it but not always. THere was a moment yesterday when she got it, and she showed me three fingers the right way! She said, "Look! They're my birthday fingers!"

Now trouble me!

Josh has been getting Noah to change clothes, by pretending to be mad. Josh says, "Whatever you do, DO NOT get into your pajamas." Then Noah does it and Josh pretends he's mad. It works for getting into pajamas at night and getting out of pajamas in the morning. Noah loves it and tries to do it so fast. Sometimes Josh says, "I want you to get into your pajamas before I count to 10. Do you hear me? That's what I want you to do." And Noah does that so fast also, and gets a kick out of being done before Josh even starts. And then Josh can again pretend to be mad and disbelieving. 

Now Aviva wants to play the same game. This morning she asked, "Daddy I want you to trouble me!" She liked that and got a kick out of "getting in trouble." 

Ha ha ha!

Yesterday, I picked up Noah from school. We were walking back to the car, and he was telling me something about how it was someone's birthday that day, but not Camilo's. He got a goody bag and it had a notebook in it and some stickers and he really liked them. He opened the car door and I helped him get in. I got in and turned the car on, and he started laughing hysterically. 

"Mama!!!!!! Look!!!!" He pointed to his seatbelt, that I had forgotten to fasten. I was distracted with our conversation and I forgot, and this was the funniest thing in the world to him. He was laughing so hard and thought it was so absurd that I would forget to fasten his seatbelt. He was laughing so hard he was panting, and couldn't breathe properly. 

Valley of Fire State Park, Zion National Park

Returned today from our travels. It's late but kids are sleeping so I can write a little.

Valley of Fire was very cool. We need to investigate the possibility of going there for a long weekend and camping. Zion was also great in a way that national parks are great. Visitor centers, shuttles, lots of signs explaining things, even a short film that gave some history and showed computer animation of geology, which I was hoping for. Valley of Fire was almost quaint, compared to Zion. We liked them both.

We flew in and out of Las Vegas. That was full of flops:

• Overall, Las Vegas is so sad and depressing. Slot machines everywhere. But there was a buffet dinner and I thought that would be great. $16 per person for this huge buffet. Sounds good. But they count children 3 years old and up to be the same as adults. We're either cheap or practical and we skipped it. 
• Our hotel had a pool so we all put on swimsuits and tromped over to the neighboring hotel where the pool is. We were walking down the street, in our swimsuits, and realized that Noah was in his socks. Had such a hard time finding the pool, and walked through so many gaming rooms to finally find it, and there was a sign on the door that said CLOSED 
• Josh got a hotel that was close to a children's museum, and they have a reciprocal membership deal with a science museum we are members of here. So we had a few hours that we planned on going. But the museum told us we'd have to pay full price because our membership card didn't have an "R" on it, and wasn't the right kind of membership
• We went to a playground this morning (which was very cool, with a splash pond and lots of good climby things) and we were sitting on the ground eating. Things were fine for a few minutes and then Aviva started screaming and fussing; she was getting bitten by ants. We swatted them all away and moved, but she still had 30 bites or something. And this was after she ate some bad grapes and threw up. 

But, other than Vegas, things were good. We saw:

• so many flowering cacti and interesting pokey cacti and the desert flowering
• a cool mini-ghost town where there were 5 Mormon families living and they set up a schoolhouse made with adobe bricks they made
• Noah got a Junior Ranger Handbook/Activity Guide for kids 4 years old and up, and it was great for him. It was a little challenging for him but he understood it. He showed the guidebook to a formal guide-person and he answered their questions (about littering and how Zion was formed and other questions) and he got his own little badge. It's wood and pins onto his shirt and he is really proud of it. He's been wearing it for the last 3 days. 

Other notes re: Aviva:

• She's singing to herself throughout the day. Ring around the rosie, the ABC song, Rock-a-bye baby, Wheels on the bus, Old MacDonald... Often she does the hand motions too, if there are some. She does it while we're hiking and when we're walking up the stairs and at breakfast and just about all the time
• She has been asking us to find her: "Where is me?" or "where are me?" and she loves hiding, even if it's behind her hands, and she's still wanting us to count for everything. Throughout the day, I probably count backwards from 5 about 30 times. It's important to her that when I count down, I say "Zero" at the end. She'll usually do whatever it is I"m asking her to do, if I count down. 

Other notes re: Noah:

• There have been several times that Noah corrects me when I"m reading, if I've said the wrong word. At first it was small words like serious/curious, or smiled/sighed, but there are more often more words -- and this is with books that he has read only once or twice before.
• He made up some yoga moves and named them. His favorite one is with two hands and one foot on the ground, and one leg up. He calls this "standup krispie with one finger up" (and it's true; he has one finger up and that's part of the stretch.)
• He asked the other day what is the difference between a pattern and a repeating pattern. Aren't they the same? It's true; there isn't a difference so there's no point in saying "repeating." 
• At one of the hotels there was a breakfast buffet with little plastic containers of fruit cocktail. He was really excited about this and said he's been wanting this for months. 
• He LOVES offering things to people. Rocks and leaves, mostly. He approaches strangers on the street (or on the trail) and asks if they'd like this very special rock that looks like an earplug. Or maybe this stick that looks like the letter T.

Walk the line

With you in mind, they walk the line.

Owe-ee

Weeba discovers that owe-we, aka lovee, still kind of functions as its former use

Yona

Dressed for the occasion

Sand pit

Noah told everyone that we passed on the trail that there was a sand pit at the start of the trail.

Apple does not fall far from the tree

Noah learns about snap crackle pop

Valley of Fire

Valley of Fire State Park, Zion National Park

meow

I have two children, one is a boy and one is a kitty cat. The kit cat will say meow and purr when prompted. But she does not purr. If you ask her to purr she says "purr" in her cute little high pitched voice. 

adulthood

Noah was asking about when people become adults. He guessed at seven.

poop!

In the toilet. By Aviva. Ice-cream to celebrate. 

She is mostly pee-trained as well. 

More pirates

When pirates sing, they sing in their own language called Pirate. 

How hot is radiator?

N: How hot is a radiator?

J: Very hot?

N: How hot?

J: I don't know, very hot.

N: Would we get dead if we touched it?

J: No?

N: Would we get burned?

J: Yes

N: So how hot is it?

J: I don't know how to explain it.

N: You could say something like 100% and I would understand.

J: 70%

N: Wow, that's hot!

pirates

What Noah knows about pirates. 

1) They sing most of the time, but not all the time

2) They don't brush their teeth or go to dentists

3) They find treasure and steal it

4) They sail on fast ships

again and again and again

Aviva does a lot of repeating. 

I'm wearing a bandaid on my thumb because I cut my finger yesterday. Why am I wearing a bandaid? It's going to get better soon. What do I have on my hand? Why is there a bandaid? I have a bandaid on my hand. 

Her classroom (at the JCC) is called Gefen. What is it called? Gefen. Her classroom at school is called Gefen. That's what it's called. It's called Gefen. One teacher is Katrina. Katrina's her teacher. Katrina is the teacher in Gefen. Her classroom is called Gefen.

Daddy has a penis. Aviva doesn't have a penis. Mommy doesn't have a penis. Noah does have a penis. Eliza doesn't have a penis. Daddy has a penis.. Dorian has a penis. Nana doesn't have a penis. Papa does have a penis. 

Multiply all of these comments times 100. 

notes

• Noah's been having a correspondence with Declan, age 3, who lives downstairs. He's given him letters (writing that he's done) and flowers in envelopes. We've gotten a couple notes back. Noah puts them in their mail slot. Yesterday he said he put their envelope in the mail slot in a special way so it would stay open a little and give them a nice breeze. The notes are for all of them but mostly Declan and his mom, Abby.  
• Aviva is learning things. She can say the whole alphabet and some Hebrew Shabbat prayers. She knows parts of her leg, from her thigh to her ankle (knee, calf)
• Noah said that his old babysitter is a toddler. I asked if he meant teenager and he insisted that she's a toddler. He thinks I'm just confused. She's a toddler.
• Aviva loves her pumpkin hat and wants to wear it always, even in bed. 
• I was reading a book (about Ruth Bader Ginsberg, and we wrote her a letter also!) to Noah and it's a book he's read a bunch of times. I read on one page about meeting her husband: "Marty was tall and funny. Ruth was small and serious." I absentmindedly said "curious," instead of "serious." Noah corrected me. He's done this before, with random (and somewhat minor) words. Maybe he has parts of the books memorized. In any case, he's on it
• Aviva still likes to hide her eyes and say "where's Weeba?" It hasn't gotten old yet, and it's been a year or more.
• Noah has been stopping people on the sidewalk, and asking them if they'd like a flower. He also picks leaves and other pretty things, just to give to people. Today it was a man at the library along with two passersby. He likes to give things. He also said he wants to give something to his teacher, Gladys, who he really really likes. I suggested making her a card or a picture, and he said he'd prefer to give her some of his toys. Then she can play with the toys or let other kids play with them.

Mean Noah

Noah wanted me to choose if I got a pinch or in jail for ever. He would not accept, "no choice." He was also clear that if I chose pinch he would pinch me. He cried and cried and cried when I would not let him pinch me. He couldn't offer any reason I needed a bad thing to happen to me, but he mentioned that I had not let him use the vacuum as long as he wanted. 

How did it start?

Noah really wants to know how the first thing on earth started. He has
asked this many times and whatever the answer he wants to know more.

Sent from my iPhone

Is this okay?

In the car and elsewhere, the kids are annoying each other (and me) to no end. One will say the other's hand is too close. Then there will be the testing out of different amounts of space. "Is this okay? Is this okay? Is this okay?" I guess they're trying to truly understand what the other means. But my answer is NO!

Then they're both happy and holding hands. 

Flowers for sale

Yesterday Noah wanted to have a flower sale. He collected lots of oxalis yellow flowers and some dandelions and some other little ones here and there (basically a bunch of weeds). He had a little container full of flowers. He said to everyone who was passing by, "Who wants flowers?" He told them it was a mix of yellow flowers and they could have some for free if they want. They could even have the whole container if they want. But just if they want. There were several takers and a couple people were really really happy to get his flowers.

Sent from my iPhone

What do you think

N: How many buildings are there in the whole world?

J: I don't know.

N: How many do you think?

J: Do barns count as buildings?

N: What's a barn?

J: A home for farm animals.

N: No, just homes for people. Including sky scrapers.

J: Does our house count as 1 or 2 (it's a duplex)

N: two

J: so you really want to know about the number of homes.

N: yes, how many?

J: 2 billion

N: really? Do you know?

J: it's just a guess

N: I think 4 billion.

Sent from my iPhone

belated valentine

We went to a valentine-making event at the UC Botanic Garden. This was one of Noah's, which he gave to Josh, who promptly ate it.

awita and gweg

Abuelita and Greg visited! We had a nice time with them, at museums and at home, reading. We went to Fairyland, which the kids love, and the Lawrence Hall of Science. We ate good food, too. The kids are loving the tea set that they brought as a gift, and bickering over who gets the sugar or the cream first.