The Giddle Song

Yesterday we were singing songs and Patrick told me he wanted to sing "The Giddle Song." I figured it was something he'd learned at school so I asked him to sing it to me. Then I heard something familiar...he was singing "The Good Old Song," which is what UVA sings after a touchdown. He wanted to hear it again and again, and listened to me with fist ready to pump in the air for cheering at the end. It really hit me how much these little things that Donald and I take for granted impact him, and how much he is picking up cues from us. He absolutely loves going to football games, even though he has only been to one other that I imagine he can remember. He loves to dance to the band, see Cav Man, get m&ms from Gran T, and go in the moon bounce at the fan fest. He's quickly seized on the football jersey as his top of choice. He wore it to school two days in a row last week and apparently told everyone he was going to a football game. He spotted some players on ESPN and told me "the big boys are wearing football jerseys just like me." And he loves giving Donald fashion advice, which consists of going to Donald's closet, looking at all of his orange shirts (which hang together) and insisting that he wear his football jerseys too. Every day.

Say Cheese, You Ham

After two years, and a very frustrating period of studiously avoiding looking at my camera, Patrick is finally picking up on saying "cheese." He even got a little carried away with his posing as I was testing my awesome new flash attachment. The "reclining" shot reminds Donald of the George Costanza underwear shoot on Seinfeld.

Birthday With Chuck

Who would have thought that after three and half decades I would be spending my birthday at Chuck E. Cheese? The minute we pulled into the parking lot Patrick spotted the unmistakable mouse (rat?) on the sign and could barely contain himself—"There's Chuck!, There's Chuck!" We played a bunch of games, had a pizza party, slapped high-fives with the mouse himself, and won "prizes:" three lollipops and a miniature basketball toy. Hanging out with your favorite people is a pretty perfect way to spend a birthday, no matter where you are.

Pumpkin Picking

Cox Farms—the Disneyland of pumpkin patches—was a thrill on Saturday morning. My consolation for not being able to slide on all of the giant slides with Patrick and Donald was getting to watch both of their smiles on the way down. Patrick’s favorite slide was a giant dinosaur-themed slide; he bounded up the hill to the top at least a dozen times and squealed with delight as he rode down on Daddy’s lap. We did a hayride (my first too!) and loved watching Patrick marvel at the painted wooden cutouts (Big Bird! A dinosaur! Elephants!) and high-schoolers in costumes who tumbled out of a UFO and other silly/scary scenes along the route. We saw baby pigs, goats, chickens, and sheep, and Patrick grooved to “Burnin’ Love” from one of the many live bands that play throughout the day. Picking actual pumpkins didn’t come until the very end—but we found two very nice ones to take home.

Aquarium and ESPN Zone

"I'm going to see two turtles" Patrick told us when we announced our destination on Sunday morning, and the Baltimore Aquarium did not disappoint. Patrick loved looking at all the animals and was only mildly annoyed that there weren't any lions present. He ran about four stories down the ramp of the Atlantic reef exhibit and was as amazed as we were by the giant sea turtle and the "mans" feeding the rays and turtles in the tank at the bottom. The giant sports balls outside the ESPN Zone held equal fascination and Patrick was desperate to get his hands on them. We played the basketball toss game, football game, and even golf. Donald took some cute photos of Patrick on Sunday afternoon eating apple slices, one of his new favorite snacks (skin removed--how do all kids prefer this?). He is also keen on "tummus" these days, which he will use as a dip but prefers to just eat with a spoon.

The Toolbelt Twins

We had a great time last weekend hosting an impromptu playgroup, spending Friday evening at Chuck E. Cheese, going to the UVA game, strolling around the Alexandria Arts Festival, and having a picnic in the park, but on Sunday afternoon it was time to get to work fixing the rotten railings on the front porch. When Patrick woke up from nap and heard all the hammering outside he told me “I gonna help Daddy.” So we gathered his tools and I helped him tie his tool belt on. He eyed Daddy's belt and his and proudly announced “I’m a big boy now.”

First Day of School

Transition has never been easy for our little man, and we shouldn’t have expected anything different for the first day at Abracadabra. Patrick proudly posed with his backpack on the front porch, but all 3 Thomases ended up in varying degrees of tears not long after. His report card says it all: He didn’t eat his lunch (they served dreaded carrots—how could they?), and the activity he enjoyed most was “holding my blanket and looking at books.” The next day was a bit better. They served chicken nuggets for lunch, Patrick played with a new friend, and told me “I like my school” as we were leaving. When we got home he saw a squirrel in the yard and said “You think that squirrel go to school Mommy?” I said yes, and Patrick said to the squirrel, “your mommy come get you.”