our week with zeeke

Thanks to circle time at school (and reinforced by Dora the Explorer), Zeeke's love of Spanish is back.  He now prefers to do his counting (at least from 1-10) in Spanish and has pretty much learned most of the colors.  He's very interested in the fact that there are different words for the same things.

On Veteran's Day, we went to New Jersey to go apple picking with Steve's mom.  Zeeke had a blast filling his little basket, eating as he picked, and hanging out with the sculptures in the play area.  

Saturday, Steve & Zeeke did some watercolor painting in the morning, then headed over to music class.  After nap, they baked a pumpkin cake. When Karen got home from work, she and Zeeke had a fun trip out to the drug store that involved dancing, colorful lights and glitter pens.

Sunday, Steve & Zeeke did some Thanksgiving-themed drawings in the morning, then Karen & Zeeke went to Moira's birthday party where he had a great time making cookies.

Conversations with Zeeke:
"All right, it's pyjama time. Take off your clothes."
"No, Daddy, you take off your clothes."
"Don't be silly. Adults never take off their clothes."
"Yes, they do!"
"When did you see adults take off their clothes?"
"In a movie."

After talking for a while about how silk worms make silk:
"Daddy, do butterflies make butter?"

Daylight saving time murdered sleep, as always.  He's waking up nearly an hour early almost every morning.  And he has lost all respect for the cow clock which used to tell him when he was allowed to call for us.   

He has a renewed interest in letters, what sounds they make, and how they'e used to spell words.  He loves bath time because it means we get to spell words with his foam bath letters.

Saturday morning's playground plans were rained out, so Steve & Zeeke did a Target run before music class.  After nap, Karen & Zeeke went to the library and came back with a big haul of alphabet books.

Sunday, the three of us made it out to the playground.  Zeeke had fun playing monsters and roads with Lazlo.  Later in the day, we melted down old crayon fragments into new crayons and spent some time cleaning up in the backyard.

Conversations with Zeeke:
"We should buy a new house."
"You don't like our house?"
"No. I sort of want a new one."
"Ok, would you rather have a new house or some popcorn?"
"Popcorn!"

“All my friends and my teacher said I'm from another planet.”
“Which planet?”
“Mars. But they're wrong. I'm from planet Earth.”
“Why did they say you were from Mars.”
“Miss Briana says I'm a straaaaaaange cookie.”

Overhearing Karen say a certain room at the library scares her a little:
"Why does it scare you? Is it a volcano?"

We think we're starting to get a handle on what causes Zeeke's bad behavior.  The days when he gets in trouble at school are almost always ones where the normal routine is disrupted by something like a trip or a party  The same thing goes for home.  The more boring things are, the more content he is.  If we throw a little chaos or excitement into the works, he's far more likely to throw a tantrum.  It's probably a new manifestation of all the fears he was having at the beginning of the year.  The changes in his routine seem create an anxiety that he doesn't know how to express or deal with properly.

The growth spurt we were expecting last week (when he started eating more) has arrived.  He grew over half an inch in less than two weeks.  It's crazy how big he's getting.

One of his favorite games lately is pretending to transform himself and others into different things and then changing back.  "Daddy, I turned into a grandpa bat!  And you turned into a baby bat!"  Sometimes the game moves along silently in his head, because we'll try to play along, and he'll shake his head and tell us, "Oh, I'm not a bat anymore!  I turned back into a boy!" like we were fools not to have noticed.

Thursday, after school, Steve & Zeeke were walking to Purple Flower Mountain with Beth & Esme when we noticed a Halloween party going on outside Tollentine Comunity Center.  After watching through the fence for a while we went in and found half of Zeeke's school inside.  Zeeke decorated yet another little pumpkin (his fifth!) and tried a few of the treats. 

Friday, Zeeke had a great time at his school's Halloween party and parade, but he was misbehaving so he didn't get cake when the other kids did.  Amazingly, one of the other children was also Marshall from Paw Patrol (although we think Zeeke's cobbled together costume was cuter than his storebought one).

Saturday, Steve & Zeeke drew a chalk town at the playground and then headed off for a Halloween-themed music class.  After his nap, all three of us went out for an early dinner at Punk Burger (where Zeeke got a free shake) and then joined a bunch of his friends for trick-or-treating on 13th Street.  Zeeke had a ball, walking around with his friends.  Getting candy was fun, but he didn't feel the need to go to every one who was offering it to him.  In fact, he's such a stranger to candy that he would often freeze when people handed it to him, studying the foreign object carefully, trying to divine what it was.  He was most excited about getting lollypops.

Sunday, all three of us went to the playground in the morning.  We continued the chalk town from the day before and played monster tag with Andrew & Lazlo again.  After his nap, we went over to Jersey for dinner with Pop Pop & Gigi, where he got still more candy!

The brat is back!  After a couple of weaks of taking it easy on us, he's swerving right back into tantrum town.   Most of the big fights this week were over him not wanting to wear long pants.  Karen finally had to just make the short pants go away to break him of thinking they were still an option.

Zeeke's been an eating machine this week.  Normally he eats like a bird, but lately it's all six course meals.  We're expecting another growth spurt any day.

Zeeke has at last settled on a Halloween costume.  After toying with going as Olaf (from Frozen), a slice of pizza, a dinosaur, a dog, and finally, a specific dog:  Marshall the Firefighter Pup from Paw Patrol.  In retrospect it was an obvious choice: his favorite character from his favorite tv show.  Even better, it was easy to put together.  He already had a dalmatian mask from Grandma Joy and a firefighter rain coat from Great Aunt June.  All we had to do was borrow a helmet from his pal Delano and then make Marshall's pup tag out of Play-Doh. 

Saturday morning, Steve & Zeeke went to play ground where they played monster tag and drew chalk roads with Andrew & Lazlo, then took the subway over to music class, where he had a great time.  On the way home, they swung by the Passyunk Ave Halloween party just long enough to grab a snack.  After his nap, they walked down Passyunk.  The party was over but Zeeke enjoyed watching all the vendors take down their tables.  After that, Zeeke decided he wanted to go grocery shopping and filled the cart with things he wanted to eat, including lunchmeat, a pommegranate, and instant chocolate pudding.  We went home and mixed up the pudding to eat on Sunday.

Sunday, we feasted on the food Zeeke bought, played with play dough, and drew our own Halloween decorations (including Zeeke's favorite, a "pretty vampire") that we put in the windows.

Autumn is here, but the cooler weather hasn't convinced Zeeke to wear long pants.  Even when he admits to feeling cold, he still insists on shorts.  We finally got him to try long pants on Sunday, but he says he'll still wear shorts to school.  He's less committed when it comes to what he'll wear for Halloween.  First, he was going to be Kristoff from Frozen, then a pink bat with a rainbow on its belly, then a monster, and most recently a slice of pizza.  (The pink rainbow bat may be inspired by his recent obsession with an old Care Bears book from the library.)

He's officially through with sippy cups and mostly doing a great job of not spilling.  Oddly, he seems to drink less at home since the switch, but he's doubled his milk intake at school.  Going to the mini-mart to pick up a half gallon of milk on Monday mornings is now one of his favorite rituals.

Tuesday, after school, there was a great dance party followed by an epic trip to Purple Flower Mountain.  Friday, after school, we raked leaves.

Saturday morning, Steve & Zeeke couldn't find parking near music class so they went to the playground instead.  That evening we went to a housewarming party at Jenifer & Eric's.  A girl named Paige took Zeeke under her wing and kept him busy with her tablet.  

Sunday morning, Karen & Zeeke painted pumpkins with glitter paint and then hit a consignment sale.  Zeeke refused any new clothes, but came home thrilled to have acquired a Dora version of Candyland and some plastic jewelry.  In the afternoon, we visited Liz & Dena.

Zeeke's behavior actually improved this week.  Could he be getting as sick of his whining as we are?  He's even been really good about cleaning up his toys and dishes lately. 

He's been relying more and more on the words "it" and "that" in his speech lately, which can be pretty confusing since he often gives you no context as to what the word's referring to.  But then again, he also likes to ask us to help him remember things we weren't there for?  ("Daddy, do you remember that song I was dreaming about last night?")

Tuesday, he went to Purple Flower Mountain after school to play with Sadie and Delano.  He even got over his fear of dogs enough to pet Sadie's dog several times.

Friday, Steve & Zeeke took a trip with his school to Johnson's Corner Farm.  He had a total blast riding the bus, going for a hayride, picking pumpkins, and playing with his friends.  Before he went to sleep, he asked if he could go to the zoo some time, so Karen got right on the computer and made some plans.

Saturday, Karen had to work, so Steve & Zeeke took the subway to music class, which Zeeke enjoyed greatly.  He was great at class this week, totally participating, no shyness or tears.  They took the bus home and after nap, did some painting and went for a stroll down Passyunk.

Sunday, Steve & Zeeke went to the zoo with Tara, Matt & Moira.  Zeeke was thrilled to watch flamingos sleeping standing up on one leg, a concept he's been talking about for the past month.  They got a free pass for sleeping on the job, but any other animal he caught snoozed was dismissed as "probably nocturnal."  Zeeke rode a swan boat, the zoo train, and a camel.  He was mad that he had to leave the zoo, but fell asleep as the car started rolling.  That turned out to be an hour long nap due to gridlock caused by the Columbus Day Parade.  Later on, they hopped back on the subway and met Karen at Harper's amazing Lego-themed fourth birthday party across the street from City Hall.  Carl & Micaela pulled out all the stops for the party and Zeeke had a ball.

Zeeke was even more obsessed than usual with absolutely needing his favorite things this week.  Tantrums over not being able to wear his shark shirt every single day made for some extremely stressful mornings.  One specific shark shirt, mind you, not just any of the seven.  He's constantly convinced we're hiding the clothes that he wants.  And he's so willful and strong that it's pretty much impossible to keep him dressed in something he doesn't want to wear.  

Selecting meals isn't as tear-filled as getting dressed, but he still exhibits the same wearying stubborness.  The variety of foods he'll accept has been dwindling and he doesn't understand why we won't let him eat the same thing for six meals in a row.

Saturday morning, after insisting that he didn't need apple juice for the trip to music class, he screamed and cried for the entire drive that he wanted apple juice.  When we finally parked, Steve tried to get him to wear his fleece, but he refused.  He screamed and cried for the whole walk and then continued making such a scene that we missed the first half of class.  When Steve finally resorted to bribing him with cookies, Zeeke said the reason he was upset was because he wanted his fleece.  So they had a talk about the need to use words when attempting to communicate and then caught the last few songs of class.  Saturday afternoon, Karen took him to the library and the grocery store, which was good fun for him.

Sunday morning, we went out to Chestnut Hill to visit Jen, Kim & the twins.  Tara, Matt & Moira came too.  Sadly he slept for five minutes on the ride home and then refused to nap.  After giving up, we went over to Tim, Tanya & Lettie's house for a dress up dance party playdate.

Conversations with Zeeke:
On the subject of bad guys who happen to be firefighters:
"I don't want them to open me up and take my blood and use it to put out a fire."

Zeeke adapted fairly well to being back from vacation and to Karen's new work schedule (she can no longer be there at drop off).  He was happy to see his friends, get his homework done, and participate in the school's sports day.  Unfortunately, he had some anger issues Thursday and tore two books, which his parents were not happy about at all.  He and Steve had a very long talk that night about respecting books and dealing with anger.

Tuesday, after school, Zeeke had a great trip to Purple Flower Mountain with his pals Sadie and Delano.

Friday was a half day at school (because of the Pope).  We picked him up, threw him in the car, and headed down to Brigantine for a few days at the beach with Steve's parents.  Even though both the air and water were pretty cold, once Zeeke got his feet back in the ocean, it was almost impossible to get him out.  

Saturday, it was a little too windy to be a good beach day, so Steve's parents took us to Storybook Land.  We all had a fantastic time.  Zeeke rode a lot of the rides, even a couple of the scarier ones, but his favorites were definitely the slow ones.  He got over his fear of the carousel for the first time and insisted on riding it at least seven times (although he's still afraid to sit on the horses).  He ate lots of junk food, decorated pumpkins and skipped his nap (at least until the drive back).  He choose a glitter art project from the gift shop and had a ball making it when we got back to the condo.

Sunday, we went to an amazing, shark-themed playground.  Zeeke rode sharks, ran obstacle courses, slid down a fire pole, walked on a tight rope, slid through tunnels, and danced on a floor that slides back and forth.  He wore himself out enough that we were able to get him back on his napping schedule.  After his nap, we took it easy with the exception of a little running around outside the condo.

Zeeke had a great vacation.

His favorite part of the trip was definitely going to the beach.  He was equally timid and excited about the ocean, so he would act like a little sandpiper, dragging us down to the water to get his feet wet, then running away as soon as it got to him, and then dragging us back down to do it all again.  Thursday, after getting over his fear that the ocean would get him, he actually got in up to his waist.  He's still a bit scared of seagulls though, so we spent some time chasing them away to remind him that they're even more scared than he is.

Zeeke's sleeping during vacation was better than last year.  Two mornings he even slept in until 7:00, although the other nights were full of wakefulness and chatter, especially when Steve was sleeping in the room with him.

Tuesday, we went out for breakfast and had a great morning at the beach, but Zeeke woke up from nap with a fever.

Wednesday, he seemed fully recovered in the morning, so we went to the beach, but just before naptime, he threw up.  After his nap, he felt much better.  We did some watercolor paintings, then walked down the pavillion after dinner to blow bubbles and look at the waves and the sky.

Thursday, we went to the playground in the morning.  After Zeeke's nap, we had to drag him to the beach against his will, where he had a fabulous time despite himself.

Friday, all Zeeke could talk about was eating chicken wings.  We drove up to the north end of the island, ate breakfast at Mustache Bill's (Zeeke tried to order chicken wings), then hiked the long jetty and climbed to the top of the lighthouse.  Zeeke was amazing and climbed the 217 steps to the top and then back down again all on his own.  We got him his chicken wings and then after his nap headed out for one more trip to the beach.

Saturday morning it was crazy foggy on the island.  The whole house went out to breakfast together (Uncle Will's), then packed up and headed home to Philadelphia.  After nap, we relaxed and drew until dinner when Steve & Zeeke went out to obtain some burgers.

Sunday, we headed out to the playground where Zeeke played with his friend Rosie and his classmates Amelie, Zoe, and Delano.   He had a great time and was quite tired by naptime.  

Conversations with Zeeke:
CRUNCH! CRUNCH!
"What are you eating, Zeeke?"
"Ice."
"Where did you get ice?"
"From the table."
"That's not ice! That's the varnish from the table!"

We started our beach vacation Friday and Zeeke's been loving it.  He loves playing in the sand and getting his feet wet in the ocean.  He loves the playground across the street from our rental.  He loves the frequent ice cream cones.  He loves having "no school!  no work!" every day.  He loves taking his nap in a big boy bed (although still sleeping in a crib at night). He loves lying in the hammock.  He loves the outdoor shower (except for having to get his hair wet).  And he really loves having a live-in playmate, Greta, the daughter of the family we're sharing the house with.  After only two days here, he declared, "I'm going to miss Greta!" 

Friday, we picked Zeeke up from school right after his nap and got down to the beach in time for hammock, beach and seafood.

Saturday, we hit the playground and the beach in the morning, then relaxed around the house for a rainy afternoon.

Sunday, Zeeke wasn't messing around.  He wanted to spend all morning on the beach, which was good since it rained most of the afternoon.  After his nap, we went out for groceries, ice cream cones, and a rescue mission to pickup our roommates who were stranded by the rain while biking up the island.