Little Man (written by Daddy)
Note about title: I know it's probably a little early for him to understand the concept of gender differences, but I also thought it was a little early for him to count to 10 and say the alphabet. He's absorbing everything right now, so want to make sure he gets some exposure to traditional masculine things. He's already around women probably 90% of the time.
We've been having some trouble with one of the bathroom toilets recently, so Corbin and I went to Lowes yesterday to find some answers. To avoid wandering the entire store with someone with a 12 inch stride, I asked directions of the first employee we came across. "Go down to aisle 11, then all the way to the back of the store." Corbin was pretty content to stay with me, pointing out the 10 gallon buckets and American flags on our way to aisle 11. Aisle 11 just happened to be home to all the drawer pulls, knobs, and handles, along with interesting hinges and bolts, displayed right where a 20 month old could pull on everything. Corbin was in heaven. After we slowly made our way back to plumbing, Corbin played with potty seats, faucets, and plungers while I figured out the parts I needed. He had a lot of fun and was very well behaved. He even held my hand all the way across the parking lot without trying to pull away. All in all a good trip to a guy's kind of store.
Today Angelique had both morning and evening meetings at work, so it was a Daddy Day (and some daycare too.) We went to Barnes and Nobles to play with the train set. Corbin loves trains, though we're not exactly sure where he's gotten much exposure to them. Unfortunately (in Corbin's opinion) other toddlers like trains too. There was one particular Asian boy, about 6 or 8 months older than Corbin, that was particularly scary. He kept running up to the train set, which Corbin thought was scream/cry-worthy. Maybe it was his spikey hair. The only English word I understood from him was "baby," and I repeatedly had to reassure his mother that he wasn't really tormenting Corbin. No, my son just freaks out at random things sometimes. Yes, really.
I was giving Corbin the freedom to explore the children's area on his own. He'd occasionally pull me over to a new corner, point out some stuffed animals, or bring me a book to flip through with him. One was a Thomas the Train book with buttons that played different tunes (I didn't recognize any of them). He also liked the elementary age science books, or at least the pictures on the covers. "That's my boy," I thought, "he likes trains, animals, science books, and hardware stores! He can already throw a ball better than some kids twice his age. Yeah!" Deciding to pull an ironic joke, Corbin next brought over a big, pink, Disney princesses book with lots of music buttons. Cinderella, Belle, Ariel, Aaargh! Thankfully, the batteries were dead and he quickly lost interest. After a snack and some climbing on chairs, it was off to daycare for him so I could work on that toilet.
When I picked him up this afternoon he immediately said "Daddy!" and ran to hug my legs, which is a pretty good feeling. We came home and played a little while with cars, trains, and airplanes. Corbin also likes to climb up on Daddy's chair at the table. I think it makes him feel like a big boy, even though his chin barely comes above the table top. Very cute. When eating, though, I still insist on the high chair. He loved his meatballs at lunch and pork at dinner, so maybe we have a manly carnivore that just happens to like pink. (Three out of four 1st grade boys in my class Sunday said their favorite color is pink. Weird.)
During bathtime tonight Corbin started crying and saying "bap-per" (his word for diaper) so I asked if he wanted to sit on the potty. He said yes, so I got him out of the tub and put him on the little training potty. He started screaming and crying some more, so after trying to console him I just put him back in the tub. Much to my surprise, he had actually pee-peed in the potty. Wow! I was very impressed and told him as much. You don't have to cry because that's where you're supposed to pee-pee. After some ducks and bubbles we went back to Corbin's room. He immediately started saying "bap-per" again (which should have been a clue) but I just told him I was going to get one as I sat him down in his crib. He screamed and I turned around to see a new wet spot between his legs. That he just had to step on. And again. So I got Corbin in his pajamas and gave him some milk before putting new sheets on his mattress.
Going down for bed was relatively easy tonight, but he did cry out twice within the first half hour. He asked for Mommy both times.
We've been having some trouble with one of the bathroom toilets recently, so Corbin and I went to Lowes yesterday to find some answers. To avoid wandering the entire store with someone with a 12 inch stride, I asked directions of the first employee we came across. "Go down to aisle 11, then all the way to the back of the store." Corbin was pretty content to stay with me, pointing out the 10 gallon buckets and American flags on our way to aisle 11. Aisle 11 just happened to be home to all the drawer pulls, knobs, and handles, along with interesting hinges and bolts, displayed right where a 20 month old could pull on everything. Corbin was in heaven. After we slowly made our way back to plumbing, Corbin played with potty seats, faucets, and plungers while I figured out the parts I needed. He had a lot of fun and was very well behaved. He even held my hand all the way across the parking lot without trying to pull away. All in all a good trip to a guy's kind of store.
Today Angelique had both morning and evening meetings at work, so it was a Daddy Day (and some daycare too.) We went to Barnes and Nobles to play with the train set. Corbin loves trains, though we're not exactly sure where he's gotten much exposure to them. Unfortunately (in Corbin's opinion) other toddlers like trains too. There was one particular Asian boy, about 6 or 8 months older than Corbin, that was particularly scary. He kept running up to the train set, which Corbin thought was scream/cry-worthy. Maybe it was his spikey hair. The only English word I understood from him was "baby," and I repeatedly had to reassure his mother that he wasn't really tormenting Corbin. No, my son just freaks out at random things sometimes. Yes, really.
I was giving Corbin the freedom to explore the children's area on his own. He'd occasionally pull me over to a new corner, point out some stuffed animals, or bring me a book to flip through with him. One was a Thomas the Train book with buttons that played different tunes (I didn't recognize any of them). He also liked the elementary age science books, or at least the pictures on the covers. "That's my boy," I thought, "he likes trains, animals, science books, and hardware stores! He can already throw a ball better than some kids twice his age. Yeah!" Deciding to pull an ironic joke, Corbin next brought over a big, pink, Disney princesses book with lots of music buttons. Cinderella, Belle, Ariel, Aaargh! Thankfully, the batteries were dead and he quickly lost interest. After a snack and some climbing on chairs, it was off to daycare for him so I could work on that toilet.
When I picked him up this afternoon he immediately said "Daddy!" and ran to hug my legs, which is a pretty good feeling. We came home and played a little while with cars, trains, and airplanes. Corbin also likes to climb up on Daddy's chair at the table. I think it makes him feel like a big boy, even though his chin barely comes above the table top. Very cute. When eating, though, I still insist on the high chair. He loved his meatballs at lunch and pork at dinner, so maybe we have a manly carnivore that just happens to like pink. (Three out of four 1st grade boys in my class Sunday said their favorite color is pink. Weird.)
During bathtime tonight Corbin started crying and saying "bap-per" (his word for diaper) so I asked if he wanted to sit on the potty. He said yes, so I got him out of the tub and put him on the little training potty. He started screaming and crying some more, so after trying to console him I just put him back in the tub. Much to my surprise, he had actually pee-peed in the potty. Wow! I was very impressed and told him as much. You don't have to cry because that's where you're supposed to pee-pee. After some ducks and bubbles we went back to Corbin's room. He immediately started saying "bap-per" again (which should have been a clue) but I just told him I was going to get one as I sat him down in his crib. He screamed and I turned around to see a new wet spot between his legs. That he just had to step on. And again. So I got Corbin in his pajamas and gave him some milk before putting new sheets on his mattress.
Going down for bed was relatively easy tonight, but he did cry out twice within the first half hour. He asked for Mommy both times.
posted by Daddy at
7/10/2006 07:23:00 PM
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