I’ve been away for the last couple of weeks and in that time, the Little Genius has been getting better and better at doing what he’s told (when he feels like it)
Firstly, his mother and I are trying to teach him basic manners – say “ta” when you take something from someone. He doesn’t understand WHY he’s doing it (and in actuality he says it whenever he wants to give us something, too), but the habit should (hopefully) form, and with time we can explain the reason why he does it. Well in my absence, he’s taken to it like a duck to water. “Ta” for this and “Ta” for that.
Doing some ironing, mummy? here – have a toy block…”ta”
Brushing your teeth, eh daddy? here – have a roll of toilet paper…..”ta”
Sometimes, it’s not all roses. Like if we offer him his sippy of milk, and he just yanks it and wanders off. “No “ta” for you, daddy, because it’s your duty to keep me milked up. It would be a failure on your part if you didn’t give me milk.”
I’m going to express this feeling in the form of haiku.
You can suck my big red car
Jeff – sleep forever
Wiggle Bay is special hell
Is it “DA-DA”?
Could it be “TA-TA”?
Maybe its “JAH-JAH”?
One thing is for certain – attempts to try and teach basic manners (“ta” when you take something) results in a sound of some kind. He knows he needs to make a sound, so he makes the same (or to a deaf person like myself – very similar) sound and leaves it up to the listener to decipher its meaning.
I guess i’m just thankful it’s not the high-pitch squealing we sometimes get. i hope that wasn’t a gene from my side….sheesh.
ok ok…
For all the shit i put on The Wiggles for having *annoyingly catchy* music which my son enjoys, the fact of the matter is that they have annoyingly catchy music which *my son enjoys*. And for that i am thankful to them.
“oh what’s that Xerx – an admission that you’re sorry? Your apology will only go so far”.
True, but in the next 3 years that my boy will pine (and succeed) in having every single DVD, CD, single, album, MP3 and video disc they ever made, they can go home, rest on their giant piles of cash syphoned from my wallet and GTFOI
I don’t quite know where the boy has picked up his latest habit (I suspect it’s something he learned at daycare) but for as frustrating as it can be, I have to commend him for trying to be helpful.
Picture this: daddy Xerx and baby Hamish sitting on opposing sides of the high chair. Daddy braves wearing another mouthful of whatever he’s chowing down on for said meal, and sends the next morsel on to its digestive destiny. Baby, (detecting an opportunity to make a mess) decides that nows the best time to go fishing for dinner right from his mouth. Unfortunately, this has the downside of having food strewn all across the table, and floor.
However after seeing my aghast face, my Miniature Master cuts me a moment of relief, and puts back into his food-bowl whatever was left in his hand at that moment. A peace offering, if you will. “Here, daddy – have this. I know you’ll have lots to clean up after we’re done so let me start by putting away the first piece”.
ha. lies. If he wanted to help me, he wouldn’t repeat the same stunt with the very next morsel. Check-and-mate, my little friend. You win.
I just discovered i’ve lost the ability to take a pee with the door open. If you’ve ever tried keeping a 3-foot tall monster from interrupting the process, then you’ll understand why its no longer possible.
I received a phone call while I was at work this morning which made me smile. The Tiny Terror was at home with his mum just playing around, and followed her into our bedroom where there’s a picture of myself and him on a table.
The boy (i’m told) pointed to the picture, and murmured “dadadadada” three times before proceeding to pull the picture down and bang on it like something from Planet Of The Apes.
i just witnessed the most amazing example of mental development i think i ever have!
McTurd was standing in the hall, walked over to the table where a whole lot of crap had been dumed after his birthday party (yes he is now walking). He found a set of mini screwdrivers and pulled it off the table and started rattling it – giant smile and all like he was so proud of himself.
Now whilst i didn’t care, and figured he wouldn’t hurt himself, his mother believed differently. As she came out of the kitchen to take it away from him, the little brat turned around, and TRIED to walk away before she could get to him.
Unbelievable! And only at 1.
I’m always fascinated to understand how Rat’s brain develops. He seems more and more capable each day, and going to work means I miss a lot of the little things that he does which his mummy gets to live first-hand.
For instance, I was changing him into his PJs the other night, and (unprompted) he held out each arm for me so I could slip his pyjama onto him. I expressed my amazement, and his mummy was fairly nonchalant (“yeah he’s done that for a little while, now”). Nevermind that he’s never done it for me before then, i was stunned that he learned to hold his arms out. It’s something I wouldn’t have imagined he’s consider doing.
Another example of his brain development which makes me laugh is the fear of the bath. Up until he was about 6-7 months (maybe even 8-9) he loved splashing around in the bath, and when the fun was over I could pull out the plug, let the water drain and pick him up. In the last month or two, he’s made a mental connection that the water being sucked down the drain, and he stands up and walks to the edge and looks back up at me with the “Jesus fucking christ get me the fuck out of here, this ship’s going down, bitch!” eyes. Then the gurgling/sucking kicks in as the last litres of bathwater get wolfed down, and he really starts to panic. He looks at the drain, takes a few steps AWAY from the drain and then resumes the dirty stare, but now with extra conviction! Why is he afraid of the noise? What gave him the fear? I’d just love to know how he made those connections. Why couldn’t it be a fun/happy thing (“yay! the water’s going down the drain and disappearing forever! woot!”)?
I love this kind of thing. Don’t even get me started on his dreams. I would *DIE* to find out what he dreams about. It sounds just so amazing. Boobies? Fisher-Price toys? Daddy’s gadgets? Playing with the dog? Playing with himself while I battle Nappy From Hell™ (that’s a story for another time).
It’s your b-b-b-b-birthday!
1 year has passed and a lot has happened in that time. Highs, lows and mostly in-between. I look forward to your birthday party tomorrow and know that even though you wont remember any of it, I hope you still have fun 
lots of love
daddy.
