Papa time!

Kent took Monday off and gave me a reprieve from Isaac ... it was lovely! I exercises, I wrote, I sewed. Funny how much you can get done without a little one. I always thought I was efficient before having him ... yeah right! Here's some of the pictures of their outing together.




He's a very determined climber and seems to 'focus' better with his tongue sticking out!




A smile to melt your heart!

Tuck-Ah Tuck-Ah Who?

With all the construction work that's been done around our complex, the hammer and nail has become a common sight. Isaac is continually fascinated with these men who wear the tool belts of 'power' and make such noise to make the eardrum throb forever after they've left. So memorable are they, that he created his own word for them: Tuck-Ah, Tuck-Ah. When we walk outside, he points and asks questioningly, "Tuck-ah,tuck-ah?" As if in answer, we hear hammer and nail,"Tuck-Ah, Tuck-Ah!!!"

Encouraged by this enthusiasm I went out for a new toy. If I'm a fan of any toy brand, it's the 'Melissa and Doug' brand. They make classic wooden toys of great durability and creativity. The Take-Along Toolkit was a huge winner and for the last 2 days, he plays with it in the morning and evening. Finally a toy we've bought that he loves.


In his left hand he holds the famous 'Tuck-ah, tuck-ah'. We're trying to get him to say hammer but with very little success. I think this name is going to stick!

The Destroyer No More

We were getting ready to head out to go shopping today when I had to hop online to get some quick information. I had left the hall closet open where we keep our shoes and extra supplies and thought little of it until I noticed the 'heavy silence'. Silence is always notable when you have a child, it either indicates that a problem might be about to rear it's head, or that he/she is EXTREMELY occupied. I peeked around the corner to find my son right by the open closet door. With that serious,focused 'adult'-like expression, he was carefully stacking our toilet paper rolls.



I was thrilled. Prior to this all he ever wanted to do was to destroy every tower any child or adult builds, but here now, he wanted to make something of his own. I quietly took pictures and changed our plans for the morning. After all, how often do you find a homemade toy that has the power to captivate a child so well! I watched him for a while, rejoicing in his growing abilities and even managed to chop all the veggies I needed for dinner while he played. These are the simple joys of motherhood.

Artsy Fartsy Us

We had an opportunity tonight to attend a FREE (my favorite four letter word!) Chinese dance concert at the Miller Outdoor Theater. It was 'Splendid' (as it's title indicated) and we were a captive audience, including my 16 month old son. He hardly made a sound during our 45 mins there except to 'huh' at a few spectacular moves or when he finally figured out where the lights kept changing colors. It was a fusion of modern and traditional chinese dance. The costumes were beautiful and the grace of the dancers epitomized the haunting chinese music. And did I say yet it was free?!! ;0) I'm just SO Chinese sometimes!



Earlier that day Isaac was invited to his very first birthday party. We'd read a little about one and it was a good opportunity to put it into practice. We started off by making birthday cards - artistry done by Isaac Montierth and then we bagged up some of his favorite treats to give to his 3 friends (Tim, Lydia and Audrey) from storytime. Their parents actually belong to the Herman Park ward, odd how we seem to know more moms in a different congregation. The party was held at Chuck E Cheese and was a 'first time' experience for both Mama and Isaac. A little overwhelming, but fun all the same.

Chalk Anyone?

At long last we are back into our apartment. It took a week of cleaning and moving items for things to finally feel like home again. I'm such a creature of habit so it's nice to be back to a routine. There was alot of cleaning that needed to be done. They had covered up our furniture, but that drywall dust gets everywhere regardless ... picture a film of chalk dust on everything. You wipe and wipe and wipe and still there are streaks of it everywhere. Isaac thought he'd help out though and it made easier and more fun to do.




In case it's hard to see, the blue blur is my son, the yellow on is the duster! We desperately need a new camera that take pictures at a higher speed, especially given how quickly my son moves around.