CARS - Your First Full Length Feature Film

Since early fall, you've been talking about AMAZING MOVIE, aka Disney Pixar's Cars.  

You were so excited tonight when your Daddy put the new DVD your Great Aunt Sheila gave you for Christmas into the DVD player.

You instructed your dad to sit on one side and me on the other.

You snuggled up under a tractor quilt and ate some crackers and cheese for a snack.

You held your CARS sippycup and pointed out all of the cars you recognized from the CARS books and stickers you have.

You held our hands when you got nervous, and you paid great attention until the last ten minutes, and then you got a little squirrelly.  When it was over, you said, "MORE!"

I asked you to tell me about the movie and you said, "That's a good movie. AMAZING! Likaqueen and Tow mater in that movie.  They did racing! "

I should also note that today is New Year's Eve, and you were up until almost nine, which is pretty late for you!

First Attempt at Finger Paints

Daniel's first attempt at finger painting was not very successful.  He enjoyed watching me set up the table and pour the paints onto the plate for use.  He did not like when I dipped his hands into the paint medium... he said, "Ugh... bath! Bath!! Bath!!!".

Perhaps I can coax more art out of him if I let him use paint brushes.  At least for now, he is more interested in the dish of water I brought out to wash our hands!

First Time on Trampoline!

This wonderful experienced occurred in early March.

He was a bit cautious at first.

Then he started to bounce. 

And test the springs.

Jumping on his knees.

And resting.

2 Big Boy Milestones

1) Brushing his own teeth using trainer toothpaste this morning.  He thought he was just SO special and really liked the safari animals on the package!

2) Hair cut, given by dad, using electric clippers!  He was upset about this a few times, but at other times smiled during it.  I held him on the stool and sang close to his face.  His dad used the 7 level clip (which is longer) and I trimmed a little with scissors.  Overall, it was a happy experience for Daniel!

Lots of exposure to the clippers... he watched his dad's hair cut.  He held them.  He tolerated them being close to his head without touching. He wasn't very scared!

Look at the hair that was trimmed! I didn't realize his hair was so long.

Goodbye, fuzzy head!

He posed for this photo.  He also clapped for himself!

I did it!

He looks like his Uncle Wes in this photo! Also, notice his last head wound. 

He loved running around in diaper afterwards.

Comparison of Dan's dark hair and Daniel's lighter fluff.

Time to shower up!

A First Hair Cut

This hair cut has been a long time in the making, and to tell the truth, it remains half finished three days after the first snip was made!

First, I sat DHH down to watch an episode of Sesame Street.  He just loves the Old School DVD Collection I found for him, especially the segments with Bert and Ernie.

Then I crept behind him and snipped off the large, puffy curl that has become a mini-mullet.

I could only make two more cuts before he became annoyed with me and wanted to take the scissors from me... probably to explore how they work!

I talked to a mother of a similarly aged son (though he has much more hair than our boy) at the library, and she recommended sitting him in a high chair and giving him a sucker to occupy his hands (and mouth).  Daniel loves candy canes, so that might be the perfect option!  For now, its much better than it was.  Maybe I'll get adventurous or more determined for perfection in the next week and finish it up!

First Concert

Daniel attended his first concert (we think).  He was so attracted to the musicians at the farm festival we went to that he kept pointing for us to go there.  He was so fascinated by the musical instruments.  He kept time tapping on his knee.  When we left after ten minutes, he threw a fit because he wanted to stay!

First Petting Zoo

Well, it was a barn full of barnyard animals, not technically a zoo.  But I don't think its called petting farm or petting barn, right?

Daniel went straight for the pigs.  The barn was dimly lit, but he dashed in after the other children.  He got very close to a very large pig that was rooting in the mud.  He made sniffing sounds, which is the way he does oink-oink snorts because he can't snort.  He sniffed and sniffed and laughed at the pig!

Next we went to the calves.  Daniel watched other kids and then reached for the cow's ears and back.  He enjoyed the cows, but I think he enjoyed standing on the fence more.  We didn't realize he could climb a fence!

The horses were noisy and did not seem to impress Daniel much.

Next we saw the Glass Cow, which is a research tool.  There is a panel cut into the cow's side making it possible to see inside the stomach.  It stunk.  We didn't let Daniel reach inside.

Next, we talked to a professor who was nearby.  Daniel was really interested in his potato chips, and he mooched some off of the man.  He was really happy about this.

Next we saw some goats.  They were very active, and we did not get close.  There was a large hole in the barn wall that Daniel found really fascinating.

We went outside to see the Clydesdale horses.  They were very popular, but Daniel barely noticed them.

The last stop was to see some more horses. They had a chalk skeleton drawn on their coat to teach anatomy,, which was kind of neat.  Daniel just liked the fence.

I think Daniel would have enjoyed seeing chickens, puppies, kittens, and other smaller animals, too.  He really loves the animal books we have in our library, and he wasn't at all afraid of these animals!