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June 2, 2003
June 2, 2004
Hello again! I hope this finds everyone here doing well, and enjoying their kiddos. I was really glad to get a little feedback on my last entry. It’s nice to know that you enjoyed getting to know Aidan a little, something I hope to expand upon a bit in this entry.
“Would You Like Some Cheese With That Whiiine?”
I think the biggest issue that Toby and I are facing right now with Aidan is how to deal with his constant whining and fussing. My goodness, this kid can fuss 24/7 about anything and everything! From getting yogurt to his hands, to having to come in from a walk, to a movie ending, Aidan can whine about it. I know it’s a completely normal developmental/emotional stage, and a lot of it stems from his being frustrated that he’s not physically able to do a lot of things he wants to yet, but it’s still difficult to deal with all day long. Right now, we’re really working on being consistent with Aidan on this issue. A lot of the time, I don’t think Aidan is even AWARE that he’s whining, so we will call his attention to the tone of his voice, and ask him to repeat what he’s saying without whining. Other times, he’s run across the room and thrown himself on the couch, because there’s no more milk in his sippy cup. At times like this, we have a more serious talk with him. While there is little change in his behavior and attitude right now, I know that calling Aidan’s attention to his behavior, even at this very young age, is building the foundation for his future as an emotionally healthy and happy individual.
Like Father, Like Son …
Early on in our relationship, Toby told me a handful of stories having to do with his getting into all kinds of mischief as a kid. Many of these stories ended with him getting stitches, or barely escaping getting seriously injured. Toby was ALWAYS climbing on things when he was a kid. Fences, trees, big rocks …you name it, Toby tried to climb it. It appears that Aidan is going to follow in his Daddy’s footsteps. As I am writing this, Aidan is climbing over the back of our couch, onto the ottoman, and then onto the love seat. All without touching the ground. He’s also quite fond of climbing around the plastic slide in his room. I don’t mean going up the stairs, and sliding down the slide, but climbing up the slide, and going over the back of the steps … backwards! He loves for Toby to put him on top of the entertainment unit in our living room, and then jumping into Toby’s arms. I’m sure he’d love to walk around on top of our kitchen counter, if we would let him. Of course, there are times when my heart leaps into my throat, and I get afraid that Aidan will get hurt. But honestly, Toby’s mischievousness is one of the qualities I love most about him, and I love that Aidan has that side to him too. I want to encourage Aidan’s boy-ness, and if that comes with a few bumps and bruises, then that’s o.k. with me.
Before I forget, the other thing it seems Aidan has inherited from his father is his palate. Toby’s loved cooking since he was a kid (the first thing he remembers making is cinnamon rolls when he was 9 years old), and for a while he thought he wanted to be a chef. I have the feeling Aidan is going to be the same way when he gets older. This kid is a fine diner in the making. He’ll scarf down Brie, Bleu Cheese, Catalan olives … stuff we get from the little gourmet store down the street from us. As Toby just said to me, “He may not swallow it, but I like that he TRIES just about everything”.
Likes and Dislikes …
Rather than writing paragraph after long paragraph about different things Aidan does and does not like to do, I think it would be easier to tell you more about him by doing the following …
AIDAN LIKES:
• All things dairy: He’d eat yogurt all day long, if I let him. I’m trying to cut down on the amount of milk he drinks, but that’s a losing battle right now. Oh, he’s also discovered how much he loves ice cream. Sigh …
• Peanut Butter and Jelly Sandwiches: I know this is a very normal thing for a toddler to enjoy eating. I somehow doubt the WAY he eats it is normal, though. As soon as I set the sandwich in from of him, Aidan immediately takes the sandwich apart, and proceeds to scrape the peanut butter and jelly off of the bread with his finger. I almost always have to make him eat the bread, or he’d just eat the PB&J. Is this weird, or does your kid do something like this as well?
• Dancing and listening to music: We get music channels through our cable T.V., so off and on through the day I’ll turn it on to give us something to listen to, usually the channel that has Frank Sinatra, Judy Garland, Dean Martin … stuff like that. A number of times I’ve turned around to find Aidan hopping and bopping along to the music, which always turns into a little sock-hop for the two of us. I get a kick out of dancing with Aidan, just like my Dad used to do with me. I only hope the neighbors aren’t watching! LOL
• His Car Bed and Puppy Pillow: My Mom bought Aidan the “Blue Dog” bedding from Pottery Barn a while ago, and he absolutely LOVES the pillowcase. She and my Dad also bought Aidan a toddler bed for his birthday, in the shape of a blue race car. Talk about love at first sight! His puppy pillow and “car beht” (as he pronounces it) did the trick in getting Aidan to sleep in his own bed. After months of trying to get him to sleep on his own, he “weaned” himself in one night! Yippee!
• “Mickey’s House”: This is Aidan-speak for the DVD I got from the Walt Disney World resort. It “showcases” everything the resort has to offer, and Aidan LOVES watching it. It’s short, so I’ll sometimes pop it in if I need to take a shower and he can’t safely entertain himself. You should have seen the look on his face yesterday when I told him we were going to Mickey’s House next week with Gobby and Grandpa Ron. He actually squealed. =)
AIDAN DISLIKES:
•BUGS!!!: Recently, Aidan spotted a nasty looking bug on the kitchen counter next to his highchair where he was eating his dinner. The blood-curdling scream he let out was unreal. For the next couple of days, he completely FREAKED OUT if he saw a bug, or even thought he saw one. Once, he apparently saw something while sitting on the toilet. I was out of the house, and poor Toby thought Aidan’s butt had fallen off or something, going by the racket he was making. Thankfully, this Insectophobia has calmed down a bit, and he doesn’t have nearly the same reaction he used to. He gets nervous, and he may jump into our arms, but we don’t have to worry about “Rosemary’s Child” visiting us throughout the day.
I feel weird leaving it at this, but Toby and I both have tried to think of things that Aidan doesn’t like, and we haven’t been able to come up with anything else worth writing about. I guess he’s a pretty easy-going kid and there’s not a whole lot he REALLY doesn’t like.
Updates on Me …
When I finished my last entry, Toby and I were about to celebrate our 5th wedding anniversary. While I knew that we were going somewhere overnight, and my SIL would be watching Aidan for us, everything else was a surprise. Our anniversary fell on a Saturday this year (for the first time since our wedding day!), but we decided to go out Friday night, so as to not complicate being able to go to church on Sunday. SO, on Thursday evening, Toby told me he would be gone for part of the day doing something for our anniversary. When he returned, he gave me a beautiful small album, which he had MADE himself, with pictures of our wedding, our first 4 anniversaries, and some of the major “events” of each year we’ve been married (ie, Aidan’s birth, going to Europe, etc.). He wrote a little snippet about what we did for each anniversary, where we went, and how we celebrated each year. In the middle of the last page was a paragraph describing how we were going to celebrate this year.
Toby decided to re-create the last 2 days of our Honeymoon, which we spent here in NYC. Five years ago, we went to dinner at Isabella’s, a restaurant featured in an episode of Seinfeld, after which we went to see “The Lion King” on Broadway. Our friends put us up in a Westin Hotel, the Essex House, which is right across the street from Central Park, where we took a walk before going to the airport and flying home to San Diego.
This year, we PLANNED to go to Isabella’s, but ended up going to a restaurant called Rue 57 due to time constraints (Translation: I was late getting ready). Toby loved it, b/c we were able to have sushi AND steaks for dinner … his two favorite meals. After dinner, we saw the Broadway show “Wonderful Town”, which was a wonderfully funny show about two girls from Ohio who come to NYC to “make it”. It was great to hear so many references to places in the City that have become familiar to us. Again, we stayed at the Essex House, this time with a fabulous view of the Park (on our Honeymoon we looked out over a rooftop). After “celebrating”, (aided by the champagne my SIL had left in our room, LOL) we watched the movie “50 First Dates”, and fell fast asleep.
The next morning we slept in and eventually packed up our things and went downstairs to partake of the INCREDIBLE Brunch the Hotel offered. Very fancy shmancy, but worth every penny. We took our time, talking and looking out at the Park, after which we walked across the street and walked through Central Park on our way to the subway. It was a beautiful day, and a wonderfully relaxing way to end our time together. That evening, Courtney and Jon-Paul came over and Toby prepared the most incredible spread of tapas I’ve had in a long time. We toasted our special day over glasses of sangria, and ate and drank late into the evening.
St. Croix, here we come ...
At this very moment, I am sitting on an airplane on my way to Orlando, where we will meet up with Toby’s parents, and his brother Ryon and sister-in-law Alex. We’re going to spend tomorrow and the next day in Orlando, before flying out to St. Croix early in the morning on Saturday. I can’t believe we’re on our way after all this time!! We’re going to spend tomorrow at my favorite place in the whole world … DISNEY WORLD! Aidan is SO excited to go to “Mickey’s House”, and I can’t wait to get there myself. The best family vacation I went on as a child was to Disney World, and Toby and I spent a day at Epcot on our honeymoon, so it holds very special memories for me. I can’t wait to walk down Main Street, and watch Aidan’s face as he takes in all the sights and sounds. I know he’s still a bit young to fully appreciate everything, but I expect him to have a great time anyhow. I know I will! =)
Toby just looked over with a big smile on his face and asked if I can believe we’re on vacation. We’re both so excited to get to St. Croix. I can’t wait to see the beach, and get in the water. Toby, Jon-Paul, Alex and Ryon all got scuba certified so they could go scuba diving, and I’m so happy for Toby that he gets to do something special like that. I’m sure it will be amazing. The pool has bar stools in it that look out over the ocean, so I’m looking forward to sitting in the pool with a tropical drink and watching the sun go down in the evenings. Other than that, I’d love to send Aidan to his grandparent’s room so we can work on giving him a little brother or sister! =)
Well, we’re about to land, so I should send this on its way. I look forward to telling you about our trip when we get back, and hearing how all of you have been doing while I’m gone. You can be sure I’ll be thinking of all of you!
Until next time,
Rebekah and Aidan
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