Nana's Day

Today was Billygoats class and then a party for the families to celebrate Thanksgiving. Stacy got there early and I arrived about 12:10. Jack was in meltdown mode--probably not the best scheduling. He gets really beat at Billygoats. Stacy got us food and gave Jack a ride in a wagon. He was still in the wagon when Angelica led the Billies in their song. (Note Fiona as a naked babe.) Then I took Nerkie to swing. He announced that he was driving a stinky tar truck (we saw one this week in the neighborhood).

Jack and I walk home looking at every PG&E, SFWD, Bell Telephone, Gas Valve, and sewer hole at every house. When we get home, I can't get the front door open and so we walk through the basement where Jack spies his rhinoceros, which has been mauled by Ripley. Jack is upset "Give me the eye," "Why did Ripley do that"? "Ripley has his own toys." I'm saying, "Jack, let's focus on getting into the house." We get up to the patio and find the back door locked. Ripley is jumping around. Jack is still whining about the rhinoceros, which I am now carrying, having promised to sew it up. I crawl through the dog door and let Jack in. As we walk down the hall to the front door, Jack points to the new dog toy and says, "See, that's his toy."

Ultimately, Jack sleeps for 2.5 hours, most of the time in his bed. I straighten up the living room, throwing out paper that I hope won't be missed and making a huge stack of library books. When Jack wakes up, we read a Richard Scarry book to Cutie, with Jack excited because the book has pictures of Best Word Book Ever and Busy, Busy Town on the inside back cover. Jack runs over to find Best Word Book Ever so that he can show Cutie the Rabbit house (Note to Emmalee, Cutie is a stuffed rabbit). We call Papa and Jack tells him "I miss you."

Jack's chair in the new library

Here's Jack sitting in the chair in the new library that has his name on the plaque on the back. The dragonfly is a cutout, as you can see if you look closely at Jack's finger poking through. There were lots of kids and parents at the first storytime in the new children's section. There are a lot of chairs with plaques so I don't think we'll have any problem if another kid sits in Jack's chair.

Jack liked looking out the window down onto Wilder and Chenery Streets. We found several truck books and played with Emma on the alphabet rug. I want to go back tomorrow!

Visiting Papa in Menlo Park

In the middle of Papa's recuperation, he was cheered by a visit from Jack and Greg. Jack just came in and took over. Papa had a new road roller for him, which Jack put to work in the dirt pile outside the family room door. Greg and Jack put together a lego ambulance in various configurations and Jack acted out terrible crashes involving trucks with the ambulance guy arriving to help out.

Jack and Nana walked up Whitney to see an excavator working on the site of a new house. For dinner, we all had delicious homemade chicken pot pie from Stacy. Jack slept with Nana in the master bedroom and everyone got at least some sleep. Papa and Nana were really sad when Greg and Jack left early on Wednesday, but we've been enjoying recounting some of the cute things Jack did while here. Alex was really sorry he was too scruffy to get a goodbye kiss on the cheek.

Main Library via BART

With the Glen Park Library in transition, we've been visiting other libraries. Wednesday, it was time to tackle riding BART down to the Main Library on Larkin Street. Jenny and Emma were our guides as we learned how to buy our ticket, manuveur both of us through the turnstile, ride the escalator, and board the train. I think the whole time we were at the library, Jack was anticipating riding BART home. The rides were probably his highlight.

The new Main Library is beautiful, six stories above ground and one below, all arranged around a six or seven-story atrium. Jack was uncomfortable in the atrium, which is "too big." Once we entered the children's section on the second floor, we found a wonderful storyteller acting out a folktale to a small group of older children. She tried to guess the children's names by asking how many letters and the first letter. Jenny said, "Emma, how many letters in your name"? Everyone laughed. The storyteller could not guess Jack's name until we supplied both the first and last letter.

Next we chose three truck books and joined Emma and Jenny in the room for toddlers. Emma had found a book for Jack and Jack found a book for Emma, "Bear About Town." We rode the elegant elevators and Jack reminded us of the cafeteria in the basement where we had quite a pleasant lunch until Jack decided to practice his Billygoat sqreeching and I hustled him out.

That afternoon, Jack built an escalator, a BART platform, a BART train, and a library with his blocks. The workingmen ate avocado and cheese sandwiches in the cafeteria.

On Thursday, Jack again played at building a BART station and then we spent an hour at the Hill Park. Much of the day we were Nerkey and Chew working on the construction site in Jack's room (Jack was reported to be riding a fire engine and putting out fires).

At Billygoats alone

Friday was the first time Jack stayed at Billygoats while Nana went home. Leaving him was easy because he was busy swinging with Angelica showing him new toy tools. Angelica said that Jack missed me three times: when he wanted to go home; when he hit his head on the table; and another time.

At 12:10, I was crouched down behind a Eucalyptus tree sighting Jack sitting next to Angelica at the picnic table and wearing gloves. He seemed happy enough. He and the two little girls wandered around a bit. About 12:17, Fiona's mother showed up, so I pushed the stroller around to the playground arriving about 12:20. Jack was glad to see me and Angelica said to give him a hug to release his tension. I sat down with Jack in my lap and gave him a bottle of juice.

Jack explained that the gloves are so he won't get poop on his hands when his diaper is changed. Angelica seemed to think the day went well.

Jack was eager to get home to resume play at his construction site in his bedroom, but we stopped to watch two working men in front of the school. They were trying to fix the meter that registers the amount of water used by the fire sprinklers. One man was lying on the sidewalk with his head down in a hole and the other man was pumping water out of the hole with what looked like a large bicycle pump. They were very welcoming as we watched. Occasionally I would ask Jack if he was ready to go home and he would say no. Finally we thanked the men for letting us watch and they said "goodbye Nana."

We played in the living room and Jack's bedroom the rest of the afternoon. Jack only went into the kitchen once and briefly up to his dirt pile to get one of his machines. It was apparently important to stay in his construction area. I kept encouraging a nap, but that didn't happen until 5:30, five minutes before Alex showed up. I know Jack regretted sleeping right through Papa's visit.

Billygoats On-Duty Parent Day

Jack and I had a big day today--I was the on-duty parent for Billygoats and Stacy furnished all the food. Greg, Jack, and I took the cooler to the park in Jack's green wagon. Jack rode in the wagon on the way to the park and later walked home next to it.

Jack had fun, but Billygoats is stressful for him. When he gets involved with something, he does not want to stop.

Today, he had a game he invented with a cardboard toilet paper roll; it was a "soccer ball thrower." At some point when Angelica wanted to move on to another activity, she took it away from Jack, triggering a lengthy crying jag. Finally Angelica gave Jack a "ticket" which he could give back to her after the hike to retrieve the soccer ball thrower. The ticket was a slip of paper
with a drawing of a happy Jack and a toilet paper roll.

Other stresses included Fiona running up and pushing Jack away from a climbing structure and then basically fighting with him. Also, he had to share Nana with the other kids when she read a book to them. And of course, Jack gets tired of snack and lunch times and wants to run off onto the field. Angelica is very understanding and she said Jack did great today.

Angelica is a genius in settling the problems little kids have. She has a system for every part of the day. I can see now how it will work with just one parent there. (Today was still a day when each kid had a parent present all day.) When the kids go to the bathroom, they all sit on the stairs near the bottom and the parent reads a book to them. Angelica takes one kid at a time into the bathroom.

Jack got to help me with the wagon when it was time to serve the snack. And he enjoyed running on the field, collecting leaves and sticks for a squirrel house, playing with water and sand. The kids and the parents loved Stacy's food. It almost all disappeared. The kids loved the eggs and turkey and muffins and the parents loved the muffins and the salad. At lunch, two of the mothers announced that they have just found out they are pregnant.

Jack is very concerned about the other kids. He called out to warn them about one of the wagons at the playground that he considers too tippy. After three and a half hours, all of us were beat. I pulled the wagon home with Jack walking beside me. He was very good about taking my hand when we crossed streets. The only hairy part was going down Elk, keeping the wagon from going too fast while holding Jack's hand.

When we got home, one of the neighborhood regulars insisted on taking the cooler up to the door for me while I put the wagon away and helped Jack up the steps. We took off our sandy shoes on the porch, got Jack some milk, read a book, and then Jack and I both took a nap on his cave bed. Jack slept for nearly three hours. When we went out on the front porch to put our shoes back on, we discussed the blue water tank on the distant hill. Jack wants Daddy to take him up to see it. Then we worked on the construction site in the living room until Jack wanted to play with Play Doh. Daddy found us in the kitchen smashing up the asphault (Play Doh) to recycle it. We'll need to make our own Play Doh as the commercial product is gradually sticking to our shoes, coating the kitchen floor as little orange crumbs, and otherwise magically disappearing.

Greg, Jack, and I went to the Chenery Park Cafe for dinner. Jack kept his hard hat on and sat in my lap most of the time while I had delicious salmon and Daddy had chicken. I'll sleep well tonight.

Notes on early September activities

Jack spends time every day inventing stories about his little PlayMobil working people who build towers and runways and roads. If we visit a job site he re-enacts the job as soon as we get home. Yesterday I showed him a poster in the rec center that shows the water and sewage pipes under the road in San Francisco. We've been watching a sewer renovation project on Chenery Street. Later, we studied a map of the park and Jack wanted to know where the sewer pipes were.

This week he has wanted to play with Playdough for hours every day. He makes a sewer pipe and a truck for his PlayMobil characters to drive. The truck lowers the sewer pipe into a ditch and then covers it up with gravel and tamps it down.

Jack is in a very winning romantic phase. He tells me several times a day that he loves Nana. I get nice hugs and kisses. When his parents are mentioned, he talks about how he loves Mommie or how he loves Daddy. I try to tell Jack that I love him whenever he is having a hard time or when I am changing a dirty diaper. I also say that I love Ripley when Ripley is naughty. I want Jack to know that love is not conditional on good behavior. We’ve had some biting incidents in the last two weeks, but I think we are over that. Jack was shocked when he saw the bite mark on my arm. He kept saying “put a bandage on it.” Jenny says there’s a book about biting at Bird and Becket and I may try to find that to read but not to buy.

We have had such a good time at the park lately, playing baseball on the diamond and walking through the canyon eating blackberries. Jack has also been loving the swings where he pretends he is an astronaut in the space shuttle. Jack and Emma have played together very nicely. It’s fun tohear Emma talking now. She insisted “jacket off” when she got too hot.

First Day of Billygoats!

Here are the Billygoats in mid-hike through Glen Canyon. After about an hour of free play in the sandpile, a snack, and playing with big balls on the field, Angelica led a hike back as far as the creek bed.

The Billygoats learned how to slide down a hill and climb back up using a bear walk. They debated where the creek water went. They thought about what the funny post with holes is. They learned that they need to come when Angelica sounds the bells and that they need to stay with the group.

Jack held hands with Ollie for part of the hike. Ollie likes to screech shrilly, so Jack also learned the screech. It was all a little confusing for Jack who is used to our own routine in the park. He asked Angelica to go to the blackberry patch. The group did make it to a plum tree, but blackberry picking was not on the agenda. He was also disappointed that he could not stay longer at "Emma's tree." And he very badly wanted to be on the other side of the log in this photo. He did just fine with most tasks and requests and later in the day, I asked him what he thought of the Billygoats. "It's fun," he said.

Nana was busy sizing up the other parents who will be helping Angelica throughout the year. I'm sure they will be fine, especially when they don't have other parents to distract them from watching the kids. This is going to be a transition for Nana as well as Jack.

Jack the Climber

It's so good to be back with Jack. I got a tight hug yesterday when we met and lots of love all day long. He loves his home. But he obviously had a wonderful time on his vacation.

Here is Jack with Emma climbing the logs at the camp site. Jack is getting braver and more competent at climbing and jumping. Once today when he jumped off a log, he sort of fell, but he didn't cry, just jumped up and did it again.

We had fun with Emma today, walking and playing at various stations in the park for over an hour. Just don't touch my new tool set!

Four hours at the zoo

Jack was not ready to leave the zoo yesterday after four hours! Emma and Jenny met us at 10:30 and we set out for Grizzlie Gulch, which is full of wildflowers, a pond, a waterfall, and of course, the two young bears. Jack loved sitting on the bear statue and pretended that the bear was walking to Chenery Street. We saw warthogs, peacocks, swans, a rhinoceros, a hippopatemus, and of course the goats in the farm. We rode the carousel and then started towards the exit. But Jack wanted to go to the giraffe house, so we said good-bye to our friends and sat eating a snack in the empty giraffe barn. Jack fell asleep on the way home and slept for two hours on Mommie's bed.

Today, Jack got a surprise from Nana--a Playmobil man with a compressor and a jackhammer. He has a red hard hat and tiny ear muffs. At the end of the day, Jack could not quite believe he got to keep "Turkey" and his equipment. All the other working people took a turn at the jackhammer and Chew taught Turkey how to drive the logging truck.

Adventures of Jessie

Jack's friend Jessie was awakened by a loud noise this week. She thought a wrecking ball had struck her house. But it was only Boy dropping an I-beam! Jack tells Jessie stories with great amusement and gusto. Jessie, of course, had a birthday last month so the logging trailer and tractor actually belong to Jessie. She lets Jack play with them. Chew, who came with that set, is fond of driving the tractor. When Jack and I had our hair cut this week, Jessie did not need a haircut.

The working people have many jobs every day. Chew has been climbing a tall ladder, sometimes with Jessie or Boy holding the ladder, but sometimes with no help. Buddy Boss is a fireman who loves to squirt Nana from the bucket on the red ladder truck. All of the working people love the barn. In fact, they have decided to sleep in the barn at night. The barn itself has been under construction. It is being wrecked and a new barn built for the animals. Jack enjoys playing with the little people, the blocks, and all of the machines so much that it is hard to persuade him to leave the house or to eat a meal.

I am trying to encourage Jack to put things away when we finish playing with them, and to put them away consistently in the same place so he can find them again. It is great to have the new bins!

This week we played with Emma at the library and the park. Wednesday after our hair cuts, we visited two construction sites on Laidley Street and Surrey Street. Dump trucks were delivering gravel on Surrey Street. Thursday we went to the new playground in Golden Gate Park. Be sure to take sand toys to that playground and shoes that can get wet. Jack and Emma choose to ride in the sled on the carousel. Neither or them like going up and down on the carousel animals.

Photos from 7/14 in Capay Valley

Hi!

Jack and I had a great time out at Jennifer, Tim and Kelly's farm last weekend. There are a lot of photo's on ofoto.com plus there was a professional photographer there who sent around these shots.

http://carolineschiff.com/capay

There are some great ones of Jack!

Menlo Park Swim and Wild Animals in Point Arena

Jack spent Thursday and Friday with Anne in Menlo Park. It was hot! So Thursday evening, we went to Burgess Park for a swim. As you can imagine, getting Jack and Nana both into suits was a challenge, so when Jack fell asleep on the drive, I did not give up. I carried Jack into the pool and sat down on a bench. Then I noticed people lying on the grass looking more comfortable, so I walked over, slepping both Jack and our bag on towels and equipment. Lay Jack down and he woke up. He immediately wanted to get into the pool. We had a great time, first in the competition pool where we could jump up and down and swirl around in a large area all to ourselves. Then we tried the baby pool with its mushroom shower and its foot and a half of water. Jack sat on my lap for a while and then stood up to walk in the water by himself. Of course he fell down and got his face wet, but it was no big deal. He wanted to go back to the big pool. I thought I'd just get into the teaching pool, but forgot that it is six feet deep at the end near the baby pool. So I got my hair wet and Jack was shocked to see my head underwater. He was still standing on the deck, however, so no harm done. We went back to the competition pool and its shallow end.
We swam for over an hour and Jack kept saying he liked it. He also loved playing with a noodle, so the next day we bought a noodle for him to use at Sea Ranch (but we didn't make it to the pool this trip).

Also in Menlo Park we had lunch with Papa and went to a toy store to buy a present for Jessie, whose birthday is coming up. We got Daddy some presents too. Jack wanted to dig in his MP dirt pile and play with his new toys--oops, Jessie's new toys. Friday afternoon we drove Jack up to the city and had dinner with Greg before the grandparents continued on to Sea Ranch.

Of course at Sea Ranch, the first order of business on Sunday was digging a new dirt pile in the side yard. It was hard work for Nana and Jack because there were some thick tree roots and a big rock. Then we went downhill on Compass Close to see the four machines where the association is repairing the hill that collapsed. Jack got to sit in two Bobcats, one mini-excavator, and one bulldozer. He was thrilled and could have stayed in the driver's seat forever.

After a nap, we took Jack to the river, stopping to view a huge stag on the way. Jack walked right into the river, ultimately sitting down in it. He was really muddy by the time we set out for the wild animal preserve in Point Arena.

Anne and Alex bought a tour for four at the last RCMS auction. The preserve is the private property of Dr. Frank Mello and his wife Judy. Dr. Mello is a Ph.D. in something related to wild animals and Judy is a hard-working, hardy woman whose father founded a little bakery in Mississipppi that ultimately became Sara Lea! The preserve is three years old and comprises 100 acres. They have two Hartman zebras, a kudu, several kinds of rare antelopes, and three Gravie zebras. They are soon to have a giraffe. It is amazing what they have built in three years. We walked around some of the enclosures and then got to ride in what Jack called an "old timie truck," an old land rover they bought on eBay. Not only did they have these hoofed animals, but they have two tractors and a chipper and some chickens. Judy asked Jack to help feed the animals, which he did with great care, spreading the grain around in the troughs and topping it off with selected handfuls of hay. Dinner was at Bones where Jack ate as though he were starved, which he has learned to claim. It was my best Father's Day ever.

Haircut and charcoal adventures

Jack and I made it on time to Dalere's Beauty Salon for Nana's haircut. Jack was a little shy and sat on my lap for a while. Marian is very sweet with him; first she gave Jessie a trim and later she trimmed Jack's bangs. Jack helps her sweep up my hair and does a thorough job.

When we got home, Jack ate half of my turkey and avocado sandwich and some of my pineapple, strawberries, and yogurt. He also had about a half of a mozzarelli stick. Not long after, Jack asked me to take off his diaper so he could poop on the potty. And he did! Now to make this a regular happening. My goodness but it makes things easier! We called Daddy and Mommie who each reported that they jumped up and down with delight.

Now it was time to go to the park. We'd been planning a long hike to the back of the park so we could look for the coyote. The weather was beautiful, perfect temperature, blue skies, gentle breezes. We stopped by the creek to listen carefully being very quiet so the coyote wouldn't be afraid. Several people came by and reported that they had not seen a coyote. We walked back past the school and across the bridge, through the little glen and over the long duckboard bridge. Jack got out of the stroller and we continued over the little bridge and into the trees. We climbed over rocks and around to where the path goes back towards the school. Birds and damselflies, but no coyote. We did encounter a four-year-old named Raidan and his nice mother. We walked back to the school with them and Jack decided we should go to the fire pit.

Soon, Jack and Raidan were exploring the fire pit and I was explaining what you could do with charcoal. Jack and Raidan tried drawing with the charcoal on the stones and on the nearby Eucalyptus logs. The charcoal crumbled easily, which the boys found interesting. Then Jack found a foot-long charred log and began using it to draw on the logs. He covered an entire log with black soot and started on another. Poor Raidan really wanted that foot-long log, but we were only able to find a thinner, smaller stick for him. But even it was enough for Raidan to get hands nearly as black as Jack's. Jack resembled a chimney sweeper, black hands, black face, charcoal on his new Gama-goo shirt and pajama top and his jeans. Fortunately, I had a box of moist wipes in the stroller and was able to clean up Raidan and Jack pretty well. Jack wanted to take his precious charred log home, so its now sitting next to the stroller downstairs.

We walked (and partly ran) with Raidan and his mom back to the Rec Center where they went off up hill to their car. They live on the 300 block of Chenery, next door to a little girl named Coco who will be a Billygoat this Fall.

Jack and I spent another hour or so in the sandbox, where Jack mostly dug, but also did some climbing and sliding. Jack did not want to leave and to some degree, neither did I. It really was an idylic afternoon in the park. We were in the shade most of the time and wore our hats most of the time. Tomorrow we'll look for the coyote again.

Ripley's Bed Becomes Construction Site

This week Jack took over Ripley's bed, declaring that he was rebuilding it and that a big, gigantic backhoe was on the way to work on the project. In the photo, he is pulling off his socks to get down to work. Next he turned the bed over and folded it in two. I was told to go get his drill so he could take down the wall between the living room and the dining room to make way for the backhoe. Poor Ripley kept showing up and trying to get into his bed. Then he would wander out and lie down in the hall. Jack had no sympathy for Ripley, who was just expected to stay out of the construction site.

Jack creates back stories for his little people. Jessie has a house near here where a spider pooped in her kitchen. Jessie stepped in the poop. She also bopped her head. Jessie can drive most any machine and is a skilled construction worker.

Of course the highlight of the week happened Thursday when Jack peed in the potty. He had not let me dress him although by 11:00 a.m. I had gotten his diaper and pajama bottoms off. He just went into the bathroom and sat down on the potty. Imagine my surprise when he stood up and sure enough a good amount of pee! Jack instructed me to put the pee in the toilet. Then we high-fived and called Daddy and Mommie with the news.

New sand and a vision of heaven

May 14 to May 16
Every day we watched the work at the playground where workingmen replaced the sand. The man who operated the Bobcat scooped up and dumped sand, maneuvering around the playground equipment while others, including John McGill raked. It was a huge and exhausting job. On Wednesday, a working woman came out to us with some sand toys so Jack could play in the piles outside the playground (making Jack the first kid to play in the new sand). Jack made a hole and told her it was for a gopher. At last on Thursday, we were inside the Rec Center playing with the little kitchen and riding toys when John McGill entered and told us the playground was open. Jack ran up to Jenny crying, “Jenny, Jenny, John McGill says the playground is open.” As Jack and I hurried around the building, Jack called out “Yea for workingmen”!

One day Jack and I were looking at the photo book of Jack and his family. I asked Jack if he remembers Gigi. “Yes, she has broom and dustpan. I want to go see her tomorrow.” I told Jack we couldn’t do that because Gigi has died and that means we can only see her in pictures. “Where is she”? “Nobody knows, Jack.” A pause and then “Maybe she went to drive a bulldozer. Maybe she is driving a bulldozer.” When we got to the photo of Gigi and Jack, Jack said “That was before she died.”

Glen Park Family Fun Fest and more

Jack and I went to the Glen Park Family Fun Fest on Saturday which was a little dull. We had a good time anyway. The new sand was great. The playground was packed. We found a nice place for Ripley to hang our by John's shed. We saw a police van and Jack ALMOST went into the bouncey house. It was really close. The band that played in the afternoon opened with a LeTigre song which was odd.

Michele and Jake came over afterward and we dug in the dirt pit. After they left Jack slept from 4 to 9:30. Then he woke up ate some food and played for an hour or so and then we went back to sleep.

Sunday we tried to go the beach but were blocked on all routes by the Bay to Breakers. arggg. We ended up at Hill park which was packed and windy but fun. After hill park we came home and had lunch outside and then prepped the site for the new veggie beds. Jack took a loaded wheelbarrow up to the compost pile, unloaded it and then brought it back for me. Super. All without asking or supervision. So great. He then helped pound in 2 pegs for marking out the sites.

We slept from 2- 5 and then walked into town for groceries and a burrito.

now jack is drinking fire milk. here is a video for context on "fire milk"

Jack the Library Patron, and Owls, Floods, Machines

Tuesday morning Jack asked me about books about carpenters. I told him to ask the librarian. So when we got to story time, Jack walked across the room to John the Librarian and asked him for a book about carpenters. John escorted Jack up front to Kate, the children's librarian. Again, Jack asked very clearly for a book about carpenters. Kate found us two--mission accomplished. I think it's pretty cool that Jack feels so comfortable at the library and can state his own needs.

At the park there are two attractions this week--a nest of three baby Great Horned Owls and the action at the playground. If you look sharp, you can see one or two of the baby owls high at the intersection of several branches of a eucalptus tree. Stacy got a good photo and we think Jack has been able to spot them.

One of the toilets overflowed into the playground sand, so the city has brought out a Bobcat and dump trucks to completely remove the sand. Last week they were letting the bare earth dry out before they replace with new sand. We hope to be on hand when the new sand arrives. It was pretty neat to see the operator manuveur around the playground equipment to get every last grain up. The workingmen waved to us as we watched from above the playground.

Jack and I also spent good time watching the ditch digging and pipe replacement on Wilder Street. Machines included a backhoe, an excavator, double dump trucks, a tamper, and a little machine with a brush that squirted water and then raised huge clouds of dirt cleaning up the street. Emma came over twice last week to play in the dirt pile.

Jack visited his new doctor and we learned he has gained a pound in the last two weeks. Congratulations to us and Jack! The photo shows a chubby, tired Jack in his favorite backhoe shirt.

Beach relaxation to junked (crashed) cars

Stacy stayed with us today and we headed for Shell Beach with three shovels (blue, yellow, and red), the dump truck and backhoe, bucket, blanket, cameras, sunscreen, and hats. There was a mother seal and her baby just off the beach and impressively high waves. We laughed as we arrived because there were so many families with parents aiming cameras at toddlers. The kids were all outfitted with hats, but many were otherwise skimpily dressed. (I guess you're cool if the kid doesn't get sun on his face.) It was an almost hot day and the women quickly reclined on the blanket while Jack got to work digging. We all took our shoes off. Jack and Stacy fetched water in his bucket and build a mountain to wet down. Jack discovered the pleasures of sand mittens. Soon he also had sand leggings.

Around 1:00 we headed for Two Fish, but they were sold out of lunch. Jack spotted smoke so we drove to find the fire. It was the Association burning slash behind the office. We discovered a whole lineup of machines in their shed and behind the fire station, three junked cars. Boy were they ever junked. Glass from the windshields scattered around, doors sitting where the front seats used to be, roofs next to the bodies, engines exposed and wires pointing out of door jambs. But air still in the tires! What are these doing here? Jack wasn't the only one fascinated.

Jack ate a big lunch around 3:00, devouring another turkey, cheese, chicken sandwich, a half a grapefruit, and two oranges. Stacy had to squeeze the grapefruit dry so he could drink all the juice. He put the little bowl on his head so his hair got a grapefruit-orange juice rinse. We gave him a bath. Lots of playing after the bath. Jack announced to me that he was going to cut up my dining room table. I think it is going into the chipharvester.

Jack is happy that he is going home to Chenery tomorrow. He looks forward to seeing Daddy and Ripley. But I think he has really enjoyed his week up here. It sure is over too soon for me.

Machines, machines, machines

Obviously, seeing these machines work was the most important part of our day. The machines were at Annapolis and Timber Ridge and they were taking out huge trees and many branches and chipping them up. There was a Bobcat, a Mini-excavator, and this huge "Chipharvester." Jack visited this site three times today.

But first we dug in our garden and mixed the compost up with the dirt. Then we transplanted some salal from elsewhere in the yard. We'll see if it is tough enough to survive our tearing it up by the roots, burying it, and then digging it up again.

At 10:00 or so, we drove off to the hardware store, but stopped on the way to visit the sheep and goats. Jack loved Jay Bakers. He found a wonderful new shovel and then we went upstairs to find child-proofing electrical outlet plugs and a lock for the kitchen cabinet under the sink. I warned Jack that the toy selection might be punk, but he immediately found a plastic boat and a little metal pickup truck. Then he sighted a large Tonka backhoe that he loved. I told him we could not buy it, so he said he just wanted to play with it here. He sat sweetly next to it still in its box and then left it without complaint. We also bought a matchbox garbage truck and some watercolor paper.

It was on the way home that we found the machines (visit #1). By the time we got home for lunch, it was about 2:00. Jack ate a big lunch: turkey and cheese on a piece of toast--all gone. Most of a banana and a strawberry and some of Nana's nuts. All topped off by a glass of milk.

Nana tried her best to read to Jack and get him to nap, but it wasn't going to happen. Jack had his new red round-tipped shovel in mind and was fixed on digging in our garden with it. We went out and watered the blueberry bushes and then ended up at the garden. Jack found a banana slug and touched it. We successfully dug in the garden without destroying the new salal plants. We had a nice conversation with Daddy about the machines and about the flood at the playground. We love our Daddy!

We were to meet Stacy up in Point Arena for dinner. On the way, we stopped by the machine site to get some photos (visit #2) and found the men were still working. It was hard to leave. Despite requesting that I replay and replay the "La-de-do-da" song, Jack fell asleep on the drive. Dinner was delicious and Jack did manage to wake up enough to have a pretty good meal. The Rollerville Cafe is a real winner. Stacy drove Jack home via the machine site, for visit #3. For some reason the working men were more friendly to Stacy than to me.

A Quiet Day

Except for first thing in the morning. We heard a noise and saw a backhoe chugging up Compass Close. Jack stopped eating breakfast and we had to hurry into his clothes. Out on the driveway, a dump truck stopped at our drive and the driver waved and blew his horn for us. We drove in Nana's car to Peter and Scott's house where we found the dump truck and the backhoe at work. Craig, the workingman, was transporting dirt from the new garage site around to the slide below the Bowman's house. We had a long talk with Peter and watched Craig work. Jack got to stand in the backhoe cab. When Craig drove the dump truck away, I put Jack into his car seat. Then Craig returned and started up the backhoe. He changed from a big bucket to a smaller bucket, which was an elaborate operation. Then he drove the backhoe up onto Crows Nest and started off. Jack cried "chase him." So we did. Craig went to another work site on the Sea Ranch where he told us he was early. So he talked to us again about the backhoe. We learned that he has another backhoe with a crawler track and that the tracks are now made of rubber. They cost $1000.00 apiece and wear out quickly. Craig works with a crew of six and they are very busy.

Jack and I went down to the Lodge to buy a newspaper and to retrieve the shingle that was blown off by the wind. We took it to the receptionist and told her to call the carpenter to replace it on the roof. She said she would and that he would need to use a new shingle. Jack remembered this and repeated it later.

When we got home, we settled in for a quiet day. Jack played with his trucks and workingmen. He explained the outlets in the upstairs guest room. The photos show some of his gestures. Here's a little of what he said:

"I gonna the ectricity. Comes out at night time. You can hear when you're sleeping. That machine and this machine can wake you up. Can make loud noises. Urrrrrrr. Urrrrrrr. Sleep on your bed downstairs. Go downstairs and sleep in your bedroom. Loud noise Urrrrrr. It's ony this generator woke you up. I can put this in there. No ant in your shoe either.

"That's fire truck. These guys are making noise. Watch them. Keep out of my job. There's a sign down there. Says "Keep out of my job." This 'tricity gets power. The smoke can come down this curtain line. Come out this piece. Can go "shhhhh". Steam can come out this power thing. Can go "whoops, can fall down the curtain. We are almost done cleaning up this job."

Swimming Jack!

Even more tired tonight! More digging, and then a long swim session with Jack and a rubber duckie at the Del Mar pool. The duckie kept riding his boat (my flutter board) from one side of the pool to the other, blown by the wind. Jack and I caught him and returned him to the upwind side. The stair rails were bridges that duckie really loved going under. We swam and swam. It was windy and overcast and I kept asking Jack if he was cold. "I'm fine."

Jack fell asleep in the car going home and returned easily to sleep once I got him on my bed. He slept for 2.5 hours. When he awoke, I joined him sitting on the bed with him in my lap. Through the pine boughs, we could see the ocean waves. We stayed there for another half an hour talking about things or just looking out the window.

Jack had a late lunch but ate a lot of whole-milk yogurt and granola. No luck on the fruit or the turkey and cooked cheese. We played in the house and painted three pictures, one of a playground.

When Mommie came home, we went to the lodge so she could photograph the sunset. Jack and I were supposed to wait in the lodge, but Jack couldn't tolerate not being with Mommie, so we ended up in the old barn talking about where the horses are now and whether the carpenter will come soon to nail the shingle back on the roof. Stacy got some lovely photos.

Jack ate a good dinner and had a fun bath. Now it's my turn. The photo shows our work site.

Now Jack is focused on firemen!

I am one tired Nana, probably because of all the digging Jack and I did below the dining room. Jack is not tired, but even more reved up than last night. Here's what we did today:

• Dug, dug, dug. Jack loves the plastic piping that Papa left down in that area. The smaller piece is a leaf blower or maybe a power roller. The big piece is definitely a power roller that can pack down the dirt. We had to dig down there three times today.
  
• Went to the nursery to look for Salal (they don't have it) and bought some compost. I will transplant some from other areas and look for a flat at Roger Reynolds.
  
• Went to the Association office for a brief meeting with John Fox and Haidi. I asked Jack if he could be silent as a deer during the meeting and we took the excavator and bulldozer. Jack felt shy and sat in my lap. Pretty soon he was asleep, silent as a deer. He continued to sleep thru the transition to the car and into the house.
  
• Visited both fire stations and got complete tours of all seven or so trucks. Jack started off a little shy but soon was asking "where is your chain saw," "what goes into the engine," and "how do you climb up there"? He could not get enough explanation. The firemen were just great with him. One showed him their mask for smoke. They turned on the lights, sounded the siren, and showed Jack the inside of the engine on three trucks. At home, Jack played fire-related scenarios. The frog puppet from Four-Eyed is now a fire mask.
  
• Visited the bluff above the seal pupping beach. We saw mothers and babies and maybe the birds eating an afterbirth.
  
• Had pizza at the Gualala Pizzeria. Jack ate a pretty good dinner.

When Stacy came home, Jack immediately wanted us to take the new bag of compost down to the dig area. He is serious about that project. Love to Papa and Daddy. Jack misses you both. The photo is Papa and Jack walking down towards Shell Beach. Sorry I didn't take any photos today.

More shopping, more beach, more excavator

10:00 pm and Jack is just getting to bed. He's going strong despite no nap. His first waking words were about his excavator. We headed for Shell Beach in the morning before Papa had to go to his meetings. It's the beach with the tidepools, Greg! We saw a purple starfish and then found a sheltered spot for Jack to dig with the excavator. Stacy and Jack found a really long, huge piece of kelp and pulled it across the beach. When Jack was finally OK to leave, we drove to Gualala and ate at the Cafe Lala, handy for proceeding to Placewares and Four-Eyed Frog. The owners gave Jack a free frog puppet for not watching TV for a week or a lifetime, some chocolate, and tea for Stacy and Anne. We picked out only four books, including another Rosemarie Wells, a truck book, and another Henry Thoreau book. A few minutes for Stacy at a clothes store.

At home, we read and played and tried to nap only to be awakened by a wrong phone number. Upstairs again, Jack constructed an ant barrier out of all of the placemats and stuff in the bookshelf. We'll see if it works.

We took the excavator and the dump truck and shovel down to the area below the dining room where we will plant salau. Jack really did some serious digging and could hardly be persuaded to leave the site for dinner. Just as our order arrived in the bar area of the Lodge, Jack announced he was pooping. Anne ate her dinner and was ready to hold Jack when he and Stacy returned. The french fries were very successful and Jack also ate a little bacon and very little chicken. He has decided that avocado is yucky.

Jack opened all of the cabinets in the kitchen, quite an interesting effect. When he discovered a bottle of bubbles, we headed down for the bath. It's been up and down and up and down ever since with Anne and Stacy forgetting things and Jack announcing that he wants to come to when we go to fetch it. But now he is asleep and hopefully dreaming of playing with his beloved machines. I'll post more photos on Ofoto.

Beach Day--and Mendocino Toy Store

Let's go to Mendocino, said Stacy. Yes, said Jack, Alex, and Anne! Backhoe, dump truck, Buddy Boss, shovels, hats, camera, snacks, we're off. Green hills and cows on the right, sea stacks on the left, and the lighthouse past Point Arena. Let's go to that beach--Jack Rabbit, four Jack Rabbits! But not this beach, said Alex, Anne, Stacy, and Jack. Navarro River Beach, yes!

Dig a tunnel, said Jack, Alex, Stacy, and Anne. Make a mountain with trees! Make another tunnel, Papa! Lie on the log, said Anne. Walk in the river, said Jack and Stacy. Lunch, said Alex and Anne. Nap, said Jack. Drive said Stacy.

Mendocino and our favorite cafe. Anne carries Jack and we have lunch with Jack asleep in her arms. Where's Mommie? Watch her out the window get Jack's stuff. Now on to the Toy Store, where Jack zeroes in on two trucks in three seconds. Pay for them, says Jack. Look at this cute tractor, says Nana. Pay for them says Jack. Now Jack just wants to go to Sea Ranch to play with the new excavator and dump truck. How far to Sea Ranch? A music shop, soap store, long drive, and grocery store away.

Jack ends the day by snuggling into Papa's lap for the first time to read a book. Later, he reads a book to Nana, "Danger, stay out of my job."

Sea Ranch Week Begins!

Rainy day--Jack and Stacy arrive around 4:00 and Stacy gets everything in from the car while Jack and Nana play with the new backhoe and dump truck. Jack has a big poop and Stacy bravely does a "Jenny" on Nana's bed. Popa arrives after 6:00 and he and Jack prepare a fire. Jack crumbles newspapers into balls and tells Popa he is doing a great job.

Jack deploys his construction equipment and workingmen around the dining area and can't be distracted from the jobs. We have a great dinner with Jack eating well--salad, some chicken, even a little toast. Jack starts to say he wants to go to "Jack's house." We don't know if he means Chenery or the little house we rented for Stacy and Jack at Christmas. He never forgets anything.

Jack has a bath that includes the new backhoe and dump truck and his dinosaur figures. Stacy and Nana admire his perfect little boy body. After the bath, Popa explains to him how the toilet works and reads the construction alphabet book. Jack is pretty wound up and wants to keep playing with the new toys. Everyone is pretty tired. We hope it stops raining! We're going to have a great week but we'll also miss home!

A Two-Year-Old's Stream of Consciousness

Alex has been asking me what Jack talks about as he plays in the living room. I have attempted to transcribe a typical session. Jack often repeats a sentence or phrase and I have not captured all of his spiel, but this does give a flavor. [My notes are in brackets.] Notice that he refers to himself sometimes in the third person and sometimes in the first person:

“I’m going to go over there. The dump truck was parking. Nana, do you have your ear plugs in? It’s going to be loud. Jack has his ear plugs in. I gonna work. I have a jack hammer right there. Jack can push the red button. See this, that’s my red button, can push it. Take out this [Papa’s chain]. I’m going to go way this job. Nother job on the bridge. Jack’s going to go away bridge on the ridge. Finish this job. Go to bridge on the ridge. Bring my work gloves with me. I’m going to take Boy. Taking my stuff over there. Taking the garbage truck over there. [Jacks takes his toys over on the other side of the ottoman.]

"All cleaned up. My pick axe. I am bringing everything to the bridge on the ridge. I am taking a book so the workingman can read it. Taking Snow Day away. Read books. [Jack takes several books over the ottoman, including Mother Goose and Snow Day. ] “You will miss me, Nana. I am going to leave. He has his juice. Going to go away. See you later. Nana, Goodbye. I in construction. He’s going to put on his work gloves, work gloves. Come right back. I’m going to come over here again. I’m going to come over here now.

“Read a book. Better listen to a story. Jack comes over the candlestick. Better listen. [He’s looking at the back of the Mother Goose book which has a picture of a little rabbit jumping over a candlestick.] Workingman’s reading a book. Reading a book. Reading a book. He has stories to read to you. [Jack brings some books over to me.] He’s going to read a book. [Now he has the book titled Animals, Birds, Bees, and Flowers. He turns the pages.] Volcano. Workingman reading a book. Listen to a workingman reading a book. Sit on the ground, Nana. Read a book.

[After I get off the sofa and down on the floor, Jack changes the scenario and starts to play with his little forklift.] "A tree-trimming forklift. A chain goes into it. I need a log to push it. I took the forks off so I can put the chain on. I changed it. I want a log. [He goes over the block box and pulls all the stuffed animals out of the way so he can find a block.] I can use this [a block] for log trimming. [Jacks asks me to put the chain around the block.] Jack puts the chain in the log-trimming forklift so it can put it into a ditch. Into a big ditch.

[Now Jack is running back and forth. He attaches the chain to the forklift.] "Attaches to the wheel so it can drive. It’s pulling it. The log-trimming forklift is pulling the log away. The log-trimming forklift is pulling the log away. The log-trimming truck is going away. [Jack put s the little Playmobil man into the forklift.] He’s in the log-trimming forklift. Right there next to the barn. Where’s the ladder? Near the garbage truck. They need a flatbed truck, carries the ladder. Takes it off and puts it on the roof." [Jack wants Buddy Boss to “snap” onto the ladder, but his feet don’t fit. He asks me to help. I suggest that he just pretend, but Jack indignately refused. “I not pretend.”]

Little Working Men

Whoo-hoo, the new laxative is working! Two watery poops today that seemed to happen without pain. Jack drank the doctored juice down around noon and the poops happened later. He is cool with removing the dirty diaper but not necessarily willing to lie down for the change. It would be really nice to persuade him to lie down on the changing table and hold still!

Jack had a really happy day today. We arrived early for my haircut and I gave Jack his surprise--two little Playmobile sets, each with a little working man and each a kind of forklift with accessories. These are a big hit, especially the forklift that raises the crate up high. Jack played happily with these while Marian cut my hair.Then he helped Marian sweep up the hair. We detoured on the way home to see the jackhammer on a backhoe up on Bosworth. Then we played with the new toys in the living room and in the dirt pile. We called Papa so Jack could thank him for putting the toys together.

Cute saying: Yesterday, when I asked to change the diaper, Jack said, "No, no, I'm still using it."

The Poop Log

Jack's been having some real serious troubles pooping this last week. All of us have now been privy to at least one of his painful sessions. Just awful and scary and really un-fun to the n'th degree for him.

Stacy found a new Pediatrician who she, Jack, and I visited today (Tuesday). Wow, what a great doctor. A really comfy office with a fish tank and lots of books. All of the nurses and aides were super-friendly and nice. They took their time with Jack and let us test everything first on Cutie (his bunny).

It was all very pleasant and non-rushed and really set Jack at ease. We told him what to expect and he was really super during the whole appointment.

The doctor basically said that it looks like he's eating well and drinking well and that the main thing would to be get a stool softener that could be added to his juice once a day. The goal would be to have consistent diarrhea for 1 week & then have us adjust the dosage until he was simply having comfortable, regular wet poops.

This treatment would last for six months. Time enough for him to forget about poops being painful.

She said it was actually good timing as he's not potty trained yet and that kids with this common issue who have treatment later on (4 or 5) end up having loads of trouble with accidents.

I felt that she was really reassuring and professional. She listened to everything Stacy and I said and had good, clear, reasonable advice.

Stacy was able to get the additive & we started his first treatment today!

Today he had 2 big hard poops. One very painful earlier in the day, and then another one that was less painful later in the day. The second poop seemed a bit softer to me than the poops I had been seeing.

Lets' stay posted.

Easter Brunch

A house full of parents and kids, a big dog, new toys, kids playing with his toys, chocolate, eggs with candy or pretzels inside, it was all exciting and at times too much for Jack. He is dressed in a light blue searsucker suit with a white shirt. It takes Nana forever to unwrap the chocolate chicken, which comes complete with two little chocolate eggs. Unlike Max, Jack isn't forced to hunt eggs before he gets a taste.

The new dump truck needs to be tried out at the playground, so Nana and Papa, Jack, and Ripley head for the park. Three minutes in the sand with the dump truck and Jack wants to return to the party. Good thing because the food is disappearing as people discover how good it is. Great job, Greg!

The children have a great time finding eggs and turning in one egg for a prize. Jack is easily perturbed if Mommie is out of sight, but he has a good time. By 2:00, everyone has left and Jack is snuggling down for a nap. Nana and Papa head for Menlo Park where Nana also takes a nap.

Jack and Ray, the Painter

The day began with our Glen Canyon walk with Ripley and Daddy. Back at the school, we noticed a smoldering log in the fire pit along with some empty bottles and trash. Greg found the receipt for a senior citizen discount on a bottle of vodka. Jack is very interested in fires and that became a theme for the day.

After a few bits of oatmeal, Jack and I walked to the Destination Bakery to order Hot Cross Buns for Sunday. Got a blueberry muffin for Jack and some decaf coffee for me and we settled into the seat by the window. Jack enjoyed watching some working men have their breakfast and then the street sweeper came by! We had such a great view of it sqirting, brushing, sucking up the dirt right in front of us. And then Rob and Taj showed up. We have met them before at the playground but this was a chance to play with Taj and talk to Rob. Rob works parttime teaching ESL at night and takes care of Taj several days a week. Taj is three months older than Jack and has similar linquistic agility. (He's even a little ahead of Jack.) The two boys delighted in playing with the Christmas lights hanging down the window and making funny noises at me. When it was time to leave, Taj gave Jack a big hug. Rob took my cell number and we'll get together on Wednesdays at the playground.

Next was the pet store to investigate all the different kinds of foods for guinea pigs, rabbits, rats, hook-billed birds, and wild birds. We picked out treats for Ripley and an ear of corn for the wild birds.

And then we met Ray the Painter. He was painting the red fire alarm poll at Diamond and Chenery with a very fast drying paint and a small roller and brush. We watched him put three coats on the red parts and then do the blue police telephone box, with white letters for "Police Telephone." Ray told us he can paint 20 alarm posts a day, versus two a day for his predecessor. Ray loves the city and is proud of his work. Recently an older woman watched him paint the fire alarm and then remembered it when her house burned a few days later. She told Ray he saved her husband's life. When I told Jack we could buy him a small roller at the hardware store, Ray said, "No, I've got one you can have." Ray gave us a small roller, a small paint brush, and a grid to put in a bucket to get the excess paint off the roller. The roller is Ray's own personal tool.

Jack "painted" the kitchen doors one coat as soon as we got home. I told him he could have his lunch break while that coat dried. He then ate part of my chicken sandwich, some yogurt and granola, and some fruit. About 2:30, Jenny and Emma arrived for our play date. Shortly afterwards, we heard some trucks pull up and discovered that PG&E was there to make another pass at the hook-up work for the new house. Jack insisted that we go out to watch so we ended up across the street watching the jackhammering, shoveling, pick-axing, and throwing of debris into a dump truck. Emma watched for a while, but then wandered off to hug the tree in front of Jack's house. Jack and I watched the five working men fill in the hole with concrete until they put saw horses over the new cement and drove off in their three trucks. What a day!

Jack referred to fire several times in the afternoon. While we were talking to Ray, I pointed out the hole in the roof of the house that burned on Diamond Street. When we got home, Jack talked about the hole in the roof and later made up a story for Jenny about how sad it was that Jack's house had a hole in the roof. Jack had me read the Clifford the Firedog book in which the giant Clifford makes a hole in the roof of the burning building. We talked about the tree hitting the Sea Ranch house and making a hole. I assured Jack that we could get contractors to fix any hole and that a contractor had already fixed the hole at Sea Ranch. I suspect Jack will want to see the site of the Sea Ranch hole.

Emma and Jack returned to paint in the kitchen, first with water and the new roller and brush and then on paper with the last of the Kids Crayola paints. When Emma left, she grabbed Jack, wrestled him down on the floor to give him a hug and a kiss. Now Jack knows what it feels like--he's been doing that to Emma for months.

Our day ended with a good poop and me persuading Jack to let me change his diaper. I told him we really had to do it and it would be nice not to have a big struggle about it. I told him I would put the diaper on my head and then on his foot and then on his head and then on his bottom. He let me lay him on the changing table and remove the dirty diaper and clean him up. Then I started to put the new diaper on him, but he reminded me that I was to put it on my head. So I took it off of him, put it on my head, then on his toe, his head, and his bottom.

Zoo March

Jack and I went alone to the zoo on March 29. As we set out, Jack says "The giraffes will be so happy." We always visit them first; today one spread his front legs and bent down to nibble the grass. At the farm, we made friends with Irene, who cares for the large animals. She was concerned about an elderly pony who wasn't eating. She added some water to the feed and the pony ate it. Irene explained that she will mix some dirt and hay with the horse poop and compost it for use in the rose garden in Golden Gate Park. Jack asked Irene if the bull had ever gotten his horns stuck in a tree trunk (as happens in one of his books). Irene said no, but it could happen. We met Marjorie, the Llama and learned she eats something similar to Jack's oatmeal. Marjorie likes the smell of babies and she came right up to sniff Jack, who told her "Go eat your oatmeal." By this time Jack had already swept up the wood shavings in the barn and hauled them outside in the little wheelbarrow. Irene invited us to visit Marjorie any time we come.

As we walked across the zoo, we saw a backhoe and then a fork lift moving large crates up to the roof of the former elephant house with an arm that extended. The grizzly bears new home is almost finished and they have it blocked so we couldn't see any of the construction.

Jack really wanted to go to the cafe even though I had brought our lunch. He'd seen someone with a bag of pretzels. A small bottle of apple juice and a small bag of pretzels was $5.00 even with the member's discount. Next time I'll buy them ahead at a grocery store. After lunch we rode the train and then walked back past the penquins. There's a little statue of an elephant that Jack really loves. He tried to give it a pretzel saying, "Have a pretzel, elephant, we bought them at the cafe." He still had the energy to run off in the opposite direction from the exit but once we reached the car, he fell asleep almost as soon as we drove off.

Jack the Workingman

Jack really thinks of himself as a workingman. Sometimes he is a carpenter, sometimes a painter, and of course, sometimes a demolition specialist who works a jackhammer. Greg calls "Dispatch" to learn where Jack's next job is and to report our location on route from one job to the next. Note the tool belt. Tuesday morning Papa was there with Nana and we all stayed indoors because of the rain.

Today Jack was a painter and window washer so the kitchen door's lower eight window panes are now sparkling clean. He took his jackhammer to the playground where it works really well in the sand. The other kids were all hoping for a turn, but Jack offered up his big shovel and bucket to share instead of the jackhammer. It was funny to watch him edge over to the end of the sand area to avoid the other kids. In the afternoon, we visited the pet store to buy treats for Ripley, the library, and the hardware store. Coming home, we spent hours looking at the snails on the steps and the stepped-on snail on the sidewalk.

We also watched the PG&E men using an instument to locate the gas main. Tomorrow is the big day when they will jackhammer up the sidewalk and street next door. Jack and I plan to be there with earmuffs and his jackhammer.

Jack and Emma Paint the Zoo

Friday, March 16, Jack and I met Jenny and Emma at the zoo. On the way, Jack saw a man trimming a hedge and raking the trimmings into a trash can. "He's doing a great job" was Jack's verdict.

At the zoo, we headed for the Farm where Jack immediately located a rake and dustpan and set to work. It was a gorgeous cool, bright day so there were soon other kids to contend with. Another little boy wanted to use the wheelbarrow, so we had to negotiate a sharing arrangement. No kid ever perseveres the way Jack does, however, so the other kid soon wandered off. Emma loves the stall in the barn where you can draw. Jack joined her there and raked the whole room. They have a TV in there that shows a video of horses, but neither of our kids pay it any mind.

Jack had brought two little strips of watercolors and set to work with Emma painting the fence. A zookeeper was incredulous and asked us to put the paints away because she was afraid the goats would eat the paint. Jack had no problem with taking the paints outside the Farm area where he and Emma painted the turtle statue and the nearby fence.

We rode the train, played in the dirt, and had lunch at Leaping Lemur Cafe before heading for home. The photo is Jack with his friends, Big Bear, Tom Cotter the giraffe, Tom Cotter the polar bear, his police puppy, the Gama-go Bird, the horse, and his monkey head.

Jack and Joker

Today was quite a day and I'm too tired to relate it in detail. After morning at the playground and at the rec center class, Jack worked in his dirt pile, hoeing energetically and then instructing me where to sprinkle the "seeds" before he raked dirt over them.

A Gama-go spouse needed a blond toddler for Gap advertising, so I drove Jack down around 3:00 for a photo session. Jack fell asleep in the car and didn't warm up to changing clothes and posing, so we returned home around 4:30. Guess who was there on our steps to greet us--Joker.

Jack was so excited. Joker ducked under a construction sign with Jack dancing after him explaining "I told John McGill about you, Joker. I told him to watch out for you. I told him you are afraid of riding the Cushman." "Joker, come see the stroller." "Joker, there's a shed here. I have a shed upstairs, Joker." When Jack and I patted Joker, he meowed and Jack was delighted. Joker was content to roll on his back and present his tummy for patting.

We had a real battle of wills late in the day when Jack refused to let me change his dirty diaper. Trying desperately to think what an unconditional parent would do, I reasoned with him every which way. Finally got the diaper off only to progress to a battle about cleaning up and then about the new diaper. Jack took the new diaper and rolled it up into a tight roll. Then he grabbed my glasses so that I had to gently extract them from his hands and put them out of reach. I considered just letting him go without a diaper, but that seemed impractical because I had not been able to take his pants off. Eventually I got another diaper on him and when I started to put him down on the floor, he started to cry, so we hugged and kissed each other and then went in to deposit the poop in the toilet, which gave him great satisfaction. (No flushing until he left the bathroom.) He gave me a hard time each diaper change today, but this last one was really extreme. Is this all about the difficulty of pooping? Does he not want to let the poop go even after it's out? Does he do this with everyone or is Nana special?

Jack and the machines

Tuesday's high light was sitting in the Cushman and pretending to drive. He questioned John McGill about each lever. John explained each one as he would have to an adult. Jack also got to go inside the shed and name the chain saw, the weed-wacker, the lawnmower, and the chain pruner. We watched as John McGill put down the ramp and drove the Cushman backwards into the shed.

Thursday was a stressful but ultimately happy day. After the flood in the bathroom and Jack's clean-up of the kitchen floor, we took Jack to a new doctor. Jack got to look into each examination room before the doctor was ready for us. It's a nice cheerful office with only the doctor and his receptionist--no crowds of parents and kids. But Jack became unhappy when we went into the doctor's office. He probably remembered the shot at the last doctor visit. This doctor has good ideas for helping Jack. I took Jack off so the parents could consult with the doctor without a crying kid. We comforted ourselves with a visit to the hardware store and then headed for the playground.

Jack did a lot of digging and playing with his little plastic bulldozer. The playground was crowded and we interacted with several other kids. Jacob, the little five-year-old who gets dumped there by his father, Joshua, another similar kid, Nicholas the bare-foot three-year-old, and Kayter, an almost two-year-old boy. Jack readily shared his shovel and bucket with these kids. In a real star moment, Jack wanted his bulldozer back from Kayter. He asked nicely for it and kept asking when Kayter did not return it. Finally, Kayter handed it back! Kayter is a good climber and Jack tried to imitate him when he climbed up the side of the little house instead of the ladder at the back. Three little boys shared the slide with only a little intervention to be sure they did not land on each other.

We returned home and tried lunch but Jack didn't eat much: a little avocado, some pecans, some banana, some pineapple, a dab of yogurt. He refused to try some stew or my sandwich. He did drink about two glasses of milk on my watch and two glasses of juice. In the pm, he asked for and ate a whole orange (tangerine?) and some apricots.

It became obvious that he was not going to take a nap, so we set out to find machines. I drove to Bosworth and Rousseau and parked the car. We checked out a large high-rise forklift, a backhoe, and dump trucks. A large crane was using a grapple to pulverize debris and lift it into a huge dump truck. A large truck was shooting cement into the foundation, but we couldn't see that from our vantage. We observed the reebar and talked to a working man who had been working on the concrete. Jack love all this and asked to go see the backhoe again.

Around 3:00, Jack had a pretty easy, big poop. He asked me to go to the kitchen which I did. We changed the diaper with no fuss and continued play. Around 4:00 we went up to the dirt pile with the wheelbarrow and his tools and the yellow bulldozer. He worked hard digging, especially with his hoe.

Jack really plays well in his living room. He invents all sorts of scenarios, most of which require me to move from one spot to the other. I can read my newspaper a little bit, but he wants me to participate pretty regularly in the logging exercise or putting out a fire or building a shed or highway. When he is annoyed with me, he tells me to "stay out of my job, Nana, stay out of my job."

Books: The Happy Dog book is popular as are all the machine books, including the new one Ericka gave him. He also pulled out Best Word Book Ever and the Best ABC Book and the "food book," which is the alphabet book that uses vegetables and fruits. Jack lives his books--the food book prompted him to ask for apricots from the jar in the kitchen cabinet (he knows where everything is).

Concern: Giving Jack the metal chain was probably not my best idea. He has begun to throw it up in the air. I tried to teach him to just drop it, but there's still some danger he could hurt himself with it. I also taught him to put it on a newspaper if he wants to stand on it on the wood floor. He does need a chain for his logging work. Do we have a plastic chain that could work?

Jack has a sick week

Jack had his first really bad cold this week and he made the most of it. Stacy stayed home with him on Friday, February 9 and he had both of us to boss around. Monday, Nana arrived but Jack was so needy that Stacy stayed home again and Nana went home. Tuesday we had to skip storytime but he felt well enough to dig in the dirt pile. Wednesday we had a good time at the playground with Emma. Jack can now climb the ladder up to the roof of the plastic house and slide down its slide. He laughs when he lands on his bottom in the sand. We met Emily, a redhead who is two and a half. She allowed Jack to play with her wooden duck toy and Jack let her use his big round-tipped shovel. After the nap, we went down to see the fire damage at the house next to Bird and Beckett. Jack was awed by the burned clothes, especially the burned hat. Thursday was a Daddy day and Friday Daddy took us to breakfast at Toast before Jack's doctor's appointment for his two-year checkup. The appointment went well until Jack got a shot and then he was pretty upset. By the time we got home, Jack was his usual sunny self and we had a great afternoon. First a little digging in the dirt box, a nap, and then a lot of fun play and invention in the living room.

Jack recreates what he witnesses. This week he's been dragging a piece of chalk on a chain with his little bulldozer and putting out fires with the wire from Mommie's computer. He also is very inventive when we sing Old MacDonald. That farm has a combine harvester, a backhoe, Bowling Ball Beach with Quinny and Axel, and all the animals he remembers seeing at Sea Ranch (deer, rabbits, turkeys, a woodpecker). He remembers an event and populates the farm with the things he values. It's touching to realize he is thinking about Quinny and Papa whom he really cares about even though he doesn't see them so often. He also remembers books that we took back to the library weeks ago. Next week, I need to find the Max book that has a bulldozer in it. Machines have definitely replaced brooms now although brooms are still loved when they show up in a book.

The doctor said, "no more juice; he's got to eat more." So we'll have a struggle for a while. Jack has figured out that he can suck the juice out of an apple slice and spit out the roughage. He did, however, drink 6 ounces of chocolate milk for lunch, just chugged it down.

Jack's valentines

Jack enjoyed giving Emma the valentine he and Stacey made for her. While we were at the playground, we heard a chain saw and went out to find that John McGill had cut down a little tree and was preparing to tow it back to his pile halfway up the path to the school. We watched John drive away in the Cushman, pulling the tree behind. Jack wanted to follow to see the pile. On the way, Jenny encouraged Jack to hold hands with Emma who was lagging behind. This was the cute result.

Yesterday, Jack called John McGill on his toy cellphone to ask about the Cushman. He always calls him "John McGill."

We had a happy day. Jack met another little two-year-old boy named Todd. Unfortunately, Jack was not willing to share his bulldozer with Todd. I hope we see Todd again because it would be good for Jack to see a male friend of about the same age.

Jack and the construction crew

PG&E is still working in the intersection of Chenery and Diamond and today they have a Double Drum roller sitting there while the whole crew eats lunch on the sidewalk in front of Tyger's. After inspecting the roller, we cross the street and greet the crew. Jack says something about seeing the generator and then announces "I have wheelbarrow and round-tip shovel." "I have jackhammer." The men ask Jack if he wants to join them. They tell him it is important to eat lunch. Then they point out that their jackhammer is in the truck nearby. So we inspect the truck bed, noting the two jackhammers, the straight-edge shovel, the push broom, and the jackhammer bits (that is, Jack sings out the names of these tools). One of the men asks if Jack is four and is pretty surprised to learn his age.

All of this followed our trip to the library where Sharon read several books and showed three movies. Ask Jack about the movie with the tricycle and the dump truck. We gave Sharon her present and I think she was really touched. At the hardware store, Susan and Hal gave Jack and Emma valentine balloons. I think they really do enjoy having us visit. They gave Jenny and me chocolates (Alex ate two of mine).

Jack really does like to run the show. At the library, another little boy was sitting where we generally sit when we pick out books. I realized that Jack was telling him to move because that's where Nana sits! Fortunately, I don't think the other little boy understood him. I told Jack we couldn't move the other kid and we could sit on the other side of the aisle. Jack has also started grabbing things away from other kids, so we need to be alert to that. Jack also asked Jenny to read a book to him and settled himself into her lap. I read to Emma and everyone was happy. Very cute to hear him talk to Jenny. When Jenny and Emma came into the library, Jack ran up to tell them about the card he has for them. (Need to take it to the park tomorrow.)

Jack's language is astonishing. Notice that he uses the future tense correctly and that he says "catched it" and adds 'ed" to other irregular verbs to make the past tense. That shows that he understands the grammer of the past tense--he has never heard any of us say "catched" but is correctly following the usual pattern. He also remembers the names of things that I have forgotten. For example, I have forgotten what you call the round wheels that a bulldozer track goes around. Jack remembers what they are. Jenny says she has learned the names of the various machines from Jack; before she called them all tractors.

In the afternoon, Jack ate two of my cooked baby carrots and a bit of my peanut butter sandwich, but none of the brown rice and vegetables that I had made him (wouldn't even taste it). Maybe I need to put things into my lunch box or maybe buy a lunch box for him. (Or maybe toddlers are just always going to be difficult about eating.) No poop today. He slept about two hours or so. He was excited that Papa fixed his rake and he loved the new puppy from Ken and Christina. When he saw the little card that Christina sent (Why God Made Little Boys), he announced that he was going to hang it with his cherry picker and he ran in to hang it from the fireplace, standing in that little wagon. (I later moved it higher because it wouldn't stay up where Jack put it.)

Maybe Jack is going to solve the global warming crisis.