our week with zeeke

The hot new trick at Purple Flower Mountain is climbing the fences.  Zeeke has no trouble getting right to the top but is completely dependent on Steve for getting him down.  He's similarly dependent on Karen, making her rub his back while he's falling asleep and even feed him sometimes, neither of which he insists on with Steve.  He's clearly aware enough of his growing independence that he's picking and choosing when to be dependent and upon whom.  

Karen went out of town for a girls weekend, so the boys were on their own.  Zeeke did great with her absence, not expressing any sadness or anger, just curiosity.  Part of that is that he really prefers having only one of us around at a time.  Certainly his behavior is better in one-on-one situations.  

Saturday morning, Steve & Zeeke went to the Academy of Natural Science for their Animal Superheroes event.  Zeeke had a blast making his own cape and revisiting each of the displays he enjoyed on his last trip.   In the afternoon, they met up with Tim & Lettie at the playground.

Sunday morning, they got dougnuts for breakfast and then joined Tim, Tanya & Lettie for a fun-filled morning at the Please Touch Museum.  Zeeke split his time there evenly between desperately following Lettie around and focusing on his own pursuits.  He really enjoyed the drafting table where he made a cool rendering of a motorcycle.  He melted down when it time to leave, then fell asleep eating a sandwich on the drive home.  A nap at the house never materialized so they headed back to the playground and then dinner at Birra with the returning Karen & her friend Patsy.  

Conversations with Zeeke:

Random quotes from the weekend without Karen:

"Daddy, make me a cocktail! Mmmmmm... that's a good cocktail."

"Hi, Mommy!  Daddy and I are eating donuts all day long!"

"That's ok, Daddy, you don't have to send me to college."

"Oh! You discovered me kissing my hand!"

"Daddy, I need coffee!"

Zeeke's new joy is joining shadows.  Whenever we're walking down the street lately, his eyes are on the ground trying to merge his shadow with ours, even if it means getting trampled by us in the process.

After an auspicious start to the Purple Flower Mountain season, he's gotten back into the habit of staying close to the adults when his friends run off to explore the far end.  If one of the kids mentions seeing a dog or a monster, he sprints to Steve.  The hot new activity there is for all the kids to grab sticks and sketch in a pile of dirt until they stir up a dust storm.  The game started as art, but quickly evolved into, "Let's make our mommies and daddies cough!"

Thursday, after school, we went to dinner at Punk Burger with Zoe, Sofiya, and Amelie.  The kids had a blast playing with the Ms. Pac Man machine, despite having no quarters, but Zeeke preferred coloring while waiting for the food.  Zeeke ate his first ever grilled cheese sandwich, because that's what the girls were ordering.

Saturday morning, Steve & Zeeke made lemon cookies.  The sugar fueled his refusal to nap, so he and Steve went to the playground with Lettie, Asif & Sofiya.

Sunday, we spent a lazy morning making art.  After his nap, we headed to Steve's parents for Easter dinner.  Zeeke had fun hunting for eggs with Jackson, making chalk drawings with Taylor, and building pillow stairs with Aunt Kathy.

Conversations with Zeeke:
"Daddy, at school today we were reading magazines and I had some bad bacteria in me so I had to pee it out. And Miss Briana said I should wash the bacteria off my hands."
"You were reading magazines?"
"Oh, yeah...."

"Daddy, what is a wasp?"
"They're like bees."
"Do they live in Philly-delphia?"
"I think they mostly live out in the woods."
"Daddy, I am never going camping in the woods!"
"Don't worry, pal, If you see a wasp, just walk away from it."
"I would never walk away from a wasp, Daddy!"
"If you walk away, you won't get stung."
"I won't walk away from a wasp and I will never go to the woods!"

"Mommy, did you remember to bring my Easter candy?"
"No, I left it at Pop-Pop and Gigi's."
"Mommy! Why did you forget my candy!?!?!"
"I'm just joking. It's in the trunk."
"HAHAHAHAHAHA! Joking's NOT funny, Laugh-Man!"

Zeeke saw his first movie in a theater this week.  It was Zootopia and he loved it.  He was fidgety, constantly switching from his seat to Steve's lap and back again, but his eyes were always glued to the screen.  Whenever it was night time in the movie, he was convinced it was night for us too and would ask if we had to leave to go to bed.

Speaking of bed, he's been making his bed and getting dressed all by himself in the mornings.  He sometimes needs a little help with buttons, but it gives us a few extra minutes to lay in bed as we're waking up.

He's declared that when his school goes to see a play next month he doesn't want either of us to chaperone.  He says he just wants to go with his friends.  That's a pretty huge leap since he's always been pretty clingy on those trips.

He's getting much better at playing with younger kids who he used to dismiss as being "too little," even adjusting his style of play slightly to accomodate their limitations.   

Saturday morning, Karen & Zeeke let Steve sleep in while they went downstairs and played.  When Steve woke up, he and Zeeke went to the playground and then joined Nick, Nadine & Zoe for the Passyunk Square Easter Egg Hunt.  At lunch, Zeeke asked about going to the movies, so when his nap was over, he and Steve popped some corn and then headed over to the theater.

Sunday, all three of us went to the Natural History Museum.  Unlike our previous attempt, Zeeke wasn't frightened away by the animatronic dinosaur and he had a great time.  He dug for fossils, petted a bunny, made videos of himself being chased by dinosaurs, protected eggs, and put together all the jigsaw puzzles.  Although he said his favorite part was the cafeteria where he had a cookie.  After his nap, we painted some watercolors and then Zeeke played nicely by himself, which is always a joy.

Conversations with Zeeke:
"Zeeke, if we got our front door painted, what color do you think it should be?"
"Red!"
"Okay, what color that's not red?"
"Yellow with black stripes!"

"Zeeke, how many time did you kiss Berta today?"
"Oh..... four!"
"And what does Berta say when you kiss her?"
(throws his arms in the air) "Mother of God help me!"

Purple Flower Mountain is back!  With the unseasonably warm weather, Zeeke and many of his schoolmates can be found each day after school, running up and down the long strip of grass next to the local Catholic high school.  Zeeke is far more confident this year, bravely chasing his friends to the far end of the fenced-in area without imploring Steve to go with him.  When they're not running, they're rolling, hiding and seeking, looking for dinosaur footprints, showing off tricks, putting out fires and exploring fallen tree limbs.  It's been great for tiring him out, which has helped greatly with the day lights saving transition.  

Our new bedtime ritual of demonstrating sleeping through the night with his purple monkey, The Kid, has gotten a little out of control lately.  We now need to provide voices and personalities for all of his stuffed animals.  And they all need their own treats for sleeping through the night.  Sometimes, he'll be talking to the animals when we're not paying attention and he gets mad at them for not answering his questions.  "Bunny!  Bunny, why aren't you talking?"

When he's the one being called to answer questions, Zeeke's new standard reply is, "You tell me!"  We may have to start chucking him under the chin for that too.

Saturday, Steve & Zeeke went to the playground in the morning with Nick & Zoe.  There was a lot of swinging and slide climbing.  That evening, we went to Tara's birthday party at a hibachi restaurant on the river.  Zeeke was terrified of the fire and skeptical of the food, but loved dancing to the live music and playing with his pals Jack & William. 

Conversations with Zeeke:
"Daddy, do you want to see the monster I'm drawing when I'm done?"
"I can't wait!"
"No, Daddy! You don't... not... can't wait!"

Karen has started chucking Zeeke under the chin every time he talks back to us, just a little tickle whenever he chimes in with a "no, it's not" or "no, I didn't."  Making him aware of when he's doing it seems to be having a positive effect.  Sometimes he even points out his own backtalk if we fail to notice.

He's started eating like a crazy man again, so clearly another growth spurt in on the way.  Saturday night he had three servings of pasta and then asked for a bagel with a cream cheese.

Saturday morning, Zeeke made a birthday card and wrapping paper for his cousin Riley.  Her 8th birthday party was at the Garden State Discovery Museum and he had a blast making giant bubbles, experimenting with pneumatic tubes, and getting his face painted.

Sunday, Steve & Zeeke went to the zoo for the third week in a row!  Thanks for the zoo membership, Grandpop Bob-Bob!  This time we went with his schoolmates Asif, Sofiya, Delano and Evan.  Zeeke had a fantastic time running around, playing with his friends, and quite likely scaring a few of the animals.  We discovered some new facets to explore, like the Treehouse and the migration movie, and Zeeke rode the carousel for the first time without wanting Steve to hold onto him.  The whole trip was so much fun that they ended up staying way too long and missed out on the nap. 

It was a rough week for sleep.  Zeeke's been hard to get to bed and then waking up really early and sobbing because we're not sitting outside his door like we were when he fell asleep.  We've told him that we only stay there until he falls asleep, but it still its him hard every time.  One step forward, one step back.  

We've stopped riding in the back of the car with him, a big milestone for all of us, as the habit goes back to his baby days when he would scream bloody murder every time we put him in the car.  So far, he's taking it well.

Saturday, the three of us went to the zoo in the morning.  Zeeke had an exciting time brushing goats, riding the carousel and being chased by geese.  After his nap, we all went to the playground to do some chalk drawings and work on his soccer skills.

Sunday, we were back to the playground for an epic playdate with his schoolmates Lettie, Asif, Sofiya, and Zoe.  The kids had a blast together.  Zeeke banged his head pretty hard standing up under the jungle gym twice, but made a strong recovery each time.

Conversations with Zeeke:

"Daddy, I can't wait until I'm a grownup."
"Why's that, buddy?"
"Because then I can read one of the books that you write."

"Daddy, do you want to play Pick-up Truck?"
"Sure. How do we play?"
"I hold up tools and you say, 'I want that!'"
"Ok, where's the pick-up truck?"
"There is no pick-up truck."
"Why is there no pick-up truck?"
"Because this is the United States of America, a place where some people live. Now do you want this tool?"
"I want that!"

Zeeke has been talking a lot about death ever since David Bowie died, so many questions and concerns.  

We're still acting out sleeping through the night with The Kid.  Zeeke's obsessed with it.  He now believes he's the kid's big brother.  He reads books to the kid, rubs his back to help him sleep.  He really loves being a big brother in a way that goes beyond make believe.

Monday, Zeeke's school was closed for President's Day.  Karen & Zeeke had a great trip to the art museum.  Zeeke brought his sketchpad and drew his own versions of a few of the paintings, then they played in the snow that had fallen while they were inside.

Friday, we got a call from school that Zeeke had a fever.  The poor little guy was so limp and weak.  He camped out in the living room, under some blankets, for napping and tv watching.  He threw up (on Steve), but was already feeling better by the end of the day. 

Saturday, the sickness was all gone and he was full of energy.  Steve & Zeeke went to the playground with Jen & Amelie.  Back at home, he fought taking a nap with all his might and even tried to push Steve down the stairs to make his point.  

Sunday was quite warm so Steve & Zeeke headed out to the zoo in the morning.  They had a great time and Zeeke didn't want to leave.

Conversations with Zeeke:

"Mommy and I found a fountain at the art museum and made wishes. I wished that I will be alive forever."

Upon learning the show he wanted wasn't available:
"Noooooo! Dinosaur Train was my last idea! Now I am all out of ideas!!!!"

We made Valentine's Day cards for Zeeke's classmates this week.  Steve made them with some downloaded images from the show Daniel Tiger, Karen printed them up and found envelopes, and Zeeke carefully decided which friends got which characters and paintstakingly colored each one with colored pencils.

Zeeke has been obsessed with a color-by-the-numbers coloring book this week.  He wakes up thinking about it and tries to color as many of the pictures as he can every day.  

We have moved from sitting in his room while he falls asleep to sitting outside of his room.  It's a distinct improvement most nights since it slightly curbs his attempts at late night conversation and makes it easier to sneak away once he falls asleep.

Saturday, Steve & Zeeke took a walk to the bakery for a Valentine's Day treat and then returned home for lots of coloring.  

Sunday, there was still more coloring.  He refused to take his nap which left everybody unhappy.  Steve's parents had us over for dinner.  He had a great time playing with puppets they brought back from the The Rose Parade.

Zeeke is very excited about "Valencetimes Day" next week.  He wants to decorate the house with hearts and gets very excited whenever we walk past houses decorated for it.  

To help with Zeeke's adjustment to the freedom of his bed and the difficult sleeping that's resulted, Karen came up with new part of our bedtime routine.  Each night, before we read stories, we act out sleeping through the night with a purple sock monkey that Zeeke calls "The Kid."  It seems to be working.  Saturday night he actually slept through the night and even used the potty without waking us up.  

Saturday, Karen & Zeeke went to another cooking class the Free Library.  This time they made hot chocolate and sweet treats.  Zeeke was very proud of pouring the honey. 

Sunday, Steve & Zeeke made rainbow pizza.  At first he'd requested a heart-shaped rainbow pizza, but Steve wasn't confident the pizza would keep its shape.  It was actually pretty delicious.  After his nap, we took advantage of the non-freezing weather to make a short trip to the playground.

Zeeke doesn't eat meals anymore.  He eats snacks.  We ask him what he wants for dinner and he'll say, "Oh, I'm not hungry for dinner.  I'm just hungry for a snack."  Fortunately, we can usually convince him to eat the same things for snack as he would at a meal, but it's important to him to call it what he wants.  It's probably because he associate meals with going to bed or school and is hoping to break the routine.

Monday, his school was closed on account of the blizzard, so Steve & Zeeke went to a fun play date at the home of his friends Asif and Sofia.  He had a blast playing and dancing in bubbles with them and their schoolmate Evan.

Sunday was a two party day.   The first was a birthday party for his friend Delano.  Although all of his friends from school were there, Zeeke was a little stand-offish, focusing his attention on solo play.  He was more social at the next party since there was dancing, but the amazing thing was that he played on the floor for hours with a dog walking around him.  We were afraid to point it out for fear of breaking the spell of his sudden confidence around dogs.  After the party, we went out for dinner at P'unk Burger.