March 19, 2007 by Barbara.

• Cowgirl Kate and Cocoa by Erica Silverman, an early chapter books about a cowgirl and her cowhorse that Reid sits quietly through and seems engaged by;
• My First Valentine’s Day Book (no author), it was my first time through and I enjoyed the tiny valentine’s card on each page and may use them for inspiration in future as they are full of puns;
• and two from Robert Munsch:
• I Have to Go! and
• David’s Father, who is a giant but David is still nice and so is his father.

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March 19, 2007 by Barbara.

I thought about calling this “what in the world was I thinking?”

On Saturday, I took Reid with me to pick up some clothes that Ken needed for his trip. In my mind, it was going to be a lark - Reid and I giggling and having fun while choosing shirts, pants, socks, etc. Okay, now you have all wondered what I was drinking when I imagined this scenario but I must tell you, when Reid was little (read unable to move about on her own), we shopped all of the time and had fun doing so. Now, however, she is two and definitely able to walk, run, hop, and so on. Not once in the 13 days, no 13 hours, okay, not-quite-two-hours that we were shopping was she “bad”. Bored, yes. In possession of far too much energy, most definitely. Never bad. Reid had a grand time trying on hats, even a straw safari hat a la Toopy’s butterfly chasing hat, and also bras. (I don’t know why but she can’t walk by them without stopping to touch and even try them on.) She amused herself very well for quite a while in the change room, looking in the mirror and climbing on the chair, while I hunted for the right size pants and the right pattern pants but then a man selfishly wanted to try on some clothes and so that ended. By the end I felt like one of those people who wins a contest where they win whatever they can get out of the store in a set amount of time. I decided it would be better to grab lots of shirts for Ken to choose from and return the rejects, without Reid of course, than try to keep her with me while narrowing the choices. I think Ken thought I was a but nutty with some my shirt selections but he doesn’t take Reid with him to shop - he already doesn’t enjoy shopping ;+) All in all, Ken has fewer, “what was I thinking?” moments that I do.

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March 19, 2007 by Barbara.

Reid’s new favourite song is “Five Little Monkeys Jumping on the Bed.” She can sing all of the words, or at least the words that make up her normal grammatical repertoire - the prepositions and articles are mostly  missing - but she certainly has the tune and the message down. One of the little girls at Kindermusik requested it a few times during the “favourites” portion of the class and it has caught on for Reid. It’s such a great song when you think about it, there is:
* counting on your fingers;
* jumping to be done with the singing;
* calling from the best telephone of all, your thumb and pinky extended;
* finger wagging - that know-it-all doctor who has probably never spent time caring for five little monkeys;
* danger - heads are being bumped; and
* rule-breaking - at the heart of it, you can live vicariously through those naughty monkeys.

Of course, Reid has been, on occasion, known to jump on the bed to better understand the motivations of the monkeys she is singing about. I think that is called “method acting” - many of Hollywood’s greatest follow this technique. I *think* Reid had tried jumping on the bed before she learned the song but since the jumping is now accompanied by singing, I know for sure she is doing it.

Reid’s fingers cause her some grief during the song, though. We start by holding up the appropriate number of fingers. Five is easy and so is four, though Reid always conducts a visual inspection to be sure the right number of digits are raised. Three, though, starts the challenge. I hold out my thumb and the two closest fingers in accordance with American Sign Language. Reid stares at me a bit but instead forms a sort of “ok” sign as she stares intently at her fingers, willing them to comply. Two requires a great deal of concentration and involves Reid’s pinky sticking out at an unusual angle and her ring finger standing up in a tentative way. For one, Reid triumphantly holds out her pinky or  her index finger.

As you can imagine, Reid waggles her finger enthusiastically while giving voice to the doctor’s words.  There is no hesitation to her finger selection for that part.

Have a great day and remember, no jumping on the bed.

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