As previously mentioned, I recently signed Peter up for a "music and movement" class and, as previously mentioned, he has been a holy terror in this class. He runs the circumference of the room seeking out weaknesses, he grabs, hugs, kisses, and hits the one smaller boy in the class (most often all of the above in rapid succession), he throws the musical instruments, generally wreaks havoc and does everything except participate in the circle of "jamming" mothers and children.
So, I figured, he needs to expend a little energy before coming to class. I experimented with several pre-class outings: half an hour at the park immediately preceding class (no discernible effect), an hour at the park before lunch, nap, and then class (again, no discernible effect), and finally today, I pulled out the big guns. First, I let him climb by himself all the way down all three sets of stairs and walk BY HIMSELF down to the mailbox on the corner, where we mailed a letter (always thrilling). We then took a BUS ride (Peter's first since he became aware of the exciting magic that he perceives our MUNI system to possess). He was so overwhelmed that he merely sat, paralyzed by the wonders around him, for the entire 30-minute ride. Then we visited the animals at the Randall museum (chickens, rabbits, guinea pigs, frogs, ducks, various birds and squirrels, and a hive of bees). Then we climbed and played outside for a good half an hour. Finally we took another bus back home (this time he shook himself out of his stupor about 5 minutes from the end of the ride and started his usual climbing and standing versus sitting antics). After that, he slept for a good two and a half hours.
Aha! I thought. He'll be worn out for the music class! And he was. He was so worn out, that he refused to participate at all. He clung to me, sat on my lap, and started crying at the drop of a hat. Poor thing was completely exhausted. Next week's experiment: a doctor's appointment in the morning before class. We'll see how that goes...
Besides experimenting on my child, I also have been known to experiment with food. Tonight I substituted a nice piece of Virginia ham for the bacon in a simple pasta recipe (fusilli, corn, zucchini, pesto and bacon/ham). The ham was part of my birthday present from my dear uncle. I actually started off the meal with another part of my birthday present, some real Virginia peanuts! And if you've never had them, you don't know what you are missing. But I digress. The pasta was delicious! And I got to use more of my stockpiled home-made pesto. The first time I made pesto from scratch, I did not own a food processor. I chopped everything by hand, and swore I would never EVER make pesto again. Until I got the food processor, which makes many things so very easy! Like pesto. And salsa. I just discovered how easy salsa is with a food processor. Trial and error. The only thing Pawlene has been experimenting with lately is the most comfortable spot on the bed as the nights get colder.
Martin and I, on the other hand, are still experimenting together with the location of our dream house. The pendulum has now swung BACK to Nevada City, for those of you who have been following this ever more tedious game of table tennis. We found a great house in Petaluma (Penngrove actually) two weekends ago, and even drove back to see it the following Tuesday, but when it came right down to making an offer, we decided to follow our hearts, no matter how much we feel like we SHOULD be following our heads. We know it is ridiculous to move two and a half hours away from Martin's job, but our hearts are in Nevada City. The head vs. heart argument is sure to heat up this month as we travel back up to Nevada City to look at more houses while keeping one eye on the Sonoma County housing market. I think we just need to buy something somewhere and try it out. If it doesn't work, we cut our losses in a few years and try something else. Trial and error. If we don't try it, we'll never know.
In the mean time, it's OCTOBER! Now I am normally not a fan of Halloween, but this is the last year I get to dress Peter up as whatever I want without him having any say in the matter.
Last year he was a pilot:
I think he looks better with the real accessory:
Ok, ok, enough gratuitous old baby pictures. Keeping this big guy in mind (thanks Lynne for the photo!), what should Peter be for Halloween? Anyone have a teeny little cowboy hat and boots I could borrow? Ok, never mind, don't let the photo influence your choice. Polls are now open.
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