The Joy of Music

In June we went to Auntie Jennifer and Big Jeff's wedding in Chicago, at a very old and beautifully ornate Catholic church. At the back of the church on the balcony was a massive pipe organ. Little did we know this would turn out to be the highlight of Elliot's trip to Chicago. He was so fascinated with it that at the wedding rehearsal, he walked down the aisle backward just so that he could see it. Luckily he managed to properly perform his duty during the ceremony!

Well, here we are one month later and he is STILL talking about that organ. Last week he led me into his room to show off the homage he has built out of blocks. It's on his nightstand, and he now closes the door to his room everyday so that Audrey won't go in and destroy his creation.

For reference, the structure on the left is the "little pipe organ" that was in the front of the church, and "big pipe organ" is the one on the right.

Happy Feet

I forget to make notes about Audrey. This is the funniest thing about her right now:

Audrey has a sock fetish.

A few months ago, we bought a small assortment of Blue's Clues and Sesame Street character socks from the dollar bin at Target (thanks for the tip, Aunt Lindsay!). It's too hot to wear them during the day, so I use them at night to bribe Audrey into getting her jammies on. I'll grab a pair, say, "Look Audrey - sockies!!" and she'll come running and plop down in my lap. I'll get her dressed and finish by slipping on the socks. She'll stand up, bend over to see which "friend" is looking up at her from her feet, and do a happy dance. She is such a funny little thing.

Miracles

Today we had a therapy appointment that had been rescheduled from Wednesday, so the waiting room was full of new people. Elliot plopped down next to an older boy and immediately introduced himself with a "Hey dude! What's your name?" His mom chuckled and started talking to me about the kids when I sat down next to Elliot. I came to find out that her son, who is now 11, was born at 22 weeks. He had heart surgery the day after he was born, and stomach surgery after that, among other things. I was completely flabbergasted -- I didn't realize babies that young could make it, especially 11 years ago; and also that he didn't seem to have any noticeable delays (obviously he's in either physical or occupational therapy if he was there, but seemed like an average boy otherwise). His mom said he spent 6 months in the NICU, and that she'd gladly go through it all again for him. What a miracle.

I wanted to hug the mom, and hug my kids. We are SO fortunate to have had boring pregnancies, births, and such a minor issue to deal with in Elliot.

Round and Round

Elliot has reached this uber-annoying stage where conversations go in circles, as if I'm talking to an 80-yr-old man with Alzheimers:

E, as we drive past a construction site: "What's that over there?"

Me: "A giant drill"

E: "Oh, that's cool. What does it do?"

Me: "It's for drilling big holes into the ground for a new building"

E: "What drills holes?"

Me: "The drill"

E: "What drill?"

AAUUGGH!

And so it begins.

Bathtime tonight...
E: "Mommy, when I tooted in the water, bubbles came out the back of my butt! Is that funny?!"

Elliot's Commandments

I just sent Elliot off to school. On his way out the door, I gave him a hug and kiss tried to to add a brief behavior pep talk.

Me: "Okay Elliot, have fun, are you going to be a good friend today?"
E: "Yup!"
Me:"And what should we NOT do at school?"
E: "Don't hit, don't kick, don't throw Goldfish..."
Me:"... don't say mean things..."
E: "And don't say F**KIN."

Siren in training

Little Commander

I have always wondered what goes on in the period of time between closing the door for naptime, and when he actually surrenders to sleep. Today I got a small glimpse.

I went in Elliot's room to wake him up and found him in the fetal position. He was now wearing a necktie, and surrounded by an army of rubber lizards and bugs on his bed [It was much funnier before I took this picture - he rolled over when I ran to get the camera]. I wonder if he gave them orders before he drifted off.

Hard to hold a grudge

This morning we went to Elliot's therapy and then to the Y. We ended up leaving abruptly because Elliot got into a tiff with another boy, and then got sassy with the staff when they put him in time out. Uh uh, doesn't fly anymore... playtime's over.

I was stern with him in the car, and as I stewed during the drive home, Audrey didn't help things by starting to scream -- it was close to naptime; she was refusing a paci and her drinks and snacks were long gone. I yelled back to Elliot to try making her laugh. He attempted his usual repertoire of silly talk and failed.

Then, in a very quiet voice, he started singing to her:
"Close your eyes, please don't cry, quiet baby, lullabye"

After he repeated the tune a few times, Audrey was quiet. My eyes welled up with tears. How could he go from being so hateful earlier to this angelic display of concern for his sister?

He claims he just made the song up. Wherever it came from, I think it was the sweetest sound I've ever heard.

Respect your elders

We were in HEB today, looking for laundry detergent, when an elderly couple shuffled past us, fixated on their grocery list. The woman had an interesting hair color, as old ladies sometimes do -- perhaps her hair used to be naturally red, but now it was dyed more of a bright orange. This could not go unnoticed by Elliot. He stood up in the cart and broadcast:

"Mommy! Check out that lady's crazy hair!"

The nice thing about old people? I don't think they heard him.